Nexus

by Scott Westerfeld

  A shudder went through Kelsie. She knew it was the voice, but it was the creepiest thing she’d ever heard.

  Ethan pointed at the convenience store down the block. A few people had emerged to check out the sound of the crash.

  ‘Fine, I’m gone.’ Essence grasped the bike’s handles, revved the engine. ‘But stay away from us!’

  With a last nervous look at Ethan, she sped away into the night.

  ‘Nice work, Scam,’ Flicker said. ‘Now look for a car to… what’s wrong with your vision?’

  No answer.

  Kelsie turned. He was just standing there. His arms hung loosely and his face was slack in the moonlight. ‘Ethan?’

  He didn’t answer. Just started walking away from the wreck like a zombie.

  Kelsie ran to him, pulled him to a halt. She touched his temple and felt something warm and sticky. Her hand came back dark with blood.

  ‘Call an ambulance,’ she said.

  ‘That means cops.’ Flicker came toward them. ‘That’s a stolen truck. They’ll hand us to the feds!’

  ‘He needs a hospital!’

  ‘We need to disappear. Anon, can you…’ Flicker’s voice faded.

  Kelsie looked around. Of course – Thibault! She didn’t remember him getting out of the car. Had he ever been in the car?

  ‘Thibault, are you here?’ she cried.

  Flicker waited a moment for an answer, looking stricken.

  ‘He must’ve stayed behind,’ she finally said. ‘Or Piper got him. Or maybe he…’

  She shook her head.

  ‘Find a car to hot-wire, Kelsie. Let’s get Ethan home.’

  ‘RELAX,’ PIPER SAID. ‘YOUR FRIEND WILL BE FINE.’

  Nate looked up at her, trying not to show how dizzy he was. Glitch had hit him with a jolt of her brain-addling power out on the vacant lot. His whole body felt wrong, like someone had replaced his organs with off-brand duplicates. Even his clothes seemed borrowed, ill-fitting and unfamiliar.

  ‘She’d better be,’ Nate managed. He tried to stand straighter as he looked around.

  He was in Piper’s headquarters at last.

  The broad concrete floor was bright and buzzing. Harsh work lights illuminated a parade float in the middle, decorated with purple, green, and gold bunting. Workers swarmed in all directions, and the dark corners were full of barrels and boxes. But everyone spared a splinter of their focus for Piper, who soaked up their adulation effortlessly.

  ‘Chizara is safe. We don’t hurt special people.’ Piper swung herself down from the float, navigating the glittering trusses like an acrobat. ‘Except Swarms, of course.’

  Nate stared up at her. ‘And kidnapping doesn’t count as hurting?’

  ‘You were trespassing. Did you want me to call the cops?’ She smiled, her glorious attention narrowing on him. ‘You’re still a wanted man, Nataniel.’

  He tried to sound defiant. ‘Verity wasn’t trespassing when you took her.’

  Piper shrugged. ‘She was working with the FBI, trying to grab one of my people. Trying to make him spill the beans. Can’t have them breaking down my door this close to showtime. Also, I needed her for my little project.’

  She gestured at the parade float behind her.

  Half a dozen other Zeroes – Crashes, presumably – were working on the float. It was built onto a truck chassis, and the hood was open, revealing an engine alongside things Nate couldn’t recognize. The Crashes were wrapping the interior in a shiny hexagonal metal mesh.

  The biggest part of the structure was a huge bowl, eight feet across, brightly painted, and full of strings of Mardi Gras beads. Three raised seats sat behind that – green, purple, and gold. Across the front hung a crooked sign with big sparkly letters:

  KREWE DE NEW WORLD ORDER.

  ‘What is this thing?’ Nate asked.

  ‘It’s called Nexus,’ Piper said. ‘It’s like me and you.’

  ‘I don’t follow.’

  ‘We channel a crowd’s power. Take all that unfocused energy and make something useful out of it.’ She reached up to run a hand along the giant bowl of beads, and Nate saw that beneath its garish paint job, it was just a satellite dish. ‘Nexus is just a high-tech version of the same trick.’

  ‘You mean it’s a machine with superpowers?’

  Piper rolled her eyes. ‘Nataniel, haven’t you realized? All our powers come from machines. From the simple truth that humanity is connected now – by our phones, our feeds, our endless pinging each other with texts and tweets and posts. We are Homo nexus.’

  ‘Seriously?’ He let out a laugh. ‘This is about the internet?’

  She sighed. ‘That word makes you sound so old, Nate. I’m not talking about the wires, but about the encircling flood of data that binds humanity. People used to think that one day it would all become conscious and start talking to us. But instead it gave us superpowers. A much more interesting outcome, don’t you think?’

  Nate didn’t answer. His brain, which still thrummed from being glitched, was now infected with Piper’s madness as well. It all sounded ridiculous, except that this was exactly how Chizara described the world she saw – a vast chorus of connections, a noisy sea of information sloshing between humans and their devices.

  Crash’s power had always seemed different from the rest – more about machines than people – but maybe it was at the center of them all, the key to understanding the others. And that was why Piper had gathered twenty Crashes in her city.

  ‘That glitch that was supposed to happen in the year two thousand? Y2K?’ Piper said. ‘We were it.’

  ‘Huh. Okay.’ Nate started at the parade float. ‘So this machine is a…Charismatic?’

  ‘Yes, a – what did your friends call you? Bellwether? You know that’s a kind of sheep, right?’

  Nate sighed. ‘It’s the head sheep, okay? But yeah, it never really worked as a name.’

  ‘Another symptom of your small thinking, Nataniel.’ Piper shook her head. ‘This machine is a change in scale. You and I are a couple of matches, and it’s a flamethrower, hooked up to the biggest source of fuel there is – Mardi Gras.’

  He managed to hold steady against the wattage of her gaze. ‘What are you actually planning to do?’

  She turned toward the three raised seats on the float. ‘Nexus will project three powers. Three things the world desperately needs.’

  ‘That’s why you grabbed Verity? You want to force truth on New Orleans?’

  ‘Not just my city. The whole world.’ Her smile was radiant. ‘Think of it. No politicians lying about how they’ll help us rebuild. No crooked businessmen stealing our houses. No lies.’

  ‘Maybe. But total honesty might lead to some awkward situations.’

  Piper shrugged. ‘More than awkward, I hope. But the effect won’t last forever. Maybe a few months, maybe a year. But even a day with no bullshit would change the world forever.’

  Nate finally had to turn away from Piper. Her certainty was infectious. ‘Yeah, it might. But I’ve got a feeling you’re not storing up food and guns for an outbreak of honesty, are you?’

  ‘No.’ Her smiled faded. ‘You were there when Davey Master-son died, weren’t you?’

  ‘Every night in my dreams,’ Nate said.

  ‘Then you know how my friend Troy’s power works. But he’s managed to reverse himself. Something a show-off like Davey never would’ve considered.’

  Nate shook his head. ‘You mean, he can turn things into… not money?’

  ‘Clumsily put. But yes, money is the most fragile weapon our bosses wield. Once we stop believing in all those dead presidents, they’re just paper.’

  ‘Jesus, Piper.’ Nate took a step backward. ‘Troy’s going to break money?’

  She nodded. ‘After the hurricane fucked up my town, it was the bankers that twisted the knife. I’m going to return the favor.’

  Nate closed his eyes. Suddenly the stockpiled food and medicine and guns all made sense. If people stopped believing i
n money, even for a week, he couldn’t imagine what would happen.

  Would people still feed each other out of the goodness of their hearts? Would doctors trade medical care for chickens?

  ‘Think, Nataniel,’ she said. ‘No debts. No stock market to manipulate. No one tossed out of their home because they miss a payment.’

  ‘I think you’re missing a step,’ he said. ‘The part where everyone starves.’

  Piper gave him a smile. ‘Not everyone.’

  Nate swallowed. ‘Should I even ask what the third power is?’

  ‘You should. Because that’s where things get really interesting.’

  ‘GET ICE ON IT!’ CAME KELSIE’S VOICE FROM THE BARROWS’ KITCHEN.

  She and Ethan were in there, her vision darting around for a hand towel to put the ice in. Ethan’s eyes stared at the mist inside the open freezer with that sickly waver they’d had since the accident.

  Accident. Flicker pulled back inside her own head.

  Not an accident. Crashing had been her brilliant idea.

  But the brutal fact was, Flicker had bigger things to worry about than Ethan’s concussion – Piper’s city-crashing parade could be starting in a few hours.

  She could still see those stacks of boxes in her mind’s eye. Thousands of them filling the warehouses near Piper’s headquarters. Food and medicine. Guns and ammunition.

  Piper was expecting everything to shut down, leaving her in charge.

  Flicker sent her vision into the next house – Mrs. Lavoir was awake and watching. She must have heard the three of them getting back in the middle of the night, in yet another new car, one of them drunkenly staggering. Her eyes were focused on the kitchen window, watching Ethan’s silhouette as he applied an ice-filled towel to his head.

  Then the eyes went to the phone in the hall, where the Barrows’ vacation number was still on that sticky note. Ethan’s number, really, but that only meant she’d get a disconnected burner and call the cops.

  Unless Thibault had snuck over and updated it since they’d last switched out the…

  ‘Thibault,’ Flicker said, remembering again. ‘He’s still back there.’

  ‘You think they got him?’ Kelsie asked. She was leading Ethan into the living room, the ice rattling in the towel. The two sat heavily on the couch.

  ‘They couldn’t have seen him,’ Flicker said. ‘Piper’s army would give him all the Curve he’d need.’

  ‘Unless he got glitched,’ Ethan said.

  ‘Or…’ Kelsie began. ‘You know.’

  Flicker stared at her. What if he’d faded out, drifting into nothingness? Because an imminent disaster was too much for him to face?

  ‘He’ll be fine,’ Flicker said. ‘He’s probably rescuing Zara and Nate right now.’

  ‘We should go back,’ Kelsie said.

  ‘Knock yourselves out,’ Ethan said, his words slurring a little. ‘But don’t expect any help from me. I am preknocked out.’

  ‘We’ll take you to a hospital on the way,’ Kelsie offered.

  Flicker jumped inside Ethan’s eyes – they blurred the room double.

  Definitely concussed. What was she supposed to do?

  ‘We can drop you at Emergency,’ Flicker said, ‘and leave before anyone sees us.’

  ‘Too pretty for jail,’ he mumbled.

  Right – jail. Ethan had no ID, so someone would call the cops. He’d be arrested, taken to the local FBI headquarters, and presented with the choice between prison or working for Phan.

  Flicker knew which Ethan would choose. And Scam would be even worse in an interrogation room than Verity.

  Of course, this might all be irrelevant in a few hours.

  ‘We can’t just sit here,’ Flicker said.

  ‘But Piper’s got Glitch on her side,’ Kelsie said. ‘And all those Crashes. She has an army!’

  ‘You know who else has an army?’ Ethan said. ‘Like, a real one? The US government. Why don’t we call the FBI?’

  Flicker shook her head. ‘And tell them to attack an abandoned power station in the middle of the night?’

  ‘We could tell them who we are,’ Ethan said. ‘Phan would listen to us. We nuked a supermax!’

  ‘You think some flunky would call him at home at five a.m.?’ Flicker asked. ‘And it would still be, “Hi. It’s your least favorite terrorists, and we’d like to tell you where some worse terrorists are.” That sounds like a productive conversation.’

  Ethan shrugged, making the ice click. ‘I could do it. The voice could, I mean.’

  ‘Ethan,’ Kelsie said, putting a hand against his forehead. ‘Did you forget your power doesn’t work on the phone.’

  ‘I know! So take me to the hospital and let me do my thing.’

  Flicker stared. Was Ethan volunteering to go to jail? To sacrifice himself? His head injury had to be worse than it looked. ‘Are you serious?’

  He shrugged. ‘To save a whole city, sure.’

  ‘But it wouldn’t be just you,’ Flicker said. ‘If the FBI shows up at Piper’s headquarters, Nate goes back to prison. We’d be making that choice for him, too.’

  ‘Like he wouldn’t sacrifice one of us?’ Ethan cried. ‘When I was tied up in the Whatever Hotel about to explode, Nate was, like, “See you later, pal!” ’

  ‘Zara’s in there too,’ Kelsie said softly. ‘How many years would she get for busting him out of a supermax?’

  Flicker’s head swam for a moment. Were they really talking about sacrificing three of their friends?

  But then she saw the endless rows of boxes again – food, medicine, guns. A million people glitched. A whole city crashed. Maybe the whole country.

  The whole world?

  ‘Maybe it’s worth it,’ she said.

  ‘No,’ Kelsie said. ‘I know a better way. Talk some sense into Piper. Make her see that lots of people might die.’

  Flicker almost laughed. ‘She doesn’t care about who gets in the way. She only cares about the plan!’

  ‘That’s Bellwethers for you,’ Ethan murmured.

  Flicker shook her head. Nate would never sacrifice a whole city.

  ‘I’m not saying we can convince her,’ Kelsie said. ‘But I know someone who can.’

  ‘What are you talking about?’ Flicker asked.

  Kelsie hesitated, then spoke carefully, softly. ‘Today, when we were supposed to be looking for Verity, we took a little detour to find my mom.’

  ‘Your mom?’ Ethan said. ‘Did you find her?’

  Kelsie nodded. ‘We did…and also this guy. He has a power, one that makes you see.’

  THIBAULT DOUBLED BACK TO THE POWER PLANT.

  Flicker had been right – these guys were preparing for a straight-up apocalypse.

  Slipping inside the warehouses had been easy. The long rows of loading-bay doors were open to the chill night air. Trucks were still arriving, bringing labeled boxes: survival gear, fuel, generators, emergency rations. And long, unmarked cases that had to be guns.

  Piper and her crew could last for months with everything they had stored here. Maybe years.

  And they weren’t looking to share. The warehouses were receiving goods tonight, but they were ready to be locked down at any time – alarm systems, dogs, and lots of people.

  Piper had her own army, like some kind of mad dictator. Watchful attention lines sizzled down from roof corners, loading docks, entryways. Armed men and women of all ages. Piper hadn’t just been recruiting teenage Zeroes. She had mercenaries.

  Piper could mint her own money, of course. She had at least one Coin, who’d honed their skills by faking the Super Bowl tickets.

  How to stop all this? It was too huge, too unthinkable.

  But busting out Nate and Chizara was a good place to start.

  The main doors of the power plant were big enough to drive a truck through, but they were closed. All the windows had the same wiring that had zapped Chizara, so Thibault wasn’t going anywhere near them.

  Circling to the waterfron
t side of the plant, he found a smaller door with people flowing in and out. The two security guards gave him a puzzled look as he followed someone in, but he snipped away their interest.

  The Curve was in full effect inside, the air hazed with attention lines. People on high alert, keeping an eye on everything. The smell of instant coffee filled the dusty hallways.

  No guns or food in here. Thibault came to a whole room full of parade costumes on racks – boned and bouffant, sequined and beaded. Spiked and feathered headdresses hung on the walls. Everything was in gold, green, and purple, just like the float Chizara had described.

  Just like Rien had said. What did the colors mean? Purple for justice? Green for faith…whatever.

  These were uniforms, for an army posing as Mardi Gras revelers.

  A guy was going through the racks, reeling off numbers to a girl with a clipboard. The two looked as deadly serious as army quartermasters the night before a battle.

  But when the sound of a revving engine echoed down the halls, both of them went silent, their eyes alight.

  The sound sputtered a moment later, but Thibault was already looking for the source. Everyone’s awareness bent toward it, threads of excitement spilling over from their immediate tasks. The closer he got, the brighter the lines of attention burned.

  Until there it was, framed through a large doorway – the parade float, glinting with colored foil bunting.

  But above the doorway a camera pointed right at him. Thibault ducked his head, stepping back into the shadows.

  Piper knew all about Stalkers, of course. She’d even had one in her army.

  Maybe she was worried Rien would come creeping back to try to stop this plan. Whoever was watching that camera feed would sound an alarm if anyone unfamiliar approached the float.

  Besides, Thibault was here to rescue Chizara and Nate – and maybe Verity, if he was lucky. He had to focus.

  What had Crash said before trying the lock? Something about a power-shielded room on the second floor, near the front of the plant. Perfect for holding prisoners.

  He went looking for the stairs.

  A lone guard was posted outside the door.