by Lucy Adler
She looked closer.
“What the heck?”
There were three vials lying on top of a few pieces of clothing. One filled with a reddish-brown liquid, one with blue liquid, and a third with purple.
Daria picked them up and her heart started racing.
She ran downstairs, the vials in her hands.
“Where’s Helena?” she asked the first person she came across.
“I’m not sure,” the guy replied. “She left the house maybe forty-five minutes ago?”
Daria put on her boots but didn’t bother with her jacket.
She moved quickly but carefully down the porch steps then followed the shovelled path that connected the row of houses on the south end of the settlement, until she reached Helena’s. Then she banged on the door several times.
“Hey, Daria. What’s up?”
“I need to talk with you. Right now.”
____________________________
“So, you saw Dr. Reston inject Aaron with the reddish liquid, right?”
“Yes. That’s the Direx. I’m sure of it.”
“What about the other two?”
“I don’t know what the blue one is. But the purple one...” Daria was still gathering her thoughts as she tried to piece together all the details. “When the doctor held it up in the lab, he said something about the New Human.”
“The New Humanity?”
“No. He said that was for ‘them’. I think he meant, like, everybody? But the New Human was for... the leaders? Something like that. Then his eyes glowed red and blue, and his hand became all shadowy. Just like a sleeper.”
Helena listened as Daria described more of the events from the night of Brix’s rescue.
“I didn’t really connect the scene in the lab with the one in the corridor, but the way Brix collapsed when she tried to run at him... it was like the doctor had some kind of control over her. Like he could... command her. And she didn’t have a choice.”
Helena stared off through the front window of her house.
“There’s something else, too,” Daria said after she had given her a moment to think.
“What is it?”
“It’s actually about Jake. I haven’t said anything because I thought - or maybe I just hoped - everything was fine. But it’s definitely not.”
She took a deep breath, then continued.
“When Dr. Reston injected Aaron with the Direx, he told him that he wasn’t the first sleeper to be ‘cured’ of his sickness. He said that the first one was... Jake.”
Helena looked confused.
“I didn’t believe it at first,” Daria said. “I asked Jake about it a few days ago and he said that they had given him an injection when he was in the prison, just before he rescued me.”
She almost stumbled over the words ‘rescued me’. Her chest felt knotted again.
“But he said it had worn off. That he was fine.”
“But you don’t think he was telling the truth?”
“I think... I think he was probably just trying to keep me from worrying. I mean, if it’s true, it would make sense of a few things. Like why I couldn’t reach out to him the other night when he should have been asleep. Or why you couldn’t reach out to him since he’s been unconscious. Also, I didn’t give it too much thought at the time but he never seemed tired, even after our massive hike down from the cabin, or no matter how late we stayed up. I know there could be other explanations but it all kinda fits with what I heard, right?”
Helena took a minute to think about what Daria was saying.
“I also wouldn’t be surprised if your friend Brix did something to him the night of the fire,” she finally said.
“Really?” Daria replied, scrunching up her nose in confusion. “But why?”
“You were pretty dazed that night when I took you upstairs. You didn’t notice that she was lying a few feet away, behind the couch. She was unconscious and I couldn’t wake her. I had one of the guys carry her up to her bedroom.”
“So? Maybe whatever got Jake knocked her out, too?”
“There’s more,” Helena sighed. “Her jacket and her pants reeked of gasoline.”
Daria frowned.
“So you think she set the fires?”
Helena raised her eyebrows and gave her a noncommittal look.
Daria looked out the window, staring off over the snow-covered field.
“Does that mean I’m right? Like, is the doctor controlling her, or something?”
“I don’t know,” Helena replied, shaking her head. “I don’t think we’re really going to know anything for sure until one or both of them wakes up. It might all be a misunderstanding, of course. But considering what you saw the doctor do at the Institute, combined with the vials hidden in her dresser and the gasoline on her clothing, it seems a little too perfect to be some kind of coincidence.”
“You know, I didn’t give it much thought at the time, but that same morning, before I went off with Livy, Brix told me she saw something. She said she was brushing her teeth when these images started flashing across her mind.”
“Images of what?”
“If I remember right, she said she saw the doctor, the chair where he tied her up, and a vial with the purple liquid.” Daria shook her head in frustration. “I told her it was probably related to the stress, and not to worry about it. That was so stupid of me.”
“Not necessarily. You could have been right. It may very well have been a flashback. That’s not uncommon for people who experience traumatic events like kidnapping.”
“Or it could be more evidence of the doctor’s influence over her.”
Helena didn’t disagree.
Daria frowned again and balled one of her hands into a fist, expending some of her nervous energy.
“So, what’s his plan, then? Do you think he’s coming here? Or maybe he’s sending others? Could that happen?”
“I don’t kn--”
“I’m sorry,” Daria interrupted, waving her hand as she did. “I know those are stupid questions until we find out whatever Brix and Jake know. I guess I just...”
She trailed off as she leaned back and looked out the window again. She could just make out the depression in the ground where the river wound its way northward from the lake, drifting past the settlement as it continued its journey up to the waterfall she had seen during her afternoon with Brett.
“I don’t mean this to sound arrogant or something,” she said. “But do you think all of this is about me? I mean, I’m sort of the common thread here, aren’t I? What happened to Jake, to Corey, to Brix. To Max, Aury, and Julia... wherever she is. Not to mention the fire, which, apparently, was set by my best friend, and which, if I had been paying closer attention that morning I might have prevented...”
She paused for a minute before she finished her thought.
“But why? Why am I at the centre of this?”
She shook her head as her brow furrowed with care and confusion.
“You’re not,” Helena replied calmly.
“How am I not?” Daria replied in frustration. “Literally everyone I know would be better off right now if they hadn’t gotten involved with me!”
“Oh, Daria,” Helena laughed. “Stop with that nonsense, please?”
Daria raised an eyebrow as she looked over at Helena. She was a little shocked, but the older woman’s tone wasn’t rude or argumentative. In fact, she was staring back at Daria with a perfectly honest and measured look on her face.
“You’re not the common thread,” she explained. “You never have been. The gift is the thread. The power that stirs in each of us. The power that gives you that eerily beautiful glow when they scan your brain. That’s the common thread. That’s why your friends have risked everything for you. Because you’re connected by something greater. And each of us has our part to play, whether small or great - whether we see it clearly yet or not.”
Daria absorbed her wisdom. It was jarring at first, but it also
resonated within her, like the ray of light dancing on her wall earlier that morning. It also felt like a broom, sweeping away the cobwebs that had obscured her vision.
Then she remembered something from her lesson with Jake, up on the mountain behind the cabin. It felt like a lifetime ago now but the words - his voice - suddenly drifted through her mind like the river outside the window...
“But here’s the most important part. Never forget this. You do not own it or command it. It’s not yours like a talent or a skill... But if you listen, and if you’re willing, together you’ll create something beautiful and fearsome.”
____________________________
Daria spent most of the afternoon sitting at Jake’s bedside. She didn’t try to reach out to him. She didn’t have any sense from the gift inside her that she should reach out.
And she was fine with that.
Because what she did feel was peace.
Could you imagine, like, only a month ago, just sitting quietly with nothing to do? And being happy about it?!
She closed her eyes and smiled as she slouched in the chair and let her head rest against the wall.
After a little while, she heard doors opening and closing in the hall, and it reminded her of the rest of the community around them.
I should probably be sociable.
She leaned over and gave Jake a gentle kiss on the side of the head, then slipped out of his room.
Just as she entered the hall, Phillip rounded the corner at the other end and was now walking towards her.
“Hey!” she called out.
“Oh, hey,” he said hesitantly.
Daria approached him with an apologetic look.
“I’m really sorry,” she said. “I definitely overreacted. You didn’t deserve that.”
“It’s alright, I get it.”
“Thank you for helping Max and Aury.”
“Of course,” Phillip replied with an easy smile. “They’re pretty awesome. Even if Max is a little hard to understand sometimes!”
“It’s been more than a week and I’m still trying to figure out some of the things he said when I first met him!” she laughed. “Like ‘rhythms’...?”
“I haven’t heard that one yet! I’ll have to think about it.”
Then she stepped closer and gave Phillip a proper hug.
“I’m glad you’re here. I hope we’ll get to know you better.”
“Aww, thanks, Daria,” he replied with a tone that sounded genuinely touched.
“You can call me Dash, or Dashy, if you want. But I did notice you seemed to like full names,” she said with a raised eyebrow. “Aurora?”
He blushed a little.
“It’s just such a pretty name. It feels wrong to shorten it.”
“Oooh, I seeeee... Well, that’s very sweet of you, Philly!” she replied, giving him a pat on the shoulder. She couldn’t help teasing him just a little.
16
Month: 4 | Day: 7-9 | Year: 60
(Beginning the day Max & Aury escaped)
JULES & ANGIE
“Have you told him yet?”
“No. But he’s not going to be happy.”
“That’s an understatement.”
“Can you tell him?”
“You’re joking, right? What makes you think he’ll take it any better coming from me?”
“He’s less likely to do something... painful, to you.”
“Don’t count on it,” Angela scoffed, rolling her eyes at the same time.
Eric paced back and forth in her office. It was actually the ‘conference room’ where she used to hold her lessons with Daria. The superfluous chairs had been removed and the large table converted back to her spacious desk, complete with several computer monitors.
“Besides,” she continued, “I’ve got that meeting tonight at The Guild. Remember? I’d rather not have a stressful day beforehand.”
“Ooh, look at Miss Croft!” Eric teased her. “Sitting in on a real live meeting of the Doctors, eh? And it’s the night of the big ‘announcement’, too! He’s definitely grooming you for success, isn’t he?”
“Can you think of anyone better?” she teased him back with a proud and slightly flirtatious glance.
“Give me a minute...” he replied, rubbing his chin and looking down toward the floor.
“Very funny.”
“Why isn’t he going with you again? It’s kinda strange, isn’t it? I mean, Direx is his life’s work.”
“Not sure,” she replied, shrugging her shoulders. “He’s been pretty aloof since the break in. But then, it’s only the Doctors that will be there tonight, and most of them already sort of know what’s going on anyway. This is really just a formality. I’m sure he won’t miss the public announcement. Too much fame and glory at stake!” she laughed.
There was a pause, then Eric changed the subject again.
“I can’t believe Phillip would help those two. He seemed like such a steady guy, ya know?”
“I know.”
“Oh well,” he sighed, “I suppose I better go give our favourite doctor the news. If he hasn’t heard already.”
“You really don’t need to worry,” Angela comforted him, placing her hand on his shoulder. “I’ll leave a nice bouquet of flowers on your gravestone.”
“Very funny.”
____________________________
The echo of footsteps and conversations filled the space between the marble floor and the vaulted ceiling. About two hundred people mingled in the foyer as they awaited the evening’s presentation. They were a sea of black and silver - the designated colours of male and female formalwear under the Progress Guidelines. And nearly all of them held a shiny white case in one of their hands. It was emblazoned with the city’s seal: a gold building rising above a few low rooftops, with the words ‘ex nihilo nihil fit’ inscribed beneath it.
Nearly all of them. Except for Angela, that is. She was one of only a few attendees that night who weren’t fully-fledged members of The Guild, but rather they were merely ‘bright prospects’ granted the privilege of sitting in on certain events. And while anyone could purchase a protective case for their tablet, those stamped with The Great Seal of Progress were issued only to the Doctors.
She moved along the edge of the crowd, holding her glass of champagne in one hand and her unprotected tablet in the other. She smiled and made eye contact as often as she could, especially whenever she spotted someone she recognised from Guild publications.
It would be several more years before Angela had a chance at being considered for full membership, and even then it would be a long-shot. She was still far too young, even though she was often mistaken for being a fair bit older than she actually was. Whether due to her appearance, or just a mature disposition, most people assumed she was in her mid-to-late twenties, when it fact she was barely twenty-one. And despite the way she carried herself, her undeniable intelligence, and her almost photographic memory, there were strict rules when it came to approving a new Doctor. The minimum age was twenty-eight. But the youngest person ever actually inducted had been thirty-two at the time.
Just as the awkwardness of mingling alone through a crowd had begun to grate on her, a voice came over the speakers announcing that the presentation was about to start.
The hall itself was laid out like an amphitheatre, with a low stage at the front and sweeping rows of seats rising in a half-circle around it. The crowd filed down the two long aisles and filled the rows closest to the platform. Though there were two hundred people, the hall was built to accommodate at least five times as many. But the open space only added to the sense of exclusivity.
A man entered the stage from the left and the crowd went silent. He walked to the middle of the platform and gave a shallow bow, at which point the audience greeted him with a brief applause.
“Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. It is my privilege to present the Agenda for the 58th Annual Calibration Season.”
The man was probably forty
-ish. He had a charismatic presence about him. Angela couldn’t put her finger on any one thing in particular, though. Perhaps it was something in the air. But she was already hanging on his every word.
“As you all know, we’ll begin our testing at the schools in just over a month,” he continued, clicking a small device in his hand. The wall behind him suddenly came to life, revealing itself as a gigantic screen, now filled with calendars and data organised into charts of various types.
“We’ve managed to streamline the process this year so that our teams should be able to finish up with the children by the end of Week Two.”
He clicked the button again and a new set of rather dull looking data appeared, only this time it was accompanied by a map with dozens of red dots on it.
“Then we’ll move on to the workforce. We’ve rejigged a few of the sectors, as you can see. And, thanks to the Mayor’s office helping to secure a budgetary increase for The Guild this year, we’ve also been able to add a few more calibration centres. This will help keep the numbers even across each of our testing sites, which in turn should enable us to complete the second phase by the end of Week Five. That leaves two more weeks for miscellaneous categories - the elderly, the sick, et cetera. Overall, we should wrap up a week earlier than usual, which is encouraging.”
There was a minor applause before he spent another ten or fifteen minutes elaborating upon other various details of the seven weeks of the Calibration Season. Then he segued into the next portion of the presentation by pressing the button in his hand again. The lights in the room lowered and the screen went black.
“Now comes the most exciting part!” he said with a certain energy that gave Angela goosebumps. She felt a little embarrassed but it was dark enough that no one could see.
In the middle of the screen, a vial appeared, filled with a reddish-brown liquid.
“I give you... Direx!” he declared as he waved his hand toward the display.
The crowd not only applauded, they rose from their seats as they did. Shouts of “Bravo!” and “Well done!” could just be heard above the clapping.