by T. C. Edge
With the plane rushing fast, however, I don’t get much of a chance to look any closer. I zoom back out, and take in The Titan’s Hand once more, marvelling at the natural formation. And then, before long, it fades again before my eyes as we enter a soup of white cloud, heading straight for the ocean.
The weather only gets worse as we get closer to the coast. By the time we reach it, the clouds outside have turned black, pouring rain from above. Strikes of lightning burst from out of them, reminding me of the picture that hangs on the Master’s chamber in Petram. As we begin to descend, the rough seas only add to that image, Eden sitting there like a giant metal fortress, even the most powerful storm and waves having no impact upon it.
I stand and move up towards the cockpit, wishing for a better view than through my little window. The pilot barely seems to notice as I gaze over his shoulder at the enormous platform. Seemingly, he’s too busy on the radio.
“Identify yourself,” says a crackling voice.
I look at the dashboard of the plane and see that some sort of weapons detection system has gone red. Below, I look down to see one of the giant cannons on the side of the city turn in our direction, ready to spray anti-air missiles right at us.
“Jeez,” I whisper, “don’t they know it’s us?”
I was mainly speaking to myself, but the pilot hears me and turns with a frown. “You shouldn’t be here,” he barks, before responding to the man on the radio with his flight identification number.
“Don’t they know who we are?” I ask again, taking no notice of the pilot’s irritation at my presence.
The radio crackles once more. “OK, copy. The hanger door is opening. Medical staff are waiting for the patient. Stand by.”
The pilot begins hovering towards the city walls as one of the mighty hanger doors begins to slide open. As he does so, he deigns to answer my question.
“The city is in lockdown, kid,” he grunts. “They’re not taking any chances.”
That becomes even more evident when we land. Within the hanger, numerous guards and soldiers are ready to receive us, all heavily armed and armoured. It’s actually quite comforting to know how impenetrable this city is right now.
I step out of the cockpit as the pilot sets us down and lowers the ramp. As Link is rushed straight off by the medical staff, Ajax follows closely behind. I watch them from the plane’s exit and see Ellie coming forward. She wraps her arms around her son as my eyes scan the mess of people below.
There, walking towards the plane, I see my parents. I’m quick to dart down the ramp and into the large hanger, all of us quickening our step as we approach each other. It’s my mum who reaches me first, her own arms gripping tight and half suffocating me. My dad stands by, smiling and waiting for her to let go. Then he takes his turn to deliver a more reserved embrace.
“You have a lot of explaining to do, Theodore,” says Cyra, glaring at me as she has so often. Yet in her eyes I see a toughness that I’ve never seen before. They’re not the soft motherly eyes I’ve known all my life. There’s something more in them now. They’re the eyes that tell me one thing: her powers are coming back.
I nod my head, knowing this would be coming.
“I can explain everything. Grandfather…it was his plan…he foresaw it all. We had to keep you in the dark. I hope you understand.”
Cyra looks at me and begins nodding. To her side, Jackson does the same. In their eyes I don’t see the typical looks of admonishment that I’d get when I’d come back late after hunting, or return home having suffered an injury seeking some dangerous adventure. No, this is different. I see in their eyes a measure of pride.
As they nod, my mother speaks again.
“We do understand,” she says, her voice calm amid the rushing bodies around us. “We understand everything, Theo. My father is missing. Link is badly hurt. And now…now the spectre of Augustus Knight is upon us again. Oh, we understand this all too well. This is war now. And we all have to do what we must.”
I can hardly believe what I’m hearing, what I’m seeing. Ahead of me, stand two legends, now come back to life. And for the first time, I don’t look upon my mother as I always have: a timid woman, hiding from her powers, hiding from her fate. I see now a warrior, a fighter, a woman who will do anything to protect the people she loves.
I see, for the first time, the Golden Girl return to the world.
8
Professor Lane
Security in the city is even tighter than before. Now that the revelation of our adventure at the Watcher Wars and the Baron’s compound has come to light, more soldiers and guards have been deployed, the ways in and out of the city being more closely monitored.
Trade has been largely suspended, the walls only opening if absolutely essential. Martial law has been put into action, the people advised to obey the new curfew in place. For all intents and purposes, it appears as if the city has retracted to how it was in the days of Augustus Knight. The irony, I’m sure, isn’t lost on anyone.
Nevertheless, they’re necessary measures to ensure that the people are safe. While most don’t know the full details of what’s going on, they do know that the city’s security protocols have been dialled up to eleven, and that another terrorist attack or assassination is considered imminent.
We move through the city in our convoy of hovercars, Jackson driving ours with Cyra next to him, heading towards our new accommodation. Next to me in the back, Velia and Vesuvia sit, their eyes open wide and marvelling at the wondrous sights around us.
I can’t help but smile when looking at them, knowing that I was doing precisely the same thing only a couple of months ago. They do look quite comical, their eyes bigger and brighter than I’ve ever seen them, their mouths slightly agape.
Cyra looks back and offers her own smile. “Quite a place, isn’t it girls,” she says.
They turn to her and nod silently, their faces equally star struck as they look at her. Only a few minutes ago, they’d greeted my parents like giggling children, losing their cool for the first time. Above all others, my mother’s name became the symbol of the rebel cause during the war, her visions forging the path to Knight’s eventual defeat. Clearly, the Golden Girl is well known and admired, even as far away as the Western coast.
We move towards the centre of the city, and the convoy comes to a stop outside the main Senate building where the city leaders reside. Outside, a number of guards stand, protecting the entrance. We climb out and pass through, before moving straight up towards the stairs ahead. The last time I was here, Ajax and I were rising right to the summit of the building for President Stein’s wake. It was then that Drake took Link and us to one side, and our secret pact was formed.
It didn’t work out so well for them, I think to myself, shaking my head.
Ahead, at the top of the stairs, a large set of double doors block our path. Jackson pushes them open, and leads us in towards a large open hallway, beautifully furnished and adorned with fine art hanging on the walls. When my father shuts the doors, there are only five of us inside: my parents, Velia and Vesuvia, and me.
Cyra turns to address us.
“This was, until recently, President Stein’s home. Now, it officially belongs to Drake. Given his temporary disappearance, we’ll be keeping the place warm for him.” She grimaces slightly as she vocalises her father’s current fate, but maintains her composure. “There’s plenty of space here, and it’s well protected. Girls, you’ll be sharing a room, as will you, Theo, with Ajax. Ellie is also staying with us, although I suspect she’ll be spending a lot of time at the hospital. It’s important, right now, that we all stay together, and stay strong. OK?”
We all nod, before we’re guided through the sprawling level towards the bedrooms on the East wing at the rear, pretty much as far from the front as possible. Inside, the rooms are large and overly luxurious. I don’t look at them with any pleasure, not at a time like this. If anything, such a state of living will make us weak.
I bring that concern immediately to my father.
“It’s not where you lay your head that makes you weak or strong, Theo,” he says. “We’re here because it’s the safest place in the city. And we’re here because it’s where Drake would want us to be. The size of your bed is irrelevant.”
Down the corridor, Cyra appears, having shown the girls to their room.
“Do you know who once lived here, Theo?” she asks me.
I shake my head. “I guess saying President Stein is too obvious?”
“Actually, it was your name-sake,” she says.
“You mean…Theo Graves?”
She smiles, remembering the young man who saved her life, and my father’s too. “You’re a student of history, so you’ll know that his parents were Councillors…Priscilla and Emerson they were called. Both turned on Knight right at the end. Without them, and their son, we’d have lost the war.”
The Graves family is well known throughout the country. The two elderly Councillors were extremely close with Knight until his twisted mind took things a step too far. In the end, they helped free the city from his grip, and for several years before their deaths they were instrumental in reforming the country as it is today, working alongside the likes of Aeneas Stein and my grandfather, among others. Time and illness, unfortunately, took them both, long after their son, Theo, had been killed during the war. And with them, the name of Graves was lost.
“I came here the evening Theo and I were paired,” continues Cyra. “It was so awkward. We hated each other back then, and had to dance in front of all the parents.” Her face slowly darkens as she speaks. “It was the same night I met the High Chancellor as well. I’ll never forget that first meeting.”
Everything goes silent as she speaks, disappearing into her own mind. She just stares forward as my father and I stand there, her eyes starting to burn.
“I’m not surprised that he had clones made of himself,” she continues. “He always wanted to live forever. The day he died, he did so with a smile on his face. I suppose, maybe, he knew what would happen. He must have had this plan in place all along.” Her eyes turn to the floor. “He’s down there now, laughing up at us.”
Jackson steps forward, right ahead of her, and lifts her chin back up.
“He’s not laughing, Cyra, because he’s dead. And soon enough these clones, these Seekers, will be dead too. We’ll wipe all memory of him off the map. And then,” he says, sweeping his eyes around his family, “we can all go home.”
Down the corridor, the girls come out of their room, apparently far more excited than I am by this luxurious new residence. Their sudden presence lifts us out of our discussion, their voices carrying down the hall.
“This place is amazing,” says Vesuvia, turning to us with a beaming smile. “Can we explore the city?”
They come towards us, and I watch as Cyra’s face works up a smile.
“Well, girls, I’ll let my husband answer that one. He’s in charge of security now.”
We turn to Jackson, who also appears somewhat lightened by the girls’ energy. “I don’t see why not. I’ll have someone take you around.”
“Thank you, Governor Kane.”
“Please, girls, if we’re to live under the same roof, let’s forget any formalities. Call me Jackson.”
“OK. Thank you…Jackson,” they say.
I stand silently, watching the exchange, looking at Velia’s eyes light up bright and beautiful. It’s nice to see them so excited, so innocent even, the burden of what we’re facing fading away, if only for a few fleeting moments.
After briefly being shown the rest of our new quarters, we return outside where Jackson sets about recruiting someone suitable to show the girls around the city. Some of it will, of course, be off limits, the upper deck level providing the majority of the tour.
It’s no surprise that it’s Leeta who is summoned, her own role as Chief Secretary to the President continuing to blur now that Drake has gone missing. She rushes in to greet me as she did before, with a hug, before performing the same routine on the girls. Then, under orders from Jackson, she moves off with them, accompanied by a couple of guards, to show them around the deck.
Alone with my parents, Cyra now sets about meeting the new Watchers trained by Athena. By the looks of things, they’re to stay in the adjoining building to ours, and will be tasked with front lining the defence of the city leaders. They meet Cyra with a great deal of reverence, her status once more preceding her.
I stand to one side with Jackson, several questions bubbling up in my mind.
“So…do the Senate know about this?” I ask.
He turns to me with a frown. “You mean, the fact that there are Watchers out there?”
“Yeah, and that Athena’s been training them in secret, with the support of Stein and Drake. It’s illegal, isn’t it?”
“Well, technically it’s not. From what I’ve heard, Athena saw to this on her own. Stein and Drake’s involvement is something that cannot be proven. In any case, perhaps now the Senate will realise that having a few extra Watchers on hand might be a good thing.”
“Well they’d be stupid not to, with everything that’s happening,” I say. “What about mum…are her powers coming back?”
We look at her again, keen eyed and assertive, talking quietly with the Watchers who she’ll most likely take under her wing.
Jackson nods.
“Her visions have been returning slowly, but they’re blurred,” he says. “It may take time for her powers to fully return. She’s been suppressing them for many years now.”
“That’s what I thought would happen. And Ellie?”
“The same, although as you know she could never see into the Void. I hear from Athena that your own powers are growing significantly, Theo? How was your training with her?”
He offers me a knowing look, perhaps aware of the brutality of Athena’s methods. He reaches forward with his hand and brushes a lock of blond hair from my forehead, revealing a couple of scars around my hairline.
“I guess these aren’t the only ones you received?”
I shake my head, knowing how many other marks of battle now litter my body.
“Athena did what she had to do in the short time we had,” I say. “Her training was tough, but she prepared us well. We’d have probably died in the Watcher Wars if it wasn’t for her.”
“Well, you’ll have to tell me all about it sometime. Your mother and I had no idea these Watcher Wars even existed. There’s a lot coming to light that we’re just catching up on. And right now, there’s one thing that we need to see to immediately.”
He leads me towards Cyra, interrupting her conversation.
“Cyra, I’m taking Theo down to Underwater 3. We’ll be back a little later.”
“OK,” she says. “Good luck.”
We climb into a nearby hovercar, and begin working our way towards the perimeter. I can’t help but think of my previous journey to Underwater Level 3, when Ajax and I secretly unleashed our powers under the genetics scanner. I don’t have to ask why we’re returning. Jackson is quick to fill me in as we approach the perimeter and move towards the lifts.
“Professor Lane has been operating down on Underwater 3 for many years now, and she’s been doing a lot of great work,” he tells me. “It was her and her team who developed the suppressor medication for your mother and any others who wanted it.” He taps his bionic arm. “She also built this for me, for which I’ll be eternally grateful.”
We enter the lifts, and begin plunging down past the surface levels and beneath the waves. Outside, I suspect the storm is still raging, but within this metal fortress you’d never know. We step out onto Underwater Level 3 at a very different point to my previous journey here. Beyond the perimeter wall, I see labs extending far into the distance, all with clear, see-through walls. Inside, scientists work on various projects, bright lights creating a constant yellow glow deep into the level.
Jackson leads me around
towards a large entry door and opens it using a keycard. Beyond, an endless corridor stretches into the distance, labs on either side. We begin walking down it, passing rooms marked with their specialisms: illness prevention and cure; agricultural science; biomedical research. Here, it seems, engineering also plays its role, new modes of transport being developed and tested. I even spot a sign for weapons development, something that makes me hope that, down there, they’ve cooked up something that might even the odds against the Seekers.
Then, I consider that, if the Baron is able to create clones, he’s probably got a team of scientists of his own who are able to do just about anything else. Perhaps he too has more secrets that we’ve yet to uncover.
Soon enough, we’re moving towards a part of the level that isn’t so busy. Some labs now remain dark and unused, seemingly surplus to requirements. I suspect it’s also possible that, given the current state of play in the city, not all projects are being considered a priority.
Before long, we reach another door, marked with an extra layer of security, and enter an inner level within the level. Inside is a larger, open space, filled with machinery and screens and lab equipment. Here and there, technicians and scientists go about their work. And from the front, standing by a series of giant computers and glowing screens covered in data, an elderly woman turns to look upon us.
She works her way towards us, her body slightly bowed by the years, a pair of spectacles nestled on the end of a pointy nose. Her eyes, however, remain bright and untarnished, inspecting me closely as she approaches.
“Jackson,” she says. “I assume this is the prodigal son?”
“Yes, Professor,” says Jackson. He turns to me. “Theo, meet Professor Lane.”
I reach out my hand and take her spindly fingers. Her grip is stronger than I’d have expected. “A pleasure to meet you, Professor Lane,” I say.
