Eli let go of me. “I’ve got the passengers. You two keep finding more power.” And with a whoosh of the internal door, Eli disappeared, headed to the tail of the pede, a segment I could now see had been fully encased in a robotic swarm.
In an instant, the scent of singed hair and burning flesh filled my nostrils. I could hear the screams, feel the fear like a charge in the air. Real or imagined, I didn’t know. The heat the swarm generated could be turning the train into a microwave oven, or I could be reliving a nightmare only to die this time.
The back end of the pede bucked and fish-tailed from the wind the swarm created, twisting and rocking. If Eli didn’t get back there and quick, it might cause us to roll and then it would be game over. “Oh God.”
“What are you doing, Iia?” Max smacked the back of my head. “Eyes up here. Can’t do this without your help. You might not have a chip, but you can cut some wires to the intercom system and cooling systems.”
“Right.” The smells and sounds vanished, and I realized I’d been hallucinating. I reached into a bench and found a pair of wire cutters. It took me ten seconds to pop the hatch to the control panel, and I started to selectively snip. This one is critical, leave it. This one flushes the toilet. Good bye. And on and on I went. I didn’t have time to think too deeply about what happened outside or if Eli was safe. It became about me and the console.
The engine jumped, and I fell forward, smacking my head into the edge of the control panel. Another lurch, and we shot forward. “Easy Max. I’d like to get out of this without brain damage.”
“I didn’t do it. Eli cut the last two cars loose.” He glanced back. “We’re losing the swarm.”
I collapsed on the floor and sucked in a deep breath. “Now what?”
“I say we go to the tower and shut the network down,” Eli said from behind me.
“I don’t have the generators, or the device from the cosmetology department.”
Eli shrugged out of his backpack. “I have one generator and the device from the cosmetology building. I wanted to stop there first, in case I didn’t get another chance. The other men with me had two other generators, but I sent them to cover.”
“Damn. I’ve got to have two to leapfrog.” No way could I find the parts for another on this train.
“Good thing I brought one in my pack,” Max said. “I told you you’d be glad I came along.” He grinned.
The train hit the harbor and saltwater sprayed to the sides, creating a massive wake. I glanced back and calculated we were at least five hundred yards ahead of the swarm, but the speed would cost us when it came time to stop.
“Keep this train headed for the tunnel, Max. Eli and I are going out back to have everyone buckle in and brace for the stop. It’s not going to be pretty.”
“I got this.”
I nodded at him. “I know you do.” Eli and I jogged toward the back of the train.
17
“Five minutes to the tunnel. Buckle in. This ride is going to get rough.” I walked down the aisle, swaying with the erratic movement of the hover-train. “Keep an eye on your neighbor. When we stop, check to make sure they are okay. We are going to make it out of this.”
“I’m guessing this disaster is your doing, Iia Jaxson. I should have dropped you from the program instead of letting you move forward. Always knew you were trouble. Nothing but a no good traitor.”
I glanced over to see who spoke to me, and my stomach bound into knots. Conditioned fears returned, slamming into me like a tsunami. I took a step back, wanting to retreat under his glare. One of my old teachers stared back, arms crossed over his chest.
But this time, what he thought didn’t matter. None of it mattered. If we didn’t get this train to the tunnel, we were all dead. Everyone on the pede still lived because of Eli, Max, and me. This time, I wouldn’t hold my opinions back. I wasn’t the student he could bully anymore, but an advanced programmer, way ahead of any technology he could throw together. I’d become wiser, and the brainwashing I’d been through had been neutralized the moment the bees attacked. I would not step into a mold to be shaped into the perfect citizen. Not anymore. No one on this train should if they valued their lives. Anger rose within me, and I realized the beauty of the freedom Eli had spoken so much about. I could do with my life what I wanted now. I would not tolerate anyone taking it from me again, no matter how much I’d feared them in the past. “I didn’t create this mess. The people you report to did.”
“It’s not their faces on every wanted bulletin on the islands, Ms. Danner. That’s who you are, the rebel leader’s whore, and the woman who turned our technology against us.”
I walked up to him and leaned over. “I didn’t create the technology, nor did I program the bees with a second directive to become a weapon. People like you did it. So, shut up, before I throw you off this train.”
“Who do you think you are?”
“I am Iia Danner, the last descendant of the man who built the power grid, and the woman who is about to give the people of Sententia their freedom back.”
“Traitor.” He spat, hitting me in the face.
The student sitting next to him smacked him in the head with her mobile processor. My former teacher slumped forward, blessedly silent, unconscious. After a quick visual inspection, I could see his chest rising and falling.
The girl behind him spoke up. “I don’t like him much anyway. He spied on students and reported them to the authorities. I saw him talking to the police hours before they dragged one of my friends away. All for designing an alternate program to make the hives run more efficiently. Nothing illegal by any means, or at least we hadn’t thought it was. I never saw her again.”
I nodded. “Make sure he’s buckled. I don’t like him either, but I don’t want his death on my conscience.”
The student grabbed the restraint and pulled it over his chest and across his lap, snapping it into the receiver. Clear impact resistant domes dropped down over each section of seats, as much a precaution against flying debris as sinking in the ocean. The train had been designed to break apart in a water crash, releasing each capsule full of passengers to float to the surface.
Eli and I moved through each section as quickly as we could, locking passengers down and activating the crash-domes. When the last dome sealed into place, we jogged for the engine to buckle in for impact.
Just before we reached the forward compartment, the whole train shook. I stumbled, falling into Eli who caught me. A quick glance out the window confirmed we were still over the water, but slowing down enough, the train began to drop toward the ocean. The compartment bounced on the water like a skipping rock, the rest of the train followed suit, but also whipping back and forth.
“What’s going on here?” I moved toward the door to the engine compartment as the pede slammed down on the water again. My feet left the deck as I became airborne, flying into the window next to me before hitting the floor.
Eli landed on the deck stomach down and scrambled to his feet as the engine dropped again and rebounded off the water. Our compartment repeated the action. Back down I went, hitting hard. This time I stayed down, opting to crawl for the door. I had to get into the engine room to see what had caused the problem.
Boom! Down we went again, but this time I’d already latched onto the grating. Eli rolled across the deck and into me. “We’re not going to make it to shore.”
“Not an option.” I was off my belly and scrambling to my feet again, running for the door. Just as I grabbed the bar to open, the train dropped again. Harder, more violent than before. I held on, my feet coming out from under me and my knees slamming into the door. Eli knocked into me from behind and grabbed onto the bar.
“Pull the door open.”
“I can’t!”
“Together.”
We yanked, and the door flew open at the same time the train dropped again, flinging us around like rag dolls. Through the open door, I could see Max strapped into the captain’s chair, his
hands flying across the control panel as fast as they could go.
Eli grabbed my arm, pulling me to my feet as the pede bounced again, this time the momentum catapulted us through the open door, slamming us into the forward cabin like bugs on a windshield.
“It’s about time you got up here. We have a problem.”
Lying on my belly next to Eli, I eyed the teenager, who looked on the verge of panic. “Calm down and explain.”
“The bees are draining the grid in this sector. I’m not sure we’re going to make it to shore. We’re running…hold on!”
Eli and I grabbed onto the base of a chair as the engine bounced again. Our bodies lifted off the floor and crashed back down. Eli let out a loud oomph and then a groan.
“We’re running on 50% power.”
Thud!
Max’s gaze dropped to the panel. “Make that 40%.”
I closed my eyes, trying to think.
“Bad time to take a nap. I need something.”
“I’m thinking.”
“30%. We’re going to sink to the bottom of the harbor. Iia…give me something.”
“Kill the rear props and let’s drag our backend to shore.”
Max turned to me, his mouth open. “You sure it will work?”
I nodded. No, not sure, but we were out of options. “Do it.”
He killed the hover-prop for the last four cars and the engine lifted and shot forward. Eli and I climbed to our feet, watching out the back window as we dragged the rear of the train like a water-boarder. The end fishtailed but stayed afloat.
“It’s working.”
Eli elbowed me. “That’s all good, but what happens when we hit land?”
I turned to see we were five hundred yards from shore and closing fast. The train would break apart the moment we hit the shore, and nowhere near the tunnel where we wanted to be. I ran over to the panel. “Which are the rear engines?”
“On your left.”
“Tell me when the engine makes shore.” I hovered my hands over the buttons, ready to jump start the engines. I hoped the momentum would keep us going forward enough to make the tunnel before we came to a stop.
“Now!”
I fired up the engines just as the train hit land, kicking up a cloud of debris. I twisted around to see all but the last car gliding above the ground. Seconds later, the segment in question snapped free, rolling like a ball across the sand.
The swarm behind us flew around it, their target all too clear. We were the bull’s eye and they were picking up speed as they drained our power. “They aren’t going after the last car.”
“Doesn’t matter, if we don’t find some power somewhere, we aren’t going to make it to the tunnel,” Eli said from where he stood by the control panel, checking the gauges.
I spun around and slammed my hand on the button to cut the engine to the next car on the end, it dropped, snagged on the ground and snapped loose, spinning in place. The bees avoided it, still focused on the train. I grabbed a chair to keep from falling back as we picked up speed.
“It’s not enough.”
The people in the cars could escape with the bees focused on us. Without a second thought, I cut the next one loose. The bees split and went around that segment as well. The train shot forward and seconds later, dropped into the tunnel, sliding to safety as we rounded a curve and entered the platform for the station. I glanced back to make sure the bees hadn’t followed, not certain they couldn’t.
Max shut the power down and opened the hatches, freeing the passengers, who rushed into the underground station. “Please exit through the nearest doors. There will be a steward near each exit to guide you to your next connection, or the bar, if you want a stiff drink to shake off the scary shit that just went down.”
“Very funny.” I rolled my eyes.
Max spun around and unfastened his safety harness. “I thought so.”
“Too bad for you. I disconnected the intercom, and they didn’t hear a word.”
“Figures.”
Eli nodded toward the exit. “Let’s get out of here before we run into the police. They haven’t had to deal with the bees in this area and may not be as helpful as those on campus.”
Max popped open a storage bin and snagged his pack and mine. He handed his pack to Eli and gave me mine. “I’m off to wreck some havoc and hack the city’s holo-corders. I want to see what’s going on out there. You have my pad in the bag. I’ll connect and keep you ahead of the soldiers and bees.”
I flinched. “What did you say, Max?”
“I’m going to hack…”
“No, before that.”
“I’m off to wreck some havoc?”
“Where have you heard that saying?”
“I’ve always said it. Why?”
“You just reminded me of someone for a second.” I shrugged. “It’s not important. Be careful.”
He grinned. “Always.” Max reached out, hugged me and turned around, nodding to Eli. “Take care of her, or I’m coming for you.”
“I plan on it.”
“Do you?”
Eli narrowed his eyes as Max darted out the door and into the crowd. “He’s trouble.”
“He saved a lot of people today.” But what he’d said hung in the back of my mind. How did Max know so much? A lot about him reminded me of Tyler.
“Yeah, he did.” Eli pulled me out the door and into the crowd. We ducked behind a pillar as three police officers ran by, headed for the train. “This way.” He grabbed my hand, leading me toward a staircase which went down. A triage area stood off to the right, where passengers sat on the decking and on benches waiting for medical personnel to arrive. I looked to the left to see my face and a warning flash across the screen. Iia Danner. Wanted for mass murder.
“Eli.”
He turned to look at me. “What?”
“Look at the holo-board.”
“Not good.” He snagged my wrist. “Come on. We’ve got to get out of the open before someone identifies you.”
I glanced around the station, cameras everywhere. More police charged by, six this time. We both slid behind the pillars, ready to flee as they passed, but they stopped behind where we stood.
“Station is locked down. She has the exits guarded by bees.”
I looked at Eli, and he shook his head, raising his finger to his lips.
“Three segments. All the passengers have been evacuated to a safe location.”
Some of the tension leached from my body as I realized the passengers were safe. My doing. Eli’s doing. I wasn’t a killer. I didn’t control the bees, but obviously the authorities thought I did. Why?
It didn’t take long for me to come to a conclusion. “Because someone is.”
“Is what?” Eli whispered.
I scanned the area for cameras, any way we could be seen. They were all over the place and it would be a matter of minutes before they figured out I was still in the station. I ducked my head and turned to face the pillars. Eli followed suit. “Controlling the bees. I thought their programming had caused them to go after everyone like you said, but it’s not. Somebody killed all those people.”
The police moved toward the train, scanning the chips of everyone they passed.
“Come on. We need to get out of here.” Eli snagged my shirt and guided me toward a maintenance tunnel.
“Down there?”
“You’d rather go outside?”
So down we went, under the train station and back toward the sewers.
18
Alarms wailed. Soldiers ran past, heading for the boarding platform. My backpack buzzed. Eli looked at me. I looked at him.
“Are you going to answer it?”
It took me a moment to realize the sound came from the pad Max had left in his bag, the one he said would link us to him. I reached in and pulled it out.
Max sat staring at me from the screen. “Head for the north exit. I have redirected the police and soldiers with holo-images and false com t
ransmissions. It’s not going to take them long to figure out you aren’t where I sent them, so I’d get moving.”
The screen went blank, and I stuffed it into the pack. Eli grabbed my hand as we took off running for the north exit, not sure what we were going to do once we got there, but certain if we didn’t, we’d be in custody.
Screams ahead grew louder. I came to a stop. Eli gave my hand a squeeze and a tug. “Keep moving.”
“What’s going on up there?”
“Not sure, but it might be for our benefit.”
I nodded and started again.
As we entered a large dome-shaped building, I looked up to see that we had made it to the surface, but the light from the sun didn’t come through the glass above. At first I hadn’t realized we were topside, not until I saw the dark screen covering the dome move. The bees covered the glass in a thick mat, so dense that light couldn’t get through. They didn’t hammer the surface like they had the elevator, but merely perched there as though they were waiting for something, or someone.
My bag began to buzz again. I reached inside and extracted the pad.
“Get your generator out. I’m going to open the entrance, and you should be invisible when I do, or the bees will see you.”
People continued to rush past us, headed into the station and away from the menace above.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea to open the doors. There are people still in here.”
“They seem to be moving for the station. If they aren’t, they will be as the door alarms sound. You might want to cover your ears.”
“What?”
Max made a gesture, cupping his hands over his ears.
I dropped the pad back in the bag and covered my ears. Eli copied. A screeching sound filled the chamber and bright red lights began to flash. Shit, the generator. I dropped my hands and flipped the canvas flap on Eli’s bag open, hitting the power button. It would take at least thirty seconds to bring it to full power. The doors looked to be ready to open at any second.
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