The Compendium (23 page)

Chapter 32

I stood inside the translucent plastic greenhouse from Innoviro’s Mojave research farm. Seedlings in various stages stretched ahead on one side. They looked like a purple cactus and palm tree hybrid. The smaller plants were mere spiked balls. The larger plants were bristly cylinders, a lighter pinkish purple. They glittered with a powdery coating. I suppressed the strong urge to touch the spindles. I didn’t trust being safe from Innoviro even in my dreams.

I turned away from the spiky plants to face a wall of rock with a flat glass panel of sand mounted beside me. I faced a cross section of an insect colony. Albino ants streamed through the sand. A long yellow tendril shot through the sand picking up ants with its sticky surface before it retracted out of sight.

Beside the colony was a steel door with no handle. A woman dressed like a dirt biker walked past me and swept a card through a reader beside the door. The door slid sideways into the wall and the woman walked forward. My gaze followed behind her as she descended into a florescent-lit corridor.

We went down and down and down until we hit level ground. Stairs quickly reappeared and we went up and up and up. We reached another closed door. The biker slid her card through another reader and the door opened into a desert plateau, bright under the Mojave sun. We faced a mobile home alongside Ivan and Tatiana’s fifth wheel trailer. A giant carnivorous evergreen loomed over the yard. The biker crossed through the shadow of the tree and entered the mobile home.

As the biker shut the home’s front door behind her, the trailer’s door opened. Tatiana, Ivan, and Gemma stepped out. Tatiana approached the evergreen. Oil-slick bees hovered around the open flytrap mouths. They seemed to know not to land inside the glistening deadly pods.

Ivan and Gemma stopped to watch from a distance. Tatiana passed the evergreen, looking at a seedling about ten feet away. I resisted the urge to zoom to my sister. I concentrated on seeing Tatiana’s face. My disembodied self rushed ahead and whirled around to face my aunt. Her skin’s green tint startled me, more vibrant than at first. Her eyes had normalized but she now had vivid emerald irises instead of her once dark brown hue. Streaks of chlorophyll had stained her hair from root to tip around her face.

Tatiana knelt on the ground, reached forward, and rammed her fingertips into the earth around the seedling. She wiggled her hands and the seedling grew. Green flushed across her face. She looked as though she would throw up any moment, but she kept burrowing her hands into the dirt and the evergreen grew taller until Tatiana had to stand up and back away. She rubbed her temples with dirty hands and knelt back down in front of her young tree. She gripped the evergreen’s trunk and opened her mouth. Pale green fluid shot out of Tatiana from the back of her throat and the evergreen’s bark absorbed it, growing again, soon as large as the tree next to it. Tatiana let go of the tree trunk and collapsed on the ground.

“Tatiana!” shouted Gemma as she ran to my aunt’s aid. Golden light flowed out of Gemma’s hands into Tatiana’s chest. Gemma continued massaging my aunt’s collarbones while Ivan watched calmly. Tatiana sat up with a gasp, weak, but restored.

“You’re not stable,” said Ivan to Tatiana.

“I will be. Given time and resources, I’ll stabilize this variation as well,” said Tatiana.

“Ilya and Irina will be coming back,” said Ivan flatly.

“They’re your children. The decision is yours,” said Tatiana.

“She doesn’t know she’s on the wrong side! You need to give her a chance. She’s my sister! Your daughter!” said Gemma.

“We gave her a chance in Victoria,” said Tatiana coolly.

“She will be safe unless she threatens our lives.
The Compendium
is the future, the life, of every variant in the world,” said Ivan.

“If Irina has her way, variants will continue to live in hiding, pretending their gifts don’t exist. She thinks our guardian bees are weapons. She thinks our research is intended to harm the very people we are fighting to protect,” said Tatiana.

“Your sister’s secondary ability has been activated. With telekinesis and remote viewing, Irina will be our biggest threat if she refuses to align herself with our work,” said Ivan.

“Combined with the boy’s mind reading and illusory abilities, there will be no level of security that can keep them out. She could be watching us now for all we know,” said Tatiana.

My aunt stood up and turned to face me where my disembodied gaze originated. As she looked me in the eye, I felt her anger. Tatiana’s mouth curved into a subtle smile.

I awoke surrounded by a dome of navy blue nylon. Jonah slept soundly next to me. I grabbed his shoulder and shook him gently.

“Jonah. Jonah, I know how to get to the other side of the Innoviro farm,” I said.

“Huh. What?” he said sleepily. He yawned.

“We have to wake everyone up,” I said.

“Be my guest.” He rolled back on his side.

I shoved my arms into my hoodie and zipped it up before I got out of the tent. I went tent to tent shaking them by the tent poles.

“This better be good,” Faith said angrily from inside her and Ilya’s tent.

“I know how to get to Ivan and Tatiana’s trailer! We can catch them now,” I said.

I still had no idea how exactly we would stop them from unleashing their disease and their variant animals and plants upon the world. The more I saw, the more I became certain I had only seen the tip of the Innoviro iceberg.

“Ilya, you have to get us into the greenhouses with some kind of cover. Can you make us look like something else? Can you make it so they don’t see us?” I said to my brother as he exited his tent.

“I can’t make us invisible, if that’s what you mean,” said Ilya.

“Do we actually want to come face to face with them? What will that accomplish? I think we’ve established there’s no talking them out of Compendium work,” said Faith.

“We still need to get a hold of
The Compendium
itself, so we know what we’re up against in its entirety. Otherwise, we’re groping in the dark until some catastrophic natural disaster or surprise disease puts another dent in the planet. I’m sure they’ve got it stored electronically, just not on a network or anything you can hack,” I said to Faith.

“So why do we need to get into the greenhouses?” said Cole.

“There’s an underground corridor connecting one of the greenhouses to a plateau on the other side of the hill. That’s where they’ve parked their trailer. I saw one of the dirt bikers there too,” I said.

“You’re hoping to steal something like a laptop or a netbook and then level the place?” said Josh.

“I’d like to find something truly useful, but either way, I think we should leave nothing behind,” I said.

“Are we prepared to kill to get
The Compendium
? Are we willing to keep killing to shut down Compendium projects? We know the Krylovs are willing to take lives to bring their vision to life,” said Jonah.

“We’ve come this far without saying it out loud, but I think it’s time. This mission will likely require deadly force,” said Josh.

“I always hoped my father would come to his senses once his projects were shut down,” said Ilya.

“There is still that possibility, however remote,” said Jonah.

“If this is bigger than our own lives, it’s bigger than theirs too,” said Cole.

We sat in silence for a moment. All loss of life around us so far had been in the heat of the moment. We had never entered a situation planning to end lives, or willing to sacrifice them. The image of Nellie and Bruno lying next to smashed variant dogs, surrounded by a charred landscape stayed fresh in my mind. One field of carnage already haunted me. Ivan wanted to remake the entire world. What would that atrocity look like afterwards?

“I’ll conceal us as coyotes. It’s an animal they’ll expect to see around here,” said Ilya.

“Hopefully by the time we’re inside the underground passage, we’ll be past the worst of their security,” said Josh.

“I’ll listen for those variant dogs as well. I’m sure I won’t confuse those primal brains for anything else around here,” said Ilya.

“What if they have something worse on the other side of the hill?” said Faith.

“Let’s hope they don’t,” said Josh.

We retreated to our tents for what little sleep we might get.

Faith and Ilya made a breakfast of baked beans and toast while Jonah and I disassembled the tents. Cole repacked his car and Josh repacked his Jeep. My stomach turned over as I watched Josh rearrange the tarp inside his Jeep’s trunk. He had flipped it over to put the bloody side down, so as not to stain our tent bags and backpacks. About an hour later, we were parking at the edge of the ruined farm field.

“We’ll need to walk in,” said Josh.

“I suggest we talk as little as possible until we’re inside the greenhouse. Sound is harder to convert than images,” said Ilya. Nobody argued.

The autumn smell of burnt leaves blew off the ground. My heart had no room for nostalgia. The adrenaline of fear rushed through me tingling in my limbs like circulation returning.

We marched with determination, following Josh’s motions and signs. He used two fingers, pointing to his eyes and then a sweeping all clear gesture. He could see the coast was clear, with his eyes at least.

The greenhouse itself had only a simple screen door to enclose the entrance and we found it merely latched, not locked. The glittering purple plants I had seen in my mind were exactly as I’d pictured them in all stages of growth. And at the far end of the structure where it jutted up against the hillside were the insect colony and the smooth steel door.

“Okay, what now? Rip the door off?” said Cole.

“Refresh our memories as to exactly what’s waiting on the other side,” Josh said to me.

“Behind that door is a stairwell leading under the hill and back up to a plateau on the other side. There’s a mobile home. I have no idea what’s inside the structure. And Ivan’s fifth wheel trailer with all his personal gear and specimens is parked alongside. There’s an exceptionally large one of the carnivorous evergreens next to the trailer. Tatiana grew it with her variation, but she pays a price every time she uses her ability. She’s unstable, like Jonah was. Gemma has been healing her, but she needs more gene therapy to stabilize herself,” I said.

“In terms of threats, did you see any animals or weaponry?” said Faith.

“No, but I mostly saw Tatiana growing her trees. I’m not sure why I saw it, but I don’t think she’s a physical threat right now. Ivan appears to be in perfect health. I’m sure Gemma healed his arm and any other lingering injuries, including his outrageously strong telekinesis. He’s got my sister totally fooled, that’s for sure.”

“Are we ready then?” said Jonah.

“Ready as we’ll ever be,” said Cole.

We crossed the greenhouse to the steel door, which Cole stopped to evaluate. It had gone unspoken that he would be the one to rip it open. Suddenly, the steel door slid open, unbidden, and an enormous mass of muscle filled the frame. In one fluid motion, the huge man flipped open his second set of arms and grabbed Cole and Josh by the collars, tossing them to the far end of the greenhouse.

The four-armed man turned around and I came face to face with Casey, the bouncer from The Looking Glass and what felt like another lifetime back in Victoria.

Chapter 33

Casey picked up Faith by a handful of her purple dreadlocks and flung her through the plastic wall behind me. From overhead, a
WHUUUPUNKSHHH
announced the arrival of Rose and Sage. They burst through the plastic sheeting and wood rafters of the roof, swooping down in a shower of debris. One of Rose’s wings crashed into the ant farm spilling sand and large grey-white ants everywhere. The winged sisters grabbed Jonah and Ilya from behind and heaved, leaping up into the sky with a captive each.

Casey and I were left face to face and I froze. I cringed, waiting for a blow, but he stood there. He glared at me, speechless. Had he been instructed to spare me? I noticed a familiar talisman. He wore one of the same rune necklaces I’d carried when I lived at my Innoviro apartment.

“Where’s my sister?” I blurted at him.

“She’s with your father, where you should be. He’d forgive you, even now, if you pledge to join us. Your brother too. This doesn’t have to be a fight,” said Casey.

Cole and Josh picked themselves up and were running back towards me.

“I’ll never understand why Ivan thinks wiping out most of humanity is justifiable. He may have brainwashed enough variants to help him, but he’ll never count me among them,” I said.

Casey opened his mouth as a rush of fire consumed the nearest wall of the green house. The acrid smoke from melting plastic bellowed around us like a thick fog. I ran out of the greenhouse to where Faith, Jonah, and Ilya stood catching their breath. Cole and Josh detoured around the fire and burst out of the building.

Rose and Sage swooped into the fire and carried Casey out and over the hill back to where I expected to find a mobile home and Ivan’s trailer.

“That’s right, run back to your boss!” yelled Faith as the trio disappeared over the hilltop.

Jonah diverted irrigation water again, dousing the greenhouse completely.

“Well, they totally botched their ambush,” said Cole.

“Not necessarily,” said Josh.

“How do you figure? We’ve still got access to the tunnel connecting to their compound,” said Ilya.

“There could be something waiting for us in the tunnel,” said Jonah.

“I can’t hear anything. If another one of those scorpion dogs was in there, I’d hear its primal brain,” said Ilya.

“I’ll test it.” Cole walked through the still smoking remains of the greenhouse, back to the steel door into the hillside. He ripped it off like an old paper poster and stepped through the doorway.

Cole took two steps into the tunnel and fell to his knees. He retched violently and the contents of his stomach spilled out onto the ground. He clutched his stomach with one arm, pulling himself along the floor with the other, until he crawled back out through the doorway.

“Anyone else wanna to try?” said Faith.

“This is probably going to suck.” Josh crossed the charred structure and helped Cole to his feet. Josh braced himself for a moment and then stepped into the stairwell.

“It’s not too –,” Josh’s words were cut by the sound of vomit lurching out of his mouth.

“Can you get out?” Jonah took a step forward as if to help and I grabbed his arm. We watched as Josh too crawled back out of the tunnel.

“What the hell was the point of attacking us if they’ve got some kind of hex on their tunnel?” said Faith.

“My father used to refer to ‘curses’ as security measures. I never took him seriously,” said Ilya.

“I’m sure it’s not some form of witchcraft. I worked security for Innoviro and I never heard of anything like that,” said Josh.

“I know what it was. I mean, I know how to stop it,” I said.

I ran back to Josh’s Jeep leaving everyone scratching their heads. I rummaged in my backpack until I found the black leather and stone rune necklace I’d had to wear when I lived in Victoria. I put it on and marched back to the greenhouse.

“Don’t you remember having to wear these at my building in Victoria,” I said to Jonah.

“What is that?” said Cole.

“Irina lived in an old walk-up in Esquimalt. We were supposed to wear these in the building. I figured they used it as a form of identification. I didn’t think it really mattered,” said Jonah.

“But you wore it anyway,” I said to Jonah. To everyone else, I continued my explanation.

“When Rubin moved me in there, he told me to wear it at all times. He didn’t say what would happen if I took it off and I didn’t ask. I figured I’d learn more in time, but that time never came,” I said.

“How does it work, really?” said Josh.

“I have no idea,” I said.

“Are you willing to risk your breakfast to find out?” said Faith.

“It’s not like I’ve never barfed before,” I said. Now Jonah grabbed my arm. “I’m right about this, I know it.” He let go and I walked to the doorway.

I took a moment to size up the bare earth in front of the stone steps. The space ahead seemed empty, harmless. Cool air floated outward. I looked to my right where Cole and Josh–the two strongest men I’d ever known–were sitting up against the rock wall, recovering their composure.

I closed my fist around the small black stone on my chest and I stepped into the tunnel. Nothing happened. I took another step and another until I had descended several steps. I turned and ran back to the greenhouse.

“I can go!” I said excitedly.

“What about the rest of us?” said Josh.

“There’s no way you’re going alone,” said Jonah.

“We can’t use the tunnel, but we might be able to cross over the hill,” said Cole.

“That’ll take all day to go up and over on foot. We should take the Jeep and the car,” said Faith.

“We’ve already lost whatever element of surprise we had going for us,” said Josh. He threw up his hands and walked back to his Jeep. We followed quickly.

“Shit!” yelled Josh. We caught up and I saw why he was upset.

Both back tires on the Jeep and the car were flat. We weren’t going anywhere on wheels.

“Those fuckers!” yelled Cole.

“The attack was a diversion so they could take out our cars?” said Jonah, perplexed.

“I don’t get it either,” said Ilya.

“They could be buying time. If Ivan’s working on something he doesn’t want to walk away from, but he doesn’t want company, he might be stalling,” said Josh.

“They are willing to kill. Casey was still trying to sell us on joining their ‘team’ back in the greenhouse, but I saw Tatiana and Ivan talking with Gemma. They’re flat out ready to murder us before sacrificing
The Compendium
. There’s no question about it now,” I said.

“If we go over that hillside and find critical research and specimens worth destroying, we will be risking our lives to do it,” said Jonah.

“I’m still in,” said Faith.

“Me too. I still feel responsible for my father,” said Ilya.

“This isn’t our first trip into the lion’s den. We’re all in it until the end,” said Cole.

Josh nodded. “Everybody grab a bag. Take only what you really need for the day. Whatever happens on the other side of this hill, we won’t be going any farther any time soon.”

“What happens if we all get sick? I mean everyone but Irina. That ‘curse’ thingy might extend up into the hill,” said Faith.

“If I have to go alone, I’ll pretend like I’m joining their side. It’s the only chip I’ve got to play. Ivan might not know I’ve inherited his telekinesis, so I could have a surprise to spring if needed,” I said.

“You haven’t learned to use or control your telekinesis very well yet,” said Jonah.

“It’s still better than sending her in armed with visions,” said Cole.

At the word ‘armed’, I felt numbness in my chest. I had never considered myself armed with anything. But Cole was right, an offensive ability, even a clumsy one, made a better weapon in a fight than mental images.

We walked away from our vehicles with a sense of foreboding. Nobody spoke. As we trekked up the hillside, I looked for loose rocks and practiced remotely throwing them at tree trunks we passed. Under other circumstances, I would have been amused. I would have looked for smiles on my friends’ faces. Today, it was all I could do to keep my breakfast in my stomach, even with my protective rune pendant.

Dry grass and dusty clay earth with a sparse growth of little round cacti, sage, and small pine trees covered the hillside. No clear trail presented itself. Several times, someone cried ‘ouch’ and had to carefully dislodge a small prickly ball from a pant leg.

We crested the hillside and looked down into the second half of Innoviro’s Mojave research farm. The mobile home, fifth wheel trailer and two freshly grown carnivorous white spruce were exactly where I’d seen them. Josh knelt to the ground where we still had the cover of a few pines and we all copied him.

“Ilya, can you give us a read on how many people are down there?” whispered Josh.

Ilya frowned, concentrating. He looked back and forth between the mobile and the fifth wheel.

“What is it?” I whispered.

“Seven people. My father, Aunt Tat, four girls and I think Casey,” he whispered.

“Where are they?” said Cole.

“In the mobile. Wait, no. What the . . .?” said Ilya.

“What’s happening?” hissed Jonah.

“My father is gone. No, Aunt Tat too. Now the girls. There’s only . . . There’s no one left!” said Ilya at regular volume.

“They’re underground again?” said Josh.

“No, they disappeared out of existence. Their minds, just, blip, gone!” said Ilya, bewildered.

“Could it be some kind of panic room?” said Faith.

“I don’t think so. I’ve never been locked out like this except for a variant like Rubin. Even then, he couldn’t shut me down like this or put up a wall around so many people. They’re . . . gone,” he said confidently.

“We might as well investigate,” I said.

Josh put his finger to his lips and gestured for us to follow him. We all trusted his military expertise more than ever. Every crunch made by one of our missteps sent a dagger of fear through my heart, but we kept walking. I reminded myself over and over that Ilya was probably right. They had escaped somehow.

“Wait,” said Ilya as we arrived down on the plateau. “I can hear someone. It’s one of the girls. She popped out of thin air! She seems familiar but I can’t place her.”

We all stopped short. Ilya took another couple of steps as though listening and suddenly vomited all over himself. Faith ran to pull him back and the sickness hit her too. I ran out in front of both of them and concentrated with all my heart on lifting them up and backward towards the hillside.

Faith and Ilya both rose a few inches of the ground and floated backwards a few feet until I accidentally dropped them. They were still recovering, but the sickness had lost its grip.

“Don’t come any closer, anyone,” I said.

“The girl is in the mobile home. Hurry! While she’s still there,” said Ilya, wiping his face in disgust.

I ran to the front door of the mobile home. I hesitated for a moment before I opened the door.

The building held an office and storage space with several cubicles nearest me. A wall of cabinets stretched along one side of the building and a row of walk-in freezers hummed along the other side. Rows and rows of canisters sat in quiet stasis.

I forced myself to continue inside, remembering that I was supposed to be looking for a live person before trying to make sense of anything behind the doors ahead. And then a rustle of paper inside one of the cubicles sent a shock of panic through me.