by Marty Chan
They sprinted across the courtyard. By the time they reached the stonewall fence, the windows glowed orange from the fire within.
Ehrich climbed up and straddled the ledge at the top of the fence. He waved down to Tesla. “The fire’s started. Go warn the sentries.”
The Serb ran to the main gate.
Amina started to climb, but stopped when she spotted a second figure atop the stone fence. It ran toward Ehrich. She waved at Ehrich and pointed behind.
He spun around in time to receive a face full of shoulder. Kifo knocked Ehrich off. He slid off the top, scraping his back as he tumbled back into the courtyard with Amina. Kifo flicked his metal hand at the prone teen, but Ehrich rolled quickly out of the way of the darts that imbedded the dirt. He rose to his feet as Kifo landed a few feet away from him. An orange glow emitted from the building.
“Fools-s-s!” Kifo hissed.
He charged at Amina. She vaulted into the air and unleashed a spinning kick, but Kifo was faster, raising his metal claw to block the kick and punching Amina’s solar plexus with his other hand. She fell. He towered over her, his sickle-shaped nose whistling hard. Before he could finish her off, Ehrich slammed into the back of the raggedy man and sent him tumbling across the ground.
Shouts from the other end of the yard erupted. Ehrich could hear Tesla shouting, “Fire! Fire!”
Lamplights filled the night as over a dozen men rushed toward the fire. Now flames licked the edges of the window. Kifo glanced back at the blaze, then at the approaching men. He flicked his metal hand at Ehrich, who dropped low before any of the darts found their mark. He climbed to his feet, but the assassin was gone.
“Get out of here,” Amina said, grabbing his arm and hauling him to his feet. The two of them sprinted to the fence and scrambled up, but the men weren’t interested in them. They were more interested in attending to the blaze.
Once clear of the courtyard, Ehrich tried to catch his breath while Amina led him toward Tesla, now coming to join them.
“What happened?” the tall man asked.
“Kifo showed up,” Amina said. “I think he must have been staking out the place.”
“He must not want us to locate Edison first,” Tesla guessed.
“Let’s clear out before anyone sees us,” Ehrich said.
v
Amina had found the perfect vantage point to spy on Menlo Park. A small stand of trees allowed them a clear line of sight to the main road coming into the village, as well as a view of buildings around the facilities. Amina set up camp, creating a lean-to for shelter out of fallen branches while Tesla foraged for food. Ehrich stood watch on the road. He knew Edison wouldn’t come immediately, but his main target wasn’t the Demon Watch commissioner; he had his sights set on Kifo. The assassin was sure to be around somewhere.
The night turned to day and back to night with no activity on the road besides a few villagers heading toward the city. Ehrich whiled the time by practising palming a Morgan dollar. The silver coin slipped out of his palm several times, but he couldn’t stop until he executed the palm perfectly ten times in a row. The highest he reached was seven times.
The failure to perfect the sleight triggered his thoughts of Dash. No matter how he tried, he couldn’t save his brother. He was too late to stop the boy from flying through the portal into this dimension. Though he had possessed the Infinity Coil for two years, he didn’t realize its true purpose until after he had lost it. He had Kifo in his grasp, and the assassin had slipped away. The more he tried, the less he succeeded. Another sunset and another day had passed with no action at all. He wondered if Kifo had moved on to Edison’s other facilities or if he had intercepted the man on the way.
On the morning of the third day, Ehrich declared the plan a bust. With no sign of Edison or Kifo, he realized there was nothing more to be done.
Tesla guessed, “Perhaps Mr. Edison transferred the promising items to his facilities in West Orange.”
“Then why the sentries?” Amina asked.
“A distraction,” Ehrich said. “If we see someone protecting the facility, we assume there is still something inside worth protecting. Thus, we waste our time and energy trying to break in.”
“Fine.” Amina sighed. “Let’s head to the West Orange facilities.”
v
When they arrived at West Orange, Ehrich saw firsthand the futility of making any kind of attack. The sentries tripled the contingent at Menlo Park. Armed pairs patrolled the perimeter of the walled fence. This fortress was less a laboratory facility and more a stronghold against any and all attackers.
Amina, in a hunter’s duster, approached the main entrance. Two sentries eyed her approach.
“Password,” the beefy one demanded.
“What?” Amina asked.
“What’s the password of the day?”
“I didn’t know I needed one. I was looking for Thomas Edison.”
“He ain’t here.”
“You sure?”
“Password,” the big man ordered, raising his teslatron rifle.
She backed off and walked down the road to join Ehrich and Tesla. “There is no way we are getting near this facility. They use passwords to gain entry.”
Ehrich shook his head. “Maybe we can launch one of your incendiary devices into the compound.”
Tesla stood up and led the group down the road. “No. Not without hurting the people inside.”
Ehrich said, “We need to find a way to lure Edison out. Lure him to a place we can control.”
Amina raised an eyebrow. “How are we going to draw him away from his hunters? I’m sure he’ll be protected.”
“Other than Devil’s Island and here, where does Edison go, Mr. Tesla?”
“Well, he is a political creature. He does mingle with the mayor and the governor. He appreciates fine restaurants and the theatre. If I remember, he was known to enjoy a show or two.”
“There is no way he’s going to take a risk just to catch a show,” Amina said.
“You’re right,” Tesla said.
Ehrich rubbed his arm. “What else?”
“He’s a curious man. Always wants to be at the forefront of technology. Ever since he was heralded as the Wizard of Menlo Park, I suspect he has been trying to find something that eclipses his invention of the light bulb. I believe this is why he’s been so interested in the Dimensionals’ technologies. He’s grasping for inspiration for his next great invention.”
“What could we offer that might pique his interest?” Amina asked.
“Something to do with energy?” Ehrich asked. “Maybe another weapon?”
“I don’t think so,” Tesla mused. “His heart is an explorer’s, not a warrior’s. He’s always curious about the world. Sadly, his curiosity is tempered by the ugly side of his entrepreneurial desires. From what I remember, he began indulging in the field of entertainment. He dabbled in devices to record and transmit sound. And I think I heard he had an interest in recording and broadcasting images. ‘Moving pictures’ is what I think he called it.”
“I don’t suppose you can whip something up,” Ehrich suggested.
Tesla shook his head. “If I had laboratory equipment, maybe I could build something I’ve been thinking of. Tele-automatics. Remote controlled devices. Though, I’m not sure if he would be as interested in them. He does seem fascinated with images. I suspect it probably has to do with the fact that he’s going deaf.”
“So all we have to do is invent something that doesn’t exist yet and prove that we’ve done it better than Edison could,” Ehrich said.
Amina beamed. “We don’t have to invent this. We just have to pick it up.”
MOVING PICTURES
Amina detailed her plan as the trio ran through the streets. “Do you remember the codex I brought with me to the sector?”
“The large book?”
“Not a book. A codex.”
“The thing that looked like a book.”
She sighed. “Yes. Th
e codex can project images. You remember the ones we showed of Ba Tian’s conquests?”
He shrugged.
“The images are small.” She flashed a glance at Tesla. “But your friend has some expertise we can capitalize on. What do you say, Mr. Tesla?”
“I’m game.”
Under the cover of night, the trio trekked across the city to one of the few remaining access points to Purgatory, the underground sanctuary for the travellers who had survived Ba Tian’s invasions.
Amina led Ehrich and Tesla through the Bowery. She stopped outside a tiny clothing shop squeezed in among other shops. Pushcart vendors occupied the street, trying to catch late-night revellers to buy their wares. A headless clothes dummy displayed a chiffon bodice and frilly petticoat. Amina slipped behind a Dimensional operating a pushcart of questionable oysters. A barrel-chested vendor with green skin shucked oysters with one set of his arms while giving change to a customer with his other set of arms. The man grunted at Amina and pushed the cart ahead a few feet to reveal the cellar doors underneath his cart.
She pulled open the metal doors and jumped down. Ehrich ushered Tesla after her, then followed suit. The vendor closed the cellar doors and rolled his cart over the access point.
Ehrich landed in the clear glass pneumatic tube transport. Tesla marvelled at the velocipede while Amina prepped the controls. The sled whooshed forward through the tubes and into the depths of New York. Ehrich couldn’t get used to the system of transport, which sent the vehicle careening on cushions of air. The journey was a seemingly endless spiral until the sled appeared at the top of a cavern.
Tesla let out a low whistle. “Amazing.”
The system of clear tubes fed into the massive globe at the bottom of the cavern—Purgatory.
“An underground city. In my wildest imagination, I could not even begin to conceive of such a place. If only my people could witness the wonders of your world.”
“They would most likely attack us,” Amina said.
“Oh? You have such a low opinion of the people here.”
She shrugged. “Not an opinion. More an observation based on my experiences. Your people are closer to Ba Tian’s race. Eager for war.”
“I would not characterize everyone that way.”
“What about the way the humans treated the travellers at the Hudson River Tunnel Project?”
“An aberration brought on by the stress of the situation, I would propose,” Tesla said.
“How about incarcerating all the travellers with no solid evidence of wrongdoing?”
“I’ll concede your point there, but I would not go so far as to charge the entire human race with the same bloodthirsty callousness.”
Ehrich wanted to help Tesla, but he found himself agreeing with Amina. Everything he had witnessed in this sector since he arrived had been the worst—from the treatment of immigrants on Devil’s Island to the treatment of travellers in the streets. Worse, he found many similarities between his home world and this.
Tesla had a more optimistic view of his people. “Not everyone here is prone to war. My parents, for example. The Serbian army conscripted young men into the army when they were of age, but my father had already lost one son to an accident. He wasn’t about to lose me to war. My mother gave me a bundle of books and sent me into the mountains of Croatia. I survived the winter on whatever I foraged. When I returned home in the spring, I wanted to study engineering, but my father insisted I go into the priesthood to pursue a path of peace. We argued many nights, so much so that I suspect the stress caused me to fall ill, but I did not stray from my dreams. My father saw my passion—even on what he feared might be my deathbed—and he relented. In turn, I honoured my father’s hopes that I would pursue a path of peace. I only used my talents to create inventions to benefit the world, not to destroy it.”
“You are the exception,” Amina said. “Albeit, not enough to make a difference.”
Tesla tapped his finger on his knee three times. “Amina, do not underestimate the influence one person can make. I may not appreciate his personality, but I acknowledge Thomas Edison’s contributions. His electric light bulb will revolutionize the world. If not for Michael Faraday’s work on electromagnetism, I would not have been inspired to construct the motors and coils that power Devil’s Island.”
“Do you mean the generator Edison used to torture you?”
Ehrich interjected, “You have to admit, Mr. Tesla, we have more examples of the cruelty of the people here than their kindness.”
“I still believe in the capacity of people to do good before harm. Don’t underestimate my species. We might surprise you.”
They spoke no further of the issue as the transport descended from the top of the cavern and spiralled toward a minaret in the middle of the sphere city. The trio stepped off the transport. Amina led the two through glass tube hallways until they reached Mr. Serenity’s quarters. The spacious room had been decorated with function in mind and not form. The overhead light snapped on as Amina entered, sending cockroaches skittering off the crumb-covered triangular white table at the centre of the room. Other than a couple of high-backed padded chairs, the room was bare of furnishings.
In the next room, an inventor’s dream awaited. Amid the work table and shelves were all manner of gadgets in various states of progress. Tesla’s eyes lit up as he surveyed the copper wires, vacuum tubes, and gear parts scattered around the room. Amina reached for a book on the worktable.
“The codex,” she proclaimed.
“It’s a book.”
Amina sighed. She set the thick volume on the table and pressed the dial of the latch on the side. The surface blossomed open to reveal a carousel within. The wheel began to spin, and images flashed in the air of Ba Tian’s soldiers in exoskeleton machines marching ahead. Tesla jumped back surprised at the sudden appearance of the glowing images.
Ehrich examined the moving pictures. “Not bad, but do we want to show battle scenes?”
“The codex can also record. I’m judging by Mr. Tesla’s reaction that we might have something worth using to attract Edison.”
“Mesmerizing,” he said, reaching out to touch the small projection. His hand passed through the image of an exoskeleton. He put his hand behind the image and it disappeared, blocked by the apparently solid projection. He giggled.
“Ehrich, even if the codex can bring Edison to us…”
Tesla clapped his hands through the image. “Oh, it will. It will.”
She rolled her eyes. “Even if Edison shows up, how are we going to snatch him away from his escorts?”
“You said this device can record as well as project, right?”
“Yes.”
“What if we bring Edison on the stage to examine the projection, and record him? Then let the projection play while we grab him. By the time anyone realizes, we’ll be far away.”
“Not a bad idea,” Amina admitted. “All we have to do is figure out where to show the projections.”
Ehrich said, “One step at a time. First, let’s see if we can make the codex do what we want. What do you think, Mr. Tesla?”
Tesla viewed the carousel and the gear wheels within. “Let me see about expanding the range and size. Leave me to work on this.” He rolled up his sleeves and pressed the dial on the latch to shut down the projection.
In the main room, Ehrich cleared the crumbs off the table while Amina searched a tall cupboard in the corner. The shelves were bare except for a clay pot. She overturned the pot and poured out a few silver coins, which she stuffed into her pocket.
“I’ll have to go to the marketplace to gather some supplies. Do you want to come?”
“Thanks, but I had better stay in case Mr. Tesla needs my help.”
“Ehrich, this plan to lure Edison to us is risky and may not yield the results we want. You do know that, don’t you?”
He pursed his lips. “Yes, I know, but this is our best chance. Without Ba Tian, we’re not getting back on the airship, and wi
thout Edison, we’re not getting Kifo.”
“Promise me that we’re not risking any other lives in this quest.”
“What do you mean?”
“The attack on Menlo Park. Setting the fire while people were still in the building. They could have died.”
“But none did.”
“That doesn’t absolve you of this folly.”
“Amina, if we make all our decisions based on what could happen, we would be paralyzed. Trust me, I know what I’m doing.”
“That’s what scares me, Ehrich.”
She walked out of the room, leaving the weight of her accusation to settle on Ehrich’s shoulders.
He took a deep breath, then headed past the workshop and through a doorway into the cryogenic chamber. His little brother slept in suspended animation inside a glass sarcophagus attached to a large chugging machine. A thick hose ran from the back of a control panel to the containment chamber. Dials measured the temperature and dipped around the freezing mark. The device chilled Dash’s body to slow down its functions. The boy seemed so serene in the glass coffin, almost as if a gentle nudge would wake him from a nap.
“Dash?” Ehrich whispered.
No response. Not even a flutter of the eyelids. The body was here, but the spirit was elsewhere. Ehrich stared at his brother’s face, trying to conjure up the image of the younger boy who had cherished his big brother.
Stretched between two oak trees, a thin cable awaited Ehrich—Prince of the Air. He attempted to recreate the act he had seen at the travelling circus the previous week. Though the height of the wire and size of the crowds were not as spectacular, Ehrich didn’t care because he had one admirer—Dash.
His kid brother watched with big eyes as Ehrich teetered on the cable. He pressed one hand against the tree trunk as he tried to balance himself.
“You can do it, Ehrich!”
