Chapter 3 Dana
Re: Time Sensitive! Gnnar needs to have his story written. NOW!
Hi Penny
I was wondering when you are going to write Gnnar’s story. When you do, please message me; I’d like to be written into the story as well.
A New Reader
I reread the message for the fifth time. I was scared to give too much away because, surely, Nova Vita was monitoring the contact. I knew how upset many of the colony officials and the owner of EshopU were about these books. I worried that just downloading one would get my name on a list.
That was what we’d told the masses when Omnia Pictures ran an article on them. I didn’t know if it was actually true or not, but the article had to include that little caveat; the whole point was to convince people not to download them.
Luckily for me, Omnia Pictures had a copy, and I’d sent it over to myself so I could pull some details from it while writing the article. We had to put just enough truth in our stories so the public couldn’t tell it was all just state-run propaganda. I’d wanted to read it, but then all the sordid details of the Utopia Project were leaked, and that had kept me super busy. It had also confirmed what I already knew: that Julie hadn’t gone there.
I dug the file back out and transferred it to my phone. Just as Gunnar—that was the closest I could get to pronouncing his name—had said, Penny Wrights’ contact info was at the back of the book. It looked like any other Nova Vita ID number. Here on Nova Vita, we were given a number that was tied to the chip installed at birth. It served as our bank and contact number as well. My entire life was in that chip.
I took a deep breath and pressed the send button. I didn’t know what I was expecting, but the chip in my arm did not explode, and no sirens went off in my apartment. Now for the wait.
I stuffed my phone into my pocket and crawled out of my blankets, reminding myself not to look up at the lights. That was another myth I’d had been sent out to debunk: that the colony watches their citizens not just through their phones and devices but cameras built into their dwellings. Unfortunately, instead of debunking the myth, I found irrefutable evidence that my light was actually a recording device.
Still, I had to write a politically correct, colony-friendly article. You know, the whole it’s silly to think the colony can watch everyone all the time, and besides, you won’t care if you don’t have anything to hide, right? shtick. Thing was, they didn’t need to watch everyone all the time when there was a record they could check on as needed. And not everybody had these cameras. Julie’s place had been a camera-free zone, and that was why we used to hang out there instead of at my place.
So I’d written the article they wanted but added at the end that they could always wrap some tin foil over their lights to be sure. Wink, wink. It was just tongue-in-cheek enough to get past edits. They thought I was making fun of the conspiracy theorists; little did they know that I’d secretly joined the “crazies.”
That was the way of my entire career. I’d be told to write an article about something, find out the truth, and then have to write the original article of lies anyway. I had so much on Nova Vita and our corrupt system that I could write a novel. Hell, I could write an entire series.
How my coworkers still believed the very lies they told was shocking. But then, maybe they didn’t. Maybe they were all like me, too afraid and powerless to do anything about it. It was a terrible feeling. I wanted to expose them all, but I’d seen what happened to those who tried.
Not only did their words fall on deaf ears, but most of the time, their messages never even reached the masses. Then, they’d disappear forever. But if Penny Wrights could publish her stories from the safety of the Kadrixan’s stronghold, maybe I too could finally tell the world everything I knew. That was another reason why I didn’t simply want to find Julie but to join the stronghold as well.
I was pretty sure that after my visit with the Kadrixan, those cameras in my apartment were on right now. I had a signal jammer, the one I’d used for the interview, but using it would give me away. Also, I needed to save the battery on it for the next part of my plan. I was too paranoid to plug it in at home or at work.
I still couldn’t believe they’d let me walk right out of the secret facility and into a guarded, windowless transport that took me straight to my office. So it must mean they hadn’t noticed that for five whole-ass minutes, their surveillance video had been looped. I hoped that by the time someone went through the feed and found the anomaly, I’d be well on my way out of the colony.
My phone vibrated, and I dove right back under the blankets to check the screen. Penny Wrights. Holy crap. She was calling me! I’d expected her to message me back. I picked the call up even as I questioned how I could keep the conversation muted.
“Hello,” I whispered.
“Who are you, and what do you know about Gnnar?” asked a female voice.
She was going straight for the kill. I hesitated, knowing that my response was probably being recorded. I wasn’t sure whispering worked.
“The lights in my room are too bright,” I said carefully. “Let me get to a better location.” I rolled my eyes at how ridiculous I sounded. I’d gone full tin-foil hat.
“What? Oh… oh I see. Alright, answer what you can while you do that.”
Did that mean she understood what I meant? I got out from under the blanket, quickly threw on my jacket, and grabbed the pack I’d prepacked before walking out into the hallway and heading straight for the stairs.
“Okay, I’m walking.”
“Great. I’m Penny. And according to your contact information, you work for Omnia Pictures?”
“Yes, I do, but this isn’t… they have nothing to do with this. This is for me… and uh… him.” Argh! This was so awkward. I had no idea if she understood what I meant or if she thought I was a total loon. I did feel a little crazy right now as I stepped outside into the chilly, early evening air.
“I see. Well, Nova Vita can’t listen in to our calls or read our messages. So once you get somewhere safe, tell me everything I need to know.”
Well, that was convenient. I jogged down the street, around the corner, and into an alleyway I knew was devoid of any cameras. Still, I covered my mouth and whispered, just in case.
I told her everything that had happened. About looking for my friend and about meeting Gnnar—she said the spelling was closer to the proper Kadrixan pronunciation, but I honestly couldn’t hear the difference. I explained how I’d asked him to help me find my friend, and that he directed me to contact her. I even told her about the signal jammer.
“And he said to tell you, and I quote ‘east of the third peak, marked with my family’s crest’ in case you don’t believe me.”
“Huh, so that’s where he built his nest.”
“Nest?”
“Yeah, you know, for his future mate.”
I didn’t know because I hadn’t actually read her books. I really had to get on that when I had the chance. Some Kadrixan smut sounded interesting now that I’d met Gnnar.
“What about my friend Julie?
“Do you mean a Julie that arrived during the last exchange two years ago. Big brown doe eyes and blonde hair?”
“Yes! She was sick before she disappeared.”
There was a pause, and then an image of Julie in a bikini hanging out by an outdoor swimming pond, the kind the rich colonists got installed in their yards, showed up on the screen. But instead of a fancy, inner colony estate and a pool boy, there were several other women and a whole slew of hunky, red-skinned, be-horned Kadrixan warriors in the background.
Tears welled up in my eyes, and I heaved a sigh of relief. I’d found her! She was safe. And happy, judging by her smile.
“I’ve been looking for her nonstop for two years. Tell her I’m on my way.”
“So you’re going to join us?” Penny let out a squeal loud enough to make me wince and hold my phone away from my ear. “Yes! My first convert. I knew those books were worth writing!”
Oops. I didn’t want to admit that I hadn’t actually read her books.
Suddenly my phone beeped loudly, and a message appeared on my screen stating that my ID number and credit account had been temporarily disabled and that I should immediately head to the closest enforcement station.
“Oh shit! Penny? You still there?”
To my relief, her voice came from the speaker. “I’m still here. What happened?”
“They either just found out about this call, or they figured out that there is about a five-minute chunk missing from today’s recording in Gnnar’s cell. According to the message, my device and account have been disabled.”
“Shit. Okay. Well, surprise! We’re not on Nova Vita’s network.”
There was a masculine clearing of a throat, and a low, rumbly voice said something. It took me a moment to realize it was a Kadrixan voice.
“What did he say? I returned my translator to the office.”
“That’s Vostak, my mate. He says they’re already planning a rescue mission.”
“Wow! That’s fast.”
“If you can stay out of a cell, they can pick you up when they go grab Gnnar. They can track your device location.”
“Really? Great. Staying out of a cell was my plan anyway. But the moment I hang up, this device is going inside a Faraday pouch, and you won’t be able to reach me.”
“A what now?”
“It’s something that blocks the signal. It’s old technology. I made it myself. I tested it, and it works. There’s a route out of the colony going through all the surveillance blind spots. It goes through parks in the wealthy areas and alleyways in the outskirts. I’ll be exiting the colony at the southeastern side, near the industrial zones.”
I was totally blabbering now from how nervous I was. It was one thing to plan, but now that my plan had been set into action, everything felt out of control.
“We’ll contact Ellaston. They’ll know of it. We’ll look for you along this route.”
Ellaston was the new human settlement that had popped up by the Kadrixan stronghold. It was supposedly full of rebels who’d left the colony—the very ones who’d revealed the truth about the Utopia Project. I was excited to meet them. Now that was real journalism!
“Tell them I’m using the Snakes and Ladders Path; they’ll know what I mean.”
“Gotcha. But you don’t have to put your phone in that pouch. Let me send you a program that will disable your phone’s connection to Nova Vita’s network. They won’t be able to track you through it. But they’ll still be able to track you through your chip. I’m sorry I can’t help you with that.”
“You’ve already helped plenty. I have a signal jammer that’s supposed to block the chip on my arm, but it only works until the battery runs out. Which means I plan to haul ass the second I turn it on.”
To be honest, I was surprised I’d met so little resistance from her, and a part of me worried that this was too good to be true. Was it risky? Hell yes. But the chance to get out of this colony and see Julie again in one fell swoop was worth it.
And then there was Gnnar. I remembered the golden fire of his eyes and the wiry muscles over his tall, broad frame. Even chained up and looking half-starved, he oozed power and dominance. I hadn’t missed the way the guard flinched at his every movement like he’d expected Gnnar to break out of his bonds at any second. If that was Gnnar at his worst, what would he be like at his best?
Penny wished me good luck and hung up, and I got to work preparing for my exodus from the only home I ever knew.