Episode 4: The Puppet Master

Episode 4

"The Puppet Master"

(Jeff's Point of View)

Sweat beaded down my forehead as I looked around me carefully. The stranglers were circling us, slowly moving in to get a strike on us.

"One," I began,

"Two,"

"Three."

We opened fire, and it was chaos. I shot the strangler that was close to me, Hudson shot down a bunch of strangler with his duel wielded pistols, Cora gunned down a whole bunch of them with her machine gun, and Calvin sent some flying backwards with his shotgun. Eric shot at them, but he wasn't a very good shot. A strangler darted at me out of nowhere, I grabbed it's head and bashed it against a tree. We were getting nowhere though, stranglers just kept on coming. Cora made a small gap for us by clearing out some stranglers just big enough for us to slip out of the stranglers grip. We started to head for the truck, with tons of stranglers wanting a ride too. I ran as fast as I could to the truck, stranglers panting behind us desperately trying to catch us. I leaped into the back of the truck with Cora and Eric. Hudson took the wheel and Calvin got in the passenger seat. Hudson slammed his foot on the gas pedal and we peeled out of the forest. Some strangler grabbed onto the back of the truck and were getting dragged along the forest. Cora immediately started mowing them down with her huge machine gun, they all started falling down.

"We can't go back!" I yelled, "We just got here! I need to find my daughter!"

"Do you think we'll find your daughter in this?" Cora yelled over the bullets of her machine gun.

She was right, there were so many stranglers in the forest, where did they come from? It all seemed like they came out of nowhere. I remember in the Toronto lab, we found something that said stranglers liked to travel in packs, like wolves. It's rare that you'll ever find a strangler all by itself.

Hudson got the truck onto the highway and we started driving back into Kingston. Cora stopped firing her gun. We were safe, for now. I rested my head up against the back of the truck and took my gas mask off. While we drove down the highway. I sighed.

"It's okay," Cora said, "We will find your daughter. Just like what Hudson said, she made it this long, she has to be alive."

"I just want to see her," I said, "It's been so long. There is so much I need to say to her."

We got back to Kingston and I looked around as we slowly drove through the city. I saw a bunch of soldiers sitting at outposts watching us as we drove through. It made me feel reassured, if Lockwood is this big and powerful, they'll find my daughter.

"We need to come more prepared next time," Cora said, "More people."

"Or just with a better plan." I said.

The gates to Lockwood opened up and we drove to a parking lot, Hudson parked and we got out of the truck. We noticed something off about Lockwood this time, nobody was outside. We walked inside and saw a bunch of people in a crowd arguing with each other. What was going on? Soldiers were trying to keep everyone in line, but it wasn't working.

"What the hell?" Calvin asked, looking around.

Brad and Lindsey were standing around on the staircase watching everyone and talking to each other, they must know what's going on.

I started walking towards them and climbed up the staircase.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"Oh Jeff," Brad said, "I thought you guys were on a run."

"I did too, but that's not important right now. What's going on?" I asked.

"Nothing, don't worry about it, people are just upset right now."

"I think I deserve to know."

"Someone tried leaving Lockwood, we locked him up for now. Everyone is mad about it." Lindsey sighed.

"Why did you lock him up?" I asked, confused.

"Listen Jeff, Charlie has a strict rule that whoever enters can't leave it without permission."

"Why not? People should be able to leave if they want to."

"Think about this Jeff, you know Lockwood is at constant war with the bandits, we can't have people walking in and out of here, it's too dangerous. Whoever stays, stays. It keeps everyone safe."

I still didn't agree with that, Lockwood is powerful enough to stop an attack against almost everyone. They have a big military, what are they afraid of? I've heard rumours about bandits while I was here, but they don't sound like too big of a threat at all. People here had all the right to riot, if someone wants to leave, they should leave.

"I want to talk to Charlie." I said.

"Sorry, Charlie isn't taking any visits right now, especially not in the middle of a riot." Lindsey said.

I was getting angry, taking people in and keeping them here against their will was not good. Maybe Charlie would listen to me, he is a reasonable man. I pushed through Lindsey and Brad and ran up the stairs. I hit the button on the elevator and it was called down immediately.

"Hey!" Lindsey yelled, "You can't see him! Guards stop him!"

A bunch of soldiers started running for me, I hit the twelve floor button and the doors closed before any of the guards could stop me. I reached for my gun, but then stopped myself. No Jeff, no killing. You're not outside anymore, you're in Lockwood, you play by Lockwood's rules, just talk to Charlie, no killing. The elevator made it's way to the top floor and the doors opened, there were already a bunch of guards on this floor guarding Charlie's suite. I started walking down the hallway towards the end of the hallway, two big wooden doors were at the end, Charlie's suite. About five guards ran up to me and stopped me, they started shoving me backwards.

"Get out of here!" one yelled at me.

"Charlie!" I yelled, "Open the door! It's me! It's Jeff! I just want to talk to you!"

One guard shoved me a little too hard and set me off, I head butt him. A guard fell backwards and held his head, the other guards tackled me onto the ground and held me there. The guard I hit got up and kicked me in the head when I was down. Then the two wooden doors opened.

Everyone stopped, Charlie was standing there.

"Jeff Jones?" he asked.

"Yes!" I struggled.

"Get off him, he's just misunderstood. I'm sure he just wants to talk."

The guards got off of me and I stood up.

"Are you sure?" a guard asked him.

"Yes I'm sure, come inside Jeff."

I started walking towards Charlie and into his suite.

He led the way and walked to the couch by the big window, overlooking Kingston. He sat down and I sat down with him.

"Would you like anything?" he asked me, "Coffee?"

"No, I'm good for now." I said.

"Alright suit yourself." he said, taking a drink from his coffee mug.

"Thanks for seeing me like this," I said, "I'm sorry for what happened back there."

"It's okay, you must have a good reason for coming up here in a hurry like that. Is it about the riot that's going on downstairs?"

"Yeah it is," I said, "I heard that it was because you locked some man up for trying to leave? I mean, that's a little harsh don't you think?"

Charlie sighed and stood up, he walked to the window and looked out of it, he crossed his arms behind his back.

"For anything to be successful, there needs to be rules. We can't have people running around like savages."

"But locking someone up because they wanted to leave? What's with that?" I asked.

Charlie seemed slightly angered by what I said, and sighed.

"Well Jeff, look at it this way. You've heard of the notorious bandit group haven't you? Those bastards that run around Kingston thinking they own it. I am what is keeping people safe, Lockwood is the reason bandits haven't taken over and turned everyone into savages. Lockwood is what is left of law and order."

"That still doesn't explain why you sent someone to jail for wanting to leave."

"Since we are constantly fighting off bandits, do you think it would be wise to let people walk in and out of Lockwood as they please? Things would get too hectic."

"But you're taking people's freedom away! You can't do that!" I exclaimed.

Charlie punched the window.

"You can't walk in here and tell me what to do! I don't care how long you've survived out there Jeff Jones. You haven't met these bandits. They threaten our people! We need to be careful!"

"But it's like you're running a dictatorship! It's wrong!"

"That's exactly what I'm doing!" Charlie turned to me and looked me directly in the eyes, "Maybe a dictatorship is what this world needs now! It keeps people in line!"

I stood there stunned for a few seconds. Charlie thinks taking people's freedom away and turning them into soldiers for his own sake is good? I'm sure these bandits aren't even that bad.

The guards outside of the room must have overheard the argument and came in to see what was going on.

"I would like Jeff Jones to be escorted back to his room please." Charlie said.

The guards grabbed my arms and I didn't even bother to struggle. I let it happen, I was still shocked at Charlie. Does that mean I am stuck here forever? This place is a prison, one way in, no way out.

(Charlie's Point of View)

Once Jeff was taken care of and sent back to his room, the guards reported back to me. I was making more coffee at my kitchen. I really needed to slow down on the caffeine.

"The threat is taken care of," a guard said, "Anything else you need?"

"Yes, I want the rioters stopped."

"And how would you like it done?" they asked me.

"I will do it, follow me." I started walking out of the room, the guards followed behind me.

We headed to the elevator and I hit the lobby button, the doors shut and we started slowly moving down. I still need these people on my side, I can't have my own people hating me. We need to look at who the real enemy is here, the bandits. The elevator dinged and we had reached the lobby floor. The doors slowly opened and I could see a whole crowd of people arguing in the lobby. I started walking towards them, they all stood and stared. I didn't normally come out of my room, so this was all new for them. I walked through the crowd, up the stairs and to the balcony overlooking the lobby. That was where Lindsey and Brad were. Several guards stood up here, making sure nobody tried anything. After the few minutes of silence, the crowd got brave again.

"Why did you lock that man up! We should have freedom!" a woman called out.

Everyone got encouraged and started yelling at me all over again, people arguing and nothing but chaos going on down below me. Lindsey and Brad looked at me for reassurance. I nodded and them, telling them I had this under control. I raised my arms up.

"Listen everyone! Everybody listen!"

After a few times of repeating myself, people started to fall quiet and listened to what I had to say.

"This isn't going to get us anywhere. Lockwood was built for law and order, it's the only way we survive. it's how the government ran the world before the apocalypse, it's how it should be run now. We are your new government, the military has fallen, and Lockwood is here to save you. I am here to save you. The reason we locked someone up for trying to leave was for your own safety. As you all know, there is a bandit group outside the walls of Lockwood roaming Kingston. They are constantly trying to overthrow us, the good guys. It never works, because we have the rules. Rules are what keep us together you see. It's what prevents a full out war between the bandits and Lockwood. If we constantly let people walk in and out of here as they please, how will that turn out? Everything will be chaos. What if someone walks in here with a strangler scratch? What if bandits walk in here? You see what I mean? You come here, you stay here. You are under the protection of Lockwood, the bandits are the people you should be angry at. Not us."

The crowd looked hopeful.

"He's right." Brad added.

The tension stopped between everybody, and the crowd cheered. They saw me as their saviour, the hero of this world. I walked away and the guards escorted me back to the elevator, we went back up to the twelfth floor, and that was that. I walked back to my romo and shut the doors behind me. Easy as that, everyone took my side. I was great at this sort of thing. After I killed my parents with the ricin, I had my story ready for the cops. They believed it, and their business was handed over to me. I was a master manipulator. As long as these people follow me, I can get them to do whatever I want. They're like little puppets on strings, I control them. That's how I like to handle most of my problems, I want people to see me as the good guy, even though I have done some horrible things in my past. Acting like the hero paints over all the bad things you have done. Nobody ever knows that I poisoned my parents, as far as the cops knew, I was a poor little rich kid who lost his parents. I ended up getting what I wanted, like I always do.

I started walking to my desk, I pulled out the briefcase once again and opened it, the ricin package was still in there. This is what I will kill Jeff Jones with, and nobody will ever know. As far as they know, I am the good guy. That is how you get people to do what you want. Fear was overrated, all you need is false hope, and people will do anything. It was almost too easy.