Beyond the railcar, however, the tunnel opened into what, on Earth, would have been a giant underground station worthy of the Paris or Moscow metros. And covering one wall of the station…a shimmering curtain of bubbles. “What on Earth is that?” Zhao said, pointing to the curtain.
“The way into the Skyphoi habitat,” Yvonne said. And just like that, the former order was restored: Zhao would question, Yvonne would answer for the Architect.
Yvonne turned to Rachel. “Your father called it a Membrane, I think.”
“My father.”
Zhao found that revelation interesting. “Did our friend Keanu tell you that?”
“No. During the first EVA, Zack sent video of something that looked just like that, only smaller, when he and Pogo and the others made that first ingress.” Zhao noticed that Yvonne was again blinking away tears. “God, that was only a week ago.”
“Or another lifetime,” Zhao said.
He and Pav and Rachel were following Yvonne and the Architect. The giant lumbered along like the drunks Zhao remembered seeing in the streets of Shuandong, though a more charitable explanation might be that its head kept brushing the top of the tunnel…and its legs appeared to be unsteady.
The dog trotted along happily, flanking them while taking momentary detours.
Zhao was fascinated by this big Membrane. “What’s on the other side?” he asked.
“The Skyphoi habitat.”
“So you said. Are we going in there?”
The lag between question and response was longer than expected. “No,” Yvonne said. “Keanu says you wouldn’t like it.”
“Can we be the judge of that?”
“He means, it will kill you. Atmospheric pressure too high, too toxic.”
“Is he going in?” Pav said.
“No,” Yvonne said. Before she could say anything more, the Architect slowed to a stop.
They were looking at what appeared to be an accident scene at a balloon festival…if you allowed for the fact that the festival was taking place indoors.
Three large spherical objects floated in the “station” area, occasionally bumping up against the Membrane. They were mostly blue in color, ranging from desert sky to almost aquamarine, with flickers of other shades, too. The creatures weren’t perfectly spherical; their shapes kept changing with a regular rhythm. It’s as if they’re breathing, Zhao thought—and why wouldn’t they?
The trio hovered over a fourth balloon, this one crimson in color, that lay half-deflated on the ground emitting clouds of nasty-smelling gas.
“Are these the Skyphoi?” Rachel said.
“Yes,” Yvonne said, “and that one is badly injured.”
Keanu the Architect approached the scene, stopping some distance away and freezing into near-immobility. Zhao caught Yvonne a handful of meters from the Keanu, with Pav and Rachel and Cowboy joining, too. He hoped this was a respectful distance.
He also hoped something would happen, because he felt even more paralyzed and helpless than at any time since being sluiced through the tunnels.
As they watched, the three Skyphoi barraged the Architect with colors. “They’re talking to him,” Yvonne said, “but he doesn’t understand. He needs a Skyphoi Revenant.”
Pav pointed to the dying Skyphoi. “What about that one?”
“That was the Skyphoi Revenant,” Yvonne said quietly. “We didn’t get here in time.”
The dog suddenly began barking furiously, startling the Architect and causing the Skyphoi to rise and bump against each other.
“What is it?” Pav asked.
Cowboy took off down the tunnel beyond the accident scene.
“God, I don’t like this,” Rachel said. Pav put his arm around her, a gesture Zhao appreciated. Even Yvonne seemed apprehensive.
Four figures emerged into the faint light of the “station,” one notably taller than the others and looking like an image from a dark ages nightmare.
The other three, however, were undeniably human, though as ragged as refugees. Zhao squinted…. Who were they? And what was that thing they were with?
Rachel Stewart suddenly broke free from Pav and ran toward them, screaming, “Daddy! Daddy!”
Part Seven
Second thoughts: Okay, voyages of exploration usually suck, at least for most of the voyagers. For every Columbus or Admiral Zheng He who gets his name in the history books, there are a few dozen or a few hundred people who die along the way, and nobody thinks about them.
I guess that’s how it goes.
On the plus side…you do get to see shit you’d never see if you stayed home. And meet some interesting people, depending on what you mean by people.
KEANU-PEDIA BY PAV, ENTRY #6
THE PRISONER
For many cycles, the Prisoner’s only wish was to escape from its chamber, and to somehow shame its Connate. With the small aid of the Two Arms, that task had been accomplished.
But what shocking surprises awaited it! The changes in the habitat, the disappearance of its former allies!
The relentless pressure from the Two Arms to move, and to consider—much less act in support of—their petty goals.
The moment had been supremely disorienting, a reminder of the horror the Prisoner had felt when first locked away in the annex to the Beehive.
With no contact with its allies, hampered by these new companions, its only option now was to return to the original goal from many cycles back…the original mission that had been the cause of its downfall.
It seemed so far in the past—seven plus seven cycles—that the Prisoner and its Connate had plotted to turn the Small Ones’ powers against them, creating their own assemblies that would fight, then absorb the others, giving the People final control of all habitats and the warship itself!
But then…to be betrayed by one’s Connate! To have been forced to make the Small Ones his allies against the People!
Now the Prisoner’s mission was clear: Locate its former manufacturing gear, and help the allies to shame and destroy the Connate.
Then…deal with the allies.
Help the allies. Shame and destroy its Connate.
Then, apparently, die.
Unless it found something new to live for.
MAKALI
Makali Pillay had endured many shocks and surprises since being scooped up in the Bangalore vesicle. But nothing prepared her for the sight of a teary teenage American girl running toward them. What was Rachel Stewart doing here? The last she knew, Zack’s daughter was in the human habitat with 180-plus others!
And Pav was with her. And the Chinese spy, Zhao.
And the dog!
And a human woman she recognized as Yvonne Hall, the dead Destiny astronaut.
Followed by the Architect, and three giant jellyfish creatures.
It was good that she’d barely eaten or slept in the past forty hours. Emotional numbness and nearly paralyzing fatigue allowed her to be objective. This wasn’t happening to her, this was some kind of lucid dream, one in which she knew what was happening, but was powerless to change it.
She feared for Zack Stewart’s mental health. He had been reunited not only with his daughter—he hadn’t even known she was missing!—but with Yvonne Hall. He was openly weeping, visibly confused, thoroughly shaken.
She realized that she was crying, too.
And so was Dale Scott. To Makali’s astonishment, he slid an arm around her and pulled her close. She could feel him trembling. “God,” he said. “We’d better get it together.”
Makali agreed, because they weren’t the only actors on this stage.
The Skyphoi had surrounded Dash. The Sentry stood impassive, almost immobile, as the giant balloon creatures bumped and floated above him, their colors flickering through the visible spectrum in what had to be deliberate patterns. “What do you suppose they’re saying?” Makali said.