As the timer ticked by its last few seconds the alien ship slid up close. It was far larger than it had seemed from a distance, in part because it moved with such agility that it was difficult to believe the sensors’ estimation of its size. When the timer ran out, a cylinder of light filled the gap between the two ships, large enough to comfortably surround Snow's door. Though it might have been more dignified to leave through the large bay door in the back, they rolled with the situation, each gliding out the side door into the cylinder of light.
Linda closed the door to the Dee-Dub. “Chirp-chirp,” she said.
Nearing the midpoint, Snow found herself placing her foot on the bottom of the tunnel to keep from bumping into it. The others too were drifting towards the bottom. She noticed also that the tunnel narrowed slightly towards the end and that the downward pull grew as they came closer. Before they reached the end of the tunnel it was clear that there was some sort of artificial gravity in effect. Soon they were walking and when they reached the portal into the alien ship, which opened at their arrival, the pull of gravity was greater than that of Earth. Max took the lead into the portal, his gait heavy, he crouched slightly and ducked his head to pass through, bumping his yellow axe handle in the process. Doozer, now resting comfortably on the ground seemed to test his new weight, tapping his feet and pumping his body up and down several times before accepting his new heft and following Max in, pulling Snow along with the leash.
Chapter 21
“What new space, Cay? What's wrong with this one?” Quin asked, certain he had heard wrong or more likely, that Cailin had misspoken.
“No Quin. They're sending us to space. There were pictures and everything.”
The sound of voices got louder and louder as theater goers returned to their tent homes from the most recent show.
“Cailin is quite correct. The evacuation he speaks of leads to the relative safety of an as yet undisclosed off-world location,” Chaplin said. “Conventional wisdom is that this world will become less and less safe with time. Sadly, it is a situation that seems unlikely to be reversed. Not, at least, until all humans have left it.”
“But we can't just to go to space. They can't make us do that,” Quin said, “can they?”
“The newsreel indicated that there would be an opportunity to opt out,” Chaplin said, “but to opt out, we would need to leave Tent City and travel elsewhere.”
Quin wondered, not for the first time, why Chaplin was still here. Why didn't he get back to his unit or whatever?
“We won't be able to leave. Opting out requires an adult to sign for us,” Jayleen said, just coming into the tent. “Mine have all been eaten. Yours are gone too…”
Quin felt a sting at the mention of his parents, but he let it go, Jayleen's pain was still fresh. He nodded a greeting. “What do you think? Should we let them evacuate us?”
“I don't know,” she said. “They had a lot to say about it in the theater. But after what happened in NaChar? I don't think we can just rely on others to take care of us.”
Quin nodded. “What do you think, Cay? Should we go to space?”
Cailin shrugged. “They're trying to help us. Chaplin got hurt bad helping us.”
“And you? What do you think, Chaplin? You think we should go?” Quin asked.
“The earthlings strive for a result that allows the largest number of surviving humans to escape the forces of the Galactic Evil,” Chaplin said.
“What do they want anyway?” Quin asked.
“The Galactic Evil?” Chaplin asked.
“No, the earthlings,” Quin said.
“Freedom of mobility for the human race, to not go gentle into that good night,” Chaplin said.
“Can we trust them?” Jayleen asked.
“So far as your goals are in alignment, yes. As a human, your life has inherent value in their ideology. As the descendants of their fellow task-force members, your value is greater still. But had things gone differently, had GE not discovered your planet through an accident, it is difficult to say what might have happened between your peoples. As it is you have been forced into alignment with each other and so for the time being you may act as one people. Does this answer your question?”
“Not really,” Jayleen said.
For Quin, it gave him something to think about, though it fell short of answering all his questions.
“I think we need to keep our options open. So how do we get out of here if we decide we want to?” Quin said.
“There's Uncle Jessie,” Cailin said.
Quin got a knot in his stomach just hearing the name.
“That sounds promising,” Jayleen said. “How would you get a hold of him? Everyone's being moved to the staging area in a couple days, so we don't have much time.” Now standing beside Quin, she tapped him on the housing surrounding his new eye. “Can you really see through that?”
“Ya. Good as new,” Quin said. He winked with it for emphasis. “I guess we could send Jessie a letter. He lives in SoChar, so it might get to him on time.”
“I’m glad you made it, Quin,” Jayleen said. “Now we are even right? It would have sucked to forever owe you one life saving.”
“Now I guess I owe you,” Quin said, “for looking after Cailin when I was being repaired.”
“Ya. I guess you do,” she said, “but let’s stop there. It's probably best not to take the who-owes-who math too far. I don't want to end up indebted again.”
Quin wrote the letter and dropped it into the mail same as he would have back home. Normally the letter would have a good chance of making it before nightfall, given how early it was in the day. Perhaps it would take longer given the way things were here, but Quin didn't think so. He expected the bottleneck would be Uncle Jessie himself. Uncle Jessie who chose to leave them in NaChar on their own, rather than having his life be disrupted by having them live in SoChar with him. He would show up eventually of course. But Quin doubted it would be on time. Already he was considering a simple backup plan. It was Rokun Twelfth, the last day of the month and therefore tonight would be the last True Night of the month. If they were going to break out, it would have to be tonight.
They sat inside their small tent room before first sleep and talked through their plans, counting on the inescapable din that thrummed throughout Tent City to mask their voices. The second half of the day was spent in preparations. They gathered food and packed their things. But most of their time was spent near the buffer wall, familiarizing themselves with the site of their big caper. 'The Great Tent City Escape.' Clothed as they were in kickball gear, there was no possibility of going unnoticed, so the plan included the normalizing of their presence on the perimeter. They played tag, hide and go seek, and grab-the-crab (which was basically reverse tag) until Quin was thoroughly exhausted. Then they played some more. He did find time to visit the theater, to see the news film from the earthlings. It was much as Cailin and Jayleen had said, alarming stories of an unstoppable foe. Cold and merciless. The promise of safety for those that could be evacuated. Quin had expected an announcer that was too friendly, too pretty, and too perfect to be believed. Instead the announcement was cold and untheatrical. Nothing like the entertainment they had all seen on countless occasions in the past. His suspicions still remained however, if somewhat lessened.
At the second meal of the second half of the day Quin was surprised to be given a square card along with his ration. It informed him that he had a visitor at gate one. Jessie had come to see them after all. To arrive so quickly he must have dropped everything. Quin took his food to-go and, without discussion, the whole team followed suit.
When they reached the gate, they were directed to a small tent room with a table and chairs. It provided as much privacy as anywhere in Tent City, which was none beyond that afforded by the constant rumble of voices throughout the refugee camp. Quin was mindful though, that the wrong ears were more likely to be within hearing range given their location on the perimeter. Uncle Jessie, the kid broth
er of Quin's mother, sat on one of the chairs with his back to the entrance. He wore the same black leather jacket he always had on. His brown hair was, though still long on top, cut short on the sides now. When he turned around, he had the same signature grin Quin remembered. The one that Quin despised. The same one that Cailin loved so much.
“Jessie!” Cailin ran over to embrace his uncle.
Jessie grabbed him up and spun him around. “Little Cay! You’re not so little anymore are you? Just look at you. You are bigger and bigger every time I see you.”
“You always say that, Jessie,” Cailin said.
Quin didn't say what he was thinking, that Cailin wouldn't seem to change so quickly if Jessie was around more.
“Hello, Uncle Jessie,” Quin said.
The sound of Quin's voice had a visible effect on Jessie, causing him to slump and deflate. But he straightened up again quickly, before turning around.
“And there's the big guy himself. Quin, how are you? You've been through hell, I'll bet. I've been worried sick—” The look of relief on his face seemed genuine, but of course Jessie had always been a talented fake. His expression changed from relief to shock when he saw the new Quin.
“We've been alright, I guess,” Quin said. “A few bumps and bruises along the way.”
“What happened to your face, your arm…”
“Quin got eaten by a squid,” Cailin said, as though it were the greatest thing that could ever have happened to a person ever, “and he killed it from the inside like a real squid fighter! So, they decided to turn him into a combat android,” Cailin said, overflowing with pride.
“They're not…” Jessie said.
“They are! Tell him I'm right, Chaplin,” Cailin said, turning to the robot.
If so, it was news to Quin.
“You are incorrect,” Chaplin said. “Quin suffered injuries fighting a squid in his effort to rescue me. The injuries were severe enough that certain replacements were the best option for a return to a normal life. Though it's true that he dispatched the alien squid in a manner similar to that of a combat android. We would be honored to rank him among our number. But I am sorry Cailin, your brother must remain human.”
Cailin looked disappointed that his brother wouldn't be completely converted into a robot. But then his face brightened. “He can still punch holes through walls though.”
“Uncle Jessie, we need your help to get out of here. We can't leave without an adult’s permission…” Quin said.
Jessie was technically an adult, though Quin recalled that the details of his Survey were every bit as sketchy as Jessie himself.
Jessie smiled. It was to Quin a familiar expression that tacked the word 'idiot,' to the end of whatever he was saying at the time. “Where are you planning to go (idiot)? There's nothing around here outside your shanty-tent-town (idiot).”
“We need to get out of here before they ship us off to space,” Quin said.
“What, really?” Jessie said, his expression changed to one of incredulity.
“Yes,” Quin said
Jessie looked at Quin as though his head where not only part plastic, but had been screwed on crooked.
“I'm serious, Jessie. They're sending us to space,” Quin said. Then, feeling as though he sounded as stupid as Jessie's face implied, he added, “I mean that's what they said.”
Jessie shook his head, at a loss for words, a rare event.
“It doesn't matter why,” Quin said, “but we need your help to get out of Tent City. Are you going to help us or not?”
“It's true, Jessie, there were pictures and everything,” Cailin said.
“Ya, I know about the evacuation. I just can't believe you're trying to leave,” Jessie said, he looked angry. “Do you have any idea how many people would like to get in here? To take your place?”
Quin said nothing. He was completely taken aback.
“Hell, I was hoping you might be able to get me in. Crab stones Quin,” Jessie said.
And there it was. The real reason Jessie had shown up so quickly in the first place.
“So, no, Quin. I won't help you throw your lives away.” Jessie shook his head. “And here I was thinking that you were the one that made smart decisions.”
Quin's mind was already made up.
“Hi there, pretty lady,” Jessie said to Jayleen. “We didn't get a chance to meet. I'm Jessie. Good luck with the Brainiac, I'm sure you'll all do very well once you get to space.”
Jayleen blushed and said nothing, charmed by Jessie the ladies’ man.
Jessie crouched down to say goodbye to Cailin. “If I don't see you again, you make sure you grow up to be big and strong, alright space-Cay?” Jessie said, and punched Cailin lightly on the shoulder.
Cailin's mouth hung wide open as he struggled to comprehend what was happening.
“Okay, Mr. Robot,” Jessie said to Chaplin, “you can take them back to their cells now. Make sure you keep them locked up. If I know this one, he's got some sort of backup plan.” He pointed at Quin for clarity. “Go back to being the smart guy. I liked him better.” He turned around and smoothly left through the tent flap without looking back.
A moment passed and Cailin broke the silence, “He's leaving?”
“Of course he's leaving Cay. It's his signature move,” Quin said.
“I thought he was nice,” Jayleen said.
“What will we do now?” Chaplin said.
“Why are you still with us?” Quin said. “Shouldn't you be arresting us? Or trying to stop us from getting out?”
“I have no orders to do so.”
“But why stay with us? Why haven't you received orders?”
Chaplin paused before answering. “I'm…not certain why I haven't received orders. But you didn't abandon me. And without orders, I'm free to choose my friends.”
“Ya, Quin. He's here ‘cause he's our friend. Duh!” Cailin said.
“I still want to know what we are going to do now,” Jayleen said.
“We're going back to plan B. Which I always thought of as plan A anyway. Getting out of here is the only way to keep our options open. If they want us in space so bad, it shouldn't be too difficult to get back in if we change our minds later.”
Quin was expecting an argument from Jayleen. 'I thought he was nice,' was a clear sign that she had been charmed by Jessie's good looks and easy manner. Quin had seen it with others before. But she hadn't changed her mind and seemed to be still firmly in camp not-sure-ask-me-later.
There was little reason to return to their assigned quarters. They were already most of the way to their chosen exit point, and they had literally all of their possessions on their backs. So instead they knuckled down to business, starting with a hearty game of grab-the-crab on the way to the mission jump off point.
Night had arrived. The band of prison breakers was resting from the energetic games meant to explain away their presence, and now they watched the most promising section of wall. They had not discussed the plan any further. Each of the others were too caught up in the process of actually pulling it off to think of anything else. But Quin's mind was churning. Was he making the correct decision? He was pretty sure the earthlings at least had good intentions. And he personally might find himself in need their assistance, when inevitably something went wrong with his new body parts. But he needed to do what was right for Cailin. And buying time to figure out what that was? That just had to be the right decision. But what if Jessie was right? Maybe they needed to take the opportunity that was being handed to them.
“Clear,” Cailin said in a whisper, meaning that his side of the path was free of observers.
“No good here,” Jayleen said.
Chaplin sat in near perfect camouflage at their center covered with bags. Quin could see a pair of pedestrians coming up the path. There had been a couple of false starts and two good missed opportunities early on, before their nerves were quite ready for action, and before they'd had a chance to assemble their ad-hoc bed s
heet rope. The couple walked by smiling at the small group of kids and bidding them a good evening. Before that pair had cleared the other way, a singleton arrived from the same direction and another group after that and so on and so on.
“Clear,” Jayleen said.
There was only silence from Cailin, but Quin could see that his direction was almost clear as well.
“Clear,” said Cailin.
“Let’s go,” Quin said, as he rushed across the path. He handed one end of the rope to Cailin who wrapped it around his waist. Quin bent down to give Cailin a leg up and Jayleen grabbed Cailin's other leg. On a count of three they lifted him.
Cailin grabbed the top of the white shell wall and pulled himself the rest of the way. “Wait, wait,” he said, dropping back down and hanging from the wall. “There's someone coming.”
“Crab stones,” Quin said, and lowered Cailin from the wall.
The group retreated to their 'Just resting,' position where they tried to look innocent. They didn't have to wait long. A pair of hands appeared at the top of the wall, visible in the sharp contrast of white shell wall and dark gloves. The owner of the gloves followed quickly after, dropping down and pulling on a rope. A backpack and small step ladder came tumbling over the wall, only to be caught by the newcomer. Quickly the intruder detached the ladder from the rope and tossed it aside, then turned. Seeing the youngsters, she greeted them with a wave and stepped toward them. A noise from the wall warned them all of more intruders. The woman lay her bag on the ground near the wannabe escapees and removed her top hat, tossing it on the ground behind the bag. She ruffled her hair and opened her jacket, fanning herself to cool down.
The sound of voices and more hands came from the other side of the wall. First one man, then another climbed over and leapt from the wall, rising before the growing group of would-be/suspected criminals. The woman pointed down the path. “That way,” she said, “then the first left.”
Starship Invasion (Lost Colony Uprising Book 2) Page 18