by Eliza Tilton
She’s vertical, electric cables pulling at her body, spreading her arms wide, like she’s being crucified. Her eyes are closed, but her chest moves up and down rhythmically. She’s dressed in a strapless, flowing navy dress that ripples around her in waves. Her hair floats around her sleeping face. If we weren’t all in imminent danger, I could easily spend another day staring at how beautiful she looks.
The cables are connected to massive servers that surround the room like a cage. With the USB in hand, I walk near the glass, holding my breath and wait for one of those monster cables to knock me out. A low humming thrums, and blue and purple code pulse from the cables to Ivy. The tentacle-like cables move like living creatures sucking her energy.
Running a hand across the glass, I search for a way inside. I hit a groove and a pane dissolves. From her impossibly high perch in the air, I stand tall and put one hand right behind her. I run my other hand underneath the hem of her dress until I find her thigh.
One . . . two . . . three . . . I slam the USB tip into her thigh and press the button.
Her eyes open and she gasps, losing her eerie suspension and plummeting to the floor at the same time.
I catch her in my outstretched arms and jump away from the cables.
The cables scream and thrash, then shoot our way.
“We got to go!” Still holding her clutched tightly to my chest, I dodge out of the way of one of the cables, but another snaps forward and latches to my neck. Pain shoots out from the spot and I scream.
Boom!
The loud noise causes my ears to ring, but it also causes the cable to disengage.
My heart is pounding. I blink as the ringing in my ear fades. Ivy is holding the gun I used to have on my hip.
Her gaze meets mine. “Run!”
I bolt out of the room and into the elevator as Ivy shoots over my shoulder from her perch within my arms. The elevator door closes shut and we both exhale loudly.
“You came for me.”
I touch my forehead against hers. “There was no way I was leaving you here.”
She wraps her arms around my neck. Her eyes glisten. “You really came for me.”
Did she honestly doubt I would? Didn’t she know what was happening between us?
The elevator whizzes, passing by each floor with a whisper.
“I’ll always come for you.” With that, I kiss her. I don’t know if it’s the right time or not, but I can’t stand holding her in my arms, my body riding an adrenaline wave, and not take advantage of the moment.
Her lips open, inviting me in, and suddenly we’re in our own reality.
I’m lost inside her.
Every thought, every sensation is magnified, until my entire body tingles with an electricity that mimics pure ecstasy.
The elevator stops and I break away, knowing this place will suck us in if we don’t stay aware of our surroundings.
Our gazes lock on to each other, and if we didn’t have to run, I’d stay in Absalom and disappear with her. I place her on her feet, taking her hand in mine.
“Stay close, and don’t let go of me.”
She nods and hands me the gun.
I kiss her lips once more, then pull her behind me. “Get ready to run.”
We walk into the glass-walled lobby and my heart stops.
A multitude of security balls are pulsing red, an impassable crimson barrier surrounding the tower outside.
“What do we do now?” Ivy asks.
“I don’t know.”
Red lights flash off the glass menacingly. As we stand in the center of the lobby, I grip her hand tighter with my sweaty palm.
“No matter what, you’re getting out of here,” I vow. I check the gun, though I’ve never shot anything in my life. Let’s hope Eric uploaded some enhanced aim abilities.
Darting my gaze left to right, a trickle of an idea comes to me. “I’m going to make a break in the wall. When I do, you run straight through and keep going. There’s a steel room directly down that path. That’s where I came in and where you’ll leave. Eric can extract us from there.” I point forward. The tip of the small building glints under the fake light.
“What about you?” She tugs on my arm, forcing me to meet her frightened gaze.
I won’t admit how terrified I am. Instead, I grab her arms and face her. “I’ll be right behind you.”
The security balls do nothing but float in the air, glowing, keeping the barrier up. With everything that’s happened, and not knowing what will happen next, I steel the courage to tell her how I feel.
“I know you’ve only known me a few days, and this might sound insane and crazy, but I don’t care anymore.”
Her face softens, and she reaches up to caress my cheek, urging me on.
“I love you,” I blurt. “You don’t need to say anything, but I need you to know how I feel. If I don’t—”
She doesn’t let me finish. Her mouth connects with mine in a heated rush. I grip her sides and lift her up, holding her as close as I can. We kiss, and kiss, and the more her hands move across me, the more I just want to stay. I’m afraid to go back out there. I’m afraid to never see her again.
I’m afraid the emptiness will return to me.
We separate, and the cold air between us brings me back to reality.
“I don’t know if I understand love,” she says softly. “Or what it’s supposed to feel like, but I know I’m scared of losing you, or never kissing you again. Whenever you’re with me, I feel as if everything will be okay.”
I kiss the top of her head and tug her to my chest. “It will be. We’re in this together.”
“Okay.”
“Ready?” I release her, even though I don’t want to, and face the entrance to the tower. The balls wait outside, blocking our exit to freedom.
“Yes.” Ivy steps beside me, her face lined with determination.
We run ahead, through the revolving doors. When the crystal balls begin to pulse a deeper red, I start shooting. The first ball I hit explodes. I hit the next one without pausing to think about my next move.
“Go, go!” I wave her forward.
Ivy runs past me, through the crack in the barrier.
I shoot again, exploding two more balls, but more of them show up and encircle me. Red beams shoot out from the balls, and my body becomes unbearably hot.
“Argh.” I drop to one knee, pain arcing through my body, and shoot another.
“Damion!” Ivy turns around, reaching a hand out to me.
“Keep going! Go!”
A tear slides down her cheek, but she turns around and runs. Three balls chase after her, but I shoot, hitting two.
Increasing beams of red make my entire body shake and burn. I watch as Ivy runs, careening around people who don’t seem to even care about the drama unfolding.
I close one eye and aim. The shot goes off, flying through the air, and with a bit of magic, hits the last ball. It explodes behind her and she keeps running until she disappears into the room where Eric will get her out.
Safe.
Every muscle in my body constricts. I scream from the liquid fire pouring over me and fall onto my side, curling into a ball. The ground is cool against my burning cheek. My breaths are fast, heavy. I scream, unable to think coherently or move.
Agony courses through me. My muscles constrict, and moving anything sends another wave of pain. I vomit as the red beams send me into a realm of suffering I never knew could exist. White dots blot my vision and the only thought in my head is How can I make the pain stop?
Make it stop.
Please.
Anyone.
Please.
A man in a black suit with ruby sunglasses walks toward me. His hair is blood red, slicked to the side, and he has a black nightstick in his hand. I blink the image away, wo
ndering if it’s real or some hallucination spurred from my delirious state. The balls shift their beams to him, and the world explodes in a vibrant splash of blue and red.
Blinking the flashes out, the man waves the stick in crazy circles that create indigo electric currents that disintegrate the balls in seconds. He steps toward me and squats by my face. Closer, I recognize him.
“Buzz?”
“You ready to go?”
“What about Ivy?”
“We got her out.” Buzz clamps a hand on my shoulder. “Exit program.”
THIRTY-THREE
~Ivy~
With a gasp, my eyes flutter open and I realize I’m back in the room with Eric. He stands over me, smiling and holding a hand out to me.
“Eric!” I sit up and reach for him. “I’m so glad you’re safe.”
“Me too.” He squeezes me back. “I’ve been worried since the day you left. I wish I could’ve contacted you.”
“I know.” I hold onto him until I see Damion curled into a ball on the floor. His hands are clenched and his body shakes violently.
“Why isn’t he out yet?” My mind goes back to the last image of him being lasered by the security orbs. I vault out of the chair and run to his side. Sweat beads his forehead. “Pull him out!”
Eric takes two quick strides and is back at the computer. “I’ve been trying! I can’t reach him. The security is trying to force him to disconnect from Absalom, but since he’s plugged in here, they can’t and it’s frying him.”
I touch Damion’s forehead, hot to the touch. Worry pulls at my heart. I think back to how he kissed me in the elevator. A kiss I want to repeat over and over again. “Come back to me,” I plead softly.
In response, his body convulses and his head bangs the floor.
“Eric, what’s wrong with him? He’s burning up.” I hold his chest to stop the convulsions.
Eric walks over and touches Damion’s forehead. “The security programs are trying to destroy his code in LUCID. If I unplug him while it’s happening, I’m not sure how it will affect his mind.”
“What happens if they succeed?”
He pushes his glasses up his nose, but they fall back when he starts shaking his head. “Technically, you can’t die in LUCID. My father designed it as a safe place. But the program is designed based off external connection. I wired him in from here.”
“You have to do something!” I scream at him while holding Damion’s head from hitting the floor again. “Please!”
“Okay. Okay!” Eric runs back to the computer.
The screens of Absalom flicker in and out as if the entire feed is breaking. I search them for signs of Damion. Suddenly, there’s a flash of blue and red concentrated in one area.
“There! Look!” I point to the upper right screen.
Eric glances up and taps on the computer until the image zooms in. “What is that?”
I cradle Damion to my chest. Sweat slides off Damion’s forehead and my chest bursts open with a sob. “Eric, he’s so hot. He’s so hot.”
He swings back to face me. “I won’t give up. I’ll keep trying. We need to keep him cool. Go get water.” He nods to the sink at the opposite side of the room.
I nod and sniffle back the tears. I kiss Damion’s burning forehead and slowly lay him back on the floor. I want to rip the visor off his head, but I trust Eric knows more about this than I do.
My shoes slip on the tiled floor as I race to the sink. I throw open one of the cabinets, searching for rags. I find a package of white cloths and rip them open. They fall to the ground and I grab one out of the pile and turn on the sink.
Come on. Come on.
Once the rag is soaked, I run back to Damion, sliding across the floor on my knees and scooping him back into my arms. I drag the cool cloth across his forehead. His cheeks are flushed red.
“What is that?” Eric’s voice pulls me back to the screens where everything flashes white.
Damion coughs, violently, his body spasming with each ragged breath.
“Damion!” I grab his shoulders as he coughs again and struggles to sit up.
He rips off the visor and tosses it across the floor, breathing heavily.
Eric sighs in relief and sags back against the chair he’s in.
Damion, looking disoriented, suddenly looks at me and grabs my arm. “You’re back!” he cries. “It worked.”
I lean against his shoulder, allowing him to hold me tighter. “What happened to you after I ran away? You were burning up. I thought we were going to lose you.”
He pulls away and smiles. “I thought I was going to burn to death in there, but Buzz came to the rescue.”
“My brother?” The incredulity in Eric’s voice would be comical in any other circumstance.
Damion nods. “One and the same. He came in with some kind of crazy tech and shot the security droids up.”
Eric scratches his head and his mouth curves into a smile. “He must have broken the code and gotten in,” he releases a light laugh. “I’ll be damned. He figured out our father’s code.”
Just then, Damion’s watch lights up. “Damion? Damion, are you dead? Where is everyone?” Startled, he hits a button on his watch and turns on the hologram. “I’m alive,” he answers, smiling. “Where are you?”
The hologram of Jims hovers over Damion’s watch. He has that blue cylinder in his mouth and he puffs out smoke rings from it. “I locked myself in a room. I haven’t seen any guards lately. Did we win?”
Darting a glance at the security feeds in the corner of the room, I see hordes of police running through the building. The blast on the net must’ve worked. They’re here for BORAS.
“Yep. We won.” Damion grins and grabs my hand to kiss it.
“My father is missing,” Eric interrupts. “He took his personal security with him.”
“Any idea where?” Damion stands. I wrap my arm around his waist to steady him.
“BORAS has facilities across the globe. He could be heading to any of them.”
“But LUCID is done, right?” Damion asks, his grip on me tightening.
Eric sighs. “Without Ivy as the conduit, everyone’s dreams and thoughts are still their own. However, the virtual reality is still there. Even I don't know the location of those servers.”
“So, this isn’t over?” My heart sinks. “After all that?”
“Don’t say that.” Damion turns and holds my face between his hands. “BORAS’s plans are on the net, and the kids in this facility are safe. You’re safe.” He brushes my cheek with his thumb.
Dumbfounded, I ask, “But where will they go? Where will I go? We’re all orphans.”
He smiles and brings his lips an inch from mine. “It just so happens, I know of a place. I’ll make sure you’re all safe.” His lips lightly touch mine. “Especially you,” he whispers. “Now that I have you in the real world, I’m not ever letting go.”
THIRTY-FOUR
Three months later
~Damion~
With Ivy’s hand in mine, we walk up the steps of the orphanage. Construction completed two weeks ago, but I didn’t want her to see it until I had everything furnished.
“Are you ready?” I ask, kissing her knuckles.
“Yes.”
Sunlight sparkles in her eyes, which still have a disconcerting purple tint. Even though she’s disconnected from LUCID, the nanotech is still in her body. Dormant, according to Eric, but still there.
Releasing her, I open the large wooden doors.
Laughter reaches our ears, spilling out from the kids running down the corridor adjacent to the lobby. The expansive arched windows allow in the sun and brighten the entire center, causing the chandelier above us to twinkle like stars.
“What?” Her mouth hangs open, her eyes glistening with what I can only assume i
s pure joy. She twirls around, gazing at the painted ceiling.
I pull her deeper into the building, bursting with excitement and wanting to show her more.
We head past the lounge where I have huge screens and games set up for the kids. I even brought the picture books she loved so much from the facility. A few kids wave at her, and she nods through the tears she brushes aside.
My heart races with pride and happiness.
Mom is in the cafeteria, cooking with the house mothers. We wave as we pass by and Ivy squeezes my hand. So far, everything is perfect. I can’t wait to show her my favorite part.
I take her up the grand staircase to where the bedrooms are located, and then to the end of the carpeted hallway. We end at an ornate wooden door, etched with ivy.
“And this is your room.” I open the door, and she gasps.
Directly across from us is a bay window, overlooking the city and brightening the whole room. A cushioned bench is under it, decorated with ivory plush pillows dotted with flowers. The walls are painted a soothing shade of light baby blue, with tiny baby’s breath painted around the border of the ceiling. On the far wall sits a large, wooden canopy bed with white drapes lightly swaying from the breeze coming in through the window.
Ivy slowly steps forward. “This is mine?”
“Yes.” I beam. “I asked my mom to help. I figured with all the tech you’ve been exposed to, you may want something more antique to sleep in.”
Having her stay at the hotel the past few months showed me how much I need her near me, but I won’t smother her. Plus, the kids need her, and we aren’t planning to get married until summer. Mom said she needed adequate time to properly plan an old-fashioned wedding, no tech allowed. Until then, she can stay here.
She’s too precious to keep all to myself.
Ivy walks over to the bed, running a hand softly over the pillows, and I close the door behind us to give her some privacy.
“It’s beautiful.” Her voice cracks.
I’m desperate to see her face.
The lovebirds I bought her chirp, and she runs to the cage. I didn’t know if Ivy ever had pets or even wanted them, but I wanted to give her a romantic gift. Once again, Mom helped with the decorations and ideas.
