by Rob May
They hit the cloud like it was an inflatable castle, and spent the next minute or so bouncing up and down uncontrollably. Jason swore the whole time, while Grok chuckled and laughed.
‘Well, that was fun,’ Doo said, staggering clear. ‘Can we do it again?’
‘No need,’ Jason said, looking out over the city. ‘Here’s our ride.’
Something big was making its way between the skyscrapers: a huge grey shape that Jason first thought was a parade float. But that was just his eyes showing him what his mind expected to see. In actual fact, it was a building that was moving through the city: a building turned on its side and floating down the streets.
Jason stretched out his arms and slowly waved them up and down. ‘How on Earth did they get that thing moving again?’ he asked himself.
‘Is that the ship you came in on?’ Doo said. ‘The one you left crashed in the jungle?’
Jason nodded. It was indeed the Majestic: battered, battle-scarred and smoking from several orifices, but airborne nevertheless. Once it had been one of New York’s most iconic structures; now it looked like a long, crumpled silver bullet … but at this moment it was the most beautiful thing Jason had ever seen.
It pulled up alongside the building they were on, and a hatch opened up on the side. Doo’s cousin, Brug (or was it Bunk?) stood inside. ‘Get in!’ he yelled. ‘Hurry!’
There was another series of rumbling tremors from deep underground. The entire city shook, and just a few blocks away a building swayed just a little too much, and fell ponderously over, taking out several of its neighbours as it crashed to the ground.
‘Give me Grok,’ Jason said to Doo.
Doo was hesitant. ‘What, are you going to toss him across the gap and into the hatch?’
‘Yep,’ Jason said. ‘Come on, quick.’
There was no time to argue. Doo hand over the baby and Jason flung him across the gap between the skyscraper and the Majestic. Grok wailed the whole way across, but Brug caught him safely.
‘You used your bionoid things to guide him in, right?’ Doo said.
‘Of course,’ Jason said, who had intended to, but in actual fact had pitched the baby perfectly with his bionic arm.
‘Alright then,’ Doo said. ‘Bionoid me in then!’ And with that, she raced up to the edge and leaped into the air.
Jason gave her a mental shove when she was halfway across and sent her crashing into Brug. When he prepared to jump himself, he felt the building he was standing on start to shake wildly. The entire city was falling apart.
‘Come on!’ Doo and Brug shouted from the hatch. ‘Jump!’
He panicked and misjudged his leap. As the skyscraper he had just left collapsed like a Jenga tower, Jason found himself hanging out of the Majestic’s hatch, clinging on by just his fingers. Before he had chance to summon his strength and pull himself up, his fingers slipped and he fell.
Then a hand grabbed his; a tiny hand.
‘Grok!’ he spluttered. This was bad—now he was going to pull the king of the balaks down with him!
But Doo and Brug had each grabbed one of Grok’s little legs, and Jason was able to use the bionoids (the last time he would ever use them, as it turned out) to strengthen the limbs and muscles of all four of them, and allow Doo and Brug to pull them all in to safety.
They sprawled panting in the airlock. Brug crawled over to the hatch and pulled it shut.
‘As if the boss fight wasn’t hard enough,’ Jason gasped, ‘there’s always the frantic escape sequence to go through before you’re done with the game!’
‘Best get up then,’ Brug grunted. ‘You’re not done yet!’
* * *
They ran down the corridors of the Majestic, towards the cockpit. Brug carried Grok, and Jason followed, hand in hand with Doo.
‘How did you get this thing flying again?’ he called after Brug.
‘We didn’t!’ Brug shouted back. ‘The Resistance found out that the zelfs had recovered the wreck from the jungle and started repairs and refuelling. So me and Bunk took a gang of lads over and asked them nicely if you could have it back!’
‘Well, we’re lucky that you did,’ Doo said. ‘When we get back home, I’ll make sure you and Bunk get a heap of treasure and honours for this!’
‘Not Bunk,’ Brug said casually. ‘He got killed in the fight. But I’ll happily take his share of the treasure and glory!’
Jason was stunned. ‘Bunk died? How can you be so nonchalant about it? He was your brother!’
‘He died the way he wanted to!’ Brug said. ‘In the middle of a good scrap. I wish I had died at his side, but he told me I had to go see this girl he always fancied in the tribe.’
‘To pass on his dying words?’ Jason said. ‘Okay, that’s pretty cool, I admit.’
‘What? No! He always wanted to get off with her. He said that now that he wasn’t going to get the chance, I should try my luck! Apparently, she has really big—’
The Majestic suddenly tilted violently and dropped several hundred metres towards street level, sending Jason and the others tumbling around the corridors. Loud bangs echoed around the hull outside.
‘Sounds like a building just fell on us,’ Jason said. ‘What the hell is happening to the city?’
They made it to the cockpit—a small, cramped room full of machinery and navigation equipment that was situated just below (if the Majestic had been standing upright) the large control room that had taken up the top floor of the ship when it had been a building. Hewson was squeezed into the pilot’s chair, wrestling with the controls. Beside him was a zelf woman who was looking intently at readouts on a monitor.
‘Structural integrity at fifty-three percent,’ she was saying to Hewson. ‘We’ve got about half an hour until the whole thing blows apart.’
‘What, the ship?’ Jason said as he and the balaks entered the cockpit.
‘No,’ the woman said, looking up at him. ‘The planet.’ She gave him a weak smile. ‘Hello, Jason. I’m Rana—Brandon’s aunt.’
He took her hand and shook it. He had so many questions, and his mouth flapped open and closed for a moment. ‘Where’s Bran and Kat?’ he said eventually.
‘They’re safe. They made it to the Firebath Caves, with the rest of the balaks and the Resistance. Don’t worry, we’re going to go and pick them up right now.’
‘The Arch Predicant set off some kind of self-destruct system before he died,’ Hewson said. ‘He reversed the flow of the geo-thermal energy pumps that power the city and … something about the core of the planet, right Rana?’
‘Right,’ she confirmed. ‘The core is being overloaded. It’s venting into chambers throughout the rest of the planet that can’t take the extra pressure. Corroza is going to tear itself apart.’
Jason shook his head. ‘He can do that just by flipping a switch?’
‘He designed the whole system to do that,’ Rana said. ‘Zaal often threatened a worldwide apocalypse. The Arch Predicant wanted to make that threat a reality.’
‘Huh,’ Jason grunted. ‘Talk about a self-fulfilling prophecy.’
‘Look down there!’ Doo shouted. On one of the other monitor screens, they could see thousands of people all gathering in one of the wide public plazas that hung between the buildings in the residential sector.
‘Can we pick them up?’ Jason asked.
‘We haven’t got time and we haven’t got room,’ Hewson said from between clenched teeth as he concentrated on guiding the Majestic out of the city.
Jason saw Doo and Rana exchange a concerned look. He realised that if the entire world was on the brink of destruction, then it didn’t matter if you were balak or zelf.
He leaned over Hewson’s chair and put his hand on the man’s shoulder, in a firm vice-like grip. ‘If we don’t save at least some more of the zelfs, then the entire race will most likely go extinct. So take us down there, now!’
* * *
They made it to the Firebath Caves almost twenty minutes later. T
his (and not Brightroot Cave) was the real balak sanctuary—the place where the tribe had fled after the wedding, and where Brandon and Kat had led the slaves after escaping the city.
However, following recent events, the caves now looked just as dangerous a place to be as the lair of the glowing white worms had been. The Firebath Caves were overflowing with lava, which gushed out of cavern mouths and surged along valleys like rivers. Churning clouds of black smoke billowed out of fissures in the rock, and the surrounding jungle was on fire.
‘There!’ Jason said, pointing to where a crowd of people were gathered on the high ground of a flat plateau. Lava was sloshing around the edges and looked like it could spill across any moment. Hewson took the Majestic down as low as he could, then flipped a switch that opened one of the hangar doors.
Doo and Brug rushed out of the cockpit to go help get everyone on board. Rana remained at her monitor. ‘Core integrity at eight percent,’ she reported, a trace of anxiety in her voice.’
Hewson’s hand was hovering on the throttle. ‘We’ll have to go soon, whether everyone is on board or not.’
‘Nobody’s going anywhere until I say so,’ Jason said. ‘Seriously, Hewson; we already left too many people behind back in the city. I’ll smash the controls up if you try to leave before everyone is on board. Either we all escape, or we all go down in flames.’
Hewson gave a tight grin. ‘I believe you,’ he said. ‘Don’t worry, we’ve got a few more minutes. Hey, look at that—seems like we’re going to have some pets on board.’
Jason looked at the monitors showing an outside feed. He could just about make out Kat running around organising the loading of several large cages. A pair of catrons prowled around in one, while a flock of villaxx shook the bars of another. The largest cage held two sleeping dragons.
‘Trust Kat to want to save the animals too,’ Jason said. ‘This is just like the ark.’
Rana gave him a curious look.
‘It’s something biblical,’ he explained. ‘Just like a lot of things that have gone down today!’
Brandon came rushing into the cockpit. ‘Let’s go,’ he snapped. ‘We’re ready; we’re just closing the doors. So let’s hit it … punch it … whatever!’
Hewson nodded and calmly engaged the thrusters. The Majestic lifted away just as a nearby cave belched forth a fresh helping of lava, which sloshed over the plateau, covering it from view.
Rana slumped back in her chair in relief. Jason punched a console in triumph. Brandon turned to him and, after an awkward moment, they embraced.
‘You did it, Jason. You did what I couldn’t, and defeated the Arch Predicant.’
‘It’ wasn’t all my doing,’ Jason said. ‘Wait til you hear the full story. But what about you? You masterminded the whole plan. I couldn’t have done it without you and the bionoids. Hey, cheer up—we’re safe now!’
Brandon’s expression was bleak. ‘We’re far from safe. But let’s take one thing at a time and get as far away from Corroza as possible.’
As they rose higher and higher into the stratosphere, they watched the jungle below transform: new fires were breaking out in patches all over the planet surface as explosions within the core made their presence felt at the crust. The Majestic pointed upwards, a towering skyscraper once more, and rocketed into space. By the time they were high enough that the full circle of the planet was visible, the jungle was more red than green.
Kat entered the cockpit and stood beside Jason without a word. Doo returned, too, and took his hand. They all watched on the monitors, unable to take their eyes off the small round disc as it pulsed and flickered angrily.
Corroza got smaller and smaller, until it was just a bright red dot. They stared at it in silence for a few more long minutes.
‘Come on,’ Brandon said, and led them all out into the main control room. This vast chamber was at the very top of the Majestic. It was here that, back on Earth, they had faced the Thanamorph Prime and the robot assassin known as Saoirse. Brandon went to a control panel and pressed a switch that rolled back the blast shields from the windows. Now, the vast emptiness of space surrounded them almost completely, and they could see the dying glow of Corroza with their own eyes.
‘I just needed to see it for real,’ Brandon said. ‘One last time. My home planet. ’
‘And mine,’ Doo said.
‘Well, we’re all homeless now,’ Jason said. ‘So much for the idea of starting a new life on Corroza.’
‘That place was rotten to the core like a bad apple,’ Kat said. ‘I’m not sad to leave.’
And as if in answer, Corroza exploded, expanding to a ball almost as large as the nearby sun, swallowing whole its orbiting moons, and turning every corner of space blood red for a few brief seconds. There was no sound, and only a slight vibration from the shock waves, and then as quickly as it had blown up, Corroza winked out of existence.
And the universe returned to normal as if the planet, and all of its life and struggles, had never existed.
20—SUPERLUMINAL
Jason loaded two twenty kilogram plates onto either end of the bar, ducked underneath it and hefted it onto his shoulders. The total weight, including the bar, was one hundred kilograms. Jason took a deep breath and prepared to squat.
He wasn’t even wearing his bionic arm; he had disposed of it now that its job was done. Just looking at it had brought back too many memories of its former owner, Saoirse; and of smashing an elderly villain several times in the face.
He didn’t need it for this particular exercise anyway. The squat was all about the strength in your quadriceps (also known as your thighs) and the stability of your abdominals. Jason lowered himself until his bum almost touched the floor, then stood up again with an explosive exhalation of breath.
He was in the Majestic’s gym. Through the mirror on the wall opposite, he could survey all the activity around him. Two massive balaks were alternating bench press sets. Across the other side of the big open space, a group of zelf girls were laughing at some hilarious joke as they pedalled side by side on the exercise bikes. The President’s two daughters were on the rowers; they had smiled and waved at Jason as they came in, seemingly having no bad blood for the fact that he had defeated their father in a fight to the death.
The gym doors swung open and Kat came in, dressed in a leotard and luminous yellow sweatbands. She strolled over to her brother and helped him complete his fifth rep by adding the power of her little finger to the underside of the barbell.
‘Thanks,’ he grunted.
‘No problem,’ Kat said. ‘How’s it going, anyway?’
‘Pretty good,’ Jason said. ‘I think my arm is growing back.’ He waggled his shoulder stump in his sister’s face.
‘Hmm. Maybe by a millimetre,’ Kat said. ‘Here. I brought you some beef jerky from the stores.’
‘Yum. Protein,’ Jason said, grabbing the snack and scoffing half of it in one bite. ‘How are things with you, Deputy Captain?’
Kat was in charge of the day to day running of the ship. ‘Not so great,’ she said. ‘Food supplies are getting low. Most of what’s left is beef jerky, and the balaks are not too happy, them being vegetarian and all.’
‘They’ll change their ways before this voyage it over,’ Jason said, lowering himself into another squat.
‘If this voyage is ever over,’ Kat said. ‘There’s still no sign of any habitable planets worth making for. Tensions are starting to run high: some zelfs and balaks got in a fight in a bar last night.’
‘Let me guess,’ Jason said. ‘Over religion?’
‘No. Over a game of monopoly. Hewson had to lock them all in the brig. Oh, and down in the zoo, one of the catrons—’
Jason’s eyes widened. ‘Escaped?’
‘No,’ Kat said. ‘One of them’s got a splinter in her paw. But no one dares get too close because of those deadly claws. I’d get Brandon to go check it out, but he hardly ever leaves his room.’
‘How are things betwee
n you and Bran?’
Kat’s expression darkened. ‘Nothing much going on there. The other day, when you and Doo went on that romantic picnic down in engineering, I suggested that me and Bran go on our own little adventure. He just wasn’t interested. He prefers to sit in his room all day and read his astronomy books.’
She sighed. ‘I think it’s over, Jason, but neither of us has the guts to admit it.’
‘Do you want me to go and talk to him?’ Jason said, standing up and putting the weight back in the rack.
‘Not now,’ Kat said. ‘Well, not unless you want to tell him to man-up and break up with me properly!’
* * *
Jason showered, then got dressed in his Adidas tracksuit and matching trainers. The top had the Chrysler logo over the left chest and across the back: the old nineteen sixties Forward Look logo, two intersecting chevrons that gave the impression of a rocket ship. The Majestic was stocked with hundreds of the tracksuits, but Jason didn’t care that every other person on board (especially the balaks) seems to be sporting one: he had the rarest colour. There was only one black tracksuit aboard the entire ship.
He walked through the dark-wood-panelled corridors. It was funny, but all the art deco stylings made the Majestic seem more alien to him than the futuristic skyscrapers of Corroza. The fact that there were balaks and zelfs walking around, saluting him as they passed, made the ship seem even less human.
Hewson collared him as he passed through the shopping lobby. ‘I need your help tonight at a zelfs versus balaks football game, Jason,’ he said as they walked.
‘Oh, come on!’ Jason said. ‘Can’t you and Brug handle that yourselves? Sign up a few more guys for security detail, if you need to. There’s this balak dude I met in the gym who was asking about joining up.’
Hewson laughed. ‘I’ve got security covered. But we need a referee for the game, and Brandon told me that you’re probably the only person on board who knows the offside rule.’
‘So that’s why everyone voted me captain of this ship,’ Jason said. ‘Because of my specialist knowledge.’