by B.V. Bayly
Chapter Sixteen
“What was that about?” Gabriel sat at the kitchen island, waiting for Adin to return.
Adin sighed. “At work yesterday, Dr. Cymru offered to cover Mom’s funeral costs. Pretty generous of him.”
Gabriel hadn’t thought about the funeral at all. “So, you agreed?”
“I guess – I did.” Adin frowned. “Apparently.”
“What’s that mean?”
Adin shrugged. “Some planners want to meet this week to discuss details.”
“And you’re just going to go with it?” Gabriel was annoyed. “I mean, WE haven’t even discussed it yet. Don’t you think that should happen first?”
“Of course.” Adin was defensive. “I didn’t initiate this – I’ve been working on trying to solve your little problem. Dr. Cymru took the lead.”
“Why am I not surprised?” Gabriel shook his head.
“Hey!” Adin snapped at him. “Look, I have done nothing, but try and figure this thing out. I didn’t ask him about the funeral – he offered. Sorry if he’s impulsive, but the man doesn’t like to waste time. He does what he thinks is best. And besides – you’re not supposed to exist right now.”
Adin made a good point. Gabriel couldn’t be thinking about things like a funeral when less than 24 hours ago someone was willing to cut the ore out of his chest. “You're right.” He nodded. “My bad. It’s not you. It just always seemed that Dr. Cymru made your decisions growing up.”
“I was a lost kid, not sure I would have accomplished much if he didn’t. But that was a long time ago. I barely even see the man now, our weekly visits stopped shortly after I finished my schooling.” Adin sat down at the island. He popped the tops off some of the containers of food and slid one towards Gabriel. “Eat.” He scooped out some food. “Besides, maybe it’s best to leave that to him. I don’t even want to think about it, to be honest.”
“Yeah.” Gabriel sighed. “With everything that’s happened, I think I’m with you. I don’t even how to process all of this.”
“Then let’s agree to just leave it up to the planners.” Adin stopped eating. “I – I don’t know how to start.”
Gabriel felt the same way. “That’s a good idea.” He didn’t really want to talk about it any longer. “So, what’s our plan?”
“I’ll head to work tomorrow.” Adin talked between mouthfuls. “You stay home – try to search for something we can rent for a month or so. Something with some space and out of the way. Just keep it close to the city.”
“I can do that.” Gabriel filled his mouth with the delicious noodles. Adin was right about how good the food was.
“Eventually, were going to need someone’s help. A private surgeon or something, someone willing to keep their mouth shut.”
“Surgeon?” Gabriel stared at Adin. “What for?”
Adin almost laughed. “To take that ore out of you.”
Gabriel frowned. “Why?”
“Because it’s too dangerous to leave it in.” Adin stared at him. “As long as it’s in you – you’re never going to be safe. You would never be able to live a normal life.”
“Says who?” Gabriel scowled.
“Everyone.” Adin frowned at him. “Trust me, it’s for the best.”
Gabriel didn’t say anything. He was torn. The ore kept him warm. Gave him energy. Made him stronger. It healed him. Did he really want to cut it out? As weird as it sounded, he and the ore needed each other somehow.
“What is it?” Adin eyed him suspiciously.
“I just thought I would find the Sphere thing first. See what it was all about. Maybe they could explain what I’m feeling.” Gabriel shrugged.
“Feeling?” Adin looked confused. “What are you talking about?”
“The ore listens to me,” he said.
Adin choked on his food, then coughed until he caught his breath. “What?”
“I didn’t think about it until just now.” Gabriel did his best to explain. “I was freezing all last night, hiding, too afraid to move. This morning, when I finally got the guts to come here, the ore…” He didn’t know how else to say it. “It listened to me.”
Adin didn’t say a word. He just stared at Gabriel.
“Look, I’m not crazy. I was cold – it heated up my body when I asked it to. It gave me energy to run all the way here without stopping – more than twenty blocks – I wasn’t even tired. And my foot!” He pointed down to his feet. “I cut my foot on a chunk of glass and it healed the wound like a minute later. It glowed, then faded.” Gabriel slowly shook his head. “This thing isn’t dangerous. It’s helping.”
Adin didn’t speak at first, he pushed his plate forward and put his elbows down on the island. He took a deep breath. “If you lose control again, you’ll kill everyone around you. Even me.”
“But what if I can learn to control it?” Gabriel lifted his hands. “What if they can teach me how? The other ore users? Look at what she could do with hers!”
“That’s a big if.” Adin sighed, staring down at the black marble top. “I dunno. If you want to try and find them…it’s your choice. I’ll stay with you either way.”
Gabriel nodded at him. “I need to find them.”
Adin drummed on the black marble. “Alright, let’s keep you hidden here until after the funeral. Then I’ll take some holidays – we can rent a home base for you and we can start looking.”
Gabriel smiled at his brother. “Thanks.”
“Just promise me something.” Adin looked into his eyes. “If we can’t find anything – or even if we do – if it’s too dangerous to stay that way then we will find a way to get it out of you. Make you normal.”
Gabriel nodded. “Of course.” He didn’t mean it. Something lay on the other side – a war was being fought in the shadows. He thought back to the murderous priest, strung to the building by glowing vines. He needed to find the Sphere. What if they needed him?
Three hours later Gabriel sat in the overstuff leather chair watching the RPTV. The 3D images were mesmerizing. Adin had stayed at the kitchen island, reading through more of the Cubes from work. Adin huffed. Gabriel twisted around to meet his gaze.
“There’s just nothing.” Gabriel could tell Adin was annoyed. “Everything we know...” Adin went over to the cupboards. “And there’s nothing about ore users. Not even a mention in the research.” He grabbed another bottle of wine. “Not even a thought about the possibility.”
“Really?” Gabriel had already had two glasses, and a third seemed like a good idea. He held his glass out over the back of the tall chair. “You hungry?”
Adin paused as he popped the top of the wine, a frown on his face. “You ate everything. How are you still hungry?”
Gabriel shrugged. “It’s the ore.” Maybe it was.
Adin topped up Gabriel’s glass, taking the rest of the bottle back to the island with him. “I think I have some of the noodles you like in the cupboard.”
Gabriel felt his eyes pop. “Yes! I love those things.”
Adin took a big drink from his wine. “Do you understand what I mean about the files not having any mention about ore users?”
Gabriel searched the cupboards. “Sure, no one knows about them?”
“No.” Adin shook his head. “Third cupboard from the left.” He pointed at it for Gabriel. “No, you’re missing the point on the files. There’s no mention at all.”
Gabriel found a bowl and hit the button for the stove on the counter. It slowly rose up, the pot fixed in place. He selected the size he wanted and the pot filled with water from the bottom. He turned around and stared at Adin. “I don’t get it.”
“Gabriel, I’ve read hundreds of case files about all sorts of things – every single one of them has some crazy theory in them. Some random thought that the researcher decided to include as his own theory. These have nothing. Like whoever made them deliberately didn’t talk about ore users.”
Gabriel paused as he thought about Adin’
s words. “So, you’re saying…they know.”
“Exactly!” Adin raised his glass in a toast.
“So, TERA knows about them – which is why they’re hunting for them – but no one talks about it.”
“Precisely.” Adin smiled.
Gabriel shook his head. “I think you’re drunk.”
“What!” Adin rolled his eyes. “No! Do you not see what they’re doing?”
“No.” Gabriel shrugged. “If they know about it, what’s the point in hiding it? We use the ore for everything – it’s the new energy source. They brag about it all the time, saying how it will save the world. Wouldn’t something like this just be another thing for them to brag about?”
“No.” Adin shook his head. “Gabriel, think about it – it’s an entirely new field of study for the ore. All new possibilities. It’s a new frontier. If they could harness it … Maybe they already have.”
It didn’t make much sense. Gabriel dumped the noodles into the steaming water, instantly producing a thick starchy mess. “What the hell?”
Adin rolled his eyes, laughing at him. “Why aren’t you using the hydrator? That’s what you cook the noodles in.”
“Damn it. Do you cook anything properly?” He felt stupid. The technology of the kitchen was more work than the simple bio-fuel stove they had at the ranch.
“Actually, I don’t even think restaurants do anymore.” Adin was still laughing at him.
“Where can I throw this out?” He poked at the starchy soup.
“Just close the stove. It will clean itself.”
“Okay. You want some?” He shook a fresh box of dried noodles and searched for the button for the hydrator.
“No, I’ll stick to the wine.”
“So, you’re saying that TERA already knows about ore users. Probably more than anyone. So, there’s something about an ore user that they're hiding. What?”
“That’s the million dollar question.” Adin poured another glass of wine.
Ten minutes later Gabriel sat at the counter eating his noodles in silence. Adin had succumbed to the wine and was snoozing in one of the leather recliners. The question swirled in Gabriel’s head. If TERA knew about ore users and was hunting them, what did they do once they caught them? What were they using them for?
