[scifan] plantation 04 - beyond the river of time

by Stella Samiotou Fitzsimons

  emotion in a safe spot in our brain, they would not be able to access it.”

  “Ah, did he tell you how to do that? It doesn’t sound easy.”

  “He did. Zolkon told us how to lock access to the part of our brain that controls emotion with

  visualization and self-hypnosis techniques. Did you know that Sliman are especially skilled at that?”

  I nod. I remember Wudak talking about hypnosis and how he was able to block entire parts of

  Pip’s memory.

  “I had no idea if it had worked,” Damian goes on, “until the moment I saw you and everything

  was released in me again.”

  “Do you think Zolkon is on our side after all?” I say still trying to accept the fact he saved my

  life and then did it a second time in the same day.

  Damian shakes his head. “I don’t think he has any allegiance. He’s looking out for himself. But I

  believe he felt he owed you one. And I also believe in his mind you are now even. You should not

  count on him ever again.”

  “I didn’t plan on it,” I say.

  Damian smiles. “I guess your next question would be about Kroll.”

  “We can think about Kroll later,” I say.

  “We?” he says. “Does this mean you will get me released from these chains?”

  “These chains might be the only way to keep you safe.”

  “You would keep your husband chained?” he says. “Don’t forget what we did.”

  “Ah, it’s all coming back to me,” I say amused. “We really got married by that weird hot spring,

  didn’t we? You promised to love me now and forever.”

  Damian laughs a long while. “I can’t believe you remember it,” he says. “Burning with fever,

  drugged and half-asleep but that bit is still there.”

  “Was it real to you?” I ask.

  “It can be whatever you want it to be,” he says with a sudden reflective sadness in his voice.

  “It doesn’t matter anyway,” I say absorbing part of his sadness into my bloodstream. “Rabbit

  and Scout are gone and I’m not sure if it’d be better for them to be alive or dead. It’s a matter of time before Exodus falls.”

  “Up,” he says.

  “What?” I say confused.

  “Get up, I need to unstrap my legs.”

  I do as he says and watch him bend over to reach the straps around his ankles. He springs onto

  his feet rubbing his wrists. “I will find a way to turn things around, Freya,” he says. “But I have to get off Exodus.”

  My heart sinks at his words. I’m going to lose him again. I make up my mind fast. “I’ll go with

  you.”

  He looks at me sternly. “You should be wherever you’re needed,” he says. “I know you. You

  won’t be happy with anything less.”

  “I’m not needed anywhere anymore.”

  “Bullshit,” he says. “Get it through your head. You have uncanny wartime instincts and you have

  Tobi and Pip. You are essential.”

  “I should have looked for a receptor,” I say. “It should have been the first thing I did once I got

  inside the plantation.”

  “You wouldn’t have found any,” he says. “They don’t just let them lying around. You know that.

  Not since you arrived in their world.”

  It seems he has answers for everything today. I take a deep breath in and then breathe out. “We

  have to get you out of here.”

  The technician doesn’t like what he sees. He instinctively reaches for the intercom keeping his

  eyes on Damian.

  “Don’t bother,” I say to him. “If he wanted out, he could have gotten out at anytime.”

  The technician swallows hard. His eyes get narrower behind his glasses.

  “I’m taking full responsibility for Damian’s release. We can call up Commander Eldritch if you

  wish, but we’d be waking him up.”

  “This is highly against regulations,” he says. “You will be the one to answer if anything

  happens.” He hands me a form and asks me to sign it.

  “Thank you,” Damian says as the technician unlocks the door.

  “I’ll be back for Kroll,” I say when I’m halfway through the door. I can only imagine the poor

  man’s terror.

  *

  “EXODUS IS BEING PREPARED for the ultimate battle,” Theo says when I ask why it’s so

  silent on the station tonight.

  Damian and I walked together through the halls and common areas. We felt creeped out by the

  complete emptiness we found everywhere.

  The remaining Saviors have gathered in a meeting room. Only Finn and Zoe are missing.

  “The aliens have started the process of shutting down plantations,” Biscuit says. “There is some

  major mobilization among alien facilities.”

  “We know for a fact that the children of Plantation-5 were moved,” Theo says. “There have

  been indications that Plantation-3 will be the next to be evacuated.”

  “Where are the children taken?” I ask.

  “I don’t think anyone has the answer to that,” Theo says pensively.

  “Almost as if they’re getting ready to leave the planet,” I say.

  “Or destroy it,” Damian says.

  “The explosions against the Exodus shield have lessened,” Theo says. “We don’t know why.

  And all our major problems remain unchanged.”

  I know what Theo means. The fate of the children in the various plantations is out of our hands.

  The aliens will gather up their last energy fields and bring out their heavy weaponry like when they

  first invaded Earth.

  Their resources have been out of use for a very long time and they will probably need to

  perform a lot of testing. But they will get everything ready. It might be their swan song but they will not go down without a battle to end all battles. They have my genetic code and once they defeat us,

  they will be ready to produce their first offspring in decades.

  I leave Damian to get caught up with the other Saviors and go to visit with Zoe who was hurt

  worse than originally thought. Three broken bones along her leg and ankle and a nasty skull fracture.

  Exodus is in panic mode as if trying to retreat into its own belly. Bright red signs have been

  placed at different spots indicating gathering places in case of a missile attack. White signs indicate places to avoid as they have been deemed the most vulnerable.

  I count three supply stations complete with food, clothing and ammunition. There are painted

  lines on the floor along the corridors that we have to follow when we walk. Green for those heading

  to their rooms, brown for those exiting a Sector, blue for those visiting common areas.

  Every inhabitant over the age of eighteen has been given a specific position and duty during the

  crisis. Youngsters are kept in schools and daycares under the supervision of their teachers and

  caregivers. None of that is going to matter if the shields don’t hold.

  Spring Town is extremely vulnerable without the power generated by the receptor. Everything

  hangs on a thread as far as its defensive systems. But the aliens don’t want Spring Town for the time being. They want Exodus and they want me and they want both of us bad enough to risk using up their

  last resources. Which won’t matter much to them if they are ever able to generate more hands for the

  receptors.

  I knock on Zoe’s door twice before Finn lets me in. Zoe is propped up on the bed by two

  pillows with her left leg stretched out over a third pillow. There’s an open book on the bed. Finn has been reading to her.

  “He never leaves, does he?
” Zoe says glancing at Finn.

  “Nope, he doesn’t,” I say smiling. “Once he takes your cause on, you’re stuck with him.”

  “I’m still here, by the way,” Finn says.

  “Not for long,” I say. “It’s time for some girl talk.”

  Finn squeezes Zoe’s hand before he goes.

  I sit on the bed moving the book onto the side table. “How are you holding up, Zoe?’

  She stares down at the covers on the bed. “I don’t know,” she says. “I’m numb and I feel guilty

  about it.”

  My heart goes to my dear friend. Pain hasn’t settled in yet. When it does, it will be devastating.

  “Joshua wanted to be there for you,” I say. “There was no stopping him. He wanted you to be safe. He

  would be happy to know his mission was accomplished.”

  “I try not to think about it,” Zoe says. “I’ve been told it’s called denial.”

  I nod. “I should have been able to protect him.”

  Zoe turns her weary eyes on me. “Freya, are you forgetting? They had to fly you out of there on a

  stretcher.”

  “Actually, I did forget that part,” I say with a half smile. “I told him to run, Zoe, and that’s when he was hit. The memory lingers in my mind.”

  “Please change the subject,” Zoe says. “You are messing with my denial.”

  I look at Zoe with a new kind of admiration. “How can you be so calm about it?” I say. “I should

  be the one comforting you.”

  “Because there’s still work to be done and we need cool heads,” she says. “We owe it to the

  fallen and we owe it to the ones who remain.”

  I am astonished to hear her commitment to the war that has taken everything from her. I wish I

  could believe as strongly as dear Zoe.

  “Let me show you something,” she goes on. “Do you see that box over there by the desk? Bring

  it to me.”

  I pick up the cardboard box. It looks like a shoebox except is has nature scenes painted on it. A

  forest, a lake, a starry sky. I hand it over to Zoe who opens it and takes out a few index cards.

  “What are those?” I say.

  “Daphne and I used to play a game,” she says. “Back in our days of innocence when we thought

  war would be a piece of cake. We used to watch you guys in training, in simulation and in meetings.

  Then we gave you scores on a scale of one to ten. I was rather generous with everyone but Daphne

  was as tough as she could be. I kept a few of the cards. Do you want to see her scores from a random

  day?”

  “You girls had some weird idea of a good time,” I say astounded at Zoe’s revelation.

  Zoe gives me an index card. “Read,” she commands me.

  I look down at the odd handwriting. Daphne’s handwriting. It’s not the first time I’ve seen it but

  it’s the first time I stop and notice the odd little peculiarities of the r’s and the w’s and the p’s. I see Rabbit’s name with a 4+ next to it. Tilly has a 4-. Theo has a 5 and Nya a 6. Finn has a 7 and Damian a 9. And then I see my name. Freya: 9+.

  I look up at Zoe. “Is this a joke?” I say.

  She shakes her head. “On that day we were grading potential. Daphne knew before anybody else

  did. Before you ever picked up a receptor and discovered what your mutated genes were all about.

  She said she sensed a pool of energy in you that was unlike anything she had felt coming from another being.”

  “If only Daphne had the mutated genes,” I say, “the world would have already been won.” I put

  the card down by Zoe’s feet and hold my face in my hands.

  “Daphne believed in you. We all do,” Zoe says.

  I wish I could tell Zoe I have nothing left, that it’s been mostly luck and some mutated genes that

  have nothing to do with who I am. I want to confess my dark, selfish thoughts and beg them all not to tie their destinies to me.

  Instead, I start to read other cards from her painted box. I see that Zoe gave me a 2-on a given

  day. I show it to her and she laughs like a devil.

  20

  I knock on the door of Commander Eldritch’s office with a heavy heart. It doesn’t feel right that

  I’ve come to say goodbye when the station is getting ready to take its ultimate stand.

  I find him on his wheelchair. Our scheduled monthly therapeutic session is well overdue and the

  effects are seen on Eldritch. His features are tense from the pain in his joints and the lack of sleep that comes with it.

  “Ah, Freya,” he says, “come on in. I hear you’re planning on leaving us.” His face is sad,

  worried. He tries to hide the fact beneath a smile.

  “I hope you won’t mind too much,” I say.

  “Of course I will mind. But I’m hoping you have a plan.” His face cheers up for a moment and

  then gets serious again. “Do you?” he says. “Don’t keep me in suspense.”

  “Ah, Commander, I wish I could tell you I did,” I say. “It so happens I just plan to follow my

  instinct. Everyone seems to think it can’t go wrong.”

  “Yes, yes, instinct,” he says. “I’ve heard a story or two about your instinct. Where do you think

  it will take you this time?”

  I laugh at his question. “If I knew, it wouldn’t be an instinct, would it?”

  Commander Eldritch glances deep into my eyes. “Do you want a piece of advice from an old,

  broken-down man?”

  I nod. “I’d love to hear your advice,” I say. “But you’re not broken down.”

  “That’s generous of you,” he says. “The truth is I failed to act because I tried to use reason in a

  situation that was unreasonable. I decided that staying out of danger was a good strategy. The truth is it never was going to get easier to sacrifice the children on Exodus. Whether it be thirty years ago or now.” He shakes his head. “It never gets easier,” he says. “Do what you have to do the moment you

  see an opportunity. At the very least you won’t have to deal with decades of guilt and regrets.”

  I look at him wearily. “In every battle, there are many regrets you take with you. If we measured

  our regrets, it would be a close race.”

  Eldritch stretches over to take my hand in his. This unexpected gesture of familiarity startles me

  and I’m not sure how to respond.

  “I hope you can forgive me,” he says.

  “Commander, what are you talking about?” I say.

  “Was it all my fault? Sending the troops down there?”

  “No,” I say firmly. “Don’t ever think that. It would have happened sooner or later. They were

  after me. They always are. They were the ones testing the shields through Torik, I told you that. They would have attacked Spring Town to pry me away once they managed to get the shield down.”

  “Freya, don’t you make this your fault either,” he says. “The children of Exodus whisper your

  name like you’re a hero from old legends.”

  I put an arm around his shoulder. “I will fight,” I tell him. “For you and for me. I won’t let

  Exodus down.”

  His glistening eyes squint at me. “Just do what your heart tells you and don’t worry about what

  anyone thinks,” he says. “I have faith in you.”

  “Thank you, sir,” I say and bow.

  He shakes my hand. “One last thing,” he says. “Take Kroll with you, please. He upsets my

  stomach.”

  I laugh. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

  *

  THERE HAVE BEEN THREE ATTACKS on the shield in the last two hours. The whole of

  Exodus felt the quivering of the last one. Somehow we know it’s just a prelude to what’s to come.r />
  Theo has been monitoring the pattern of frequency and intensity in an effort to figure out the best

  moment for the space pod to take off as safely as possible. I don’t have any illusions. I know we

  could be blown right out of the sky despite our best precautions. But we need to minimize the risk.

  I meet Finn at the Observatory where he’s been hiding these days. When he’s not trying to

  entertain Zoe, that is. Something in Finn has shifted since the night of the battle at Plantation-15 and it’s causing him to be more brooding and absent-minded than usual.

  “So, you’re leaving,” he says when he sees me.

  “Yes,” I say. “I have to stop the empire and I cannot do it from here.”

  “What is it you think you can do?” he says.

  “I don’t know. My instinct will guide me. Isn’t this what you’ve always told me?”

  “You shouldn’t listen to me,” he says. “Sometimes, I’m faking it.”

  “We all do that, Finn,” I say. “I guess that’s the same as instinct.”

  He points at the glass ceiling above us. “You can see some pretty interesting things from here

  when the shield is hit,” he says. “The liquid explosives especially can light up the sky like

  fireworks.”

  “Come with us,” I say.

  “Not this time, Tick. I feel I am more needed here.”

  I put my hand on his shoulder. We look together at the dark sky above the station. I can’t find any

  words that would add to our connection. Nothing would be able to assuage the fear that has crept up

  inside our hearts.

  “You will enter a dangerous zone,” he says. “There’s no telling how long the shields will hold

  around Spring Town without your energy.”

  “The whole planet is at danger,” I say. “I have to make sure the Dark Legion will hold up under

  Kroll. The rest I will figure out as I go.”

  “You trust Kroll,” he says.

  “I have no reason not to.”

  “Remember when we were kids and your brother made a swing for us?” he says. “You wanted

  me to push you so high you could reach the sky. Higher, you said, higher. I’m getting near the sun.”

  I stay silent.

  “Did you hear me, Tick?” he says.

  I heard him. I heard many things in his voice. Things that I wish weren’t there anymore.