Chapter 10 - Awaken

"So, Sunny, how do I look?" asked Melanie while she blinked a few time as her eyes got used to the contacts.

Sunny twisted in the front passenger seat of Jared's jeep. Melanie leaned back in her seat to let the sun shining through the window to fall directly on her face. Inspecting the brunette's eyes carefully, she saw a faint silvery reflection provided by the contacts. Nodding in approval, Sunny said with growing smile "Melanie, you look just like me." Then her smile dropped and the Soul added in a hurry, "Sorry, I didn't mean to insult you."

"It's okay, Sunny," replied Melanie as she slid the contact carrying case into her shirt pocket.

Next to her, Kyle also studied Melanie's fake eyes. With an amused shake of his head, he said, "Yeah we can go back to calling you Wanda."

Melanie pulled out of the direct sunlight and her eyes returned to normal. Shooting Kyle a dirty look, she then turned back to Sunny. "See, Sunny, that's how you insult someone."

"Well...the contacts do make you look like Wanderer," admitted Sunny truthfully. That earned her a faint groan from Melanie. Sunny mused silently for a few moments and then asked, "You received this pair of contacts from the Humans in Chicago? They did an excellent job."

"Yep," answered Melanie, "Marc and his gang do good work. But they only have a few good pairs of contacts so they could only give us this set."

Jared, still focused on the road as he drove, spoke. "And that's something I hope to correct while we're on this trip. If we can get enough of those contacts, we could get more people into the raids without worrying about attracting Seekers."

"Scott warned us not to be too comfortable with these things," countered Melanie. "The contacts can't completely mimic a Soul's eyes. If you shine a bright light on my face, it won't reflect like a Soul's."

The jeep slowed as Jared carefully navigated the large parking lot he had turned into from the main road. "Well, believe me, it's definitely better than nothing," replied Jared as he spotted an empty parking space. It was farther out from the entrance to the farmer's market then other spaces, but it would offer a greater amount of privacy.

Turning off the engine Jared finally turned in his seat to look at Melanie and her eyes. She smiled as she batted her eyes playfully at him. When she saw the expression on Jared's face, she abruptly stopped. He had gone very still and had noticeably paled. Worried, she asked, "What's wrong?"

Jared shook himself, trying to push away the dismay in his face. "You really do look...like before."

"It's still me," reassured Melanie.

"I know, Mel," said Jared as the tension in his voice eased. Eagerly changing topics, he looked around the parking lot as few more vehicles pulled into the parking lot. "Looks like they will be busy today."

Following Jared's watchful gaze Melanie looked around and nodded. "Well, we should be able to blend right in."

Sunny pulled her seatbelt off and opened the door. Starting to get out she saw Kyle was still sitting in the back seat. His face a mask of tight concern, worry lines running from his eyes as he took in the growing crowds. Timidly she reached out with her hand and after a second of hesitation she touched his hand with hers. Kyle gave a start and his head whipped around to face her.

"Sorry," she gasped out as she yanked her hand away.

Kyle's features softened as he focused on her. "No, I'm sorry Sunny. I didn't mean to scare you."

Glancing out the window a weak smile formed on Sunny's face. "There's hardly a cloud in the sky, Kyle. You can wear your sunglasses. Nobody will think anything of it."

Looking back one more time at the busy farmer's market Kyle nodded slowly. "Yeah, your right, Sunny." Letting out a sigh, he opened the jeep's door and stepped out. Sunny followed and they quickly joined Melanie and Jared in the parking lot. Jared already had his pair Ray Bans on as he once again was cautiously scanning the area.

"Okay, so how do we do this?" asked Kyle as he put his own set of sunglasses on. He glanced at Melanie and Sunny and then let out a nervous laugh. "We let the fake Soul lady and the real Soul lady do all the talking for us?"

"I reckon," replied Jared. "But I can manage if need be. No point acting like a mute or something. That'll just draw attention."

"Kyle, just be polite and soft spoken, and you'll be okay," said Melanie. She heard Jared snort in derision. The idea of Kyle being forced to be soft spoken greatly amused him. Giving her lover a withering look she added, "Goes for you too, mister."

The California sun was high overhead as the four made their way into the large open field hosting the farmer's market. Row after row of little booths filled the area. Some were little more than tables with stacks of fruits and vegetables. Others stalls were larger with tented roofs of various colors. A cool light breeze blowing from the Pacific Ocean caused a steady fluttering of multicolored flags and banners. There was a naturally festive atmosphere to the market as Sunny, Kyle, Melanie, and then Jared entered the maze of stalls. Families and other groups of Souls drifted from one stall to the next. A relaxed and laid-back chatter of conversations flowed nearly continuously through the air.

Working in pairs, Sunny with Kyle and Melanie with Jared, moved up and down the aisles as they sampled and searched for suitable plants to be used in Jeb's caves. Sunny worked well as she stopped at each merchant, with Kyle at her side she was beginning to enjoy herself. She was finally shedding her anxiety of going on raids. Fearing she would be terrible at telling a lie, Sunny had been initially very reluctant to leave the safety of the caves. She intensely dreaded getting Kyle and the others caught. But Wanderer had been right, raids were not really scary. It was just like going shopping.

"Thank you, Summer Winds," smiled Sunny as she took the bag of corn from the elderly woman. Next to her Kyle coughed and said a little stiffly, "Yes. Thanks." The Soul smiled happily and waved goodbye.

Walking back into the busy pathway that stretched through the many tents and awnings Kyle asked, "Corn? We've got plenty of that back home."

"We can dry the ears for seeds," said Sunny. At Kyle's quizzical look, Sunny explained in greater detail, "It's important to introduce new seeds from outside sources when growing corn. It prevents inbreeding depression of the crop."

"Really? How do you know about..." Kyle drifted off mid question. "Jodi knew about that stuff," he said with a sigh as he answered his own question. "She wanted to become a plant doctor...a...ah..."

"Botanist," finished Sunny in a whisper. She looked up at Kyle, his eyes unseen behind his sunglasses made his face distant and impossible to read. Tears began to form in Sunny's eyes. "I'm so sorry," she blurted out.

Not wanting to draw attention to themselves Kyle led Sunny over to an empty tent. A sign on the table in front read - "Be back in an hour." Kyle gave a quick glance around to make sure no one was paying them any attention. They hunkered down behind a large unused counter to give them a little bit of privacy. Kyle brought his big hands up and ever so gently wiped away Sunny's tears. "Shh..." he breathed. "It's alright. I'm not blaming you."

After Jodi had failed to wake up, Sunny had taken upon herself to not cause Kyle any further pain. Simply being in this body was a daily reminder to him about what he had lost. She had gone to great lengths to not further remind him of Jodi. Now trying to be helpful to her Human friends she had accidentally hurt Kyle. His kindness, his willingness to forgive her for taking his Jodi away, caused a fresh set of tears to run down Sunny's little face.

Pulling Sunny in close, Kyle held her as she cried into his shirt. "Baby, you're going to get the whole surrounding neighborhood worried about you. We don't need that type of attention right now," said Kyle dryly, but also with a note of caution in his voice.

"Sorry," sniffed Sunny.

"You want to go back to the jeep?" asked Kyle. Still concerned about her sudden breakdown.

Sunny rubbed at her eyes, trying to wash away any lingering tears, as she pondered Kyle's question. "Maybe for just a little bit."

"Okay, let's go tell Mel and Jared," standing up from behind their hiding spot Kyle surveyed the crowds looking for their companions. As he searched he suddenly went rigid with alarm. His fist tightened at his side he spoke one word out like it was a curse, "Seekers."

A jolt went through Sunny as well. "Where?"

"Down near the entrance. There are two of them," replied Kyle. Studying the pair, he mused, "I think they might have been checking cars."

"We need Melanie and Jared."

Kyle's head bobbed as he agreed with Sunny's appeal. "Need to find them first," muttered Kyle as he continued to look for the other two humans. Sunny felt a tight ball of regret settle in her stomach. They would not be in this predicament if she did not start weeping. "Damn," said Kyle abruptly, "They're heading this way."

Sunny started to get up when Kyle stopped her. "No," he said quickly, "Sunny if they see you've been crying they'll get suspicious. Just stay here and I'll get Mel and Jared. They'll help us get out of here."

"But..." stammered Sunny meekly.

"Please, Sunny, just stay here out of sight," pleaded Kyle. Sunny nodded once acceptance and Kyle returned a brief apologetic smile. He shifted discreetly from his hiding spot and rejoined the steady stream of people walking past the empty booth.

Sunny pulled her legs in tight to her body and rested her chin on her knees. Several minutes passed and Kyle did not return. She felt a wave of misery settle throughout her body. Everyone was in jeopardy because of her. So much guilt, what could she do? Sunny tried to think what Wanderer would do in this situation. Wanderer was so good at telling stories, she surely could tell the Seekers a convincing lie that would make them go away.

More time passed. What was taking Kyle so long? A more distressing thought came to Sunny. What if he had already been caught? Her guilt was quickly washed away by a growing panic. Sunny trembled in the shadows behind the big table. It felt like her heart was going to shatter in her chest. Outside the stall the sounds of people walking past had not changed, maybe the Seekers had already moved on. She had to know. She had to see what was happening.

Summoning up all her courage, Sunny unfolded her legs and then slowly rose up until she could look over the top the table. There were fewer people around now and she had no problem spotting the Seekers. They readily stood out from the rest of the crowds. Two men wearing matching tan shirts and shorts stood several booths away chatting with a young woman who had brought several boxes of oranges. Their clothing was not what made them stand out, but the gun holsters attached to their belts. Only Seekers would carry weapons.

But as Sunny watched, the Seekers did not appear to be looking for anyone. Instead, they smiled and continued to chat away with the woman and her oranges. After a little more friendly conversation, she handed one of the Seekers a bag full of fruit. It was only then that Sunny understood. The Seekers were not here to hunt for Humans. They had come to enjoy the Farmer's Market like all the other Souls. Kyle had simply over reacted and Sunny felt a flood of relief run through her body. Sunny relaxed and sunk down against the table. They were safe.

"Excuse me miss, what are you doing here?"

The words had come from above her and Sunny's head snapped up to see the source. Curious blue eyes looked down at her while his square-jawed face wore a mild smile. Her heart froze in chest. Standing over her was one of the Seekers. Sunny's mouth opened, but nothing came out.

"We saw you crouching behind the table and wondered what was going on," elaborated the Seeker. He continued to look at her with a mix of curiosity and concern. Frozen in place Sunny could only gape up at the man.

Worry began to build on the Seeker's face and his smile began to fade. "Is there something wrong?"

"N...N...Nooo," stuttered out Sunny. Her eyes darted frantically up and down the pathway looking for Kyle, Melanie, or Jared.

Her nervous sputtering and behavior only severed to sharpen his attention. The Seeker also began to look around, his eyes wary. But among the Souls happily walking around there was nothing to draw his attention. Turning, he called to his comrade. "Frank, I think you should come over here."

Desperately Sunny tried to calm down and to stop her nervous panicking. As the other Seeker approached, she managed to whisper out. "I'm...m...m okay. J...J...Just waiting for my friends."

The Seeker named Frank came up to the table and looked at Sunny and then the first Seeker. "What's going on here Jasper?" He was thinner than the first and his dark black hair reminded her of Kyle's but it was much shorter.

"This young lady seems to be in some sort of distress," explained Jasper. He looked back down at Sunny with a helpful looking smile. "Your waiting for some friends? Are you not feeling well?"

"Yes," replied Sunny. Her one-word answer was finally sounding louder than a faint breeze. But her answer only served to confuse the Seekers.

"What's your name dear?" asked Seeker Frank in a kind voice.

"S...Sunlight Passing through the Ice," answered Sunny truthfully. As soon as the words left her mouth she knew it was a terrible mistake. She was never to give out her real name. If the Seekers investigated, they would quickly tie it to her disappearance from Las Vegas. But it was in her nature to tell the truth and the words had come out naturally.

Seeker Jasper's smile had returned. "Well Sunlight, where are your friends?" He asked as he once again looked around the area.

Sunny stopped herself from answering. She had messed up so badly. If she had only remained out of sight like Kyle had told her, none of this would be happening. Wanderer or Melanie could have lied their way out of this, but not her. Sunny knew she would never be able to lie convincingly. Then she remembered the little pill in her pocket Kyle had given her. He had told her if they were ever in danger of getting caught to use it. It was supposed to be quick and painless. She had cried when he had first given it to her, stricken by the awful idea of losing Kyle.

Tears again sprung from Sunny's eyes. Did she have any other choice? If she ended herself the others would be safe, she would not be able to betray them. As droplets of moister worked their way down her face both Seeker's lowered themselves down to sit next to her. Clear worry on their faces as they tried to understand her heartbroken sobs. They attempted to calm her, but Sunny only cried harder.

"Now this is really convenient," interrupted a new voice.

Both Seekers looked up, frowning. Sunny managed to turn her eyes upward as well, wondering who else she had attracted with her weeping. There was a young man standing above them. His face was darkly tanned and it contrasted with his white teeth in his broad smile. But the mirror shades of large aviator sunglasses made the rest of his face unreadable.

"Who are y..." got out Seeker Frank when the stranger raised his hand above them. In it he held a gray cylinder. Without any warning, a burst of dark colored gas jetted out and enveloped both the Seekers and Sunny. Almost immediately Seeker Jasper began to cough and sputter. Seeker Frank did not even do this, his eyes just rolled back in his head and his body collapsed on the ground.

With the tears still in her eyes, the dark fog stung as it reached Sunny's face. It smelled awful, like something rotten. But before she could even think of holding her breath the black gas was already breathed in. The noxious smoke made her want to cough, but at the same time it made Sunny feel so very cold. It was ice running through her veins. She managed one or two small coughs, her body feebly trying to get the inky substance out. But it was far too late.

Sunny felt her body grow numb and the sounds and sights of outside world rapidly began to dim. Everything, every part of the being called Sunlight Passing through the Ice faded. It was like being tossed into a dark abyss where there was no light at all. It pulled on Sunny, icy tentacles sought to drag her down. She had one desperate thought before it yanked her into darkness.

'Kyle!'

Then there was nothing and Sunny fell, hurtled into a deep and pitch-black prison. She wanted to cry out, but she had no voice. She tried to move, but nothing happened. In this desolate void Sunny found herself there was no light and no feeling.

Trapped in the emptiness Sunny gradually became aware that she could still hear. Coming from a long ways away she detected the faintest of voices. Nothing more than a murmur at first but it slowly and steadily grew. Eventually, Sunny could make out words. The voices were still muted as if her ears were packed with gauze, but they were audible.

"It's a good thing you were here Healer," said one voice.

"Indeed," came a second voice. "People sometimes forget that too much exposure to this planet's Sun can cause problems in these bodies."

"So it's just sunstroke?" asked the first voice. It sounded like the speaker was a woman.

"Yes, I'm almost certain. But I've called for an ambulance, just to be sure," answered the first. This voice sounded like it came from a man.

"I'm so glad it's nothing serious," replied the woman.

"Well, we should give them some space. Can you keep the crowd back?" asked the man. His voice sounded vaguely familiar.

"Yes, of course, Healer," said the woman agreeably.

A crack of light appeared in Sunny's dungeon. Blurry, dull light entered her newly opened eyes and Sunny could make out vague shapes. She was on her side laying on the ground. Near her, there were two light brown lumpy shapes. Her eyes blinked several times and her vision improved. Sunny could see she was in the far corner of the tent and the two forms laying next to her were Seekers Jasper and Frank.

Someone stalked into her line of sight. It was the same tan skinned man who had sprayed the strange black mist. Under his breath, he muttered irritably, "Idiot worm, the last thing I need is everyone gawking at us."

Sunny tried to shrink away from this strange man. He terribly frightened her, but her body did not respond. Instead, it's hands weakly opened and closed and her head slowly rose up off the ground.

"Hey," said the tan skinned man in surprise as he saw Sunny's body move. "You're already waking up." Excitement rose in his voice and struggled to keep quiet. "That's good. That's real good!"

"W...W...What'sss go..going on?" said Sunny's voice.

The unnamed man squatted down right before her and spoke urgently. "I know you're really confused. And scared. But I need you to be calm and quiet. We're not safe just yet."

Sunny heard her voice ask, "W...Who are you?" But Sunny had not asked the question. She had not tried to speak. Rising horror flooded through Sunny. Her body was talking on its own.

A friendly smile broke on his face. "My name's Jeremy. Do you remember your name?"

"My name..." began Sunny's body.

'My name is Sunny! My name is Sunlight Passing through the Ice!' cried Sunny, but that did not come out of her mouth.

Instead her voice said, "My name is...Jodi."

AN: I don't believe its explicitly stated but I believe its implied Jodi and Kyle were college sweethearts in the novel. Having Jodi studying to be a botanist was just an idea I went with. Again we're seeing the power of this new cure. But how exactly it works will be explored as Jodi recovers. I'm laying the foundation for some major revelations down the way. As always, read, enjoy, and review.

-Walker.