Stranger King

by Nadia Hutton

  “She’s obviously a Daywalker. Look at the artificial lenses, who else could afford something like that? All the other paperwork is fine. So she doesn’t have a birth certificate? I’m sure a lot of us are missing them after the Independence wars,” Kozol insisted.

  He stood in the back of the room nervously as the guard returned to Lena, lowering his visor as he examined her closely.

  “Where were you born?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Are you a Canadian citizen?”

  “Yes.”

  “How do you qualify if you cannot prove where you were born?”

  “I’m adopted. My father is a Canadian citizen. By the laws of your country and mine, I am granted the same amnesty as he is. It does not matter where I was born , I am a Canadian citizen and you have no right to hold me this way.”

  Lena did not move as the slap hit her face. She felt the burn and she stared up defiantly, “I am a Canadian.”

  “I’ve looked up your file, Greenwood,” the officer said. “The closest we have to a birth certificate is your father registering the adoption. We have new orders, given to us from the president herself, that any citizens born within American borders are Americans and are to be brought off Canadian soil and back to the homeland. In this time of threat, we want to keep our citizens safe and protected.”

  Lena paused and looked at Kozol as he was handed the documentation.

  “This is real, Lena,” Kozol said quietly.

  He looked over and addressed the officer, “As her employer, I must hold her to her contract. She still owes me over a year and a half of service that must be provided here. I will vouch for her citizenship.”

  “If she is proven to be American, you would risk perjury?”

  “Yes,” Kozol said, his eyes meeting hers.

  “So be it,” the officer replied. “I will arrange for the hearing. She is allowed to leave for now, but she will be given a tracker until she is acquitted.”

  He hit a button and a man came into the room, a large syringe in his hand. Lena froze as he kneeled by her, pressing the needle into her shoulder and pumping the fluid in. She groaned as the sensors settled into her muscle.

  “You are free to go, citizen,” the officer said, as Kozol helped Lena to her feet. They walked back to the transport, Lena resting slightly against Kozol.

  “What the hell is going on?” Kozol hissed to her.

  “I honestly don’t know,” Lena lied, rubbing her shoulder.

  *

  Lena woke when they arrived at the campground. They showed their passes and made their way through the metal shelters with darkly tinted windows. They were led to the last one on the edge of the grounds where they set out their gear.

  Kozol went out to talk to the organizers and phone the lawyer. Stiar sat down beside Lena, who lay down on her cot.

  “I’ve seen your birth certificate,” Stiar said quietly, “I saw it when I was hiring you. So why don’t you tell me what the hell is actually going on?”

  “It’s a fake.”

  Stiar looked concerned as Lena sat up. “The truth is, I know where I was born. I was born in Toronto a few weeks after the borders were drawn up. My parents were both Canadians trying to immigrate to British Columbia. They lied, said I was older than I was, trying to get me under the cut. I’m not 26. I’m 25. It worked for years. But now … what was I supposed to say? It was obviously a forgery. I couldn’t just give it to the guards, I couldn’t just tell them the truth. I panicked. When I found out about the occupation, I called my dad. He’s trying to get me real documents, but I don’t know how long it will be until all the bribes go through. Especially with everything on hold right now.”

  “But your birth parents are Canadian…”

  “The Americans don’t care. They’re going to see I was born in annexed Canada well after the borders were settled. According to them, I am one of them. I don’t have any proof in my favor.”

  “So you’re just giving up then?”

  “No,” Lena said quietly, “I’m accepting. When we get back, I’m going to tell my dad, and then I’m going up north. I may get away for a few years, long enough for parliament to begin again. I just have to figure out how to dismantle this stupid tracker. But I’m not going back with them.”

  “Would it be so bad?”

  “Would you go with them?”

  Stiar said quietly, “No.”

  “Then don’t expect me to.”

  “Why are you telling me this?”

  “I trust you and you gave me a chance. You believed in me. You’ve been a good friend, Stiar. You deserve to know the truth.”

  “I won’t tell them until you’re gone.”

  “Thank you.”

  Stiar hesitated before touching her hand softly. They glanced at each other and Stiar smiled.

  “You look me up when this is all over, kid,” Stiar said quietly.

  Lena squeezed her hand, “I promise.”

  Chapter Eight

  Lena made her perimeter rounds as the sun rose in the sky. She saw only the trees and the rich kids in their exo-suits, each hand-painted to mark the individual inside. She had been given a few nervous glances as she passed, her nearly bare skin an open threat.

  As the opening act began to play from behind a tinted Plexiglas shield, the crowd turned from her, focusing on the band. They had been a fad when she was at school, but Lena had very little interest in them at the moment.

  She planned her actions again. She would vid her father, grab what cash and survival gear she could, and go up north. The days were growing shorter there; she could survive outside longer until the summer began again. Lena didn’t know how long she would have to wait, but anything was better than being taken from her homeland.

  She remembered the wars vaguely. Peace had been officially declared almost a decade before she was born, but there had been much infighting and rebellion in the provinces left behind.

  Lena remembered her mother somewhat, a willowy Japanese woman with soft brown eyes. She remembered her carrying Lena close to her chest as they ran. She remembered being handed into her father’s arms. Harvin Greenwood was so timid about taking the child into his arms. She remembered looking up into his steel blue eyes for the first time, and the sense of calm that followed. He did not need to say it aloud, but they both knew in that moment that he had sworn his life to keep her safe. He was her dad; there was no question even from the very start.

  Lena had asked little about why her father had been in Ontario. He didn’t want to discuss it. As an adult, she realized it was dangerous for her to know, even though her curiosity only grew over time.

  How much trouble would he be in when they realized she had run? They certainly would go to him if they couldn’t find her with Manthras. He wouldn’t tell them anything. Perhaps they would leave him be. Perhaps he would manage to get north too, and hide out with her. She didn’t know. He would know better than her how to do this. And how was she going to get the trackers out of her arm so they couldn’t find her?

  Lena could still feel them in her body. They hurt less as her muscles adjusted. Gratefully, they had put them in her right arm, not realizing she was left-handed. Her aim would be accurate, and she still had quite a few clips. She could trade for more when she went up north.

  The music ended abruptly and she could hear the crowd murmur. Lena looked up, gun cocked, her eyes scanning the horizon. Her vid-com came on, and she could hear Kozol swear, “Holy shit!”

  Lena looked to the sky. She blinked at first, the brightness too much for her eyes to handle. As her false irises adjusted, she saw them. Three dark shapes coming toward them. She saw people run, looking for shelter. Lena simply stood, watching the three shapes grow closer. When she could make out the metal paneling on their hulls, she realized very quickly they were not of human make.


  Her brain thought two things, almost simultaneously: she could leave now for the north, no one would think she had survived, and they would assume her trackers were stolen from her corpse for scrap. And she thought of her father.

  She ran toward the fleeing crowd. She called out for Kozol and Stiar on her vid-com, telling them to go true north, head deeper into the mountains, and reconnect with her. She looked up for them in the crowd, two figures clad in white among the exo-suits.

  She saw one just as the firing began. Later she would remember the smell, her brain concluding that they were being shot with a compound of sulfur and iron. People fell and she ran to the side of the white suit who had collapsed onto the ground. Stiar looked up at her blearily and Lena hoisted the woman over her shoulder, carrying her as the crowd fled.

  “Kozol!” she called out, scanning the crowd. She saw him to her left and their eyes met. She followed him into the forest, holding Stiar as close to her body as she could. Kozol signaled her to get down and she did so, crouching in the brush as they watched the scene unfold. Stiar breathed heavily as they watched others fall. Kozol passed her a green and brown paint and Lena began covering both her and Stiar’s suits with the mixture, to blend them into the ground.

  Kozol went as low to the ground as he could. Lena held her head up, watching as the ships docked, their landing gear digging into the softened earth. She panted, watching as the first figure departed. She recognized the face at first. It was an older man with papery pale skin and hazel eyes. She had seen him on Haida Gwaii. She remembered the jagged scar on his right cheek. It was the same one her father had. It was common for Canadian prisoners of war; it was used to differentiate them from the American prisoners.

  He said something in Mandarin that Lena did not understand. When he switched to English, Lena felt a chill.

  “I am translating on behalf of the Great Council of Hal-Water-Joy. The Mission asks you to lay down all weapons and step forth in a sign of peace.”

  As he began to repeat the same phrase in French, Lena looked over at Kozol. He shook his head and they remained in the brush. Others came forward, kneeling in the dirt before the entrance of the ships. Some came out firing weapons, but snipers shot them down.

  Lena could make out the creatures as they walked off the ship. They were taller than an average human, most of them a bit over seven feet. She could not see their skin underneath what she assumed was their variant of an exo-suit. She could see that they were bipedal, with a tail of limited mobility. She guessed that was due to the suit, but she could not be certain. They spoke in the clicks and hisses she had heard before, and she knew that the message had come from them.

  As one stood by the scientist, a large hand resting on the human’s shoulder, the scientist continued first in Mandarin and then in English, “The Great Council thanks you for your cooperation. In the name of the one true Goddess and the three suns of the collective, you are blessed for being diplomats of your home world. You will now line up in an orderly way and will be brought along as guests. Our ships have been made to accommodate you without what you call exo-suits. Others of your kind are already on board and will help you adjust. Deviants will be dismissed immediately.”

  As the message was repeated in French, Lena turned and whispered to Kozol, “We need to get out of here.”

  He looked down at Stiar and nodded.

  Lena said quietly, “I need to get to my father.”

  “Calvin’s in Hope. That’s on the way.”

  Their eyes met and there was a quiet understanding as Lena whispered, “Okay.”

  They waited for hours as the captives were processed into the ship. As it grew close to five, the three of them tried to lay still. They were protected by shade, but it was not nearly enough, and they all grew thirsty.

  Kozol and Lena laid side by side, her head resting on his shoulder. She could feel her lips cracking and her hands slowly burning. Kozol whimpered slightly, a blister forming along his jaw line.

  “Hang on,” Lena whispered, her voice cracking.

  As the sun started to fade, she could hear ships leave the ground, but began to smell ash before she saw the fire.

  “We need to go, now,” she ordered.

  Kozol stood weakly, helping Lena carry Stiar as they tried to run. Their muscles ached as the fire grew near.

  “Leave me,” Stiar whispered hoarsely.

  “No,” Lena said simply, pushing through the brush until she made it to a clearing. Kozol pointed to one of the shelters and they ran. Kozol kicked open the door and they entered, sealing it behind them. Lena started the generator, the air sweeter and cleaner as it filtered out the ash.

  They looked at each other in exhaustion. Lena took a bottle of water from the fridge.

  “It’s the only one,” she whispered, “We have to make it last until the fire dies down.”

  She drank a sip greedily before handing it to the other two. She tried to look at Stiar’s wound, but the woman brushed her off.

  “I’m stable,” Stiar whispered hoarsely, “Don’t waste supplies on me until we know we can get out of here alive. We need rest.”

  Lena nodded, lying on the floor with the other two. Kozol shivered and the three huddled together, some ash still reaching them through the filters. Lena coughed and tried to fall asleep.

  She could barely shut her eyes. She did not want to stop watching Stiar, who winced and moaned quietly beside her. Lena put her arm around her friend, holding her close as they both tried to fall asleep.

  *

  Lena woke first, rising uneasily to her feet. She took another drink of water and looked out through the Plexiglas portal. The grass around them was incinerated, the trees still burning embers. It was somewhat light out, but she could not tell what time it was nor how long they had slept.

  She remembered Stiar’s wounds and kneeled down beside her friend to examine her. As she looked, Lena realized that Stiar had stopped breathing. She looked peaceful, a small smile on her blistered face. Lena’s hands shook as she closed Stiar’s eyes, her fingers trembling. She had been holding her when she died and didn’t even notice.

  Kozol was warm to her touch and he stirred as she called out his name softly. He saw Stiar’s body first and sprang to his feet.

  “We’ll bury her before we go,” he said softly.

  Lena nodded, trying to hold back her tears.

  “Check for any gas masks,” Kozol pointed to the cabinets, “We’ll strip the camp of supplies and head east. There’s no point going back to Metro city, they would hit the major population centers first, if they’re already out this far…”

  Kozol bowed his head and whispered, “How many of my crew are dead?”

  Lena said softly, “We’re still here. Two of us are alive. Come on. We need to move.”

  With full packs, their wounds bound and treated as best they could, Lena and Kozol buried Stiar in the ashy ground. Neither of them could think of any kind words to say, but simply bowed their heads in silence as the sun set in the sky.

  Kozol took Lena’s hand in kindness and they walked into the forest like two lost children trying to find their way home.

  Chapter Nine

  Lena woke at the sound of frosted ground crunching slightly under the heavy footsteps of another. She grabbed her pistol and stood, seeing Kozol walk from the brush, his hands in the air. She sighed, lowering her weapon.

  “You can’t try to shoot me every time I need to take a piss,” Kozol grumbled, lowering his hands.

  “Sorry,” she apologized, “I’ve been on edge. I don’t think you can really blame me.”

  “It’s alright. If you’re awake, then we better get moving. We’re near the edge of Hope. We’ve been lucky so far, but those bastards might be here already.”

  Lena nodded. It was easier to not call them by what they were. Considering what they had seen, the
slur seemed more appropriate anyway.

  They had been walking down the wreckage of the Lougheed Highway for three days now. Chilliwack had been burnt out –– they’d seen the glow and smelled the smoke from across the Fraser River –– and they’d skirted Agassiz for fear of the questions they couldn’t answer. While neither of them said so, there was a good possibility that Hope would not exist when they crossed into the mountains. The grid had gone down within hours of fleeing, so they had no way of communicating with any others and all the transports and vehicles that relied on the grid were dead. The thought flittered through her mind that they might be the last two alive. They had not seen another soul for two days. It was as if the modern world had disappeared and all that remained was crumbling highways from a long ago era.

  Lena went through her pack and looked for any winter gear. There were only two light jackets, both of them too big for her and too small for Kozol. They dressed in what layers they had while night settled in around them. With winter just around the corner, they were relieved to have shorter days to walk through, but the cold was seeping into their lungs and bones. It had been hard adjusting to the increasing altitude, their energy wore out quickly and sleep called to them, but as it grew colder, the chances were greater that sleeping would kill them. Instead, they kept moving; they had to.

  As the moon rose higher and the sky brightened, they crossed the bridge into Hope and saw their first view of the town. They both held their breath. There were no electric lights, but both of them could see campfires flickering in the distance.

  As they reached the first few homes, they grew cautious again. It seemed that the locals had evacuated further into the town center or maybe up into the mountains themselves. They continued on, looking through empty houses for signs of life or supplies to refill their packs. There were few signs of either.

  “Calvin’s mother lives on the other side of the valley,” Kozol said hopefully. “They might even still be there, if those fires are any indication. If not, we’ll keep moving.”