Cadence

by Wilson, Dianne J. ;

  Evazee held her arms close to her sides to try make herself take up less space.

  Sam sat on a dirty blanket in the corner with his face beaming, eyes glued to Evazee’s face.

  As crude and small as it was, the place was tidy and as clean as a shack built on dirt could be. Sam’s nana took a deep wooden bowl from a makeshift shelf and scooped water from a bucket in the corner. She held it out to Evazee with hands that shook.

  Evazee’s heart pulled tight. She could only imagine the effort it took to get this bucket of water from wherever they had to fetch it from. Drinking it when they had running water from taps back at the OS seemed nothing short of a crime, yet to refuse it would be wrong.

  She drank a few mouthfuls and passed it on to Zulu.

  He bowed deeply to the old woman before draining the bowl and handing it back.

  The lady shuffled across the small space and slipped it back onto the shelf next to an ornate black glass flask. The flask was so out of place in the humble surroundings that Evazee’s curiosity flared.

  “What is that?” She spoke gently to the old lady, keeping a smile on her face even though she was feeling uncomfortable.

  “Tonic. It gets dropped off here every month. I don’t see who brings it.” Her ancient face creased into a smile. “Helps my old bones and his young ones.” There were more gaps than teeth in her gums.

  “Can I see what it is?” Hairs stood up all down Evazee’s neck.

  The woman was reluctant, but Sam shot up and whispered in her ear. She sighed and nodded. Sam gave her a quick hug before handing the bottle over to Evazee.

  She took off the lid and gagged as a familiar scent tinged drifted through the room. “Are you sure you don’t know who brings this for you?”

  The lady’s face lit up. “Somebody loves us. As a bottle finishes, we put it out and a full one is delivered.”

  “Do you know what you’re drinking?”

  “I told you already.” The lady sighed as if this conversation were sucking up all her energy. She waved to Sam and he stepped forward.

  “A tonic that helps us. Just what Nana said.” He shrugged.

  Evazee caught Zulu’s gaze and handed the bottle to him. “Do you know what this is?”

  He sniffed and shrugged.

  Evazee turned back to Sam’s Nana. “Do the neighbours get it too?”

  Sam waved his arm in a gesture that seemed royal. “Everybody. Everybody gets.”

  “Do you like the taste?”

  Sam shook his head so hard his cheeks wobbled. “Ugly.”

  Dark Affinity serum. Someone was supplying them all with dark Affinity serum and they were drinking it like soda.

  ~*~

  “I brought you some test subjects for your newest batch.” A gravelly, cigar-smoking voice.

  Kai lay still, allowing consciousness to return to his brain. Adrenalin pumped through him as he tried to remember how he’d ended up on the cold tile floor of this dark room.

  “Who are they?” A voice as cold as the floor Kai lay on.

  “Expendables. Caught them snooping in the vault.”

  “You know that this batch isn’t safe to be live tested yet. The effects of this mutate are designed to be permanent. I’m not inclined to rush the process or the testing.”

  “Do you honestly think the general cares?” A fit of coughing. “Just do it. He’s pushing hard now. Besides, they shouldn’t have been here.”

  “Strap them to the beds and leave me to my work, then.”

  “Hey, you can’t order me around like that.” Bad lungs and an insecurity complex. Almost enough for Kai to pity him.

  “Just get it done. I thought the general was in such a hurry.”

  “Fine. But I’m not doing it because you told me to.”

  “Ja-ja. Whatever makes you happy.”

  Kai’s mind flew. Resist? Run? Before he could make up his mind, he felt hands sliding under his armpits, dragging him. His dragger coughed, and Kai cringed at the thought of being coughed on. The man hauled him to his knees in front of the wheeled gurney. Kai saw the straps waiting for his arms and legs.

  Not happening.

  He flung himself backwards. His head connected with something sharp. Crunch. They fell to the ground. Kai whipped himself around and backed away on all fours, looking for the others. He saw them lying in a row along the wall, not moving. Not conscious.

  A slim man in a lab coat stood off to one side, arranging instruments on a metal table. He didn’t seem bothered by the drama at all.

  Kai’s captor had regained his balance and came at Kai with his arms out like a gorilla, his face a contorted mask of rage. His nose was bleeding. So that was what crunched. Kai’s Affinity sparked, and the man’s eyes were solid black. The snake marking writhed on his forehead.

  Kai yelled, deep and guttural. He ran, putting the gurney between him and the man. It was time to take this man out of the picture. He swung the gurney around, pulled it towards himself, and pushed. The gurney rolled across the room and smacked into the man who doubled over with a grunt.

  The man sucked air into his lungs. It seemed that Kai had succeeded in fuelling the man’s anger. He threw the gurney aside, toppling it. Groaning came from near the wall. The others were waking up.

  “Zap! Ruaan! Get up!"

  The man launched himself at Kai, catching him around the waist. The man’s weight toppled them both. They came down hard.

  Kai winced as his shoulder joint clicked. Pain shot through his torso, and he fought back stars.

  The man hauled him onto a gurney like a sack of potatoes and strapped him down before moving on to the others who were still too far gone to resist.

  Through the stars, Kai watched the man re-tuck his shirt and haul up his pants. He sniffed and wiped the back of his hand across his nose.

  “That’s how you do it.”

  The man in a lab coat sighed. “Fine. You’re the man. Let me get on with my job now, please.”

  “If they give you any trouble—”

  “I know where to find you. It’s all good. Now please…”

  Clunky footsteps sounded on the tiles as the man left. He must weigh about the same as a baby elephant.

  Lab Coat sauntered over to Kai and shone a light in each eye. “Neanderthal.”

  He looked familiar.

  “Me or Muscles?”

  Lab Coat grinned. “I guess time will tell. You put up a good fight.”

  The man’s face was definitely familiar. “Do I know you?”

  “Doubt it.” He focussed on Kai’s strapped arm, trailing his fingers down the blue lines of veins that criss-crossed the inside of Kai’s wrist. He reached for a syringe from a silver tray next to the gurney and filled it from a small vial. With the loaded syringe in one hand and deep frown lines creasing his brow, he leaned on Kai’s gurney.

  “What is that?” Kai worked hard to keep his voice neutral.

  “This would be better if you were still knocked out.”

  Kai knew one thing for sure, whatever was in that syringe should not go into his veins. His restraints were too tight for him to budge. Keep him talking. “Is it an improved version?”

  Lab Coat stopped, tilting his head to the side with an eyebrow lifted with the exact measure of are-you-crazy that Bree used. “You’re Bree’s dad, aren’t you?”

  The syringe bounced off the edge of the gurney and tumbled through the air, spinning twice before hitting the tiles with an unsatisfying clink.

  “I can see Elden in you too.”

  Lab Coats’ lips were moving, but no sound came out.

  Kai focussed on his mouth and understood.

  Shut up.

  17

  Evazee stood next to Zulu and admired his handiwork. “If the high priest thing doesn’t work out, you can go into construction. This looks good.”

  A quick smile cracked his face, followed by a frown.

  “I’m sorry, that’s not funny. It does look much better though.”

>   Zulu had found a bunch of weeds growing nearby with leaves as tough as leather, but bendy like rubber. He’d used the leaves to lash all the walls together and create a makeshift hinge for the door. It swung open and closed with ease. He’d tested it all by leaning on the outside wall with his full weight.

  Evazee’s heart nearly stopped. She imagined the structure coming down on top of the old lady and Sam like a house of cards. But Zulu had leaned and pushed, and the structure had stood.

  He’d also laid a new layer of leaves over her holey roof. He’d split the topside of each leaf from the underside, using the sticky sap to glue multiple layers of leaves together. The sap would gradually harden to a solid resin that would stop any leaks.

  The old lady came out blinking like an owl. She nearly fell out the door as it swung back easily instead of needing a hard shove. Her eyes misted over as she saw what Zulu had done. “How can I thank you?”

  “No, thank you.” Zulu grinned.

  Evazee patted his arm and shook her head. “There is a way you can thank us.” She led the way back into the shack. Half shocked at her own boldness, she reached for the dark bottle on the shelf. “Please don’t drink any more of this.”

  “But it’s good. It does good.” The old lady’s face puckered up into creases of distress.

  “No, no it’s not. Can I show you?” She didn’t wait for permission, and she had no idea if this was going to work or not, but she had to try something to stop this woman and her son from drinking serum.

  She let herself out and tipped a few drops onto one of the plants that Zulu had harvested root leaves from. Nothing. The old woman came shuffling across the dirt and hunched over even further for a closer look.

  “Well?”

  “Let’s just give it another minute. I don’t know how quickly it will take effect.” Evazee began to wonder if she should have poured out more. She was just considering it when the old lady’s patience ran out.

  She plucked the bottle from Evazee’s hand and shuffled back towards her house muttering.

  Sam stood staring at the tree hardly blinking. Evazee gave him a hug. “I’m sorry, Sam. We have to go.”

  Sam stubbornly refused to budge. He shook his head once and kept eyeballing the tree.

  Evazee rubbed his head in farewell and motioned to Zulu. It was time to leave.

  They collected the other two off the dusty street and started walking.

  Evazee had no idea where to go or why. As they walked through the slums, Evazee saw signs of the serum. Empty bottles lying around, some people leaned on their broken walls, drinking from the bottles openly. They were all hooked on this stuff. What would it take to get them all free? This was impossible.

  Zulu rubbed his hands on his shirt as they walked. Then he started rubbing them on each other, seeming more desperate as they went.

  Bree clucked her tongue at him, “You’re making me itchy just watching you. What are you doing?”

  Zulu held out his hands towards her. “Leaf sap. Too sticky to wipe off, itchy now.”

  Evazee shut her eyes and stuck out her hands as if she were trying to navigate her way out of a giant maze. She scratched her chin. “I’m sure there’s a river close by here. Let’s see if we can find it.”

  Bree crossed her arms over her chest and tapped her foot faster than a foot should move. “It’s probably not a good idea to ask the only one here who used to live in this neighbourhood. That person wouldn’t have a clue where to find what you need.” She coughed behind her hand and stared off into the distance.

  “You know where to find water?” Evazee asked. Her cheeks were hot. She should have remembered that Bree used to live here.

  “It sometimes moves around, but it should be quite close. I know because I used to avoid it.”

  ~*~

  Kai sat in the cell, studying the walls, the floor, the locked door all by the light that came from him. Lab Coat had untied him from the gurney and bullied him down the stairs and into this cell. He hadn’t denied it though, and the panic in the man’s eyes had spoken volumes.

  So Kai had been shoved into this locked room and apparently forgotten. They could try and lock him in, but that didn’t mean he’d be as meek and submissive as a lamb. There was no time for this nonsense. He ran his fingers along the floor, along the join where the floor met the wall. He shut his eyes and let his Affinity kick in.

  The room glowed green, and he took a moment to let his eyes adjust.

  A quiet click and the door slid open just enough for a man to slip through. It was a Lab Coat—Elden and Bree’s dad.

  Kai stayed on the floor, arms looped around his knees, torn between the desire to bash the man on the head and run, and stay put and perhaps have some of the puzzle unravelled.

  The man seemed aware of the possibility of having his head bashed as he approached Kai with his hands up. “I’m here to talk, and I don’t have much time. Hear me out.”

  Kai waved to a spot on the floor.

  The man frowned but sat down anyway. “You can call me Dr S. I’ll get straight to the point. Elden doesn’t know that I’m alive.”

  “Neither does Bree.”

  Pain flashed across the doctor’s face, but it was gone in a moment. “They can’t know that I am.” His watch beeped. He reset it and took eye drops out of his shirt pocket. Two drops in each eye then he tucked them back in his pocket and blinked a few times. With a sniff, he sneaked a sideways glance at Kai’s face and sighed. “My death was staged to protect them. The work I’m doing here is of the utmost importance and because of that, I have some powerful enemies. It was the only way I could protect them.”

  A pit of anger lit in Kai’s belly, a slow burn of rage fuelled by his helplessness to free Bree, to see her whole. This man was clueless.

  “I’m sorry, but in your opinion, what do you do here that is so important?”

  Lab Coat leaned back on the wall and his face lit up. “Serum development. We’ve just made a huge breakthrough. Huge. Up until now, the serum has worn off within hours. But I think we finally have a permutation that will be permanent. A single dose will alter the user on a DNA level that won’t dissipate over time.”

  Kai’s spit dried up. “And you think this is a good thing?”

  Dr S. seemed taken aback. “Yes, of course. Obviously. How can you ask that?”

  “Wait, back up a moment. To your knowledge, what does your serum do, exactly?”

  “I can see that you’re a serum user yourself. Do I honestly have to describe this for you?” He shrugged and carried on. “Our serum is designed to integrate all parts of a person. To firstly wake up the spirit, and then connect mind, body and spirit to function in unison. Can you imagine every person on the earth functioning at their highest capacity? The world would be a very different place.”

  The way the man’s face glowed, Kai could tell he believed every word of the sewage coming out of his mouth. Someone had short-circuited his brain.

  “Have you ever tried the serum you create? Injected it into your own veins?”

  “Well, no. I’m not allowed. But my field agents have told me some incredible stories. I’m part of changing people’s lives forever.” He deflated, and a hint of pain twisted his forehead. “I know it must be hard for you to understand how I could leave my family.”

  “Lie to them.” Break their hearts. Mangle their insides. Betray them in every way.

  “You’re right, of course. But surely you can see that this is bigger than me, bigger than their feelings. I wouldn’t abandon my own flesh and blood for anything less than this. I’m part of recreating the world as we know it.”

  Affinity zipped through Kai’s veins, quickening his heartbeat. When he looked up, the doctor’s head lit up in a solid helmet of green light. Even his eyes lit up green as if he were a cat in the dark under torchlight. Someone had done a dirty on him. This would take some delicate handing.

  “Doctor, I can see you believe in what you do. I don’t know how to break this
to you, but you’ve been lied to.”

  ~*~

  Bree pushed through between two bushes and waved her arm towards the sparkling expanse of water. “There you go. Not too far from where I remember it.”

  Zulu ran to the edge, knelt down, and plunged his hands into the water, sighing with relief.

  “Are they feeling a bit less itchy now?” Evazee pushed past the bushes and stopped at the sight of the water. The sparkling ripples made her tummy flip. Not long ago, she would have been the first one in, but now? Who knew what would happen? She settled down against a tree trunk and watched Zulu’s face.

  He kept plunging his arms in, even though the stickiness would have washed off on the first rinse. His face lit up as he allowed the water to dribble through his fingers. He chuckled and dipped his head under the water. Then he sat up with a gasp and shook the water off his head.

  Bree sat next to Evazee, frowning at Zulu. “He’s enjoying this way too much, don’t you think?”

  “I know, right?”

  Paintbrush stood next to them for a moment, then she took off at full speed and bomb-dropped into the water, splashing Zulu. He guffawed a deep bellow laugh and scooped a handful of water over her head. She shrieked with laughter.

  “The plant. It died.”

  The voice came from behind and Evazee spun around, ready to jump up and fight.

  Sam stared at her with wide eyes, and he clutched the serum bottle from his Gran’s house to his chest. He stumbled forward on wooden legs, bewilderment all over his face. “The plant is dead.” He held out the serum bottle pinched between two fingers. “Please. Take it.” His foot snagged a root, and he tripped. The bottle flew out of his hand, uncapped in midair, and spun. Liquid poured out in a trailing arch and landed on Bree.

  “Bree! Go wash it off, quick.” Evazee leapt to her feet to help her friend.

  “My eyes. It’s in my eyes.” Bree waved her arms around like a blind person swatting at bees.

  “Wait, I’ll help you.” Evazee put an arm around Bree and they shuffled to the water together. As they got closer to the bank, Evazee’s foot slipped on a slick rock. She landed with a thump, pulling Bree down with her.

  Bree slipped from her grasp and slid unceremoniously on her bottom all the way into the river. She spluttered as she rinsed out her eyes.