ACTIVATION

by M. G. GILIBERT

  Dave slowly emerges. After a couple of minutes and many efforts, he manages to sit down next to Gabe.

  The only words they exchange are to enquire about each other’s physical condition. Dave quickly understands that if Gabe is not talkative, then so he must be. They are probably being monitored right now and everything they say is very likely to be recorded and analyzed. In any case, they have nothing to talk about now. They both know what they need to do. They agreed to it right before they got out of the car. They will do what they are told, act in a non-threatening way, and observe.

  A few hours go by during which silence reigns in the aircraft. Without feeling that they have landed and stopped, Gabe and Dave are lifted from their sitting position by the robots. The back of the aircraft opens up to a bright morning light. As they get out, the boys realize they are on what seems to be a military base.

  There are many aircraft around them, similar to the one they are stepping out from. Robot-soldiers walk in tight ranks at a distance. The base is not located at ground level but instead seems to be on top of a structure. The boys have a nice view of their surroundings. They have been sent to a Metropolis, just like Don told them.

  They know more or less the basic layout of a Metropolis based on all the pictures they have studied back at the base. Unfortunately, as all Metropolises are built following the same plan, it is difficult for them to know exactly in which one they are now. They also don’t know at which speed the aircraft was flying nor do they know how long they have been unconscious. Therefore they don’t really have a clue of the distance they have covered.

  Gabe thinks he can be wrong as many variables are at play. But he believes the aircraft probably took them to the nearest Metropolis. Given the time it was when he and Dave were taken and the time it seems to be now, he believes that somewhere around six hours have gone by, give or take one hour in case they changed time zone. Gabe does not expect the aircraft to fly very fast. He believes its main mission is to patrol specific areas, and therefore speed would not be its main purpose. If it flies two hundred miles an hour and if they flew around six hours, they are probably between one thousand and fifteen hundred miles away from the factory. Searching his memory for potential Metropolises in that radius around the factory, Gabe can only come up with two potential candidates. One north of the factory, the other one south.

  Given the outside temperature and what Gabe can see beyond the city limits, he rules out the first option and believes they are in the second Metropolis. This is already useful information in case they manage to escape. They now know which direction they need to take to get back to the base.

  As Gabe turns to Dave, he notices that he is scrutinizing the base. Probably counting the number of aircraft and robots. A small sign of the head from Dave, answered by a subtle wink from Gabe tells them both they are fine and already concentrated on the mission they defined for themselves.

  The robots direct the two boys under a large covered area on one side of the structure the base is built on. It looks like a massive hangar for the aircraft. From there, they take an elevator that opens a few seconds later to a large corridor. There were no numbers or buttons inside the elevator, and Gabe and Dave do not know which floor they’ve stopped on.

  As they walk down the corridor, they do not notice any window. There are no doors either. Just a long and straight hall. Minutes later, the robots and the boys reach another elevator. This time they are apparently going up. They can feel it. Gabe thinks they have probably taken a tunnel between the military base and another building. But he will not have a chance to confirm his assumption. The elevator opens to a larger area than the hallway they just come from. And once again, as Gabe searches deep in his memory for the mental pictures of a Metropolis’ general layout, he recalls the location of the airbase in the overall distribution of the buildings.

  It is close to the center of the city. And not too distant from it stands a large and tall tower. He saw it earlier from the airbase. If his senses do not deceive him, the direction they took from the elevator is the same as to the tower. They might now be there. Right in the heart of the Metropolis. Potentially close to GAIA.

  However, not a single sign seems to confirm the immediate presence of GAIA. As they keep walking, Gabe and Dave see a group of people at a distance. They are also escorted by robots.

  As they get closer, they realize they appear to be more or less their age. There are two boys and two girls. But before they can pass the little group, the robots stop. Two doors open at the same time. Gabe and Dave turn around and when they look inside, they realize they are standing in front of cells. They will be separated.

  As they are pushed by the robots to enter their cell, they notice how modest it is. Apart from a bed, there is nothing else. No toilet, no sink, nothing. Just the bare minimum. As they turn around and now face the door, the other group passes their cells.

  They look at them. They look strange as if all life and hope had left them. But as one of the girls passes Gabe’s room, she briefly and unnoticeably looks at him.

  Their eyes meet, and without knowing what, how, and why, they both know that something has just happened and that they can trust each other.

  At the factory, the team is now long gone. As decided by Don, they have brought the truck in front of the entrance and loaded it with robots, parts, and components. They also replaced the two robots Don ‘killed’. They left the premises in less than one hour, in line with Don’s directives.

  Don is driving. And he is doing it as fast as he can. The rest of the team does not feel well sometimes, but given Don’s determination, no one dares ask him to slow down. They also know that the further they are from the factory, the safer they are. And if they are safe, it also means that the rest of the base is safe. And when they reach the base, they will finally be able to go after the boys. Everything is logical. And their best shot at finding the boys requires them to let Don drive fast, regardless of the effects it has on their stomachs and hearts.

  According to Don’s expectations, if they continue at the same speed and do not encounter any problem, they should reach the base within the next twenty-four hours.

  Jack and Don know what it also means. In less than a day, their wives’ world is going to be completely shattered. They hate this idea and this is why they want to reach the base as fast as possible to increase their chances of finding the location of the boys and rescue them.

  PART V

  CHAPTER 29

  Don did not stop driving until they reached the base. He didn’t want to waste even a single minute switching seats with someone. As he is the only one who knows in which shape the boys were taken to the aircraft, he just cannot wait to get to the base, find a monitor, and check the boys’ actual condition.

  As he takes the truck down the mountain tunnel, Don knows the base is already aware something has gone wrong. The truck has been on the base’s radars for the past two-hundred miles. More than enough time to understand there is a problem.

  Two vehicles left, but only one is coming back. Don is positive Pam and Jen will be at the forefront of the welcome committee waiting for them. And he can already imagine their reaction when they realize that the ones who did not come back are their sons.

  The door is opening slowly before the truck even reaches the end of the tunnel.

  They are expected.

  Just like Don thought, everyone is already waiting. Pam and Jen are standing before the rest of the base. They both look worried and concerned. Their hands cover their mouth. As the truck approaches and they have a better view of who is inside and who is not, Pam and Jen burst into tears.

  Don stops the truck and asks Jack to come with him.

  The two men stand in front of their wives. They feel guilty and do not know what to say and how to say it.

  Pam and Jen raise their heads, firmly holding each other’s hand. They use all their strengths to keep their tears from shedding as they now face their husbands.

  Their
eyes are full of anger and at the same time seem to be imploring for a miracle.

  “Where are our sons?” Jen asks.

  “We don’t know yet,” Don answers.

  The answer is definitely not satisfactory to either mother. But they manage to remain calm, while Don and Jack clearly notice that their next answer should better be more acceptable.

  “Are they alive?” Pam asks.

  Don hesitates one second, and before he opens his mouth, Jack answers with a simple ‘yes’.

  “Why did you hesitate?” Pam asks Don.

  “Because they were fine the last time I saw them. I don’t know how they are now,” Don answers.

  Silence.

  Jen then addresses her husband Don in the most solemn, serious, and calm tone she can manage to use in such circumstances.

  “I know you didn’t mean for that to happen. I also believe you actually did everything you could to protect our boys. But you didn’t bring them back with you. You didn’t keep your promise. You need to fix that. I suggest you rest and think about how you are going to do it. Once you are ready, you go back out there and you find our boys.”

  After hearing Jen’s words, Pam does not feel the need to add anything. Jen has as much trust in Don as Pam does in Jack. She realizes that something beyond their husbands’ control happened, something they cannot be entirely blamed for.

  And as wives, but mostly as mothers and for the boys’ sakes, Pam and Jen now feel the responsibility to support Jack and Don and the rest of the group so they collectively have everything they need to find Dave and Gabe and bring them back safe and sound.

  “We are starting now,” Don says.

  Don orders the men to unload the truck and to bring the robots in the reverse-engineering area. Jack will start working on them as soon as he gets some rest.

  As for Don, he still has a pressing and secret question that needs to be answered.

  He runs straight down the stairs to the command center. He knows he will find the tracking devices’ monitors over there.

  He takes one and isolates himself from the rest of the base. As he turns the device on, he has to wait several minutes before it eventually detects the trackers’ signals.

  The location of the boys is now known. They are in a Metropolis, as expected. They are apparently held at its center.

  But most importantly, their vital signs all seem normal.

  Don is relieved.

  Even though this confirmation is the best news Don could ever have wished for, it acts like a hammer on him. Stress and pressure are no longer stoking the fire inside his body. The adrenaline levels that kept him so focused over the last thirty hours are suddenly dropping. His body surrenders to the tiring effects of the mission and the drive back to the base.

  Don decides to go back to his bedroom and rest a little. But before, he stops at the command center and gives directives to the people who are now back from upstairs. He needs them to focus all their attention on the Metropolis Gabe and Dave are held in. They also need to find the best and safest way to get there.

  On his way to his room, he stops at all his team members’ bedrooms to check on everyone and to update them on the latest of what he found out. When he finally reaches his room, he finds it empty.

  Jen is not there.

  He wishes he could hold her right now. He decides to go next door, to Gabe’s room. Just to see it. Just to remember him. And also to find strength for what’s to come.

  Jen is there.

  She is standing. Holding one of Gabe’s t-shirts in front of her face, and inhaling it deeply.

  Don comes behind her and takes her in his arms.

  After a minute or so, in silence, they both lie down on Gabe’s bed. Before he falls asleep, Don murmurs in Jen’s ear, ‘I will bring him back. I promise.’

  Gabe is sitting in his cell. He and Dave have probably been here for two days now. And since then, no one has come to see them or to tell them what is going to happen. They get fed three times a day with a tasteless thick soup. Despite the poor quality of the meal, it seems efficient and nutritious as they have not felt hungry or weak ever since they arrived here.

  For some reason, Gabe is also unable to take his mind out of the girl he saw the first day. He keeps wondering about her. Who is she? Is she like them, part of a resistance cell? Does she live here in the Metropolis? Did she and the others do something that got them incarcerated?

  He doesn’t really care about the answers to his questions. If she is here, it means that they have something in common.

  The thing that troubles Gabe the most is the way the girl looked at him. Her look, even though it was brief, was so intense that Gabe felt she actually looked through him. And despite how fragile she appeared to be physically, Gabe felt an intense sense of power and confidence coming from her.

  Gabe is intrigued by her. And for that reason, and others that he cannot explain, he feels strangely attracted to her.

  He is starting to consider taking her, and her friends as well, with them when they escape.

  If they ever escape.

  Indeed, if the past couple of days are a reflection of what the future is going to look like, it will be extremely difficult to find an opportunity to escape. And if they cannot escape on their own, they will need to solely rely on their fathers and friends to get them out of here. That is, if they ever find them.

  The problem is that Gabe and Dave don’t know what happened after they were stunned by the robots. Who knows if the robots didn’t find the rest of the team and they are now in a cell just like them. Or worse.

  And above all, the trackers they have swallowed are supposedly already completely dissolved. They are no longer sending data about their location. And if something happened, no one would ever know where they are.

  Gabe is now convinced that he and Dave are the single best shot they have at escaping this place.

  He will therefore start to think about a strategy right away.

  From her cell, Rose is also thinking about that boy she saw. Who can he be? He is clearly not from the Metropolis. Could he be one of these mercenaries she vaguely remembers hearing about in the past? No, he certainly doesn’t look like one. Does he hold secrets like the ones she shares with Kim, Byron, and Ted? She doesn’t know. She tried to mentally communicate with him last night, but nothing happened. She decides to give it another try but with more focus this time.

  “Can you hear me?” she asks, trying to visualize him inside his cell and concentrating all her attention toward that mental picture.

  Nothing.

  After many trials, she still cannot obtain any response from the boy. But the more she concentrates, the more things she begins to see.

  It all starts with very brief flashes. She hardly notices them at first. They do not make much sense anyway and she ignores them. But the flashes slowly form a picture, with increased quality and detail, and seem to stick more in Rose’s head.

  What she visualizes is entirely white. A white room. She can distinguish what seems to be a door. The place looks vaguely familiar.

  The still picture is morphing into an animated one. Rose can now control it and look around. To her surprise, the room she sees looks identical to hers. She opens her eyes and confirms they are the same.

  Motivated by her discovery, she closes her eyes again and focuses her attention even more. After long minutes and many efforts, she starts hearing a voice. A man’s voice. But it seems so far away that she cannot distinguish the words yet.

  Despite how faint the voice is, Rose does not believe it belongs to Byron or Ted. She is now familiar with their tone of voice and she doesn’t recognize it in what she is currently hearing.

  Focusing even more on that voice, she tries to visualize herself get closer to it. And it works. The more she does, the louder and clearer the voice.

  Now that it is perfectly audible, she can listen to it.

  What she hears leaves her speechless. She seems to be listening to the bo
y’s thoughts. All of them, without any filter.

  He is clearly thinking about her. But his thoughts seem to have a very limited impact on her. If any. He also thinks about escaping.

  This is something new to Rose. As a matter of fact, she doesn’t really understand his reasons to escape.

  While she believes she needs to hide her condition from GAIA, she doesn’t really know anything else. Life outside the Metropolis is a foreign concept to her. And as she has nothing to compare her current situation with, Rose never felt compelled to escape.

  As Rose wants to find out more about the boy’s reasons, it seems like his thoughts are diverting and changing subject.

  His thoughts are now taking Rose to the sound of another male’s voice, older, that says: ‘Be strong, think about us. Find strength in our love for you, and know that we will not rest until we get you out safe and sound from wherever you will be sent. We love you.’

  These are some of the last words Don pronounced before the boys got captured.

  And similar to a mental dialogue, Rose also hears the boy respond, ‘I’m strong, Dad. I love you and Mom.’

  Rose doesn’t really understand what this is all about. Her brain has still not fully recovered from the damages caused by the emotion-controlling chip. Many feelings and emotions are still foreign to her, or at best, they are a vague memory. She remembers about her father, about different times, and different places. She remembers about laughing, about her father holding her in his arms and her feeling good about it. But it is still very nebulous at this stage. Many things are still colliding in her head.

  Rose opens her eyes and deliberately cuts the boy’s thoughts’ feed.

  She starts to think about herself and tries to gather and connect the bits of memory she can manage to find inside her head. It’s a difficult task. But from what she is able to remember, there was a time when she was not in this cell. A time when she was not even in this city. A time when she was … happy.