by Eliza Green
A wave of guilt consumed Stephen—yes, he had left him behind. ‘And you don’t remember what they did to you—at all?
‘No, sorry, old friend. I don’t remember a thing.’
There was that funny phrase again. Stephen couldn’t help but notice how Anton’s shadow on the wall appeared to have a life of its own.
‘What’s the last thing you do recall then?’
‘We were inside the docking station and I was being chased by some military humans. I reached the control room. My memory gets hazy after that.’
‘And who’s the female that sticks close by you?’ Stephen asked.
‘That’s Serena,’ Anton said, sounding surprised. ‘I told you about her, I’m sure of it.’
‘Sorry, Anton, I’ve never seen her before—or heard you talk about her.’ What Stephen left out was that he found her strangely alluring. She seemed to have that effect on the other males too, who were suddenly keen to be around her.
‘She’s from District Eight. Don’t you remember? She arrived here when she heard about my return.’
‘Maybe you did,’ Stephen said, wanting to change the subject even though he wasn’t entirely convinced that Anton was telling the truth. There was something about her—a familiarity, as if they had met before—that Stephen was drawn to. She had a quiet resolve that he found immensely attractive, and she seemed to fit in, as if she had always belonged. He couldn’t stop thinking about her.
‘So when will you be getting back to work in the lab?’ Stephen asked. ‘No one else here is a match for your mind and your team are anxious to get moving on some new designs.’
‘Soon, but I have to do one thing first.’ Anton’s voice had a new edge to it.
‘What’s that?’
‘I’m not entirely sure.’
Stephen frowned. ‘Anything I can help with?’
Anton smiled. ‘I’ll be sure to come and find you when the time’s right.’
Elise and Pierre spent the evening together in their private dwelling, the first alone time they’d had since Elise had unlocked memories about her human life. She wanted to tell Pierre everything—about her attempts to rewrite neural pathways in her brain using the Nexus, about Elizabeth, about Arianna’s mother once being her human assistant—but it didn’t feel right, not yet. Instead, she decided it was more important to discuss Anton with her husband. She wanted to know what Pierre made of him since he’d returned.
‘You must have your doubts about Anton, like I have,’ Elise said. Sitting on the mattress, she leaned her back against the cold wall.
‘I understand that you’re feeling overwhelmed by his return, but surely that and Stephen’s recovery are things we need to celebrate?’ Pierre said.
‘Can’t you see it?’
‘See what?’
‘The change in Anton. He’s not the same as he was before. And as for that female who hangs around—’
‘Serena? I’ve spoken to her. She’s a lovely gentle soul,’ Pierre said.
‘I’m not disputing that she’s lovely. I just don’t believe she’s a natural Indigene.’
Pierre sat beside his wife and, picking up one of her hands, kissed the tops of her fingers. ‘Forgive me for not being there for you recently. Do go on.’
Elise tightened her hand around his, relieved she had his attention at last. ‘She believes she’s an Indigene. She can communicate telepathically. Yet she appears out of nowhere. Do you not think that’s odd?’
‘Mmmm, I’m not sure it’s necessarily odd. She seems right at home here—she can’t just have appeared out of nowhere,’ Pierre said. ‘Besides, I’m drawn to her.’
‘Yes, you and all the other males,’ said Elise, realising too late that she sounded as if she was jealous. ‘What I mean is, why are you males so drawn to her?’
‘I don’t know why,’ Pierre said impatiently. ‘I can’t explain why.’
‘Exactly! You can’t explain why.’ Elise pulled her hand free. ‘There’s something else you need to know.’ She swallowed hard. ‘I’ve been conducting experiments on myself.’
Pierre’s eyes widened. ‘What kind of experiments?’
Elise grabbed her husband’s hand again and squeezed it. ‘In my attempts to rewire parts of my brain and create new neural pathways, I’ve inadvertently unlocked memories of my past—my human memories.’
Pierre was silent for a moment. ‘What have you seen?’ he eventually said.
‘I found out many things about myself, about others. The Nexus has helped me.’
Pierre scowled. ‘What a dangerous thing to attempt on your own! Do you know how risky that is? What if you damaged your mind beyond repair? We’re not as evolved as we first believed.’ His anger was palpable. Then something else occurred to him. ‘Why are you keeping secrets from me?’ he asked.
Elise smiled and patted her husband’s arm gently. ‘For the same reason you’re keeping them from me.’
‘What do you mean?’ he said, looking affronted.
‘I know you spoke to Stephen about the changes that were happening to him, but you didn’t tell me about it. I had to find out from him that you two had spoken.’
‘You had too much on your plate,’ Pierre said hastily. ‘I didn’t want to burden—’
‘Please, Pierre, I’m not angry with you. I’m just concerned about what might happen.’
He shook his head. ‘I don’t understand. We’re no longer in danger. Everything is back to normal—more or less.’
‘Is no one else wondering why Anton’s come back—been allowed to come back? Is it just me?’
‘We don’t know what happened to him. He doesn’t even know himself. He doesn’t remember.’
Elise got up and paced the room. ‘There’s something else I need to tell you.’
Pierre’s face darkened.
‘I’ve already told you that I can predict Indigenes’ emotions,’ Elise said. Before, I could only see their mood as it happened but—well, the Nexus has opened my mind up to new possibilities.’
Pierre looked unconvinced, but said nothing.
‘I can also see where neural pathways have changed or where trauma exists,’ Elise went on. ‘I can see, for example, that Serena’s mind is not wired the same as yours or mine, or the same as any Indigene for that matter. But she’s not the problem—Anton is.’
‘Anton? Why?’
‘Either he’s hiding something, or someone is trying to reach out to warn me about something. When I look into his mind, I can see scar tissue on his hippocampus. But there was something stopping me from looking deeper. When I tried to tune in—well, I could hear a voice, a very faint voice. I couldn’t make out what it was saying.’
‘What exactly are you saying?’ Pierre asked, frowning.
‘That we shouldn’t take Anton’s return at face value. That there’s a possibility the humans have altered him—that he’s not himself.’
Pierre stroked his chin thoughtfully. ‘I trust your judgement on this, Elise. I’ll keep an eye on him.’
Elise noticed something in Pierre’s expression. It was fleeting.
‘What?’ she said.
‘Who were you—as a human?’ Pierre asked gently.
Right there and then, Elise did what she’d wanted to do for such a long time—she opened up her mind to her husband so he could experience her memories for himself. When she had finished, Pierre pulled away and let out a long slow breath.
‘Are you okay?’ Elise asked, resting her hand on his arm. ‘I know it’s a lot to handle.’
‘How have you managed to deal with this on your own?’ Pierre shook his head. ‘I’m sorry I wasn’t more supportive.’
‘There’s something else you want to ask,’ Elise said suddenly. ‘Go ahead.’
Pierre leaned in close and whispered, ‘Help me to unlock my human memories.’
‘What direction are we heading?’ Jenny asked.
‘I don’t know,’ Bill replied. He glanced down at the communication stone
, which shone brighter when he pointed it in a certain direction. They followed its bright glow and it led them towards an underground bullet train station. ‘Stephen has to be somewhere beneath these streets. The stone glows more strongly in this area.’
‘I think my skin is beginning to blister,’ Laura said, her earlier excitement now dissipated. The sun had already damaged her fragile skin. It had probably never occurred to her to pack a high-grade sun cream.
Bill removed a spare shirt from his backpack. ‘Here, take this,’ he said, tossing it to her.
Laura caught it and draped it over her head. ‘Thanks. Now I really blend in.’
‘Well, it’s better than getting burnt.’
‘How much further?’ Jenny asked.
‘I’m not sure,’ said Bill. Even with the stone he had no idea.
He made sure they took a less obvious route across town, cutting through side streets and alleyways. He wasn’t sure if they were being followed, but he hoped it would be enough to shake off anyone who might be. Many newly erected buildings—taverns, restaurants, replicator terminals—had sprung up in the three and a half months since he’d last been there. New London was changing before his very eyes; soon, the city would be too small for the population’s needs and new building projects would need to be extended past the animal biodomes and out into the dusty landscape beyond.
The communication stone became warm in Bill’s hand. ‘Access to their environment is through here,’ he said, pointing the stone at the entrance to the Victoria underground bullet train station. ‘My team once tracked Stephen as far as this entrance.’
‘What are we waiting for?’ Laura shrugged. ‘Let’s go.’
Bill looked around him. ‘Let’s do this quickly, just in case we’re being followed.’
They walked quickly into the train station and descended to the platform. Once the next train had passed and the platform had emptied, they jumped onto the tracks and followed them into the darkness. The cool air of the tunnels revitalised Laura and she instantly perked up.
‘I never thought I’d say this, but the cold air is refreshing. Remind me never to complain about the cold again.’
‘And in a minute, you’ll be complaining about the lack of sunlight,’ Bill said wryly.
‘You’re probably right,’ she said. She gently touched one of her shoulders and winced.
‘I have both sun and skin repair cream in my bag,’ said Jenny. ‘We can put some on later. For now, we should probably keep moving.’
The communication stone, now a luminescent blue, glowed brighter when Bill pointed it towards the west. They walked the tracks as quickly as they could, climbing into a worker’s crevice each time a Maglev train approached. When they reached a split junction, the stone indicated they should go left. About twenty minutes later, the stone reached its brightest illumination at a length of wall.
‘There’s nothing here,’ Jenny said, feeling along the cool rock for some type of opening.
‘This has to be the right place. The stone’s almost burning the hand off me. Keep searching,’ Bill urged.
Jenny and Laura ran their hands along the length of the wall again. It was Jenny who found something.
‘Over here,’ she called in a loud whisper. She put her face up to the recess. ‘I can feel cool air but I think we’re going to need our masks.’
They put on their gel masks and connected them to a mobile oxygen supply unit they each had in their backpacks. One by one, they squeezed through the recess and entered the Indigene’s labyrinth of tunnels.
‘Take me somewhere where there are other Indigenes,’ Anton demanded.
Stephen frowned. ‘Why?’
‘Because I feel the need to be around others right now. I’ve been alone for far too long.’
It sounded reasonable enough, but Stephen was wary. If Anton couldn’t remember what had happened to him while he was away then how could he know he’d been alone? But his suspicions weren’t enough to override his lingering guilt, and he felt obliged to take Anton wherever he wanted to go.
Stephen led the way through the tunnels towards the core of District Three, where Indigene social life was at its most active.
‘Pierre, I think I need to speak to Stephen again,’ Elise said.
‘Why?’
‘Because he’s anxious about something and he needs our support right now. I can sense that he’s still experiencing a lot of turmoil. Anton’s return hasn’t freed him from his guilt. We must protect him—if Anton’s not who he appears to be, he may try to take advantage of Stephen’s need to appease his guilt.’
Pierre headed for the door. ‘Then we should go. But I’ve no idea where Stephen is.’
‘I do,’ Elise said assuredly.
‘Are you sure?’
‘I can see his personality signature. He’s heading towards the core.’
Stephen and Anton arrived at the core of District Three. Several impromptu classes were going on; when the teaching alcoves were fully occupied, this space was used for overflow classes. In one group, Evolvers sat cross-legged on the ground listening to an Indigene teach them about science. In another, the youngsters were learning telepathy. Stephen noticed a couple of Evolvers giggle; they were playing the Indigene equivalent of Chinese Whispers.
Some Indigenes looked up when they arrived and Stephen noticed how the collective mood shifted from green to yellow. Everyone fell silent. Stephen tensed up and became more alert.
‘There’s something missing, old friend,’ Anton said.
‘What?’ Stephen asked. He felt compelled to take a good look around and note where the exits were.
‘I don’t know. I can just feel it,’ said Anton.
In the tunnels outside the district, Bill relied on the stone’s blue light and a small flashlight he’d brought with him to guide the way. Laura was behind him; Jenny was at the back. The tunnels were wide enough to walk side by side but in such unfamiliar territory, Laura and Jenny felt better hanging onto a fistful of each other’s clothing. The further into the tunnels they ventured, the faster the blue light pulsed—like a heartbeat.
The walls were slick with moisture, meaning the tunnels were not airtight, and a type of moss grew on the rock face where water had accumulated in small pools. Beyond that, there were no obvious signs of life. The need for their gel masks was clear.
The tunnels seemed to carry on for miles and branched off in multiple directions. When they reached their first junction, the communication stone gently vibrated when it was pointed in a particular direction.
Eventually they were led to a strange opening, which, once they’d all passed through, turned out to be a false wall that closed behind them to seal off the route.
It made Bill jump. ‘Did you see that?’ he asked.
He shone the flashlight on the rock, checking for signs of mechanics, but he could see nothing except a solid wall of rock. He let out a low whistle, impressed by what he saw. Earth engineers could learn so much from the Indigenes and he now understood the Indigenes need for secrecy.
‘How much further do you think?’ Laura asked.
‘The stone is getting hotter again. I think we’re close.’
Elise and Pierre walked hand in hand along the tunnels and for the first time since Stephen and Anton’s trip to Earth, felt connected once more.
‘Promise never to keep secrets from me again,’ Elise said. ‘We need to stick together.’
‘It wasn’t fair of me to think your problems were less important than mine. I’m sorry.’
Elise squeezed his hand. ‘If we’re to expect more trouble from the humans, we need to be prepared. The problem is we’ve no idea what they’re planning.’
Pierre hung his head. ‘It’s all my fault. I expected a physical attack—gas, military, bombs, that sort of thing. It never occurred to me they’d try a more subliminal approach. I need to learn to keep an open mind, like you’ve been doing all along.’
‘Well, for all my efforts, I still
don’t know much. Maybe their tactic is to do nothing and to leave us wondering,’ Elise said.
As soon as they arrived at the core, Elise could see Anton and Stephen. She stopped abruptly when she sensed the atmosphere in the area—the Indigenes’ unease and uncertainty. She squeezed Pierre’s hand once. He nodded almost imperceptibly.
Anton spotted them and came towards them, followed closely by Stephen. Elise noticed Stephen’s agitation.
‘How are you two getting on?’ Pierre asked. ‘I hope you’re finding answers.’
Stephen shook his head. ‘Anton still doesn’t remember anything.’
Elise concentrated on Anton while he was distracted with Pierre’s questions, but he was aware of her attempts and continued to block her. He stared at her in a way that forced her to break her concentration.
Pierre tried to grab Anton’s attention again. ‘And how are you feeling today, Anton?’
‘I’m very well thank you,’ Anton said, suddenly drawing himself up to his full height. ‘In fact, I believe I’ve everything I need now. I couldn’t figure out what was missing earlier, but as soon as you two walked into the room, it just clicked into place. I have a gift for you, Pierre. From an old friend.’ Anton held something out to him.
Pierre studied the small metal disc that sat in the palm of Anton’s hand. ‘What is it?’
Anton didn’t reply.
Pierre repeated his question, looking straight at Anton this time. ‘What is it?’
Anton smiled and tilted his head slightly.
Elise tried to get inside him again. Buried far away in his mind, she could sense despair and regret. Then there was a rush of emotions and the expression on Anton’s face suddenly changed. His eyes welled up with tears. Elise grabbed his free hand.
‘What have I done?’ he cried.
‘Nothing yet,’ she said softly. ‘I knew you were in there. I could feel it.’
Pierre looked anxiously around the room. The core was packed with Indigenes and their conversation had attracted a crowd. Stephen moved in closer to shield his friend.