The Glorious Becoming (62 page)

Their purpose would become clear.

Motion.

It is the bearer of humanity’s most fundamental scientific laws. From motion, the rules of existence are established.

An object at rest will remain at rest unless acted upon by an outside force. It takes but the slightest provocation, the slightest indication that its master might be in harm’s way, to prompt ferocious loyalty from even the most feral of companions. They will abandon their dens to rush to their master’s aid, to rescue the ones they love. Or to die trying.

An object’s force is equal to its mass times acceleration. To its skill times determination. Force can come quietly, masked behind the tapping of high heels and the pretense of a late-night date, or beneath good intentions and a full desert moon. It can build slowly behind glass partitions and dark purple eyes, biding its time until the right moment comes for its reckoning—its force—to be unleashed.

For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. For every push. For every defiance. For every bluster. For every arrogance. For every darkness. For every atrocity. For every murder.

For every terror.

For those whom destiny beckons, motion is inevitable—be it from provocation, purpose, or reaction. Be it for sacrifice, freedom, or infamy.

Motion will occur.

E
STHER WAS HALFWAY
to the cafeteria to meet Giro Holmes for their date when the sound of her comm halted her in her tracks. Raising a carefully defined brow, she read the message on its display.

Exciting news, meet me in my office – G.H.

On Friday, August 5th, 0011, an event triggered a course of history. A woman was murdered. Six days later, a lion fell.

H
ANDS RUBBING TOGETHER
apprehensively in the elevator, Scott exhaled a nervous breath. He was late. Natalie was probably already waiting for him on the surface. Closing his eyes, he whispered a prayer.

In that same month, a new face emerged at the center of the world. Champagne-blond hair, amber eyes, and a prince’s smile. Perfect sincerity.

S
TANDING IN THE
War Room with the rest of the Council, Benjamin Archer watched and listened as the word was given—the final order of EDEN’s first president. Very subtly, he locked eyes across the room with Kang Gao Jing.

In war, humility must sometimes supersede dedication. Compromise must sometimes come before loyalty. Existence can be so complex.

C
RICKING HIS NECK
, Tauthin laid back on his metal cot. The lights in Confinement dimmed as the night shift came on. Farther inside
Novosibirsk,
in Room 14, those operatives who chose to retire for the night nestled into their bunks. Deep within the Citadel, Ignatius van Thoor joined the night’s call to slumber.

The Machine was falling asleep.

As night fell on Friday, March 16th, 0012, the gears of motion began to turn, their groans setting into play that which had become inevitable—bringing nonparallel lines to their point of intersection.

Motion. It is the bearer of humanity’s most fundamental laws. From it, the rules of existence are established.

And it sleeps for no one.

30

FRIDAY, MARCH 16
^TH
, 0012 NE

THAT NIGHT

CAIRO

N
ATALIE WAS WAITING
for Scott outside the garage. As soon as she saw him, her face lit up.

T
HE TRAMLINE
screeched as it slowed, hissing to a halt at Hell’s hub. Esther had received no further messages from Giro since the scientist’s request for her to go to his office. Though she’d replied with an affirmation, she’d received nothing back.

S
COTT WAS WEARING
his standard-issue uniform. Despite the date-like nature of his and Natalie’s meeting, this was a totally different situation than Sabola. Hair combed haphazardly and clean-shaven, he looked as disarming as he could. He needed
disarming
tonight.

Natalie’s hair was tied back in a damp ponytail, indicative of a recent shower. She too was dressed appropriately for an on-base meet-up, wearing simply a dark gray long-sleeved shirt and her EDEN fatigues.

A
DJUSTING HER PEARL
earrings and necklace, Esther stepped off the tramline. Fingers tracing the pleats of her black maxi dress, Esther continued down the hall. It was an alternative outfit, one she’d brought for a reason. Its plunging neckline revealed just enough to tantalize without crossing any lines. Her hair was perfectly done, her inverted bob styled so that a layer dipped over her left eye. She’d already planned to make a trip to the city of Cairo tomorrow to buy a new ponytail. But that wasn’t a priority tonight.

“H
EY
!” N
ATALIE’S VOICE
shivered. Her mouth remained open in a broad, hopeful smile. Thin vapors escaped her lips. “Can I say something?” she asked rhetorically, laughing. “I am
freezing
!”

He’d almost mistook the shiver in her voice for nerves, though the chill of the desert air was undeniable. “I’d offer you my coat if I had one.”

“It’s okay,” she blew out a breath, “just colder than I expected!”

A
PPROACHING THE
security checkpoint, Esther waited for the two door guards to grant her entrance. Both guards were avoiding looking at her. Like it was a conscious effort. Offering them the best smile she could manage, she passed through the door into the administration wing.

The wing was dimly lit, as if the whole area had settled down for the night. Stopping in the lobby, she waited to see if anyone would come to escort her. No one did. Easing her head just slightly, she peered down the hallway to Giro’s office. Everything was vacant. Silent. Subtly, something began to tingle. That small shiver down her spine—that unsettling intuition she knew and trusted.

Something was off.

* * *

NOVOSIBIRSK

T
HE SMELL OF
coffee wafted throughNovCom tower. Overlooking the grounds of The Machine, the night crew leaned back in their chairs, feet propped against various consoles in the window-surrounded room. All was still.

B
ENEATH THE
PARIAH’S
stripped-down control panel, with an assortment of tools spread out beside him, Travis was hard at work. In the co-pilot’s seat, Tiffany leaned her head back and lounged lethargically. Her left wrist swayed with every move Travis’s cuffed right hand made.

Laying in the middle of the troop bay, Flopper was sound asleep.

N
OVCOM’S RADAR
operator jolted upright. He looked wide-eyed at his screen.

S
VETLANA WAS IN
the infirmary, working tediously on her medical reports beneath the glow of a desk lamp. Several feet away, Max dozed with his feet propped on a chair.

“T
HAT CANNOT BE
right!” the radar operator said.

Several seats down, a communications operator screamed emphatically into his mic. “NovCom to inbound aircraft, I ask again,
please
respond!”

Voices erupted everywhere.

“Now reading fifty contacts!”

“Should we go to red alert?”

“Sixty!”

* * *

CAIRO

“S
O
,” N
ATALIE SAID
, holding up a finger, “I want one rule tonight. No talking about work. We can talk about this morning’s mission, but only about how awesome it was. No talking points, no agendas, no
actual
work. Sounds good?”

Scott laughed softly. “Sounds good.” If she only knew what they were about to talk about.

“By the way,” she said, eyeing him coyly, “are we walking anywhere in particular?”

“Eh.” He scanned their surroundings. He needed to take her somewhere away from everything else. Where he could disclose the truth in private. “I just thought we’d wander around a bit. It’s kind of nice out here.”

“Yeah, it is.” Looking against the night breeze, Natalie stared at the sky. It was clear as glass. Though far from being totally dark, the outer grounds of
Cairo
caused far less light pollution than
Novosibirsk
. The stars actually shone. “So, to where shall we wander?” she asked.

As hard as he fought to maintain an outer display of pleasantness, his heart ached harder. Nothing about this was going to be easy. Scanning the area, he nodded at some shallow hills in the distance. “You ever been over there?”

“Those hills? Can’t say that I have.”

“Let’s head that way.”

* * *

NOVOSIBIRSK

“N
OVCOM TO
G
ENERAL
Thoor,” screamed the operator, “we need you immediately!”

“They are coming from every direction—
everywhere
!”

Thoor grunted gravelly over the channel. “This is Thoor. What is it?”

“General, we have...”

“Ninety-five!”

“...ninety-five aircraft inbound to
Novosibirsk
!”

“What?”
Thoor asked. “Who?”

The radar operator was sweating. “There are so many signatures, I cannot even pinpoint!
Richmond
,
Atlanta
,
Nagoya
,
Berlin
!” He looked atNovCom’s supervising officer. “It looks like everyone!”

* * *

CAIRO

M
AKING HER WAY
down the hall, Esther stopped in front of Giro’s office. There was no one else anywhere. The tingle worsened. Lifting her fist hesitantly, she rapped her knuckles on the door.

“Calliope?” Giro called from inside.

“Yes, it’s me.”

“Good! Please, come in!”

Turning the knob, Esther eased the door open and walked inside. She froze after only her second step.

S
COTT GLANCED BEHIND
him. “I don’t have to worry about Lieutenant Marshall stalking us, do I?”

Chuckling softly, Natalie shook her head. “What I do with my personal time is my business. He doesn’t even know we’re out here.”

G
IRO
H
OLMES WAS
standing behind his desk, arms folded sternly. The spectacled eyes that met Esther weren’t pleased or excited. And he wasn’t alone. Standing uncomfortably several feet away was Janice. Then Esther saw the guards. There was a pair of them, each at the front corners of the room. The moment Esther had stepped inside, she’d placed herself between them.

Inhaling deeply, Giro lifted his chin. “I hire good people, Miss Lee. Dedicated people who take pride in their work.”

The color drained from Esther’s face.

* * *

NOVOSIBIRSK

A
LERT SIRENS WAILED
across
Novosibirsk
. The sleeping occupants of Room 14 leapt up in their beds.

“What the?” asked a groggy David.

A frantic Russian voice emerged over the base-wide comm. He spoke in Russian, then English. “This is not a drill! This is not a drill!
Novosibirsk
is under attack!”

Becan stared wide-eyed. “Oh, bollocks!”

S
LIDING OUT FROM
the
Pariah
’s control panel, Travis shot a look at Tiffany. The blonde was kicking to her feet. “Did you just hear that?” he asked.

Neck lifted and ears perked, Flopper began to howl.

S
VETLANA SWIVELED
around in her infirmary chair. Max was already lurching upright.

I
N
N
OVCOM TOWER
, the radar operator screamed. “Missiles incoming!” The tower occupants bolted for the stairwell. The missiles struck.

Outside, the first wave of Vulture transports descended on the airstrip. The foremost transport—a Mark-2 with a brazen letter V ordaining its nose—kicked in its braking thrusters. Under the cover of Superwolves, the ship touched down.

It was purple and white.

* * *

CAIRO

G
IRO CONTINUNED
. “So when Janice was led to believe that she’d forgotten about your appointment,” Giro said, “she sought an explanation. Had another call distracted her from writing it down? Had she been called away from her desk? Why didn’t she remember speaking to you?”

Behind Esther in the hallway, two more guards stopped by the door. The pair from the hub entrance. The scout’s gaze refocused on Giro and Janice.

“Being the diligent worker that Janice is, she took it upon herself to go back and listen to her calls. First she went back two months. Then three. Then four, each time listening to the first few seconds of each conversation, waiting to hear your voice. But she never did.” He leaned forward. “On a hunch, she decided to call
Sydney
. She spoke to Amisha herself. Their Confinement is not expanding, and Amisha has never heard of you.”

The first traces of sweat dripped from Esther’s scalp. The inner guards slid their hands over their holsters.

“So I will ask you only once, Miss Lee,” Giro said. “Who are you really, and why are you here?”

* * *

NOVOSIBIRSK

A
FIERY PLUME
reached for the heavens whenNovCom tower fell; the earth rumbled. As squadrons of Superwolves concentrated their fire on
Novosibirsk
’s turrets, EDEN’s ground forces touched down.

* * *

CAIRO

“A
PENNY FOR
your thoughts,” Natalie said.

They were at the edge of
Cairo
’s outer grounds; the hills still loomed ahead. It wasn’t quite time. “Let’s just walk for a bit,” Scott said.

The depth of his tone seemed to catch her off guard. She offered an anxious expression, only to drift away into a stare of self-contemplation. Nodding, she followed.

Scott stared at the night sky. The ancient explorers, the ocean-faring mariners, they’d all looked upon those same stars, with no knowledge as to what they really were. With no idea that around one of those stars, an alien species known as the Khuladi was enslaving those unfortunate enough to fall in their sights. That in the cosmic equivalent of a blink, that same species would be setting their sights on Earth. Interstellar Midway.