They moved out, down the alley, around the corners. At each intersection, Benson had to politely, but firmly, push through Atlantian youths that seemed increasingly intent on crowding their egress. Benson was no linguistic expert, but he could read body language. The crowd was growing hostile, and worse yet, bold. Their skin patterns were beginning to merge, passing subtly from one individual to the next, until the ripples turned into waves that spread out from one youth to the next subconsciously. Benson had seen it before among gangs of Atlantian kids right before they built up the nerve to do something stupid.
Benson dropped back a step to confer with his friend. “Kexx, they might give you a wider berth. Would you mind?”
“Not at all.”
But Kexx leading the caravan did not have the desired effect. Instead, the growing horde became even more restless and aggressive. Voices started taunting Kexx, calling zer a “pet” and “halfskin”, a cruel insult aimed at the massive burn scar covering most of zer back that could no longer produce light or shadow, a remnant of the Ark’s nav laser that destroyed the Black Bridge at the climax of the battle of the same name.
Sakiko stood at her mentor’s side and hurled insults right back at the mob, in their own language. Benson’s plant translator had trouble with some of the more… creative ones, but it was obvious the girl had a gift.
An object arching through the air caught Benson’s eye. A rock, sailing right toward Theresa’s head. Well-worn neural paths, many decades old, took over as the visual information left Benson’s eye, was processed through the motor control and spatial recognition portions of his brain, and down the nerve trunk to his right arm. Benson’s hand sprang up to intercept the rock with grace and ease, and was immediately reminded that he still had a sprained wrist.
“Ow! Son of a bitch!” Benson’s first impulse was to switch hands and hurl the rock at the nearest protestor’s stupid head, but his instructions to Korolev extended to him as well and he let the projectile drop harmlessly to the ground.
“Nice catch, honey,” Theresa said. “You do remember you have two hands though, yeah?”
“You’re welcome.” Benson gingerly rubbed his aching wrist before turning to face the direction the rock came from. “Who threw that? C’mon, don’t be shy. Step up and take credit. It was a great throw. You almost hit my mate in the head!”
The crowd of faces leaned back perceptibly from the sudden emotional outburst, but held their ground.
“Well? Either let us pass in peace, or let’s get down to it.” Benson dragged his foot through the dry dirt to make a line, then started loosening up his shoulders. “Step right up and let’s sort this out one at a time. I’m not as quick as I used to be, and I’m not running as many kilometers as I did, but I figure I’ve got a solid five minutes of asskicking in me. Bet I get through eight or nine of you before I get winded. Who’s first?” Benson looked around at their now silent faces. He recognized one here and there, kids who only a couple of weeks before had gone through a summer rec program, or even tried out for the Mustangs’ roster. They at least had the good sense not to make eye contact.
Just as Benson believed his point had been made and he could lower his guard, something rustled from deep in an alley to his left. As he turned to face the disturbance, the sea of faces parted to reveal a beast of an Atlantian. Benson had noticed zer face a full head and shoulders above the crowd before, but assumed ze’d been standing on a crate.
There was no crate, just the better part of three meters of the biggest sentient being Benson had ever encountered.
“Jesus,” Korolev said. “Is ze half-dux’ah?”
“What are you feeding the adolescents here?” Kexx asked incredulously.
The brute looked down at the club in zer hand and dropped it unceremoniously to the ground. Then, ze pulled a well-worn metal kitchen knife from the band of their traditional skirt and sunk it deeply enough into the nearest mudstone wall to make it stick.
Benson swallowed hard and dropped a foot back into a ready stance as the beast lumbered down the alleyway with purpose. Even lanky as ze was, the youth had to weigh a hundred and twenty, maybe a hundred and thirty kilos. He’d get two, maybe three good strikes in before getting wrapped up like a Christmas present and dragged to the ground. He had to get inside the monster Atlantian’s reach, get behind zer, maybe try that Vulcan nerve pinch Korolev discovered about ten years ago. At least with one arm out of the fight, the tables would be level. Of course, Benson would have to climb just to get to zer shoulder.
The fighter leaned forward, and the looming walk turned into a charge as ze sprinted the last few meters to where Benson stood. Scratch that, he’d have one shot.
“Oh, shit,” Benson muttered as he hauled back with his good left arm and tensed his core muscles in anticipation of the rib-bruising impact.
But it didn’t come.
Instead, Theresa slid in between her husband and the stampeding ogre, held up her sidearm, and smartly shot a taser round right at the base of the Atlantian’s bulging neck. The 9mm round spun out of the barrel, sunk less than a millimeter into the Atlantian’s flesh, then opened like a flower and discharged fifty thousand volts of pulsing current through the target’s skin, toppling zer like a tree and sending zer skidding through the dirt to come to rest at Benson’s feet, still twitching.
“Esa, what the hell?” Benson barked.
“Ze threw that rock at me.”
“No ze–”
Theresa turned to face the equally stunned crowd. “And I’ve got seventeen more of those bad boys in this magazine. We all saw zer throw that rock at a duly-appointed city constable, namely me. Didn’t we?”
Judging by the wildly bobbing heads, a consensus quickly coalesced among those assembled that yes, they had in fact seen that person in particular throw the rock. Quite clearly, now that she mentioned it. There was no question that ze had been the one solely responsible for throwing the rock at the crazy human lady presently pointing a stun gun at everyone. There could be no question.
“You’re evil,” Benson whispered.
“You’re welcome.”
“I could’ve handled zer.”
“Oh, honey, no. Not even ten years ago and with both your hands healthy.”
Benson looked down at the brute, only now recovering from the taser’s assault on zer nervous system. She was right, he couldn’t have taken this one on in an even fight, not even in his Zero prime. But neither was he going to admit it to anybody.
“So, are we arresting zer or what?” Benson asked loud enough for the gathered to hear.
Theresa’s voice remained elevated. “Nah, ze’s a good kid. Just got caught up in the moment, right? We all got caught up in the moment, but it’s over now and we’re all going to go back home and cool off, yes?”
Once more, the crowd showed their deference to Theresa’s wisdom in a way reserved for respected philosophers and people who have demonstrated a willingness to use firearms in public.
“Outstanding. We’ll be going now.” She pointed the muzzle of her gun at her prostrate victim. “Somebody help zer up and make sure ze gets home safe.”
Several friends of the incapacitated rushed to help. In the end, it took four of them to lift the behemoth back to zer feet.
“When this is all over, remind me to invite zer to tryouts for next season,” Benson said.
The rest of their egress from the Native Quarter was uneventful. A handful of spotters shadowed
their progress, but kept a respectful distance well outside the effective range of Theresa’s stun rounds.
“We got off light,” Korolev said. “That could’ve been a whole lot worse.”
“No,” Kexx said, “We didn’t. Just delayed the inevitable. That was a chaotic rabble, leaderless. I doubt they’d even all heard the news yet. Half of them probably just tagged along with their friends because they were bored, or high. But tonight, at the cleansing pools, or tomorrow at Temple, they’ll hear about Jian’s mission from their elders, and they’ll find focus. By tomorrow night, they’ll be organized.”
Everyone let that sink in for a moment. Theresa was the first to respond. “But these people grew up here, Kexx. They’ve spent their entire lives in and around Shambhala. Why are you so sure they’ll respond to the news like your people in Atlantis would?”
“Because they’re still Atlantians, Theresa. Varr is sacred in ways that not even Cuut and Xis are. Ze fought for us, not over us. Ze represents our final salvation. And even if these adolescents grew up here, their elders did not. The Bearer with No Name did not. And they have not forgotten the old stories, even if they came here to forge new ones alongside your people. I’m afraid you don’t understand just how deeply this betrayal will be felt.”
“But it didn’t happen,” Benson said. “Jian denied his father and stopped it from happening.”
Kexx’s skin fluttered, betraying even zer conflicted feelings. “Let us hope that is enough.”
Twenty-Two
Benexx stalked around in the dark tunnels and caverns for what seemed like days, although ze had no way to know how much time had actually passed. Zer captors had realized ze’d gone missing and come looking.
They’d swept through in pairs, skin glowing as brightly as they pleased, scouring the tunnels for their missing hostage. At one point, ze could see the dirt between the toes of one of their feet from the rock shelf ze’d scurried under for cover, close enough to reach out and touch. Close enough ze didn’t dare to breathe. They moved on, and through the grace of Xis, ze’d managed to outpace, evade, or hide from them each time they’d drawn close since.
So far.
Ze’d given in to sleep at one point, holed up in a tiny alcove halfway up a wall scarcely big enough for zer to curl up in. Thankfully, Atlantians weren’t prone to snoring, unlike zer father.
What ze did know was zer waterskin was getting light, as was zer bag of food. If ze didn’t find resupply soon, ze’d be going on a crash diet.
A nagging feeling crept into Benexx’s mind. Ze couldn’t place it at first, but it eventually coalesced into a sort of eerie familiarity. Deja vu, zer mother had called it once. That’s when the space and the smell reoriented in zer mind and Benexx realized with sinking dread that ze’d been in this spot before. Ze was still for a long breath, quiet, listening for sounds of pursuit or hidden enemies. But silence was all that filled zer ears. Benexx took a risk and brought zer skinglow up for the first time since escaping the hole ze’d been thrown in, only to confirm zer worst fears. Ze was standing only meters away from where ze’d started.
Benexx’s hands balled into twisted fists as ze swallowed a scream that would’ve been loud enough to bring the ceiling itself crashing down on zer. Ze’d forgotten Uncle Kexx’s training. Ze should’ve been leaving trail markers to avoid doubling back as ze had. Sakiko wouldn’t have forgotten. Sakiko had always been the more attentive student.
Benexx gave zerself a ten-count to let the anger and self-recrimination wash over zer, and break against the battlements of zer psyche.
“Shouldn’t have taken that left turn at Albuquerque,” ze whispered, smirking at zer own joke. Benexx was probably one of only a couple fullhands of people alive who would get it, thanks to zer father’s untraditional parenting methods and esoteric sense of humor.
Ze walked over to the hole in the floor that opened to the improvised cell ze’d spent the last few days languishing in. Where ze’d languish still if ze hadn’t escaped, except with the added horror of Jolk’s wretched spawn beginning to grow in zer back. Benexx spit into the hole and muttered a curse that would’ve earned a grounding from zer parents as soon as their translators explained what it meant. Actually, ze father would probably know, the amount of time he spent in a locker room.
The plan hadn’t changed; ze needed to get as far away from the literal hell-hole as possible. Benexx looked back over zer shoulder. Ze’d passed a few larger chambers in the last couple hours of walking because ze couldn’t see the far side of them and didn’t want to risk being caught out in the open. But now, it seemed likely one of them was hiding the way out.
Frustrated but determined, Benexx set off in the direction of the nearest chamber, although it was still a considerable distance. The cave network was absolutely massive, and what had at first looked like a straightforward system of ancient lava tubes had grown into a dizzying labyrinth of tunnels melted through the rock by long-gone magma, as well as limestone caverns eroded by rain. The first set of human geologists to set foot in the place would doubtlessly be overjoyed at the discovery, but Benexx had well and truly run out of patience.
Retreading ground ze’d already covered once before, Benexx quickened zer pace through the dark, still alert, but at the same time more confident that ze could avoid any surprises. The vastness of the place worked to zer advantage in one respect. No part of the caves ze’d seen so far indicated any sort of long-term settlement, not now or even in the distant past. They were virgin territory, lacking the worn footpaths, fungus farms, and other refinements of a Dweller city. It would take a small army of people to thoroughly patrol the place, and ze was fairly sure ze was dealing with a terrorist cell. Religious zealots, separatists, whatever they were, they probably only numbered a fullhand or two. Which explained why ze’d only run into three search parties since escaping.
Ze reached the junction to the first chamber in half the time it had taken to leave it behind, despite taking care on the return journey to leave zer little trail markers. Ze’d just have to hope they were subtle enough not to be noticed by zer pursuers. The cavern beyond was huge, and deep. Dots and irregular patches of soft blue light emitted from colonies of bacteria and fungus coated the walls, giving the space shape and volume. Something about it seemed odd to Benexx’s eye until ze realized part of the floor was mirroring the wall next to it.
Water! ze thought with relief and excitement. It was then ze recognized the smell of the pool on the air, however slight. Even perfectly still, clean water had a smell. It was subtle, and easy to overlook in the mingled layers of odors in the stale air. Still, as thirsty as ze’d become, Benexx couldn’t believe ze’d missed it on the first pass.
Ze let the rifle hang from its sling and held up zer hands to get a sense of what else might be hiding in the chamber. The moist air in the caves held odor well, and the sluggish airflow meant it could linger for many hours before fading. There was the usual muddy scent of the bacteria and fungus sticking to the walls, the rusty smell of the rocks themselves, a pinch of salt, a whisper of ammonia and hydrogen sulfide, not nearly enough to worry about, and… and…
Benexx’s hands snapped shut from the shock of the smell. It was subtle, even more subtle that the water had been, but it was there, and it was familiar. So familiar, it couldn’t be mistaken for anything else.
Human sweat.
But what were humans doing down here? Other hostages? They must be. Zer captors must be holding their prisoners in widely separated cells to keep them from comparing notes, organizing, or otherwise increasing their odds of escape. It was probably the first smart thing they’d done, considering how inept their efforts at holding zer had been.
Benexx caught zerself starting to gloat. In truth, the only reason ze’d escaped wasn’t because there was anything wrong with the cage they’d assigned zer to; it was because Jolk was a petty, vindictive little bully who tried to take advantage of zer and lost. If Jolk had even a little more discipline, ze’d still be fl
oundering at the bottom of that hole, or worse, dead. Both zer mother and Uncle Kexx had hammered home the dangers of overconfidence and underestimating one’s opponent.
Zer father, well, he had a different philosophy about these things. His overconfidence had its own gravity. It pulled people along for the ride without him having to do anything.
Propelled by the chance of seeing a friendly face for the first time since zer nightmare had started, Benexx entered the cavern, zer mission of escape morphing into a rescue attempt. Hostages meant guards, although ze didn’t detect any fresh Atlantian pheromones on the air. It was only then ze became aware of zer own smell, and just how powerful it had become after days in captivity. Any Atlantian should be able to smell zer from a hundred paces, and even a human could pick zer up from across a decent-sized room. Ze’d need to fix that. Fortunately, the solution was only meters away.
Ze clung fast to the wall and moved with great care to remain as silent as possible until ze reached the edge of the pool. Its surface was as calm and still as glass, and every bit as clear. Even in the weak bioluminescent light of the cave, ze could see straight down to the bottom of the pond as if there was nothing there at all. It was almost disorienting. The water was so pristine that Benexx felt badly about polluting it. But it only took a moment for zer thirst to win out. Out of habit, ze touched a finger to the water to check its freshness. Too fresh, as ze suspected, fresh enough for humans to drink unfiltered. Like all Atlantians, ze preferred water with a little brine to it. But, in a pinch, fresh would have to do. Ze uncorked the waterskin and gently lowered its mouth into the water, careful not to make any bubbles as it filled or send any telltale ripples across the surface to the other side of the cave beyond what ze’d already cleared as safe.
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