Flight 12

Flight 12 – a serial novel by Travis Creel

CHAPTER 25 – HEADIN' ON DOWN?

Previously, on the island's surface:

• Seth follows Miles and Vic when they leave the tower; he watches them have sex and then sees Miles speared by a `penis garden' and taken underground.

• After others have been captured on their birthdays, Seth and Harry prioritize protecting Augie, whose birthday is imminent; Augie is struggling to accept being gay.

• Ed, the British knight, has rejected his son Leo for being gay, despite his own homosexual experience in college.

Underground:

• Stan is to be the next left-sider castrated, but Ian wins a reprieve for him from Hamish by revealing the details of Leo's escape attempt. After the escape attempt fails, Hamish forces Paul to choose a captive to be executed; he picks Leo, sparing Dai. Theo and Piers are sentenced to `permanent' bondage, and Al is to undergo the knife.

Elsewhere:

• Stimulever had ordered Sean to "neutralize" Miles and Jordan because of their awareness of Flight 12; rather than killing them, he transferred them to Betaworld, removing all memory of them in Alphaworld.

[Author's Note: Chapter 24 ended on the morning of Dec. 11. This chapter will rewind initially to Dec. 10 to include events that didn't fit in the previous two chapters. – T.C.]

• • • • • • • • MONDAY, DECEMBER 10 * * * * * * * *

THE WHITE ROOM/THE THRONE ROOM – MILES

I had fallen straight through the earth without being cognizant of ever having struck it or passed through it. And landed – softly! - in an all-white room with a foam-rubber floor.

I'd heard stories about others disappearing into the earth, after venturing onto what they called a `dodecagon'. Wherever they went to, I figured I was in the same place.

Moments later, two naked brutes burst through the door, grabbed me, dragged me out into the hallway and shoved me inside a room marked Sex Room D. That didn't augur well.

What seemed like hours passed. Eventually, the door opened and different naked brutes appeared, escorting me (a euphemism) to a rather majestic suite populated by three men. The first was white, in his forties, and fierce-looking, evidently the boss of this enterprise; the second a light-skinned Black, masculine but subsidiary to the first. They were clothed, but the third man was naked – and seemed to be a dog. He crawled along on hands and knees, a tail protruding from his ass, which he wagged constantly. The boss man proclaimed himself to be Hamish' and his accomplice Percy'. He didn't introduce the dog.

The inquisition began.

• So what are you doing here?

• You tell me. I was minding my own business when this thing shoots up out of the ground and shoots up my ass. Then it –

• I don't need an explanation of a penis portal. I need to know why you are on this island.

• Someone brought me here.

• Sean?

• That was his name, yes.

• Why?

• We weren't supposed to know about Flight 12. But we did.

• You and Jordan Murdock.

• You know our names.

• We know a lot about you. The question is – how much do you know about us?

• All I know is that we were in danger in the real world.

• Sean was supposed to neutralize you.

• You mean kill us.

• That's right.

• He said it was only important that we not exist in the real world. He said we would disappear there if we came here.

• That's correct. You exist only here. Sean did his job – he terminated your existence in Alphaworld.

• (with false optimism) So . . . everything's cool, right?

• Everything is not `cool'. Your appearance on the island has disrupted our plans. The question remains whether you need to be terminated in Betaworld as well.

• Uh –

• Since you don't exist in Alphaworld, death here would be final. We just ended the life of a young man named Leo – in both worlds. You may be next.

• Please, if there's anything I can do –

• There isn't. And it's not up to me. We need guidance from corporate. They'll tell us what to do with you. In the meantime – Barry, fuck him.

Of all the indignities I can think of, getting fucked by a dog wasn't one I would ever have anticipated.

THE PHALLIC TOWER – JORDAN

• Jordan.

• Vic. Oh, Vic, I'm so sorry.

• Are you . . . ?

• Am I what?

• Part of the conspiracy.

• WHAT?!

• Are you real? Or are you Beta-Jordan?

• Vic, what are you talking about?

• Are you a female in Alphaworld?

• No! I got my hair cut in Aruba. Before Sean brought us to Betaworld.

• How do I know that? Maybe in the real world you're female. For all I know, you plotted to bring Miles here and are responsible for him being captured by . . . whatever captured him. It's time you came clean with us.

This was a nightmare. Vic is yelling at me, I supposedly don't exist in the real world, I might be two people, Miles is gone and I'm stuck here on this crazy island where I came to find Augie, and after I do I find out he hates me and –

I CAN'T HANDLE ALL THIS CRAP!

• (a voice) Vic, leave Jordan alone. He's been through a lot.

I looked up. Harry. He put his arms around me and kissed me on the cheek from behind. I turned around and cried on his shoulder.

God bless Harry.

THE PHALLIC TOWER – JASPER

We never left the tower after dark for fear of being locked out. Some nights the door handle was missing and some nights it was there – we never knew why. It was safer to stay in after sunset.

I had witnessed the scene between Vic and Jordan. I disapproved of how Vic had handled it – but the guy was understandably distressed over losing Miles. As Jordan seemed to be in Harry's good hands, I thought maybe I should talk to Vic. But when I saw Seth head toward him with the same idea, I stopped. I stopped further when I heard a voice near me, looking at Harry holding Jordan:

• Aww, that's sweet.

Obviously not Cody or Ray. I had noticed that recently Gary seemed to come out more often. This was a positive development, one I wanted to encourage.

• You're sweet, Gary, you know that.

• No, I – don't say that, Jasper. I'm . . . I'm a mess.

• A sweet mess.

• Well, I think you're sweet, too, Jasper.

• Thank you.

• But what do . . . what do the others think of you?

• The others? You mean –

• Ray and Cody. Do they like you?

• I don't know, really. They don't pay me much attention.

• Do you like them?

• To be honest, not much. I don't like how Ray's always hanging around Augie. And Cody – Cody doesn't like gay people. He wouldn't approve of Harry hugging Jordan right now.

• It's what Jordan needs.

• It is indeed what Jordan needs. He's had a rough go of it here.

• Vic, too, I guess. I mean – it wasn't nice what he said to Jordan, but he just lost his boyfriend.

• . . . Gary?

• Yeah?

• . . . Would you like a boyfriend?

He froze. I noticed Ed, the other homophobe in the assembly, watching the two of us carefully.

Gary was silent and reserved, not answering anything. And then I saw a gleam in his eye that hadn't been there before. He regarded me as if surprised I was there. I knew then that he wasn't Gary anymore.

He realized that he had been engaged in a conversation with me, though.

• What did you say?

I wasn't sure which of them I was talking to, so I studied his face. When I saw him grin, I knew it was Ray. Before I could respond, Ed piped up:

• (Ed) He asked if you wanted a boyfriend.

• (Ray) Wow, are you volunteering, Jasper? You do have a pretty ass, but you know who my number one boy is. I'm going to nail him, too. Gonna give him a nice birthday present tomorrow. I know he wants it.

• (me) Augie's not going anywhere tomorrow. We've got to save him from the dodecagon.

• (Ray) He doesn't have to go anywhere. I can do him right here.

I glanced at Augie. The kid was a mess. The anxiety of his birthday tomorrow putting his safety at risk combined with the stress of being confronted with the reality of Jordan's sex and his own sexuality – someone needed to talk to him, but he was pushing away anyone who tried. Instead he was stress-eating, stuffing himself with banana after banana.

• (Ed) That boy's going to eat our entire food supply.

• It's okay, Ed. We'll do another food run in the morning.

• • • • • • • • TUESDAY, DECEMBER 11 * * * * * * * *

THE PHALLIC TOWER – AUGIE

I didn't sleep easily. I felt pummeled from all sides – from Jordan, from memories of Alfonso, from this supposedly being some kind of parallel universe, and most of all from everybody trying to protect me. Like I was a little kid who didn't know better. Dammit, I knew where the green medallion was, I knew enough to avoid it. They were acting like I was a castle they had to defend. I suppose it was because Dai disappeared without them noticing, they were afraid that would happen to me, too.

There was a second reason I didn't sleep well – I'd eaten too many bananas. My stomach was uncomfortable, and while I usually slept on my stomach, this time I had to sleep on my back.

Eventually I nodded off. But when I woke up, I didn't know what time it was. The walls were still dark, so it was before sun-up. I needed to crap.

Well, I would just sneak outside, somewhere safe, close to the tower. And – oh, heck, this was one of the no-handle nights. I couldn't get out. I'd have to hold it in.

I went back to `bed'. I lay there, hoping to somehow fall asleep again, when I felt something hot against my face: breath.

• Hello, sweetcakes. Happy birthday.

It was too dark to see who it was, but I recognized the voice. Before I knew it, he had lowered his head and planted his lips firmly against my mouth.

• Ray!

But it came out `Rmmm' because he had totally covered my mouth with his.

His arms were holding mine down as his bare chest slid over mine and I heard him say

• Now slip off those pants so we can have a little fun. I already ditched mine.

He lifted his hand from my left arm and started to unzip my khakis. He lowered his head to kiss me again, and I totally panicked. I started gasping for breath, unable to even call out for help, I was so shocked. And when his hand finally reached my cock, the worst possible thing in the world happened.

No, I didn't get an erection. It was far worse than that. I lost control of my bowels.

THE PHALLIC TOWER – SETH

There was vague light in the tower, so it was probably a little after six in the morning. I needed to piss and checked the door handle. Yes – it was back. I sat up and saw all the sleeping forms – and heard some of them snoring.

Oh, no.

One of the sleeping forms was missing. The critical one.

• Harry!

Some of the snoring stopped. Harry woke up and looked at me.

• Harry – Augie!

• (sleepily) What about him?

• He's gone!

• No! Not again!

The sense of waking up to find Dai missing on his birthday was totally déjà vu. Harry picked up his shirt, which he had used as a pillow, slipped it on, and headed with me out the door.

And there was Augie, standing sheepishly nearby. The sight of him filled me with relief and fury at the same time. What the fuck did he think he was doing? Come to think of it, that was exactly the thing to say.

• What the fuck do you think you're doing, Augie?

He crumbled under the vitriol I had expressed in my outburst. Anxiety spread over his face like cheese melting on a hamburger.

• Oh, God, Seth, I'm so . . . I need to wash my pants.

• We can do a laundry run, but –

• And myself.

• Augie, you know you can't go to the stream today.

• Please, Seth. I . . . I crapped myself.

I didn't know what to say. Fortunately, I got help.

• (Harry) Diarrhea?

• (Augie) You could say that. I ate a lot of bananas last night –

• (Harry) We noticed.

• (Augie) And I was feeling like, you know, bloated, and then Ray . . .

• Ray? What does Ray have to do with this, Augie?

• (Augie) He . . . kissed me.

• WHAT?!

• (Augie) And he reached down my pants and groped me. He was naked.

• (Harry) Dammit. Jasper told me Ray was threatening to do something today. To celebrate Augie's birthday with a little sex.

• You didn't think to tell me about it?

• (Harry) I wasn't expecting him to make a move in the tower with everybody there! I figured we'd keep Augie well-protected, there was no way he could really do anything, it was just braggadocio. You know how Ray is.

• Yeah, I know how Ray is.

• (Augie) Anyway – can I go to the stream, please? It's the opposite way from the green medallion, and you can guard me and like that.

• Well –

• (Harry) Come on, Seth, look at him. We can guard him, like he said. We have to do a laundry run and a water run anyway.

• We need a food run, too.

• (Harry) So split up into two groups. There are nine of us, we can manage it.

• (Augie) Only . . . could I have some privacy when I . . . you know, clean myself off?

• Augie –

• (Harry) Of course you can. Seth and I'll go with you and stand guard, but we'll look away.

I was semi-amused at how Harry was taking charge of the situation. His kindness toward Augie was complemented by the logic of his perspective. I was probably being overly paranoid.

We'd have to select a discreet and empathetic crew to go with us to the stream, without explaining why. My plan was to send Vic, Ed, and Gary on food duty, the rest of us to accompany Augie to the stream. I wanted to keep Vic away from Jordan after their confrontation last night, Ed was never the most tactful of individuals, and who knew which version of Gary would show up.

This went awry when all three of them insisted on going to the stream, begging to bathe. Jasper and Tim volunteered to go for food, and so I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best. Augie was understandably anxious about my including Gary, but was reassured when he saw it was Cody and not Ray who would be making the journey.

STAN'S CELL – IAN

I gazed at Stan's nude body, sleeping soundly, and wanted to fuck it right then and there. Thank God he had taken my advice and rejected the escape attempt, which had spared him – at least for now. His gain was young Al Casey's loss, which saddened me. The chopping block would claim Al's balls today and his head tomorrow, but it has to be somebody, and Al had foolishly joined Leo's doomed mutiny. But at least Alpha-Al was still around, back in Syracuse after his Caribbean holiday, oblivious to the impending demise of his Beta counterpart.

The same could be said of Stan, of course, but I wanted a different life for Stan than what his Alpha version faced, married to that horrible woman, unaware of the sexual awakening he had experienced here. How long would it take for Alpha-Stan to realize he was bisexual? If he didn't meet the right guy – and didn't get away from the Polish shrew – he might never find bliss with a mister. A mister like me.

Looking at his bare ass made me horny. I needed to fuck someone and it was a bit early to go raiding the Twelve – and to fuck a left-sider this early in the day I'd have to get permission from his custodian.

But there was one place I knew I could go for a quick hump. For which I had Percy to thank.

After all of yesterday's craziness had abated, Percy had taken me to the Dark Room, where Hamish had imprisoned Piers and Theo.

The Dark Room was worthy of its name. There was absolutely no light, like a sensory deprivation chamber.

Normally it held just the one chair, with an embedded dildo, on which each of The Twelve would magically land in just the right spot for the dildo to stuff his ass. Hamish had extra seats installed, on either side, for Piers and Theo, who had been sentenced to perpetual bondage.

While rarely used, there was a light switch which you could find if you knew where to look for it;, when Percy flicked it on we could see the two bound Bahamians. Their chairs had a large hole in the seat, underneath which were fucking machines in operation, methodically thrusting upwards into the men's anal cavities. Judging from the grimaces on their faces, they were not yet accustomed to it. Theo was straight and thus totally unaccustomed to anal penetration. Piers was gay, although his build and demeanor suggested he rarely bottomed. They were both suffering.

Percy had offered me the key to the chair of my choice – it would free its occupant so I could use him sexually whenever I pleased. I chose Theo. His dark skin appealed to me – I so often fucked white boys – and his being straight was an additional turn-on. I had not taken Theo last night, but now was a good time, and I had brought my key.

Percy had explained that the fucking machines were operational for twelve hours a day – three four-hour stretches, separated by two-hour rest periods, and then an eight-hour overnight respite would allow the men to sleep (sitting up, bound in the chairs). During the rest periods, they would be bathed and cleaned out for anyone who wanted to fuck them. They'd also be fed and allowed to relieve themselves.

I inserted the key into the pillar behind Theo's head. There was a whirring sound as Theo's bonds loosened – which woke him.

• Yes, boy, it's time for some human fucking.

I ordered Theo out of his chair – he knew well enough not to speak. Bottoms who fought back – even verbally – risked a session with Mac, who knew how to remove more from a mouth than just teeth. The expression `hold your tongue' took on new meaning.

I escorted Theo out, to the enema room. Two lieutenants manned that space; one of them, Penn, was on duty.

• (Penn) First fuck of the day, hey, Ian?

• Had to try this one out.

• Nice meaty ass.

We bent Theo over and Penn inserted the hose up his rectum and turned on the water. Theo reacted with gasps – the water was hotter than he was expecting, and it rushed into his guts at a prodigious pace. The water was hot enough that expelling it caused him considerable discomfort; the next round was with ice cold water, which surprised him.

I thanked Penn, apologizing that I couldn't offer Theo to him as a tip, and escorted my black Bahamian to Fuck Room B, where I rendered him supine and plunged my dagger between his sweet cheeks. While my dick was not as thick as the fucking machine dildo, my thrusts were more irregular, surprising, and vigorous, causing a lot of involuntary grunts.

Once my sperm had lubricated his guts, I felt a hundred percent better. He didn't.

THE WOODS – ED

I wasn't happy about recent events. Seth had done nothing to prevent more of us being captured, and now he was allowing Augie to bathe on the one day the lad needed to be kept inside the tower. And, dammit, if we lost Augie, I would lose all confidence in Seth. My own birthday was in two days, and I didn't intend to meet the same fate Leo had – whatever that was.

And there was too damn much homosexuality going on. Okay, some would say I had a homoerotic encounter with Ryan Mackenzie back in Cambridge – and there was that incident that Leo contrived a year ago – but I was a firm believer that men ought to marry women and stick with it, no matter what. Beatrice was no joy to live with, but it was a proper marriage and respectable. After all, I was a bloody knight, wasn't I?

Things got worse when Jordan and Miles appeared. This boy Augie in love with a girl who's actually a boy – it's like Twelfth Night in reverse. And this Miles person – who was he? They concoct some cockamamie tale of a parallel universe – and then Miles disappears? Seth and Vic cook up some story about penises flying out of the ground and sticking Miles up the arse – absurd. I don't trust Vic – and I don't trust Seth.

STAN'S CELL – STAN

Ian returned from wherever he had been. I had the feeling he had been having sex. I knew it was part of a lieutenant's job, but I still felt jealous when he was with someone else. I couldn't help it. I had grown used to the feel of his cock inside me, and wanted to feel it now more than anything.

But he was not in the mood. He had something to tell me.

• Stan, you know the escape attempt failed.

• You ratted on them to Hamish, didn't you?

• Do you know why?

• To be honest, Ian, I don't. I thought it was a chance for us both to escape. You could have given Leo the right code.

• I didn't have the right code.

• It's the right code for today. You could have told him to wait until today.

• I couldn't wait until today. They were going to castrate you today. There's a schedule, Stan. You were next on the list. I couldn't let that happen. I had to earn a favor from Hamish. I had to get him to promise it wouldn't be you.

• . . . O god, Ian, I . . . I . . . Thank you.

• We're not out of the woods. The math is not favorable. Eventually, they'll have to castrate all the left-siders. And after they castrate them . . .

• They disappear.

• That's one way of putting it.

• Aren't they releasing them to the surface?

• They're beheading them, Stan.

• . . . Oh god.

• I'll figure something out. I've won Hamish's trust now. Maybe I can use that to my advantage.

• . . . Ian?

• Yeah?

• Are they still castrating somebody today?

• Yeah.

• Who?

• . . . Oh, jeez, Stan, I'm sorry. It's Al.

THE THRONE ROOM – BARRY

My stock was rising. True, I was still getting fucked daily by Hamish, but Percy largely left me alone, showering his attentions on Abe, and there were no more multiple-lieutenant gang-bangs. Occasionally, one of them would fuck me `doggy style' – their little joke, ha ha, so original – but I was taking it up the ass no more than twice a day. As opposed to half a dozen times when I first got here.

What was more, I was allowed to top more often. Just yesterday, Hamish had let me fuck both the new arrival, Miles, and the rebel, Leo – before they lopped off his head. I suppose I should feel sorry for the kid, but he was just plain stupid. He gambled and lost. One thing I've learned – you don't gamble against Hamish. The house always wins, and it was Hamish's house. I gave the boy a rousing sendoff – a sexual experience he'd remember for the rest of his life – all two hours or so of it.

So today I was happy to see another left-sider hauled in and bent down on all fours.

• Boy, do you know who this is?

• No, Master. He looks delicious, though. May I fuck him?

• He's one of yesterday's insurrectionists. He goes under the knife this afternoon.

• He deserves it, Master. Imagine anyone wanting to escape your hospitality.

Yeah, I was laying it on thick. But he seemed to like that. Being obsequious was earning a much better return than the sarcastic approach I had taken at first.

I looked at the youngster. Around twenty years old, only about five-seven, squeaky clean white boy. How I would love to put him on my St. Andrews and have at him for an hour or so. And then put him on the sling and see how much he could take in his sweet little boy-cunt.

So he was sacrificing his nuts. Well, that was the price you paid for listening to a loser like Leo Niemann. At least he'd only have to experience life as a eunuch for a single day before he surrendered his noggin.

I was salivating at the prospect of shoving my cock up this delicious rump and moved around behind him.

• Oh, no, Barry. You're not going to fuck him.

• Fellatio, Master?

• No, he's going to fuck you.

• WHAT??

• He won't be able to do it after today, so we thought it only fair to give him one last screw.

• Master, in all honesty – is the kid even gay?

• No, but he's had a lot of gay sex since his arrival – not all of it passive, either. We let him fuck King a couple of times. I thought maybe he might take to a bit of bestiality – with my favorite pooch.

• Sir –

• Quiet, Barry, or I'll bring in a train of lieutenants you can pull.

• . . . Yes, Master. I understand, Master. Bring on the kid, Master. Let him sow his last wild oats.

I got on all fours for him, lubed up, and in he went. At first, he was very tentative – and his cock was tiny, compared to Hamish – but he actually got into it as time went on. It may be an ass and not the cunt he was used to, but by the end of it, he was having a good time sliding in and out of me.

Well, good for him. I'm glad he enjoyed it. Another sexual experience he'll remember for the rest of his life. All twenty-four hours or so that remain.

THE WOODS – SETH

We let Augie trail behind, to shield him from others seeing the stain on his khakis. Everybody knew Augie was shy about public nudity, so they didn't question it when he wanted to go downstream to bathe and wash his pants. Jordan volunteered to go with him – Augie demurred, but Jordan insisted and promised to be discreet. Harry went with them. It was my intention to accompany the three of them, just as extra protection, but Harry and Jordan said it wasn't necessary. Augie wouldn't go anywhere without his clothes and we were nowhere near the green dodecagon. So I stayed with Ed, Vic, and Cody, who stripped down to wash both themselves and their clothes.

There was a little curve downstream blocked by trees so I couldn't completely watch the group, but I trusted Harry and Jordan – and Augie was nervous enough to stay out of trouble.

And then trouble started where I least expected it. Ed flew off the handle.

• (Ed) What are you hiding, Vic? What really happened that you're covering up?

• (Vic) What the fuck are you talking about?

• (Ed) Miles. What's the real story? Are you colluding with them – Miles and Jordan?

• Whoa, Ed, calm down.

• (Vic) Miles was my – is that what this is about? You upset because he and I are lovers?

• (Ed) Mate, you can bugger each other all you like for all I care. But what's he doing on this island? And isn't it suspicious that twenty-four hours after he gets here, Miles goes off with you and doesn't come back?

• (Vic) Ed –

• Ed, you're out of line.

• (Ed) You're covering up for him, Seth. The two of you make up this ridiculous story about penises springing out of the earth –

• (Vic) That's what happened!

• (Ed) Bloody hell it is. You know more than you're letting on. Your kind always does, playing the victim.

• Whoa, whoa, calm down.

• (Vic) What do you mean, my kind? What kind is that, Ed? The Black kind?

• (Ed) Well, you're the only Black man here. And everyone knows where the crime rates are highest.

That was the final straw, as far as Vic was concerned. He threw down the pair of jeans he was washing and charged Ed. Ed, eighty pounds lighter than Vic, was no fool, and took off on foot, dashing up the hill toward the wreckage of the plane where we had found the water bottles.

Vic raced after him. Granted, Ed was fast. I remember him talking about being a sprinter in college and almost on the national team, but Vic was twenty years younger and had long strides; he just might catch him.

I yelled after them, which attracted the attention of those downstream. I saw Augie's naked body appear from around the bend, with Harry close behind, wondering what all the commotion was about. It was understandable – on a day when Augie was vulnerable, shouting was bound to ring alarm bells.

"It's okay!" I yelled at them, "nothing to do with you!" And looked up the hill where Vic was closing in on Ed. If Vic caught him he could pound the shit out of the older man. I started after them to try to limit the damage – my big mistake.

THE WOODS – RAY

Gary or Cody must have brought me out here, but they couldn't have done me a bigger favor. We'd been bathing, so everybody was bare-assed, clothes drying on tree branches. I was alone by the bathing pool; for some reason Seth, Vic, and Ed were chasing each other up the hill.

And there, downstream, in all his glory, was the object of my desire. He was naked, I was naked, I was getting hard in a hurry – it was time to give him the birthday bang he so richly deserved. Yeah, Jordan and the fat boy would try to intervene, but Jordan was no match for me physically, and I had the feeling Lardo would be too scared to move.

They say opportunity knocks only once, but the middle of the night wasn't really an opportunity. I'd have had to get his pants off him. And now they were conveniently off. Time to pounce.

I started to run downstream.

• Augie, I'm coming to give you your birthday present!

You'd think you couldn't run with your cock standing at attention, but you can if you're motivated. And I was motivated by that sweet boy's ass. He wants me, I know he does. And he's going to get me.

THE WOODS – AUGIE

My worst nightmare: Ray, stiff as a rod, heading toward me, intent on sex. He'd tried to rape me last night, and now he was trying again.

I had to get away. I pushed Harry in front of me, hoping to deflect him and took off downstream, hoping I could outrun him.

THE WOODS – JORDAN

Oh, hell! Augie is running away. Harry is trying to stop what must certainly be Ray and not Cody anymore, and Augie is – where the hell is he going?

I'd let Harry deal with Ray. Someone had to get Augie. He was running along the stream like he was running for his life. I don't know what got into him. Ray was no threat to him – Harry and I would have made sure of that.

THE WOODS – AUGIE

I don't know how it got here – when we saw it before, it was miles from here. But there it was – the green medallion. Here.

Suddenly I knew that all my fears were silly. I had been afraid of this green medallion: Why? It was beautiful. The most beautiful thing I had ever seen. And at its far edge, a big green phallus, as tall as I was. Gorgeous.

Oh, hell, Jordan, I want that penis, I want to hug that penis, I have to go to the medallion – I don't know why I was ever afraid of it.

It's lovely. And it wants me.

THE WOODS – JORDAN

• Augie, no! Come back!

• No, Jordan, it's fine! It's okay! It's my friend! Come experience it!

• Augie, it's dangerous!

• Omigod, it's . . . it's IN me! It feels wonderful! It's – wow!

He looked like he was hugging a column of air and was bent over at the waist, and rocking back and forth. I leaped up onto the dodecagon and grabbed him around the waist, pulling backwards. I had to get him off the thing, but he wasn't budging. I looked down and saw that his feet were embedded, as if he had sunk up to his ankles in liquid that had frozen around him. He couldn't move. I crouched behind him, bending over at my own waist and pulled on his legs, trying to free them. And then I felt my own feet sinking. All of a sudden I couldn't move either, as something crawled up my leg, slithering toward my ass.

On the dodecagon's surface I think I saw the image of a goat.

THE WOODS – HARRY

I held off Ray as long as I could, but he got past me and took off toward Augie and Jordan. I raced after them, but losing ground with every step and getting cuts on my feet as I ran.

I heard Ray call out "Holy shit!" and moments later I saw it – the dodecagon. The green dodecagon. The GREEN dodecagon – here! Nowhere near where it was supposed to be. And Augie and Jordan, both naked, were trapped on it.

• Ray! Get them! Save them!

Ray started to run toward the dodecagon but before he could get there, a fence suddenly sprang up around it, a fence consisting of inch-thick black rods with no space between them. They rose to a height of over ten feet, so that I could no longer see Augie, Jordan or the dodecagon itself.

THE WOODS – SETH

Vic had tackled Ed and was starting to unleash the power of his fists. He had landed one blow to the solar plexus before I tackled him myself to pull him off the British knight. Just then we heard Ray shouting and looked down to see him sprinting toward where Augie had been bathing and washing his jeans.

• Vic – Augie!

Vic looked up and saw what was going on, and instantly rose to his feet. Both of us started running in pursuit, Ed trailing behind us, slowly – doubtless still reeling from the punch Vic had landed in his gut.

I watched as Augie took off running downhill and then saw Jordan take off after him. Harry bravely stepped in front of Ray, who collided with him, knocking him over. Harry grabbed hold of Ray's leg, breaking his momentum and making him fall. Both scrambled to their feet, but by now Jordan was yelling something at Augie, and both Ray and Harry took off in pursuit.

I caught up with a distraught Harry as the two of us were on the side of a hill, looking down at a big black fence that looked exactly like the fence that had surrounded the penis garden when Miles was taken.

• (Harry) The green dodecagon. It's here. It's moved.

• What? It's behind that wall of . . .

"That wall of ten-foot dildos" was too silly a phrase to say out loud.

Ray had reached the edge of it, grabbing onto it, trying to figure out a way to reach between the rods and pull them apart.

• Ray, don't touch it! It's no use.

A moment later, the dildo wall retracted by itself, revealing . . . nothing. There was nothing behind it, just a normal patch of ground.

No dodecagon. No Augie. No Jordan.

We had failed. And when we went back to where we had left our clothes, they had vanished.

ST. MORITZ, SWITZERLAND - SEAN

• (Jesús) I should have sent Ari. He would have terminated them properly.

• You said neutralize them. I neutralized them. They no longer exist in Alphaworld. Jordan's own sister insists she's an only child. Ari would have had to kill her, too.

• He would have. He took care of Nick. How that fellow managed to hack us, I'll never know.

He knew because I gave Miles the password, and Miles fed it to Nick, an experienced hacker able to penetrate the other system defenses. But this was information that Jesús would never learn.

Germán entered just then.

• Jesús, there's news from the island.

• What is it, Germán?

• Stapleton just arrived underground.

• Good. He was expected today. I'm sure our Trigger and his friends have cottoned on to the dodecagon portals by now and are doing everything they can to protect the remaining Twelves. But we got Stapleton anyway. That's good. Five down, seven to go.

• Yes, indeed, Jesús, but there's bad news.

• I don't need bad news, but go ahead.

• Murdock went with him.

• What?

• The Dark Room was programmed for one arrival, and when two came through simultaneously, they landed on top of Sebold and Thompson.

• Were Sebold and Thompson damaged?

• Not seriously. They got a good jolt up the ass of course, but the auto-repair kicked in. They'll be fuckable tomorrow, but the machines had to be switched off for the rest of the day, giving them more of a rest than was intended. The problem is that since there were two of them, neither Stapleton nor Murdock landed on the welcome chair.

• And - ?

• Well, they put Stapleton in it, but don't know what to do with Murdock. And they're out of balance now, they want to know if they need to cut another left-sider.

• Sean, get Dolph on the phone.

Ten minutes later, Jesús had worked it out with Dolph. I could only hear Jesús' end of the conversation, but at the end of it, he picked up the phone and called Hamish.

• (Jesús) Hamish, here's what you do. Get Stapleton off the welcome chair and mount Murdock on it. Let him sit on that dildo for twenty-four hours or so. Now, here's what you do with Stapleton. It sounds unusual, but Dolph says it's what needs to be done. First of all, give everyone a very large dinner. Make them overeat so that they'll have to move their bowels within an hour or two. Shackle Stapleton – with chains, not rope – and put him in one of the smaller shower stalls. Now, shut down all the toilets. . . . You heard me, all the toilets – and give everyone chamber pots. Left-siders, Twelve, lieutenants, everyone needs to use chamber pots tonight. The chamber pots are to be emptied over Stapleton. Keep him like that all night. . . . True, we'll have to forego the welcoming gang-bang until we get him smelling like a rose, and that will be tomorrow at the earliest. But he's got to spend at least twelve hours covered in shit. . . . After that? We'll get back to you. Dolph and Thibaut are running simulations. . . . Any questions? . . . Yeah, well, what's one adjustment more? The Project is still full speed ahead, Hamish – nothing's happened yet that we haven't been able to fix. . . Hah! Good idea. Russell won't like it, though.

I was left wondering what that was all about.

THE THRONE ROOM – BARRY

Well, the boy who fucked me was named Casey, and he is now officially a eunuch. Hamish showed me his balls after they had cut him. That was okay, but I hoped Hamish won't show me what they sever tomorrow. Atticus gave him his first fuck as an ex-man, and all the other lieutenants followed. I don't know if the boy realizes this is going to be his last hurrah – well, actually it won't be. They'll do him all over again tomorrow before one of his lives ends.

Hamish was in a surprisingly good mood, considering the balls-up in the Dark Room. He approached me with a smile on his face.

• Boy, I think it's time you got another reward.

• . . . A `reward' like this afternoon, or a real reward?

• What would you consider a real reward?

• Getting to fuck ass.

• Your wish is granted.

• Really, Master? Thank you!

Being obsequious pays.

• You're going to be the first to fuck our new arrival Stapleton. It will be a bit cramped. He's tied up in a shower stall, but I'm sending Lucas along to watch you do it – all the lieutenants are involved in the train Casey's pulling, but Lucas is as close to a lieutenant as I've got available. He's going to report back to me on how well you fucked him – and I want a good report.

• Oh, yes, sir! I will fuck the shit out of him.

• Interesting turn of phrase, Barry.

THE PHALLIC TOWER - SETH

• We failed, Harry.

• I failed. I failed, Seth. I was there, I was supposed to watch him, I was supposed to make sure nothing like this happened.

• It wasn't your fault. You did what you could. Who could have predicted Ray would go berserk like that? I shouldn't have allowed him to come. I didn't want to – but he was Cody at the time and . . . well, he did need a bath.

• I think it was fate. They would have gotten him somehow. You were right about the dodecagons moving. That was the same spot where Paul was caught – only it was blue then.

• We lost Jordan, too.

• Poor Augie. He's going to feel responsible for that, as well.

• Unless . . .

• Unless?

• Unless it's a good thing. We don't know what happens when we disappear. We might go back to Alphaworld.

• Doubtful.

• We don't know, Harry. But I do know this – we've got to do something different. Ed is beside himself – his birthday's Thursday – and we've got to break the chain.

• How?

• I'm going down.

• WHAT?

• We've got to do something drastic. They aren't expecting me to go down. And I know how to get there. The same way that Miles did. I'll wander onto that penis garden – it'll take me because I'm naked – and go underground.

• Seth, no! You can't do that! It might kill you!

• It might. But I don't think so. Why such elaborate planning just to kill us?

• We need you here!

• I haven't been very effective here.

• I need you here!

• Harry, I've seen you grow since we got here. You have leadership ability.

• No I don't!

• You just don't believe in yourself. But people respect you, they'll listen. And you're SMART, Harry. They know that. You know we have to protect Ed, now. And he'll cooperate because he's scared shitless. I can leave you in charge, it will be fine.

• Wait – you'll still be here to protect Ed, right? His birthday's in two days.

• Harry, I have to go tomorrow.

• Why?

• You know why. You're the one who figured out all the patterns – Flight 12 and all the twelves we've discovered since then. Harry, what is tomorrow's date?

• The twelfth.

• Bingo.

[COMING UP NEXT: CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX – THIS COULD CHANGE EVERYTHING]