The Evolution Trilogy: Hybrid, Complications & Return

by Vanessa Wester

  Catherine had never had any issue with taking human life for survival, but taking human life for pleasure was another matter. It was unacceptable. This was the keystone of their beliefs. The only exception they allowed was when members of the community left on a reconnaissance trip. The compromise was necessary to ensure they kept up-to date with new developments. It also gave a renewed vigour to those that left.

  That was the only occasion where the rule was broken. Emily had gone against everything they had worked towards when she conceived Steven.

  In retrospect, it should have been so easy to spot. No-one had ever been good enough for Emily. She had always been the rebel, wanting what was forbidden. With that last thought in mind, Catherine heard the pupils enter her class. As she looked up and smiled, a barely audible gasp escaped as she stared into her sister’s eyes. She would have known he was Emily’s son anywhere.

  She kept her emotions in check. She wondered how Emily could have left her child for the sake of the community. The sacrifice must have been great. It was time for Catherine to set things right. She would accept Steven and cast her doubts aside. Maybe then, Emily would learn to trust her again.

  ***

  Steven was taken aback by the woman standing authoritatively in the middle of the room. She was about his height, wore a serious expression, and had blazing red hair – it was even brighter than Caitlin’s. There was something familiar about her stance, but he could not put his finger on what it was.

  As he got closer she welcomed him, hand outstretched, ‘Steven, I am your Aunt Catherine. Your mother, Emily, is my sister. Welcome home.’

  ‘Thanks,’ he muttered, surprised at the formal introduction. At least it explained the familiarity.

  ‘Please, sit anywhere,’ she said, as she walked back to the centre of the room.

  Steven sat on the closest seat. It was one of several wooden benches, arranged in a circular fashion around the teacher’s central round table. There was nowhere to write, which he thought unconventional. He liked the idea of no writing being involved. In total, there were six pupils in the room, including Steven. They all looked similar in age. He wondered when the others would undergo their change.

  ‘For the sake of our latest addition, can you all introduce yourselves, please?’ Catherine held out her arms in an open gesture.

  Jensen, Kayla and Susanna introduced themselves, before a girl of a similar complexion to Susanna, said, ‘I’m Lisbeth Santos.’

  ‘Lisbeth is a very gifted mathematician. I’m sure you’ll get to know her more in time,’ Catherine added. She attempted to break the moment. It was obvious to Steven that Lisbeth was not keen to be acquainted.

  The last student stood up, ‘I’m Tobias Abel; I’m your second cousin. I don’t need another cousin. I have enough cousins already.’ He sat down and folded his arms.

  Steven had to suppress a smile. Another relative. Overnight, he had gone from being an only child with limited family, to having an enormous family. He was not sure how he felt about that. Catherine looked uncomfortable, yet she did not reprimand Tobias for being rude. Steven thought she should have done. Manners were always welcome where he came from.

  Catherine gave a beaming smile, ‘Introductions aside, let’s begin. Steven, this lesson will help you stretch your mental agility. You have probably never thought to test your mind in this way, but it is something we realised we could all do after the change. Therefore, we try and prepare you to use this ability before the change. You have to be aware of the different facets you will be able to explore. Jensen, Susanna, can you stand up please, and give our guest a demonstration?’

  Steven rolled his eyes, now he was a guest.

  Jensen and Susanna stood up and faced each other. They grinned, as if they shared an inside joke.

  ‘Jensen you start,’ Catherine instructed.

  ‘Okay then, 1356 times 467; that shouldn’t be too complicated,’ Jensen said, smug.

  Almost immediately, Susanna smiled, ‘633,252. My turn! 1,722,000 divided by 56.’

  ‘30,750 back at you. And I started out playing nice,’ Jensen remarked, wiping his fingers casually on his shirt.

  They made it look so easy.

  ‘Okay, thank you for the demonstration,’ Catherine said, as she motioned them to sit down. ‘Steven, it’s your turn.’

  ‘Sorry I can’t do that,’ Steven said. He shook his head. This was not funny.

  ‘Yes, you can. It’s inbuilt. Let your instinct take over. Go on, stand up and give it a go.’

  Steven did not want to get up, but he did not think he had a lot of choice in the matter. Reticent, he stood up and slouched.

  ‘Don’t think about the answer, just know it.’

  That was funny. She had no idea how bad at maths Steven actually was. With a huge sigh, he looked at her and pouted, ‘How do I do that?’

  ‘Don’t think.’

  Steven shrugged his shoulders, ‘Fine, whatever.’

  ‘Lisbeth, can you give him an easy one, please?’ Catherine encouraged.

  Lisbeth stood up, and raised her chin. Steven doubted she would give him an easy one. Lisbeth avoided eye contact and said, ‘162 times 12.’

  Steven felt his palms get sweaty. He had no idea what the answer was. All he could think of was that everyone was waiting and watching. He had never felt so inadequate. The more he thought, the worse it got, until eventually his mind went blank.

  After an eternity of silence, Catherine interrupted. ‘You’re trying to work out the answer with your head. You are not allowing your instinct to take over. Close your eyes this time, pretend none of us are here.’

  As much as he tried, Steven could not see the answer. He felt stupid. In desperation, his mind scrambled through the numbers trying to come up with the solution. It failed to materialise. Silence ensued. It seemed like the harder he thought, the more elusive the answer got. Finally, he opened his eyes and shrugged his shoulders, ‘I don’t know.’

  Catherine could not hide her disappointment. She tried to cover it up with an encouraging smile. ‘That’s fine you can observe for today, practice with the others and try again next time.’

  For the next hour Steven watched, perplexed, as they all tested themselves on a variety of mathematical questions that were not restricted to number. Most of it went over his head. He had never been good at mathematics, just average. He had passed his GCSE and been glad to see the back of it. What they were expecting of him was impossible.

  After an hour of mental calculations, Steven needed caffeine. He had never felt so lost or confused by anything academic in his life. This took things to a different level.

  ‘That’s enough for today, see you all tomorrow.’ Catherine said, as she turned to her desk and sat down. She looked up as he was leaving, ‘Don’t be downhearted. You’ll get there in the end.’

  Steven gave a half-smile. In his head, he screamed at her, ‘Are you out of your mind?’

  He followed Jensen out of the room, deep in thought. He could not help but consider what other skills they had been hiding. The issue was, would he be able to do what they could? He had definitely flunked that class.

  ‘That was intense,’ Steven admitted, once he was sure he was out of Catherine’s earshot.

  ‘That was quite a mild one actually,’ Jensen added.

  ‘That was mild?’ Steven grimaced. This was not fun, not at all.

  ‘Afraid so,’ Kayla sighed.

  ‘I don’t stand a chance,’ he pouted.

  ‘We’ve all been there. It takes a long time to learn to trust your instincts. We’ve been preparing for this a long time. It’s only recently that we’ve understood what they’ve been saying. The change is drawing near and our instincts are sharpening. But, it’s a two-way process, nothing happens unless you let it,’ Susanna explained. She sounded like the teacher now.

  ‘I’ll take your word for it,’ he scoffed.

  Steven wondered what was next.

  Lisbeth and Tobias had scarpe
red at the end of the lesson, not hanging around to get acquainted. Even though he had been selective about his friends over the years, he had never had people actively avoid him. The whole situation would take some getting used to. For now, it seemed most people within the community saw him as an alien, a different entity. Maybe when the change happened he would be accepted.

  It dawned on him that it mattered whether he was accepted. He had never wanted to be one of the crowd. Even so, he could not deny the pull of the family bond. Like it or not, the fact they were all in this together made him want to belong. For the first time ever, he knew there was something about him that linked him to everyone else. It was unnerving, but enticing. He had a family now, whether he wanted one or not.

  Back to Table of Contents

  Chapter 33

  Gifted

  After a lesson on Amazonian animals that had nearly sent him to sleep, Steven relished the thought of freedom. According to Jensen, this was the best one. It involved a trip to an underground cave.

  Once inside the gigantic cavern, he noticed an older man waiting inside.

  ‘He is one of the originals,’ Jensen commented.

  ‘What do you mean originals?’ Steven asked.

  ‘One of the first to be bitten, first generation.’

  ‘Right,’ Steven nodded. He considered the point. It made his mum an original and him second generation.

  He noticed Kayla easing up alongside him. She leant in and whispered, ‘That’s Franco, my grandfather.’

  This time Steven was not singled out as a new arrival. He kept to the background and hoped to go unnoticed. There was a mixture of ages in the group. He guessed they ranged from about fifteen years to his age.

  ‘So, do we have a volunteer?’ Franco asked.

  Gideon stepped forward and nodded.

  ‘Good, right go to the far end of the room. You know how this works. No-one will be able to see you, but you should be able to see us. Do not move or make a sound. Silencio.’

  Steven was confused. He stayed at the back and watched as a girl went first.

  She looked towards the direction Gideon had gone in and started to walk.

  ‘Close your eyes, let your senses take over,’ Franco commanded.

  The girl disappeared.

  After a few minutes, they heard a thump. ‘Ouch,’ the girl cried out.

  Coming back into the light, she rubbed her nose.

  ‘I bumped into the wall,’ she said, her nose crimson.

  ‘Good try,’ Franco added. He searched the crowd for another victim. ‘You at the back,’ he motioned, and then pointed right in Steven’s direction.

  Steven rolled his eyes, so much for not being singled out. ‘Me?’ Steven asked. He felt like a small child intimidated by a burly schoolteacher.

  ‘Yes, show us what you can do. Remember just follow your instincts.’

  Steven walked to the front and faced the direction in which Gideon had gone. He might as well give it a go, he had nothing to lose. He decided to go the whole hog, closed his eyes, and made his way forward. The darkness of the cave enveloped him. He was slow to start. Gradually, he gained confidence and increased his pace. Instinctively, he whispered Gideon’s name and listened. An echo ahead gave away the direction. He focused on the miniscule sound. On a mission, he walked on and held out his hand in anticipation. When it landed on Gideon’s shoulder he could not suppress a smirk. He had done it.

  ‘You’re a natural, that was amazing,’ Gideon said, his voice gushing with admiration.

  Steven could not help but wonder how he had done it. It was mystifying. Back in the open Steven received his first rapturous applause.

  ‘That’s how it’s done,’ Franco beamed, as he approached, ‘Tell me, since when have you been able to locate things from a distance so easily?’

  ‘It’s been coming for a while, but, in the past year or so I seemed to be able to hit targets in games easily,’ Steven replied, just as bewildered.

  ‘Your skills were naturally homing in on the targets.’

  Franco turned to face the rest of the group, and announced, ‘Everyone, Steven has the gift of echolocation. Just like his mother. Some of you will develop the skill quickly, others will have to practice. As most of you know, this is a skill that has been passed on to us by bats. They have used it to track down their prey for millions of years and now we are lucky enough to have inherited the same trait. Right, enough show, time for you all to partner up and practice.’

  Steven was completely taken aback. Who would have thought that he’d be naturally talented at something like echolocation? It wasn’t like he hadn’t heard of the term before, but it was incredible to think that it was something he could use. He noticed a few impressed glances. Perhaps now, some of them would see him in a new light. The new boy might actually belong after all. It was certainly a turn up for the books.

  Steven found himself in a group of mixed ages. There was a girl of about sixteen, a boy that looked like he had barely reached puberty, and Kayla.

  ‘I’ll go first,’ said Kayla. She winked at Steven, as she murmured, ‘See if you can find me, Steven.’

  The other two shrugged their shoulders and took a step back. With no alternative, Steven made his move. He closed his eyes as before and let his senses take over. Once he was enveloped by the darkness, he called out her name softly and waited. Almost immediately, he knew where she was. Once he reached touching distance, he opened his eyes and held out his hand. When he felt her shoulder, she turned towards him and reached out with her hand for his face.

  He froze as she traced his face with her fingertips and ran her index finger over his lips. A second later, she leant in and kissed him. The kiss was soft, yet longing. When she ran her tongue along his, he could not help reacting. Then, as quickly as it had begun, it was over.

  She eased back and whispered in his ear, ‘Hmm, nice. I just had to know what that would be like, hope you didn’t mind.’

  Steven stood motionless, as she walked back into the light. Inadvertently, he let out a stunned laugh. The day before, he had bathed naked with Ingrid, and now he had been kissed in the dark by a girl he just met. This place was more interesting than he expected. A guilty pang hit his conscience – Caitlin. Even though he had been forced to leave her, a part of him felt like he was contemplating cheating on her. It did not feel right. It was not her fault he’d been erased from her memory.

  ***

  Jensen was pensive on the way back to the food hall. Since he had witnessed Steven’s dismal failure with maths and natural talent at echolocation, he was intrigued. In his case, maths was child’s play. It came naturally. However, his homing skills still left much to be desired. He could not understand why they all seemed so different. He was also troubled by the conversation they’d had earlier on. Kayla seemed interested in Steven, and Jensen suspected many other girls would soon follow. The quest to keep their species diversified had got more interesting the day Steven arrived.

  His heart was already well and truly taken. For as long as he could remember there had only been Susanna. He had been patient and soon their time would come. Luckily, he knew she felt the same way. All they had to do was wait for their change, then they would be together. It had been ingrained into them to avoid getting involved until they had fully matured. Somehow, it did not seem worth the risk, even though at times it was hard to suppress his desire.

  As curiosity got the better of him, Jensen turned to Steven, who was also quiet, deep in his own thoughts, ‘Kayla is nice, isn’t she?’

  Steven flinched, as though Jensen had intruded into his private space. It was too soon to expect Steven to open up to him.

  ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to pry.’

  Steven shook his head and looked ahead, ‘Kayla, hmm, she is certainly forthcoming. Can I trust you to keep a secret?’

  Jensen did not hesitate, ‘Of course.’

  ‘She kissed me.’

  Jensen could not help laughing, ‘Really?’ He c
ould not believe her nerve. So much for waiting. ‘You realise you’re going to be popular with a lot of girls and women now, right?’

  ‘Why? I thought everyone wanted to keep away from me.’ Steven stopped walking and frowned.

  Jensen grinned. ‘Anyone who has no link to the Roberts family will see you as a great prospect. The fact that you are an anomaly will only make them want you more. It’s only natural to be attracted to something unique and potentially bad for you. Lucky for me, Susanna is related to you. But, you must understand, any attraction you feel must be suppressed until after the change. You don’t know what you are going to be like until then.’

  ‘Will I change that much? Does everyone wait until after the change before getting involved?’

  Jensen shrugged his shoulder and started to walk again. ‘For everyone it’s different. In your case it’s a complete unknown. And yes, we all wait. At least, as far as I know. It’s not like we have that many chances anyway,’ Jensen sighed.

  Steven kept pace with Jensen. ‘Well, I was not attracted to Kayla, anyway.’

  Jensen was not sure if Steven was being completely truthful. He sensed a little hesitation. ‘At least that’s a start.’

  ‘But, she’s not the first to come on to me,’ Steven added.

  Jensen’s jaw dropped as he stopped again. ‘You’ve only just arrived. Who else can there have been?’

  ‘Ingrid.’

  ‘Ingrid, of course,’ Jensen raised his eyebrows. Of all the people available, Ingrid had decided to go for Steven; it was so typical of her. ‘She’s my cousin and for as long as I’ve known she’s always been impulsive. I feel sorry for you if she has set her sights on you. She usually gets what she wants,’ he paused, unable to hold back a chuckle.

  ‘She’s not getting me,’ Steven snapped.

  ‘She’s not that bad.’