Free Podcast Novel

 

 Standard Podcast [6:37m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Written and read by ApocD.

Rachel Carter was smiling, and Streis didn’t like it.  She was giving him the same look that Ito had given him, a look that said she was talking to a child.

Streis remembered why he’d once hated her.  “What?”

“Our network implants.”  She paused, looked around the room, and then back at Streis.  “We took them out, of course, but we had special implants, anyway.  We don’t think they would have been affected.”

“Special implants?”

“Unregulated.”

“Oh.”  Now Streis understood at least part of the reason that Imaoka had been so good on the network; he’d had an unregulated implant.  “I see.  Well, are we ready to get started on the plan?”

Reed held up a hand.  “Just a second.  Something about all this doesn’t seem right.  These alien things were on our networks.  I just don’t see how alien technology and our technology could be compatible.”

 

 Standard Podcast [9:04m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Written and read by ApocD

Rachel Carter led the way through the underground tunnels. Ito was gone; Streis assumed he was being debriefed. Behind them walked a group of at least twenty Pana-wave; they remained silent as they walked; Streis took quick glances back as they walked to make sure they were still there.

Soft fluorescents hung from the sides of the tunnels. There were no steps, only a long, slight grade.

When Streis could take Rachel Carter’s silence no longer, he spoke. “You going to tell me why you’re here? Are you really Pana-wave?”

Rachel Carter kept her eyes forward. “Yes, Streis, I’m Pana-wave. That’s why I’m here. That’s why I was on the lunar surface.”

“And that’s why Imaoka just happened to find you?”

“No. That was a coincidence. We knew there was little hope of me surviving my mission. Imaoka didn’t know I was Pana-wave; he just happened to be there. I should have died up there, Streis.”

“What was your mission?”

“Sorry, Streis, but that’s classified.”

“Classified? Is that why you killed Imaoka?”

There were several gasps from the group behind them.

“Yes, Streis, that’s why I killed Imaoka. He was a liability.”

“Liability?” Streis let the word hang in the air. “He was completely loyal to Pana-wave.”

“He could have been corrupted, Streis. We couldn’t risk that.”

“Why’d he try to kill you?”

“Let’s just say Pana-wave isn’t one big, happy group. I was supposed to die on the lunar surface. By surviving, I threw off the plans, what little plans there were. No one was ready to deal with that; it was easier to get rid of me.”

“Well, this is quite a group you’ve gotten yourself involved in.”

 

 Standard Podcast [6:16m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Written and read by ApocD.

Streis awoke.

Ito was speaking, but Streis couldn’t hear the person on the other end of the conversation.

Streis looked to Reed, who shrugged, and then back to Ito. When his conversation had ended, Ito turned around.

“They want us to do some recon before we come in. I hope you two don’t mind.”

Streis took a deep breath; he still felt half asleep. “What kind of recon?”

“They want me to fly over Osaka and take some pictures for them. They want to see what the damage is like, maybe even see if these aliens are organizing.”

“If they’re organizing, don’t you think they might be able to shoot us down?”

Ito smiled. “I wouldn’t worry about that, Mister Streis. I’d suspect they’re focusing on their ground war now.”

“You suspect?”

Ito nodded. “If I see any danger, I’ll take us out of there.”

 

 Standard Podcast [13:16m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Written and read by ApocD.

Market Street was a warzone. Broken bodies covered the street and sidewalks. Most bodies had eyes missing. Streis wondered if he’d ever known any of them; with the condition of the bodies, there would be no way for him to ever know. They saw no one else alive as they ran toward the Embarcadero.

The makeshift clinic was gone; all that remained were scattered strips of the canvas that had served as the clinic’s walls and roof. Streis wondered what had happened to the homeless man. He had seen the phantoms, which meant he had a network implant. He was probably dead.

They stepped over bodies and found an open area beside the water. Reed doubled over, gasped for air, and was sick. Streis turned; he was afraid seeing Reed would make him sick as well. Ito, who seemed comfortable with the carnage around them, looked to the sky. Streis looked up and saw sunlight dancing off a distant object. The object grew until Streis could see that it was a transport.

Reed joined them. “Sorry about that. I’ve never seen anything like this.”

Ito kept looking up. “Not many people have ever seen anything like this. Probably just the people in the great wars. No one in our generation.”

 

 Standard Podcast [7:38m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Written and read by ApocD. I’ve finished writing the story, so now I just need to record it. There will be 36 chapters total. Thanks for listening.

The phantom was gone.

Streis looked to Reed. “Do you know when it disappeared?”

“No. I got so used to it, that I didn’t even notice when it was gone. You have any idea?”

Streis shook his head. “It was on the sidewalk outside, at least for a while. I don’t remember seeing it in here, though.”

“It has to be the network implants, then. Those phantoms must only be visible to people with implants. When we took ours out, it disappeared.”

“But, I could see it even when my implant was turned off.”

Reed clicked his tongue. “I don’t know what to tell you, Mister Streis. I’m just telling you what I think.”

Streis knew Reed had to be right. “But, if they’re just put into our minds through out implants, then how do they kill people?”

“You saw those people out there, Mister Streis. They were going at each other, and when there was no one else around they hurt themselves. I’m guessing they had implants and they thought they were fighting with phantoms, when they were really doing it to themselves.”

“Then if everyone still with network implants is dead, that means there are no more phantoms.”

“That’s what I think, Mister Streis.”

“Then do you think we’re safe?”

“No, Mister Streis, I don’t. If we’re right, then half of the people in the world are either dead or almost dead. They must have a plan for the other half.”

“What if one of those half with implants had access to some weapons?”

“Like that fighter jet outside?”

“No, bigger. Like nukes. It would just take one of them to take everyone out.”

Reed shook his head. “I don’t think that will happen. If they wanted to just destroy the planet, they could have gone about it some other way. If they’re just taking out the people, then that’ll leave the planet intact for them. Anyway, the people with implants didn’t have any control over themselves; there’s no way they could work the controls to launch a missile.”

There was a metallic sound from the front of the store. Reed went to the office door and cracked it open.

He turned to Streis. “I can’t see anything, but it sounds like someone’s coming in.”

Streis stood. Reed kept his face pressed against the crack in the door. There was a crash; it sounded like a metal clothes rack had fallen over.

Reed closed the door, locked it, and turned to Streis. “I heard a growl.”