Category : Stories

Sub Category : Adventure

Chapter Six: I Can See Your Halo

Marsellus was frozen with fright as he looked into the ominously glowing red eyes of the mysterious figure before him. Of course he couldn't move anyway, even if he could shake the feeling. The straps around his arms and legs, keeping him bound, felt as if they had been set an adamant intent. He couldn't escape. This was his fate... 

And he felt it draw his book to a close as the mysterious figure drew a sword and lift it high overhead. And so he closed his eyes and awaited the clash. Then he heard the slash of metal on metal and realized he was still alive. Looking to his hands, he noticed the very bottom of the bindings had been cut clean. But with a weapon like that? How could that even be possible?? What was this monster? 

No time to even think on it. He pulled at the bindings on his legs, but pulled his fingers back just in time to avoid another slash that looked like it completely missed its targets of the bindings. Still he heard the sounds of clashing metal before the bindings shattered to a hundred pieces. Finally free, Marsellus was a blur as he hopped from the examination table and bolted for the door. He got closer and closer to it with every footstep, yet it felt like it was still miles away, slipping further away on the horizon. So far away that eventually in his run he felt he would never catch it. It wasn't until he looked down that he noticed he was not touching the ground. 

"No. No no no! Please!" He looked back to the figure with the weapon which had turned about to watch his attempt to escape, eyes now blazing with a deep crimson hue that threatened to burn Marsellus very sanity should he look into them too long in this state of distress. Was this monster keeping him here with some form of telekinetic ability?

Then he thought back for a second to what the doctor had said. He had indeed been dealing with many strange events these past few weeks. Maybe it would help him in this extreme condition. And before Marsellus knew what he was doing, he threw his arms out at the mysterious figure... And nothing happened. "Oh come on! What good are these powers if I cannot use them when I need?"

"When you learn to control them, you can use them." A soft, soothing voice came to the room, eminating from the mysterious figure. Feminine, yet accented with a bit of harshness. Almost condescending. The nerve, now he was being insulted by strangers? 'Could this situation get any worse?' He thought to himself just a minute before the figure pointed a black-nailpolished finger at him. He felt his body spinning around like a wheel. 'Yeah. Yeah this could definitely get worse.' 

He yelled for his release and felt himself lower to the floor gently, a laugh coming from the cloaked female as he attempted to right himself once more on two feet. His expression was astounded, dumbfounded even as he looked to her with a barking question. "How the hell did you do that? All of that just now?" Obviously the shock of the entire ordeal had him not censoring his vocal functions. But could anyone blame him at this point? 

Her response seemed a lot more calm this time, as if she understood and sympathized with him. "Halo helped." 

A video game helped a woman with her psychic powers? Yeah, he must be in a bad dream. He was in hysterics at this point. "Sure, and let me guess: Reach helped you with flying?" 

The sardonic response that woman gave as she answered was purely genuine. "What is this 'Reach' you speak of?' Okay. So perhaps it was not a video game reference. He attempted his best to calm down in preparation for the exchange to come, but she was already on the move, grabbing him by the hand and dragging him even as he tried to resist. 

"No time to chat. Evac is in two minutes! We have to get to the drop point." He was yet again a screaming baby as they rushed down corridor after corridor, running through walls that should splatter them but allowed them through like water. Finally they ran through one more wall and appeared in a large room that showed only a double sliding door at the other end. 

When they came to a stop at the doors, she waved a hand and the doors opened to reveal an elevator-like platform which they entered. He dared not take a breath yet lest she perhaps start some other apparently great quest that he would be pulled imto. When she too took a sigh of relief and pulled back her hood, Marsellus was floored. 

She was astonishing. Perfection with the face of an angel, dark red eyes, framed with hair of a snow white color put up in a ponytail that reached back into the hood itself. She turned to look at him and smiled. "So, you must be Marsellus Gustov, the great treasure The Evil Doc has been looking for. There is no need to panic, but what you are about to see is no dream. Just breathe, okay?" 

Marsellus was already reeling from the startling revelation of her beauty, as well as the sequence of events that lead up to now. What could astonish him any more than this? And insert foot into mouth now. The window before them now revealed that they were travelling upward in a vast tower, a castle of glass and metal that dwarfed any skyscraper he had ever seen before. Well, except for one. The building that marked one juggernaut corporation that he had dreamed to one day be an employee for: Caliber Industries! At one time just a small manufacturing company just a decade ago. Over the course of those ten years however, it had mysteriously changed direction and had become one of the most reliable and advanced robotic system corporations in the world...

And Marsellus was making his way to the top of this gargantuan tower of advanced technology and robotics application. But then Marsellus thought back to the exchange. "Wait. Evil Doc? You mean Dr. Calico? The guy that is apparently a specialist in neurology?" 

The girl nodded her head. "Yes. Also one of the chief scientists in their research and development department in biological warfare. A man who has made his living off of utilizing the power of those with psychic aptitude and exploiting them for war profit. This industry is a cover-up. And you are now climbing their base of operations..." 

The thought floored Marsellus, a place responsible for so many advances in their society, and he discovered that they were this shady. Inhumane. Flashes of images went through his head of war and conflict, people floating over battlefield with explosions going off around them. Dr. Calico grimning evilly at a man encased in a glass cylindrical tube. 

"This... This is madness. This is inhumane. It is an absolute travesty." Marsellus whispered as he felt his fists clench, blood blanching from his knuckles. The elevator sped up even, picking up speed at a tremendous rate. When he felt a hand upon his shoulder, the images stopped and the elevator returned to normal speed. He turned his head to look up at the female. Her expression seemed softened, amd it seemed to almost soothe him as he felt his calm return ominously. 

"Not to worry, though. I am Saturn, leader of The Halo Organization. And I am here to keep you and the rest of this world safe from his clutches! But now I dare ask you one question: Do you sympathize with such a cause?"