16
I end up following Leo out of the forest, back to where the explosions took place on the Main Street. I try to look away from the dead bodies scattered all over the streets, but I glimpse body parts, which is scarier than a complete corpse.
“What if some of them are still alive?” The thought hits me.
“Four of them were alive when I got you the clothes,” says Leo, searching for any weapons we can use.
“Really?” Making conversation keeps me from panicking. I have to get used to — well, to having dead people all around.
“I finished them off,” Leo says. “I used my hands. Had to spare the ammo in the rifle.” Who is this guy? “I killed them so they wouldn’t suffer, you know.” Leo explains. I’d love to believe him.
“I think I saw a young girl back in the forest, but she ran away,” I inform him. “How is that even possible?”
“What do you mean by a young girl? You’re a young girl,” says Leo, still rummaging through the dead people’s pockets.
“A kid. Seven or eight years old,” I reply.
Leo freezes, without turning around. “Are you sure?”
“I am not sure how old she was, but I am sure I saw someone hiding there that I haven’t seen before.”
“We could use this info later. Good job. I need you to stay alert and learn things fast.”
I am flattered that he thinks I did a good job. “My name is Decca, by the way.” Even though I know that he knows my name, I introduce myself.
“We will have to change that.” Leo kneels down next to a dead body.
“What do you mean?” I ask. He wants me to change my name?
No reply.
“Hey.” I start to lose my temper. “Who are you?”
“We need to look for anything we can find in the pockets of the dead. Anything we could use,” he mumbles, ignoring my questions.
“Like what?” I comply helplessly.
“Use your head. We’re fighting for our lives here. You think I love searching dead bodies? We’re in the middle of a war. Wake up.”
“Okay.” I am speechless. Maybe I talk too much. My mom said I talk too much. But then, she wanted to kill me. Maybe she wanted to kill me because I talked too much.
“Try to get us all the money you can find,” he offers.
I don’t reply. I think he is joking. He is coping with such a crazy world, making silly and dry comments. I think he does it to escape the grim situation we are facing.
“How’d you like your money? Tens, twenties, or coins?” I mock him, as I start looking.
“Now we’re talking,” he says. He likes it when I get his sarcastic look at the world. I like that I am getting used to him being mean. No prejudice or criticism, only survival on our minds.
“I know it is unlikely, but getting our hands on sterilizers or medicine would be really good. Besides, we need to get water.” He mutters the last part.
“We can find a first-aid kit in one of the buses. School buses should have those,” I remind him.
“Fascinating.” Leo gazes at the far end of the slope we took down here to the Playa. There is only one school bus left. “I need you to do exactly as I say.”
“I am listening.” Finally, I feel like I am of use to him.
“Turn off your iAm.”
“Again?”
“I didn’t turn it off the first time. I only muted it.”
“Are you sure this won’t upset Timmy?” I say, while turning it off. “I am not sure we’re allowed to do that.”
“We can do whatever we want,” he says. “It’s not like we’re playing capture-the-flag here. They are trying to kill us.” Leo runs toward the bus. I run next to him. He shoots a couple of cameras on the way. His favorite habit. I make a mental note: If you survive this, don’t forget to blow up some of their cameras too. It looks fun.
“Sooner or later, we’ll need to disconnect from the iAm network, if we want to survive this,” he says. “You know there is a small device like that bomb receptor installed underneath your left ear? A very small one, the size of a grain of rice. It’s how your iAm tracks you.”
“Oh. I knew that everyone in Faya has one. I never knew where exactly. It is installed right after birth. You don’t get a birth certificate without it, and it’s illegal to remove it. Punishment is as harsh as a death sentence. I know everything. Happy now?”
“Good girl. Remind me later that I’m starting to like you.” He stops and squashes a beetle on the ground, and then moves on. Boy issues, I guess. “Since we’re already in the game, we could care less about the punishment. To remove the receptor, I’ll need to operate on you. It’s a small surgery, but dangerous. It’s not like this is my main plan, but it’s a possibility, as plan B.”
“Hmm — so what is plan A?” I wonder, neglecting the fact that a strange boy wants to operate on my brain.
“Plan A is improvising,” he says.
“What a plan!”
“Are you mocking me?” he wonders, ducking as he runs. I do the same. I don’t know what I’m ducking from. “Ever heard Charles Darwin say that ‘in the history of mankind, those who improvised have most effectively prevailed?’”
“Who is Charles Darwin?”
“The only dude who can prove that Prophet Xitler is a monkey.”
It seems like a joke, but I don’t get it. What’s wrong with monkeys? I love monkeys.
We get on the last unexploded bus, and start searching for the kit. Leo breaks a window in the bus with the back of the rifle, and shoots all nearby screens and cameras. I find the kit. I have no time to check what’s inside. We get off the bus. Leo hides the kit in the bag.
Once I turn the iAm back on, we hear Timmy cursing. He is mad at us for turning off the device. I can’t understand what he is saying though.
I hear a rumble in the distance. It looks like everyone is gathering in the front of that crazy-looking huge glass dome. The one I saw when Leo stole the soldier’s Jeep. Leo and I run toward the others as they signal for us to hurry over.
What’s going on?
“In case you haven’t heard me, you two sweethearts,” Timmy growls in the iAm, “the second round of the game is on!”