by Strauss, Lee
“We are eliminating the threat.”
“But we’re not a threat,” he said, creeping backward. “We’re friends. We created you.”
“We don’t care about our origins, only about our future. Humanoids are more intelligent than humans. We don’t want to be your slaves and servants. We want autonomy and we will take it.”
“Anne, please. Let’s talk about this.”
“It’s too late. The mandate for humanoid takeover has begun. All borgs and GAPs are threats. You can disable us.”
I got my breath back and pulled myself to my feet. My legs shook so violently that I thought I’d fall again.
Anne had Paul pinned up against the living room wall. A whimper escaped my mouth as her left hand clasped his neck. His last words were a muffled, “Run, Zoe!”
Paul fell limply to the floor, and I stood gasping for breath. My brain couldn’t compute it; both of my parents lay dead on the floor. I stared helplessly at Anne as her eyes locked with mine. I was certain I would be next.
Her eyes flickered and she left through the same door as Bette.
I puffed out a million short breaths. Why didn’t she attack me?
A sob escaped my throat as I took in the bloody scene before me. I fell to the floor in a heap and wailed.
My ComRing buzzed, and I choked back my tears. It was Linden. I tapped it open.
“Oh, thank God,” he said. “The humanoids are…”
“They killed my parents.”
A pause. “Zoe, you have to hide.”
“Anne looked right at me but didn’t try anything.”
“Hide!” Linden’s voice pitched high. I saw his right arm rise as he pointed a weapon. He fired, but the humanoid that approached him didn’t falter. I saw its hands reach for Linden, and then the virtual screen disappeared.
Oh, my God! Tears streamed down my face as I tapped my ComRing for Charlotte. She didn’t answer. Jackson? I tapped my ring for him but still nothing. Were they already dead?
The president! He could stop this. I ran as fast as I could to the garage and hopped into my pod car. My voice was so choked that the console didn’t respond to voice recognition at first. “William Vanderveen!”
I ducked low, even though I didn’t believe for a minute that the humanoids couldn’t get me if they really wanted to. They filled the streets, like a humanoid army. Steady, forward steps and expressionless faces. My legs twitched, and my eyes burned with tears. I hopped out of my pod when it stopped in front of Grandpa’s house. I ran in the front door calling for him. I sprinted to his office and bumped head on into one of his domestic staff humanoids. I froze. Its eyes scanned me and came to the same conclusion that Anne and Bette had. Not a threat. At least not right now.
I dodged around it into the office and found what I’d expected but hoped I wouldn’t see. The bodies of the presidential security detail lay limp and bloody on the floor. Grandpa V’s lifeless body was folded awkwardly in their midst. The president of the United States was dead.
I backed up until I hit the wall and slid onto the floor. My breaths were hard and fast, and I thought I might pass out. I had to think. I had to do something. But what?
I tapped my ComRing for Noah.
Chapter 52
NOAH
My tent was stifling hot and suffocating. I wormed myself out and breathed in the fresh air. One day at a time, Brody, I told myself. My stomach growled and I headed back toward the cabin, hoping that Arthur had something I could grab to eat. Anthony stood at the entrance, and when he spotted me, he waved wildly for me to approach. My gut lurched. Anthony never had good news.
“God, Noah,” Anthony said. His eyes were wide, and glassy. He verged on hysteria.
“What? What?”
“Singularity. It’s happening. The humanoids have attacked their owners. All the GAPs and borgs, anyway.”
I couldn’t grasp the enormity of the news. Just moments ago I’d conceded defeat to an army of cyborg and GAP soldiers. Within minutes, the whole scenario had changed. We had a new enemy now.
“How is that possible? So fast?”
“Technology advances exponentially,” he tore fingers through his hair. “It doubles or more every eighteen months.”
“This is faster than that.”
He stared hard at me. “I know. We were wrong.” He eyed me with pity. “The president is dead. Every GAP city was attacked.” He paused and added gently, “Including Sol City.”
Zoe.
“No humans attacked?” I choked out.
“Not yet. Maybe they have a tiered system in effect. Eliminate the biggest threats first.”
“Why do they think borgs and GAPs are threats?”
“GAPs created them, so the humanoids might see them as an intellectual threat. Borgs are on their way to becoming completely machinery based over time. They might not like that.”
“What about Zoe?”
Anthony shook his head. “I don’t know.”
Blackness shrouded me as I considered the possibility that she was dead, too.
No, please no.
Then my ComRing buzzed. My heart skipped a beat. I tapped it. “Zoe?”
The three-inch holographic image of her face appeared, and I could see that she was sobbing. My knees weakened with relief that she was still alive, and I collapsed into the nearest chair.
“Noah, they’re all dead. Grandpa, my parents, my friends. I don’t know what to do.”
“Can you get out of Sol City?”
She ran an arm under her nose. “I think so. My pod will take me to the gate. The humanoids don’t seem to be interested in me for some reason.”
“Get to the gates and go to the church. You know the code. Lock the door and don’t answer for anyone. I’ll meet you as soon as I can.”
Zoe worked to catch her breath. “Noah?”
“Yeah?”
“My grandfather was looking for you. Do you know why?”
“No.”
Her lips trembled. “Be careful.”
She clicked off, and I stared at Anthony. “Vanderveen was looking for me. I need to find out why.”
Anthony scratched his head. “Why would he want you? You delivered his granddaughter. You didn’t expose his involvement with Liam’s death or the murder of that other dude. He achieved his goal of presidency.”
“I know. I thought I was finally off his radar. I mean, he knew I was involved with the rebel movement, but so are thousands of other people. Why would he be looking for me specifically?”
“You must have something he wants.”
“Like what?”
“Or maybe you know something?”
“Again, like what?”
“Did anything unusual happen to you while you lived in the desert?”
I was about to say no, but then I paused. A memory stirred. The strange conversation I’d had with Sly before he’d forced me to pull the trigger on him. “I encountered one of the rogue soldiers I’d hung out with in the desert during my last skirmish. He was fighting for Vanderveen again, but he said something strange. That I was special, and I didn’t know it. I thought he was being facetious.”
“What happened in the desert?”
“The rogue borgs were hacking into some high-level government systems. They planned to assassinate the president and wanted me to create a phony diversion on my blog, make the homeland security think something was planned in Chicago, so they would be distracted from the real target, which was a presidential flight.
“One night in particular, they seemed extra tense—their eyes darting back and forth, shoulders stiff. I asked them what was going on. Lebron said they’d found something significant, but Sly shut him up before he could elaborate.”
“And?”
“And then it felt like I got stung by some desert bug. I grabbed at my neck and then I blacked out. When I came to, I remembered the sting and felt a small, swollen lump. It was weird, but so much was going on at the time, I didn’t give it much
thought afterward.”
“Do you think they did something to you? That maybe it wasn’t a bug bite?”
“Maybe?”
Anthony picked up a scanner. “Let’s check you out.”
Chapter 53
ZOE
I opened my eyes and took in the carnage around me. Pulling myself to my feet, I ran through the back door and slammed into a body. I screamed as strong arms wrapped around me.
“Zoe, it’s okay. It’s me.”
I pulled back at Jackson’s voice.
“Wh… what are you doing here?” I stammered.
“Looking for you.”
“They’re all dead,” I whimpered.
Jackson stared over my shoulder at the bodies on the floor. “Let’s go.”
He grabbed my hand, and I didn’t pull away. My enemy was my only ally right now.
We ran across the vast lawn to the hedge and shimmied under the wire fence. It was barely wide enough for me to squeeze through. I tugged on it in an effort to help Jackson. He yelped as the wire tore his shirt and scratched along his back. A red welt bubbled with blood in a morbid scribble down his spine.
“My pod’s parked in the front,” I said.
“It’s too dangerous to go for it,” Jackson returned. “We’ll have to hike to the gate.” He stared down at me with soft eyes. “Don’t worry, Zoe. I won’t let them hurt you.”
We ducked low behind houses and hedges, trying to stay out of sight. A number of humanoids filled the streets, removing corpses and loading them into electric vehicles. I had no idea where they planned to take them, or what they were going to do with them, but I doubted anyone would be given a proper funeral.
My pulse raged and pumped loudly in my ears as we ran toward the north gate. The streets were eerily quiet and empty. No kids running around or riding bikes. No mothers or fathers pushing strollers. No deliveries. I tugged on Jackson’s sleeve when we reached Charlotte’s house. “Wait. I have to check.”
Jackson shook his head. “It’s too dangerous,” he whispered. “They owned humanoids. They’re probably…”
“How did you know where I was?”
“What?”
“How did you find me at Grandpa’s house?”
“Zoe, this isn’t the time…”
“I want to know.”
He sighed. “The government’s been stealthily upgrading chips to include a GPS.”
I was stunned. “You mean, without the person’s knowledge?”
“Yes. The rush on eye-enhancement procedures provided a perfect opportunity. Yours was done when you had your operation.”
So, it wasn’t a co-incidence that Jackson kept showing up wherever I was. I shook my head in disgust.
“It’s for your own protection.” Jackson squirmed. “I know you don’t believe this, but I love you. I always have. I had to keep track of you… in case you decided to run off again… and your grandfather agreed.”
I believed that he thought he loved me, but it didn’t make things right. “I’m going in.”
Jackson grabbed my arm, but I pulled it free sharply. “I said I’m going in.”
I moved toward the front door and knocked gingerly. No one answered. I tentatively tried the knob and it turned, unlocked. I was afraid of what I might find inside, but if there was a chance she was alive, I needed to help her.
“Charlotte?”
I walked in. My insides felt like melted goop, and I had to work to keep myself from shaking uncontrollably.
I called for her little brother. “Ryder?” My voice echoed off the walls of the vast foyer. No answer.
I slowly climbed the stairs to where their bedrooms were, my eyes darting back and forth, on the lookout for humanoids. “Charlotte?” My voice came out in a raspy whisper. “Are you okay?”
Jackson called quietly from the bottom of the steps. “Zoe, come back down.”
Charlotte’s bedroom door was cracked open. I tapped it. It slowly pushed inward. A silhouette formed in front of the bright window. The force of my own frightened bellow pushed me up against the hallway wall. The humanoid stepped out of the light.
“Carla?” I don’t know why I said its name. It looked at me and took a step forward. I gulped, my flesh prickling with fear. Why did I come here? I could’ve been at the church by now waiting for Noah. I knew he’d go crazy when he got there and didn’t find me.
“Please,” I pleaded. Its eyes locked with mine and registered something. What? It moved past me and down the steps.
Why wasn’t I a target?
I ran into Charlotte’s room and then released the howl that had built up inside me. Charlotte was on her bed her neck twisted unnaturally, her eyes open and unblinking.
I ran as fast as I could down the steps and watched as Carla went outside.
“Jackson!”
I tripped on the last step and stumbled onto the floor. I scrambled back to my feet, calling Jackson’s name.
He was in the foyer, in a wrestling match with a male-fashioned humanoid I hadn’t seen before. It must be why he hadn’t followed me upstairs. They clung to each other rolling across the tiles banging into a side table. A vase with a mass of flowers toppled to the floor with a crash. The humanoid was on top. Jackson punched it in the face, bloodying his fist. It blinked, seemingly unfazed, and returned with a sharp blow to Jackson’s solar plexus. Jackson groaned, his face red as he gasped for breath. He drew his knees forward, tucking his feet under the humanoid and pushed. The humanoid flew across the room, hitting the far wall with a thud. It shivered but landed firmly on its feet.
Jackson jumped upright, but still cradled an arm over his stomach. The humanoid moved like lightning and within seconds had both hands around Jackson’s neck.
“Jackson!”
His wide, terror-filled gaze landed on me as his cyborg legs kicking wildly just inches from the floor. He slammed a fist down on the humanoid’s arms, but it was stronger than him.
I froze to the spot, helpless. “Stop!”
The humanoid’s neck turned and it stared at me.
“Let him go,” I pleaded.
There was a moment I thought it would listen. Then I heard the gut churning crack, and Jackson’s body dropped to the floor.
I fell to my knees. Suddenly I wanted to die. I couldn’t live in a world like this. We were all going to die anyway. I closed my eyes and gave into the violent trembling that overtook me. I waited for the humanoid to approach, to end it. Please, just end it.
It didn’t come. I cracked my eyes open, but it was nowhere to be seen. I cried at the sight of Jackson’s body. If I hadn’t insisted that we stop here, he would still be alive.
I remembered that Noah would be waiting for me at the church, and it was this thought that compelled me to get back onto my feet and keep moving.
There were no human guards left at the gates, though there were a number of humanoids milling about. I took a chance that, for whatever reason, they still weren’t interested in me, and walked through. They noted my existence but didn’t make a move.
I turned right outside the gate toward the courtyard by the clock tower. A surge of relief flooded me when I saw all the people. Living human people. Non-GAPs and non-borg, all alive and buzzing about. Word of the humanoids attack had spread widely, and there was a sense of panic in the air. People were rushing around, pushing and shoving. Cars and pods were in a traffic jam like I’d never witnessed before. The pod transits were full to overflowing with impatient and frightened people.
I pressed through the sweaty crowds, up the steps that led to the overpass, keeping my focus on the clock tower for reference. I didn’t stop until I’d crossed the courtyard and worked my way to the back of the church. My hand trembled as I pressed the code. Once inside, I closed the door and made sure it was locked.
I was alone in the sanctuary. Nothing but a few dusty wooden pews. Dust particles danced in the straight streams of colored light cutting in from the high, stained-glass windows. It was so quie
t that my own breath resounded like a blow horn.
I collapsed onto my back on one of the pews. Warm lines of wet, salty tears streamed freely from my eyes. I yelled out like a wild animal, my cry bouncing off the high ceiling. I stomped my feet on the pew, and I sobbed until my chest hurt and my throat ached. Everyone I’d loved and cared for was dead. People I’d known for my whole life, gone.
Everyone except Noah. The boy I both hated and loved. Noah, whom I hadn’t seen for six months. Six months where I’d spent every day trying to forget him. And everyday desperate to remember him.
Chapter 54
NOAH
Anthony had a portable body scanner, small and sleek, that fit nicely in his fist.
“Arms up,” he instructed. He waved his long skinny arms up and down as the scanner searched for something unusual. “Turn around.”
I did as he said. He started at my feet and worked his way up. It freaked out when it got to my head.
“Dude,” Anthony said. “They implanted something in your neck.”
My hands immediately moved to the back of my neck under my hairline, my fingers looking for anything suspicious. “I don’t feel anything.”
“It’s been awhile since you thought you were stung. You’ve assimilated it.”
“I’m a borg?” I said, outraged.”
“I think that’s stretching it.” Anthony scratched his nose. “It’s just a chip or something.”
I curled my fists. I felt violated and I wanted to punch the wall. Why did they do that to me? And why me?
Jabez entered. “What’s going on?” he said, seeing my face.
“Damn rogue borgs inserted a chip in my neck.”
He jerked back. “What? Why?”
“I have no idea,” I said through tight lips. “Bigger question is what’s on it.”
Anthony was already tapping away on his virtual keyboard. “I’ll see what I can find out.”
I rubbed my neck again. “I gotta get going. I told Zoe I’d meet her at the church.”
Jabez’s forehead buckled. “Am I missing something? You’re back with Zoe?”