by David Beers
Only silence met his message, the line capable but dead. His people had heard what he said, and he had to hope they were the only ones.
They wouldn’t contact him, just as he asked. The Prophet’s safety was in their hands now. He was alone again, staring at the woman he loved—her eyes still closed and her breathing the same as it had been seconds before.
Manor didn’t close his own eyes or try to sleep. He only watched Raylyn and wondered if she might somehow escape what was coming. Perhaps she could take the Touched’s Blood. Perhaps she could follow the Prophet as well.
The First Priest had listened as the two below him made love, though he took no real pleasure in it. He listened out of necessity … because at this point, the First Priest knew only a few things with certainty. The most important fact was that the High Priest had forsaken him, and he was being sent to die. A close second in importance was that he, the First Priest, wanted to live more than he had ever wanted anything else in this life. The third thing he now knew—though he hadn’t been completely positive until moments ago—was that the man beneath him served the Black.
The First Priest flew above the two lovers, but above him flew the same drone that had followed Raylyn Brinson since she first discovered the weapon’s existence. The populace thought drones could read thoughts, but that wasn’t exactly true. It definitely listened to conversations, but that wasn’t very advanced. The drone couldn’t fully read thoughts, but it could make intelligent guesses. It used a combination of actions, conversations, and masked nano information to form probabilistic theories as to what someone was thinking … Most of the time, it turned out to be correct.
In front of the First Priest was a screen, displaying a digital landscape. The answer he’d been seeking lay plastered across it.
The First Priest had asked the drone a single question when it first started following Manor Reinhold: Does he follow the weapon?
The drone had been hovering over Manor for the past 48 hours, from the moment the transport picked him up and brought him to Corinth’s Shrine.
It finally had an answer, and the First Priest read the message almost not believing his fortune. So many things had gone wrong lately, all of them piling up one after the other. He wasn’t even considering the weapon in these personal disasters, nor the Black—they were beyond his ability to deal with at the moment. No, the First Priest was concerned with his own life, and would only deal with the Black once he secured his continued existence.
82% probability Manor Reinhold is involved with the Black.
Not precisely the question the First Priest had asked, but close enough.
The First let the screen dissipate into the air. He wasn’t worried about what Raylyn had told the man earlier. She didn’t have the first clue about what was happening around her. She knew what she’d been told, but none of it really meant anything—at least not yet. From the moment she started telling the First Priest to do something, especially with bringing this Manor character on board, she guaranteed that she would know nothing of value.
The First Priest was traveling to the weapon’s expected destination, because that’s what he’d been commanded to do. The First, though, hadn’t yet decided his course of action. Ships were floating in front of him, all invisible to the naked eye, but that didn’t mean they would be used in the way Brinson told her lover.
It didn’t mean they had to be used at all.
Or, perhaps, they could be used in a very different manner. Because the High Priest lived inside the One Path now (an insane notion, to say the least). And it was he who wanted the First dead.
The First Priest was flying with the True Faith’s largest army, its only army, and he could either direct it at the weapon … or, he could use it against the man issuing the First’s death warrant.
Manor Reinhold might have actually just saved the First Priest’s life. When the First left the True Faith, he thought he would have to go fight the weapon—killing him was the only path to a pardon. If he managed to kill the weapon, perhaps the High would spare his life. Now, though, the First had a follower of the Black, and his lover.
Why not turn this armada only slightly, and head to where the High Priest rested his head? Why not end that crazy old man’s life, and then use the follower, the lover, and the informant to kill the weapon?
If the First Priest wanted to live above all else, and secondly, wanted to save the world, didn’t that make the most sense?
He closed his eyes and leaned deep into his chair. Not quite horizontal, but close. For the first time in days, the First Priest thought there might be a way to salvage everything. His own life. The world. And it all hinged only on causing pain to a few people who deserved it anyway.
Eleven
Rebecca?
The message came from Christine, through Rebecca’s nanotech.
I’m here.
We’ve received information. It’s credible. The True Faith is planning another attempt on David’s life.
Rebecca tried to control her face. She wanted to show no emotion. She still sat next to David, and would for the next hour until they landed. She didn’t know if he was looking at her, but if so, she wouldn’t let him see any changes.
Tell me, she said back to Christine.
They’re sending another armada. This one is camouflaged. There’s over 1,000 transports.
Anything else? Rebecca asked.
We don’t have anything else yet.
Do you know when? Rebecca asked.
No. That is literally all we know. They’re going to attack and the transports are camouflaged.
How do you find this out? She was careful to keep her nanotech calm, even—she was simply asking a question.
There’s a leak somewhere. It’s hard to say exactly where, though. There’s a lot of moving pieces, but the information flowed back up. You have to tell David.
Of course. I will.
Okay, Christine said. Let me know if you need anything else, alright? I’ll send more information as we get it. When are you supposed to arrive?’
Another hour, I think.
Good. You have the information regarding where you’re staying?
Yeah, we have it. Thanks, Rebecca said.
No problem.
Rebecca felt the connection close, her nanotech alone again. She didn’t look over at David, but kept staring out the window to her right. He was awake now, not asleep as he’d been when the True Faith had contacted her. Different conversations from different sides, all while she rode beside her brother. Rebecca continually doing her best to not let him see, to hide the conversations.
Do you even recognize yourself?
Their transports had slowed down over the past few hours, moving carefully beneath the One Path’s territory. Much of it was controlled by David’s followers now, but even so, a strange transport could be shot out of the sky by friendly fire, or by the Ministry’s remaining defenses.
Another hour, though, and they would be free of the transport. Then, David would begin preparing for the woman.
You have to tell David, Christine had said.
It wouldn’t happen. Rebecca found no glee in that knowledge, only a sick determination—something that made her stomach turn while knowing she couldn’t avoid its truth.
There was a leak, though, and on the True Faith’s side.
Rebecca, still looking out the window, had no idea how to address it. Should she contact this Raylyn woman again? Maybe, but not now. Not with David right next to her.
“What’s wrong?”
The question cracked through her thoughts like a pick through ice, sending flecks flying into dark corners of her mind. Even though she’d tried concealing her face, hadn’t moved at all, David’s question still hung inside the transport, waiting for an answer.
“Huh?” Rebecca said, turning to look at her brother.
Remember, Christine can’t contact him. Only you. He doesn’t know. He can’t.
Yet, that wasn’t true,
was it? Because David always knew. He was the Prophet, regardless of what side Rebecca had chosen.
“Something’s bothering you. I can feel it. What is it?”
“Nothing,” she said, knowing that wouldn’t suffice even as she spoke the word. “Just thinking about Rhett. Worrying about him.”
He looked at her for a second longer, then nodded. He looked back out his side just as the transport turned upward.
“We’re here,” he said.
And the clouds above grew closer as their ship ascended into the One Path.
David’s transport pulled up into the building, moving through the bottom as was typical inside the One Path. The transport’s doors opened on both sides, and David walked out onto the house’s transport platform.
The flight up would have been harrowing, if David had paid attention to it. He saw fires burning across the sky, black smoke billowing up to space. No ‘capsules’ carried anyone anywhere. The skies were empty except for the transport carrying him and Rebecca, and though he saw no one, he knew people watched him.
David paid just enough attention to recognize possible attacks—a real threat given the state of things—but other than that, he hadn’t cared.
He was concerned with his sister.
The transport’s doors closed. It was too tall to see over the top, but he looked through the glass walls and saw Rebecca on the other side.
“It’s a great honor.”
David looked in front of him and saw a short man standing there and what appeared to be his short wife standing next to him.
“We’re just so happy to have you,” she said.
David nodded. He felt their blood now that he was focusing on them, though he should have noticed the moment he stepped from the transport. He was too focused on Rebecca’s brief conversation.
“Thank you for having us,” his sister said in the silence that he should have filled, but hadn’t.
“Come, come,” the man said, breaking from his wife and moving toward David. The woman went the other way, the transport’s platform in the shape of a rectangle.
The man fell to his knees when David was a few feet from him.
“It’s an honor, Prophet. A great honor.”
“Please, please, no,” David said, trying to keep any annoyance from entering his voice. Rebecca … his mind could focus on nothing else, yet now he had to deal with these people wanting to prostrate themselves on the ground.
He reached down and helped the short man back to his feet.
“Are you hungry?” he asked, looking up at David.
“No, no. We’re fine. Maybe just a bit tired.”
“Come inside,” the woman called from the opposite platform. She took Rebecca’s hand and led the four of them into the home.
David spent the next 20 minutes doing his best to remain polite. Food was shoved in their faces and questions asked, but he couldn’t shake his thoughts about Rebecca.
And what were they, exactly? Could he even name them? No. Not directly. Something happened inside the transport, though he didn’t know what. He only knew there’d been a change. He’d felt it.
Was she worried about Rhett? Was that the truth?
What are you saying, David? That your sister is lying to you? Is that something you really want to entertain, especially right now?
“I’m sorry, but can we have a few minutes to ourselves?” David finally asked. He saw the faces of his hosts change, turning quickly to embarrassment.
“Yes, yes. Of course. We’re so sorry. Truly. We’ll … We’ll give you some space. If you need us we’ll be in our bedrooms.”
Less than a minute later the two of them were alone, brother and sister.
“That was a bit rude,” Rebecca said.
David looked at her for a second, taking all of her in.
Am I missing something? he wondered.
Finally he broke eye contact and stood from the table. He walked across the small kitchen to the sink. The rooms in the One Path—all One Path buildings, really—were small. It was a necessity to conserve energy, as keeping everything suspended in the air consumed massive amounts. It made David feel like a caged animal, walking around in this small orb.
“We need to reach out to Rhett,” he said.
“He told us not to.”
“I know, Rebecca. But they should be arriving here soon, and we need to know when.”
“What if we get him killed?”
David turned around. “What if we get me killed?”
She said nothing.
“Because I’m the one going up against this woman. What if my not knowing when she’s arriving ends up giving her the upper hand? Is my life more important than Rhett’s?”
Rebecca nodded and whispered, “Of course it is, David.”
“Then contact him, and find out where they’re at.”
She looked away from him and he watched as her eyes lit with green specks. She was quiet for a few minutes and he said nothing, only stared at her, letting whatever conversation was taking place continue.
He hadn’t planned on contacting Rhett when he got here. He believed he would be able to sense the woman when she arrived, but …
You just put Rhett’s life at risk, and why?
He didn’t know, but Rebecca had said she was worrying about him. Only, David had pretty easily overcome her arguments against contacting Rhett.
Haven’t you been saying for years that you were tired of her arguing with you? Of not simply acquiescing to what you want? Isn’t this what you’ve been asking for? And maybe tonight is different because she knows what the stakes are. She knows what you have to do tomorrow.
He thought the words, but none of them felt true. David hadn’t doubted himself in long, long years. What he felt was real, and it had been ever since the Unformed touched him. When he first felt the girl, no doubt. When he first felt the traitor, no doubt. And now, he sensed something wrong with his sister—but because it was his own blood, he was letting doubt enter his mind.
He watched as Rebecca stared in silence, eyes alight, and he wondered what it was that bothered him so.
Where are you?
Rhett heard the message. He looked over at the Disciple, as much habit as anything else. The man gave no indication that he knew a conversation was taking place, but that meant absolutely nothing.
Brief anger rose in Rhett at Rebecca for contacting him. He’d specifically told her not to, that he would make contact if he could.
It’s not her, he thought. She wouldn’t do it on her own. David told her to talk to you, so if you’re going to be angry at anyone, be angry at him.
Seconds passed without him saying anything in response, Rebecca remaining quiet too, though the line remained open.
What did it matter? If Rhett ignored them, would it change anything? This Disciple already knew just about everything, and Rhett was flying with a ticking time bomb behind him. David was the only thing that could save him from any of this, and if he wanted to know Rhett’s location—what, would he not tell him? Was that the safest choice?
Rhett shook his head.
“I’m going to tell them the truth,” he said.
The Disciple nodded, though not looking over. His usual calm countenance unbreakable, regardless of what happened. The nod, though, that made Rhett feel better about his decision. The Disciple had heard the nanotechnology—impossible for normal people, but easy for him, apparently.
I can see the One Path, Rhett told her.
And he could, miles and miles ahead, buildings hanging in the air. It was beautiful, in a sad, sick way. The fires raged in the morning sky making the buildings look like bursting stars. They weren’t stars, though, but people’s homes, and the people in them were dead now—or would be soon.
How long before you arrive? Rebecca asked.
Probably a little before sunset.
Are you okay? she said.
Yes, but they know now. Everything I just told you, the True Faith knows. So do
n’t say anything about yourself.
He looked over at the Disciple, but the man kept staring forward, as if none of this bothered him.
Okay, Rhett, Rebecca said. Good luck.
The connection ended and Rhett kept watching the Disciple. Rebecca’s words rang in his head; her voice sounded fragile—as if she were a wounded bird, barely keeping flight, but knowing a strong wind would eventually bring her down.
What’s happening with them? he wondered.
Rhett could have kept wondering, but he thought to do so might give the Disciple more information.
David was coming, and hopefully by tonight they’d be reunited. The Disciple, the woman, the whole One Path—they would all see the truth, and the Disciple would no longer need ask questions regarding faith.
That’s all Rhett knew, and that’s all that mattered to him.
“He said they’d arrive before dusk.”
Rebecca watched David nod. His eyes were still, no gray dancing nor threatening to break out.
“Did he say where?”
“I didn’t ask. One, it’s not safe for him, and two, how would he know where they’re going?”
David didn’t nod this time, but he didn’t look away.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, trying to keep her mind still. Thinking anything outside of this conversation could be disastrous.
“That’s what I want to know, Rebecca. What’s wrong? Is it really Rhett? Because something changed in you right before we got here.”
“What do you mean? ‘Changed in me’?”
“I’m just asking you what is wrong. That’s what I mean. Because something is, and it still is, and you’re not telling me.”
Rebecca shook her head, doing her best to mimic bewilderment. “I did tell you. I started thinking about Rhett, David. He’s alone and with the enemy. I love him, just like I love you, and so I’m worried about him. Why is that so hard to understand? What else would it be? I mean, there are other things I could worry about: the woman, the True Faith, the Unformed, our war. There are a million things, but why is it so hard for you to believe me?”
