Episode 176: Repercussions (Guy)

The day had gone sour. Pairing two brothers together had gone from full of potential to a disaster. Both were stuck training, working through the same loop until the almost impossible was achieved.

“I had no idea,” Cecil muttered as they passed through another set of doors. “I knew he was protective of Thayer, but this borders on suicidal.”

“You need to break him of it,” Guy insisted. “He can’t protect everyone.”

This was coming from someone who was about to fail at his first cull – he was going to get the kids out of there. It was Cecil’s idea, at least. He understood it, but Asa and Pip both needed to be hardened and it was their job to harden them.

They mattered here, but they weren’t impervious to culls.

“He’s going to get himself removed from the program,” Guy added for effect. He knew how Cecil felt about all the boys, and he’d heard of him talk about Asa in a way that made it seem like he would be the hardest (and least likely) to cull.

“I don’t care how much you like his eyes for the job,” Guy finished with.

He brushed Cecil’s blonde hair out of his face and kissed his cheek. They kept walking toward Adele’s office, but their hands were interlaced. He knew this wasn’t easy for Cecil.

It was supposed to be a good day.

“Do you have any kids who are little shits?” Cecil asked.

Guy laughed. So much for intense affection. “I have some. But you’ve seen him with Brendan, he can dislike someone. It’s the one he likes he needs to take a step away from.”

A kid acting that way, in this environment, after a decade in this environment, wasn’t going to stop being protective. He needed other incentives. Guy could see the problem growing, but he didn’t want to push Cecil to see it before he was ready. They were a team, and they always stayed a step away from each other’s kids.

“So, we threaten him if the kid can’t perform. Not him, Thayer. If the kid can’t do well, we hurt Thayer; make him resent the kid.”

Adele wasn’t going to play that game much longer.

“Give yourself a day before you tell him that. You’re frustrated right now.” Guy slid his hand to Cecil’s back and massaged as they walked. His kids were still young; when they reached this stage he would have ones he needed help dealing with, grieving for.

“Has he ever failed before?” Guy asked.

“Occasionally, but not with a life on the line.” Cecil leaned into him. “If Adele lets you, you should get the brother out. I almost think he knows, even if only instinctually.”

They looked alike, they had blue eyes which Cecil made sure Asa knew he had. They also had the same builds. Even if Asa never knew he was brothers with Pip, Guy could see them feeling like brothers to one another just because of the journey Asa had been on, wanting to help.

“I’ll speak with her,” Guy replied. Pip was one of his brightest students, it was going to be hard to convince Adele that a prepubescent body wouldn’t turn into a brilliant mind and fit being.

They had almost made it to Adele’s. His boys were back in their room, doing puzzles and other games. Cecil’s were doing laps in the pool. Asa and Pip were working on the course.

“Is that the only punishment for Asa?” Guy asked.

“We’ll see.”

Cecil stopped in front of the double doors that made up Adele’s apartment and office.

She opened them instantly; she had to have been watching on the cameras and known they were coming. It was convenient to not have to wait for her, because she had to the power to make them wait for as long as she wanted.

Guy didn’t like Adele; not many people did. She was ruthless and she enjoyed pain and torment, especially of children. She had long brown hair and she was full bodied. Most things about her seemed off for her role, yet she had made her way there through her ability to push and kill.

“What was that,” she demanded.

“We were hoping to inspire Asa, get Pip to improve physically,” Guy explained.

“You aren’t culling Pip. Asa, maybe.”

“I can dispose of him with the boys tonight. Cecil seems at a loss how to push Asa without acting on threats to Thayer. Asa is too protective.” Then, for fun, he threatened Adele’s golden boy. “If we removed Thayer, you could keep Asa.”

Without blinking or breathing, she exhaled the words, “I’ll take Thayer.” She almost had to catch her body.

It was disgusting. She wanted a boy. That’s all Thayer was.

Adele smiled, brushing her hair back. “I have a job for him here. I’ll talk to Cecil today. Pip…has one more chance. I like his genes but not enough to risk the program over.”

“He’ll be proficient at the course. Asa is working with him until he masters it.”

“Good.” Adele shut the door on them.

Cecil looked at Guy, who looked back and shrugged. They’d done what they needed to do, and the next time the boys messed up they’d be gone.

If the cull went well, Guy had hope. The last part was figuring out how to save themselves, along with Cecil’s daughter.

They walked out, a long night ahead of them. Guy wanted to give the thirty boys some fun, in case the cull didn’t work out. It would be the first, with many to come, but the first meant they wouldn’t know the fun was to compensate.

They were six, and they were losing their innocence that night.

Guy wanted out, he wanted all of them out, but he wasn’t sure he could save the world and himself.

It was too bad, but it was all he had: he’d been raised there too, one of the top five in his class. One of the five percent to survive.

He didn’t, couldn’t, wish that on anyone. He knew how Asa felt, he’d been there. He’d hardened enough to survive, but not enough as it turned out.

Back in their room, Cecil kissed him. Neither was into it, but a hot shower would do before they got to work. Cecil was his Thayer, except he loved him. Too many thoughts raced through his mind, about possibilities, about Adele using Cecil against him or finding out he failed to complete the cull.

Endless possibilities, knots in his back, but he tried to pretend he was okay for Cecil; Cecil tried to pretend too.

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