Sunspire (The Reach, Book 4) (17 page)

“Talia, what do we–?”

“Hold onto something!” she yelled at him.  “We’re going in!”

20

Knile slammed on the brakes as the handcar rapidly neared its termination point, and the sudden change in momentum catapulted him over the side and onto the unyielding floor of the way station.  The handcar shrieked as it slid to a halt, and Knile rolled back to his feet, gasping as he tried to force some air back into his lungs.

Nearby, Ursie and Lazarus lay sprawled just inside the way station door.  The Redman was face down and once again motionless, while Ursie lay staring up at the ceiling, blinking in confusion as Tobias hunched over her.

Knile started toward them, but at that moment there was a grinding sound from above, and the way station door slammed shut with a resounding thud.

“What the hell was going on out there?” Knile demanded.  Ursie sat up, and her eyes drifted over his face, dreamlike.  Then she seemed to snap back to reality.  She gave a sudden, sharp gasp, as if she’d been hit in the face with a bucket of cold water.

“What–?”  She stopped, then looked around.  “Did we make it?”

“We made it,” Tobias assured her.

Knile moved past them to where Lazarus lay on the floor.  He gripped the Redman’s shoulder and turned him onto his back, then knelt at his side.  Lazarus seemed to have once again reverted to his comatose state.

“What happened back there?” Knile said hotly, turning to glare at Ursie.  “What were you doing with him?”

“I’m sorry,” Ursie said, still trying to get her breath back.  “I was just trying to help.  It was the only thing that came to mind.”

“You were manipulating him, weren’t you?” Knile said.

“I linked with his mind, yes.”

“Like with Heketoro, back at the habitat?” Tobias said.

“Yeah.  Just like that.”  She met Knile’s accusatory stare indignantly.  “Don’t look at me like that.  It worked, didn’t it?”

“I was going to ram the door, remember?  That was the plan.”

“Don’t take this the wrong way, fella,” Tobias said, “but there was no way in heck
you were gonna ram that door open with the handcar.  Might’ve been funny to watch, but that’s about it.”

“We don’t know that,” Knile said.

Ursie got shakily to her feet.  “That’s gratitude for you, huh?” she said bitterly.  “I just saved us and now you’re going to chew me out.”

Knile sighed.  “I know I sound ungrateful, but… there had to be a better way.”

“Yeah, sure.  You were just about to save the day again, I’ll bet.”

“That’s not what I’m saying.”

“Whatever.  Let’s just get out of here,” Ursie said.  “The Skywalk is still falling apart, remember?  You can judge me later, when we’re safe.”

Knile ignored the jibe and got to his feet, then took a look around at the way station for the first time.  The
interior
was far larger than the Skywalk itself.  They had arrived in a loading dock area, a space of scratched steel walls and blank storage compartments, left empty for who knew how many years.  At one end, the handcar track ended abruptly at a platform, and there was no possibility of pushing it further.  They would have to find another way of transporting Lazarus to where the Skywalk began on the other side.

“Would they have any trolleys stored away in here?” Knile asked Tobias.

“Maybe.  Who’s to know?”

“What for?” Ursie said.  She glanced at Lazarus.  “You’re going to load him up again?”

“I told you before, I’m not leaving him.”

“Yeah, I know.  It’s just that…”  She shrugged awkwardly.  “There might be a better option.”

Knile stared at her, incredulous.  “Are you suggesting what I
think
you’re suggesting?”  Ursie said nothing.  “You want to get inside his head again?”

“It’s the fastest way,” she said.  “I’m telling you, we’re going to die if we have to keep lugging him across the whole damn Skywalk.  If I can reach out to him again–”

“You have touched me for the last time,
demon
.”

They turned as one to see Lazarus staring at them from the floor, his blue eyes sharp and clear in the gloom.  He twitched, then began to sit up, moving jerkily as he rose, like a freshly reanimated Frankenstein’s monster.

“Lazarus!” Knile said, both shocked and delighted.  He moved over toward him.  “Take it easy there, big guy–”

Lazarus reached out a meaty hand and pushed awkwardly at Knile, shoving him out of the way.  His eyes bored into Ursie as he tried to get up.

“I would invite you to try placing those tainted fingers upon my skin once more, demon,” he grated hoarsely.  “And I will gladly break your rotten neck.”

He grunted and fell back to a sitting position, and Knile reached out a hand to steady him.

“Whoa, take it easy.  Don’t rush it, you’ve been out for a long time.”

Knile glanced across at Ursie, who was looking at them, scared out of her wits by the Redman’s venomous tone.

“Let me up, Knile,” Lazarus said again, leaning forward again.  “Let me crush the ghoul who stands watch over us–”

“You better park it, you big lump of poop,” Tobias said menacingly, interjecting himself between them and Ursie, a hammer in his hand.  “Ain’t nobody gonna crush nobody around here without my say-so.”

Lazarus’ eyes narrowed.  “Do not speak to me in that way, old man.  I am Aron Lazarus of the Crimson Shield, defender–”

“I don’t care if you’re the Queen’s uncle, mister.  Ain’t no use for titles and graces around here.  Not in these parts.”

Knile’s grip firmed on the Redman’s shoulder.  “Just relax, Lazarus.  These people have helped to carry you half-way around the Earth.  They’re not our enemies.”

“She violated me,” he hissed.  “She is a trickster of the mind.  I felt her therein, her–”

“She did what she had to do,” Knile said.  “And she won’t do it again.”  He looked pointedly at Ursie.  “Right?”

Lazarus seemed as though he might offer another retort, but then he clasped at his temple and squeezed his eyes shut, obviously suffering a wave of discomfort.  A moment later he opened his eyes again and looked around.

“Where are we?” he said.  “Was our mission successful?  Have we secured the habitat?”

“Not exactly,” Knile said.  He squatted beside the Redman.  “We docked at the habitat, and Holger went on ahead to ready one of the evacuation modules.”  He grimaced.  “Then he took off with it, leaving the four of us stranded with the bomb still ticking in the railcar.  We piled you onto a sweepdrone, and Tobias here led us to the Skywalk, a tunnel that connects the habitat to another space elevator called Sunspire.  We’re on our way there now.  This is a way station between Habitat One and Sunspire.”

“The habitat itself?” Lazarus said.

“Destroyed.”

Lazarus looked at each of them in turn.  “You tried to help me.  That is why Holger proceeded to the evacuation module with
out you, is it not?”

Knile nodded.  “Yeah.”

“You are fools.”

Knile clapped him on the shoulder.  “See, when you put it that way, that makes all the effort worthwhile.”

“You’re welcome,” Tobias muttered.

“You should not have risked your life for me,” Lazarus said.

“You did for us, when you bashed your way out of the railcar and tried to remove the explosives.”

“Listen,” Ursie said, “it’s great that we’re patting each other on the shoulder and stuff
, but we need to move.  This way station could break apart any minute.”

“She’s right,” Knile said.  “We need to find a way to move you along, Lazarus.  I was thinking–”

“I will walk.”  He attempted to get up again, and Knile moved to ease him backward.

“Just relax a second, will you?  You’re in no condition to–”

“I will
walk
,” Lazarus said adamantly, and with that he lurched to his feet, staggering across the dock like a drunken sailor.  Knile ran after him, grappling awkwardly with the man’s massive girth.  He managed to steady him a second before he ploughed into a stack of shelves, then the two of them stood there panting as Lazarus tried to regain his equilibrium.

“This is going to be fun,” Ursie said airily, and then she set off through the nearest doorway and into the way station.

The way station possessed a far more modular design than Habitat One.  There was no concourse, but instead a series of small
compartments about the size of bedrooms
that flowed one to the next.  The place had been stripped and cleaned out, and as a result, Knile had no clue as to the purpose of the rooms.  Whatever functionality they had once possessed was now gone.

“Just be careful,” Ursie said to them.  “I’m sure I saw a face through the window back there, before we came inside.”

“Just your imagination,” Knile said, straining with Lazarus’ weight on his shoulder.  The Redman was still unstable on his feet and required constant support.  “There’s no way someone could survive in here all these years.”

“Don’t be so sure,” Ursie said.  She moved over to a rusted sink and pulled the lever above it, but no water came from the faucet.

“I imagine they’d be pretty darn thirsty by now if they’r
e lurkin’,” Tobias said.  “What
with no water in the taps.”

“Keep going,” Knile said.  “Maybe there’s some old supplies we can raid further along.”

As they made it to the next room, the hairs on the back of Knile’s neck suddenly stood on end, and a moment later there was a clicking sound from above.

The darkness was suddenly banished, and a soft glow emanated from several panels on the wall.

“What the–?” Knile began, but Tobias held up a hand to stall him.

“It’s the auto lights,” the old man said, glancing around.  “Movement sensors must still be cranking along after all this time.”

“Where’s the power coming from?” Ursie said doubtfully.

“Solar panels mounted on the outer hull,” Tobias said.  “Or so I’d reckon.”

“It’s creepy,” Ursie said.  “I don’t like it.”

“Just calm down,” Knile said as he struggled forward with Lazarus.  “We won’t be here long–”

He stopped and stared at what lay before them.  At the end of the room, a translucent plastic covering hung across the doorway, and the light coming through from the other side seemed even brighter than it was here.  As he watched, Knile saw movement, a shadow drifting across to obscure the light.  Then it seemed to move back again.

Knile held up his hand silently, turning to attract the attention of the others.  Sensing his alarm, Ursie and Tobias stopped dead.  Knile signalled sharply toward the doorway.

“
Movement
,” he hissed.

“I
told
you!” Ursie whispered back.  “Someone’s–”

Knile held a finger to his lips, silencing the girl, then began to edge forward as quietly as he could with Lazarus leaning on his shoulder
.  He kept his eyes glued to the plastic covering, waiting to see more shadows, but none came.

He and Lazarus
reached the doorway and paused, listening.  Nothing.  Whatever was on the other side of the covering was being awfully quiet.

Knile held out a hand and began to draw back the plastic.  The next room came into view.

His breath caught in his throat, and he inadvertently let Lazarus drop to the floor, such was his amazement at what he saw.

21

Duran turned and watched the dirigible labour upward, clearing the nearby rooftops as its warbling engines sent a dull rumble across the neighbouring buildings.  It was such an unconvincing-looking contraption, with its envelope streaked with water stains and a thin trail of smoke left in the wake of the left engine, that for a moment he expected it to falter and drop like a stone.  Somehow it kept climbing.  Half a block away, a couple of dimwits emerged from atop the scaffolding of an old factory and began taking pot
shots at it, but after a few ill-aimed attempts they gave up and scuttled back into whatever crevice they had emerged from.