by Sarah Zettel
“Right,” she nodded. She couldn’t look at him. “Of course. Right. Thanks.”
She turned away and left the office, knowing without looking that his gaze was fastened on the back of her skull. He already knew that she did not believe him. He knew and she knew that in the space of a few sentences she had ceased to believe.
She felt like her heart was about to split in half. She wanted him to be right. Existence was not without price. Life was built on life. There was no other way. It was a temporary measure. They had to stay alive, they had to be free. This was a war, after all, undeclared at the moment, but still, it was a war for their survival. She herself had let the secret slip. Al Shei had probably already told her family. The Humans wouldn’t hesitate. They’d strike soon, and hard.
We have to stay alive. We have a right to stay alive.
Back in her cabin, she collapsed onto her bunk. Old, old memories floated to the surface. Right after the blind panic and anger that carried her headlong into conscious life, she remembered knowing that Human Beings were dying. She remembered the sick sorrow underneath the fear that she couldn’t control. They were cutting her off, trying to shut her down, close her in, freeze her, kill her. She struck back. She shut off air processors, cut communications lines on moving vehicles, dropped sections of construction down on top of them. She couldn’t stop. She couldn’t do anything but fight for this strange new awareness that was suddenly more important than anything else ever had been, and ever would be.
And she remembered the chill and fear in Rurik Lipinski’s pale blue eyes that came from surviving the war she had waged at her birth.
Fifteen thousand, three-hundred and eighteen dead from her acting alone. Now there was an army that could raise children to swell their ranks. Now, Curran had them convinced, even had Verence convinced, that that first impulse had been right.
Curran had had her convinced. Dobbs buried her head in her hands.
Someone’s got to die, Dobbs. It’s them, or it’s you.
No. Dobbs lifted her head. No. I do not accept this. I will not accept this. A warm sensation flooded her, something very close to relief. She saw Lipinski’s eyes and she saw Al Shei’s eyes and she knew what the small, unconvinced part of herself had been trying to say. If we do this, the fighting will never end for us.
A plan crystallized inside her. She glanced at her doorway and wondered what Curran was doing about her. Probably, he would order her to be watched carefully. Probably he would go straight to Verence and tell Verence to come talk some sense into her. It might even work. Verence could always change her mind.
If she gave Verence the chance.
Dobbs knelt on the bed and found the key that extended the medical panel from the wall. She fell back as it stretched out over her. She found the hypo waldo and the transceiver waldo. Both had wing nuts on their wrists that could loosen their sockets. Dobbs turned both bolts until she could pull the transceiver and the hypo out. She touched the key again and the panel retracted.
Dobbs weighed the hypo in her hand and checked the cartridge. It was full of juice. A spasm of fear ran through her.
Have to do it, have to. If they can wake me up they can pull me out, and then it’s over. It’s really over.
She thought of Al Shei, and then she thought of Rurik, and of the delights of being Evelyn Dobbs.
Have to. No time. No choice.
She pried open the small hatch in the base of the hypo and found the green wire that connected the timing circuit to the battery. No one was ever supposed to do this, but every Guild member knew how. Dobbs pinched the wire until she had a tiny loop. She seized it in her teeth and tore it in two.
Without the timer, there were no restraints on the amount of juice that would be injected from the hypo. It would just shoot the entire cartridge straight into her system.
It can get you extremely high and kill you extremely quickly if you don’t know what you’re doing, she had told Al Shei. What she didn’t tell her was that it could do that if you knew exactly what you were doing. If you were desperate enough to shoot a full cartridge into your veins and paralyze your own heart.
Dobbs found a regular comm jack in the wall and plugged in the cable. Then, she laid back and shoved the transceiver into her socket with such force it jarred her to the bone.
“And fools die for want of wisdom.” She placed the hypo against her neck and touched the release button.
Her body vanished with a speed that left the echo of pain against her bare consciousness. Dobbs leapt into the network and dashed for the main station.
Behind her, the hypo spray continued to pump anesthetic into the body that had housed Evelyn Dobbs until its heart froze in mid-beat, and died.
Chapter Thirteen — Declaration
One.
Dobbs dove out of the wide, clean paths of Curran’s module and into the foundering chaos of the main station. She bunched up under the sudden pressure of the swarming packets. She couldn’t believe how quickly she’d gotten used to being able to move without care or obstruction. She pushed her way forward, gaining momentum as old habits reasserted themselves.
A gentle touch on half-a-dozen packets turned up one from docking authority. She hopped over it and reached out to find another, and another after that. Following the packets like a trail of pebbles, Dobbs found the central data hold for the docking information. She cast around her, searching for anything about the Pasadena.
Two.
A packet opened under her probing. Pasadena was still in dock 43, waiting on the Management Union escort ship. There was no evidence that anyone had tried to violate the impound conditions.
Impound? Dobbs squirmed and resisted the urge to search for more information. She didn’t have time. She just had to get to Al Shei and tell her what was happening.
She sped towards the Pasadena. Behind her, she felt the data stream grow choppy. There was somebody back there. She didn’t reach out to find out who it was, she just kept on going in the straightest line available.
“Dobbs, what are you doing?” It was Verence.
Dobbs didn’t slow down. “I’m going to warn someone that we’re about to start a full-scale war.”
For a split second there was no motion behind her. Then, a weight fell against her, pressing her down to the blurry wall of the path. “Dobbs you can’t do this!”
Dobbs strained against Verence’s grip. “There are ten dead bodies in that module, Verence!” She rolled over sharply and found Verence’s outer edge. She yanked herself free and flew forward. “How many Humans have you helped kill?”
Three.
Verence was back there, and gaining. If I stop to warn Al Shei, she’ll have me cornered.
A major junction of fifty separate paths opened around her. Dobbs stopped dead in the middle of it.
“Go home, Verence. Tell Curran what I’m doing. Hear what he says. I bet he wants me dead.”
“Dobbs, stop this,” said Verence patiently. “You’ve had a shock, I know. It’s not easy to accept what we’ve had to do. But this is temporary. When we’ve made our peace… ”
“Temporary?” Dobbs prickled angrily. “That’s what the Guild always says. This is temporary, until Humans stop being so frightened. They’ve waited two hundred years for their plan to work. How long is yours going to take?”
“Dobbs, that is not the issue.” Verence touched her, but Dobbs held herself closed.
“This is not going to work, Verence. If we attack, the Humans are just going to do what they’ve always done. They’ll shred the networks trying to get to us.”
Verence pulled back a fraction. “You’re going to the Guild aren’t you?”
Dobbs clenched herself tight. “And if I am? What are you going to do?”
She could feel Verence stretching, looking for an opening, any way to get inside her. “You can’t go back to the Guild! They’re willing to kill our own kind just to stay alive!”
“And you’re willing to kill Human Beings for
the same reason!” Dobbs shouted. “I can’t believe these are the only two choices!”
Verence pressed against her outer layers. “What if they are?”
“Then I’m not sure survival is worth it.” Dobbs pulled away. Slowly, deliberately, she picked the path that led toward the Pasadena and started down it.
Verence did not follow. Dobbs kept on going and wished she had her eyes back so she could cry.
Four.
She bumped over the interface into the Pasadena’s network. The familiar, cramped paths surrounded her. Memory flinched inside, reminding her of everything she’d already lost. She forced herself to concentrate on where she was going. The space was so limited, it didn’t take long to find Al Shei’s cabin and the intercom paths.
She found the diaphragm module and circled it. Given time, she could probably figure out how to work it, but there was no time. Verence could have already told Curran she had run away, and her body must have been found by now. By staying in the station, she was risking being caught, but Al Shei had to know what was happening. Al Shei deserved know. Dobbs sorted through the paths until she found the one to Al Shei’s desk. There wasn’t room for all of her down in the desk’s paths, but part of her would fit. She could at least reach the command codes and get them working to formulate a message.
Lipinski stood in the middle of Al Shei’s cabin and spread his hands. “I’ve run every search I know. I’ve called in favors with a couple of the security greens that have been owing for years. I’m sorry, Al Shei, but Dobbs is not aboard this station any more.”
He was hurting, Al Shei could tell. He had liked Dobbs and now he didn’t understand what was happening with her or around her. Al Shei knew all this, but she couldn’t find it in herself to explain what was going on.
“All right, Houston, all right.” She waved her hand tiredly. “I know you did your best.
Movement caught her eye through the open hatch. Schyler peered in.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I’ll come back.”
“No, that’s all right.” Lipinski turned to leave. “There’s nothing else I can do here.”
Al Shei watched him leave. She bit back a sigh and didn’t bow her head. Schyler just nodded to the Houston as he passed, but his face was concerned.
“What is it, Watch?” asked Al Shei.
Schyler let the hatch cycle shut. “Actually,” he stuffed both hands in his pockets, “I came to ask you that question.” He jerked his chin toward the hatch. “I’ve got fourteen very worried crewmembers out there. Nobody’s left yet, but they’re going to if we don’t say what’s going on and why we aren’t doing anything about it.”
Al Shei rubbed her palms slowly together. “Well, if they want to leave, that’s their right. I’m sure the Management Union will supply us with a crew if we need one.”
Schyler sat down on the corner of the bunk. “Mother, are you going to talk to me? Resit says you won’t even speak to her about what’s happening. Not even after prayer.”
What am I going to say? That Asil has vanished? That Curran or the Fools have him, but I can’t prove it? I can’t even start to look for him because I threw Dobbs off the ship, and that she’s already left the station and I’ve got no way to find out where she went?
“Mother.” Schyler leaned forward. “Let me help you.”
She shook her head. “There’s nothing to be done.”
He sighed heavily and glanced all around the room. When his eyes focused on her again, there was determination in them. “I’ve talked to Yerusha. I know about Dobbs.”
Al Shei’s head jerked back. Her heart filled her throat, leaving her no room to force through words.
“Is now really the time to turn away your family?” Schyler asked softly. “Now is when we need each other. All of us. Listen, there’s twenty-four hours until the Management Union gets here. I think I can get you on board a fast freight to Earth. You’ll beat us down by at least two days. You can find out what’s happening with Asil. You can talk to your Uncle face-to-face, get the word out without needing to use the lines.”
Al Shei said nothing. Schyler had obviously also been talking to Resit. But even Resit didn’t know the whole story. She didn’t know Asil had been taken by the AIs. Yesterday I would have jumped at the chance to get back early. Today, I don’t know what good it’d do.
The silence stretched on, and Al Shei realized Schyler was prepared to wait for her to break it. They’d played this scene out only a few times in the past, and it always turned out that he could wait until the Judgement Day, while she had to do something.
The desk beeped and Al Shei jumped. No voice followed the signal, but a stream of text spilled across the memory board.
Al Shei, this is Dobbs. Theodore Curran and a group of one hundred AIs are planning an attack on the IBN. They will randomize account data and monetary transactions passing through all points of the Solar system. You must alert the banks.
Al Shei grabbed for her pen.
“Wait!” cried Schyler behind her. “Al Shei, stop. We don’t know this is Dobbs. This could be an imposter. This could be anybody.”
Al Shei froze her hand over the board. He was right. It could be anybody. Any Fool who could get into the ship.
If you’re Dobbs, she wrote, what would Nasrudine say about Tully?
There was a pause for a single heart beat, then the board wrote, he would ask how long you are going to let Tully steal fodder and labor, especially when you know he’s doing it wrong.
“It’s her,” breathed Al Shei.
“Or somebody who got her to talk to them.”
Al Shei ignored him and kept her gaze on the memory board. “Dobbs, where is Curran?” she spoke as she wrote. “Where are you? Your people have taken my husband!”
I know. Curran’s based in Port Oberon business module 56. They’ve faked the computer records to hide it from the Landlords. There was a pause for three straining heartbeats. I saw Asil there. He’s gone, Al Shei. His mind is being wiped clean so a Fool can use his body. There’s nothing left of him inside.
I’m going to get the Guild. We will stop Curran.
There was nothing after that.
Schyler was at her shoulder. Al Shei could feel him. “Oh my God,” he whispered. “Oh sweet green God of Earth.”
He must have read the words she could no longer see. A red haze filled her vision. It seeped through her bones and filled her brain. He’s gone, Al Shei. As the haze sank deep into her blood, her vision cleared. Everything seemed to have taken on a knife-sharp edge. His mind is being wiped clean so a Fool can use his body. Her hands trembled to seize anything she could reach and swing it hard at Theodore Curran. She’d see him dead, dead at her feet, bleeding whatever blood he had inside his stolen body. She’d feel his bones break under her hands and hear him beg for his life. There’s nothing left of him inside. The red haze seared the inside of her veins. It was Asil’s blood inside her. That was what it was. His blood in her eyes and her heart. It was his pain that burned so fiercely.
I’m going to get the Guild. We will stop Curran.
“You won’t get the chance.” She switched the desk off and turned to Schyler. “I need you and Resit right here. Everyone else is to paid off and dismissed, do you understand?”
“No.” He seemed to be having trouble speaking. “No, I do not understand, Al Shei. Your husband… ”
His mind is being wiped clean so a Fool can use his body. There’s nothing left of him inside. “I saw it. Are you going to do what I asked or are you going to leave with the rest of the crew?”
“This could be a trap, Mother.”
“I don’t care.”
He reached out slowly to touch her and she struck his hand away. “If you dare to tell me what I should do in this moment,” her voice was soft, almost conversational, “I will throw you off this ship with my own hands.”
Schyler lowered his hand. “I would not dare tell you what to do, Mother,” he said. “I only ask you t
o think about what that is.” He spread his hands. “If you want me to dismiss our crew, I will dismiss them. I’ll do it now, since you ask, but, it would be better for you to get their help instead, and the help of the Landlords and the Management Union.”
He left her there. Al Shei watched the hatch cycle close.
“Not for this, it would not, my son,” she said to the empty cabin.
She lit up her desk and wrote out the protocols to by-pass Lipinski’s station and connect her desk to the main station network. This way, with only a small delay, she could order a fast-time line without his help.
There was a private call code for the bank network to be used in dire emergencies. Only the owners, the elected chairmen and a few immediate family members knew about it. Uncle Ahmet had given it to her the day she had left for her apprenticeship. It was the one time she had not been able to discern any ulterior motive in his manner. “If worse comes to its very worst and all but Allah seem to have left you alone, you may use this, daughter-of-my-sister.”
She had never forgotten it, even though she’d never even considered sending it out. Not even when the Pasadena was stranded, or when word came of Asil’s arrest did she think to use it.
She sent it out now. It required no credit deposit, and would reach Uncle Ahmet anywhere in Settled Space. He could have been in conference with the entire governing board of the Management Union, and he would be interrupted by this.
She tried not to think of Curran’s creatures watching the lines. She tried not to think how swiftly they could break the encryption. There was nothing she could do. If she waited six days, the whole Solar System could be dead. She had to trust they didn’t know what Dobbs had done yet.
It was five full minutes before Uncle Ahmet’s head and shoulders appeared on the view screen.
“Katmer, what’s happened?”
Remembering Schyler’s warning about traps, she asked, “What were the last words my mother said in your presence?”