The Fall

by Laura Liddell Nolen

“That is a liability,” said Mars, taking in his unbalanced posture. “We have work to do. Next step. We gotta get An on the line.”

  I squeezed Eren’s hand, then reached across him to grab the band on his other wrist. I pressed a few buttons, hoping it hadn’t run out of batteries, or whatever it ran on. “An? Are you there?”

  Eren leaned down, monkeying me. “An!”

  “Maybe she isn’t monitoring him.”

  I snorted. “Maybe when we get to Eirenea we’ll find flying salamanders who live in cupcakes.”

  Mars gave me a long look.

  “Sorry. But it’s not likely, is what I’m saying.” I squeezed the band again, rubbing it. Trying to find an “on” switch. “An! We know you’re there. We know you’re listening. We’re out of stasis. Adam is coming for your Ark next. You’d be a fool to let him in.”

  Silence.

  “You didn’t already let him in, did you? Okay,” I said, my tone conciliatory. “You’re not a fool. But seriously, talk to us. Please. We only want to help.”

  We looked at each other in the darkness. The band gave no response.

  “I told you this was a bad plan,” said Mars.

  “Not helpful,” I hissed.

  “She’s probably already under,” she said.

  “She’s not. She’s too smart to let him get that close. It’s a fine plan.” Even I could tell that my tone was unconvincing.

  “It’s been a month,” said Mars.

  “Yeah,” I said. “And we’d probably know something if… you know.”

  Mars rolled her eyes. Again. “Not if he’s controlling her. He’s totally there.”

  “He’s… okay. He’s probably there. Maybe. That doesn’t mean she let him…” I couldn’t finish the thought. The others looked at me. “All right. So what’s our next move, then?”

  “Wait for the inevitable?” said Mars. “Hope for the best?”

  “I guess we better go with your first idea.”

  “Which was?” she asked.

  “Hijacking a hopper.”

  “You listen to me,” Mars said. “I don’t want Adam getting a hold of nukes any more than you do. But we are not about to go rescue the Imperial of the Asian Ark. For all we know, she and Adam are best friends, and everything is peachy.”

  “She doesn’t have best friends, and neither does he.” I rubbed my face across my bad arm and groaned. I’d lived to see another day, but for what? I was no closer to stopping Adam. It was a matter of time before he slaved the Asian Ark to his programs. “Look. We have to warn An. If he gets close enough to her, he will put her in stasis. Then he’ll have control of her nukes. Her entire ship. I mean, heck. Maybe she already is.”

  “We need a better plan,” Mars said.

  “Well I’m all ears.”

  We locked eyes, and Eren looked from one of us to the other in the darkness. At last, Mars looked away, irritated.

  “While I appreciate your concern, Lieutenant Everest,” came a voice, “I can assure you that I am not in stasis.”

  Seventeen

  We jumped in unison, and I grabbed Eren by the wrist, lifting his k-band to my mouth. “An? Oh, thank goodness.”

  “A strange salutation, Lieutenant. I trust you are well.”

  “I’ve been worse,” I said quickly. “Listen. Adam. You can’t take him in. Don’t give him sanctuary.”

  There was a pause as the woman on the other end of the line considered my warning. “Putting aside your tone, Lieutenant, let us consider your position. Why are you asking this of me?”

  “Adam is a threat to you as much as anyone. He’s not safe. Turn him over to the EuroArk and preserve the peace.”

  “I like to think I can decide such matters for myself.” I pictured a delicate set of eyebrows raising slightly.

  “Surely you agree with me, though.”

  There was another pause. The silence was maddening, but I gritted my teeth until she spoke again. “I am prepared to do as you ask,” she said at last. “Provided that you do something for me in exchange.”

  I exchanged a glance with Mars. “What could I possibly have to offer you?”

  “You had an audience with the leadership of the EuroArk. I find myself in awe of you, Charlotte Turner. Is there anyone to whom you do not have access?”

  Mars’ expression was dark, and I felt my own face twist. How could An have known that? “Sounds like you’re the one with access,” I said cautiously. “It wasn’t exactly voluntary. I’ve been their prisoner for weeks. They were planning to tort—” I cut myself short. All I needed was for An to start thinking I had some top-secret info as well. “Why don’t you tell me how the meeting went?”

  “I am happy to make a guess. You refused to tell them about Ark Five,” said An.

  I shoved Eren’s wrist back into his lap in frustration, then apologized quickly. “You have to be kidding me.”

  “Allow me to convince you otherwise. I know what Adam is capable of, but his path before the North American coup was obscured. He was young, too young to be a major player yet. Only a few people could have had a hand in the fate of Ark Five. My own resources have convinced me that the leaders of the other Arks are entirely innocent. That is to say, they are ignorant. Which leaves those who have controlled Ark Two. Your Ark.”

  “I’ve never had control of anything, An. Least of all an Ark.”

  “Maybe. Maybe not. But you must have found yourself in a strange position, Lieutenant. You had access to the leadership of both factions on the Ark. You are an official representative of the Remnant, and yet you married the son of the High Commander.”

  “Which was your idea,” I reminded her. “And I was a prisoner to both,” I said, angry. An had forced me to marry Eren in order to secure peace on board the North American Ark. It hadn’t exactly helped my relationship with his father. It hadn’t helped much of anything, come to think of it. “That’s about as far from access as it gets. And An. I’m a representative of nothing. There is no Remnant. Not anymore.”

  “Nevertheless. The Commander is dead. His son is in your company. And while Isaiah has eluded us, well, let me simply observe that he has a way of loosing his secrets in your presence.”

  I ignored that. I wasn’t all that interested in helping An find Ark Five. She was just this side of predictable, and she was dangerous beyond words. If, as I suspected, she was still working with Adam, then who could stand against them? “Adam probably blew it up before we started fighting.”

  “He lacked the weapons,” she said flatly, making it clear that she wasn’t falling for that or any other story. “But even if he didn’t, they were never deployed. The only traces of radioactivity our scanners have found are from the sun.”

  I blinked. “Maybe Ark Five’s life support glitched, and they all suffocated. Maybe it got hit by one of the meteors that missed Earth. Maybe their rockets broke down before they got going, and they’re still sitting back there, right where we left them.”

  “Then it would have sent out a signal. A ship in distress hails every other Ark automatically. This function cannot be disabled, Lieutenant. We all have an interest in the other Arks.”

  I closed my eyes and took a breath. The best lies are mostly true. Mostly. “An. I’m telling the truth about this. I always have been. I don’t know what happened to Ark Five.”

  “Oh, now that, I believe.”

  I stared at the band incredulously. “Then how can you possibly expect me to help you?”

  “I have taken measure of you, Lieutenant. You are not without your means, nor are you working alone. This is my offer. Find out for me what happened to Ark Five, and I will refuse sanctuary to Adam and extradite him to Europe if they ask.”

  “If you’re smart, you’ll do that anyw—”

  “And I will help you find your father.”

  I went cold. “What do you know about my father?”

  There was no response.

  “An. You can’t just do that. If something happened to my dad,
you have to tell me.”

  “Fugitives need hostages,” she said sharply. The sudden steel in her voice threw me, cutting off any response I’d have otherwise given, and we endured a moment of tense silence. “Charlotte Turner,” she said finally, slowly. Her voice took on a dreamy quality in spite of her inflexibility. “It may surprise you to hear that I was pleased that you survived the years since we met. At times, I have believed that we share similar goals in spite of the discrepancy between our stations. Like you, I am disinclined to sit idly by in the hope that peace will find us. I will never cease to fight for the continued success of my people. We will colonize Eirenea. We will grow.

  “But to do that, we must eliminate every threat. This journey is a delicate thing. One misstep, and it will end. Prove to me the fate of Ark Five, and I will tell you what you need to know as well.”

  There was no sound, not even a click, but the conversation was definitely over. I looked from Mars to Eren, rubbing my hand on my scalp and over my eyes. “Uughh,” I moaned. “Adam has my father. An has Adam. I’m just a fugitive. I’m nobody. She probably has a million nukes, all pointed at the other Arks. What can we possibly do?”

  Mars gave a plaintive glance to the ceiling. “Emotional fortitude of kittens,” she muttered.

  I scowled at her. “You got any bright ideas?” She glanced down, and I realized I was stroking Eren’s still-outstretched arm protectively. It was comforting, somehow, but it wasn’t enough. “Because I sure don’t. I need to think. Without this.” I waved at the k-band. “Can you get it off?”

  She shook her head. “Aren’t you the one who breaks into stuff?”

  I stretched my hand across my forehead and rubbed my temples. “Something is just… off.” Everything seemed so cut and dried, like it was all laid out ahead of time.

  She narrowed her eyes. “Like what?”

  All of it, I wanted to say. But even I wasn’t sure what I meant, so I kept my mouth shut. On the surface, it all fit together. Adam escaped. He had been allied with An in the past, but she was no fool. She was probably keeping a close eye on him. And me.

  And everything.

  “For one thing,” I began, “how did An know about the interrogation?”

  “She has spies everywhere,” said Mars.

  “She’s listening to us right now,” said Eren. I looked at him, pleased that he was waking up. We exchanged a smile, and I had a sudden moment of clarity.

  “Here’s another thing. How did Adam kidnap my father?”

  “He’s… Char, he’s Adam.” Mars rolled her eyes. “If I can get you out, he can get to your dad.”

  I bit a lip. “Maybe,” I said. “But he was already gone by then, right?”

  “He slaved an entire Ark to his biometrics. Maybe more than one, if we’re being blunt,” she said. “It wouldn’t even be hard for him.”

  Adam had the capabilities, no doubt. But still. Something was definitely off. “No, you’re right,” I said.

  “Alert the presses.”

  I made a face at her. “Just—just let me think.”

  “Try not to pull a muscle,” said Mars. She made an open gesture, as if to say go ahead, and stopped talking. I had too many questions to sort through, but they were as good a place to start as any. I closed my eyes and picked through them one by one, trying to put a finger on exactly what was bothering me. A few moments later, my eyes popped open.

  One question connected all the others.

  “Why didn’t the panel believe me?” I said aloud, eyeing the k-band. From the beginning, no one could swallow any theory save one: I—or someone like me—had blown up Ark Five. It was as though no other possibility could exist. Why?

  “We have to talk to Charles,” I said firmly.

  Mars frowned. “Who?”

  “Charles Eiffel. He’s some kind of administrator here. One of the architects of the EuroArk. I met him the day I had my big meeting with the Imperial.”

  “The French guy from the party?” said Eren.

  I nodded, and we exchanged another smile, prompting another eye-roll from Mars. “To what end, exactly?” she asked.

  “To—you know what? You just have to trust me.” I pointed at the band, and she studied it for a moment before capitulating.

  “All right, Char. Lead the way.”

  Eighteen

  I knew a few things about Charles Eiffel. One: he was an optimist. Given the responsibility of choosing which of Earth’s great works of art to save from the meteor, he’d scrapped them all and taken in as many babies as he could instead. He’d called it saving art itself. Needless to say, he had a certain flair for the dramatic. That’s probably why he’d gotten away with it.

  Two: His flamboyant personality masked a brilliant mind that understood the risks he took. He’d allied himself with the Remnant in the days before its destruction. We weren’t even a legitimate nation, but he’d been on our side anyway, just for the principle of the thing. He could as easily have turned us away, like almost everyone else, and told us we’d all work it out when we got to Eirenea. But he didn’t.

  I could work with a man like that. Assuming he’d have me.

  Not that I had any choice. I was fresh out of queens and commanders. It wasn’t like I had any other contacts up my sleeve.

  We found our way to his cube within the central sphere without difficulty. If the rest of the EuroArk was well ordered—hallways, spikes, and spheres in a state of perfect discipline—the nursery was anything but. Hundreds of children ran free throughout the vast cube in Charles’ command, and I took a moment to appreciate his handiwork. One wall was composed of rows of bunks separated by interior columns of ladders. In lieu of the motivational posters of varying levels of humor I’d always seen in classrooms, paint adorned every spare inch of the walls. Not quite finger painting, but something close. The center of the space had long rows of desks in concentric circles, and there was a series of play areas that looked like they’d been built up from scraps of whatever was handy.

  Orderlies dressed in bright colors walked calmly through the crowd, keeping watch over their charges, who played busily. Some painted, some played games. There were blocks and every other tool for creating that I could imagine. A team of pint-sized bikers rode in circles around the perimeter. The far wall of the space was covered in screens. For the moment, the screens were synched to display a composite image of a woman. She smiled down at the scene contentedly. She must be the Mother.

  Everywhere—everywhere—there was art. The floor was composed of intricate mosaics sloppily pasted together. No, not sloppily, I thought. Just executed by inexperienced craftsmen. On closer inspection, I could see that every shard was painstakingly laid in its place. The walls, as I mentioned, were hand-painted by the students. There was no plain surface among any of the desks, and each bunk was adorned with an elaborate, if crude, quilt. The rungs of the ladders were inscribed with poetry. The lights overhead were hung with pastel filters, and the color and quality of the light vacillated as the filters shifted.

  Contrary to my expectations, there were no babies. There wouldn’t be, of course, I realized. The youngest of the children would be more than five years old by now. The noises of childhood were everywhere. Singing, shouting, and playing games, and Charles sat at the center of it all, quietly reading a book. I stood and watched a few minutes longer, trying to put a name to my slight sense of discomfort. I could not account for it, save for the obvious: I was an interloper, a fugitive aboard this Ark, and that made me Charles’ enemy.

  He looked up as we approached.

  “Charles!” I stood a few feet away.

  He stood in pieces: book down. Hands in lap. Legs and back straightened. We had the attention of the orderlies now, too. From other places around the room, they turned to look at me. When I met an orderly’s eye, she returned her focus to her charges. The second time it happened, the skin on my neck began to crawl. By the third, I found myself checking the exits.

  But no one came nea
r us, so I took a breath and tried to concentrate.

  “Ms. Turner,” he said quietly, then smiled. “How good to see you.” I blinked. It was as though someone had pulled the corners of his mouth up. I was reminded of—

  “But not unexpected, judging by your posture,” said Mars.

  Charles’ mouth remained stretched into a smile, and he ignored the question inherent in her statement. “How may I be of service?”

  “I—actually, we’re here because we—I—thought you might be able to help me,” I started uneasily.

  “Anything for an old friend.”

  He sure wasn’t acting like we were old friends. But he wasn’t acting hostile, either, so I cleared my throat. First things first. “Got any tin foil?” I asked, trying to keep my tone light.

  He nodded to an orderly, who relayed the request to a child in a bright, gentle voice. The girl returned almost instantly with a roll of heavy-duty aluminum… and two more escorts. “Perfect!” I said brightly. She gave me a shy smile and returned to her tasks. The orderlies at her side remained with us. I squeezed the roll between my knees, half-crouching, and tore off a truly massive portion with my good arm as quickly as I could manage, then motioned to Mars to give me a hand.

  As Mars leaned in to wrap it around Eren’s k-band, his hand slid past her waist. I tilted my head, trying to get a better view, but the movement was too quick. She circled his wrist several times with the tin foil, letting it crinkle a little more than necessary. The sooner we lost contact with An, the better. Still, I couldn’t relax. Not yet.

  Charles simply watched, immobile.

  The children continued to play. The noises of the room were all around us, but either it was my imagination, or they’d gotten a bit quieter since the k-band was wrapped.

  Probably my imagination. Eren’s hand moved a second time, and I caught a flash of silver. I blinked, then shook my head. His wrist was wrapped in aluminum. Of course I saw silver. My years of running had made me paranoid.

  I was just about to address Charles when the orderlies took a step toward us.

  All of them. At the same time.