“Well, their technology, granted. In the wrong hands.”
They fell quiet. The wheels clack-clacked. Far across the valley, the east canyon wall threaded across the landscape and disappeared over the horizon. Zeke contemplated the kilometres of red dirt surrounding them. Sometimes Mars seemed grandly mysterious, a world of ghosts and emptiness. At other times, simply dead.
“What do you think of the Marmish?” he asked.
Pin-mei grinned. “They’re nice.”
“Nice! If Scuff was here he’d call them ‘whack jobs’.”
“Tsk, tsk, that’s rude.”
Zeke edged forward. “But living without machines. It’s crazy!”
“I am missing the Mars-Wide-Web. But I respect what they’re trying to do.”
“What are they trying to do?”
Pin-mei’s brow furrowed. “I’m not sure exactly. Be more human?”
“Whoa,” cried Josiah, pushing down on the wooden brake lever.
Zeke and Pin-mei gasped. The land ahead dipped into a gentle basin. Instead of endless dust, they saw acres of green. Fields!
“Beautiful,” Pin-mei cooed.
“But how?” Zeke asked.
Josiah gave a genial laugh. “Take a closer look,” he said, jumping down.
“Hey, Miss Liang, can I show you our runner beans?” Bartholomew asked. He was a tall, freckled boy, with his mother’s blond hair and eyes as blue as an afternoon sky.
“Yes, please,” Pin-mei said, and this time did blush.
They waded off into the waist-high grasses. Josiah and Zeke walked in the opposite direction, deep into rows of sweetcorn. The stalks towered over them. Zeke leaned on his crutch and stared at the husks.
“How on Mars did you do this? Without any science?”
Josiah looked very proud. “Hard work and prayer, son. A lot of prayer.”
Zeke gave a ‘hmph’.
Josiah smiled indulgently. “Tell me, what is the Mariner’s creed?”
Zeke narrowed his eyes. He sensed a trap. “Gravity, magnetism and thought are the forces that bind the universe together. Of these three, thought is the most powerful.”
“Or, as we say here, faith can move mountains.”
Zeke shrugged. Okay, Josiah had a point.
“There’s a tad more to it,” Josiah added.
He crouched down and scooped up the soil in his hands. The crumbs of earth fell away to reveal wriggling earthworms.
“Oh!’ Zeke exclaimed.
“First we bedded down layers of organic waste, everything from leftover food to sewage.”
“You mean poo?” Zeke asked.
Josiah nodded.
“And then we let these little mites loose. God’s humblest creatures. Yet, thanks to His Wisdom, also His Mightiest.”
Zeke scratched his head.
“You made an enormous compost heap. The worms digest the organic matter and turn the Martian sand into soil.”
Josiah ruffled Zeke’s hair, much to his annoyance.
“Got it in one, son. Our own little miracle.”
Zeke’s brain was in overtime. “Wait, how did you get the worms here?”
“Imported from Earth.”
“So you needed machines.”
Josiah stroked his beard. “Well son, I wouldn’t call you a machine. It took one Mariner to translocate the shipment of worms. From Earth to Mars in a second, all down to mind powers. A Gift from God, if you will.”
Zeke was feeling flustered. “Sure, but the journey also required using the Televator and a go-ship. You couldn’t have done it without science.”
Josiah’s baritone laughter rang out. “We couldn’t do it without Providence, son. The Hand of God.”
Zeke wanted to stamp his foot. Josiah was manipulating the facts to support his beliefs.
Josiah gently lowered the worms onto the earth and they began burrowing underground.
“The worms of Mars! Who’d have guessed they’d be so small,” he said. “Not that we don’t have problems. Pumping the water up from bedrock is hard labour, believe me.”
Pin-mei and Bartholomew fell through the curtain of stalks. They were chuckling away like old friends.
“Bartie is so funny,” Pin-mei said, wiping away a happy tear.
Both Zeke and Josiah frowned.
Josiah pointed to the cart. “Time to head back. Sunday service is at three.”
“Oh, I’m not going to that,” Zeke said, and pushed out his bottom lip.
Pin-mei made a face at him, as if to say, ‘Don’t be a brat.’
“Your presence would be a great honour,” Josiah replied, and turned back to the cart.
Chapter Eleven
Chapel
Josiah stood at the pulpit, bathed in radiance. Sunlight streamed in through the tall windows behind him.
“And now a few thoughts,” he announced to the congregation.
More anti-science mumbo jumbo? Zeke wondered, seated at the front.
He glanced over his shoulder. The pews were packed. Pin-mei and Bartie were at the back, both grinning from ear to ear. This made Zeke uncomfortable, but he wasn’t sure what to do. Maybe Justice wasn’t so bad after all?
The ceremony was nearly over. It involved lots of prayers and hymns, as well as plenty of standing up and kneeling down. Zeke found it all rather bewildering, but did his best to mutter and nod in the right places.
Josiah smiled at him.
“Brethren, today we have two young Mariners in our midst. Brave souls destined to lead the human race to the stars.”
A round of applause rippled through the congregation. Zeke stared at the floor. He didn’t fancy any hero worship.
Josiah continued, “Which leads me to contemplating. What are the planets for?”
He paused for dramatic effect.
“Surely, every one of God’s creations has a purpose. Take the planets, like the hands of a cosmic clock, always tick-tocking around the Sun’s golden dial. But why?
“Earth, we know, is humanity’s cradle. The Moon stirs the tides and quickens our pulses. Mighty Jupiter is our protector, blocking the comets that might otherwise crash upon our heads. But what of Mars, this dry and lonely world? Why did it spring from those oceans of celestial dust so long ago?
“Brethren, it’s purpose is crucial to the holy plan.”
Josiah slammed his fist on the pulpit.
Everyone jumped.
“Mars is a stepping stone. The good Lord put Mars here as respite on our journey into space. Think about it. It’s His Divine wish that Humanity carry the Good Word through the Milky Way and beyond. Sharing it with any heathen cultures we encounter along the way.”
“Why are aliens heathens?” Zeke piped up.
The air went so still he could have heard an atom split.
Josiah frowned. “Son, we do not speak up while the preacher’s doing his job.”
Zeke mouthed a ‘sorry’ and went redder than a Martian tomato.
“You see Brethren, that magnificent journey will need somewhere to break, to rest, to gather resources. That is Mars’ purpose and ours too. It’s the resurrection planet. What, I hear you say, does old Josiah mean by that? Cast your mind back to biblical days. Was not poor Lazarus brought back from the shadow of the valley of the dead?”
Zeke vaguely knew the story of Lazarus, who died and came back.
“And as the Lord rose Lazarus from the grave, so must we raise Mars. His Divine Will has brought us here to work this miracle. God’s plan cannot be made by computers and robots. That’s blasphemy. God’s plan must be achieved by backbreaking toil, by honest sweat, by kindness, by prayer, by a mother’s sacrifice and a father’s duty. In short, we must love Mars. Oh yes, brethren, we must shower the barren valleys and the empty craters with affect
ion. Does a mother hand her newborn over to machines? No, she nurtures that child herself. Mars is no different. We, the Church Of The Martian Saints, have been here sixty years. And we will be here for six hundred and then six thousand. And by the grace of God, we will be miracle-makers. The humble earthworm, the sprouting vine, the hen and the lamb. All will play their part with us as their farmers. Mars is our Promised Land. Mars is our mission. By love and faith, we will light the spark of life and Mars shall blossom!”
His voice soared to a crescendo.
The congregation erupted with cries of, “Praise the Lord!”
Josiah threw out his arms. “The service has ended, go in peace. Amen.”
“Amen,” said forty voices.
The chapel looked out over the stony roofs to the vast plain beyond. The twilight burned with a dark shade of rust. Worshippers were gathered on the slope, in twos and threes, quietly discussing the sermon.
Zeke scanned the scene for a glimpse of Pin-mei. Where was she?
A hand fell on his shoulder. Josiah.
“What did you think, son?”
“Huh?”
“About my sermon?”
“Oh,” Zeke replied. “I liked it.”
“But did you see my point?”
“Oh, yes. You’re saying that terra-forming Mars needs to be done with heart. Not machinery.”
Josiah’s eyes lit up. “You hit the nail on the barn door!”
Zeke peered around for Pin-mei again.
“You’ve got spirit, son. And that’s why I need to ask you something.”
“What’s that, Sir?”
“Now hear me out, Zeke. Talking of miracles, don’t you think it was mighty strange that whirlwind demon deposited you here, on our very doorstep.”
Zeke cocked his head to one side. “Totally random, I’d say. And it’s not a demon.”
“Don’t jest with me, now. The good book tells us that for every purpose there is a season. You think that critter dropped you here by accident? Not at all. That was providence in action.”
Zeke gave Josiah a hard stare. “What are you saying?”
“Not saying, inviting.”
“Inviting?”
“I’d like you and Miss Liang to stay on, as our guests. Once we get your shackles off, them powers of yours will come in mighty useful.”
“Oh, we’re useful, are we?” Zeke scoffed.
“It’s true you’d make a contribution to the Marmish way of life. But you’d be part of our community. Family. Already the China girl and my Bartie are like brother and sister.”
Zeke wondered if brother and sister were the right choice of words.
“Mr Cain—”
“Elder Cain, son.”
“Elder Cain. In eight days I’m rocketing out of this Solar System. I’m going to be with my dad. Nothing means more to me than this.”
Josiah gripped Zeke with both hands. “Zeke, don’t you see what danger you’re putting yourself in?”
“That’s my business.”
“Why don’t the Mariners ever come back? Even if you do get to your father, after fifteen years he’s probably dead. It’s not worth the risk, the good Lord—”
“He’s not dead!” Zeke shouted so loud everyone stopped talking. His blood was boiling.
“He’s not dead,” he screamed again. He pirouetted on the crutch, which wasn’t easy, and hobbled off furiously.
One foot, the crutch, one foot, the crutch. Zeke limped through the maze of rock-pile houses. His head was so full of angry thoughts he paid no attention to where he was going.
How dare Josiah suggest my father is dead! He is not!
Zeke shuffled around a corner and—whack! Headlong collision with someone coming the other way. Zeke tumbled over, his shinbone in agony.
“Ezekiel!”
It was Bartie. He offered his hand and hoisted Zeke back up. Although two years younger he was as strong as an oak.
“You gotta come quickly.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Not wrong so much, your people are here.”
Finally!
“Is it Mariner Chinook? Knimble?”
“It’s a lady, Ezekiel.”
Zeke’s mouth dropped. Principal Lutz herself had come to save him?
“Is she black?”
Bartie slipped his arm under Zeke’s shoulder and helped him to walk.
“Nope. I don’t rightly know who she is. Real pretty though.”
Zeke was stumped. Surely they hadn’t send Doctor Chandrasar? The two boys hurried across Edenville. At the Cain residence Zeke dived inside. Who could it be?
His mouth dropped.
A young woman, with cropped ginger hair and wearing army fatigues, leaned against the table. She was flanked by two soldiers, both armed with ferromagnetic rifles. She arched her eyebrows.
“Don’t look so pleased to see me,” said Isla the Incisor.
Chapter Twelve
En Route
The sky cracked open and tentacles slithered out. The ground trembled. Ancient canyons collapsed into vast choking clouds. People screamed.
Zeke was running as fast as he could. Across the wasteland. Away.
“Come to me,” boomed the Spiral from high above.
“Never!” Zeke shouted back.
The land broke into fragments. Flames leapt as high as skyscrapers. Lava erupted and coursed towards him. There was nowhere to run.
“You won’t get away.”
“Go to hell,” Zeke bellowed, desperately looking for an escape route through the carnage.
“I won’t betray you, not like your friend,” said the Spiral.
Zeke raised his hand, intending to shake a fist. He froze. His fist was too chubby. He was somebody else! The orange waves flowed closer. Heat seared his skin.
“He didn’t betray me,” Zeke heard himself cry. Only it wasn’t his voice.
The molten rock was closing in. A few more seconds and he would fry. A door materialised out of thin air. A glass auto-door. It slid open. Zeke ran through it, only to find himself back in the same place. The lava was still bearing down upon him.
Something impossibly huge rose beyond the horizon, like the dawning of a red giant star. A woman the size of Jupiter. Beautiful and calm amidst all the desolation.
“Wake up.”
Zeke opened his eyes with a start. He was in the back of the Mars Utility Vehicle, an armoured landcruiser, reeking of leather and plastic. Isla was next to him, her arm around a sleeping Pin-mei.
Up front, a soldier was driving. A second sat next to him, and on the left were Josiah and Bartie, both snoring. Bartie’s head rested on his father’s shoulder.
“That sounded quite a nightmare,” Isla remarked.
Zeke gazed through the window. Outside, the darkened landscape rushed past. A land of shadows and shapes. A world that died two billion years ago. Zeke felt a pang of homesickness for his mother’s house, somewhere up there, among the constellations. On a speck of blue light called Earth. He missed the School, he even missed Edenville, with its smoky chimneys and smiling colonists. But here he was, in the empty night.
“Not speaking?” Isla asked.
He said nothing, staring through the glass.
“Why are you so mad?”
“Maybe I’m fed up being everyone’s prisoner.”
Isla sighed. “I told you, you’re under our protection. That’s a quite different matter.”
“Then let me go when we reach Yuri Gagarin Freetown.”
Isla placed her hand on his arm. “We will.”
“Immediately?”
She hesitated. “As soon as you help out with our little problem.”
“Translating more Hesperian runes?”
“Something li
ke that.”
“More orbs?” Zeke asked in a contemptuous tone.
“Um…I can’t tell you any more.”
Zeke rolled his eyes. “But you’ve nothing to hide?”
Isla leaned forward. “Zeke, there’s a war coming. A civil war between the Unpro and Earth. Spies are everywhere, secret agents, surveillance drones, bugs. We have to keep our plans confidential. You’ll find out soon enough.”
She went a little pale, as though recalling something unpleasant.
“And what if I refuse?” Zeke said, pushing out his bottom lip.
Now it was Isla’s turn to be quiet.
“You see, I AM your prisoner.”
“Of course we’ll send you back to the Chasm. But when is up to Ptolemy Cusp. He’s the leader of Freetown, not me.”
Zeke chest was beating faster. “And you’re his girlfriend, so you’re as much a part of it as he is.”
Isla went from white to red. “He’s my superior, nothing more.”
“Yeah, right.”
Zeke has seen Isla and Cusp together on two occasions. Her feelings were as easy to spot as Saturn’s rings.
Zeke folded his arms. “I’m sick of adults. Enki, Josiah, and now you. None of you care about Pin and me.”
Isla’s emerald eyes flashed in the darkness. “Listen, life’s complicated. We all have to do things we don’t like. Sometimes we even go against our conscience. That’s what being an adult is about. You’re sixteen, you should know that by now.”
“Fifteen, actually.”
“Whatever. Just trust me, will you?”
“Why should I?”
“Because I’m your friend.”
“Fine friendship this is,” Zeke replied. Suddenly his emotions bubbled up. “Dayo’s offer to take me to Alpha Cephei is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!” he shouted. “Miss that and I might never reach my father.”
“I understand,” Isla said in a softer tone.
“Do you? Then free us.”
Zeke could bottle it up no longer. A lump swelled in his throat.
Isla put her arm around him and drew him close. He broke down.
“Zeke, you might need our help more than you know.”
He glanced up. Isla nodded in the direction of the right window.
The Particle Beast Page 6
