The Defiant Spark

by Annie Percik

  * * *

  Back at Gadg-E-Tech, the lev-e-fact doors opened on a bright and airy atrium, almost entirely enclosed in glass. In the centre was a bustling canteen, full of people collecting and eating a dazzling array of food. Brain-e-facts dished out hot food from the buffet, taking away empty trays and returning with full ones.

  Abelard stared. ‘Isn’t it after seven on a Thursday night?’

  Jonathan shrugged. ‘Gadg-E-Tech never sleeps! We’re not slave drivers or anything; we just let people work to their own schedule. We find people actually work longer hours and come in on more days under that arrangement.’

  Abelard joined the end of the queue, looking at the artisans going about their evening. Gadg-E-Tech had a good reputation for equal opportunities recruitment and the diversity of the workforce seemed to bear that out. As long as you had a strong enough spark, they reportedly hired entirely on merit, regardless of any other characteristics.

  Of course, it was the spark that was the most important thing to all the artisan companies and, in that regard, Gadg-E-Tech was just as elitist as Spark-Le or McPherson. They would argue that they had to be. If someone didn’t have enough of a spark they wouldn’t be able to manipulate mana and so would be useless in artisan roles. Gadg-E-Tech’s insistence on secrecy even led them to fill all the non-artisan jobs in the company with brain-e-facts.

  But what about what had happened to Abelard? If his own spark could be increased by accident, shouldn’t it be possible to do the same thing to other engineers by design?

  Abelard selected a smoothie and followed Jonathan to an empty table in the corner of the room. Several people hailed Jonathan or looked at Abelard with open curiosity as they passed. Jonathan merely nodded at them and made for the corner with determination.

  ‘Don’t want me mixing with the natives, huh?’ Abelard said, half joking and half annoyed.

  Jonathan looked sheepish.

  ‘It’s nothing personal, honest. It’s just your status is still uncertain until Alessandra signs off that you’re safe. I don’t want a lot of questions from people when I don’t have official instructions as to what I can say. We’re so insular here that the rumour mill can get out of hand if communications aren’t monitored carefully. So I think it would be best if you kept a low profile for the time being.’

  ‘Just in case Alessandra recommends that the Board lock me in the dungeon after all?’

  ‘Oh, don’t start that again.’ His voice rose in frustration. ‘For the last time, there’s no dungeon!’ Jonathan glared at Abelard when the people on the nearest tables looked over at his outburst.

  ‘Okay, okay!’ Abelard said, unable to stop himself from laughing. ‘But I don’t understand why I’m causing such a fuss. This must have happened before. You have a secret code for it so don’t you have a standard procedure to go with it?’

  ‘What happens with Code 47s is way above my pay grade, as I said. We’re all given the codes just in case but nobody’s called a Code 47 in almost fifty years.’ Abelard raised his eyebrows. ‘I looked it up,’ Jonathan said.

  ‘Who was it and what happened to him?’

  ‘His name is Rajesh Kumar and he works in the Quality Assurance Department,’ Jonathan said, as if it was the most mundane piece of information in the world.

  ‘What? He still works here? Can I go and talk to him?’

  The paranoid glint snapped back into Jonathan’s eyes and he hunched his shoulders. ‘Oh, uh, no, I don’t think that would be a good idea. He’s, uh, very old now and a bit confused so he wouldn’t be able to tell you much. Besides, things are completely different now so his case wouldn’t relate to yours anyway.’

  Abelard didn’t believe the artisans would let someone who was confused work in their Quality Department. But Jonathan would just get more defensive and belligerent if he pressed the matter. He would just have to find his way to the Quality Department to speak to the other engineer-turned-artisan on his own.

  ‘If the artisans know that it’s possible for someone’s spark to get stronger, why isn’t that public knowledge? The rest of us are under the illusion that the spark you’re born with is all you get. But artisans must know that’s not true in order to understand the use of Code 47. Why don’t you tell everyone else?’

  Jonathan’s eyes narrowed and Abelard prepared himself to receive the party line.

  ‘We have the code for safety reasons. You of all people know how dangerous an uncontrolled artisan-level spark can be. But think about it – only two cases in fifty years! And what would engineers do if they knew there was even the slightest chance of increasing their spark?’

  Abelard didn’t need to think about that. ‘They’d start sticking their fingers in every live mana source they could find.’

  ‘Exactly! And they’d be frying artefacts, themselves and random bystanders left, right and centre.’

  Even if that was only the official response, Abelard couldn’t argue with Jonathan’s logic.

  ‘But can’t you figure out what causes it so you could replicate it safely? That way, all those engineers desperate to be artisans could get their wish.’

  He knew the artisans would not be in favour of that, since it would change the balance of societal power to their detriment but he was interested to hear what Jonathan’s excuse would be. It was another good one.

  ‘We haven’t exactly got a huge pool of instances to investigate. And since no artisan was present at either incident, there’s no reliable empirical evidence. We can’t go around charging up engineers with mana to see what happens. Would you want someone from R&D experimenting on you to find out what happened?’

  ‘Uh, not really,’ Abelard admitted.

  ‘Well, there you go.’ Jonathan smiled wryly at him. ‘Those R&D guys are pretty one-track, though. If they got their way they’d have you splayed out on a dissection table in no time.’

  Abelard pushed his smoothie away, his stomach roiling.

  ‘Don’t worry, the Board hasn’t let them dissect anyone yet. I don’t think they’ll start with you.’ Jonathan sighed. ‘But you see, there are sensible reasons for the things we do. It’s not all some complicated conspiracy to keep the lower classes in order.’

  Abelard decided to concede the point for the time being in the interests of continuing good relations with his guide to all things artisan.

  ‘So, what happens now?’

  ‘I’m going home and I suggest you get an early night. You’re due to meet Alessandra here for breakfast and training at eight am. Think you can make your way back up to your room on your own?’

  Abelard nodded and Jonathan bade him good night.

  A brain-e-fact loitered by the lev-e-facts, shifting from foot to foot. It stepped forwards as Abelard approached. The number carved into its chest plate read Sixteen-Twenty-Two.

  ‘Mister Abernathy, sir?’

  ‘Call me Abelard.’

  The brain-e-fact gaped at him. ‘Yes, Mister Abelard, sir!’

  Abelard decided not to labour the point.

  ‘What can I do for you?’ he asked.

  The brain-e-fact hesitated. ‘You gave Terry a name.’

  Abelard waited. The brain-e-fact shuffled its feet and looked at the floor.

  ‘Please can I have a name too?’

  Abelard laughed, then regretted it as the brain-e-fact shifted backwards and hung its head.

  ‘I’m sorry,’ he said. ‘Of course you can have a name.’

  The brain-e-fact looked up at him, its eyes wide and fixed on Abelard’s face.

  ‘I hereby name you Fred,’ Abelard declared with a flourish.

  ‘Oh, thank you, Mister Abelard, sir!’

  ‘No problem. Enjoy!’

  ‘I will!’ Fred said and strode off.

  Abelard watched him go, shaking his head in amusement.

  * * *

  The following morning Alessandra arrived at Gadg-E-Tech in plenty of time for her breakfast meeting with Abelard. She stopped off at her office to c
heck her messages and found a beautiful flower arrangement of white blooms on her desk. The card read: ‘Sorry about what happened. Abelard.’

  Alessandra couldn’t help smiling at the gesture and continued on to the canteen in a somewhat better mood. She had already collected her breakfast and chosen a table when Abelard entered. He spotted her and raised a hand in greeting. She found herself waving back and he looked surprised. It might be fun to keep him off balance.

  Abelard grabbed some food and came to join her. He was about to say something when Walter appeared from nowhere.

  ‘Ah, the famous engineer,’ Walter said, his tone humorous. ‘I hope our Alessandra is treating you with the respect you deserve.’

  What on earth was Walter up to? Alessandra rose and faced him.

  ‘Walter,’ she said, neutrally. ‘How are you?’

  Walter turned to her, his expression changing to one of calculation.

  ‘Very well, thank you. Might you have time for a meeting later? I could easily make room in my schedule.’

  He couldn’t possibly think there was a chance they’d get back together, could he? He was arrogant enough but Alessandra thought she had made herself quite clear. A flicker of amusement flashed through her. She hooked an arm round Abelard’s elbow and squeezed.

  ‘I’m afraid I’ll be very busy with my new responsibilities today.’ She gave Walter a bright smile.

  His eyes widened, his smooth veneer cracking to reveal his true feelings. ‘Alessandra, how can you waste yourself on this trash? I know I said you’re nothing without me but there’s no reason to stoop quite so low. You’re at least worth more than this.’

  ‘The only person I can think of that I’m worth more than is you, Walter. You have no idea what Abelard here is worth; two of you at the very least.’ She smiled again. ‘He has hidden depths.’

  ‘An engineer?’ Walter spluttered. ‘How can an engineer possibly have anything that would interest you? He’s only here by accident. He’s an upstart pretender with less talent than I have in my little finger. I thought you would be smart enough not to be fooled.’

  Before Alessandra could react a brain-e-fact stepped up behind Walter and tapped him on the shoulder. Its unit number had been scratched through and the name ‘Fred’ scrawled across its chest plate in clumsy letters. Walter spun round, his surprise at being interrupted turning to outrage at the sight of the artefact standing behind him.

  ‘How dare you touch me!’

  ‘You will not speak about Mister Abelard Abernathy like that,’ the brain-e-fact said.

  ‘What?’ Walter’s expression was frozen in a rictus of rage.

  ‘Mister Abelard is a great man. He deserves your respect.’ The brain-e-fact’s hand closed over Walter’s shoulder.

  ‘I will not tolerate insubordination from artefacts!’ Walter ground out. ‘You will come with me immediately for diagnosis of your obvious fault.’ He turned back to Alessandra and Abelard. ‘This isn’t over.’ Then he marched the brain-e-fact out of the canteen.

  Alessandra released her hold on Abelard and stepped away from him. His mouth was open and he looked back and forth between Alessandra and the departing Walter.

  ‘What the hell was all that about?’

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  ‘I could ask you the same thing,’ Alessandra replied, narrowing her eyes at Abelard. When he just continued to look at her expectantly, she sighed. ‘Walter and I used to – be close – but I ended it recently. He apparently still thinks he can order me around.’ She pulled herself up short and pasted a superior sneer on her face. ‘He’s right about you not being good enough for me of course but I didn’t want to give him the satisfaction.’

  ‘So you made him think we were actually together. Do you want to get me fired? Or worse?’

  ‘Stop being so dramatic.’ Though Walter did have a lot of power at Gadg-E-Tech and could cause trouble for both of them very easily if he wanted. ‘What have you been doing to the brain-e-facts? I’ve never seen one act like that before.’

  ‘I haven’t done anything to them,’ Abelard said. ‘Can we just get on with my training please?’

  Alessandra allowed him to deflect her. She didn’t care that much about the aberrant behaviour of a brain-e-fact and they had more important things to focus on. ‘Don’t you want your breakfast?’

  ‘Not really. I’ve lost my appetite.’

  Alessandra shook her head. ‘No mana training on an empty stomach. You know what happened last time. So eat.’

  Abelard obeyed, managing to make it through at least some of the food on his plate. Once Alessandra was satisfied, they made their way down to reception.

  ‘We’re not going up to the residential floor?’ Abelard asked.

  ‘Full marks for observation. I’m taking you off-site to do some practical applications of mana manipulation at one of the factories.’

  Alessandra noted Abelard’s covetous expression when she opened the door of her speed-e-fact for him. It was a small, sleek model her mother had rolled her eyes at, but Alessandra enjoyed the feel of the leather seats and the smooth gliding motion. Abelard looked out at the city the whole way, as if he’d never seen it before. As the urban sprawl started to give way to a more industrial area, he sat up straighter.

  ‘I know where we are! Are we headed to the factory where Jonathan works?’

  ‘You’re really on the ball this morning, aren’t you?’ Alessandra said. ‘And yes. Jonathan asked if he could help with the training and I figured there wasn’t any harm in it, since he already knows you.’

  When they reached their destination, they breezed past the security checkpoint and made their way to one of the workshops, where Jonathan was waiting for them at the door.

  ‘Morning, Abelard! Hi, Alessandra. I’ve got everything set up ready for you, as per your instructions. And we’ve cleared the whole of the first floor just in case anything goes wrong. Not that it will, right Abelard?’

  ‘Shut up Jonathan, there’s a good boy,’ Alessandra said. ‘I’m wasting enough time on this as it is without having to put up with your inane babble all day.’

  Jonathan’s teeth snapped together as he closed his mouth. They went up some stairs, emerging into a large open space that was completely devoid of people but full of different types of artefacts. Alessandra marched straight to an area at the back where a table had been set up. On the table were several different artefacts and a pile of mana units.

  ‘Today,’ Alessandra announced, ‘we are going to work on your control. You will learn the difference between charging an artefact directly and storing mana in a mana unit. You will practice siphoning mana from the wall supply and transferring it to different destinations.’ She fixed Abelard with a hard stare. ‘You will pay attention and you will do exactly as I say when I say it. This is not a game and you already know what the consequences can be if you don’t do it properly.’ She raised her painted-on eyebrows to make her point. ‘Do I make myself absolutely clear?’

  ‘Yes,’ Abelard said.

  He sounded as if he wanted this to go well as much as she did.

  ‘Good. Now if my lovely assistant will set up the first exercise, we can begin.’

  Jonathan scowled but moved to the table without a word and started arranging the objects on it.

  By lunchtime Alessandra was exhausted and had a splitting headache. They had been working hard all morning without a break and the tension of being responsible for an uncontrolled artisan was very tiring. She wasn’t directly involved in any of the exercises herself, instead ordering Jonathan about, getting him to put different configurations of artefacts out on the table and using him to bounce mana back and forth from place to place with Abelard. Jonathan started showing off at one point, juggling balls of mana until Alessandra told him to stop being an idiot. Eventually Alessandra announced they could stop for lunch and Jonathan escorted them to the factory canteen. It was darker and dingier than the airy eating space at Gadg-E-Tech HQ and Alessandra wondered ho
w Jonathan put up with working here. They got a lot of stares from the other workers, but Alessandra couldn’t tell if they were directed at her or Abelard. Perhaps both. Regardless, she ignored them all, keeping her shield of superiority firmly in place.

  Alessandra didn’t let Abelard take too much of a break, dragging him back up to the assembly room only twenty minutes after they had stopped.

  ‘Now,’ she said, ‘we’ve gone through all the basics. It’s time to test whether you’ve been listening. Jonathan, show him a stream.’

  Jonathan placed an empty mana unit on the table, then rested one hand against the wall supply conduit and the other on the unit. He closed his eyes and took a couple of deep breaths. Blue mana light emerged from the wall supply, ran smoothly up Jonathan’s arm, across his chest, down the other arm and into the mana unit. The mana level display on the unit gradually filled up until it was at capacity. Shortly before it reached full power, Jonathan broke contact with the wall supply and allowed the remaining mana to flow out of him into the unit, charging it completely. He took his hand off the mana unit and opened his eyes again. His breathing was slightly fast and there was a sheen of sweat on his forehead but he looked satisfied.

  Alessandra turned to Abelard. ‘Once you’ve gained full control of mana manipulation, you’ll be able to act as a link between the wall supply and whatever artefact you want to charge. You’ll be able to feel the flow of the mana through your body and tell when the artefact or mana unit is fully powered. Eventually you should be able to do this without looking at the display.’