System Seven
Page 43
He knew, had already passed barriers the others could not. Anxiety bubbled with fear as she pushed and pried at the seams to learn how solidly encased she was. For long moments she probed from a dozen different perspectives, searching for deception, any hint of a set up. After thoroughly raking the dream, she finally conceded to his control. Overseer was right – he governed the mesh like none other.
“I’m going to assume you are projecting some suitably erotic version of events for those that might monitor. Bastion is capable. I’m not sure about the others.”
He nodded. “You’re still being sponged. Without an audience as far as I can tell.”
She gazed into vivid hazel eyes, briefly giving herself to the fantasy of a god courting her. He made it so, so easy. His power exceeded that of Bastion, that of several of the Executives, if not all, combined. Self-preservation felt attainable with collusion. Removing Bastion would simplify everything as long as he truly departed.
“Well then, let me start by saying you do not understand what the council is protecting against. Our methods may appear oppressive and inhumane but it is all meant to avoid the chaos that would otherwise manifest.”
“You’re standing in the way of a planet’s evolution. How is that protecting anything but your control?”
“Evolution? Devolution more like. Are you not aware of the nature of man? Of the variety of subspecies? They didn’t tell you, did they? Not all are created equal. There is violence in the DNA of some. Instability in others. Raising them from the murk of ignorance would not lead to utopia. Curing all disease would not improve the outlook. Without the systems, without our management, without our plans, mankind would unravel.”
“You will not convince me, Maria, that your council is fit to preside as gods for an entire planet. Even you do not believe that.”
“I can’t say it for our predecessors, but we’ve made great strides in the last hundred years. The Runa Korda disagree, not surprisingly. Control of ultimate power always spawns differences and contests but the battle they’ve begun will not be tolerated. The Korda cannot replace our plans with theirs, no matter how fierce their desire. My problem is that Bastion’s leadership may leave us with little or nothing to rule. There is a better way to manage our powers and our problems.”
“Bastion then.” He sipped from his cup. “How can I get to him?”
She nearly blushed at revealing his name. Unspoken goals suddenly came into focus. She hesitated. “I cannot be implicated. Even after you succeed, my complicity cannot be revealed. If it is, you’ll think of Bastion as a feisty kitten.”
“I intend to stop the obscene retribution under way. If you help me remove him and change the present course, I won’t reveal your cooperation. You have my word. Beyond that, I have ideas that involve you and the Runa Korda.”
Whatever his plans, she didn’t doubt the promise or his altruism. It would have to do.
“Killing his body will be difficult but nothing compared to handling his core. You obviously managed to slip by my guards. Bastion’s personal guard is many times that of mine and hand-picked. He travels with his own recovery crew to move him to a new host should his be damaged. I cannot turn you onto his core because he will recognize my sense as your source when you reach for him. If you manage to destroy his host and control his core you would need to keep him subdued until he is collected. You are aware of Eden? Then you know it can take its own sweet time. You’ll be on your own, during and after. I cannot pull them off you in any case. If things fall apart and I’m discovered, you promise to deliver me to Eden, at all costs.”
“That’s reasonable. Where can I find him?”
His probe for information on the Core felt like a rough strip search. “Consider him beyond reach. I will arrange to get him out and about. There is a woman by the name of Samantha Sigler in a care home in Cambridge, the UK. She is autistic and posts a running blog every day. Look it up and stay on it. You’ll get instructions from that.”
“Will you be able to keep this from him?”
“Surely. I am experienced. There is something you should be aware of. Combining. I’m sure the Korda are working on it. Our teams are close to achieving it. Should they succeed, you would have one hell of a fight on your hands. You may want to check with your priests.”
“Thanks, I’ll do that.” He set down the grapes and wine and stood, eyeing the two slaves. “Just so we understand each other, I don’t expect a truce,” he leveled his gaze at her, “but in exchange for your... elevation, I expect a resumption of peace in the world of man. A return of the status quo, at least. That is your preference as well, no?”
He needn’t ask but she reassured him anyway. “My vision differs from Bastion’s, so yes. However, if this new arrangement comes to pass, we will meet again to discuss the Runa Korda’s future. There is so much you need to consider.”
She motioned and the two slaves approached. The deal made, she loosened her robe and her demeanor. “I have half an hour.”
“Perhaps another time, Maria. Enjoy.”
The intense power left his gaze and was replaced by the energy of her own imagined god. She quickly breathed life into him, life modeled after Gerrit’s Dionysus. It seemed quite possible he had outdone the original, something only a god could do. She lingered under his stare, unwilling to give up the fantasy.
“Come, Dionysus. You have been away from your earthly roots for too long.” She reached out and drew him in by the hips. “Let us celebrate your return...”
• • •
Johan swung his feet to the deck, visibly shaken. “What a mind fuck.”
“Almost, yes,” Anki said.
“What happened?” Austin asked from the hatch. “Did she make it across?”
“Yes she did.” Johan looked to Anki. “I wasn’t sure she should go.”
Anki nodded in agreement. Martin started a countdown timer.
Austin looked to ready to pop. “What happened? The audio was poor.”
“Maria’s her name and she’s ready as can be. Either that or she’s setting me up. We made a deal. She turns us onto the one in charge, we take him out, and she calls off the dogs. The guy’s name is Bastion. I got a vague reading off her but nothing I could use to track. We’ll have to hit him in the grid and then punch him home.”
Martin grew concerned. “And you sent Clare over anyway?”
“She wanted to go,” Anki said. “I don’t think I could have stopped her.”
“So now we wait?” Austin asked.
“First window is in three minutes. She’ll try for details of the base first. If she wants to continue, we’ll extend again.” He laid back down, clearly exhausted. He explained the autistic blogger and the instructions to monitor the site.
Martin shook his head. “A website? I don’t like it. Might as well point an arrow at yourself.”
“We may not have a choice. I’ve an idea on how to watch it safely.”
“Oh shit,” Austin said. “I don’t like it already.”
“One minute thirty,” Martin said. “Silence now and prepare.”
• • •
Blackness.
Boundless.
Without time.
Without form.
Can you be trusted?
The question split the void as a shining blade, a defensive swipe at whoever was lurking.
Meaning bled into the darkness. Time faded once more.
• • •
“That was damn close. Too damn close.”
Johan had again slipped by Maria’s guard in order to wait for Clare’s return. In the narrow nook of nothingness that had proved safe before, the executive’s sudden focus struck like nails in his chest. While he struggled to maintain his sense of absence, Clare’s gossamer thread beckoned. As if he’d split in two, one side paced Maria’s attention while the other managed to bring Clare back. Had he blinked, she might have sensed him and known what he’d done.
A small part of him wondered if she ha
d.
Anki sat in the living room with her head in her hands, consumed by the knowledge transfer with her mother. Martin sat with her, hand on her shoulder, calming as best he could.
“It’s a bit much,” he said softly.
“Yes,” she started. “It’s a lot.” She looked up. The energy in her eyes and voice told Johan it wasn’t Anki speaking but rather Clare.
“I’m going to need some help sorting through it. Maria is one hell of a character. Complex doesn’t begin to describe it. And just so you all know, Anki’s not trained for this. It’s taking a toll. Don’t think less of her.”
Martin asked what she could share.
She looked to Johan. “Maria’s impressed with you. In fact, she was still playing with your god like a three hundred year old cougar. And there is no doubt she wants Bastion removed from the picture. You’ve hooked her there. But listen you two... this woman is a threat. She is made of things stolen, borrowed bits and pieces of thousands of souls. For her, taking a life is no different than moving a chess piece. She also harbors love for all of creation, a love that encompasses the very souls she displaces. If that isn’t a dangerous combination, I don’t know what is.”
Hers was the world view that had helped shape humanity for millennia. Knowing death did not mean the end, all matters of conscience were subject to interpretation. The call for balancing nearly lifted Johan to his feet.
Austin asked if there was anything about the Comannda’s base.
“The Core, yes. I sought access but the lady has ‘access’ to so much that it was hard to filter without setting off alarms. I found something though. There’s a building in the Persian Gulf, at the coast. It should be easy to find because it’s round with scimitar-shaped arms coming off it. Maria held concern about it, a vague ‘weak link’ feeling. I’m almost sure it’s a transport depot for the base.”
“I see its form, yes. What about the base itself?”
“It’s big. Radial in nature, with transport lines running out to distant ports. It’s secure, remote, like another world. All underground. So much safety yet also a stifling that she dreads. She loves being topside.”
“Where is it?”
“Distant from the depot and the coast. Totally landlocked. It felt surrounded by rock.”
“Johan,” Martin said, “I want you to work with Ginia and help Anki. I don’t want her retreating. She needs to be with us.”
“What about separation?” Johan asked.
“I do think it’s time,” Clare said.
Martin agreed. “I’ll speak with Cathbad. Meanwhile she should spend time with Johan. Quality time, focused on normalizing her world as much as possible. How long before Maria updates via the blogger’s site I don’t know, but be there for Anki now.”
Austin asked about the blog. “I know we’re all on board with this Maria, but what if it’s a trap? How are you going to monitor it without Overseer tracing?”
“I said I have an idea,” Johan said.
“Yeah?” Austin said, only half smiling. “Why do I still not like it?”
Chapter 26
Confidence is the feeling you have before you understand the situation.
- Source unknown
Wind through the open side door of the barn carried the smell of rain. Austin sat on a chair facing the ship, forearms resting across his lap. An empty plate on the floor held the remnants of a spaghetti lunch. Six Korda engineers pored over the ship with equipment, poking, prodding, recording, and talking amongst themselves. The few stray words he’d heard referenced beam weaponry, radars, field generation, and metamaterials.
He’d patiently sought the small sense of meta that had blossomed in his mind and flooded him with knowledge of the ship. He entreated contact, paced by Johan and other bràthair. The danger was in attracting the Comannda or perhaps worse, the Mu. Geo had acted to give them the ship, so the tendency was to think it was in some way on their side. The reality could be different and Cathbad made sure they all considered it. Whether it was truly an alien entity or just made to appear so also concerned Cathbad. Further contact might provide clues. His own thought was that Geo was an outsider, more concerned with humanity’s fate than with power or control. The impression was clear yet could still be a product of manipulation.
An engineer walked over. “Got your answer. It’s a closed system complete with air scrubber. You can take it up and out anywhere you can steer it, as far as we can tell. Underwater, too, with or without the field.”
“What about power?”
“It’s got nuclear batteries but we have no idea how it’s generating the fields it is. Best we can tell it’s got some kind of over unity capability, probably in the sealed modules of the lower section. When you’re ready I’ll show you what we learned about the beam emitter and the different radars. You should be able to pull off your trick no problem.”
“Great, thanks. I appreciate it.”
“One more thing.” The engineer offered him a black velvet bag with a string tie. “It’s a stretch suit. Same metamaterial used on the hull, just different composition. The pilots must’ve used it for stealth operations outside the craft. Wonder where it’s been, ya know?”
Reaching into the bag, he felt something like thin lycra. He pulled it out and immediately tried to make sense of what he saw. Touch contradicted what his eyes told him. The outside of the fabric blurred slightly what was beyond it. Only seeing the inside of the suit calmed his brain. He held it out at arm’s length but saw nothing.
“Bizarre, isn’t it?”
“One suit?”
“Only one. I’ll be needing it back, of course.”
Hell of a toy, Johan commented. Bring it with us.
“Do you mind if I take it for the ride? We’ll be back in a short while.”
“Fine. Just don’t lose it.”
Austin smiled. “I see what you mean.”
• • •
From twenty-two thousand miles away, Earth basked in light pouring from the star, Sol. Seen only through the craft’s cameras, the view still held the eyes and hearts of all three in the cabin. Austin mentioned how funny it was that beyond the planet, the sun stopped being the ordinary bright thing in the sky and instead became the star that it was.
“Perspective is everything,” Johan said and returned to the bunk to check his laptop. Anki sat in the co-pilot’s chair alongside Austin.
Fine-tuning the radar and beam emitter to the frequencies used by satellite service providers would provide the connection needed to browse Samantha Sigler’s blog. They just had to line up on the beam of a satellite without weakening it too much. To do so might attract attention.
“Alright, hold it. Tilt another two degrees. Okay, there. Now ease it forward just a nudge.”
The Hughes HS601HP they’d researched and selected was an older Astra satellite servicing northern Europe. They’d found it after an hour’s search in the wide field of geosynchronous satellites. With Johan’s help Austin worked the controls to bring the craft closer in. Signal strength rose as they neared the beam.
“That’s good right there. Hold it,” Johan said. “Okay, I’m in. Need to forge another account if we’re going do this regularly. Hang on.”
Austin glanced at Anki. “How you doin’?”
She smiled. “I’m fine. We’re fine.”
“You sure?”
“I’m sure.”
Johan cursed.
“And?” Anki asked.
“And nothing.”
“No entry?”
“Not in three days. Last post is a photo of a leaf.”
“We’ll just have to try again later. I’m heading back.”
“Wait,” Johan said.
Austin and Anki both turned. “For what?”
“See, there’s a little boy who deserves to have his body back and I know exactly where to get it. I want to do this now before they decide to destroy it.”
“Johan...” Anki’s tone carried a warning.
“So that’s why you wanted the suit,” Austin said.
“What suit?” Anki asked. When he showed it to her, she shook her head. “I’m sorry but I don’t get it. Is defying Cathbad really the way you want to play this? Didn’t you learn anything the first time?”
Johan bristled. “Look, I’m thankful for what the Korda’s done for me, but I’m doing my job and taking care of my own business. That’s how I’m always going to play it.” He looked to Austin. “We can have him back in under fifteen minutes if we go now.”
Again Anki shook her head though said nothing more.
Austin looked at the viewer. Memory of Kaiya’s return to a Korda host echoed, mixed with the knowledge of Cathbad’s orders. They could be back before anyone noticed...
“Alright, but we do this my way.”
Austin toyed with the silver ring Kaiya had slipped on his finger. She’d cried when he left; reassurances only went so far. Ignoring her plea to run away with her had been difficult. He’d barely rejected the temptation and instead promised to make things safe enough so they could be together. He wondered now if he’d ever be able to keep the promise.
Johan laid down in the bunk while he crouched near the hatch. They would expect them to use the ship, so going in without it made the most sense. He pulled the hood element over his head and face, effectively becoming invisible in the dimness of the cabin.
“Cathbad’s going to shit bricks when he hears about this.”
“He already has,” Johan said. “Heard about it, that is. Not sure about the bricks.”