The Rebirths of Tao

by Wesley Chu

  Chase pulled open the floor panel and led them down a steep set of stairs. Roen sighed when he saw the living area. And he had thought the motel was a dump. The place was an old pump room that had been converted into a storage room and then forgotten once the factory shut down. Fortunately, there was still power, though little else. Other than four large columns symmetrically placed to hold up the ceiling, their new home was essentially one concrete square, filled with piles of junk one would expect to see in a mechanic’s shop. The dust down here was thick enough that Roen couldn’t see what color the walls or floors actually were. The lone light source at the base of the stairs was barely strong enough for them to see the far wall.

  The ceiling in the living area was low enough that it made Roen feel claustrophobic, though unlike Marco and Elias, he didn’t have to bend over to avoid banging his head on the pipes and beams zig-zagging around the ceiling. All in all, this place was a shithole. However, it would prevent detection. That would be especially important once they retrieved Prie. Who knew what condition he would be in once they snatched him out of the IXTF’s grasp?

  The team broke their gear down and set up shop. Marco took charge as each of them claimed a sleeping spot, ordering Sheck to get their comm system back and up and Elias to take inventory of their stocks. Helen and Chase were sent out to restock whatever supplies they had had to leave at the motel.

  Roen ended up taking first watch, which was fine with him. He couldn’t take more than a few minutes in that pit anyway. He found a small alcove in the third story of the factory overlooking the two roads to and from the location and settled in. His mind wandered back to what they had discovered at the catalyst facility. He adamantly believed that he was right. Somehow, he had to convince Marco. The guy was battle-hardened; he should know better.

  It was times like this he wished Tao were here to advise him. To be honest, there was no time when he didn’t wish Tao was with him. He would know what to do. His friend and mentor was good at more than just appraising tactical situations. He would make them see the light. Well, Tao wasn’t here, so it was now all up to Roen.

  “We are so screwed,” he muttered, tossing a pebble at an oil drum in the yard below. He missed it by about five meters. “So screwed.”

  26

  On Their Own

  The Quasing on this planet were unable to identify a unified objective because, unlike our merged consciousness on Quasar, we were all singular beings on Earth, isolated from each other in our individual hosts. This was a new experience for us, being alone with our own thoughts. Over time, our individual ideas deviated from the collective. Because of this, we experienced dissension in our ranks and eventually fractured.

  Tao

  * * *

  The last couple of days in the forest had been rough. At least for Alex they had been. For Cameron, it was just another camping trip. Unsure of the extent of the attack, Tao had recommended they hide and stay low until things had calmed down. After all, if the Genjix were based out of Eureka, which was probable, wandering into town would play right into the enemy’s hands.

  That suited Cameron just fine; he had been camping in the wilds with Roen for years. One of his fondest early memories was playing hide and seek with his father. Roen would use a Penetra scanner and try to find him while Cameron did everything and anything he could to stay hidden. Since the scanner could continually track Tao, it was inevitable that he’d lose the game, but its limitation was that it could only provide directional proximity. By being clever, and with a lot of help from Tao, he was surprised at how well he could keep from being “tagged.”

  Alexandra Mengsk, the princess of Siberia, had toughed it out the first night, and they huddled together in the brush in the lone sleeping bag Cameron had in his emergency pack. Two nights, it seemed, was all she could take. When he told her on the morning of the third day that they weren’t going to head into town yet, her composure went downhill fast. When they ran out of dried rations at lunch time and had to go without dinner, she threw a fit.

  Remember the time you asked why your parents had to spend some time apart every once in a while? Well, here you go.

  “Is this what married life is like?”

  Sometimes. There is good and bad. You just hope for mostly good.

  Cameron harrumphed, and looked over at Alex. The two hadn’t talked since their last fight. She was sitting with her arms wrapped around her knees, staring at the ground. It had rained earlier, which only exasperated the situation. Still, Cameron thought Alex would have handled the situation a little better. She was a host, after all. Shouldn’t she be prepared for this?

  You should be more sympathetic to her. Alex was not raised to enjoy the wilderness like you.

  “I’d think all hosts would be.”

  Not all agents were trained as I trained you and your father.

  “Isn’t survival a basic necessity?”

  There are many ways to survive. All hosts are different, especially ones raised from infancy. Alex was meant to follow in her father’s footsteps, to one day control his financial empire and become a player in Russian government. Tabs has played politics in that region for over a thousand years.

  “That’s true. I would suck if I tried to do her job.”

  Well, first of all, you are very much like your father in that you are not adept at languages, and politics bore you. You can barely speak English, let alone Russian. You also make a poor chess player, which in my opinion, is key in understanding political dynamics.

  “Chess is boring, and hard.”

  I rest my case. It will be cold tonight. Maybe it is time to head into town. Find a roof over your head. Go talk to her. Apologize.

  “For what?!”

  You have a lot to learn, Cameron. Just trust me on this. Apologize. Repeat after me.

  “Hey,” Cameron dragged his feet as he walked up to her.

  “What,” she replied, not bothering to look up.

  “I’m really sorry you have to put up with this.” He repeated Tao’s words verbatim, though not his inflection.

  Damn it, Cameron. Say it like you mean it.

  Cameron tried again. The words came out reluctantly as Tao hammered in each word. “It’s been rough out here and I know I haven’t been listening to you. I’m sorry.”

  Alex looked up at him. “Are you sorry?”

  “I… I just said I was,” he stammered.

  Do not extemporize. Just apologize again and offer a solution to her misery.

  “I am totally sorry and I think you’re right,” he said, trying very hard not to grit his teeth. “It’s time we head into town and find some shelter.”

  It took a little more cajoling before she finally acquiesced to leaving the campsite and heading into Eureka. It was actually very mysterious to Cameron how it came about that he had to beg her to do what she wanted to do all along.

  The two packed up camp and headed toward Eureka. They had been camping on the fringes of it already, just staying out of view. It didn’t take them long before they saw signs of civilization. They passed a few scattered houses, farms and warehouses. Cameron had considered breaking into one of these places for the night, but Tao had other ideas. If they were going to abandon the safety of the forest, they might as well go all the way.

  As they walked, Cameron took out his cell phone and tried to get a signal. He had hoped that the outage was just from being deep in the woods. However, his phone still wasn’t working. That meant his mom had ordered a complete shutdown. He and Alex were truly cut off from the rest of the network.

  I have a way of getting in touch with them. For now, just take care of your basic needs.

  “I’m worried Mom didn’t get out in time. Dad’s still missing too.”

  If Jill had time to initiate a lock down, she had time to escape. Your mother is very competent. Operate under the assumption that she is safe and looking for you as we speak.

  The weather finally caught up with them, and they began feeling a f
ew drops of rain. Cameron and Alex picked up their pace, continuing west until they reached the town’s limits and hit Myrtle Avenue. Tao pressed them closer into the residential area. By now, it was night, and Alex had gone from complaining of being wet and hungry to complaining of being tired of walking. Cameron didn’t blame her. His feet hurt, too. He reminded himself that she was only fourteen. As the oldest here, it was his job to keep them going.

  All right, gramps.

  To Alex’s surprise, since they hadn’t been on the friendliest terms of late, he grabbed her hand and held it as they walked, telling her that they were almost there, though he wasn’t exactly sure where there was. He soon realized where when Tao had him turn onto Harrison Street. There was a tiny hamburger place where some of the high school kids liked to hang out. The hamburgers were better than average, but more importantly, it was in a wooden building in a less-trafficked part of town. The two went around back and studied the door. It was an older deadbolt with a flimsy frame. He rapped the door; it felt hollow. If he gave it a hard kick, he doubted the frame would hold up.

  Or you can just pick it.

  “Lock picking is hard.”

  You are just not good at it. Like someone else I know. Try first.

  Grumbling, Cameron took out the set he kept in his pack and went to work. Tao had tried to train him before, and it had taken him weeks to successfully pick his first padlock. It still sometimes took him an hour to undo the most basic lock. Now, he had the added pressure of attempting it under Alex’s expectant gaze. It didn’t matter though. This door was the only thing standing between them and food, and as his father liked to say, “Nothing stands between a Tan and his food.”

  Five minutes into his attempt, after fumbling a dozen times and snapping two picks, he began to sweat. The rain didn’t let up. Alex began to give him tips on what he was doing wrong. Twenty minutes into his attempt to pick the back door of a run-down burger joint, Cameron had had enough of this crap. With a frustrated guttural cry, he slammed the stinking lock picks on the ground, took a step back, and attempted to kick the door in half.

  “Stop,” Alex said, moving in his way. She rolled her eyes. “Boys.” She picked up the picks and went to work on the door. Within three minutes, the door was open.

  Like I said, different skillsets.

  “Why didn’t you just tell me you were a master thief?” he complained. “You stood there laughing at me for over twenty minutes.”

  “You were trying so hard. I didn’t want to ruin your confidence. It was adorable.” She patted him on the cheek. “Besides, I assumed a Prophus agent would know how to perform such a simple task. I guess I was mistaken.” With a tinkling laugh, she walked inside.

  “We can’t be good at everything!” he called after her.

  The hamburger joint consisted of nothing more than a tiny dining area, a range in the back, and a large walk-in fridge, all divided by a center counter with a register. The two made a beeline for the goods inside the fridge and promptly hauled out a dozen patties and packages of lettuce, onions and tomatoes. They added to their ill-gotten booty a bag of frozen French fries and several bags of chips. They dug into the chips while they figured out how to operate the industrial range and deep fryer.

  Alex held up the bag of frozen patties and frowned. “It says grass-fed cows. What else would you feed them?”

  Cameron shrugged. “Corn?”

  Alex looked at him as if he was crazy. “Why don’t you eat the corn and give the cow grass that people can’t eat?”

  That stumped him. “Because, um, that would make a lot of sense, wouldn’t it?”

  It is a little more complicated than that, but she wins the point.

  Alex turned on the lights once the fryer and grill were heated. Cameron rushed over and turned them off. “They’ll see us,” he said, much to her disapproval. It seemed she got cross whenever he contradicted her, no matter how right he was.

  It took a few overcooked patties and batches of fries, but before long, they were dining on poorly-constructed burgers, chips, and fries. Cameron and Alex settled down for dinner, sitting cross-legged on the floor behind the counter. By candlelight, no less. It was the most romantic thing – the only romantic thing really – Cameron had ever experienced.

  I obviously have been sorely remiss in your education.

  At least the food was good. The two hungry kids scarfed down the burgers and chips within minutes and were contently nibbling down the mound of fries as they huddled closer together in the darkness. Outside, the rain came down harder. Now Cameron was glad they had decided to leave the forest. It would have been miserable out there. However, still in their wet clothes, and now without the warmth of the sleeping bag, they shivered as they edged closer to the small bundle of candles they had found in storage.

  Cameron looked at Alex’s face in the dark, the flickering light reflecting off her pale skin and blonde hair, matted down against her head. She caught his gaze and they both looked away. Cameron could feel his ears burning so hot they felt numb.

  She reached out and touched his left brow. “Your cut is festering.”

  The fight with the Genjix sentry had left him with an ugly bruise just above the eye, but it had left a small gash as well. After two days out in the wilderness, it had become infected and hurt like crazy any time Cameron moved his face.

  “It’s nothing,” he said, trying to smile, though that only made him wince.

  “No, we should take care of that before it gets worse and infects your entire face. Would be such a pity.”

  Cameron’s brain short-circuited a little as his heartbeat became the only noise he could hear. Beads of sweat or water – he couldn’t tell anymore – dribbled down the side of his face. He felt like someone had grabbed the ends of his guts and wrung them like wet rags. It felt strangely sickening and wonderful.

  All right, Marc Antony, you are starting to make me sick, which is supposed to be impossible. You and Cleopatra better cool it before you lose Egypt. Remember, she is a Genjix.

  She was so close to him. He could feel her breath lightly touch his skin, and the slight shiver of her body. He noticed for the first time that they were both shaking. “We have to stay warm,” he said.

  Alex nodded. She looked at the rain splattering the windows outside, now coming hard at almost a horizontal angle. Then she reached out and felt his wet shirt. “We should get out of our wet clothes.” She began to strip her jacket off.

  Now I know Tabs is screwing with me.

  Cameron didn’t need any more encouragement. In a minute, they were in their undershirts huddling closer together for warmth. Alex shivered as she nuzzled against him. Awkwardly, Cameron put his arms around her shoulder and pulled the dry layers of their clothes over them like a blanket.

  “You are so warm,” she said, poking her cold nose against his skin.

  Cameron, please consider the situation. You know who Alex is and where she is going. Do not get too attached. Once we find your mother, Alex will be leaving you.

  Tao said please. Tao almost never said please. In another time, that word coming from his Quasing would have given Cameron pause. This time, though, the words went right through him.

  All Cameron could think of was how nice it was, and wished he could somehow make time stay still. She was supposed to go with Vladimir to South America. What if he had died during that attack? Could she stay with him then? Would his mom and dad allow it? She’d be an orphan. How could they say no?

  Of course it was a terrible thing to think about. It wasn’t like he wished for Alex’s father to die, but Cameron didn’t know what he would do right now if Alex left. For now, he just wanted to keep her safe.

  Puberty. I hate it. In the thousands of years using humans as hosts, you idiots have never evolved out of the worst of human conditions.

  “What, Tao? Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention.”

  Exactly my point. Do not worry about it. For now, get some rest. I will wake you in the morning be
fore dawn. You need to clean up and be out of here before the store opens.

  “What are we going to do then?”

  Alex is right about one thing. Your cut is badly infected. We need to take care of that before it gets worse.

  “How?”

  Why, by keeping your perfect attendance perfect. You are going to school.

  * * *

  Tao waited an hour after both Cameron and Alex were deep asleep. Then he slowly untangled himself from her body. Control over the sleeping boy was awkward again as he got up and walked toward the back office. The experiments he had been doing with Cameron and the conscious control had been pretty cutting-edge. Now, without being able to use Cameron’s consciousness as a conduit, Tao was once again feeling all the inefficiencies of unconscious control.

  Tao looked back at the sleeping Alex. Now was a time for some secrecy. With luck, Tabs wasn’t focused on what was happening outside of Alex’s body. Still, he had better do this fast. He found the phone in the back office and dialed the emergency line.

  “Twenty-four-hour wake up service. We wake up to wake you up. Can I help you?”

  “Identification Tao.”

  “Voice recognition matches Cameron Tan. Current condition: Unknown. Base binary code required.”

  “Binary code one, one, zero, zero, one, zero, one, one, zero, zero, zero, one.”

  Silence.

  “Tao, it has been days since the reported attack. We had feared you were lost, either your host or to the Eternal Sea.”

  “My host and Alexandra Mengsk survived the attack. This is the first I have been able to report in. What about the others?”

  “Jill Tesser Tan survived and is currently at the safe house in Fort Bragg with the scientist. Can you rendezvous with them?”