He wandered over towards Bryce. “It looks like they’re making good progress.”
“We still have a long way to go,” Bryce said, not bothering to take his eyes off the tunnel.
“I worry about them in there. What if something happens?” Memories of the quake played afresh in his mind.
“The tunnel is short. They’ll be able to get out quickly if anything happens. Besides, the further down you go, the safer it is. Most of the tremors happen near the surface.” A curious look came over Bryce, as if he had just now realized that Adan was standing next to him. “You and Sierra have become friends, haven’t you? Maybe more than friends?”
“What are you talking about?” Adan’s thoughts scattered. He had no idea what Bryce was getting at.
“She told me that you and she had met before, when you were in the Institute,” Bryce said enigmatically.
Adan focused in on him, trying to gauge what he was thinking, but as far as he could tell, Bryce was merely making idle conversation.
“And what does that have to do with anything?” Adan asked at last.
“I’m just trying to gauge your state of mind going into this,” Bryce said. “You may not be a warrior, but you know more about the Devs than any of the others. I don’t want you losing sight of our mission down there because your emotions get in the way.”
Adan still wasn’t sure exactly what Bryce was driving at, but there was something about the tone of the conversation he didn’t like.
“You don’t have to worry about me. I’ll do whatever I can to make sure we all get out of this alive,” Adan said. “Gavin is down there, remember?”
“Our first priority needs to be stopping the Developers. If we don’t do that, we’ll all just end up getting captured or killed.”
“I can tell you don’t trust me,” Adan said. He wasn’t sure if he should be sharing the impressions he was getting from Bryce, but if Bryce was going to question Adan’s commitment to their cause he might as well be up front with him. “I don’t have much reason to trust you either. You stole Gavin’s extractor. You won’t tell me who you are or why you’re here. Yet you still expect me to listen to you.”
A dark expression flickered across Bryce’s face. “If you really care about these people you’ll do what I say. I’m ready to give my life for them—unlike some.” The pointed stare he gave Adan convinced him Bryce knew about Will and the virus.
“What did Nolan tell you about me?”
Bryce’s eyes twitched in surprise at the mention of the Reeve’s name. “You’ve been to see Nolan?” A knowing look crept into his eyes. “That explains things, then.”
“Explains what? What are you talking about?”
“That he wants you alive, which I didn’t expect. But then again, that man is full of surprises.” Bryce gave Adan a thin smile, like a crack in an otherwise smooth stone.
“What is his plan? Why did he send you here?” Adan blurted out, grasping for any information Bryce might give him.
Bryce started walking towards the tunnel. “I think it’s finally time we gave them a rest.”
“You’re not going to tell me what your plan is, are you?” Adan hurried after him, but Bryce stared straight ahead and continued walking.
He’s just like Will, Adan thought. Nolan sent them both for the same reason: to destroy Oasis. But this time it wouldn’t be a virus. It would be something else, though Adan had no idea what that might be.
The two teams alternated back and forth for more than seven slices, twice shifting the direction of the tunnel based on Bryce’s suggestions. Adan’s group had only been resting for a few microslices after their most recent stint when Sierra shouted something from down the tunnel.
Bryce shot to his feet and rushed to the opening. “What’s going on?”
“I think I found something,” Sierra yelled. “It may be just a natural cavern—I’m not sure yet—but it’s definitely an open space.”
Adan and his team, hurried down the tunnel, joining Sierra, Von, and the two Waymen around a small black opening in the floor. It looked just big enough for a single person to fit through.
Bryce asked for a lumin and shined the light down into the hole.
“It’s a man-made tunnel,” he said, beckoning Von to take a look. “See the smoothness of the floor. That’s not natural stone.”
Several smiles flashed in the darkness. A rush of renewed energy pulsed through Adan’s tired limbs. Bryce patted Sierra on the back. “Good work. Now let’s go get the supplies and jump down.”
Tired as they were, the Sentients practically ran down the tunnel to collect their things. The quarry bustled with activity and excited conversation as everyone gathered their equipment.
Despite the grime on her face and the sweat matting down her hair, Sierra’s eyes seemed to sparkle brighter than anyone else’s. It struck Adan as he watched her finish packing that she had never looked more beautiful. He tried to push the thought out of his mind because it made him uncomfortable for some reason, but he found that for all he tried he could not deny what he saw.
“Aren’t you excited?” Sierra asked, walking up to him as everyone gathered near the entrance to the tunnel. Adan stared blankly at her, unable to speak. “Well, I am—and nervous. I can’t remember when I’ve felt this restless—or this hungry. Could I have a strip of your kern?” she asked.
“Oh, yes—sure,” Adan sputtered, shoving his hand inside his garrick and rummaging around for where he’d put the kern. For some reason he had trouble finding it; every pocket that he thrust his hand into seemed to be filled with something that wasn’t kern.
“What—did you finish it already?” Sierra teased.
“Here, have a bit of mine,” Von said, joining them and offering a slice from his own supply. As Sierra took the kern Von gave Adan a gruff look. “I think all this excitement may have gone to his head.”
“Sorry,” Adan mumbled, looking away, embarrassed. “Maybe you’re right.” But looking into their eyes he silently wished that he was not a memorant, for he could see that neither of them believed him.
“All right, everybody. Keep your spears sharp and your eyes and ears sharper,” came Bryce’s voice, resounding above the chatter. “Today we end this once and for all.”
Taking the lead, he marched into the freshly cut tunnel. Adan, still embarrassed about the kern, fell in self-consciously behind Sierra, his stomach in knots. But he could not tell this time whether his nerves were due to the impending descent into Manx Core or the strange things he had begun to feel whenever he looked at Sierra.
Twenty
Contingencies
There was a drop of about two body-lengths onto the floor from the hole Sierra had made. They helped lower each other down to avoid injury, all except for Wik, who went last. He was the most agile of the group and he dropped the distance easily on his own.
The first thing which struck Adan about the new tunnel was the size. It was certainly the widest he had ever been in. The entire group could walk abreast. The walls were also perfectly smooth, forming a half-circle over their heads.
Zain and Yor shined their lumins about. In the steady white light the passage stretched off out of sight in either direction. A thin layer of dust coated the ground.
“No one has been in this part of the Viscera for a while. That is a good sign,” Zain said.
Now that Adan was finally here, it hit him that there was no going back. They would follow this tunnel to wherever it led and would not leave this place until they found what they came for. A fleet of ships, an army of somatarchs, and the technology of the Developers seemed an impossible challenge for a few Sentients armed with pinions and a cutter. Would they be able to free the Sentient prisoners? What about Gavin? What had seemed like the only choice after the quake seemed a fool’s errand now that they were down here. And what about finding Adan’s memories? A hope more foolish still. But such things were all he had to cling to in the enduring dark.
Bryce ges
tured from them to come in close and he addressed them in hushed tones.
“From here on in, anyone with a bioseine will use the Collective channel to communicate. I’ll use hand signals to relay any messages to the Waymen. We need to capture an assessor at some point in order to hard link. That will give us access to the system down here. Most of the patrols will be somatarchs, though, so we’ll have to be careful.”
Bryce wasn’t telling them anything new at this point, just reminding them of what they’d already decided before they started digging in the quarry. The plan was to hard link to the mind of an assessor, giving them access to the esolace, the system the Devs were using to communicate with and control Manx Core. Using that, they would find out where Gavin and the captured Sentients were being held. Hopefully, they would both be in the same place, or at least close by. If they got discovered while freeing the prisoners, Von had suggested they could highjack some of the enemy ships to escape. It was a risky plan, but it was the best one they had.
Although Adan had connected to the minds of the other Sentients before, it had been brief and informational in nature. Now as his mind entered into a more lasting bond with theirs he was able to observe the free flow of thoughts, feelings, and impressions shared amongst the group. He sensed they were just as nervous as he was, even Bryce, but beneath that there was a quiet resolve, the sort of acceptance that comes from facing hard realities and knowing there is nothing else to be done. In this they shared a remarkable solidarity.
Before they set off, Bryce thrust a pair of pinions into Adan’s hands. “Take these. You have your cutter, but you might need these if you have to hit something at range.”
For the second time, Adan reluctantly took the weapons from Bryce. As much as he hated the thought of fighting, particularly with these Waymen spears, there was a good chance it would be necessary.
“What about Sierra?” Adan asked, noticing that she was unarmed.
“She’s a handler. We don’t want her getting in the thick of things if at all possible. Besides she likes fighting even less than you do.”
Bryce gave him a strap to fasten the weapons to his back. Once everyone finished readying their equipment, they set off wordlessly down the gently sloping passage.
As wide as the tunnel was, Adan felt like the walls were pressing in on him, the passage growing smaller and smaller as they went. If another tremor occurred, there would be no way out this time. Though they walked at a brisk pace, it wasn’t fast enough. The sooner they got out of this place the better.
They met no connecting tunnels for some time. There was only the long, steady descent through the slumbering rock. But at least they didn’t run into any patrols. Adan tried to focus on that and keep his mind off the dangers of traveling underground.
Small bits of gravel and dust coated the floor. Eventually they came across cracks running through the walls and ceiling. They became more and more prominent, as did the debris underfoot. In spots they had to pick their way over the top of large piles of rubble.
The Waymen gestured towards each other, waving their hands and brushing the air with their fingers.
“What are they saying?” Adan asked, hoping the Sentients understood.
“They are saying that this damage looks fresh,” Von answered. “Bryce taught us the signals. You’ll need them as well.” Along with his thoughts, Von passed what he knew of this Wayman system of communication.
Adan immediately was able to read Wik’s gestures. “Probably caused by the same quake that hit us this morning,” he signed to the others.
So much for it being safer lower down, Adan thought to himself, recalling Bryce’s assurances.
They continued on through the rubble, step by tentative step. At last the debris started to thin. Then it disappeared altogether. They had been walking for almost a full slice by then. They walked another half a slice after the tunnel cleared without seeing any change.
Finally they reached an intersection with a tunnel that was even wider than the first. The most notable difference between the two was the beam of light running down the center of the new passage, like a luminous cord, as thick as Adan’s body.
“This energy rail must be part of their transportation system. Levs and other ships can travel along it without having to use their own power,” Bryce explained. “It should eventually lead us into Manx Core.”
“How do you know this tunnel will lead us there?” Adan asked. Matching information from his bioseine with what he’d discovered in the chronotrace, he knew their location in reference to where Gavin was being held, but he had no idea whether or not this new passage would take them there. “There might be other transportation systems down here. And besides, we’re still too far up. The Core is twice as far down as this.”
“True, but the tunnel we’re in now doesn’t look like it’s being used. This one is much more likely to go to the Core.”
With everyone’s thoughts connected, it only took a moment for Adan to realize that the consensus was to follow Bryce’s suggestion and head down the light rail to see where it led. Adan didn’t push the issue.
Bryce signed the decision to the Waymen and they started down the new passage. The round, translucent cord lit up their surroundings with a peaceful glow. This strain of locus energy was harmless to both living and nonliving matter, but everyone kept their distance, walking on one side in case a transport should come whisking through the tunnel.
The new passage had metal supports at regular intervals. These showed no signs of damage from the recent quake, nor did the walls. The path curved downwards at a much steeper incline than the previous tunnel, but Adan could tell from his bioseine they were still quite far from Manx Core. In fact, the direction they were headed in was opposite from the one that they should have been going in.
Adan was about to suggest they consider retracing their steps, or maybe get out the chronotrace to see where this tunnel led, when they arrived at another intersection. The new tunnel ran off to the left and sloped even more sharply downwards, another light rail running down its center as well.
Up in the lead, Bryce paused, looking down the tunnel. It was headed more in the direction they needed to go, but he stood checking his modulator to see if it was safe.
“We should go this way,” he announced. Then a sense of alarm gripped his thoughts. “And let’s hurry. There’s someone coming down the tunnel we’re in.”
He waved the group into the new tunnel. Zain did the same, hanging back until everyone got in.
“I’m tracking six zoetic signals with bioseines and they’re coming faster than I thought,” Bryce informed them as they hurried into the tunnels. “Forget about stealth. Run.”
They sprinted along both sides of the light rail. Hurtling down the steep passage they quickly picked up speed. Adan was near the back with Bryce and Zain, his legs churning as he tried to put as much distance between himself and the last tunnel as possible, but he noticed Bryce falling behind.
Bryce pulled out a black disc from his garrick and tossed it into the middle of the tunnel.
“What are you doing?” Adan asked.
“It’s a contingency trigger. Hopefully it will stop them.”
Adan recognized it as the same sort of device he had seen inside Nox’s coat. This immediately raised his suspicions. What were they both doing with something like that?
Bryce picked up his pace and surged back towards the others. He had barely gone twenty paces when the first of a group of white-robed somatarchs appeared behind them. It ran through the air, streaks of light trailing from beneath the skimmers on its feet. Three more appeared behind it in rapid succession.
Bryce drew a pinion and his shiv, but he had no chance against four somatarchs. Adan reversed course and headed back towards him. He had no idea what he was going to do to help, but he didn’t want Bryce facing these creatures alone.
“Are you crazy?” Bryce’s thoughts burst into Adan’s mind. “Don’t worry about me. Keep running.”
Adan ignored the warning and caught up to Bryce. They were about a hundred paces from the trigger when the first two somatarchs, who were skating neck and neck, reached the black disc. As they passed over it, the tunnel flooded with white light, blinding Adan momentarily. When his vision returned he saw the charred and mangled remains of the two somatarchs hitting the ground. Two of the skates detached from the somatarchs’ feet and went hurtling straight towards him. Bryce tackled Adan and the two men crashed to the floor. The skimmers whizzed just over their heads and clattered to the ground, skipping harmlessly towards the fleeing Sentients.
As Adan rolled over, the other somatarchs streaked towards them. This time he remembered to shield his eyes as they glided over the trigger. When the flash faded, he opened his eyes in time to see the latest somatarchs fall. Their skimmers also ricocheted off the tunnel walls, but they petered out a few dozen paces away.
For a moment Adan thought they were safe. Then another somatarch, who must have been bringing up the rear, appeared. Surely it had seen what had happened to the others, but it continued on, though it hugged the side of the tunnel. It twisted its body and swerved to avoid the blast, but the explosion clipped the creature in midair all the same. The somatarch slammed into the side of the tunnel. The crack of its body hitting the stone reverberated down the passage.
The creature bounced off the wall and landed in a twisted heap. It should have been killed on impact, but Bryce held his pinion above his head, ready to strike as he advanced towards the fallen body.
The creature stirred in a weak attempt to rise. Bryce let his pinion fly. It found its mark in the creature’s side and the somatarch shuddered, but continued struggling to rise. Bryce’s arm whipped behind him and another pinion flashed down the passage before the creature could steady itself.
The second shaft pierced the somatarch’s leg, but it barely fazed the creature. It regained its feet and began plodding towards them.
The Chronotrace Sequence- The Complete Box Set Page 53
