by Tara Basi
Stuff took to following Mina and Tress around, which Tress coped with a lot better than Mina. An exasperated Mina eventually sent Stuff to regular tube school, making him spend at least a couple of hours a day getting an education about more than animals. Then, with Jugger’s support, Pinkie started joining him.
Tress discovered cooking, and she loved it. It became her passion and everyone enjoyed Tress’s passion. They were all happy, unnaturally happy.
Except for Mina, who never stopped, never rested and was never satisfied. Only Tress was able to persuade Mina they needed regular time off. Mina never took hers. When she wasn’t working on getting the base ready, she was desperately searching for Sara’s blood bomb formula. Eventually Trinity found a likely candidate in a blood analysis machine in one of the smaller medical research labs.
“Are you sure it’s Sara’s?” Mina asked when Nurse Trinity came to her with its discovery.
“Did she sign it? No. Is it a concoction of the worst bio-shit imaginable? Yes. Ergo. Who knows?”
“She was working in there. Then, she worked in a lot of places around the base, looking for ingredients.”
“It’s not like we can test it. Unless you’ve got an Owner secreted about your person who can testify to its authenticity?”
Annoyingly Trinity was right. The only other entity who could probably confirm they’d found Sara’s formula was Reference and she wasn’t handing it over to the Blocks.
“Program one of the VR trainers with the formula,” she said at last. “I’ll memorise it. Once it’s imprinted, flush the trainer and keep only one other copy, encrypted to the max. It’s probably our only bargaining chip. Once they have it…”
“We’re Block food,” Trinity said, completing her thought. “I’m happy to encrypt a version. Helpfully, the universe makes it very easy to encrypt and extremely difficult to decrypt, even for Owners. Your brain on the other hand is a leaky sieve.”
“Thanks, a bunch. Just remember, this leaky brain made you.”
“I read somewhere that Leonardo Da Vinci’s mother was a moron.”
“We’re ready, let’s call Tippese,” Battery Boy said at their regular weekly meeting.
“He’s right, it’s been months,” said Jugger. “Remember what I told you, Tippese wants us to take longer.” He leant back in his chair, looking even more menacing since he’d started wearing black leather and dark glasses.
“You don’t understand, we still have to do more on the logistics, staging areas, screening, supplies,” Mina started to explain.
“Old woman, you afraid? I ain’t,” Pinkie said, and patted the Glock at her waist. “It’s time for some action.”
Like Jugger, Pinkie was dressed in leather, but hers was red. Mina thought she looked fantastic and she was jealous. She remembered being pretty and sexy once. Damn, she thought as she realised it wasn’t even a year ago. Things were changing for them all and Pinkie wasn’t a little girl any more. She didn’t approve of Jugger giving her a gun. At least he had trained her well and she was as good a shot as Battery Boy. Stuff was happy with his crossbow which was just as well his marksmanship was awful.
Trinity pointed at Pinkie as they started to argue about their state of readiness. “Listen to the slightly psychotic one. It’s only twelve thousand, there’s twelve billion inside. I think we have enough toilet paper. Get a grip.”
“I’ll keep my room with Battery Boy, right?” Stuff asked, looking very strange in a pirate outfit he’d found somewhere in Manhattan.
Tress placed a reassuring hand on Mina’s shoulder, “It’ll be fine.”
“How many do you think get shipped to the Yard every day, just in Block Seven,” Battery Boy whispered
“Okay, okay, I suppose we’re ready enough. Let’s call Tippese tomorrow,” Mina conceded, looking tired and drawn.
“Well?” Stuff asked, pushing his eyepatch up onto his forehead, “What about my room?”
“Sorry, yes. There’s plenty of room for everyone. Trinity’s found four more bases, all as big as this one. They’ll need some work to get them operational but that’s for later. After the first evacuees are settled and can help.”
“I’ll be a base Boss. When we open the others up,” Jugger stated.
“Well,” Mina started to say.
“Anton, anything changed?” Battery Boy asked the screen which showed the ancient man up in the Maxinquaye space station.
Mina guessed he wanted to change the subject before she started arguing with Jugger. It wasn’t an argument she was going to win. Jugger would do what Jugger wanted to do with or without her help. He’d spent enough time in the learning tubes and studying the base’s systems to be able to manage a new facility. She could ask Trinity to lock him out of the systems but that would only end one way. It was a problem for another day. She turned her attention to Anton.
“Yes,” said Anton, his voice cracking and his eyes more manic than usual. “A different-looking oblong emerged from the Iowa Block last night and it’s gone into geo-stationary orbit directly over your location.”
“Different?” Tress asked.
“It’s got a blue tinge,” Anton answered, and shrugged, still looking worried.
“The blue light,” Tress whispered to herself, and Mina knew she was remembering all those decapitated little towns around Block Seven. Only Anton had actually witnessed the blue light attack. He’d seen the horror unfold from the safety of the Maxinquaye. It was Tracy’s idea, a way of announcing the power of the Blocks and ending any resistance before it had even begun. Over the course of a single day a million small towns all across the globe were struck from space by the blue light. Everything over a metre high, organic or inorganic, simply vanished. The Blocks arrived shortly after.
“What are we going to do?” asked Battery Boy.
Mina intervened. “Trinity found the blood bomb formula. I had a learning machine implant it deep in my memory. I can’t forget it, even if I wanted to. I’ve deleted every other copy and all of Sara’s research. Trinity has the only backup copy. It’s heavily encrypted. Trinity doesn’t think they’ll be able to access it and Trinity’s the only one with the key. If they attack us, they’ll lose it.”
“Maybe they want to get rid of it, if it did a lot of damage?” Battery Boy suggested. He didn’t sound sure that Mina had made the right choice.
“Or they need the formula to create a cure. It’s all we have to bargain with. They can’t get it till we’re sure they’re letting everyone go,” Mina answered.
“For once, I think our supreme leader may be right,” Trinity said.
“It’s settled then. Tomorrow we’ll call Tippese and start getting people out. Tonight I’m cooking up something fabulous,” Tress announced, to cheers from the younger ones.
But it looked like the fun was coming to an end. Mina wondered if she would ever be happy again.
Mina paced back and forth. Everyone was in the meeting room, including Anton who stared out of his little corner of an otherwise blank screen. This time Mina had decided to handle the call herself. It didn’t seem fair to ask Jugger again, not after last time.
Six months had gone by since Jugger had last spoken to Tippese and negotiated their deal. And nearly a year since Mina had returned to Earth.
Mina felt more stable and confident than she had done in a long time, even though the future looked darker and more challenging than ever. At first only thousands, but then billions of frightened people were about to be released into a haunted world. She could finally do something about the poor wretches trapped in the Blocks. She was scared, but something of the old Mina who’d flown in mankind’s first FTL ship to a distant star had resurfaced. She was a highly trained scientist and astronaut, the best of the best. She could do this, there was no one else.
“He’s ready for us, be careful and stay calm,” Trinity whispered in her ear.
“Hello?” Tippese said as his giant face popped into view. As always, he was dressed crazily, this time i
n a top hat and tails, as though they’d caught him on his way out to a formal dinner. He was alone in the Heaven House: there were no screens and no line of pampered Boss faces staring back.
“We’re ready to start picking people up,” Mina said, struggling to keep the emotion out of her voice.
“Really? So soon? Are you sure you don’t need more time? The first lot will need an awful lot of support.”
Mina took a deep breath, “We’re ready. When and where can we start collecting people?”
Tippese smiled. “You can’t. The plan’s changed.”
“What?” Mina shouted back, banging her fists on the table in front of her.
Tippese shrugged. “Listen, the Owners are coming, they’ll be here inside of six months. Reference wants to wait.”
“You bastard, you lied,” Mina screamed. Trinity was urgently whispering advice in her ear, to keep calm and find out as much as possible. She turned her back to the screen, tried to compose herself by taking a couple of deep breaths and then turned back to face Tippese. “So what now?”
“I didn’t lie, you know. Reference would have let everybody go in return for the formula. But it’s too late now, we can’t negotiate any more. Not till the Owners get here. You missed your chance, maybe the only one you were ever going to get.” Tippese walked nonchalantly away from the screen and draped himself across a chaise longue.
“You could let some go, the kids in the schools outside your Block. Please, they’re only kids,” Tress pleaded. She was copying Mina and trying not to be confrontational.
“That was a stupid Tracy thing. The schools are gone, everyone’s inside now, much better that way.”
“Don’t react. While he’s still talking, find out everything you can,” Trinity hissed in Mina’s ear.
“Why does Reference want the formula?” Mina formed each word carefully and slowly, focused on every syllable in a bid to keep calm.
Tippese looked smug as he studied Mina. “No idea. Reference doesn’t answer questions. It just wants it. And, don’t get any ideas about an attack. Reference has a blue light ship over your base. One of those things can vaporise New York in an instant if you try anything crazy, like launching missiles.”
“What’s going on with the Iowa Block,” Battery Boy asked, as Mina took a moment to control her emotions. She was grateful for the time.
“Why should I tell you anything, kid? But hey, why not? Reference is storing product there, till the Owners arrive. And, the Iowa Block used to make weird weapons. Horrible things. It’s got plenty in storage. I wouldn’t mess with it,” Tippese answered.
“What about the people?” Tress asked, the question Mina had always been too afraid to explore.
“You started this. Space had to be made for product. The Blocks are still churning stuff out. Honestly, they’re better off now. Like I said, those weapons it used to make were really sick,” Tippese answered, looking slightly uncomfortable.
“Don’t you want to get out?” Stuff asked, looking puzzled.
“Stupid kid, exchange all this for a rat’s life, what do you think? Look, don’t call again, there’s no point. The Owners will be in touch,” Tippese said and switched off his end of the connection.
“That’s that then,” Jugger announced.
“What?” Mina whispered.
Pinkie walked foreword to stand directly in front of Mina with her hands on her hips, “Jugger’s right. You blew it old woman.” Without another word Jugger and Pinkie left the room.
Mina had no idea how long she had been sitting in the dark, drinking and sobbing softly. It had been many hours, maybe even days. Her misery seemed bottomless. There was always more. Everyone on the Small Business had died for nothing. Why hadn’t she handed over the formula sooner? She was tortured by the thought that she could have saved everyone. She hadn’t made any difference. All that was left to her was to grieve for her race and herself.
She was so wrapped up in her own despair that she didn't notice the door of her room opening, a pool of light flooding over the threshold and someone quietly walking in. A hard slap threw Mina to the ground. Astonished and shocked, a stinging pain flooded over her instantly converting her depression into rage. Mina jumped to her feet, fists balled, ready to hurt her assailant. It was Tress. A dam had broken and a flood of frustration, bitterness and wrath welled up.
“Angry. You’re angry. Good. I told them you weren’t going to give up,” Tress said. She folded her arms and stared at Mina.
Mina’s ragged breathing started to slow down. The fire in her cooled, but didn’t disappear. “Give up? No, I’ve been thinking about your story. About how you kept going, It’s hard though,” Mina whispered. She lowered her fists then stroked her stinging cheek.
“Sure it is, but that’s what we do, right, we keep going,” Tress said, relaxing and trying to smile.
“But we keep losing. I know you’re right,” Mina whispered, staring down at the floor, the rage gone, to be replaced by a suffocating tiredness.
“Battery Boy’s been talking to Anton; they’ve got some ideas. They could do with your help,” Tress answered, her smile a little brighter.
“They have? How long have I been in here? I smell awful. I feel sick,” Mina said, avoiding Tress’s eyes.
“A couple of days. And, I thought you’d like to know, Pinkie’s pregnant, and Jugger’s looking pleased,” Tress concluded with a real smile.
“What? She’s so young,” Mina said, lifting her head to look a Tress with surprise. Gently Tress took hold of Mina by the shoulders. “This isn’t the world you left, Mina. I was pregnant with my second child when I was her age. This is good news.”
“Oh sorry, of course, it’s good news,” was all Mina could say, smiling weakly.
“I’ll tell them you’re back and ready to fight.”
“I don’t know Tress. I can’t forget what Pinkie said. What does Jugger think?”
“Ignore Pinkie, she was just playing up to Jugger. Jugger’s not stupid. He knows you’re the only one with the schooling to fight the Blocks.”
“What about Anton?”
“He’s stuck up there,” Tress said jerking a thumb towards the ceiling. “You’re down here, with us.”
Mina wrapped her arms around her head and groaned.
“Mina if you don’t come back the whole group’s going to splinter. I’m really worried that Battery Boy will do something stupid and get himself killed.”
“Don’t worry, I’m back. I have to shower first, then can you tell Trinity to come and find me. I’ll see you all in the morning.”
The two women hugged for a long time and Mina felt a little better but she had no idea what she was going to do. They all expected so much from her.
The next morning Mina gathered everyone together. Anton was in his usual place on the big screen. Jugger and Pinkie were sitting together and apart from everyone else. Jugger was a man now and Pinkie looked more beautiful every time Mina saw her and it reminded her of what she’d lost. It hurt. Battery Boy looked angry and impatient. Stuff made her smile. He was dressed in a Spider Man outfit and sitting next to Tress.
Stuff came forward and took hold of Mina’s hand and placed a number of small packets into it. “We went back to the Store, got loads of gum and more costumes. See?” Stuff did a little spin.
Pinkie laughed and said, “We didn’t find anything else. There was no bear. I looked it up Stuff, a bear would have torn you up. You wouldn’t have stood a chance.”
Stuff balled his fists and glared at Pinkie, “I told you I didn’t kill it. Battery Boy opened up a way for it to escape, same way we got in this time.” Stuff turned to Battery Boy, “Tell them it’s true. I stopped the bear. Didn’t I?”
Battery Boy was staring at his hands. He hadn’t been listening. “What? Not now Stuff. Have you got a plan Mina?”
Mina ruffled Stuff’s wild hair. “Thanks for the gum, this is really going to help me concentrate.” Stuff didn’t smile, he took his seat and
folded his arms tightly across his chest. Mina looked around the room, catching the eye of everyone. “We have two choices. Forget the Blocks, their Owners, and find somewhere safe to live.”
Battery Boy was immediately on his feet. “Hide away? Never. We’ve got to attack the Blocks!”
“She said live. I’m okay with living,” Jugger said and took Pinkie’s hand.
Tress stood up and with hands on hips gave Jugger a hard stare. “If they let us Jugger. We’ve never found anybody else living free. Mina, you said there was a second choice?”
Mina took a deep breath. “Or we fight.”
Jugger as calm as ever responded immediately, “Who, how, and most of all, why?”
“Let’s start with the ‘Why?’ If we could do some damage, before the Owners arrive, it might frighten them into agreeing better terms. Grain, Sara and the others on the Small Business could have done a lot more damage than we think. Perhaps they’re running scared.”
Jugger smirked, “Could, might, perhaps?”
A seething Battery Boy shouted, “Better than doing nothing and waiting to get a Band or sent to the Yard. That what you want for your kid?”
Jugger’s smirk vanished.
Pinkie put her hand on Jugger’s arm, “Maybe we could hear the rest, just for the sake of it.”
“I’ll let Nurse Trinity explain the how.”
“Listen up dopes. I think it’s a suicidal plan. But you all strike me as a suicidal bunch. Our base is full of killing shit. Mega missiles, nukes. You name it. Trouble is, none of it will get anywhere near a Block. Its protective field is way too clever. And the lovely blue light could vaporise this whole city at the first sniff of a missile launch.”
Jugger jumped right in, “So there’s no chance. Why are we here?”
“Hold up there my young sociopath, I haven’t got to the suicidal bit. As you’ve discovered, the Blocks have a weakness. Underneath, its field doesn’t seem to work. So, if you could smuggle a couple of ten tonne missiles under a Block and fire it right up one of its arseholes when it poos. Boom, bang, boom.”
