Ueland indicated with a nod of his head that they should follow him and they did. Adam had been listening and he followed as well. As they passed Tish and her mother, they rose from their half-made beds and followed. They arrived in the small control cabin of the engine car. Blanchfleur noticed the youngsters.
“You two kids should get back to bed,” she said and stood there with her arms crossed, looking firm.
Adam spoke quickly. “I’m staying.”
Blanchfleur looked toward Nora and Mabon, who turned to one another and simultaneously shrugged. “Adam more than took care of himself during the attack in the valley,” said Nora. “He can stay.”
“What about Tish and Alice?” asked the mayor, suddenly unsure of herself and doing her best to appear conciliatory.
“I’m staying, Mother,” said Alice. “I would prefer to know what’s going on.”
“Me, too,” said Tish. She wanted very much to stay near the adults she knew and relied on.
“You may not like what you hear, darling,” said Blanchfleur. “I’m going to leave it up to your mother.”
“I’m staying,” said Tish emphatically. Alice shrugged.
“Let her stay,” said Adam. “She’s a person, too.” If he could stay, why shouldn’t she? Besides, it was nice to have another kid around, even if she was an insider.
Tish looked at Adam with an expression he couldn’t read, an odd mixture of appreciation and resentment. That look bothered him a bit, made him feel awkward and uncomfortable, but he still wanted her to stay.
“Okay, let’s talk,” Mabon said. “Blanchfleur, you seem to have some clear ideas of what we might find up ahead. So do I and so do the others, I imagine. I’d like to hear your thoughts and whatever solutions you might have. For instance, I’m wondering if it might make sense to travel in the deep of the night, when most people will choose to be asleep. Our enemies will probably go to the undamaged service centres or to some camping area for the night. The planes and the satellites and the robot drones will be looking for light or sound, but we’ll be underground. We can slow down as we pass the service buildings. That sort of thing.”
“That makes sense, regarding the human enemies, at least. The drones and the kill bots don’t care about the time of day or about light or dark, but some of their controllers do,” said Blanchfleur, as she ran her long fingers through her hair, trying to shake out some of the dirt and untangle the many knots the day’s activities had brought to it. “I expect that we may find some of the traitors somewhere up ahead.
“It would be my guess that they were duped into betraying Aahimsa and they discovered too late that their treachery would not be rewarded except by termination by Federation forces. Perhaps they’ve all been apprehended by the Federation, but I expect not. There weren’t any signs of a violent attack against the train.”
“What sort of weapons can we expect them to have?” asked Mabon.
“I assume you refer to the train passengers,” said Blanchfleur. “If you are thinking of them as citizens who betrayed us, there may be members of the police with them. If so they could have powerful Tasers; if not, I can’t be sure. There was little need for weapons in Aahimsa. But we can’t know for sure.”
“You think they could be someone else?” asked Nora, her green eyes alert and worried.
“Anything is possible,” said Blanchfleur, turning her dark eyes on Ueland. “Possibly some of your workers, Doctor.”
“Not likely,” he said. “My workers were hit first during the attack, which began at the Agrihome. The ones who did escape were headed through tunnels running south and west. They would never risk entering the city.”
“What about Federation fighters?” asked Alice.
“Yes,” said Blanchfleur. “This is a real worry. There were rumblings lately of unauthorized visitors from the Federation arriving unannounced and speaking at various gatherings in Aahimsa. If some of these were professional fighters, they’ll have access to some of the most powerful weapons on the planet.”
“But there may be nobody at all up ahead. So what do you propose we do?” asked Mabon, his arms crossed and his jaw set firmly.
“And where should we head?” asked Nora, moving over near Mabon, who uncrossed his arms and pulled her gently close to him, his jaw relaxing. “Should we get out of this tunnel and travel over land somewhere?”
Ueland stepped into the conversation. “We should head for Queenstown. Blanchfleur has suggested to me that there are a couple of excellent places nearby where we could hide for a while until the situation cools off. And if not somewhere in the city ruins, there are the offshore islands and all the abandoned land across the river and along the other side of the lake. It sounds like an excellent starting place with lots of options.”
“One person with a mobile phone or a single light can let the Federation know we’re here,” said Adam. “Wouldn’t it be better to avoid any place where people might gather?”
“Yes, without a doubt. That would be real trouble,” said Mabon. “Look what they’ve done to Aahimsa and the Manuhome.”
After a bit of conversation and assurance from Blanchfleur that one unknown location was as dangerous as another, and that Queenstown offered, in her opinion, the best available possibilities for safe haven, they decided to stay with the train until Queenstown.
Afterwards, Adam and Tish were sitting on different ends of a bench along the back wall of the engine car. He turned and glanced at her. She noticed and turned angrily to him.
“What are you looking at?” she said.
“Sorry,” said Adam, with a broad grin. “But I noticed you were looking at me a whole lot earlier.”
“I never saw a young outsider before,” she said, staring down at her dirty shoes and stockings.
“I never even saw another kid my age before,” said Adam, laughing and feeling like he might have won the little game they were playing. “I only saw a few older kids working in the Manuhome, and I never was allowed to talk to them or be near them. And they weren’t even allowed to talk to me or anything.”
“Oh,” she said, feeling a pang of sympathy. “I forgot about that.”
“Your grandmother says we’re all outsiders now. But you and I are the only kids,” said Adam.
“But you’ll always be the outsider to me,” said Tish, feeling the need to separate herself from Adam.
“No, that’s not true. I’m just a boy and you’re just a girl. You’ll be a woman and I’ll be a man and we’ll always be outsiders, both of us. Maybe we’ll even be friends someday.” He looked down at his badly scuffed and worn leather boots.
“Maybe we won’t,” she said, looking away again.
“I bet we will,” he said cheerfully. He stood up and went out of the engine car.
Chapter 19:
Heading for Queenstown
That night on the train, once everyone was settled for the night, Blanchfleur departed from the rear car where Alice and Tish lay curled up on two of the seats, already asleep. She joined Nora, Mabon, and Adam in the front passenger car. She found them sitting in silence and wide awake.
“Where’s Ueland?” she asked and took a seat behind them.
“Up front in the engine car,” said Adam. “Mabon is going to go up to join him in a minute. He thinks the doctor may need a break.”
“Does anyone mind if I sleep here?” she asked, pointing at one of the empty seats.
“If you want,” said Adam.
“Okay,” said Nora, and Mabon said with a smile, “Fill your boots.”
“Great,” Blanchfleur said. “But before that, I’m going up with Ueland now, too, if you don’t mind, Mabon. You coming?” she said, looking at Nora and Adam. They shook their heads and the other two went out the door one after the other.
After they left, Nora said to Adam, “You ready to sleep?”
&n
bsp; “I’ll try,” he said. He moved close to her and she drew in so he could lean against her. He made no protest this time and Nora supposed it was because for the moment they were alone in the car.
“I saw you talking to Tish,” said Nora.
“Yeah,” he said, his voice already drowsy.
“What did she say?” she asked.
“Nothing much really. She says I’ll always be an outsider,” he said, yawning sleepily.
“What did you say?”
“I said we’d be friends someday.”
“Good for you,” she said. “I bet you’ll be fine friends one day.”
“Maybe,” he said. “Probably. Goodnight, Mom. I love you.”
Chapter 20:
Somewhere Near Queenstown
When Adam next woke, the train was in darkness and perfectly silent. There was no sense of motion, no electric whirr from the engine. He slipped from under the sleeping bag that his mother must have drawn over him while he slept and fumbled his way to where he guessed the door to the engine room would be. He was relieved when, still half-asleep, he found it and entered the engine car. It was pitch black inside and completely empty.
Carefully, he made his way back to his sleeping bag and crawled back inside. He wondered where everyone was but not for long as he was so groggy that he fell quickly back asleep. At some point he had a dream that came from time to time. He was back inside the valley where he and Nora and Mabon lived with the old ones who had managed to escape the Manuhome and carved out a few years of happiness for themselves. They took in Nora and Mabon and gave Adam the best years of his life. He learned from Nora and her books and the kindness and wisdom of Mabon. He learned love and courage and many skills from his adoptive parents and many skills from the old ones. The dream always ended with the battle, a hollow victory, and the sacrifices and deaths of the old ones. And then he startled and was awake.
“Queenstown,” Adam heard someone say aloud. Someone had turned on a small light in the car and most of the others were up and dressed for the day and gathered together around the rear section. He shook the confusion out of his drowsy head and sat up quickly.
“You’re awake,” a voice said from the seats opposite him. He turned and saw Tish there, squatting on the seat opposite him. “We’re stopped somewhere under that Queenstown place,” she said.
“We’re here,” he said, “and we’re safe.”
“Maybe,” she whispered. “I don’t really feel safe. I’m a bit scared.”
“What have they been saying?” he asked and handed her the apple he’d been carrying since they got on the train. She held it high in her hand. “Give it back and I’ll divide it,” he said.
“All I heard was my grandmother telling someone what I told you. Then they went to the back of the car and started talking quieter,” Tish answered. She bit into the apple and handed it to him. “Have a bite,” she said. “I guess if we have to be friends we can eat the same apple.”
“Let’s go up closer so we can hear,” he said, taking the apple and biting into it. He handed it back to Tish. He had slept in his clothes and only took a moment to quickly fold and tie up his sleeping bag.
Tish held the apple and led the way. When they were close enough to hear the adults, they sat on opposite sides, keeping the aisle between them, handing the apple back and forth until it was gone save for the seeds and the crispy bits inside. Adam looked for someplace to put the damp bits he still held in his hand and finally dropped them into his shirt pocket.
Blanchfleur was speaking to the others and she paused to glance at the two youngsters briefly before continuing. “So today you will learn something about your options,” she said, then pulled back her grubby hair, forming a ponytail that she fixed with a heavy rubber band. She appeared to Adam to have become somehow younger and softer during their travels. He guessed that it was only from getting to know her a bit more.
“What is there to learn, Mom?” asked Alice, who seemed brighter and more relaxed this morning, too. “We’re in the wild and there’s really no perfectly safe place we can go, is there?”
“Time will tell,” her mother said, her face hopeful. “There are no completely safe places. Good times come and go no matter where you are.”
“Have you been keeping secrets from us?” asked Ueland with a teasing grin.
“You aren’t the only one with secrets,” the mayor said. “We all have lots of untold stories to tell, don’t we, Ueland?”
“Yes, that’s true,” he said. “Are we going to tell all now?” he asked. He was enjoying himself, as was Blanchfleur.
“No, not all of them. But I’m going to explain something that will surprise a few of you, perhaps all of you. It may prove helpful to us or may prove to be a problem or something in between. But bear with me and you will hear some of it.
“As mayor of Aahimsa, I had a certain amount of power to shape the futures of many people. There were, however, certain lines drawn in the sand that I crossed not only at my peril but also to the endangerment of my entire city and its population along with its attachments and enterprises.”
“Like the Manuhome?” said Mabon, his voice low and sad.
“Exactly,” she said. “Like the Manuhome.”
“And what about the Happy Valley?” asked Adam, wondering if he had said too much.
Blanchfleur hesitated, momentarily annoyed. Then she gathered herself together and smiled. “Yes, like the valley.”
“But you didn’t know anything about the old ones’ valley for a long, long time,” said Nora.
“Don’t be too sure,” said Ueland.
“What do you mean?” asked Alice, raising her voice.
“I’m sorry, but we don’t have time for this now,” said Blanchfleur. “If things work out we will have time for all of these questions before long. If not, they won’t matter anyway. All that matters for the moment is getting us all to a safe place.”
“Where is this safe place?” asked Mabon, moving closer.
“If it hasn’t been destroyed like all the other places that we used to love, it is not far from where we are right now,” she said.
“In Queenstown?” asked Tish.
“There is no ‘Queenstown’ as such,” said Blanchfleur. “There is a place in what was once a small city above where we are located in the tunnel, in a partially destroyed set of buildings once used by a group of religious women from the old world. They called themselves ‘sisters’ and lived together in a community where they shared everything they had and worked and prayed together to help their community and serve their god.”
“Did they have children?” asked Tish.
“They had no children of their own. They sometimes worked in schools as teachers of children or in hospitals serving others. It was other people they worked to serve and in that way and through their prayers they served their god. They lived simple lives together as individuals. I understand that they were quite happy, for the most part, doing that.”
“Did they get married?” asked Adam. He had never heard of these people.
Blanchfleur laughed. “In a way, they did. This was long ago in the old world, long before the insider cities. They followed an outsider, a holy man they called Christ, whom they believed to be the Son of God. They believed this Son had come to earth and died for the sins of everyone and then was killed and returned to his father. These sisters would sometimes say they were the brides of this Christ.”
“Do they still live here?” asked Tish.
“No, dear. That was many years in the past. They have all died and gone.”
“Then where are we going and is there someone there?” asked Adam.
“That depends on whether the Federation knows about what I did here at this place, this ancient monastery where these women lived in community and followed a strict set of rules in common.”
/> “What did you do?” asked Tish.
“Remember that the World Federation of City-States had many laws about what insiders could do and couldn’t do.” She looked from face to face and saw that everyone was waiting for the next words. “Well, there are always those who disagree and try to do things their own way without considering the consequences of their words and their actions, right, Nora? Nora can understand this.”
Nora nodded. She was very aware of the consequences of her actions. Adam was here, close by and alive, to prove it, and she had no regrets about that.
“I have many regrets centred around all that followed, but I can’t say I would have done, or, indeed, could have done anything different than I did,” said Blanchfleur. “Nora’s escape with Adam was an event I had no control over, and no say in. She chose to leave the protection of Aahimsa with a foundling child born outside our laws who had no rights to exist. I predicted her actions would have dire consequences and they did. We’ve all seen what happened to Aahimsa and the Manuhome once the Federation found its excuse to destroy us.”
“So it’s all my fault?” said Nora on the verge of tears.
“No, Nora, it is not your fault. Even if it was the consequences of your choice and the actions that followed. But it would likely have happened sooner or later. It may have happened at exactly the same time, or even earlier if you had not saved the child. You acted out of love and that is never anyone’s fault. Ueland acted out of love when he tried to save the old ones. And I, too, acted out of love on several occasions. I am about to tell you of one of them.”
“You acted out of love quite often,” interrupted Ueland, his voice tender, not at all the official, controlled voice they were used to hearing from him.
“Not now, Doctor. Please, not now. Let me get on with this.”
“Very well,” said Ueland, “continue.” He stepped back a few feet from where she stood.
“You haven’t told us what you did,” said Tish. “What you did when you acted out of love.”
“I was very close to telling you my secrets, but that would have spoiled the fun. It would also have placed all of you in greater danger, so I’ve decided to show you rather than tell you about my foolish, headstrong act of love. You will have to wait until we arrive at our destination and settle in. I’m still not certain that our sanctuary awaits. I don’t know how much the Federation knows about my activities. I’ve tried to keep them secret, but you all know how difficult it can be to keep those secrets.
And All the Stars Shall Fall Page 10