Touching down on the ship’s fins in the small clearing, Ada hopped out of the ship just a few steps from Sam and the Master. The Shadowslayer looked grim. The ghosts had lost people - bodies, whatever - and they weren’t exactly sure what they were getting out of it. She could see why that would trouble them.
“Ada. Were you successful?”
She stared at him. “I know where we need to go. Cherry, pictures?”
The ship projected a crisp, true colour image of the mountain top Ada and Isavel had found in the archives. It floated in the air, made of a billion little points of light, hovering between her, Sam, and the Master.
“This shrine - it’s on the northeastern slope of this mountain. The big white one.”
Sam squinted at the image. “I know that mountain. We passed it on the road south.”
“So did that army.” Ada said, and the Master gave her a strange look.
“Do they know the shrine’s location?”
She sighed. She knew it was true. “They do, yes. The details aren’t important, but they’re heading the same way. We need to leave immediately.”
“And get there at the same time as them?” Sam asked. Ada was still getting used to hearing that more feminine voice. “Didn’t you say you have work to do there before you can fix it?”
She pointed at Cherry. “I can get there right now, with my ship. I just can’t take more than one other person with me - and to be honest, I don’t think there’s anyone I need to bring along. That should give me a few days to figure out what I need to do and do it.”
“Will that be enough?”
“It will have to be.”
The Shadowslayer frowned. “And if it’s not?”
She bit her lip, and hesitated for just a moment. “I’ll blast that entire army to ash with my ship and keep trying. But I’d rather send as few people to hell as possible.”
The Master grunted. He looked to Sam, and then sighed as he turned back to Ada. “And you require us to delay them again, I assume.”
“Yes. You don’t need to get yourselves killed, just slow them down as much as humanly possible. Or, er, ghostlily possible.” She glanced between them, and at the other ghosts skulking further away. “Whatever. Peck away at them. I’ll need all the time you can give me - I’ve never seen the kinds of technology I’ll be working with.”
And Ada really, really didn’t want that army to catch up with her.
Sam reached out and put an arm on her shoulder, surprising her. “You’ll manage.”
She blinked, and saw cool approval in the newly reforged woman’s eyes. The appropriate response was probably to smile, so she tried that, but she wasn’t sure whether it made things better. That gnawing in her gut hadn’t stopped. “Thanks. I know I will. But right now, do whatever you think is best. Hell, even if you abandon me entirely, I’ll still have a few days’ head start given how they can’t fly anywhere.”
The Master looked on impassively, but Sam shook her head. “I think you’re our best shot.”
Ada could tell there was personal gratitude playing into that sentiment, but she was loathe to challenge it. Perhaps it was fine for personal gratitude to play a role. If that was how the world worked, her next meeting with Isavel might not be a throwdown.
“Thanks for the vote of confidence, Sam.” She wasn’t sure how else to respond, so she left it at that. “If only we had some bigger guns to beat them back.”
“There are many ancient weapons still in storage in ancient military bases, tended to by walkers.” The Master looked like he was speaking from personal familiarity. “It can take time to find them, though.”
Ada sighed. “Yeah, and it’s not like we have archives or anything.” She blinked, and smiled. “Oh, wait. Actually, I think I have just that.”
The ghosts looked at her with confused expressions, but she glanced up into the air where Cherry floated, awaiting her commands. Cherry, I need help. I’m looking for something big, with lots of firepower, that doesn’t need people who can read to make it work. Any piece of military equipment, anywhere in the world.
Cherry’s voice responded immediately. I have access to public and low-level classified documentation as well as up-to-date satellite imagery. I will cross-reference these to locate an asset matching your description. This may take a few minutes.
Ada smiled, genuinely this time. Her ship continued to impress her. “Okay, my ship is searching. I’ll let you take care of this, but I think I need to go prepare. If I find anything we can use, I’ll let you know. Cherry, get down here.”
The ship descended, splaying its dark fins out like feet to land on, and settled down in the clearing. Ada hopped in and let the cockpit snap shut again, giving her a sense of safety that she rarely felt on the ground. She glanced outside to see the Master already walking away, but Sam still stood there, raising a hand in goodbye. Ada raised one hand in return.
“Cherry. Can you contact Zhilik and Tanos again?”
Contacting.
It was only a few seconds before Tanos’ voice filtered through the transmission. Ada? We’re still watching Hive - people are making runs to the army with horses, bringing them food and supplies and medics. Are you okay?
“Thanks, Tanos, I’m fine. Listen, I’ve got an idea. I’m asking Cherry to search for old relics we might be able to use to help stall the army. Maybe you two can help me lock something down.”
Zhilik’s voice filtered in now, sounding skeptical. You know that most advanced technology, especially the military kind, was designed with biometric controls. My people will not be able to use it, nor would unauthorized humans.
“Cherry can override -”
Cherry’s voice broke into the conversation, apparently audible to everyone. I have identified the most suitable candidate based on your parameters of size, firepower, and automation. The submersible assault cruiser Chengdu is currently floating on the open ocean a few thousand clicks west of your location, in low-power standby mode. It is stabilized, but seems unoccupied. It is by far the largest such object I was able to find by searching all available databases.
Ada’s eyes went wide. “It’s a boat?”
It is a warship.
She grinned. “Hell yes. What do you think, you two? Feel like commandeering an ancient warship?”
There was a pause on the other end that worried her, but when Tanos finally spoke it was with some measure of enthusiasm, or at least interest. I’ve never piloted a warship, but it sounds… impressive.
If it helps us prevent further conflict between ghosts and humans, it is worth investigating. Zhilik’s academic caution and curiosity seemed inseparable. I wonder which war it was built to fight in.
Ada shrugged. “Petty bickering between cultures that died long ago. Let’s give it something new to chew on. Cherry, can you override the ship from here?”
Yes. It will take some time, as the cybersecurity measures on the ship were state of the art when it was launched in 2319. I can request a coordinated command injection from the ring that will allow us to take control of the Chengdu and pilot it towards this region.
“Send it towards Campus. Tanos, Zhilik - when that ship gets there, see what you can do with it, okay? Be ready.”
Cherry tempered the urgency, though. The ship may take a day to arrive after control has been seized.
“Or, you know, wait for it.”
We can head back to Campus. Zhilik sounded like he agreed. That might be the safest option. There have been more eyes on us than usual lately.
That didn’t sound good - all the better if they left. Ada was guiding Cherry through the air, watching the ghosts pull away from the enemy and turning towards the mountain, which was already visible in the distance. It was true - Tanos and Zhilik could easily go back to Campus now. It would be safer. She felt a pang of guilt at that, especially at sending Tanos away, but she couldn’t think of an articulate reason why she should feel guilty.
“All right. Do that, and then just wait for that warship. I -�
��
Weapons suddenly burst to life in the woods, snapping out from cover to strike at the ghosts. The ghosts dodged and ducked, and Sam fled the scene unharmed, but this was far too close for comfort.
“Shit!”
Ada? What’s going on?
“There’s fighting! Hang on, wait a second!” The ghosts were returning fire. Ada called up her ship’s sensors and spotted the offending humans, a few shapes in the underbrush. Some were firing, others were not - pathfinders and hunters, she assumed.
She brought her weapons to bear and aimed straight at them, but then she paused. She couldn’t just gun them down. She had no idea who they might be, and she didn’t want to hurt - well, anyone really. Wasn’t that the point?
Still, the ghosts knew she was there. They expected her to be on their side, and to help them. She readied Cherry’s weapons and aimed false, in front of the attackers, sending angry hexagonal shards of light into the ground and churning up dirt and vegetation.
The threat seemed to work - the people firing on the ghosts immediately turned and ran. All except for one - a single body lay in the woods, unmoving, its glow slowly fading. A sudden, cavernous pit appeared in Ada’s stomach, and she fumbled around trying to close it.
“It’s just an enemy, right? There’s no way… Cherry?”
Yes, Ada?
“That body, the one we just hit. Can you… do you know who it is?”
Scanning. Brief pause. Their biosignatures do not match any individuals I have scanned recently.
Ada was flooded by a sense of relief, one she immediately knew was misplaced. It didn’t matter who she was killing - killing was not what she was here to do. It shouldn’t matter at all.
She angled the ship at the ghosts and started moving above them, and saw Sam running, occasionally glancing back up at her from between the tall, straight redwoods and firs. Perhaps that had done it, then. A little bit more trust established.
Ada? What happened? Did you shoot someone?
She had completely forgotten that Tanos and Zhilik were still listening to her.
“Yes, Tanos, that’s what happened. I’m fine. The ghosts are fine too, not that that’ll make you happy.” She looked out across the rolling forests and hills, towards the great white mountain in the distance. “I need to get going. Take care of that ship if it shows up, okay?”
Got it. Take care of yourself, Ada.
As the transmission clicked out, she rolled her eyes. Of course she was going to take care of herself. Who did he think she was going to take care of? “Okay Cherry, let’s just talk, you and me. You have scientific and historical archives, right?”
Yes. The state of human encyclopaedic knowledge, as of the year 2347, is stored in my databanks.
Ada angled the ship towards the mountain and started moving it forward.
“Good. Can you start running me through how these simulations work? And can you do it in fast-time? How much can you teach me before we reach the mountain?”
Using cognitive time dilation, we will be able to cover several hours’ material in the twenty-four minutes required to reach our destination. I do not have access to the specifics for Kronos simulations, unfortunately, but similar computational simulations have hundreds of years of technological and social development that I can share with you, beginning in the twentieth century with systems known as videogames that were -
“Alright, sounds good. I need all the information I can get, so start teaching.”
She squeezed time to a crawl, her eyes firmly fixed on the mountain ahead, as Cherry started from the beginning.
Chapter 13
“What happened?” Isavel had heard the sounds of battle tapering off as she emerged from the archival facility, and by the time she reached the others things seemed to have calmed down entirely. She was sweating and tired and nervous. Trying to fight wasn’t something she even wanted to think about right now.
Dendre Han was scratching his head. “The ghosts attacked, but they were pretty conservative. The dragons were pelting us but even they keeping their distance, and everybody suddenly bolted a few minutes before you showed up. Some kind of fireworks in the sky above the facility was their signal to leave, I think.”
“Saint Isavel.” Elder Tan’s voice tried to offset with apologetics the suddenness of his approach. “Did you uncover the shrine? Did you destroy it?”
“The shrine isn’t here.” She saw their dismay right away, but she wasn’t sure how to soften it. It had been extremely clear to her, inside the facility and indeed still now, that she and Ada were looking for the exact same thing. “It’s buried in the northeastern slopes of the great white mountain we passed on the road south. We need to go there, as fast as we can.”
“You need me to send the drones?”
She almost jumped hearing Aren’s voice from one of the drones overhead. “Can you?”
“I don’t know if they can go that far. I don’t think dad ever sent them that far.”
“Can you find out? It’s very important. We’ll need as many as you can send, to keep track of the ghosts.”
“Sure, I can try. Should I send the shooting drones out front?”
“Uh, yes, send those ones too. Get them harassing the enemy.”
“So, shooting, but not too much?”
She grinned slightly. “That’s right. Don’t let the drones get destroyed.”
She saw Hail’s eyes widen, and when their eyes met Hail pursed her lips. “I had heard rumours, but I didn’t actually know he had armed drones.”
Isavel nodded, remembering the oddly quiet drones suspended in the air in the Mayor’s home. “From what I saw, there definitely are.”
Aren’s voice broke through again. “Isavel, the ghosts are moving away from you. I think they’re going towards the mountain too.”
Dendre and Elder Tan both looked surprised. “Do the ghosts know? How can they know?”
Isavel felt her heart sink in her chest, but she tried to straighten her shoulders. She knew the answer. “They know. We have to stop them from reaching it before us. Go! Get everyone moving, stop standing around.”
Tired as she was, she started walking. They could use an example.
She heard gentle running behind her after a few moments, and she turned to see, to her surprise, Venshi. The steward had already stopped running when Isavel laid eyes on her, but Isavel wished she could have seen Venshi run. She had never seen Venshi move at anything but a leisurely and slightly creepy stroll.
Venshi started her warble with a title. “Saint Herald Isavel - did you destroy the shrine?”
“No, it’s not here.” Isavel watched Venshi as she said that, but the steward didn’t seem to react at all. “Come on, Venshi, we need to keep up with the ghosts.”
She started walking again, and Venshi managed to keep pace with unusually long strides underneath her gown. “You seem troubled. What is wrong, child?”
Isavel gazed back at the facility. She thought about what Ada had said, her strange claim that the afterlife needed to be fixed. She thought back to the time she died, to the terrible world she had seen there, the same one that had engulfed the guardians of Glass Peaks outside the city walls. Everybody had assumed it was simply one of the more terrifying of the thousand worlds, but Isavel knew otherwise. “Is the afterlife broken, Venshi?”
Venshi’s ceramic white face didn’t change, her voice as composed as ever. But something in her nevertheless spoke of sudden anger. Her posture? The direction of her gaze? “Who told you that? Who would claim to know such a thing?”
“A woman I met in the facility.” Isavel knew that the coders didn’t like Ada, so though Venshi had never mentioned her before, avoiding the name might be best. “She said it needed to be fixed.”
“Who would dare assume to fix the work of the gods?” Venshi demanded. “How could one who had not died know the nature of the afterlife?”
“I died, Venshi. You know that.”
Venshi’s pause was bri
ef. “And did it look broken to you?”
“Yes.”
“That’s because you didn’t reach the afterlife.” Venshi waved dismissively. “There is a desolate pathway between this world and the next, and the gods snatched you back from the beyond before you crossed it. You died, but you did not see what ultimately comes after death.”
Isavel nodded. She couldn’t know either way, so it was certainly possible. She was too tired to worry about it. “And the ghosts? It seems like they live in that pathway.”
“They are evil spirits who themselves cannot cross into the beyond. They hate us so much that they will come here to take our bodies, to try and ride them to the afterlife when they die. Normally the gods protect us from them, but at times the spirits grow more dangerous than usual, and the gods see this as a chance to test our strength. To rouse us to heroism.”
Isavel nodded again. It all seemed plausible. “Why would the gods send someone to lie to me?”
Venshi made a strange hissing sound. “Who was this woman you met? Was it Ada Liu?”
Isavel was taken aback. She didn’t remember telling Venshi about Ada, ever. “Did you talk to the coders?”
“I did. They say you danced with the woman in Hive.”
She nodded, though in truth she had danced and Ada had stumbled along next to her.
“You should not dance with the devil.” Venshi shook her head. “It is her mission to subvert the will of the gods and bring ruin to our society. If she seizes power, the world will forever be changed, unrecognizable, and the society we have built under the watchful eyes of the gods will shatter. Do not trust her.”
What had Ada done to deserve all the scorn these people seemed to place on her? To suggest that Ada might seize power seemed… Well, after a moment’s thought, she decided that it didn’t seem so unreasonable. The rogue coder was ambitious, that much was clear, and she had an uncanny knowledge of how to manipulate ancient relics. Beyond that, she kept appearing again and again in Isavel’s life, without explanation, and now in the most significant of places. There was certainly something about her.
Some invisible current had swept Isavel away, changing her life and carrying it to strange waters. Ada, it seemed, was floating in that same current. Isavel knew that she herself was protecting the world - that was what she was meant to do, tasked by the gods. That didn’t leave much room for another saviour, did it? Surely the gods wouldn’t choose two for the same task.
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