Wild-born

by Adrian Howell

  “I saw Cindy yesterday,” said Alia during breakfast.

  I looked up at her. “Really?”

  “She was sitting on a wall with…” Alia’s telepathic voice trailed off.

  “With who, Ali?” I asked, wondering about my own dream about a wall, but Alia didn’t answer.

  I forgot all about it during the day’s experiments, but that night I had the same dream again. This time I was much closer to the wall and I could make out the shapes sitting on it. Cindy was there, and next to her, Ralph. They just sat there and looked at me, Cindy watching me sadly and Ralph smiling mockingly. I felt that Cindy was trying to tell me something, but I woke before I could figure it out. Alia didn’t mention anything about her dreams the next morning, and I wondered if the previous day had just been a coincidence.

  The next night convinced me that it wasn’t.

  “Addy, Cindy was looking for me,” said Alia when she woke. “She was sad.”

  “Did you have another dream?” I asked.

  Alia shook her head. “It wasn’t a dream,” she insisted. “I saw her.”

  It had been a vivid dream for me too. Like the first two, neither Cindy nor Ralph spoke at all, but I could feel their desire to. I thought about asking Mr. Koontz, the dream expert, what it meant, but I didn’t see him that day.

  The next morning, Alia said to me over breakfast, “Cindy wants to talk to you, Addy.”

  “I know, but I can’t hear her,” I replied. It was the exact same dream again, and I knew Alia had dreamt it too.

  “She says that you have to want to hear her. She says you’re blocking her.”

  I stared at Alia.

  During my testing session later that day, I thought again about talking to Mr. Koontz and asking him what these dreams were. But I already had a hunch, or rather, an ever-so-slight hope, and I didn’t want to speak openly about it just in case I was right. My hope was that somewhere, someone was dreamweaving to us. I was certain it wasn’t Mr. Koontz because, though I had told him about Cindy, I never told him about Ralph. And how could Ralph be there if…

  “Adrian?” said Dr. Otis over the intercom. “Focus please.”

  I fired another shot at the scanner-mounted target in the Lab-C Testing Room. And then another, and another. I was sweating profusely by the end of the session. Before leaving, I looked around once at the Testing Room, at the dreary concrete cave where I spent my days dancing to the doctors’ every demand. This was where Jason Witherland had jumped from in his desperate bid for freedom, and now, more than ever, I understood why. Despite Dr. Kellogg’s warning, I decided that if there was even the slightest chance of escape, I’d take it too. I was never going to live fifteen years down here like Mr. Koontz. One way or another, I wanted out.

  I meditated for nearly an hour before bed that night. I hadn’t done that ever since arriving at the facility. Alia did her best to shake me out of it, but I sternly silenced her and went about my breathing exercises. According to Alia, Cindy said I was blocking her, but I didn’t know how or why. Meditation seemed to be Cindy’s answer to most problems in her life, and as I lay beside Alia in bed that night, I prayed it would work for me.

  I was once again standing in the field of brown grass, almost touching the wall. Cindy and Ralph sat there looking down at me. Ralph… What was he doing here anyway? I felt a chill run through me, and opened my eyes.

  The chill, I discovered to my annoyance, was caused by Alia having pulled our blanket off of me as she slept. The luminous clock on the desk showed 2am, and I knew I had little time to re-enter the dream I had woken from. I had to find Cindy and Ralph again. Carefully as not to wake Alia, I pulled the blanket back so that it was covering us both. Closing my eyes again, I nudged my mind back toward the field of brown grass swaying in the wind. Back to the long wall of little black stones. Back to Cindy and Ralph. Back to sleep…

  I felt as if I had been walking for several thousand years, searching, but now I could finally see the black wall off in the distance. As I warily approached the two sitting there, I wondered why it couldn’t just be Cindy. Ralph wasn’t welcome here. I glared at him furiously, daring him to use his psionics on me, but he just sat there wearing his mocking smile. Cindy was also watching me with the slight frown she often wore when commenting on my lack of power balance. I looked again at Ralph, took a deep breath, and cautiously let down my guard.

  I immediately heard Cindy say, “Adrian, we are very close now. We are going to try to get you out of there. Ralph has agreed to help us. He has brought some Guardians.”

  “We have agreed to try to rescue you and Alia,” Ralph said quietly, “but you have to understand that there are no guarantees. We’ll give it our best shot, but you’re in a real fix.”

  I noticed that Ralph didn’t have his usual accent or attitude. And I knew then that there was someone else hiding behind Cindy and Ralph… or perhaps hiding inside of them.

  “Who are you?” I asked. “Who are you really?”

  Cindy said, “Keep Alia safe. I love you both very much, and I promise we will do everything we can, but we really don’t know much about the research center yet.”

  “Who are you?” I asked again.

  “We are working on a plan,” said Ralph, “but it may take a while. You have to be patient, Adrian. If it is possible to rescue you, the Guardians will see it done.”

  Suddenly the wall vanished along with Cindy and Ralph, and I was standing alone in the field, which became hazy and finally disappeared completely.

  “Cindy? Ralph?” I called out into the void. “Where are you?”

  I felt a presence behind me, and turning around, I woke.

  I was looking into Alia’s eyes, which were wide open and staring back at me.

  “Addy, did you hear Cindy?” asked Alia.

  “Yes, Ali, I did,” I whispered.

  “I want to see her, Addy.”

  “Go back to sleep, Alia.”

  I was certain it was a dreamweave now. What else could it be? Mr. Koontz had said that he could project dreams out of the facility, so certainly someone could project in. Whoever it was knew Cindy and Ralph, and knew how to dreamweave to Alia and me. I had never met a dreamweaver before Mr. Koontz, but he had told me that all he needed was an image of someone in order to control the dreams. It seemed possible for the mystery dreamweaver to just hear about us from Cindy and know enough to send dreams to us.

  I thought about what might have been happening outside while we were trapped down here. In order to save us, Cindy had searched out Ralph and somehow got him on her side. Ralph was a former Wolf, so he had probably known where the Psionic Research Center was. And Ralph would have Guardian friends to help him, such as a dreamweaver.

  I wondered what Cindy had promised Ralph for his aid. Could it be possible that she had agreed to rejoin the Guardians? I felt horrible thinking about what I must have put her through for my refusal to listen to reason at Mark’s house. I knew that even if we managed to escape, things would be very different.

  At the moment, however, we were still trapped down here, and this was our chance for freedom. I would apologize to Cindy later, and I would make it up to her if ever I could, but right now I had to think about how to help them get us out.

  Another two dreams later, I was convinced that the Guardian dreamweaver could not hear anything that I was saying in my dreams. The connection just didn’t work both ways, so I had no way to return a message or ask any questions.

  I had also discovered that dreamweaves, just like normal dreams, fade away quickly once you’re awake. I had to make a conscious effort to quickly recall everything I had seen and heard as soon as my eyes opened. It wasn’t easy, and I probably lost a fair bit of information, but I learned that Cindy was hidden somewhere near the facility, along with Ralph and about ten other Guardians.

  The reason they hadn’t stormed the place yet was that none of them knew what kind of defenses the facility had. Even Ralph had never set foot in here before. C
indy, or rather the dreamweaver controlling her likeness, told me that if the odds proved too great and a good plan could not be formed, the Guardians would have no choice but to abandon the attempt and leave us here. I knew that the real Cindy would never say such a thing, but it was a crushing blow to hear it from her mouth.

  Three more nights passed, and the Guardians were not any closer to forming a plan. In the most recent dream, Ralph had hinted that they were considering giving up the rescue, and I woke up in a cold sweat.

  I desperately wished I could somehow return a message. It was, if anything, even more frustrating knowing what was happening above us and being unable to respond, especially since I knew I could help them get the very information they needed. Were they really going to abandon us? I knew Cindy wouldn’t, but alone she couldn’t do much. We needed the Guardians’ help, and to get it, I had to help them first. But how?

  Fortunately, no one but me could hear Alia talking about her dreams, so when she did, I kept quiet or changed the topic. I felt sorry for Alia because she so wanted to talk about Cindy, but I knew it was the only way to keep this a secret.

  I racked my brain for an answer to my communication problem. Alia would never be able to reach Cindy, even if Cindy was standing at the entrance to the facility and there was no shielding at all. Ten stories down was just too far. If I could only get Mr. Koontz to dreamweave back to Cindy just like she had used a dreamweaver to send her messages to us…

  But that was impossible. Every room, every corridor, even every toilet had surveillance cameras and microphones. There was simply no way to talk to Mr. Koontz without letting Central Control in on our conversation.

  Unless… I thought for a moment. Yes, there was a way. It was dangerous, even reckless perhaps, but it just might work. If I failed, I would be lucky just not to be killed, and Alia would lose her only protection here. I knew what was at stake. I did, as Dr. Kellogg had suggested, think very carefully about everything we stood to lose. It was because of my recklessness that Alia and I were trapped down here. Perhaps my solution would prove to be equally disastrous, but the Guardians had already been on site for at least eleven days, and they might not be around much longer if I didn’t contact them soon.

  That night, as Alia pressed herself up against me and closed her eyes, I turned onto my side and put an arm around her, pulling her even closer. Afraid that the camera would see my mouth move, I turned my head slightly, bringing my face so close to Alia’s that I was almost kissing her. I knew from watching my sleep-hovering videos that the surveillance camera could see surprisingly clearly in the dark, but I didn’t want to pull the blanket over our heads because it would look too suspicious. When I opened my mouth, I tried to make it look like I was just taking a breath, and I did my best to keep my lips and cheeks from moving as I whispered, “Alia.”

  Alia opened her eyes. “Addy?”

  “Keep your eyes closed and listen to me,” I said in a whisper of a whisper. I could barely hear my own voice, and I prayed that the microphone wasn’t sensitive enough to pick up what I was saying. Alia must have sensed how nervous I was, because her whole body became rigid, but she did as I told her to. I closed my eyes too, but kept one slightly open so that I could be sure Alia was keeping hers shut. For all anyone would know, we were sleeping.

  “Ali,” I breathed, “you know those dreams about Cindy?”

  “Yes, Addy,” said Alia. Her voice in my head was much quieter than usual, as if she was afraid her thoughts could be heard on the microphone.

  “She’s really up there. She’s going to come get us.”

  “I know.”

  “We have to help her.”

  “She can’t hear me.”

  “I know, Ali,” I whispered. “We’re going to ask Mr. Koontz to help us talk to her. Can you speak to Mr. Koontz?”

  Alia was silent for a moment, and then answered uneasily, “I don’t know.”

  Alia had never spoken to Mr. Koontz, or anyone aside from Dr. Kellogg for that matter.

  “Alia, Cindy needs our help.”

  “I’m scared, Addy.”

  “I know you are, but I need you to be brave, Ali. You’re a big girl now, and I need you to be brave for Cindy.”

  Silence. Alia didn’t open her eyes, but I could tell she was struggling with her emotions.

  “Ali, will you talk to Mr. Koontz for me?” I asked in my near-silent voice.

  Alia took a moment longer before answering, “Okay, Addy.”

  “Good. I want you to say hello to him. Can you do that?”

  I felt incredibly restless but I knew we had to take this slowly. I couldn’t push Alia and I didn’t want Mr. Koontz to jump in surprise either. When I could no longer bear the tension, I asked, “Did you say hello to him?”

  “Yes.”

  “Good. Now, I want you to tell him that I have a plan to help us escape. I want you to ask him if he will help us.”

  “Okay.”

  “Tell him that if he wants to help, he should…”

  Should what? Wink at me? Put a thumb up? Every second of our lives was being recorded so I couldn’t risk any odd gestures, and I didn’t want him to reply in a dream just in case I accidentally blocked it again. There was no telling how much longer the Guardians would stay.

  “Addy?”

  I whispered, “Tell him that if he wants to help, he should ask when my birthday is the next time we meet.”

  There was a pause, and then I heard her quiet voice in my head say, “Okay, Addy. I told him.”

  “Good girl, Ali. You’re very brave. We’re going to be rescued soon. Go to sleep now.”

  Alia and I met Mr. Koontz the next evening, and we sat together in the lounge for an hour after dinner. I was beginning to think that either he hadn’t gotten Alia’s message or that he was unwilling to help, but as we stood up to go, he called back to me, “Oh yes, Adrian, I’ve been meaning to ask when your birthday is. It’d be nice to have a party now and then.”

  I grinned and said, “It’s still a while away, in October.”

  “What about Alia’s?”

  “Already over.”

  “Well, time doesn’t mean much down here anyway. Perhaps we’ll have a party soon and just pretend it’s your birthday!” Mr. Koontz laughed heartily.

  From the look in his eyes, I instantly knew that he was game. I wanted to send our first message to Cindy that very night, but like most insane plans, things were much easier said than done.

  First off, I wanted Mr. Koontz to send the dream to both Cindy and Ralph so that they would be sure it was a dreamweave and not just a normal one. I figured that since Cindy must have managed to get her dreamweaver to contact Alia and me by just describing us to him, the same would work on our end. However, although I had told Mr. Koontz a little about Cindy, I hadn’t described what she looked like or anything. And about Ralph, Mr. Koontz knew nothing.

  There was another potential snag as well: Ralph’s Guardians would no doubt be inside Cindy’s hiding bubble. Could Mr. Koontz dreamweave to them when they were psionically hidden? I believed that he could, since the Guardian dreamweaver managed to reach us deep underground in exactly the kind of place a psionic gathering might be hidden. But there was no way to be sure.

  That night, I once again pulled Alia up close to me. She was expecting it, so it probably looked more like she was trying to snuggle closer to me. I hoped it looked that way anyway, since I usually didn’t cuddle Alia like this and Central Control might get suspicious.

  “Close your eyes. Pretend to be sleeping,” I said under my breath. I was still terrified that the microphone would pick up my words, and my heart was pounding louder than my voice. “Ali, I want you to tell Mr. Koontz about Cindy.”

  “What should I say?” Alia asked in her quietest telepathic voice.

  “Tell him that her name is Cynthia Gifford. Tell him what she looks like. Tell him about her hair, and how she smells, and how she walks.”

  I paused, trying to think wha
t I might say if I were the telepath.

  “Tell him how Cindy is quiet and nice and caring,” I whispered. “Tell him how much you love her.”

  I waited until Alia said, “Okay, Addy, I did.”

  “Good, Ali. Now, next I want…”

  I hesitated. I really did not want to put Alia through this, but I had no choice if this dream was going to go to Ralph as well.

  “Alia, I want you to tell Mr. Koontz about Ralph.”

  Just as I expected, Alia became extremely tense, and I feared Central Control might see that she wasn’t actually asleep. I held her gently, giving her some time to adjust to the idea, before whispering, “Ali?”

  She didn’t answer.

  “Alia, please tell Mr. Koontz about Ralph.”

  “No, Addy,” said Alia.

  “Ali…” I pleaded, my voice becoming a little too loud for comfort.

  “I don’t like Ralph.”

  “I know, Alia. I don’t like him either.”

  “Ralph is a bad man.”

  “I know that, Ali.”

  Holding Alia in my arms, I realized again the precariousness of this faint sliver of a plan that was entirely at the mercy of a frightened little girl. Without Alia, however, there was no plan.

  “Alia, please,” I whispered. “I know you’re scared. But I need you to talk to Mr. Koontz. Ralph is a bad man, but you have to tell Mr. Koontz about him so Cindy can rescue us.”

  Alia was silent for nearly a full minute before I heard her say nervously into my mind, “Okay…”

  I hugged Alia even more tightly as I told her what to say about Ralph P. Henderson. I had her describe his looks, his various powers, his personality and some of the things he had said. Ralph was a soldier, a killer. When Alia had finished talking to Mr. Koontz for me, I could tell she was near tears.

  “Good job, Ali. I’m really proud of you. Now, I want you to ask Mr. Koontz if that’s enough information to send a dream to Cindy and Ralph. I want you to tell him that they are very close, but they are in a hiding bubble. Ask Mr. Koontz if he can dreamweave to them.”

  I thought of another password, having Alia tell Mr. Koontz to say that I looked small for my age. The next evening, he did.