THE GATE KEEPER (20 page)

       ‘I
would need helped to take him in,’ the assailant suggested.

         
Agent
Nastassja
Taylor was behind
shihan
ready to board. She stood still, turn back to the boy and his captor. His
hand was tied to the front as he lay dormant on his back.

‘Sure,’
Agent Taylor muttered.

With
utter amazement she stares, wonder how a tall and well build up man like his colleague
couldn’t lift the young boy who was not yet a man.

Big
Mac and
Nastasja
stood the opposite side of the young
unconscious body. As if reading each other’s mind they systematically kneel
down. They grab him by intertwining their arms into his.

‘On
the count of three,’ Big Mac confirmed.

‘One,
two and….,’ she made the count.

‘Three,’
Big Mac said as he gave out the momentum rhythm for the first lift.

As
a team they lift him up and drag him towards the stealthy plane. The drag felt
light as they combine forces. They had felt his legs lightly brushing the
floor. For them this had been inevitable.

At
the plane big Mac glanced at his partner as he looked at the last obstacle. The
thirty five degree incline door. He could neither feel a slack nor a desire to
stop from the other side. She had kept up with it. She showed no sign of
weakness.
Born ready with robust personality proven availed in hard
circumstances,
he thought. Inside red lights flickers. Their employer
watched them as they both walk up at the same speed.

On
board their master waited until they were across the pivot line of the door.
Once inside both dump him in the closest available seat at the back. Big Mac
quickly secure the package by reaching for an attached V shape metal harness
from the seat and drive it down. Tightened against the boy’s body he gave it a
sudden pull. It produce a mechanise sound. This was enough to assure him that
the lock was forging its purpose.

Master
had given the on board computer the right to secure the door by gesturing his
hand with an erect finger in a circular motion. Sensors from within had
detected it and the door was moving up. Agent Taylor had walked towards him.
She stretched her arms and shoulders while they waited for big Mac.

The
plane took off as its door sealed. The assailant turned his head sideways and
rotated his shoulders in a circular motion. They cracked. He felt better. The
tension of the weight had been released.

He
proudly walked the aisle of seats facing them. The empty seats of unused metal
harness which were locked and facing the ceiling. He head for them. The man he
had called master and his
ninjutsu
colleague.

I
felt weightless. As if gravity seized to co-exist. I could see myself through a
tunnel. Except it wasn’t a normal tunnel. Its wall of marvellous rainbow colour
captures my mind. It moves fast. I had no control upon the inertia of my body.
It bends down and sideways. I close my eyes as the agony of my head
prevails.    

Everything
seems to be moving fast until I open my eyes. Ahead a white light could be seen
at the edge of the tunnel. Closing in I notice a crystal clear substance. Upon
reaching a desired velocity my body’s momentum deduced.

Suspended
in a strange, circular and vertical motion I notice how it emits the light at
the other side. Beautiful glowing patterns of light tempted me to touch it. I
reach out for it. I wanted to feel its presence.

I
felt close. The water like effect of what appears to be a substance was simply
amazing. With my hand inches away I felt an abnormal force pushing my body
through. The light felt intense. My eyes got sting by the sun.

I
had no choice, except to shield my face and eyes with my arms as I got thrown
forcefully. At the other side with my face on the ground I felt compel with fear.
Face down on an unknown sedge ground I wonder what had happened. My heart races
sending adrenaline fear rushing through my vein.    

         
I take a peek at the back. The circular door of water-like substance merges and
vanishes with its environment. Gone was for sure.

Chuckles
of amusement and a sense of shyness caught my attention.

Sound
friendly,
I thought.

‘
Phil
there’s no need to be on the ground.’ An amicable female teased.

It
felt like a pitch I’ve heard before.
I know you…,
I challenge my sanity.

Once
more I overheard the familiar chuckle. The same tone of friendly voice.
Unafraid I look around. I could see us at the back of the school.
Yes us,
at
least that’s what my heart and mind had concluded each time I met her.

That
tingling sensation I had been accustomed to since when I first met her at
school.

Samantha
Burk,
she had told me.

She
was displaying her thin modelling body. Her long blonde hair got caught up in
the gust of wind. Samantha looks at me flush and chuckle as she walks towards
me. I end up swallowing saliva as she playfully modelled for me.

‘How
you bring joy to my life Phil Smith.’ She expressed with sensual delight.

Though
I had not known her that long, she had made it easy for both of us.

‘What’s
the matter, pretty boyfriend can’t catch his tongue? It’s only me,’ Samantha
teased with a sense of humour.

Speechless
I stare at her wonderful figure which was shape properly in her long evening
gown. It fit her nicely that it gave her the appearance of innocence. An angel
sent to extinguish and suppress hate. Her presence mysteriously enlightened and
broadened the love I taught I never had.

Her
hands reach out to touch mine. Still on the ground as if under a hallucinating
spell I stretch my right arm. Instantly the sunny day turn moody. I felt it but
nothing could prevent me from reaching out for her. She slowly turns her head
skywards.

Imitating
her I turn sideways and stare at the sky. Dark thick cloud races towards the
marvellous blue sky and covers the sun. Intensity of the wind builds up as
lightning traces its path through the dark sky and thunder roars. Tremor starts
to shake the ground. Unbelievable cracks made its way from underneath our feet
to the school nearby.

Tearing
sound of grassy ground to bricks brought shuddering terror from both of us.
With horror we glance at the volatile and progressive move of the crack. Then
we patiently look at each other.

‘Phil
what is going on?’

I
didn’t have an answer but I felt like she deserved some sort of comfort though
I could not think of any. ‘I don’t know.’

The
bricks fall apart. Trees went down crashing on the ground. The ground
mysteriously got swallows up. Samantha looks at me with watery eyes.
Uncontrollable fear drastically quivers her body. She gasps for air as tears
rolls over her cheeks. Panic seized control of her.

Deep
down I had felt the same. I close my eyes and suck my fear in. I stand up. I
try to settle my body’s equilibrium against the moving ground. Hopeless and
thrown to the cracked ground I forcefully struggle to stand up. Struck with
mortal fear I shockingly watch Samantha’s body gradually lifting up.

‘Phil!
Help! Please!’ She screamed as she open her arms to reach out for me.

With
my back to the ground I stretch my hands. Half a metre away from me I had no
choice. I had to stand up to reach her.
Impossible under all that chaos,
I
thought. Behind her an immense powerful circular doorway sucks everything.
Chunks of bricks, ground, trees and concrete footpath went flying by.

Samantha
flows backward.

‘Samantha!’
I cried out.

‘Phil!’
She cried out.

Debris
of concrete and trees flying by knock her unconscious. She was gone. I close my
eyes scream and weep.

Unknown
shudder woke me up. Dizzy with hallucination I remain calm until my vision
starts making sense. My hands were tightened together. A ‘V’ shape metal
harness had strapped my body to an unknown surrounding that seems to operate
either up and down.

Opposite
to where I was sitting were seats similar to the one I was in. Each of them has
metal harness facing the ceiling. I turn to my right and notice that the wall
was slightly raised at an incline angle from the floor. 

‘I
see that the turbulence has brought you to life Mr Smith,’ someone from the
opposite direction said.

Immediately
I turn around to face the stranger. I saw all three of them standing rigid.
Staring at me and yet two of them seems to be fixing their strange uniform. The
lady assassin and my captor were standing opposite to each other. They help
each other strap the strange uniform.

At
that point I realised that Samantha was not dead. At least not for real as it
felt surreal after all. For now I know that she was dead only in my dreams. The
thought of seeing her again boost up my moral to live.

The
man the muscular assassin have called master walk towards me. ‘Ready for the
next round
?…
cause we are,’ he said joyfully as he take
a peek at his foot soldiers.

I
was busy looking at his two specialists behind him. Devotees to unknown cause
which I was yet to comprehend. As their master move closer, they had carry on
to help each other with the strapping of some weird futuristic suit.

Their
leader was close. Gazing through my eyes and tracing it to the targets behind
him he smiled. With a jovial smile on his face he says, ‘Impressive isn’t it?’

Mute
I kept on staring.

‘Let
me introduce this technology to you. Exoskeleton technology…’

His
foot soldiers turn and face both of us. There were thin metal straps with their
strange robotic boots. It protruded part work in harmony with their body’s
outline. It extends upwards to their hips.

‘…outstanding
mechanise piece of kit,’ the old man proudly said. ‘…..in your time, its blue
print had just been electronically pen down and had not been transformed into
reality. Science fiction in your time and science fact within ours…’

I
begin to wonder where he was heading with this conversation.
Come on old man
get on with it.
His speech somehow aided me to think straight. With him
being occupy of his speech I knew that I stand a chance of freeing my hands.

At
least I had to try.

‘…Its
main task is to make any individual ten times or even more powerful than any
average person,’ he said zealously.

I
still remain mute and observed them as they approach. 

He
carry on, ‘on this mission their task is to find the hidden truth from within.’

‘So
you’re a team of child beater?’ I brought in a sense of sarcasm.

He
stays quiet for a while. Listening to the hum of the aircraft and the
monotonous thud of the robotic boots which instil fear through me.
Curiosity
of their ill fate plan troubles my mind.

The
old man point a finger to one of his ear, ‘do you hear the slight vibration?’

He
pauses and stare at me deep in my eyes. As if he had expected me to crack under
fearsome pressure. Deep down the jolt I was hearing did scared me.
I had to
find a way out
, I thought.

I
glance at him and the exoskeleton beings heading our way. ‘We can make a deal.’

He
turns around and nods at his foot soldiers. The jolt came to an end. He
produces a mischievous smile and says, ‘I’m all ears. Do not mistake me for a
fool. You see fear is the ultimate goal when it comes to gaining access to
information.’

‘We
can exchange information.’

There
was an element of surprise as he sighs while staring at me. ‘Are you making a
mockery out of us? In that right mind of yours, do you see yourself under any
circumstances able to strike a deal?’

Muse
with a pause I felt I had to come up with a smart answer though I was running
out of them. ‘Definitely no, I was just hoping that you could only reach out
for the gentleman in you and greet me with mercy,’ I challenged.

He
sighed joyfully as if surmising himself as the claim gentleman. After a small
pause he frowningly states, ‘aren’t we all a survivor when it comes to saving
our skin?’

Puzzle
I felt that I deserved an answer. ‘What do you mean?’ Irritating, I asked.

He
glances at me with blunt emotions. Then he walks away in a slow circular pattern
and carries on, ‘we all got secrets and yours is one I’m trying to figure out.’

With
confrontation scepticism I ask, ‘where are you coming from with this argument?’

‘The
fact is that you don’t probably recognise me.’ At a halt near the door he looks
at me. ‘Do you recognise the old face you see before you?’ he asked.

I
studied the contours of wrinkles, shape and elevation of his face. The neat
shaven beard, Moustache and decent trim haircut made him appeared ten years
younger. Facts that he was not bothered about dying them were in plain sight.

‘Sorry
for disappointing you but I still can’t figure out who you are. Are you
supposed to be a superstar?’

He
lunge a fist in my face.
Fast and unpredictable for an old man,
thoughtful sarcasm which I wanted to share but instead I decided to stay mute.
Burning sensation from my nose and inner lips had forcefully made me divert my
thoughts.

With
my lips I could assess the damage done. Inside my lips I could taste the blood
oozing out of the miniscule cut. At the bridge of my nose I felt warm fluid
flowing towards my mouth. I lick a sample to confirm the taste of blood.

The
old man opens his arms and smile. Winking and gesturing that I should know him.
‘It’s me, your old buddy Michael!’ he said as he laughed.

It
felt odd. Michael, my colleague in my time and a friend I was not sure of it.
He had always felt that he was my competitor instead of a friend. I was in the
future. His present, therefore his aging appearance made sense but there was
one thing that did not add up. His mystify involvement with the whole show.

‘Surprise,
eh,’ Michael said as he carry on laughing.

There
was no doubt that the old Michael was enjoying his gleeful humour. He takes a
peek at his foot soldiers. My male captor gave him a jovial smile. My female
captor seems not to care much as she bluntly looks at me.

‘What
really happened between you and me? Back then we use to be buddies.’ I lied.

Caught
by surprise he kept quiet. ‘Friends eh, now we’re friends,’ he insisted.

I
kept quiet. Silently I was begging for him to vomit the facts.

‘You
see we were once friends that we stop competing against each other and we had
entrepreneurship marriage between our companies. Your promise to our mutual
bond was for us not to have any business secrets. For ten long years my ability
to financially make headway with your ability to invent was far beyond the
reach of those that envy us. Five years ago you disappeared and I noticed a big
chunk of our funds gone.’

‘You
mean I stole from you.’  

‘Yes
us, half of our corporation money. Five hundred billions of dollars wipe out
without a trace. You see with that kind of corporate money gone missing you can
expect those at the board and its investors to get answers. Money I was
accountable for as the CEO of our company. Being a member of the board I had
the responsibility to investigate as they held me liable for the crimes.’

I
could not resist of not insisting at the continuous impulse of the motives of
the theft. ‘What’s the motive behind it?’ I press for a provocative and
controversial question.

There
was an immediate silence of speech. Michael glance at me and his two
specialists with daze confusion. My guess is that he must have never seen that
coming.

‘Clueless,’
he said, pondering for the truth. 

‘I
thought I was indeed a friend that you perfectly knew.’ I fish for the facts.

‘That’s
why we’re all here today. After five years of you, gone missing with an illegal
lump sum, I finally got in touch with you twenty four hours ago.’

Instantly
he kept quiet in search for reasoning. Low hum of some sort of engine’s flight
persists. We all stare at him waiting for him to satisfy our hunger and desire
for the vital information.

‘So
we did meet again.’

‘Not
in person but electronically through a hologram’s message of yourself. Like
I’ve promise this little reunion is all about finding the truth.’

He
turns, stares at the muscular assassin and says, ‘Mr Mac.’

Thud
sound of heavy machinery boots brought in fears as Mac turns his back and face
the front. His stunning colleague’s eyes did not dare to keep me out of her
sight. In between the two exoskeleton soldiers there was an empty space which
leads ahead to where the aisle came to a halt.

 
        Mac raises his hands with slow
precision. He slowly twists his hands. Metal made quenching sound and bolts
from the front flows backward to us. Then he closed his fist and part of an
unseen door collapsed. He cross both of his hands and open them wide. There was
a loud bang and there was an opening straight to the pilot seat.

         
In between the pilot and the man-made crevice I could see the time machine. I
felt that there was hope. Helplessness vanishes as I search for a way out of
this miserable seat. Determine to free myself I glance at the ‘V’ shape of the
metal harness. At the bottom of the metal harness I notice a red button.

         
‘Well somebody had been hiding a secret? We know that you know what it is. The
only problem is that we don’t know what it is. After years of keeping me in the
dark I heard from you two weeks ago. Finally it seems you decided to trust me
again. But you chose to trust me on handing over this weird machine to you
without explaining it to me. It doesn’t make sense,’ Phil said as he turn his
back and stare at the time capsule.

         
I slowly lift my elbow up, squeezing my cable tied hands where the ‘V’ shape
metal meet and comes to a halt once my thumb reach the red button.

         
He glances at me and says, ‘It’s only now which I get part of the mystery.
Uncontrolled circumstances must have occurred and I must be part of the cure.’

         
I press the button. Abrupt disengagement of the locking mechanism unloosed the
safety harness. I fully stretch my hands skyward. Pushing the harness up and
then I let it go. Before I could get a chance to fully stand Phil execute a
back kick in my belly. It cut off my supply of air and I land back in the seat.

         
He follows up with a kick in my throat. He left it there and applies pressure.

         
‘Nice try, but we came well prepared and we can guarantee that you won’t
escape,’ Phil snapped.

         
Starved of air I felt like I was about to leave this world. I started to feel
dizzy until he eases his side kick at my neck. Then he says, ‘stand down I got
this. What is the purpose of that strange machine?’

         
Both of his soldiers stood down as requested. They maintain alert. Ready to
intervened if their employer lost. I lunge my tied hands towards the back of
his knee while I kick the side knee of the supporting leg. He went down and I
stand up connecting my knee to his face. He instantly went down on his side.

         
‘Get him!’
Nastassja
cried out.

Big
Mac throws two fast flights of punches. I step away and counter attack with two
side kick to his face. Without delay he coordinates with my movements and
blocks it with his open palm.

         
On the floor Phil was on all fours. His face was bloody. I sprint, jump on him
and produce a semi flying kick on big Mac chest. He went off balance for a
while and quickly recovers. The lady assassin caught me by the neck, lift me up
and throw me at the back. I land at the incline door.

         
She helps her boss to stand up. Phil uses her for support and was on his feet
in no time. There was a sudden vibration. Then I felt the incline door moving
down. Mac had press the emergency button. He was smiling at me as the door
slowly open.
I had to get to the time capsule
, I promised myself.

         
Michael removes a white handkerchief from his pocket and wipes the blood off
his face. Then he says, ‘there’s no way out as you can see. The only way out is
down my friend, unless you tell us what we want to know.’

         
Big Mac rushes on me. Like a mad bull he throws punches at different angle and
I try to block. It was so fast and powerful that it went through the block. It
brought me down to my knees. He quickly caught me by one arm and
Nastassja
copied the same movement.

         
With my feet barely touching the floor and my arms lock I felt powerless. Gust
of wind mixed with drizzle moves through the open door. I felt cold and afraid.