Waking Gods

by Sylvain Neuvel

  —Tell me.

  —DNA’s a nucleic acid, like the name says. It’s made up of smaller things called nucleotides. To make a nucleotide, you need three things. A phosphate, a base, and a sugar.

  —Sugar?

  —Yep. There’s sugar in life. If the sugar is the one we call deoxyribose, you get deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA. If the sugar is ribose, a simpler sugar, you get RNA, which can also store information, but isn’t as stable as DNA. The aliens have a very similar genetic makeup, but their nucleotides use a different sugar, a form of what we call arabinose.

  —ANA.

  —Exactly.

  —And that is the only difference?

  —Not quite. Each nucleotide also has a base. In DNA … Are you sure you want to hear this?

  —Please.

  —In DNA, there are four possible bases: cytosine, guanine, adenine, and thymine, which we just call C, G, A, and T. That’s the genetic alphabet. The alien genetic code doesn’t use A but something called diaminopurine. It makes their genetic code a little more stable than ours.

  —Is it compatible with our DNA?

  —Maybe. It’s close enough the two might be able to talk to each other.

  —So there is nothing really interesting about the differences.

  —Are you kidding? This is probably one of the greatest discoveries we’ve ever made. People thought DNA was pretty much the only way you could get life. We’ve been wondering whether life could evolve from an RNA base. It’s just recently that people have been able to play with the makeup of nucleic acids. We can make ANA in a lab, we’ve done it with a bunch of different sugars. We can make diaminopurine. We can make all this! But to see it occur naturally in the universe in complex life-forms so similar to us … Now we know there’s nothing really special about DNA. We can change the ingredients and still have a recipe for life. Do you understand what I’m saying? We’re this close to understanding how life came about. How you go from a thing to a living thing. It’s—

  —Fascinating?

  —It’s not just fascinating. It’s awe-inspiring. It’s … Genesis.

  —It touches you.

  —Yes. It’s—

  —That seems like a completely human reaction to me.

  — … I guess they made a good copy. I know what you’re trying to do, but I don’t think I’m a robot. Having feelings doesn’t make me less of a fraud.

  —Does it not? I was not drawing attention to the fact that you can experience emotions, but to what triggered this emotional response. It may be my limited knowledge, but it seems to me you were moved by the fact that the building blocks for life can take many forms. Was it not the point you were making? That there is nothing fundamentally unique about DNA, no magic involved? You were saying that no matter the ingredients, life can shape itself from any molecular structure stable enough to hold information and replicate itself. You were moved because you were able to decompose something you thought was impenetrable into elements you can understand.

  —Yes.

  —Then should you not feel the same awe over what happened to you? Why would the realization that something as unique as you can be reduced to a stable configuration of atoms not bring you the same satisfaction? I know nothing of genetics, so I am not moved as you are by the discoveries you describe, but I find you extraordinary, and I am absolutely humbled by the thought of something so complex and nuanced being remade from the very fabric of the universe. If your faith is what is torturing you, you should find the miracle in there.

  — …

  —Think about it.

  —Your phone is vibrating.

  —It does not matter.

  —You should answer. It might be important.

  —I am here for you.

  —Pick up. I promise I won’t do anything stupid.

  —Very well … Yes? … When? … I am on my way.

  —What is it?

  —Something that unfortunately requires my immediate attention.

  —You can go.

  —I will not leave you alone. I can ask Ms. Resnik to come and keep you company but I would rather you came with me. Your assistance may be needed.

  —What’s going on?

  —Themis has disappeared.

  —What?

  —Will you come with me?

  —Yes. Let’s go!

  —Dr. Franklin. The gun? Please?

  FILE NO. 1529

  INTERVIEW WITH CAPTAIN KARA RESNIK, EARTH DEFENSE CORPS

  Location: EDC Headquarters, New York, NY

  [Were the hangar doors closed?]

  {Do you rememb—}

  —Everyone, stop! One at a time. Euge … General, you go.

  [When did you notice that Themis was missing?]

  —Really? Like, five minutes ago, when I called you. You think I went for a manicure first?

  [Watch your tone, Captain Resnik … ]

  I’m trying, but we’re wasting time. Yes, Rose?

  {Were the hangar doors closed the whole time?}

  Yeah they were. I’m telling you, he didn’t go for a stroll. He can’t walk Themis without me, she falls.

  —Ms. Resnik, are you certain Themis was inside the hangar this morning?

  —Yes! She was here like ten minutes ago. I saw her. I talked to Vincent!

  —Please tell us everything that you remember.

  —What I remember? It just happened! Is anyone listening?

  —We are now.

  —Vincent got up real early this morning, said he wanted to try a few things by himself so he let me sleep in. I couldn’t go back to sleep, so I read a little, then I headed here. I radioed him. He was in the sphere. I asked if he’d had breakfast, he said no. I told him I’d bring bagels up. I went into the kitchen, and when I came back, they were gone.

  —Are you certain you are not forgetting anything? The smallest detail could be important.

  —Yes! I mean … He said he wasn’t hungry. I told him it’d be a shame to let the bagels go bad—he brings them back from Montréal when he visits. We don’t have a freezer here … He said OK. I made bagels! Do you wanna know what I put on them? Cream cheese and raspberry jam. Then Themis was gone, with my husband inside. Happy?

  —I am now. Details about the condiments were unnecessary.

  —I think that was the first time I’ve called him my husband, not as a joke … We have to find him!

  —We will. Dr. Franklin, can you tell us where Themis is located at this moment?

  {There’s nothing on the GPS.}

  Could it be malfunctioning?

  {We’re picking up everything else. Just not Themis.}

  Perhaps the receiver is broken.

  —All three of them? Are you sure you can’t see her?

  {According to this, she’s not here anymore.}

  That makes no sense. She couldn’t have just vanished.

  —Maybe someone tampered with the GPS receiver so we could not locate her.

  —Not a chance.

  —I am simply trying to lay down some possible explanations.

  —That’s not one of them.

  —Why is that?

  —The receivers are inside the sphere. It takes about ten minutes just to get up there. You’d have to find them, disable them, all before Vincent can pick up a radio. Then what? Even with Vincent, you can’t pilot her out of here. That’s a two-hundred-foot-tall, seven-thousand-metric-ton piece of metal to move without making any noise, all in the time it takes me to make a bagel.

  —Your logic is sound. Can you offer a more plausible explanation?

  —Not right now I can’t.

  —Could the aliens have somehow transported her?

  —You mean like the alien robot just “beamed” itself in London? I don’t know. Rose?

&n
bsp; {We don’t know if it “beamed” itself or if something else “beamed” it. Either way, I don’t think so.}

  —It would seem premature to reject this explanation without any evidence to the contrary.

  —She’s right. If they could just yank Themis away whenever they felt like it, they would have done it when we fought, wouldn’t they?

  —It is possible they lacked the ability at the time but possess it now. Doing so might require a ship, or equipment that was not present in London.

  —But it’d be here now? Without our detecting anything?

  —It does sound a bit far-fetched, but we are talking about giant robots from outer space.

  —It’s not an option anyway.

  —I would not blindly discard the possibility.

  —I would! If aliens just beamed Themis to their home world, or into space, or whatever, then there’s nothing we can do about it. Can we talk about scenarios where we get Themis and Vincent back? And in one piece?

  —Certainly. If we ignore, for the moment, the possibility that Themis is no longer on Earth, there would seem to be only two options. Either the GPS is malfunctioning or has been tampered with, or she is somewhere the GPS signal cannot reach. Could she be inside a structure that blocks the signal?

  —You mean like here?

  —Yes. I know GPS receivers do not function properly inside some buildings.

  {Themis is different, somehow. It takes a lot of interference to block a signal from her. We shouldn’t get a radio signal inside this much metal, but it works. GPS won’t work on my cellphone inside this building, but it works inside the sphere, and we always see Themis onscreen when she’s here.}

  —Thank you, Dr. Franklin. But she could be in a more … opaque building. We cannot reject every improbable explanation as there clearly are no probable ones available.

  —OK. So either Vincent is being zipped through space on his way to God knows where, or he’s here on Earth and we just can’t reach him. Can we start making a list of places that can hold a two-hundred-foot giant?

  —We certainly can. But without sounding overly pessimistic, you have made a very solid argument that Themis could not simply have been moved in the traditional sense. If aliens did not “beam” her out of this hangar, it would appear someone, or something, did.

  {Vincent and I had talked about the possibility that Themis might be able to transport herself, assuming that’s what the robot in London did. We haven’t tried anything yet, but it’s not impossible Vincent found something on his own.}

  Where could he have gone?

  {I have no idea.}

  [I hate to interrupt, but the press is coming this afternoon. There’s a Q&A with the pilots and some high-school kids.]

  I fear you will have to reschedule, General. Ms. Resnik is unfortunately coming down with a very nasty case of the same flu that kept her husband in bed this morning.

  —Cough. What can I do while I recover?

  —You can help the General make a list of potential domestic sites.

  —Where are you going?

  —Chantilly, Virginia. We should have satellite surveillance of any facility large enough to house a missile silo, or a small army. Who is that at the door?

  —That’s Amy … something … She’s a civilian employee.

  —Is she supposed to be here?

  [She’s cleared. She works in Comms.]

  Let her in … What can we do for you, Ms.… Amy?

 

  Thank you very much, Amy. You can go now.

  —What is it?

  —A very busy day, Ms. Resnik.

  FILE NO. 1532

  TRANSCRIPT—FINNISH CUSTOMS INTERROGATION

  Location: Helsinki Airport

  —I t … t … told you a hundred times already. My name is Mar … Marina Antoniou.

  —And what are you doing in Helsinki?

  —I don’t be … believe this. I’m not doing anything in … Helsinki! I have a c … connecting flight. What time is it?

  —Almost 19:00.

  —Gamoto! I’ve already missed my plane. I’ve been in this room for sss … six hours. Can I go now?

  —Soon. You can take the next flight. Where are you flying to?

  —There is no next flight. The next one is tomorrow. And you have my ticket in ff … in front of you. I know you’re asking the same questions over and … over again to see if I ch … change my story, but this must be the tenth time you’ve asked, and it’s written down right here: New York City, so is my name. It’s a plane ticket. I can … can’t go anywhere else with it. If you plan on qu … questioning me forever, you should at least find something I could p … poss … ibly get wrong.

  —These are just routine questions. Airport security has been increased and your boarding pass was selected at random.

  —Why don’t you tell me what’s … really going on? You don’t select people at random to spend a day being inter—

  —I only have a few more questions … for security reasons.

  —No! You don’t. You ran out of que … questions four hours ago. Can I get some coffee?

  —Soon.

  —You keep looking at your watch. Are you waiting for someone?

  —He is waiting for me … He did not offer you anything to drink because you would not be allowed to leave this room and he did not want you to soil yourself.

  Thank you, young man. You can leave us. I know I need not remind you that you may not discuss your encounter with this woman with anyone. You can, however, discuss your promotion with your superior when you exit this room.

  Alyssa Papantoniou. You do not seem surprised to see me.

  —I had a feeling you might be coming.

  —New passport? Antoniou. I am impressed.

  —They told me to make the lie as cl … as close to the truth as possible.

  —Why Marina?

  —My … my mother’s name.

  —Hard to forget. The Russians taught you well.

  —They also told me you’re t … trying to frame me for the Sre … Srebrenica massacre. Don’t you think that’s overreaching?

  —Is it?

  —You think I would kill people for some … outdated notion of ethnicity?

  —To be frank, Ms. Papantoniou, I have absolutely no idea what you believe is worthy of torture or death.

  —Torture? I would never purposely inflict p … pain on anyone. You really don’t know me at all.

  —I am the first to admit it. I do not. But you had no compulsions about submitting Ms. Resnik to, shall we say, very unpleasant procedures.

  —I never wanted her to suffer! I’m not some psychopath who burned ki … kittens as a child. I never took … pleasure in hurting anyone.

  —You are telling me you had absolutely no part in the events at Srebrenica?

  —How can you … ? Do you know what happened during the Bosnian wars? Or did you just watch the new … newspeople get all the names wrong?

  —I have no firsthand knowledge of the Bosnian war. I was present during the Kosovo war.

  —So you know the difference between a Serbian and a Serb, a Bosnian and a Bosniak—

  —Croatians and Croats. I am aware of the difference between nationality and ethnicity. What does this have to do with your involvement in ethnic cleansing?

  —My parents, they were s … scholars. They met at a conference. My father came from Orthodox Serbs. My mother was Romanian, Catholic. Somehow, that made her a Cr … Croat in the eyes of everyone in our town, except for the Croats, who ca
lled her a Gypsy. My sister had a Mu … Muslim boyfriend. I was an atheist. We were all Bosnians.

  —Your point?

  —I wouldn’t have known which side I was on.

  —You were unemployed for over a year at the time of the massacre, yet your lifestyle never suffered.

  —Is that wh … what bothers you? I was supposed to be a geneticist. There was no research anymore. People weren’t getting paid. I was tired of seeing m-m-mutilated people die in front of me, so I quit the hospital. My parents had ju … just died. They left me some money.

  —Then I suppose I will have to be content watching you be tried in the United States. It says here you had a layover in New York, on your way to Puerto Rico. Why were you going back there?

  —Nothing that concerns you.

  —I realize we do not know each other very well, but you must understand that you will eventually tell me all that I want to know. Why not save yourself the added discomfort?

  —Now who’s talking about torture? What are you so ang … angry for?

  —We both know what you did. If you do not remember, I am certain you will be reminded many times during your trial.

  —I only did what needed to be done. Someone had to, even if you didn’t have the sss … stomach for it.

  —Removing ova from Ms. Resnik against her will is something that had to be done?

  —It would have been better if she had volunteered, but she didn’t.

  — …

  —Yes … It had to be done!

  —It did not have to be done there and then. You could have waited until she volunteered, or until the circumstances called for more extreme measures.

  —No! I couldn’t have! You can’t wait. You can’t worry about other people’s feelings. You can’t com … compromise, hope for the best. Or people die.

  —You seem agitated all of a sudden.

  —Have you ever seen a village being raided?

  —I have not.

  —Me neither. Bu … but my father told me. I was still in Sarajevo when the siege began. The whole country went c … crazy. Everybody fought everybody. The Serbs fought the Croats. Everyone f … fought the Muslims. Villages were being raided all the time. Then one day, they came into our village.