“What will you do with us?” Thane said, sensing her thoughts. River pursed her lips.
“Nothing,” she said after a moment’s consideration. She made a sweeping gesture. “Do you see these people around you? They are the ones you betrayed. If you want forgiveness, they’re the ones you’ll have to convince.”
She turned her attention back to the crowd. “All right, show’s over. I want everyone to get some rest. We’ll be out of the water soon, and then we’ll have work to do.”
Chapter 12
River spent the next hour in the front passenger car of the train with Pirate. During that time, the Horse crossed another bridge that spanned a deep gorge in the sea bottom, and then began a long, steady climb towards the surface. Gradually, the water outside the windows turned from black to murky green. Eventually, River saw diffuse rays of silver light shining down from above.
Pirate took notice of this change and spent a good twenty minutes perched on the back of the seat, gazing out through the windows. When one of the glowing eels passed by the window, Pirate made a strange warbling, chirping noise that River might have mistaken for a bird if she had heard it in the wild. Soon after that came a school of fish, and Pirate’s excitement increased exponentially. He began growling and barking. He leapt from his perch on the back of one seat to the next, and went racing back and forth along the windows until the fish vanished from sight.
At last, the locomotive broke through the surface with a crash of water and roaring waves. It was night, and a full moon rested just above the horizon in the west. River leapt to her feet, unlatched the door, and raced up to the locomotive cab.
She checked the fuel gauge first, and saw that the Iron Horse had enough starfall left in the tank to travel a few more miles. It was not nearly enough to reach New Boston, but more than enough to see the train and its crew safely to land. Pirate crawled up onto the map table and rested on his haunches, watching her intently. River leaned out of the cab, checking on the rest of the cars. One by one, they exploded out of the water. Torrents of seawater splashed down, forming a glistening river along the tracks that captured the brilliant starlight and cast it back against the walls of the train in wavering reflections. Silver moonlight cascaded down over a smooth barren landscape, and a backdrop of snowcapped mountains seemed to shimmer and glow against the dark sky.
At last, River released the pressure valves and activated the Iron Horse’s brakes. As the train rolled to a stop, she glanced at the wet, still form of Socrates in the copilot’s chair.
“We made it,” she said in a whisper, gazing into his blank stare. “Thank you.”
As soon as the train had stopped, the rest of the crew emerged. It was late, well after midnight, but they were eager to be off the Horse, and to get a look at where their journey had taken them. A few crewmembers came up to the locomotive to check on Socrates.
“He’s so still,” Shayla observed quietly. “He really does seem…”
“Dead,” Micah finished. “It’s like he’s not there anymore. Like it’s just a toy.”
“The flesh is but a vessel,” said Loren. “Nothing more. This is what the Tal’mar believe. Perhaps Socrates has gone on to the next world, to join our ancestors.”
“He’s a machine,” said Vann. “A machine can’t go to the next world.”
“Maybe not,” said Thane, appearing at the rear of the group. “But it can be brought back to life.”
“No,” River said. “I’ve already explained this to Micah. I swore to see this train and its crew to New Boston, and I will do as I promised. If we find more starfall someday, then perhaps I can revive Socrates.”
“Don’t say that,” said Micah. He pushed through the crowd and emerged at the base of the stairs, looking up at her. “We all know how much Socrates means to you. To all of us. We know what he sacrificed. I say we go after Burk, and get our starfall back. To hell with New Boston!”
Several people cheered. “I’m with you!” said Thane.
“And I,” said Loren.
River gazed at their expectant faces and her heart sank. “I promised him,” she said wearily. “Even if I hadn’t, it wouldn’t make any difference. Burk could be anywhere. Even if we knew which way he had gone, we’d never catch up. He has an airship. We have a train. The Horse can only go in one direction, and that’s where the rails take us. I know you want to help Socrates. I know you want to punish Burk for what he’s done. Don’t you think I feel the same way? But I have responsibilities. I’m responsible for all of you, as well as this train, and I can’t set that aside. Not for revenge, not even to help another crewmember.”
She thought of Kale, and couldn’t help but wonder what had become of him. River wasn’t worried about his safety. She knew that Kale would be all right, whether he was trapped back in Port Haven or had already set out on some new adventure. What bothered her was the knowledge that she might never see him again.
Kale was the closest thing to family that she had. Even her mother, somewhere back in Astatia, didn’t know River the way Kale did. While River had been growing up under the tyrannical rule of the Vangars, her mother had been lost in the Wastelands. Kale had been there throughout her childhood, through the war, even when they first discovered Sanctuary. But now he was gone, and with the world the way it was, the chances were that she’d never see him again.
She turned her back to the crew. Over her shoulder, she added, “At first light, we will take stock of the tracks ahead and begin our search for fuel. We’ll need a full load of firewood if we’re going to make it to New Boston. That means a lot of work is ahead of us, so go get some rest.”
The crew disbanded with some quiet grumbling. River pulled a steamwagon off the train and carefully hauled Socrates’ body back to the engineering car. Once she had him on the bench, River found that she could gently manipulate the ape’s robotic limbs into a reclining position so she could strap him safely down. During the process, his inner gears and springs made unnerving sounds that were far more noticeable than when he’d been alive.
River grabbed a cloth and a tin of grease, and went to work. She stayed up late into the night, cleaning and oiling the gorilla’s inner machinery. She found a worn bronze gear that she replaced with a more durable steel gear. After that, she cleaned Socrates’ memory banks, a series of glass tubes and electrical components designed to store information though a complex set of thousands of tiny switches. River didn’t know exactly how the system worked -she wasn’t even sure if Socrates had known that- but she was sure that it all needed to be dry and clean in order to function properly. She spent two hours meticulously doing just that.
Finally, exhaustion overcame her, and River stretched out on a narrow bench along the wall. As she fell asleep, Pirate curled up on her chest and began to purr.
Pirate woke when the morning light came shining through the windows, warming his skin and heating up the interior of the train. The furry creature had burrowed into the cradle of River’s arm during the night, and he tried to wake her now by making cute cooing noises and shifting his position every few seconds. When that didn’t work, Pirate raised the stakes by climbing up onto her chest and licking River’s face. She turned her head the other way, but Pirate remained determined. He bit her playfully on the end of the nose. At last, River’s eyes fluttered open.
“I see it’s time to get up,” she said with a yawn. Pirate sat back on his haunches, tilting his head sideways as he stared down at her.
River lifted Pirate by the scruff of his neck and set him on the workbench next to her as she rose to a sitting position. She moaned as her cuts and bruises sent jolts of pain through her body. The salve had long since worn off. River was tempted to apply more, but she resisted the thought. It was better to suffer through the pain than to dull it. If she became too reliant on such luxuries, her tolerance of pain would be low, and River knew she would not always have a salve or medicine handy.
She took Pirate to the dining car, and found that Vann and
the others had erected breakfast tables outside. The cook had prepared eggs, seasoned potatoes, and grilled meat. It was a luxurious meal and River felt guilty at first, staring down at her plate, knowing that the train had a limited supply of such food.
“Enjoy it while you can,” Vann said encouragingly. “In a few days, we’ll be in New Boston and our food stores will do us no good then.”
River glanced at his smiling face and couldn’t be angry. Vann and the rest of the crew were all trying to make the best of the short time they had left on the Iron Horse. Their future was uncertain. No one knew what would happen to them, or the train, once they reached their destination.
River settled down at one of the tables to eat. She shared a generous portion of her breakfast with Pirate. The coon didn’t care much for potatoes, but he would have finished the meat entirely if River had allowed it. As it was, the furry creature ended up with two-thirds of her serving.
“Ship!” someone called out. River turned in her seat and squinted against the light of the morning sun reflected in the choppy waves of the sea. In the distance, she saw the colorful sails of a carrack moving in their direction. Micah appeared next to her.
“I thought the ships only sailed to other villages,” he said. “According to my maps, the nearest village is several miles north of here.” River rose to her feet.
“Pirate, spyglass!” she commanded. The raccoon burst into action. He leapt from the table and went racing down the rails so fast that he kicked up a cloud of dust in his wake. He leapt onto the side of one of the railcars, scaled the outer wall to the roof, and went speeding down the train, leaping from roof to roof, until he came to an open hatch and disappeared inside.
“Do you think it’s Burk?” Micah said.
“I don’t know. I didn’t get a good look at the ship he was on, but I doubt this is the same one.”
A few seconds later, Pirate returned carrying the scope in a small leather case that he had slung over his back. River accepted it, and thanked him with a scratch behind the ears. She extended the spyglass to full length and put it to her eye. In the distance, she saw the crew pulling in the ship’s sails. A familiar dark-haired warrior stood at the bow of the ship.
“Well?” Micah said. “What do you see?”
River glanced at him. “It’s Kale,” she said, smiling.
She put the glass back to her eye. A woman had appeared next to Kale. She had long, elegantly curling black hair and dark skin. She was barefoot, wearing knee breeches and a white blouse tied in a knot at her waist. The woman put her arm around Kale, and the warrior turned to face her. They drew close, embracing, and he leaned in to kiss her…
River raised her eyebrows but said nothing. She slammed the spyglass shut and set it on the table.
The ship anchored three hundred yards offshore and the crew launched a rowboat. Less then thirty minutes after their first sighting, Kale was standing on the rocky shoreline with the waves crashing around his boots. New boots, River noted as she watched him wade up the shore. New shirt and breeches as well. New everything, she thought, gazing at the dark-skinned woman who had come along with him.
As the crew of the Iron Horse raced down to the beach to meet Kale, Micah caught River by the arm and dragged her along as well. They all swarmed around the tall warrior, and River could only see his head and shoulders sticking up in the crowd. Then, as she closed in on the group, the crowd seemed to part and River found herself standing face to face with Kale. He threw his arms around her and lifted her off her feet.
“I knew you wouldn’t leave without me!” he said. She winced as his arms closed around her wounds.
“We didn’t have much choice,” said River, struggling to breathe in the warrior’s powerful bear hug. “We ran into some trouble.”
“I can see that.” Kale set her back on her feet and took a step back, looking her up and down. “What happened to you?”
River lifted her shirt slightly, and turned so Kale could see her back. He let out a whistle.
“You came out worse than me,” he said. He tore off his new white shirt to proudly display the stitches racing up his chest and the massive purple bruise on his left shoulder.
“All that is from when you missed the train?”
“Yep. What happened to you?”
“It’s a long story.”
The dark-skinned woman appeared next to Kale, smiling, beautiful. River noticed a slender scimitar hanging from her belt. The woman put a hand on Kale’s shoulder.
“Oh!” he said. “I forgot to introduce you. River, this is Captain Rowena Skyhart. Rowena, this is River, my best friend since we were children.”
“Kale has told me much about you,” the woman said.
“Captain?” said River. “Then that is your ship?”
“Yes, I run cargo throughout the Forgotten Sea, as well as up and down the coast.”
“Do you have maps?” Micah said suddenly. They all looked down. River hadn’t even realized he was standing next to her.
“Aye,” said Rowena. “A lifetime’s worth.”
“Can I see them?”
“You’d have to board my ship,” she said. “I won’t bring them to land.”
“We’ll have a talk with Socrates,” said Kale. “I’m sure he can spare a few hours.”
River and Micah exchanged a glance. Kale noted the look, and he frowned. “What?” he said. “Did I say something wrong?”
“It’s Socrates,” River said. “You should take a seat. This is a long story.”
She guided the small group back to the breakfast tables, and they all settled down. Pirate leapt onto the table and perched himself on River’s shoulder. Rowena grinned broadly.
“It is appears I am not the only sailor here,” she said.
“He was a gift,” River explained. She handed Pirate a morsel of food and he greedily munched it down.
“I know this animal,” said Rowena. “His name is Pirate?”
“Yes. How did you know?”
“I am familiar with all the other sailors in the sea. Pirate was quite famous, in his day.”
“His day?” said River.
“Yes. Did the seller not explain this to you?” Seeing River’s perplexed look, Rowena smiled and continued to explain: “Coons are clever, agile creatures. They are very useful shipboard. However, as they age, the creatures grow more stubborn and moody. They defy orders and cause all sorts of mischief. They can even become violent, if provoked. These are the sort of animals you find for sale on the boardwalk.”
“Then Pirate is old?” River said.
“Relatively speaking. Coons can live to be twenty, perhaps even more. I’d say Pirate is about half that. He has many years of life left, but unfortunately, at that age, most of their good years are already used up.”
“He seems fine to me,” said Kale.
“Perhaps,” Rowena said with a nod. “Every creature is different. Then again, the seller was getting rid of him for some reason, no?”
“I’m sure he’ll be fine,” Kale said. “Anyway, what were you going to tell us about Socrates? Did something happen to him?”
River fixed her gaze on a distant point, and began to explain all that had happened during Kale’s absence. Micah helped with the story when River’s voice faltered, and Vann chimed in a few times as well. When it was all done, River was emotionally exhausted. She felt like she had just relived the entire experience. The story rendered Kale practically speechless.
“Well this…” he started. “This is just…”
“It will be all right,” River said. “I promised to get the crew to New Boston, and I will do that. Once they are all safe, then I can try to find some starfall. Maybe even see if I can track Burk down.”
“No!” Kale said. He slammed his fist down on the table so hard that it jumped. Pirate barked. “We have to go after him. We have to go now!”
River shook her head. “We can’t, Kale. We can only go where the tracks take us. Besides, we’re ou
t of fuel, and we have no idea where to find Burk. It would be a waste of valuable resources, and dangerous for the crew.”
“I know where he went,” said Rowena. They both turned to stare at her. “I saw the whole thing. It all happened so fast… my crew was terrified. They thought the Vangars were attacking us.”
“Vangars?” said River. “You know of them?”
“We have all heard your stories. A group of raiders matching that description came through this area earlier this year, but we drove them away. They were strong, but well outnumbered. They may have been Vangars. I saw others like them on the ship that stole your boxcar.”
River leaned forward on her elbows, staring at her hands as she considered this new information. “It doesn’t matter,” she said with a dismissive gesture. “It wasn’t Vangars who stole our fuel; it was Burk, one of our own. Even if you did see which way he went, there is no way we could catch him. We’re tied to the tracks.”
“We’ll take a steamwagon,” said Kale.
“The mountains are too steep, and even if we made it across them, we’d be stuck in the Wastelands.”
“What if you had a ship?” Rowena said.
River glanced at her. “A ship?”
“An airship, like the one your crewman used.”
“Are you talking about your ship?” River said.
“Of course. The Lady Fair could be made to fly, could she not? It doesn’t seem that complicated. I couldn’t do it without your help, of course.”
“But we…” River hesitated, glancing back and forth between them. “We would need balloons. Or at least one large balloon, but it would have to be massive. Several times the size of your ship.”
“And how are these balloons made?”
“Fabric,” River said. “But not just any fabric. It must be lightweight but strong, and dense enough to hold in the air.”
“Like my sails?” Rowena said.
“I suppose, but much larger. It would take several dozen sails like that.”
Killing the Machine (Aboard the Great Iron Horse Book 2) Page 10
