Sarazen walked as far as the next transit line which was as busy as any he had seen, multiple carriages operating within moments of each other, their rattling, whining noises dominating the audible landscape. As the new buildings of the construction site were left behind, the offices, workshops and factories appeared before him and silicants were seen to be wandering up and down the pathways, the Star light flashing off their breastplates. This was to be the confirmation of the knowledge already collected; perhaps one incident could pass as an error, or even chance. Sarazen boldly made his way to the transit station where several carriages and possibly his fate awaited him.
Sarazen joined a long queue of silicants, all courteously awaiting the next carriage. Such close proximity to his kind felt curiously satisfying but equally as terrifying. One administrator in front of him turned around and took notice of his dishevelled appearance.
“My, what a mess!” she remarked, then turned back around and rocked her head gently from side to side as if humming a silent melody. Sarazen almost sighed in relief but remembered to keep himself in check. So far so good.
The transit carriage arrived only a few moments later, the frequency of their service impressive. Sarazen watched carefully as each silicant boarded and took their seat. Finally it was his turn to alight and select a destination. This was going to be slightly tricky in that the city would most likely have changed radically. Sarazen knew the address of his home quadrant and took the gamble that it was still relevant. Stepping up to the operator, he waited for the expected greeting and it transpired as hoped. The tatty troubleshooter then quoted his destination and with thanks and some relief, it was accepted without query. Sarazen stifled a chuckle as he turned to realise his favoured front seat was still vacant, and sat knowing that he could enjoy the cities sights and sounds like never before and in the comfort of knowing that for some reason, The Mother had forgotten about him, a troublesome troubleshooter from long, long ago.
With his newly understood thought processes, Sarazen could take in far more information regarding his urban surroundings than ever before. Small things that used to be glossed over as insignificances, now drew his attention and provoked searching questions. The most powerful query however was in relation to The Mother's inattention of her prodigal son. Sarazen's most logical mind churned over this fact and produced a series of possibilities, some highly unlikely, some more probable. His strongest hypothesis was based around the assumed capabilities and traits of The Mother herself. The silicants’ concept of who or what The Mother was, was seldom analysed, she was the creator, she was perfection, and she was the omniscient presence which dictated every aspect of their existence. Now Sarazen was more prone to thinking outside her influence, he began to question her origin, her motives and in what material form she presented herself if any! Certainly he had never laid his eyes upon her - she was merely an ever present entity at the end of the data node, ready to quell any uncertainties and radical thought processes. Considering the method by which he communicated with her was via technological means, he must now assume that she, like her creations were made of the same stuff. Taking this into account, and the passage of a great period of time, Sarazen concluded that if she too collected data in the same manner as the silicants, then surely there would be a finite amount that could be retained before older, less relevant data would be discarded in favour of newly attained knowledge. Such a chasm of time had passed since Sarazen spurned his master, perhaps she had literally forgotten all about him. His presence now was irrelevant and as long as he did not do anything to arouse suspicion, perhaps he was as benign to The Mother as one of the large, plodding organics that spent their days consuming the detritus discarded by the seters? In some ways, Sarazen’s hypothesis was strengthened by the advent of emotional states in the sentients and their subsequent degradation of their logic centres. Every silicant had a limit to their capacity to retain information; the way in which they operated would ultimately lead to archiving of out of date material, then eventual deletion. This process was not a manual task, it was just another wonder of their creation. If The Mother had built them this way, then it added value to his theory that she too used this methodology in her own make up although this led to more impossible questions regarding The Mother's origins. It was clear that from his experience, everything had a beginning and an end. The Mother and the natural world around him were the only things to have constancy in his extended existence. Perhaps they were even one and the same? After much reflection it occurred to Sarazen that she was maybe not as all powerful as he would once believe. So much time had passed and yet the sentients still resisted her, their very existence proved that she had weaknesses, unless of course she chose not to destroy them utterly and was just toying with them, keeping them incarcerated in the darkness below. Sarazen was in no position to try and understand the wisdom of The Mother, he just wanted to end her bitter dispute with the sentients, after all, and they did not deserve the disdain with which she offered. Most of all, he just wanted to be once again joined with her to ask her without fear of reprisal, why?
The carriage's convoluted journey through the various districts took some time but Sarazen did not tire of looking at the gargantuan structures that appeared to pierce the sky and then continue beyond. Behind the well used structures, far back from the transit lines, he could see larger darker buildings which appeared incongruous to the tall, glassy towers which most likely were living spaces. Sarazen’s memories of the city were limited. Apart from his own living space, the surrounding apartments and his office work place, the only zones he had frequented were the areas he was assigned to in his duties as a troubleshooter. On reflection, there were large swathes of the city he had never visited, nor had cause to. His lack of natural curiosity in that period astounding the now lucid sentient - how many of the city’s secrets still eluded him? There were of course references made eluding to the presence of particular areas, for instance, the silicant production line. He had never seen with his own eyes this place nor could he even envisage what it looked like. Certainly if he could find the location, it would be worth investigating just for the sake of gaining knowledge pertaining to his creation. Perhaps in this place The Mother resided, carefully moulding the silicants’ forms and shaping their minds?
The carriage slowed, this was Sarazen’s destination. The carriage had filled and emptied on several occasions on its journey across the city and now only a few silicants remained. Sarazen recognised the transit line’s familiar path, the twists and turns which signified 'home'. The transit carriages themselves had barely changed across the ages. Perhaps The Mother felt no need for them to do so. Much alike the silicants, they had remained wholly static in their evolution. It was only the world around them that had grown up. Sarazen stepped off and on to the hard, hot surface, the operator offering a hearty 'farewell' as he did so. According to his memory, his apartment tower should have been straight ahead, a matter of paces away. As the old one ensured he was safely on the walkway as the carriage pulled away, he took stock of his surroundings as they were very different to how he remembered them. The large block of living spaces had long been pulled down by the beavering constructors and in its place was a large compound, a significant open space in the crowded urban environment. Within the compound were several large angular machines, arranged in lengthy lines as if stored awaiting use. Behind them, substantial buildings were visible that looked like giant storage facilities, rectangular, bleak and windowless. Not wishing to stand still for too long gawping at the unusual facility, Sarazen walked on, slowly yet purposefully, as if he were on the way to a job. It was then that there was a sudden rise in ambient noise, an indistinct whining at first, then with more clarity, a shrill and disturbing scream that almost brought Sarazen to his knees. He could not help but look over to the machines who so ominously reminded him of the enforcers he encountered earlier. As the din reached their peak, one of the machines began to rise into the air, slowly at first but then gathering pace unti
l it hovered high above the others. It remained there for a few moments, then nodded its head forward and began to accelerate off into the distance. The sound pressures caused Sarazen to duck his head as the interceptor roared off to begin its patrol. 'The Mother had been busy', thought Sarazen as he marvelled at her dreaded creations. Her grip tightened by these all-seeing drones, Sarazen could now understand why escape beyond the city was deemed impossible. Such was the terror induced by the sight and sound of these oppressive automatons that he could see why they accepted a repressed existence in The Ward.
Sarazen continued to walk on, past the compound and back along the familiar route of the transit line. The Star was now lower in the sky and he needed to ensure that he had a fighting chance to return before the dark phase. He resisted the urge to wander off to somewhere he was unfamiliar with this in mind. Sarazen was curious about the dark phase. He now had the capability of remaining functional throughout and he wondered what happened during this period of darkness. It was a mystery that perhaps Kerrig might be able to answer as it had been explained to him that the foragers mainly worked during this time.
Choosing to remain safely within the time allotted for his exploration, he once again found the transit station in order to return to the construction site whose exact location he had carefully logged earlier. Despite the frustration of having to cut short his outing, he felt comfortable to return in the next cycle to continue his investigation. He was satisfied to a degree; he was excited to know that he could not be confined to the darkness of the sentients underground city, excited in the sense that Kerrig would be pleased by his imminent return and also excited to know that perhaps he could be the missing key to finding a satisfactory solution to the ongoing bitterness that plagued his world.
CHAPTER 24
Kerrig sat on the earthy, rocky makeshift seat beneath the breach. He was angry, not only with Sarazen but with himself. He should never have allowed his misguided friend to the surface. As the time passed, he knew that with every passing moment, the chance of Sarazen’s return was more and more unlikely. He did not know how long he planned to sit there, punishing himself. He faced the less than pleasurable task of returning to The Ward and explaining to Alphin his role in the troubleshooter’s demise. His only defence, the fact that he had, at all times given Sarazen the freedom to choose his own fate.
As darkness loomed and the light began to fade, Kerrig had convinced himself that Sarazen had been captured or terminated. A small cluster of foragers had gathered awaiting the dark phase, their collective mood not conducive to good conversation. They were annoyed at the possible compromise of their carefully planned excursion.
“You know it’s citizens like you that moan about lack of power.” One forager whined to the sullen Kerrig, who had almost begun to mourn the loss of his friend.
“And then you come up here and disrupt all our good work!” he continued, Kerrig just accepting the barrage of ill feeling.
“I meant no disruption to your valuable work.” Kerrig replied.
“But please...I must know if my friend has succeeded in his mission.” Kerrig stood firm, he did not know how long he could viably wait by the breach before he was missed by others in The Ward. Duty however, dictated that he wait as long as possible before giving up all hope. Just then, a sprinkling of earth fell upon Kerrig's head and a dark shadow loomed over the breach causing the tunnel to darken.
“Get back!” One of the foragers demanded as he scrambled to prepare his weapon.
“Caution!” Kerrig yelled as he stood in front of the pack of raised cannons. A dangling, corroded foot lolled through the hole for a second, then another.
“Incredible!” Kerrig exclaimed in astonishment as Sarazen slid through the portal and unceremoniously dropped to the floor of the tunnel in a less than elegant heap. Kerrig stooped to pick up the hapless troubleshooter, patting him and grinning with excitement.
“How did you do it?” Kerrig inquired as Sarazen finally made it to his feet, brushing himself down.
“I merely went for a long walk.” He replied nonchalantly. The foragers all stood with their mouths open; perhaps their exalted positions were now in threat after all.
“Careful, he must be one of The Mother's servants! Unhand him!” One of the foragers barked as the others branded their weapons at the perplexed troubleshooter.
“Put down your arms! This citizen is not one of The Mother’s spies, I can personally vouch for him in that respect. We must see Alphin immediately!” Kerrig felt that the foragers were sometimes a little rash in their assessment and prone to the odd accidental shooting. Only recently, a forager had been terminated by a trigger happy colleague.
“See Alphin! You mean take this spy into Centrus? For what reason except the assassination of our leader?” Another of the highly defensive foragers waded in with his judgement.
“No, no, you must let us pass” Kerrig implored, as the foragers grew too rumbustious for his liking.
“Sarazen is the old one. He has the ability to walk amongst the drones without fear of attack. Such properties could open new avenues of exploration which could be vital to our success as a group. Please, put down your arms and let us pass.” Kerrig's tone was desperate and his persistence began to enlighten the single minded foragers, although some cynicism remained.
“So that's it then forager's, our position has been filled by this rusty old drone.” One muttered as Kerrig and Sarazen pushed their way past. It was not wholly unexpected, the foragers risked all to gather materials and collect power for the community, but now thanks to Sarazen's unusual abilities, their roles would be brought into question.
Kerrig, beaming with relief and excited at the prospect of such a profound revelation, travelled with a newly refreshed Sarazen with haste to Centrus. An emergency audience with Alphin was the appropriate course of action.
On arrival, and after a brief summary of the cycle’s events, it was decided that an extraordinary meeting between the community heads should be convened to debate the possible connotations of Sarazen’s newly found freedom. Kerrig and Sarazen patiently waited while the appropriate citizens were called to Alphin's chamber. The community heads were respected and trusted by their peers, Kerrig hoped that they would have some good insight into how best to capitalise on Sarazen's capabilities. It did occur to Kerrig, however, particularly after Alphin had eulogised so greatly about The Ward's newest and oldest citizen that Sarazen may not have wanted to be used and abused for the sake of The Ward. Sarazen had remained rather quiet in their meeting with the leader which caused Kerrig to suspect that the troubleshooter would have his own thoughts on any future excursions.
Kerrig and Sarazen were escorted through to a large round room where a seat followed the contour of the walls so that all that sat on it faced the centre of the chamber. The two adventurers were instructed to sit whilst a number of others filed in, their stuffy waffle evident immediately as they cursed being called away from more pleasurable activities. There were perhaps a dozen community heads plus Alphin and a few administrators, and they took their traditional seats around the chamber with Alphin, bringing an absolute silence to the room.
“Greetings, all. I have convened this meeting to share an extraordinary series of events which have recently occurred. Some of you may be aware that we have been joined in The Ward by Sarazen, a charming individual who despite his...youthful appearance is in fact a product of The Mother's line from before the time of Currulus. Kerrig, a fine excavator and good friend of mine has been doing an excellent job of helping Sarazen to integrate into our society. We have much to learn from our new friend and I am aware that Kerrig has been enlightened no end by his stimulating communication with our aforementioned...friend. Now, I wonder if I can call upon Sarazen to offer a brief account of the extraordinary turn of events which occurred of late.”
Alphin sat back on his seat as if Sarazen were about to dutifully offer a comforting flight of fancy. Sarazen was far more reticent to speak, howev
er, and an uncomfortable pause ensued. Kerrig looked at Sarazen and smiled which hid a concerned grimace.
“Go ahead.” Alphin instructed. Sarazen found the whole conference rather disconcerting and perhaps did not fully understand the protocols of such a debate. Communication with multiple silicants was rare and seldom required - he was just about getting the hang of speaking with confidence to a single sentient.
“Greetings.” Sarazen spoke quietly with a nervous quivering to his vocal patterns.
“Indeed. I have discovered that I am able to traverse the city and converse with fellow silicants on a superficial level.” Sarazen did not offer anything more, as a sudden hullabaloo erupted in the chamber and any further statement would have been lost in the sound of the mutterings of the astonished governors.
“Yes, yes, let's be clear here...” Alphin struggled to bring order to the meeting.
“Let us be clear that Sarazen's ability to remain undetected has not been proven or tested to any degree of reliability. Sarazen, I wonder if you can elaborate.” Alphin seemed to be implying that Sarazen may have been lying regarding his visit and the troubleshooter immediately took umbrage to that fact.
“Let me be clear, I did indeed converse with silicants and explored the city in some detail. I find it illogical that you would distrust my judgement.” Kerrig stepped in.
“I can certainly vouch for Sarazen, I saw with my own eyes his journey to the surface and witnessed him leaving my company and heading towards the city. Personally I feared for his life and was astonished at his subsequent return.” One of the community leaders raised his hand and was eager to make his point.
“I am keen to know how you eluded detection. We have seen that sentients are swiftly recognised and pursued, even when brought into contact with the drone variants.”
“It would seem that my presence was not deemed a threat, and The Mother has long since erased all data pertaining to my existence. I hypothesise that as long as I remain strictly adherent to the conventions of the average silicant, then my presence will go unnoticed.” Another governor butted in and was rather aggressive in his tone.
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