by L B Garrison
“You know what.”
Mandy slipped her hands from her neck and lay them on her knees. If it wasn’t so dark, she would have been staring at them. This world was so removed from her own, it didn’t matter what she admitted. She wiped her sweaty palms on her jeans. There was a kind of therapy where people confessed to strangers. Not that she needed it or anything. “Something happened to me once. For about a year, I couldn’t take care of myself. I mean basic personal needs kind of stuff.”
“That would be hard,” Cisco whispered.
“It was worse for my Mom than me. She works all the time just to buy the basics, but she never complains. I felt like such a burden then and now. I don’t like that. Also, it turns out, you can’t always depend on the people that should be there for you. My father taught me that one. It’s best to rely on yourself.”
“That could get lonely.”
“Sometimes,” Mandy admitted. But it was better than being disappointed.
Glass shattered.
Mandy pulled herself into a tighter ball, resting her chin on her knees. Her heart thumped in her chest. If only she could go home.
The thud of footsteps came from above. More glass scattered across the floor, along with scrapes and bumps, like furniture being moved. A spider-bot scurried across the floor above them. The bots must be putting up a fight.
Cisco took Mandy’s hand. She flinched. Her breathing came too fast. She squeezed His hand in return. There wasn’t enough air in the tight trap of a tunnel.
Footsteps came closer. They stopped directly above them.
A whoosh came from Mandy’s right. She reached out. Her hand passed through the space where the grate had been. She tugged on Cisco’s hand and felt around the entrance to the opening.
The sides of the dark tunnel were smooth and hard, but gave slightly. Some kind of plastic, maybe? There were pipes running along the top of the tunnel, which Mandy discovered with her head. Twice.
They crawled in the dark stillness for several minutes. Being in front, Mandy set the pace and went as fast as she could. It wasn’t so bad on her palms, but her knees throbbed. Surprisingly, she managed to move quickly and wasn’t nearly as out of breath as she thought she would be.
Eventually a dim light grew brighter at the end of the tunnel. It led into another pipe-crammed box. This one twice as large as the first. The grating over the entrance was open. A dull yellow light filled the tunnel, but didn’t have a source or at least not one Mandy could determine. It came from the air. Actually, the only light source Mandy had seen here was the T30’s headlight. All the others were like this. Each of the four walls had a tunnel entrance. The other routes were covered by black gratings.
Cisco settled against one wall and rested his head against a pipe. “Bailey is opening a lattice in their tunnel. She’ll work on ours after that. They ran into a couple of hunters. That’s what caused the first delay.” He slid his hand over his mouth.
Mandy propped herself on the opposite wall, a little further down so they were catty-cornered from each other. Pipes of different sizes and colors cluttered the walls and crowded the space. A comfortable position was impossible to find. “Something you’re not telling me?”
He dropped his hand. “What?”
“You covered your mouth. That can mean a lot of things, but I‘m guessing you’re holding something back. It’s okay. You don’t have to sugar coat it for me.”
“Huh.” He looked down at his palm, then back at Mandy. “The hunters don’t know where we went, but there are more of them now and the void is getting close. We don’t have long.”
“Figures. How’d you know all that?”
Cisco touched a finger to his temple.
“Oh. The whole cell phone telepathy thing? Bailey told you.”
Cisco nodded and closed his eyes. “She talks to me a lot. Sometimes she keeps me up late. It’s an Alora Lux thing. It was strange at first, but now I’m used to having her in my head.”
Cisco was doing that handsome thing again. Symmetrical, like Bailey said. Strong chin. She should probably say something. “It’s nice you two are so close.”
Cisco opened his eyes. “We were in orientation together. Neither of us knew anybody. We’re, uh, just friends.”
Tension uncoiled in Mandy’s gut. She hadn’t even known it was there. Strange. Why would she care if he was seeing Bailey? Why did he think she might? She liked Cisco and Bailey, but Landin was out there. Somewhere. And she had bought that romance package. The silence had gone on too long. “Friends are important. I miss mine. I didn’t mean to infer or imply or anything.”
Cisco’s ready smile made an appearance. “Things get complicated fast, don’t they? It’s been a rough time for everyone and we’re just talking, right?”
“That’s right. Just talking.” The stain had faded on Cisco’s shoulder. New threads pulled the gash in his uniform together, healing just as the window had. Mandy nodded towards it. “It looks like you’re almost patched up. That happened when you pulled me out of the cage, didn’t it?”
He glanced at his shoulder. “I wasn’t quick enough, I suppose.”
“And then you put yourself between the hunters and me. Just like you did in the forest. I can understand you protecting Bailey, but not a stranger.”
Cisco stared somewhere beyond the walls. “Have you ever seen someone die, Mandy?”
Mandy forgot to breathe. “God, no. In person? Of course not.”
It wasn’t the lighting; Cisco was pale. “I have. It wasn’t clean either. That’s why. I won’t let that happen to anyone I care about again.”
Care about? A little rush swept over Mandy that made the room brighter. “Funny, isn’t it? We’re kind of the same. I haven’t had your experience, but I don’t want to see anyone hurt, especially to keep me from being hurt. I wouldn’t want that on my conscience, because I—” What? Like him? He kind of said it first and that was okay. People like other people. But it was more complicated with boy people.
Cisco leaned forward. “Is there a soliloquy going on in there?”
Mandy’s cheeks warmed. Again. Why did she blush so easily? “Your intuition is annoying.”
He sat back. “You’re a good fighter.”
“Random, but thanks. We were lucky. It could have gone bad in so many ways.” Mandy tightened her fist until her nails bit into her palm. She hadn’t fought. Something dangerous had done it through her. At least that’s how it felt.
“Alex is fierce. Bailey can do anything with machines. What I’m saying is, if we support them, I don’t think we’ll have to worry about losing anybody.”
The grating opened.
Mandy turned and entered the opening. “I hope so, Cisco. I do.”
“And I like you too,” he said.
Mandy smiled once she knew he couldn’t see. To herself, she could admit she was attracted to him, but nothing could come of it. “I may like you, but I absolutely love cannolis, so you rank below pastry, if you’re keeping score.”
“You have a mean streak.”
Mandy crawled as fast as she could down the passageway. This time it wasn’t just to get away from the hunters, but to escape feelings that confused her. “What are these enhancements everyone keeps talking about?”
“We’re changing the subject?”
“Yes, but to play properly, we should pretend we didn’t notice.”
“You should come with instructions.” The smile in his voice echoed through the tunnel.
“Sadly, my mom said it first. So, enhancements?”
“Everyone has them, but people choose different ones according to profession or personal preference. Almost no one ages anymore. I have carbon fiber in my bones and spider-silk skin, though it didn’t help with the hunters. Bailey is a walking super computer and Alex is a sniper who never misses—ever. You must have tons of enhancements.”
“You think so?”
“You must, to do the things you do.”
Was that the answer? Was she so full
of these enhancements that she lost her memory and they were taking over? The air was suddenly thin in the cramped space. She had to concentrate to slow her breathing. “I don’t even know how I got them.”
“Still don’t remember?”
“No. Not even how I got here.” She concentrated on moving around a junction box for a moment.
“Maybe I should go first.”
“Because you’re the guy?”
“Because I know the way and something has upset Bailey.”
“Oh. Go ahead.” Mandy pressed herself against the wall.
He brushed against her in the tight space, creating a little tingle down her spine.
“Sorry.” He moved past her and took the lead.
It was a good thing Cisco did lead. There were several twists in the path to the motor pool. Eventually the tunnel opened up into a low, square room, covered by a grate made up of hexagonal mesh.
Bailey knelt on the metal grate above them, wringing her hands. “The situation has gone pear shaped.”
A portion of the grating folded itself up to form a large hexagonal opening. Cisco pulled himself through. “What happened?”
Bailey pressed her lips into a flat line. “I miscalculated. The void’s growth isn’t linear, it’s exponential. We are in a bit of a spot with little time left.”
Mandy pulled herself up and sat on the grating. The motor pool was a huge room, like a parking garage with gray floors, arching woven beams that looked like wicker and several bays filled with various massive trucks. A new plastic smell filled the air. She hopped off the grating to stand on the opposite side from Cisco and Bailey. Something unnerved her about a floor that moved around on its own. “How long do we have?”
“We’re out of time,” came Alex’s voice from behind Mandy.
Alex gripped her rifle in one hand, not exactly ready to use, but close. “We’ll be using the T30 in bay twelve. Let’s move out.”
Alex walked to one side and slightly behind Mandy as they passed down the line of assorted trucks. Each sat in a sunken bay with a rollup door. There were several shiny black T30s. They were dwarfed by the cranes and tank-like machines on treads.
Cisco and Bailey walked ahead, with little personal space between them. They belonged together, like bookends. Mandy had lost that sense of belonging when she lost her world. An empty hunger gnawed at her insides. Memories of home were fading.
Alex stopped at the T30 in bay twelve. “Cisco there is one more cubical of supplies. Load and secure it.”
Bailey climbed into the front and shut the door. “I’ll bring the autopilots up.”
Cisco said Alex would know when the sim-net broke. The guilty silence between them reminded Mandy of her high school principal’s office. Her heart beat a little faster. “You know about the sim-net, don’t you?” Mandy whispered. “I had to break it. You have doubts about me, I’m sure, but you’re still taking me with you. Thank you for that.”
Alex stepped between Mandy and the T30. She didn’t bother lowering her voice. “You’re involved in all this somehow and I don’t know your agenda. If the net can’t hold you, I have few options to contain you, should the need arise, but leaving you behind is certain death. You’ve done nothing to justify that.”
Cisco returned from stowing the cargo.
Alex glanced at him. “Through Bailey, Cisco let me know the circumstances. You saved his life, he says.”
Mandy couldn’t tell Alex that her own strength frightened her, much less that she had barely been able to control it. “I helped. That’s all.”
“No,“ Cisco said. “I couldn’t have stopped them.”
Alex opened the rear door. “Cisco, you’re in back with Mandy.”
Cisco boarded and Alex motioned for Mandy to follow.
As Mandy passed, Alex said, “They are still my priority over you. I will be watching.”
Alex sat in the front with Bailey beside her and Mandy directly behind. Bailey seemed preoccupied with something only she could see.
Alex nodded. “Light ‘em up.”
Bailey swiped her hand through the air, leaving behind a trail of rectangular images. Some were various views of the motor pool, others showed running data. The window tint darkened, while the windows on the T30s next to them turned silver. Every truck started, engines revving.
With a swipe, Bailey sent the images spinning. “Launching.”
A hum and mechanical clanking echoed through the cavernous room. Mandy pulled up on the front seat to see around the truck beside them. Six bays down, the door opened and gray light fell across the floor. Shadows moved within the light and rain drops darkened the concrete. In the far bay, the back four tires of a T30 squealed, filling the air with a smoky haze.
As soon as the gap was eight inches high, the hunters poured in and pounced on the other T30. Metal tore and glass shattered, sending sparkling bits tinkling across the floor. The T30 peeled out, crunching hunters under its wheels.
Other bays opened. One of the cranes roared into the dawn light, plowing through hunters and scattering severed limbs. Mandy gripped the back of the seat.
Bailey slumped down, conducting the chaos with quick hand motions. She glanced up at Mandy. “Strap in. We’re next.”
Mandy dropped into her seat and grabbed the safety belt. The acceleration pushed her back as she clicked the buckle. The T30 was big, but it bolted like a race car into the morning light. Rain thumped against the windows. The front end dipped with a bump. A hunter slid across the hood on its back, its legs clawing the air. It hit the windshield with a crack and tumbled to the side.
Dozens of winged cones, like flying baby carrots smacked into the window. Mandy hunkered down and clamped her hand over her ears. Her heart jumped with each impact. Gray ooze streaked the window. There was no end to them.
“What the hell are they?” Mandy gasped.
“Seeds,” Cisco said. “They only swarm like this when the forest is stressed, like with a fire.”
“Because of the hunters?”
“No,” Cisco said, nodding towards her window. “The void is here.”
In the distance, a purple mist rose above the trees. It boiled and twisted like a living thing. The trees within it blackened and crumbled. Everything died.
The back wheels locked and squealed. Mandy was thrown to one side. The safety belt cut into her neck as the T30 made a nearly forty-five-degree turn. A body thumped against Cisco’s door and was gone. The vehicle accelerated again, bumping over everything in its path. Another T30 veered in front of theirs, cutting through a group of hunters and sending a dozen flying. It dropped back to take up a flanking position, while another T30 came up from behind to guard the other side.
A forlorn bass wail rattled the windows and sent a shudder through Mandy’s chest. Trapped and pawing against a crumbling building, the tumtum struggled to escape. Leaves fluttered and fell. Branches dipped. Mandy pulled at the belt. With a shuddering moan, the mist covered it and the tree fell apart like so much blackened ash.
The T30’s engine screamed and lampposts flashed by. Ahead, the void swirled and closed in on either side of the road like ocean waves. The sun vanished. Mandy gripped the armrest. Her heart pounded in her ears. One of the flanking T30s vanished. The other flipped and rolled sideways, spilling car-guts across the road. The opening ahead narrowed.
Alex grit her teeth. “Veer left!”
“Shite,” Bailey yelled.
The T30 swerved. The void pressed in. A purple tendril grazed the window. It crackled and blistered. Mandy bit her lip. Shadows faded.
The sky opened up above them.
Mandy popped the belt, turned around and hugged the headrest. In the road a child in a form-fitting black and green uniform stood stroking the head of one of the hunters. The void closed over her.
An electric chill crept down Mandy’s spine. She had never seen the girl before, but she knew her name.
“Razor.”
CHAPTER NINE
T
>
he T30 hummed along a winding road. Mandy rested her head against the rain-streaked window and watched trees blur past.
Razor. The name caused a dull emptiness in her chest, but why? She hadn’t told the others—couldn’t tell the others about the creepy stranger she somehow knew. They were weirded out enough. Mandy’s breath fogged the window. Of course, she was pretty weirded out too.
Not long after leaving the purple mist behind, Bailey had shut down the displays and slumped down into her seat. Her eyes closed and her breathing slipped into a steady rhythm.
Alex reached across and brushed the fine hair from Bailey’s face. “The poor little hacker must be exhausted after all that.”
Bailey swatted at Alex’s hand. “Crumpets and jam,” she murmured and rolled over.
Alex turned her seat around to face Mandy. “I think Bailey has the right idea. There isn’t much we can do until we reach Artemis and none of us has slept in almost twenty hours.”
Mandy sat up. “Artemis? Is that where we’re going?”
Alex nodded. “Yes. It’s a self-assembling city that will be the planetary capital someday. A few thousand people oversee the construction, so it’s the largest settlement nearby. It’ll still take most of the day to reach it. Cisco, we’ll sleep in shifts. I’ll take the first watch.”
Mandy put her hand up. “I’m not sleepy. I can take the first watch.”
Alex glanced at Cisco and back again.
Mandy dropped her hand. “Oh, you’re guarding me, aren’t you? I must be the worst prisoner ever, huh?”
“Until I believe I can trust you, this is the way it will be,” Alex said. She turned to Cisco. “I’ll wake you in eight hours, unless I can’t stay awake.”
Cisco’s eyes traveled to Mandy. “Yes, ma’am.”
Mandy glanced away. ”Night, Cisco or good day . . . just sleep well.”
“I’m tired enough, I’m sure I will. Good night, Mandy.” He smiled and rolled over against the door. The bench seat was wide enough for four people, giving him plenty of room to stretch out.
“Mandy, you should get some sleep too,” Alex said.
Mandy shrugged. “Or, we could both stay up, do each other’s hair and talk about boys.”
