The Lie (The Seekers Book 2) Read online

  He looked ecstatic to be mobbed in such a way and Millie was amazed at the noise the children were now making. The Professor patted and hugged everybody in sight and finally Amanaki spoke to her, “He has been gone for one hundred seasons, it has been a long wait for them.”

  Millie turned to look at him, “They must love him very much.”

  Amanaki frowned, “What is the meaning of love?”

  Millie thought he was being wistful but he looked genuinely confused, “Oh... er... well, on Earth we would call it the highest of all emotions I guess – but I’m no expert.”

  Amanaki just nodded, a man of few words, thought Millie.

  Finally the Professor came over to Millie’s little group, “Thank you so much for getting me home, I don’t know how I will ever repay you.”

  “Just look after my friends till I get back with Oliver and then we can all get safely home.” Millie said.

  Christina’s heart was beating like a drum and she felt sick with worry but she smiled bravely, “I’m not happy about this but we will be praying for you. Keep safe.”

  Millie didn’t know what to say to that so she turned to Amanaki, “Right, where’s your portal then?”

  He led the way to an innocuous slab of marble like stone carved into the floor, Millie assumed they must have landed there but she could not remember it. “Oh right. What is our destination again?”

  The Professor held her gaze with his own and as soon as he spoke the words her blood ran cold, “Portal – Library of the Dead.”

  There was no time for goodbyes, instantly she felt the familiar rush and dizziness and she unconsciously held her breath for those few seconds of travel. Images flashed before her eyes as she spiralled through time and space, finally ceasing as a view of the Library came into focus.

  Brilliant. Here we go again.

  But this time there was a welcome committee. Luckily it wasn’t the Doorkeeper, but a small drone hovered a short distance away. It was almost spherical and about the size of a large football, the only sign of life being a small red light in the centre of the metal casing that blinked occasionally. A voice spoke, “Greetings, envoys of Kalos, please follow me to the holding bay.”

  The drone sped off and they followed as best they could. It didn’t seem to be paying them any attention and Millie wondered if now was as good a time as any to make her move. This part of the Library was different to where she had been before though, these shelves were empty of books. Instead it looked more like a warehouse. Floor to ceiling were stacked with tiny drawers, each having a small handle in the centre. Amanaki was unperturbed by his surroundings, however, and strode ahead confidently, arms swinging. Millie ran to keep up with him, Guess he’s used to doing as he’s told, thought Millie.

  She scanned the corridor; it seemed to have no obvious exits but the first one she saw she was going to take. Who knew what this holding bay would hold? The drone stopped suddenly and waited for them to catch up. Damn. It spoke only once, “Area 51.” Next to them a whole section of the wall disintegrated revealing a huge laboratory. Millie didn’t know where to look first; it contained such an odd assortment of things. Then her eyes fell on a beautiful young woman in a simple white dress. She was floating in a huge glass jar. But what was it filled with?

  O liver was stunned, why had he been spared? Alana and the apparition had disappeared so he was alone again. He kicked the ground and shoved his hands in his pockets, he was still freezing. His hand touched the metal cylinder so he took it out and examined it and for the first time he reflected on its purpose. The snake was clearly willing to die to defend it and yet it had caused its death as soon as Oliver possessed it. What did it mean? Did it offer him some protection? He decided to enter the hut anyway as it offered his only chance to get out of the cold; he gripped the cylinder tightly and tiptoed to the door. It was slightly ajar now so he gave it a small push, hoping to enter quietly, but when he saw what was inside he realised there was no need for stealth.

  Oliver had never seen a dead body before and now he was confronted with hundreds of them. Stacked head to toe on simple wooden slats, three layers high, they lay in front of him like sleeping mannequins. For a minute he was rooted to the spot, revulsion filled his mind but he found he was not afraid. The “new” Oliver was curious and approached the nearest bench. He stared at the odd selection of bodies – all sizes, all ages, male and female. He stretched out his hand, and then paused. They were all perfect. No ravages of time, no injuries or imperfections – each face serene. Suddenly Oliver began to doubt his conclusions – how could they be dead? Okay, it was cold, but cold enough to preserve a body? He stretched out his hand again and withdrew it quickly, stepping back in shock – they were warm!

  T he Apprentice had to do something. In a few minutes his charge would be at the gathering and then all Hell would break loose, but what could he do? Jack continued to stagger along the darkening streets muttering under his breath. He was a pitiful sight. The veneer of his life promised so much, he was young, healthy, intelligent and so full of potential, but The Apprentice recognised the pit of sorrow in his soul. It was why he had been assigned. He was an easy target.

  Suddenly he recognised where they were. The Church would be coming up soon, it was the focal point for the opposition, but he knew who would be there at this time. It was worth a try.

  Chapter 21

  T he girl’s eyes were closed and her arms were hanging limply by her side, but something made her move occasionally in a strange robotic dance. It was mesmerising. Only when she heard her name did Millie realise that Amanaki was pulling at her sleeve. “We have to go – the drone is getting impatient.”

  Millie dragged her eyes away and forced herself to look straight ahead, the stuff going on around her was too bizarre. She felt terror in the pit of her stomach; she had been naive to think she could simply find Oliver in a place like this. He could be anywhere, and what did they hope to achieve by experimenting on all these envoys? Millie shivered, at least the drone was taking them away from the glass jars now, but she gave a little cry as she passed some smaller units on her right. Children! They must have been about five years old, their beautiful faces glowing in the translucent liquid. Long eyelashes fluttered gently from time to time. They looked so peaceful. Amanaki took her hand and in her shock Millie actually held onto it. They walked on, turning now into a small corridor with metal doors on either side. The drone stopped at number 29. “This is your room.”

  Millie hesitated, there was nowhere to run, but she was fairly sure she did not want to be trapped in a room either. Amanaki smiled and squeezed her hand, “It will be okay.”

  But Millie didn’t agree, her legs were like lead and her throat was so dry she could barely speak. She pushed the door open and went through. The door closed behind them and Millie tried immediately to open it. It would not budge. Amanaki just shrugged. Millie kicked it several times, “Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Idiot.”

  Amanaki raised an eyebrow which annoyed Millie even more, “What?” she demanded, flopping down on one of the beds. At least that was something to be grateful for. She studied the room; it looked like any student bedsit, the bare minimum of furniture, but no books and no windows. There were shelves on the rear wall containing an odd assortment of what looked like spare parts and there was a screen in the corner. Amanaki beat her to it. He passed his hand over the screen and it burst into life, Millie watched with begrudging admiration as he navigated his way to a site in English. Up until then she had just taken for granted that people would speak her language. The “information” was outstanding in its dreariness, page after page detailing allocations and assignments. It made no sense to Millie. The list of names was endless. She was about to turn away when she had an idea, “Can you search for Oliver?”

  He raised another eyebrow.

  “Please.”

  “I need more information. Full name, date of birth, where he was recorded...”

  Millie remembered the Doorkeeper ha
d asked her something similar, “Oh yes, Oliver Jeremiah Freeman. He hates his middle name, but perhaps it will help us. Date of birth -28/5/1999.”

  “Do you want me to put Earth as the place of record?”

  Millie nodded without giving it much thought, but as soon as Amanaki had finished inputting the data an alarm began to sound above their heads and the screen went blank. They looked at one another in disbelief, they had only just arrived and now they had given themselves away!

  R uth bowed her head and tried to concentrate, the old wooden pews provided little comfort and it was always cold even though the heating was apparently on. There were only a handful of them now. Why was the prayer meeting always so badly attended? She smiled to herself, having it on a Friday evening was probably part of the problem she guessed. This was her second time in church today but initially her thoughts were elsewhere. She knew her daughter was at home but she always had the television on so loud, what if George needed something? She released all of her anxious fears as she reminded herself that it was out of her control anyway. He was keeping watch.

  She shuffled again on the hard pew and listened to the prayers of others for a while. So many needs, so much heartache. She added her Amen to the prayer for the young man in hospital, only 16 years old and in a coma, it sounded really serious.

  Jenny prayed again for her daughter and Bob prayed for the local school and the service on Sunday, the Family Specials were really popular with the young families and there was going to be another Baptism. Ruth was happy to listen, she had been coming to these meetings for years but she never prayed out loud. She lifted her heart to the Lord and abandoned herself to His care. This was her way. He knew all. She felt the familiar comfort flood her being and she was immediately aware of His presence as the voices of the others dimmed. She could feel the gentle blow of The Spirit on her face and a deep peace settled in her heart. All too soon the others were closing with the Lord’s Prayer and it would be time to leave, but Ruth felt the Spirit’s stirring still. Something was about to happen.

  T he Apprentice had to wait outside, he was not strong enough to enter but he knew that others did sometimes. He watched as the odd collection of human beings left, each with their Royal Robes casting brilliance all around. He hoped he hadn’t missed her. Finally there she was. Eighty-five years old in her mortal frame, but The Apprentice could barely stand to look at her, such was the anointing.

  Jack was on his way, but if she crossed the road now she would miss him, he had to delay her. Frantically looking around for an idea he spotted the bins awaiting collection in the morning. Summoning all his ability he swept through them and succeeded in knocking them over, right in front of her. She was old school, she would pick all the rubbish up first and then she would see Jack. But then what?

  T he door crashed against the wall and two armed soldiers grabbed them before they had a chance to object. Millie struggled against the vice-like grip which pulled her arms so tight behind her she could barely breathe, but Amanaki simply stared at the man now standing in the doorway. It was the Doorkeeper. His eyes flashed with cold fury as he approached Millie and slapped her across the cheek, “So we meet again Miss Freeman, I think you have something of mine.” He unzipped her jacket and snatched the amulet. “Now you will pay for your meddling. Take them to the Arena.”

  Luckily for Millie it wasn’t too far away, as she realised quite quickly the soldier was another fine example of technology in action, and clearly had no human compassion whatsoever. Her arms were nearly breaking under the strain while Amanaki registered no distress. Perhaps being an android had some benefits after all. Eventually they entered a large lift and descended a hundred floors at hurtling speed. Millie felt sick and thought she would pass out but at last it stopped and she was bundled out. When they finally arrived at their destination Millie managed to lift her head a little and she saw a tall, thin stranger in the corner of the room. Dressed all in black he had his back to them and spoke almost in a whisper, “You may release them and wait outside.”

  Millie couldn’t help collapsing, the pins and needles were excruciating, but she despised her own weakness in front of her captor. Amanaki went to help her up but she pushed him away and struggled to her feet, rubbing her arms to improve the circulation. The man turned. He did not speak but watched Millie with interest. He was old, with raven black hair swept away from his fine features, and the eyes were cruel. Millie was afraid of him. She was determined not to show it, however, so she decided to take a leaf out of Amanaki’s book and stay silent.

  The man walked up to her, standing slightly too close Millie noted. “Who is Oliver Jeremiah Freeman?” he asked.

  Millie continued rubbing her arm, “Never heard of him.”

  The man gave an appalling attempt at a smile, “Then why did you input his name into the census, Millie Lydia Freeman?”

  Millie shrugged, “I was looking for my grandfather, he died before I was born.”

  “Really?” He seemed pleased with the answer, he turned to Amanaki, “And what about you?”

  Amanaki returned the stare.

  “Name and place of record?” The request was formal almost angry.

  “Amanaki. Kalos.”

  Millie watched her new friend closely, she had not noticed until now that his speech was always so concise, so programmed. The man nodded, “Yes. That is correct. And you – Millie Lydia Freeman? What is your place of record?”

  Millie met his gaze, “Kalos.”

  He returned the stare and held it for a few seconds, finally he called out, “Guards!”

  In an instant the two soldiers returned, the black visors hiding most of their faces. They stood to attention. “Remove the control panels,” the man ordered.

  Once again Millie found herself in the painful grip of the guard. They were dragged to a seating area and held securely by metallic wrist constraints. She was about to kick out when her ankles were bound in the same way. She could see Amanaki opposite her, again he displayed no emotion. Before Millie could apply what she was learning, however, the guard was rolling up her sleeves. The other guard was doing the same to Amanaki. Scanning both arms quickly with a small monitor he quickly located what he wanted and plunged a sharp blade into Amanaki’s skin. Millie watched in horror as he forced open a rectangular section of “skin” to reveal a mass of wiring and flashing displays. Millie had no time to reflect on this, however, for her own guard had already scanned both of her arms, twice. He was clearly not interested in details. He raised his blade and with considerable clinical efficiency brought it down heavily onto Millie’s upturned forearm. Millie screamed as the searing pain registered and blood spurted in an impressive arc. “Are you crazy?” she gasped.

  “Stop!” The man pushed the guard away and knelt by the side of Millie, the blade was still in position and deep red blood was now oozing all over the floor. Millie was too traumatised to say anything else but what happened next sickened her even more. The man stretched out a trembling hand and ran his fingers through the sticky puddle forming on the floor. His eyes burned with desire. Slowly he lifted his fingers to his lips and licked. Millie wanted to scream again but her world turned black and she was spared any more.

  Chapter 22

  M ichael was always in such a hurry and Quark was nowhere to be seen. Winston was so bored he had started inventing little games. If one of the angelic host appeared he would try and remember their name and area of responsibility and ask them silly questions. He had discovered certain clues about their status and demeanour but there were so many of them he soon found he got confused. Some of them looked so similar he did not know how they could tell one another apart! He was also lost when they spoke in their own language, something they tended to do when he was around. He didn’t take it personally but it did not help with the boredom. He sighed. How could it take so long?

  He was just about to take another nap when Quark appeared, tapping the tips of his fingers together as he walked; he was still pre-occupi
ed. “Ah, there you are,” he began. Winston resisted the temptation to ask where else would he be. “We will be leaving soon for Diabolicus so I think it is best I take you home. Millie’s mum and dad will be going there soon and we can’t have you missing as well, can we?”

  Winston was horrified, “But what about the other doors? I thought we needed to do them all?”

  Quark stopped fidgeting and tried to explain, “My dear friend we know where the twins are now because they have been detected by our observers. We do not know if they are together at this point, but they are certainly in the same Domain. Preparations have been underway for some time now to enter this enemy territory but it is far too dangerous for you. I would never be able to explain to Oliver and Millie if I lost you, and they will want you to be at home when they get back.”

  “But there must be something I can do?” Winston pleaded.

  Quark was adamant, “That place is not like your planet Winston. It is a counterfeit system. Can you understand what I am saying? The Fallen have corrupted everything, there is nothing good there. They try to copy everything you have on Earth, but they cannot do it, they try to simulate landscapes, cities, even people with their technology. Their artificial intelligence is quite advanced, but what they really seek long term is a new home. They know the prophecies will be fulfilled and when the time comes there will be a new heaven and a new earth for the old will have passed away and they will pass into judgement. They still seek a way to prevent this happening.”

  Winston hung his head, “Why are the twins there then?”