Science and Sorcery Box Set

by Ryan Tang

  "No, only one meal arrived. Andrew says he brought the meal back to his store, anticipating someone would pick it up. It only gets more complicated from there."

  Alex shook her head and cursed.

  "I spoke to Joanna - the pianist - and she said she wasn't even the person who passed the meal along. She was supposed to wait at the Block 2 park and relay it over, but nobody came. She said she left it on the bench because she was afraid to go to Stock's house by herself. I went back to the bench she told me about and checked it. The meal's gone."

  There was too much obfuscation. It had to be a conspiracy. But to what end?

  Alex put her hand into the pocket of her dress and wrapped her fingers around the Eternium. The holy metal would keep her safe. But strangely, she didn't feel frightened.

  A new thought sprouted in her mind fully-formed, the sort of complete realization that often struck her in the middle of battle.

  Stock's attempt wasn't meant to kill her.

  Anyone who could plan such a complicated scheme to obfuscate where the gun came from would have diligently researched to guarantee the plan's success. They would have known that Stock was the worst possible catspaw. It'd been a narrow thing when he was fumbling with his gun, but a better killer wouldn't have fumbled. They wouldn't have wasted all their bullets on the Eternium barrier, and they wouldn't have given the plan away as soon as they were defeated. Of course, Alex's life had still been in tremendous danger, but something else was happening here.

  "Andrew doesn't even know who picked up the meal. He said someone took it when he was working on a model. And from the sounds of it, there might have been a third and fourth meal. I was talking to some of the people from The Wastes, and it sounded like they thought it was their turn to bring food to Stock. Jon and Elaine both said it was their turn. I'm still trying to unravel that."

  Alex shook her head and sighed.

  "This seems impossible."

  "I think our best bet right now is just to make sure nothing else gets into his house. We can bring the food ourselves if we have to."

  "Yeah."

  "We'll tell the guards not to enter his house, even when his food arrives. For all we know, it could have been a guard who gave Stock the gun."

  Alex bit her lip and sighed. She hadn't thought of that. It wasn't just about the meals. If one of the guards were in on it, the gun could have arrived at any time.

  She wasn't very good at this sort of thing. It'd been the same on Diligence. She'd mostly followed Emile's lead, and she'd gotten caught at the end. If it hadn't been for the brave and generous actions of her childhood friend Hector, things would have turned out very poorly.

  "Don't worry. We'll figure everything out. Just make sure you stay safe inside."

  Leanne's bold confidence didn't completely remove the sudden knot of anxiety that'd appeared in her stomach, but it softened the edges.

  "Come on. Let's put on a good show. It's time to play."

  As her friend strode away, Alex found herself wondering if Leanne would be a better ace than she was. She was a natural leader. She was quick to comfort and easy to follow. And despite her injury, she'd been spending hours each day on the simulator. Her skills were improving by the hour. And she could almost summon a Paragon.

  Leanne turned back to her.

  "Hey. You okay?"

  "Yeah."

  Alex hadn't realized she was standing still while everyone else had walked to the courtyard. She shook off her thoughts and followed her friends. So far, the tower had chosen her, and her alone. But it wouldn't be that way for long, and when her friends could summon Paragons too, they wouldn't have to worry about assassins, no matter how many there were or who had sent them.

  ____

  Matthew laughed as he played and played.

  The sound was free of the usual cynicism and self-deprecation. Even when he laughed after a good move in the simulator, there was always an unfortunate edge to it that hinted at all the years he'd wasted piloting Waters's broken machines.

  Matthew had never liked the Paragons until now.

  "This is awesome."

  As always, his precision was divine.

  Alex's machine was built from Eternium, but the Hands Paragons were made from lesser metals and rubber. Jared had coated the edge of every finger with a small plate of Eternium so they could play the songs. It was the perfect way to hone their precision. They had to strike every plate precisely against the other, or they'd be left with the long drawn out sound of Eternium on rubber.

  Matthew was the best at hitting the plates. The fingers moved just as he directed them, and he never missed a single strike. The problem was that he couldn't read the music. He kept playing the notes in the wrong order.

  But he couldn't stop smiling.

  "Man. I never got to do something like this."

  Luke scoffed.

  "This is lame! And you're so much worse than every else, dad!"

  He waved a fist in the air.

  "I want to see you fight again!"

  Matthew laughed again. His voice boomed down from the speakers of his Paragon.

  "When you get older, you'll see that music is better."

  He hit another wrong note.

  "Goddamn it!"

  "See? You suck!"

  "I'll get better."

  "But dad! Look at how much better everyone else is!"

  Leanne was totally immersed in the music. The flow of the notes enveloped her. She had the same rare talent the pianist in the hospital had. She'd become a conduit for the notes. Every one in the perfect order, every one with the perfect emphasis, every one with the perfect gap, one after the next.

  She hit the plates almost as well as Matthew, and even when she missed a strike, she turned it to her advantage. Soon she was hitting the rubber on purpose, using it almost like a pedal on the piano. The long and haunting sound accentuated the rest of her music.

  Everyone knew she'd play the lead role.

  "Oh my god. How are you so good?"

  Miles had stopped playing entirely so he could listen. Soon, Jared did too. Then Emile, then Alex herself. Before long, they were all listening as Leanne played on and on. The music flowed from her machine like the waves of a gentle ocean. It was another five minutes before she stopped.

  "Hey, don't all watch me! I'm going to get nervous!"

  "How are you so good?"

  She chuckled.

  "I used to play music competitively on Generosity. The hand harp. The violin. The piano too."

  Alex's childhood hobby seemed meager in comparison. Leanne had the time to do stuff like that, as the daughter of one of Generosity's Minor Families. She probably could have played all the piano she wanted when she wasn't swearing blood oaths or playing the colony's bizarre games of chance. Her Family had been so rich that she was practically a princess.

  "I'm only good because I had the chance to practice as a kid! We have a lot of time before the performance. And the more we practice, the more we'll improve as pilots too!"

  Matthew immediately tried playing again.

  The sound of Eternium was always beautiful, but Leanne had showed everyone them what a true musician could do.

  Luke jeered.

  "We should go back to capture-the-flag. You were good at that!"

  "Yeah, well, Leanne's taller than me too. Everyone's good at different things. I like this more."

  "But you suck!"

  "I can already hit all the notes. Just need to figure out how to read this damn thing."

  He hit another wrong note and cursed again. Alex smiled. He was already improving. Before, he couldn't tell when he was playing the wrong notes.

  "I just need to figure out how to read these things!"

  Some of the other kids cut in.

  "Stop swearing! Stop swearing!"

  Leanne started strumming again, but when Matthew fell silent, she immediately stopped.

  "No. Don't listen to me! Play! Play! It's the only way you'll get bet
ter!"

  She gestured to everyone else, and soon they were all practicing once again.

  Nico grinned.

  "Look how good my mom is!"

  "Well, so what? My dad is going to learn!"

  Leanne crowed triumphantly.

  "Can't wait to see what my Family will say when they see this. Plenty is better than Generosity. They never had Paragons."

  She laughed.

  "They never had their own musician-warriors!"

  The children liked the sound of that. They cheered and cheered.

  "Agh!"

  Arthur let out a cry of frustration. He was still failing to hit the plates. He chuckled, gave up on trying to play the notes, and started simply beating the plates steadily together.

  Plink. Plink. Plink. Plink.

  "Worst case scenario, I'll be the triangle."

  They all laughed.

  Alex played on, buoyed by the happiness all around her. It was much easier for her than Arthur, and not just because her machine was all Eternium. She had the skill and precision to hit the notes. She just wished she could feel the music the way Leanne did. There were so many levels of expertise ahead of her that she just couldn't reach. She was walking, and Leanne was running a four-minute mile.

  A curtain shifted in the Spire, and she saw the girl grinning with delight. Alex smiled and closed her eyes, thinking of their secret audience member.

  The music became even sweeter than before.

  ____

  They rehearsed until late in the night. The songs were full of joy. When they finished, Leanne gathered them around her and smirked.

  "I've had a lot of time to practice at home. By the time we host the event, Alex won't be the only one who can summon a Paragon."

  She walked up to the Spire and gently stroked the tower. An ivory white portal emerged from the black. Her Paragon slowly emerged. A massive hand grabbed the wall and pushed outward, revealing broad shoulders and a head shaped like a knight's helmet.

  They gasped.

  Leanne's smile grew brighter.

  The second arm emerged, and the Paragon leaned forward.

  "Amazing."

  "Yes!"

  Alex beamed with relief. Things would be so much better if they had two Paragons. And Leanne was the perfect ace.

  Then her friend let out a choked cough and grabbed the side of her head.

  The Paragon immediately dove back into the tower, vanishing so swiftly it was like it'd fled. Alice and Nico cried out in frustration.

  "Oh man, you were so close!"

  "Mom! You were so close!"

  Leanne paid them no mind. She grabbed her head again and wailed.

  "I'm trying! I'm trying! I'm actually trying! Trust me! I'm trying!"

  "Mom?"

  Alex leaped out of her cockpit and bounded down the ladder.

  "Leanne! Leanne! Are you alright?"

  Alex's friend whirled toward her. Leanne's usually fierce eyes were wide and terrified.

  "No! What are you doing! Don't come! Go back! Go back! Go back! I'm trying! I'm trying!"

  Nico sprinted forward. Leanne stumbled forward and nearly fell to the floor. Her arms suddenly surged toward her son, but then jerked back again.

  "No! Go back! Go back!"

  Fear coiled in Alex's chest. She could hear Jared shouting for someone to call a doctor.

  Nico screamed into his tablet.

  "Dr. Courtney! Something happened! Something happened to mom! What happened? I thought the test said everything was okay! Help!"

  But just as soon as Nico hung up, Leanne shook her head and stopped yelling. She let out a long and tired sigh.

  "I'm sorry about that. Just tired."

  She stumbled a little and grabbed her head again. Alex wanted to vomit. This was all her fault. She should have been more careful. The Paragons had the strength of a thousand people.

  Leanne shakily clapped her hands together.

  "Well. That's enough excitement for one night. I'm going to return home and take a break."

  She smiled unenthusiastically.

  "Trust me. I'll have the Paragon ready too."

  Nico hastily helped her walk back to their apartment.

  "You shouldn't be pushing yourself so hard, mom."

  Alex stepped back into her cockpit and returned it to the Spire. Before long, her tablet buzzed with a message from Leanne.

  "You shouldn't have gone outside. It's too dangerous. Make sure you stay inside."

  Alex sighed. Leanne should be worrying about herself.

  "You know, there's another way we can easily solve this problem."

  "How?"

  "I don't think the traitor was trying to kill you."

  Alex frowned. She'd had the same thought.

  "I think they were trying to free Stock. We should just kill him. Just shoot him and send a video to Generosity. Then they'll know there's no point."

  Alex shuddered.

  There was a cold logic to what Leanne was saying. It did seem likely that the traitor was trying to free Stock. After all, Stock had boasted about his allies on Generosity, and Joshua Steel had professed his admiration for Southern Robotics.

  It didn't seem likely that they could capture the culprit. Keeping track of where the baskets had gone made her feel like someone had tossed her brain into a roaring river. And as Leanne said, they also had to suspect the guards. The gun could have come from anywhere and anyone.

  Killing Stock would end their troubles. But shooting him in cold blood and filming it?

  She let out a long breath before sending her next message.

  "I don't know about that."

  "Think about it. And make sure you stay inside. I'm pretty sure this is about Stock, but we can't be too sure. I'll check in on the guards tomorrow."

  Alex entered the book-corridors and sighed. When she called out, the girl didn't respond. She waited a moment before heading to her nook on the 8th floor. Alex changed into her pajamas then fell onto her bed.

  None of this made sense.

  Leanne's theory was the closest they'd come to a breakthrough. It certainly didn't feel like killing her had been the traitor's primary goal. Maybe it was all about freeing Stock. Alex's mind felt like it was bouncing against a brick wall, and her insides felt like they were rotting. It shouldn't be anyone. Everyone on Plenty was supposed to stand together. Why was there a traitor?

  The librarian wanted nothing more than to roll over, go to sleep, and stop thinking about this.

  But she was Plenty's ace, and she had to solve this mystery. Alex pulled out the picture she'd taken of Leanne's notebook and stared at it, but nothing happened. The vise around her brain simply grew tighter.

  Leanne had the right idea. They should investigate the guards next. The basket of food must have passed through the guards before making its way to Stock. It was the logical conclusion to the map she'd had drawn. No matter where the baskets had vanished, one of them must have reached the guards. Alex should stay calm. They still had cards to play. Perhaps she should investigate the guards tomorrow instead of Leanne. She didn't want to overtax her friend. It'd be worth the risk of going outside.

  A thumping and awkward knock on the door pushed her out of her musings. The sound was unmistakable. It was made not by a hand, but by the edge of the girl's laptop.

  The librarian sighed.

  Once again, she wondered whether or not she should ask the girl about removing the appliance hands. She shook her head and rubbed her temples.

  She wished she knew what to do and say. She was acting like she was the girl's mom or big sister, but she had absolutely no idea what to do.

  The girl knocked again, and Alex hurried forward to dismiss the Eternium wall.

  "Hey, what's up?"

  "What are you thinking about?"

  Alex blinked. That was a strange question. Not a lot of people just knocked and asked what the person inside was thinking about.

  "What do you mean?"

  The gi
rl shrugged and looked away.

  "Looked like you were thinking about something tough when you came in."

  "Oh."

  She was good at observing faces and good at staying invisible. She had to have been to survive under Stock.

  Alex gulped. She was his daughter.

  "We're just trying to figure out who helped Stock escape."

  The girl shuddered, and Alex cursed herself.

  She should have just lied and said it was about something innocent. But then again, the girl might have been able to tell.

  Alex put a reassuring hand on her arm.

  "Don't worry. We won't let him escape."

  "We" was doing a lot of work there. Leanne knew how to play politics from her days on Generosity, but this kind of cloak and dagger game wasn't Alex's strength. If it hadn't been for Emile, Alex never would have unraveled Steel's plot.

  The girl shifted awkwardly at the door.

  "Will it really be okay?"

  "Yeah. It will be."

  Then it was Alex's turn to shift uncomfortably. The words caught in her throat.

  Alex wanted to ask the girl if she wanted to replace her hands, but a question like that might drive her off. And the girl probably didn't want to see a doctor. This had probably happened to her at one of Stock's private medical centers.

  Alex tried to imagine what she would think if she was in that situation.

  Would she want her hands removed?

  Surely she would.

  But wouldn't the girl just ask if she wanted them removed?

  Was it alright to bring up something so traumatic? Wouldn't asking just remind the girl of what had happened?

  But Alex was the adult. Shouldn't she be the one to bring something like this up?

  Her mind ricocheted uncontrollably in her skull, and it felt even worse than trying to puzzle out the gun conspiracy. She was utterly unqualified, but she was like a parent and sister now. She was the only person this girl had, but this was nothing like taking care of her students from the Spire.

  It was a burden far greater than being the colony's ace.

  "Alex? Alex?"

  "Yeah?"

  "Are you still thinking about Stock?"

  The librarian shook her head.

  "No. We don't need to worry about him. We'll deal with him soon."

  She hoped that was the case. She hoped they'd find the traitor. But if it came to it, Alex would just have to kill him. Leanne was right. Seeing the girl confirmed it.