Activate (7 page)

I
t’s
hours after the others leave me before the Creator and some of her soldiers find me. They use some kind of laser to break open the door, and I run out.

“They killed Clayton, and ran.”

“You let your guard down and got caught,” the Creator says, slapping me across my face. I’m surprised to feel the sting, and I show it. “Yes. I can hurt you. I can’t kill you, but I can make you wish you were dead.”

“I didn’t know there were others.”

“Now you do, and you also know what has to be done. You cannot fail.”

“I won’t. I promise you, I won’t.”

“We
will
find them, and then it will be time for you to make good on that promise.”

“Yes,” I say, standing up straighter. “Find them, and I will end this once and for all.”

J
ennifer
and I swam to Dublin. Yeah, we
swam
. From Australia. And I’m not even winded. Soaking wet, but not tired.

She said we need to rest, even if it doesn’t seem like we do, so we changed into dry clothes, put on sunglasses and hats, and checked into a hotel with a credit card she somehow had on her. I didn’t ask, although I’ll admit I’m curious, but I know it’s really not important at the moment.

After a full eight hours of sleep, I realize she was right; I needed to rest. I don’t know where everyone else is, although I think they’re close, but I hope they’re getting rest as well.

I knock on our connecting door and smile when she answers. I can tell she just woke up, too. “What do we do now that we’ve rested?”

“You have to ask him where we need to go.”

I nod, and pose the question, hoping there is a set-up here, because we’re really not sure, and didn’t want to ask ahead of time, in case it would cause them to lay a trap for us. They could do that now, but they’d have less time to plan, so we feel relatively safe.

“Is there help for us here in Dublin?”

“Yes,” he answers

“Where?”

“You don’t want to try and find it yourself? After all, you traveled there without any guidance.”

“Sorry if we pissed you off, but I thought you were all about the help.”

“I have been nothing but benevolent to you. Your attitude is very disappointing.”

“Are you going to tell me, or not?”

“I will, but just remember that you need me more than I need you.”

“I seriously doubt that.”

“So much insolence to hide your fear.”

“Where is it?”

“Be Earnest, and you’ll find it.”

“What?”

I leave the question hanging, but he doesn’t answer. I probably shouldn’t have goaded him, but good needs to trump evil, and since I don’t know which he is, I’m not feeling the need to play nice.

“What did he say?” Jennifer asks me. I tell her, and she nods. “Oscar Wilde. Nice.”

“Isn’t he an author?”

“He is, and he’s from here. One of his plays was
The Importance of Being Earnest
. The set-up has to be near his house, or another monument dedicated to him.”

“Can we go now?” I ask, looking out the window at the darkened sky.

“Nighttime is our best time to go out. Put on your hat, and let’s go!”

I do as she says, and follow her out the door. I’ve always wanted to go on an adventure.

A
lejandra
and I are in Milan. It’s Fashion Week here, and we’re able to blend in with the models, because we’re both tall. She has a credit card and passport in another name, so we’re dressed in designer clothes like the models, too. We have to make sure we’re not photographed, and we wear sunglasses everywhere, but no one seems to care.

“How are you holding up?” she asks, as we sit in a plaza, eating gelato.

“I don’t really know how to answer that. I mean, I’m glad I remember now, but my head is still spinning from everything he told us.” We don’t use names when we talk about the others, just in case someone’s listening. I’ve learned that you can never be too careful. Especially after she filled in some more details for me.

“I get it. When I found out we’d been watched all our lives, it really sent me for a tumble.”

Yeah, that. Apparently, there were cameras everywhere. I don’t even want to know who was watching me pee. I shudder just thinking about it.

“It’s so creepy.”

“Yeah. Nothing to be done about it now, so I try not to dwell.”

“Easier said than done, though, right?”

“Sometimes, it definitely is.”

Back to the business at hand. “Do you really think we’ll find what we need here?”

“Yes. He hasn’t heard from his
friend
for some time now, but when they were still in contact, clues had been dropped.”

“How will we find it in a city so big, and crowded.”

“The crowds are our friends, and we’ll
know
when we’re near.”

“We don’t have that
skill
, do we?”

“We all have a little bit of everything. Not enough to use it, but sometimes we can
feel
it.”

“Time to walk the city then?”

“Afraid so.”

I can’t even imagine how many miles I’m going to be walking, because even if we can
feel
it, I’m pretty sure finding the set-up isn’t going to be easy. There are just too many places it could be in a city this size. Good thing I’m now pretty athletic, because I know the “old” me probably would’ve passed out, but the “new” me swam across an ocean or two to get here.

Being activated wasn’t all bad, but I do hope to see my parents again one day. Even if they’re not biologically mine, I know they loved me, and now I also know I love them. There are many benefits to remembering, but there are also some painful things, too. Realizing what was done to my parents, as well as to me, is probably the most painful of all.

T
he tourists are probably thinking
London looks lovely this time of year, but all I can think about is my siblings; how I’m going to find them, and then how I’m going to kill each and every one of them. The Muse is a concern, too, of course; but it was those four who left me, so I’m most concerned with taking them down. Maybe even obsessed, if I’m being honest with myself.

The Creator flew me here, but now I feel like I’m just twiddling my thumbs. I
think
Levi is too smart to let any of the others come here, but then again, he also thought leaving me alive was okay, too. That’s not going to turn out so well for him.

“Why are you just standing here, looking out the window?” the Creator asks from behind me. “Do something!”

“What? What am I supposed to do? You have no idea where they are.”

“You’re supposed to make yourself useful. Walk the city,
think
about anything you might have forgotten from your time with Levi, just do
something
.”

“You want me to just walk blindly around a city this size?”

“Yes, and you should want that to. Or maybe you don’t want to find them.”

“You know I do.”

“No. I know you have failed me once already, and you’re just sitting around here waiting for something to happen now. A true leader doesn’t expect things to just be handed to him or her.”

I hate him. Not as much as I hate the ones I’m destined to kill, but I feel the emotion just the same. I would kill him, too, if I could. Right here and right now, I would do it.

“I’ll go now.” I don’t think I’ll find anything, but I’ll do what he says, because I have no choice.

I change into clothes more suited for a teenager wandering the city, throw on some sunglasses—because if the people I’m with have eyes everywhere, who’s to say their enemies don’t as well—and take off into the city.

I look in the shops, eat some pastries, and even drink some tea during my day out. I see no one I know, which is exactly how I expected this day to go. I’m walking through Bankside by the Tate Modern, when I feel it. I don’t know what exactly it is, or why I’m drawn to the water’s edge, but there’s something calling to me. So strongly that I can’t resist.

I can’t exactly walk into the water right now, with all of these people around, not to mention the guys the Creator sent to follow me. I’m going to have to get away later, and come back here. I feel the need to see what’s down there before I share it. It’s not my siblings—of that I’m sure—and since they’re who I’m supposed to be searching for, I don’t feel guilty for hiding this. If it’s something important, or if I can use it to my advantage later, I’ll do it. For now, this will just be my little secret. The only one I’ve ever had all to myself. I think I like that.

I
don’t think
I ever thought of Brussels as a place to visit. I mean, I don’t remember my life before I was activated, but I just can’t see it. This is where I am right now, though, and it’s pretty cool. Levi’s pretty cool, too, and he makes me think we might make it out of all of this alive.

“It’s pretty cool, huh?” he asks me, nodding to the giant carpet of flowers in front of us. It’s surrounded by tourists, and we’re doing a good job of blending in with our band t-shirts and jeans.

“She’d probably like it better than I do, but it
is
cool.”

He smiles. “Maybe I can bring her here when this is all over.”

“I hope you can.”

“You’re good with me and her, right?”

“Would it matter?” I ask him with a smirk.

“Not really, but I’d rather us all be friends.”

“No worries, man. I think it’s nice. I don’t remember her from before, but I think she must have always been pretty cool, and nice.”

“I can’t imagine her being anything but nice,” he tells me, smiling again.

“Not to burst the bubble of this bromance we’re embarking on, but any news on the location front?”

He sighs, and his smile is gone. I’m a little sorry, but we need to find the set-up. It’s our only chance right now. “No. He won’t open the lines of communication.”

“So we’re just going to go looking? You said we’ll feel something when we’re near it, right?”

“Yes. We’ll feel a pull. I know this is one of the cities he’d mentioned in passing to me, and I don’t think anything he ever said could be considered small talk.”

“Which way do you want to go first?”

“How about lunch, and then we’ll start heading East?”

“Lunch? I thought we don’t need food.”

“We don’t, but that doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy the taste of it. Don’t you like a burger or pizza?”

I close my eyes and try to remember, but I can’t, so I shake my head. “They fed us some energy bars at the facility while we were looking for…you, but I don’t remember regular meals.”

He curses, and then smiles at me. “When this is all over, we’ll get you some American goodness. For now, we can grab some local stuff. That okay with you, mate?”

“Why not? When this is all over, we’ll have to pretend to be fully human, won’t we?”

“Yeah. We will.”

P
aris
. A city for lovers, but I’m here with a fighter, instead. Lauren and I arrived on the shores of this country yesterday, dried off, blended in, and took a flight to the City of Lights, while in the cover of darkness. We’re just all about the contradictions. Well, at least when it comes to our trip, and our location. Otherwise, we’re getting along pretty great.

“I love the taste of croissants…and chocolate,” she tells me, a contented smile on her face as she takes a sip of her Chocolat to wash down the bite she just took of her pastry.

“I’m pretty sure they make croissants with chocolate
inside
of them,” I say, taking a sip of my own hot drink.

“But I love this drink, and there really is such a thing as too much chocolate.”

“If you say so.”

We both smile because she’s lucky enough to remember her past, so she knows if she’s binged on something, or gotten sick. I should be jealous, but I’m not.

She has memories, but I have love. A love I wasn’t expecting, and that I don’t know what to do with, but that’s what it is. Love at first sight, a love for the ages…all of the above, and more.

“You’re getting that dreamy look on your face again. Thinking about Levi, huh?”

“Yeah,” I say, not trying to hide it. I do have a question, though. “You guys have been figuring things out, and I was wondering if you’d found out anything about how we love. I mean, is this fast connection between Levi and I something that might be normal for us? The alien us, or the hybrids…whatever we are.”

“I wish I had an answer for you, but I just don’t know. We both know they didn’t plan for us to live long enough to procreate, and I don’t even know if we can, but insta-love? I have no clue about that.”

I sigh. “I don’t want it to be part of why they made us. I want it to be real.”

“Does it feel real?”

“Yes, but everything felt real until I met the five of you.”

“I don’t want to lie to you and tell you I’m sure it’s real, but I hope it is.”

“Thanks. I don’t ever want you to lie to me. Please. Even if you think I don’t want to hear it, or it will hurt me, please tell me.”

“I will as long as you promise the same.”

“Yes.”

“Great. Now, let’s get down to business.”

“We’re going to walk to the museums today?”

“The Louvre and the Musee d’Orsay, yes. The Seine is close to there, and I feel like water is key. Maybe I’m wrong, but since the island was well, an
island
, and there were set-up materials beneath it in the ocean as well, I think we’ll find it near the water.”

“It makes sense.” About as much sense as any of this. “Let’s go for a walk.”