There would be a few other oddities arriving at the Haven too. Rothan would make sure all the members of my unit who could face going Outside reached the sea farm. Once we were back at the Hive, I’d talk to Lucas about offering all my unit members the option of having training sessions Outside. After this trip, it would be easy to argue that such training could be extremely useful in future.
My brother was only fourteen years old. I might be able to persuade him to join my unit’s training sessions and adapt to going Outside, but I knew my parents would never make the attempt. Even if I broke every Hive secrecy rule, and explained exactly why it was important, it would make no difference. They were like Morton, with a lifelong conditioned fear of Outside so strong that they would literally choose to die rather than leave the Hive.
Chapter Thirty-eight
Lucas and I spent the next few hours sitting on crates in the observatory and watching the activity down by the seawall. Aircraft were sweeping in from the direction of Tropics to make vertical landings on the top of the seawall. Adika and the Alpha Strike team were running up to each aircraft as it arrived, to help unload passengers and bags. The aircraft would then lift back into the air and fly off over the Haven hill.
The Admiral was a conspicuous figure in his striped jacket. He was standing on the raised area where he and Lucas had made the live broadcast, and putting what looked like the same microphone to his lips, alternating between staring at the sky and giving orders.
Juniper was in the observatory with us, pacing restlessly up and down. “I want to go down to the seawall, but I couldn’t do anything to help.”
“I’m surprised the sea farm wasn’t given more warning of a storm like this,” said Lucas.
“We normally get far more warning,” said Juniper. “This storm changed direction unexpectedly.”
“The waves are getting awfully high,” I said anxiously.
“They’ll get even higher,” said Juniper grimly. “When the storm reaches its height, there’ll be waves coming right over the top of the seawall.”
There was silence for ten minutes before I spoke again. “There seem to be fewer aircraft arriving now.”
Juniper nodded. “When the aircraft take off and fly over the Haven hill, they aren’t turning inland to collect more people any longer, but heading straight on to the coastal patrol base. That means almost everyone is home.”
I counted ten more aircraft arriving, then the last huddles of disembarking people hurried off towards the Haven, and things went quiet at the seawall. I saw Adika leading the Alpha Strike team back along the path towards us, while the sea farm people gathered in small groups on the seawall and stood looking out to sea.
“Everyone who had faded into the countryside is back. We just need the fishing fleets to make it here and we can relax.” Juniper went over to one of the circles of magnifying glass and gazed out at the horizon. “We should see the boats coming soon.”
Lucas and I exchanged glances and went to stand next to her. Minute after minute went slowly by. The door to Outside opened, there was thirty seconds of gusting wind and loud conversation as Adika and the Alpha Strike team came in, then they carried on into corridor 5 and everything went quiet again.
“We should see the boats coming soon,” Juniper repeated her earlier words in a strained voice.
More minutes passed. I could see the waves lashing higher and higher against the seawall. Juniper was standing perfectly still, the fingers of her right hand clenched in tension, and then she shouted in triumph.
“I see sails!” She grabbed her dataview from her pocket, put it on top of a crate to tap at it, and then repeated her words. “I see sails.”
“Juniper reports sails from the observatory.” I heard the Admiral’s magnified voice repeating the news before Juniper ended the call.
I couldn’t see any sails myself, but then Lucas touched my arm and pointed. Yes, there they were, not straight out at sea as I’d expected, but over to my right, seeming to grow in size as they got nearer.
Juniper stared fixedly at them. “Look at the pennants. The first few boats are ours. After that, the fleets are mingled.”
“The pennants? You mean the coloured triangles at the top of the masts?” asked Lucas.
“Yes.” Juniper frowned in concentration, counting under her breath, then gave a soft sigh of relief. “All our boats are there. The one leading them looks like it might be … Yes, that’s the Admiral’s eldest son’s boat. Seawind.”
We changed position to get a better view. I watched the leading boat fight its way to the gap between the twin arms of the seawall, and then through it to calmer water, and thought how relieved the Admiral would be that his wife and two older sons were safely home. Boat after boat followed Seawind to safety, and still more were coming.
“Will there be room for all those boats inside the seawalls?” I asked.
“Yes,” said Juniper proudly. “Long ago, in the days when the storms were far worse, we regularly had four fleets of boats sheltering here. You must have seen the old image of that on the wall in the Admiral’s command centre.”
“The one with all the boats crowded together?” I asked.
“Yes, you can see there was barely a hand’s breadth of free water left inside the seawall.”
Lucas blinked. “You mean there used to be a time when storms were even worse than this?”
Juniper nodded. “That’s why our sea gates were built. The great storms caused a lot of problems with crops and livestock, so the fishing fleet was vitally important.”
“What are sea gates?” asked Lucas.
“You should be able to see them in a minute. The last boats are arriving at the seawall now, and this is forecast to be an especially severe storm, so the Admiral will probably order the sea gates closed as soon as they are inside. Watch the gap between the two seawalls.”
Lucas and I obediently stared at the gap for the next couple of minutes. I was just about to ask if anything was going to happen, when I saw something black sliding out from each side of the gap.
“Those are the sea gates?” I asked. “They look more like gratings than solid doors.”
“The sea gates are to break the force of the waves,” said Juniper, “not block them entirely. They’ve made our Haven famous as a safe refuge for boats in peril. The tricky bit is engaging the locks, because you have to do that between waves hitting the gates.”
Juniper paused to watch critically for a moment. “Yes, the sea gates are locked in place now.”
People were leaving the boats and collecting together on top of the seawall. A few minutes later, the Admiral led a large crowd of them towards the Haven.
“That will be the crews of the visiting fleet heading up to the hospitality area,” said Lucas. “I see they’ve got an injured man on a stretcher. Presumably there’s an arrangement for him to have medical care.”
As Lucas finished his sentence, there was a booming sound, and a jagged flash of light came down from the sky to hit the sea.
“What’s that?” I gasped.
“Lightning,” said Juniper cheerfully. “Don’t worry. We’re safe here because the observatory is designed to resist lightning strikes.”
A moment later, what looked like a dark veil swept across the view, and rain started pelting against the glass of the observatory.
“Everyone left at the seawall will be running for the Haven,” said Juniper. “We need to focus on catching the murderer now.”
“We already have everything in place to catch our target, Juniper,” said Lucas. “You can’t do any more to help us with that, but I’ve a suggestion about how you could usefully spend the time while waiting out the storm. We could put you through Lottery testing.”
“What?” Juniper and I chorused the word in unison.
“We could put you through Lottery testing, Juniper,” repeated Lucas. “I had a full set of basic Lottery testing equipment flown here yesterday.”
Juniper looked dazed.
“You can’t put me through Lottery testing.”
“Yes, I can,” said Lucas. “One of the duties of a Tactical Commander is to investigate failures of the Lottery system. I regard your reluctance to enter Lottery as a failure of the system, and I can request a special test run of Lottery to investigate it.”
Lucas smiled. “Kareem, Megan, Buzz, and I are all qualified to run Lottery mental evaluation tests, and any of our medical people can run physical appraisals. The sea farm has a much smaller number of potential professions than the main Hive, and there won’t be the usual waiting around for staff and equipment to be available, so we should be able to complete your Lottery testing in either two or three days.”
Juniper shook her head. “I told you the only reason I registered to go through Lottery was because I wanted to become a Sea Captain. That’s impossible now, and I don’t want any other imprinted profession forced on me.”
“This wouldn’t force a profession on you,” said Lucas. “I’m offering you the chance to go through Lottery, see what profession it offers you, and then choose whether to accept or reject that decision.”
I opened my mouth to say the obvious, but Juniper said it first.
“Lottery doesn’t work like that. If you go through Lottery, then you have to accept its judgement.”
“I’m suggesting changing the rules in your case,” said Lucas.
“Why would you do that for me?” asked Juniper.
“You gave us crucial help during the live broadcast at the seawall, and we should help you in return, but this would also be a trial run of a general change to the system for sea farm people going through Lottery.”
Lucas paused. “If the eighteen-year-olds of the sea farm already have the choice of whether or not to enter Lottery, there seems no reason why they shouldn’t also have the option to reject its verdict. I believe offering that option would increase the number of Lottery candidates from the sea farm, and very few of them would end up rejecting Lottery’s verdict in the end. You would be my test case for this, Juniper.”
Juniper waved her hands. “If I have the option to reject the verdict of Lottery, then I suppose there’s no longer a reason for me to refuse testing.”
“Good.” Lucas tapped at his dataview for a moment. “I’ve now requested a test run of the Lottery automated decision process. I’m afraid we’ll need to carry out most of your tests in a windowless room because a lot of the people running them haven’t acclimatized to Outside. You can have the room door open at all times though, and take breaks in your own apartment or here in the observatory whenever your claustrophobia troubles you.”
“I had trouble with claustrophobia at the Hive because I knew I was fifty or a hundred levels underground in a strange place,” said Juniper. “It shouldn’t be an issue here.”
Lucas nodded. “In that case, one of our medical staff will meet you in Corridor 5 room 1 to carry out your basic health checks.”
Juniper walked out of the door, and I smiled at Lucas. “Thank you for doing this for her.”
“I know you’re worried about Juniper. I want to find an answer that makes her happy because it will make you happy too. I’m perfectly serious about her being a test case for a change to the sea farm rules for Lottery though. Juniper is intelligent, selfless, resourceful, courageous, and has great personal integrity. If our current system makes someone that valuable consider going drifting to another sea farm … Well, it proves the system needs changing.”
We sat there in silence watching the storm for a few minutes longer, and then Lucas’s dataview chimed. He glanced casually at it, and then grimaced.
“We have a problem.”
“What problem?” I asked anxiously.
“We saw the people from the visiting fishing fleet had an injured man on a stretcher. The man is very badly hurt, so Atticus needs to talk to me immediately.”
Lucas hurried out of the observatory into corridor 5, and I chased after him. When we went through the fire doors, we found Adika and Atticus were engaged in a heated argument, while Megan, Buzz, and several of the Strike team watched wide-eyed.
“You can’t go near the flying hospital,” said Adika. “We’ve set everything up to make our target attack it.”
“I have a patient with severe internal injuries,” said Atticus. “His only chance of survival is if I use the advanced equipment in the flying hospital to operate on him.”
“If you carry out this operation in the flying hospital, then you won’t just put your own life at risk but Morton’s as well,” said Adika.
Atticus shook his head. “Do you really think our Hive would let Morton’s life depend on a single surgeon? Six of us were imprinted with the knowledge to carry out his operation. I was Morton’s preferred choice for lead surgeon, so I’ve been working with Telepath Units, but if anything happens to me then the others are ready to take my place.”
“You’d still be putting yourself in danger,” said Adika. “It isn’t worth it to save someone from another Hive.”
“It’s worth it to save a human life, regardless of what Hive that person belongs to,” said Atticus fiercely.
I smiled. I’d thought Atticus was just a pale reflection of Lucas, but I’d been wrong. Atticus was a surgeon, and at this moment, fighting for the right to life of his patient, he was magnificent.
“Atticus is right,” said Megan. “What Hive this man is from doesn’t matter. Atticus will operate on his patient in the flying hospital, and I will assist him. This is going to be a very long operation, and he can’t do it alone.”
Adika stabbed a forefinger at her. “You can’t do this, Megan.”
Megan lifted her head. “I am doing this. I constantly watch you going out on emergency runs that save people’s lives. I never argue about the risks you take, though I had a husband who was killed taking exactly the same risks.”
She paused. “This is my emergency run. There is a life that needs saving, and I intend to help save it. I’m not going to be in danger anyway. Everyone in our unit will be working to keep Atticus and me safe.”
Adika turned to Lucas. “You have to stop them doing this.”
“I can’t stop them doing this,” said Lucas. “Atticus is on Gold Assignment, reporting directly to the Hive Gold Commander, so I’ve got no authority over him.”
Adika gave him a frustrated look. “You’ve got authority over Megan.”
“I may have authority over Megan,” said Lucas, “but I’ve no intention of using it in this situation. Every Tactical Commander knows there’s no point in winning a battle if it makes you lose the war. You might try thinking that through yourself, Adika.”
I understood precisely what Lucas meant. I’d been trying to avoid reading Megan’s mind, but it was impossible not to see the thoughts blazing in her head right now. She was going to help Atticus with the operation whatever the cost to herself. Her relationship with Adika, or even her life, were secondary to her need to care for others.
“Atticus and Megan have made their decisions,” I said firmly. “We have to accept that and let them do their job while we do ours.”
Adika groaned, hesitated, and then accepted the inevitable. “Presumably this patient is in the hospitality area on Level 4. I’ll take some of the Strike team to help me escort Atticus and Megan there. Once they’ve collected their patient, I’ll need Liaison to check the surveillance camera images to make sure the route to the flying hospital is clear.”
I watched them hurry off. I’d just been thinking that Atticus was magnificent. Now I had to admit that Megan was magnificent too, but I was ruefully aware that I’d soon return to thinking her annoying. Why was that? How could I accept the flaws of every other person in my unit, but find everything Megan said or did annoying? Had the problem started because of the conflicts between her and Adika in the early days of their relationship?
I thought back to the time I’d spent in Hive Futura having my telepathic training. I’d been alone with Megan at first, and then my p
rospective team leaders had come to join us. No, my feelings about Megan couldn’t have anything to do with Adika, because I remembered being frustrated with Megan from the very beginning. I’d been shocked when she told me I was a telepath, and then …
I realized what should have been obvious from the start. Buzz had been right to warn me about bottled up anger and resentment. I’d gone into Lottery loathing nosies, and come out of it as a telepath myself. I’d wanted an ordinary life where I could fit in with everyone else, but been told there were only five people in the Hive who shared my rare abilities and I wasn’t allowed to meet the other four. Of course I’d felt anger, resentment, fear, distress, and a host of other powerful emotions.
I was a dutiful girl, raised to serve the Hive without question, so I wasn’t angry with the Hive about what had happened to me. I was angry with Megan. She’d been present during the late stages of my Lottery testing. She’d used strange sound tests on me to force my telepathic ability to the surface. She’d sedated me so I could be transported to Hive Futura. She’d shattered my world by telling me I was a telepath.
I’d blamed Megan for everything, but she’d just been serving the Hive, doing her job, and that job included breaking the news to me that I was a telepath. Part of me knew what had happened to me wasn’t really her fault, and that was why I felt guilty about finding her so annoying.
I finally understood my problem with Megan, but I didn’t know if that would change anything between us. Lucas understood his deep-seated insecurities, but that didn’t stop them having power over him. Some wounds went too deep to heal.
Chapter Thirty-nine
That evening, Lucas and I sat in a darkened transport aircraft. Adika and the Alpha Strike team were lounging in the other seats, somehow managing to look relaxed and comfortable even in full body armour. Forge was with us, claiming he’d suffered so much wearing the nosy costume that he was entitled to be here when our third target was caught.
Hurricane (Hive Mind Book 3) Page 36
