by Eliza Green
‘It’s easier if you sit,’ she said. ‘And try to relax.’
Laura did the first part. The second part gave her more trouble.
She drew in a deep breath, watching Arianna as she closed her eyes.
‘Copy me, Laura, and try to think of positive things. The Nexus doesn’t like negative energy.’
Positive things. She sucked in a deep breath. Easier said than done. She closed her eyes and thought of Bill, and the happy years they’d spent together. She smiled when she remembered how they’d met, when she’d followed him down a dark alley in Sydney only to have him turn the tables on her. It had been the start of a friendship that would weather the stormiest of Bill’s moods before it turned into love for both of them.
In her mind, the wall changed to a golden lattice. Something warm and bright snaked through the lattice and touched her arm.
She scooted back and opened her eyes. ‘What the hell is that?’
Arianna, with her eyes still closed, touched her leg. ‘Relax. It’s just a tendril from the Nexus. Don’t fight it. Let it pull you inside.’
Laura sucked in another deep breath and closed her eyes again. She watched the tendril wrap itself around her arm. A sharp tug first, followed by the sensation of falling, unsettled her. She tried to fight it but the momentum carried her through the lattice. On the other side, the tendril let go and her body—in the form of energy—felt light and free. She floated above a collection of bright orbs at the centre of a three-sided, orange and golden wall. The fourth side, where she’d come though, appeared to be hundreds of entry points into the Nexus. The wall of shimmering energy connected with the entry points to create a full circle around the orbs at its centre.
Laura laughed and a burst of energy, warm and gentle, rippled through her—different to the searing pain she’d felt before. She watched two new energies enter the Nexus. She sensed them as female energies; how she knew that, she didn’t know. The Nexus must be exaggerating her ability to sense things. She recognised the distorted voices as belonging to Arianna and Serena. Their energies stopped next to her.
‘It’s the Nexus; it taps into the gamma rock and uses its amplification properties,’ said Arianna. ‘Everything inside here is enhanced.’
Serena floated closer to the wall. It sparked with unrestrained energy.
Laura panicked. ‘What’s she doing? It’s dangerous.’
Arianna chuckled next to her. ‘Don’t worry. Serena has a special relationship with the Nexus that the rest of us don’t. I’ll be curious to see how it reacts to you.’
‘Me?’ She kept an eye on Serena’s energy, which floated close to the sparks. ‘Why?’
‘We altered you fully then reversed your treatment to change you back to human. Yet you retain some Indigene skills and sometimes feel like us. I feel your connection to this life, even if you don’t.’
Laura wanted to say she felt it too, but she didn’t want to think about what that meant for her and Bill.
Serena’s proximity to the sparks caused Laura to squeak, ‘Watch out!’
She looked away from the wall but didn’t hear anything. She looked back to see Serena had connected with the wall. The slow pulse the wall gave out changed into a deeper, rolling movement. The sparks that had appeared dangerous appeared only to fuel her energy. It was as if Serena had a symbiotic relationship with the Nexus.
‘That’s exactly it,’ said Arianna, in response to her private thought. ‘Serena tamed the Nexus and turned it into a more trusting entity. It follows her command and when she enters the space, naturally, the Nexus gets excited at her presence. It benefits the other users because when she’s around, the Nexus puts out more energy.’
Laura hadn’t expected any of this. ‘Amazing.’
‘None of us expected it. She and Stephen were using the Nexus at the time. She had a rough experience and the Nexus knocked her about.’
‘What happened?’
‘She was okay, but shaken,’ said Arianna. ‘I worked with her after, came back here. We soon realised the Nexus wasn’t trying to harm her; it wanted a deeper connection with her. She can influence others. The Nexus was drawn to the raw energy she had yet to harness. I guess you could say they evolved together, found their true power. If I were to give the Nexus form, it would be a young wolf. It has bonded with her and follows her around.’
Laura continued to watch Serena’s energy ride the wall’s deep, rolling movement. The pulsations slowed until they returned to the gentle ripple they had been when she’d first entered. Serena disconnected and floated back to where Laura and Arianna waited, over the bright ball of energy in the centre of the Nexus.
‘Sorry, I was just saying hello. He misses my energy.’
‘He?’ said Laura.
‘To be honest, I’m not sure if it’s male or female. Feels too boisterous to be female.’
‘Are we ready to try some expressions?’ said Arianna.
Expressions?
‘Yes,’ replied Serena. ‘We’re going to tap into the skills of other connected users, see how you express yourself in their company. The Nexus will boost any connection you make and it should show us where your best abilities lie.’
‘I... okay. What do I do?’
‘We need to move right into the centre of the ball,’ said Arianna. ‘This will work fast. Many things will hit you at once. Fight off what hurts, and embrace what feels easier. Do you understand, Laura?’
‘Not really, but I’m here so let’s try it.’
Avoid hurt; embrace easy. She could do this. They moved closer to the collected energies. They were so bright, it hurt her to look at them. The closer they got, the more she heard the murmurings that sounded like a collection of voices.
‘Everyone’s defences are weak at the centre of brightness, including the Nexus,’ said Serena. ‘We have to be careful about who gains access to this central space.’ Laura felt honoured to be granted access. Serena pointed to the energies. ‘Join the centre, and let’s see what happens.’
See what happens? She hesitated at the edge of the collected energy, but not for long. Something drew her mass of energy right into the centre. Voices all around consumed her mind. The brightness dazzled her to the point of blindness. She couldn’t see her way out. She grappled for something to hold on to, but found only air. Her body on the outside panicked the same as her energy on the inside.
Laura looked up just as the energies shifted their attention away from each other and to her energy. She tried to swim out, but the brightness surrounded her.
Voices felt like drills inside her head. Fight the hurt. Embrace the easy. That’s what Arianna had said. She erected a barrier inside her mind and pushed against the pain. The voices lessened.
Next came the feelings. Her mind flooded with emotions that overwhelmed her to the point where she felt she might cry. It was all too much and it hurt. She fought against them.
The feelings lessened but the battle for control raged on inside her. Colours hit her next, yellows, greens and blues attached to other energies. Laura felt no pain, so she granted the colours access. They danced before her eyes.
But soon the bright display faded. A darker energy hidden beneath the brighter ones came for her. A gasp escaped her lips on the outside as her energy tried to escape from it. But the dark energy barrelled down on her position. She braced for impact. It passed right through her, leaving her winded, but otherwise unharmed. She turned to see the energy doubling back for her. This time she was ready. It slowed upon approach and merged with hers temporarily. Her own light lessened to accommodate the darker one. She had expected to feel pain, trauma, but she felt a weird connection to it, as though it were her missing piece.
The energy stayed connected for a few minutes before it detached and merged with the collected energy. Then the dark spot faded into nothing.
A route opened up and Laura floated out of the centre of energy. Serena and Arianna joined her.
‘Let’s disconnect first, then
we’ll talk,’ said Serena.
Laura returned to her body. She opened her eyes and climbed out of her unit. Both Indigenes waited for her at the top
‘How do you feel?’ said Serena.
‘Weird, if I’m being honest.’ She turned to look back inside the unit. ‘What the hell was that?’
‘The others were testing you. Tell me what you felt.’
‘Well, the voices hurt, and so did the emotions, but not the dark energy. That felt part of me.’
‘The bad news is you’re not a full Indigene,’ said Arianna. ‘You can converse telepathically, but it doesn’t come naturally. Nor are you an empath, like me.’
Laura hid her surprise and disappointment. ‘That’s the bad news? What’s the good news?’
‘The dark energy was your human side. It manifests as such because it can’t convert into energy like the Indigene side does.’
‘Is that a good thing?’
‘It depends on whether you want to know if you’re more one thing or the other.’ Arianna shrugged. ‘The answer is you’re equal parts human and Indigene.’
Laura had suspected it wouldn’t be that easy. ‘So I’m stuck with partial abilities and a weird attachment to this life, but also my human life?’
‘Not many people get the chance to skirt both sides of the fence,’ said Serena. ‘When the human doctors turned me from human to Indigene, I still felt a connection to my past life. Then, when I found out what I was, I had the choice to turn back. I chose this life because it felt right.’
‘So how do I choose?’ said Laura. ‘I don’t want to be unfair to Bill.’
‘Why do you need to choose at all? Can’t you just have both?’
‘And leave him every time I have the urge to come here?’
She didn’t see how that could work.
Arianna touched her shoulder. ‘You did well in there. Why not stick around a bit longer, try this life on for size? Maybe help us test Anton’s neurosensor?’
Laura needed a distraction now. Because going home while she felt this way, torn between two lives, wasn’t an option.
She had no idea where home even was any more.
30
It had been forty-eight hours since Bill had spoken to Laura. As he paced his tiny office, it felt like longer. Stephen hadn’t been in touch either. His attempts to distract himself with work had only worked for a short while. Just one question replayed in his mind: Should he have told Laura to go?
His head said yes; he’d noticed the changes for a while now, minor ones that had begun soon after her initial reversal from Indigene to human eight years ago. Not counting the changes in the lead up to Laura’s forced transformation, she had been Indigene for just one day. Post reversal, she still remembered her life, but her reflexes had been much improved.
His head said yes. His heart said no.
It felt like he’d abandoned her when she needed him the most. He swapped his pacing for the window and stared out at the grand designs that dominated this part of town—a replica of the war office among the grandeur. The changes to her behaviour had been subtle: her restlessness, her preference to stand not sit, her ability to sense when others were lying. She’d told him the lie appeared to her as a physical manifestation of itself, like a black cloud that followed a person around.
With a sigh, he sat down and pulled up the Wave chatter that he’d asked Julie to forward to him in his wife’s absence. He was grateful Julie hadn’t asked any questions. She was the only person who knew about his wife’s double life.
A knock on the door surprised him. It opened and Julie stuck her head round. ‘Do you have a minute?’
Bill gave her a sharp nod and she slipped inside the room. The sound of intermittent beeping from monitors in the next room faded when she closed the door.
‘There’s a boy downstairs, says he needs to speak with you.’
‘A boy? What does he look like?’
Julie tucked her blonde hair behind her ear. From some angles, she reminded him of Laura. ‘More teen, I suppose. Tall-ish, lanky, black hair. Ben something. Says it’s urgent.’ She thumbed behind her. ‘I can have security remove him if you’d prefer?’
Bill stood up. ‘It’s fine. I know him. I’ll take care of it. Thanks, Julie.’
She nodded, but lingered by the door. ‘If you have a moment, I could use you on the first floor. We’ve got a lot of chatter and not enough people to monitor it.’
Bill rubbed the tiredness out of his forehead and said, ‘I’ll be there as soon as I can.’
Julie left and Bill wasn’t far behind. He took the lift to the ground floor. Given everything going on, Bill had forgotten about the boy for whom he’d gained safe passage to return to Exilon 5. He hadn’t felt the need to check on him at his new accommodation. Mrs Hegarty was a tough landlady, but also kind.
The lift doors opened. He passed through the security station and entered a room before security that was reserved for uninvited guests. He found a pacing Ben.
Ben turned when he entered and his expression brightened. ‘Great, I didn’t think they were going to let me see you.’
Bill’s guilt reared its head suddenly. ‘I’m sorry I haven’t checked up on you. There’s a lot going on at the moment.’
‘I don’t care about that. I just needed to chat to you for a minute.’
‘How’s your accommodation working out?’
‘Yeah, okay. Mrs Hegarty’s nice. It’s a change from Waverley neighbourhood. I still have a curfew, but if I miss it, at least I won’t be killed.’
Bill shuddered at the reminder of recent conditions back on Earth.
The boy waved his hand dismissively. ‘But that’s not why I’m here. I thought you could use my help.’
Bill had no time for this. ‘I’m sorry, but everything we do here is confidential. I have no use for you.’
Ben grew angry. ‘I told you when we met that I wanted to be useful. All I’m doing is sitting in the house, or going to school with kids way younger than me. I’m way past what school can teach me. Returning after eight years is too much of a culture shock. I can’t be expected to live a normal life, not after what I’ve seen.’
‘So you want practical skills training, is that it? I can arrange for Mrs Hegarty to set that up—’
‘No! I want to work here.’
‘I’m afraid that’s not possible.’
‘Why not?’
‘I told you. The work is confidential.’
‘So I’ll sign a privacy waiver. I can keep secrets. Been doing it my whole life.’
‘It’s not that.’ Bill rubbed his eyes. ‘I just... this isn’t a good time.’
‘Look—’ Ben stepped into his personal space, forcing Bill to step back. ‘—I know the trouble you’re having with the Indigenes and the GS humans. It just so happens I’m good at finding shit out. Just ask Jenny Waterson if you need a reference.’
Bill had heard good things from Jenny about Ben’s efforts to help break the criminal factions’ hold on the neighbourhoods.
‘I’ve heard and I know you’d be good, but I just can’t accommodate—’
‘Give me a trial run. You don’t even have to pay me.’
Bill stared at the ambitious teen who reminded Bill of himself at that age. ‘And if I say no?’
The boy’s eyes danced. ‘Then I’ll keep coming back every day until you accept.’
The door opened suddenly, causing Bill to wheel round. ‘What?’
Someone from Laura’s team stuck their head in. ‘Sorry to interrupt, but Julie needs you on the first now. Says it’s urgent.’
‘It’s always bloody urgent. Fuck.’ He stared at the teenager, who showed no signs of leaving. Bill relented with a sigh. ‘Fine, but you sign a confidentiality statement first and you don’t interfere with anything. Got it?’
Ben nodded with a grin on his face. ‘Whatever you say, boss.’
☼
Bill brought Ben to the first floor after making him sig
n his life away and swear never to disclose anything he learned in the ITF. He found Julie sitting at her station.
She looked up, then frowned at Ben. ‘We have a guest?’
‘This is Ben Watson. I thought you might find a use for him.’
‘He’s a little young, Bill. What is he, sixteen?’
‘Don’t let his age fool you. This boy has seen a lot and he knows how to keep his mouth shut. While Laura’s away, we could use the extra help.’
Julie shrugged. ‘I guess I could put him on sorting.’
‘No, put him on chatter.’
The others in the room looked up.
‘Chatter?’ said Julie. ‘Are you sure? That’s highly sensitive information coming out of there.’
‘I’m sure. He’s all signed up and he has a head for detail. He’ll be fine.’
Julie shrugged. ‘Okay, I’ll get him sorted in a minute, but there’s something I wanted to show you. A new discussion came through on the chatter just now.’
‘Show me.’
Julie pulled up a screenshot of the chatter. ‘There’s talk about a meeting near a section of the power grid’s cable. Ollie Patterson sent a few men to watch while one of the GS humans tampered with that intelligent cable you discovered. Another man was mentioned. A John Caldwell?’
Harvey Buchanan’s alias.
Bill didn’t like the sound of that. ‘What were they doing out there?’
‘Well, we have reports from Frank at the base station that the GS has doubled their mine of power.’
‘Doubled their double? Fuck. Since when?’
‘Since last night.’
Bill had ignored the goings on at the station—the thing with Laura had distracted him too much. Truth was he couldn’t concentrate while she was gone.
‘Order the tech team to erect a localised force field around the damn cable and the station. Caldwell and Patterson may be accessing the station using hacked codes.’ He turned away and bit his thumb. ‘What the hell do the GS want with the extra power?’
It was clear he and Laura had received a version of the truth from Simon and Tanya at their previous two meetings. Bill now suspected the Elite’s plans to grow old gracefully had changed.