Rot 1 Read online

  Anyways, so I get a GPS reading of the sensor on my watch and find his room. Those hospital beds are worse than bunks. Nothing to grab onto. Fortunately, I’ve got my grapplin’ gun. I’ve gone through some upgrades. Batman 2.0. Real kick ass. I shoot a loop up round the handle on one side of the bed, and hit the button, reeling myself up. First thing I notice is his hands are strapped down on each side of the bed. He’s sleep twitching pretty hard. Proper Exorcist shit! It’s only when I climb up onto his chest that I notice he’s staring right at me. No kiddin’!

  His mouth is crumbling with teeth. There’s a half broken one glued to his cheek with spit. His heads bolted down. I can see the whites of his eyes scanning for help. ‘Course I’m about to jump ship. Not as young as I used to be. I been spotted before but that’s been by kids. Overactive imaginations, they were told. Just a dream, they were told. Can’t get too cocky though. There’s a reason we carry the red pill with us. Like they told us in training, once the cover is blown, and there’s no way out – then you go dead red. Poof! Vaporized. Last resort.

  But, watching my old buddy struggling. Seeing the fear in his eyes as I strut along his chest? I couldn’t be more confident. I was gonna get me some revenge.

  I think he recognizes me. Well, ‘spose if you’re human you kinda remember a guy the size of your thumb that wakes you up in the middle of the night. Yeah, he definitely knows me. First thing he does after screaming is close his mouth shut. Pressed real tight. Yeah, he knows. I’m a badass tooth fairy and I’ve come to collect.

  Memories of that shitty palace. Trawling through the jobbies and muck. Swallowing curdled lumps of the waste. Eyes burning with the ammonia. The putrid smell. My lost pot of gold.

  The red mist descends. I start swinging my sledge as hard as I can at his mouth. He’s taking the blows full on the lips. He’s breathing hard. Snot is flying down at me, making things slippy. So, I go up to his eyes. They’re fluttering real cute like butterflies. I start ripping out eyelashes. One by one. He’s wincing. Shutting ‘em real tight. So, I goes up to his ear. Real gentle like.

  “This is for those kids whose teeth you knocked out,” I says. “More importantly, it’s for losing that bag of teeth you asshole.”

  He starts thrashing and calling out for his mammy. Beautiful! I step back, just watching. Calm like, ‘til his fit passes. Then his mouth opens. Course I’m not taking the bait just like that. He could chop my head off with one bite, the minute I go inside. Lucky, this time I’ve got my tranq dart with me, so I find his jugular and stab him in the neck. Just to be doubly sure, like.

  Few minutes later, he’s snorin’ and I’ve got free passage to his mouth. Success! By the time I’m done, his mouth is full of blood. Teeth? I take the best of a bad bunch.

  I s’spect that it was the amount of blood that triggered the alarm. Sensor must have picked it up. Just my luck to be caught by one of the upgraded pillows. There’s that R&D money. Thank you, taxman.

  Anyways, what’s done is done. Council pull me up a few days later. Had me a hearing and everythin’. Character testimonies. The works. People coming out of retirement that I hadn’t seen since before the Rot. Grouping together to say what a nice guy I was. Trustworthy. Loyal. Yeah, I know. I thought they laid it on a bit thick too.

  Next thing I know, they’ve passed their sentence. Castration which they think will help my ‘rages’. Or, be done with it. Walk the plank. Yeah. Like I said. Should have went nuts.

  So that’s me, standing at the end of a plank, lookin’ down at the hot pit below and certain death. The noise? Yeah. That’s a baying mob. Calling for my blood. Then there’s her. The Fairy G. Over on the side? That’s my beautiful Lena. What I wouldn’t give just to…

  “Stop!” the Fairy Godmother says.

  Everyone stops shouting, looking toward her. Her hand is held up. Everyone waits. She gets off her throne, and floats down the stairwell. She’s dressed in black today. Goes well with her heart. I’m on the edge of the plank, arms spread wide for balance. Hoping that a gust doesn’t blow me off.

  She’s coming toward me. Oh God. I face her. See the crowds part as she walks through them. People kneel as she passes, bowing their heads. I take a step back. I’m out of plank. Below, I see the hot steam rise from the swamp. The pit is bubbling. Should be instant. Least that’s a relief. I can barely stand. I’m feeling faint. It doesn’t help when she steps onto the plank and walks toward me.

  I can’t stand to look at her. I look across to Lena. Her head is in her hands. She’s crying. This bitch is gonna push me off! The final insult. I turn ‘round just before she meets me, bracin’ to jump.

  “Wait!” she says.

  My breath is held in my chest. I turn.

  “I’m going to give you one last chance to redeem yourself,” she says.

  She’s up real close. So close I can smell her breath. It smells like sweaty pennies. I can feel everyone’s eyes on me. They’re all mumbling to each other. No one knows what the hell’s happn’in. Best I can do is take a big gulp and nod that I’m listening.

  “People tell me,” she says, coming close and whispering so only I can hear, “you’re a fairy that isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty?”

  I force a smile.

  “That’s me. Ray Jones. At your service. How can I help?”

  There’s a sparkle in her eyes as she reaches out a hand. It’s as cold as ice when I shake it. She smiles. I can tell this ain’t gonna end well.

  Author’s Note

  You made it!

  I sincerely hope you enjoyed Part 1 of the Rot Collection.

  If you found the story enjoyable, I’d be THRILLED if you took 30 seconds to write a teensy-weensy review.

  You can do that by scrolling down to ‘write customer review’ on the Amazon Page. As a self-published author, reviews are crucial to help me reach a new audience.

  Part 2 – The Tooth Hurts - picks up the story. If you want to grab that, you can visit the US, UK (or other country) pages for more detail.

  Alternatively, get all six-parts (60,000 words) in ROT: The Novel! Check it out here.

  Finally, thanks for reading!

  Aidan