Eve of Man (The Harvest Book 2) (4 page)

The sun rising and setting. Garbage day. Dogs barking.
Kids riding bikes. Everyday common occurrence, taken for granted and now gone.
Replaced by others, those once thought unusual, now accepted as the norm. Over
the past months the events, even those once perceived as phenomenal, had become
routine. Three suns rising, no moon, no stars, no life. Each morning arrived
without circumstance. Each day held a static appearance and had become routine
for the few people left to care or notice such things.

Zack sat in one of the leather recliners facing the
wall sized screen in the command center. As his mind churned, speculating,
pondering, and analyzing their situation, the three suns materialized in the
sky. The winds subsided and the black sky lightened to a dismal gray. One
cataclysmic event had changed their world forever, creating a perpetual hell
where nothing changed. The view of the exterior materialized, appearing as a
still painting of a vast frozen waste land. Other than a few scraggly pines
hanging on, the trees were barren. The fields were empty, having been covered
in snow ever since the aliens arrived, ever since all signs of life vanished
into thin air.

Except for the bodies.

Those who were dropped from the sky, emptied of
anything remotely human. Those who were left behind, barely recognizable after
being torn, shredded and drained of all life. Annihilated by the sharp talons
of the alien predator, the elusive Sundogs, the monsters seen only by the
select few remaining. The gruesome image of the truck driver he and Colin found
flashed before him. He wouldn’t exactly classify a corpse as a sign of life. So,
aside from the departed, there had been zip. No birds, no cats, no wild beasts roaming
the land, not even an ant. For all of his knowledge, Zack couldn’t fathom how
the Sundogs had wiped out every existing species known to man. Well almost
every one, German had survived, and that they’d found him alive constituted a
major miracle in Zack’s mind, but to what avail? If no other canines were
found, he would be the last of his kind. Thousands of species vanished from the
Earth every day before the Sundogs invited themselves to the party, but Zack
never witnessed those lives being extinguished or gave them any thought. If German
had good health, he might live fifteen or more years. Would Zack be around when
his life passed? Would any of them be around to witness this tragedy? Zack
shook his head to these questions and a million others he asked over and over. 

He couldn’t lay all the blame on the Sundogs. It was
Eve’s people who were the masterminds, who controlled the Sundogs, the planet.
Vampires, Luke called them. Adita, Roth named them. As far as Zack was
concerned names meant little. Giving the aliens a specific name, such as
vampire, would deceive the mind into thinking of them in that capacity, which
could be dangerous. The Adita could not be destroyed by holy water or garlic. A
stake to the heart was up for debate, seeing as how he didn’t know if they had
hearts. The Sundogs had internal organs, including a heart, but their skin was
capable of absorbing the kinetic energy from the most intense of impacts with
amazing effectiveness. He knew this for fact, having tested its strength with
various high-powered military hardware. Reason might dictate the Adita’s skin would
withstand the same level of assault, and reason also suggested they did have a
heart, but reason wasn’t exactly reliable in the current environment.

Research in the bunker’s vast data base on the name
Adita delivered ambiguity in providing answers or hope. He’d found similar names
existing in ancient script, and even stories of blood sucking demons, gods and
angels depending on the date or region of reference. A few vague descriptions
of ghost like beings having soulless eyes peppered history, but the names Agra
and Arati never surfaced. A few sightings of a waif like being, that may or may
not have been Eve, were cited. One passage referred to the waif as a witch,
others called her a dark angel. One Russian tale told of a pale goddess, who
delivered a group of starving settlers from the depths of hell to a heaven of
abundance. The accounts were never in great detail or conclusive. The tellers often
referred to as people too far ‘in the cup’ or too crazy to be relied upon.

When pressed, Austin had shared little information about
Eve or her people. Based on what Zack overheard in the Adita death chamber, he
knew she was somehow connected to Roxanne’s death. But Austin had been a closed
book on the subject of his wife. His reaction, and subsequent behavior, belied
the captain’s previous obsession with finding her, but the topic was better
left alone until such time Austin felt like sharing. Zack doubted very much they’d
have ever the ‘what happened to Roxanne’ conversation.

Climate control, gargoyle looking beasts with computer
chips, vampire like aliens, all of these oddities could be rationalized, maybe
even explained by modern science or some sort of science. However, making sense
of the Captain’s attitude was beyond sense, common or otherwise. Zack sighed,
as if in doing so the weight of his thoughts might dissipate into the air. He
knew in a few hours it wouldn’t matter. The captain would be gone, Luke and Ed
tagging along like dutiful soldiers. Gone on a mission to save Austin’s son, to
save the people in the warehouses, to stop the Adita and to most likely die
before doing any of those things. Yet another anomaly Zack didn’t quite understand.
The paternity of the boy was unquestionable, he was Austin’s son, but who was
the mother? Eve or Roxanne? If Eve was the mother, the boy would not be fully
human and that in itself raised many more questions without answers.

“Watching the suns?”

Zack bolted out of his chair like a startled
jackrabbit. “Holy shit man. You scared the crap outta me.”

“Sorry,” Austin offered halfheartedly.

“Forget it.” Zack leaned on the chair for support, trying
to calm his nerves. “What’s with the sunglasses?”

Austin rubbed his shaved head, pausing before he
spoke. “Can I trust you?”

“Uh, I think we’ve figured that one out months ago.”

“This is different.”

“From what?” Zack laughed. It came out sounding
maniacal rather than humorous. What could possibly be different from anything
they’d experienced thus far? “Serious dude. You can trust me.”

Austin reached up and took off his sunglasses. He
lifted his head and looked straight at Zack.

Zack’s jaw dropped. “What the fu...”

“Told you it was different.”

“Different? Different is dying your hair pink or
having a tattoo of Justin Bieber on your thigh. Man, that’s not different,
that’s fucked up.” Zack stepped closer to Austin.

Austin held up his hand stopping Zack from getting
closer. “I need you to run some blood tests.”

“What happened?” Zack couldn’t stop staring at
Austin’s eyes. Once blue, now blue and black. The black appeared to be spreading
in the pupil, like someone had spilled ink in his eyes. If it continued, his
eyes would soon look like an Adita’s, solid black.

“Eve bit me.”

“Whhhaaat?”

Pulling up his sleeve, Austin turned over his arm
exposing the purplish marks on his wrist. “Right before we left Bliss. She said
it was a gift.”

“Gifts come in boxes wrapped in shiny paper.”

“Do you have the equipment to test my blood?”

“Yeah, but what am I looking for?”

Austin shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“Good place to start. You want to do it now?”

Austin put his glasses back on and turned for the door.
Luke and Ed wouldn’t be ready to leave for about another hour, which would
allow time to draw a few blood samples, but that was all. Zack would have to
figure the rest out after Austin left and by then the answers might not matter.
Austin wiped a bead of sweat from his brow. The bunker’s temperature seemed
higher than usual but that didn’t make sense. The system Zack built always kept
the climate at perfect temperatures, so maybe he was running hotter than normal.

Once in the lab, Zack filled three vials with Austin’s
blood. The color was a combination of red and blue, the consistency thick, like
cold motor oil. With the vials stored in the refrigerator, Zack pulled out the
microscope. He put a drop on a slide, smeared it and placed it on the stage,
not bothering with staining. The lab had a more sophisticated scope, but it
took a while to setup and he had the feeling Austin wanted answers fast.

“Wanna look?”

“You do it.” Austin stood to the side, sunglasses in
place.

 Zack peered into the eyepiece not expecting to see
much without stain, but was shocked when the cells appeared to jump up at him
like he was watching an old 3-D video game. Large bluish-black cells were consuming
the red. The foreign cells were shaped similar to red, but contained a nucleus that
was rapidly absorbing the normal cells. Thoughts of gamma radiation and the
Hulk surfaced. 

“Well?” Austin asked, growing impatient.

Zack sat back from the scope. “I don’t know. I mean,
I’m no scientist.”

“I don’t have time Zack,” Austin snapped. “Just tell
me what you think,” he finished, using a less harsh tone.

 “I think,” Zack spun around to face Austin, “whatever
Eve of the dead injected into your bloodstream is taking over, eating your
cells like a giant piranha. Like a cancer, like what gamma radiation did to
Bruce Banner. And based on the rate of consumption you’ll be fully vamped out
within a couple of weeks.”

 “They aren’t vampires,” Austin responded in a dry
tone. He expected more from Zack than to believe in fantasies.

“What does it matter what you call them? From my
limited account, they’re superior beings and, based on this sample, they have superior
kick your ass DNA. So vampire, bloodsucker, Adita, it doesn’t mean shit. Not in
stopping them anyway.”

A wave of dizziness washed over Austin. “Am I becoming
one? Is it changing my DNA?”

Zack breathed a heavy sigh. “Man I don’t know. I don’t
have enough to go on or the equipment to test that kind of thing. I could go
the hospital in Colorado Springs, run a few more tests, but they’d take time.
You could postpone your trip until I know more.”

“Not an option.” Another wave hit him, this one
stronger.

“Then I don’t know what to tell you.” Zack clicked the
scope light off. “Maybe you can ask Eve.”

Austin shook his head. “I know this much and I think
you know it as well. Once this thing is complete, it’s not something that can
be reversed.” He removed his sunglasses.

Zack stared into Austin’s eyes and repressed the urge
to shudder.  He didn’t have to say out loud that he agreed. “What are you going
to tell Ed and Luke?”

“The truth. They need to know in case...in case I
become dangerous.” Austin looked away, images of Madison flashed through his
head.

“Dangerous how? Has something happened?”

“No,” Austin replied. “I gotta get...I gotta get my
gear.” The room wobbled out of focus. Austin grabbed for the table, catching
the edge before collapsing to the ground.

Zack rushed to him. “Austin.  Austin you ok?” He
turned him over. His eyes were closed, his skin pale and clammy. Zack checked
for a pulse, still strong. “Shit.”

Zack called Ed, catching him right as he was leaving
for the barn.  “I need you in the infirmary right now, bring Luke.”

Ed and Luke arrived in less than two minutes, bursting
into the room.

“What’s wrong?” What happened?” Luke ran to Austin’s
side.

“I don’t know. One minute we’re talking, the next he
collapsed.”

Ed looked past Zack to the microscope and empty vials
on the counter. “What were you doing?”

“It’s complicated,” Zack replied, knowing it was that
and a few other things. The three men carried Austin into the next room and
laid him on the bed. Zack checked his pulse again and it was still beating
strong. This comforted and unnerved him all the same.

“What the hell happened?” Luke asked.

Various lies ran through Zack’s mind, none were
believable, but telling the truth wasn’t an option. You can’t tell what you
don’t know, Zacky boy. Another popular phrase dear old dad was fond of saying.
A good philosophy to live by when you ran with the mob. Zack looked away from
Austin to answer Luke. “Honestly man, I don’t know. He said something about
being hot and the next thing I know he’s on the floor. If I had to guess, maybe
some kind of flu.”

“Is he gonna be ok?” Luke glanced down at his friend,
noticing his pale skin.

Zack shook his head. “I wish I knew. His heart beat is
regular. So is his blood pressure.” Zack sighed. “We’ll have to wait and see.”
Not complete bullshit, but the best he had to offer and the most he wanted to
share. Without having to think it over, he knew Austin wouldn’t want anyone
knowing about his condition.

A week after Austin sank into a deep sleep, Eve was wandering
the temple making her plans. Sometimes Caleb followed at her heels, asking his
millionth question for the day and other times he gave his mother peace and
went off exploring every dark corner. Always he caught up to her for she did
not wait or pause to ensure he was safe. Although her mind was void she was
deep in thought, thoughts that would cause Agra much concern if he were to hear
them.

Eve deposited Caleb back in his room with instructions
to stay out of trouble and Agra’s way. He smiled and promised to be on his best
behavior. An impossibility Eve knew, for, although only seven, Caleb’s
abilities had advanced beyond most mature Adita. He heard many thoughts, sensed
many feelings, and none more so than Agra’s. The true meaning of this she had
not yet come to understand, but she knew Caleb was aware the lurking danger and
of the need for caution. For this Eve was grateful, hoping her son would always
be more than cautious where Agra was concerned.

Outside the temple, Eve wandered down the path through
the tangled undergrowth of the jungle. The vines and limbs parted, allowing her
to pass unhindered. Soon she came to the clearing near the warehouses, seven
rows of buildings, numbering thirty-five in total. She walked to the front of
the first building in the last row. The massive doors slid open at her silent command.
She walked past the tables of specimens hooked up to a multitude of tubes, not
seeing or caring about them as a living being. They were a means to avoid an
end. The Adita needed the humans if they were to continue on, to not turn into
savages controlled by instinct alone. The fact that her people were already
driven by a strong desire to survive, one that eliminated compassion or any such
feeling beyond that of basic instinct, never occurred to Eve.  Had this fact
been pointed out to her, that the Adita behaved much like animals, it would not
have altered her view. If asked, she would give her opinion that humans were
not so far advanced from the beast. Given the choice to live or to perish, they
would survive by whatever means necessary. The nature of the beast cannot be
altered or changed.

Eve was almost to the end of the row when she paused at
the foot of a female specimen. The sound of the woman’s beating heart was clear
and a quicker pace than any other. She examined the woman lying on the table.
Behind the blank stare of her brilliant green eyes, Eve felt her strength
radiating outward. Laying her hand on the woman’s forehead, Eve explored
inside. Images of a familiar face flashed before her as the woman’s memories
played out. Eve focused on the future and the woman’s place in it. Life and
death, death and life, both were associated with the woman. An overpowering
emotion filled Eve’s mind and body. A feeling she’d experienced when Agra spoke
of Caleb’s future, his purpose. The one she’d felt when he’d spoke of
termination; so intense at times it liked to crush her. The same fierceness she
sensed coming from the woman.

Eve decided then and there to take the woman to Earth
when she returned. She would help Eve gain the trust of the humans and would be
needed in the future. Reasons yes, but not considerable enough to ask
permission to again break Adita law. An action that if taken was against all
the rules and meant death for even allowing the thought to occur, but this
woman was important. Making the humans accept her was in part true, but not the
only motivating factor in play. Other events were going to happen in the future
and this woman would play a role in those occasions. Eve’s self-preservation
instincts were strong, stronger than loyalty to her people and of this admission
she felt no guilt. Maybe the cause being she’d spent too much time alone or perhaps
she’d taken on more human traits than she’d realized. The reasons did not
matter, only Caleb mattered.

The process to revitalize the woman was complicated and
not without great risk, but Eve had other preparations to attend first. She
moved on from the woman, down to the last table in the row.

“Good morning Captain Chase. How does your blood taste
today?” She smiled down at the putrid blob of flesh lying on the table. “Don’t
fret. This will be the last time.”

Chase didn’t stir, but Eve could hear his muddled
thoughts. “Still cursing me?” She traced her finger down his arm. “Soon you can
rest forever.” Eve pulled his wrist to her mouth and drained the remainder of
his blood. She was sorry to lose him. His blood was sweeter than any she’d ever
tasted, except for maybe her first kill. He too had been a worthless despicable
man she’d taken great pleasure in killing. Chase’s arm fell limp to the side of
the table. His heart pushed out two more beats before giving up; his rancid
thoughts churned no longer. Despite her disdain, Eve appreciated his efforts.
He fought all the way to the end, never believing he would die. To her
surprise, his last lucid thought had been filled with regret. Not for being a
despicable man, but for lost opportunities, for Charlie.

Charlie. Eve repeated the girls name in her mind and
brought forth an image of her face. She looked forward to seeing the girl again,
and felt perhaps their relationship might be different this time. After all no
glass prison or General Roth would be watching this time. And no voice of her
father telling her what to do or not do. She was her own master now. Charlie
would be her friend and maybe she would be more. With this thought in mind Eve
whisked herself back to the temple where she proceeded directly to Agra’s
chambers. She stood outside his door and waited. Rules didn’t mean a great deal
to her, but she knew entering Agra’s chamber without an invitation had irritated
and angered him. She needed him to be calm, his mind was easier to follow when
not stirred into a frenzy.

“Enter.” The word, his voice, echoed in and around the
hallway.

Eve pushed open the door and stepped inside, careful
to keep her head down until he acknowledged her.

“Eve. A pleasant surprise. I did not hear you coming.”

 Eve looked up into her father’s face. They both knew this
a lie. Eve had made certain he heard her, for had she not taken this precaution
he would have grown suspicious; he would have given her additional
consideration, which Eve wished to avoid. Let him continue to trust in his
assessment of her intellect as an inferior being, one who continued to stumble
about in her new way of life. As in any pack, only one alpha was allowed and
that one alpha, if threatened, would attempt to eliminate any and all threats. She
would not challenge his position, not now, not yet.

“I’m sorry to arrive unannounced, but I wish to
discuss...”

“I agree you should leave as soon as possible.
However, the matter of taking the boy will have to be approved by the Elders.”
He walked over to Eve. “However, I expect they will see the benefits of sending
him to Earth.”

“Yes father. I think only then will we know his full
immunity to the human’s blood.” Eve replied.

“And you are willing to take this risk?”

“I’m confident his genetics are everything the Elders
expected and possibly more.”

Agra paused to listen. His suspicions were always
heightened when it came to Eve. He checked thoroughly, but found nothing to
justify his doubts. “While on Earth, you will collect the boy’s father and
bring him back as was decried by the council.”

“Yes, of course father.” Eve nodded. “I think that
task will be made easier by having his son as an enticement.” Eve waited,
patient and quiet, while her father looked into the future. A future guided
indiscriminately by Eve. A future of certainty to sooth Agra’s underlying fears
and anxiety, his insecurities that she wasn’t able to grasp onto. 

Agra relaxed his shoulders, satisfied with what he
saw. “I will speak with the Elders.”

“Thank you father.”

Agra placed his arm around Eve’s shoulders. “I know
coming here has been difficult for you, but do you see how pleased I am with
your progress of late? The discovery of the human, your return and most of all the
boy. All these things have given the Elders, the Adita, great hope for
survival.”

Eve laid her hand on top of his, suppressing the urge
to reach out and snap his neck. “Yes father and thank you. It has been a great
comfort knowing I belong here, that I have a family. One I will do anything to
protect.” These words couldn’t ring more true, but not in the context Agra
understood them to be.

“Your loyalty will comfort me in the months to come as
we proceed with the harvest.” He walked her towards the door. “The Svan have
begun to moving into the southern regions to gather more humans.”

Eve hid her surprise. “Do we not have enough for the
harvest?”

“For the Elders and the Saciva, yes, but we need more
and especially the young. The first children the Svan tested were filled with
defects. We must find as many of the purest of their species, if we are to be
ready by the ninth moon.”

Eve chose her words carefully. “I thought we had time,
several moons,” she said, controlling the suspicion, keeping any concern out of
her voice and mind.

“We do. We do.” He smiled at her. “Don’t you worry. I
have everything under control. Now go prepare for your journey, while I explain
to the Elders and the Saciva what their best interests are in this matter.”

Eve returned her father’s smile. “Thank you father.”
She bowed her head to him and exited his chambers.

Once the door closed, Eve made haste to her room, and
found Caleb anxiously waiting.  Upon seeing her, he sprung from the bed and ran
to her. “Is it true?”

Eve grabbed him by the arm, her nails digging into his
skin. “Silence,” she said and released him. The nail marks quickly vanished.
Eve knew he’d felt no pain or fear for that matter and sometimes wished he did,
for safety’s sake if nothing else.

“Sorry mother,” Caleb chirped, undeterred by her
anger, which he’d felt plenty of and was accustomed to. “I can’t help it. I try
not to, but the voices come and I can’t stop them and then I’ve listened
without meaning to.”

“You’ll learn to control them,” she replied
automatically.

Caleb was unconcerned. He had more important things to
tell her, but caution demanded attention first and foremost. Caleb hummed a
tune and listened. Agra talking with the Elders and not paying attention to him
at the moment. He proceeded, choosing his words with great care. “I saw a man in
my dream last night,” he announced. “He’d fallen down and is sleeping.”

“Is that right dear,” she replied as if she could care
less about Celeb’s silly dreams. “We don’t have time to talk about dreams and make-believe.
We leave soon.” She patted him on the head. “We can talk about your dreams
later, right now you must prepare.”

“Ok, but the man has been sleeping for many days. His
friends couldn’t wake him up.”

“Maybe he was very tired. I’m sure he’s fine.” She
shook her head at him. “Now go to your room. I will come for you soon.”

“Where are you going?”

“To the warehouses.”

“I want to come.”

“No. And if you don’t do as I ask, you will not travel
with me to Earth,” she threatened.

 This propelled Caleb out of the room and took his
mind off of the warehouses, a subject she was constantly trying to protect him
from knowing too much about. A task she was failing at, but could not worry over.
This time Eve didn’t walk, but used Agra’s preferred method of travel and
arrived at the warehouses in a split second.

Back inside the warehouse, the woman was as she’d left
her. Her heart beating steady and strong. Eve laid her hands on the woman’s chest
and closed her eyes. From the tips of her fingers energy flowed into the
woman’s body, through her veins, organs and finally into her brain. Eve proceeded
in a precise order, knowing even the slightest misstep would kill the woman.
Death was a matter of fact Eve wasn’t concerned over, but the loss of this
human would be more than an inconvenience. Eve withdrew her hands and waited.
After the first few minutes noticeable signs of improvement were evident. Color
returned to her skin, making the corpse like appearance less prominent. Another
few minutes passed and Eve removed the multitude of tubes inserted into the
woman. She was now breathing on her own. The danger had passed. Eve’s plans
were clicking along without interruption.

Long before he made a sound, Eve knew Caleb was nearby.
Suppressing her anger at being disobeyed, Eve continued to listen to the
woman’s progress. Satisfied the process was proceeding as she expected and
needed, Eve went to find her wayward son. Outside the warehouse she searched
for Caleb. Not in the manner a human mother searched for a child by shouting
out his name, rather Eve closed her eyes and searched the sounds and smells.
When this turned up only the faintest hint of her child, she searched using her
mind. Her brow furrowed upon finding him back in his room, sitting cherub like
on the floor doing his lessons. Having a new appreciation for the human mothers
she’d observed, Eve was not fooled, nor angered by Caleb’s act of innocence. To
a certain level she respected the humans and was thankful for having witnessed
their lives, their relationships and interactions. All of which had been her
only preparation for motherhood.