ASBO-Boy - The Battle of Dyfatty, Part Six

As the door dissolved in front of him, light poured in from outside, blinding Helix momentarily. In the distance he could hear helicopters, throbbing like war drums. He was expecting to see an array of soldiers with weapons raised, awaiting him, but the courtyard between the flats was deserted. All apart from one person.

"Helix, my son," Dr Euryale was standing in the centre of the car park, a halo of sunlight glowing around him, "What have you done?"

Even now, his soft, comforting voice was hard to resist. He was disappointed and Helix couldn't help feeling guilty. Looking down at the sword he'd forged out of dust, Helix felt small and young.

"I had to see for myself." Helix replied softly. "I had to know."

"And are you happy now that you know the truth?" Euryale demanded, "Are you happy that your actions have derailed the programme, undermined my authority – my vision?"

Helix levelled his eyes with Euryale's and returned the cold stare. "You created this mess. Not me."

Euryale sighed, "And it is my responisibility to bear the brunt of maintaining it. No matter the cost."

Helix had to smile, "You're threatening me."

"I made you. I can unmake you also."

"We're all expendable, I suppose. Even me?" Helix muttered, tracing a line on the ground with the sword. Euryale didn't answer. He didn't have to.

They both moved at once, Helix lunging forward with his sword and Euryale diving for his pocket. Before Helix could cross half the distance, a wave of nausea passed over him. Helix stumbled, dropping the sword to the ground with a ringing clatter.

"For what it's worth, I'm sorry." Euryale smiled sickly. He was holding a small cylinder in his hand, his thumb pressed firmly over the top. "Betrayal was one of the first things I factored when I created you. Control, despite your genetic make-up was never something I intended to relinquish."

Helix's vision was beginning to blurr. His whole body was shaking uncontrollably. With horror, what Euryale had done to him dawned on Helix with clarity. Somehow, he'd managed to de-stabilise his control, take away his ability to regulate his power.

Radiation, he thought. Euryale had used it to create him, now he must have used some form of radiaition to unlock a clause in his make-up. Helix pushed himself into a sitting position. Beneath him the ground shook, almost imperceptibly at first, then stronger, growing in strength.

"What have you done?" Euryale gasped.

Helix couldn't help but laugh. His body was falling apart, his control slipping like a fever. It was Core, destroying the foundations of the complex beneath their feet.

"I'd run if I were you." Helix whsipered, his voice grating like a rasp over stone.

Euryale didn't waste much time, just a brief hesitation. Helix sat on the cold stone and grasped for the sword. Maybe there was an honourable way out. Before he fell apart, before he lost himself to the poison sweeping through his cells.

Then it occurred to him. There was a better way. He could deliver the final blow. Consume half the city in a ball of fire they'd see from space. With all the strength he had left in him he concentrated on seperating his molecules faster. But with each passing second he felt more and more of his control slipping beyond him.

Distantly, over the sound of the explosions in his ears he could sense someone approaching. A blur became form and mass as Vue stumbled over to him.

"Helix!" he gasped, his voice ringing like a peal of bells.

"Run, Vue. I can't hold it much longer." He heard himself saying.

Vue nodded, looking around. In a flash, he was gone.

Finally, Helix thought, he could finish it.

The following day:

"Yesterday, the city mourned as terrorist suicide bombers destroyed the Dyfatty flats. The Elementals, brought in on a routine mission to silence the dissenting party, wasted no time in establishing their authority. However, things slipped out of hand and a small nuclear device was detonated, levelling half of the old city."

The following month:

"Dr Euryale has announced that there will be a new line-up of Elementals to replace those sadly lost last month."

The following year:

"One year after the now infamous Battle of Dyfatty, the city remembers its brave protectors and the never-ending fight against the dissenting voice. In this time of increased civil unrest, the importance of remembering those who have died trying to keep the peace is more important than ever. The ASBO programme and the fight to combat Otherness continues."