“What?”
“You are not the Scion.”
It felt like someone had slapped me across the face.
I recalled snippets of conversation I had heard on Orbis 2 when they had replaced my arm: talk of the Scion and the Trust and their fear of my death. I should have felt relief, but a tiny part of me felt disappointed.
“Then why am I here?” I mumbled.
“Your jump.”
“It was an unauthorized space jump.”
“Where is the burak?”
“Yes, where is the belt?”
They all seemed to be talking to me at once. Their different body parts flinched as their eyes darted about. Even the ones in the dark seemed to be listening, as if waiting for my answer.
I did jump, didn’t I? One moment I was standing in front of Banar’s bait, and the very next instant I was on the other side, thrusting my fist into his back.
“How did you do that?” Vairocina asked.
“Quiet,” I replied. “I don’t have a Space Jumper’s belt,” I told them.
One member of the Trust twitched so hard that she dislodged her right arm from the rock with a sickening snap.
“That’s impossible!” she cried out (or one of them did, anyway). Her arm shriveled like dead moss on a rock while tubes and wires slipped through the black stone and attended to the fresh wound. The improbable combination of rock, metal, and flesh made it difficult for me to understand what was happening.
“He hit my sister. I don’t know how it happened. One moment I was here, and the next moment I was there.”
The lights that illuminated each berth flickered in response like some broken control panel button. Their eyes, black and vacant, darted back and forth but never rested on anything. It seemed to me that they were talking to each other, but I wasn’t sure. The silence was unnerving and painfully long. Another member shifted in the rock, and I flinched at the obscene sound of mutilating flesh and bone that cracked the dead air.
“Space Jumpers cannot jump without a belt,” Vairocina whispered. “It’s never been done. The belt works with the jumper’s softwire ability to bend space and time, but the way I understand it, the belt does most of the work.”
“This has set a new precedent,” one of them interrupted.
“You must be observed.”
“This is another augury.”
“Can you demonstrate this ability now?” they asked me.
“No . . .”
My bones ignited as a fiery bolt of pain convulsed my body once again.
“I’m telling you the truth! Please!”
The pain stopped as quickly as it had come.
“Please. Can I go back? I won’t do it again. I know things have happened in the past, things like this, that make people think I’m the Scion guy, but —”
“You are not the Scion.”
“Tell me who he is so the next time I see him I can thank him,” I said.
“That knowledge must be restricted.”
“Forbidden.”
“Why?” I asked them.
“History has recorded its most tumultuous events upon the awakening of a Scion.”
“I’m taking that to mean that bad things are going to happen, then. So where are the other Scions?”
“There are no others. Throughout the history of the universe, every last Scion has been killed by the very people who seek its enlightenment.”
“Or so they claim,” one of them mumbled. This set off a flurry of assertions by the rest of the Trust.
“They know not what they ask.”
“That’s why no one can know the identity of the Scion.”
“If the Scion’s identity is revealed . . .”
“If the Scion blossoms before the revelation . . .”
“The Scion will surely be killed.”
Suddenly I felt very relieved that I wasn’t the Scion.
“Your home planet has murdered several Scions.”
“If the Scion does not succeed, then the universe will succumb to forces that feed on the fear and negativity generated by its masses.”
“Then why aren’t you protecting the Scion?” I asked them.
“We cannot intervene. The auguries have warned us not to interfere. Free will must choose the path of enlightenment, not force.”
“But you,” the Trust whispered, every member hanging on the last word, as still as the stone that encased them.
“What about me?”
For the first time, the eyes of the Trust focused on mine. Their stares linked to something inside me, something so deep I couldn’t breathe.
“You can be trained to protect the Scion, for you are the Tonat.”
“I’m the what?”
“The Protector.”
“A champion.”
“Some will worship you.”
“A seraph.”
“Others will fear you.”
“A devil.”
“Stop! You’re all talking too fast.”
My head felt heavy, crammed full with information that I could not decipher. Vairocina, are you getting all of this? I whispered inside my head.
Most of it, she replied.
“Does anyone know about this? Do they know about this Tonat thing?” I asked.
“Several Keepers have had suspicions since your staining.”
“The event was seen as a favorable augury.”
“An omen outlined by the prophecy.”
“The genetic identity of the Scion is hidden.”
“Until you are trained.”
“It is safe.”
“No one will look where we hid it.”
“They will protect it with their lives.”
“Who will?” I asked.
“The Citizens.”
“Greed serves them well for this task.”
“Everyone protects a treasure.”
I held my hands up. “Please stop with this double-talk. It’s too confusing. What do you mean a treasure? The Ancients’ Treasure? What does that have to do with it?”
“You know of the Ancients’ Treasure?” one asked me.
“Unnecessary information.”
“The identity is safe.”
Did the Trust hide the identity of the Scion near the Ancients’ Treasure? Switzer was going after the treasure. I didn’t care about the treasure. I told him to have it. Did he know? But I didn’t care about the identity of the Scion. At least it wasn’t me. Some poor split-screen was going to have the destiny of the universe thrust upon him. Does anyone get to pick what they want to be around here?
The Trust was waiting, but for what, I didn’t know. I did, however, see an opportunity to get back to my sister. If I told them I would help, maybe they would let me go.
“Send me back now and I’ll help protect this guy,” I said.
“He knows too much,” one of them replied.
“He has not yet chosen.”
“Just tell me where it’s hidden,” I asked them.
“You do not need this information.”
“If I’m going to protect this Scion guy, I will.”
“You have not chosen.”
“Chosen what?” This was frustrating. Every second I was here was one more second Ketheria was left with Banar.
“To become what you were created to do.”
“Created? What do you mean created?” I asked.
“You are special.”
“You are a success.”
“You can be a Space Jumper.”
“What if I don’t want to be a Space Jumper?”
“That choice is also yours,” they replied.
“But I doubt you can make that choice,” someone whispered, close to me. I spun around, but no one was there.
“What do you mean? You said it’s my choice.”
“Technically.”
I held my head in my hands. I didn’t even try to figure out what that meant. What was happening to Ketheria? I thought about my promise to Max. I told her I would nev
er become a Space Jumper. Would she understand? Would she accept the responsibility if she were in my shoes? I told her we would all stay together. Could I keep my promise to Max if I chose to be the Tonat — to be a Space Jumper?
“What if I say no?” I asked them.
“The fate of the Scion lies in the cosmic streams that flow through this universe.”
The universe? That only means he’ll be left to deal with the likes of Weegin or Odran, or Madame Lee. Even the Switzers of the universe!
“You would just let him die, then?” I said.
“We cannot interfere with the prophecy,” they argued.
“I think you broke that rule a long time ago.”
“The Universe will decide,” they replied matter-of-factly.
“I can’t believe you’re willing to take that chance,” I said.
“Then you accept.”
“You choose your destiny.”
“Your fate.”
“No, I will not be a Space Jumper,” I told them. I had made a promise to Max. I was not going to break it.
“An unwise decision,” replied the Trust.
“It is not honorable.”
“Quirin was wrong.”
“This is a bad augury.”
“Take him back to his cell.”
“Maybe he will change his mind.”
“Wait! Who is this Quirin guy? I’ve heard his name before. You have to put me back.”
“No, we must understand your gift.”
“To jump without a belt.”
“Extraordinary!”
“Look,” I pleaded. “My sister is in danger right now. Let me help her, and then I’ll think about it. She’s playing in the Chancellor’s Challenge! You have to put me back!”
I crumpled to the floor, not because I was pleading with them but because my body had exploded with pain.
“You will obey us!” their collective voices rang out. It was more than sound; their voices were the very air I struggled to pull into my lungs.
“Put me back!”
More pain. I clutched my arms in fear that my bones were about to rip from my body. I thought about Ketheria lying on the ground — her broken body vulnerable to Banar. I was so tired of this. Tired of playing their games, following their rules. I was tired of being a knudnik.
“Put me back!”
JT, stop this. They’re going to break every bone in your body, Vairocina pleaded in my head.
“I don’t care. Put me back. I demand it!”
I pictured Banar standing over my sister while the Trust tried to snap my spine.
“Now!” I screamed at them.
And then I was gone. Wherever I had been, I wasn’t there anymore. The pain was gone, too, and I was kneeling on the floor inside the labyrinth. Just like I had pictured, Banar was standing in front me, looming over Ketheria, his arm raised to strike. The faint smell of sweaty feet lingered in the air.
“Banar!”
The alien spun around and laughed when he saw me.
“Wait your turn!” he cried.
I stood up. “There won’t be any more turns,” I said. “This is enough. The game ends now.”
A champion? A seraph? A devil? I’ll show them. From where I stood, I pushed into the Labyrinth’s computer through the escape button to my left. I willed my mind through the massive computer simply by thinking about where I wanted to go, almost as if I were jumping through it. I settled over the programs controlling the stadium. The data flashed through the virtual metropolis, exposed and vulnerable. I reached out with my mind and trashed whatever was in my path, without discretion.
“What are you doing, JT?” Vairocina questioned.
“I’m choosing — that’s what I’m doing. I’m choosing not to play their game anymore. I’m choosing to protect my sister. I’m choosing . . . I’m choosing for me now.”
“Oh.”
I pulled out of the computer to find the labyrinth exposed and barren. Gone were the holographic walls, the obstacles, and even the lights. Banar and I stood at the center of an enormous circular pad comprised of concrete, circuits, and metal. It oddly reminded me of the Trust. Ketheria was still unconscious on the floor.
“What have you done?” Banar roared.
The crowd was on its feet, high above us. The aliens were screaming and pointing at me. I ignored them. The facade was gone. It was just Banar and me now.
“You want the same punishment I dealt your bait?” I asked him.
“Ha!” Banar’s armor spun forward, locking in place as the monstrous alien lunged toward me. I jumped as he reached forward, or at least I tried to. Nothing happened. I remained exactly where I was. No smell of stinking feet. No pitted feeling in my stomach as if I were falling. Only Banar moving swiftly, arm raised ready to strike.
“JT?” My sister mumbled from the other side of the labyrinth. Ketheria was alive! I glanced past Banar to see Ketheria struggling to sit up. Every cell in my body wanted to be next to my sister. I jumped again, and this time I slipped through space and time as easily as if I were blinking. I was kneeling next to my sister as Banar stumbled over my previous location, reeling about. I heard the crowd gasp.
“Space Jumper!” someone screamed.
“Ketheria, Ketheria, are you all right?” I said, tapping my sister’s cheek. The blood had not yet dried on her mouth.
“Ketheria!”
Her eyes were closed again, but then they flickered open. She was alive. I let out a breath I had been holding for a very long time.
“Where are we?” she croaked, looking around.
“We’re still in the labyrinth. Can you walk?”
“I think so.”
Ketheria stood up, a little wobbly at first, but she assured me she would be all right. Banar was just as cautious. Everyone had heard stories about Space Jumpers, and I’m sure he was no different.
“It’s your choice,” I told him. “You can let us pass or you can die here. You might even find that honorable. The task will be nothing more than an annoyance for me.”
“JT?” Ketheria whispered.
Four security drones, larger than any I had ever seen before, drifted into the vacant playing field and splashed us with their incriminating searchlights.
“Remain where you are,” they demanded in unison.
“Nope,” I said, and pushed into each device simultaneously. I corrupted any functioning code I could find. The machines, disoriented and useless, crashed into the wall before hitting the ground.
“Well, Banar?” I said.
Banar did not speak. He simply stepped aside.
“Where are we going?” Ketheria asked.
“Down there,” I said, pointing to the drain at the center of the labyrinth.
A new and invigorating sense of myself streamed through my body as I dragged Ketheria through the drainage system of the labyrinth. It felt like someone had cracked open my skull and rewired my brain. The new data screamed at me, Can you see it now? Do you get it?
I did. The Trust had awakened something inside me. I could even see Switzer’s point of view, if just a little. Whatever my parents had planned for us on the Rings of Orbis, it was not for me to find out, and I didn’t care anymore.
Ketheria and I were forced to squeeze together as the tubes narrowed. They were much smaller than the tunnels that led to Toll Town on Orbis 2. I was very aware, however, that the Trust might come after me. I had jumped again, and this time right in front of them. I didn’t have a clue if they could track my movements or if they simply focused on the point of my jump. The Trust did mention that they were aware of my staining, so I had to assume that they could track me as easily as my last Guarantor had. If that were the case, then where were they? They should have caught me the moment I jumped. Whatever technique they used, though, I was planning to make it very difficult for them to find me.
I stopped when the tunnel split. This new part of me felt very alien. This fresh sense of myself, of my own identity, pushed me, but
I was still unaware of what it actually meant. My feelings kept giving me pause as I looked at each decision with this new filter. I knew I was no longer going to wait for people to tell me what to do. I was living for myself now. For the very first time, I felt like my choices were my own. Right now I wanted to find Switzer. I needed his help.
“You can’t possibly be considering that,” Ketheria said, reading my thoughts as I chose the tunnel to my right.
“Why not? I should have listened to him a long time ago. Besides, he’s only a means to an end.”
“You can’t trust him.”
“I don’t plan to.”
I knew Switzer was going after the Ancients’ Treasure. I was counting on the idea that the Citizens would make it quite difficult for him to get at it.
“What if he’s already gone?” Ketheria said.
“He’s not.”
Something inside me told me that he was still on his quest; that Switzer was still on the Rings of Orbis. It was all I had to go on.
Ketheria and I waded knee-deep through a small pool that gathered in front of another grate. The metal bars had been cut and pushed apart. Switzer had come this way. “What about the others?” Ketheria said.
“Once you’re safe, I’ll come back and get them. I’ll jump if I have to.”
Ketheria did not reply.
“Even Nugget,” I added to reassure her, but Ketheria simply waited in front of the grate.
“There’s a drop,” she said, peering through the gnarled metal. She was hesitating, but I sensed that it had nothing to do with the drop.
“If Switzer can do it, then so can we.”
“You’re assuming he survived,” she argued.
“He did.”
Ketheria jumped into the tunnel and disappeared. All I heard was her scream.
“Ketheria!”
I dove in after her, only to discover that the tunnel dumped into a large reservoir. It was a five-meter drop before I hit the water, barely missing my sister.
“This has to recycle back into the labyrinth,” I cried. “Switzer is close.”
I swam to the edge of the pool and then helped Ketheria out of the water. There was only one exit from the room, and the door was already pried open. A pinkish light seeped through the forced entry. From where we stood, I could hear the sounds of a struggle on the other side of the door.
“He’s in there,” I told her.
The Softwire: Wormhole Pirates on Orbis 3 Page 27
