Sleeper

Beads of sweat dripped from Jedrick’s pores, soaking his t-shirt as he waited in the operating room. The metal chair he was strapped to wasn’t ergonomically designed, being without pants or underwear didn’t help.

Across the room, Hassan prepped his surgical tools. This operation he was about to perform was not only dangerous but could kill Jedrick and himself in the process. If he made the slightest mistake, the Delegation would have his head and Jedrick would bleed to death.

Hassan pushed a metal table towards the operating chair where Jedrick awaited, dodging any eye contact.

Fear encompassed them both in this moment. Several seconds passed before Hassan brought his eye gaze to Jedrick’s, who gave a slow nod to signal he was ready.

Hassan picked up his scalpel and brought it down between Jedrick’s legs. “I only need enough to make the weapon. The incision won’t be large, and it will heal in no time.”

“Whatever, just do it,” Jedrick replied dryly.

Hassan sliced the delicate skin, holding a small bucket underneath. Jedrick jerked slightly, though he tried desperately not to.

“Remind me why you need blood from that area?” Jedrick questioned, speaking through his teeth in an attempt to hide his discomfort.

“Blood from this location houses your genetic code. No other area of your body contains it, so there is no other option.” Hassan refused to look up as he spoke. “This blood is more than the typical helix; it is comprised of 1’s and 0’s. It also contains Quicksilver, thus making the weapon venomous enough to work once I fuse it with the counterparts.”


After he was glued back together, Jedrick redressed. His gaze followed Hassan, who brought the blood to his workstation, pouring it into a beaker containing liquid metals. Perfecting the concoction, he poured it into one half of an alloy, square mold.

Sealing the mold halves with latches affixed each side, he slid the box into a machine that reads “NITROGEN.” He closed the lid and stood there for a few seconds before pulling the mold out.

Frost covered the mold and icy fog burst from the sides as he unlatched it. Removing the lid, they peered down to gaze upon a crimson red metal dagger. It glimmered like glass, printed with countless 1’s and 0’s. It was indestructible and the only weapon that could kill the rogue.

Just then, two Delegation members walked into the operating room clad in white robes trimmed with red, covered from head to toe. Their masks bore the symbol of their homeworld, a stitched red dagger fashioned from 1’s and 0’s.

Jedrick was briefed on his mission, informed that he would have no recollection of anything until the mission was complete. He would be controlled remotely, and the rest was on a need-to-know-basis.

Jedrick felt a shock of electricity surge through his body, jerking him violently, as they rendered him unconscious.


Jedrick came to, lying in the middle of a vast, green field. Shards of sound pierced his eardrums as thunder clapped overhead, a grey atmosphere pelted cold rain onto his face. Sluggish and confused, he sat up and evaluated his surroundings. A bulge protruded from the waist of his pants. Touching it with his hand, he discovered it was a knife.

Furiously, he shouted, “Where am I? What is this?” His voice was absorbed by rolling thunder. Sheets of precipitation shrouded the landscape around him, except for a castle off in the distance. Without hesitation, he started towards it.

By the time he reached his destination, he was completely soaked. As he came upon the castle’s cryptic brick walls, a wooden door had emerged, already slightly ajar. Jedrick looked around, certain he was being watched, and wandered inside, regardless.

The entryway began as a long brick tunnel, lit by torches mounted along the wall. He hadn’t walked but a yard when he looked behind him to find that the entrance had disappeared. He removed his sodden shoes. Knowing what to expect or why he was even here, seemed beyond him at this point.

Tunnels seemed to slope downward the further he walked. He then heard something echo throughout the hall; the sound of girls having a discussion, piquing his interest. Using his ears as a compass, the voices led him to an arched doorway.

Peering around the edge, he observed two girls, both naked. He felt a pain in his crotch as his pants began to tighten. To distract himself from becoming aroused, he shifted his attention towards the walls, noticing they were constructed of the same white brick, rounded to make the room look circular. Torches lined the wall, illuminating the two girls.

Bound by the wrists and ankles, one girl sat on her knees at the foot of the other girl, who stood over her. Jedrick thought the girl standing looked strikingly familiar, but he couldn’t summon the memory.

The red dagger began to glow and pulsate. He pulled the knife from his waist and red light spilled into the tunnel.

Luminescence caught the eye of the standing woman. Her head snapped towards the doorway as she emitted a high-pitched shriek.

He thrust the knife outward towards her chest as she ran towards him, impaling herself on it. Instantaneously, his memories came flooding back.

Bare, porcelain skin faded to grey as Jedrick looked into her eyes, recognizing his soulmate before her form faded into 1’s and 0’s, then sequentially into dust. Glistening, the knife fell to the floor, and he remembered: she intended to spread sexual disease among the people of this world, and he was hired to kill her.

A member of the Delegation materialized into the room next to the girl who remained; from behind the mask, eyes like stone stared into her dilated pupils. Suddenly gasping, her eyes rolled back into her head before she collapsed.

Jedrick nodded at the councilman, and together they faded from the castle, retreating to their homeworld.