23

The light extinguished, and Evazee fell back. It was as if something had her head in a death-grip but decided that she wasn’t worth eating. Her eyes filmed over, and she blinked rapidly to clear her vision. Someone had called her name, and she could have sworn she’d seen Kai. She blinked again and shook her head to clear the strange fog in her mind. She needed to think clearly.

“Zee! Is that really you?”

Somebody had called her, she hadn’t imagined it. The boy that came running looked too tall, too thin. But there was no mistaking that face. She lay back on the grassy path that meandered between the pools, watching him as he ran toward her.

Was this part of the vision from the pool?

Then the vision bent down and folded her into a hug that seemed to last forever. Evazee breathed in the smell of him. “Are you really here? Or is this some weird thing my brain is cooking up for me?”

He laughed and hugged her, but she didn’t hug him back. He backed off and waved a hand in front of her face, frowning. “Are you drugged, Zee?”

Evazee couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She pushed herself to her feet and turned on him. “How is it possible that even visions of you annoy me so much I could cry? How, I ask you? And what is that awful jumpsuit you’re wearing?”

“I promise I’m not a vision. They brought us here for testing, but I found Tau instead. So their plans aren’t working too well on me. I was killing time, hoping to fake it, but now you’re here, and it’s all worthwhile. I’ve been so worried about you. How are you? What have you been doing? Have you figured out how we’re supposed to get home?”

“Who are they and why are you wearing that thing?”

“Oh, and we found Bree. Zee, I don’t know what to do. She’s changed, nothing like she used to be. She wears her hair straight and doesn’t paint anymore.” Kai seemed to run out of words, though the creases in his face spoke of his deep worry.

Evazee took his face in her hands, lining up with his eyes. He looked real. He sure felt real, too. This vision was overwhelming. There was no way of knowing whether he told her truth or lies, though. “Kai, who are they?”

“We’ve been at Stone City. You know the light we saw from the graveyard? Well, we found it. It’s just back this way.”

Zulu and Peta were sitting cross-legged next to a pool that cycled through hues of pink, purple, and a shade of turquoise so pretty it made Evazee’s heart pop. Peta was telling Zulu a story, a funny one by the loud guffaws coming from Zulu.

“What kind of place is it? So far, we haven’t found anywhere safe. I keep waiting for bad things to happen.”

“There’s no simple answer to that. It’s beautiful and organised. The people are kind. Except that one soldier who took his job too seriously. It all seems to work. They live in light, not darkness.” Kai traced his finger in the sand along the edge of the pool. “It’s so weird. We had to go through all sorts of obstacles to get to Stone City and yet if we’d come this way, we could have walked straight in.”

“What are you not telling me?”

“What do you mean?”

“C’mon, Kai. I know you by now. What’s it about this place that doesn’t sit well with you?”

“I can’t put my finger on it. I guess the way Bree has changed has me somewhat rattled. It’s not a city full of people who celebrate differences. They seem to want everyone to fit the same mould.”

“Is that such a bad thing?”

“That’s what I’m struggling to figure out. What do you think?”

Evazee didn’t answer. She felt an overwhelming urge to dive into the pool in front of her. She needed answers. Maybe this walking, talking vision of Kai was her answer.

“Come. You can get a good view of the city from just up that rise. Maybe you’ll get a gut-feel of the place.” He helped her to her feet, and she dusted grass off her pants. The path narrowed, and she slipped in behind him.

Kai turned back. “It’s right up—” He bounced off an invisible barrier, snapping backwards into her. They both stumbled and fell. “What the heck?” Kai helped her to her feet, and his hand shot out, apparently reaching for the invisible wall he’d just bounced off. “This barrier seems to stretch across the path. I can’t reach the top either.”

Zap and Ruaan slipped out of the bushes on the other side of the barrier, panic all over their faces. Zap shook his head and ran a thumb across his throat. Ruaan had both hands up, palms facing Kai. They ran straight through a barrier that Kai couldn’t stick a pinky finger through.

Zap’s eyes darted to the sides. “Run, Kai, they’re coming for you.” He stopped dead as his gaze settled on Evazee. “Is she for real? Or some sort of mental simulation?”

“Real. You can hug her. But maybe not now.” Kai shook his head. “I need to get back to the other side. I need to get to Bree.” He turned back to the invisible barrier and smacked his hands against it. They bounced back, stinging. “You try, Zap.”

Puzzlement played over Zap’s features. He turned and walked back the way he’d come, bounced, and fell on his rear. “What is that thing?”

“So, it’s not just me.”

Ruaan tried, too, and walked through the barrier as if it weren’t there, spun around, and came back. “I don’t know what you guys are talking about.”

Bodies flashed by, running through the trees. Evazee leaned in close and felt the blood drain from her face. Run Kai. They are coming for you. “They seem kind of desperate to catch you. Should we go?”

A group burst around an enormous bush on the far side of the pools. They ran swiftly, some carried guns.

“Kai, run. Now! Go!”

They turned together and took off. Kai’s hands were suddenly on her back, pushing her in front of him.

They picked their way between the pools and the other visitors who glared at them for running.

“Why are they after you?”

“I busted a fake healing meeting.” Kai gasped for air as he ran. “I know how they trick people. They saw me.”

They made it over the top of a small hill. Evazee shaded her eyes and searched for Zulu and Peta. There. She grabbed Kai’s arm and pulled. They barrelled downhill at full speed and slid to a stop at the edge of a pool. Peta jumped to her feet with a shriek.

Evazee threw an arm around Peta and steadied herself on Zulu’s shoulder. “Zulu! We need to leave. Quick!” Her hand waved between the boys, “Kai, meet Zulu.”

“Zulu, Kai.” Evazee doubled over, catching her breath from the run.

Zulu rose to his impressive tallness. “They will not follow beyond where the pool light ends. Come. We must run.” He reached down and lifted Peta onto his back. “Hold tight, small one.”

“Whoa! Who is he?” Zap grabbed Kai’s arm and pulled him close. “What’s up with the big guy? When did we get him?”

Evazee answered over her shoulder. “You can trust him. I think. We have to go.”

Zulu gathered them together and they ran, single file between the pools. They reached the edge of the light. Evazee steeled herself and stepped into the darkness. It seemed darker than she remembered. They melted into the shadow and switched from running to a fast walk that gave them enough time to navigate without tripping.

Evazee risked a glance backwards. Their pursuers stood within the edge of the glowing light and shook their fists at the darkness. Just as Zulu had predicted, they wouldn’t go any further. For the first time, she felt grateful for the dark.

Kai manoeuvred next to Evazee

“Are you grinning at me?”

Kai cleared his throat. “You can’t blame me. Finding you and Peta? It’s just the kind of miracle I need.”

Zulu halted, and Peta slid off his back. “We stop here. Make plans. Yes?” He didn’t wait for anyone to agree, but went about kicking purple mushrooms until they sat in a glowing circle that gave off enough light to see each other’s faces.

Evazee eased herself down onto a fallen tree trunk and stretched her legs out in front of her. “How did you get to be on our side of the barrier?”

“I don’t know. I just walked through. There was nothing there. But you saw what happened when I tried to go back.”

“They must have a selective one-way filtered barrier of sorts.”

“So what you’re saying is that we failed to make the grade?”

Evazee shrugged. “Draw your own conclusions. I’m just calling it as I see it.”

“Well, that’s not very nice.”

“Oh, stop frowning, we have bigger issues. You know the OS problem that we solved? Well, that was just one small anthill in a world-wide network of anthills and tunnels.”

“What are you saying? More schools?”

“An entire global network of schools and some sort of underground tunnel system to connect them all.”

“It’s not possible. How do you know?”

“I found a map thing.”

“You found a map. Where? Did you bring it? Let me see.”

“I said a map thing. Not exactly something I could stuff in my back pocket. And before you ask me to take you to it, it’s right in the heart of where I’ve just escaped from. I don’t really want to go back.”

Kai settled onto the tree trunk next to Evazee. “I feel like I’m completely blind. I was clueless last time I was stuck here, so this time I should be a little wiser, you know? But everything is different. I haven’t seen a single darKound or LightSucker. Tau is mostly gone. I just don’t get it.”

Evazee rubbed her temples with the heels of her hands. “The way I see it, our most important mission is to find the Healing Stream. With that, we can break the power of the negative Affinity serum and—”

“Wait! You know about that? How?”

“Not know, exactly. I suspect. What do you know?”

“I had a chat with Runt. Don’t ask how. Anyway, she told me that everybody back at the OS is completely knocked out. When I find out who did this...”

“The question is what do we do now?” Evazee shivered and rubbed her arms.

Peta settled herself next to Evazee. She rested her head on Evazee’s thigh and almost immediately, her breathing slowed.

Evazee stroked her silvery fair hair, and Peta smiled in her sleep. “If we can find the Healing Stream, the water will reverse the effects of the serum.” She glanced over to Zulu, who examined something at the base of a tree a good distance away from them. She leaned close to Kai and whispered, “His village has a supply of Healing Stream water. He won’t go back, but it might be our only option.”

“How can you be so sure that it will work?”

Evazee smiled gently at the young girl on her lap. Peta’s mouth was wide open, and she snored softly. “This one. This is how I know.”

“I still think your map thing needs to be our starting point.”

Evazee rolled her eyes. “You don’t know what level of stupidity that would be. I can’t believe you’d actually consider it.”

“You won’t tell me anything, so how can you expect me to make good choices?”

“I suppose I thought you’d use your common sense.”

“Ouch.” Kai pulled back as if she’d slapped his face with her words. “The thing is, Zap, my friend Pete, he doesn’t have time for us to mess around. His death date is being carved right now. Who knows, it might even be finished. Not to mention Bree and her grave. We need a map.”

“I know. I was there. Remember?”

“Then you should understand.”

Evazee struggled against the words on her tongue. Again, nothing lit up or glowed. It was just her and her bad people skills. She should tell Kai about Shasta. She should. But every time she thought back to his breath on her neck, how close he stood to show her the map, she knew she couldn’t talk about it without giving away the fact that she had enjoyed being alone with him. And yet she hated everything he stood for. The battle inside her showed up as two hot spots riding high on her cheeks.

“What is going on with your face? What are you thinking?” Kai’s left eyebrow rode high.

“Nothing, I’m just feeling the heat.” Evazee fanned her face with her hand, avoiding Kai’s eyes.

“That’s odd. I’m not feeling hot. In fact, it’s quite cool here under the trees.”

“Well, boys and girls are different, you know.” She turned her back on him, shifting Peta to a more comfortable position. Maybe he’d get the hint and go away.

~*~

“I’m still here, you know.” Kai rubbed his temples. The stubbornness of this girl gave him a headache.

A deep boom shuddered through the ground beneath their feet. Evazee jumped up, her eyes stretched wide. Peta slipped, banged her head on the tree trunk, and cried out.

Kai slid over to Peta and pulled her closer. “Evazee, what’s going on?”

A double drum beat rippled through the ground. Evazee shut her eyes. She was swaying on her feet. A sudden quiver ran through her body.

Zulu stood, rooted. “Not this again.” His muscles bunched beneath his dark skin.

As the next drumbeat rolled, Evazee stumbled through the trees and began to follow a path that led downhill from where they stood. She was picking up speed.

Peta’s cheeks were wet with tears, but she made no noise. Zulu took off like a cheetah after his prey. Kai wasn’t planning on losing Evazee again. “Guys, follow!”

Zap looked up. “Cheetah indeed.” He roused Ruaan with a shove to his shoulder. “Come on, sleeping beauty. There’s some trouble going down.”

Ruaan rubbed his eyes and stretched, blinked twice, and squinted off into the distance. “I see them. Follow me.”

Kai shivered at the sight of Ruaan’s glowing eyes. He picked up Peta and followed, dashing through the trees, losing ground to his friends. Her slight weight became heavier as he ran, holding her in his arms. More drumbeats followed, picking up the pace, building toward a crescendo. Evazee ran faster than Kai thought possible. She crashed through low-hanging branches and left them swishing wildly.

Zulu halted. He waited for Kai to catch up, “We can’t let her get to the underground gate. Once she’s in there, we would lose her too quickly. I think there’s another entrance close to here. I’m going to stop her.”

His eyes flashed purple in the gloom, and Kai’s heart shifted. This is Zulu. You can trust him. I think.

“No! Wait!” But Evazee and Zulu had both vanished from his sight in the thick undergrowth. Kai stopped running and let Peta slip out of his arms. “Let’s keep going. I’m not losing them.”

Peta slipped a small hand into his and nodded. Her eyes glowed a luminous blue in the dark. She took off in front of him, running like a spooked rabbit. She dodged, weaved, and dove under low-hanging branches. Kai pushed hard to keep up with her.

The drumbeats took on a regular rhythm, and Kai ran in time to them. They rounded a corner and Peta thumped into a solid object. Zulu. He stood waiting for them, the few lines on his forehead the only indication of his anxiety.

“Where are they? Why did you lose them?”

“Your friends have fallen under the power of the drums.”

Kai pushed past Zulu and Peta. “Did they go that way?”

“You can’t follow them.”

“Who’s going to stop me?” Kai paused for a fraction of a second before turning back to the path. Tau, show me the way. He saw it then, broken leaves and branches all glowing green, telling the story of many feet passing in the same direction.

Zulu took Peta’s hand in his. “If you’re going, so are we.”

Kai studied Peta, standing so still and unmoved by the rhythm that seduced their friends. He nodded once. “Stay together.”

Moving through the forest as quietly as possible, Kai tracked the signs all the way to a broad dip in the landscape. The forest floor ran all the way up to the base of a big rock. The trail ended there.

Zulu whispered from behind. “Keep going. The way will open.”

Kai’s mind churned through the possibilities. Zulu’s plan was the only one if he wanted to see his friends again. He stepped onto the slope, took another step. Nothing exploded or set off an alarm, so he kept going. Kai was about halfway to the rock when the ground beneath his feet tipped downward, opening up a gaping hole in the ground.

Sweat broke out on Kai’s forehead. This felt like walking into his own grave and waiting for the shovels of dirt to start piling up. His heart pounded.

Zulu and Peta walked in first, still holding hands. Kai hesitated at the entrance, pacing. Stop being such a chicken. The ground trembled, shaking so hard that he lost his footing, fell, and rolled the rest of the way down the hill. As he lay on his back, he focussed completely on drawing the next breath. Stars danced in his vision, but he knew they weren’t real.

The trapdoor slammed shut with a loud creak.