The Other

by Matthew Buscemi

  “It would allow us to weaponize that program,” Sahaan said. “Given their position, it’s a reasonable request.”

  “Reasonable?” The doctor frowned. “What’s to prevent them from overrunning the Reclamation once they’re inside? They could explode just like Samantha, and this time it won’t be inside a containment zone.”

  The scientist sighed and pushed down the screen of his computer, apparently deciding to fully join the conversation. “I heard that the request is for just one of them. This Charles. Assuming it is just one person, then we have weapons that we know can kill them and inoculations that we know can prevent transformation, correct?”

  “Well, yes.”

  “Sounds as though we could probably manage, as long as we can give Charles a large enough escort.” The scientist turned to Sahaan. “How’s he supposed to get inside, anyway?”

  “That’s why I need an Engineering Corp representative,” Sahaan said. “I need to know all the possible risks and precautionary measures that can be put in place if we intentionally open up a path through the walls.”

  “May I be frank, Mr. President?” The doctor asked, eyes wide.

  “Certainly.”

  “This sounds like a plan that will end the Reclamation.”

  “We have two other options,” Sahaan said. “First, we could continue to wait, hoping that another option presents itself within three months, at which point our power will run out and we will be overrun by the nanites inside the containment zone. And then there’s the other alternative. Dr. Gyaan, would you please elaborate for the doctor the plan you described to Vice President Aapada?”

  “Sure,” Gyaan said. “The basic idea is to compress the containment zone into nothing. Right now, our nanites are just holding back the Pinnacle’s nanites and preventing them from expanding any further. If we increase their replication rate, we believe we can actually push them back.”

  “Why on earth aren’t we doing that?” Dr. Darshak asked.

  “Imagine,” Sahaan said, “what one of our citizens inside the zone would experience.”

  “The shrinking wall would tear apart their bodies when it touched them,” Dr. Gyaan said. “It would kill everyone in the containment zone.”

  Dr. Darshak stood, silently staring at the wall behind the president.

  “That remains our plan of last resort,” Sahaan said. “We need to see if we can make the logistics of Charles’s plan work before we forfeit the lives of fifteen thousand of our own citizens.”

  Dr. Darshak nodded, still frowning, but saying nothing. Dr. Gyaan re-activated his computer screen.

  Sahaan recalled just then that there was one more thing he needed to do. Sahaan pulled out his handheld and dialed Bharo.

  “Hello, Mr. President. You’ve caught me on a rare excursion to the surface… Do I call you Mr. President now?” Bharo’s voice intoned.

  Sahaan smiled. “I didn’t make the rules. Sure.”

  “How are you holding up?”

  “Pretty well, thanks to the good doctor here. How is Charles holding up?”

  “Much better. He’s remembering more and more all the time. He’s heard about the containment zone incident and he wants to know what he can do to help.”

  “Great,” Sahaan said. “I want you to talk to the military and find out whether or not they’re confident that they can safely transport him to my office in Portal City.”

  “Oh. Okay. Sure. What do you want him to do when he gets there?”

  “I’m going to introduce him to his counterpart in the Pinnacle. The man his memories are templated from.”

  ~

  Before too much longer, Khatra Aapada returned with both a man and woman, each of them filing into Sahaan’s now very crowded makeshift office.

  The man was perhaps Sahaan’s age. He wore a military uniform, with medals indicating him to be a Master Sergeant. He also wore a pair of glasses with large, black frames. He stood poised, his eyes scanning everyone and everything in Sahaan’s office. Sahaan got the impression he typically sized up situations this way, quickly and perhaps even effortlessly.

  The woman wore blue overalls at a brown-grey heather work shirt, the standard garb of the Engineering Corp. Their insignia were woven into the strap of their overalls. Hers had four stripes. A division leader, then. Her gaze was erratic. She looked as though perhaps she might be claustrophobic.

  Khatra stepped forward. “Master Sergeant Anush and Supervisor Jeenya, Mr. President.”

  Sahaan introduced himself. “Forgive me for not standing. My doctor has advised me to remain seated.” He shook their hands, then nodded toward the doctor. “This is Dr. Darshak. And also, Dr. Vigy Gyaan, our science advisor. I’ll cut right to it. We’ve established communication with the Pinnacle. They’ve agreed to undo the damage Samantha caused, but only on the condition that one of them is allowed to enter the Reclamation and run the nanite programs himself. What I need from the both of you are the answers to two questions. First, can we provide a military escort capable of neutralizing a nanite-bodied if he proves hostile? Second, we will need to provide a gap in the wall through which he can pass. What can we do to prevent any unwanted visitors from entering the Reclamation?”

  Jeenya’s eyes had grown intense and gained extraordinary focus. She looked as though she had something to say, and so Sahaan nodded to her.

  “We have a protocol for this planned out,” Jeenya said. “It’s just a thought experiment meant for undergrads. I can’t believe we’ll actually have a practical use for it. The idea is to make an airlock out of the walls, except it’s not an airlock but a nanitelock. We put some of the walls on rollers so that we can quickly open and close a breach. But instead of that breach opening into the Reclamation, it just opens into another ring of walls, which has another open-and-close section on its opposite side. We leave that one closed until we’re certain we don’t have any unwanted guests inside the airlock.”

  “How long would it take to set up such an airlock?”

  “About two days. And under the current situation, let’s make that three. We’d have to call in a favor from Alterra. With the visitations and Citrine-Adamantine wallroad explosion, we’ve only got two backup wall slabs left.”

  “Will they have enough?” Khatra asked.

  Jeenya nodded. “They should. They were pretty well stocked, last time I checked.”

  Sahaan turned to Master Sergeant Anush. “And the military situation?”

  “We could do this only if we reduced the portal to its minimum functional capacity, which I don’t like. I fear another civilian rush on the portal.”

  Dr. Darshak adjusted himself against the door frame. “How many soldiers are you thinking?”

  Anush turned to Sahaan. “We would escort him from this airlock to the Portal City containment zone, and then back to the airlock, correct?”

  Sahaan nodded.

  “Let’s say seventy.”

  The doctor nodded. “About two days to get them all inoculated.”

  “And,” Anush added, “we will need to pull our quantum-disruptive armaments out of storage and make sure they still work. But that will take a day at most.”

  “Well,” Sahaan said. “It sounds like we have a plan. We just need to set a location for this airlock. Presumably at the point where we can minimize the length of Charles’s journey to the capital.”

  “The wall between Barine and Exenine,” Jeenya said. “That would be best. The closest wall, strictly speaking, is in the Enerine suburbs, but it’s also heavily populated. The stretch of land from Barine to Exenine is mostly uninhabited.” She turned to the Master Sergeant. “How does that plan sound?”

  Anush nodded. “Easier to secure if there are fewer people. I agree.”

  “Choose a precise location, and send that to this office within the next thirty minutes. I will tell Charles to be there in five days. That should give us enough time to make the appropriate preparation.” Sahaan paused. “I never imagined I would be doing this,
but here I am. Here we are. About to have a nanite-bodied visitor to the Reclamation. If he is genuine, I want this to work. If he is not, then I want us at least to be safe. If you think of any other contingency plans or safety procedures, you are authorized to implement them. Thank you.”

  The members of the room began filing out, except for Dr. Darshak who moved behind Sahaan. Sahaan turned his head and saw that he was tinkering with the thermostat. Probably for the best. Sahaan had been starting to sweat. He was also was starting to feel a bit lightheaded.

  Dr. Darshak moved back around to the front of the desk, watching the door. When the last person had left, he raised an eyebrow and said, “I need to get you to the hospital now.”

  “I need to tell Charles.”

  “Let someone else do it.”

  “I will tell Charles.”

  A deep sigh, in and out. “Okay. But I’m having them prepare—”

  “I need to walk out of here myself, doctor. Can you make that happen?”

  “Mr. President—”

  “Can you make that happen?”

  A slouch of the shoulders. “There will need to be an ambulance outside. But I suppose I can give you some painkillers and we can try.”

  “Thank you, doctor. It’s the visibility of this thing. It’s very sensitive.”

  “I understand.”

  Sahaan turned to the computer and opened up the feed for View Seven while Darshak tapped at his handheld, presumable ordering said ambulance.

  “Since we need to wait for Jeenya to tell us the coordinates,” Sahaan said.

  The news announcer had become very animated. “At this time, we have one-hundred and eighty-six districts reporting. Cooperation write-ins now total 37 percent of the vote, giving them a lead over the two traditional parties. Guardian is at 30 percent and Reconciliation at 33. With the race this close, anything could happen as the remaining districts report in. Those who have voted Cooperation are now arriving at the power facilities en masse and volunteering their time, claiming themselves to be ‘cooperationists,’ both in support of wall defense and communication with the nanite-bodied. We talked with one such individual earlier today—”

  Sahaan turned off the broadcast.

  “Dr. Darshak?” Sahaan asked.

  “How about we just talk until we hear from Jeenya?”

  “That sounds like a better plan.”

  ~

  “Charles?”

  “Hello, President Sahaan Ekeer.”

  “The Reclamation agrees to your terms. I am sending you the coordinates where we will open a gap in our walls for you to enter. Have you received those?”

  “Yes. I have them.”

  “Will any nanites be coming through with you?”

  “No. Only the nanites that compose my body. They will not leave my form, and no others will be coming through. They told me to tell you that we will be shutting down all non-essential programs on our side of your wall to make sure that only I go through.”

  “Thank you for that assurance. There is something else you should know. There will be a military force of seventy soldiers on this side. They will guide you to Portal City. This is for your own safety.”

  “I understand.”

  “There are a number of preparations on our side. We will need five days. Does that work for you?”

  “It does.”

  “I will order our scientists to prepare the flora samples, as well. You can take those with you when you are done in the Reclamation.”

  “I understand.”

  A pause.

  “Is there anything else, President Sahaan Ekeer?”

  “… Charles, it is very possible that I will not get to meet you during your time here, though I would very much like to. The man who has your memories is a rare mix of both intelligence and empathy. He searches relentlessly for the knowledge he knows is locked inside him. He has represented the Pinnacle well.”

  Another silence.

  “Charles?”

  “Thank you, President Sahaan Ekeer. A friend will tell me that he ‘told me so.’ Does that make sense?”

  Sahaan chuckled. “Yes, I think it does.”

  “I will be there in five days. At noon.”

  “At noon will work.”

  “Goodbye.”

  “Goodbye, Charles.”

  ~

  “At this time, we now have confirmation that two hundred and twenty-nine districts have confirmed their ballot totals. Guardian has 32% of the vote, Reconciliation 31%, and Cooperation 37%. At this point, even if no Cooperation votes were to arrive from remaining districts, Cooperation would still be the winning party.

  “In a typical election cycle, the winning party would use the intervening month to nominate candidates to various political posts. It is unclear how in this election cycle we should proceed. Under normal circumstances, Parliament would be able to convene and ratify any appointments made on behalf of the new party, but the current emergency has made that impossible. At the present moment, only two MPs remain outside the containment zone, and one of those, MP Bada Kismat for Exenine, remains in critical condition at Portal City Central Hospital.

  “The President’s office has issued a statement that they will provide a list of appointments by the end of the week. It describes the present situation as ‘extraordinary,’ but says that the president’s office is fully committed to upholding the constitution and our democratic procedures to the best of its ability.

  “Stay tuned for or next segment. Earlier today, our reporters in Besserine, Cynine, and Adrine went to those cities’ reactor facilities and talked to citizens who have volunteered to defend and monitor their respective cities’ power supply to the capital…”

  ~

  “Hello?”

  “Hi, Charles. This is… Well, I’ve been calling myself Charles. I suppose I should stop.”

  “No, it’s fine. It’s fitting. I think that’s the word.”

  “Seems right.”

  “Did you have trouble with their language? I was worried you’d have trouble with that.”

  “No. The language came fine. The memories were the most difficult part. Catherine’s communication helped a lot, though.”

  “That’s good. I’m glad. Have they treated you all right?”

  “Yes! I mean, well, there was an incident with a train. But it wasn’t Sahaan’s fault.”

  “President Sahaan Ekeer?”

  “That’s right.”

  “You talked with the president?”

  “For a full three days. And then more later. But recently I’ve been talking to Consul Bharo Meharab. He showed me around Portal City Central Library today. He also showed me a famous book. It’s famous because Sahaan’s grandmother read it because of him, and used it as inspiration for a speech. And then she inspired him to go into politics. I read it. I know what that must mean for you. Reading. Because you can only download data directly into your brain, or at best, run it through a scanning processor in your mind, which is kind of like reading but not the same.”

  “What did you think of reading, Charles?”

  “I liked it. I think it’s better than scanning. And you’re never going to believe me when I tell you what book I read.”

  “Why’s that?”

  “Sahaan’s inspiration, the book his grandmother read— it was The Politics by Kenek, the book that got you talking to Brad.”

  “…”

  “Charles?”

  “Yes. I’m sorry. That’s amazing. Have you talked to Sahaan about The Politics?”

  “Not yet. He’s not available right now. But I’m going to see him soon.”

  “Say hello to him for me.”

  “I wanted to ask you one more thing.”

  “What’s that?”

  “I think… I want to go to the Pinnacle. Unless you tell me I shouldn’t.”

  “You’ll be very welcome here if you decide to come back. You… You understand what will happen to your body if you do that, right?�
��

  “I do. And I remember enough now to know what effect my memories will have when they’re available in the Pinnacle’s memetwork. They told me you’ll be visiting the Reclamation in four days. Can I go back with you?”

  “Yes.”

  “Okay. I’ll try to read as many books as I can until then.”

  “Please do. I’ll see you soon.”

  “See you soon.”

  ~

  Sahaan retained few memories of the first day following his surgery. There were exactly two things he recalled with clarity. The first was seeing Lachel and Jaan’s faces when he first woke up. The second was Khatra Aapada telling him that the Cooperation Party had won the election. There were other tidbits in there. Khatra was preparing to evacuate Portal City of civilians completely in preparation for Charles’s arrival. Dr. Darshak appeared to announce the operation had been a success. A number of the details of that conversation had not made it through the sedative, except for the look on the doctor’s face when he’d said, “if you remain in bed this time.”

  The following days passed uneventfully. He received regular updates from Khatra on how the preparations were progressing. Sahaan watched the news from time to time but mostly talked to Lachel and Jaan.

  Two days before Charles was to arrive, the Portal City evacuation order was announced. Lachel and Jaan were given an exception, as were Dr. Darshak and a number of other patients and medical staff. They were given strict instructions, however, to remain inside the hospital at all times on the day of Charles’s arrival.

  The next day proceeded much as the day before it. The news was now covering the Portal City evacuation and Khatra Aapada’s address to the nation about the government’s plan to let a nanite-bodied inside their borders. The response was not an uproar, but rather a dampening of the high spirits that had rallied citizens to support and defend their local energy centers. A few individuals made comments online about wishing they could take back their vote for Cooperation, but most of the country seemed make the unconscious jump from a hesitant trust for Charles the visitor, who had never so much as lifted a finger against them, to Charles the nanite-bodied, who was offering to save the lives of twelve thousand three hundred citizens (the exact number of those inside the containment zone was, by this time, known).