Going Wild #3 Page 7

  Maria eyed him warily. “I do not like that look.”

  Mac grinned, trying to look innocent. “What?”

  “Just say it. Get it out there. What ridiculous animal do you have in mind for me now?”

  Mac’s face fell. “Werehamster,” he mumbled. “It’s funny.”

  Charlie laughed. “Or, like, a wererabbit. Like Bunnicula!”

  “Dios mío,” muttered Maria. “Bunnicula is a vampire rabbit.” She sounded disgusted. “Vampires and werecreatures are not even in the same monster class. Good grief, Chuck. Sometimes I’m not sure I can hang out with you anymore.”

  Charlie laughed and sank back against her pillows. “I’m hopeless.”

  Maria raised a skeptical eyebrow. “Anyway, Mac. Hamster not funny.”

  Mac sighed. “Okay, sorry. What’s next?”

  “Oh!” said Charlie, something on her screen catching her eye. “Here we go. One of us should definitely have the attack ability of a sarcastic fringehead.”

  “I think we’ve got that covered,” said Mac.

  CHAPTER 9

  Making Progress

  Charlie, Maria, and Mac eventually stopped goofing around and got serious, writing down a few real options. That afternoon the scientists and kids, plus Ms. Sabbith and Charlie’s mom gathered in the Wilde living room. Dr. Jakande, who still wore her soldier bodysuit minus the mask, opened the meeting. She stood with the slight unease of a visitor even though she’d been part of the group for weeks now. Maybe it was the fact that she hadn’t been able to change herself back to normal yet that made her feel apart from the others somehow. It was a constant reminder that she’d been on the other side.

  There was something about Nubia’s distance that made Charlie wonder if she were entirely trustworthy. She’d felt it off and on ever since the woman had joined them. But thoughts like that were always on Charlie’s mind these days. She didn’t truly trust anybody except Maria and Mac and her family. Not after what she’d seen and experienced. Not after Kelly had turned her back on them. And it wasn’t like Nubia had steered clear of Charlie in the battle—the two had physically fought. The memories of that clouded Charlie’s view a bit too, she supposed.

  Even though Dr. Jakande had apologized and had worked diligently to fix things for Maria, maybe Charlie hadn’t quite accepted that the woman’s motives were exactly what she said they were. She’d had Maria’s device this whole time. Why was it taking her so long to fix it? And a week after Nubia had joined them, Charlie had overheard a voice that sounded like Miko coming through the communicator in Nubia’s suit. Nubia hadn’t answered Miko, but she’d looked around like she was worried someone had overheard. Charlie had kept an eye on her after that. She was still wearing the suit, after all.

  In Dr. Jakande’s hand was the Mark Two, nicely polished and fully assembled. She held it out to Maria. “All fixed,” she said. The woman glanced at Charlie’s dubious expression and added, “And the other doctors checked my work. The howler monkey is still there, but it won’t permanently change your DNA ever again. You’ll be able to turn it on and off.” She paused. “Are you ready to give it a try?”

  Maria jumped up and took it. “I want to but I’m a little scared,” she admitted. She turned the device over and studied it. “Are you sure I won’t be stuck like that this time?”

  “I’m ninety-nine point nine percent sure,” said Dr. Jakande with a small smile.

  Charlie frowned. Was Nubia trying to do something sneaky? “What if you’re wrong?” she challenged.

  “Then we immediately inject Maria with the other formula like we did before to fix the problem. I kept extra just in case.”

  “Oh,” said Charlie. That seemed okay.

  “How will we know if it happens?” asked Maria.

  “Once you put it on, we’ll have you activate the device and change into your monkey form. Then you’ll take the bracelet off. If you change back to your human self, we’ve done it right.” She pointed to the device. “I’ve installed a key-in code so you can quickly take it off anytime.”

  “That all sounds pretty good.” Maria shrugged—she was surrounded by four experts, so her fears were quickly fading. Nubia’s explanation seemed great to her.

  Maria took a deep breath, then cringed and slapped the device on her wrist. She did the clasp and looked at the screen, then tapped it. The graphics looked updated—Nubia had really done a lot of work to improve things. She held her finger above the howler monkey icon, then clicked on it.

  Black fur sprouted from her arms and neck and a beard grew from her chin. The hair on her head became coarse and fur-like. A tail pushed out. Maria reached back and guided it over the waistband of her shorts and let it drop.

  “You look like the same old monkey,” said Charlie.

  Maria hopped a few times, feeling the spring in her step after a few weeks without it. It felt good. Like jumping on a trampoline after a long time away.

  “Okay, now take it off.” Nubia gave Maria the code to unlock the bracelet. “If the physical traits disappear, then we’re good to go. If they stay, well, then it’s back to the drawing board, as they say.”

  Maria glanced nervously at her friends, then entered the code to unlock the device. The clasp clicked free and Maria slid the bracelet off her wrist.

  Nothing happened at first. Then a second later all the monkey features disappeared and Maria was back to looking like her old self.

  “Whew!” she said.

  “It works!” said Charlie, relieved. She felt a pang of guilt for not trusting Dr. Jakande. She still wasn’t sure the woman was totally on board with them, but everyone else seemed to think so.

  Maria put the bracelet back on, and since it was already set to monkey mode, the features immediately returned. She clicked through the various screens, landing on the Turbo option and tapping it. Her limbs immediately started growing slowly, about four inches each, making her taller than Charlie and Mac and giving her the ability to reach farther and jump higher. She checked herself over and nodded. “This is just like it was before,” she said. “I love it! Thank you so much, Dr. Jakande. I’m so glad to have it back again.”

  “You’re welcome,” said the woman. “But …”

  Everyone looked at her. “But what?” said Maria, alarmed.

  “Oh, it’s nothing to be concerned about,” Dr. Jakande said hastily. “It’s just … well, two things, really. Let me explain.” She smiled to reassure Maria, who looked mystified. “First, I found something while working on the device that gave me an idea about how to reverse my own predicament. You see, for me, going back to my human form is not as easy. Dr. Gray’s Mark One permanently changed my DNA to a panther-human hybrid, but it was different from how I set up the Mark Two. Add to that the fact that I … well, I don’t have any samples of DNA available from my former life. I left that world behind years ago, so there’s no way for me to do what we did with yours.”

  While Dr. Jakande talked, Maria quickly powered down the bracelet’s effects and returned to normal. She listened solemnly.

  “But I saw something in the device that I want to study again, if you don’t mind.”

  “Oh!” said Maria, crestfallen. “Well, sure, if you think it’ll help you.” She wanted Nubia to have the freedom to look human again, too. She unclasped the device. “What’s the second thing?”

  “Well, you already know we want to give you an additional wereanimal as we gear up for a potential major fight with Victor Gray and his soldiers. So I’ll need the device back for that part anyway.”

  “Well, I figured that,” said Maria, blushing. “And I can’t wait.”

  Sure, she was disappointed that she couldn’t mess around with the bracelet now that it was fixed, but this was more important—not to mention exciting. Maria held the device out to Nubia. “Here, go for it. Charlie, uh … ,” she said, glancing sideways at her friend and then back at the scientist. “Charlie said you were maybe looking for … our suggestions?”

  �
��Absolutely. After what happened in the last altercation, I was originally thinking of something venomous since that can be so debilitating.”

  “Oh,” said Maria, realizing in that instant that having a poison ability didn’t sound fun at all. “Okay. I mean, whatever you think is best.” It was another letdown. But Maria knew that the bracelet wasn’t technically hers. It was Dr. Jakande’s—or the government’s, she supposed.

  “But,” said Dr. Jakande, “I’ve since changed my mind. I just wasn’t feeling a venomous vibe with you, Maria.”

  “You weren’t?” Maria said, looking up.

  “And after thinking about you and my own situation,” Dr. Jakande continued, “I realized that the animal should be the kind that you would be most comfortable with. So, I’d love your input on what sort of creature feels right.”

  “Really?” Maria asked. She was relieved she wouldn’t have to poison anyone. “That would be awesome. I’m … not really feeling anything in particular yet.” She blushed. “But I’ve been thinking about it.”

  “That’s okay. I’ve got this other work to finish,” Dr. Jakande said, shaking the Mark Two. “Keep looking until the right thing clicks.”

  “I will.”

  “I’ll need to collect your device as well, Mac,” said Dr. Goldstein as he walked over to the boy. “For the same reasons.”

  “Sure,” said Mac, excited about what would happen next.

  “Of course, I’d love to hear your ideas as well,” said Dr. Goldstein.

  Mac beamed and handed over the bracelet. “You got it.”

  Charlie looked at her father. “What about the Mark Five? You don’t need this, do you?”

  “Sorry, kiddo, but I do. Ms. Sabbith brought more materials for the communication and safety systems. And Dr. Sharma’s going to see if we can add another animal ability to that one.”

  “Plus, I’ve got some other ideas for making the Five more … universal,” Dr. Sharma chimed in.

  “I’ll keep working on the Mark Six for you, though,” Charlie’s dad continued.

  “Oh. Okay.” Charlie punched in her code, took off the Mark Five, and gave it to Dr. Sharma. She rubbed her bare wrist. It felt weird not having something there … not having her abilities after living with them for so long. They’d become a part of her. She had so many great ones, and she was really skilled at using them now. And they were perfect—they’d be perfect for anyone.

  Suddenly Charlie looked up. “Hey, Dad,” she said. “Since my device is so cool, have you ever thought about making copies for Mac and Maria? Then we’d all be the same! Or … is that too hard?”

  Maria and Mac glanced at each other uneasily. “I’m not so sure I’d want that, to be honest,” said Maria. “I mean, I already know how to use mine. I don’t really want to change.”

  Mac nodded. “Besides, our devices have cool features that do things yours can’t do, Charlie. Like swinging from trees and being able to cut through things like concrete.”

  “And protecting us from sharp-clawed attackers, and being able to jump far,” said Maria.

  “Right,” said Mac. “We cover the gaps.” He shrugged. “We’re a team. We each have our strengths and weaknesses.”

  “And we like it that way,” said Maria. “It’s kind of like in soccer. We’ll get rid of the pesky defenders while you take the ball to the goal.”

  Charlie smiled at the analogy. Her friends had a point. And Charlie couldn’t imagine giving up her abilities either. Mac’s and Maria’s devices not only had a lot to offer, but it was true her friends were already familiar and well-trained with them. Starting from scratch with five new powers would take too much time to become skilled. Time they didn’t have if they were going to stop Dr. Gray from wrecking the whole world.

  “Sounds like we’re settled on that,” said Dr. Goldstein. “Continue your research and we’ll send Ms. Sabbith back to Chicago in a few days to get the necessary samples. We’ll be ready to start working on that soon. In the meantime, we’ve got other tasks to finish.”

  Charlie and Maria grinned and Mac lifted his chin, looking deadly serious as he clutched his iPad to his chest. “Time to get down to business,” he said.

  CHAPTER 10

  Easier Than It Looks

  While Dr. Gray worked long days to create and perfect the formula for Miko’s condor wings and Braun’s porcupine quills, Kelly and Miko repeatedly hit the beach.

  “You’re going to practice this until you can do it in your sleep,” Miko declared.

  “Easy for you to say,” said Kelly, “sitting here in the sand.”

  “It’s not like I’m getting a tan,” said Miko. “You can imagine how boring this is for me, quite honestly. I can’t do anything fun with all these other people around. I just have to sit here and not be noticed.”

  “You could swim too,” suggested Kelly.

  Miko blinked. “Hmm,” she said. “I guess I could, couldn’t I?” She thought about it for another moment, glanced around, then got up. “All right,” she said. “I’ll go in with you.”

  “You mean it?” said Kelly, a grin spreading over her face. “Cool, I’ll use you as an obstacle. Let’s go!”

  Miko hesitated. “I … I’m not sure if I can actually swim. You know? I haven’t … I mean, not since before.”

  “Before what?”

  “Before I joined Dr. Gray.”

  Kelly looked at her. “How long has it been?”

  “Six years. Almost seven, I guess, since I ended up like … this.”

  Kelly nodded sympathetically. “It’s okay. Could you swim before?”

  “Yes.”

  “Do … do chimps swim? Does it even matter since you’re human too?” Kelly squinted at Miko in the bright sunshine. She wasn’t sure how things worked for the soldiers. Miko’s arms were slightly longer than an average person’s and she could swing and jump like she was practically floating on air. But how much chimp was she, exactly? It was a subject Kelly had been curious about since she joined up with Dr. Gray, but she’d always hesitated to ask—it seemed like too personal a question.

  Miko gave Kelly a long look, as if she were wondering the same things. “I honestly don’t know. My instincts are to go for it, though. I don’t feel afraid or anything.”

  Kelly smiled encouragingly. “Well, I’m probably the best person you could go into the ocean with,” she said. “I’m kind of famous for rescuing struggling swimmers, you know.” Then her grin faded. “I was, anyway.” She started walking to the water and Miko fell in step with her.

  “The hype has really died down, hasn’t it?” asked Miko.

  “I guess. I haven’t been able to check since Dr. Gray took my phone.”

  A flicker of concern brushed over Miko’s face. “Yeah. I’m not so sure I like that he did that. I mean, I know he doesn’t want to risk any information about his experiments accidentally getting out, but you’re just a kid.”

  “It died, anyway,” said Kelly. “And I haven’t exactly needed it to phone home. I’m sure there hasn’t been any other news about me in a while. I disappeared and everybody’s moved on to the next outrageous thing.”

  Miko nodded and slipped her face mask on. “That’s how it usually goes, I guess,” she said. They waded into the surf. “This feels nice.”

  “I’m getting to like it more,” Kelly admitted. She dived under, feeling the slight shock of cool water on her face. She clicked her dolphin ability on and barely cringed when her fin protruded from her back. Then she weaved a bit as she swam, enjoying the muted sound of the underwater world. It was almost pleasant. She came back up and saw Miko wading in up to her chest, looking apprehensive.

  “Just plug your nose and go under for a minute,” Kelly advised.

  “I … can’t. My nose doesn’t really protrude enough for me to plug it.”

  “Oh.” Kelly thought a moment. “Breathe out when you go under, then.”

  Miko nodded. “That’s what I used to do.” She stayed upright as the wa
ves lifted her off her feet, then lowered herself underwater. Kelly went under too and watched her. The chimp woman floated for a minute, then she flailed and found her footing again. Her head surfaced and she coughed once. “Okay, that was a little different from what I remember. But not terrible.”

  “Why did you join Dr. Gray’s team?” Kelly asked suddenly, thinking about everything that must have changed for Miko once she’d made that decision.

  Miko was taken aback. “Well, to be honest, I needed the money. The experiment was a huge commitment, but it came with a big reward.” She hesitated. “Dr. Gray was looking for outcasts. Loners. People who could leave everything behind.”

  “And … that was you?” asked Kelly gently.

  Miko nodded. “That was me.” She paused. “That was all of us.”

  They swam for a while and Kelly practiced her obstacle course again. Miko went into shallower water and moved about, trying to throw Kelly off by jumping and splashing and doing handsprings and flips when she neared. Moving and avoiding objects was becoming routine for Kelly, and eventually she could dodge Miko without having to think about it.

  After a while Kelly turned on her cuttlefish ability and blended to match the mottled sandy background of the ocean floor. Then she concentrated even more until the mesmerizing pulsing began.

  As a joke, she stayed just below the water and faced Miko, moving slowly toward her, completely visible to her friend. She assumed Miko would swiftly look away or turn around like she usually did when she knew Kelly was going to use her hypnosis ability. But Kelly hadn’t warned her this time, and Miko focused an instant too long. She couldn’t pull her gaze away in time.

  Kelly didn’t realize it until she stopped in front of the soldier. Still pulsing she stood up, wrung out her ponytail, and lifted her goggles, and saw that Miko had a glazed, faraway look in her eyes. Kelly stared. Then she grinned, tempted to make Miko do or say something embarrassing. Or to try to get her to tell her more secrets about her past.