Shattered Lands

by ALICE HENDERSON

  They trudged wearily toward Gordon’s plane, anxious to deliver the last piece of the craft back to Sanctuary City.

  Chapter 23

  When Gordon landed them in Sanctuary City, H124 headed straight for the medical lab. She stopped at the window. Inside, Felix worked at his desk while Astoria sat beside the medpod, watching her brother through the glass lid.

  Felix saw her and stepped out. Astoria looked up, spotting H124 with weary eyes, but made no effort to get up.

  “What’s his status?” H124 asked the doctor as he emerged from the room.

  “No change, but the countdown continues.”

  She told him what Willoughby had said about the special extractor tool.

  “That might be his only chance then, if such a tool exists,” Felix told her. “I’ve tried everything, but there are no precedents for this thing.”

  H124 nodded toward Astoria. “How’s she holding up?”

  “She’s been very quiet.”

  “She’s not berating you or telling you what to do?”

  He shook his head. “Silent as stone.”

  As he went back to work, she watched Astoria through the glass. The warrior met her gaze. H124 felt as downcast as Astoria looked. All her fire was gone.

  H124 had started down the hall when she heard Astoria leave the med bay. She glanced back to see her pacing in front of the lab’s window. Byron emerged from the lift, joining his old friend at the med lab door. She watched their brief exchange, Astoria speaking with slumped shoulders, defeated. Byron gripped her shoulder, but she shrugged it off.

  He stood there a few more minutes, trying to comfort her, but she just shook her head and retreated back into the med lab.

  Left alone, Byron spotted H124, and started off down the hall. When he reached her, Astoria shot back into the hall. She bit her lip and stared after them, then glanced back to her brother.

  “Byron. Wait.”

  “What is it?” he asked, as she caught up with them.

  Tears glistened in her eyes, threatening to pour down her cheeks. She wiped at them roughly. “I need to tell you something.” She gave a sigh. “This thing in Dirk.” Her eyes met H124’s. “That PPC exec . . . your grandmother? She told me they’d put something inside him, that he would die if I didn’t cooperate. She wanted information, and said she’d kill him, that she could do it any time she wanted, no matter how far away we were.” She crossed her arms and sniffed. “I didn’t believe her. I thought after we got out of there that he’d be safe.

  “But she kept contacting me. Wanted to know locations, information. Specifics about our plan to divert the piece that’s going to hit BEC City. I blew her off. Then Dirk collapsed, and I realized she wasn’t bluffing when the doctor found that sphere. I didn’t know what to do. She was going to kill him . . .”

  Byron touched her arm. “What did you do?”

  Astoria looked up, helpless, the tears now spilling freely down her cheeks. “I contacted her. She wanted to know if we were going to be successful in saving BEC City. I told her I thought we were, about the craft with the nuclear payload. She forced me to grant her access to the craft, and to locally lock us out. She wanted to know where we were, where the Rover stronghold was.”

  H124 felt all the color drain from her face. “You didn’t tell her about this location?”

  Astoria shook her head. “No. I got her control of the craft, then told her she had to save Dirk. If she didn’t, she wouldn’t get any more information from me. But by then the sphere had already started its countdown. Until I give her this location, she’s not going to save him. I don’t know what to do.”

  “What else did you tell her?” H124 said, dreading the answer. Her stomach went sour.

  “Where we keep the Silver Beast.”

  Byron’s jaw fell open. “No—Astoria, you didn’t.”

  She hugged herself, rubbing her hands up and down her arms. “I did, Byron. While you all were in Basin City, an airship destroyed it.”

  His voice sounded weak. “And Chadwick?”

  “He’d already left the area after storing it.”

  Byron let out an explosive sigh. “Well, at least there’s that . . .”

  “But she didn’t deactivate that thing. She says I still have to give her the Rover stronghold location, or she won’t save my brother.”

  Byron ran a hand through his hair. “I can’t believe this.”

  “We can’t trust her,” H124 said, feeling sick. “We have no guarantee she’d save Dirk even if you did tell her. In fact,” she added, thinking back to what Willoughby had told her about her mother, “I doubt she would.”

  Astoria’s chin trembled. “I don’t know what to do. He’s dying.”

  H124 told her what Willoughby had learned about the extractor tool before he escaped Delta City, and Astoria’s head lifted, her eyes catching the slightest glint. “You think she has it?”

  “I think we need to get there and find out.”

  “But how will we get in? You say Willoughby’s gone, and the Beast is destroyed.”

  H124 met her eyes. “You’re sure you didn’t reveal the location of Sanctuary City?”

  Astoria shook her head. “I would never do that.”

  “Okay. Let’s go talk to Raven.”

  * * * *

  They found him and Rowan in Engineering, where Rivet and her team were beginning to assemble the three pieces. Tools lay scattered on every surface, and all of them wore special suits to keep everything sterile and static-free. H124 pulled Raven aside, apprising him of Astoria’s confession.

  Raven watched Astoria silently as she explained, then hurried her toward the astronomy lab. “Let’s talk to Orion. See where we stand.”

  The astronomer looked up from his display as they entered. “We don’t have much time. If we don’t detonate it soon, we’ll miss the window to change this thing’s course.”

  Onyx closed down her floating display. “I can’t get in,” she said with disgust. “I’ve tried everything. We’re going to have to go there in person and shut them down on their end. I’ve pinpointed where they’re hacking from.” She brought up a schematic of Delta City, zeroing in on a PPC tower there, and then straight on Olivia’s floor.

  H124 felt a crushing disappointment. “But how will we get in? Willoughby’s gone, the Beast is destroyed . . . We’d be back to accessing the CO2 vents, and those are too far away from that tower.”

  Astoria crossed her arms, pacing again. “We have to get in there. Get the extractor tool.”

  Raven lifted his head, and laughed absently. “I just had the craziest idea.”

  Byron narrowed his gaze. “Why do I get the distinct feeling this is going to get us all killed?”

  Raven grinned. “Well, it might get two of us killed.” He gestured excitedly. “We’ve got these prototype flying suits. You said Willoughby hacked a hole in the shield by replacing the streams of the citizens who maintain it, right?”

  She nodded.

  Raven continued. “If Onyx could use that same method to hack a hole in the top of the atmospheric shield, Gordon could fly over the dome, dropping two of us above the hole. Then we fly in, land on the tower itself. Look. Here.” He brought up a schematic of the tower on his PRD. “There are balconies on the upper floors for the exec living suites. We could land on one of these.”

  H124 nodded. “We could land undetected on Willoughby’s balcony. They might not have replaced him yet, so his suite would be empty.”

  Byron held up his hand. “Just to be clear, you’re talking about falling thousands of feet to land on this tiny ledge?”

  Raven nodded. “Exactly.”

  “I’ll do it,” Astoria said. “No offense to any of you, but I’m not trusting my brother’s life to anyone but myself. I’m going. Besides,” she added, looking down, “I want to make th
ings right.” She walked to the door. “Show me these suits.”

  Raven stared at her. “I don’t think so. How can we trust you now?”

  Astoria’s eyes brimmed with tears, but more so with defiance.

  Finally H124 stepped up beside her. “I trust her. She’d never risk Dirk’s life. She told us what she did, didn’t she? She could have given away our location, but she didn’t.”

  Raven pursed his lips. “Okay, then.” He led the way to the armory, where he lifted down two small sacks with straps. “We only have two of these suits,” he told them. “They stow away in this small pack.” He lifted one so they could see the case, no bigger than a couple of bricks. He held up a small, round disk. “This syncs with a PRD. You can then control your pitch and yaw, angle the chute to gain speed or slow down. They’re not perfect.”

  “Can a suit carry two people?”

  Raven shook his head. “No. We’re still designing a tandem jumper. Only two of us will be able to go.”

  Rowan stepped up, looking at it. “I can go.”

  “No, it’s got to be me,” H124 said. “There are going to be TWRs between where we land and Olivia’s office. I know how megacities work. I can get us in and out.”

  Rowan moved to the rack of energy rifles. “You’re going to need weapons.”

  Astoria stepped forward. “No. We can’t bring shock rifles. It’s too risky. If we hit the extractor tool, it could fry it out.” She selected an old 9mm handgun and checked it over, then grabbed a handful of magazines, stuffing them into a satchel.

  Byron crossed his arms. “I’m with Astoria. No half-assed weapons anymore.”

  H124 knew the stakes. She grabbed a .45 pistol, some extra clips and magazines, then selected a sonic hand weapon from the rack. She adjusted the setting so it would be enough to render someone immobile, but not kill.

  Astoria donned a tactical vest and draped a belt of grenades across her chest. She threw a second vest to H124.

  Though her body burned from fatigue, H124 returned to the airstrip with the others. Gordon was sleeping in the back of the Vega. He snorted awake, struggling to sit up.

  “Feel up to another flight?” she asked him.

  He rubbed his eyes. “Rarin’ to go. Where to?”

  “Delta City. And you won’t even have to find a place to land.”

  He cocked a brow, so she explained the plan. “Are you kidding me?” he asked, mouth agape.

  “Nope,” she told him.

  He shook his head in disbelief, his eyes wide. “Well, alright, then.”

  She and Astoria stowed their gear while their pilot refueled.

  Rowan hugged her goodbye at the runway. “You be safe, H.”

  She nodded meekly, hugging him back, her emotions conflicted.

  Byron handed her a second pistol. “Take this. And here are some extra magazines and clips.” She put them in her satchel. “Don’t take any unnecessary risks. Kill if you have to.” He embraced her, half in friendship, half in longing, then stepped out of the plane’s way. Rowan gave him a cursory glance, but H124 tried not to think on it.

  “Keep us posted!” Raven shouted as Gordon started up the engines. The propeller filled the night.

  “We’re going to watch over Dirk,” Byron called out. “Don’t worry!”

  She and Astoria boarded the plane, stealing a last look at their friends. Then they buckled in, looking across at each other.

  “You ready for this?” H124 asked.

  Astoria checked her weapon, then holstered it. “Never been readier. I’m going to end every one of those PPC fuckers.”

  Chapter 24

  For a moment H124 didn’t think she’d be able to jump. She stared out at Delta City’s atmospheric dome below her, the crowded buildings and streets, so tiny from this height, looking like a grey blight after the beauty of Sanctuary City. She thought of the desperate lives of the people pressed into a space not big enough to accommodate them all, and of the treacherous, vile ways of the PPC. A queasy feeling washed over her as she thought of her own confined life in New Atlantic, how ignorant she’d been then, a cog in the cold machine of a grasping and heartless regime.

  And now she had to jump into the core of it. Cold sweat formed at her back and neck.

  Astoria held on to the door frame next to her, staring down with an exhilarated grin. “You all set?” she shouted to H124 above the roar of wind.

  “I . . .”

  Lowering her goggles, Astoria stepped to the lip of the plane and leapt out. H124 gripped the door frame with a swallow, knowing she had only a narrow window on this pass. She pulled down her goggles with a trembling hand.

  “You got this!” Gordon called from the cockpit.

  As her stomach reared up in protest, she dove out. The air pushed against her as she opened her chute. It jerked her back up, her teeth clacking together. She sailed down, seeing Astoria below. The dome glowed beneath them, and to her right, she saw the hole in the amber light where Onyx had hacked an opening. She adjusted the chute’s controls, aiming it toward the aperture. She made her body more aerodynamic.

  Below her, the PPC tower’s antennae came into view through the hole, the blinding lights on either side bringing tears to her eyes. Astoria zipped through the hole, followed moments later by H124. They sailed past the bristling antennae, circling the tower, and H124 spotted Willoughby’s ledge on the eastern side. She aimed for it, angling her body to slow the descent, adjusting the flight suit’s controls. Astoria landed deftly, tucking her body into a ball and rolling to a stop against the ledge railing.

  H124 approached the ledge too fast, so she had to make an abrupt adjustment as the balcony loomed up beneath her. She landed hard on her feet, stumbling forward, but managed to remain upright.

  Astoria had already pressed the button on the suit to reel in the chute, which folded itself neatly away into her small backpack.

  H124 did the same, feeling at once both dizzy and terrified. She half expected troopers to storm out onto the balcony, but their entry had gone unnoticed.

  Astoria unholstered her gun. “Let’s go.”

  H124 moved to the balcony door. The room beyond lay in darkness. She hoped they hadn’t installed anyone in Willoughby’s quarters yet. She stood next to the glass, reaching her mind out to any TWRs. She found one, and sent a signal to it. The balcony door slid open, and a cool breeze washed over them.

  “I’ll never get used to that,” Astoria told her.

  They entered Willoughby’s living pod, and H124 lifted her goggles, resting them on the top of her head. The familiar scent of Willoughby hit her. She still couldn’t believe he was her father. It was all a strange dream. H124 checked the map of the tower on her PRD. “Olivia’s office is three floors down.”

  H124 waved her hand over the door release, and they stepped out into the hall. Moving quietly, they filed past a number of other exec living quarters, eventually reaching the maintenance stairwell. They hurried down the steps, stopping three floors down. Astoria cracked open the door, peered into the hall, and pushed it open wider.

  H124 remembered this corridor. She’d taken it during her escape from Olivia’s office. She crept left, toward the rear door of Olivia’s office.

  They paused then, as light spilled into the dark hall from under the door.

  “She’s still up,” Astoria whispered.

  H124 brought up a comm window to Onyx. When the hacker’s face appeared, Astoria moved into the frame and asked, “Is the signal still coming from the same place?”

  Onyx waved through her display. “Yes.”

  “How’s Dirk?” Astoria asked.

  “Still unconscious, I’m afraid.”

  Astoria reached over and closed the window without saying goodbye. “We have to go in now,” she whispered.

  “Agreed.”

  Astoria cham
bered a round.

  H124 withdrew her sonic weapon from its holster, and aimed it at the door. Astoria nodded to H124.

  She tried the TWR, sending the unlock signal, but it wouldn’t open. It was security locked from the inside. H124 used her old workaround method, sending a signal for the TWR to both lock and unlock simultaneously. The panel started to smoke and then caught fire. The door unlocked, opening.

  Astoria shoved it to one side, extending her gun with her free hand.

  Olivia sat at her desk and snapped her head up. She flung her palm against her chest. “What the—” As her eyes fell on H124, she closed her mouth.

  “Where’s the device?” Astoria demanded.

  “What device?” Olivia stood up, backing toward a panel in the wall behind her.

  “Don’t move!” Astoria shouted, training the gun on her. “The device that you’re using to kill my brother. He’s dying!”

  Olivia’s gaze fell to her desk, where a slender metal rod lay. H124 didn’t recognize what it was. It could be the extractor tool, or a weapon for all she knew.

  Olivia started backing away again. “I said,” Astoria snarled, “don’t move.”

  But the exec continued to back up, so Astoria took a knee and fired right through the desk at Olivia’s legs. The older woman screamed in agony, and keeled over on her side, clutching her knee. Astoria stormed around the desk, throttling the woman by the throat. She dragged her out into the center of the room.

  “Be sure no one gets in that door,” Astoria told H124, nodding to the main entrance.

  H124 went to it, adjusting the lock readout to the maximum setting. No one was getting in without Olivia’s permission now, and she was in no state to give it.

  “Tell me where the extraction tool is. Now!” Astoria shouted, leveling the gun to Olivia’s head.

  “Astoria—” H124 began to say.

  When Olivia didn’t answer, Astoria jerked the gun down and fired it again, blowing away the woman’s other kneecap. Olivia screamed as the blood jetted out, spattering her immaculate white suit. “Please!” Olivia pleaded. “It’s in a d-drawer—in my d-desk. S-second one down . . .”