Archipelago N.Y.: Flynn Read Free Page B

talk to us that way again!” Flynn spat in the water and threw
himself on the car seat, patting the space next to him. “Let’s head back, Tony…
I’ll do all the pedaling.”
    Flynn placed his
feet on the pair of rusty pedals sticking out of the square well-hole cut into
the platform. Tony sat next to him and allowed his tired body to finally relax.
“Home, sweet home!” cried Flynn, popping open a can of soda that had long lost
its original fizz. He took a swig and then pressed on the pedals. Suddenly, he
felt his spirits rise. He loved the Seeker . Although it was a very basic
type of water vessel, the raft had served him well over the years. Flynn
grabbed the steering rudder and the raft started to turn slowly, until it faced
the setting sun.
    Far in the
distance, surrounded by miles of water, were the familiar buildings of their
Archipelago… or what once used to be known as the City of New York. Of course,
Flynn knew these buildings looked different from the Olden Days. He had seen
enough faded photos of the city before the Flood... For a start, the
skyscrapers had been much taller… Today, they were half their original size.
What remained of the fabled and once proud metropolis now rose straight out of
the ocean, creating a string of islands. With no solid land to build on, there
were awkward-looking structures sticking up from every single rooftop that had
remained… And a spider-web of cables had been strung between them, with cable
cars moving back and forth… and bridges and walkways, suspended in mid-air,
connecting the old skyscrapers… What had once been Manhattan was no longer a
single island… It had become a string of inhabitable outposts, little pockets
of life, a seemingly haphazard cluster of everyday survival above the
waterline. This was the Archipelago and the place Flynn and Tony called home.
    “See that building
there, Tony?” Flynn pointed to a tower on the Upper Side, not far from the one
they used to call the Empire State. “That’s where we’re going to live in just a
week, my friend! Let’s see how the Van Zandt boy can stop me from moving in
right next door to him!”
    “If you win the
Trials, that is!”
    “Of course we’ll
win. We’ve got to win, Tony!”
    Tony said nothing.
He just shook his head and stared at his aching feet.

TWO
     
     
     
     

     
    Mike Foley stood
on the edge of the Customs Platform. Overweight and puffy faced, he didn't look
like the majority of the Archipelago’s people. Unlike Mike, most were lean and
fit… But then again, Mike didn’t get to do much physical work…he just sat
counting boats and rafts passing by his designated outpost. His station was a mid-sized
pontoon, moored between the roofs of two partially submerged buildings, with
only their top three stories still above the water line. The space in the
middle worked like a gate for the boat traffic to pass through. The last two
floors of these derelict buildings were used to temporarily store the Customs
booty. Mike's checkpoint was on the west side of town, over what once used to
be called Brooklyn. It was one of the many stations positioned at regular
intervals around the Archipelago. The stations were connected with big nets to
prevent unauthorized traffic, forcing all rafts and boats to go through these
gate-like checkpoints.
    Of course, the
Government officials couldn’t possibly keep an eye on the miles of nets
encircling the Archipelago’s limits. Holes kept appearing, allowing vessels to
sneak in and out unnoticed and to constantly supply the city’s Black Market. It
was a risky business, though. If the traffickers could bypass the nets, they
then faced a much harder task…that of evading the sharp eyes of the Watchers.
These men kept a constant vigil over the waters around the Archipelago from
their Watch Towers… And they were watching Mike Foley, too! He had to be
careful.
    The day was almost
over. All of the big rafts had already passed through and gone back towards