Tree: Live to give, give to live (Numbered Book 3)

by Magus Tor

  When she got to the office, her father, Jonathon, and Lukas were in earnest discussion.

  “You don't have a choice if you want to leave now,” Lukas was saying.

  “I agree,” said her father. “He'll pass cursory inspection but no more than that.”

  Jonathon sighed. “Fine,” he said grudgingly. “But I don't like it.”

  “What's the deal?” asked Aurelia.

  Lukas shook his head. “Jonathon's making trouble about pulling rank. You guys can all travel under your own names and numbers now that there's no secrecy, but Nicholas is another matter. We've got him an ID number that should work if he's asked for one, but the safest thing to do is for Jonathon here to play the spoilt Elite and demand that he and his entourage are let onto the shuttle at the last minute. If he throws enough of a tantrum, you'll all probably be let on without too strict an inspection.”

  “And Jonathon doesn't like the idea of being a spoilt rich kid,” added her father, with a grin.

  “Okay, okay, I said it was fine, right? I'll do it,” Jonathon said.

  “Do what?” asked Nicholas and Elza in unison, coming into the office laden with packs.

  “Nothing,” said Lukas. “We ready?”

  Aurelia turned to her father. “Good luck, Dad,” she said quietly.

  “And the same to you,” said her father, hugging her. “You'll need it up there.”

  She took a moment to hold him tight, but she refused to cry. She hated leaving her parents.

  “Let's go,” said Lukas. “It's a long way, and we don't have much time.”

  They emerged from the underground cavern into the soft orange light that came right before darkness.

  “We've got to walk into the City,” Lukas said. “Not much choice there, but once over the boundary, we'll get a transport pod.”

  Aurelia resigned herself to walking through the horrific sand dunes again, and she settled into a trudge that she hoped would be over sooner rather than later.

  The night fell swiftly, and soon it was dark. But they could see the twinkling lights of City 05 in the darkness, meaning that they didn't need any other light source. They were all quiet, their breathing laboured as they tried to get the walk over and done with. Aurelia felt a presence behind her, then someone caught her hand. Of course it was Jonathon, and he squeezed her fingers.

  “You okay?” he asked.

  She nodded, breathing hard and not wanting to waste precious oxygen on unnecessary words. She squeezed his fingers back and heard him laugh a little.

  “What are you laughing at?” she asked, giving up her battle for breath and stopping for a moment.

  “Thinking what Lunar would think if they could see us now, walking dirty and sandy through the desert,” he said.

  “Are you worried about going back?” she asked him, getting her water bottle from her pack and drinking.

  He thought for a second before answering. “Yes, and no. I'm excited too. This is everything that I've worked for. But then...”

  “I know,” she said, offering him the bottle. “It's difficult to think about change, and about what we'll have to do to get it.”

  He drank deeply before handing the bottle back. “Come on, we have to catch up.”

  Once inside the City limits, Lukas pulled out his screen and tapped a few icons.

  “Transport pod will be here any second,” he said. “Key in the coordinates for the 05 shuttle bay. Now listen carefully.” He stopped and made sure they were all looking at him. “There are only two passenger shuttles a day from 05, and the next one leaves at 21:00. You need to get to the bay no more than twenty minutes before that. If you have to wait any longer than twenty minutes, there's a fair chance that you'll have to go through the security procedures. Arrive late, and you, Jonathon, demand to get onto the shuttle. As long as you're recognised, they should pull out all the stops to get all of you on board. If for any reason they don't let you on, you need to leave the bay as soon as possible. Get back to the safe house here—Aurelia knows where it is—and contact me, okay?”

  “Got it,” said Jonathon.

  “Nicholas, have you memorised your new ID number in case you need it?”

  The Clone nodded and rattled off the number as though it had been assigned to him his whole life.

  “Alright, you're ready to go.” A transport pod hummed up just as he was speaking. “Good luck to you all.”

  Jonathon stopped to shake Lukas's hand before he got into the pod. “We'll see you soon, my friend,” he said.

  The pod door shut with a click, Jonathon keyed in the coordinates, and they were off. Humming and then lifting a level, the pod slid away. Jonathon checked his time reader.

  “We should be right on time,” he said. “When we get to the shuttle bay, I'm going to need all of you to act deferential, and you have my apologies for that.”

  Aurelia looked around to check on Elza and Nicholas, who were sitting behind her. Both of them nodded, and she noticed that Nicholas still held his arm in a light sling.

  “How's the arm?” she asked.

  He shrugged. “I feel pain sometimes. Elza says it's the nerves that were connected to my hand. But sometimes I sort of feel like it's still there. I put my hand out to open a door and then realise that I can't.” He grinned. “I guess I'll get used to it, though.”

  She turned back around in her seat. Everyone was so quiet. It was like the energy and buzz of the last few days had drained them all. She knew that everyone was tired, but it was more than that: they were worried. This was the end game, where everything would be won or lost. Aurelia was certain in her heart that they were doing the right thing, but she also knew that many would be sacrificed, and there was nothing she could do about it.

  City 05 slipped away, the brown sand and buildings nothing more than background. As the residential buildings faded into the distance, Aurelia saw the bright lights of the shuttle bay shining into the night. Getting closer, she saw that there was a passenger shuttle already in place, the transport corridors locked in. The pod followed a path around the edge of the large open space before honing in on the entrance and sliding to a stop.

  Jonathon checked his time reader once more. “Let's do this,” he said.

  He jumped out of the pod, striding towards the entrance, not waiting for the others and not looking back. Aurelia skipped a few steps to catch him up, but made sure that she didn't quite walk at the same pace. He pushed open the door to the bay, bypassed the line of people waiting for security, and went straight to one of the desks.

  “Out of the way,” he said sharply to the man who was about to give his ID number to the sec Worker. “Do you know who I am?”

  The sec Worker was a young woman, and Aurelia thought that Jonathon had made a good snap decision to go to her desk. She looked awed as she nodded.

  “Excellent. I and my three colleagues need to get on this shuttle. Arrange it, please.”

  He pointedly looked at his time reader, then back at the Worker.

  “You don't seem to be doing anything; come on, get those gates open.”

  “I'm going to need your ID number, sir,” the Worker stuttered, her face flushed bright pink.

  “Ridiculous. You know who I am. Open the gate, or bring your supervisor.”

  The girl's fingers twitched for a second, and Aurelia thought that she was about to open the gate. But the Worker wasn't as naïve as Jonathon had taken her for. She instead picked up a com and pressed an icon.

  “Give me that,” Jonathon said rudely, grabbing the com from her hand. “Hello? Jonathon Hansen here. Your Worker refuses to let us onto the shuttle. Yes, of course.”

  He handed the com back to the girl, who listened for a moment and then with a shaking hand pressed the button to open the security gates. Jonathon marched through, leaving the others to follow in his wake.

  Other passengers parted, allowing them to walk through the crowds easily and quickly. Jonathon again pushed past the queue of people waiting to board
the shuttle.

  “Let us on now,” he barked at the sec Worker manning the entrance gate.

  “Your reservation number, sir,” said the Worker, obviously aware of whom he was talking to.

  “There's no reservation,” Jonathon said airily. “Just put us in the best seats on the shuttle. Quickly now.”

  Hurriedly the Worker pulled out a screen and tapped on it. “Deck four,” he said. “Right this way.”

  Miraculously, the boarding gate opened. Jonathon walked through without even thanking the man, and Elza, Nicholas, and Aurelia followed. It was like being in the wake of a hurricane; Aurelia had never realised what power Jonathon wielded, and she wondered how on earth he stopped himself from using it. He could travel like this whenever he chose, but instead he made reservations and waited in line just like anyone else.

  They were met at the shuttle door and shown to their deck.

  “Make sure the rest of the deck stays empty,” Jonathon said to the steward. “I have work to do and don't want to be disturbed.”

  “Of course, sir,” the steward answered, backing away.

  Jonathon slumped into a seat. “I hate doing that,” he said, quietly now.

  Nicholas took a seat opposite him. “At least you got us all on,” he said.

  Jonathon smiled at him. “I guess I did,” he said. “I guess I did.”

  There was a groaning of metal as the passenger corridors were removed from the shuttle. Aurelia quickly settled into a seat and did up her safety belt. This was a whole lot better than the last time she'd taken a shuttle when she'd been a prisoner. She rolled her shoulders to relax her muscles and looked closely at Jonathon. She knew what was occupying his mind. The rally was over, the election was in the future, but right now he was worrying about his father.

  “Have you told Nicholas and Elza?” she asked him.

  “About what?” Nicholas said immediately, his ears sharp.

  Jonathon sighed and told both of them about what Tara had found out. Nicholas looked aghast, but Elza simply nodded.

  “We should have guessed as much,” she said sadly.

  “Why on earth would you guess that Jonathon's father would have him killed?” asked Aurelia.

  Elza shrugged. “That's the way Lunar politics work, unfortunately. And Jonathon's right. With him out of the way, there'd be a large gap that could be filled very nicely by his father. Have you thought about what you're going to do?” she asked Jonathon.

  “I have no choice,” he said, leaning back against his seat. “It's a case of him or me. As much as I don't want to sink to his level, I can't think of anything else to do.”

  “You want to have him killed,” Nicholas stated bluntly.

  “I have a Resistance order drawn up. I just need to sign it.”

  Jonathon looked far from happy. There were deep creases around his eyes and dark shadows under them. Aurelia felt awful for him.

  “I have an idea,” said Nicholas. “I mean, if you're open to options.”

  “I've gone through everything a thousand times in my head, and I can't think of anything else to do. No one's going to arrest my father; no one's going to believe that he's behind all this.”

  The shuttle was beginning to vibrate, the engines revving in preparation for tearing the ship off the ground. Aurelia pressed herself back into her seat. She hated this part. But she also wanted to hear what Nicholas had to say. She knew that to sign the Resistance order went against every principle that Jonathon had, and that once done it would be something that he could never forgive himself for, something that he'd have to live with. Like him, though, she saw few other options.

  “I can think of someone who will arrest your father,” Nicholas said. “Well, at least in a manner of speaking. Why not call on the Connectors—Bryn in particular—to do the job?”

  “What do you mean?” asked Jonathon, looking interested.

  “Bryn takes your father—I guess ‘kidnaps’ might be a better word—and goes with him outside of the dome. He'd be safe enough out there, at least for a while until the election is over, and you'd be safe as well. It seems simple.”

  Jonathon considered this. “You could be right,” he said thoughtfully. “And once the election is over, I can get my father arrested if necessary. I mean, as long as everything goes to plan and our reforms go through.”

  Nicholas shrugged. “It seems a less permanent plan than signing that order and doing something that you might regret.”

  “You're right.” Jonathon looked at the Clone and smiled. “Thank you, Nicholas. And yet again I feel like I should be apologising to you. I've never done anything but underestimate you, and you've never done anything but save me whenever necessary. You're a true friend, and I thank you for it.”

  Nicholas gave him a wicked looking grin. “You can thank me properly by making sure I get a decent meal on this flight. If you remember rightly, on my last flight I was chained to a wall and force fed.”

  Jonathon laughed. “I'll see what I can do. We're about to take off.”

  The shuttle was shuddering, and then with an immense surge of power it pulled itself up, away from the ground. Aurelia felt the deep vibrations under her seat throbbing into her bones. At first it seemed like the shuttle wasn't moving at all, but then slowly it began to rise up, and Aurelia could see the lights of 05 below her.

  “Will we fly over the other Cities?” she asked no one in particular.

  “No,” said Nicholas. “The 05 shuttle bay is pretty isolated, which is why there are only two passenger shuttles a day. The shuttles from 05 take a different track into orbit. That means that you won't be getting any scenery, I'm afraid. Though it is a slightly shorter trip this way.”

  Well, that’s something, Aurelia thought. This was her third shuttle flight, and she rather hoped that it was going to be a normal experience. On her first flight, the shuttle had been attacked and damaged; on the second, she'd been a prisoner—albeit a fake one—so she heartily wished for the regular flight that most people experienced for the third. She glanced at Jonathon, who was looking out of the window in deep thought.

  “What are you thinking about?” she asked.

  “Just that the next time we see Earth, it might be a very, very different place,” he said slowly.

  That it might. If they were successful. She felt the weight of worry in her stomach, but the ball was rolling now and nothing more could be done. And all those millions of people down there on that little green-and-blue planet deserved more. They deserved what Jonathon had promised them.

  Once again the shuttle began to vibrate, this time getting ready to pull away from the Earth's gravity. The pressure came, pushing them all down against their seats as the roaring grew louder and the shuddering more violent until all at once there was silence, and the ship was floating in space.

  “Now,” said Jonathon, unbuckling his belt, getting up, and stretching. “Let's see what we can do about that food situation.”

  He disappeared for some minutes, and Aurelia watched Elza's blonde head lean towards Nicholas, speaking quietly to him. After a few moments, the woman reached over and laid a hand on his leg. Aurelia had no idea what they were talking about but had a feeling it was personal. They looked so right together, despite a small age difference. Not only were they an attractive couple, but the looks on their faces told Aurelia that they were completely in love with each other. There was an air of comfort in their speech, something that said they were totally at ease. She smiled to herself. Nicholas had once been in love with her, but she felt no pangs of jealousy. Remembering the conversation she'd had with Elza about how much the woman had given up to be part of the Resistance, she truly wished the best for the couple—though neither Nicholas nor Elza had come out and directly said that they were a couple, of course.

  She was still watching them when Jonathon came back bearing steaming trays.

  “The steward will be busy for a while yet, so I thought I'd help myself,” he said, grinning and handing a tray
to each of them.

  “You can cook too?” said Aurelia, raising an eyebrow. “Aren't you full of surprises?”

  “You have no idea,” he said, giving her a look that she couldn't interpret.

  She looked at him askance, but there was clearly no explanation of his mysterious remark coming, so she turned her attention to the food. Okay, it was shuttle food, but it wasn't bad. Nicholas was practically inhaling his, and she had to admit that she was pretty hungry herself.

  Once done, Elza took the food trays back to the steward's cabin and then dimmed the lights.

  “Might as well get a little rest,” she said.

  But all four of them were too restless to sleep. Screens came out, silence descended, and Aurelia wondered how long it would be before they had the opportunity to relax like this again.

  With a sliding whine of engines, the shuttle landed on Lunar. The thud of passenger doors connecting to the hull shook Aurelia out of her thoughts.

  “This part should be a piece of cake,” said Jonathon, pulling out his screen. “I'm ordering a transport pod to take us to my house, and we'll just walk through the shuttle bay like we own it. Nicholas, you keep close to me, just in case you're recognised, but there should be no problems.”

  Aurelia stood up and stretched the journey out of her muscles. She was surprised by the sound of the outside door clicking.

  “We're Elite, remember?” said Elza, smiling at her. “That means that we don't wait for anything. We'll be first off.”

  “Delay a little bit,” said Nicholas. “Make like you're arranging your bags so a few other passengers get off first. It'll be easier to be lost in the crowd that way.”

  Jonathon nodded in agreement, and the two women began unpacking then repacking their bags. It was only after another ten minutes that Jonathon gave the word to leave. He picked up his pack and strode out of the shuttle, the others following.

  It was just as easy as he'd predicted. A few people stared or pointed, but that was because they recognised him. Other than that, they weren't stopped as they made their way down the passenger corridor, into the wide expanse of the waiting area, and then finally through the front hall and out onto the pod access deck.