by Imran Siddiq
The Intercom vibrated.
He almost didn’t believe it.
Rolling onto his front, Zachary answered, “Rosa!” Silence from the Intercom. That was odd. With calmer tone, he tried again. “Hello. Rosa?”
“Who is this?” responded a stern male voice.
Zachary tensed. Had the army intercepted the Intercom? No – how could they? He’d swapped the Intercom’s identity.
“Who is this?” asked Zachary.
He tried to activate the viewer setting. Text materialised on the upper screen, ‘Images not permitted by caller’.
“Are you Zachary?”
How did he know his name?
“Did you steal my daughter’s Raptor?” said the man.
Zachary gulped. It was Rosa’s dad; Jordan. “No, Mister Kade. She gave it to me. My dad helped to clean the infected shells around your home.”
“And you’ve been calling her ever since?”
“No – she called me.” Zachary’s mouth filled with grimy spit. He swallowed every few words. “She wanted me to wipe the Raptor’s memory, but I didn’t, and we talked now and again, because she wanted somebody to talk to, because she doesn’t have anybody else.”
Goose bumps chilled him. Why was Rosa’s dad calling him? Where was she?
Jordan’s sigh crackled. “Your account is similar to my daughter’s. I will accept your acquisition of her Raptor, but I do not approve of your continued contact with her, and especially of how you have coerced her.”
“Coerced? What do you mean?”
“How old are you?”
What a strange question. “Sixteen.”
“The same age as her. How convenient,” said Jordan. “You remind me of the arrogant bullies that I knew when I was young. They’d take on personas that matched their prey to lure them in. What you’re doing isn’t new. Gaining my daughter’s trust by pretending to be her age, from Underworld, and to understand her, is a plan that you’ve executed rather well.”
“You think I made it up?” Zachary bit his lip. “I’m not a pirate. I never stole her Raptor, or attacked your home.”
“Count yourself fortunate that I have not turned this over to Hadrian Tower.” Finger clicking sounded. “They’d have you by now in a small cell, tried for theft, conspiracy, attempted murder and the spread of vicious lies, but the compassionate side of me wants to give you a chance to explain yourself.”
Zachary’s neck stiffened. “Do you really think I’m that bad?”
“Explain.”
Zachary couldn’t suppress the rage. “If I wanted to use Rosa against you, I’d have done it when I was at your home. I could have hurt her then. I’m sixteen. Do I sound older? Do I? I don’t have any friends. Okay. I’m a loner. I’m a scavenger. Rosa gave me her time. More time than anyone’s ever given me. She wanted to be my friend. I let her, and I’m glad I did.” He inhaled aloud. “Where is she?”
“Don’t use that tone with me.”
“I will,” snapped Zachary. “If only you had let her out, and let her make her own friends, then none of this would’ve happened.” Zachary’s stomach churned. What was he saying?
Jordan’s tone cut through the Intercom. “A pathetic scavenger. Do you look at my daughter as a trophy?”
“No!” Why did her dad not understand? “Please, just tell me that she’s okay.”
“You sound concerned.”
Zachary held the Intercom from his face. “Allow the Intercoms to transmit images. Then, you’ll see me. You’ll see that I’m just a kid.”
“You will have no contact with her. She will not call you, and neither will you call her. If you commit to breaking this, I will have you dealt with. My daughter does not belong with anyone, especially an Underworlder.”
Zachary growled. “Where is she?”
“Did you really think that she would fall for you? Is that what you wanted? Do you want to move up here? Do you want money?” Jordan’s tone lowered. “Was it her interest in your sad life that drove you to lie?”
“Lie about what? I’ve told you, I know nothing about the pirate attack.”
“How about the lie that Underworld is under attack?”
Zachary panted. Everything inside his stomach turned. “But we are.”
“You don’t sound like you’re under attack?”
“I escaped. I got out. Sokolov’s army attacked us.”
“Listen to him.” A faint female voice came from the Intercom.
Rosa?
“I’m not so gullible that I can’t see how you’ve used the announcements of expansion and the movement of your Districts to spin yarns to my daughter,” said Jordan.
“B-b-but.” Zachary squeezed the Intercom. “I’m not lying. You’re the ones who’ve been lying. There were no negotiations. You dropped papers, orders, telling us to move, but you never explained why, and then your soldiers attacked us. You’ve destroyed the Districts.” Zachary’s face felt rigid as rock. The tears he’d managed to hold for a minute flowed. “Your soldiers killed people. The Panthers. The Pumas. Sokolov. Commander Paver. Rock-Walkers. Fire. Dad. They shot him.” Sniffling, he continued, “I did lie. I admit it. I pretended to be Snake Seven, so that I could escape, and now I’m trapped.”
“Snake,” muttered Jordan. “Masim had a file on his table called ‘The Snakes’.” Then he said more directly, “Are you telling the truth?”
“Yes.”
“Overworld soldiers came down and attacked you?”
“He’s already told you that they destroyed the Districts,” came the woman’s voice. “The boy isn’t lying. I can feel it.”
“It doesn’t make sense, Amelia. Masim made clear there’d be no bloodshed.”
Zachary kneaded his neck. “Blood is all I saw, Mister Kade. I can see it now.”
“How many soldiers did you see?” asked Jordan.
“I don’t know. Three hundred, maybe more, and lots of Rock-Walkers.”
“That’s the entire army,” said Amelia. “Masim sent in the whole army, and he has your name as the one who commissioned it.”
“We don’t know that,” said Jordan. “The boy could still be lying.”
Amelia puffed. “I suppose he thought up the name Paver? How would he know him?”
“There’s more,” Zachary said. “Sokolov wanted me to be Rosa’s bodyguard. Something about the Souls Programme.”
“What did he tell you about the Souls?” snapped Jordan.
“He said I could become part of it. I don’t know what he meant. He never explained it.” Zachary shook his head. Had he said something awkward?
“Did you mention Rosa to him?” Persistence dominated Jordan’s pitch.
“Of course I didn’t.”
“Fine. If any of this is true, then I am sorry for your loss, but if not …” Jordan paused for several seconds. “I will leave you now.”
“Wait! I know you’re not going to let me speak to Rosa, but please tell her that I’m alive. Tell her that I got out.”
“You will not speak to each other again. To her, you are dead. It’s better that way. I’m sorry, but you’ll never understand our differences.”
The Intercom silenced.
“Come back!”
Jordan Kade’s words scorched him; he’d tell Rosa that Zachary was dead? No – she wouldn’t believe him. She couldn’t. How had they reacted when she told them about communicating with an Underworlder? How did they get the Intercom from her? It was always her mum’s Intercom. Damn!
Slouching, with his heart pulsing, he stretched the bag’s strap over his shoulder. Something clicked on the other side of the dead-end before it slid sideways, disappearing into a cavity within the pipe. Steam burst down onto him. Zachary plunged through the new hole and into another pipe. It became obvious that the pipes alternated in openings to allow the movement of steam, and that offered him more time to increase his distance from the soldiers. The route curved for several minutes as if it travelled around a powerful object, which h
ummed on the right side of the pipe. Where were the connecting tunnels? He should have reached at least one by now.
The bag clattered. Zachary grabbed the vibrating Intercom. Was it her parents again? Had Jordan gone back on his word and reported him to the army? Was it Rosa?
“Hello?”
“Are you alone?” asked a female, flatter in tone than Amelia Kade.
“Yes – I’m alone.” Zachary took a guess. “Alice?”
“Correct,” replied Rosa’s bot. “I overheard your conversation with Mister and Missus Kade. Do not fret, they both left moments ago. The nature of my call is to advise you.”
Zachary frowned. “Where’s Rosa? Is she okay?”
“Mister Kade has arranged to meet with General Masim Sokolov to discuss the recent attacks within Underworld. I can assure you that Mister Kade is troubled by your account. The specialised Intercom in your possession contains an irremovable locator-beacon that is currently transmitting your co-ordinates.”
“Can I deactivate it?”
“Not unless you destroy the Intercom. If your account is confirmed, and General Masim Sokolov feels threatened by your revelation, he will order for your search. You must discard the Intercom, and find another place to hide. The probability of being caught increases if you keep it.”
Zachary ruffled his hair. “But I need this. How will I talk to Rosa?”
“Mister Kade made his order clear. You will not communicate with her.”
Tears welled, blurring Zachary’s vision. “Is Rosa not allowed to choose what she wants? Doesn’t she want to talk to me? Does she hate me? Don’t you care about her?”
“My loyalty to Rosa in unquestionable,” replied Alice. “I am her protector.”
“But not her friend, because if you were, you’d tell me where she was and you’d let her decide.”
The bot paused. “Mister Kade suspected foul-play by your doing and locked Rosa inside her room before making contact.”
“What?” Zachary pictured Jordan yanking Rosa’s arm. “Did he hurt her?”
“Mister Kade loves his daughter, and would never harm her. He felt compelled to protect her from misjudgement. She is too young to understand.”
“I think she understands perfectly well. If you listened to her, you’d see that. You must let her out.”
“Inconceivable. Mister Kade would be angered, and Rosa’s emotions will intensify associated risk,” said Alice.
“I don’t care if she doesn’t want to talk to me. You have to let her out. She shouldn’t be a prisoner in her home.”
“Take my advice. Abandon your current location.”
“No! Not until you release her.” Zachary kneeled with the Intercom held up in prayer. “I just want to talk to her … one more time.”
A gritty tone filled Alice. “I should have followed the rules and prevented her from calling you. This has gone on for too long. The hazard for both of you is immense and I must prevent any more. It is you, Zachary Connor, that must choose. Stay and await your demise at the hands of the army, or run, whilst your feet remain attached.” The Intercom made the whooshing sound of a cancelled call.
Questions without answers were all he had. Arms spread against the pipe, he wept. “What did Rosa do wrong? All we did was talk.”
Zachary heard dirt crunching under fast-approaching footsteps. He turned just as somebody grabbed his Intercom-holding hand.
“What’s this?” hissed Shekhar.
Chapter 16 - Desire
Twirling with precision, Zachary swiped himself free from Shekhar’s grasp. How had he got here? There was no way that he could have convinced the army that he was a Snake. Not at his age.
Shekhar flicked open the sharp blade of his penknife. “You little bugger. Give me the bag. You know the rule. Hand in what you find.”
“We’re not at the stall now.”
The secretary grimaced. “We’re always at the stall.”
“Stop this,” said a weak voice coming up behind the secretary. “Who is it?”
Shekhar’s mouth screwed. “Connor. He’s got gear on him.”
Using the pipe to balance, Biro hauled his leg along. “Mister Connor. This is a surprise.”
“Master, he has a –”
“Enough – we’ll need him.” Slime covered Biro’s clothes and his bare feet. Dark cuts bore into his side where his waistcoat was torn.
Zachary couldn’t comprehend how three people from the same stall happened to meet up in this strange place. “How did you get here?”
Biro’s arm twitched. “We made it to the bent beams beside the Far-Wall. Do you know them? Quite the find. They’re hollow inside.”
Shekhar steadied the Master’s shuddering posture. “A hole blasted in a beam let us through. It wasn’t easy to climb.” His voice quivered. “Master took a battering when the stall caved in. We only just made it out. What’s your tale?”
Zachary sighed at the two elderly men, worn out from escaping. His own passage through the toxic pipes felt insignificant. “The end sewers of the Far-Wall. I followed some pipes here.”
“The sewers.” Shekhar smirked. “We’ve been through muck that’s half of what you’d find in the sewers, yet you don’t look so dirty to me.” He stepped forward. “I heard some soldiers talk about aid from infiltrators.”
“I was thinking the same about you.” Zachary motioned behind him. “I got drenched by the steamy pipes.”
“We’ve been through pipes, and we’re not drenched.”
“Enough of the questions,” mumbled Biro. “He’s been with us since he was a child. Why would he align with them?” Even surrounded by bruising, the Master’s eye hadn’t lost its beady glare. “Is the bag yours?”
Zachary adjusted the strap on his shoulder. “I found it.”
“Like a true scavenger.” Biro’s face begged for relief.
After helping the Master rest on the floor, Shekhar looked up. “Who were you talking to?”
Zachary pulled in his lips. How much had the secretary heard?
“The person the bag belongs to called. They wanted to know where it was.”
“Really,” said Shekhar.
“Shekhar.” Biro reached out. “Go and check that it is safe.”
“We already have –”
“Shekhar. Check, again. Don’t worry about me. I’m sure that I’ll be safe in Mister Connor’s presence.”
Leaving his eyes on Zachary for as long as his turn allowed, Shekhar spoke, “I hope you have tough hands. You’re going to need them.” Hunching his back, he disappeared into the pipe.
Biro patted the floor. “Come. I am not interested in the contents of your bag. It’s worthless when you have nobody to trade with.”
Upon sitting, Zachary glimpsed the spasms along the old man’s leg.
“Now, more than ever, I could do with an android leg,” sighed the Master. “A flick of a switch and my legs would heal.”
“Can they do that?”
“Oh yes. Androids weren’t built just to be helpers. They’ve assisted less able people to function.”
“Is that what was in your room? The torso?”
Biro almost stopped breathing before he revealed a palm-sized screen. His fingers danced on it. “What you saw is something even I don’t quite understand.”
Zachary saw a 2D recording of Shekhar probing the torso. A layer of skin, entwined with muscles and textured by cords, hung off the table.
“Veins contain magnetic fluid. It’s sticking to the needles,” reported Shekhar’s recording. “Electrode causing a reaction.” The diaphragm region of the torso clenched. “We have movement.”
Zachary stayed looking at the device after Biro switched it off. “Are they meant to be replacements for a human?”
That sounded ridiculous. Substituting a metallic structure for a human limb was believable, but an entire body? Stomach. Lungs. Heart.
“Duane uncovered it,” said Biro.
“Duane? He’s useless. He does not
hing but collect wires.”
“Except on that day. He saw a man come down from the ceiling on a rope.” Biro twiddled his crooked fingers down a line. “Climbing down. Crying for help.”
“Androids don’t call for help.”
Biro smirked. “The man-droid misjudged the placement of his rope. It tangled, and pulled him up into a turbine. Sliced up like a rat.”
“It doesn’t make sense,” shrugged Zachary.
“Nothing ever does.” Biro tapped Zachary’s arm. “Can I ask you to be honest with me?” He continued on the nod. “I was close, before Shekhar overtook me. I heard your conversation. It didn’t sound like the concerned owner of an Intercom. Who is Rosa?”
Head lowered, Zachary succumbed. “She’s an Overworlder. We’ve been talking, whenever we could. Her bot was warning me –”
“Yes-yes-yes, I know.” Biro’s fingers rattled Zachary’s arm. “I don’t care for the details.” Branches of blood littered Biro’s sympathetic eyes. “Your voice crumbled.”
“I just wanted to talk to her.”
“Wrong. You want her. Speaking to her is a small step. You want her to be present, otherwise she’ll become a memory you fear you’ll forget.”
The Master’s understanding words stunned Zachary. “What do I do? She’s an Overworlder.”
“Worlds apart are we? Earth. Mars. Jupiter. Saturn. Over. Under. Inner. Outer. Rich. Poor. What does it matter? Created or evolved, when you scrape the flesh off the bone, we are the same.” Biro leaned close. “Do not give up on seeking Rosa. Find her. Treat it as the greatest scavenge of your life, and never let anybody take her away from you.”
“It’s not that easy,” protested Zachary.
“They say we live for a reason,” whispered the Master. “I still don’t think I know mine, but you’ve revealed yours.”
Shekhar reappeared, looking tired. “It’s getting hotter. Now or never.”
Zachary helped Biro to his feet. “Where are we going?”
“Out of here,” replied Shekhar. “They didn’t build this network of pipes for nothing. If anything stops working, someone has to come down and fix it. We found a way to reach Overworld.”
