Chapter Fifteen
There was a loud knocking against my bedroom door. It scared me, until I realised that it was probably just Sefarina. I placed the brand new laptop, which had been generously provided to me by the Elementus Populas, carefully onto my sumptuously soft duvet cover. I uncrossed my legs and looked up at the door.
“Come in!” I bellowed, and as soon as the words passed my lips, Sefarina scuttled into the room and leapt onto the bed. The firm mattress took the impact well, but the duvet did not, and ballooned up with the extra weight, sending my laptop spiralling towards the ground. I cried out in shock and anger as I saw the electronic device come within inches of the floor, before stopping mid-air. It was as if it was being held in place by an invisible string. It spun on an unseen plane, and slowly rose back up towards the bed. It hovered over Sefarina’s outstretched arms and fell into them. She shut the lid carefully and offered it to me. Her plump cheeks glowed in shame as I snatched the laptop from her, putting it down cautiously on my bedside table.
“You’re so stupid sometimes!” I scolded.
“I know… I’m sorry.” She tilted her round face away from mine in anguish.
“Stop being so clumsy!” I warned her. She nodded compliantly. No matter how hard she tried, she was the sort of person who always managed to break things without intending to. It upset her that she couldn’t seem to manage her destructive side, and that we were very critical towards her about it.
I put my hand onto hers and squeezed it tenderly.
“That was so cool,” I added, softening my tone. She looked back at me, her hazel eyes shining brightly.
“I’ve been practising!” She confirmed.
“I can push objects, but I haven’t been able to catch and control them like that.”
“Oh it’s easy,” she replied dismissively. “You just have to focus on the air around the object, and then use it to grab a hold of it.”
“I don’t think I can do that…”
“Sure you can!” She beamed, “you just have to practise!”
I laughed. “I thought you could just use the wind and air to make plants grow…”
“So did I. But over the last few weeks, I discovered that there’s so much more I can do. Although breathing life into plants and flowers is pretty nifty, catching falling objects has its benefits too. I haven’t told Sigwald about it yet. I wanted to surprise him!”
“He’ll be really shocked to see you prevent objects from breaking for once!” I jibed, chuckling loudly. She grinned, and laughed with me.
“How are you finding things down in the dark dungeon?” I asked Sefarina seriously.
She shrugged. “Okay. I like meeting all the new people and discovering what their jobs are. I also like the machines and gadgets… I feel like I’m living fifty years into the future…”
I sniggered, and so did she.
“I really miss the sun, though. Do you?” Her large eyes quivered anxiously as they locked onto my own. She clearly needed some reassurance.
“Yes, of course. I’m finding it really difficult being trapped in this tomb…”
“Oh don’t say that,” she replied, “I keep having a recurring nightmare that I wake up and go into the main hall but nobody’s there. I call out everyone’s name, but they’ve all gone. Then I try to escape but the doors are locked, and I’m trapped. I try everything to escape, but the lights turn off and I’m left alone, in the dark, knowing there’s no way out…”
I shivered in horror. The thought of being sealed down here, by yourself, was terrifying. I scooped up her hands protectively.
“Nothing like that is going to happen, Sefarina, okay? You’ve got me, and I’ll never let anything bad happen to you… you know that, right?”
Her face changed from wide-eyed worry to a pleased pout.
“Yes, of course. I know that you and Niyol would never let anything bad happen to me. And I would never, ever let anything bad happen to you.”
I gazed into her soppy eyes. Something in them hardened, and I knew that she meant every word.
Suddenly I heard the door, the only way into the living quarters, slide open with a soft clank. It jolted us both out of our conversation, and we turned towards the noise. Even though the door was way on the other side of the communal space that lay just beyond my bedroom door, it was loud enough for us to hear from our bedrooms. It was weird to think that the long corridor which connected our dormitory to the rest of the building was the only way in or out, but Sigwald assured us that it was for our own safety. I thought of Sefarina’s dream, and once again shuddered.
Sefarina looked at me knowingly, and I smiled wickedly. We both instantly jumped off of the bed and rushed towards the bedroom door, sliding it open carefully, to stare out into the communal space. Standing next to the now closed door was Niyol and Valeska. They usually came back about this time from their own ‘personal’ training session, and Sefarina and I loved to watch Niyol awkwardly try to make his move. He leaned towards her desperately, looking dishevelled after a long day of training. His short brown hair was ruffled and his light grey tracksuit was filthy from dirt and sweat. Like always, Valeska looked pristine in her impractically high heeled knee length black boots, short black mini skirt and her white lab coat, which somehow managed to have a plunging neckline that revealed all. Her bouncy black hair was still shapely and silky, and her makeup was perfect. I could see why all the men drooled over her, because she had that sexy look about her. But she wasn’t that gorgeous. She wasn’t as fantastically beautiful as everyone tried to make out. On a scale of one to ten, I’d probably give her a very generous seven, and even then it would be because of her buxom body, and not her squashed face.
Sefarina giggled quietly as Niyol tried to close the gap between his body and Valeska’s. She moved backward, clearly not interested, but Niyol persisted in being creepy. Pretty soon, Valeska had had enough and left. Niyol turned to walk towards his bedroom, brimming with confidence, as if he had actually made headway with her. Sefarina and I looked at one another and then thrust the door open loudly, exiting the room. Niyol looked up in shock.
“You scared the crap out of me!” He declared viciously.
“How’s your girlfriend?” I teased.
“I wish she was my girlfriend,” he replied earnestly. Sefarina burst out laughing. He glared at her angrily. “Why is that so funny?” he asked her. He was clearly hurt by her response.
I grinned. “You’re our brother, Niyol, and we love you, so you should expect us to tell you the truth, no matter how hard it is to take. Right?”
Niyol rolled his eyes and started towards his bedroom.
“I don’t want to hear this,” he told us as he turned his back against us.
“She’s… what? Twenty years older than you?” I questioned him, “Do you really think she’s interested in you?”
He stopped and spun around, glaring at me hatefully.
“It’s none of your business Aura!” He shouted. Sefarina stiffened, and crept forward.
“Don’t you think it’s a bit weird that she’s leading you on like this?” she asked him. Her voice was soft and warm, and in response to her his face became friendlier. Sefarina was always good at getting people to open up, because she was so easy to talk to.
“She’s just being friendly,” he began, moving back over to where we were. “I know nothing’s going to happen between us, okay? She’s just being nice… and that’s all. She’d never go out with someone like me; I get that.”
Sefarina scrunched her nose up and flicked her gaze to mine, and we gave each other the look that only sisters share with one another.
“Seriously,” I interrogated him, “why is she being so weird by hanging out with you so much? It’s just… odd.”
“She’s just helping me!” He argued defensively, “I’m a Secondus. She’s worked with them before. She needs to know everything about me and my powers so she can help me to adjust. She also has to know about both of your
powers to know how we all work together…”
“So you just sit there discussing all things to do with Ventus, and nothing else?” I rolled my eyes sarcastically. He shrugged again.
“She’s my friend. What I say to her has nothing to do with either or you.”
“Why can’t we be your friends?” Sefarina questioned innocently. Niyol froze, uncomfortably.
“I…” he began, but was cut off by a loud bellowing as we were all plunged into darkness.
I threw my hands to my ears, trying to dampen the sound of the wailing claxons. Red spinning lights suddenly flashed on, allowing us all to see one another in the maroon tinted glow. Sefarina and Niyol both looked at one another, petrified.
“You don’t think…” Sefarina started, but didn’t finish.
“It must be a fire drill or something,” I reassured them confidently, even though I was just as terrified about what was happening as they were.
The sliding door to the main hub thrust open quickly and Valeska re-entered, striding in determinedly. Accompanying her was Malik, our martial arts instructor. His imposing stature made me feel slightly more at ease, but his flattened nose, which had been broken when he was in the army, was curled up in worry, as was his brow, which once again filled me with dread. Malik usually never showed any kind of emotion, and the fact that he looked slightly concerned was not a good sign. As soon as he stepped through the door, he turned and slid it shut and then dialled a numerical code into the panel next to it. His advancing look of consternation did nothing to console me.
“What’s going on?” Niyol asked Valeska as she strode unwaveringly towards the flat screen television on the wall. She picked up the remote from the glass table in front of it and switched it on, then pressed a combination of numbers into the pad. The screen, which was black, suddenly glowed the same reddish colour, and an image of Sigwald popped up. He was staring directly at us, as if he could see us through the screen. He kept looking over his shoulders cautiously, as if he was about to be attacked, and whispered in terror.
“We have a security breach,” he told us, sweat dripping from his furrowed brow. Sefarina ran towards me with her outstretched arms and threw them around my waist. She hugged me tightly, trembling. I put my right arm around her back and stroked her hair with my left, trying my best to comfort her. Niyol walked over to us, hovering behind defensively, and stopped.
“What do you mean?” I asked the screen, assuming that Sigwald could see and hear us.
“Is this a drill?” Niyol wondered clumsily. Sigwald shook his head, darkening.
“I wish it was, but it isn’t. We have discovered that someone has been hacking into our database, and stealing encrypted files.”
I gulped, loudly. My mouth dropped open, and my eyes shot to Niyol’s. He looked just as horrified as I felt.
“About us?” Niyol asked, knowing the answer.
Sigwald sighed, and nodded.
“We think…” he began, quietly, “we think that…” He stopped abruptly, and moved his face closer towards the camera filming him. “We believe that someone within the Ventus Cohors is working for… the Inimicus.”
“What?!?” Valeska cried out in shock, taking the words right out of my mouth. “That can’t be possible!”
“I’m afraid it may well be,” Sigwald replied sadly.
“Have they come to get us?” Sefarina pondered. Her voice quivered in terror.
Sigwald smiled as if somebody had told a joke, but no one was laughing.
“No, no one has come to take you! We’re just locking down the building so that no one leaves. We must find the mole and eliminate the threat. I’ve sent Valeska and Malik in there with you because you know and trust them, and while we’re conducting our investigation, they’ll…”
The television went black as the lights cut out again. The sirens stopped their wailing, and we were plunged into a terrifying silence. I could hear Valeska trying her hardest to turn the television screen back on by fiddling with the remote control buttons, grunting as she worked frantically to restore its power. Sefarina clutched me tighter. Her breathing was heavy, and she was beginning to panic. I felt my top begin to grow wet and warm where her face was pressing into it, and realised that she was quietly crying. I stroked her hair and began to make gentle noises to soothe her.
A sudden flash of white light made my body jolt in shock. I did everything I could to stop myself from screaming. My chest heaved as my breathing grew heavier, and my eyes darted around in the lingering darkness. Another flash of light exploded through the pitch black, but this time it remained on. I turned to see Niyol holding two bright balls of lightning in both of his palms. He smiled at me reassuringly, and I smiled back. Malik remained in place, guarding the exit like a frozen statue, and Valeska continued to fumble with the remote. She too was trying to keep her calm, but her erratic movements proved that she was anything but.
The TV began to flicker on. Valeska huffed in self-congratulation. She stopped pressing the remote to turn to smile victoriously at Niyol. The television turned off again, and she growled in annoyance. Before she had the chance to press any more buttons, it switched back on, but this time the image was cracked and distorted. It looked as if the outline of a person was sitting before us, but they were just a dark silhouette, and there was absolutely nothing behind them. It definitely wasn’t any part of the Ventus base, and from what I could make out, it didn’t look like anyone I had ever met.
“Hello Ventus,” a deep distorted computerised voice spoke, making everybody in the room jump out of their skin. Sefarina continued to grab me, but now she was watching the screen, as if compelled to out of a primal dread.
“I am HE the current leader of the Inimicus. Unlike you, I have no powers of my own, but I am an incredibly able and efficient mortal for any Elemental who needs my… assistance. I have called on you today to prove just how worthless the Elementus Populas are. They promise you protection, and they have a spy in their midst. They promise you anonymity, and they can’t even stop their enemy from hacking into their security system to discover who you are. They promise you a life of service and sacrifice, while we would provide you with a life of riches and glory.”
“Don’t listen to him!” Valeska screamed out, rushing over to the television to try to switch it off. As she began clawing at the monitor hanging on the wall, I stood, frozen. I didn’t know what to think, or to feel. HE had a point, a very good one. He had been able to find out who we were, without even entering the building. I wasn’t going to let anyone harm my brother and sister, so if Sigwald and his team couldn’t protect us, then perhaps we should leave, and protect ourselves.
My gaze shifted to Niyol, who stopped creating his crackling light to walk closer towards the screen. He looked like he was absorbed with the blank outline, basking into its dank glow. Malik grunted. He was warning Niyol not to get too close to the television, as if it might suddenly be able to physically harm us. Niyol stopped obediently. HE chuckled cruelly.
“It’s so nice to finally meet all of you. Especially after hearing so much about you all. I do hope that, one day, we can all meet in person, when you decide to work with us.”
“With you?” I questioned pedantically, “Not for you?”
HE sniggered again.
“Oh no, not at all! Why should anybody expect to control you? You are deities! You should be worshipped! No one should expect you to work for them. Sigwald and the rest of the Elementus Populas have it all wrong. They want to control you. Make you bend to their will. I’m sure by now they’ve told you some mumbo-jumbo about saving the world by keeping humans and nature in balance with one another. Well that’s all hogwash. It’s complete and utter nonsense. You’re gods! And gods should rule humankind!”
I shuddered. The idea of anyone bowing down to me was absolutely reprehensible. Although it was nice for people to appreciate you, having them worship you would be another matter entirely. If I were a queen, then maybe I would
enjoy it. But being revered as a god?? I knew I wasn’t a god. Gods weren’t… like me. If there was such a thing as a God, which I was pretty unsure about, then I’m sure he wouldn’t be moody and nasty and angry. Our powers must be natural: organic. Sigwald said it was all science and genetics, and I agreed with him. It just made sense: it was evolution in action. Even if God had somehow ordained us with these powers, I’m sure they would be for selfless purposes, not for selfish ones. If I had learnt anything from going to church as a child, it was that God was all about teaching us to love others, not ourselves.
I could see the side of Niyol’s face. He had a twinkle in his eye, and I knew what that meant. I had seen that sneaky look before, right before he did something naughty.
“We shall have a proper discussion when we meet in person,” HE continued, his robotic voice crackling, “but until then, I hope you think about what we’re offering.”
HE stopped, and there was a dark silence that lingered in the large space. It made the room feel small, like a sweaty box, which we were all trapped in. I felt as if I were standing shoulder to shoulder with everyone who was in the space, and I couldn’t breathe. The temperature was rising, and so was the humidity. I felt the water droplets begin to seep out of everyone’s flesh and contribute to the damp clamminess of the air. My chest rose slowly, and dropped quickly. I waited to hear a noise. Something: anything to break the painfully onerous quiet.
“Has HE gone?” Sefarina mumbled, her head pressed further into my shoulder.
“I don’t know…” I replied, staring at the trembling glare of the TV screen. It was still on, and a figure continued to watch us. Valeska attempted to switch the television off, but jumped out of her skin when HE laughed. She shrieked, and Niyol rushed over to comfort her, but she cruelly pushed him aside.
“I’m always watching you,” HE stated, his voice continuing to crackle menacingly. “I had hoped that you might make a decision right now, but it seems that you won’t.”
“Of course we won’t!” I interrupted, “Why would we work for you, when we have the Elementus Populas helping us? They’re encouraging us to help people: how can that be a bad thing?”
“There are two sides to every story, Aura. Everyone has an agenda: the Inimicus, the Elementus Populas; everyone. But at least we have told you ours. Humans need you to rule them. They need to respect you: to fear you. Together, we can change the world. No more war, no more poverty, no more hurt. Don’t you want a world like that?”
Sefarina’s head rose slowly as it faced the shivering screen. She slowly began to nod her head in agreement. I pulled her close.
“He’s just saying what you want to hear! He’s the enemy, he wants to control us!”
HE snickered.
“You’ve seen too many movies, Aura, and listened to too many old fools. I don’t expect you to understand right away. But don’t worry: I’m a patient man. I can wait.”
“Don’t bother,” I replied forcefully, “Our answer will always be no.”
Niyol spun around, bounding towards me.
“You don’t speak for all of us,” he spat authoritatively; “I’m the leader here, not you. You don’t get to decide what we all do. We don’t have to work together you know.”
I squinted, trying to make out his facial expressions in the dim light. From the way he was speaking, I could tell that he was deadly serious. I was worried. I closed my eyes. Instead of relying on my poor vision, I was focusing on the air particles that shifted through the space. I could feel exactly where everyone was, and what they were doing. It was just as good as being able to see, except I had even more awareness of my surroundings. And I could control them.
“You want to work for them?” I asked him, solemnly.
“We don’t have to work for anyone. We could work for ourselves.”
“And what would you do? Be a killer for hire?”
“Of course not! I can do anything!”
“Where did you get this from?”
Niyol paused. He was not the type of person to go against authority for no good reason. He had always been the boy who played by the rules and did what he was told. He sighed, and I felt the air leave his lungs, and scatter into the atmosphere.
“Valeska says that we don’t have to work for anybody…”
“Oh,” I cut off, a patronising tone poisoning my voice, “I see. Valeska. I knew you wouldn’t come up with that kind of concept all by yourself. You’re not clever enough too.”
“Shut up!” He screamed. I heard Him laugh, realising that he was still watching us.
“When is Sigwald going to get us out of here?” Sefarina pondered aloud, trying to diffuse the situation.
I felt Valeska’s body dent the molecules in front of her, and knew she was walking towards us with her hands shaking emphatically by her side.
“That’s not what I meant,” she defended, “I have been open and honest with your brother, Aura. I told him that working with the Elementus Populas is a choice that you all have to make.”
“So now we are working with you?” I retorted obnoxiously. I felt her clench her fists together.
“Sigwald has never said that you are working for us,” Valeska replied calmly.
HE chortled again. This time it was deep and long, and lasted a lengthy amount of time. It sent shivers down my spine, and forced me to open my eyes.
“You just got interesting,” HE said playfully. “I’m not in any rush. You don’t have to make up you’re minds right now. But I must warn you: if you do decide to go against us, you will regret it.”
“Threatening us won’t help you,” I pointed out.
“It’s not a threat, it’s a promise. I don’t want to have to hurt you, but if you choose to work for the Elementus Populas, that means that you too become our enemy. You shouldn’t fear us, but you should fear what we are capable of. Resist us, and people will get hurt. Join us, and you can stop that from happening. And just to prove to you how serious I am, and how powerful the Inimicus are, we will now provide a live demonstration. Until I see you again: goodbye.”
The television went dead, and we were once again plunged into darkness.
“What the hell did he mean by that?” Niyol shouted fearfully into the black room.
“I… I don’t know.” Valeska’s voice trembled with fear.
“We’re safe!” Malik announced, his booming voice cutting through the darkness. He’s just trying to scare you!”
“Well he’s doing a good job,” Sefarina admitted.
In an instant, the red warning lights exploded back on, and the klaxon began sounding. I pressed my hands against my ears in shock, and gazed around the room in anguish. The television switched back on, and Sigwald reappeared, this time he was screaming into the camera in urgency.
“They’re here! This is a Code Red Emergency! There are people…”
A large fist struck the side of Sigwald’s head forcefully, and he collapsed out of view. The remaining image was of one of the science labs, with a walkway behind it, and there were loads of soldier-like people dressed in black scurrying through the building. It was the Inimicus. And they were coming for us.