by Lara Morgan
He lunged over the facing seat and into the driver’s compartment. It was small, nothing more than a dash, a wheel and the human-shaped head attached to a half seat that gave the impression of a person from the back. A chime sounded through the cabin as soon as he landed on the floor.
“Unauthorised entry detected,” the AI began saying, “malfunction, malfun–” Pip reared back and kicked hard at the left-hand side of the dash, and the voice and chime stopped. This was not the first time he’d hijacked a cab, but it had been a while. The systems had been upgraded, but luckily they had left the steering wheel, a fail-safe in case a human had to take over the driving. The car was still slowing though. He ripped the head out of the way and slammed a fist down on the emergency seat extractor. A cushion burst from the floor and he slid onto it behind the wheel, then felt underneath the steering for the override.
His fingers fumbled, the car kept slowing. Through the windscreen he saw Sulawayo’s vehicle getting further and further ahead. Come on! He felt the clip for the covering protecting the manual system, flipped it off and wrenched down hard, disconnecting the AI, then punched the accelerator on the dash. The car leaped forwards with a high whirring sound and he had to squeeze his hands hard on the steering to activate the brakes before he hit the vehicle in front. Finally, the car was under his control. He swerved out of the lane and sped up.
He didn’t know how long he had until the system sent someone to investigate the cabjacking. Probably not long, but unless he crashed, it wouldn’t leap to the priority for the guards. And unlinking the AI meant the traffic system couldn’t stop the car. Not until they found a way to get it back. Hopefully by then, he’d be out of reach.
He pushed the car faster and followed Sulawayo’s vehicle out and onto the eastbound artery. Eight lanes of traffic speeding at over two hundred kilometres an hour surrounded him and Pip breathed deep, keeping his grip light on the steering in case he engaged the brakes.
Sulawayo’s car was two lanes over and six cars ahead. Anxious, he kept an eye on it as the city flashed by. They were heading up into the hills. Business blocks gave way to more apartments, then the exits for the hill estates began to appear. Greenview was out this way. Pip wondered briefly how Rosie’s dad was. Last he’d heard was a comment from Essie that he was doing better. He’d even started talking about the future. Rosie would be sad she missed that. His attention was drawn back as Sulawayo’s silver car began to change lanes heading towards the exits. The warning sign for the entrance to the Desert Byway flashed overhead. She had to be going there.
Pip swerved the car across the lanes, keeping her in sight, and was only three cars behind when they hit the exit. The double lane swerved off due east between high crete walls. A light began flashing on the dash and a line of text appeared.
Distance to allowed limit: seventy-five kms.
He’d forgotten city AI cabs weren’t made to go beyond Newperth. Even disconnected from the AI, he probably could go only five or so k’s past the limit before the car cut off all power.
Great.
The high walls on either side became lower to reveal a dry landscape of rock and brown grass. Not much grew out here but a few stunted trees. Rain hadn’t fallen for years. There was less traffic now as well. The byway used to be a major connection that went right across the continent but few used it now. Lower atmosphere hopping was quicker.
Sulawayo sped past a boarded-up old vehicle charge station, sand piled up along its side, but Pip’s car began to slow. Lights started going off all over the dash and within a few more kilometres it had gone dead and he was forced to pull off the road. He got out and kicked the door shut, swearing at it. The few other cars that had been travelling whizzed past without slowing down. He watched Sulawayo’s car dwindle into the distance following the razor straight line of the road until the heat haze swallowed her.
So close. He leaned against the car. But at least he’d learned something. It was likely Sulawayo was heading back to the Enclave, unless she was planning on driving until she was stranded. It had to be a thousand kilometres to the next town and the only other habitats out here were shipbuilding yards. Why would she go there? Which meant the odds were good that Rosie was out there somewhere. He had to get another vehicle and come out again.
He took off his shirt and wiped over every single place in the car his DNA might have been and hoped the surveillance hadn’t got a good look at his face.
The sun would set in an hour. He sighed and began the long walk back to the city. He was going to be really late for his meeting with Essie, but at least now he had something to tell her.
Sulawayo pulled the car over under the scant shadow of a stunted eucalypt. She’d left the byway fifty kilometres back and all around her was unmarked desert. She activated her com and waited. Jebediah Curtis’s face appeared.
“Yes?” he said curtly.
“Pip saw me,” she said. “He jacked a cab, followed me to the byway. That message you let Rosie get through to her aunt must have worked; it’s drawn him out.”
Jebediah expression was pleased. “So he will come looking for her. When he does, make sure he doesn’t escape you this time. Will the girl be a problem?”
“No.” Sulawayo shook her head. “But are you sure this was wise? If the Senate have seen him in the car, others in Helios will know he has surfaced. I can’t do anything about that from out here.”
“Don’t let that concern you. I will see to it. And the MalX cure tests, how have they progressed?”
Sulawayo frowned. “No vaccine yet, but Raina reports they are closer every day.”
“Good, make sure she is ready to get the vaccine out when it’s done.”
“Are you sure that’s the best option?” Sulawayo asked carefully. “If Rosie hears of it, her cooperation …”
“We have no other option,” he interrupted. “We cannot allow anyone else in Helios to get hold of the cure, you know that. We must control it.”
“Raina is nervous,” Sulawayo said. “She’s worried about the Yalgu Warrior who watches her. She might run early.”
“Ensure she does not.” Jebediah’s tone hardened. “There is too much at stake here. Besides, Rosie’s given us the real names of two of the other Pantheon members. If we can find them, we are one step closer to our goal. The others must be stopped, or have you forgotten?”
“I know that.” Sulawayo resented his implication that her loyalty was wavering. “But what about the Senate investigating you? I heard about the Rogue Wave that named you as a member of Helios and the Pantheon. Surely–”
Jebediah cut her off. “An inconvenience; I’m dealing with it, but it gives us more reason to press forwards and rid Helios of the old guard for good. Once we succeed the Senate will be far too busy to concern themselves with that.”
“And what of those numbers Rosie gave us? Are they any use? Do you know what they are for?”
“Merely identification codes.” Jebediah waved a hand.
“Are they the code names you used to keep anonymity?”
“Similar. Each Pantheon member has one. It is of interest to have the others’ codes, but they are of minor importance. You concentrate on obtaining the locations.”
Sulawayo thought the numbers at least deserved further investigation, but it was pointless to press him. Jebediah was not one to take advice. She said, “I’m worried about Alpha. He keeps wanting to use the manacle on Rosie, despite his previous failures. He could be causing damage. I’m sure when Riley made that implant he did something to the nanos to block it being accessed by anything we might have.”
“You let me worry about Alpha,” Jebediah said. “I will be visiting the Enclave soon and will talk to him. You make sure you’re doing your part.”
“But Alpha is part of the Helios problem,” Sulawayo insisted. “Why don’t you have him taken out? You could do that.”
“No.” Jebediah’s tone was sharp. “A threat to him would alert the rest of the Pantheon that something is
awry. Leave it to me.”
Sulawayo swallowed her objection. “Fine.”
“Good. Now, are you sure the information the girl gave us is accurate?”
“I gave her adequate reason to cooperate. I believe whatever she gives me will be true.”
“You are too trusting,” Jebediah said.
“No. I am merely good at judging people.”
“If you say so.”
Sulawayo controlled her anger. “What about Riley? He’s still out there. She may bring him to us as well. The knowledge he has–”
“Riley Shore is less of a threat than he ever was. We broke him the last time. His group is fractured and he has disappeared. Even if he has the information he left on Rosie’s implant, I doubt he has the manpower to use it. I have people looking for him on every continent; if he resurfaces, we’ll stop him. Once we have the cure and the rest of the Pantheon list, what can he do? He will be seeking to bring down a Helios that no longer exists because we will have changed it. You need to worry about Rosie.” His gaze pinned her through the com. “Your job is the girl – until she is no longer of any use.”
“I know my job,” Sulawayo said.
“Good.” He glanced at something she couldn’t see. “Send me your reports.” The screen went black.
Sulawayo sat staring out through the windscreen at the sunset over the parched earth. Red was suffusing the horizon, colouring the sands and trees, softening the light. It was hot out here, but she couldn’t help feel a chill. What exactly were Jebediah’s plans for Rosie? Despite her dislike for children, Rosie had gained her respect and she didn’t like to see a good soldier put down. Her cousin, Nerita, would tell her to take it day by day, see what needed to be done, before she worried about future possibilities. Nerita had that luxury. Nerita had cut her ties to Helios the moment she’d stolen the Mars Enclave leaders’ ship and turned pirate. Sulawayo had always been the one who worried about the future. It was why she had hitched herself to this man, this Jebediah Curtis. She still believed his vision for changing Helios was best. Helios needed change, it needed to become the light for humanity it had started out as being, not this well of greed and power it had become. There were still moments when she had doubts about him though. He was too ruthless at times, one-eyed. And she was sure he kept many things from her. It suited her for now but, unlike family, she could choose how far she went with him.
When they did manage to take over the rest of the Pantheon and make the changes they needed, she might have to make some changes for herself. Jebediah Curtis was overly comfortable with his own importance for her liking. He couldn’t be left to think he could run things.
The Game Pit was locked up tight when Pip finally made it back to the city and he had to bang on the door, waking a furious Fury to let him in. He’d managed to con a ride from a farm transport but it was still around four am and he was two hours late for his appointment with Essie.
But it wasn’t only Essie waiting for him. Sitting at a table with his favourite aunty in the main bar was Cassie. He stopped dead in the doorway, faced with two angry women, both glaring at him like he’d killed their favourite pet.
He tried what he hoped was a charming smile. “Cass, so you missed me that much, eh, couldn’t stay away?”
Cassie’s hip banged the table as she shot to her feet, spilling a glass of water. “One more smart-arse remark, Pip, and you’ll be missing something.”
“Okay.” He put his hands out and shuffled a few steps sideways behind the bar so it was between them. “So I’m a bit late in heading back. I had things to take care of.”
“Oh, this should be good!” Cassie put her hands on her hips. “Please enlighten me. Or wait, because Essie and I have been talking, so I know a few things already.”
“One of them is that you didn’t tell me you were supposed to be going back right away, or that you’d sent the Yalgu back so you’ve been alone.” Essie had got up now as well. “And by the way, I heard some news about a cabjacking. That was you, wasn’t it?”
“You told me where Sulawayo would be,” Pip said. “I was using my initiative. Besides, how else was I supposed to follow her when she took a transport, fly? Anyway, I destroyed the cab surveillance; no one would have seen my face.”
“I think I distinctly remember telling you I was investigating where Rosie might be – through my contacts. I only told you Sulawayo had been spotted to keep you in the loop. You were supposed to be checking on the gangs and their pirates.”
“Which I did,” Pip said quickly. “Soon as I left you, I found out there’s some crew who are pretty sure Riley has been up on Mars. They said there was a man matching his description who’d bought a rover and had been out to the old Enclave site, ferreting around.”
“Well, that’s great,” Essie said. “And then you should have left.”
“Like you were supposed to, with Inja,” Cassie added.
“Instead of stealing a cab.” Essie stepped up to the bar and placed both hands on it like she was about to vault it and kick his arse. “What part about being ‘smart about this’ don’t you get?”
Pip felt like he was the puck in their hockey match. “Hey, I was being smart,” he said.
“How?” Essie snapped. “Or was it your genius move to trail Sulawayo and think she wouldn’t notice.”
“She didn’t.”
“You sure about that?”
Not totally, but he figured now wasn’t the time to say it. “I’m sure. I was careful. Wouldn’t they have come after me by now if she had seen me?”
“Who says they haven’t?” Cassie said. “They could be outside right now.”
“Give me some credit, Cass; I wasn’t followed. And now we’ve got an idea where Rosie could be.”
“Maybe,” Essie said. “But while you were trying to get captured, I tracked Whitely down and convinced him he should come on board.”
“Hang on, who’s Whitely?” Cassie asked and perched on a bar stool.
“Slimy Senate guy.” While Essie filled her in, Pip took the opportunity to pour himself a long cold beer, downing it in a few swallows.
“For goodness sake!” The glass was pulled out of his hand by Cassie before he was quite finished. She slammed it down on the bar. “You’re drinking?”
“Seemed like a good idea.”
“That makes two of us – pass me the vodka.” Essie sat on a stool and put a hand out. Grinning at Cassie, Pip passed Essie the bottle.
“Don’t look so pleased with yourself. You’re still in trouble, Pipsqueak,” Essie said.
“Thanks for the support.”
“Hey, I’m not your crutch.”
Both of them seemed to have calmed down though, so he judged it was safe to come out from around the bar. He poured another beer and sat next to them. Cassie watched, eyes narrowed.
“So what did you tell Whitely?” Pip asked Essie.
“Not a lot. It’s too risky to tell him about Sulawayo being Helios – he’d go after her straightaway. But he is willing to do anything to bring Helios down. I told him a little about Riley, and wondered about dropping a few of the Pantheon names until Dalton pulled that stunt.”
“What stunt?” Pip said.
“Didn’t you hear the latest Rogue Wave?” Essie shook her head. “Dalton, that dumb arse, outed his dad, called Jebediah one of the Pantheon and dropped his daddy’s company right in it. The Senate are scared that they’re going to have to investigate him.”
“But isn’t that a good thing?” Pip said.
“Not with Rosie still involved, no. We don’t know where Curtis senior stands in all this. If I confirm to Whitely that he’s one of the Helios top five, it could jeopardise Rosie’s life. He’s rabid about bringing everyone down. We have to take this one step at a time. Trust me. Subtlety is not Whitley’s strong suit, but I managed to convince him to keep anything he finds to himself, and to share what he finds with me. Plus, of course, he doesn’t know about you. Or your cure.”
Pi
p toyed with his beer. He didn’t like the idea of working with the Senate man, but they needed inside help. If Essie thought she could work with him, then maybe she could keep him in line.
“Someone should check on Dalton,” Cassie said. “He can’t have done that wave for no reason.”
“Worried about him, are you?” Pip eyed her. “Got him in your sights now?”
“He saved your life, Pip, cut him a break.”
“Yeah, and then the two of you let Rosie run off to join the funhouse of death.”
“Stop it.” Essie slammed the vodka bottle down between them. “Focus children. Dalton will have to take care of himself for the moment.”
“That’s right.” Pip tipped his glass towards Cassie. “We need to get a vehicle, some transport to get back out to the desert and find the Enclave.”
“An aerial search would be better,” Essie said. “And don’t think about going out there alone; you can’t take on an Enclave by yourself.”
“I didn’t say I was going to.”
“But you were thinking it. You know wherever she is, it will be well protected. We need to find a way in and out, or it will be a waste of time and if they get you–”
“I know,” he cut her off. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to let that happen. I don’t want them getting my cure any more than you do.”
Essie took a long swig of vodka straight from the bottle and grimaced, wiping her mouth. “Talking about that.” She turned to Cassie. “You want to fill him in on the other reason you came running down here?”
“You mean you didn’t miss me so bad?” Pip couldn’t help riling the girl again, but Cassie didn’t rise to the bait.
“If you’d come back like you should have, it might not have happened,” she said. “But you should know – we had a breakthrough with the vaccination.”
“Wait, what?” A leap of hope surged through him, but he didn’t see any joy in Cassie’s eyes. “Why aren’t you happy about it?”