by Julian North
I released a long breath laden with apprehension. Anise and Alexander looked at me expectantly.
“It sounds like we just need to make it through dinner. I’ll ask our friends to come in as well, if that’s okay?”
Anise nodded grimly. “I’ll let everyone know we have guests. What a pleasure to have Nythan Royce for dinner, finally.”
Chapter 30
“Let me tell you about my big game hunt in the last preserve in South Africa,” Jeffery announced.
The table cloth covering the massive Titan-Wind dining room table had an unusual pattern—a modernist portrayal of a lion pride, I had learned. I should’ve kept my mouth shut about it and just concentrated on the ridiculous abundance of meat and wine laid before me. Too late. I’d given Jeffery the opening, and I had only myself to blame.
What followed was twenty minutes of minutia about how he, a man with a sighted projectile gun and a camouflage suit, was somehow in danger from some cloned lions that were already on the brink of madness. Every time he said, “I asked myself if I should continue,” Nythan kicked me under the table. But what I was dreading was Nythan’s commentary once Jeffery finally stopped speaking. His pinkish lips twitched anxiously as he awaited an opening.
Rhett sprung first. “Such bravery, sir!” He slapped his palm on the table. “I envy your journey to the African continent. Just the inoculations required would’ve scared me off.”
Jeffery hadn’t finished his tale, but the smile on his face was evidence that he was willing to forgive the interruption in light of the praise. Rhett’s uncle and father might be nopes, but Rhett was highborn, and his family was nearly as rich as Alexander’s.
“The closest I ever came to danger was when my uncle locked my sister and me out of the house at his country estate one night for misbehaving when we were eleven.”
Jeffery chuckled. “Taught you not to be scared of the dark, eh? Never was bothered by the dark or animals myself.”
Rhett gave him a tight grin. “We’d been throwing rocks that day, you see—my sister and me. At a hungry coyote beyond the fence of Uncle’s country estate. It was drawn by the smells of the cooking food within the perimeter. We thought ourselves quite brave. We even went so far as to brag about our prowess to Uncle Rudolph.”
“And he set you outside for that?” I asked, easily imagining Rudolph doing such a thing. Aba would’ve approved.
“But within the electrified fence of his estate,” Jeffery pointed out.
Rhett sat back in his chair. “That isn’t Uncle Rudolph’s style. He deactivated the perimeter. And locked us out of the house. Then he went to sleep.”
The table became quiet. Jeffery Titan-Wind was no longer smiling. “What I learned quickly was that coyotes are pack animals. There wasn’t just the one out there, you see. And they are quite intelligent. It didn’t take long for them to discover the electric fence was down. I remember their glittering, gem-like eyes staring at me as they came onto the property, searching for the remains of dinner. Or anything else worth eating. I’m sure the one I had been tormenting earlier was among them.”
“Oh goodness, that’s rather barbaric, isn’t it?” Priscilla Titan-Wind remarked with a hand over her mouth.
“It was effective.”
“Did your uncle let you back inside?” Anise asked.
“No. My uncle is a man who means what he says.” He was looking straight into Jeffery Titan-Wind’s eyes as he said it.
“What did you do?” Anise asked.
Rhett laughed, a warm, self-deprecating sound. He turned his attention to Anise. “We climbed onto the roof and spent the night there, scared out of our wits. It was a long night, but a beautiful one. I remember the beating of my heart, and that my hands wouldn’t stop shaking, but I also remember the stars. It was a rare clear night, and they were beautiful. The darkness seemed to last forever.” His eyes flickered to me for the briefest of moments. A wide grin erupted across Rhett’s face. “Until my aunt found out what Uncle Rudolph had done in the morning. Then it was his turn to feel scared.”
The table laughed as one, the tension eased. The rest of the meal passed almost easily after that. I drank their coffee, enjoying the rich flavor, knowing I had a long night ahead. We were shown to rooms—of course the Titan-Wind survival house had ample space for all of us. Jeffery’s eyes had a hard glint as he bid us all goodnight.
I lay awake on a firm mattress with silk sheets. Tentacles of dread probed my façade of calm. My people were counting on me, and I was putting just about every other person in this world whom I would dare to name a friend in jeopardy. The hard truth was that Nythan, Anise, Rhett, and perhaps even Alexander didn’t need to take the risks I was taking. They could survive, even under Virginia Timber-Night’s reign. This was my fight, but I was selfish. I couldn’t do it alone, so I’d dragged others along with me, without considering the consequences to them, to their families. It was a relief when Anise finally arrived to fetch me. Better to be on the move than stuck with only my thoughts for company.
We moved quickly and silently through the house and out to the waiting aircraft. The razorFish’s engines interrupted the uneasy stillness of the night. My seat trembled as we lifted off. We flew without lights. I’m not sure if the noise was enough to wake the Titan-Winds in their deep-sleeping lairs. In any case, we were gone. Anise had made her choice, and so had I.
She rode next to Rhett in case visual navigation became necessary, her hair in a tight tail behind her head, dressed in black, just like the rest of us. Alexander was behind me, Nythan to my side. I took comfort from the strength around me: a soldier, a genius, a fellow triller, and a schemer. And we were on our way to doing something about Virginia Timber-Night.
It took only a couple of minutes for the razorFish to cross the Hereford Inlet to Nummy Island. Without lights either on the aircraft or on the ground, Rhett relied exclusively on the coordinates that Anise had provided.
“That is our target below, not that we can see anything. I’ve set her to hover mode,” Rhett said. “Even in a razorFish, trying to land without seeing the ground is dangerous.”
“Send a transmission via a light optics transmission, grade three. Send the code I’m uploading now. It will switch on the landing pad lights and allow us in as an authorized entry.”
Rhett flicked a few fingers. I couldn’t see beneath us, but the positive nods from the occupants of the cockpit told me it had worked.
“Putting her down.”
Nythan gave me an uneasy look as we descended. Rhett put her down gently.
We left the razorFish and walked along a winding footpath with Anise in the lead, using our visers’ lights to guide our way. The moon was hidden by clouds, and the night was a deep black. The smell of the sea was thick in the air, and I could hear waves nearby. Anise brought us to a pair of durasteel doors set into a low-lying concrete building that didn’t look like it would’ve been out of place in Bronx City, at least from the outside. Great trees grew around its perimeter. From the sky, this facility wouldn’t look hidden—it would appear unremarkable.
The red light of a retinal scanner flashed, and the doorways swung open.
“There are motion scanners inside. Lights are going to switch on automatically. Don’t be alarmed, but don’t speak unnecessarily either. The Gaia is docked in a covered port on the far side of this building. We’ll proceed directly through. Everyone stay behind me.”
The salty smell of the ocean disappeared as soon as we entered the facility. As Anise predicted, ceiling lights clicked on after we had taken a few steps inside. The walls were a sleek navy blue. The Pegasus emblem of Titan-Wind Global Services was emblazoned at regular intervals on the walls. The first corridor we walked through appeared to contain darkened offices. We took a turn, then proceeded down a flight of stairs into an area of laboratories and machine shops, then into a vast structure containing three sunken basins of steel and concrete. Only the middle slip was occupied.
The constructio
n before us reminded me of a metal manta ray, its bottom sprawled out like wings. Above was a narrow metal tube with a transparent forward compartment and steel railings along the sides. A pair of shining hydraulic arms were folded atop the wings, each with a diamond-tipped drill attached. The whole thing was suspended in a great harness with support beams attached to either side of the basin that kept the machine from moving.
“The Gaia,” Anise announced unnecessarily.
“Isn’t it supposed to float… in the water?” Rhett asked.
“This is the dry dock,” Anise told him with a roll of her eyes, not catching Rhett’s sarcasm. “The wall in front of each slip is a door. After we’re aboard, we will flood the basin, detach the moorings, open the gate, and float away beneath the surface. We will never be visible by satellite or drone.”
“What are you talking about, Anise?” came a voice from behind us.
My heart surged in alarm as I twirled around. There was no one there.
“Who am I speaking to?” Anise demanded.
“Hardy Rince,” said the voice over the announcement system. “The motion detectors alerted me someone was in the complex. How did you get in here? Why are you talking about taking the Gaia out?”
Anise’s eyes grew wide with panic. She twirled about, as if she could see through the walls. I grabbed her hand as subtly as I could. The speaker was doubtlessly watching us. We needed Anise’s guile. She got my message immediately: stall him.
“Why are you here, Hardy? My father closed the facility.”
“My family’s building in Manhattan took a missile hit. It’s madness there. We got across the bridge on foot. I… I took my family here. It’s the safest place. They’re sleeping in my office, but I couldn’t shut my eyes. We didn’t have any place else.” The voice faltered slightly.
“I understand, Hardy,” Anise said, suddenly all honeyed. “Where are you? We could use your help. Can you come down here?”
There was a pause. Too quick, Anise. “Happy to help, Ms. Titan-Wind… but first I need to know why you’re taking the Gaia outside.”
“I have the authorization codes. Check the logs.”
“I did. Which is why I didn’t sound the alarm. Not sure who would show up anyway. But you aren’t certified to pilot her, and I don’t recognize any of those other people. This is our most critical project. I need to check with your father.”
I leaned in next to Anise’s ear. “Where is he transmitting from? Where’s the security center?”
Anise motioned with a hand to a metal staircase at the end of the drydock quay, beyond the furthest basin. Her eyes said, Just above us. It’s close. I motioned to Alexander, but Rhett saw as well. He was on the far side of our group, closer to where Anise had indicated. He started edging away slowly.
“The net is down, Hardy. That’s why he sent me in person. These people work for another… division. They are certified on the Gaia. It’s just a test run. That’s all you need to know.”
“I’ll raise Jeffery on the secured satellite channel. Stand by. Please don’t approach the Gaia until I’ve gotten authorization, or I’ll put the entire facility on lockdown.”
Deuces.
There was no way that Rhett would be able to find the security room and deal with Hardy in time. I had no choice. I summoned my power. Ice rushed into me, and I pushed my thoughts outward, searching for the hidden voice. At first there was nothing—just the familiar minds around me. I became more methodical, sweeping the area section by section, searching for the security room Anise had indicated was close by. My breaths were heavy. If Anise was wrong, if he was further away, this all might be for nothing. That couldn’t happen. I pushed harder. I was inching further out on a cliff. I had already been walking along the edge. Now I was craning over the precipice trying to see a bit more of what might be nearby. If I misjudged it, I would be lost. But still, I searched. Butterflies ran amok in my stomach. I clenched my jaw so hard tears dripped from the corners of my eyes. My mind screamed danger as I pushed the cold horizon of my will further. Until, finally, at the edge of the endless void, I found him.
Hardy was a man of loyalty, first to his family and then to his company. The image of a seven-year-old boy with white-sand hair was foremost in his mind. The echoes of blasts so powerful they were like earthquakes lingered in his memory. There was gratitude as well—to Jeffery Titan-Wind, the man who gave him his living, who gave him a chance in this world. He was not a bad man, but he was in my way. I attacked his will. His defenses were not particularly formidable—a palisade of stout wood bounded by iron. Perhaps, in the early days of my coming into power, I would’ve had some trouble overwhelming such a man. But I had grown in strength and cunning. The distance my trill traveled was by far the greatest obstacle. My jabs of cold will were like a javelin thrown at a great distance in a gale of wind. Still, my aim was true, my mind strong. I froze Hardy where he stood. I broke contact when Rhett bashed his way into the security room. I had no desire to experience the pain I knew was coming. All for my quest. This had better be worth it.
Rudolph’s nephew returned to the group a few minutes later, grim-faced. “Taken care of.”
“You didn’t—” I began.
“Of course not. I gave him an ugly jab in the ribs. He seemed surprised, like he had just woken from a dream. He was staring at the control panel when I busted in. I tied him up with a few zip cords they had in the security center.”
Anise shook her head, the gesture slow and troubled. “It took you at least five minutes to get there, and Hardy wasn’t answering that whole time. It shouldn’t have taken him that long to reach my father.”
“Maybe an equipment problem,” Nythan offered. “With everything going on, even private satellite transmissions can be disrupted.”
“Maybe,” Anise said, but she didn’t look convinced. She took a long stare at Alexander, then turned her attention toward the Gaia. I was certain she didn’t believe him but decided to let it go.
I was impatient to get moving. “Let’s not tempt fate again. Everyone get on board.”
Chapter 31
The inside of the Gaia resembled the spaceship of a child’s imagination. The skin was a metallic alloy that occasionally sparkled even in the dull artificial light of the submersible’s interior. Metal shields covered the two small windows, so our only view of the watery depths outside the protective shell was on the numerous screens positioned throughout the vessel. There was disappointingly little to see—we were hugging a sandy floor filled with the refuse of humanity: plastika debris, super-petrified radioactive waste, mountains of other indiscernible trash. Other screens displayed heaps of incomprehensible data but there were also an array of gauges, knobs, and levers that seemed too numerous to be necessary. Nythan couldn’t keep a silly grin off his face despite the peril we sailed toward.
“Screens aren’t always reliable at the depths the Gaia is designed to travel,” Nythan said as he ran his hand over the shiny instruments. “They require constant and precise pressure. Gauges like these are far more durable. It’s really brilliant to go retro like this. It’s like being inside the Nautilus from Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.”
“I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself,” Anise said from the front of the craft, pride in her voice. “It cost a fortune. But it can detect mineral or gas deposits thousands of meters below the ocean’s floor and even drill exploratory wells with those arms. There’s nothing else like it at sea.”
“I just like the knobs,” Nythan told her.
Despite its massive cost, the interior was far from luxurious. There were only four seats, so Nythan sat in a small supply area in the rear of the craft. Nor was the Gaia particularly fast. Its top speed was forty knots, which, according to Nythan, was less than fifty miles per hour. It would take us several hours to reach the platform.
Once he got over his childish pleasure of exploring the new toys around him, Nythan remembered the mission at hand. It took him only a few questions and s
everal minutes of experimentation before he had the Gaia’s terminal synced with his viser, a look of satisfaction written on his too-pale features.
“The sensor arrays on this thing are incredible,” he murmured. “All you need to do is point to see the temperature, density, radiation soundings, magnetic signatures… how did you get this stuff to work on a ship in the water?”
“I don’t think Anise built it, Nythan,” I said. “And we’re not here to do mineral prospecting.”
Nythan shook his head. “You’re wrong—at least partly. I presume you aren’t just going to stumble blindly onto that platform, hoping to find records and other evidence of malfeasance?”
I lifted my brows. Actually, that was pretty much my plan. I knew there would be guards, but I was ready for them. We had guns, but we wouldn’t need them. Alexander and I could deal with Virginia’s security—as long as they weren’t highborn. And we had Rhett if things got ugly.
Nythan frowned at my gesture, concern in his eyes. “We still don’t know where we’re going in there. Even if your… confidence is justified, we still need to plan. I should be able to generate a decent map with these arrays once we get closer. They’re designed to face downward toward the ocean floor, of course, but with a little maneuvering of the arrays and the Gaia, we should be able to do what we need.”
“Excellent. See if you can find anything else unusual. They’ve gone to the expense of keeping everything isolated out here. They could’ve located their facility on land in South America or maybe even Korea. I want to know why Tyrell would spend so much to be so completely isolated.”
