Cold Hell - 17. Chapter 16

Adwele came back gradually. He would surface for a few moments, open his eyes, close them, and then slip back under. When he woke a second time, it was long enough to look around the room in confusion, then at Dinah and ask, "Where am I?"

"You're at the clinic, here at Colony Wuxia," Dinah said gently, leaning forward in her chair. She looked into his dark eyes and wrinkled face. His hair was shock-white but his expression was that of a terrified child.

For a moment his brow remained creased, as if trying to remember something he'd forgotten, then creased when he remembered what it was. "Okja?" he whispered. "Have you seen Okja?"

"Okja?" Dinah asked, just as confused.

"My monkey," he said, as if those two words explained everything.

Ahhhh, Okja, yes. Now she remembered. Okja was an amusing topic, even amongst Clan Wuxia and Clan Lukas. Everyone wanted to know how Adwele’s little pet friend had come to be on the planet. She shook her head sadly. “I’m sorry, I don’t know where your monkey is.”

This was as far as she got before he closed his eyes again and went back under. Dinah was a patient woman, especially when it came to getting what she wanted. She would wait for as long as she had to, to achieve her goalsgouls.

It was another hour before he woke back up. This time when Adwele opened his eyes, there was no confusion or feebleness on his face. She saw in him the cold, calculating calm that existed in all the clan leaders - without it he would not be a clan leader. He wasted no time cutting to the chase. “Are you going to kill me?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” she said. “I haven’t decided yet. You were on our side of the border so technically I have the right to. I’m trying to think what the political advantages would be.”

“Me coming towards your side of the border wasn’t accidental. I did it on purpose. I need your help.”

She sat back, alarmed. “Why would you come to me for help?”

Adwele’s eyes were as hard as black onyx. “Because, you’re cold and ruthless. Spitefull.less. Nothing like your father, I might add. For a clan leader he was a rare breed. Kind, compassionate. IfEven only he hadn’t killed himself with drinking...”

Dinah resisted the urge to slap him. “Get to the point!”

“Something...something terrible has happened.” HIs eyes widened again and the fear shown on his face. His chin trembled. He reached out faster than a man in his condition should have been able to do, and grabbed her hand. His fingers were very strong, digging into the flesh between her fingers. Dinah tried to jerk her hand away but he held on. “Listen to me,” he hissed, sitting up. “I need you to listen.”

Dinah froze. She resisted the urge to scream for Natalia. The thing that stopped her was the look in his eyes. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone look so afraid. “We sfound something underneath the ice,” he said. “We don’t know how old it is, but it’s been there long before we came here.”

“What…?” she gulped. “What did you find underneath the ice?”

“A city,” he said. “It’s massive. We were digging for uranium underneath the ice. It was completely by dumb luck we found it. One of our drills crashed through the ice, into a chain of caves.”

"Caves?" She'd stopped trying to yank her hand away, but stayed seated in her chair, back rigid. She couldn't believe anything she was hearing. Caves? There isn't anything on this planet but ice and minerals.

"Listen!" he snapped. He gave her hand another painful squeeze. "You're not listening. I sent some of my people to explore the caves and inside they found the city...perfectly preserved underneath the ice. So I set a camp...a research facility over it...so we could explore." Adwele squeezed his eyes shut. To Dinah's surprise, he burst into tears.

"What we found...we should have never gone in, we opened Pandora's box...because now it's out."

Dinah licked her lips. "What's out, Adwele?"

"The infection. It broke out. Everyone back at the camp got infected. There were a few survivors when I left, but by now they're probably dead." Adwele's grip had softened by now. It seemed he was no longer trying to restrain her, but was instead seeking solace from another human being.

"What is this infection you speak of?" Dinah asked.

"It spreads from person to person through bites and...I've seen carriers vomit on people and infect them. It also changes the host into something unspeakable. Something not human." Adwele let go of her hand. "Dinah, I think I'm infected too."

Dinah felt herself grow numb. Her body took over, acting on self preservation alone. She didn't want to touch him, didn't want to be anywhere near him. She slowly rose to her feet and backed up until she was standing by the door. "So you decided to bring it here, to my colony?"

"You're the only person I trust," Adwele said softly.

"To do what?"

"To do what needs to be done. To kill me, to keep it from spreading."

She didn't want to hear anymore. She needed to find Natalia and talk to her. "I'm going to find someone, talk to them, and let you rest. When I get back I will decide what is to be done with you."

"No!" His eyes bulgeds from their sockets. "You don't understand! It's only a matter of time! You must kill me now before I turn!"

But she wasn't listening. She slipped from the room before he could say anything else.

She found Natalia in another room, peeking into a microscope. Just as Dinah entered the room, her lover looked up, eyes wide, her expression matching Adwele's. "You won't believe this," she breathed. "I don't know how this is even possible."

"After what Adwele told me a few seconds ago, I just might," Dinah said.

"I tested the anomaly we found in his body. It looks like a plant but really it's some sort of biomatter made up ofby microscopic parasites no bigger than blood cells. Take a look."

Dinah reluctantly stepped closer to the microscope and lowered her head to the eye piece. “Tell me what I’m looking at. I’m not a scientist like you are.”

“See the round red circles moving around?”

“Yes.”

“Those are blood cells.”

“See the other things, long and tubular?”

“Yes.”

“Those are microscopic parasites. They’re devouring the blood cells and making more parasites, replacing the cells quickly. I’ve never seen anything like this. At the rate these parasites are devouring Adwele’s cells, he should have been dead a long time ago.”

Dinah looked away from the microscope at her lover. “I don’t think he’s dying. I think he’s turning.”

“Into what?”

“I don’t know. He told me some things just now, but I don’t know whether to believe him or if it’s just the raving of a mad man.”

“Whatever the case may be, we can’t let this get out,” said Natalia. “We have to keep it contained or else who knows what damage it could do to the colony.”

“You’re saying we should keep him quarantined?”

“No.” Natalia’s expression turned pained. Her voice was barely louder than a whisper. “I’m saying we should get rid of him. He’s too dangerous to keep around.”

Once again Dinah couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Natalia had always been the soft one of the couple, the one who was the most humane. Now she was suggesting she kill Adwele. Did more surprises await them, hovering just around the corner? As if in answer to this question, they heard the doors to the clinic open. Dinah and Natalia stepped out of the room, into the hallway, to see who it was. Danni and Everest were walking down the hallway towards them. Empty-handed.

“Where are the bodies you said you found?” Dinah demanded.

“Gone,” Danni said, shrugging off his coat.”

“What do you mean they’re gone?”

“When we got to the site the bodies weren’t there,” Everest said.

“Did someone come and take them?”

“We don’t know.” Danni pulled off his gloves and began clenching and unclenching his fists to get the blood flowing. HIs face was slightly discolored in places from frostbite. Natalia gave them steaming-hot rags to press to their faces. “We searched the area but if there were any tracks then they were covered by snow a long time ago. It’s far too cold to go back outside.”

“Fuck.” Dinah shook her head, making her dreads sway from side to side. “This whole situation is a clusterfuck.”

“What are we going to do with Adwele?” Natalia asked, looking from Danni to Dinah.

“Keep him under quarantine and continue to observe him,” said Dinah.

“What?” Natalia stepped towards Dinah. “I told you it’s not safe! The more we keep him around the more we risk exposure! And let’s not forget about the blizzard right on our tail! What if it hits and something bad happens and we have no way of dealing with it because we’ll be up to our necks in snow?”

In the back of her mind, Dinah knew Natalia had a point. She had always been smart, level-headed, and moral. Too good to be on this planet. It’s why I fell in love with you in the first place, so long ago it seems, Dinah thought. But it was a long time ago and I’ve changed since then. I’m not the woman I used to be - and it seems neither are you.

Dinah couldn’t kill Adwele - not now. Not while he was still alive. There was power in keeping him captive. Besides, they didn’t know enough. She wanted to hear more of what he had to say. “Keep him sedated,” she told Natalia. “I’m not finished with him yet.”

                        …

The strain between Dinah and Natalia was palpable, sharp as a knife, and it all had to do with Adwele Danni knew.

“C’mon, Everest,” said Dinah. “The night’s not over with. There are security matters you and I need to discuss.”

Everest, ever obedient, nodded. He looked at Danni. “See you around?”

“Sure.”

“We should get a drink at the pub sometime.”

The corner of Danni’s lips twitched into the fraction of a smile. “We should.” He watched Everest follow Dinah out of the clinic into the night. The butterfly sensation was back in his stomach. He frowned. Why am I feeling this again? I haven’t felt this way...since Juan.

He turned to Natalia, with the rag still pressed to his face. “I’m heading out for the night. I’ll just bring this back...whenever I’m here next.” He turned away, pretending not to notice the tears in her eyes.

“Danni,” she said in between sobs, “wait. I need your help.”

He already knew what she was going to say. He turned back around to face her with a sigh. “Don’t even bother asking, because I already know what you’re going to say - and you should already be able to guess what my answer is. I’m not going to kill Adwele.”
“Even if it were to save the whole colony?” Natalia squeaked.

“You don’t even know if the colony is in danger. Right now you don’t know much of anything. I would do what Dinah says for now, give it some time, and try to find out as much as you can until she says otherwise.”

“But I am sure,” Natalia said more boldly. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but Adwele has to be disposed of before the infection gets out and spreads and God only knows what happens!”

Danni frowned at her. “Why are you asking me to do this? Why not Everest?”

Natalia laughed. It was a humorless sound, bordering on the edge of hysteria. “We both know Everest is Dinah’s lapdog who will do anything he tells her to do, because he’s incapable of thinking for himself. Just like all the other men on this frozen rock. Tell me, are men just as stupid on Earth?” She looked at Danni pointedly. “I thought you were the type of man whothat would do anything necessary to keep the people around him safe.”

“Did you get that from my memoir?” Danni asked.

Natalia’s eyes widened comically in response.

“I know you read it,” Danni said.

“You don’t understand.” She grabbed his arm, pleading now; tears were leaking from her eyes again. “Dinah doesn’t give a damn about anyone on this planet - not even me. She used to. She used to be the love of my life. When she started out as clan leader she wanted to do good. She wanted to bring us out of the cold. Those were the words she used to tell me. I don’t know when it all changed, when she became someone else. She will do anything to get more power. She won’t do what needs to be done.”

“What makes you think I’m any different?” Danni asked. Memories and faces flashed before his eyes, splatters of blood. He gently ppulled his arm out of Natalia's grasp. “I did terrible things on Earth. I did things in the name of vengeance. I killed people, lied to the ones I loved and cared about; they had to watch me turn into a monster. I tried to kill my father. And the whole time I was doing these things I told myself I was doing it for the better of those around me, and for the rest of the world. But really I was just being selfish. I turned into someone exactly like Dinah. KIlling Adwele would only lead me down that path again. After what happened with MIkaleMikael and his friends I don’t want to kill anymore. Not unless I absolutely have to.”

“You killed Mikael to save Calvin. You took him into your home and helped him recover. Dinah would never do anything like that - maybe when we first met, when she was a different person, but not now. I know what kind of person you are, Danni. I know in the end you are a good person - better than any of us could ever be - and I know you’ll do the right thing.” Natalia sighed. “Just touch him. Use your gift. See what you pick up from him - then make your decision. I’m going to go run some more tests.”

She left him standing there, feeling more conflicted than he could ever remember being. He glanced at the door to the room where they were keeping Adwele. Danni walked towards it,tbe door, touched the knob, turned it slowly. He looked inside.

Adwele was asleep in the bed, snoring softly. Danni slipped into the room. Adwele’s hand dangled over the side of the bed. All it would take was one touch. Danni reached out, and touched the top of his hand.

In the blink of an eye the room he stood in was gone. Everything was gone. He was passing quickly through a red tunnel - no, not a tunnel but a blood stream. Someone’s blood stream. Adwele’s blood stream. He was passing through it so quickly everything was a blur. He could hear the relaxed beat of Adwele’s heart.

Eat, replace, build

He was hungry. So hungry. His sole purpose was to devour. Devour and replace and transform. He was an invader. He had never felt this sense of hunger, to be so physically empty. To feel such need to latch on and take over. This was the life cycle of every known existing parasite. He ate and ate but there was no sense of being full.

Eat, replace, build.

Infect.

Spread -

Danni let go, gasping for breath. He’d never felt anything like this, anything so alien. He could still feel it, this parasitic need. He wanted to get rid of it, tear it out of him if he had to.

Adwele was looking at him, having woken up. Danni had never seen anyone look so sad, so desolate in his life. Not since his mother was alive.

“I can feel them inside me,” Adwele said, “devouring what’s left of me. My insides, my personality. They don’t just change you physically, they change everything else too. Your mind. Your soul.” Grey-blue fluid leaked from the corner of his eyes, the same color as the substance growing along the inside of the truck Danni and Everest had found. “I’m turning into something. Something alien.”

Danni couldn’t move, he was paralyzed. Terrified. Fascinated.

“I’ve seen the very thing I turn into,” said Adwele. “And when I turn I know what I’ll want to do. You have to kill me. And then you have to take me somewhere and burn my body until there’s nothing left or else I’ll just come back. Do you understand?”

Danni nodded. “Yes.” He stood up. His legs went numb. He went over to a drawer and pulled out a syringe. "I can make it quick."

"Better you than Dinah," said Adwele.