Influence (Influence Series Book 1)

by David R. Bernstein

  “What about Amanda and the rest of the civilians who aren’t on the front line?” I ask.

  Miya adjust the weapon slung over her tiny shoulder and volunteers to answer my question. “Well, honey, our fighters will need support. Most of those who aren’t fighting have been trained to help the wounded or to supply ammo and resources. Just make sure she knows where to be when the fighting starts. Can you do that, dear?”

  I still am not a fan of how she talks to me. It’s almost like she thinks of me as a burden or a delicate flower.

  “Um, yeah I’ll talk to her.”

  Ava tells me she is going to gather the backline Influencers to get them ready. I tell her I will be there in a minute. I need to find Amanda and make sure she’s ready.

  To my surprise, I find her already working with people at the weapons stash. She’s got a clipboard and it looks like she is managing inventory. She glances over her shoulder and gives me a corny smile and says, “Hey, Kay, look at me. I’m useful.”

  The resistance is humming now. Everyone is where they need to be. Making my way to the back, I see Ava, Envee, Trevor, and the four other Influencer kids gathered together. Several armed fighters surround them. That makes me feel a little less scared. Not much, but at least a little. I join them and we go over what we discussed at the Walton hub. Everyone knows their role. Making it happen is what I’m worried about.

  Only a few minutes pass before I hear my name called. It’s Farren. He rushes from the middle of the group. Two rifles crossed over his broad shoulders. Sweat dampens the front of his sleeveless T-shirt, revealing the hardened contours of his chest. I divert my attention only to return my gaze immediately. I’m glad he ditched those stiff Magnus clothes at the Walton hub. He pulls me a few steps from the others, off to the side of the tracks, just behind a grove of trees. I look up at him and before I have a chance to say anything, his warm hand caresses the back of my neck. He pulls me closer into his body. Looking up at his intense brown eyes, we lock on the same thought. He inches dangerously close and then it happens. His lips feel chapped, but still amazingly soft as they connect with mine. His hand intertwines in the hair just above my ponytail. Cautious at first, I slowly put my arms around his waist. It only lasts a few seconds before he pulls back a bit. Flush with warmth that flows over my body; I pull my right hand from his back and place it in the center of his chest where his heart beats rapidly against the palm of my hand. Looking up at him, I have nothing to say. Words have lost their meaning. Looking down at me, his messy hair dangles in front of his brow. He exhales as if he has been holding his breath forever. He releases me and darts back into the crowd, calling back over his shoulder.

  “Be safe for me.”

  20

  NEW MOTIVATION

  “SOMETHING TO FIGHT for, huh?” Ava says just before pursing her lips.

  The girls in our group snigger. I guess Farren and I didn’t go deep enough into the woods. I take a deep breath and return to the kids.

  Just as fast as the kiss happened, the mood is reversed. Caiden informs each pocket of the resistance that we’re moving out. I look up ahead to see the group move in sections. The frontline fighters lead the way with their Influencer support just a few steps behind. Led by Caiden, our newly armored snipers break off into three packs. We still have a few miles to travel, but we’re not going to be caught off guard again.

  A large group of armed men and women flank Jax and Miya just behind the first wave. Their objective is simple: locate the Magnus Order leadership. Besides them, Farren is the only person in this group who has any information about the corporate head of this sector group. I just assume the heads of Magnus are sitting at the top of a gold tower plotting evil or something.

  Amanda, Owen, and the rest of the support members hang back quite a bit from Jax and Miya’s position. The scout vehicle hauls supplies in front of them while providing a bit of cover for the small group. Amanda has a couple of well-placed armed fighters right next to her. If there’s any spot in this resistance that is actually safe, it would be there. She is talking to Owen about some of the tech he’s invented. I didn’t realize they knew each other.

  That just leaves our Influencer team and armed escorts to bring up the rear. With things in place and the rumble of footsteps pressing forward, it’s getting harder to not freak out.

  I can’t help but think about Farren now. He jumps from the frontline to Jax’s group as he makes sure everyone is okay. I see him talking to Maddux and that takes me out of my self-centered bubble. Ava hasn’t said a single word about him or shown any concern for what is coming. She holds Envee’s hand as we walk. She is nearly twice her size, but even with her daunting presence she’s still able to show a great deal of care for those around her. I walk faster to catch up and ask, “How’s Maddux doing?”

  She takes my hand and we all walk together.

  “Maddux and I have been together for a long time now,” she says. “We’ve been through a ton of battles. We’ve learned that if we’re going to survive, we need to be at our best and do what we do.”

  Her frayed, wavy dark hair almost sparkles in the light that peers through the trees. “That means we need to focus on our abilities, not each other. It might sound harsh, but I want to hold him in my arms again and to do that I need to be at my best.”

  This hits me hard. Caught up with my feelings for Farren, I realize that I’ve done very little preparation for using my push. Influencers need a clear mind to affect the collective consciousness of others. It’s time to grow up and understand where I am and what I’m about to do. That’s all it takes to get my head straight. I’m motivated now.

  21

  MAGNUS INSIGHT

  IT’S BEEN QUIET for the last hour. The path has leveled off and we’ve been taking it slow as we keep our eyes and ears on our surroundings. We’re less than a mile out now. The civilians at the hub are flickering in my consciousness, but I don’t sense any hectic activity on the horizon. That lack of movement is starting to worry me. Jax must be feeling the same thing. He makes his way to my group. Under his command, everyone stops for a much-needed rest.

  “Kaylin, do you have a minute?” he asks.

  Knowing what he’s thinking, I turn to him and say, “Yeah, you feel it too, don’t you?”

  “I do, I do,” he says. “I’ve been feeling the civilians for the last couple of hours and something’s just not right. There doesn’t seem to be a sense of urgency with them. Have you picked up anything else?”

  Even though his reach is far greater than mine, neither of us are close enough to piggyback on the visual thoughts of the people in the hub. All we can really sense is movement and the size of the group.

  “No, I haven’t,” I reply. “We need to get closer.”

  “I might need to get closer, but you don’t.”

  It takes a second before I understand what he’s saying. Then it clicks. I don’t know why I didn’t think of it earlier: I need to connect with my little forest friends.

  “Birds!” I say while I grab his shoulders. “Birds.”

  A smile is all it takes for him to show me that we’re now on the same page. I remove my hand and wonder if my over-eager reaction may have been too much. He’s a calm guy who doesn’t appear to be easily rattled. It’s just comfortable around him.

  “Have Envee help you cover as much of the area in and around Talas as you can,” he advises.

  After waking up my brain, he heads over to the Influencer kids. Even with so much responsibility, he still spends a few moments encouraging them while he waits for my nature outreach.

  Jax exchanges a fist bump with Trevor and says, “You’re doing a great job here.”

  Even though Trevor only comes up to Jax’s elbow, there’s a maturity in the way he handles the world. They are a lot alike.

  “I’ll check back with you and the others later,” says Jax.

  Envee and I step outside the pack as the resistance settles in for a break. Less distraction is a
lways best when using your push. I’ve informed her of what I want to do and she’s excited, even jumpy. This kid has no shut-off switch. Once I tell her it’s time to get started, it’s like she channels all that energy into the push. We hold hands as we find a tree to sit against. She tells me she’s ready. Her fragile fingers get lost in my grasp. A sweet smile peers up at me. And just like that, she’s calm.

  Being amplified is an odd sensation. Beyond my normal sense of expanding consciousness, I feel pulses of deeper reach. As each wave expands beyond me, more life enters my push. Short, rapid breaths increase the pounding coming from my chest. Envee’s focused, high energy is somehow penetrating my body. All sorts of life flashes before my mind as hazy objects burst in from all angles. I’ve never experienced so much connection before. The wildlife that inhabits this area dwarfs the clustered consciousness from the resistance. Envee’s ability blends with my push so well that she disappears from my reality completely. The only way I know she’s here is by the way my push has been enhanced.

  Within a few moments, I see a vision of endless blue sky. The horizon stretches out beyond the mountains before fading into the atmosphere. Extending out from this body are wings that gather the air pushing me higher. Complications fall away as I connect with the purity of an eagle. Its movements are different from other animals, more free. It’s like they have more options to explore the world. Flying frees you from the limitations of land travel. I feel less barriers and more openness. The first time I connected to birds, I didn’t understand what was happening. Now I have a chance to enjoy glimpses of their reality. Slipping from the eagle’s consciousness, I hone in on a flock that’s much further up the path. Their conscious ripples are tiny compared to the abundant life that hides in the woods near our group. The flock is easy to push as their minds are simple and don’t affect reality like people do. They just live in the moment and the environment they’re given. The simplicity of their existence makes this easy for me.

  Flashes of visual thoughts flicker in from the birds’ connection—expansive vistas stretching as far as the horizon allows. With a simple shift in my mindset, I’ve steered them toward Talas. Without the limitations of ground travel, they cover vast distances in no time to follow my push. I’m starting to recognize the surroundings of this area. The tattered tracks just before the hub come into focus. No one is patrolling the area, not even a scout vehicle. We must have weakened them more than we thought. Can this really be this easy? An image of the towering walls of the hub bursts before my mind’s eye. The thick cement wall encircles the intimidating structure. More and more thoughts flutter in. The structure is huge, much bigger than the Hawthorne or Walton hubs. Reaching at least ten stories high, the main building resembles a cement fortress. The Magnus leadership must have a Napoleon complex—this place is unnecessarily large. Besides a few guards patrolling the outer wall and inner opening before the hub, there’s not much movement. One by one, the birds’ ripples fade as I pull away from the push.

  Envee’s hand is clammy now. I must’ve been holding on a bit too tight. Her eyes are closed. She’s unaware I’ve stopped the push. Once I release my hand, her eyes flutter before they lock onto mine. My subtle nod and smile are all that is needed for her to understand that the push worked. Unfocused energy surges back to her body as she returns to the others. Her pace quickens with every step as she dashes to Ava. Jax notices Envee’s return and heads my way.

  “How are the birds feeling today?” he jokes.

  “Simple, worry-free, and nothing like me.”

  His hands rest on his side now, in what I like to call a power pose. Again, it’s nothing like my presence. He laughs confidently. Strands of my loose, oily hair tickle my nose. This annoyance prevents me from looking as cool as him. I bat the hair from my eyes in what must look like a convulsion. I gather myself and say, “There’s not much going on up there around Talas. Not much at all.”

  His glance diverts from mine as he takes in what I say. After a moment to digest my words, he says, “Well, that’s not good. Something’s up, and knowing Magnus like I do, it’s not going to be a pleasant return.”

  “What do you think they’re planning?” I ask.

  “Well, they tend to have a treasure trove of evil countermeasures on hand.”

  Even the former head Influencer of the Magnus Order doesn’t know everything about our enemy. That’s not a fun thought. I once again invite my favorite friend—worry—to consume my thoughts.

  “Only Harold and Percy really know what is going to happen when we get there,” he says.

  “Who the heck are Harold and Percy?” I ask.

  Realizing my limited knowledge of this sector group, he stops to fill me in. He tells me that they are the Magnus brothers. They founded this sector group. They were very rich and prominent figures just before the collapse of society a few decades back. They not only built the massive Talas hub, named after their favorite childhood pet, but they built a bunch of other hubs in the area for their powerful buddies. They created a safety network for the elite, which they later exploited in order to control this new world. Those who didn’t follow their lead were overrun and forced outside to deal with the reality the Magnus brothers had helped create.

  Jax goes on to tell me that Percy is the older brother; his intelligence can’t be overlooked. But Harold is the vicious leader who ran the newly founded Magnus Order like a greedy corporation of the past. He was determined to gain as much ground as possible and they both knew Influencers were the key. It’s believed that the Magnus Order was the first sector group to start collecting young talent for the sole purpose of expansion and control. This started the Influencer recruiting war that basically forced groups to gather young kids with push abilities. Not adopting these tactics would certainly lead to the devouring of your sector group. Magnus operates like an empire with consciousness-shaped servants believing they’re living a safe and free life. But the truth is far more desperate. Everything Jax tells me is only reinforcing my decision to join this fight. The next step is to prepare ourselves for the unknown.

  22

  THE GATES OF TALAS

  OUR FINAL PUSH to Talas has begun, but not everyone will be joining us. The leadership has set up a small camp for the wounded and the older members of our resistance. As planned from the beginning, a few guards stay behind to watch a small group that has set up just off the tracks near a sheltered dropoff. Rocks and trees protect them from all angles. An older lady named Lorraine attends to the injured under a makeshift shelter made of tarps and blankets. She traveled with us from Maddux’s camp. She’s quiet but has some medical training, which is all that matters now. I recognize a few other faces, but most everyone I’m close to will be risking their lives in this final battle. If we succeed, we will return for them. ‘If’ is a scary word, but I don’t have the confidence to say ‘when.’ The next stop will be the Magnus Order’s gates.

  Breaking away from my group, I find my way to the scout vehicle. I need to see how Amanda is handling all of this. She’s hard at work, lugging supplies into the truck.

  “I’m sorry I haven’t been able to check on you,” I say.

  She puts down a box of ammo in the bed of the truck and turns to me. “Kay, I should be checking on you. I don’t care if you’ve just discovered you can shoot lasers out of your eyes or whatever, you are still my little sister.”

  It hasn’t taken her long to find her niche as she loads sniper bullets into the spare magazines. I shouldn’t be surprised; she’s always been able to adapt to whatever situation we came across.

  Taking her arm, I pull her away from her duties. Her eyes hold mine as I say, “Just know I love you and I’m grateful for all that you’ve done for me.”

  “Hey, I love you too, but just because you found a cute boy, don’t think you can get rid of me.” She smiles as she wraps her arms around me.

  “Wait, what did you hear?”

  She grins. “Get back to work, soldier!” she says, avoiding th
e question.

  Everyone has returned to their assigned groups. As for that cute boy, we’ve both kept busy. That is by design, as we need to stay focused.

  Ava and I have been preparing the young Influencers. We don’t want them to be caught off guard and unable to use their push when needed. Honest, yet scary, insights are given to them by design. The more they know now, the less likely they are to lock up under pressure. This tactic helps me as well. We tell them how there might be more deadly gun battles and how more lives could be lost. Ava knows more than anyone how push ability can turn sane people crazy. One of our biggest responsibilities is to protect the implant-free members of the group, as well as the innocent Talas civilians. The kids seem to be ready, but children’s emotions can be fragile. Ava and I will look out for them.

  Caiden calls out to the group to begin the final march to Talas. With about a half mile to go, anything can happen now. Strategic gaps separate the different parts of the resistance. This should help keep us from being one big target. To me, we just look like three or four big targets instead. My throat is dry and my stomach is churning. Our armed escorts are eager to move while the rest of my group is slow to start. Not wanting to be the last one out, I take a deep breath, exhale, and lead my group forward. Ava pats me on the back to show she’s proud of me. I take one last glance at the people left behind, ignoring the momentary envy I feel, and turn back to focus on the slow progress of the resistance. Each step is another second closer to blood, death, and more chaos.

  ***

  “Frontline: take positions,” Farren commands from the cover of a tree at the bend in the path.