The Girl Who Found the Sun

by Matthew S. Cox

  “Before something else breaks.” Trenton tossed his last bit of toast into his mouth and gave a thumbs up.

  Everyone looked at each other in silence. Mutual agreement spread among them, except for Ben who appeared nervous. Raven locked eyes with him, then gestured at the door in an ‘after you’ manner.

  He sighed, glanced over his shoulder at the HVAC room where the CO2 scrubbers chugged away, probably doing nothing of any use, and sighed again. He nodded at her, then led the team to Noah’s office.

  The big boss looked up from his logbook in response to the office door swinging inward. He started to open his mouth, but at the sight of the whole tech team walking in, hesitated as if words rushing to get out tripped over his teeth and got stuck on his lips. The single LED bulb close by on his desk accented the grey parts of his salt-and-pepper hair. Her father had been almost a decade older than him, but hadn’t sported any grey yet.

  Noah’s mood cycled from annoyance at an interruption to acceptance at Ben, then worry—until Tinsley’s presence added a note of confusion. He waited for everyone to gather in front of his desk, then leaned back in his chair. “This is either incredibly serious or you’ve misplaced my birthday.”

  “Serious.” Ben dropped the filter on the desk.

  Noah picked it up. “What’s this?”

  “An air filter.”

  “Why is it on my desk instead of in the ventilation system?” Noah turned it over in his grasp, examining it. “This filter doesn’t seem unusual.”

  “That’s because you haven’t seen the ones we’ve been using.” Lark showed off a dark stain on her poncho. “That one’s new. Unused. The ones we have are so saturated with crud they’re not filtering anymore.”

  Noah studied the panel more closely. “Are you saying you’ve found a way to manufacture new ones? What’s the catch?”

  “Catch?” asked Trenton.

  “Well…” Noah tossed the filter on the desk and leaned back in his chair. “There must be a catch or you wouldn’t be in here about to ask me for something you all expect me to decline.”

  The others looked at Raven expectantly. None of them appeared willing to rat her out.

  Here goes. I’m either going to change his mind or end up in jail tonight. Hopefully, he won’t do that with my whole team behind me.

  “We didn’t make that filter. I found it,” said Raven. “Topside. A couple miles away in the ruins of a city. My father had notes. Notes you knew about. He told you about a stockpile of useful things five years ago and you ignored him.”

  Noah’s eyebrows flared in response to the word ‘topside,’ but not from fear. He appeared annoyed at being disregarded. However, rather than snap at her, he sat in mute discontent. The same look from Dad years ago would’ve ended with her over his knee or sitting in the corner.

  “The situation is bad,” said Ben. “The ventilation ducts are encrusted with at least an inch-thick layer of dirt and sediment. Our air-purification tech is so brittle we cannot afford to shut down flow to subsections long enough to clean the ducts out for risk of suffocation. We can’t clean the vents with the fans on, or it’s just going to blast all that shit into the Arc. The chemical scrubbers are saturated to the point where I don’t think they’re having any effect beyond mechanically pulling particulate matter out of the airflow because it’s a liquid. We’ve probably been reliant on the hydroponic farm for oxygen conversion for at least a few years now.”

  Shaw leaned forward. “Those filters ain’t gonna be a magic fix, but we’re dealing with a multi-layered shit sandwich right now. Dirty air, low oxygen, crudded-up ductwork. New filters will ease one bit of that and maybe buy us time for some other more permanent fix.”

  “So you are here for what?” asked Noah.

  “My team wants to go out to the ruins and recover as many filters as possible from the storage site.” Ben nudged Raven. “Show him the feather.”

  For a few seconds, the loudest sound in the room came from the electric sizzle of the lamp on the desk.

  Raven took the feather out and handed it to Noah. He studied it while she explained the pigeons in the city square. “Topside air is good enough for birds to live.”

  “We don’t know that they haven’t evolved to tolerate compounds and vapors that could be harmful to us. You can’t just blithely go from a sterile environment and expect to be impervious to everything that might be out there.” Noah placed the feather against a pen holder, as if considering it a new permanent decoration for his desk. “I’m sure you are well aware that we’ve been isolated down here for over 300 years. Any organisms that may or may not exist out there have done so in a tainted environment. Chemical toxins aside, we have been away from germs, viruses, and other things for many generations. None of us have developed an immune response to pathogens that might be out there.”

  “The first people in the Arc didn’t all come in wearing clean suits, Noah.” Desperation lent an unusually authoritative tone to Raven’s voice. “The people who came in here brought crud with them. People here get sick all the time. It’s gotta be worse than being outside since we have a closed environment. One person gets a cold, within days, everyone in the Arc has it. There’s nowhere to go to escape breathing air a sick person has breathed.”

  “Kid’s got a point,” said Shaw.

  “I didn’t say anything,” whispered Tinsley.

  Everyone except Noah and Ben chuckled.

  Noah tapped his fingers at the edge of the fat logbook on the desk, thinking. “I have a feeling you intend to risk going out there whether I approve it or not.”

  “I’m not saying this to be alarmist, but realistic.” Ben set his hands on his hips. “Between the crumbling turbines, the scrubbers, the filters, and the sheer age of everything down here… after seeing Raven and Tinsley spend half a day outside and come back perfectly fine, it’s clear we are in a bad situation. This is an opportunity we simply cannot ignore. To do so would put the lives of everyone in the Arc at risk.”

  “So would going outside. What if you bring back a super bug that wipes us out?” Noah frowned off to the side.

  “If that was going to happen, I’d have already done it. And so would my father, years ago.” Raven cringed a little inside, admittedly never having thought of undocumented diseases as a risk before. Maybe that’s why he kept the new Saints isolated. “Doc’s tests didn’t find anything. We’re all going to die a slow miserable death if we stay down here without doing anything. This is at least a chance. You’re the administrator… did you get an instruction book for the Arc? What was the expected lifespan of this shelter? Did the designers intend for us to live down here forever?”

  Noah stood, pointing at her. “I’d appreciate it if you stopped implying that I am trying to kill everyone.” He held his arms out to either side. “My primary concern is making decisions that offer the best chance of preserving the lives of everyone here.”

  “I’m not accusing you of wanting to kill anyone.” Raven caught herself near to shouting and calmed her voice. “I’m saying you are making those decisions using information that’s a century or two out of date and ignoring physical evidence. You won’t even consider letting us put a system together to vent the Arc with outside air, which I know will fix most of our problems—until the turbines die. At least let us fix the filtration system. It’s beyond moronic to let vital supplies sit out there.”

  “It’s bad in here,” said Tinsley. “My head hurts. My chest hurts. I’m kinda dizzy all the time. Outside, I didn’t feel bad. I don’ wanna die.”

  Noah couldn’t look at the child. He stared into his desk, hands on his hips. “Anyone who goes topside should be prepared for quarantine when you come back.”

  “Bit late for that,” said Raven. “Besides. How the heck would you quarantine anyone down here? Remember, we have a closed ventilation system? You’d have to shut us up in an airtight vault, which would kill us. Also, Dad went out and came back at least eight times, and you never isolated him
. Any sort of germs out there would be all over the Arc by now.”

  “You’re forgetting something,” said Shaw, his abnormally deep voice resonating in her chest. “Outside crap’s been leaking into the Arc for years. Gasket seal on the hatch is gone.”

  Noah shifted his weight. “Yes, I’m aware.”

  “So, you’re basically just saying that quarantine shit to scare us.” Trenton pointed a thumb over his shoulder at the door. “Let’s stop wasting time and get some filters.”

  Despite there being no clear reason for it, Noah still hesitated. The worry in his expression appeared genuine rather than the angst of a shallow despot facing an erosion of his authority. Eventually, he sank into his chair. “All right. I’ll let the security team know you have approval to go on a scavenging expedition. Just… be careful out there.”

  His strange demeanor made Raven suspect he knew—or at least believed—something he didn’t want to tell them. She couldn’t help but think about the noises following them back to the Arc. If Doc’s story about new Saints had been true, and it certainly seemed so, what information about topside had they brought back that Noah kept secret? He’d already consented to them going out there. Pressing an argument could make him reverse that decision.

  If it was that bad, he would have mentioned it already. Whatever he’s thinking about can’t be a big problem.

  “You made the right call,” said Shaw before facing Raven. “What are we going to need for this trip?”

  She peeled her stare off Noah. “A couple bottles of water and decent shoes. We’ll need to work out a way to transport a lot of bulky filters back here, but I remember seeing some flatbed carts in the storage place.”

  Trenton and Lark peered down at their tread socks. Shaw wore actual boots like Raven’s, in about the same state of disintegration.

  “You only need shoes at the door where there’s broken glass,” said Tinsley. “But Mommy can’t carry all of you past it.”

  Everyone chuckled.

  Raven smiled, thinking of the plastic mat. “I’ve got a workaround. Won’t take too long.”

  19

  First Breaths

  They all thought I was crazy opening that hatch, but all great discoveries require a little bit of insanity. – Ellis Wilder.

  Raven cut forms from the plastic mat to make sandals for Lark and Trenton while explaining the route and what they’d seen on the way. She didn’t mention her intent to bring Tinsley along with them, nor did anyone ask about it. The girl remaining at her side rather than heading off to the classroom likely implied she would accompany them. Or perhaps they thought she wanted to be with her mother for as long as possible before they left.

  She debated whether or not to mention that something bigger than a bird might have been in the woods. They might think I’m nuts or maybe decide not to go. But… if something really is out there, I need to be honest.

  Hot glue didn’t take long to set. By the time Shaw finished collecting water bottles for everyone, Lark and Trenton both had sandals like she’d made for Tinsley. She cautioned them that wearing these ‘shoes’ inside on concrete floors would be slippery as well as grind the little spikes down flat. That would likely happen eventually anyway, but they could enjoy extra traction on dirt for now.

  The others assembled in front of her, clearly ready to get underway. Ben, of course, would be staying behind. No one pressed him on it even though the looks they gave him all made fun of his ‘bravery.’ Granted, having most of the people with technical knowledge all go out at the same time didn’t count as wise either.

  “Lead on,” said Shaw.

  “Guys, there’s something else I need to tell you about.” Raven exhaled. “Last wake, when we walked back to the Arc from the ruins, something bigger than a bird seemed to be following us. We never saw it, but it made noise almost like footsteps and grunting.”

  “I saw it,” said Tinsley. “But real quick. Tall and hairy all over. Like Chewie.”

  Shaw furrowed his brow. Lark appeared confused.

  “Whoa, like from Star Wars?” asked Trenton.

  “Uh huh.” Tinsley nodded. “Mommy thinks it’s a bear.”

  “Ack,” said Lark. “What if it’s a Plution?”

  “Didn’t stink.” Tinsley waved dismissively. “Plutions smell like butt.”

  Raven started backing up toward the door. “I know it sounds crazy, but I had to say something just in case I didn’t imagine it. Whatever we heard left us alone, so it might not even be a problem. If it didn’t want to mess with just me and Tins, it’s probably not going to want anything to do with all of us together.”

  Shaw crossed the room to his workstation and picked up a heavy wrench, which he hung about his waist on a utility belt.

  “There’s no pipes,” said Tinsley.

  He chuckled. “I’m not bringing it to adjust fittings. It’s in case I have to adjust a skull.”

  Lark and Trenton both scrambled to find the largest knives they could. Once everyone except Tinsley had armed themselves, the group followed Raven out into the hall, through the central core, and down the corridor to the ‘official’ way out at the end of the admin wing.

  Jose the security officer already waited by the door, likely expecting them due to a call from Noah. He shook his head at them as if they’d all lost their minds. Raven got an extra intense look when Tinsley walked past the doorway.

  “You’re seriously taking your kid outside?” He whistled. “I’m not sure I should allow that.”

  Tinsley inhaled sharply as if about to yell something, but lapsed into coughing.

  “It’s safer out there for her,” said Raven, the stern coldness of her voice stalling Jose’s retort.

  “Not really a point to locking this, ya know.” Shaw patted Jose on the shoulder. “Gasket’s been shot for years. No vents in this extra hallway. You’re breathing outside air right now.”

  “You know about the gasket?” Raven raised an eyebrow at him, finally asking what she didn’t want to bring up in front of Noah.

  Shaw nodded.

  Jose hastily shut the door behind them after everyone entered the escape corridor.

  “That was mean.” Lark elbowed Shaw. “Jose turned as pale as Noah.”

  “But accurate.” He smiled at Raven. “Noah asked me to check on it a couple months ago. Someone smelled something funny. Traced it back to the hatch.”

  “Funny smell?” asked Raven.

  “Thought it was a dangerous chemical. Didn’t stay long, just enough to hear air hissing past the hatch at the top of the shaft.”

  Tinsley smiled up at him. “You probably smelled the outside.”

  “Good air smells weird when you’ve never breathed it before,” said Raven, barely over a whisper.

  The group made their way down the corridor, Trenton and Lark eyeing the ominous graffiti warning of certain death to anyone who kept going. Even though the woman had already been outside, she appeared on edge. The indifferent confidence borne of teenage immortality also faded from Trenton.

  Raven entered the elevator shaft at the end of the passage first, aware of a faint hissing echoing in the distance above. She peered up at a hairline square of sunlight far overhead. Light hadn’t been able to leak in before, but material did crumble and fall all over her the first time she opened it. Yeah, that seal’s toast.

  Trenton walked in behind her, peered up the shaft, and whistled, the sound echoing off the bare concrete. “Why do we have to climb this? Isn’t there a big door somewhere?”

  “Yeah.” Raven plucked Tinsley off her feet and set her on the ladder in front of her. “On level one. But the whole floor is off-limits. Something really bad happened up there years ago.”

  Tinsley started to ascend, her plastic sandals clattering at her side, dangling by their cloth strips. Raven stepped on the first rung. A brief duct tape rip came from her boot, but she couldn’t find it. I should make sandals for myself, but… not now. These will survive one more walk.

&
nbsp; “Must have been really bad if they closed it off.” Trenton exhaled hard.

  “I don’t remember that,” said Lark.

  “I think it happened years ago, before any of us were born.” Raven hauled herself up the ladder.

  “Shaw was here when people first moved in,” said Trenton.

  “Hang on, we gotta go back for a sec.” Shaw tugged at the younger man’s arm. “Trent forgot his diapers.”

  Raven climbed close behind Tinsley, using her body as a human safety net in case the child slipped. “Level one happened a really long time ago. Not even Shaw was around then. And the big door is so old, the hydraulic pumps we need to open it are probably dead. Nothing sits for centuries without ever being turned on and still works.”

  “Not exactly true. Look at my wife’s mother,” muttered Shaw.

  Lark and Trenton laughed. Raven shook her head.

  Conversation petered out for a while as everyone focused on the climb. At the top, Tinsley flattened herself against the ladder so Raven could reach past her to the wheel. She got her fingers on the mechanism, but paused before turning it, looking at the sunlight leaking in where the gasket no longer sealed.

  “I should probably warn you about the daylight. It’s going to hurt your eyes at first. You’ve all been to the hydro farm, so it shouldn’t be too bad. Out there is like sticking your face in front of those lamps.”

  “Wow,” said Trenton. “Uhh, why did they make such a big tunnel for a little door?”

  “This is an elevator shaft. Dunno if they never built the cab or scavenged it for parts.” Raven twisted the wheel to unbar the hatch.

  “Escape tunnel.” Shaw’s deep voice filled the shaft below. “There are mounting brackets for explosive charges that would’ve blasted the top off so the emergency elevator could get out… but they never installed them.”

  “… or someone took the explosives,” said Lark.

  “That, too.” Shaw chuckled.

  Raven shook her head, not even wanting to think about what someone would’ve stolen bombs for. “Get ready. Here comes the sun.” She shoved the hatch upward.