by S. S. Segran
“Five. Five.” She hissed the word through her teeth. “In the span of mere hours! I’ve been made a fool, and I cannot allow this anymore. If they figure out where this place is—”
“That will not happen.”
“But if they do . . .” Reyor headed toward a counter and grabbed a brass mug, filling it from a water carafe by the wall, and took a drawn-out sip.
Mokun pushed his hair back a few times, pondering to himself. She’s beginning to crack. The more uneasy she becomes, the more dangerous she gets.
“Where are you with Mr. Sanchez?” Reyor asked suddenly.
“I’m still in the midst of wading through the information he’s shared. I’m not convinced he’s told me everything.” That was a lie, but Reyor didn’t need to know it. “And I’m working to see if there may be other abilities he could manifest.”
“Oh?”
“It seems a couple of his friends have unlocked either additional levels to their existing capabilities, or discovered brand new ones.”
“We were already aware of that before speaking with him,” Reyor said. “It’s not something groundbreaking, or even necessarily uncommon. You and I have multiple abilities, as do some of our other brethren. If I may be so bold to say, I think you’re being too lenient, too patient with the boy. You need to hurry things up, or I will.”
“Mind the way you speak, Reyor. Yes, it is true that having more than one ability is nothing worth getting excited about, but this is: they are able to merge and synchronize their abilities. As far as Jag knows, it only works with two of them at a time, but eventually they may all learn to join their powers together.”
Reyor stilled as she tried to grasp the depth of this revelation.
“If I might add,” Mokun said, “I’m about to begin using the method you implemented not too long ago with—”
“Are you stalling, Mentor?”
The question—or perhaps it was an accusation—was unexpected, but Mokun took it in stride. “What would I have to gain by stalling?”
Reyor’s gaze zeroed in on him. Her expressions had always been difficult to decipher, and right now was particularly challenging. For all he knew, she could be calculating a myriad of ways to work around him, to end Jag and his friends. He was the only thing that stood in the way of her unleashing the full scope of her fury on the teenagers, not to mention the Sentries and Dema-Ki itself.
But no. Despite the disagreements that had arisen between them over the years, Reyor respected and valued his authority. She had never once tried to subvert him, no matter how heated their arguments became.
“I think,” she murmured after a weighted pause, “that I have allowed this to go on long enough. As I said, I’ve been made a fool—and by association, so have you. I cannot allow that any longer.”
Mokun drummed his fingers on the armrest. “So you admit, then, that these five have become a . . . challenge . . . for you.”
“All I’m saying is that they are unnecessary obstacles that we needn’t trip over again and again just because one of us wants to treat them like a pet project. Regardless of your interest in these children, Mentor, I am putting an end to this. To them.”
Mokun rose to his feet, a glimmer of displeasure igniting deep in his body. “You will do no such thing,” he said softly.
Reyor’s mug went hurtling past his face. It smashed into the crystal phoenix and the sculpture shattered into a mass of fragments.
The air between them was rife with crackling electricity, the kind before a havoc-wreaking storm. The fine hairs on the back of Mokun’s neck rose. When Reyor spoke, her voice was devoid of emotion. “You will not stop me.”
For the first time in decades, perhaps centuries, Mokun felt the slightest tinge of fear. She’s more anxious than I realized.
“Reyor,” he said, clipped, “I ask that you hold yourself to a higher standard than this unflattering outburst.”
She glanced down, and when she looked at him again, the inscrutable mask was back in place.
“Good.” Tension fell away from Mokun’s shoulders. “I offer you a compromise. Bring all four of the boy’s friends to me, and once I’m done with them, we can end it. Together.”
He could almost see her pupils narrow as she considered his words. At last, she jerked her chin once. He lowered himself back into his seat. “Now that that little drama is over with . . . Are you ready for the final waves? Humanity will experience desolation like never before.”
Reyor’s lips twitched, a brief show of satisfaction. “Desolation, on their way to annihilation. Yes, I am ready.”
“As am I.” Mokun hoped he appeared as enthusiastic as he sounded, and not as though little mites of doubt had started to bite him from the inside.
Reyor reached for her hood. “I have some calls to make. I’ll be back for dinner.”
As she headed to the door, passing by the wrecked sculpture, the crystal shards rose into the air. She halted to watch as the phoenix restored itself piece by piece, seeming to glow with heat. Then it floated higher and balanced itself back on the pedestal with not a single crack on its glittering surface.
Reyor turned to look at Mokun. He had returned his attention to the television, but a ghost of a smile lifted the corners of his mouth. His hand, raised toward the sculpture, lowered back to the armrest.
“If only it were so easy to fix the world, Mentor,” Reyor said, and left without another word.
“Annnd . . . done.” Kenzo dropped his pen onto the stack of papers in front of him. He glanced at the conference room wall where a clock read midnight, then leaned back in his chair and stretched, letting out a relieved groan.
Across the round table, Arianna laughed. “You sound like a baby dinosaur.”
“That’s because I am a baby dinosaur.”
She smiled and looked down at her own papers. Her short, ruby curls were tied in a bun with two pens sticking though it. She grabbed a red one, crossed out something on a page, then pushed the pen back into her hair.
The other echelon leaders had finished their reports an hour ago, but Kenzo had dragged out his work so he could be alone with the Head of Sanctuary. He needed to get answers to Victor as soon as possible, and if that meant he had to sacrifice some much-needed sleep, then so be it.
“Would you like a refill, Ms. Abdul?” he asked, getting up.
“Oh, no thank you. I’ll be done here in a minute.”
He picked up his coffee cup and hers. As he rinsed them in the small sink, he ran through the dialogue he’d been piecing together since his call with Victor. The problem with conversations created in the bubble of one’s mind was that they rarely ever played out the same way in real life.
“Kenzo,” Arianna called.
“Yeah?”
“Since we’re all done here, would you mind accompanying me on a short walk?”
He finished up at the sink and turned to her, surprised. “Now?”
She was already at the door. He shrugged and followed her out into the massive cavern. All was quiet save for some clucking from the poultry farm. A handful of SONEs in casual clothes relaxed within Eden, the verdant garden in front of the honeycomb-shaped dormitories. They were either reading or journaling, and among them was a slim, black-haired girl in jeans and a white t-shirt. She happened to glance up at Kenzo and Arianna as they passed some fifty feet away, and waved eagerly.
Arianna returned her enthusiastic greeting. Kenzo forced himself to do the same. He noticed how warmly the Head of Sanctuary regarded the SONEs. She’s definitely a huge step up from Mr. Ajajdif and Tony.
As they continued on their way across the Sanctuary, Arianna said, “Your cousin is so sweet, the same way you are. Must run in the family.”
Kenzo soured. “Not really. Not her side, anyway.”
Arianna winced. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking.”
“The past is in the past. We have a future to look forward to now. That’s all I care about.” It no longer surprised him how easy it w
as to speak as earnestly as one of the SONEs without meaning any of it. He’d always been terrible at distorting the truth but now he could, in fact, lie to save his life. He had to.
They passed the Marauder enclosure and the parking lot, finally reaching their destination at the far end of the cavern. Kenzo stopped, confused. “Uh, Ms. Abdul? Why are we going to the aquaponic facilities this time of night?”
“It’s where I go to clear my head sometimes,” she replied. “There’s something about being around fish as they swim through water that soothes me.”
She entered the first of the three buildings with Kenzo in tow. Inside, various machines created a low background hum that was not entirely unpleasant. A couple of SONEs, still in uniform, tended to the crops and the fish. Arianna sauntered straight to the midpoint of the pond and sat cross-legged by its edge. Kenzo joined her and they watched as one of the SONEs tore open a package of fish feed and contentedly filled up a hopper connected to a timed-release dispenser. Then, with his duties done, the SONE clocked out, beaming at the pair. As he headed for the exit, Arianna raised her hand. The boy grasped it briefly as he passed, his face brightening impossibly more.
Once the other SONE had left as well, Kenzo peered into the water. “Sooo, any particular reason you wanted me here? Something on your mind?”
Arianna dipped her hand in the pool. A few fish, mainly tilapia, raced toward her fingers to gently nibble at them. “I used to be surrounded by aquariums growing up,” she said. “They really are wonderful for relieving stress.” She withdrew her hand and shook it dry. “To answer your question, yes, there is something on my mind. Dr. Nate is still disturbed by the fact that someone in this Sanctuary might have helped that intruder from a couple of months ago escape. That means there’s a possibility that someone here may not be correctly repurp—isn’t fully committed to our cause.”
“Hmm.” Kenzo slowly rubbed the bridge of his nose as if pondering her words. “Well, the recent evaluations showed nothing out of the ordinary.”
“I know. I think Dr. Nate may be paranoid, but he needs to be placated. Like you said, we’ve already got pretty good evidence from the evaluations that he has nothing to worry about. Just in case, though, could I task you to keep an eye out for anything that seems even a little off?”
“You want me be your private eye?” he joked.
“No, no,” Arianna said quickly. “Nothing like that. You’re part of the Counselor echelon, which means it’s your duty to make sure everyone is happy and on the same boat. Just . . . be attentive to your surroundings, okay?”
“Yeah, sure, I can do that.”
“Thank you.” Arianna rubbed her eyes, evidently worn from the day’s affairs. “Speaking of Dr. Nate, he seems to have taken a liking to you. You were quite the hero, saving him like that. How’s the injury? You seem to be walking with barely a limp anymore.”
Kenzo patted his calf. “I’ve never had to be patched up since becoming a SONE, so that was my first time being in the infirmary for myself. What the heck kind of stuff do we have here that can heal me so fast?”
“It’s like a miracle, isn’t it? Word is, it’s an ancient formula the Boss learned.”
“The Boss?” Kenzo repeated, feigning ignorance.
“No, wait a minute, you guys have a different term down here, right?”
“Yep. But you can stick with Boss if that’s more comfortable for you.”
She nudged him. “You’re not supposed to tell me what to do.”
“I won’t tell if you don’t.”
“Ha. Smart mouth.”
Their conversation fell into a peaceful lull. The soft gurgling from the pond, along with the fishes’ minute splashing, put Kenzo at ease. There wasn’t a real scent to the place, not that he minded with his sensitive nose. If it had smelled like aquatic life, he would have had to run out or risk gagging the moment they’d stepped in.
Okay, focus, he thought. You’ve got work to do. Ease her in with a casual question so she can—
Arianna interrupted his short-lived internal pep talk. “What do you wish for, Kenzo?”
He jumped. “Huh?”
“Beneath the surface, what do you wish for? Yes, we’re all here to eventually build a better civilization and take care of the planet, but what about you personally?”
“Uh . . .” He rested his chin on a fist. “I guess I’d love to travel into space, but that’s too big a dream. It would be amazing if I could visit Japan again. I wasn’t born there, but my parents made sure to take me at least every couple of years to visit relatives.” He tapped his chin. “Mm, what else . . . Well, we’ve heard about the other Sanctuaries, so it would be great to see them in person and meet all the other SONEs. We’re basically one giant family now.”
“That’s the cutest thing!” Arianna clutched her chest dramatically. “Once we return to the surface, I’m sure there are plans in place for you kids to get acquainted.”
“I hope so. Oh, and the Heart.”
“What about it?”
“Every other Sanctuary has its country name attached to it, but not that one. It’s just called the Heart. It sounds mysterious. I’d love to check it out.” Kenzo raised his eyebrows and clicked his fingers at Arianna. “Ms. Abdul, weren’t you working there before you came here?”
“For a short time, yes.”
He turned his body toward her, bouncing a little. “Tell me about it! Please?”
She pinched his cheeks, her own pushed up in a smile. “Fine, but let me say this first: I wish I could have adopted you so your aunt and uncle wouldn’t have been able to put you and Ren through hell.”
“I can say with perfect honesty that we would have both preferred you over them.”
Her eyes softened in sympathy and she let go of him. “The Heart is like any of our other Sanctuaries, but it’s significantly larger. And it’s the central domain. When all the waves have been unleashed and it’s no longer safe to be outside, that’s where the Boss will be.”
“That’s it? Just bigger? There’s gotta be more to it to have a name like that.”
“True. But there are things about that place that’re kept completely under wraps and out of sight from most people. I was one of them. Believe me, I tried to get a peek early on, but I learned pretty fast that’s the last thing anyone should do.”
Kenzo swept his silver hair back from his forehead. This is going nowhere. How far can I go with her? We’re on good terms, but if I keep this up, she might get suspicious . . . Gah, just go all in.
“Where’s it located?” he asked.
“What?” Arianna squawked.
“The Heart. We know where the others are. Generally speaking, anyway.”
She scrutinized him. Kenzo held his breath, wondering if he’d pushed it too far. Should I try to look adorable or something?
Then she rested back on her hands, sighing. “I don’t think most people know where the Heart is. One of the Boss’s private jets picked me up from North Carolina, but once the plane reached cruising altitude, the windows were blacked out so I had no sense of direction. And when we did land, they covered my eyes and guided me underground. Same procedure when I left. They do that with everyone.”
“That seems excessive.”
“It’s for security. Which makes sense, especially if that’s where the Boss will reside.”
Kenzo dragged a finger through the water, letting the fish chase after him. “So no one knows, huh? Even the SONEs and workers there?”
“Mmhm. But of course, people talk. There are rumors that it’s built under reclaimed land by a body of water, possibly the Mediterranean. I think that might be true; the water part, at least. When I was taken out of the jet, I heard waves lapping and the air felt warm.”
“Earth is covered in a lot of water.”
“That it is.”
“What about Dr. Nate? He’s gotta know.”
Arianna smirked. “He’s been there, but even he doesn’t have a clue where the Heart re
ally is. I asked him once. Besides getting a severe tongue lashing, he said that only the Boss and the pilots of the two jets know.”
Kenzo swallowed his frustration, careful to keep his face neutral. “That sucks. Maybe when we get out of here, we’ll be allowed to tour all the Sanctuaries.”
“I’m not sure why you’d want to get out of one Sanctuary just to go into another. Once we return to the surface, feel the grass between our toes and smell the fresh air, I don’t think any one of us would ever consider going back underground.”
Kenzo gave a tight-lipped smile. There’s no way I’m staying down here that long. Ren, either. If Victor and his people don’t resolve this soon, I’m breaking us out if it’s the last thing I do.
They sat together a while longer. As he prepared to find a way to excuse himself and call it a night, Arianna asked softly, “Is it difficult for you at all, being down here without the real comforts of home you had before? Or does it not matter to you?”
Kenzo hesitated to answer. He was supposed to be a repurposed SONE, and while they did retain memories of their past, it was no longer of any consequence to them. Still, something in him wanted to be sincere with her.
“It is a bit hard,” he admitted. “But it was already hard when I lost my real home, back when I had both my parents with me.”
Arianna nodded, as if his words confirmed something. “I get that.”
“Why did you ask?”
“Not sure. Curiosity, maybe.” She rubbed her shoulder. “I shouldn’t be taking requests, but is there a particular dish from your past that you’d like to see in the cafeteria once in a while?”
He thought for a moment. “It would great to have some miso soup, actually. If possible.”
“I think we can swing that. Keep your eyes peeled in the coming days, okay?”
Kenzo regarded her, gratitude warming him. “Thanks, Ms. Abdul.”
* * *
Having at last parted ways with Arianna, Kenzo snuck back to the other side of the Sanctuary. He rounded the gigantic workshop, treading between it and the administrative building. Dodging under the sole CCTV camera there, he pulled out his phone and tapped Victor’s name.
