Stolen Flyght – Chapter 16

“So, where to next?” I ask Jinzo. My nerves are on edge after that last call from Skylar. I hope Gloria and Lia made some headway on their snooping so we can meet up and try to figure out where to go next. We haven’t run into anything shocking yet, and nothing radioactive. Where is the big source of energy we saw on the map of Neve, and what is it powering?

My ear implant remains silent, and my stomach churns with anxiety. Where’s Skylar and my outside team? Were they found out? Have they been taken into custody? Or did they get away before the soldiers reached them?

Jinzo looks at me, hoping for some update. I shrug and drag my finger across my neck. He frowns. Communications with our team are cut off. That’s not good.

“Excuse me, Echo…?” I turn to the android, addressing it directly.

“I’m Echo-97.”

“Thanks. I’m unfamiliar with the directories here. Can you tell me how to find my colleagues?”

“You wish to locate the people with Echo-216? They’re in the medical labs.”

“Please take us there.”

The android leads us down a sublevel and into a new corridor. I try to trace my way in my head back to the surface and out of the restricted areas, but it’s no use. I have no idea where I am now.

This medical corridor is a series of rooms with one-way mirrors and android sentries next to each door. The first room we pass is dark. The second one has several couches and tables with men playing cards or reading datapads. I stop at the window when I realize they’re all wearing patient scrubs. They look relaxed and carefree, just sitting around biding their time.

The next room has several bunk beds, and men either lounge or sleep curled up on the mattresses. What are all these men doing here? They must be subjects in some kind of test, otherwise why the one-way mirrors?

I stop in front of another room, and this time, when I approach the glass, a display pops up on the one-way mirror. Ah, it’s also a data access point. Circles form around each of the subjects in the room, tracking all their vital statistics like heart rate, exercise for the day, last time they slept and for how long… I scroll through until I have a good idea of what’s available. Huh. I wonder what kind of tests are going on here.

“Hey, Terri,” Jinzo calls out. Oh! He means me. “I found them.”

He gestures at the room he’s in front of. Inside, Gloria and Lia are at a table together, speaking to a man in his twenties while their android stands in the corner.

I hesitate with my hand over the door panel. Maybe I shouldn’t interrupt?

I should. We don’t have much time left here.

Lia jumps to her feet, startled, and Gloria almost rushes at us before she realizes who we are.

“Hey. It’s just us,” I say, extending my hands, palms out, to calm down their fighting instincts. “We’ve been looking for you.”

Jinzo and I hurry in with the android right behind us. We glance at the young man they’ve been speaking to, so he stands up and extends his hand.

“Hi, I’m Robin.” His smile is sincere, so I relax a little and introduce Jinzo and myself by our pseudonyms.

“Nice to meet you,” I say, sliding into a seat across the table. I turn to Gloria and Lia. “What have you all been talking about in here?”

Lia sits forward. “Robin has been telling us all about the experiments the military has been doing on him and all the other men here.” Her voice is full of manufactured wonder bordering on sarcasm. Like, of course the military is experimenting on people here. We’d be complete and total idiots to think otherwise.

Robin laughs. “Not that hard to believe, I’m sure.” His hand twitches. He stares at it for a moment, clenches his fingers into a fist, then places his hand in his lap with a heavy sigh. “I’ve had much more tolerable side effects than the others.”

“The doctors here are using gene-altering techniques on live human subjects. They’re editing their DNA to get rid of the Vir gene,” Gloria explains. “It’s” — she laughs and shakes her head — “completely bonkers.”

Robin shrugs. “Like I said, I didn’t have a job, and my family was tired of supporting me. The military is providing me with a salary and a job once I leave here. I can’t complain.”

“If you leave here,” Lia reminds him. “If. Gene editing is risky business. It’s how we got the Vir gene in the first place.”

Robin shrugs again. “You think I’d be here if men hadn’t already been cured?”

I stand up, and once I’m on my feet, I’m not sure why.

Shit. There’s a lot more happening at this base than I suspected.

“How many have been cured so far?” I ask, deciding to pace the room. It’s amazing that once the adrenaline gets going, I don’t feel like shit anymore.

“I think only about a dozen? And the program recently went from sixty men to close to a hundred. I got here two weeks ago.”

I feel a compelling need to run out and stop test subjects from spreading their altered genes around the Duo Systems. This is madness. If they’re doing this, then who knows what else they’re doing.

“Don’t get me wrong. It hasn’t been a resounding success. Two men have died.”

I cover my mouth with my hand and sink back to my chair.

“But it’s a risk many of us will take. So…” He sits up in his chair and puts on a dazzling smile. He’s a handsome guy. If it weren’t for the Vir gene… “Now that you know more about me, what are my chances for advancement in the program?”

Lia leans forward into the conversation. “As independent auditors of this program, we can’t guarantee special favors to any of the test subjects. But we’ll note in your record that you were helpful. Hopefully, that will get you a little bonus.”

Robin deflates. “Fine,” he says, standing up. “Well, it was an enjoyable way to spend the time. It’s super boring here. There’s not much to do, and a conversation is better than nothing.”

Gloria stands up and opens the door to the room. “We’ll escort you back.”

Echo-216 leaves with Gloria and Robin.

“Well, shit.” Once the door is closed, I remove my business mask. “What else do you think they’re doing here?”

“I hate to say this, but there’s a maternity ward downstairs with three pregnant women on bed rest.”

“What?”

Lia holds up her hands. “We couldn’t tell if it was a normal maternity ward or if other things are happening there. This is an enormous base, and this secure wing caters to the upper ranks too.” She winces and draws away. “But there’s a giant lab doing experiments on Rio animals in the level below that.”

I rub my face and sigh. At this point in the investigation, I’m done. Human genome editing? Testing on Rio’s animals? And the Rio plants are being cultivated and tested, sliced and diced. They’ll probably be onto human testing in no time.

Is this enough? Have I seen the required amount of experiments to make Renata Dellis happy? I’m not sure. She’s looking for something specific, but neither of us knows what that is. It must be the giant power source, but how do I find it? How do I get there without help from the outside?

Closing my eyes, I press my hands together under the table. I have two choices. I can either call it a day, leave with the data I’ve already gathered, and hope it’s enough. Or I can stay on and try to learn more about this place.

If we stay, we could solve mysteries and get a leg up on our enemies.

But staying can also mean more time spent, energy reserves depleted, and danger.

The lack of communications from Skylar and my outside team almost makes the decision for me. They may be gone, already in orbit, or they may be dead. I swallow down the bile that rises in my throat. No. I will not think of them being dead. Not yet.

“Let’s call this day done, shall we? I think I’ve seen enough, and I’m worried we’ll have trouble getting out of the base.” I flick my eyes at the android hovering on the edge of the room. Trying not to say what I want to say is difficult. “My, uh, comms are dead.” I stress the words so everyone can read between the lines.

“They still haven’t been in touch?” Jinzo asks. I shake my head. “Then, yeah, we should go. Making our way outside will be tough without help, so we should get a jump on it.”

Lia snaps her hands out. “Wait.”

We freeze in our spots and look around.

“Where’s Gloria?” Lia stands up, trying to peer through the one-way mirror to the other side. “She should be back by now.”

The door opens, and we all scramble from our chairs and back against the wall as six men storm into the room. Within a breath, our wrists are bound and pulled behind our backs.

“Ow! Hey, that hurts!” The man who’s holding me deflects my jabs and slaps as if I’m a weak child. Jesus, his speed and strength are off the charts. I pull against his grip, but it’s too strong. Way too strong.

“Keep your voice down,” someone hisses.

I gasp and struggle, even more desperate now to get away.

That someone isn’t just anyone.

She closes the door and turns around to face us, and my heart drops into my stomach.

Lady Nina Correa, Gus’s mom, has caught up to us.

We are so fucked.