“That’s the kava,” Vishal said. “How do you feel, Moki?”
Jack rubbed his forehead. “My ears are ringing.” He took another drink. “Man, I haven’t felt this good since . . . Heather Jennings.”
“Who’s Heather Jennings?”
“This angel . . .”
Ostin closed his eyes. “Wow. This is . . . so . . . peaceful. I . . . feel . . . so . . . peaceful. It’s the kavalact . . . kavalacto . . . kava . . .”
“Kavalactones,” Vishal said. “They are the compound responsible for kava’s psychoactive qualities.”
“Psychoactive,” Ostin said. “I like that word. I’ve always liked that word. I like big words. They’re like those foot-long sandwiches. . . .”
“You sound drunk,” Jack said.
“The people here call it getting krunked,” Vishal said.
“Krunked,” Jack repeated. “That’s a funny word.”
“It’s a compound,” Ostin said. “ ‘Kava’ and ‘drunk.’ ” He suddenly leaned forward and yawned.
“Now, don’t go to sleep on me,” Vishal said.
“Sorry.”
“So, tell me, Thomas. What were the two of you out fishing for?”
“Fishing?” Ostin said. “When did we go fishing?”
“Fishing,” Vishal said. “That’s what you said you were doing when I found you. Fishing in your raft.”
Ostin laughed a little, then said, “Oh, right. We weren’t really fishing.”
“No?”
“We didn’t even have fishing poles,” Ostin said.
Jack shook his head. “We didn’t even have a raft.”
“Yes, I know, Jack,” Vishal said. “I watched the two of you jump off a very odd-looking boat and swim to shore.”
“Hey, you said Jack’s real name,” Ostin said. “How did you know his real name?”
“You are very poor liars, Ostin, from Meridian, Idaho. Very poor. Tell me, where were you coming from?”
“Hades,” Jack said.
“Hades?” Vishal looked at them quizzically. “The mythical Greek hell?”
“No. Hades in Tuvalu.”
Vishal immediately stood, knocking his chair back in the motion. His face was dark. “Do not speak of Tuvalu here,” he said in a hushed but angry burst.
“Hey, it’s cool,” Ostin said. “No harm, no foul. It’s just a bunch of islands—”
“It’s time to go,” Vishal said. “Do not speak to anyone.” He grabbed Ostin by the arm. “Now.”
“Wait,” Ostin said, grabbing the bowl of kava. “I’m not done.”
“Yes, you are,” Vishal said.
“Where are you taking us?” Jack asked.
“Home,” Vishal said.
“I don’t believe you,” Jack said. “I’m not going.”
“Yes, you are,” Vishal said.
“Who’s going to make me?” Jack asked. “You and what army?”
Just then a massive islander walked up behind Vishal. As large as Vishal was, their host was dwarfed compared to the newcomer. The man was almost a foot taller than Vishal and nearly twice as wide. He looked like a mountain of muscle. The man wore dark-lensed aviator sunglasses even though it was night.
“Oh,” Jack said, looking the man up and down. “That army.”
“Wow. You’re a really big dude,” Ostin said. “Like, can you even fit in a car?”
“I think he came to beat us up,” Jack said. “He looks like he’s going to beat us up.”
“I don’t want to get beat up,” Ostin said.
“Whether you get beaten up or not,” Vishal said, “depends on how cooperative you are. That begins by you getting up and walking out with me right now.”
“I’m going,” Ostin said, practically bounding from his chair.
“I’ll go,” Jack said. “I’m in no condition to put up a fight. Actually, I’ve never fought a mountain before. Definitely would lose.”
The man grabbed Jack by the shirt and lifted him.
“Hey. Easy, man; it’s not my shirt.”
He walked Jack out behind Ostin and Vishal.
“Where are we going?” Ostin asked.
“For a drive.”
“That’s not good,” Ostin said. “In the movies, that’s what the bad guys always say before they kill you. That or ‘go for a swim.’ ”
“Then let’s hope we don’t go near water,” Vishal said.
“Kinda hard when you’re on an island,” Ostin mumbled.
The two men put Jack and Ostin in the backseat of the van. Then the large man sat in the first bench seat, between them and the door.
“Look,” Ostin said. “Big dude can fit in a car. But, technically, this isn’t a car. It’s a utility van. You could probably fit a bull in here.” He looked around. “Maybe a small bull.”
“Quiet,” Vishal said.
“Sorry,” Ostin said. He looked at the man who practically took up the entire seat. “Hey, Big Dude. Do you have a name? Or does everyone just call you ‘Big Dude.’ ”
“His name is not your concern,” Vishal said.
“That’s a really weird name,” Ostin said.
“Be quiet,” Jack said. “Before he punches you.”
“He’s not going to punch me.”
“Then I will,” Jack said.
The large man turned around. “My name is Alveeta,” he said, speaking for the first time, in a voice much higher than either of them expected.
“Alveeta,” Ostin said. “Nice name.”
“Yes. Now shut up, or I will hit you.”
“Yes, Alveeta, sir.”
Jack and Ostin were nearly asleep when they reached an aluminum-sided warehouse near the harbor where they’d come ashore. Vishal got out and opened a chain-link gate, pulled the van through, and then parked behind the building. He shut off the van, then turned back, looking at Ostin and Jack. “We’re all going inside. For your sakes, remain quiet.”
“Yes, sir,” Jack said.
“So let it be written,” Ostin said. “So let it be done.”
“Shut up,” Vishal said.
“Yes, sir,” Ostin said. “It’s the kava.”
Vishal came around and opened the door. Alveeta climbed out first. “Come out. Now.”
“Yes, sir,” Jack said.
As they got to the building’s metal door, Vishal turned around and said to Jack and Ostin, “Let me introduce you to our friends.” He took out a key and unlocked two locks, then opened the door and stepped inside. He turned on the light as Ostin and Jack followed him in.
“I don’t see anyone,” Ostin said.
Alveeta shut the door behind them, and Vishal opened a side door. “Look in here, please.”
Ostin took a step inside the room, then froze. There were three Elgen guards sitting at a table.
27
An Exploding Friend
“You’re Elgen,” Jack said, suddenly feeling more coherent.
“Of course we are,” Vishal said, shutting the side door. “Who did you think we were?”
“We didn’t think you were anyone,” Ostin said.
“Everyone is someone,” Vishal said. “Alveeta, tie their hands behind their backs.”
As Alveeta took a thin nylon cord from his pocket, Ostin realized that this had been their plan from the beginning.
“You said you had never heard of the Elgen,” Vishal said to Ostin. “Then you made a comment about a Starxource plant.”
“That was pretty stupid,” Ostin said. “Especially for me.”
“And that was before the kava,” Jack said.
“What are you going to do to us?” Ostin asked.
“That depends.”
“On what?” Ostin said.
“On how cooperative you are. You will answer our questions honestly, or we’ll let our Elgen friends know who you really are. Something tells me that you wouldn’t like that.”
“How will you know if we’re being honest?” Ostin asked.
?
??We’ll interrogate you separately. If we get different answers, we’ll know that one of you is lying.”
“That’s a good idea,” Ostin said.
Jack shook his head. “Don’t tell them that’s a good idea.”
“I’ll take you first,” Vishal said to Ostin. He led him into a side office. There was a simple card table with a metal chair in front of it.
“Sit,” he said.
“Yes, sir.” Ostin sat.
“We’ll begin at the beginning. Who are you?”
“You know who we are.”
“I know your first names and where you’re from, but that’s not knowing who you are, is it? Why did you come to Fiji?”
“The first time or the second time?”
“So you’ve been here before?”
“Yes, sir.”
“The first time.”
“To get to Tuvalu.”
“. . . And the second time?”
“To get away from Tuvalu.”
Vishal nodded. “What brought you to Tuvalu?”
“You. The Elgen.”
“You wish to be an Elgen like us?”
Ostin looked at him like he was a moldy doughnut. “I’d rather be fed to rats.”
“That can be arranged. Who are you that you have business with the Elgen?”
“I’m with the Electroclan.”
“What is that?”
“It’s the resistance against the Elgen.”
Vishal looked surprised. “You are young to be a member of a resistance.”
“It wasn’t my choice. We were dragged into it.”
“By whom?”
“You. The Elgen.”
“Explain.”
Ostin took a deep breath. “The whole story?”
“Just explain.”
“It started when you made my best friend electric.”
“Jack?”
“No. He’s not my best friend. Well, he kind of is now, but my real best friend died.”
“What do you mean, we made him electric?”
“You don’t know?”
Vishal just looked at him. “Humor me.”
“Elgen Inc. has a machine that alters the physical electrical properties of unborn humans. That’s how you made seventeen electric children.”
“Are you electric?”
“No. Neither is Jack. We’re the only nonelectrics. Nonels. You know what that is.”
Vishal looked at him for a moment, then asked, “Why were you on our boat?”
“We’d stolen it. But then the Philippine Navy captured us. Jack and I were able to escape.”
“How?”
“Your guys were using RESATs to paralyze the electric ones. They didn’t know Jack and I weren’t electric, so we pretended to be paralyzed. Then, when no one was looking, we jumped off the boat.”
“Where are the others now?”
“We think the navy took them back to Tuvalu. The Joule didn’t have enough fuel to make it back, so it came to Fiji to refuel. We rode on the side of the ship until we got close to the shore, then jumped off.”
“Why are all these Elgen guards coming to Fiji?”
Ostin looked at him curiously. “You don’t know?”
“Just answer my question.”
“There was a big battle. Most of the Elgen guards were killed. My guess is that Hatch is trying to reinforce the island before the natives find out.”
Vishal suddenly leaned back. “You’re telling me the truth?”
“Yes.”
“We heard rumors that there was a big explosion. A flash that was seen for more than three hundred miles.”
“Yes, sir.”
“What was it?”
Ostin looked down. Suddenly his eyes welled up.
“Well?”
“You won’t believe me.”
“Try me.”
Ostin slowly looked up. “That explosion was my best friend.”
28
Discretion
Vishal gazed at Ostin for a long time before speaking. “What do you mean, the explosion was your friend?”
Even krunked, Ostin knew that whatever he said would not be believed. “My friend, Michael, had a special weapon. When it detonated, it wiped out almost all of the Elgen.”
“I have heard the island is glass,” Vishal said almost to himself. He stood. “If the Elgen are really that vulnerable, this is good news. It is important news.”
“Wait,” Ostin said. “Are you Elgen or not? Because now you’re talking like you’re not.”
Vishal ignored his question. “If you’re lying, it could cost the lives of thousands of my people. And I guarantee, it will cost you yours.”
“I’m not lying. You can ask Jack.”
“I intend to. And if you’re lying, the punishment will fit the crime.”
“I’m not afraid to die,” Ostin said.
“Really?”
“I’ve accepted it,” he said. “I’ve been lucky before. But luck always runs out. Eventually.”
Vishal looked at Ostin. “How does a boy from Meridian, Idaho, end up in a battle for the island nation of Tuvalu?”
“I’ve asked myself that many times.”
“And what’s the answer?”
“The Elgen kidnapped my best friend’s mother. We went to save her.”
Vishal was quiet again.
“May I ask you a question?” Ostin said.
Vishal looked at him.
“Who are you?”
Vishal tapped his pencil on the table, then looked up at Ostin and said, “I am a Tuvaluan and the leader of the Tuvaluan resistance. I was sailing home from purchasing new scuba equipment in Fiji when I received an emergency radio broadcast that Tuvalu had been invaded. I returned to Fiji, only to find that all communication from Tuvalu had been knocked out.
“There were about two hundred of us Tuvaluans stranded here at that time, and maybe a hundred more who were in Australia or New Zealand and flying back. Against our counsel, a few went back to Tuvalu. We have not heard from them since. We all have family and friends in Tuvalu. We plan to rescue them. That is why your news is of such importance to me.”
Ostin nodded. “That’s why you found us.”
“It was not a coincidence that I was there when you came ashore. I had received word that an Elgen boat was nearing Fiji. I was watching it through binoculars when I saw you jump off the side of it a few hundred meters from shore. I needed to find out who you were and what you knew.”
“Why do you have those Elgen guards?”
“We have been capturing them to gain information and to keep them from joining the Elgen force.”
“We should take their uniforms,” Ostin said. “We’ve disguised ourselves as Elgen guards before. Now what are you going to do?”
“First I’m going to untie you,” he said. He walked around the table and untied the knots.
Ostin stretched out his arms, then rubbed his wrists. “Thank you.”
“Tell me your plans,” Vishal said.
“Jack and I are trying to get back to Tuvalu to rescue our friends.”
“Then we have similar goals. We’re both trying to get back to Tuvalu.”
“And we have a common enemy,” Ostin added.
“Do my people know that the Elgen are vulnerable?”
“I don’t think so. But they will. There’s a man we fought with named Enele Saluni. He was going to gather his people to fight.”
Vishal looked at him with surprise. “You know Enele Saluni?”
“He fought in the battle of Hades with us.”
“I feared Enele was dead.”
“He almost was. We rescued him from the Elgen prison.”
“Where is his grandfather, Prime Minister Saluni?”
Ostin frowned but didn’t answer.
Vishal turned pale. “Then he is dead.”
“No,” Ostin said slowly, shaking his head. “Worse. Much worse.”
Vishal leaned forward. “What hav
e they done to that good man?”
“Hatch cut out his tongue, then put him in a monkey cage in the center of Nike.”
Vishal turned pale. “Who is this Hatch?”
“He’s the Elgen leader.”
Vishal shook his head. “What is Nike?”
“It’s the name Hatch gave the main island. Funafuti. He renamed all the islands. Like Hades.”
Vishal’s face turned dark with anger. “The Elgen are not worthy of being called beasts,” he said, choking on his words. “Where is Enele?”
“We gave his men the lifeboats from the Joule so they could return to their homes. He planned to gather the natives and lead a revolution against the Elgen, but he wouldn’t know that the Elgen have already begun rebuilding their forces.”
“Then we must hurry to their aid before the Elgen are strong again,” Vishal said. He looked at Ostin. “Will you fight with us?”
“Of course. We were planning to fight without you,” Ostin said. “I need to rescue my friends. But first we need a way back.”
Vishal stood. “If you will fight with us, I will take you back myself.”
* * *
Jack was surprised to see the change in Vishal’s and Ostin’s demeanors as they walked from the office. They almost looked like friends.
“Alveeta,” Vishal said. “Release Jack. These men are not our enemies.”
Alveeta looked as surprised as Jack did. “How do you know this?”
“Because I have questioned him, and what he says adds up. And he knows Enele Saluni.”
Alveeta looked at Ostin warily. “Why would you trust this boy? He has done nothing but try to deceive us since he arrived.”
“As did we,” Vishal said. “In such days, discretion is the better part of wisdom. Trust me, he is with us.”
Alveeta walked over and untied Jack’s hands. Jack rubbed his wrists. “What’s going on, man?” he asked. “If you’re not Elgen, who are you?”
Ostin said, “They’re Tuvaluans. We’re going to help them, and they’re going to help us.”
“We need to assemble everyone immediately,” Vishal said to Alveeta. “The Elgen are vulnerable right now. That’s why the guards have been gathering. The great explosion we heard about destroyed most of the Elgen forces. I’m going to put out the call.” He walked back into his office.
After he was gone, Alveeta asked Jack, “Do you know Enele too?”