Beginnings (The Trifectus Series - Book One) (6 page)

“Can you believe this?” my father screeched.

“Another bank was robbed.  This is starting to get way out of hand.  How are they doing this?  Those wired freaks have always been nothing but trouble.  At least the vampires and werewolves aren’t breaking into places and stealing people’s money,” he exclaimed.

I hadn’t seen my father this heated in a while.  He hadn’t been this mad since the androidian attack seven years ago in London.  I started to make my way back upstairs to talk more to Marcus.

“Can you believe that?” I typed to him.

“What?” he asked.

“There was another bank robbery today.  Those androidians are all bad news,” I said.

“I don’t think all of them are bad,” he said.  “There are always bad people in any group.  You shouldn’t label them all bad.”

“I don’t know.  They all seem pretty bad to me.”

Right after I said this, Marcus signed off.  What did I do?  Almost everyone thought badly about the androidians.  They were never around anywhere and when they were, bad things happened.  Of course people would think they are a bad group of people.  What else do we have to think?  That they are stand-up citizens who play with puppies in the park?

I thought a lot that night.  I thought about James.  I thought about Marcus.  I even thought about Ashley and where she was right now.  Everything was my fault.  James wouldn’t talk to me.  Marcus was mad at me.  Even Ashley was probably in some prison somewhere because of me.  I was walking bad luck and who knows what I would do next.

As I went to bed, my head was racing.  I slowly started drifting away until I was woken up by faint tapping on my bedroom window.  It was James.  He was there, looking at me, waiting for me to wake and open the window.

I made my way over to the window and slowly and quietly opened it.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, with confusion.

“I needed to see you.  I couldn’t stop thinking about you,” he said.

He couldn’t stop thinking about me?  All this time he had been avoiding me and refusing to talk to me, and now he couldn’t stop thinking about me?  I was mad, but not mad enough to turn him away.

“Why?” I asked

“I couldn’t stop thinking about what you said to me.  What you thought I was.”

“I’m sorry if I offended you.  It’s just that--.”

“No,” he said, interrupting me.  “You didn’t offend me.

“It’s true.  You were right.”

I was so happy in this moment.  He finally admitted it to me.  Even with all of the struggle and pressure he felt, he cared about me enough to tell me the truth, no matter what it meant.

“You can’t tell anyone,” he said.  “If anyone found out, especially your father, things would be really bad really fast.”

“No, of course not.  I care about you, James.”

“I care about you too,” he said while looking at me softly in the eyes.

He started leaning in towards me slowly.  Was this really happening?  Were we going to kiss?  I started leaning in and closed my eyes.  It was at this moment I felt his lips against mine.  It was magical.  His cool, soft lips caressed mine with strong emotion.  He placed his hand against my cheek, brushing back my stray hairs.  It was in this moment I felt complete.  It was in this moment I was his.

The window coverings flowed gently in the night breeze: the moonlight shining down upon us.  He looked so beautiful.  His skin was glowing, his eyes twinkling. 

“Why did you hide it from me?” I asked.

“I didn’t want to scare you.  You are so perfect, and I was scared you would think I was far from it,” he said.

“No, never,” I said.  “You are the most perfect guy I’ve ever known.  I want to be yours.”

He looked at me, smiling.  His hands rested gently on my waist while my arms rested on his shoulders, my hands clasped behind his neck. 

I yawned while my eyes started tearing up.  I was tired, and he knew it.  He gently grabbed my hand and walked me over to my bed.  He tucked me in and sat beside me. 

“Aren’t you tired?” I asked him.

“No.  I don’t sleep,” he replied.

“Why not?” I asked in confusion.

“Well, when you’re a supernatural being you kind of don’t need to sleep,” he said with a soft smile.

As I fell asleep he stayed by my side.  I held his hand as I slowly started to drift away.  I was happy.

When I woke up that next morning, I was surprised.  He was gone.  I sat up and noticed a note lying on my nightstand.

“I hope your dreams were nice and sweet.  I can’t wait to see you again my love.”

I hadn’t smiled as big as I did in this moment in a long time.  He loved me: I knew it.  He cared for me just as much as I cared for him. 

As I got up and ready for the day, all I could do was smile.  I was in love, and it showed.  I went downstairs and kissed my parents on the cheek.

“What’s wrong with you?” my father asked cautiously.

“Nothing at all.  It is just a beautiful day!” I replied, smiling.

I skipped out of the house and to the car waiting outside for me.  I didn’t mind the guards today.  I happily greeted them and jumped in the car.  I was the happiest I had been in months. 

As I got out of the car, I saw Ariel and Melissa getting off the bus.

“Hey guys!” I exclaimed with excitement.

“Are you feeling okay?” Melissa asked.

“Well, sure I am!” I replied.  “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“I just haven’t seen you this happy since you’ve been here,” she replied.

“It is just a gorgeous day and I am happy to see my friends,” I said, smiling.

We all walked inside the school together and I went to my locker.  As I opened it, something fell out.  It was a note.  I hadn’t received a note since elementary school when Bobby Higgins asked me to the rec club dance.

“My dearest Juliet,” it read, “I have something very important to talk to you about.  I shall find you at lunch so we can talk.”

What was this about?  Was he going to break things off with me?  No, I thought.  After last night and the way he held me, there is no possible way he would do that to me.  I think he will tell me something good.

I kept telling myself this all day long.  While we had many of the same classes together, I couldn’t find him at all.  It was as if he was absent for the day.  Why would he come and talk to me at lunch, though, if he didn’t show up for any classes?

When the bell finally rang for lunch, I turned into an Olympic sprinter.  I pushed and shoved my way to the cafeteria and leaned against a wall to wait for him to arrive.  I waited for ten minutes without him showing up.  Just as I was about to give up hope,  there he was.

“Hey,” I said.  “I got your note.  What’s wrong?” I asked.

“Nothing at all.  I just wanted to ask you something,” he said.

“Well, what’s it about?” I asked.

“I was wondering if you were free this weekend.”

Was he about to ask me out on a date?  Was this really happening? 

“Y-yeah, I’m free,” I said, trying to contain my excitement.

“I was wondering if you wanted to come to my house and meet my family,” he said.

His family?  It wasn’t quite what I was hoping for our first date, but I wasn’t about to pass up this opportunity. 

“Yeah, that sounds good,” I said, smiling.

“Good,” he said.  “I will see you on Saturday at five.”

After he said that, he walked away.  I could see Emma, his sister, looking on and smiling.  She had a very pretty smile, and I could tell she was excited. 

As I went and sat down with my friends, I could tell they were slightly confused.

“What was that all about?” asked Ariel.

“Oh, nothing,” I replied.  “I am just going to James’s house Saturday.”

“I’m surprised he did that,” said Ryan.

“Why?  What do you mean?”

“Nobody has ever seen their house or where they go.”

“Well, that isn’t too weird,” I said, trying to steer the conversation elsewhere.

“Sure it is,” exclaimed Steve.  “A couple people tried following them home one day to see just where they live,” he continued.  “When they went around a corner they vanished, as if they were never there.”

“Yeah,” said Greg.  “They’re very secretive.”

Just as things started getting awkward, the bell rang.  I had never been so excited to get to class and away from this conversation.  James and Emma weren’t weird or secretive.  They just didn’t want anybody following them and finding out what they were. 

As I sat down in Mr. Quigley’s history class, he started speaking.

“Well, class.  Today we have a very interesting topic for you to learn about.  We are going to learn about the androidians,” he said.

The entire class groaned. 

“Oh hush now,” he said.  “With the recent attacks I think it is only important that we learn more about them and see if we can figure out how they tick.  Those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it,” he exclaimed.

As he dimmed the lights, the projector started. 

Androidians are a recent race to this planet.  The revolution started 37 years ago after the election of President Jonathon Rose.  President Rose sought to take this country back to a simpler time: a time when electronics and other devices didn’t rule the lives of the people.  A time when we communicated face-to-face like our grandparents and not through gadgets and devices.  Most of the population opposed this change.  A select few took it one step further.  They didn’t want their lives dictated by a tyrannical dictator who would take away the freedoms of the people. 

Once the revolution started, it easily picked up momentum.  Outcasts were enticed by a society with open acceptance.  Anyone could get the implants and be accepted into a “loving” society.  Those secluded from normal society could find refuge and families.  It wasn’t long before their numbers increased.  Word spread beyond our country and people all over the world jumped on the prospect of unity and acceptance. 

They sought refuge in underground bunkers and sewers.  Most of the members were experienced and versed in coding, software, technology and the sciences.  They developed a way to inject software into their minds.  To fuse their emotional selves with new computer selves.  They developed weapons and gear that they could implant into their bodies.  They implanted themselves with guns, cannons and even bionic limbs and eyes.  They did it all, and they did it efficiently.  Nobody saw these people for a couple years until they attacked.  They attacked President Rose and his colleagues and assassinated them.  The world watched in awe as a group of misfit rebels started their conquest of the world: a world where humans evolve into technological beings.

Soon after the assassination, most of the androidians were wiped out.  Government agents got hold of many key locations where these people lived.  They destroyed the towns and either killed or kidnapped the people who inhabited these spaces.  It was a huge loss for them, but only made them stronger. 

They haven’t been seen much since these attacks.  Many people think they are plotting something.  Many people think they are planning a large-scale attack on the mortals to take down the oppressive establishment.

“Well, class,” Mr. Quigley said, “As you can see, there is a lot of debate and confusion about these people.

“Some people think they are just a group of misguided and misinformed individuals, while others think they want the destruction of our current world.

“Your assignment for tonight is to write a short paper on what you think of the androidians,” he said.  “Write anything you feel about them and what you think the government should do, if anything.”

I barely remembered anything that was said in the movie or by Mr. Quigley.  All I could think about was James.  I wondered what his family was like.  Were they a real family, or just a group of people living together calling themselves a family?  Would they even accept me, a mortal, into their home?

As I left school, I couldn’t stop asking myself those questions.  It drove me crazy, but I knew I had to wait until Saturday to find out the answers to my questions. 

As I gathered my things and started to make my way to the entrance, my phone beeped.

“I need to talk to you,” said Marcus.

“Okay.  On my way home now,” I replied.

I had forgotten all about Marcus last night.  I got so caught up with James that I never tried to find out why he was so upset with me.  I felt really bad, and I wanted to try to make it up to him.

I went up and rushed to my room.  I had to get online and talk to Marcus.  I had to apologize to him.

“Hey!” I typed.  “What’s up?”

“Not too much.  Sorry for logging off on you yesterday.  How was school?”

“It was good.  I have to write this stupid paper.”

“Oh really?  What about?”

“About the androidians and how I feel about them.”

“I see.  How do you feel about them?”
              “I don’t know.  I mean I guess they really aren’t that good of a people.  I mean they have been committing bad acts and everyone thinks they are plotting something bad.  I guess I am just not that into them.”