“Lemon,” a young man said as he approached.
“I’m sorry. What?” Zero snapped out of his reverie.
“Lemon. That’s my name.”
“Zero.”
“Pleased to meet you. I’m glad I finally got me a new partner. The last guy hurt his back and they moved him to a new job. Now he’s in charge of eggs at the chicken farm or something.”
“So it is possible to switch jobs, then? The Elite guy yesterday made it sound like I’d be doing this for the rest of my life—not that I mind. I mean, this seems like a good job.”
Lemon waved his comment away. “Don’t listen to Lucid. He doesn’t really know anything about Quirigua. Captain’s the one who really runs the show here.”
“Oh, well that’s good—I think.”
Lemon smiled, beckoning him to follow him into the building.
They spent a lot of the morning discussing the monotonies of the job—paperwork, different ways to keep track of shipments, and so forth. They also spent a lot of time together on the forklift rearranging the incoming and outgoing pallets. Zero had never been allowed to enter the loading dock back at his school, let alone sit on a forklift. Lefty was sure to be jealous of this job—especially after Zero learned how to drive.
“We sure do ship out a lot of bananas,” Zero said.
Lemon nodded. “That’s the main thing we produce in Quirigua. Other settlements specialize in avocados or cantaloupes or whatever.” He slapped the top of the crate next to him. “This crate is full of t-shirts. Did you know shirts are made from plants?”
Zero looked at him like he was crazy.
“It’s true. There’s a plant called cotton. I don’t know where they grow it, but it’s grown at one of the other cities. They take that cotton and somehow turn it into big rolls of fabric. Then people take that fabric and cut it up according to the shirt patterns, sew it back together, and that’s how they make shirts. Pretty cool, eh?”
Zero nodded. “Why don’t we have anybody doing that kind of thing here in Quirigua?”
“They say each city is more productive if we specialize in different things. Not all climates can grow bananas, but Quirigua can, so that’s what we’re assigned to do. I guess some places specialize in just cotton and clothes or whatever.” He held up a clipboard containing a shipping form. “When we need something that’s not made here, we just order it from one of the other zones.”
They began shuffling through the many different ordering forms and discussing the different problems that could arise. There was a lot to the job and Zero was glad to have it. He wanted something that would challenge him. He felt sorry for those who did nothing more than chop down bunches of bananas and stick them into crates.
“Well, well, well. Look at what we have here.” Zero and Lemon turned around to see Flea standing in the doorway. “I just figured I’d start my day off right by coming to see an old familiar face as I went around patrolling the neighborhood.”
“Go pick on someone else, Flea,” Zero said. “We’re a little busy.”
“My name isn’t Flea anymore. It’s Watchman,” Flea said.
“Good luck getting that to stick,” Lemon laughed.
Flea shot Lemon a murderous look, then closed down the distance between him and Zero. He held a nightstick in his hand, which he poked stiffly into the center of Zero’s chest. “You guys got a problem? Because guess what. I’m the one on patrol a lot of the time. So if you got a problem, you take it up with me.”
“Are you for real? You think people are going to put up with you, big shot?” Lemon asked.
Flea didn’t even look at Lemon this time, but continued to jab Zero in the chest with his nightstick. “People better mind what I say. I have the power to send them to Exile City.”
“No you don’t,” Lemon laughed again.
Flea looked menacingly at him, which only made him laugh harder.
Lemon slapped his hand on his knee as he laughed.
Angry, jaw clenched, Flea took a quick step toward him.
Lemon reacted instantly with a stiff two-handed shove.
Flea fell back so hard that his feet were straight up in the air when his back bounced off the concrete.
Zero retreated until his back touched a wall.
Lemon laughed even harder. “If you ever come at me again, I’ll break your nose. Got it, Flea-Flea?”
“My name’s Watchman.”
“I said, ‘Got it, Flea-Flea?’”
Flea got back to his feet and retrieved the nightstick that had flown out of his hand. He began to walk away.
Lemon grabbed Flea by the back of the neck, gripping him tightly enough that it stopped him in his tracks.
“Let me go or I’ll—”
“You’ll what? Have me sent to Exile? Tell Captain? I would love to hear how that goes. Captain would love to hear how his new security guard is going around poking people with his nightstick and picking fights. You think your word carries more weight with him than those who have known him for years? You got a lot of learning to do, my friend.”
“Let go.”
“I can’t. You still haven’t answered me. I said, ‘You got it, Flea-Flea?’”
Flea hesitated, but Lemon’s grip tightened and he finally gave in. “Got it.”
“There.” Lemon smiled a big mocking smile and released his grip. “Now, go on your way. Protect the city from evil or whatever it is you think you do.” Lemon watched him walk away until he had disappeared around a corner. He turned to look at Zero, who was now standing behind a crate of bananas with his back up against a wall. Lemon’s face now showed concern. “Do you want to tell me what that was about?”
“I don’t know. It was kind of self explanatory, wasn’t it?”
Lemon paused, studying his face. “Why do they call you Zero?”
Zero shrugged his shoulders.
“Come on. We’re going to be working together for a long time. We’re friends, you can tell me.”
Zero found that statement interesting. Nobody besides Lefty had ever called him a friend before. But even though they hadn’t known each other for very long, it did feel like they were already hitting it off. It felt good.
“It’s not that interesting of a story, really,” Zero said. “My name is R-11. I got ignored a lot when I was younger. I avoided people—stayed in the background. I’ve always been a little different—a little reserved. I didn’t have any friends for a long time, so nobody gave me a new name until one day when someone called my name and one of my classmates looked over like he was surprised to see me in the room. He commented on how it was like I was invisible half of the time and my name should be R-0, not R-11. Before long, that got shortened to just Zero.”
Lemon continued to study him.
“See,” Zero said. “It’s not that interesting of a story.”
“Do you like your name?”
“I don’t hate it. It’s just a name.”
“Why do you think you’re different?”
Zero thought for a moment, but couldn’t come up with an answer. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“You said you’re different. You’ve always been that way. Why do you think that is? Do you think you’re put together differently than the rest of us?”
“I guess so. Maybe my brain is different.”
“Your brain seems fine to me. I can tell already, just by knowing you for only a few hours. You’re too smart for this town. I don’t know how you’re not living in one of the Elite cities.”
Zero shrugged, hoping desperately that Lemon wouldn’t ask about the placement tests.
Lemon narrowed his eyes, pensive. “You are unique. There’s something interesting about you that you’re not telling me. Isn’t it interesting that we’re all so unique from one another? I mean, we’re all made of the same stuff�
�a brain, skin, muscles, bones, all of that. And yet we’re all different. I think we’re all put together differently for a reason. Have you ever thought about that? Why are we all different? Why are we all even here? What’s the meaning of it all?”
“The meaning of what? Quirigua?”
“No. I’m talking about life. What’s the meaning of life? What’s the bigger picture?”
“The meaning of life? Is there supposed to be a meaning? We just are.”
Lemon raised an eyebrow.
“Aren’t we?” Zero asked.
“I think that’s the big question. I don’t know either. But I tell ya what—we’re going to find out.” Lemon walked back to the desk and shuffled through some of the order forms. When he found the one he was looking for, he pulled it out and held it up. “See this order form? Some of us have been getting together after dinner to talk about stuff like this. Root placed an order for a book. So hopefully there’s a book out there that talks about it—the meaning of life.”
Zero looked at the piece of paper in Lemon’s hand. Next to where the cafeteria ordered a variety of cheeses, beans, and other food items someone scribbled the words “A book about the meaning of life.”
“If one exists, it should arrive today,” Lemon said. “We’re looking forward to reading from it tonight after dinner.”
“How many people get together for this?”
“It started out with just a few of us, but the group has been steadily growing over the last few weeks. Yesterday we had fifteen people. You should come.”
This sounded very much like the type of thing Lefty would want to attend, but Zero couldn’t decide if he was interested. “We’ll see.”
Chapter 6
When Zero reached the end of his shift he hurried over to the cafeteria. The other kitchen workers informed him that Lefty had already gone for the day. He knew there was only one place he would go in such a hurry at the end of his duties.
He found a trail through the tall grass that appeared to be fresh and followed it out to the fence line. “Please tell me you won’t be coming here every day after you get off work,” he said as he approached Lefty from behind.
Lefty was standing in the place where yesterday he’d been sprayed by the jaguar. When he heard Zero’s voice, he spun on the spot. “Why not? I like it here. You don’t have to come.” He kept his hands hidden behind his back.
“Because it’s dangerous.” Zero began to harbor suspicion for the expression on Lefty’s face and the awkward way he was standing. Zero leaned to one side in an attempt to see behind him.
Lefty also leaned to the side, blocking Zero’s view. “It’s not dangerous. They’re just big cats.”
“But I know you. It’s only a matter of time before you do something stupid. If you come here every day after work it’s only a matter of time before you—” Zero’s eyes widened. “Did you cut a hole in the fence?”
“Come on. You need to learn to trust me.”
Zero folded his arms and gave him a disapproving look.
“It’s not that big of a deal.” Lefty stepped aside, revealing a small section of the fence where three of the chain links had been cut. “It’s not like a cat can fit through there.”
“Why would you do that?”
“Because I wanted to feed it. I wanted to see what it likes. Turns out it’s not like a crocodile. It prefers chicken over roast beef, I think. It’s still kind of hard to tell.”
Zero rolled his eyes and growled, exasperated. “You’re an idiot. A complete idiot.”
Lefty took a step toward Zero and patted him on the cheek. “You’re not my babysitter. You don’t have to look after me. I’m a big boy now.”
“How did you even cut that hole?”
Lefty’s eyes brightened. “I found a tool shed not far from the cafeteria.” Bringing his hands into view, he held up a pair of wire cutters. “We can take whatever we want. We don’t even have to sneak it like we did at school.” He held up a spool of wire. “I got me some wire, too. So I could close the hole back up when I’m done.”
“I bet you think that makes you clever. Like you’re acting responsibly, making sure you close the hole back up.”
Lefty shrugged his shoulders and grinned. “Maybe.”
Zero shook his head in disbelief.
“Look. If it makes you feel better, I’ll close the hole right now. See?” Lefty bent the fencing closed, wrapped some wire around the links he had snipped, and twisted it closed. “No worries. Unless jaguars somehow grow thumbs or figure out how to untwist that, there’s no problem.”
Zero looked around again. “Where are the cats, anyway? I don’t see them.”
“Gone. When they realized I was out of food they weren’t interested in hanging out with me anymore. They took off.”
“Were they the same ones as yesterday?”
“Yep. Same ones.”
Zero took a deep breath and shook his head. “Lefty, look. I like Quirigua. I hope you realize you are risking everything by putting that stupid hole there. If someone finds out, we’re doomed. And worst of all, Flea is on the security team. You know he would love nothing more than to tell Captain or Lucid what you’ve done.”
“But that’s just it. Don’t you see? Flea is the reason I need to get to know the jaguars.”
“That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.”
“No it’s not. Hear me out.” Lefty turned toward the fence. He interlocked his fingers into the wires. He looked out at the tree line and stood there in silence for a moment before talking again. When he did, his words were slow and deliberate. Pensive. “I like it here too. A lot. But that conversation we had with Lucid yesterday is stuck in my mind. He kept repeating himself, saying he has high expectations and a short temper. And if we don’t live up to those high expectations,” he screwed up his voice to mimic Lucid’s tone, “then, ‘You won’t be living here very long.’” He sighed.
“Lemon told me today that Captain is the one who runs the show here, not Lucid.”
Lefty shook his head. “I think you’re deluding yourself. You and I both know it’s only a matter of time before Lucid nails us for something. And with Flea on our tail everywhere we go, watching every little thing we do and trying to provoke us… something is going to happen sooner or later to get us kicked out of here. Back at the testing grounds, Cumulus kicked us out for something as simple as fighting. Do you really think Lucid is going to be more forgiving?”
“But putting a hole in the fence is the worst thing you could do. It’s like you’re going out of your way to give Flea some ammunition—something to tell Lucid.”
“You still don’t get it. I’m learning. I’m getting to know the jungle cats. The more we know about predators and the outside world, the better prepared we’ll be when we get kicked out of Quirigua. Lucid didn’t say where he would take us after kicking us out. Maybe he would take us to Exile. Maybe he would take us out into the jungle and drop us off to fend for ourselves just like Cumulus did. I don’t know, but I can tell you this much—” Lefty turned away from the fence and looked Zero in the eye. “I’m not going to Exile. If I think I’m about to get nailed for something, I’m taking off the first chance I get. I’ll risk death out there in the old world before I let them take me to Exile.”
“Okay. I’ll humor you for just a second. Let’s say you do grow to understand jungle cats, so well that you know how to live around them without them eating you—which is pretty much impossible, I think you know.” Zero threw his hands high above his head and then dropped them down to his sides in frustration. “Lefty, jungle cats and crocodiles are the least of our worries out there. It’s the Remnants we should be scared of. We barely escaped with our lives last time we were out in the old world, and we were only out there for about an hour.”
“Remnants. Crocodiles. Jaguars. They’re all just animals. I�
�m not saying they can be tamed, because I don’t think they can. I’m just saying I want to learn as much as I can about them before we get kicked out of Quirigua.” He placed one hand on Zero’s shoulder. “It’s just like how we had to prepare for our written tests at school. The more someone works at preparing beforehand, the better they perform when the test comes. On that day the time to prepare is long gone. You can call this my preparation for the big test, and this time I don’t have to worry about a reading disability.”
“But you do have to worry about being killed.” Zero was frustrated now. They stared stern-faced at each other for a long time. Whenever they battled over who could be more stubborn, Lefty almost always won, but this time the situation was a lot more serious. If Zero backed down now, his best friend might soon be dead. “You have a death wish. And you’re dragging me with you.”
“I don’t have a death wish. I have a life wish. I don’t feel like I have much choice here anyway. Like I said, it’s only a matter of time before Lucid’s high expectations and short temper catch up to us.” He walked past Zero and began wading through the tall grass back toward the city center. “Besides, nobody’s making you a part of this. If you’re not interested in learning about the world outside the confines of the fences, I won’t force you.”
Zero grunted and followed after him.
The sun was low in the sky now. Soon it would sink below the city wall and the darkness would come. Swarms of gnats followed them through the tall grass every step of the way, but that was hardly the worst part of the jungle. The mosquitoes were twice as large as those they had been used to at the schoolyard. Zero smacked one on his forearm and left a smear of blood two inches down his arm. When he saw Lefty pull his t-shirt up over his nose, he followed suit to keep any flying annoyance out of his mouth and nostrils.
The Inner Fence: a dystopian post-apocalyptic young adult novella series (Remnants of Zone Four Chronicles Book 2) Page 4
