Exterminators Infected (The Exterminators Book 1) (32 page)

“You didn't do any of that. It's all bull!” Marshall shouted. This time Nick held him back. “I know you! I know you'd never hurt anyone!”

Aric grabbed Fred and pushed him forward. They began to walk past the boys. Nick held Marshall back despite Marshall not fighting much. He watched as his best friend passed him by. Besides the slight glance he gave before walking by, Fred kept his head down. He felt ashamed.

As they walked into the gym Marshall fell to his knees. “He didn't do it.”

The boys looked at him. Not sure how to respond. None of them understood what was happening. In a matter of minutes, one of their teammates was dragged away, set up to possibly die. They stood there wanting answers, yet too confused to even ask them.

“He didn't do it...” Marshall's voice dragged on. None of them knew what to do. A part of them was gone. Their team was broken.

Chapter 26 – Trial

Marshall pushed himself out of bed. He felt terrible. His best friend was convicted of multiple offenses. Maria, one of the Protectors that chased after him, lost an eye. She was badly injured and was making sure she held his actions against her accountable. Jin recanted his attack, saying it wasn't the real Fred. Even so Fred had to go on trial.

Jin explained to them that a trial is when they bring an Exterminator panel made up of about six judges and they decide if the accused will be sentenced and then convicted. In serious crimes, such as hurting innocents or attacking fellow Exterminators, the penalty is usually death. If it came to that they would execute him a day after the sentence was announced.

Marshall got dressed. It was a Saturday and he had the whole day free. He told Lucy he had problems at the Station and would be there all day. She didn't ask any questions, just told him to be safe. He wanted nothing more but to spend his day with her. Now he had to go to a trial in which his best friend could be sentenced to death. He was scared out of his mind for Fred.

He slipped on his shoes while thinking about all the times he had spent with Fred. He remembered when they would cut eighth grade classes and head to the movies. They were still best friends then. The year after that it all changed. They would skip every Friday and check out whatever latest movie came out. It went on for over four months before the school finally called up their parents. Fred's parents didn't even bother to come home from their trip. Marshall's parents yelled at him but that was about it. So they continued to do it till school was let out.

He walked outside, bundling his jacket up some. There was a cold chill in the air today. Gloomy and dark. He looked up at the sky. Grey. It was as if to show how empty and shallow this world could be at times. He focused on the road ahead and made his way towards the Station.

He remembered times when Fred would sleep over at his house when they were kids. They would build forts in his room by placing pillows on top of each other to play king. They would make believe his little brother, Matt, would be the main big bad guy. He would roar and come towards the fort. Then Fred and Marshall would jump out and attack. The fort always got destroyed, even if Matt never reached it, which then it would be their fault. They didn't care, it was to much fun to care.

Marshall didn't want to think about the past. It was hard to imagine it was so long ago. Everything changed during high school. Once it came along, Marshall began hanging out with the football team because of class. Fred moved to the quiet side, never making any other friends. Marshall left him there. He wanted to become popular and Fred didn't. So he simply focused on himself trying to fit in with people who never wanted to be real friends with him. He only realized it at the end of high school. Was it too late? He thought so. He thought how lonely it must have been for Fred. With the weight issues, Fred never went on dates. With his boring style, none of the kids really wanted to hang out with him. His main friends were online. He played video games with people more than ever hanging out with anyone in person. Was that his best friend's life? Being alone, all the time? Not even having his parents around to comfort their own child?

Marshall hated himself at that moment. He clinched his fists. He could feel himself wanting to cry but he kept his composure. He couldn't let himself fall, not yet. He had to be strong. Had to be strong for his best friend. It was him on trial, it was Fred. If he faltered now, he'd be no better than when he left his best friend to hang out with the popular kids. No, this time he was going to be there for support.
As Peter was walking towards the Station he still felt that awful knot.
“Why didn't I tell them about me? Why did I tell them about Fred? Why? Why did you do that?”
He spoke to himself but came up with no answer. He felt terrible for what he had done.

When he came home later that night his mom hugged him like never before. His father was in jail at the moment. No one had the money to bail him out, nor did anyone want to. Peter was okay with that. If he saw his dad he wasn't sure what he'd do. His mom told the police what happened to him but without any proof they couldn't press those charges. Peter liked it that way. He’d rather not be in the local newspaper stating how he was beaten by his drunken father.

He made sure his sister was okay from the whole altercation. She assured him that she was fine. She looked more worried about his face than anything else. He laughed and told her it was just a scrap. He'd be fine. Little did she know that their father almost killed his own son. Peter thought it was best she didn't know that.
Peter rested longer than usual. His normal six hours of sleeping became over ten. He felt tired. Not physically tired either. It was the first time he felt guilt. He betrayed one of his only friends and couldn't own up to it. He didn't know how to fix this problem. He tried to formulate a solution but nothing sprang to mind. All the power in the world was in his Rod, yet nothing could change his friend’s fate. Fred might die tomorrow and he felt he was to blame.

Peter watched as two friends played catch across the street. The one friend had great aim while the other barely could throw. The perfect shot waved it off and told him he'd get better. The other seemed so angry even though it was just a game. Peter felt the kid’s pain. Others saw things as no big deal, when he felt it meant the world to him. This kid who couldn't aim was trying to prove he was good. Why didn't anyone else see that?

Peter still didn't know who he was trying to prove anything to. As he walked against the cold, he tried to figure it out. Every time he went to training, he felt he was reaching a new goal. A goal that felt untouchable. It couldn't be reached because there was no answer to it all. He trained and trained for something, but he couldn't figure out what that something was.
He tried to wipe his mind clean. He knew he could do it. He didn't think about anything. Lack all emotions. He was good at that. He kept walking, letting the wind touch his face. He let everything in his mind fly away. No matter what the strong knot in his feeling remained. A reminder of what he did wrong.
Nick sat on the steps of the Station waiting. His two teammates should arrive any minute now. He could only focus on one teammate though. The one he failed. It crushed him. Fred could very well die today and he couldn't do a thing about it. He couldn't save his friend, despite being their leader. This was his job and he failed at it. He had one more ace up his sleeve but if it didn't work out. Then all of this would have been a waste.

Nick always tried to help people out. It was just who he was. Yet, when it came to helping out a friend, one who desperately needed it, he was failing. He tried to stop them by force yesterday, but it would have made the situation worse. They probably would have condemned all of them if he pressed the assault.

He told Kelly he might be busy the next few days. She would usually argue but she must have heard the strain in his voice. She simply told him that she loved him and to take care of himself. Call her if he needed to talk. He kept that in the back of his mind. If the trials went wrong today, he wasn't sure who he could turn to.

He watched the cars passing him on the streets. It was a slow day with very little traffic, which was basically unheard of in New York City. The gloomy skies did this, though. People didn't like to go out when there was a dreadful aura surrounding the city. The skies as plain as possible, as dull as possible, the morbid feeling taking over the city kept many off the streets. It was as if it was a true representation of what was happening on this day, yet no one out on the streets knew about what was happening underground.

He saw Peter walking down the block now. Nick smiled and got up. He didn't want to be alone anymore. When he was, the thoughts of failure crept into his mind. Little did he know all three boys were having similar thoughts.

“Hey Pete, how ya doing?” he asked as his friend approached. As usual Peter kept up a blank appearance not showing any emotions. Nick confused it sometimes as a cover or wondered if that was how he actually operated.

“I'm fine. Any word from Carl?”

“Nada. I heard to meet here from Jin and that's all. I hope Fred's doing okay.”

“I doubt they would mistreat him.”

“Yeah...I can't believe it. Why did they go after him? Did he really flip out or something?” Nick couldn't understand it. Fred was the most stable in the group. He was a happy-go-lucky person who just liked to have fun. To imagine him attacking his fellow Exterminators, almost killing her, just didn't seem logical to Nick. He couldn't comprehend it.
Peter could answer the first question. He knew why they went after him. Did he really change into a monster though? Peter saw a slight hint of something hidden beneath but was too preoccupied by other things to really take notice. Now he wanted to know more. “I-” he began when Marshall came up from behind.

“Hey,” he said. He looked whiter than usual. The cold air mixed with the gut wrenching knot in his stomach.

“Hey. Are you doing okay man?” Nick asked.
“I'm fine. Any word from Fred?”

“No,” they both answered. Marshall nodded.

“Peter, did you read anything about these trials?” Marshall asked. Peter turned to him, surprised he actually asked him a question.

“I don't know much. I've read a little and Jin mentioned how they are run, but that's about it. A few judges on the bench while he pleads his case. The majority of votes wins. There'll be stands for us to watch so we can see the trial.” Peter placed hand on the bottom of his chin, rubbing it while thinking of the what was to come. “I don't know who the judges are. They may be random for all I know.”

“They are,” Jin said from the doorway. They looked up at him. “It's time to go. We gotta get to the trial sector. Let's go.” Jin turned around and the boys followed. They could feel the pressure more now than ever.
They made their way through the Station, going through the gym and passing the double doors on the other side. The boys had never been to this area. When they entered, they were amazed. The room was huge. Blue in design with two huge computers on both sides of the room. They lit up like a Christmas tree. Green, yellow, and red lights going off on them. In the center of the room were ten pods. They had an oval shape, all linking up to dark tunnels in front of them. “These are transporters. They take us to other Stations and sectors,” Jin announced. They looked on in amazement.

Marshall went up to one and touched it. A cold chill from the machinery greeted his touch. It was massive. Able to easily fit him and give him enough wiggle room. “We ride this thing?”

“Yep,” Jin said happily.

“Man, I thought the horror ended with the elevators,” Nick said laughing. The boys all had a good laugh then. The tension in the room lifted some.

“Need me to ride with you?” Marshall grinned.

“Uhh no, I think I'll survive.”

“If you’re scared though I can be there for you,” Marshall said in a high pitch voiced. “Don't ever be scared, sweetie.”

“I will punch you if you keep talking,” Nick said with a dry smile. He touched the pod's glass. It slid open quickly. “Do we really just hop in?”

“That's right,” Jin opened his own and jumped in. “Once in hit the blue button. That will close the top. Hit 331. That's the trial area. It's a fifteen minute commute. So just stay calm and relax, it'll be over before you know it.

All three boys got in their own pods. They did as they were instructed. The pods closed and they began moving forward slowly. Nick grabbed tightly on the sides of the pod. He was worried how fast they would go. Surely not much faster than the elevators. He bit his lip. The pod shot forward. He was pushed back with such force he could feel his upper lip lift. He already hated the trip.
A screen projected on the pod's glass. It was Jin who looked very comfortable sitting in his seat opposite of Nick. “This is the fastest way of transportation. You could get to another state in less than thirty minutes. I prefer it to cars.”

“Yeah, this is pretty fly!” Marshall said excitedly. He was projected on another screen, looking around his pod enjoying watching all the lights blinking around him.

“I'll take my chances with my test in the summer. I want a car. This is horrible,” Nick said gritting his teeth. The pressure on his body was more annoying than anything else.

“Oh you big old baby. This is awesome!”

“Shut up, Marshall!”

“No, you shut up!”

“Both of you shut up!” Peter now screamed as he was also brought up on the screen. They both went silent. Then all three broke out into a laugh. Jin watched them laughing for a moment and joined in. With all the tension there had to be something to break it. Acting like kids wasn't a bad idea.

They arrived a few minutes later at a new Station. As they got up they looked around the room they had just arrived in. It was very similar to the pod room at their base. “Did we just travel back in time?” Marshall asked.

“Why would we travel back in time?” Nick shook himself. He still felt some effects from the pod trip.

“This room looks the same as the one we left from.”

“It's the pod Station. They won't be vastly different,” Peter informed them. Jin nodded to show he was right.

“That's stupid,” Marshall said waving his hand. “They could have at least put a new coating of paint or something. People will get confused,” he said as he walked towards the doors. The boys followed. Jin looked back at the pods watching them close automatically. They had finally arrived, yet none of them wanted to be here.