Human Again: A Dystopian Sci-Fi Novel (Cryonemesis Book 1) (9 page)

“They will be ten thousand strong. That’s power.”

“If they are trained and collaborating, which they are not,” Toya answered.

“How old are you?”

“Sixteen,” she answered.

“And you?” I asked Bahomi.

“Same,” he replied.

“This is classic.”

I was exhausted of the whole debate.

“
Classic what
?” Bahomi asked with a sneer.

“Never mind.”

Bahomi turned to Shanta. He looked furious and she looked disappointed.

“
That's it. I'm sorry, but I told you, he's not one of us. He doesn’t care.
”

“I am one of—”

“—
shut up
!”

I looked at Shanta, and the cheerful Shanta whom I held on top of a whale, was gone. Who was standing there was a different person completely.

“Look, just let me go and I'll never tell anyone, ok?”

Shanta was silent and it made me angrier.

“I prefer asking nicely.”

She looked at me with fire in her eyes.

Dev and Toya pushed me back and pinned me to the wall, I twisted Toya’s arm and threw her at Dev but Bahomi grabbed my head and slammed it to the wall. I fell on the floor and they left before I was able to stand up.

Chapter 10

I banged on the door for awhile but no one came for me. Not even Shanta. I couldn't believe it; I was locked up by a bunch of stupid kids playing war games. I was supposed to go back to training, do my part and to blend in. Now I was involved with the second most hated group in the city. And to think; Padma didn't know that her own daughter ran the show. How genius was that? I was stuck there with no food, no water and no bed. I was afraid it would take a day until Isaac or Viti sent someone to look for me, and maybe another day until somebody would find me.

My attempts to open the door were futile because it was a sliding door and I couldn't get a grip. I managed to bust open the vent for the air supply on the ceiling with my fist but it was too high and too narrow for me to go through. I decided to rest and wait, to save my strength in case one of the resistance members came back. I sat down and dozed off.

I awoke after about an hour.  A metal clunk echoed through the room and I thought someone was outside the door. The room became fully dark except for a little emergency light, which indicated there had been another power outage. Maybe the Purists attacked again. I called for help but still no one heard me. I thought about Isaac's Mantra: “
Everything I said or did is my sole responsibility. Everything is connected. Everything changes.
” It didn't help. I was still helpless and I started to blame myself for falling for Shanta. What a manipulative bitch.

I fell asleep again and woke up to the sudden to the sound of Bahomi opening the door. Why him? He touched my shoulder with painful precision to make sure I was awake.

“I'm awake, damn it.”

“Come with me,” he said slowly for the first time.

I got up and walked behind him, as if I had a choice.

“If this is some kind of initiation I'm not falling for it.”

“Shut up.”

I didn't like him and he didn't like me either. Not enough to be polite. We went through the water system corridors. They were grey and leaking. I assumed the pipes lead from the sea, pumping salty water into the desalination systems. When we reached a ladder leading to a hatch above, he handed me a cactus suit. Not again…I was still riddled with red dots. We both dressed up though, and he did it so fast it seemed he didn't mind getting stung by the suit.

We went to the surface and the humid air stood still. There was no dust flying around and the temperature was reasonably warm. I could see the night's sky so clearly. Billions of stars were looking down at us. The wind turbines were moving slowly and the cameras were scanning the grounds. The ground was dry and every step of ours sounded like we were crushing bones. The moon was half full and low in the sky so we barely cast any shadow. He had chosen a perfect time to be out; we were like ghosts. Walking didn’t hurt as much because I managed to find the right angle to spread my arms and legs. I felt stupid and I probably looked stupid but it worked just as Viti said. Crossing the circle of guns through a hole in the fence was the scary part. I knew they couldn’t see me, but going out of the safe zone was ball-shrinking. And I wasn't 100% sure if my former stealth abilities could be applied while wearing a cactus.

I followed him for a few minutes until we reached the peak of a nearby hill.

“I'm going to show you something I think is better for you to see with your own cocky eyes.”

“I don't have cocky eyes.”

“Yes you do. You think you are better than everyone because you died once and you are the only one that can figure shit out.”

“Whatever you say.”

“You think that just because you don't belong here you shouldn't be involved, but you need to see it. Because this will make you understand.”

“Just show me already.”

We climbed over another boulder and the air was so humid my lungs almost refused to let in the air. Bahomi crouched and then crawled to a viewpoint. I did the same but a lot slower. In the desert every sound you make carries for miles; like whale songs in the ocean.

“You find it hard to believe the city endures so many attacks and invasion attempts. You think we exaggerate.”

He handed me thermal binoculars and I hung them on my neck. I watched the foot of the hill and began to see little dots of light moving around in the distance. They looked like flickering candles. I followed the light deeper into the valley and there it was, a whole city, alive and moving in the middle of the desert. There were tents and sheets of cloth stretched between them, supporting tin plates and barrels and solar panels. I could see people moving underneath the whole structure like blood cells under a skin. They were skinny, there were a lot of them, and they all carried guns.

“Do you understand what you see?”

“The Purists?”

“They have little resources. They use seismic equipment to find water, and special greenhouses to grow plants. When they can't, they destroy another group and take their resources. They just move to another place when they need to.”

“They didn't destroy us yet.”

“Strategic investment. They know we're worth the wait.”

“Because we're self-sustained?”

“Right.”

“How can they claim to be pure if they want to rely on our technology?”

“When it comes to food and water, there are no rules to these guys. They will destroy everything. Trust me, no one is pure.”

I couldn't trust him even if he'd told me the earth was round.

“But they are supposed to be pure, right?”

“It's different here. We started hearing about them long ago. When the droughts began people fled north to the Arctic Circle and the Scandinavian countries; where it was still green. That's where they first hit. They even prevented scientists from developing cold fusion energy. They grew and grew and destroyed everything they came across. They were too weak to bother us at first but now they are ready. They are here and are waiting for the right opportunity.”

“People join them?”

“You don't believe what people do for guaranteed food and water.”

“But how do they live like that?”

“To keep themselves cool during the day they hide in underground holes. Sound familiar? They’re mainly active at night, digging to find underground water reservoirs. And as for food, they grow what they can and steal what they can’t. And of course share everything with their group.”

“There is still water underground?”

“Imagine this ruthless heat to the other extreme during a short monstrous winter. The rain eventually accumulates underground.”

Again I was silent.

“They would love to camp outside our city and use our water and food resources. But they need to get rid of us first.”

“How do you know all this?”

“I used to learn everything I could about them because I knew they would come for us one day. You have to be stupid to think they won't. Then I started watching them on the outside, counting the number of attacks and their open threats.”

I was still confused. Bahomi sensed that.

“We can't beat them unless we wake everyone up before they attack us.”

“They don’t look like a real army, like a real threat.”

“We have an informant on the security team. He keeps us up-to-date with reports of more invasion attempts and shots fired at the sentinels. We might be able stop the first wave of attacks, but after that they'll destroy our defense systems, and then there will be no one to protect us.”

“But what if we offered to help them?”

“The northern city offered them help long time ago. It didn't end well.”

“So we are just going to kill them all?”

“Just the ones that come for us. Then the rest will run away. For good.”

“And if they come back?”

“If they come back for a second try, there won't be a third.”

“It doesn't make sense. Why would Padma be so blind to this?

“She isn't. She thinks she's protecting everyone by acting natural. She thinks we can withstand the risk.”

“And you are willing to risk it all?”

“We’ve fought them year after year. But they’re small fights, like a mosquito that comes back every night and sucks more blood out of you. I’ve had enough of it.”

He paused for a moment, appearing to wonder if he should continue. I wasn’t convinced it was genuine. To me he sounded dangerous. Just because he had enough didn’t mean he should get others involved.

“Do you know what frightened me the most?” He asked, pausing again, “It's not the slaughter, the bloodshed, or the cruelty. Those things are no surprise to me because we’re animals and we fight to kill, sometimes winning and sometimes losing. What frightens me is the indifference. People just don't care. They don't believe that evil exists anymore because they don't see it in their little virtual fantasies. Just like you.”

Then I saw a twinkle on the other side of the slope, a tiny white flash. I tried to listen if there was anyone there because nothing twinkles in the desert for no reason. I started to sweat down my back. Maybe they had seen our binoculars flashing. We climbed back up the hill and headed back. The gravel made cracking sounds. If there was indeed someone close enough, they’d know where we were, so we began to walk faster to reach the top. Once we got over the ridge we’d be safe because no one without a cactus could escape the guns and the sentinels.

A moment before we reached the top I heard footsteps behind me. I didn't see anything at first, but after a moment I saw a metal body coming right at Bahomi. It was another man in a cactus suit. My stomach shrank, my knees bent, and my eyes opened wide. We ran like hell. It was a sprint to get to the safe zone and into the city. But if that man had a bona fide suit we were doomed.

Everything happened in less than a second. I continued running until I heard Bahomi scream. I looked back and saw the intruder knocking Bahomi's head on the ground ignoring me completely. I took advantage of this and ran back to him, knocking him off an unconscious Bahomi as he looked around for something. The man recovered and then lunged toward me, pushing me. I rolled downhill until I got stuck on a rock. I was a couple of feet from Bahomi. I think I heard a cracking sound in my ribs. Then came the man in the cactus and started to pull the cactus off me. He pulled hard but a beam of light started to light our surroundings. It was a sentinel approaching. He stopped and leaned close to me, holding me so I couldn’t move. I could hear him gasping; his breath stunk. The sentinel shut its light and continued the patrol. I used that split second to knee him and then throw him away from me. I kicked him again and he lost his balance and rolled down the hill. I stood up and ran after him until he stopped. The sentinel came back and scanned the hill. It started to approach us and I crouched and breathed through my nose to make the least possible noise I could make. Then I picked a stone and threw it away from us to divert the sentinel’s attention. The intruder managed to catch his breath and regain focus but he didn't move. I approached the man slowly while gripping the binoculars’ lash. I started swinging it like a slingshot. I got closer. He was lying on his belly with his head toward me. He was looking at me the whole time, and I could see the glare in his eyes through the cactus fibers. Then he leaned on his side and sent his hand to his belt beneath the cactus suit. I sprung and swung my binoculars directly to his hand. A metal clunk echoed through the desert. The pistol that he was drawing fell to the ground. I immediately jumped over and took it. I cocked it and pointed it at his head.

“Stop,” I said quietly.

My mouth was dry from heaving. If I shot him the sentinel would’ve detected the sound and hunted me down. The intruder looked around him. I guessed he was trying to figure out what to do. I hoped the gun wasn't locked but I couldn't tell without diverting my eyes.

“Remove your cactus,” I said.

He did nothing.

“Your camouflage suit.”

He continued to look at me silently.

“Undress or I'll blow your head off.”

I tried to be as serious as I could without shouting or using large movements, but I didn't really know what to do. The intruder started removing all the cactus parts. First the head, then the sleeves, and finally the shirt and pants. He looked thin and pale. His clothes were dirty with yellow desert dust and I guessed he was only a couple of years older than me by the thin beard he had.

“Sit on the ground,” I commanded.

He sat, and I stood in front of him to block the sentinel’s camera and scanners.

“Where did you get this suit from?”

“We make our own.”

I thought he would’ve had an Arabic accent, but he had a normal Israeli accent. My perception of the Purists was wrong already.

“Did you spy on us?”

“Did
you
spy on
us
?”

“Are you planning an attack?”

He started laughing a dry, flat laugh that sounded degrading. I got angrier. This is not the way to play when someone is pointing a gun to your head.

“Are
you
planning an attack?” He replied with a smirk.

“Don't play with me,” I said.