Doomsday minus 520 Earth days.
The first groups to cross The Flats onto the greenbelt surrounding New Chicago were met by a hologram of a smiling woman three meters tall, who told them:
“Welcome to the Urban District of New Chicago. We’ve been expecting you, and have been making arrangements to keep you as safe and comfortable as possible in the days to come. Behind me you will find hygiene facilities and drinking water. Pause for a rest before continuing into the inner sector of the District. The location of the District Council and Security Headquarters building can be accessed via the InfoComm network using any online device. When ready, please proceed directly there in a peaceful and orderly manner. Chief Adjudicator Juno Vargas will meet you in the square in front of the building to give you her official greeting and deliver an orientation briefing.”
Meanwhile, the Eligibles in the district were viewing quite a different data update on their InfoComm units:
Good news from the High Council today! A large number of off-world postings have become available, and the Relocation Authority has already begun identifying candidates with the appropriate skills to fill them. Plans are also underway to establish a brand new colony in a star system at the edge of Sector Three. More information about that project will follow as details are finalized. However, as usual, all selectees will need to be prepared to depart within days of being informed of their status.
“And being able to broadcast something like that at a time like this may be the only upside to having a Relocation Authority,” Ridout declared as he switched off the news feed. Leaning forward on his elbows on the desktop, he turned his full attention to the guest who had just walked into his office. “And what can I do for you, Mr. Novak?”
“I stopped by to let you know that I’ve made the travel arrangements we were discussing earlier.” The Chief gave him a puzzled look, setting off Novak’s mental alarms. “For your niece,” he added, giving deliberate emphasis to each word.
“Oh, right! I’d forgotten about that. I’m sorry. I should have contacted you immediately, but Madame Vargas needed my help with an urgent matter and—”
“Where is she, Ridout?” he grated.
The Chief straightened his shoulders. “She’s gone. I’m sorry you wasted your time, Novak, but I couldn’t let you go ahead with your plan. I called in a favor and had her posted off-world.”
Novak took a step forward and lowered his voice. “Where off-world?”
“Somewhere safe.”
“I swear, Ridout, if she compromises a single op or endangers even one of my agents, I will track her down and terminate her on the spot.”
The Chief locked eyes with him across the large maple desk and said softly, “Perhaps. But not in my lifetime.”
—— «» ——
Doomsday minus 518 Earth days.
Flanked by two plainclothes Security officers, Juno Vargas emerged from the tall plastiplex doors of the government building. She paused at the top of its broad front steps to survey the multitude of people that filled the paved area below her.
She wasn’t the first to address a crowd in this location. Sound amplifiers and huge light screens lined the square and marked the sides of the broad avenues leading away from it in every direction. Each of these arteries was crammed with Human bodies, a dark, seething mass of them that stretched almost to the horizon. At the sight of them, Juno felt the air thicken around her, making breathing difficult. Thankfully, she was out in the open. In the middle of a tightly packed mob like that, a person could suffocate.
The thought must have shown on her face, for the officer on her left leaned closer and murmured, “If anything happens to make you nervous, Madame Vargas, say the word and we’ll usher you inside.”
“No, I’ll be fine,” she told him. Then, activating her mic, she announced her presence to the assembled marchers.
“Welcome, everyone!”
She had to repeat the words three more times before she had their attention. “As the Chief Adjudicator for New Chicago, I want you to know that I am sympathetic to your cause, and that I strongly support your goals. You have promised to be good guests while you’re here. In response, I am pleased to offer you the hospitality of this Urban District while your leaders make their case to the High Council. We’ve established areas where you can camp out, as well as intersections where you can find personal hygiene facilities and a free meal. Maps showing these locations can be downloaded or printed out at any InfoComm kiosk in the District. District Security will be a circulating presence, ready to solve any problems or answer any questions you may have during your visit with us.
“At this time, I also have a message for you from the Chair of the Earth High Council.” Juno reached into her pocket and pulled out a folded sheet of paper. She opened it carefully and skimmed its contents. Then, folding it back up, she beamed at the crowd and said, “The High Council greets and welcomes you. The Councilors will be pleased to meet with your leaders, to discuss the issues that have brought you here and explore ways to reach an agreement that will be satisfactory to both sides. The next session of the Council is scheduled to begin in three hours. As each of the Industrial Zones should be represented in these talks, we ask that you spend the available time selecting and conferring with the individuals who will be presenting your terms in this first meeting.”
“How many meetings will there be?” shouted a man’s voice from the crowd.
“As many as it takes, sir,” she replied. “As I said earlier, I strongly support your cause.” To her escort, she added, “Time to withdraw, gentlemen.”
Juno kept her smile in place all the way up to her office on the District Council floor of the building. Had they believed a word she’d said? It was doubtful. However, phase four was in play now, a tactic devised by Barry Novak and carried out by EIS Ops. Provided everything was in place, whatever was going to happen next would happen fairly quickly.
There were encrypted comm messages waiting for her. The ones from members of the High Council were practically burning holes in her InfoComm screen. No surprise there. Juno had just delivered a message to the masses that was the opposite of the one they’d actually given her to read, and they were enraged. Well, better the five devils she knew than the million or so that she didn’t.
“Are you crazy?!” Lynette Ellenshaw had just burst through the door and now stood in front of Juno’s desk, hands on hips, brown eyes flashing. “You have really overstepped the bounds this time. They’re talking about bringing charges, and I’m inclined to agree with them. How dare you misrepresent the High Council that way? What the hell were you thinking?”
Juno waited for her visitor to run out of words, then inquired evenly, “Will they let me back in to explain myself?”
The calmness of her demeanor instantly damped Ellenshaw’s anger. Visibly composing herself, the Supreme Adjudicator replied, “If you think it’s an explanation they’ll accept, I might be able to persuade them.”
“It’s not one they’ll like, but I’m certain they’ll have to accept it.”
Ellenshaw’s eyes narrowed. “Really? What are you up to now?”
Juno gave her a wounded look. “My goals haven’t changed, Lynette,” she pointed out reasonably. “But you might want to ask the other Supreme Adjudicators when they last contacted their families.”
Her eyes widened again. “So that’s how it is? You’re right, they won’t like it. I’ll pass along your request and call you to the Council chambers if and when they decide to hear you out.”
Juno’s cool gaze followed Ellenshaw out the door.
—— «» ——
“Where is my daughter?” demanded Patricia Chen the moment Juno crossed the threshold of the High Council chambers.
“On her way to safety, I would imagine,” she replied, “along with her husband, your husband, and your three grandchildren.”
“On her way to safety where, exactly?”
Juno shrugged. “Planetary Security is handling the details. It’s a safe location but it’s classified top secret because of your status. They may not even acknowledge that they’ve done it.”
Rhys Amis slammed his compupad down on the table. “I can’t reach my parents or my brother. Apparently, their commcodes are no longer part of the network.”
“So they’re off-world?” exclaimed Darwin Buru. “There was no safe location on Earth?”
“I’m afraid not,” Juno told them. “You see, you five are about to make a decision that could ignite violence all over the planet. Not only would you become targets for assassination, but your loved ones would be in danger as well. I was concerned for their wellbeing, so I notified Planetary Security of the possible consequences should you fail to settle the labor situation quickly.”
“Just how long does ‘Planetary Security’ plan to hold our families hostage?” Amis asked.
“They’re in protective custody,” she corrected him gently, “where they’ll remain until the danger is over, I would imagine.”
“While we stay here,” added Arbo Lugaparathan, “deciding how long that will take.”
“Deciding whether to eliminate the danger or increase it,” Juno confirmed.
“And the way to eliminate it is to give in to the demands of that mob out there?” said Amis, his features twisting with distaste.
“Listen, that ‘mob’, as you call them, would much rather be somewhere else right now. Coming here was an act of desperation, to get your attention. They will happily disband and return home today, provided their leaders can assure them after meeting with you that from now on they will no longer be second-class citizens.”
“Just tell them that and we get our families back?” said Chen.
“Telling them isn’t going to be enough,” Juno warned. “You’ll have to vote on it, for the record and in their presence.”
“In other words, we have to fold up like wet cardboard,” said Amis. “Great precedent that’s going to set!”
“Not at all,” Juno returned. “The strike leaders are going to come through that door expecting to have to negotiate. They’ll have prepared a wish list of demands, knowing in advance that most of them will be rejected. They’ll be all right with that. But they’ll fight like the very devil for the one or two concessions that they actually came here to get. Those are the only ones that you’ll have to agree to.
“And if you’re thinking of telling them what they want to hear just to make them go away, here’s something else to think about: A year and a half is plenty of time for them to learn that they’ve been lied to. When that happens, they’ll be back, in greater numbers and in a much uglier mood than what you see out the window today. I’m not exaggerating the danger you face if you’re not straight with these people. And as long as you’re in danger…”
“You can drop the pretense of concern for our wellbeing, Ms. Vargas,” spat Amis. “I think we all understand what’s going on here.”
Juno drew herself up and adopted her sternest expression. “With all due respect, Mr. Supreme Adjudicator, I don’t think you do.”
Before she could elaborate, Lynette Ellenshaw loudly cleared her throat and said, “I would just like to remind everyone that in a couple of days, the first wave of Stragori ships will be arriving to transport colonists back to Stragon. If we haven’t settled the strike by then, what conclusion do you think the Ineligibles will be forced to draw? What will the Stragori think is going on? I for one am not eager to find out.”
“Neither am I,” Arbo Lugaparathan chimed in.
“Much as I hate to admit it,” said Chen, “Supreme Adjudicator Ellenshaw makes a valid point. All right, then. I move that we meet with the leaders of the demonstration and put this general strike business to bed so we can focus on the evacuation plan.”
“We’ll be giving in to extortion,” Amis warned.
“No, we won’t,” said Darwin Buru, “and I second the motion.”
“All in favor?”
Four hands were raised.
“Carried!” Chen declared. “Now, we’ve got about an hour to prepare.”
“This isn’t right,” Amis fumed.
“Not yet, Mister Supreme Adjudicator,” Juno assured him. “But it soon will be.”
—— «» ——
Several hours later, Juno returned to her office on the fifth floor and found Angeli waiting for her in the anteroom, beaming.
“Your grandfather would have been proud of you today,” Angeli congratulated her as they continued walking into the Chief Adjudicator’s private sanctum.
“It was a first step in the right direction,” she agreed, “but we’re not there yet. Not until the Relocation Authority is put out of business for good.”
“It sounds like there’s a party going on outside.”
She paused and listened for a moment. “It does. We’d better increase the Security presence, then, in case someone does something stupid.”
Angeli regarded her sadly. “Do you ever stop worrying? Can’t you relax for just a minute and feel happy about what you’ve accomplished?”
“What I’ve accomplished?” she echoed, sinking onto a guest chair. “That would imply that I had a great idea and made it a reality. I’ll tell you a secret, Angeli, if you haven’t already guessed it. The Reformation was always Dennis Forrand’s dream. He created the blueprint. All I’ve done is follow it, as best I could. You’ve been my agent, and I’ve been his, and together we’ve managed to get things started. I suppose that merits a pat on the back.
“One day, if I live long enough, I’ll accomplish something worth celebrating. But it won’t be the Reformation. That’s why I have to worry about details, because before I can claim the luxury of pursuing my own dream, I have to keep my promise to Dennis Forrand and bring his to fruition.”
Sober-faced, Angeli sat down beside her. “How long do you think it will take?”
“To complete the Reformation? Probably more time than we’ve got.”
“I don’t understand. When you told me the Reformation was part of a greater plan, I assumed—”
“I think I know what you assumed, and I probably would have jumped to the same conclusion. So let’s say no more about that.” Getting to her feet, Juno stepped behind her desk and added, “If you want to join the festivities outside, go ahead. And close the door behind you, please. I have a lot of work to do, and I don’t want to be disturbed.”
Angeli paused in the doorway. “If I may make one final observation, Madame Chief Adjudicator? I don’t think Dennis Forrand is dead.”
Startled, Juno nearly crumpled the sheet of paper she was holding. “What?”
“If your only reason for dedicating the rest of your life to the Reformation is the promise you made a dying man fifteen years ago, then you’ve switched places. He’s alive inside you, and you’re the one who’s dying.”
Juno swallowed the words that rose to her mouth and dropped her gaze to the paperwork on her desk, sitting motionless until the sound of her door closing signaled that she was alone.
—— «» ——
Doomsday minus 512 Earth days.
The world should have felt different this morning, a little brighter, perhaps more hopeful — but it didn’t. Staring out her office window, Juno saw automated cleaners in the square, removing the last of the detritus that had been left behind by the demonstration. Making everything shiny again, and good as new.
The crowd in the streets had thinned out considerably, assisted by the High Council’s offer of MPVs to carry those who had come the farthest back home to spread the good news. It wasn’t a free ride. However, to prove that their new status was official, passengers were being charged the Eligible fare for the trip. Further perks had been promised. Whether they would materialize before the planet was destroyed was extremely doubtful.
Over the past couple of days, Juno had been in contact with her counterparts in other urban districts to find out how they’d come through the crisis. Their reports had done nothing to lift her spirits.
In New Chicago, the demonstration had been peaceful. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for every urban district on the planet. Only four other chief adjudicators, all in Americas, had chosen to heed her advice and accommodate the influx of marchers. Elsewhere, the Ineligible demonstrators either had been met by armed Security officers and ordered to turn back, or had been allowed to enter the district but provided with no welcome or amenities.
In case that wasn’t inflaming enough, in most of the urban districts, the chief adjudicator had chosen to discount Juno’s warning and deliver the High Council’s initial statement to the assembled marchers exactly as written. Predictably, there had been anger and violence. Just as predictably, there had been casualties. The figures were still being tallied, but deaths and serious injuries were already numbered in the thousands worldwide. Even worse, many of these had been children, despite Juno’s explicit instruction that only adults participate in the march.
“None of this is your fault, and what happened in New Chicago proves it,” Angeli had insisted when the reports began coming in. “You told them what to do and they chose to ignore you. That puts the blame squarely on their own shoulders.”
“I’m sure Dennis Forrand would have rationalized it that way,” Juno had responded with a sigh. “But the first choice was mine. If I’d implemented the plan as he laid it out, phase one might have been sufficient to accomplish his objective. Everyone would have stayed in the Industrial Zones, and nobody would have had to die.”
“And maybe it would have taken so long to get to phase three that the crew chiefs and gang bosses would have become impatient and thrown out the deals I’d made with them, resulting in even more violence all over the planet. Stop second-guessing yourself, Juno. You can’t turn back the clock. All you can do is accept what’s happened, deal with it, and move on.”
“Because it’s what Forrand would have wanted me to do?”
“No,” Angeli told her on her way out the door. “Because it’s what the rest of us need you to do.”
Alone once more, Juno resumed darkly contemplating the current situation.
According to her contacts, Fleet Command had just issued an all-ships recall to facilitate the transportation of colonists to off-world destinations.
This pretense of topping up and establishing colonies wasn’t going to last. It couldn’t. Thirty-four colonies could only absorb a total of ten million new arrivals at most. The Stragori had set a limit of thirty million on the number of refugees they would accept. The resort hubs could offer temporary shelter but had limited space for long-term residency, and the working hubs and observation platforms were small, with barely enough living accommodations for their respective crews.
Even if there were enough ships, and enough time to fill them, there simply wouldn’t be anywhere safe to send them. Billions were going to be left behind to face the Corvou attack. And the pandemonium that would break out on Earth when that truth came out, Juno didn’t even want to imagine.
A soft beeping alerted her to the arrival of an encrypted message. She pulled up the meta on her screen and recognized the identification code. It was Novak, on their secure channel.
“Give me some good news, Barry.”
“My operatives have all reported in. Late last night, ‘Planetary Security’ received notice that the threat to the High Council no longer exists. By the end of today, all their family members will be safe at home and reconnected to the InfoCommNet. And, with luck, no one will figure out that they’ve been conned before the next crisis lands on us.”
Juno swallowed hard. The next crisis could be a lot closer than he thought.
“Good. That’s … very good.”
“But…?”
“We need to talk.”
“I’ll start boiling the water.”
“And this time, I’ll supply the tea.”
“How much are you willing to give up?”
Forrand had warned her, but she’d been too young to understand, too full of self-confidence to take him seriously. She’d let him chip away parts of Olivia Townsend as he sculpted her into an image of himself, a suitable vessel for his dream. Now she had less than eighteen months to find those lost pieces and put herself back together. And she was going to ask Tommy Novotny to help her.
—— «» ——
“You were only doing what Forrand would have done.”
Juno halted in mid-sip and replaced her mug of mint tea on the table. “I know. That’s what bothers me. I came to Dennis Forrand because I wanted to take back control of my life by acquiring political power. I asked him to teach me how to become as powerful as he was. He agreed, but warned me that power came at a price, and that it would be steeper than I expected. He was right about that. In order to become as powerful as he was, I also had to become as ruthless and cold-hearted as he was.”
Sitting adjacent to her in his private conference room, Novak shrugged and picked up his own drink. “Clearly, there’s a balance owing, or you wouldn’t be crying into your tea about the deaths of a few thousand strangers half a world away.”
“There were 6837 casualties and more than fifteen thousand injured, and nearly four hundred of those were children,” she corrected him, her eyes flashing.
“And you chose to track those numbers, Juno. Why? What did that accomplish, other than to make you feel guilty about doing something good for society as a whole?”
“You’ve been talking to Angeli.” It wasn’t a question.
“She spoke to me, actually. She’s worried about you. Afraid you’ll do something foolish.”
Juno sprang to her feet and gathered up her jacket and handbag. “Apparently, I’ve already done something foolish, coming to you expecting help.”
Novak stood up as well. “No, wait. If you’re in trouble, there’s no one better equipped to get you out of it. Tell me what you need.”
She paused on her way to the door, then finally turned to face him. “No one else can know.”
He reached into a pocket and pulled out a jamming device, activating it before placing it on the table. Slowly, she returned to her seat, keeping her belongings bunched up on her lap.
“I want you to mount a rescue operation.”
“All right, but first, you’ll have to give me details. Who’s the target of this op?”
“Olivia Townsend.”
“That’s you.” She nodded wordlessly. “I don’t understand.”
“A couple of weeks ago, I forced my way into the High Council chambers and extorted the five most powerful officials on the planet. I threatened their families to make them do what I wanted. I should have been worried, thinking about everything that could go wrong, and about the consequences if anything did. But I wasn’t. I was like ice inside, filled with purpose and feeling nothing — no fear, no sympathy, no remorse. I wasn’t a person, I was a weapon. And the more I think about how easily I made that transition, the more disturbing it becomes. As you said before, it was what Dennis Forrand would have done.”
“I still don’t understand why Olivia needs rescuing. Unless you believe you’re possessed by Forrand’s spirit…?”
She gave him a look. “Nothing like that. It just feels as if I’m losing my grip on who I really am. Each time I do something Forrand would do, Olivia Townsend seems to slip a little further away. I’m terrified that one day she’ll be gone entirely and I won’t be able to get her back.”
“If that’s the problem, the solution is simple,” he told her. “Stop doing what Forrand would do, and start doing what feels right to Olivia Townsend.”
“It’s not that simple.”
“Forrand has been dead for the past fourteen years. You owe him nothing, Olivia.”
Visibly steeling herself, she told him in a rush of words, “Olivia may be in the clear, but Juno Vargas isn’t. Dennis Forrand is not dead. He’s on Stragon. He swore me to secrecy, then left people behind to keep an eye on me, to make sure the Reformation went ahead as planned. If I don’t follow his instructions, he’ll find out. And you and I both know what a bastard he can be when he’s crossed.”
And just like that, everything began falling into place.
“Bruni Patel,” said Novak. “Who was he working for, you or Forrand?”
“Forrand originally. I turned him, and he was helping me to identify Forrand’s other agents. One of them must have figured out what he was doing and killed him for it. But when you told me his implants had been removed and the letters EFT had been carved into his face—”
“You realized that the Stragori had infiltrated Earth For Terrans,” Novak supplied, “and there was no longer any point in collecting names.” A pause, then, “So what you’re actually asking me to do is finish Bruni’s work — paint targets on Forrand’s spies so you can remove them from the picture.”
“In a nutshell, yes, but without anything leading back to you or me. Is it doable?”
“Maybe. Forrand is bound to realize something’s up when his agents stop reporting in. However, he’ll have no one to blame if they’ve simply gotten caught up in the evacuation and sent halfway across the galaxy. I’ve already lost three operatives that way.”
“They can’t all be sent off-world. That would be too much of a coincidence,” she pointed out.
“Then we’ll just have to make sure some of them perish in the rioting that’s certain to break out when the reason for the evacuation is finally made public. It will take some time, but it’s doable, Madame Chief Adjudicator. I’ll make sure you get their names and locations, and you and I together can take care of the remaining details. And there’s a small favor I’d like Olivia Townsend to do in return.”
She stared a question at him.
“Make sure Sam Eberhart’s name makes it onto the list of colonists bound for Elysium. He’s got a family there that’s been missing him for the last five years. That’s a long time to wait for your daddy to come home.”
“Of course. I’ll find a way, I promise.”