by Azalea Ellis
“FTL, meaning faster than light?”
“Yes.” She opened the door out of the lab, and led me down a different hallway, to an elevator. “If it takes them as long as we estimated to make the round trip. It all depends on how quick to mobilize military forces they are.”
“And you’re sure reinforcements are coming back?”
She stopped and stared at me for a moment, then continued walking and talking as if I hadn’t asked such a stupid question. “We have permission to enforce a mandatory draft from the citizenry. Kind of like martial law, except no one knows about it yet, unless they’re part of it.”
“Like me.” I followed her onto an elevator, which started a long, dark descent into the heart of the earth.
“Yes.” Her lips twitched at the look on my face. “The Constitution and human rights? Is that what you’re thinking? Those don’t mean as much as you might think in the face of our extinction as a species.”
“Some would say the life of an individual is worth as much as the life of the masses.”
She snorted. “That someone would die along with the masses when these things come back. They’re different than us. Let me show you one last thing, Eve. I think you’ll find it enlightening.”
She was silent after that, and we stepped out of the elevator into a room, so deep inside the earth I could feel the weight of thousands of tons of dirt pressing down, pushing the air against my skin.
Chapter 40
I am alpha and omega, the beginning and the end. I am the creator and destroyer of worlds. So sayeth the gods.
— Eve Redding
I knew the details of that moment would remain forever clear in my mind. I stepped forward and looked through an observation window. The giant was tied up alone in the middle of a large room, connected to tubes, wires, and machines, and enough straps and shackles to confine a large elephant. The metal slab he lay on was tilted forward, so that we could see his whole body, half-standing, half-lying on it.
“The window is a double-sided mirror, triple paned and bulletproof. He can’t see us or get to us.”
I felt uneasily as if she was saying that mostly to comfort herself. A couple steps brought me close to the window, which had little wires threaded all through it.
Even bound, I could sense his terrifying strength, and a strange sense of other-ness that caused all the small hairs on my body to stand up in alarm. My skin was crawling with unease, but not abhorrence.
He didn't seem that different than us, if indeed quite a bit larger than the average human. In fact, he was beautiful, lying there with his eyes closed. Long dark lashes fanned out on his cheeks, a contrast to the dirty, once-blonde hair that hung down matted and tangled, past his face and his equally unkempt golden beard. It had grown bushy and wild since the video was taken. Dark circles lay under his eyes like those of a raccoon, standing out against his pale, drawn skin.
Skin no longer bronze and healthy, and a body that no longer looked as if it held the strength of ten men. Despite it all, I knew he would reign down terror and destruction that would make my own look like a child's tantrum if he were ever freed.
His eyes snapped open, looking right into my own.
I jumped, and my heart smashed in a quick burst of fear, trying to punch its way out of my chest. I stared back into his eyes, wondering if he could see me through the glass despite the woman's assurance to the contrary. We stared at each other for a long moment, until Petralka said, "This. This is what stands against us, coming to destroy us." She laid a hand on my shoulder, as if to keep me from moving too close to the glass.
Something changed in him, then. His upper lip lifted away from his teeth in a snarl, ever so slowly. Then he went berserk, roaring and heaving at his bindings. He strained until his face turned red, snapping his teeth at us.
An alarm started to go off, and a milky white liquid ran through a tube from one of the machines, into his neck. He weakened and calmed, but still stared out from his incapacitated body with malevolence.
"They think they're gods," she said. "And compared to us, they might as well be. Which is why we're creating gods of our own."
"You're drafting soldiers to fight an alien invasion," I said. "How crazy does that sound?" I laughed humorlessly. "But why do it like this? It seems kind of counterproductive to actually gaining a fighting force. You take kids, basically, with no military inclinations, and leave them to their own devices. Why not allow volunteers, or recruit from within the military, or at least cultivate them and train them from the beginning?"
"We do recruit from within the military, if the genetics are right. We found out early on that the Seeds weren't compatible with a large majority of the population. Only people with a certain gene sequence can adapt. The survival rate is higher in younger people, which is why we aim for them. And the Game is designed to create a specific type of person. We are looking for people who will adapt, and fight, and survive against horrifying odds. The type who can make it without someone holding their hand," Commander Petralka said.
"Do you need to kill half of them to do that?"
"The Trials do create strong people. But you're right; I wouldn't use them if I didn't have to. We need the Trials, because the Seeds we can manufacture on our own are sub-par to what the aliens have. The Skills are beyond our current technology. But we don't create the Trials. They're entirely an invention of those creatures. The aliens are violent and horrifying in nature, and their games reflect that. They worship their 'gods' through them, and are rewarded with power." She stared at the restrained and sedated man.
"You send children into these 'violent and horrifying' games. What does that make you?"
"It makes me someone who's willing to pay the price. I'm not heartless. But I'm strong enough to do what needs to be done, even if I have to carry the weight of the dead on my shoulders." She brushed past me, opening the door leading out of the observation room.
I followed, reluctant to be trapped alone down there with him. Excuse me, it. Funny how they looked like us, except bigger. What were the chances of that, two races looking almost completely alike, on two different worlds in an infinite universe?
"We have to have soldiers that can match them. People like you, Eve. I'll admit, I've been very impressed by you. Your aversion to any type of control might even be a good thing, because you won't give up the fight for our race, even if it seems hopeless. You've gone the furthest of almost any Player before entering NIX. Was that Skill before truly a Bestowal? How did you get it?"
"I took it," I said, making it clear by my tone that I was unwilling to elaborate further.
She laughed. "That's what I mean. You may have failed in your goal, but you've still played wonderfully. I've one last thing to show you."
I smiled, falling into step beside her. "You've misjudged me," I said. "I didn't fail. You mentioned being able to understand how the aliens work by looking at their Trials. I know how you work, because I've seen what the Game uses to motivate Players. Whatever fancy reasoning you want to spout for your actions, it's obvious you understand two things. Fear, and greed."
She slowed to a stop, and stared up at me.
"I showed you what there is to fear from me, but it wasn't enough to sway you. It only served to fuel your greed instead. That's too bad, but it's okay." My smile was full of teeth and triumph. "Because your greed is enough to sway you. You want my power, and you've already proven you're willing to do whatever it takes to gain it. And I'm willing to give it to you, if you can meet my conditions."
Chapter 41
Who shall tempt, with wandering feet,
The dark unbottomed infinite abyss?
— John Milton
"Let's go back to the courtyard," I said. "My team should be privy to this conversation, since it affects them in a big way. Besides, your tour is mostly over. You were just going to show me the other Players, the ones who've already joined NIX, and are happy to do so, right?"
Her eyes widened, and she shook her
head in chagrin. "You're sharper than I gave you credit for."
"That's okay. I aim to continuously surprise."
"That you do. But do you really want to have this conversation in front of them? They don't know what you've just learned, they might not understand."
"It's not that much of a surprise, Commander. I've seen plenty of aliens in the last few months. Just none that seemed quite so…human. We're not stupid. We knew Estreyer was likely another planet. There aren't many other explanations, when you get past a certain point of familiarity."
I let her lead the way back, even though I knew the route by heart already. On the way, I secretly sent a Window to the rest of the team, telling them that we were on our way, and that I needed them to trust me.
I got a barrage of Windows back, as if they'd all been waiting for that moment.
Sam sent me an apology for failing in the mission and getting captured, Jacky told me they were ready to come down and break me out if something had gone wrong, and Adam sent me a suspicious query about what was going on.
When the commander and I emerged through the destroyed doorway into the light of the sun, they all let out a collective, audible sigh of relief. The armor-skinned pixie girl was sleeping, but Sam nodded at me, communicating that she would live.
"Relax, guys. Commander Petralka here was just giving me a little tour of the grounds."
"What does she want, Eve?" Adam asked, glaring at her.
Zed struggled against his captors, and Nadia waved a hand at them to release him. "I'm sorry," he said. "I couldn't do anything. I know this ruins everything—”
Jacky placed a hand on his shoulder. "No worries. We can keep you safe, especially now that we're all together. Eve says the word, and we finish destroyin' the place, then bust the hell outta here."
Blaine had a mecha arm around both of his kids, and he had the look he got when he was thinking hard. "They must know that. Something else is going on here, I just don't understand what."
"She wants me to join NIX," I said simply.
There was a dead silence.
"You're not going to, are you?" Zed asked, looking half disbelieving and half devastated.
"I am," I said. "But I don't work for free, and I wanted you guys to be privy to the hiring negotiations. Along with everyone else watching," I said, jerking my head to the increasingly packed glass hallways.
"Let's not make a production of this," Nadia Petralka said, frowning. "You said you had conditions. What are they?"
"My first stipulation is my brother,” I said.
"We'll let him go. He'll not be in danger from us," she agreed, nodding vigorously.
"That's not what I mean. Of course you'll let him go. What I need is for you to remove him from the Game."
"Eve, please don't do this," he said. "I'll be okay. I made the mistake. You don't need to sell your soul to fix it."
"What are you talking about?" Nadia said.
"My brother got his hands on a Seed. He doesn't have the genetic marker needed to be compatible with them, but luckily I've got a pretty freaking amazing healer. However, because of the way the Trials work, he's forced into them, even though he's not a Player. I want you to fix that. I want him to have a normal life.”
Nadia seemed lost in thought for a while, then said, "Was it…just the one Seed?"
"Yes."
“And he doesn’t have the genetic marker? Amazing. I can't guarantee anything, but there might be a way to slowly release the particles and filter them out of his blood. I can’t do that for the rest of you," she added. “It’s much too late. We'll have time to get him clean, until we can get the Shortcut fixed."
"The Shortcut isn't my concern. If I have to, I'll stop it for good."
"The future of mankind depends on us!" she snapped. "What kind of life will the boy have, when the Earth is destroyed by—”
"It's okay to say it, Commander. My second stipulation is that you'll show my team everything you showed me. No secrets."
"That’s classified. I can't allow any possible info leaks to those not part of NIX.”
"May I remind you that you have a much larger information leak on your hands? As in, all of the information? Besides, as long as there's no hard evidence, who would believe us if we talked?"
"What's classified?" Adam looked between the Commander and me.
I stared her down, and after a few moments, she nodded stiffly, then stepped closer to our group so her voice wouldn’t travel. Not that it would matter if one of the Players listening from up above had extremely high Perception.
"How will your brother fare in an alien invasion from the species that created the Trials, without us here to do anything to stop them?" she continued, as if she'd never cut herself off in the first place. "Especially being as weak as he is?"
Adam's head jerked toward me, and I nodded and mouthed, "Wait." He frowned back, but didn't say anything, obviously thinking through all the ramifications of her words, speculating about what had happened while I was gone. But he and the others controlled their curiosity and confusion, and I continued the negotiations with Nadia.
"Good points, Commander. I guess it's up to you to make sure I never have to make such a difficult decision."
Her nostrils flared. "We will do everything we can to remove the Seed from your brother, and your team will be given access to the same information you were. Is there anything else?"
"Quite a bit, actually." I nodded. "Those who wish to join me in NIX will be allowed to."
"That shouldn't be too hard to accommodate, though they may be a bit behind the other recruits."
"If they do not choose to follow me, you will let them go, no repercussions."
She clenched her jaw, but nodded sharply. "Okay."
"I assume you have leadership tiers among the others, if you're training them like soldiers?" I continued without waiting for her response. "I will keep my position as a leader, for those who will follow me. I won't accept being under the command of some random person, no matter if I'm a new recruit or not. And the same for any who follow me."
"Slightly unconventional, but doable."
"You will release Kris and Zeke," I jerked my head toward the two children, "back to their uncle, Blaine Mendell. Who I also consider part of my team. All stipulations for the team extend to him. Those conditions also extend to Bunny the Moderator. I'm sure you know who I mean, though I don't know his real name."
"I do."
"Chanelle Black," I said simply.
The girl was passed out beside Sam, but if the first part of the plan had gone according to plan, the antidote to the "wolf" bite should already be working in her system.
"She's yours," Nadia said.
"Yes. And one last thing."
"Only one more?" she said sarcastically. "Why, please, go ahead."
"The man who killed China Black. You will give him to me, too."
Jacky guffawed and pumped her fist.
Both of the Commander's eyebrows rose. "I understand you must feel some bitterness, but I assure you he's been thoroughly reprimanded."
"Oh, really? Reprimanded?" The sarcasm was clear in my voice.
"Yes. He was demoted, and put under supervision, among other things. What happened was unfortunate and unnecessary."
I laughed. "What he did is unforgiveable."
"He is a valuable asset to us, and though a bit unrestrained, he's proved his loyalty. You, however, are even more of a loose cannon," she spread her hands to evidence the courtyard, "and you show a distinct lack of allegiance to anyone besides yourself and your little team. I won't trade his life for your gratification. If I were to execute everyone who'd ever killed anyone else, you'd be on that list, too."
"Indeed, I would," I said. I decided to let it go. The argument, that is. The snake man would find himself painfully dead at my earliest convenience, no matter what she said. "Okay."
She searched my eyes for a moment, and then nodded, too. Someday she might learn not to trust me if
I acquiesced so quickly. "Okay. I guess it's time to give my second tour of the day, then."
She turned her back, and I let the savage grin I’d been holding back spread across my face. I won.
Log of Captivity 6
Mental Log of Captivity-Estimated Day: Two thousand, six hundred forty-three.
She is a two-leg-maggot. When she attacked and the screams-with-no-mouth began to wail, the others of her kind gave me the seed of the poppy to force my tranquility, so that I would not damage my body again. Though her mind was walled off, I sensed her draw near. She stood on the other side of the glass, and fool that I was, I did not even notice her true nature. I thought only of my eyes meeting hers. Then the most-abhorrent and she began to hold discussion, watching me as if I was some fascinating bug. I am in blood-covenant with a two-leg-maggot. I am a halfwit. I thought my suffering complete, no pain not inflicted, no humiliation ignored, nothing pure undefiled. But the gods play a crueler game.
Chapter 42
Battle not with monsters lest you become a monster.
And if you gaze long into the abyss, the abyss also gazes into you.
— Fredrich Nietzsche
I sat atop NIX's wall, staring out at the murky evening sky. In Estreyer, the stars would just be coming out.
Birch lay on my lap, carefully grooming his paws and sharp kitten-claws.
The rest of the team was down below, considering their options. I'd left them to make their own individual decisions.
"It might be just you and me," I said to Birch, scratching behind his ears.
He grunted at me and continued grooming himself.
After the team had seen the contents below NIX, we'd talked, and I'd laid out the reasons why I was staying, which were more than just bartering for Zed's life. "I could care less about the aliens," I'd said. "I'm not interested in saving the world. But I am interested in keeping all of us safe."
