Monster Republic by Ben Horton Page A

last few seconds, as Darren scooted up, thinking about what he was going to say. He’d come up with a lot of good-sounding explanations in his head, but he wasn’t sure if they would come out right. Or even if he’d get the chance to finish. That all depended on Darren’s reaction.
    Darren pulled up sharp a few metres off, and flipped the board into his hands with akick. He looked around uncertainly. He seemed nervous.
    Cameron took a deep breath and stepped out of the shadows.
    ‘Hey, Darren.’
    For what felt like an hour, Darren stared at Cameron.
    ‘A bit of a mess?’ he said finally. ‘God. That’s the understatement of the century, mate.’
    Cameron moved forward, hands raised. Darren took an involuntary step back. His eyes were wide and he swallowed uncomfortably.
    ‘Listen, Darren. Stare all you want. You’ll probably need a whole lot of quality staring time to get used to it. And that’s fine. I’m still not used to it myself. But I need you to hear me out.’
    Darren gave a slow nod. ‘OK.’
    Carefully, skirting the names and details, Cameron took him through a brief outline of his story. How he’d woken up in the lab and been rescued by a strange girl. How he had discovered what had been doneto him, and how he’d come looking for Darren.
    His friend listened silently, his eyes widening at certain points, but he didn’t butt in and call Cameron a liar or – as was more likely – a nutter. For once, Cameron thought, maybe his new appearance was an advantage, helping to drive the reality home. It was hard to argue with a face like his.
    Cameron got to the end of his tale. He paused for a moment, then followed it up with a request. ‘Thing is, mate, I need to know more about the accident.’
    Darren grimaced. He took a breath, composing himself – probably still fighting his way past the initial shock of seeing Cameron. ‘You haven’t been following the news, then?’
    ‘No. With everything that’s happened, I’ve been a bit out of touch.’
    ‘You might wish you’d stayed that way.’ Darren sniffed. ‘It was bad. A huge explosion. They thought they’d have to evacuate the whole town until they realized that it wasn’t the reactor that had exploded, so no radiation.But loads of people were killed. Roger and Alan and Lisa, as well as you … and Marie.’ Darren bowed his head and shrugged, looking nervous and awkward. ‘I’m Sorry about that.’
    Cameron hadn’t mentioned the fact that Marie wasn’t exactly dead. For a moment he wondered if he should now tell Darren what had happened to her. But Darren seemed to have taken the rest of the story well. If Cameron went back, he’d have to admit that he’d left stuff out, and he felt sure that would break the trust they were building. Besides, how could he explain it to Darren when he didn’t understand it himself? One thing at a time.
    ‘Anyway,’ continued Darren, ‘they’re not sure what caused the accident yet, but the Fry Foundation has been looking after the families of the victims. Arranging counselling, doctors and stuff.’
    ‘Really?’ Cameron tried not to sound too sceptical.
    ‘Yeah. Dr Fry has planned this big memorial service next Friday. The whole town’s goingto be there. The Prime Minister is coming and everything.’
    Cameron frowned. ‘The Prime Minister’s coming here?’
    ‘Yeah, Fry’s invited him to give the eulogy.’
    ‘Unreal!’ Cameron couldn’t believe the hypocrisy. ‘It’s Dr Fry who made me like this. And it was him who was responsible for that so-called “accident” in the first place.’
    Darren looked sideways at Cameron. ‘Come off it. What do you mean?’
    Cameron braced himself. This was the make or break moment.
    ‘That girl who rescued me, she’s part of this … community. Fry’s been working for the government, creating monsters who are supposed to be brilliant soldiers. And all his Rejects – the ones who managed to get away – have grouped together into something they