by Kin Asdi
It was as if her whole world had collapsed into a pile of shattered dreams. Seeing Andena’s lifeless but stunningly beautiful body made Danette slump down to her knees: she couldn’t bear to look at the woman who was responsible for compromising her in this way. What’s more, she’d had to bury her pain. There was no way that she could tell Olga, or anyone from Bionex that she knew the girl. She shivered, as she thought about the potential consequences of anyone finding out. It was for her the hardest decision she had ever had to make, but she knew she had no choice. Luckily, she had managed to convince Olga that it was seeing Andena lying there with all those tubes that had freaked her out.
She had been racking her brains all day thinking about just how Andena could have ended up at Bionex.
Now she was going to be forced to deal with this woman every day, and couldn’t confide in a single soul. Knowing how desperate Lunn was to find Andena, how could she ever look him straight in the eye again? Thinking about it made her stomach churn.
Feeling a sudden urge to be sick, Danette put her bowl down and pulled herself to her feet hoping that her nausea would settle down.
She knew that she needed to eat and have a proper rest.
She knew that she had ruined her life by getting involved with Bionex.
She knew that she had to continue to train the androids.
She had no idea how to handle the situation with Andena.
However, what scared her more than anything was the realisation that she would more than likely wind up like Andena if she annoyed Mr. Yousima. It was this that brought her back to her senses, and she forced herself to finish her noodles before reaching for her sleeping pills. She hated taking the drugs, and had been proud of herself for gradually weaning herself off of them but knew that unless she got a good night’s sleep, then she was doomed to fail. Telling herself that she would dispose of the remaining pills first thing in the morning, Danette hastily swallowed two and flushed them down with a glass of water before calmly undressing. She had this down to an art form and knew that she had around five to seven minutes before she would pass out.
She was startled by the knock on her door, and she automatically shouted, “Who is there?”
She was unsurprised to hear Lunn’s voice, “It’s me, Lunn.”
A pang of guilt shot through her body and was coupled with an over-arching sense of anger. She didn’t know what to do. However, her feelings for him were still strong, and against her better judgement, she opened the door. As she walked unsteadily back to her bedroom, she tried to sound indifferent as she said, “Thanks for the roses.”
She realised that it sounded more like an apology and decided not to say anything more.
His voice sounded strange as he said, “You’re welcome. It was the least I could do.”
When she turned to her bedroom door, she saw Lunn leaning against the door frame looking bewildered. The sleeping pill was making her behave girlishly, and she began to giggle.
“What’s so funny, Danette?”
“The look on your face,” she responded aware that she was slurring already.
Those damned pills!
She dropped down her sweatpants and pulled her sweater over her head without being the slightest bothered that Lunn was watching. Dressed only in her underwear, she sighed blissfully, as she crawled into her bed and said, “I’ve taken two Dormancans. You’d better tell me quickly what you want.”
“I owe you an apology. What I’ve done was….. Look: I want to talk to you.”
“You’re wasting your time,” she answered sleepily.
“Then I’ll come back tomorrow.”
She suddenly remembered Mr. Yousima’s intimidating threat and tried to keep her voice as calm and steady as possible. “Don’t bother Lunn. We don’t have anything to say to each other.”
Danette was surprised when Lunn crawled onto the bed. With his face pressed against hers, he kissed her softly on her left cheek he whispered hardly audible, “Datanex belongs to.”
Then he kissed her right cheek, and again he whispered, “Yousima.”
The name blasted into her brain like lightning, but in her drugged state she couldn’t fully comprehend what Lunn was trying to tell her. The name ‘Datanex’ was familiar. Her brain was starting to get sluggish because of the pills. She really needed to understand his message! It was frustrating that she couldn’t place the name Datanex. What does it mean? She repeated the name over and over in her head.
Datanex, Datanex, where had she heard that name before?
Then it dawned on her, and she could barely keep herself from gasping. She was using Datanex for her secure connections! Now she understood the enormous impact of what Lunn just had revealed to her. It also explained how Mr. Yousima had managed to bypass her security systems with such ease!
She had always laughed at Lunn’s suspicions about using anything other than his software for secure connections. He had given her the software to set up her secured connections, and she remembered the funny name that he had given it. She had no idea what had possessed him to call it ‘Captain Hook.’ Danette inhaled deeply trying to fight off the effects of the sleeping pills and did her best to look him straight in the eyes. She couldn’t keep her eyes open anymore and whispered, hoping that he understood the hidden message, “Farewell skipper.”
She smiled when she thought she could feel the barely noticeable squeeze on her shoulder. The darkness descended rapidly, and she didn’t even notice that Lunn tucked her in.
It was difficult for Lunn to leave Danette’s apartment knowing that he wouldn’t be able to come back. She had made it clear that she didn’t want him to be a part of her life anymore.
It was over.
He felt a pang of sadness, and it hurt to watch her falling back into her old habits. He had helped her with a lot of personal issues, and he had been proud when she had managed to kick her drug habit. He was also hurt by the fact, that she was clearly moving on with her life: with a life that didn’t involve him. Lunn thought it was incredibly telling the last words she had said were influenced by the drugs because it was clear she saw him as a captain running a ship instead of a leader of the rebel group.
He sighed, and he needed to hurry to be on time for the monthly meeting with his financier. It would be the fifth time that they had met each other in person in the cave near the shore. Lunn knew the man was using a device to distort his voice and that he deliberately stayed in the dark. It didn’t bother him much that the financier wanted to keep his identity secret as long as the credit flow remained steady. It had made life a lot easier and had helped transform the group into the well-oiled machine that it had become.
Lunn was careful when he reached the steps down to the cave. They were slippery due to the continuous spray of the crashing waves. He loved the place: far away from luxury and the hassle but easily accessible in fifteen minutes on foot. The moment he entered, he heard the metallic sounding synthesised voice echo around the cave “You are late.”
Lunn answered, “I know, I’m sorry. I forgot that a part of my route is in the curfew zone now.”
The man clearly wasn’t interested in his excuse and came straight to the point by saying, “I want you to speed up the launches.”
Lunn was surprised because this was the most expensive project and he always had to wait for the financier to release payment. “That will be a major undertaking,” he remarked.
“What is your schedule now?”
“The ring should be ready in six weeks. I doubt if we can reschedule the launches.”
“Hmm. Does the ring need to be complete to target a very small area?”
Lunn was taken aback by his question and said, “I don’t know. I think it might depend on how small you’re talking about and where this area would be.”
“Not larger than a soccer field and the location would be a few miles from the central county.”
Lunn was intrigued, but he knew there would be some complications if the target wa
s so close to town and he said, “I have to consult my team to be sure if we can do that. We are moving the systems to the new protective headquarters tomorrow. So the earliest that we could start would be three days.”
There was a long silence which made Lunn feel uncomfortable, and he was dying to know what the target would be.
The man said, “The timing will be sufficient.”
Lunn asked, “May I ask what the real target will be?”
The man’s chuckle sounded sinister. His demeaning answer blew Lunn away, “Bionex is going to be a real danger to our society. Your former assistant is training a small group of androids and a hybrid.”
“A hybrid?”
“Yes, a female who has been enhanced with implants. I have just received confirmation that it is a woman.”
Lunn was not surprised that Bionex would do this. However, it was still disturbing to know that they had managed to create a hybrid. Alice was right: the CEO of Bionex was balancing on the rim of ethical illegality.
Then it hit him: it was a woman! Andena’s lovely face popped straight into his mind, and he hoped that the financier could provide him with the information that he so desperately needed. “Do you know who she is?”
“No, and it is not important,” he said dismissively and continued, “My intelligence says that they will start to train outside at the Bangly plateau soon. It’s a perfect opportunity to disable them all in one go.”
He knew even if it were Andena, that there was nothing that he could do to prevent this from happening. He had to bite his tongue, and it took him considerable effort to remain calm as he grumbled, “I see.”
He still had trouble accepting that this man had no qualms about murdering a human. Even if she was completely mutilated by Bionex, she was still made of flesh and blood and had probably led a normal life.
As a rebel leader, Lunn knew that he needed to set his emotions to one side. Slowly exhaling, he forced himself to focus on the financier and was impressed by how well informed the man was. “All right. I assume that my technicians can pull this off. I’ll ensure that we are ready on time.”
The man spoke slowly as if he was double checking his plan and said, “I’ll contact you. But be prepared to act fast. They won’t stay on the plateau the whole day.”
Lunn wanted to talk about the adventure with Andena and the alien fields and said, “I have video footage of the inside of one of those fields.”
“I know. I’ve seen it.”
Lunn was totally gobsmacked. How the hell could the financier have seen the recording? Lunn realised that the financier had somehow managed to access his network.
He tried looking into the man’s eyes, but could only see his legs. Still dazed by the indifference of his financier he had trouble finding the right words. The man continued, “I’m on to it.”
He couldn’t believe what he just heard the man saying and started to wonder what on Earth was wrong with him. Lunn blurted, “What? You’re on to it? Those plants are fucking alien, and they fucking use people to flourish!”
The man asked calmly, “Who said they are alien?”
Lunn huffed, “Have you ever seen plants which can attack you with such an incredible speed?”
He replied stoically, “No, but they seemed to have been specially cultivated.”
Lunn snorted while starting to get a foul taste in his mouth, “Yeah by aliens! I refuse to believe that anyone on this planet has the knowledge to pull this off. Tell me: how do you explain then the sudden appearance in one night?”
The man’s chuckle sent chills running down Lunn’s spine. “With the right amount in credits, anything is possible. I’ve seen things which would blow your mind. So as I said before: I’m on to it.”
Lunn had to admit that he, himself, was just an experienced guard with ambition and brains enough to maintain the group he was leading. He also knew that he had only been in this business for a very short time. He had to force himself to calm down! Lunn shook his head and chuckled with frustration. He said sarcastically, “So what we are doing is just peanuts.”
There was a brief silence, and Lunn knew he had upset the financier considerably. The man was clearly annoyed as he snarled, “The ring will be the most sophisticated weapon on Earth when it is completed! I would hardly call disabling the entire Earth with just the push of a button, peanuts.”
Lunn knew that the ring was the financier’s pet project and that he would be wise not to get too carried away by his emotions. He knew that the man was right, and he retorted, “Yes, just by the sheer numbers.”
When the man spoke again, he sounded calmer. “Lunn, as soon as the ring is ready I will be able to answer your questions more fully. At the moment, I must remain the plain financier.”
Lunn understood the delicate situation his financier was navigating and said, “All right, I’d better scoot on because Haruz is still on my back.”
The man retorted, “He was. He has other, more pressing things, to take care of.”
“Oh well, good to know I’m a free man again. I think I’m going to have a drink.”
“All right. I’ll contact you in a few days.”
Lunn didn’t need to reply and stepped out the cave. He walked up the steps pondering what the financier had said about Haruz. He was constantly surprised by how much the financier knew. Where did he get the information from? Who was his informant?
He was also very surprised by his lack of interest in the fields. Lunn was certain that the financier knew a lot more than he was telling and this frustrated him enormously. He was in desperate need of a strong drink.
Haruz was happy that he could finally relax. He had walked back home from the meeting with Arnost, which was tiring because of the long and intense discussion about the awkward situation that Bionex had created. The potential threat of the newly created android army was making Arnost almost irrational. It was Tancred who pointed out to him that as long as the small group of androids refrained from manifesting in public, nothing had to be done about them.
Haruz was pleasantly surprised by Tancred’s simple but clear remark, and that Arnost had been left in no doubt that in terms of the law, Bionex had not committed a crime. In fact, the more that he thought about it, the more Haruz wondered why Tancred had interfered at all. There had to be a reason why Tancred had suddenly decided to involve himself in the heated discussion. He had noticed that the alien was becoming less tolerant of Arnost’s outbursts. Something about the manner in which Tancred was behaving at the meetings had changed, and it bothered Haruz that he was unable to figure it out.
He smiled as he remembered how Arnost had stared at Tancred with a dumbfounded expression on his face. Feeling happy, Haruz entered the apartment and was surprised by the fact that Meleda was still up. He silently slipped into the kitchen, where he found her enjoying a small plate of snacks.
He could see the contours of her body when the light of the fridge shone through the thin fabric of her nightgown as she opened the fridge door. He was shocked by how thin she was and asked himself whether she had always been that thin. The last time he had seen his sister naked was when they were teenagers. He had accidentally walked into the bathroom when she had forgotten to lock the door.
He was sure she was not as thin as she was now and wondered why she was starving herself that much. When she had seen him standing in the doorframe of the kitchen her face had turned a little red, and she said, “Oops! You’ve caught me red-handed.”
“Hmm, I thought I was the only one who raided the fridge at night.”
Her laugh made him remember his mother’s laugh: the same sweet sounding but oh-so-controlled laugh. As if it was an art to satisfy someone’s ears with a pleasant sounding laugh.
“I felt too full after our wonderful lunch, so I decided to skip dinner. However, I started to get a little peckish.”
Haruz grabbed a sandwich from the plate: they were the same as those served in the restaurant that they had visited earlier in the day. �
�How was your afternoon? Have you recovered from the shocking information I gave you?”
She smiled and popped a morsel of food into her mouth, presumably to give herself more time to formulate her answer. “I already had my suspicions, Haruz. I think that we need to be very careful. I don’t like the fact, that Tancred is an addict.”
He gave her answer some thought but instinctively knew that she was right. He knew from experience how devastating the effects of an addiction could be. Both their parents had died as the result of an overdose. He sighed. “Yes, Meleda but I’m not in a position to question Tancred’s integrity. In fact, he managed to put an end to one of my useless conversations with Arnost.”
A small sigh escaped from Meleda’s lips and gently tapping his arm she said, “Don’t forget Haruz, addicts will do everything to protect their habit. Don’t you see that he is manipulating you?”
He re-ran the events of the last meeting in his head and recognised the techniques that Tancred had skillfully deployed.
“Damn! You’re right. I still don’t know when the others will come.”
Meleda squeezed his arm and whispered, “We have to find a way of preventing Earth from being turned into a druggie’s paradise. We will all be doomed if we don’t fight back against those aliens.”
Haruz hadn’t yet mustered up the courage to tell Meleda what was really happening in the fields and was shocked when she asked, “Do you know why those plants need to feed off humans?”
He was speechless for a moment and couldn’t believe that his sister knew. He whispered while hardly daring to look into her eyes, “How do you know?”
He saw the look of disappointment in her eyes when she responded, “Why didn’t you tell me?”
Haruz looked down at his feet, at a loss for words and was genuinely remorseful. He heard her sigh and her voice sounded darker when she uttered, “There is always an element of truth in rumours. The fact that there is no-one guarding those fields makes sense. They would be taken by the plants too! How many people are in the fields, Haruz?”
