The Interrogation of Ashala Wolf (The Tribe)

by Kwaymullina, Ambelin

  The size and shape of the machine clearly had some significance to the two of them that had escaped me. “I don’t get it! What does it matter what it looks like?”

  It was Ember who answered, sounding shaken. “Ash, do you remember me telling you about those powerful little electronic boxes, the ones that are used to run stuff like the Rail system, and the recyclers, and the solar generators? Computers?”

  “Yeah, but what does that have to . . .? Hang on, you think the machine is a computer? It can’t be!” Computers were advanced technology, and as every schoolkid knew, advanced tech was restricted to projects of “public good,” and then only if the Council of Primes determined that the potential good to the Balance outweighed the harm. “You’re telling me the Primes approved —”

  Connor and Ember shook their heads. “We would have heard,” Ember said, “if the council had allowed a computer to be developed for something like this. So if that machine is a computer, then Neville is breaking the Benign Technology Accords.”

  I tried to get my mind around this latest disturbing piece of information. It seemed impossible. I mean, everyone knew the dangers of advanced tech. It had isolated the people of the old world from nature, shielding them from the consequences of imbalance, and yet they’d believed, right up until the very end, that it would save them. But as Hoffman himself said, advances in technology could never compensate for failures in empathy. That was one of the reasons why we had Benign Technology Accords, to stop us from making the same mistakes.

  “I’m afraid,” Connor said, “that what Neville’s doing doesn’t end with the machine. He has something going on in the Steeps, too, though I don’t know what yet. It seems to me that there is one sure way to deal with the threat he represents. I can kill him.”

  Ember straightened in sudden interest, but I snapped, “No!”

  “There wouldn’t be much danger of being caught. With my ability, it would be easy enough to make it seem like an accident —”

  “Absolutely not, Connor!”

  He seemed taken aback by my reaction. “Why not?”

  I couldn’t believe he was even asking why it would bother me to tell him to kill. “Because I am not your father.”

  He seemed surprised. “Ashala. It wouldn’t be the same.”

  “It would feel the same. To me.” And to you, even if you don’t know it.

  His brow creased, as if I’d presented his quick mind with a puzzle he couldn’t solve, and I knew he still didn’t understand. Because you’re not used to anybody caring, Connor. Caring if you succeed or fail, yes. But not caring about you. I don’t know what he read in my face, but his expression changed, growing softer. I longed to reach out to him, but I couldn’t do that without breaching the boundaries he’d set between us, so I stared at him instead, willing him to feel what I was feeling. After a moment, his lips curved faintly into a smile, and I smiled back.

  Ember cleared her throat. When Connor and I didn’t react, she did it again, a bit louder.

  We both looked at her this time. “There’s a better way to get to Neville than killing him,” she told us. “We can expose him.”

  “For breaking the Tech Accords?” I asked.

  “And whatever else he’s up to in that place. I don’t think we even want him dead, because he’s not doing this alone. Grey might just carry on without him. If he was exposed, though . . .”

  Connor seemed intrigued by the idea. “There’d be an inquiry for certain, and they might even shut down the center temporarily. There’s talk of an Inspectorate visit being scheduled soon after the center opens. We could be able to use that.”

  Happy with any notion that didn’t involve Connor assassinating somebody, I put in brightly, “I think this is a terrific idea. We’ll just have to come up with a plan. One of your twisty plots, Em. To expose Neville — and maybe rescue some detainees, too.”

  She laughed. “I’m afraid it would have to be some amazing plan to do all that.” Then her face grew serious. “Have you thought about how this ends, Ash? With Briony, I mean?”

  I frowned, and she continued: “I take it we’re agreed that it would be best to let her introduce Connor to us. And we couldn’t expose her as a traitor immediately after that, either, because Neville would wonder if we suspected Connor, too. There’ll come a time, though, when we won’t have to pretend anymore, and I guess what I’m asking is, are you prepared to forgive her?”

  Connor glared at Em. “You can’t possibly think Ashala should forgive her.”

  “No,” she replied tartly, “I don’t. If it was up to me, Briony would be fed to the saurs. However, I am not the leader of the Tribe.”

  The two of them turned their attention to me. I didn’t say anything, and Connor snapped, “She betrayed you! She put you in danger!”

  “I know that. But she’s still Tribe. So I need time to think, okay? Both of you, just give me time to think.”

  He and Ember exchanged glances, united in their common desire to have Briony consumed by giant lizards. I absently picked up some pebbles and scattered them across the floor, trying to sort things out in my head. It wasn’t as if we could even do anything about Bry yet, but Ember was right — I had to consider how this ended. We might have to act fast, and it was my job to decide what would happen when somebody broke an important rule. It was awful to sit in judgment on someone you loved, but on the other hand, I wouldn’t have wanted anyone who didn’t care for Briony to do it. At least I could try to understand.

  I thought through all the things I valued about Bry. Her smile. The way she was always so bubbly and happy, and how intensely she believed in her dreams for the future. Except she’d done something terrible to make those dreams come true. Knowing Bry, she’d thought it was a game when she started, but after what happened to Jaz, she must have realized how serious it was. Only she hadn’t stopped, and she’d told the government everything she knew. She’d been prepared to put everyone at risk, and all to grasp at an illusion, a fantasy of family life that didn’t exist outside her head. I loved her, and I always would. But I could never trust her again.

  “Exile,” I said heavily. “We exile her. Everyone gets told what she did, and she’s never allowed to come back here.” It was the worse fate I could imagine, and I felt close to tears to inflict it on Briony, even after everything she’d done.

  Ember beamed her approval. “It’s the right decision, Ash.”

  Connor looked relieved, and a little confused. I knew he’d be trying to work out later why I was so upset over someone who’d betrayed me. Feeling tired and sick, I thought, It’s simple, Connor. Family is family.

  After a moment’s silence, he said reluctantly, “I’m afraid I have to get back.”

  I jumped. “So soon?”

  “It’s going to take me some time to return to the city, and none of us can afford for me to be missed.”

  Ember gave him a cheerful wave. “Bye, then, Connor.”

  He responded with such perfect courtesy that it was clearly meant to be sarcastic. “Good-bye, Ember.”

  Right, so these two aren’t going to be best friends anytime soon. I scrambled to my feet. “Come on, Connor. I’ll, um, show you the way out.”

  He followed me into the gloom of the tunnel, and Ember called after us, “The Serpent, Ash!”

  “Okay, Em, I’ll tell him.”

  I said to Connor, “We kind of accidentally invented an Illegal, and we were wondering if you could help us make him more believable.”

  Sounding amused, he asked, “How do you ‘accidentally invent an Illegal’?”

  I explained. “Ember told this story to the Tribe one night, a really ancient story from the old world about a giant snake that created everything there is — all the plants and animals and people and so on. Not all of the Tribe was there to hear it, so people must have told it to one another, and somehow it got garbled. The next thing we knew, there was this rumor going around the Tribe that there was some special Illegal with the power to m
ake a new world.”

  “Named the Serpent?”

  “Yep. Anyhow, this was months ago. But when you came and told us that someone was informing on the Tribe, Em revived the rumor because she thought it would be a good idea to give the government someone else to chase. And she added details, like that the Serpent covers up his face so no one knows who he is and that he won’t work with the Tribe. We thought you could maybe spread a few rumors in the city about him.”

  “A good idea, although I won’t need to begin any rumors. I’ll simply report that I’ve heard some, which will have precisely the same effect. That, combined with the information Neville will get from Briony, might convince them there’s something to the story. And if not”— he shrugged —“it’s still worth a try.”

  “Ember thinks they’ll be concerned, because a few years back, there was someone trying to organize resistance to the government who always kept his face hidden. He wasn’t actually an Illegal, but everyone thought he was.”

  “Someone Ember knew, I take it?”

  “Um, yeah. He died.” It was a part of Ember’s father’s story that she’d told us later, how her dad had insisted on exploring the tunnels, even though he’d known he was sick, and died there. “It’s complicated, but no one knows he’s dead, so . . .”

  Connor finished the thought. “The Serpent could still be him, or else a copycat. That will definitely give it more substance.”

  The two of us had reached the big cavern now and were approaching the opening to the forest. My steps grew slower and slower as we neared it until I stopped altogether in the middle of the cave. Connor stopped, too, and shifted to face me.

  “Connor . . .” I said huskily. “Don’t lose yourself out there.”

  “Oh, Ashala.” I could hear the smile in his voice. “You don’t need to fear that. I am always here, now. With you. The girl who hears me even when I don’t speak.”

  I couldn’t answer without crying, so I nodded instead. He turned and walked rapidly to the opening. When he reached it, he paused, balancing on the edge with his body outlined in moonlight, and glanced back over his shoulder.

  “Ashala. Think of me.”

  Then he was gone, swooping over the treetops and melting into the night.

  I walked until I was standing almost where he had stood, staring out over the silvery, shadowy forest.

  And I thought of him.

  FIVE DAYS AGO

  I peered around at the stacks of containers. It was night outside and really dark in there. The tiny portable solar lamp I was holding wasn’t very strong, but it would have to be enough. We couldn’t risk anyone seeing light through the windows and wondering what people were doing in the warehouse. The last thing we needed was for things to go wrong now.

  Over the past weeks, Connor had continued to pass on information about Neville, the Steeps, and the workings of the center. We’d introduced Connor to the Tribe as the administrator he was pretending to be, while Ember had worked on an increasingly complex plan to ensure Neville’s downfall. Then, seven days ago, we’d begun to put our scheme into action. Daniel — who now knew everything — reported that he had seen Connor outside the center in enforcer black. Naturally, Briony expressed her shock that the administrator she’d brought to me was no administrator at all. She said over and over how astonished she was, before reporting our supposed discovery to Connor himself. In turn, Connor had asked Bry to let him know the instant I left the security of the grasslands. Which was exactly what she should be on her way to do now.

  I could imagine how everything would have unfolded back in the Firstwood tonight, so much so that it was almost as if I’d seen it for myself. The way Daniel would have loped in to summer camp to lie about how he’d just met Ember, newly arrived back from the grasslands. He’d have told the Tribe that Em was furious because I’d taken off for Cambergull instead of helping her spy on the center from afar. He might even have acted out her bad mood, and since he was an excellent mimic, everyone would’ve roared with laughter. Briony would have laughed, too. And then, as soon as she could, she would have slipped away. She’ll be halfway to the center by now.

  There was movement in the gloom behind me, and Ember spoke. “We should probably begin soon, Ash.”

  I held out my light, pacing through the darkness toward her. She’d laid out a collection of objects on top of one of the containers — a flask that contained the sleepy-herb mix, an aromatic pouch tied to a piece of fishing line, and a river stone strung on a cord.

  “I wish you didn’t have to be here, Em. If they search the town tomorrow . . .”

  “They won’t. They have no reason to. Bry thinks that I’m still in the Firstwood and that you’re here alone.” She sighed and added, “Ash, are you sure about this? I mean, one hundred percent sure? Do me a favor and think about it, okay?”

  I put the lamp down on a container and shoved my hands in my pockets, knowing that I’d have to go all quiet and contemplative for a while to make her happy. And I did think about what was going to happen, although for me, the first part would be relatively easy. I would go to sleep, then wake not quite myself. Ember would be the one who had to mess with my memories, which would take a while. Then she would prop my unconscious body against one of the containers, hang the stone around my neck, and climb up the stack above to conceal herself next to one of the windows. If she opened it a crack, she’d hear the vehicle motoring onto the nearby main street in the morning, especially since Connor would be sending a helpful breeze to carry the sound in this direction. Since all vehicles belonged to the government, and the only ones around here belonged to the center, there was no chance of the approaching truck being anyone except Connor and the enforcers.

  Once the truck stopped, Ember would dangle the salts under my nose. I’d wake up, convinced that I had just been chatting to the Serpent, and head out of town — which was when I’d run into Connor, waiting outside the Bureau of Citizenship office.

  Everything that followed afterward would be horrible. Painful. Necessary.

  “I’m not stupid, Em. I know things could go wrong. But yes, I’m sure I have to do this. And if I don’t make it —”

  She interrupted me, indignant and a little desperate: “You’ll make it.”

  “Listen to me. If I don’t, then you’re in charge. I’ve told Daniel, Georgie, and the saurs. I even told the Firstwood. You’re the new leader of the Tribe.”

  She didn’t answer, but I heard a distinct sobbing sound. She’s crying? Ember never cried! “I won’t let you down, Ash. You know I won’t. Please come back.”

  “That’s what I’m planning to do.”

  “At least,” she sniffed, “Connor will be there to take care of you.”

  “I thought you didn’t like him.”

  “He’s dangerous.” I opened my mouth to protest, and she shook her head at me. “Don’t tell me he isn’t, because he is. Only, after hearing the way he says your name, I’ve decided that he’s not dangerous to you.”

  “How does he say my name?”

  “Slowly!” She laughed at my puzzled expression. “Don’t worry — you’ll get it yourself eventually.”

  “So you’re okay with Connor?”

  “Yes, I suppose I am.”

  “Good.” I knew it was silly to be so pleased to hear that. All things considered, I had much bigger problems than Connor and Ember not getting along. Still, it was reassuring to know those two would be all right. I wanted everything to be all right between the people I loved.

  There was a sudden noise outside the warehouse door. Ember jabbed at the button for the light, putting it out, and the two of us huddled down behind a container. We listened as someone came inside and shut the door.

  “Ashala?”

  I sagged in relief. It was Connor. And my name just sounds like my name to me. Em switched the light back on, and I made my way to where he was standing. “I thought you might be the government! What are you doing here?”

  “I had to see you
.”

  Ember arrived beside me, lamp in hand. “Has something gone wrong?”

  Connor shook his head and looked at her pleadingly. He didn’t say anything, but she seemed to understand what he was asking, because she put the lamp down on the nearest container and walked away, vanishing into the depths of the warehouse.

  Feeling confused, I asked, “If nothing’s wrong, then why did you have to see me?”

  “Ashala, I . . .” He paused, took a breath, and started again. “I have been asked to do difficult things before. Terrible things. You know that. But what you are asking of me, to stand by while you are at risk . . . I’m not sure I can do it.”

  He sounded strained, and I knew he must be almost at the breaking point to come here. I searched around for the right words to say to him, the ones that would explain what he meant to me and what I needed him to be.

  “Georgie once told me,” I said softly, “that in any given moment, there are thousands of futures. But I don’t believe there is a single one in which we don’t find each other.”

  He smiled at that. “I don’t believe there is, either.”

  “I sometimes wonder if there is a future where my sister doesn’t die and your mother doesn’t, either. So you and I, we just run into each other someplace. I’m walking on the beach, and you’re fishing or something.”

  “If my mother hadn’t died, I probably would have been an artist. She was an artist. Maybe in that future, I paint your picture.”

  I liked that idea. But I couldn’t let myself imagine it, not now. “Except, Connor, that’s not the world we live in. In this world, Neville is coming for the Tribe.”

  He shifted, and I knew he didn’t like the turn the conversation had taken, but I pressed on. “Do you remember when I showed you how I came to the Firstwood and touched the trees?”

  “Of course I remember.”

  “I’d always heard about the Balance before that. But that was the first time I actually felt it. That was when I knew that there was something greater than all of us. Those trees, and the Tribe, and even the saurs — that’s the heart of me. The essence of who I am. And Neville is trying to destroy it.”