Shadow Heart (47 page)

“How?”

“Through technology. Every surveillance device in existence can theoretically be appropriated by the central computer. The base server of the AI is in Alexandria beneath the palace, but in truth the entity is everywhere. In everything connected to the grid. It is probably listening to this conversation at this very moment.”

A chill traveled up Grace’s spine. “The way you talk about it sounds almost like how someone would speak of…”

“God?” Liz asked.

Grace nodded, trying to quell her discomfort. It seemed wrong to even make the connection between a being like God and this machine, but if others knew of this…

“Some will think so,” Liz echoed her thoughts. “The people of Corridor Prime are fanatics, devoted to the notion of Systemics beyond anything I have ever seen or heard of. So far it has been to your advantage, but it may become a danger. It is a fine line between devotion and worship, given the right circumstances.”

“Yes, but we don’t really know where the people stand, not yet, only the rulers and the soldiers. A point my officers in Silent Thunder continue to make. But tell me about the Code Zero. What has you concerned?”

“Well,” Liz looked away uncomfortably, as though afraid of what she was about to say. “In the class that we take, there is a short discussion of the Code Zero. The AI is programmed to choose the
best
person for a given role, so as long as there are options a Code Zero should never take place, and it never did until just a few weeks ago. What has me alarmed, Grace, is that in
my
class, the instructor made an offhanded comment about what a Code Zero would mean.”

A few beats passed, underscoring Liz’s reluctance to continue. But Grace would pull it out of her if she had to, “Tell me, Liz. I don’t care how crazy you think it sounds.”

“He said that it would be a warning that the AI is…waking up.”

Grace's eyes narrowed, “Waking up.”

“Becoming self-aware.”

“But it’s a computer. A machine. It does only what it has been programmed to do by humans.”

“A Code Zero indicates that it has broken the bonds of its programming,” Liz said. “The AI made a
choice
to select no one, and then another
choice
to select you, someone who not only had not been trained as a ruler, but who was not even a citizen of the city! There are supposedly strict programming rules in place to prevent things just like this, but they are failing. Something has changed.”

Grace didn’t want to dismiss Liz’s concerns out of hand, but what she was talking about
did
sound crazy.
So does the notion of a weapon that can destroy the world
, she thought dryly. Something is only crazy until it actually happens. Then it is too late.

“What do you suggest we do?”

“We can’t do anything directly, not yet,” she looked around nervously, but had little concern for the guards. Was she afraid of being overheard by the machine? She leaned in closer and spoke quietly. “The server is beneath the palace in the heart of Alexandria, and can only be shut down from there. But, Grace: it
will
have to be shut down. And when it is, Systemics, the OPE—all of it—will be gone. It cannot work without the AI. You need to understand that now, and be thinking ahead to that day.”

“So do not alienate Silent Thunder by protecting Corridor Prime’s love for Systemics,” Grace said.

“No. But do not alienate the Corridor by sweeping away their traditions with your first act. You must end this standoff with Van Dorn quickly and consolidate your hold on the Corridor. Then we must prepare to swing west and take Waypoint, opening the road to Pacifica, Vancouver, and Anchorage. You will need the strength of all the armies of the West to withstand the Imperial Guard’s advance.”

“Would it not be wiser to use the Corridor’s fortifications to our advantage?”

Liz shook her head, “Sullivan will bomb the Corridor the same as he did at Rio, killing tens of thousands and obliterating the Solithium fence. It is a weapon the World System has never fired and may not possess. Refusing to sanction its use in the war was the reason I was removed from power.”

“Bruce tells me that they will take Mexico within the week,” Grace said. “We might delay their advance with air raids on their lines, but we need the Halos to protect Prime from any Van Dorn might send.”

“You need to finish this, Grace. Today.”

Grace didn’t even need for Liz to tell her what she meant this time, for it was written all over her face. It was that same look she had given her in the Stone Hall the first time she had convened with Davian and Crenshaw, imploring Grace to choose a path that was abhorrent to her. A path of death.

“You would have me murder him.”

“I would have you stop the bloodshed before the river runs red with it,” Liz said. “Is one life worth the thousands who will die in the coming battle, soldier and innocent alike? Is it worth being crushed by the Imperial Conglomerate if they arrive before we are ready?” She lowered her voice again. “And imagine what will happen if a machine that understands more about humans than any human who has ever lived, programmed to control the world, suddenly begins to make its own decisions. Plugged into our vehicles, our homes, our weapons, every facet of our lives…what chance will your fight for freedom stand then? Time is of the essence. We must take Alexandria and shut it down as quickly as possible. Every hour could matter.”

The air in the hall pressed in a little tighter, and Grace shut her eyes. She still didn’t know whether she shared Liz’s concern about the System’s central computer. The theory seemed a little out there to her. But the lives of all those people—that was something that resonated. Those men in Great Army uniforms out there were
her
men now, and she had a responsibility to protect them if she could.

Even if it meant compromising her own soul.

“You’ve done this sort of thing before?”

Liz nodded, “When I was in the Triad, just before Specter. All intelligence officers receive cross-training as elite assassins. I just happened to be very good at it. They gave me three high-profile targets, all elements within the System who wished to raise another rebellion to ally with the one in Rome. Very secret stuff, not kept in any file. I bet the Ruling Council didn’t even know of it when they selected me for Specter.”

“So you were successful, then. All three times.”

“Yes,” Liz replied. “And like a lot of things I did serving the System, I’ve since had cause to regret them. But not this time, Grace. I know what will happen if a man like Van Dorn rules Corridor Prime. I know what will happen to Silent Thunder—to you—if he defeats you. And I will never regret being the agent that prevented those things from happening.”

Grace paused, her path clearer but no easier to take. She could not ignore the logic Liz presented, condemning all those lives if they might be saved. Even should Van Dorn survive the coming conflict, what then? Bruce and his allies would demand his head on a spike—figuratively, she hoped—and she would have little choice but to oblige. The end, for the general, would be the same. But the end for all the rest need not be. The larger war was still to come, and every soldier could be vital.

“Can you accomplish it with minimal risk to yourself? I am not prepared to lose you.”

“No one will ever see me,” Liz promised. “Likely not even Van Dorn.”

Grace gritted her teeth and quieted the warnings in the back of her mind, “What do you need?”

“T
IME TO GO
, G
ENERAL
.”

Nathan Van Dorn, general of the Sixteenth Army of the Corridor, looked up in annoyance as Derek entered his office, Gentry close on his heels.

“You know I have guards posted outside for a reason, Grand Admiral, so that I am not unexpectedly disturbed. You could at least show me enough courtesy not to barge in unannounced.”

“Desperate times,” Derek shrugged.

“For you, perhaps,” Van Dorn replied. “I was able to make contact with Alexandria. The MWR seemed surprised to learn you were here assisting me.”

The color drained from Derek's face. Grace and her allies had managed to cut off all communications in the region to the outside world, likely to prevent the MWR from turning the neutral forces in Corridor North and South. Derek had been hoping the blackout would hold, albeit for different reasons.

“And how did that conversation end, may I ask?”

Van Dorn hesitated, and during that awkward silence Derek sensed Gentry's tension as his hand went to his blade. Van Dorn noticed as well, and smiled, “You are a magnificent commander, Grand Admiral; I will give you that. This plan you have formed will likely give both of us what we want, but I wonder at what cost it will come to you. Obsession has clouded your judgment and dulled your edge. I hope Grace Sawyer's death will sharpen it again, and the MWR shares this view. War is coming to us on every side, and we need the Grand Admiral that drove back the Imperial Guard's advance, not the man who has spent months chasing a single girl across the Wilderness.”

“She turned my partner, General,” Derek said with quiet anger. “Her manipulations got him killed. Should I just let that go?”

“You should heed the wisdom that brought you into power, and not the fire of vengeance. There is a time for reckoning, but not at the expense of the larger picture. You have forgotten that.”

“While I enjoy the lecture, I've had enough from my father to last a lifetime. Fortunately for me, I am under no obligation to listen to yours, given that I outrank you. Now as I said before, it is time to move. My men are in position, and all is prepared.”

“This is still my army, Grand Admiral. Perhaps you should ask nicely.”

Derek smirked, “Just out of curiosity, if you spoke with the MWR why isn't he sending reinforcements? Seems that if he really wanted you to win, he would send you enough firepower to crush your detractors.”

“He offered. I declined.”

“I fail to see the wisdom in that.”

“Of course you do,” Van Dorn replied. “You're an Alexandrian. But we do things differently here in the Corridor. My claim is contested because I was appointed by an outsider. If I accept help from him now, it will only unite the entire Corridor against me. Win or lose, I would be dead in a week.”

“Then why accept help from me?”

“Grace Sawyer has Spectral-adepts. I need your swords.”

“And you have them,” Derek said. “Now I need your army. Will you march, or will I have to take the Stone Hall myself?”

“I suppose that is as close to asking nicely as you are likely to get,” Van Dorn said. “Yes, I will order the march. If this plan of yours works out, the Corridor will have its true magistrate before the day is out.”

Satisfied, Derek turned to leave the tent, but paused when Van Dorn stopped him, “Grand Admiral.” He turned. “While I know you will likely ignore my advice, I do think you should remain here with me. Let your men win the day.”

“I don't just command men into battle, General. I lead them. And I didn't come here just to make you magistrate. I'll see you installed in the Stone Hall, but only after Grace Sawyer is dead.”

- X -

Liz’s long golden hair trailed behind her as Barley raced north out of Corridor Prime, his hooves a steady thunder against the broken ground. This was her first time guiding him on her own, but thankfully he knew more about what he was doing than she did.

The areas outside the main city centers of the Corridor were populated, but only sparsely, and with the coming battle there would be no military presence save the occasional scout along the road. Still, she preferred to be as cautious as possible, and stuck to the undeveloped ground where vehicles could not go, but Barley could. She would have to go on foot when she drew near Van Dorn's forces, but time was of the essence, and it would take her an entire day or more to reach his encampment on her own two feet. Barley would get her there in a fraction of that time.

They flew across the distance, and with the wind in her hair and the sun on her face she almost forgot the gravity of her situation. Almost. Thoughts of killing again, as she had done years ago in the Triad, loomed like a dark shadow on the horizon. She had killed so many more in battle than those three by assassination, but it was a different kind of killing. More personal. She believed what she was doing was for the greater good, but that didn't make her dread the deed any less.

She rode Barley for a couple of hours before he slowed to a trot, and she chose not to push him. Truth be told, she welcomed the delay. She leaned forward and patted the animal affectionately on the neck, “You did great today. I haven’t known many horses, but I’m already convinced that you’re the best.”

Seemingly heartened, Barley picked up a bit of speed, and Liz smiled. She took a moment to look around at the scenery as it passed her by, a strange mixture of Wilderness and civilization, quiet but not completely untame. To her left the Solithium wall shimmered with unnatural light, transparent enough to see the actual Wilderness beyond. Liz was surprised to feel a sense of longing for it. The Wilderness had always been this terrifying thing to her, filled with obstacles and horrors bent on ending her life through any means. There was some truth to that, as her encounter with the lions proved.