by Simone Pond
Completely immersed in typing out the details of her strategy, she hadn’t heard the chiming of the bell. The administrator touched the screen, shutting down the program.
“Time’s up,” he said.
“I wasn’t finished.”
“You’ll be judged on what you accomplished in the time allotted.”
Grace left the room feeling she had done well enough to impress the judges. All those years of study paid off. Of course, it didn’t hurt having the same genes as one of the most strategic minds in the military. Two down, one to go. The last test would be the toughest—technology was her mother’s thing, not hers. She swallowed down the boulder of fear in her throat and ignored the biting voices of negativity.
In the middle of the main hall, thirty loungers had been set up in a circle so that the competitors faced each other. Everyone took their places. Grace looked around and saw Blythe, who winked with blatant cockiness. Unlike Grace, Blythe had nothing to worry about.
The announcer stood in the middle of the circle and addressed the competitors. “For the final segment, individuals will be tested for their aptitude inside the mainframe. You will have five minutes to exhibit your level of coding competence.”
Grace was confused. He said the mainframe. She thought the final segment would be a virtual aptitude test, not actually connecting into the network of servers. This was not something she had prepared for. She had only been in the mainframe a few times, and her coding knowledge was bordering nil. If she failed this segment, her scores would plummet, costing her acceptance into the academy. Grace put her hand into the connector panel and saw her mother smiling from the benches. She wanted to hit pause and tell her how sorry she was for everything—not just their argument the night before, but for always pushing her away. It was too late. Grace slipped into the blackness of the mainframe . . .
Inside the mainframe, Grace jetted through what looked like space—bright flashes of galaxies zipped by at warp speed. This was far more intense than any virtual. This was the real deal. She shot through a tunnel of cascading white light. When she looked closer, she realized it was coding. Millions of strands of coding. Her objective was to engage and manipulate the coding instead of just ripping through the endless tunnel. She had less than five minutes to make something happen. Whatever that meant.
“Stop!” she yelled.
Her body slowed down, and she floated in place while rivers of iridescent light rushed alongside. It seemed she could manipulate the mainframe with voice command.
“Systems panel,” she said.
She dropped out of the tunnel and landed in a vapid white space that had no beginning or end. She remembered something her mother had told her about the mainframe: it’s an intricate coding system with many doors, and each one opens to an individual network.
“Access networks,” she said.
The space morphed into a long hallway with thousands of doors. A few feet away she saw a giant silver door that reminded her of the vault in the library. That was unusual. She stood before the chrome tri-spoke handle, thinking of the possible combinations. Her instincts told her to try the same sequence her mother used for the library vault. Ava’s birthday: 06-14-2310. She had nothing to lose. Well, except getting into the academy. She entered the numbers into the panel and turned the handle.
The door opened.
Grace entered another hallway and moved deeper into the mainframe. Up ahead, she noticed a red door. That had to signify something. She went over to open it, but there wasn’t an access panel or even a handle—just a small, square window. She peered through the glass. Beyond the door were acres of forest. The trees looked vaguely familiar, like the ones in Ojai village, but something was different. She didn’t know what any of this meant, but believed the answers were behind that red door. Before she could figure out her next move, she felt as if she were being ripped from a dream. Time had run out, and she was leaving the mainframe.
She opened her eyes and looked around, disoriented. She wasn’t sure if she had failed the test or not. Judging from the perplexed expressions on the other competitors, they weren’t sure how they did, either. Of all the challenges, the mainframe was the most draining. She couldn’t wait to get out of there and back home.
The announcer addressed the group. “That ends our tryouts. Judges will be deliberating through the night. Tomorrow morning, we will announce results. Thank you for participating.”
Grace walked over to Marion. “You okay?” she asked.
“I’ve never seen anything like that. I blew it.” Marion collapsed against Grace.
“From the looks of it, I think we all did. Even Blythe looks bummed. And this is her thing.”
“I guess there’s nothing we can do about it now.”
“We can get some rest. We worked hard.”
As they were walking out of the main hall, Grace scanned the benches for her mother. She noticed one of the judges had pulled her off to the side for a private conversation. Grace wondered if they were talking about how poorly she had done on the mainframe test. She’d find out soon enough.
5
Ava was walking down the benches when Ms. Atwood, one of the judges from the academy, approached. The woman’s eyes were as wiry as her white hair, and she looked agitated about something. Ava worried that maybe Grace had done something wrong during the mainframe segment. For years she had tried to get her daughter more interested in technology, but like everything Ava suggested, Grace resisted. She had been like that since she was a child—a rebellious girl with a stubborn mind. Ava smiled to herself, knowing that if you plant corn you don’t get peas. Something Joseph often reminded her of.
“Hello, Ms. Atwood,” said Ava, shaking the woman’s hand.
“We need to talk,” she said, ushering Ava to a private corner away from the other judges and lingering villagers.
“Is it Grace? I’ve offered to train her with the coding, but she just doesn’t want to listen. I’m told this behavior is quite typical for teenagers. I’m not sure what else . . .”
“No, she did quite well.”
Ava was relieved, but didn’t understand why Ms. Atwood was acting so strange.
“Is it about me coming to the academy this semester?” Ava asked.
“No, that’s not it, either. Although, I’m quite delighted you’ll be joining us.” Ms. Atwood said, looking over her shoulders.
“Well, what is it?” Ava asked, getting antsy.
“This is highly sensitive information. At the moment, I’m the only one who knows, since I was assigned to Grace’s mainframe aptitude test.”
“Please, Ms. Atwood.” Ava wished the woman would hurry up and get to the point.
“I didn’t think it would be possible, not at her level, but your daughter interacted with the coding inside the mainframe. Beyond just manipulating it. She actually merged with it.” She paused.
“That’s fantastic. I mean, isn’t it? Highly advanced, for a rookie.”
“And there’s something else,” Ms. Atwood said.
“Yes?”
“She might have tracked a set of digital footprints. Although, I’m not sure . . .” Ms. Atwood continued talking, but Ava no longer heard the words. The walls closed in, and the only thing she heard was digital footprints on a loop.
“Morray,” she whispered to herself.
“I didn’t say that. Nothing is confirmed.”
Ava fought to keep her composure. “I’ve been searching for years and have only hit archive files and no digital tracks. How was Grace able to do that?”
“The equipment is new, state-of-the-art. Listen, I’m not sure what any of this means. It might mean nothing. Most likely a glitch. But I’m asking you to make sure Grace keeps this information to herself. It cannot get out.”
Ava knew it meant something. This was no glitch. She had spent the last sixteen years tracking what seemed like a ghost—nothing concrete had come up in the searches—but this discovery, though it may have seemed small
, was evidence of Morray’s return. Evidence her daughter had uncovered. A small part of Ava felt envious that she hadn’t made the discovery herself. Yet, a bigger part was proud of Grace. Her daughter was special. She was the first child naturally conceived and birthed to a city center resident, and the first human to have both Insider and Outsider genes. She was a miracle. Ava and Joseph believed Grace’s life symbolized change in a world that had been corrupt for centuries under the hand of Chief Morray. Flashes of Morray’s life passed before her and melded with own memories. Images of the Repatterning. Morray’s boyhood. The monster he had turned into by the end of the Repatterning. His insatiable desire for control. The Los Angeles City Center. His obsession with making Ava his indefinite life partner.
“Mrs. Strader?”
“Yes, I’m sorry. I’m listening.”
“I’d like to keep this conversation between us.”
“Of course.”
“And if Grace mentions anything, you must steer her away from the discussion.”
Ava politely shook Ms. Atwood’s hand. “Thank you for sharing this information.”
Ava walked across the main hall in a daze, trying to organize her scrambled thoughts. She looked around for her daughter, but Grace was already gone. She wondered if Morray specifically planted those digital footprints to divulge his return. Was he still inside the mainframe, or had he found a way to upload his consciousness into a new body? He could be anywhere—or anyone. And what about his assistant, Dickson? Was he out there, too? The only way to know for sure would be by conducting a more in depth mainframe search. She needed to get inside the network before the scent grew cold.
“You okay?” Sam waved his hand in front of Ava to get her attention.
“Hi, Sam. Just thinking about something.”
“It’s not Grace, is it?”
“No, she’s fine. Thanks for your help earlier today. She looked really good out there on the mat.”
“I’m always happy to help. You’re my only family.”
“And I appreciate that very much. Even if Grace doesn’t,” Ava said, and patted Sam on the shoulder. “Have you seen my husband?”
“He’s waiting outside. Are you sure you’re okay? Anything I can do?”
“I’m fine. I’ll see you in the morning for the results. And thanks again. I’m sure Grace’s performance impressed the judges.”
Ava walked outside to find Joseph, who was standing next to a group of young soldiers-in-training. He said some final words and joined Ava.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“How do you know something is wrong?”
“I know you, Ava. The look on your face says it all.”
“I just spoke with Ms. Atwood.”
“I can see why that would be bothersome. Those academia type are so, I don’t know, judgy.”
“Well, she is one of the judges.”
“What’d she say? Was it about Grace?” he asked.
“I’m not supposed to say anything, but I trust you’ll keep this to yourself, right?”
“What’s going on?”
“Grace came across something inside the mainframe.”
“And?”
“Morray’s back.”
“What do you mean back?”
“She found some digital footprints inside the mainframe, and it looks suspicious.”
“So, you automatically assume it’s Morray?”
“I’m not assuming anything. I know it’s him.”
Ava and Joseph walked along the dirt path toward their cabin. A cold chill whipped through the village, cutting into Ava’s bones. She looked up at the black sky to the millions of stars above. She remembered when she first arrived at the village and saw real stars for the first time. Many years had passed, but sometimes she still felt like a newcomer. An eerie feeling permeated through her pores. Some of the old fears resurfaced. In the past, she had run from Morray. She didn’t want to do that again. This time, she’d face him head on. He was back to finish the match, but she was ready for him. She knew every detail of his life. Every tragedy. Every weakness. This time, she would be fully prepared.
Joseph stopped and held her hands. “You know we’ll get through this, just like before,” he said.
Ava loved her husband and his comforting words, but she had work to do. “I knew this day would come.”
“We don’t know anything yet. Just some digital footprints.”
“I know Morray well enough to know it’s not just some digital footprints. He’s back. Most likely using a new body. And he will do whatever it takes to regain control. Both he and Dickson have had a lot of time on their hands to come up with a plan.”
“We don’t even know if Dickson survived.”
“I think we both know he survived.” She glanced around at their peaceful village. “The worst part is he’ll try to take me with him. I don’t want to lose any of this,” she said.
“And you won’t.”
Joseph pulled her over and they kissed. For a few seconds, she rested in the arms of her husband until one of the young village boys yelled, “Way to go, General!”
Ava separated from their embrace. “I’ve got to get on this immediately.”
“Not tonight. You can work on it first thing tomorrow morning. We should get home and congratulate Grace. She did well today.”
Ava remembered the look in Grace’s eyes—wide with confusion and curiosity—when she had come up out of the mainframe. What had she seen? Was Morray trying to send a message to Ava through her daughter? She had to protect Grace. No; she couldn’t wait until morning.
“Why don’t you go on ahead of me? I forgot to tell Sam something.” Ava kissed Joseph’s cheek.
“You didn’t forget anything. You’re going into the mainframe.”
“I need to see Grace’s test results. It won’t take long.”
“I know you. You’ll be out the rest of the night.”
Ava paused, and then tried a different approach. “This is information you’ll need for your intelligence gathering. If Morray and Dickson are officially back, you’ll need to come up with a plan. Between the two of them, they could destroy everything we’ve worked so hard to build.”
Joseph grabbed Ava’s hands. “The thing I fear the most is that you’ll never have peace—even if you find him.”
Ava pulled away. “I’m sorry, Joseph, but I have to do this.”
“I know I can’t stop you. Do what you have to do. You really take stubbornness to a new level.”
“I thought that’s why you fell in love with me.” She smiled.
“Just be careful,” he said.
She ran off toward the main hall, turning back for one last wave. Joseph mockingly saluted her and turned back down the dirt path.
*
Inside the main hall, the last few stragglers meandered out. Ava waited until the room was empty and made her way through the darkness over to the loungers. She turned on the same machine Grace had used earlier. The glow from the monitor lit up and she studied the control panel for a few minutes, getting comfortable with the technology. It was similar to what she had been using over the years. Her searches had always left her longing for more, but she believed this would be different. She was so close to locating Morray that her hands trembled with excitement.
Somewhere behind her, a door closed shut.
“Hello?” she said.
Sam walked over. “What are you doing here, Mrs. Strader?”
“Oh, good. It’s you.”
“You okay?”
“I’m fine. Just wanted to test out the equipment,” she lied.
“Test it for what?” Sam asked.
She had promised Ms. Atwood she wouldn’t mention their conversation to anyone. But this was Sam. He’d spent the last two years assisting her with her searches, running errands for her, and keeping an eye on Grace. She could trust him. Couldn’t she? He had earned it. Besides, she could use the extra help with the new equipment. It’d be good
to have a set of expert eyes on the monitor while she was wandering around inside the mainframe.
“Sit down. I need to tell you something,” she said.
Sam sat down on one of the loungers. “All ears,” he said.
“Earlier when Grace was inside the mainframe, she might’ve come across a set of digital footprints. Not the archive files. Not any ghost trails. An actual track left behind from an identity matrix. She found something, and my gut tells me it’s Morray.”
Sam readjusted himself in the chair. “So, she spotted some activity?”
“She found something unusual, only I don’t know what. Which is why I want to go back in and explore. This could mean both Morray and Dickson have resurfaced. They could be out there, anywhere. I want to follow the trail and see where it leads.”
“I don’t understand how you’ve been searching for years and haven’t hit anything concrete, but Grace was able to accomplish this during a five-minute test? This has to be a fluke.” Sam turned to the monitor, pulled up Grace’s results, and scrolled through lines of coding.
“She couldn’t have known what she was doing. It’s almost as if she was deliberately brought to that location. As though Morray intentionally led her there to get my attention. That’s why I want to go back in and finish what was started.”
“Are you sure it’s safe? You’re not familiar with this equipment.”
“You can help me figure it out.”
“It’s not the right time.”
“What are you talking about?” Ava asked, confused.
“I just don’t want you to get lost in there.”
Ava didn’t have time to argue with Sam. Every passing second was another lost opportunity. If she didn’t do the search now and get some more definitive answers, she’d have to wait until they were in Silicon Valley.
“I’m doing this with or without you, Sam. The right time is right now.”
“I apologize, Mrs. Strader. I understand the importance of getting back in while the trail is hot. Give me a second to figure out the tech so I can monitor your search.”
“Thank you. I knew you’d understand.” She placed her hand onto the connector panel.
