Lottery
Chapter 26
By Mark J. Silva Jr
“What was the dream about this time, Mark?” Lily asked as she held him close.
Mark had been home now for five long months. The day he'd been called to the shuttle bay, Mark had never met Captain Hughs. On his way to the shuttle bay Mark was passed by a large group of seventeen year old girls. They were roughhousing and accidentally knocked Mark under a safety railing that was meant to protect people from falling off the upper skywalk, to the promenade floor, below.
Mark had fallen two stories. He suffered a major concussion when he had landed on his back. While not life threatening, Mark suddenly had started to have night-terrors and nightmares.
So for the past five months Lily would wake Mark from his night-terrors and talk him through what he had dreamt, and what was real.
For a half an hour Mark told Lily about how the shuttle broke down, and how a nutty doctor had wanted to cut him up, and make him into a girl.
Lily laughed a little, and pointed out that no one would ever consider changing a male into a female, as there simply weren't enough boys to go around.
Mark lay in Lily's arms and watched the sunlight slowly invade his room.
Lily, on the other hand, was getting an education in Mark's care, and in her Nana Lisa's ultimate plans for Mark. It was Lisa's wish that Mark be regressed, and now Lily was faced with the other part of Lisa's plan. It was a procedure that would relieve Mark of a lot of his PTSD related issues: targeted memory removal. Basically, it removed the major trauma events in his life that had given him so much grief. Mark was scheduled for his first treatment later today. He had spent the past two weeks having his memories probed and mapped out.
At no time was Mark told any 'whys', just that it was for his long term well being.
“I think you should jump in the shower, while I see if grandma has breakfast ready,” Lily said as she let Mark get up.
As Mark stood, Tina wrapped a robe over his shoulders. He said, “I feel so worthless.”
Lily stepped back and looked at Mark, as he stared at the floor.
“You are far from worthless Mark. And hopefully soon you will be feeling a lot better, once Dr. Weasley finishes her treatments.”
Mark kept looking at the floor, “I'm not stupid, I know what she going to do to me.”
A cold chill ran down Lily's back.
“You are going to have my memory modified,” Mark said.
The color drained from Lily's face.
“He is far from stupid. I told you he would figure it out, pretty face,” Di said as she entered the bedroom and walked over to Mark.
Di knelt down and took hold of Mark's face, bring his eyes up to look at her.
“You are not worthless! You are a delicate flower who is in need of care. Mark why don't you tell us what you think is going to happen?”
Mark glanced over at Lily, who looked panicked, and said, “Dr. Dee Weasley is a specialist in traumatic memory modification. She has been in practice for thirty-three years and has written nine books on the subject. These past sessions I have had with her, have been for mapping out the targeted memories so she knows which ones to go after.”
Di smiled, “Like I said, you are not stupid, and you are far from worthless. You are right, Mark, you are going to have your memory modified; but, it was not our choice. Lisa had it in her will, that you should never have to suffer the memories that have caused you so much grief.”
A tear formed in the corner of Mark's eye.
“But I don't want to lose my memories of Vicky or Lisa.”
Lily now rushed to Mark's side.
“You won't,” she assured Mark.
“No, you won't, Mark. Do you understand what Dr. Weasley will do?” Di asked.
“There was no information on what she does, just how effective it was and why it benefits so many people,” answered Mark.
“Yes. The doctor was mapping out your memories, but she was also recording everything you said. The plan is, once you have forgotten what happened, the doctor will then reintroduce you to your own thoughts and feelings about each event. This way, you will have the memories of the events, but not the same hurtful feelings. Dr. Weasley says that this way, you can move on in life, freed from the horrors you have been through. Those are the same horrors that are now holding you back from your work, and are keeping you from enjoying your life,” explained Di and she brushed the hair out of Mark's face.
“But I don't want to lose the feelings I had for Vicky,” replied Mark.
“Some memories will not be touched, the feeling of loss and love for Vicky will not be touched. The same for the memories you have for Lisa and your own mother. But the events of being shot and tossed off of the balcony, are not needed. In fact, they are holding you back. It's memories like that, that are stopping you from being happy. You should not feel you have to double check every corner, and not be able even to use your holoband. These memories have you scared of living, Mark. I have even seen you send Tina to check your own bathroom, over and over again, before you'll go in there. This memory modification will free you from all these fears and bring back the fun loving boy we all treasure,” Di explained as she stood back up.
“Excuse me, Mistress, but I have Master's breakfast ready,” Sasha said as she walked into the bedroom.
Sasha was another bad memory. Mark now knew of the truth surrounding her, and how she came to be here. He was told about how she was the one who drugged him up, and had resold him to a drug dealer. He learned that she tried to have him killed and that her punishment was being forced to forever serve him. This was a memory that Mark knew was second hand. He did agree his feeling towards her made so much more sense, now that he knew why he hated her. Since Di told him everything, he'd gotten used to her being around. He even trusted her, a bit.
“Very good, Sasha. Mark why don't you go eat, while I get my own shower, and get changed,” Di said.
“But I'm not really hungry.”
“You need to eat something, as we have a long day ahead of us, Mark,” Lily said as she headed for the bedroom doorway.
* * * *
Mark lay on the large bed in Dr. Weasley office, dressed in a simple green nightgown. Nurse Ambrosia adjusted the scanners around Mark. She was trying to ignore Penny and Tina, who were also lying on the bed, one on each side of Mark.
Everything was set up to make Mark as comfortable as possible. From the super soft bedding, to his own pets lying down on the bed, with him.
“Now, Mark, I am going to inject you first with a mild sedative, then once you’re half asleep and relaxed, we will start once more by reciting each event.”
“Will it hurt?” asked Mark.
“Oh, no. I will be directing nanites to undo the memories. As they work at that, each memory will become harder and harder to recall until you simply forget them. Then after each event is erased, I will playback your own statements on that event, which will build a new secondhand memory in its place. This way when you recall it, it will be like watching an old movie. There will be no feelings or emotions, just the facts,” Dr. Weasley explained as she placed the auto-injector to Mark's shoulder and released the sedative into his system.
A few minutes later, Mark was in a half-sleep state.
“Now Mark, lets start with Heiress Healfeather on Suptemper sixteenth, when she grabbed you off the street,” Dr. Weasley said as she watched as Mark recalled the events.
Mark looked at the green dot on the ceiling and started recalling what happened.
“I was cutting through Baker's Alleyway heading to the Westside City Park. I had passed 'Sweeties' loading dock when someone grabbed me from behind and covered my mouth with a rag, she forced it deep in and the rag tasted of vinegar. When she pulled me into her van she told me if I fought her, she, she, she,” the memory vanished and Mark blinked his eyes.
Dr. Weasley smiled, “It's okay, Mark. Now, how about I share a story with you, and see if you can remember it?”
“Okay,” Mark said.
The green dot changed to blue, and a voice recording of Mark reciting the event started up. It told Mark about the day he met his first loving owner: Lisa.
After three hours, Mark blinked and became fully awake.
“Well, Mark, we've gotten four events modified. We will stop, here. Your next appointment will be in three weeks,” Dr. Weasley said as she closed a few files on her tablet.
Mark sat up and looked around the room and found Lily seated close by, “Why wait so long?”
Dr. Weasley got up from her seat and walked over to Mark.
“Because it will take time for the new memories to settle in," she said. "Then I have to recheck, and make sure everything is holding, correctly.”
* * * *
“Do you trust me?” Lily asked as she sat on the edge of one of Mark's loungers in his back yard.
“I, I think I do,” Mark said as he looked at the Holoband in Lily's hand.
Lily gave Mark a hurt look, “We have everything set up Mark, I have personally found and set up a new hide so that we can win this match, and we badly need you and your sniper rifle.”
“But what if they find me?”
Lily was upset when she first heard those words months ago, Mark had played BorderWars while on vacation and during the match was discovered and beaten. While at first it didn't seem to have bothered him after a game played at home where he was once more discovered Mark had gotten a fear everyone was out to beat the crap out of him in the game, and this led to him no longer playing.
“Tracy will be guarding you the whole time. You will not be alone for anyone to attack you.”
Mark lay there as Lily slowly placed the holoband on Mark's head and activated it. When Mark blinked his eyes, he found himself standing in his safe room, once more. Lisa was looking down at him, smiling.
“I have missed you, my blue eyed wonder.”
Mark smiled at her. For some reason, whenever she called him that, he felt warm inside and loved.
“Hiya, sweet cheeks. I have your gear all ready for ya,” Tracy said as she stood by the bed.
Mark walked over to the bed and looked down at his pistol and the case holding the Leopoid MAC,
“You got the wrong ammo.”
Tracy was fifteen years old, and already she stood a full foot taller than Mark. She looked down at the ammo case she'd grabbed. On the side of the case it read '10 rounds, caseless, 30mm, depleted uranium, armor-piercing'.
“What's wrong with the ammo?”
“The map we are playing is a hydrogen cracking plant. These rounds will cause a massive explosion that would kill us all,” Mark said.
He walked over to the wall and let it open up. Mark walked to the rear where several ammo cases were placed, and picked up a dark blue one that read: '10 rounds, caseless, 30mm, Non-metallic for hazardous environments'
“These are plastic and won't cause a spark that could kill us,” Mark said as he placed the ammo can down.
“But will that pierce armor?” Tracy asked.
“It will go through most body armor, but won't pierce hardened targets like tanks, or hardened shelters.”
Tracy thought about it for a moment, then said, “That may make it harder to get targets.”
Mark smiled and replied, “Just means Lily and Sammy will have to work harder to flush our targets into the clear.”
An hour and a half later Mark found his first soft target. He took aim and doubled checked to make sure it wasn't a friendly. The scope screen stayed red. After letting out half his breath, Mark slowly pulled back on the trigger stud and when the stud made contact the whole rifle jumped back and sent a 30 millimeter plastic round, down range, at half the speed of light. And then Mark started swearing up and down.
The target was a dummy and was meant to flush him out!
“We have to get out of here,” Mark yelled to Tracy.
But, when he turned around, he found her slumping over with a tiny hole burnt through her head as she disappeared. This wasn't good, someone had to have known. There was no way they could have targeted them through the shielding. And they had to have known it was a kinetic shield because they had used a laser on Tracy.
Laser were weight restrictive, and had a long recharge time. Good thing, because Mark was now on his own, and needed to bail. Mark touched the Leopoid MAC and it de-rezzed. For the rest of the game Mark was now on survivor mode and wouldn't need to be dragging such a large heavy weapon around. Pulling his pistol from the holster Mark checked its charge and mag load.
Mark looked at Tracy's position and smiled. She may have died but she also had been carrying an old Ruger Mini 14 rifle with five thirty round mags. Mark took the rifle and her extra mags and headed out. He was on his own and now had to make his way to at team rally point to get any points at all for the game.
Mark made it out of the building and checked his head up display (HUD). The Rally point was sixteen miles from his current position, and there were no friendly icons within twenty-four miles of him.
Mark made it ten miles, before being pinned down and captured by Red team.
Donna smiled at Mark and held a pair of handcuffs before him.
“Come on, Mark, you know the rules. Please don't make me kill you. Just come with me to our POW point.”
Mark reached for his pistol but before he could draw it someone else behind him grabbed his arm, lifted him off the ground, and tickled him on the side.
“Caught you! Donna get the 'Box' and we can just carry him back to base,” Holli said as she smiled at Mark.
Holli held Mark's arms behind him and waited for Donna to unfold a plastic box they planned to hold Mark.
“Do you know how long we planned this, in order to capture you?”
“No,” Mark said softly.
“Nine months! You're worth a million kill points! Plus, if we can get you back, alive, to our rally POW point, we get a bonus gold locker. Besides, you're so darn pretty, who wouldn't want to capture you?” Donna said as she placed the box on the ground in front of Mark.
“I'm not getting in that,” said Mark with a touch of panic in his voice.
“Aww, come on, Mark. The box is for your protection. I wouldn't have dragged it all around, otherwise,” Donna said.
“How is that for my protection?”
“It's a portable 'timeout' box. In there, no one can harm you. Even shooting the box full of holes wouldn't hurt you at all,” Holli said as she picked Mark up.
“But it will be dark and tight in there.”
“Nope! Mark, once you are in the box, you will be displaced to your safety room. You'll stay there until we open the box up to take you out, or the game ends. You will not be stuck in a small dark box,” Donna said as Holli laid him into the box.
Donna then closed the box, and Mark suddenly found himself sitting on his bed in his safety room, with a Ref-bot floating in the air.
“Mark Howland, you are in a timeout. Do not leave your safety room, or your team's points will be forfeit,” the Ref-bot said.
Lisa walked over to the Ref-bot, and touched its smooth sides.
“What happened to you?” she asked Mark.
Two hours later, Mark blinked and found himself once more in the custody of Holli and Donna, at their team's rally point POW zone.
Holli reach out and offered her hand, to help Mark out of the box.
“Do you need anything while you wait here?”
“Have you let Lily know about my capture?”
“I did. She wasn't all that happy; but, as long as we take care of you, she'll be alright,” Donna said as she set up a sun shade.
Holli walked over to Mark, and offered him a drink.
“Last I heard, Tracy was sniped. Lily and Sue are getting close to our flag, but we have you. So even if they win we get a butt load of points.”
“I'm going back out,” Donna said as she picked up her rifle.
Mark looked at their team map, and could see where each of the Red team members were. With his HUD display he could over lay his own team members' positions, and he laughed. The information team Red had, was way off. Sue was already at the Red team's flag, and Lily was only twenty feet away.
Suddenly, Holli gasped as Donna's icon blinked out.
“Shit shit shit,” Holli said.
“You are backed into a corner! Give up Mark, and I will let you live; or I'll just toss in a few hand grenades, and walk away,” Lily yelled moments later.
Mark swallowed hard. If Lily tossed in a hand grenade, Red team would lose the extra points, and Mark would be killed for this round. But it wasn't something he wanted to experience first hand. It would also rob Red of all their hard work.
But, if Holli gave Mark up; Red team would still get half the capture points, and no one had to die. Mark looked back at Holli, and she was smiling.
“Go to her, Mark. You've been rescued, fair and square.”
Mark took a step forward and looked back at Holli.
“Go," she said. "Even half the points are worth something. Besides, we can find you again, later.”
Team rally points are normally considered safe zones;, but, once the Red team took Mark inside as a POW, it changed to a combat zone. It was a risk Red team decided was worth it.
Mark stepped out of the rally point, and Lily pulled him behind a wall, “Take off your Holoband. It's too dangerous to try to get you to safety.”
Mark looked shocked, if he took off his Holoband he'd lose points for leaving before the game was over, “But I'll lose my game points.”
“I know, but you're at risk of getting hurt. You didn't make any kills, so all you'll lose will be the one hundred game play points. Log off, and wait for us in your safe room,” Lily said as she checked Mark carefully over.
Then she watched as Mark raised his hand, and vanished.
Mark had been home now for five long months. The day he'd been called to the shuttle bay, Mark had never met Captain Hughs. On his way to the shuttle bay Mark was passed by a large group of seventeen year old girls. They were roughhousing and accidentally knocked Mark under a safety railing that was meant to protect people from falling off the upper skywalk, to the promenade floor, below.
Mark had fallen two stories. He suffered a major concussion when he had landed on his back. While not life threatening, Mark suddenly had started to have night-terrors and nightmares.
So for the past five months Lily would wake Mark from his night-terrors and talk him through what he had dreamt, and what was real.
For a half an hour Mark told Lily about how the shuttle broke down, and how a nutty doctor had wanted to cut him up, and make him into a girl.
Lily laughed a little, and pointed out that no one would ever consider changing a male into a female, as there simply weren't enough boys to go around.
Mark lay in Lily's arms and watched the sunlight slowly invade his room.
Lily, on the other hand, was getting an education in Mark's care, and in her Nana Lisa's ultimate plans for Mark. It was Lisa's wish that Mark be regressed, and now Lily was faced with the other part of Lisa's plan. It was a procedure that would relieve Mark of a lot of his PTSD related issues: targeted memory removal. Basically, it removed the major trauma events in his life that had given him so much grief. Mark was scheduled for his first treatment later today. He had spent the past two weeks having his memories probed and mapped out.
At no time was Mark told any 'whys', just that it was for his long term well being.
“I think you should jump in the shower, while I see if grandma has breakfast ready,” Lily said as she let Mark get up.
As Mark stood, Tina wrapped a robe over his shoulders. He said, “I feel so worthless.”
Lily stepped back and looked at Mark, as he stared at the floor.
“You are far from worthless Mark. And hopefully soon you will be feeling a lot better, once Dr. Weasley finishes her treatments.”
Mark kept looking at the floor, “I'm not stupid, I know what she going to do to me.”
A cold chill ran down Lily's back.
“You are going to have my memory modified,” Mark said.
The color drained from Lily's face.
“He is far from stupid. I told you he would figure it out, pretty face,” Di said as she entered the bedroom and walked over to Mark.
Di knelt down and took hold of Mark's face, bring his eyes up to look at her.
“You are not worthless! You are a delicate flower who is in need of care. Mark why don't you tell us what you think is going to happen?”
Mark glanced over at Lily, who looked panicked, and said, “Dr. Dee Weasley is a specialist in traumatic memory modification. She has been in practice for thirty-three years and has written nine books on the subject. These past sessions I have had with her, have been for mapping out the targeted memories so she knows which ones to go after.”
Di smiled, “Like I said, you are not stupid, and you are far from worthless. You are right, Mark, you are going to have your memory modified; but, it was not our choice. Lisa had it in her will, that you should never have to suffer the memories that have caused you so much grief.”
A tear formed in the corner of Mark's eye.
“But I don't want to lose my memories of Vicky or Lisa.”
Lily now rushed to Mark's side.
“You won't,” she assured Mark.
“No, you won't, Mark. Do you understand what Dr. Weasley will do?” Di asked.
“There was no information on what she does, just how effective it was and why it benefits so many people,” answered Mark.
“Yes. The doctor was mapping out your memories, but she was also recording everything you said. The plan is, once you have forgotten what happened, the doctor will then reintroduce you to your own thoughts and feelings about each event. This way, you will have the memories of the events, but not the same hurtful feelings. Dr. Weasley says that this way, you can move on in life, freed from the horrors you have been through. Those are the same horrors that are now holding you back from your work, and are keeping you from enjoying your life,” explained Di and she brushed the hair out of Mark's face.
“But I don't want to lose the feelings I had for Vicky,” replied Mark.
“Some memories will not be touched, the feeling of loss and love for Vicky will not be touched. The same for the memories you have for Lisa and your own mother. But the events of being shot and tossed off of the balcony, are not needed. In fact, they are holding you back. It's memories like that, that are stopping you from being happy. You should not feel you have to double check every corner, and not be able even to use your holoband. These memories have you scared of living, Mark. I have even seen you send Tina to check your own bathroom, over and over again, before you'll go in there. This memory modification will free you from all these fears and bring back the fun loving boy we all treasure,” Di explained as she stood back up.
“Excuse me, Mistress, but I have Master's breakfast ready,” Sasha said as she walked into the bedroom.
Sasha was another bad memory. Mark now knew of the truth surrounding her, and how she came to be here. He was told about how she was the one who drugged him up, and had resold him to a drug dealer. He learned that she tried to have him killed and that her punishment was being forced to forever serve him. This was a memory that Mark knew was second hand. He did agree his feeling towards her made so much more sense, now that he knew why he hated her. Since Di told him everything, he'd gotten used to her being around. He even trusted her, a bit.
“Very good, Sasha. Mark why don't you go eat, while I get my own shower, and get changed,” Di said.
“But I'm not really hungry.”
“You need to eat something, as we have a long day ahead of us, Mark,” Lily said as she headed for the bedroom doorway.
* * * *
Mark lay on the large bed in Dr. Weasley office, dressed in a simple green nightgown. Nurse Ambrosia adjusted the scanners around Mark. She was trying to ignore Penny and Tina, who were also lying on the bed, one on each side of Mark.
Everything was set up to make Mark as comfortable as possible. From the super soft bedding, to his own pets lying down on the bed, with him.
“Now, Mark, I am going to inject you first with a mild sedative, then once you’re half asleep and relaxed, we will start once more by reciting each event.”
“Will it hurt?” asked Mark.
“Oh, no. I will be directing nanites to undo the memories. As they work at that, each memory will become harder and harder to recall until you simply forget them. Then after each event is erased, I will playback your own statements on that event, which will build a new secondhand memory in its place. This way when you recall it, it will be like watching an old movie. There will be no feelings or emotions, just the facts,” Dr. Weasley explained as she placed the auto-injector to Mark's shoulder and released the sedative into his system.
A few minutes later, Mark was in a half-sleep state.
“Now Mark, lets start with Heiress Healfeather on Suptemper sixteenth, when she grabbed you off the street,” Dr. Weasley said as she watched as Mark recalled the events.
Mark looked at the green dot on the ceiling and started recalling what happened.
“I was cutting through Baker's Alleyway heading to the Westside City Park. I had passed 'Sweeties' loading dock when someone grabbed me from behind and covered my mouth with a rag, she forced it deep in and the rag tasted of vinegar. When she pulled me into her van she told me if I fought her, she, she, she,” the memory vanished and Mark blinked his eyes.
Dr. Weasley smiled, “It's okay, Mark. Now, how about I share a story with you, and see if you can remember it?”
“Okay,” Mark said.
The green dot changed to blue, and a voice recording of Mark reciting the event started up. It told Mark about the day he met his first loving owner: Lisa.
After three hours, Mark blinked and became fully awake.
“Well, Mark, we've gotten four events modified. We will stop, here. Your next appointment will be in three weeks,” Dr. Weasley said as she closed a few files on her tablet.
Mark sat up and looked around the room and found Lily seated close by, “Why wait so long?”
Dr. Weasley got up from her seat and walked over to Mark.
“Because it will take time for the new memories to settle in," she said. "Then I have to recheck, and make sure everything is holding, correctly.”
* * * *
“Do you trust me?” Lily asked as she sat on the edge of one of Mark's loungers in his back yard.
“I, I think I do,” Mark said as he looked at the Holoband in Lily's hand.
Lily gave Mark a hurt look, “We have everything set up Mark, I have personally found and set up a new hide so that we can win this match, and we badly need you and your sniper rifle.”
“But what if they find me?”
Lily was upset when she first heard those words months ago, Mark had played BorderWars while on vacation and during the match was discovered and beaten. While at first it didn't seem to have bothered him after a game played at home where he was once more discovered Mark had gotten a fear everyone was out to beat the crap out of him in the game, and this led to him no longer playing.
“Tracy will be guarding you the whole time. You will not be alone for anyone to attack you.”
Mark lay there as Lily slowly placed the holoband on Mark's head and activated it. When Mark blinked his eyes, he found himself standing in his safe room, once more. Lisa was looking down at him, smiling.
“I have missed you, my blue eyed wonder.”
Mark smiled at her. For some reason, whenever she called him that, he felt warm inside and loved.
“Hiya, sweet cheeks. I have your gear all ready for ya,” Tracy said as she stood by the bed.
Mark walked over to the bed and looked down at his pistol and the case holding the Leopoid MAC,
“You got the wrong ammo.”
Tracy was fifteen years old, and already she stood a full foot taller than Mark. She looked down at the ammo case she'd grabbed. On the side of the case it read '10 rounds, caseless, 30mm, depleted uranium, armor-piercing'.
“What's wrong with the ammo?”
“The map we are playing is a hydrogen cracking plant. These rounds will cause a massive explosion that would kill us all,” Mark said.
He walked over to the wall and let it open up. Mark walked to the rear where several ammo cases were placed, and picked up a dark blue one that read: '10 rounds, caseless, 30mm, Non-metallic for hazardous environments'
“These are plastic and won't cause a spark that could kill us,” Mark said as he placed the ammo can down.
“But will that pierce armor?” Tracy asked.
“It will go through most body armor, but won't pierce hardened targets like tanks, or hardened shelters.”
Tracy thought about it for a moment, then said, “That may make it harder to get targets.”
Mark smiled and replied, “Just means Lily and Sammy will have to work harder to flush our targets into the clear.”
An hour and a half later Mark found his first soft target. He took aim and doubled checked to make sure it wasn't a friendly. The scope screen stayed red. After letting out half his breath, Mark slowly pulled back on the trigger stud and when the stud made contact the whole rifle jumped back and sent a 30 millimeter plastic round, down range, at half the speed of light. And then Mark started swearing up and down.
The target was a dummy and was meant to flush him out!
“We have to get out of here,” Mark yelled to Tracy.
But, when he turned around, he found her slumping over with a tiny hole burnt through her head as she disappeared. This wasn't good, someone had to have known. There was no way they could have targeted them through the shielding. And they had to have known it was a kinetic shield because they had used a laser on Tracy.
Laser were weight restrictive, and had a long recharge time. Good thing, because Mark was now on his own, and needed to bail. Mark touched the Leopoid MAC and it de-rezzed. For the rest of the game Mark was now on survivor mode and wouldn't need to be dragging such a large heavy weapon around. Pulling his pistol from the holster Mark checked its charge and mag load.
Mark looked at Tracy's position and smiled. She may have died but she also had been carrying an old Ruger Mini 14 rifle with five thirty round mags. Mark took the rifle and her extra mags and headed out. He was on his own and now had to make his way to at team rally point to get any points at all for the game.
Mark made it out of the building and checked his head up display (HUD). The Rally point was sixteen miles from his current position, and there were no friendly icons within twenty-four miles of him.
Mark made it ten miles, before being pinned down and captured by Red team.
Donna smiled at Mark and held a pair of handcuffs before him.
“Come on, Mark, you know the rules. Please don't make me kill you. Just come with me to our POW point.”
Mark reached for his pistol but before he could draw it someone else behind him grabbed his arm, lifted him off the ground, and tickled him on the side.
“Caught you! Donna get the 'Box' and we can just carry him back to base,” Holli said as she smiled at Mark.
Holli held Mark's arms behind him and waited for Donna to unfold a plastic box they planned to hold Mark.
“Do you know how long we planned this, in order to capture you?”
“No,” Mark said softly.
“Nine months! You're worth a million kill points! Plus, if we can get you back, alive, to our rally POW point, we get a bonus gold locker. Besides, you're so darn pretty, who wouldn't want to capture you?” Donna said as she placed the box on the ground in front of Mark.
“I'm not getting in that,” said Mark with a touch of panic in his voice.
“Aww, come on, Mark. The box is for your protection. I wouldn't have dragged it all around, otherwise,” Donna said.
“How is that for my protection?”
“It's a portable 'timeout' box. In there, no one can harm you. Even shooting the box full of holes wouldn't hurt you at all,” Holli said as she picked Mark up.
“But it will be dark and tight in there.”
“Nope! Mark, once you are in the box, you will be displaced to your safety room. You'll stay there until we open the box up to take you out, or the game ends. You will not be stuck in a small dark box,” Donna said as Holli laid him into the box.
Donna then closed the box, and Mark suddenly found himself sitting on his bed in his safety room, with a Ref-bot floating in the air.
“Mark Howland, you are in a timeout. Do not leave your safety room, or your team's points will be forfeit,” the Ref-bot said.
Lisa walked over to the Ref-bot, and touched its smooth sides.
“What happened to you?” she asked Mark.
Two hours later, Mark blinked and found himself once more in the custody of Holli and Donna, at their team's rally point POW zone.
Holli reach out and offered her hand, to help Mark out of the box.
“Do you need anything while you wait here?”
“Have you let Lily know about my capture?”
“I did. She wasn't all that happy; but, as long as we take care of you, she'll be alright,” Donna said as she set up a sun shade.
Holli walked over to Mark, and offered him a drink.
“Last I heard, Tracy was sniped. Lily and Sue are getting close to our flag, but we have you. So even if they win we get a butt load of points.”
“I'm going back out,” Donna said as she picked up her rifle.
Mark looked at their team map, and could see where each of the Red team members were. With his HUD display he could over lay his own team members' positions, and he laughed. The information team Red had, was way off. Sue was already at the Red team's flag, and Lily was only twenty feet away.
Suddenly, Holli gasped as Donna's icon blinked out.
“Shit shit shit,” Holli said.
“You are backed into a corner! Give up Mark, and I will let you live; or I'll just toss in a few hand grenades, and walk away,” Lily yelled moments later.
Mark swallowed hard. If Lily tossed in a hand grenade, Red team would lose the extra points, and Mark would be killed for this round. But it wasn't something he wanted to experience first hand. It would also rob Red of all their hard work.
But, if Holli gave Mark up; Red team would still get half the capture points, and no one had to die. Mark looked back at Holli, and she was smiling.
“Go to her, Mark. You've been rescued, fair and square.”
Mark took a step forward and looked back at Holli.
“Go," she said. "Even half the points are worth something. Besides, we can find you again, later.”
Team rally points are normally considered safe zones;, but, once the Red team took Mark inside as a POW, it changed to a combat zone. It was a risk Red team decided was worth it.
Mark stepped out of the rally point, and Lily pulled him behind a wall, “Take off your Holoband. It's too dangerous to try to get you to safety.”
Mark looked shocked, if he took off his Holoband he'd lose points for leaving before the game was over, “But I'll lose my game points.”
“I know, but you're at risk of getting hurt. You didn't make any kills, so all you'll lose will be the one hundred game play points. Log off, and wait for us in your safe room,” Lily said as she checked Mark carefully over.
Then she watched as Mark raised his hand, and vanished.