She turned her attention back to the matter at hand.
A train was being made ready. Just one train to conquer Artemis.
‘It took a division to take Wien,’ Kavan had declared. ‘It took a regiment to take Turing City. We’ll take Artemis with a battalion.’
Eleanor didn’t argue. Kavan had been proved right so far.
He had summoned his troops, ordered oil and cleaning fluid. Forges had been set up along one platform; he had the quartermasters set up shop along the next. The chosen robots had stripped their bodies down, cleaned and repaired themselves and each other and rebuilt themselves afresh for yet another battle. The activity had slowed the removal of material from Turing City, but this was more important.
The train on which they were to travel was newly built: a functional thing of unpainted metal, edges of solder and curls of swarf marring its unsmoothed extent. The troops were already boarding.
Kavan, Wolfgang and Ruth took their places in the lead carriage. Kavan finally noticed Eleanor.
‘Come in here,’ he said. ‘I’ll need you with me.’
Eleanor made to join him in the lead carriage, pleased to be back amongst the minds of the army. Kavan gave her a rare smile as she climbed into the carriage; her feet echoing like a drum beat on the bare metal floor.
‘I’d rather have you in here where I can watch you than out there plotting behind my back,’ he said.
Eleanor smiled. ‘How well you know me, Kavan.’
Vision returned. Then sound.
‘Three minds,’ said someone, and Karel was shown two minds nestled into a metal frame. There was space for a third between them. His own, he presumed. Questions began clamouring for his attention. How was he seeing? Where were his eyes? Where was his body?
‘You control this locomotive,’ said the voice. And his vision moved, giving him a view along the dull grey length of the freshly built machine. He saw the roughly cut metal, the unfiled coils of swarf curling from the ends of panels. The view swept further along the train’s length, showing a line of bare metal carriages, infantryrobots climbing on board. The view shifted again, and for a moment it lingered on the platform. He saw his old body stripped of its panelling, arms and legs removed, head empty. And then his vision moved again and it was gone.
‘Your coil has been hooked up as follows,’ said the voice. ‘Your legs are linked to the motor. It’s diesel, so give it time to warm up. It should have a good midrange pull, this model usually does. Left arm linked to the brakes, right arm to the gears. You’ll soon get the hang of it. You’ve got ears so that you can be told what to do. You’ve got a mouth, but unless we want to hear from you we won’t be using it. Mostly we’ll just have you linked to a buzzer. One beep for yes, two for no. Long beep if you see something important.’
I should have fought while I had the chance, thought Karel bitterly. That wild, unreasoning anger that had always filled his life was swirling inside his mind, searching for a release. There was none.
Suddenly, his thoughts were with his mother. For the first time in his life he had empathy with Liza, an understanding of just how powerless she had been on the night of his making.
It came as a revelation. For the first time in his life he realized something cruciaclass="underline" who could blame her for what she had done? Kneeling before an Artemisian soldier, a gun held to her head, she had done her best to keep the terror from her mind, but the anger that she had felt was woven into Karel’s mind.
The voice continued speaking. ‘There are three minds. Disobey orders and your coil will be crushed. We’ll just link up one of the other minds. Do you understand?’
Rust your mind! shouted Karel. All that emerged was a strangled beeping.
‘One beep for yes,’ said the voice.
Karel said nothing.
‘Answer me now or I hook up the next mind. I do that, and you may end up riding this train in limbo until you die.’
To take away his sight as well, to take away what little sensation he had left, the thought filled him with terror. Yes, said Karel, and he heard a single beep.
‘I knew you understood. Hey, think yourself lucky that you are the middle mind. It must mean you’ve got a friend somewhere. Okay, you’ll be setting off soon, so watch the signals.’
And that was it.
There was darkness for a moment, and then his mind was plugged properly into the locomotive. He saw the view down the tracks before him, and then, with a surge of awakening, he felt the power of the diesel engine.
What to do? He practised revving the engine. He practised pulling at the brakes with his arm.
This was what Artemis did to minds, he realized. It treated them like things. Now his mind was nothing more than metal to be employed by Artemis in its never-ending conquest. He had warned Banjo Macrodocious about this, but he had never expected it to happen to himself.
He was jolted from his reverie by the voice. ‘Hey, can’t you see the light? It’s time to go!’
He noticed the green signal shining up ahead. He concentrated on walking, felt the surge of diesel power. He saw the sleepers begin to slip beneath him. He was moving.
‘Okay, engine, I don’t expect to have to speak to you again. We’re off now. Next stop Artemis City.’ Karel heard a little laughing noise, and then the voice spoke again.
‘And take care driving, you’ve got Kavan himself on your train.’
Karel emerged from the wrecked railway station into Copper Valley. The train picked its way over the bridges and points as he headed north. North to Artemis City.
The journey northward passed without incident. Even Eleanor was silent. She just sat in the corner of the carriage, cleaning her rifle, sharpening her knives, making herself ready for the coming battle.
The others were much the same. Wolfgang, his aide, stared at the ceiling, concentrating. Ruth remained standing, swaying with the movement of the train.
Kavan wondered at how he now felt. Was he doing the right thing, or had his hand been forced? Something didn’t feel right.
‘Why is the train stopping?’ he asked.
‘I don’t know,’ said Eleanor. ‘Pendric, Dylan, find out what’s going on.’
The train was slowing to a halt. Two grey infantry-robots slid open the carriage door.
‘Get up the front to the driver,’ called Eleanor, and the two robots dropped out onto the desolate plain that lay outside.
Kavan went to the door and looked out. The sun was going down, huge and red, setting the underside of the dark clouds on fire, lighting up the thin gusts of rain that the cold wind sent splashing over his metal skin. He could see another train in the distance, running on a nearly parallel track. It seemed to be setting out from Artemis City, heading towards Stark or Segre.
‘We’re almost there,’ said Eleanor, leaning forward from the train beside him. ‘I can see the city. I can see the Basilica. It’s all lit up in red.’
The robots waited in silence, the metal of their bodies plinking and pattering as the rain drops fell on them.
There was a shout from ahead.
‘Kavan,’ called Pendric. ‘I’ve got some engineers building an observation tower. There’s something that you need to see.’
‘What is it?’
‘I think you’d be better looking from the tower.’
‘What about the attack?’ said Eleanor.
‘Patience,’ said Kavan.
He dropped out into the rain, and made his way to the skeletal tower that was quickly taking shape.
‘Safe to go up now,’ said one of the engineers.
Kavan nodded, and then swarmed up the rods they had left protruding from the sides of the tower, using them as a ladder.
The city confronted him: a magnificent, smoky mass of metal sprawling over the barren plain.
And, as he looked back at Artemis City, Kavan did something that many of his followers had never seen him do before.