Sleeping Giants

by Sylvain Neuvel

  —You do realize I am essentially a spectator in all of this. I do not come from outer space. I did not build a giant robot. I did not even play any significant part in finding it or understanding how it works. You can therefore assume that 100 percent of the knowledge that I possess was handed to me by other people. If anything were to happen to me, there would be someone left who knows what I know, a lot of someones. I trust that, in the event of my demise, the right information would find its way to the people who need it, as it found its way to me.

  —Sure, but why not save us all a lot of time and tell us, so we can, you know, help a little!

  —You are helping, tremendously. And part of the reason you are able to contribute so significantly to this project is that you are not burdened by unnecessary knowledge. Some of it might help you, I agree, but some of it would also narrow your options, steer your thoughts in one particular direction, prevent you from seeing all there is to see. Since I cannot know which information would hinder your thought processes, I find it best to provide you only with what you really need to know.

  —Really? All this time I thought you were just the biggest micromanager the Earth had ever known. I never realized you were doing all of this for me. How can I ever thank you enough?

  —You should leave the sarcasm to Ms. Resnik. She is infinitely better at it than you are. Are you ready to go back to work?

  —What work? I’ve done two things so far, decipher some alien symbols on panels I accidentally dematerialized, and learn to pilot a robot you sent to the bottom of the ocean. As far as I can tell, there’s nothing left for me to do.

  —That was not my question. I was asking whether you felt ready or not.

  —To do what?

  —Anything. I am asking whether you feel ready to do anything.

  —I don’t understand.

  —Unless there are aspects of your life I was not made aware of, all you have accomplished in the last five months is to grow a beard and build models of World War II naval ships. While those ships are admittedly highly detailed, and do testify to your patience and dexterity, they offer little in the way of reassuring anyone about your mental stability.

  —I…I don’t know what to say…I’m stable…mentally, and I can do…things, that you won’t tell me about.

  —What is the current state of your relationship with Ms. Resnik?

  —My…I haven’t spoken to her in quite some time.

  —Precisely. How can you pretend to be strong enough to resume work if you cannot even pick up the phone and call a woman you obviously care for very deeply?

  —I wanted to wait until I was sure.

  —Sure of what?

  —I’m almost there. I will call her soon, I promise. I wanted to wait until I was sure.

  —…

  —Until I was sure I’d never fall again.

  —…

  —I don’t know how else to explain it. I wake up every morning hearing Rose screaming for me to stop. People keep telling me that it’ll pass, that there’ll come a day when I don’t have to watch her die over and over again in my dreams. I don’t think that day will come, but I’ve learned to live with it.

  I mean, of course, I wish I could only remember the good parts. She gave me her trust, her friendship, and she opened the doors to a world I would never have dreamed of. I’ll be in her debt until it’s my turn to die. I wish I could only see that, but I can’t. So, if waking up screaming every morning is part of remembering her, I’m fine with that.

  I can’t bring her back. It’s too late for me to listen to her, and I can’t promise I’ll always do what anyone else asks me to do, but I swear to you, I swear on my life, I will never fall again. I will never let anything happen to someone I love because I wasn’t strong enough, starting with Kara. That’s why I’m waiting to call her.

  —I do not question your resolve, I never have, but you cannot guarantee that your knees will not simply give again, as they did the last time.

  —I climb stairs.

  —What?

  —I climb stairs with my knees in reverse.

  —Perhaps there are aspects of your life I was not made aware of. Please go on.

  —At night, in my apartment building. I set my alarm for 2:00 A.M., and I go up and down the back stairs. I go up four floors, then down, then up again, until I can’t move anymore.

  —How often do you do that?

  —Every night since I came back here. My legs are too tired to work out during the day, so I drink protein shakes and work on my concentration. I build model ships while I do multiples in my head using alien math. It’s a bit unorthodox, I know, and I’m sorry if it’s not up to everyone’s standards, but it’s the closest thing I could find to working the console. So I don’t know what you’re really asking me to do, but if you’re thinking of getting the band back together, I’m ready. I’m ten times more ready than I was the last time I set foot in the sphere.

  —Getting the band back together might not be that easy.

  —…I’m sorry. I’m not laughing at you. It’s just, what you said, it’s a quote from Jake in that movie, The Blues Brothers.

  —I was citing you, from a moment ago…

  —I know. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to…

  —…and that line is from Elwood, not Jake. Congratulations.

  —What did I do?

  —You have convinced me that you are fit for duty. All you need to do now is to convince Ms. Resnik.

  FILE NO. 239

  INTERVIEW WITH ALYSSA PAPANTONIOU, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER AND CHIEF SCIENCE OFFICER, BVI COMPANY NUMBER 462753 INC.

  Location: Undisclosed location, near San Juan, Puerto Rico

  —Alas, Ms. Papantoniou, we meet again.

  —Yes, it must be hard for you.

  —Why would you say that? I was sorry to see you go.

  —You had me de…deported.

  —Yes. I meant afterward. I had underestimated your contribution to the team. I believe you lack the social skills and empathy that are necessary to lead people, but I realize that you are a uniquely talented individual and that we can greatly benefit from your presence.

  —And now the board has ch…chosen me. I’m in charge this time.

  —Indeed they have. You must have made quite an impression with the Russian government. I am curious, however, as to what you really offered them since you knew nothing of this facility. You must have convinced them that you could find a way to activate the controls for their pilots, were they able to retrieve the pieces from the bottom of the trench on their own. I am fairly certain the United States would not look kindly on your proposal to the Russians.

  —I don’t think they would look kindly on your setting up this consortium either.

  —Exactly. As you can see, we have a lot in common. We are both deeply committed to this project, enough so that we must often choose between what is ethical, honorable, and what is important. I hope this shared commitment can serve as the foundation of our renewed relationship. I hope we can have a…fresh start.

  —They dragged me out of my home…like a cri…criminal!

  —They thought you were. But, as I said, water under the bridge. You do realize we have to find a way to work together? I am honestly willing to try if you are.

  —I’ve always been professional. You’re the one who made things pers…p…

  —Personal. I would describe my actions as…decisive. I thought that was a quality you admired in others. Believe me, when I make things personal, it will leave no room for interpretation. So. Shall we begin? How is the construction progressing?

  —…

  —I will not leave before you talk to me. If you care for this project as much as you claim to, you will not let a…temporary relocation get in the way of its success.

  —We’re ahead of schedule by almost a month. Cons…Construction of the lab is almost complete, and we’re laying track much faster than we thought possible. You should get the pilots here now.


  —It was my understanding that you would not be ready for training until Christmas. Even with the good news you just presented me with, I fail to see what the pilots could possibly do here now.

  —Nothing. They’d have nothing to do. They could go to the b…beach, have a few drinks, have some fun. Let the resentment dissipate slowly for a few weeks.

  —Do you believe they resent me for ending the program?

  —No, I don’t think so. But they’ll certainly resent me. They’ll be useless to me for at least a…at least a month. They didn’t like me before, but they’ll ha…hate me now.

  —This line of thinking seems somewhat irrational to me. You have spent only a short time with them. They do not know you well enough to hate you.

  —Irrational’s the ri…right word. They won’t know why, but they’ll resent me for not being her. They’ll resent me just for…for being alive.

  —Dr. Franklin?

  —Yes. They probably won’t realize it, but the thought of anyone but Dr….anyone but her being in charge will make their stomachs turn. They’ll hate me for not being exactly like her, and they’ll hate me when I remind them of her. They’ll hate me for making them relive her d…death over and over. Trust me, they’ll hate me. So I’m asking you to get them here now, give them a chance to get over it. I can’t do my job if they want me dead, even if it is sub…consciously.

  —I will see what can be done. They might need some time to work out their own differences. Let us leave these psychological concerns aside for a moment and go back to the work you have accomplished. You said that construction of the lab was almost complete. Will it be as large as the room we used in Denver?

  —Almost. It’s about forty feet smaller lengthwise. The ground was more unstable toward the ocean than what the…geological surveys had shown. Don’t worry—there’ll still be enough room for it to move around, but you wouldn’t want the roof to collapse. It’s a lot…deeper than Denver. There’ll be millions of tons of rock and water above our heads.

  —How many men do you have laying tracks?

  —Zero. I didn’t like the security risk to begin with, people can’t keep a secret. Divers could only have done the first few hundred feet anyway. Our German friends managed to build the train so it can lay its own track. It’s more of a shaft, really. A good portion of the path is on a near-vertical slope, so the weight doesn’t push on the track like a regular train. What we built looks like a steel I-beam with a series of holes in the middle. The train drive has geared wheels on both sides of the beam to move along the shaft.

  It’s a nice piece of engineering. It goes to the end of the path, lays a new section of the track, and comes back to get the n…next one. When we started, it would come back every couple hours or so, now it’s gone for almost a day at a time. It’s really slow, but it’s…steady.

  —How will you collect the pieces once you reach the target area?

  —We have an unmanned submarine with a robotic arm. When we get to the bottom of the trench, we’ll attach…buoys to the pieces to reduce the weight, and we’ll hoist them on the train platform with cables. Then we bring the pieces in…one by one.

  —Is the train powerful enough to pull the pieces out of the trench?

  —No, it’s not. With enough buoys, it could probably handle the smaller pieces on its own, the hands or the feet, but not the thighs or torso. When it’s done laying track, we’ll put a cable on the train and help it up. We have a winch the size of a four-story building.

  I…I know you’re keeping things from me, and there’s probably a good reason for that, but I’m assuming you wouldn’t k…keep this to yourself. Why is it taking so long to find the propulsion system? You found the rest of the pieces in a relatively short period, and you must have covered most of the Earth’s surface by now.

  —We have not found the propulsion system, as you call it, because we have not been searching for one. In fact, all search efforts were abandoned once we recovered the head. What makes you think there is such a thing?

  —Well, I’m sure there’s a lot I don’t know, but…

  —This is the second time you allude to the notion that crucial information is being withheld from you. I assure you it is not.

  —It doesn’t matter. I knew that when…when I signed on.

  —I…

  —Just let me finish. As I understand, this device, this robot, it was built by advanced beings from…outer space, in the hopes of defending our planet against some other aliens, is that correct?

  —Yes.

  —I mean, are you certain it was designed for p…planetary defense?

  —That is my understanding.

  —Then how could there not be? This thing, the way you describe it, is extremely powerful, and I’m certain it could defend a neighborhood really well, perhaps a city, against just about anything. But what’s it gonna do if the enemy attacks in another country, let alone another…continent? Is it just gonna walk there? It’s not like it can hail a cab.

  Without a propulsion system, its mobility would be so limited, it would be com…completely useless. All the enemy would have to do is land more than a few miles away. By the time this thing gets there walking, it would already be over. This would be the s…stupidest planetary defense system ever—not that I know of another one—if it can’t cross an ocean.

  —That is a sound argument. One I am surprised no one, including myself, has made in the past. I will endeavor to resume our search efforts as soon as possible. However, as you pointed out, we have covered a significant percentage of all the continents except Antarctica. If such a propulsion system does exist, and we do not find it there, it would most likely be submerged.

  The surface we will need to cover is much larger than what we have searched to date, and we currently do not have a reliable underwater-delivery mechanism for the compound Dr. Franklin developed.

  —We’ll need to hire someone. I’m a geneticist, not a chemist or an engineer.

  —Neither was Dr. Franklin.

  —Well, maybe she was a bit of a Renaissance woman…but she’s dead. Your pilots killed her. So we’re gonna have to d…deal with that as best we can. Like I said, I’m a geneticist. I’m already managing…steelworkers and engineers, and I don’t understand half of what they’re saying. With the money we’re s…spending building this place, I don’t think one more salary will make much of a difference. If we need a chemist, we’ll hire a chemist. If the engineers who thought this place up can’t come up with a delivery system for that compound, we’ll hire one more.

  Speaking of genetics, that’s another reason I’d like to get the pilots here as soon as possible. If I’m gonna figure out what it is about these two that makes this machine tick, I’ll need access to their…to their bodies. I’ll need samples.

  —I can have them send blood samples here by courier.

  —I might need a lot of samples, and not just blood. Please just get them here as soon as possible.

  —They might object to a lot of physical probing.

  —It’ll be real difficult for me to do my job if they don’t co…coo…perate. They’re an uncontrollable variable in this equation. It makes the board real uneasy that a project this big is at the mercy of two people. You and I have already had this conversation. Let’s not have it again. I’d like to get these tests started as fast as we can.

  —All I am asking is for you to make these tests as nonintrusive and painless as you can without sacrificing the results. As for the board of directors, you let me worry about them. Your job is to get us back on track, as soon as possible. When we are fully operational, we can work on a contingency plan, should anything happen to either of our pilots. But for now, we have pilots. You should focus on what we do not have, and as of this moment, we do not have a robot, nor do we have a viable work environment to continue training.

  —I understand. But I can’t just ignore the b…board of directors. They’re the ones who named me CEO. I understand your implication in this pro
ject, but there is an administrative structure in place here, and as far as I know, you’re not p…you’re not a part of it. I have all the respect in the world for what you did for this project, but my obligation is to the board.

  —I admire your loyalty and your desire to fulfill your duties as CEO as best you can.

  —Thank you.

  —If I may offer a suggestion. It would be wise, for a woman in your position, to take some time to get a better understanding of your surroundings, perhaps to revisit some assumptions you may have made early on. Understanding the true nature of the power structure in such a complex enterprise is not something one can achieve instantly.

  —Thank you for your concern. It’s very nice of you.

  FILE NO. 249

  INTERVIEW WITH VINCENT COUTURE, CONSULTANT, BVI COMPANY NUMBER 462753 INC.

  Location: Undisclosed location, near San Juan, Puerto Rico

  —I hope you are enjoying yourself in this new setting.

  —How could I not? I live on the beach! I don’t know where you’re from, but for someone who’s lived in Quebec all his life, this is pretty awesome.

  —I am happy that the beach house is to your liking. I was actually referring to this facility.

  —I’ve only been here twice. I met with Alyssa—did you know they brought her back?—the day I arrived, and I met her again when I came in for a physical a few days later.

  —You have been here for nearly two weeks if I am not mistaken. What have you been doing with your time if you do not spend it here?

  —I’m learning to surf! Well, I’m trying to learn to surf. I’m horrible at it, but it’s so…much…fun! I know I can’t, but I keep thinking it might be a lot easier with my knees flipped. You should come! I’m easy to spot, I’m the glowing white guy with really bad sunburns.

  —I…Is it really necessary for me to state that I do not surf? Can we talk about work?

  —Sure!

  —What do you think of the new base?

  —I’m sure you know a lot more about this place than I do. Like I said, I’ve only been here twice. I thought our room in Denver was impressive, but this thing is completely insane. Do you know we’re almost a mile deep underground?