James Scotson - Planets Falling

After we’ve landed back firmly on the ground, we lounge in the grass. Theo runs his fingers through my hair. “Things, they’ve changed now, haven’t they?”

I smile effortlessly. “Yes, Theo. For the first time in a very long while, I feel hopeful.”

Our peace is short-lived. We hear scuffling in the distance and Bets shouts to us, “Stay down.”

We turn to see Minns and Bets crouched behind a mossy oak tree, with an ominous grey, metallic orb floating above them. My thought turns to Troll. Minns and Etch were wrong. We are not alone in Farmington — the artificial ones who think remain around us, watching and wondering. The pilot within me reaches out. I feel Etch in the Fuerst. And I know he senses me as well. I send one word: danger.

Three more orbs appear from a garden of vines with bright yellow blooms. Another group of orbs approaches purposefully toward us from the lake.

“What the hell are these things?” Bets exclaims, more annoyed than frightened.

Minns sighs with frustration rather than fear. “The FRT left these drones to look for stragglers or squatters. We’ve been tagged. There’s no sense in running. They’ll stick to us like stink on a skunk.”

I laugh. What I would give to smell one of my stubborn black and white friends right now.

Theo’s less amused. “Do these things carry weapons?”

Minns stands up. “Only defensive. If we were to try to disable a drone, it’d give you a nasty shock. The FRT has been alerted and ships are assuredly on their way.”

I see a faint image of Etch or perhaps Fromer in my mind. It says, “Whack them.” I think this is strange and then I imagine swatting an annoying fly. Three of the drones drop into the lake.

“What on mars?” Minns asks.

I start swatting away in my mind and the drones drop — like flies. “Let’s run,” Bets shouts.

We’re speeding in the car toward the Fuerst through the city streets when two FRT vessels descend between two arched buildings, heading directly at us. For some reason, I know these are short-distance cruisers, built for speed and agility. They’ll overcome us easily. “Turn left and then right,” I yell to Minns. She hesitates for a moment and then complies, our heads nearly snapping off their necks. We descend into another tunnel, which descends deep below the surface. The voice in my head says, “Find the elevator. Rise to the roof top.”

Minns stops the car at my urging. We’re in a spacious storage facility, full of boxes and dusty vehicles. The only light comes from our car. “Where to now, Amy?” Theo asks.

“We’re to find something called an elevator. Minns, do you know what that is?”

“Yup. There are signs leading to one straight ahead.”

I turn to hear voices and see flashes of yellow light down the passageway from which we just emerged. “Let’s hustle. They’ll be here in a minute.” Minns gestures for us to follow her.

We enter a door marked with the words: air lock. I’m surprised that I can read them, although I’m unsure of their meaning. Minns searches the wall for something. “Look for a metal box full of buttons.”

“Is this it?” Bets asks.

“Good job my sweet,” Minns exclaims. With the flip of a lever, white light washes over us. She hits a red button on the door and it whines. “Stand back and watch the fun. The entire city is sectioned into air-tight compartments, in case the atmospheric containment field over us fails.” Minns looks at our blank faces. “You have no idea what I’m talking about, do you? Anyway, here we go. Our pursuers are going to experience some pain. We’re safe in this control room.”

The light turns red and a Troll-like voice says, “Air purge from storage compartment imminent. Take cover.” Four FRT soldiers arrive just as the air is sucked out of the space with a hiss. They fall to their knees, holding their ears and their throats. Within a minute, they’ve collapsed. Strange plastic bubbles grow around their heads.

“Those things on their heads are emergency breathing devices. Their suits will automatically recover them,” Minns remarks. “However, they’ll need some serious medical treatment for pressure sickness. We won’t be worrying about them anytime soon. Let’s look for our lift.”

We find the elevator in no time and ascend. At the top of the building, we gaze in dismay through a window at the scene before us. Five enormous Fuerst-like ships hover over the city, gleaming in the sun rising at the moon’s horizon. If Etch tries to launch, he’ll be pummeled.

“Those are definitely pirate, I mean, FRT ships.” Minns groans.

The roof of the room is a clear, glass-like substance, with a ladder leading to its surface. Beyond the ships I can see the sky in its glory. I think of Wenn and Eliza far away. Deep inside, I know they haven’t connected yet. I fear they’re both lost.

On earth spinning below us, Thresh moves deliberately toward the portal at Yellow Stone. I have no idea what I’m going to do if we make it there. All I want is my daughter back and to go home. Or do I? I’ve seen so many horrors and wonders recently. The universe has opened itself to me. And this thing called technology is complicated. Just like people, it seems to have captured the struggle between good and evil — something that the plants and soil in my garden never cared much about.

Theo puts his hand on my shoulder and I fall back into his arms. I glance at Bets. She seems unconcerned. Theo sighs, “So is this it for us? Etch’s damned if he rises into those ships.”

“Oh, don’t be so negative Theo.” Minns smacks his shoulder. “We should hold tight. Etch is a clever man. Even if he doesn’t make it, we’ve got an entire city at our disposal. We’ll just have to be discrete. It’s only a matter of time before the Institute forces regain control of this sector.”

“So why were you hiding on earth from the Institute if you’re so confident that they’ll welcome us?” I ask.

Minns groans. “Well, that’s a valid point. I suppose it all depends on what happens with the portal. If they try to hide it and protect it, then we’re going to know some stuff that’s pretty inconvenient for them. However, I think the box is opened don’t you? Every pilot throughout the fleet probably knows of its existence by now.”

“What are pilots going to think of this thing?” I ask no one in particular.

“What do you mean?” Minns is interested in my thoughts. Here I am a product of a world devoid of machines and space travel, and yet I’m quickly slipping into the other world, where technology dominates and too often placates the people it’s supposed to serve.

“I think the pilots will see the portal on earth as a blessing and a threat. From what I understand of it, it’s a doorway to other parts of space. It could make their jobs obsolete. On the other hand, it has endless possibilities for exploration. If pilots experience what I’ve experienced on earth through the portal’s effects, then they can travel to places that no one’s even dreamed of yet. Even places beyond space — where the others are from.”

Bets is perplexed. “Marksman, you’re saying that earth could become a place where pilots gather to explore all this?” She raises her hand to the glorious star-lit sky. “Like a monastery?”

“Yes, and they can explore what lies beyond the door — whatever that is — and teach us what they learn. Or the portal at Yellow Stone could become a bustling port for space ships moving through the doorway it makes to other worlds. But I fear it would ruin the nature around it. Earth may return to the mess of its past. The crazy part is, I think the reason the portal opened up is because the people, the technology, on earth went away. The earth healed and the doorway appeared.”