by Michael Ford
“Psycho,” muttered Niki.
“CLAWS is just the developer of the tech or something,” said Asha, though she didn’t sound all that certain. “They run Healhome. It’s nothing sinister.”
“But . . .”
“They’re good people, Kobi. They look after us.” Although she’d directed what she said at Kobi, her gaze was locked on Fionn. The young boy’s expression was stony. Kobi got the impression that Fionn didn’t have such a high opinion of the Guardians as the others.
“My money says these Snatchers are our ticket out of here,” said Niki. “I mean, they’re probably linked up to Healhome, right?” She moved closer to the metal contraption. “I bet these eyes are cameras. . . .”
“Please, don’t touch it,” said Kobi a little desperately. “It’s deactivated, but . . .”
“It’s just a drone,” said Niki. “There’s no need to wet your pants.”
“Niki, give him a break,” said Asha.
Niki sighed and backed off. “It’s a miracle he’s survived this long,” she said. “I’m just trying to get us home alive.”
“This is my home,” said Kobi. “I was raised here. It was always just me and my dad. I can’t leave, not until I find him. And I don’t think I want the Guardians’ help anymore. Look, I appreciate you looking for me, but I never asked for any of it. You say this Healhome place is safe, but . . . at least here we can do what we want. And we are safe. We have protocols! And I’ve only just met you.” He backed away, overwhelmed by it all. “I can help you get back to the transport, but I’m not turning myself in.”
Niki was staring at him with something close to contempt, but Asha offered a small sympathetic smile. “Fionn, can you show him?” she asked.
“Show me what?” said Kobi.
“Healhome,” said Asha. “You don’t have to take our word for it.”
The boy hesitated a moment, as though afraid.
“It won’t hurt,” urged Asha.
Kobi placed the gun on a table, and Fionn approached. His face had paled, the freckles standing out over his thin cheeks. He turned and looked at Asha again, and she said, “You can do it, Fionn. Show him.” He put out a hand toward Kobi’s head.
“Close your eyes,” said Asha. “It might feel a bit weird.”
Kobi was lost. He didn’t know who to trust or what to believe. But he couldn’t see how this small, scared boy could possibly be planning to harm him. Asha smiled again, reassuringly. Kobi let his eyelids drop. Then he felt Fionn’s fingers touch his temple. No one had really touched him like that, so deliberately, before.
Slowly lights began to intrude from the perimeter of his vision. Then the scene cleared, and he saw what looked like a game taking place, with kids and grown-ups—twenty or more—tossing a Frisbee between them. It was in some sort of hall. All the kids wore the same gray uniforms, and the adults were dressed in a variety of different color tunics. He saw Asha leaping up and snatching the Frisbee from the air, heard cheering. He noticed Niki too, looking bored, chatting to another boy, tall and lean like a rock climber, with hair falling over one side of his face. Kobi was amazed at what he was seeing. And then he saw Fionn himself, waiting in a corner by the sidelines. He looked isolated. The shouts of the players dimmed, and Kobi could sense an emotion building. One of fear, anger. And then the Fionn in the vision looked up and seemed to meet Kobi’s eye. The vision faded.
Kobi opened his eyes and saw Fionn had retracted his hand.
“That was . . . amazing,” he said.
“Fionn’s powers are unique,” said Asha. But the young boy didn’t seem to hear. He turned away.
Kobi stared after him. “I was talking about that place. Was it Healhome?”
Asha nodded.
“And those people—they were the Guardians?”
“We told you—they look after us,” said Niki.
Kobi had a dull pain emanating right from the spot Fionn had touched, and massaged it. His brow felt hot, and the edges of his head felt like they were prickling with static. It must have been Fionn’s emotions he had felt in the vision. Why was the boy angry and scared? Was he trying to tell Kobi something in the vision?
“What’s wrong?” said Asha.
“I’ve got a headache,” said Kobi. “I think it’s from the telepathy. I’ve been having pain in my head since Dad left. I think it might have been Fionn trying to contact me.”
“I’ve never heard of anyone getting a headache from telepathic messaging,” said Asha. “And your dad left awhile ago, right? We only got dropped in yesterday.”
“Oh,” said Kobi.
Niki crossed to the other corner of the room, where a fire door led out to the school grounds. She started tearing at the sealant tape.
“Hey, what are you doing?” called Kobi, rushing after her. The others followed more slowly.
Niki shoved the door’s bar open, and light spilled into the classroom. Light, and millions of invisible Waste spores. Kobi could almost see them flooding inside, filling every corner of the room as quickly as the despair filling him. Years of care and caution literally out the window.
“I’m going home!” she said. “I don’t care if you want to stay. Can’t you see—those things, the ‘Snatchers’ or whatever you call them, they’re our ticket out of here.” She stepped outside, waving her arms and shouting at the sky, “Hey, come and get me!”
Kobi seized one of her arms and tugged. “Don’t! Get inside!”
Niki tried to struggle free, but Kobi was stronger. He manhandled her back into the classroom. “You’re going to get us all killed!” he said.
They both fell onto the floor, just inside the open door. All Kobi could think of was the Waste taking hold, breaking through the school’s defenses like an unstoppable army.
“Let me go!” screamed Niki.
The next moment, Kobi felt a painful jolt down his left side, making him spasm. He rolled away, crying out. At first he couldn’t tell what had happened—he just knew he couldn’t move at all. His muscles weren’t listening. Then he saw the sparks across Niki’s fingers. Asha knelt at his side. “Are you okay, Kobi?”
“Close the door,” mumbled Kobi weakly. “Please . . .”
Niki stood up, scowling. “He’s crazy,” she said.
“Let’s all just calm down,” said Asha. “Fionn, close the door.”
The silent boy hurried over and pulled the door shut. Kobi wondered what level of contamination might already have occurred. He still felt woozy but managed to sit up.
“You don’t understand,” he said.
“And you’re just being paranoid,” said Niki. Kobi noticed she had tears in her eyes. “Not everything and everybody are out to get you. The Guardians . . .”
“Wait!” said Asha, head jerking up, hyperaware. “I sense some—”
A low growl cut her off.
“What was that?” said Niki.
Through the classroom blinds, Kobi could see a shadow—a huge shadow—moving alongside the window. Kobi gripped Asha’s arm, and she helped him to stand. Adrenaline pounded through his body, giving a bit more life to his limp right side. He put his fingers to his lips, but the others didn’t need telling. All their eyes were fixed on the creature prowling outside. Then the shadow vanished.
After a few seconds, Niki whispered, “I think it’s gone.”
With a crash, the door shook as something slammed into it from the other side. They all jumped.
Fionn backed away quickly.
“It’s trying to get in,” said Asha.
“We have to go,” Kobi said. He stumbled with the others toward the classroom door.
SMASH! The fire door broke free of its upper hinges, and on the other side Kobi saw shaggy gray fur and a single yellow eye. “Wolf!” he shouted. “Go!”
Their shoes slapped and squeaked down the central hallway as they ran. Kobi was limping, his muscles along his left side stubbornly refusing to fire after Niki’s shock. At the junction of corridors he looked
back to see the wolf prowl from the classroom too. It paused, breathing labored, about a hundred feet away.
A crossbow bolt was jutting from his foreleg. It was the same creature Kobi had encountered in the city. It must have tracked us here. And then Niki got its attention.
“The dart gun’s still in the classroom,” whispered Asha.
The wolf’s head hung low, tongue lolling. It took a short pace toward them.
Kobi glanced right. “There are more weapons in the front office,” he said. But even if they ran that way, they didn’t stand a chance. The crossbows and hunting daggers were in a cupboard. The wolf would easily close the distance before they could get prepared. If they took a left, he knew they could at least get to the main hall—maybe barricade the doors with a table. Buy some time.
“Fionn, stop!” hissed Niki.
Kobi’s heart almost stopped as he saw that the young boy, against all logic, was edging slowly past him. Not away from the wolf, but toward it.
9
KOBI’S FEET WERE GLUED to the spot. Feeling was returning in spiky tingles to his arm and leg. Fionn, he saw, was visibly trembling as he crept along the corridor. What’s he doing? He’s going to be ripped apart.
“Come back, Fionn,” said Niki, her voice choked with terror.
Fionn either didn’t hear or did and ignored the advice. The wolf’s lips curled back, and it snarled again, eyes narrowing.
It’s going to pounce, thought Kobi. It’s going to kill him.
He looked back toward the office. If he went now, while the wolf was distracted, he could probably get a weapon in time to save the others.
“Wait,” said Asha, eyes glued to her friend. “Fionn knows what he’s doing.”
Does he?
The distance between the boy and wolf was down to twenty yards, then fifteen. Kobi’s breath caught in his throat as the wolf moved too, closing the space between them further. He could hardly bear to look but couldn’t look away either. At any moment, he expected the massive predator to launch and fasten its teeth onto Fionn’s neck. But when they were ten yards apart, the wolf’s ears rose from their flattened position, and its tail drooped.
“It’s in pain,” said Asha, frowning. “It’s scared too. I can sense it.”
Fionn stopped, looking tiny in the middle of the corridor. His legs were still shaking. The wolf padded right up to him, lifted its muzzle, and sniffed at the boy’s face. Fionn flinched, then lifted a pale hand and laid it gently on the side of the wolf’s head. Kobi couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
“He’s projecting a soothing emotion,” said Asha quietly. “Telling the wolf we’re not a threat—that we can help.”
“This is crazy,” whispered Niki.
For once, Kobi agreed with her. It was insane.
But it was really happening. The wolf yawned, revealing rows of jagged teeth, then its hind legs folded underneath it and it lay down in front of Fionn.
“No sudden moves,” said Asha. “Fionn’s calming it down. He’s telling it we have food.” She threw Kobi a sideways look. “You do have some food, don’t you?”
Kobi nodded. He knew exactly what they could use. “Wait here.”
Walking as steadily as he could, he headed back toward the kitchen and fished out several cans of Barkz, emptying two into a large dish. He grabbed some antiseptic spray too, then rushed back. When he arrived, Asha and Niki were closer to the wolf, though still not as close as Fionn, who was sitting on the floor, right beside it. Practically leaning on it! Kobi slowed his steps, and walked over. If they can do it, so can I . . .
Asha smiled. “Can you take out the arrow?” she asked.
Kobi laid down the dog food beside the wolf’s head, and it began to eat at once, gulping everything down in a matter of seconds. He inspected the arrow. The shaft was barbed, he knew, but if he twisted the rear end, the barbs would retract and he could pull it out easily.
Which was all fine, in theory.
With his instincts screaming at him not to, he reached for the bolt. As soon as his fingers touched it, the wolf’s head jerked around and growled at him, releasing a blast of terrible, fetid breath. Kobi backed off.
“It’s all right,” he said, wondering if the creature could understand. “Good doggy,” he tried.
Fionn stroked the wolf’s ears, and it seemed to relax again. The quiet boy was looking at Asha meaningfully.
“Go on,” said the older girl. “He’s telling the wolf you’re a friend.”
Friends with a Waste-infected wolf . . . , thought Kobi. His dad would never believe it possible.
He touched the shaft again, holding it firmly in his left hand. This time the wolf didn’t move, though it kept one yellow eye fixed warily on him. Kobi twisted the end of the bolt with his right hand, then applied force as gently as he could, easing the arrow from the flesh. Thankfully it came out without too much pressure. He handed it back to Niki, then sprayed plenty of the antiseptic over the wound.
The wolf laid out a paw and nudged the food bowl.
“He wants more,” said Asha.
Kobi nodded and began to open another can.
“It can’t stay here,” said Niki. “What if it brings others, or decides it’s still hungry? Put the food outside.”
Good idea.
Kobi picked up the bowl and held it out toward the wolf. “Come on. Follow me?”
It seemed to understand, and rose to its full height on four paws. Kobi went back into the classroom and crossed to the broken door. Quickly checking the coast was clear, he carried the bowl outside, and laid it on the asphalt basketball court, well away from the school buildings. The wolf actually waited patiently while he emptied two more cans, then lumbered forward, shouldering Kobi aside with its bulk. As it fell to eating, Kobi jogged back toward the classroom.
“We should block the door,” he said. “Niki, the janitor’s closet is three doors down the hall. There’s a drill and a toolbox. Bring it here.”
Niki didn’t object and hurried off. While he and Asha lifted the door back into place, he watched the wolf finishing up. It might not be a threat now, but that didn’t mean it wouldn’t turn on them later. They couldn’t afford to have it roaming the school—aside from the obvious danger, its fur was probably covered in Waste spores.
Niki soon returned, and, between them, they nailed the door upright, then reinforced it with a board fixed across the base, and another farther up. If the wolf really wanted to break in again, it might be able to, but hopefully it would just move on.
When they were done, Kobi led the others out, gathering the Waste-cleanser syringes from the fridge. They’d last for several days out of cold storage. Asha took the dart rifle and looped the strap over her shoulder.
“Just to be on the safe side,” she said.
Kobi closed the classroom door, then applied lots of sealing tape to the frame. The classroom itself was lost, and he already dreaded the battle to keep the rest of the school Waste-free. Fionn was watching the whole thing unfold, staring wide-eyed.
“Fionn, that was incredibly brave,” Asha said, hugging the boy close.
“Yeah, and incredibly dumb!” said Niki, but she was grinning.
Kobi wanted to join the moment of triumph. In the end, he couldn’t work out quite what to do, and then it was too late. “You saved all of our lives,” he said. “Thank you.”
Fionn himself could barely look at them. There were tears in his eyes, and he looked younger than ever, and lost, like the boy Kobi had seen in the vision. Maybe he was scared after all, Kobi thought. But it was more than that. If anything, he seemed ashamed.
“So what now?” asked Niki.
Kobi looked at the seal on the door again. When his dad did get back, he wouldn’t be impressed. “I’ve got some work to do. We have security protocols to follow. You could help if you want.”
“Sure,” said Asha.
“What about getting back to the Guardians?” asked Niki.
“Because you
r last plan worked so well,” muttered Asha.
“There must be a way to get a message out somehow,” said Niki.
Kobi shook his head. “Look, I need to find my dad,” he said. “At noon, I’m going out.” He gave Niki a hard stare. “I can help you get to the Guardians, but I’m not coming with them.” He looked at Asha, who nodded briskly. “There are blankets down in the nurse’s office,” he said, “Make yourselves at home and try to get an hour’s sleep—it might be a while before we can get any more, and Dad thinks it helps recharge my abilities, so I’m guessing it’s the same for you. One hour. Then we go.”
“Kobi, help me!”
His dad’s voice.
Kobi was running through the city, jumping roots and swinging under branches with ease. His feet almost seemed to float over the foliage, and nothing could slow him down. He wasn’t even worried about predators or Snatchers. He just had to find his dad.
“Help!”
Ahead he saw a split in the road. A crack. He slowed his gliding steps and crept toward the edge. There was something there—a single shoe. Dad’s shoe.
Kneeling, he picked it up, fear clouding his heart and making his head pound. What did it mean? Had his dad fallen in? He took the flashlight from his backpack and shined it over the edge. His dad stood on a ledge about seven feet down. He looked unhurt. He looked healthy, and in the back of his mind Kobi knew that was impossible. Not after nearly three weeks of being out in the city, alone, without his medication.
“Kobi, thank goodness. Get me out of here!”
Kobi lay on his stomach and reached over the edge. His dad clawed up, and their fingers met, locking onto each other. Their gazes connected. Kobi smiled. Started to lift.
Two things happened at once. Beyond his father, in the depths of broken asphalt and earth, something moved. At the same time, his dad’s eyes widened in horror. Kobi saw the barbed tendril of a Choker looping around his waist. Suddenly his dad was twice as heavy.
“Kobi, pull!” said his dad.
Kobi heaved, arm straining. Shoulder straining. His dad’s face became a grimace.