Flight 12

By Travis Creel

Published on Apr 13, 2024

Flight 12 – a serial novel by Travis Creel

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE: AFTERMATH

Previously:

Aided by Ian, Seth collects Stan, Al, and Augie for his escape attempt. Searching for Abe, he discovers that Jordan has switched locations with Abe. Stefan and Lucas are acting as Abe's guards, but when Seth and crew invade, Seth knocks Stefan out cold. Lucas, panicking, presses a button which seals Abe into a wall; Seth, enraged that his attempt to free Abe has been foiled, attacks Lucas and kills him. They take Stefan and Lucas's corpse to the Dark Room, freeing Theo (who is in bondage there), and make their escape to the surface.
Ed arrives underground, and is greeted by a man from his past, Ryan Mackenzie, now called Mac.
Days earlier, Miles is captured by a penis garden, causing a disruption in Stimulever's plans. Although Miles is Vic's boyfriend, he actually loves Sean, with whom he cohabited in Minneapolis; Miles is unaware that Sean's true target is Seth.

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 14 * * * * * * * *

THE MEADOW – SETH

I recognized the surroundings; it was near the place where Vic had made love to Miles before Miles had been speared by the penis garden.

But something was wrong. From here, we should be able to see the Phallic Tower to the north. And it wasn't visible, despite crystal-clear weather.

Ian, the tower's gone.
(Augie) No wonder I didn't recognize where we were.
(Al) Tower?
It's where we were staying. It should be about a half mile to our north. But it's not there.
(Ian) I knew there was a tower, but I don't know anything about its location.
Could they have taken it to a different universe?
(Ian) Seth, there's just Betaworld and Alphaworld. This island exists only in Betaworld. If they moved the tower to Alphaworld, it would sink to the bottom of the sea.
(Augie) The dodecagons could move.
(Al) The what could move?
There's a lot to explain, Al. Just hang tight while we figure these things out. Augie, are you suggesting that if the dodecagons can move, the TOWER could move?
(Augie) Why not?
Ian?
(Ian) I have no idea.
Let's assume the tower is still on the island. If it were to the north, we should be able to see it. There's a lot more of this island to the south. I suggest we go that way. We've got to find Harry and the others.

THE PHALLIC TOWER – HARRY

So Seth had left me `in charge'. And what did I do? Trying to make peace between Ed and Vic, I had blurted out an offensive truth – that everyone suspected Ed's sexuality was more complex than he let on – causing Ed to storm out in a rage. On his birthday.

And like others on their birthdays, he had not returned. We waited all day, but as the sun faded, it became obvious that the purple dodecagon had claimed him, even though he was supposedly following a path that had previously been dodecagon-free. But dodecagons could move – somehow. As if that mattered now: Ed had met his match – and perhaps his maker.

Seth's absence was unnerving. I had no idea if he was alive or dead, or even in the same universe as the five of us. That's right – besides me, there were only four of us left at the repositioned Phallic Tower: Vic, Tim, Jasper and Gary.

Vic had not been himself since Miles' appearance on the island – and especially since his disappearance. His sensitivity, coupled with Ed's insensitivity, had stirred up a volatile cocktail of emotions. He was not fun to be around, and while he professed that Ed's vanishing was `no loss', there was enough humanity in him to feel guilty about that honest sentiment, and he spent most of the time moping.

Tim was a trooper – figuratively as well as literally. He was the one I knew least well – a former soldier who was now a sculptor specializing in figures of birds. He was no-nonsense but always cooperative and if he blamed me for Ed's possible demise, he didn't vocalize it.

Jasper had been the most supportive. He confessed to me his struggles with sex addiction, and how difficult it had been remaining celibate for the past two weeks. I suspect he was comfortable talking to me because I didn't tempt him at all. I admired the way he was working with Gary, whose hard body and large cock should have turned him on as much as it did me; I wondered if Jasper had donated his pants to Gary to cover him up, decreasing the temptation.

And then, of course, there was the triune Gary – buy one, get three. Gary was sweet, but didn't show up often enough. Ray, when dominant, seemed to be making overtures toward Jasper, which bothered me as well as Jasper. Cody was often the compromise when issues of sexuality raised themselves too prominently for Gary to handle.

I had no game plan. Seth was gone; what was there to do but wait? We had found both water and food, the water bottles had accompanied the Phallic Tower to its new location, and we'd seen no dodecagons. So there were things to be grateful for. But it was the fourteenth of December, and the next birthday on the list was mine. In three days. And I didn't have a clue how to prevent my own capture.

To be honest, I wasn't sure I wanted to. I wasn't doing much good up here. And maybe I'd be reunited with Seth. If he was still alive. I was hoping he'd managed to find Abe.

JORDAN'S CELL – ABE

I yelled my head off, to no avail. I pounded the wall, to no avail. There was nothing I could do to free myself from this dark, cramped space. And I could hear nothing through the wall, no inkling of what had happened after Lucas had pushed the button and slid me into this virtual coffin. All I could do was try to find means of avoiding panic. I needed to calm down, something to occupy my brain that was peaceful. Mozart was good for that; I ran Eine Kleine Nachtmusik in my head over and over again.

I don't know how long it took – probably no more than half an hour, but it seemed like an eternity. All of a sudden one side of my `coffin' flipped open, and my mattress slid back into the room. After the darkness, the light was too harsh and I shut my eyes as hands released me from the chains that had bound me.

I felt a hand softly caressing the back of my head. I opened my eyes to the sight of Percy, looking concerned. Behind him were Hamish and several lieutenants.

(Percy) There you are, pussycat. Safe and sound.
(Hamish) Where are Stefan and Lucas?
I don't know. They knocked out Stefan – he was lying on the floor. Lucas sealed me inside. I don't know what happened after that.
(Hamish) Stefan was unconscious?
Seth slugged him pretty good. Where is Seth, do you know?
(Hamish) He went to the surface. Who was with him?
The only one I knew was Ian. Three others I didn't recognize.
(Hamish) Probably Kowalczyk – Ian was advocating for him. I hope the others weren't Omi and Eton. But Stefan and Lucas were both here when you entered the security recess?
Yeah. Stefan was on the floor, and Lucas was right there, by the button.
(Percy) Do you think they're on the surface?
(Hamish) Six people went up the Egress Pole. Herrick, Ian, and – you said three others?
Three that I saw.
(Hamish) So that makes five who escaped. The sixth could be Lucas. He might have sealed Derisian away as a precaution and then took advantage of the opportunity to escape.
(Percy) Then where's Stefan?
(Hamish) Good question. Orson, Anthony – get the other lieutenants and initiate a room-by-room search. We've got to find those two – and figure out exactly who went with Herrick to the surface.

So Seth had made it. I was both pleased and disappointed. He said he had come to get me, and here I was, still Percy's pet. I thought Seth was safer on the surface, but it meant we were once again separated.

A zillion questions raced through my mind. WAS Seth safe on the surface? Would he make another attempt to rescue me? Would I ever see him again? Would I ever get out of here? Would we ever get off this island?

Could there please, please be a happily-ever-after that somehow comes out of all this?

It didn't seem likely.

ST. MORITZ, SWITZERLAND – JESÚS

Germán came in with the message.

(Germán) Chief, the Trigger's back on the surface.
Good. Derisian?
Still underground. Herrick apparently tried to rescue him, but failed. But Ian was able to persuade Herrick to go to the surface anyway.
Just the two of them?
Oh, no. Six.
Six?!
Another Twelve member, Stapleton. And three left-siders, Casey, Kowalczyk, and Sebold. Casey and Sebold were involved in the first escape attempt and must have realized that their survival time was limited. Kowalczyk was Ian's charge, and it's believed an attachment was formed there.
I thought Sebold was fixed to a chair he couldn't get up from.
He was. But Percy had allowed Ian access to him and had given him the key to unlock him. So we think Ian must have freed him, though we don't know why. But . . . there's more.
Why do I sense I don't want to hear this?
Heidekker's dead.
Heidekker's DEAD?
His neck was broken. The group went to free Derisian, and Herrick attacked Stefan and knocked him unconscious. We presume it was he who killed Heidekker, but have no direct evidence.
Get Thibaut and Dolph in here. We've got to run more simulations and see what this does to the physics. We've got to salvage this Project, and they keep throwing curves at us. If there are new parameters that still make this work, we've got to communicate them to Hamish.
What if they involve Herrick? Ian needs to know them and Hamish can't contact him.
Has Sean arrived in Aruba?
He has, and is awaiting instructions.
Good. Tell him to wait until we have the new parameters, then transfer to Betaworld and go to the island. Sean can convey the parameters to Ian in person. We can trust Ian, can't we?
He got Herrick to the surface.
Herrick may need to know the parameters, as well, if his behavior is relevant. We'll see what Dolph comes up with.

THE MEADOW – SETH

Shit, I forgot about the penis garden. The penis garden that had ensnared both Miles and me, and maybe some of the left-siders, was just south of where Vic and Miles had been fucking prior to Miles' capture. After five minutes, we saw the big black phallus – and, all of us being naked, it was singing to us.

(Augie) God, look at that. It's beautiful.

He headed toward it.

Augie, no!

The fool was walking slowly toward the penis garden – which I realized he had probably never seen. It would zap him back underground, less than an hour after he had escaped – and who knew what Hamish would do to him then.

I was as vulnerable as Augie in my nudity, and I felt its seductive pull. It wanted me, and somehow I wanted it, but there was enough awareness in my brain of its dangers to keep me from dashing to embrace it. The surge of adrenalin in my bloodstream was charged by my need to protect Augie, which, in the moment, overpowered my impulse to love the phallus.

I took off in pursuit of Augie, hoping to reach him before he strode onto the penis garden. Behind me, I heard Ian yell out "Don't look at the phallus!" I knew that clothing would protect me, but was it possible to avoid its seduction by looking away? I kept my eyes firmly focused on Augie, who fortunately was just striding forward at a calm pace, and was able to tackle him, immediately averting my eyes; the moment I did so, I felt the seductive powers diminish.

(Ian, calling out) Turn around.

He was talking to the others. I looked back and saw them all facing away from the phallus. Ian, keeping his head to the side and observing me only through his peripheral vision, trotted out backwards to join me and escort Augie back to safety.

(Augie) But it's so beautiful.
That's what you said about the dodecagon, remember?
Uh . . . yeah, I did. And it was, Seth. It was beautiful. Jordan thought so, too – I think.
Augie, it took you underground – just like this would have.
(Stan) This isn't where Al and I were captured. There are more places like this.
Augie, if you see another phallus, stay clear of it, okay?
(Augie) Okay.

We continued walking south until the meadow ended in a grove of trees. Which created an issue. In the woods, we wouldn't be able to see the Phallic Tower – if, indeed, it still existed.

Let's head west. I don't think it's too far to the coast. And if we walk along the beach, it should be easier to spot the tower.
(Theo) And it will be easier on our feet than walking through the woods.

It now being mid-afternoon, the sun had veered enough toward the west that we could use it as a compass. We had maybe three hours of daylight left; I hoped that would be enough for us to find the tower while it was still light.

MILES'S CELL – MILES

I was a jumble of emotions. I was a prisoner – and getting fucked daily, sometimes twice a day. The odd thing was – that was the best part of my day. They would take me to a room and plow the shit out of me. I had no choice but to submit to their desires, but I had lived my life submitting to powerful men who would take me as they wanted. I loved that sense of feeling helpless without actually being helpless.

The sex took me out of the despair I felt the rest of the time; I so longed for human contact that was more than physical. I longed for conversation, I longed for a gentle touch, I longed for the look in someone's eyes that said `I love you' without a word needing to be spoken.

In short, I longed for Sean. Sean, who had dragged me into this thing by encouraging me to initiate a relationship with Vic – for reasons he never fully explained. I didn't mind that much because the sex with Vic was great – my God, he knew how to use that massive cock of his. I knew in the back of my mind that Sean was manipulating me to further this mysterious Project that he was always flying off to Switzerland (and Cleveland) for, but I loved him so much that I allowed him to do that.

Was I a fool? I had known Nick, and Sean had used me to feed him the password he needed as an entryway to break into Stimulever's website. And things had devolved from there. I met Jordan in Aruba, we got moved into this alternate universe and shipped to the island. And then Sean left me here. He LEFT me here! He said it was for our protection, but was it? I don't know where Jordan is, but three days after I arrived on the island, I found myself impaled on a giant dildo and whisked off to this underground prison.

Where there was no Sean. Where I saw no one I knew. Only these men who called themselves `lieutenants' who would take me away for sex. They indicated that I was lucky: I wasn't being tortured, just fucked.

I didn't mind being fucked. I minded being alone.

In the four days of my captivity, I saw only one guy other than the lieutenants – a small man about twenty, fit, with a nice ass. I heard them call him Casey, though I think that was his last name, since they kept calling me `King'. Apparently he was on the plane with everyone I had met up on the surface, though it was unclear how he had wound up down here.

Once each day, when I was taken into a Fuck Room, Casey was there as well. There were four fuckers, each of whom occupied one end of one of us, and they kept changing positions so that my mouth and ass were raped by all four of them, and so were Casey's.

After spitroasting us both with multiple cocks, they made us fuck each other – first I fucked him, then he fucked me. At least that was the scenario the first two times I saw him. The third time, I only fucked him. He couldn't fuck me – he had been gelded. I didn't see him today – what had happened?

This terrified me – was this to be my eventual fate? The fact that I first saw him with balls, and then without – was that a message? Was that their way of saying, "Miles, this is what we do down here, don't get used to being a complete man?" The guy was evidently straight, so not enjoying the sex at all. And why wasn't he there today? Some of the lieutenants hinted that perhaps not everyone down here survived their experience – had they done away with Mr. Casey?

I wanted to keep my balls and I wanted to keep my life.

Sean, where the hell are you and why did you do this to me?

ARUBA – SEAN

Thibaut and Dolph had run the simulations and had come up with new parameters, which Germán had texted to me. I found them rather surprising, but having them was such a powerful tool in my hand. All I had to do was convey MOST of them to Ian/Seth, but omit or alter one or two critical elements. That way, it would appear to Jesús that I had done my job but that either Ian or Seth had fucked things up – and when the Project crashed, I would not be blamed for it. Ideally, Ian would be the fall guy.

There was one aspect of the parameters that was problematic for me. The parameters required the deaths of everyone except the Twelve. That included not only the three left-siders who had emerged to the surface with Seth but all of the left-siders underground – and both Jordan and Miles. I didn't want to see Jordan dead – he was hot. Miles, while a good fuck, had served his purpose and was expendable. If I could keep them alive – or even just Jordan – maybe it would sabotage The Project.

I had three motivations for taking down The Project: (1) to discredit Jesús sufficiently enough that the Board would replace him as Chairman, hopefully with Ari; (2) to prevent the unfair assignment I had received were The Project to be launched; and (3) to take Seth home to Switzerland as my willing slave.

The question was going to be timing. Jordan, like Miles, now existed only in Betaworld. Should the Project launch after his Beta-death, he would not be part of it. Should the Project fail after his Beta-death, things would revert back to Alphaworld, in which he currently did not exist.

I wanted to have my cake – à la mode – and fuck it, too. I had to sabotage The Project, had to take Seth with me, and prevent Jordan's Beta-death before the critical moment.

Time to head to the island.

THE BEACH – SETH

We reached the beach in what I guessed was a little over an hour. I was used to walking in the woods in bare feet (and bare everything else) but others found it difficult and were grateful when we reached the calm sand of the beach. And the vision of the tranquil ocean was itself calming.

(Theo) Whoa, what's that?

He had spotted a pattern of shells in the sand some distance ahead. I knew what it was. I had been here before. I didn't feel like explaining, but knew I would have to. Theo trotted ahead to check it out.

(Theo) It says "Gin and Tipsy".
(Ian) Why does that sound familiar? Wait – you asked for it downstairs when you saw Abe.
It's a message Abe left for me. Private joke.

We walked along the beach for another hour or so, as the sun started to fade. There was no sign of the Phallic Tower, and my confidence in our finding it before nightfall – or ever – was waning.

A half-hour later and the sun was sinking fast, resulting in a beautiful sunset over the ocean. That was little consolation.

Looks like we'll have to camp out on the beach tonight.
(Stan) The mosquitoes should like that.
I don't think there are mosquitoes here. I've been naked for two weeks and never been bitten. Something they forgot to include.
(Al) Huh? Who's they, and how could `they' have forgotten to include mosquitoes?
Sorry, Al. Tonight, after we've hunkered down, I'll explain everything. So far as I know. Ian may know more than Augie and I do.
(Stan) The last time we slept on the beach, Al and I woke up in a different place. And alone. Someone moved us. We went to bed with clothes on and woke up naked.
Maybe you'll go to bed naked and wake up dressed this time.
(Al) I wish. I barely remember clothing.

THE DORMITORY – PAUL

Ed!
(Ed) Yeah, I got stupid. Vic was saying racist stuff and then Harry was rude to me and I just walked off in anger and fell right into the trap.
(Dai) Have they . . . done stuff to you?
(Ed) I don't want to talk about it.
So they have. They have to all of us. Was it . . . someone you knew?
(Ed) How the hell did you know that?
(Dai) We've all run across someone we knew. I hate to tell you, Ed, we know you're straight –
(Ed) Damn right.
(Dai) But you're going to get fucked a lot here. That's what they do. We don't know why, but everybody that's come down has been used sexually several times a day.
(Ed) Yeah, well he did use me that way. Ryan Mackenzie. Ryan Fucking Mackenzie.
Mac? You knew Mac?
(Ed) Yeah. He threatened to knock out my teeth, but he didn't.
He might in the future. But don't worry, they'll grow back overnight.
(Ed) Huh? Listen, someone told me that Leo . . . Is he okay?

I looked at Dai. Dai looked at me. Neither one of us knew what to say. Ed knew how to interpret the looks on our faces.

(Ed) Is he dead?

I nodded. I wasn't going to tell him that I was wearing a jockstrap made out of Leo's skin.

(Ed) Beatrice will skin me alive.

The irony of his phrasing did not escape either Dai or me. Nor did we miss the fact that he seemed less concerned with the loss of his son than over the reaction his wife would have. My mind flashed back to the first night in the Tower, when Leo had not yet appeared, and Ed had said something similar.

Loving father, huh?

(Ed) Are the others dead, too? Augie and Lucas and Jordan and Miles?
We don't know. We're hoping Augie escaped with Seth.
(Ed) So Seth did get here.
(Dai) He was hoping to bust out his boyfriend, Abe. He thought he found an escape route, but we don't know if he was successful. He was going to take Abe and Augie with him. Lucas has been with us here in the dormitory, but we haven't seen him for hours – he should have been back by now.
Jordan and Miles – we don't even know who they are. I mean, I thought Jordan was Augie's girlfriend.
(Ed) Hah! Pervert was some kind of trans-something, I don't pretend to understand these things.
And Miles – that's Vic's lover, right? We never met him either. So if we've seen him, we wouldn't even know it.
(Ed) Tell me about Leo.

Okay, time to lie. Or at least shade the truth.

Leo was very brave. He was working with one of the guards who was going to help him find a way out of here. He organized an escape attempt, which was bold and very courageous –
(Ed) Sounds like foolishness to me, but go on.
But the guard betrayed him and they caught him. Hamish – do you know who Hamish is?
(Ed) The big cheese, yes.
Hamish decided to make an example of him, and . . . I'm sorry.

Ed, for the first time, showed some emotion that was not self-directed. It had been clear from the very first that father and son were at odds with each other, mostly over the fact that Leo was gay and Ed was homophobic. But Leo was still Ed's son and I think it was only at that moment that Ed really felt the loss. For reasons deeper than the fact that his wife would be upset.

Dai tried to hug him in consolation, but Ed pushed him away. We were all naked, and Ed was not yet ready for another naked man – a gay naked man – to embrace him.

I felt sorry for the man, in so many ways.

And then turned my attention to a more curious issue – why the hell hadn't Lucas come back? Had he escaped with them?

THE BEACH - SETH

Just then I heard something I had heard about a week before. I recognized the sound instantly – it was a helicopter.

The sound grew closer and closer until it appeared over the tops of the trees that were a few yards from the beach. It paused, hovering almost directly overhead, then flew a bit north, slowly. I postulated that whoever was inside had spotted us, and was scouting out landing spots. At least, I hoped so.

My theory was validated when the whirlybird descended and set down about fifty yards north of our location, on the grassy plateau above the surface of the beach.

The first time we had seen a helicopter, it had not been to take us off the island – it had been to deliver Miles and Jordan. So I was cautious about rushing up to this one. But some of the others eagerly trotted up to meet it, in expectation of rescue.

THE BEACH – IAN

If I were ever to get Stan and myself off of this island, this was our chance. I scrambled up the sandy slope to the plateau above the beach, as the chopper's blades spun to a halt and the pilot climbed out.

I stared in disbelief.

Jude? What the hell was Jude doing here?

Jude was my friend back in Cleveland, Jason's friend, the one who had helped me adjust after my breakup with Seth. The one who had encouraged me to repair Seth's relationship with Abe after their disastrous second date.

The one who had gotten me that fabulous discount to Martinique – that resulted in my coming to the island and becoming one of Hamish's lieutenants.

Jude – that Jude – was here? Whether this was a good thing or a bad thing was not obvious. But it was definitely a thing, a thing that made me wonder – and worry.

[COMING UP NEXT: CHAPTER THIRTY – NEW PARAMETERS]

Next: Chapter 32

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