by Susan Gates
‘But I don’t need to, do I?’ Jay said, with sudden panic. ‘I’m living with you, aren’t I? That’s the plan, isn’t it?’
Dad looked a bit flustered. ‘Er, yes, of course. That’s the plan.’
‘You aren’t going to go away again?’
‘No, I’m not,’ said Dad, defensively. ‘I told you, I’m here to stay.’
Jay had heard that before. But this time, he almost believed it. Something seemed to have changed in Dad’s mind. As though he had to take his responsibilities seriously now. Because he suddenly said, ‘You’d better go back to school.’
‘Why?’ said Jay, astonished.
‘Because if you don’t, they might put me in jail for not sending you. I heard they do that nowadays. And then what would you do?’
‘I could keep the Diner going,’ said Jay desperately. ‘I’d be all right there on my own.’
‘No,’ said Dad. ‘I’m taking you back to school. Right now.’
Chapter 4
They drove, in tense silence, back to Franklin High School by way of Franklin High Street.
Jay gazed out at the shops. Franklin’s two takeaways had closed down. A new place called The Mineral Café had opened up. It was crowded with Verdans, sitting at outside tables, with tall glasses of blue and milky white drinks.
Jay read the board outside the café. ‘Get your Nutrients Here,’ it said. ‘Today’s Special: Phosphorus Pick Me Up.’
Dad frowned. ‘What’s that all about?’
‘Verdans don’t need human food,’ said Jay patiently. ‘Only light, water and minerals.’
‘But what about humans?’ said Dad. ‘Don’t they come down here any more?’
‘There’s some, Dad,’ said Jay. ‘And, look, there’s some more over there.’ But mostly, the High Street seemed like a green sea of Verdans.
Dad drove on, grim-faced.
Jay said, ‘Maybe we should change Rainbirds American Diner to Rainbirds Mineral Drinks.’
‘If that’s supposed to be a joke, it isn’t funny.’
Jay didn’t dare tell Dad that he’d never felt more serious in his life.
Then Dad suddenly braked, shouting, ‘Jay, look! That kid over there, isn’t that Sage?’
Jay squinted at the Verdan girl, skipping along in a world of her own. ‘I think so. Yeah.’
‘Bet she knows where Viridian is,’ said Dad. ‘Go on, get out and ask her.’
‘What, me?’ said Jay.
‘Yes, you. I’m not going anywhere near that freaky kid. Go on.’
At first Sage didn’t seem to notice Jay. She tried to skip around him as though he was a litter bin on the pavement.
Jay blocked her way. He wasn’t sure what to say.
‘You on your own?’ he started. ‘Where are your mum and dad?’
Sage shrugged. ‘They’ve gone away.’ She didn’t seem at all distressed.
Jay said, ‘Have they left you on your own?’ Sage stared at him, as if she didn’t understand the question.
How did you get through to this kid? Jay tried a different approach. ‘Remember me? From the Diner? I helped your brother get you down from the ivy.’
‘You’re shading my light,’ she said.
Jay decided to get to the point. ‘Where’s Viridian?’
‘Who?’ she said, lifting her face to the sun and smiling.
‘Your brother,’ said Jay. ‘Remember him?’
Sage said, ‘Oh, he’s gone away too.’ She waved vaguely over the rooftops. ‘To the building with glass bubbles.’
‘What?’
‘Three glass bubbles,’ said Sage, untangling her long, green hair. ‘Great big ones you can walk into.’
‘You mean the Agricultural Research Station?’
Sage shrugged again. ‘He’s gone to be a Cultivar.’ She peered at Jay through her river weed hair. ‘I painted words on your caravan.’
‘Excuse me?’
‘I painted words on your caravan,’ Sage repeated, as if she was pleased with herself.
Jay stared at her open-mouthed. Sage was a weird little Verdan. But he’d thought she was harmless.
‘Why’d you do that?’ he asked.
‘Because I’m going to be a Cultivar. And Viridian says, to be a Cultivar you must hate Polluters.’ Sage smiled at Jay, coyly twisting her hair round a long green finger. ‘I’m already in the Climbers.’
Jay was totally bewildered now. ‘What’s the Climbers?’
‘It’s for Verdans who’ve been chosen to be Cultivars one day. It’s where we learn how to hate Polluters.’
She pointed at him with a twiggy arm, her finger outstretched. ‘You are a Polluter,’ she chirped cheerfully at him. ‘So you must die!’
Jay gaped. She smiled at him again.
‘When I told the other Climbers what I’d done, they said, “Well done, Sage, you will make an excellent Cultivar one day.” And they gave me my orange belt to show I’d passed a test, and some extra sunshine.’
‘What?’ said Jay. ‘What are you talking about? Extra sunshine?’
But Sage said, ‘I’m not supposed to talk to Polluters.’ Then she darted off, swift as a dragonfly.
Jay stood on the pavement, staring after her. He gave one quick, convulsive shiver. Then he climbed back in the van.
‘Did she say where he is?’ asked Dad eagerly.
‘No,’ said Jay. ‘She doesn’t know.’
Dad swore and started up the engine.
Jay didn’t like lying to Dad, but something told him that Viridian was nothing but trouble. That they should stay right away from him.
But he did say, ‘You were wrong about Viridian. It was Sage that did the graffiti.’
‘You’re kidding me.’
‘She just told me,’ said Jay. ‘She did it to win an orange belt and extra sunshine.’
‘What?’
Jay shrugged. ‘It’s what she told me.’
Dad was quiet for a minute. Then he said, ‘She’s a creepy kid, isn’t she?’
Jay didn’t answer. He was thinking about those chilling words, ‘You must die!’ coming from a young girl’s mouth.
Then he told himself, Don’t take it so seriously. She didn’t understand what she was saying.
‘Do I turn right here?’ asked Dad, who’d never been to Jay’s school before.
Jay tried to adjust his mind as they approached the school. It would be weird seeing his friends again. They must have thought he’d fallen off the planet. Since he’d been at the Diner with Dad he hadn’t contacted any of them, hadn’t answered their texts. He’d thought his time at school was over and done with: they were kids, messing about in the classroom, while he was in the real world, growing up fast.
But, suddenly, he was quite looking forward to seeing them.
They were in a stream of cars now, heading for Franklin High. Dad followed them through the big iron gates.
Then Jay saw the sign. ‘Look, Dad!’
The sign said, ‘GET YOUR PLANT VIRUS SHOTS HERE’.
‘What’s going on?’ said Dad. ‘I’m going to turn round.’ But he couldn’t; he was stuck in a stream of cars.
In the school car park there were Verdan kids in high visibility jackets, waving cars into free parking spaces. With a sudden chill, Jay realized they were students at his school. ‘That’s Lily Mae Taylor,’ he said. ‘And that’s Rashid. I’m going to find out what’s going on.’
‘Wait,’ said Dad.
But Jay had already leapt out of the van. He fought his way through the crowds of people, all heading for the main entrance.
‘Hey!’ he greeted Lily Mae, trying not to stare at her pea-green braided hair.
‘Where have you been?’ she asked him, without much interest. ‘No-one’s seen you for ages.’
She spoke like the old Lily Mae, but Jay only had to look into the depths of her vivid green eyes to know she was a stranger.
‘You here to get injected?’ asked Lily Mae.
‘I don’t l
ike needles,’ said Jay.
‘It’s just a little sting,’ said Lily Mae, showing her green teeth in a grin. ‘Everyone’s doing it. All my Facebook friends are Verdans. Aren’t yours?’
Jay said, ‘We’re not on the Net where I live now.’
The world had moved on but he’d been left behind. He thought, incredulously: I’m the odd one out and they’re normal.
But then his best friend, Mac, came racing up. With a huge surge of relief Jay saw he wasn’t a Verdan. He was still the same old crazy Mac.
‘Hey, Mac!’ shouted Jay. ‘Am I glad to see you. I thought I was the only human left!’
Mac turned round. His face was flushed with excitement.
‘They can’t stop me now,’ he said. ‘Stupid Polluters, living in the past.’
‘Who can’t stop you?’ asked Jay.
‘My parents,’ said Mac. ‘They can’t tell me what to do. I’m getting a virus shot whether they like it or not.’
‘My dad won’t let me,’ said Jay. ‘He hates Verdans.’
‘So does mine,’ said Mac. He gave that shrill giggle that Jay had heard so often in class. ‘What are they going to do about it? Wipe us all out? Come on!’
Mac grabbed his arm, and Jay found himself caught up in the crowd of eager, smiling humans heading for the school hall.
Jay expected a sickly antiseptic smell and queues of silent, shuffling people, wincing as they got jabbed. But it wasn’t like that at all.
The hall was flooded with sunshine from the big tall windows. And the atmosphere was joyous. People were dancing and having fun. The school steel band was playing. The hall was decorated with green flags and streamers.
Jay detached himself from the crowd and hung back to watch.
It was like a party, but the weirdest, craziest party Jay had ever seen. People were jostling to get their jabs from Verdan nurses, rolling up their sleeves as if they could hardly wait. It was obviously much quicker and more effective than catching the virus from live plant sap. Within minutes, a green tinge began to show around the injection spot. In hours the same thing would happen all over your body. But as soon as they saw that hint of green, people whooped with joy. Verdans crowded around them: ‘Welcome! You’re one of us now.’
And Jay, slumped against the wall, felt left out, a sad, lonely Polluter. Self-pity flooded through him. And sneaky thoughts were forming in his head. ‘Why should Dad tell you what to do? It’s your future.’
That made him remember Viridian’s words. ‘We are the Future. Becoming a Cultivar – it’s the biggest adventure ever.’
The biggest adventure. The biggest adventure. The words danced in his head to the rhythm of the steel drums.
A Verdan was up on the stage. Jay saw, without much surprise, that it was the Head Teacher of Franklin High.
The Head said, ‘Franklin High is proud to be host to this happy event. There was a time when the Earth was inhabited only by plants. Our world was Paradise, before animals came along to pollute it and steal its resources. Because of your brave choice today, our planet will be healed and made beautiful again! Together we shall turn our backs on our misguided, modern lives. We will go back to that purer, simpler way of life and make our Earth a Paradise once more!’
Wild clapping and cheering followed this speech. Jay found himself joining in.
Mac came racing up, euphoric. ‘It doesn’t hurt at all,’ he shouted above the din. ‘Well, it does a bit. But it’s worth it.’
Jay found himself grinning too, yelling, ‘Well done, mate, I’m pleased for you.’
‘I’ve chosen a new name,’ said Mac, his eyes shining fervently. Already they seemed to have a greenish tint. ‘You’ve got to call me Thorn from now on.’
Dad would have made a joke. Jay said, ‘Nice one, Thorn,’ and slapped the brand-new Verdan on the back.
‘Come on!’ said Mac – Thorn – and suddenly Jay was surrounded by Verdans, gently guiding him towards the nurses, full of encouraging words. ‘Join us and be happy. Make Paradise on Earth. It’s brilliant, it’s the best thing you’ll ever do.’
Jay let himself be carried along. He forgot about Dad and his own fears. The biggest adventure ever, his brain kept repeating. Paradise on Earth.
Then all he could hear in his head was the music. And, before he knew it, he was staring down at the tiny puncture wound in his left arm, waiting for it to bleach to grey, then show the first signs of green.
The world seemed to stand still. Minutes passed.
Thorn said, in a baffled voice, ‘Nothing’s happening.’
The Verdan nurse bustled round the table and inspected Jay’s arm.
‘You don’t seem to have got the virus,’ she told Jay. ‘It can’t be the serum. It’s worked for everyone else.’
Quickly, the word spread and people waiting for their shots crowded round, confused, asking questions, staring at Jay as if he was a circus freak. Thorn seemed to have melted away.
Doors flew open at the end of the hall. The crashing noise startled Jay, and the band stopped playing. Verdans were pushing through the throng towards him. They were taller and darker green than the others. They looked tougher, like bouncers or bodyguards. And they stalked through the throng in a super-confident, swaggering way.
‘Cultivars,’ Jay heard a Verdan whisper.
Other Verdans, even the nurses, shrank away, leaving Jay standing alone.
The Cultivars made a circle around him, facing outwards, blocking out the light. Jay began to feel very scared.
One announced loudly, ‘Nothing to worry about, Verdans. We’ll take care of this. Carry on with the virus shots.’
The band started up again. Outside the circle that imprisoned him, Jay heard people celebrating, as if nothing was happening.
He said, ‘What’s going on?’
No-one answered. Then one of the Cultivars slowly twisted his neck and stared at Jay.
It was Viridian. His eyes glittered like a green, icy pond. ‘It’s you,’ he said. He seemed astonished to see Jay was still human. ‘I made you a Verdan. We mixed blood.’
The Cultivar next to Viridian leaned over and hissed something to him. Immediately Viridian turned his face away, as if Jay had ceased to exist.
‘What’s going on?’ Jay stammered again. Now he was getting really panicky.
Then the circle started moving. Jay was forced to move with it.
‘Where are you taking me?’ he asked, his voice shrill now, almost hysterical.
No-one answered.
Then, from somewhere in the hall, he heard Dad bellow, ‘Jay, where are you?’
‘Dad! Over here!’ Jay screamed. He threw himself at the circle, battering against his captors, frantic to find a way through. But they closed together, squeezing Jay into a smaller space. He stood panting, helpless, defeated.
Then, unbelievably, a gap showed between a Cultivar’s legs. Jay made a mad dive for it, slithering through like a snake.
One of his captors yelled a warning: ‘He’s escaping!’
Jay heard Viridian’s voice: ‘Let him go. We’ll get him later. I know where he lives.’
Jay was running blindly now, bouncing off Verdans, shoving them aside trying to find an exit from the hall.
‘Dad!’ he yelled, as he ran. ‘Dad!’
And then Dad appeared from nowhere, grabbing Jay’s arm, dragging him out of the hall.
‘They’re after me,’ gasped Jay as they ran across the car park.
They leapt into the van. Dad screeched out of the car park, forcing incoming cars to swerve out of his way.
Jay looked back, sure they would be pursued. But there was no sign of any Cultivars among the happy stream of humans going in to get their shots.
‘Don’t think they’re following us,’ said Jay. ‘Dad, I couldn’t get out. They wouldn’t let me go.’
Dad said, ‘What were you doing in there anyway?’ He floored the accelerator as they sped back to the Silver Bullet.
Jay didn’t want to
explain that. ‘Those were Cultivars, Dad, the ones around me. Viridian was with them. They were really scary.’
‘Come on,’ scoffed Dad. ‘Whatever they call themselves, they’re still Verdans. Verdans aren’t scary. They’re wimps.’
‘Not this lot,’ said Jay. ‘They’re different. Believe me.’
Chapter 5
Jay and Dad were sitting in the Silver Bullet eating burgers for supper. There were no customers. Since they got back from Franklin that morning, not a single trucker had stopped at the Diner.
Jay said, ‘So are we going to see Gran again?’
Dad said, ‘I’m not. You can, if you like.’
Jay frowned. He wasn’t sure Gran wanted to see him. When people became Verdans they didn’t seem to need family anymore. It seemed really selfish to Jay. But weren’t they supposed to be saving the world?
Dad said, ‘So what actually happened in that school hall? You haven’t really told me.’
Jay didn’t want to tell Dad that he’d willingly gone to get his virus shot. He chose his words very carefully.
‘I got caught up in the crowd. Before I knew, it they’d given me the shot. I couldn’t help it, Dad.’
‘Hey, it wasn’t your fault. So when nothing happened, like the shot didn’t work, these Cultivars appeared out of nowhere?’
‘Yeah. They surrounded me, tried to take me away. It was like they were arresting me or something.’
‘But you escaped,’ said Dad. ‘That’s my boy!’
‘But why didn’t the shot work? Why didn’t I get the virus? I didn’t get it before either, when Viridian tried to infect me.’
‘You’ve got the luck of the devil, that’s all I can say. That’s twice those green freaks have nearly made you one of them.’
It was time for the news. Dad flicked on the TV. ‘Hey, look at this!’ he said.
The Prime Minister and his wife and children were standing outside Number 10 Downing Street, smiling. They had green chlorophyll skin.
Jay gaped in amazement. ‘They’ve become Verdans!’
‘I don’t believe this,’ said Dad. ‘When did this happen? Wait a minute, he’s saying something.’