Lightning (2 page)

S
elah sat in the office area of her quarters and glanced through the long expanse of glass offering a sweeping view of the blue waters of the Atlantic and exerted pressure on her thought.
One
. . .
two
. . .
three
. . .
release
.

Again
, came the voice drifting through her consciousness.

She pictured the dart of an idea burrowing like an inchworm into the core of her subject. Treva Gilani, former child prodigy of biochemical research in the Mountain, sat on the gas rig platform called Petrol City anchored fifteen miles out at sea.

Very good
, came Treva's mental response.
I like this exercise. Your thoughts are
becoming solidly focused.

Since their escape from the Mountain, they'd become fast friends, and Treva spent every opportunity helping Selah exercise her new mental abilities.

Selah tossed back a thought.
Talking about focused . . .
I've been trying hard to
research the novarium who've come before me. I need
more information than Glade is offering. I get the impression
he's stalling on purpose, even in the research I'
m doing in the Repository.
The Repository was the data file storage of the collective knowledge and actions of the Landers since their beginning at the Sorrows.

Treva's thought hit Selah's mind.
Maybe he really is busy like
he says. Other than our mind-jump exercises, we haven
't been able to spend a lot of time together
either.

Sometimes it irritated Selah when her friend tried to find the logic in a situation she wanted to consider chaotic.
I keep running into information holes and blocks
in the Repository. There's only sketchy data on a
few of the Landers in the last hundred years who'
ve transitioned to novarium, and no files on the actual
outcomes. You would think that with the transition happening to
so few, they'd have every minute of data
, Selah thought.

I still have to ask. What would be Glade'
s motivation to stall you?
Treva thought. Selah noticed a bit of force in her delivery.

I don't know
, but I'm pretty sure it's him trying to
discourage my efforts. Several times I've seen his name
in the sign-in log at the Repository, and then
mysteriously I can't find records I know I've
looked at before.

Glade, in his rabid determination to find a way to the West, had relayed very little information on the meaning or consequences of being novarium, the condition that had put the bright swirling tattoo below her collarbone. Selah had taken it upon herself to search out the information, and now
she felt it was being hidden from her on purpose.
Mother would say drill the well until
it produces water.

After all you've told me about
her, Pasha would say stop being reckless. Hang on.
Treva's thought-trail evaporated.

Selah's ComLink vibrated through the bones in her arm, tickling her elbow. She smiled and tapped the crystal. A holographic projection of Treva's head appeared above her wrist.

Selah laughed. “Sometimes it's hard to keep up with you. Why'd you break the mind-jump?” She brought her right foot up onto her chair and rested her wrist on her bent knee.

“It makes me nervous to think other Landers could mind-jump and be privy to our conversation without us knowing it,” Treva said, wrinkling her nose like she'd smelled something bad.

“I did find several notations on
that
subject. Seems after the first couple of years of hearing each other's every thought, some of the Landers developed a drug concoction that deadened the ability to mind-jump, until finally a lot of them lost it altogether and didn't need the drug anymore,” Selah said.

“It's sad that they thought to get freedom from the others they had to shut down the ability completely,” Treva said. “They could have trained themselves to close off their minds. I've done it since I was a child. It was a hard exercise, but in the end it's been worth the peace.”

“I guess they thought taking a drug was easier. Maybe someone convinced them there was no other option.” Selah lifted an eyebrow. It sounded like a great start to a conspiracy.

Treva shook her head and smiled. “You could find a subversive plot under a flat stone. If I remember correctly from the
stories you've told me, your past exploits don't always turn out for the best. Do I have to remind you of a certain beach? Don't go getting any ideas. I see that light in your eyes.”

Selah was thinking of exploring six different file trails at one time. She had gained much Lander data, but almost nothing on novarium or the location of the special file she wanted.

Treva furrowed her brow in thought. “Now that I think about it, that drug sounds like the one used on Glade in the Mountain to keep him from communicating with the other prisoners.”

Selah straightened. “They couldn't be the same, could they? That would mean there was a scheme between the Mountain and at least some of the original Landers, but which ones?” Her mind sorted through all the compatible searches she could do on the data.

Treva tapped her lip, then raised a finger. “We know there are three Protocols of Landers. The original Landers who came from the Mountain were the First Protocol. Glade is one of the venerated ones in that group. The Second Protocol are the Landers who come by sea, like Bodhi. And the Third Protocol are the lost ones Glade is seeking in the West.”

“Remember, when we were in Baltimore, Glade told us about the splinter groups in the First Protocol that went renegade with their own plans. So whoever went in league with the Mountain on that drug would have to be from one of those groups.” Selah pursed her lips, then pulled them tight. “I've seen that word
protocol
used as a reference all the way back to the beginning of the Lander records at the
Time of Sorrows, so somebody didn't just make it up. What's it mean?”

“It depends on if they were using
protocol
literally or figuratively. It could mean a set of rules for connecting computers, or having the same philosophy, or it could even mean a detailed research plan or a code of conduct. It's just an odd word to use for a set of people,” Treva said.

Selah's thoughts had already jumped into action, crossed the quadrant, and headed for the data cubes in the Repository. Her curiosity was running rampant.

“Did you find out anything about me having Lander abilities but not a mark?” Treva didn't have clearance to use the archives at the Repository. Selah's clearance came because Glade was the original head of the TicCity Council, and even after he'd been replaced during his incarceration, his status was still solid.

“A couple of the files I cross-referenced about that have disappeared. We already knew that the original Landers were a group of regular human people who left the Mountain after the Sorrows.” Selah wrinkled her forehead, thinking of what she knew. “And their marks didn't show up until they left the Mountain.”

Treva nodded. “And apparently that's when the longevity came about also. They were adult men and women of various ages who started out with the mark across their forehead and down the left temple. So if they intermarried inside the group, those children also had the mark. When they or their children married outside the group, the mark didn't transfer and it created a whole new generation of Landers with no mark.”

“What I get from those records is there are as many types of Landers as there are nationalities of people. And not all Landers are created equal. There is a reference to some kind of test for proliferation. I didn't find what that term meant, and the specifics on the test are missing. It was deleted on purpose, because parts of the file were in different sectors of the data cube and all those locations are now empty,” Selah said.

“But they are
human
! The original Landers were ordinary
human
people from the Mountain! I lived there my whole life, and granted, twenty years isn't a lot, but I've never heard anything remotely close to talk about Landers being normal people!” Treva's nostrils flared.

“But I can't find anything about what happened to turn them
into
Landers. Some of those same people could still be alive, as is Glade.”

Treva started to laugh. “And why are they called Landers? I always thought they were just the ones who came by sea and landed on our shores. But after meeting Glade and the others, I've realized there are a lot more Landers who were here originally and never came by sea.”

“That's a good question. Another is, how long will we hybrids live?” Selah felt her face warming. There. She had finally said it. She didn't understand why asking it made her feel selfish when it was a legitimate question.

Treva gritted her teeth. “The more we know, the more there is to find out.”

“I just don't understand why Glade won't open up. He's frustrating me. A lot of this includes me, so I'd like to be prepared for what's coming.” Selah had played with that
question for weeks. She now had several abilities like mind-jumping and increased physical stamina, and new dreams and the flashes were becoming common.

“Glade says he doesn't remember anything from before they left the Mountain.” Treva looked behind her, then back toward Selah.

“Frankly, I don't believe him anymore. That's why I'm investigating on my own. There's something he doesn't want me to find out.” Selah was pretty sure from reading his body-speak, and having grown up around three males, that he was concealing something.

“You're getting as paranoid as Cleon. It's his idea that we've landed in the middle of a huge conspiracy.” Treva smiled. “And please don't get me started on what your brother thinks. He's driving me crazy about this trip.”

Selah tipped her head. “What trip?”

“Didn't I tell you? Must have forgotten. I'm going to the Mountain. I've thought long and hard, and there are just some things I have to get. I don't know why, but it's been bothering me a lot lately, and I have to go.” Treva dropped her gaze.

Selah froze. It had taken a few weeks for her to stop having nightmares about the Mountain.
I don't want to go
back there.
Her hands shook at the thought of being shot at again.

Easy, girl!
Go back to speaking
words.
Treva's thoughts came in a soothing tone, then she spoke. “I don't need you to go. Cleon said he'd accompany me. Besides, I'm also going to see how my uncle is coming with his settlement of Stone Braide. If he didn't run into problems, they should be
a thriving colony by now. Getting into my private lab won't take much extra effort. I should have brought all my data out with me anyhow. I can be in and out in a day.”

“I don't want you or Cleon going back to that dangerous place.” Months ago Selah had been driven by a burning desire to find her real father. But now the craziness of such a foolish venture made her feel reckless. Dragging her stepbrother Cleon and the others into danger had caused her several delayed bouts of anxiety.

The Mountain night terrors had finally faded. Now they were replaced by streaking flashes of lightning and exploding fireballs. It seemed that since she'd turned novarium, her mind never rested.

“Enough about my plans. You didn't tell me you're having nightmares.” Treva's eyebrows pinched together and she frowned. “Why didn't you say something before?”

Selah realized just how much she'd left her thoughts open in the last few minutes. Some things she just wanted kept to herself. It was an acquired skill she hadn't mastered yet. She looked at the floor, trying to think of how much to say.

“You haven't answered me,” Treva said.

“Don't worry. I had some of these dreams even before changing to a novarium.”

“Apparently some dreams are new and they've scared you.”

“At least when I had the tsunami nightmare I knew it came from the Time of Sorrows. These new dreams have water images that I don't understand, and it frightens me.” Selah knew there was more meaning to them, but apprehension kept her from exploring. They felt dangerous.

“When I get back from the Mountain, we'll work on them together,” Treva said.

The word
Mountain
brought instant dread. Selah measured her words to not sound as panicked as she felt. “How do you think you can get into the Mountain and back out without being caught?”