Rebel Cell

**Rebel Cell** is a series of books written by Gelo.

## Text

### Chapter One

The grenade left the launcher with a whump and bounced noisily off the wall with a clang, skipping along the floor and clattering noisily to the ground next to the beast. Through the pipes, Jerrod saw the beast turn towards the grenade, and immediately leap away with surprising speed. His body coursing with adrenaline and fear, Jerrod hit the trigger. The explosion shook the platform, throwing debris and flame into the floor and walls, but it only glanced the beast. Guardian's monster roared in pain. Dropping the grenade launcher onto the ground, Jerrod got up, raised his pistols and stepped out of the shadows.

The ocular implants locked on to the beast's hobbling form.

"I'm behind you, freak."

*The beast spun around, its bumpy purple skin torn through with lances of red and black from where the grenade had found its mark. Without a word, it launched its colossal frame forwards, charged towards Jerrod with blistering speed.*"

Spent casings flew through the air as, one after the other, the bullets tore into the beast's body, sending blistered flowers of blood erupting on its pustuled hide. The beast jerked with every hit, but it kept closing the distance between it and Jerrod with a terrifying intensity.

Jerrod didn't move, keeping the beast in his sights, as the dual punches of the recoiling pistols shot through his arms. Adrenaline began to mix with a growing urge to turn and run as the beast rushed closer. The targeting reticule enhanced the detail of the hurtling beast; the bumpy, purple skin, the serrated and pointed horns that wrapped around the head, and a helpless man's face, misshapen and twisted in pained shock. Jerrod could almost make out the tears welling in his yellow eyes. Jerrod instinctively swiveled his arms upwards.

*The beast's misshapen human face, collapsed as two rounds punched through one of its eyes. The beast seemed to gasp as its powerful legs faltered. The momentum of its heavy mass made it slide along the floor as its legs spasmed and gave out, dropping its deformed body to the ground. It slid to a halt at Jerrod's feet, massive lungs making a shuddering sound as their last breath escaped.*"

Jerrod heard the quick shuffling of dragging feet behind him, reminding him of the reality of his situation. Without looking around, he climbed over the body of the felled beast, and made a running beeline for the elevator.

He almost slammed into the elevator wall as he skidded to a halt, pressing the elevator's button rapidly. There was a dinging noise as the elevator doors opened. Running inside, Jerrod hit the descend button. Turning, Jerrod saw the shapes of Guardian's drones lurch towards the elevator, their hands outstretched. He fumbled with a clip, trying to slide it into the pistol's magazine. One of the men shouted out, "Go! Run!"

They closed the distance. The doors closed shut.

*Jerrod could hear their futile banging as the elevator descended towards the Aqualabs.*"

### Chapter Two

There was a locking sound as a new chest plate was sealed into place. Jerrod sat silently as the machines knitted his broken body back together. He didn't really know what to say, what to think. It had been less than twenty-four hours since he had woken up from the augmentation surgery. In that time he'd been nearly killed twice. And he had killed people. It scared Jerrod how very good he had been at it. The augs that PriCor had forced on him had helped, feeding him data and assisting his aim, but underneath it all, it was he who was the killer.

*He'd grown up in an industrial slum; cheap housing subsidized by the corporations in return for indentured, low-cost labor. The slums were dirty and dangerous, and violence had been all around him. From the gunshots in the night, to the blaring of CorpSec sirens as the corporate police patrolled the streets, to the gangs of angry youth who postured and threatened on the street corners, violence filled the air like the smog from PriCor's exhaust stacks. Jerrod had tried all his life to avoid drowning in that world. He saw the broken streams of humanity that fell through the cracks in that place; the helpless drug junkies, the angry thugs, and above all the crippling poverty of the working poor.*"

A sudden wash of pain washed over Jerrod's chest and sides. The medical suite had removed the shunt from his neck. He still couldn't move or feel his legs. The high-pitched whine of a laser saw filled the air.

Iris's voice seemed hesitant. "Are you angry with me?"

*There was a pop, and a heavy thud. Jerrod lifted himself up on his elbows and looked to see the mangled alloy remnants of his left knee, trailing purple ichor, be dumped into a plastic bin. Jerrod glanced down to see that his lower leg was just barely connected to the rest of his body by a set of stringy tendons and blood vessels. He looked away.*"

Jerrod felt his shattered leg bone be knitted back together again by the medical suite. Nerves and veins were being bundled together into clear plastic tubes which threaded their way safely around the series of metal socket joints that mechanical arms were sliding into the space where his knee used to be.

*"No."*"

### Chapter Three

The way in front was clear, keeping low, Jerrod tried to move as fast as he could towards the far side of the room.

He didn't make it.

The searing pain in his back as his body armor absorbed a massive blow was the first indication that the gunman behind him at found his mark, the crushing pain of his head slamming into a console and retort of gunfire were the second.

Jerrod dropped to the floor, curling up involuntarily as pain ran through his head. He vaguely heard the grenade launcher and shotgun clatter to the ground as he clutched his throbbing head in his gloved fingers. The impact with the console had pushed his left ocular implant into his skull and the pain was nearly unbearable. Guardian's rumbling voice cut through the haze of suffering that was engulfing him.

*Cosmic Dissonance. Cosmic Consonance. You know which path you wish for. The problem is action. Such contradictory creatures. We will act for you.*"

Jerrod forced himself to keep going. With half his vision jumping from sight to static, he limply grabbed his grenade launcher and set it launch a remote detonation charge. Pointing the launcher towards the ground, Jerrod fired. The grenade popped out of the launcher's barrel with a whump, clattering and spinning noisily as it bumped around at the base of a nearby console, just feet away.

You'll never get me to surrender.

Jerrod crawled on his belly, his hands scrambling for traction on the smooth tile surface of the floor. He finally collapsed a few feet away, behind the next console closer to the far side of the room.

Your body has submitted. This is all that is required.

*The sounds of feet, carrying a heavy, disfigured body that almost sloshed as its heavy stalks hit the ground, thudded closer. The tip of a grotesque shadow slid over Jerrod's eyes. He hit the detonation switch.*"

*There was a sickening crunch as his body was smashed between the two consoles. The wind blew out of Jerrod's lungs with a whoosh. His body was wracked with pain as he desperately tried to breathe. Hot, ashen air washed into him as his lungs started to work again. Everything hurt, but he was alive. Alive! Gloriously alive.*"

### Chapter Four

Jerrod saw the lurching, marionette bodies of Guardian's drones shuffle about, pipes and chunks of rubble gripped tightly in their hands. They moved in geometric patterns, equally spaced apart, moving in carefully planned circuits through the forest of pipes and shadows; search patterns. Jerrod felt a dark, low voice fill his mind.

Again you hide from us. Why fight and suffer alone. Join us; there you find harmony and acceptance.

Jerrod heart was pounding as he sat crouched among the pipes. The pipes were hot, emitting heat, as if boiling water was passing through them, and soon Jerrod could feel his sweating face begin to turn red. He willed himself to stay still, clenching his jaw tightly to keep from making a noise. Instinctively he projected a mental reply. Your idea of harmony doesn't look very pretty.

*The deep voice replied, and Jerrod knew that Guardian could peer into his thoughts.*"

One drone moved past Jerrod's location, his neck jerking back and forth as if a giant hand was twisting it roughly about; defeated eyes sweeping over Jerrod's hiding place, and moving on. Guardian's forces searched for their prey. The heat was getting almost unbearable as the exposed pipes continued the slowly cook Jerrod's exposed skin.

*We know of Earth. We have learned much in this metal womb. You will not deny the injustice and oppression of that place; a trillion selfish individuals clamoring on the bodies of their fellows in petty plays for power. You rail against this injustice yet you cannot stop it. We will stop it for you.*"

Guardian spoke with the frank certainty of a prophet.

What do you know of justice, or of happiness? You live every day surrendering yourselves to outside forces. To leaders, structures, to the very whims of your body. Not one we have united with has wished to be a murderer, an adulterer, a thief. And yet they steal, lie, betray. You, among all beings, have the power to chose your reality. You dream of Heaven, you see visions of it, you talk with God. Yet you do not exercise the actions that will give fruit to your innermost desires. Your actions produce only suffering. Weak minded creatures. Immature children. Your freedom is illusory, you have many masters and you do their bidding well. We are the newest, highest, master. Not even we can control your will, but we can control your actions. This will do.

*The elevator doors that had brought the beast down to the platform closed, and the elevator groaned back to life as it started back up to Propulsion. Jerrod knew it would return soon with more of Guardian's soldiers.*"

### Chapter Five

Captain Joachim Tannhauser stood in front of the Demaratus's viewscreen. The Demaratus, like all mercenary gunships, was a compact vessel with barely enough space on its bridge to fit the four-man crew.

Tannhauser didn't mind the claustrophobic conditions; he'd been working with his current crew for three years, and they worked together like the pieces of a well-oiled machine. While claustrophobia wasn't a worry, boredom was. And up until twenty minutes ago, this mission had been boring.

*Tannhauser and the rest of the Demaratus crew had been hired by PriCor to babysit Omega, using whatever force necessary to ensure that nothing got off the station. So far, the only action they'd seen had been shooting down the few escape pods that PriCor hadn't successfully ejected earlier in the week. Tannhauser and his crew had had no difficulty shooting down the slow-moving and unarmed pods, and each successful kill meant an added bonus on his crew's paychecks, but this sort of work didn't exactly fill him with a sense of pride and accomplishment. Just a little guilt and a lot of boredom.*"

PriCor didn't want massive carnage this time; the head honcho who was calling the shots back down on Earth had called for a precision strike. Their agent onboard was in a little trouble and needed some extra firepower. It had taken some time, but the Demaratus was now sitting with a straight line towards its target.

"We're in position Ms. Bardsmith."

"Good." The crackly, but severe, voice seemed pleased over the communicator. "Jerrod's nearby, so don't miss."

"I never do ma'am."

"Then fire away."

*Captain Tannhauser turned to the pilot controlling the ship's weapons and propulsion systems. "Target Deck Three, section forty-four. One blast, all forward weapons. After you've taken out the sub-deck, move us a few clicks away from the station. Get ready for possible debris collision."*"

*There was a brief, yellow flash and suddenly a white-hot gout of fire bloomed on the distant surface of Omega. In the vacuum of space, the explosion was accompanied only by the sound of silence. The small burp of fire quickly disappeared from view. Glints of debris and thin wisps of vapor as gas and wreckage were sucked into space were the only indications that they had scored a direct hit. From this distance it almost looked like a scene out of a video game.*"

### Chapter Six

A mewling sound to his left caught Jerrod's attention. Jerrod turned to find the body of one of the horned creatures a few feet away. It had fallen in through the jagged hole before the whale had toppled into it and plugged it up. The creature was wounded, its neck was twisted at an awkward angle, but it still tried to move towards Jerrod, flopping about and hissing in pain as it feebly pushed its body closer.

Jerrod wasn't afraid, he didn't know if he could ever be afraid again. Slipping his assault rifle off his shoulder, he walked towards the dying animal. The animal jerked its head, swinging its horns at Jerrod. It was a feeble gesture, Jerrod easily side-stepped the blow. The animal's breath was coming in rasps; it was suffocating in the open air.

Guardian's voice filled Jerrod's mind.

I misclassified you earlier. You are not a misguided individual whose life wounds the whole. No, you do not search for life, you do not seek to build. You only exist to destroy. You are a half-dead microbe, writhing through our innards. Without purpose you tear and slash apart all that is precious.

*"You sound afraid. You want to be my Master, control everything I do. Is Master getting scared of the slave?"*"

Every disease has its cure. You cannot kill us all.

Jerrod pulled the trigger.

The animal jerked violently, and then was still, the hum of Guardian's presence melting away.

A loud shearing sound caused Jerrod to whip his eyes up to the giant carcass of the whale, plugging the hole in the bottom of Omega's sea. The jets of bloody water that were shooting out from around the whale were faster now, the pressure of the ocean slowly rending its flesh and pushing it with more force into the observation area. Cracks were beginning to spread around the beast, as if the entire ceiling was about to smash apart, letting loose a torrential flood.

*"Iris? Kat? Are you there? How do I get out of here?"*"

The water was up to Jerrod's waist now, the thick plastic of the ceiling crackling dangerously. Jerrod shook his head, drops of water flying off. He was sick of running from Guardian. "Iris, I'm taking the elevator."

Jerrod waded through the pink water, towards the large panels of the nearby elevator, hitting the down button. There was a ding, and the elevator doors opened, water pouring in as Jerrod sloshed his way through and hit the descend button.

*The doors closed, leaving several inches of water lapping around Jerrod's knees. The sounds of running and dripping water accompanied the hiss of the elevator as it came to life, and moved deeper down into Omega.*"