The Significant

by Kyra Anderson

  “If you die…” she choked on the words, “what will happen to the planet? Venus might be shut down, but then…”

  “Then Remus and the Syndicate will do everything they can to bring the planet back online and move forward,” Isa whispered. “I have had threats on my life since I was a child,” she murmured. “I had become so desensitized to it, and for a while, I even welcomed the idea of one of the plots succeeding, but now…this is the first time I’ve ever been truly afraid to die.”

  She reached forward, resting her hand against Kailynn’s cheek.

  “I used to be afraid to go through with this plan because I did not want to leave the planet without a leader, and I figured if I was going to fuck up the planet so horrendously, it was my responsibility to repair it. But now,” she shook her head, “I know that if I were to die, Remus and the others would do a fine job leading the planet. What I’m afraid of is not being able to be with you.”

  Kailynn reached up and took Isa’s hand, holding it tightly and turning her head to press it to her lips, trying to hold the tears back.

  “My life has been dictated by Venus,” Isa continued quietly, “and even though I rebelled slightly, I was still a part of her, I was still obedient. Now, I would throw all of that away if it meant I could be with you as I should be, without the fear of death on both of our shoulders.”

  “Isa,” Kailynn whispered, sniffing back her tears and clearing her throat, “you survived your life up to this very moment,” she said. “You even managed to bounce back after throwing yourself into the control room of the Syndicate.” She tightened her grip on Isa’s hand. “Do not let this be the thing that brings you down.”

  She released Isa’s hands and took her face, looking into her eyes.

  “You will survive this. I know you will.”

  Isa closed her eyes and leaned forward, kissing Kailynn gently.

  For seventeen hours, the car drove them over the continent, crossing bridges that spanned the seas and going through cities that Kailynn had never heard of. Most of them looked like Anon, clean and white with no one on the surface streets, but cars whizzing around the underground roads.

  As they were driving through yet another large city, the windshield of the car darkened and turned into a screen where the word “advisory” flashed on the screen.

  In the next moment, the word disappeared and Kailynn’s picture flashed on the screen. Next to her picture, was the advisory notice. Kailyn was able to read most of the words, but she did not need to read all of them to understand.

  Jacyleen Lynden. Height: 170 cm. Weight: 53 kg.

  Kill on Sight—by Order of Venus.

  Report any information.

  Isa stared at the picture and the words next to it as Kailynn gasped, staring at the words that seemed to stab her in the gut.

  Kill on Sight.

  “Once she is disabled,” Isa started, “stay close to me.” The Golden Elite turned to Kailynn, her eyes dark with anger. “Until we can get Anon up and running again, you will remain a Kill on Sight target. Once the Official computers are back up and running, we can remove the order.”

  “How much longer until we get there?”

  “Two hours,” Isa answered. “We’re taking a longer route.”

  “Can Venus kill you even from here? With the processor and everything? Can she just stop your heart?”

  “No,” Isa assured. “She has been sending little attacks at me all day. They just haven’t been enough to hurt as much as her previous ones. As I continue to move, she has trouble finding a strong signal to the processor in my chest. Once we stop moving, I’m sure the attacks will become severe.”

  Kailynn took Isa’s hand once more.

  As the night began darkening the skies, the car slowed and pulled off the road, driving out of the town into barren land where small, sharp brush grew in the fine sand where nothing else could live.

  Isa opened the control panel of the car once more and activated manual controls. A joystick protruded from the center console and the car began to slow. Isa moved her foot forward to the front of the car to rest on the sensor that would keep them moving.

  “Why are you turning it on manual?”

  “Because we’re about to leave the road system.”

  “What?” Kailynn gasped. “You’re going to drive this thing over dirt?”

  “Yes,” Isa said, a small smile taking over her lips.

  Isa slowed the car and turned off the road. The car beeped at her twice, telling her there was a problem, but as soon as they were off the road completely, the alarm silenced and the computer for the car shut down, leaving Isa to direct the vehicle over the rough dirt path without interference.

  Kailynn, confused and unsure where they were or where they were going and increasingly nervous about the darkening sky, remained quiet. There were no lights so far away from the city, making it very difficult to see.

  Isa continued to drive toward a large mound of rocks and finally slowed at the base of it. She tapped the car lights twice and a small red light could be seen in the crevice between two large rocks.

  One of the rocks moved backward, showing an underground passage that allowed the car under the rock.

  “Where are we?” Kailynn asked as Isa drove forward.

  “The outskirts of Saera.”

  Kailynn turned to Isa quickly, surprised to recognize the name.

  “Saera?”

  “Venus’ main processor was placed in a remote location just outside of the city,” Isa said with a nod. “Since food production is protected across the Altereye System, previous Golden Elites began projects to terraform Saera into food production.” Isa sighed heavily, glancing ahead of her, though she could barely see in the short tunnel that led them to an underground lot where other cars were parked. “That protected Venus’ main processor.”

  “But, when Colonel Amori attacked Saera…”

  “The city was leveled,” Isa whispered, “because Venus’ processor was so close to the generators. The processor was not damaged, it was never in range. However, it provided a lot more power to the Charge Blast that destroyed the city.”

  Isa got out of the car, Kailynn in tow, and grabbed their bags of food and supplies. Everyone was bringing some rations to hold them through the process of shutting down the super-computer.

  Isa typed in a code to the only door in the underground lot and they both walked into the cavernous, hot room. Rayal and Tarah were already there with half the Syndicate, Paul, and Dr. Busen. Tiana, Paul’s dog was also there, and ran forward to greet them.

  Kailynn was too distracted by the enormous pillar in the room to notice Tiana at first.

  Standing in the center of the metal-lined dome was an enormous pillar of light. Small strands of brighter yellow and blue would occasionally flicker in the grooves of the sparse metal casing around the light, but the white light remained constant and unwavering.

  “Is that…”

  “That’s Venus,” Isa murmured, stepping forward to greet Dr. Busen.

  “Glad to see you’re here safely,” he murmured.

  “You as well,” Isa agreed, taking Dr. Busen’s hand before hugging him briefly. She also hugged Paul. “How is it going here?”

  “They’re still trying to disable the monitoring system,” Paul explained. “They can’t figure out how to turn it off.”

  Isa walked to the Elites crouched around the base of the pillar as Paul and Dr. Busen turned to Kailynn.

  “How are you holding up, Kailynn?” Paul asked.

  “I feel like I’m in a dream,” she laughed nervously. “I don’t know, this seems a bit…”

  “Surreal, I’m sure,” Dr. Busen said with a nod. He took a deep breath, averting his eyes to the ground. “Did Isa tell you about the procedure?”

  “Yeah, sorta,” she said, her stomach flipping in fear. “But you managed to help her after everything with Colonel Amori. I’m sure that everything will be fine.”

  “I promise,
I will do everything in my power.”

  “I know.”

  Isa and the other Elites were looking over the control panel for Venus that was far more complicated than any of the newer technology to which they were accustomed. They knew they only had once chance to disable the security monitoring system, which would allow them to set up the area where Dr. Busen would perform the surgery. As long as the monitoring system was up, Venus could be notified of any changes in the chamber of the processor, tipping her off to their location when the healthcare machines were plugged in.

  Isa carefully moved her finger along the screen, rotating the circle of codes and files represented by small boxes.

  “I’ve never seen one of these before,” Aolee whispered.

  “I’ve only dealt with this once,” Isa said, her eyes sharp on the screen as she held her finger over one square, seeing the route of the codes listed at the top of the screen. “I had to do repairs on one of her processors, and I know there is a release mechanism for programming somewhere around here.”

  “This isn’t the programming panel?” Hana asked, confused.

  “No,” Isa said. “Just the control panel.”

  “What is the difference?”

  “Control panel is what you might call the landing page for everything,” Isa murmured, turning the circle once more and holding her finger over another box. “Programming panel is what we understand as the control panel.”

  Isa double tapped the box and a metal panel moved away from under the screen, extending a platform with a touch keyboard.

  “There we go,” Isa said. She quickly typed in some commands for the processor and opened up the security, disabling the program. She checked once more to be sure that the monitoring was off on all related files and programs and then turned off the programming panel.

  “I guess it’s safer that her hardware was never upgraded,” Anders said, shaking his head. “No one would know how to use it.”

  The Elites went over to help Dr. Busen and Paul set up the surgical area, while Isa walked back to Kailynn, who was crouched on the ground with Tiana.

  The two remained as far away from the surgical bed and monitors as they could, glancing over occasionally and sharing silent conversations with each other in the heat of the humming processor.

  Isa began to get nervous when Remus did not arrive at the time he was expected. After three hours of pacing worriedly, the door opened and the Silver Elite walked in, his caretaker, Luska, behind him, and a dog that looked almost exactly like Tiana with them.

  Isa ran to him and hugged him tightly.

  “You scared me,” she whispered.

  “I’m fine,” he assured, heavily dropping the ration bags and a bag of programming wires and supplies. “Listen, everyone!” he called through the cavern. “Venus has shut down everything on Tiao.”

  “What?” Isa hissed.

  “She’s left the Official communications up and planetary communications, as well as her own security monitoring system,” Remus continued. “That’s why I was late. I had to walk the rest of the way here. The roads were shut down before I could disable the system on the car.”

  Isa turned to look at the surprised expressions in the room.

  “It must be chaos out there,” Chronus whispered.

  “Dr. Busen, do you have that computer I gave you?” Isa asked. He turned to get it as Isa looked at the other Syndicate members. “This is probably a way to scare the people into believing they need her and cause chaos that will force us out of hiding. She knows if the people cause enough problems that we’ll step in because we can’t leave them to destroy themselves.”

  “We have to stay hidden for now,” Anders said strongly.

  “This is what it will be like when she does shut down,” Remus added. “The people know that you’re trying to shut her down. Their reaction to this situation will tell us if they support you.”

  Isa sighed heavily, running her hands through her hair, her stomach tying itself in nervous knots.

  Dr. Busen returned with the computer and Isa took it, rifling through one of Remus’ bags and pulling out a cord. She went to the processor and connected the computer to it.

  “What are you doing?” Tia gasped, horrified. “If you access her mainframe, she’ll see it immediately.”

  “This computer operates outside her sphere,” Isa murmured, opening up several windows and typing in codes. “I’m not opening anything she does not already have open. If she has left her security running, then we can just project it onto this screen.”

  Several codes flashed across the screen before it went temporarily black. Then, the security footage from the Syndicate Building lit up the screen.

  Everyone was too stunned to speak.

  In Anon, it was the late hours of the night, and the speakers were playing a continuous message, hauntingly echoing through the silent city.

  “Without me, this planet will plunge into darkness. Starvation, illness, and war will become rampant. I have kept Tiao strong all these years, and I will show you my power. As the planet sits in darkness, remember the power I hold.”

  However, the city was not dark. Several small points of light were gathered at the base of the Syndicate Building. As Kailynn looked among the small, floating lights, she realized that each of those points of light were emergency lights, and each was held by a person, pointed upward to the sky.

  There were several thousand lights gathered at the base of the Syndicate Building.

  The feed switched before they could study it further, and they saw that, throughout the city, there were congregations of lights in the streets.

  Beyond the city limits, a gathering of lights and fires could be seen in Trid, contained in the center of the district, near the Keeper’s building.

  When the feed switched to another city, one where dawn had just begun to lighten the streets, the security cameras showed the citizens gathered in the city center, sitting with one another and chatting lightly, some standing, others by themselves along the edges of the congregation of thousands of citizens.

  No one in the processor cavern could believe their eyes.

  Yet another city showed gatherings of people in the streets. One city even saw the largest group in the city center, chanting as dusk descended on another area of the planet.

  “Isa! Not Venus! Isa! Not Venus!”

  Isa placed her hand over her mouth and bowed her head.

  Everyone remained silent in awe as they followed Venus while the computer discovered just how much support Isa had across the planet to shut down the artificial intelligence.

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Kailynn was so overwhelmed by everything she had seen while watching Venus’ security mainframe scan the reactions around the planet that, when Paul slipped away to take Tiana for a walk, Kailynn quickly volunteered to go with him and take Remus’ dog Rio, allowing Luska to get some sleep.

  Kailynn followed Paul to the lot filled with cars and out the direction they came, leading them into the cool morning of the desert.

  The former Significant took a deep breath, letting the air fill her lungs and clear her head. She was startled at the difference in the air. The air felt cleaner as it entered and left her lungs, and the cool feeling of the morning relieved her body from the heat of the cavern.

  “Amazing how different the air is, isn’t it?” Paul said with a chuckle. He also took a deep breath and closed his eyes. “I don’t know about you, but I was dying in there.”

  “It’s way too fucking hot in there,” Kailynn agreed.

  Paul began walking around the rock mound, finding a path that led up the embankment and to the top of the ridge behind the mound of rocks.

  “That was incredible,” he said.

  “What?”

  “Seeing the support she has,” Paul clarified, leading Kailynn up the path, watching Tiana sniff around the bushes. “Isa is incredible.”

  “I don’t know if that’s the word for it,” Kailynn whispered. �
��I’m not sure there is a word for what she is.”

  “No, I don’t suppose there is.”

  “Paul, can I ask you something?”

  “Of course.”

  “Are you and Dr. Busen a couple?”

  Paul chuckled. “Yes, we are.”

  “Dr. Busen is one of the best doctors alive, right?”

  “Not one of the best,” Paul said, shaking his head. “He is the best Elite Specialist alive.”

  “Does that ever get to you?” Kailynn asked. “Do you ever feel intimidated by him?”

  “No,” Paul said, shaking his head again. “I’m one of the best, too.” He glanced back at Kailynn with a teasing smile. “We’re both doctors. Anyone who would listen to our conversations at home would think we were speaking a different language at some of the terms we throw around. Michael astounds me. He’s absolutely brilliant, and watching him research this, seeing his dedication and fascination with what we’re about to do, it just makes me admire him that much more.”

  Kailynn lowered her eyes to the ground.

  “But it never makes you feel insignificant?”

  “No,” Paul said. “We’re both doctors, so we operate in the same way. You and Isa? You two are extremely similar in many ways, but very different in others.” Paul turned around and looked at Kailynn, slowly walking backward up the dirt path. “You should not feel insignificant at all,” he said. “I’m sure Isa’s power unsettles you. Right now, she has the power to shut down Venus, with help, of course, but that help would have never been available without her power to begin with. That is no small feat, and that would be frightening to anyone.”

  Paul turned back around and continued walking as Kailynn dropped her eyes to the dirt.

  “When this is over,” she finally said, “and Venus is gone, Isa will still have that power, though. She’ll still be the leader of the planet, and she’ll still have the power to affect everyone on the planet.”

  “She will,” Paul agreed. “That’s why we should be thankful that Isa is the one who will be doing this, and not Colonel Amori or General Decius.”