Carbon (The Watcher Series Book 2)

by AJ Eversley

~

  A loud bang, followed by a shutter from inside the ship, woke me from a restless sleep. I bolted upright, startling a sleeping Chevy. I threw a shirt over my head in such a rush it ended up backward, but I didn’t care. Sprinting through the hallway and up three flights of stairs to the control room, I prayed we didn’t hit something again.

  Chevy followed, and Max was close behind.

  “What happened? Have we hit something again?” I asked Lankey as soon as I entered.

  “Oh no, ma’ dear. We be just resurfacin’ is all,” Lankey explained. “How would ya’ like to see the sunrise?”

  “Serious?” Finally, I’d be able to breathe some fresh air.

  “Follow me.” Lankey stood, and we walked to a tall ladder. The ship let out one last groan before it leveled out, bobbing at the surface.

  “All clear, Cap’in,” Pete, a short, stocky fellow, yelled.

  ~

  The magnificent display of color was more beautiful than I could’ve imagined. It was like seeing a sunrise for the first time or experiencing the ocean like I’d never seen it before. My breath caught in my throat while I stared out to the glistening, crystal blue water surrounding us. The sky was dim and gray as the sun rose, sending pops of color bouncing off the water. The heat was already rising, and I realized that my all-black wardrobe I’d grown accustomed might not have been the best choice. My still bare legs and oversized shirt tingled as the warm salt air hit my nose, and I took in a few deep breaths. I closed my eyes and reveled in the serenity of the moment. The sun peaked its way over the ocean’s edge, casting orange, pink, and yellow shadows across the water. I couldn’t pull my stare away from the amazing display of color dancing across the surface.

  “Wow,” Max mumbled.

  I nodded in agreement and chanced a glance at him. His face reflected almost a childlike awe, much different from his usual cocky grin or tempered scowl. A smile crept on my face.

  “What?” His brow knotted.

  “Nothing. It’s just so beautiful.” My gaze returned to the rising sun, shoving away whatever moment that just was.

  “Like looking in a mirror,” Max teased.

  I cocked my head to the side and shook it slowly.

  He gave me a grin and nudged my side, “Don’t act like you weren’t thinking the same thing.”

  “I wasn’t.” I tried not to let the lie show.

  He smirked as if he saw through me and went back to watching the sunrise.

  “The decks will be scrubbed, and the main doors opened in jus’ a few hours,” Captain Lankey said as he gestured to the ladder.

  Shuffling slowly, I reluctantly followed, taking one last deep breath before I descended into the ship.

  Chevy nuzzled his nose under my hand as I walked back into the room. Max followed a few steps behind and then plopped onto his bed before he tossed that coin overhead and caught it. I sat as my attention followed the coin going up and down. Up and down.

  I reached over and snatched it away.

  “Hey!” Max yelled. He propped himself up on one elbow.

  “Why’d you do that?” I asked.

  “Toss a coin? Oh, I don’t know. Out of boredom. Maybe I like taking chances.” He winked.

  “No. Ruin a perfectly good moment with your excessive teasing.” I flipped the coin in my hand.

  “I didn’t realize I was ruining a moment.” Max sat up, swinging his legs over the edge and brushing my knee as he did. “Could you at least try to lighten up, just a little?” There was a coldness to his voice. “You spend every day thinking about him…about them. I see it in your eyes. Vengeance is all you see, and yet you judge me for wanting to bring even the slightest smile to your face? Get over it.”

  In the split second it took me to process what he said, my body was already shaking. That’s all this was to him. This was a game, and he thought I’d be a willing participant. He had no idea the nerve he’d hit.

  “How dare you talk about him,” I said through clenched teeth. “How dare you judge what I’ve been through when you’ve spent the last ten years safe in a cave in the forest.”

  “Ha! You think I was safe there?” He crossed his arms, and all amusement left his face as a cold rage set in. “I spent six years completely alone in that forest. I had to find my own food and shelter until I found that camp. I had to fend off the Dred Wulfs and other mutated, vicious animals that lived in that forest. I survived freezing cold winters and blistering hot summers. I didn’t even know if anyone else was alive. I didn’t know if I was the last human alive, or if my dad was dead. I was alone and hunted every night like some horrible nightmare. You had people. You had help.”

  “I had people to keep alive! That was what I did for ten years. I wasn’t just hiding and feeling sorry for myself because I was lonely. I was fighting our enemy every day, risking my own life daily.” I couldn’t breathe. “I didn’t have Daddy there to take care of me.”

  “Didn’t you?” he sneered. “You had your own dad trying to keep you safe along with my dad. I know your story. But I was alone and fighting an enemy just like you were. One equally as vicious and haunting.”

  The way he spoke sent a shiver down my spine.

  “For as long as I can remember it was always just me,” Max said. “My father hardly even communicated with me even when I did find that camp because he was too busy with you and his adopted son.”

  “Don’t you dare speak of Kyle.” My voice was shaky, and I was inches from his face.

  Chevy looked between the two of us.

  “You don’t know what we went through,” I shouted. “You weren’t there!”

  “That’s my point,” he said softly, not looking away from my hard glare, “I wasn’t there. I am never there. Even now my father sends me off again, with you. The only person in the whole damn universe who doesn’t know how to smile even for a second.”

  I rubbed the back of my neck. “Did you ever stop to think that maybe not everything is a joke?” My knee brushed his leg as I squeezed past him.

  “I know it’s no joke. But if you don’t stop feeling guilty about things you can’t control, then he wins. Coleman will have already won.” He stopped me in my tracks. Pain and anxiety dripped from his voice, sending a shiver through me.

  I glanced over my shoulder. “He won’t win.” The words were barely a whisper as I spoke them. The venom and heat had subsided as I realized the fight in me was no longer there despite what I tried to convey.

  “I’m going to hold you to that,” Max promised.

  I wanted to say something. I wanted to bring back that strong person I felt clawing in the darkness. That person was there only a moment ago, but tears welled up instead with the pain and guilt. I pushed them down, but I couldn’t move. He was right. Coleman was winning.

  And I was lost.

  Chapter 8

  “How could he be so ignorant?” Wind hit my face as I paced on the ship deck while Captain Lankey lounged on his side.

  “E’ryone sees things differently. We all ‘ave our own fears and nightmares that keep us up at night.” He pulled his hat down over his eyes to block the sun. I couldn’t sit still. My mind had been racing since I stormed up and found Lankey. “You’re gonna put a hole in the floorboard of my nice fancy ship there, darlin’.”

  “Sorry.” I dropped to the ground, resting against the railings. My eyes closed, and an audible sigh escaped me. “He’s not wrong.” I pinched the bridge of my nose as my head ached. “Coleman has a hold on me even when he’s not around. I can’t seem to find a way not to think of everything I’ve lost and all the people I let down.”

  Lankey sat up and took off his hat to reveal his stringy wisps of hair. He wiped his brow with his sleeve. “Did ya’ ever stop to think about the thousands of people who lived because of ya’? E’rybody dies sooner or later, and it’s unfortunate that sum of yer closest friends died sooner than they shoulda, but thousands of others lived and are still on this earth because of ya’. Ya’d do best t
o remember them too.”

  I bit the inside of my cheek and considering his words.

  “He has his faults, we all do,” said Lankey. “And sometimes…well…a lotta times he says or does the wrong thing. But deep down, he ain’t a bad person. Sum’uns just gotta help him see that too. He’s just as broken on the inside despite what he tries to hide. And I think ya may need the same therapy he does.” Lankey winked before he closed his eyes again and rested his hat over his face.

  He was right. Max wasn’t a bad person. And maybe that’s why I was so mad at myself because everything he said and everything he did was meant to get me out of this funk. But I couldn’t seem to find my way out of this quicksand I had put myself into. It was like I was drowning myself more with each step forward I tried to take. If there were an easier way out of this darkness, I couldn’t see it.

  Pete interrupted my thoughts. He came running toward us, horribly out of breath. “Cap’n, sir. There’s sum’un on the Link for ya’ and the Misses ‘ere.” He pointed to me.

  “For me?”

  ~

  I nearly jumped out of my skin as I walked in to find Sam standing in the middle of the room—well, the Link version of Sam anyways. “Sawyer!” Sam exclaimed as he ran over, throwing his arms out to hug me, but instead he wisped through my arms, sending a chill down my spine. “Oh, right. I guess I can’t really hug you now, can I? Well, that was a bit awkward—for me, not you. You’re always composed and graceful. Am I babbling again?”

  “Yes.” I smiled.

  “Right. Sorry about that.”

  “How did ya’ manage ta’ tap into our Link system? It shoulda been secure,” Lankey asked.

  “Oh, yes, it was fairly secure. But of course, that’s kind of my specialty.” Sam puffed out his chest. “Before you guys left Kuros, I hacked into your system. It was only a matter of days before I guessed your password.” He gestured to the captain’s men. “Mr. Fluffybottom is not that secure of a password. Especially when the screen picture on your tablet is of a cat wearing a sweater with his name sown onto it!”

  Pete turned bright red, and a few snickers came from the men around us.

  “Anyway, Sam, why are you here?” I asked.

  “Right, of course. I’ve been trying to reach you for days, but you were too far underwater. It was just my luck that I tried today as I was originally going to help one of the guys with a system override, but I thought to myself…Sam, now is the time to check. And so I did, and my instincts were right because here you are. You see, the Link system doesn’t work underwater,” Sam babbled. “The Link system needs something—”

  “Sam!” I interrupted.

  “Right, right, sorry. I wanted to give you a few updates. First, we are settled in the nice little village Murray told you about. It’s amazing here. We all have our own tiny houses and little kitchens. There’s a garden and a playground for the kids. We’ve set up a security field with help from some of the men from Kuros, so Coleman can’t find us here. It’s spectacular. Not that being on a ship wouldn’t be awesome too, that must be exciting—”

  “Sam!” Lankey and I both shouted.

  “Right. Well, we did a little digging once we found out what your ship is made out of, Captain, and sure enough, it’s the same mystery metal the new advanced Carbons are made of. Alatonion! That’s why we couldn’t detect them. It’s also how they can heal so fast. The Alatonion protects them and seals wounds quickly enough to start the healing process almost instantly. And obviously hides the chip at the back of their neck with which Coleman controls them.”

  Instinctively, my hand reached to the back of my neck.

  “But of course Adam is already remedying the problem. He’s also working on a device that will disable the Carbons so we’re ready for an attack. We just need to test it out on an actual Carbon, but he and Murray seem quite confident this will work. We’re going to be prepared next time Coleman comes around, that’s for sure.”

  “Has Adam figured out how to remove the chip without killing the Carbon yet?” I asked.

  “No, not yet, but he’s working on it night and day,” Sam tried to reassure me. I hoped he could figure it out soon. It might be the only way to break the control Coleman had over me.

  “Thank you, Sam.”

  “You’re welcome. We all miss you here, Sawyer.”

  My heartstrings tightened. “I miss you guys too,” I responded.

  “See you again soon.” Sam chuckled as he faded. “Mr. Fluffybottom, ha!”

  Pete went even a darker shade of red.

  Chapter 9

  Kenzie

  They stood before him like statues, hundreds of thousands of Carbons waiting for Kenzie to give them an order. The air in the room was stagnant and it was silent except for the soft footsteps he made circling them. Kenzie walked down the rows, scanning between the Carbons and his tablet that told him everything he needed to know about the Carbons. They were under his control and his guidance. They were a necessity in his regime, but that didn’t mean he had to like them. They weren’t refined like Coleman. They weren’t themselves, just machines willing to do whatever told. The idea sickened him. If Coleman hadn’t asked him personally to do this, he wouldn’t give any one of them a second glance. But he knew what had to be done to see their victory. Kenzie reached the front as soft footsteps came behind him.

  He often forgot how small Coleman was until he was standing beside him. Despite being barely up to Kenzie’s shoulder, he still commanded the room.

  “How are they? Acceptable?” Coleman asked.

  “They’ll do. There are a few I can work with. The rest are just foot soldiers.” Kenzie had spent the better part of the morning analyzing each and every Carbon, checking what skills they had and how fast they utilized and harnessed their powers. Some never would harness their powers, they were mindless sheep, who would do as they were told, and that was it.

  “Good. Take them. They’re yours. Just make sure they are ready.” As Coleman strolled away, he spoke over his shoulder, “Oh, Kenzie, you can use Sector 7 for your training. I expect them to be ready.”

  “The following soldiers will come with me for additional training.” Kenzie drew back their attention as Coleman left the room. “Faulk–821, Yandry–1787, Linton–6134, Easton–10010.”

  As he called each name out, a Carbon came forward, forming a line in front of him.

  “And Russo–29940,” Kenzie called out, looking up from his tablet. As he glanced beyond the screen, his face blanched and his breath was caught in his throat. Kenzie dropped the tablet as all of his focus fell on the woman who had stepped out from the group of Carbons and stood before him. He recognized her immediately but had no idea how and the ringing in his ears had suddenly returned. Her shoulder-length dark hair seemed so familiar.

  “Sir?” One of the Carbons handed Kenzie his tablet.

  Kenzie rubbed at the back of his neck and twisted away. He didn’t know her. She was just a Carbon—a nothing.

  “Right. Follow me.” He regained his composure as they marched down the hall toward Sector 7. The chiming of boots hitting metal sounded in unison.

  Once they reached Sector 7, they entered a large windowless room. The Carbons fell into line at the front. Kenzie did his best not to look at her, Russo, but he kept catching her glances. He swore she noticed him too.

  He cleared his throat. “You have all been chosen based on your diagnostic scores and abilities. I will be training you to amplify your abilities to complete the mission we’ve been tasked.”

  “Yes, sir,” they said in unison.

  “Good. Faulk, you’re first.” A tall, broad-shouldered man walked forward and turned to face the wall. He glanced at Kenzie, waiting for permission to begin. A subtle nod, and Faulk raised his arms toward the wall as a blast of air pushed through his hands and into the wall. The strong wind current crashed against the wall and bounced back toward where Kenzie stood, causing a shiver to travel down Kenzie’s spine. “Not bad. We�
�ll work on the velocity. It could be faster. Next!”

  One by one, each Carbon stepped forward to display their abilities. One produced flames in his hands, another made herself invisible, and yet another multiplied into ten different versions of herself.

  Russo was the last left to go. “Next,” Kenzie said.

  “I will need your assistance, sir,” she said softly. Kenzie looked at her face and saw a glimmer of something familiar despite the small wrinkles that framed the Carbon’s brown and amber eyes. She was old enough to be his mother and looked at him with the kindness of one.

  He fumbled with confusion, waving his hand dismissively. “Go ahead.”

  Without warning, pain seared through Kenzie’s head, and his vision went black. He grabbed the side of his head as he groaned in pain, and then it was gone.

  As he opened his eyes, he was no longer in Sector 7 on the space station but was on land. His feet felt warm sand between his toes before cool water splashed over them. Kenzie looked out over the dark blue water that sparked and lit up with sharp pops of lightning from a storm overhead. The night sky cracked with electricity and reflected in the dark waters like a mirror. Just ahead, wadding in the water was a girl. She shimmered with the glow of the lightning as her long dark hair flowed over her shoulders and down her back. Her pale, white skin shone in the light with each booming crack in the distance. He couldn’t see her face. Squinting and leaned closer, he took a small step forward, before—

  Kenzie blinked and was back in Sector 7, with Russo still standing before him. Kenzie shook his head. “What was that?” he asked.

  “I can make you see whatever I choose,” Russo stated sweetly. Kenzie nodded, unable to formulate words. It all felt so real. He still felt the sand between his toes and the cool water. He felt the lightning and distant thunderstorm still rumbling deep within his chest.

  “That will be all for today!” he yelled. “Dismissed!”

  The Carbons fell into line as they marched out of the room, leaving him in silence. Kenzie fell to his knees. The lightning still sparked in his vision as he closed his eyes, wiping his hands over his face.