The Rebellion (A Dystopian Cyberpunk Journey)

Chapter Four

Nona stared up at the bed frame above her in a trance. She counted the wrinkles in the mattress above her to keep her thoughts distant.

“You’ll never amount to anything worrying about the world.” Her mother’s voice echoed in her head shaking her skull. “This drug is this family’s biggest success, Nona.” She pushed her wild hair further from her face and turned onto her left side. It felt as if the voices spilled out of left ear as she turned to look at Vasi. He lay asleep on the floor directly next to her bed. She studied his face and watched his dreadlocks fall over his face like a waterfall as he turned to his right side. It had been a while since Nona had talked to a guy, an attractive guy at that.  She hadn’t fooled around since she was twenty. She was going on thirty, this year. Nona’s extra blankets covered his bare chest. I wish I were those blankets, she thought. She felt like a pervert observing his body from toe to head. He moved again, pushing the blankets off of his body. Nona’s eyes traced his muscles, she begun to count his abs.

            “I thought men were objectifying.” He whispered. His eyes were still closed. Nona’s cheeks were flushed with pink, blending into her freckles. He opened his hazel eyes and stared up at her. A girl could have been mistaken by the look in his eyes. It made you want to be in love with him, but Nona knew.

            “My apologies.” She whispered. He smiled his crooked smile.

            “First you punch me in the face, and then you rape me with those pretty eyes of yours.”He chuckled under his breath. “…What were you thinking about?” His face was peeling at her brain. She frowned and sighed.

            “Nothing. I just can’t sleep.” She stared at the floor in front of him.

            “That makes two of us.” He folded his arms over his chest and stared at the framed of the bed.

            “What’s the plan for, today?” She questioned.

            “We gear up and wait for the message.”

            “I’m not one to wait for orders.” Her eyebrow rose. Vasi could tell she was offended.

            “I don’t mean to offend you. It’s just how I’m used to working. The message usually comes early.”

            “Maybe you should work a different way.” She retorted.

            “I’d still be taking orders.”

            “Yeah? From who?” She sat up in the bed letting her feet come down to the cold, white tile on the floor.

            “You.” He smirked. “My jaw still hurts…”

Nona was about to come back with a smart remark that would make him choke up, but life didn’t happen that way. Vasi’s eyes grew big as he begun to yell out in pain. His deep groans made Nona’s heart stop. She ran over to his side as he balled in pain.  He was cupping his wrist and biting his lip to contain what was happening to him. Ava jumped off the bed like a bunny and ran to his side.

            “What do I do?” She asked. Nona had Vasi’s head resting in her lap as she tried to keep him calm.

            “I don’t know!” Nona yelled to Ava. “I don’t know what’s going on.” They watched in horror as he cried out. He held his hand up in the air. The veins in his arms were moving as if it was reconstructing itself in his arm. Four points came up in his palm and a hologram appeared. Vasi was nearly unconscious in Nona’s lap.

            “Good evening, Nona. Miss Ava. Don’t fret over Vasi. He will be quite alright. I’m transferring over a few file reports over. I want you to---,” There was no face, only documents.

            “Are you the asshole that sent him? You’re this boss I keep hearing about?” Anger saturated Nona’s voice.

            “I wouldn’t address myself as such, but yes. Vasille is a priority of mine.” His voice was a strong but elderly. Nona remembered hearing voices like his in the vintage movies where people celebrated a weird holiday called Christmas.

            “Well, your priority is dying.” The voice was silent for a while.

            “Nona, don’t be so dramatic. Now, are you ready for these instructions or not?” The tone was a familiar one. She was silent herself for a while as she wondering who was on the controlling end of the hologram. “I’m sending documents over to you as we speak. All the instructions you need for the next few days is there. Guard them with your life. This is confidential material that should stay between the four of us.”

            “What if I don’t follow anything you say?”

            “Then that will be your loss. I won’t hurt you. But if you don’t follow my rules, I know people who would. These directions are an expansion of your life on Earth. I’d hate to see Ava without a sister in this hateful world.” Nona tilted her head to the side.

            “Is that a threat?” The pitch in her voice was rising.

            “It’s not a threat, Nona. You’ve been in the dark for eleven years. I’m offering you a light bulb.” His voice was demanding. He, however, wasn’t going to force her to do a single thing. She didn’t have to blink if she didn’t want to.

            “Whatever.” She caved in.

            “One last thing…” He said. Nona stared down at Vasille. He moved his head to the side slowly and sat on the fence between consciousness and sleep.

            “What?”

            “Try to stay alive.”