Luca

by Jacob Whaler

  Ricky follows, working on a slate. “Doing my best to access any cams still connected to the Mesh. I’ll keep the video going until we lose the last one.”

  “Where will the destruction begin?” Jedd says.

  “The ash started falling on the East Coast.” Qaara gazes at the thousands of people milling around. “That’s where the acid will probably hit first.”

  “The City?” Ricky points at the bluescreen, showing a shot of the Genesis Building close to the Wall.

  “Afraid so.” Qaara mounts the steps to the stage. The others follow her.

  “What about Moses and his army?” Jedd says.

  Qaara scans the bluescreen. “Look for yourself. The streets are empty. The globules are as big as basketballs. Sidewalks and buildings are covered. We gave Moses fair warning. They know what’s coming. My guess is they’re doing their best to get away, to hide, to do whatever they can. Like everyone else.”

  How can we help them? Lots of people won’t make it here.

  Luca’s voice plays in Qaara’s mind. The girl’s concern is evident in her eyes. Bending low, Qaara brings Luca's face closer to hers. “I wish we could save them all, but there’s a limit to what we can do. We’ll help as many as we can."

  If only the Cloud knew what it was doing. If only I could find a way to tell it to stop.

  “I think it does know.” Qaara feels a small wave of anger rising. “And it doesn’t care.”

  Luca furrows her brow and looks away.

  They look out on a sea of heads.

  “Look,” Jedd points at the bluescreen. “The Wall.”

  The globule spheres are stuck to its surface in neat rows, now much larger than when Qaara last saw them a few hours ago.

  Qaara recalls night after night pouring over data, looking at the killer molecule from every possible angle. Taking it apart and putting it back together in innumerable computer simulations, all to better know how to stop it. Along the way, she studied its ability to dissolve anything, especially organic matter.

  She still remembers when she found out its secret.

  Carbon atoms stick to just about anything, including other carbon atoms, forming long chains that are the backbone of massive molecules and polymers. They can mold oxygen, hydrogen and nitrogen into the complex shapes that are the basis of all life. Proteins. Nucleic acids. Carbohydrates. Lipids.

  The killer molecule severs the carbon links. The glue holding organic molecules together disappears.

  Simple, elegant and deadly.

  But her understanding of the process is useless. There’s nothing she can do, no way to stop the inevitable.

  She peers at the image of the Wall on the bluescreen. Made of Graff, it’s nothing more than layer upon layer of pure carbon. Like sugar for the killer molecule.

  How much longer can it last?

  As if in answer, the spheres on the Wall’s surface burst in unison. Green liquid covers its surface. For an instant, it’s as if the Wall, the symbol of her life, cries out for help.

  A hush falls over the crowd staring at the bluescreen as the Wall bulges outward.

  And liquefies.

  In an instant, it’s gone. A smooth block of seawater a hundred meters high pushes into the City, engulfing the first row of towers that now, more than ever, remind Qaara of tombstones. Breaking into a maelstrom of green foam, the water explodes through the streets.

  As similar walls of Graff disintegrate across the planet, the same scene plays out in city after city.

  The rich and affluent on the coasts are the first to feel the wrath of the Cloud.

  Inside the dome, the crowd is silent except for scattered moans and cries.

  Ricky taps Qaara on the shoulder.

  “Looks like the first wave of guests just arrived.” Ricky looks down at his slate. “I’ll divert the visual to the outside.”

  An insectoid shape with eight rotors touches down in the middle of the ring of domes. Oval balls the size of cabbage heads litter the ground in long rows, but none stick to the domes. Side hatches open, and masses of people rush from the transport to an open door, forming a neat line as they file inside the dome facility.

  “They’re from Tokyo,” Ricky says. “Ten more transports are circling above us, waiting for their turn to land.”

  “No need to wait. Have them all land within the ring. We have to get them inside now.” Qaara studies a holo that jumps above her jax showing detailed schematics of the domes. "I can only find one entrance. Any luck finding another?”

  “Nope. The whole complex is airtight. Above ground and below.” Ricky’s fingers fly over his slate. “Looks like Mercer only wanted people to be able to enter or exit a few at a time. At this rate, it’s going to take hours to unload the transports already here. Hundreds more are on the way. We’ll have a bottleneck of massive proportions."

  “Just keep them moving as fast as you can.” Qaara suppresses thoughts of the thousands that will die at the doorstep of the domes. “No matter what, we keep the entrance open. I don’t care if the domes are submerged in a sea of acid. We still keep the entrance open. Everyone that makes it here deserves a chance.”

  With many of the walls breached around the world, flooded cities dominate the bluescreen in the auditorium. Cries rise from the crowd.

  Qaara turns in the direction of the voice.

  A woman in a bright orange dress and headscarf waves her arms and pushes her way through the crowd, followed by thirteen Japanese girls linking arms and moving like one being.

  “Luca! Here you are. At last!” says the woman.

  Luca slips her fingers out of Qaara’s hand and runs into the crowd. The woman bends and takes Luca into her arms. After a long hug, Luca leads the group onto the stage.

  She let us into the dome from the outside.

  “I’m Alice.” The woman walks to Qaara, arms wide for an embrace. “I take it you’ve met our little Luca and learned about her special abilities.”

  “A natural telepath.” Qaara says. “We couldn’t have overcome Mercer without her.”

  “Before she left my apartment, Luca was trying to connect with the Cloud. To get it to stop the attack. I’m guessing she hasn’t had any luck."

  “Wait.” Jedd comes closer. “Luca’s been trying to talk to the Cloud?"

  “Like it’s alive?” Ricky says.

  “It is.” Alice walks to the railing at the edge of the stage, still holding Luca’s hand. “Luca’s gift is the ability to hear the music of life. From insects and plants to animals and humans, she hears their voices. And the Cloud has a voice. Isn’t that right, Luca?”

  Luca nods.

  “Makes sense,” Qaara says. “And I’d guess the Cloud is looking for something it didn’t find the last time it was here over three billion years ago. And if it doesn’t find it—”

  “It’ll wipe the slate clean,” Jedd says.

  Ricky points at the bluescreen. “Based on what happened to the Wall, I’d say it hasn’t found it.”

  Alice bends down, hands cupping Luca’s face. “Child, I know you can understand me. Try again. Try one last time. Find the Voice of the Cloud. Let it know we are here and we want to live. Can you do that?”

  Luca nods, dropping to her knees and closing her eyes.

  “Everyone, back away.” Qaara waves her arms. “Give her room to meditate.”

  Alice sits beside Luca, arms encircling her. “If you don’t mind, I’ll stay with her. Maybe it will help.”

  When Qaara gazes at the bluescreen, her mouth drops open.

  A video feed shows the exterior of the Genesis Building. All across its surface, the globules burst like water balloons, staining its surface black. Steam rises as the liquid eats and dissolve all that it touches.

  The steel and Graff structure melts.

  As it collapses in on itself, shadows of people on the inside of the building flash in and out of view. In less than a minute, the whole structure sinks under the ocean waters that still flow through the lowe
r levels of the City’s towers. As if by some unseen signal, high-rise buildings disintegrate. Some are eaten away midsection and topple into the water like giant, severed trees.

  Video from a circling transport shows a bird’s-eye view of the dying City, shrouded in mist. One by one, massive towers fall away, as if pulled down by invisible hands.

  Leaving the City behind, the transport moves inland over the Fringe. Or at least where the Fringe used to be.

  Jedd and Ricky stare at the bluescreen, barely breathing.

  “There’s nothing left.” Jedd shakes his head. “Just a lake of dirty water and rising steam.”

  Qaara slips her fingers around Jedd’s arm. “I’m sorry.”

  “So am I,” Jedd says. “So am I.”

  70

  SHINJUKU

  “Ready, sir.”

  Mercer looks up from the slate. “I want it to be a two-way conversation.”

  The female technician nods. “I’ve established the feed in both directions. Your face will appear on the bluescreen in the auditorium, and we will see them right here.” She points at the screen on the wall behind her. “They will hear you, and you will hear them.”

  “And the sonic charges?” Mercer swivels in the chair to face a man in a blue security uniform.

  “Ready on your command, sir.”

  Mercer reaches for a lemon slice. “And the fire doors to seal off the rest of the dome complex?”

  “All fully functional.”

  “What can you tell me about the people coming here on transports?” Mercer asks.

  “Most are from the Tokyo, the Shinjuku area where the worst slums are. Like the Fringe back home. Turns out the effect of the ion storm was weakest there due to geography. It’s the focused lens effect. Transports from that area are still functional. Passengers are locals. Worthless rabble. Fifty flights are headed our way at the moment. Over 25,000 aboard in all. Another 20 aircraft are circling overhead, waiting for the landing area to clear. Ten transports on the ground. They’re passing through the single portal and pouring into the complex as fast as they can.”

  “What is she thinking?” Mercer whispers to himself.

  “Ms. Qaara’s plan, if it can be called that, is to fill the dome complex to capacity—halls, rooms, auditorium, wherever there is empty space. She's made it clear she won’t turn anyone away.”

  “Can’t you close the portal?”

  The woman’s fingers dance over her slate. “Not from here. Someone has hacked into the main control module and inserted a local firewall of their own. Crude, but effective.”

  “None of that will matter when the acid begins to flow.” Mercer turns to face the woman. “Any idea when it will start?"

  “It’s already started in the area formerly known as Manhattan. The City is gone. Erased. Down to bedrock. And it’s all underwater anyway. It seems to be happening in random spots around the planet. Difficult to detect a pattern. Could happen here at any moment.”

  “The sooner the better.” Mercer bites another lemon and leans back in his chair. “All right then. Let’s do it.”

  The woman brushes her finger across the slate in her hand. Lights dim in the room.

  An image of Qaara appears on the screen.

  71

  THE VOTE

  The world is dying.

  The multitudes gathered in the auditorium are speechless. Images on the bluescreen are accompanied by shuffling feet and silent weeping.

  Like a pastor brooding over her congregation at a funeral, Qaara stands close to the rail of the stage, staring over the tops of heads at the video feeds from the parts of the planet still connected to the Mesh.

  All along the East Coast of North America, major population centers have fallen. Pods burst. Seawalls rupture.

  Qaara points at the bluescreen. “London.”

  One of the images on the bluescreen shows long lines of people snaking through the grounds between the domes.

  Ricky works his slate. “Twenty people per minute. That’s as fast as we can get them in. There’s only one entrance, and it's got an elevator. I hacked into the control unit and sped it up, but if I push it any harder—”

  “It might malfunction,” Qaara says. “At this rate, it will take days to get everyone in. We only have hours or minutes. We need another way."

  “Explosives.” Jedd lets go of her hand. “That’s the answer. We need explosives to blow away the elevator, shaft, everything. Then we clear away the debris. People will be able to walk in.”

  Ricky shakes his head. “The elevator shaft is thirty meters deep. You’ll end up with a big hole filled with twisted metal and junk. Could take days to clear.”

  “I tend to agree.”

  A voice as if from heaven shakes the auditorium.

  Every set of eyes swings to face the bluescreen. Mercer comes into view. He’s sitting, legs crossed. A lemon in his hand.

  “It’s a logistical nightmare.” Mercer takes a bite. “Believe me, I’ve been through it, over and over. And I always come to the same conclusion. Four simple words. You can’t save everyone.”

  Qaara leans forward into the rail, gripping it with white knuckles. “You knew what was going to happen. You could have saved millions more if you had shared the information earlier. Months earlier.”

  “I’m not going to quibble over numbers. The simple reality is that billions are going to die. It’s impossible to build enough domes and store enough food to save everyone. Once that realization took hold, the world would have descended into a desperate war of survival. Mass hysteria. Religious fanaticism. In humankind’s struggle for existence, culture and civilization would be cast aside. All that is of value would have been lost.” Mercer leans back. "In the end, I was forced to choose a better way. Orderly. Scientific. Neat. In short, perfection. The best of everything preserved by experts.”

  Jedd raises a fist at the bluescreen. “Desperate people are waiting outside. Thousands of them. You have no right to decide who lives and who dies.”

  “So I should just let them in?” Mercer extends his arms out into a T. “Open the doors wide?”

  “Yes!” cries Qaara.

  “Let’s put it to a vote.” Mercer motions to the screen, symbolically including everyone in the auditorium. “You’ve conveniently arranged a meeting. Let’s see what everyone thinks. But first, it’s only fair to make full disclosure about what's at stake.”

  “Don’t listen to him.” Qaara throws her arms out to the crowd. “Don't let him talk you out of what you know is right in your heart.”

  “We’ll see.” Mercer’s face grows larger on the screen as the camera zooms in. “It’s true I knew what was coming months ago. It game me time to prepare. First, the domes, built of material that resists the acid that will soon flood the world outside. I’ve set aside a carefully selected cross section of plant and animal specimens to repopulate the world after the acid neutralizes, which it will in three or four days. And I have enough food stored for years to keep 3,000 people alive, until agriculture can be restarted.”

  After this last remark, a chant flows through the crowd.

  “Let them in. Let them in.”

  “Now let’s talk about the people.” Mercer reaches off-screen and picks up a slate. “Each of you were selected using a sophisticated algorithm, one that took months to develop. Your scientific or social expertise, personality, genetic makeup, all of that was taken into account to maintain a careful balance to keep the group working together and moving forward through the difficult years ahead. What do you think will happen if we let random people in from the outside?”

  The chanting stops.

  “I’ve already modeled it while we’ve been talking.” Mercer's fingers dance over his slate. “You’re all exceptionally healthy. People from the outside will introduce disease into our population. We know nothing of their personalities. Most of them come from poor urban areas of Tokyo. All it takes is a few unsavory characters,” his eyes rest squarely on Qaara, “to di
vide us into factions, turn us against each other. There might be criminals among them. And then there is the issue that goes to the very core of our survival. Food."

  The crowd murmurs.

  “After the complete destruction of plant and animal life on the outside, it will take time to reestablish viable agriculture. Not months. Years. With thousands of new inhabitants, food will run out before we’re ready. You’ll all die of starvation if you don’t die before that in the battle for survival. When resources run low, the basest human instincts kick in. If you keep the doors open, there will be civil war.”

  The crowd erupts into a frenzy.

  “He’s wrong!” Jedd yells. “We can make it work. Trust your instincts. There has to be a way.”

  His voice is drowned by a sea of shouts.

  “Many of you are scientists.” Mercer’s voice booms across the heads of those gathered. “I submit my data for your analysis.” The bluescreen fills with graphs, charts and projections. “See for yourself.”

  Qaara whispers in Jedd’s ear. “He’s carrying the crowd with him. Playing on their fears.”

  “It’s not over yet.” Jedd pulls her closer.

  “Time to vote. With your feet.” Mercer’s face fills the bluescreen. His voice silences the crowd. “I appeal to your intelligence. If you believe me, if you trust me, if you want to follow me, if you have seen the vision I’ve tried to create, if you want to be part of the new world, then walk out of the auditorium now. Go back to your rooms. Shut the doors. Do what you know is right. Enjoy peace and quiet and harmony for the next three days while the world around you rages and dies, in chaos."

  “Don’t leave!” Jedd waves his arms, trying to change the momentum of the crowd. “We have to show Mercer that we won’t let the people outside die.”

  The doors to the auditorium burst open. Lines of security troops in black armor enter and stand at the perimeter, weapons pointing forward.

  “On the other hand, if your heart bleeds for the dregs of humanity that wait outside, if you yearn to join them, then stay here. I will personally see to it that your fate and theirs are one and the same.”