ABC - Penance
Chapter 1

Introduction

Welcome to another serving of life in the Zone, this time focussing on Police Inspector Luisa Alvarez, whose story began in ABC – The Confession.

In this tale, Luisa is on the trail of the elusive Jacob Tan, once an operative for Jericho-Three but now an enemy of the Archimedes Network.

Please enjoy.

A Man called Pony

Extract from Data files recovered from Jacob Tan

November 2046

Interview with Zeus Tubbs, former Warden Corporal at Labour Camp One

Tan: Thanks for agreeing to this interview, Corporal Tubbs. Our Agency appreciates your cooperation.

Tubbs: That’s fine, Mr Tan. I had to give a heap of these interviews right after the incident, so one more is Okay. Especially since you bought me a nice lunch too!

Tan: You’re welcome, Corporal. May we begin with a brief description of the role you performed at Labour Camp One and how long you were deployed there.

Tubbs: Sure, but it’s just Mister Tubbs these days. I resigned from the Warden Corps not long after the attack. Nowadays I am a plain old Security Guard working in Spitfield City.

Back then I was a Corporal in the Warden Corps and had been in service for close to five years. The Wardens are responsible for security at the Labour Camps in the Zone and we are loosely affiliated to the Police Auxiliary.

We patrol the perimeter fences, man the watchtowers and conduct security patrols within the camp grounds. Whenever there was a prisoner riot or fighting between inmates, our job was to break it up with whatever level of force was required.

I had been deployed at Labour Camp One for eight months, following four years duty in Camps Three and Seven.

Tan: Our records indicate Camp One was considered a dangerous assignment for the Wardens. Most of the highest risk prisoners, especially those who were Awakened, were sent to Camp One. There was a high turnover rate of Wardens at the Camp, often due to injury or disablement.

Tubbs: That’s why I wanted the transfer. After four years I was still only a Warden Corporal. For those who could tough it out, promotions were pretty common at Camp One.

Tan: I see. So you would say you were highly motivated to gain advancement in the ranks?

Tubbs: (Laughter) Nah, I thought it would be an easy path to better pay. I never minded cracking a few heads to keep the peace, so I reckoned I would fit in perfectly at Camp One. It was a lot like I had expected, but they had put most of the trouble-makers in PCDs by the time I started my deployment. That made the riots and brawls short and sweet. (Laughs again)

Tan: PCD’s? Can you elaborate on what those are, Mr Tubbs.

Tubbs: Sure, but I am surprised you need me to explain what they are. Most Labour Camps use them, particularly on any Awakened they have in detention. It stands for Prisoner Control Device, but most Wardens and inmates call them Janglers. They are worn like a collar around the prisoner’s neck and are locked by smart keys. When a prisoner misbehaves the Wardens can trigger them with a remote control to send electric shocks right into their necks.

We all get to sample the delights of a Jangler as part of our training, just so we know what they feel like. Even at the lowest settings those bastards hurt! Whoops, pardon my language there Mr Tan.

Tan: That is fine, Mr Tubbs. Please continue.

Tubbs: Okay. So, PCD’s can be triggered on any prisoner who is getting out of control or refusing to follow orders. They are especially useful on Awakened, as the electric pulses mess with their Abilities. While they are being pulsed they can’t use whatever special powers they have. Comes in very useful for the more dangerous ones like Blockers or Kinetic Enhancers.

Tan: I see. Thank you for your insights. Now, how did you come to encounter the man at the centre of the incident, Prisoner One?

Tubbs: Pony? I suppose it was in my first month.

Tan: Pardon me, did you call him “Pony”? Why is that?

Tubbs: Sorry, it was just a standing joke at the Camp. He had that nickname long before I got there. Every prisoner has an Ident Number and this is used for all of them instead of their personal names. Kind of a control measure by the Wardens.

Anyway, this man had been in the Camp system for so long he was literally Prisoner One. The very first inmate of the very first Camp if the stories are true. So, he was always referred to as P-One, which in the way of things became ‘Pone’ which then evolved into ‘Pony’. At least, that is how Pony explained it to me.

Tan: I see. You must have been on good terms with ‘Pony’ then. What was he like?

Tubbs: Yeah, you could say so. He was an old guy, probably at least in his fifties and maybe older. Tall, looked like he was fit and strong as a younger man and still quite able to take care of himself. He was damn near bald and had a grey beard, cut close in that goatee style.

Tan: (Shows Tubbs a picture of two men in front of an old van) Is the man on the left of this picture the man you knew?

Tubbs: Yes, that certainly looks like a young Pony. Who’s the other guy with him?

Tan: No one of consequence. The other individual has been dead for many years.

Tubbs: No problem. The photo just looked kind of familiar for some reason. Anyway, Pony was a quiet inmate. He kept to himself, never bothered any of the others. Occasionally some new inmate would try and take him on, but we had orders to watch out for that. I had to take out a couple of newbies myself when they attacked him in the Camp Library.

After that time he started to talk to me and I guess you could say we became friends. He was fitted with a PCD but I never saw it triggered in all the time I was there. Pony was what we called a model prisoner and spent most of his time in the library, reading old books and writing in his journal.

Tan: Thank you. Now, can you go through the events you experienced on the day of the incident?

Tubbs: Sure. The day started normally enough. We released the prisoners from their cells and the work groups were sent to their stations. The Trustees like Pony were sent to work in the kitchens and library, plus a few helping out in the Infirmary. That was just after dawn, around six-thirty in the morning.

I had come on duty at six AM and was patrolling the main building when I had a message to bring Pony to the Administration Block. He had an outside call waiting, some high priority caller that we had to get the prisoner to answer.

Tan: Is that a common occurrence?

Tubbs: Most inmates never get that kind of call. Usually it is from an official in the Police Auxiliary or a lawyer on behalf of the prisoner about an Appeal or Parole application.

Tan: Do you know who was calling Pony?

Tubbs: We aren’t allowed to listen in on the calls. It would be a violation of their rights.

Tan: Did you overhear anything at all? Perhaps accidentally as you were too close to the prisoner?

Tubbs: (Shifts on his seat, looking guilty) Maybe. (Sighs). I told them this in the other reports so I may as well tell you. I heard Pony listen to whomever was on the other end of the call, then he says “I am not ready for forgiveness. I must serve out my Penance”. Then he listens some more and just sags, like the life was sucked out of him. He says “So be it” and hangs up the phone.

Tan: What happened next?

Tubbs: I escorted Pony towards the library then he stops and tells me he needs to use the toilet. I was going to take him into the ones at the Administration Building, but he says they are not clean enough. He wants to use the ones in the Library building.

I kind of agree about the state of the toilets so I hustled him to the Library and he goes into the facilities. I am waiting about outside, flicking through an old novel, when he comes out. Looks a bit worried and I am getting antsy myself now about his behaviour.

Pony tells me he needs to go and sit in the yard, at his favourite spot where he likes to read each afternoon. That seems safe enough so I key him into the yard and make sure he is seated at his usual spot. I am wondering though as he doesn’t have anything to read.

Then to cap it all off, he reaches up and removes his PCD. Just lays it on the seat next to him, cool as a cucumber. That’s when the alarms started ringing, blaring out we had incoming aircraft on an unauthorised flight plan.

Tan: So what did you do, Mr Tubbs?

Tubbs: I kind of knew this had to involve Pony so I levelled my pistol at him, demanding he stand up and put his hands behind his back. I planned to handcuff him until I found out what was going on.

Tan: Did he comply?

Tubbs: Nope. Instead he sat there and told me I needed to lie on the ground. He says to me: “Anyone they see standing will be considered hostile and fired upon”

Then I hear all the prisoners screaming and I look out into the main yard. Every single inmate wearing a PCD is thrashing and crying on the ground, while the few who don’t have them are all scared and cringing, trying to look as small and unthreatening as possible.

In the distance, over the walls, I can see a pair of Helijets coming in low and fast, escorting a stealthed VTOL.

I went back to Pony and he is still sitting in the same spot, with an expression on his face like he is about to go into the Execution chamber. He looks at me and nods at the ground. This is way too much for me to process so I just lay down, hands over my head and watching him.

Around the walls I can hear the automated gun turrets being deployed, sliding out of their housings. I tilt my head and I can see the main yard, with a couple of prisoners still standing. Amongst them are the Wardens, some aiming at the incoming aircraft, others pointing at the gun turrets.

(Subject pauses and takes a few moments to collect himself)

Tan: I know his is difficult, but please continue Mr Tubbs.

Tubbs: (Sobs) Then the gun turrets open fire on the Wardens. Prisoners too. Anybody standing gets shot down by the automatic guns. A few guys throw themselves to the ground in time, cowering like me, and the guns pass them by.

Pony then stands up and walks past me, so I shift around and watch him. The VTOL, one all angled and covered in anti-radar paint, skims in low and lands right beside us. I am nearly flipped over by the engine exhaust, but Pony strides through it like it’s just a gentle breeze.

I can see the side hatch opens and a squat, solid looking guy, Japanese I think, comes down to greet him. The pair climb into the craft and it lifts off, the jet wash flipping me onto my back. It races off over the walls and the other two Helijets follow it until I can’t see them anymore.

I got to my feet, which was pretty stupid I realised, but the automatic guns were already sliding back into their bays like nothing had happened. All those prisoners with PCDs stop rolling about and crying too, at least the ones still conscious.

That’s it. That’s’ all I can tell you about the incident. The whole thing was hushed up and no public reports were ever released.

Tan: Did anyone ever tell you how they overcame the automated systems? Or triggered the PCD’s?

Tubbs: Not officially. Everyone said it had be a high grade Net Diver, maybe even a rogue AI. We agreed it had to be an inside job, but no-one was ever arrested that I know of.

Tan: Thank you Mr Tubbs. I have everything I need from you. I appreciate your time.

Tubbs: Hey, Mr Tan. Who was Pony? I mean, before he became Prisoner One? The stories I heard say he was the first prisoner in the first Labour Camp, so he must have been someone important. Someone the authorities wanted kept safe but out of sight, waiting until he was needed again.

Tan: If he was so important, why was he in a Labour Camp, Mr Tubbs? That hardly seems the safest place to keep a valuable asset.

Tubbs: I don’t know, Mr Tan. Maybe he did something really bad, so off the charts evil he deserved to be a prisoner.

Tan: Perhaps, Mr Tubbs. If I were you, I would forget about Pony. Forget you ever met the man and forget you ever saw me.

Tubbs: Ah, I get it now. I’ll walk out of here and forget this whole meeting, right?

Tan: It would be best I think in the circumstances. Good-day Mr Tubbs.

Tubbs: Good-day, Mr Tan.

Interview ended.