Genesis Code, (Book 1, Genesis Series)

Chapter 2

With a dry mouth and feeling colder than normal, Stephen paced the length of District Three's laboratory. He was hours away from going on the most difficult mission of his life; this was the perfect time to have second thoughts. It would be the first time the Indigenes had tried anything like this. Exposing his fragile skin to the blistering Exilon 5 sun was risky and stupid. Others compared the burn to a fire that started in the pit of their stomachs before it spread to their arms and legs.

Was that what it really felt like? Stephen had never stayed in the sun long enough to find out.

Previous attempts to contact Surface Creatures—the Indigenes' name for the race that lived above ground—had always been at night. But this mission had to be different. It would occur in the daytime because that's where his target would be. The very essence of how the Indigenes lived impinged on his success or failure.

Everything had to go according to plan. He must get the information fast, before a Surface Creature noticed him in their world.

Failure is not an option, Stephen.

He stopped pacing when he heard the voice in his head. Anton, his childhood friend, stood at the entrance to his lab.

Don't you think I know that? said Stephen in reply to his telepathic conversation.

Anton entered the room. Shadow People. That's what they call us.

I suppose it fits. He looked at his friend. I mean we do stick to the shadows a lot and we like to hunt more than animals. In weaker moments, he'd considered joining the group that targeted Surface Creatures instead of animals, on one of their nightly hunts. What are you doing here, Anton?

'I thought you'd like a hand getting ready for tomorrow.' Anton switched to speaking out loud. 'It's what they do, right? Talk out loud? They don't have telepathic abilities like we do.'

'We have nothing in common with those brutes.'

Stephen and Anton had been friends since they were young Evolvers, but Anton was not scarred by events of the past. Stephen had witnessed the land explosions and the early changes to their society; changes that had later killed his parents. But Anton, born after the initial horror, was not consumed by thoughts of revenge like some others.

Like Stephen was, most of the time.

The district tunnels that ran underneath Exilon 5's surface had preserved what was left of their species, giving them a new start.

Stephen shook his head causing Anton to roll his eyes. 'My hatred of their kind is valid, Anton.'

'If you say so. I just think you've let it consume you for too long.'

Stephen buried his anger and strode over to his workbench where he'd left the artificial skin designed by Anton. He tried it on; it felt like an additional layer on his skin, yet it weighed almost nothing. Changing his appearance bothered him but he had to blend in with their kind. The target must not suspect his differences. His fingers grazed the delicate silicone on his face and it yielded to his touch. How could something so fragile feel so heavy?

'It's good, yes?' Anton handled another piece of skin on the workbench. 'I adapted their silicone at the molecular level to make the skin lightweight and wafer-thin. And, it also cools the skin. How great is that?'

It was great. Stephen always knew Anton was destined to be a genius. With the ability to manipulate the Surface Creatures' technology, he could do great things. Or dangerous things.