Mana Tapu

Chapter 12

The room was lit by the gentle filter of light through the open window. The rich tones in wooden cabinets soaked up the rays like parched earth after the rain. There were three empty syringes interspersed with paper in a receptacle. A fourth lay shattered on the floor. Bits of obliterated glass acted as dew drops on the floor. Their pearly shapes refracting rainbows onto a shiny, polished boot. Three brisk knocks echoed into the room. They returned to the door without an answer. A minute passed before they bounced through the space — only to return with silence.

"Captain, I am requesting permission to enter." Commander Jackson barked through the wood. He followed through with another series of knocks. After thirty seconds a key slid into place and clicked. Commander Jackson slid through the open door and shut it before turning to look at his friend. His moments were momentarily halted as he took in the scene.

He didn't notice the rainbows or the sun soaked wood. The commander's eyes were drawn towards the desk. Captain James Arlo's head was bleeding onto his desk via a small gash in his eyebrow. His hands clenched and unclenched in violent, uncontrolled patterns. Beneath the sweat soaked suit his chest convulsed. Without hesitation he strode across the room and heaved his friend onto the floor. Flicked open the safety mechanism on his belt he drew his knife. A twinge of remorse crossed across his eyes when he sliced apart the custom suit and specialty fabric. All fabric was bunched to the side. Calloused fingers punched in an emergency code and the vest vibrated once.

"Okay Dr. Gentri, let's hope this vest works. One buzz and I start; two and I stand by." Placing his hands on Captain Arlo's chest he began. The fast paced humming commenced; in its urgency it forgot to echo. The song looped for eight minutes straight — it's only interruptions came from two cracks and the electric vest. At the climax James gasped; Caleb collapsed. They both laid there and struggled to find breath for words. The clock on the wall ticked away, content to be the only sound for once.

"Dude... why did you have to go and overdose?! Dr. Gentri warned me that you could do that... still..." Caleb Jackson grunted, waiting for a response.

"It... It wasn't me..."

"Wasn't you eh? Each dose has 1 mg of tetrodotoxin. You had ... five syringes. The case on your desk is empty."

"Caleb... the first three were my doing."

With an exasperated cry Jackson called out "Then why are all five missing? You died! And you could have stayed dead if I didn't use the key!"

There was a clumsy double tap on the door. Both Captain and Commander fell silent.

"Captain? May I come in?" The cheery voice came from the youngest member in the building.

"Not now. The Commander and I are discussing a situation." For someone who just had cardiac failure the Captain's voice was convincingly gruff.

"It's urgent Captain!" His voice cracked at the apex of urgent.

"Whatever it is it can wait. Report to cleanup in Sector 5. We'll meet you there in an hour." There was no weaseling out of a direct command from the Captain.

"Yes Captain!"

The two friends waited on the floor for a few seconds before Jackson got to his feet. Bracing himself against the table he helped Arlo up. With the tetrodotoxin pumping through his veins his muscles were stiff, unwilling to move. He lost his balance and toppled into his chair. The wheels weren't locked. When Arlo made contact he spun around once and rolled into the farthest cabinet. Jackson tried to smother his laughing through a cough or two.

"At this rate I'll become just as clumsy as Calum," the Captain chuckled as he took in the scene, "This is quite the mess."

"Will you let me know why you overdosed? I know you had problems with that in the academy. You said you were clean."

"You work here because you're my friend. Not only that, but you're the smartest one I know. Look at the scene," He gestured with his eyes, "tell me what happened."

Commander Jackson took a step back and surveyed the upturned room. His keen eyes caught the tiny specs of refracted sunshine. A bent needle was jutting out from beneath the shredded suit. Crumbled paper littered the floor, leaving a trail towards the toppled receptacle. The scrunched notes gently cushioned three empty containers.

"It appears that you've had three doses over the past four hours of entering into your office. Based on the sloppy handwriting you were feeling the results. Their layering suggests at least an hour between usage. If I didn't know you I would think that you took a fourth, had a seizure, and dropped it. A fall of that height broke the glass. With the toxin in your body your heart stopped." Caleb gestured towards James and shrugged.

"But you've known me since the academy. Considering that, what happened?"

"You never open the window; you are allergic to the flowers in Central. Second, you rarely lock the door without informing me. On top of this the fifth dosage is missing. Considering that," Caleb looked towards his exhausted friend, "Someone came through your window, injected you with another dose, locked the door, and left with the final injector."

"Caleb you are smart. However I'm afraid that my assailant has outwitted you." The Captain was met with an inquiring gaze.

"Oh?"

"This is what I know: I was studying my notes on Calum — I was absorbed in them. There was a knock on my door and I told him to leave. The door hinges are too well oiled; I didn't hear anything until he was at my desk. When I looked up from my papers a hooded figure had a syringe in his grasp. With a lingering dosage in my veins I couldn't move to stop him."

"Oh... he left through the window," Commander Jackson's eyes grew wide, "Only Elite's have access to this building."

"One of our friends just tried to take my life."

"This doesn't leave the room. Sit there and I'll clean this up. We have to meet the Intern at 15 before the unknown hoodlum," He paused with an expectant face, "hoodlum... get it?"

"Ha. Ha. You are a clown."

"I thought it was clever! But before the hoodlum is aware we need to get you far away. Clean up at 15 should take long enough for the toxin to run through your system."

It took just under thirty minutes for Commander Jackson to put the room back in order. The Captain wheeled towards his emergency wardrobe and dawned on a new shirt and suit coat. Jackson caught the plastic cover and threw it in with the debris. With the vest securely hidden Captain and Commander opened the door and headed towards the underground garage. For such an intimidating facility the elevator music did not belong. Its upbeat jazz danced into the concrete pillars as the doors slid open.

"Catch."

Jackson shot his hand out and let the key fall into his open palm. The manaia keychain dangled beneath his thumb.

"Man, you are obsessed with the Beast. A keychain? Really?"

"I promised myself that he'd be in my car one day. I never imagined I'd lose his tracks." James appeared genuinely exhausted. "I can't lose another man looking for him. If I drive we'll both die."

Jackson's smile grew.

"It's just this once — or at least until my limbs move properly."

"This is the dream man."