“They’ve figured out the first part of the message, that’s what got them this far, but that last line ‘they must know that the field is collapsing, and the void follows behind’ means nothing to me. Nothing at all. It seemed sensible to ask you two, as all three of us must have been placed here for a reason.” He eyed his companions. “Vihaan, anything?”
Vihaan was concentrating, but shook his head, “No, nothing springs immediately to mind.”
All faces turned to look at Miko.
“Miko?” said Michael.
She, too, took a long pause before answering, and I was sure that she was also going to say she had no idea what it meant, but instead, she whispered, “Perhaps, but I hope that I am wrong.”
All of us except Albert instinctively edged a little closer to her.
“My main field of research,” Miko said, “was the study of the Higgs field and a particle called the Higg’s Boson.”
“I’ve heard of it,” I said, “but I have no idea what it does.”
Miko smiled, “It is complicated, but to put it as simply as I can, it is the particle responsible for giving every other particle in the universe its mass.”
“Okay,” I said. “Still don’t understand, but how does that relate to the last line of the Architect’s message?”
“Rather than explain, if you will indulge me, it would be better if I showed you.”
“Go right ahead,” said Freuchen, his eyes not leaving Miko. I had to smile; it was pretty obvious that the arrival of this brilliant woman had reduced Freuchen to puppy dog status. He would be tripping over his own tongue if he wasn’t careful.
Miko pointed at the glass marbles Albert held in his hand. “Albert, may I have one?”
Albert nodded enthusiastically, glad to be invited into the adult conversation.
Miko took a marble and placed it carefully on the table, just a few inches from the edge.
“Imagine the marble is our universe, nestled comfortably within the Higgs field,” she said, lowering herself down until her eyes were level with the table. She tapped the tabletop with a knuckle. “To us, the universe appears just fine, everything working as it was intended, with the Higgs field in a stable low-energy state, a state that is known as a true vacuum.” She paused for a second, letting her words sink in, then continued. “But it could all be a lie, we could actually be in what physicists call a meta-stable state, one where our universe appears to be stable but actually exists in a false vacuum. Theoretically, the universe could stay in that state forever, and we would be none the wiser. But… if a high-energy event occurs anywhere within our universe, it could disrupt the Higgs field sufficiently enough to force a portion of the universe out of its false vacuum and into a true vacuum.” Miko gave the marble a gentle nudge with her finger sending it rolling off the edge and into Albert’s lap.”
“And that would be bad?” I said.
“It would be very, very bad,” said Miko.
Chou nodded, adding, “The end of… everything.”
Miko said, “The true vacuum would expand outward at the speed of light in an ever-increasing bubble, changing the state of everything within it from false vacuum to true. It would mean the destruction of everything that holds our reality together. The very fundamental laws of physics would change; nothing would remain the same. It would mean not only the end of life in this universe but also the end of the potential for life.”
“I think it might be even worse than that,” Chou said. For the next couple of minutes, she explained how she and her husband, the AI of the science vessel The Shining Way had been assigned to investigate what she had called Vagrant particles, strange particles that simply should not exist in our universe, that had leaked through from alternate dimensions. “I believe that the Architect may have developed technology to access the alternate universes through these rifts, which allowed it to bring all of us here.”
“Okay,” I said, looking at Freuchen, “I think we’re following.” He nodded that he was. “So, what does that mean?”
“It means,” Chou continued, grim-faced, not only the end of the universe where the false vacuum event occurred but also the destruction of any other alternate universe connected to it. It could destroy not just everything that is, but everything that has been, too. There would be nothing left. Not only would humanity cease to exist, it might cease to have ever existed.”
Michael blinked several times. Vihaan seemed to melt into his chair. I’d thought that delivering my message to Candidate 1 would be the end of my role, but it was becoming obvious that, instead, it was just the beginning.
Vihaan cleared his throat. “But surely, if what Miko says is true, then the Architect must have found a way to counteract that disaster, or why else would it have brought all of us here? And why task Meredith with bringing us the message? It would not make any sense unless the Architect had already deduced a way to either stop it or save us.”
Chou nodded in agreement.
“Well,” Miko said, “let us assume I am correct, there is no way for us to prove it and certainly no way to stop it.”
“Vy not?” Freuchen said.
“The bubble generated by the event that shifting from false vacuum to true vacuum is expanding at the speed of light. There is no way for us to detect it.”
“Then how would the Architect have known it was even happening?” Michael asked.
“A good question,” Miko said. “And one I regret I do not have an answer for.”
“I think I do,” I said. “If the technology the Architect used to bring us here allowed it to effectively move back and forth through time within any other universe outside of our own, then wouldn’t it be possible to have maybe seen this false vacuum bubble destroying other universes?”
Chou nodded solemnly. “I think you may be right. And if that is what the Architect saw, then it would have been logical to draw the conclusion that it was also happening here in this universe.”
“There’s another possibility,” Vihaan said, suddenly animated.
“Go on,” Michael said.
“We are forgetting a simple fact: if there are infinite universes out there, then it stands to reason that there are other Architects, too. Perhaps one of them communicated with our Architect and confirmed that the event was indeed occurring and that this universe was in imminent jeopardy.”
“Wow!” I said. I hadn’t really given the idea that there were other versions of me and my companions out there in alternate universes much thought since we had landed at the bay after leaving Avalon. It was mind-blowing.”
“Whichever is true,” Michael said, “I think Vihaan is right—it doesn’t make sense for the Architect to have brought us here only to tell us it’s the end of the universe. They must have thought it through, and there must be a way out of it. There has to be more to the Architect’s plan than we first thought.”
“Now, if only we knew where the Architect was located so we could ask them,” I said with a deep sigh.
Michael stood up and began pacing back and forth.
“Are you feeling alright?” Freuchen said.
Michael nodded but continued to pace quickly back and forth, then suddenly stopped, placed both hands on the table, and leaned toward us. “I think I may know where to find the Architect,” he said.
I leaped to my feet. “What? Why didn’t you say earlier?”
“I wasn’t entirely sure,” he said, “but the more I think about it, the more I am convinced that I am right. It all makes sense to me. Why I would be here and why I would be designated as Candidate 1.”
“Where?” Chou demanded. “Tell us.”
“What’s wrong with Blue Alpha?” Albert said suddenly.
“What?” I said, annoyed that the boy had distracted us at such a critical point in our discussion.
“Look at Blue Alpha,” Albert insisted, pointing to where the robot hung in midair, unmoving. Her lenses all glowed red, and her tentacles were locked rigidly in place at every j
oint, so they all pointed straight down like she was a soldier standing at attention.
“Blue Alpha? Are you okay?” I asked, but she said nothing.
Silas began to make his way toward her, “Perhaps, there is something I can—”
With a sudden explosion of movement that sent me and everyone except for Chou leaping from our seats, Blue Alpha sped across the room and crashed into the wall, sending bits of plaster and wood into the air. She pulled back six feet and did it again, then again, and again. Silas strode across the room in a couple of huge leaps and threw his arms around her, pulling her to his chest like she was some kind of rogue basketball. But even his immense strength could barely contain her, and she struggled to continue her seemingly insane act of self-harm.
“What is that?” Vihaan said, taking a step backward and knocking his chair over.
“Look out!” I hissed when I saw the unmistakable glowing eyes of one of the same robo-bugs that had spied on us when we’d first arrived on Avalon and assassinated the Nazi commander, staring back at me from just over the threshold of the doorway. Before any of us could react, a second robo-bug came through the doorway, climbing across the ceiling, then a third and a fourth appeared.
Chou picked up a chair and threw it at the doorway, scattering the bugs. Two of them vanished back into the corridor. The other two spread out across the walls, one on either side of us.
“Don’t let them near you,” I screamed. “They’re deadly.” I grabbed Michael and pulled him backward while Albert, Miko, and Vihaan rushed to join us.
“Get behind this,” Freuchen said, flipping the table over onto its side. It wasn’t much of a barrier, but it would have to do.
Meanwhile, Chou leaped to her feet, grabbed her chair by its legs, and advanced on the nearest robo-bug. The tiny assassin seemed focused on stalking my little group and didn’t see her coming until it was too late. It leaped from the wall toward the ceiling, but Chou’s lightning-fast reflexes were too quick for it, she swung the chair and caught it in midair, knocking it back into the wall. It bounced and tumbled to the floor. There was a crunch as Chou brought her foot down hard on it, sending pieces spinning.
Chou whipped around and ran at the last bug. She swung the chair again, but this one was more alert. It dropped from the wall to the floor and leaped for Chou, who was now using the chair like she was a lion tamer. It leaped again, and Chou managed to catch it mid-flight, not hard enough to do any damage, but with enough force to send it skidding across the floor on its back. Chou ran after it to deliver the coup de grâce, but before she reached it, it righted itself and scuttled out the door into the corridor, Chou in hot pursuit.
As soon as the bug had vanished into the corridor, Blue Alpha relaxed in Silas’ arms. Her tentacles returned to their normal graceful ebb and flow. Silas released her, and she floated away from him.
“You have to leave, now,” Blue Alpha said urgently, her voice resonating with panic. “Quickly, follow me.”
“Why?” I yelled, falling in with the others around our new metal friend.
“The collector has been breached,” she said matter-of-factly. “Something is here.”
Twenty-Three
We grabbed our packs and equipment from the dormitory.
“Albert,” I said, “I want you to stay back with Michael and our new friends. I’m relying on you to keep them safe, okay?”
Albert nodded enthusiastically. Michael caught my eye and gave his own subtle nod acknowledging that he would watch over the boy. When we reached the foyer, Chou and I crept forward and peaked out through the open doors. Blue Alpha’s main chassis was where she’d left it. The open ground between us and the tunnel back through the mountain looked clear.
“Let’s go,” I said and started to edge through the door only to be tugged back inside by Chou.
“Look!” she hissed, pointing a finger toward the doors of the tunnel we’d entered through.
A tall black shape stepped into the threshold. It looked more like a human-shaped black hole than a man, sucking in all light around it, which was why I hadn’t seen it standing in the shadow of the tunnel’s entranceway.
“Abernathy,” I croaked, my throat suddenly dry.
Abernathy walked a few paces into the open, his black cloak swirling around him as though it was a living, thinking thing. His head moved from side to side as he surveyed the land and buildings. I instinctively ducked further behind the door as his gaze moved over our hiding place. He stopped, staring, it seemed to me, directly at us.
“Do you think he saw me?” I whispered to Chou.
She shook her head. “I don’t think so. It’s more likely he’s looking at Blue Alpha’s chassis.” Blue Alpha’s main chassis still hovered silently above the ground, where she’d detached herself from it, just a few feet away from the steps leading down from the doorway.
With long, purposeful steps, Abernathy began to walk toward us. Behind him, a steady stream of people began to step out of the tunnel. At least, some of them were still people, most were changed; their skin covered in thin, ropey black coils that covered each of them to varying degrees as though there was some kind of a process of assimilation going on. I stifled a gasp of horror as I saw a creature that was made of conjoined humans, fixed together by the ropey material to create a new, fast-moving, almost crab-like new being. More came into view, scuttling toward their master like a pack of hellhounds.
“Back inside,” Chou urged, and we retreated into the foyer where a worried-looking Michael and the rest of the group waited.
“There’s no way we’re going to get to the exit without being seen,” I said. “There’s just too many of them.”
Chou said, “It’s not going to take them long before they reach here. Then it’ll just be a matter of time before they find us.”
“I have an idea,” Blue Alpha said. “There are maintenance tunnels that crisscross the entire property. About thirty feet to the east of this building is an access panel. There’s another shaft that comes up close to the entrance tunnel.”
“There’s no way we will make it across any open ground without Abernathy or one of those… things seeing us,” Chou said.
“I know,” Blue Alpha said, “which is why I will need to cause a distraction.”
“No,” I said, “you have to come with us. You don’t know what Abernathy is capable of.”
“I swore to protect this facility and everyone in it,” Blue Alpha said. “I will do that.”
“There has to be another way,” Miko said.
“This is the only way,” Blue Alpha replied adamantly. “Now, you must leave. Quickly, come with me.”
We followed her down several corridors until she stopped at another, smaller door. “Stay close to the wall of the building until I have time to distract the intruders. I will lead them away. Take the passage and follow it north until you reach the third access shaft. That one will get you closest to the tunnel.”
“But—” I began to say in a final attempt to stop her, but I knew it was no use. Instead, I simply said, “Thank you.”
Blue Alpha rustled her tentacles, turned, and sped back toward the foyer.
One after another, we filed out of the door, pressing ourselves against the smooth, cool tower wall until we reached the building’s corner.
“There’s the panel,” Chou said, pointing to a square metal box protruding out of the ground about thirty feet to our right. From our position, the building effectively blocked us from the sight of Abernathy and his minions, but that also meant we couldn’t see what he was doing. Chou was the only one who had a clear view, crouched at the corner, her head angled just enough around it to be able to see what was going on.
“Get ready to run when I tell you,” Chou said.
Everyone but Chou jumped as, without warning, Blue Alpha’s voice boomed across the fields and open ground. “You are not authorized to be here. You will leave immediately or suffer the consequences.”
“Ready…” Cho
u said.
The sound of metal crashing against metal rang out.
“Now!” Chou yelled, loud enough to be heard over the cacophony.
One after the other, we sprinted toward the access panel—Freuchen, Albert and Michael first, followed by Vihaan and Miko, then Silas and me. Chou was the last to leave. Freuchen was already lifting the heavy metal manhole when Chou and I reached it. Only when everyone but Chou and I were safely in did I dare to look back toward the tunnel’s opening.
Halfway between the tunnel and the tower, Blue Alpha had engaged Abernathy’s minions. She picked them up in her tentacles and smashed them into the ground or tossed them back away as though they were nothing, cut others in half with her saws, or crushed them with her hammer.
Abernathy stood with his back to us, oblivious to our presence, silently directing the attack. A phalanx of his minions broke free of the main horde and maneuvered around behind Blue Alpha. They dove at her. She managed to fend off most of them, but not all of them. I saw three black shapes clambering up her chassis like mountaineers climbing a rock face.
“Meredith! Move!” Chou urged, pushing me.
I snapped out of my stupor, and continued down the ladder, unwilling to look back at the carnage spilling out across the land.
The maintenance tunnel was large enough for Freuchen and Chou to stand shoulder-to-shoulder as they splashed through a couple of inches of stagnant water that had collected on the concrete floor. Silas and I brought up the rear behind Michael, Miko, Vihaan, and Albert. Michael was old, but he was still sprightly and didn’t slow our pace.
“Here,” Freuchen said when we reached the next access shaft leading back up on the other side of the complex. “I’ll go up first.” He climbed the ladder and pushed the cover up an inch so he could see out. “My God!” he whispered, his voice echoing down to us. “They are everyvare.”
He replaced the lid and climbed back down.
A Memory of Mankind: (This Alien Earth Book 2) Page 22
