FUTURITY

AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHT SECONDS

Jude heard the alarm somewhere close, but he couldn't worry about it now. The cavernous room seemed empty. But it wasn't. From behind the crates, Jude saw them—thousands and thousands of automatons lined up in neat rows.

Jude took a deep breath to clear his mind. He'd already planted two bombs. Now he needed to plant the third.

Shaking his head, Jude sighed. He crept forward to see the other side of the room. Across it was a parked jeep.

He arrived behind the jeep in an instant. Jude took the third explosive and started to place it against the wall.

CLINK!

Jude whirled; his heart slammed against his ribs. He scanned the room. Crates. Automatons. All was silent except for the distant siren. Jude shook his head. He needed a weapon.

Spotting a rack of guns, Jude grabbed a shotgun and stuffed his pockets with cartridges. Putting as many bullets into the weapon as possible, he glanced around.

ZZZZZZ!

Jude jerked. The faint, whirring sound stopped. Everything looked normal—sort of. Jude frowned. Something seemed off. He studied the lines of mechanical men.

With a jolt, he saw it. In the line of automatons nearest, he saw a gap, not a small one, just a space big enough for one machine.

Then a revelation hit him. An automaton had moved.

Fear rocketed down his stomach. Where is it?

ZZZZZZ!

Jude's eyes darted around the room. He saw nothing but rows of cold, metal machines. He shakily fingered the third bomb in his hand. I need to get out of here.

Something cold touched his back. "Don't move, intruder," a mechanical voice said.

Jude suddenly jumped back, but the automaton was too fast. It gripped his arm. And Jude teleported.

The ANO facility and the army of automatons disappeared. Cold wind burst over him. Jude shivered and caught a glimpse of the Antarctic landscape. It was night. Snow pounded on them both. The automaton, still holding his arm, gazed around for a moment, then looked at Jude again. 

"Take us back," It said.

Jude squeezed the trigger of his shotgun.

BOOM!

The mechanical man flew back. It fell into a heap of snow, sparking, and jerking. The light behind its eyes flickered and went out.

Jude hefted the shotgun against his shoulder and smirked.

A wave of warmth washed over him the moment he reappeared in the army room. And the lights blinded him for a second. Metal hands grabbed him from all sides. Panic seized him.

Jude teleported again and appeared on the edge of a cliff on the side of Mount Everest. The biting cold slapped him in the face, taking his breath away. And with a leap, he jumped over the edge with the automatons with him. The feeling of falling exploded in his mind.

The automatons detached themselves from him and clawed at the cliff face to stop their fall. But the bottom of the cliff came rushing up. And they didn't have time.

Jude grimaced. He needed to break his fall. With a flick of thought, Mount Everest, the automatons, and the bottom of the cliff vanished.

And Jude fell over the glistening surface of the Pacific Ocean.

SPLASH!

Down and down, Jude went under the surface, his momentum pushing him. The ocean disappeared as fast as it had come. And Jude—soaked—lay on the floor of the ANO facility.

Coughing, Jude looked at the wet bomb in his hand. He hoped it was still good. More and more automatons were waking up and looking at him.

He needed to finish this—now.

With a thought, he was across the room. He set the third bomb and went to the final wall. He took out the last explosive, armed it, and—

WHAM!

A metal fist slammed into his skull, he fell back, and the bomb flew from his hand. Jude blinked blearily. He looked past the automaton that stood over him, at the flipping, twirling bomb in the air.

It touched the floor.

It exploded, and a shockwave lifted Jude into the air. An intense burning and blinding pain caught his breath. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't see.

He teleported.