Page 53 of The Program

It felt strange at first, too, like thousands of tiny pinpricks biting at my skin.

I recalled how the darts bounced right off of me, and decided to test those limits, as well. I searched the kitchen for something to use, settling on a meat cleaver dangling from a hook above a block filled with more, albeit smaller, knives.

Junior watched curiously from across the room, but he jumped and made a panicked sound of distress when I brought the blade down on my wrist as hard as I could.

A clang sounded throughout the room, followed by a snap and a crunch. There lay my hand, still perfectly attached to my body while the meat cleaver’s handle had snapped into pieces and the blade was crushed into an arch-shape that matched the circumference of my wrist.

Junior whined his unease, checking out my arm to ensure everything was okay. When he realised nothing had been cut off he sent me what I could only describe as a look full of reproach before turning his back on me, laying on the floor and covering his eyes with his front paws.

‘No one told you you had to watch,’ I muttered, earning an unimpressed huff from him.

Placing the now-useless cleaver to the side, I rummaged through drawers until I found a meat tenderiser, curious how that one would hold up against me. As it turned out, not well.

On and on it went, and I even went so far as to shoot myself with a laser gun I found in a hidden compartment within the cockpit. Nothing penetrated the metallic covering, and I ended the session without even a dent.

Dave Junior followed me from room to room, though he kept his distance as if afraid I would suddenly turn on him and attack him the same way I was attacking myself. He heaved a sigh of immense relief, practically collapsing on the floor when I put the gun down and stopped hunting for anything else.

Sadly for him, I wasn’t finished with my little experiments.

Next up was the forcefield I’d formed alongside the metal casing. I started off small, pushing it just beyond my reach and using small objects on the table as a reference. It was still just as invisible as before, but I succeeded in extending my reach and flexing the ability.

I performed similar tests from the inside, proving that it was just as impenetrable as the metal, aiming the gun and pressing the trigger. Just like I remembered, the plasma went splat against the surface, spreading out before dripping down and dissipating.

I learned that the more power I exerted, the more I needed to replenish my energy. I would need to carry some of the Nutri-bars with me at all times in case of emergencies. I would definitely need extra lining my pockets forthe mission. My luck lately had been far too consistent and beneficial, and I didn’t trust it. Something bad was going to happen, soon, and I needed to be prepared for the worst.

I suspected it had something to do with Bromm. He was most likely a hallucination I’d conjured because I missed him so much. I missed the others, too, but I wasn’t certain any of them would want to see me. I’d lied to them for the entirety of our fleeting time together. Sure, it wasn’t anything personal against them, but that didn’t change the fact that I’d pretended to be someone andsomethingI wasn’t.

They knew me as Arthur Mercer, but Arthur Mercer didn’t exist.

A deep-rooted loneliness that had plagued me for the majority of my life burst forth to the forefront of my emotions. Libby and Bal were my everything, but they couldn’t give me all that I craved. I once thought T could, until he’d let me down and proved me wrong. I’d pretended Bromm could, but he was attracted to a male, no matter what scenarios my mind conjured up.

Adara was the only person besides Libby who had accepted me as I was, vagina and all, but she was in a relationship with the captain.

There was no one else.

Needing to see Libby’s face, I connected with her holo-tab again.

She popped up immediately, concern etching lines around her eyes. ‘Artemis? What’s wrong?’

The smile I gave her was watery at best. ‘Nothing. I just missed you.’

The lines smoothed out and were replaced by an equally watery smile. ‘I miss you too, A. I can’t wait for you to come back to me.’

‘Me either,’ I admitted freely. ‘Being apart is justwrong.’

‘Well, what have you been up to in the past few turns since we last spoke? Bored yet?’

I smirked over at where Dave Junior was trying to gnaw through the Nutri-Bar, far,faraway from me. ‘Just practicing my new abilities.’

‘Any luck?’ she asked, her interest genuine.

‘Yup! Easy enough to control. Need to keep myself stocked with food, though.’

‘That’s good news. Any new developments?’

‘None so far.’

Someone called her name in the background, and she turned towards them before facing me again. ‘Hey, I have to go. We’re making some furniture for the cave. Trying to make it a little more homely, you know?’

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