Alone in the Crowd (The Chronicles of Anna Foster Book 3) Page 19

  “I do not understand why you attack me,” Bryce said in his usual placid tone. “But I assure you it will not be tolerated.”

  As soon as his words reached everyone’s ears, Bryce’s body dissolved away to reveal the dark sphere floating in front of Cary’s chest. Cooper’s grip caved in, and Cary and Tomomi inadvertently followed through and threw his hands apart as he fell down onto the console. Anna and Jason, pulling him back from the workstation, lost their balance with the sudden change, and all three tumbled onto the floor.

  The sphere floated over the panel and paused about three meters above the floor directly above the tangle of bodies. In the blink of an eye, a wire frame formed on its outer shell and filled in to form a weapon pointed directly at Cooper. They could see the telltale glow from within the weapon as it prepared to fire.

  Jason scrambled away from the others. Cooper instinctively reached for his ever-present pistol, which was no longer on his hip. Anna thrust her hands toward the orb and yelled, “Wait!”

  The inside of the weapon continued to glow but did not fire. “Yes, Anna?” Bryce’s voice spoke as clear as if his body was present above them.

  “Cooper was acting in Anderson’s defense, a soldier under his command. He is merely doing everything in his power to protect his man. Can you fault him for that?”

  “His reaction was misdirected. He should direct his anger at the ones who caused his death, not the ones trying to fix him.”

  The sergeant shifted his stare at Anna as she continued to barter for his life.

  “Maybe so, but it is human nature to react against the one bearing bad news, even if that person is not the one who caused it. He merely acted on instinct. I am sure that he will not do so again.”

  Turning her head to gaze at him, she added, “Right, sergeant?”

  “Uh, yeah. Yeah! I will be better.”

  A few seconds passed in silence. Anna cast a quick glance at Jason, who glanced at the sphere, then at her, and then back at the sphere again.

  Anna’s arms relaxed a bit, and she stared at the orb with a mixture of fear and curiosity. The suspense was killing her.

  The sphere hovered menacingly over Cooper but did not act. The room was silent save for the energy discharge from Anderson’s bed. Everyone felt the tension in the air as if it was tangible, a cloudy veil that covered everything in sight. Tomomi brought a trembling hand to rest on her belly.

  Suddenly, the glow from with the sphere’s weapon faded, and the cannon digitized out of existence.

  Everyone exhaled audibly.

  “Thank you,” Anna said, elation coloring her voice. Cooper chuckled to himself, while Jason clambered to his feet and offered a helping hand to the two still sitting on the floor. Cary and Tomomi surged toward them. While Tomomi hugged Anna, Cary clapped the two men on their backs with a laugh.

  Bryce reformed behind Cary with a grim expression on his face. As the others turned to face him, he said, “Know that I will not permit any further attacks against me or any part of this facility. This is your last warning.”

  “Understood,” Cooper replied with a firm nod.

  “Good.” Bryce’s face returned to its normal appearance, stripped of all emotion. “Since your companion is stable, shall we return to the recreation room?”

  Chapter 24

  What in reality was a couple of hours felt like a couple of days to Anna. Waiting in the recreation room with the others, and dwelling on Anderson’s unexpected change, did little to pass the time. She sat off to the side by herself next to the window and watched the others. They did not talk much. Tomomi and Jason just sat in their chairs and stared at the floor. Cary paced back and forth across the room with his hands behind his back, while Cooper checked his equipment over for the fifth time. Bryce had disappeared a few minutes after dropping them off and had not been seen since.

  Like them, Anna had a lot on her mind after dealing with Anderson. Why did he have to mentally revert to being like an infant? Could they restore his mind? If they couldn’t and he needed to learn to do everything again, including walk and talk, how would they get him back to the colony? Would they be able to reeducate him? Would he be able to stay on the colony or have to be shipped back to Earth? Was he better off being dead?

  “All right.” Cooper broke the somber stillness as he stood and returned his belt around his waist. Everyone else’s eyes panned over to him. “The silence is killing me. I know we’re all worried about Anderson. But, the fact that he is alive is good. If we can get back to the colony, we can see about having him shipped back to Earth to rehabilitate.”

  Cary and Tomomi nodded their agreement, but Jason frowned. Cooper’s words did not seem to fit his personality. To him, it sounded like something Anna would say.

  “We shouldn’t be sad that his mind was wiped. He can regain that. We should be happy that he is alive. Right?”

  “Yeah,” Tomomi agreed with a bit of a smile, while Cary nodded. Anna scrutinized the group.

  “Let’s stop moping and celebrate that he is back among the living. Fire up that game!”

  As Cooper and the scientists converged on the entertainment system, Anna glanced at Jason and found the look on his face mirrored her feelings. She motioned him toward the door, rose to her feet, and moved that way. Jason responded with a nod and fell into step behind her.

  The pair moved across the hallway after the door closed and faced each other, each with a discerning look.

  “What’s happening with the sarge?” Jason started in hushed tones. “This isn’t like the way he was before. Do you think something happened to him during his treatment?”

  Anna frowned. “Maybe. I can’t be sure without a better understanding of the technology, and it’s beyond our current levels. I may never understand it. But, it certainly is possible.”

  “I don’t like it.”

  “Me, neither.”

  “Do you think Anderson will turn out the same way?”

  Anna shook her head. “Not likely. His mind was completely erased because of the whole death thing.” She swept her hands outward as she spoke.

  “What do you think we should do?”

  She sighed and thought for a couple of seconds. “Well, we could…”

  The door to the recreation room, and Cooper stepped out, making a beeline right toward Anna. Jason’s mouth twitched nervously. “Uh, hi!”

  “What are you two talking about?”

  “We were just…”

  Anna intervened, “We were discussing our thoughts about Anderson.”

  “You’re not happy about him being alive?”

  “I’m more concerned about his mental state.” She cocked her head slightly to the side when she responded.

  Cooper took a deep breath and tightly pressed his lips together. “Me, too. That speech I gave in there? That was mainly to break the tension and try to cheer you guys up. I see I didn’t fool you two.”

  “I thought Cary and Tomomi would have picked up on that, too,” Jason suggested with a hint of disappointment.

  Lowering his eyes, Cooper shot a glance at him. “There’s one thing I’ve noticed about eggheads. They may have the book smarts, but people smarts evades them a lot of the time.”

  “I thought you would be a bit gruff. What inspired you to be all nicey-nicey?”

  Pointing a thumb at Anna, the trooper answered with a wink, “Since Anna gets along with them better, I figured I’d sugar-coat my statements and see if it worked. Left a bad taste in my mouth, though.”

  “What are your thoughts on Anderson?” Anna asked while suppressing a smile.

  “If he continues to be a baby, he’s not going to be able to walk and talk, let alone be an asset to our group. But, we have to get him back to civilization. Anna, do you know if these aliens have anything like a wheelchair that we could use?”

  Anna shrugged and shook her head. “I really don’t know. They might, but we’d have to ask Bryce.

  “Speaking of which, where is he?”r />
  All three reflexively turned their heads and searched the corridor, only to find empty space between the cold, smooth walls. After a few seconds, Anna interrupted the search. “We should look for him. This place isn’t that big, so finding him shouldn’t be too difficult.”

  Jason looked past her, his eyes not wavering from what grabbed his attention. “Yeah, especially since it looks like he found us first.”

  “What?” Anna and Cooper followed his gaze and found the dark sphere floating toward them, descending as it approached. Stopping a few meters from them and hovering at their level, Bryce’s body reformed around it.

  “Looking for me?”

  Cooper moved in front of Anna. “How’s Anderson doing?” A sense of urgency reinforced his question.

  “He’s doing well. In fact, the treatment has completed, but he is still asleep. All bodily functions are working properly.”

  “What about his brain? Is it still…” He paused, sounding uncertain about the next words to say.

  “His brain patterns, though they are still cleared, were recorded with the initial scan. However, the readings are unclear since his cells were degrading at the time the scan took place.”

  “Can you do it?”

  “Our knowledge of human anatomy is limited. We can scan and repair the body as a whole. Complex neurosurgery such as what you are requesting is delicate and beyond our current level of understanding. Even if we knew what we were doing, the procedure could take many damal.”

  “Bryce,” Cooper queried with impatience. “What in the hell is a damal?”

  “A damal is… ”

  Anna interrupted, “It’s a unit of time. Let it go.”

  “So,” she continued, turning to Bryce. “You can’t restore his brain?”

  “We could attempt it, but I cannot guarantee any level of success. More harm could be done to him by trying.”

  “What perc… ” Cooper stopped himself for a second. “Using base ten, what percentage chance do you think you have to succeed?”

  A few seconds transpired before Bryce responded. “Thirty-seven percent.”

  Jason stepped forward. “What if you have a template to go off of?”

  Anna and Cooper turned to him with expressions of curiosity.

  “Go on,” urged the sergeant.

  “What if I stay behind and let them use my brain as a basis to re-establish Anderson’s memories?”

  Anna furrowed her brow as she considered his suggestion. “Wouldn’t that create him as a mental clone of you?”

  “Not what I have in mind. They can monitor my head to see how a young man’s mind works and, using that to go by, they can cross-reference with their last recording of Anderson’s brain patterns to rebuild him.”

  Cooper leaned closer to Jason. “How old are you, Fuller?”

  “Twenty-four.”

  “A couple years older than him,” Cooper mumbled. “That could work. Bryce, how do the odds look with his plan?”

  A few seconds passed. “The percentage changes to seventy-eight percent.”

  “That improves his odds.” Anna mused aloud before addressing Cooper. “What do you think? You’re his commanding officer. The final decision comes to you.”

  The leader’s face became dour, as his thoughts turned toward his fallen trooper. Seconds passed by with silence being his only answer. Though Anna waited patiently, Jason started involuntarily tapping his foot, earning him a withering look from her that immediately stopped the action.

  “Do it.”

  The three turned toward Bryce. He swept his arm toward the distant infirmary. “Come with me, please.” After taking several steps in veritable silence, he added, “The shield around the pyramid has finally dropped.”

  Jason cheered, while Cooper gave a curt nod. Anna, on the other hand, creased her brow upon hearing the news. Jason’s face changed from joy to concern. “What’s wrong, Anna?”

  “The colonel back at the colony was attacking the shield when I contacted them. I’m not sure what he’s going to do, now that the shield is down.”

  “If I was in his position,” Cooper interjected. “I would have that pyramid leveled. It’s been nothing but trouble since we first found it.”

  Jason leaned forward for a clear view of the soldier around Anna with a grimace on his face. “You see? That’s the problem with the military. Shoot first, and ask questions later.”

  “We’ve done an exemplary job of protecting your sorry asses ever since you got here!” Cooper emphasized his words with a jab of his finger toward Jason.

  “Cool it, you two!” arbitrated Anna with haste. “We’re here.”

  The group entered the infirmary. Anderson was still lying on the medical bed, but the towers by his feet were gone. He slept soundly with his hands resting on his chest. Other than the low hum from the dim lights, the only noise in the room was his soft snoring.

  “Aw,” Anna commented, her words sickeningly sweet. “Isn’t he cute?”

  Cooper scowled at the statement as he walked toward the dozing soldier. “Cut the bullshit, Anna. We’ve got work to do.”

  Anna escorted Jason to the bed next to Anderson, while Bryce reactivated the control station. “Are you going to be okay?” She watched as Jason squirmed to get comfortable.

  “Yeah, I’ll be fine. Probably get bored after a while, but I should be okay.”

  With a nod and a smile, she stole a glance at Cooper, who appeared to be examining Anderson, before moving across the room to watch Bryce over his shoulder. The bilsintik activating assorted functions through the holographic screen: initiating scans, processing results, and preparing treatments. Although she did not fully understand everything he was doing, she attempted to absorb what she could. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she believed she might need to know it someday.

  “If you’re bored,” Bryce stated after a few minutes of working in silence. “You can return to the recreation room or find your quarters from your previous visit.”

  Not realizing until his statement that she had sighed aloud, Anna berated herself inside her head. “Sorry, Bryce. I didn’t mean to…did you say I have a room here?”

  “Yes.” He spoke while continuing to work. “It’s located on the lower level, the last door on the right from the lift. You should still find it in the same condition as when you left.”

  Anna speculated about the room that awaited her. What did she have in there? What did she do in there? Had she left anything there when she had returned to her ship?

  “Okay. I’m going to go check my quarters. Keep me informed of any changes that take place.”

  “Will do, Anna.”

  “Guys,” she announced to the others in the room. “I’m going to go…”

  “Check out your room,” interrupted Cooper before looking her way. “I heard. Go on. I got things here.”

  Happy to see Cooper cooperating with her, Anna smiled as she nodded her acknowledgement and departed.

  Within seconds of walking through the door, Cary and Tomomi approached her, concern on their faces. “Anna!”

  She cast her gaze at them before moving her hand to her shoulder, absentmindedly scratching the blue-tinted flesh. “Yes? What’s wrong?”

  “We were wondering the same thing,” Cary stated with a slight frown curling his lips. “Everybody disappeared, and we didn’t hear from you all.” Tomomi gave a confirming nod.

  Anna pointed to the door behind her. “They’re in there.”

  “What’s going on?” Cary probed with a slight shrug.

  Anna scratched her neck as she replied, “Jason had an idea on how we might be able to restore Anderson’s memories. They’re getting set up now.”

  The scientists’ eyes widened. They gave their thanks and entered the infirmary, leaving Anna by herself in the corridor. Sighing heavily with a sideways smile on her face, she proceeded to the far end of the hallway and quickly located the lift that carried her down to the facility’s lower level.

&nbs
p; Anna stepped out of the lift. “Last door on the right. Hmm.”

  She occasionally toggled her communicator, hoping more out of curiosity than anything else, to see if another door would open. Nothing reacted to her attempts, until she reached the end of the passageway.

  Activating the communicator on her wristcomp, a door a few meters from the end slid open to reveal a dark chamber on the other side. Anna glanced behind her for a second and crossed the threshold, letting the door close behind her. She stood in complete darkness for a few seconds, waiting to see if the lights would automatically turn on. Nothing happened.

  She exhaled sharply and cocked her head. “Lights.”

  Starting dim, the single light installed in the center of the room’s ceiling activated and slowly brightened, bypassing the level of illumination elsewhere in the subterranean structure. Anna blinked a few times despite a lack of discomfort. When the brightening finally stopped, she found that they were about as bright as the outside daylight, much to her surprise and delight.

  Anna surveyed the room, marveling at what the Altiki had provided for her during her stay many years ago. In the middle of the room atop the lush, blue carpet sat a queen-sized bed, complete with two pillows and a full cover set with white sheets and a thick, dark green blanket. The simple and unadorned metal headboard rested against the wall next to a black, metal end table adorned with only a simple lamp. On the wall between the lamp and the headboard was a small panel with a holoprojector lens embedded into it. The far-right corner held a doorway that led into a personal head. From her position, Anna could see that it held the standard equipment: toilet, sink, and shower stall, all covered in pristine white porcelain. Cut into the wall opposite the bed was a four-drawer dresser with a mirror. The drawers were seamless, their presence indicated only by four pressure plates embedded in the front of the cabinet. An assortment of personal effects lay on top of the dresser. Upon closer examination, she discovered that they were parts of a makeup kit: foundation, blush, eye shadow, eye liner, and lipstick.