Anne Winchell: The Last War

The ship finally started docking, settling into the sunken heat pad at the top of the government building. Very few ships had clearance here, since it was so close to the President’s office. Medane waited while the jets steamed and shut off, and the gate opened. He watched Raven help Kaela off and thought perhaps it wasn’t just politeness that inspired Raven to let Kaela go first. Medane knew from Raven’s slow walk and lowered head that he was fully aware of the trouble he had caused by going to the moon. But when Raven and Kaela faced him, Raven met his gaze without a trace of repentance. Medane had to hide a smile and focused his attention on the girl.

The two looked remarkably similar, both being the result of a centuries-old breeding project. Though they weren’t related, they had both been selected for intelligence, speed, and strength, and these traits tended to be associated with certain physical characteristics. They both had black hair and light brown eyes, skin a muted chocolate, darker than most Western World residents but normal for the Eastern World, where assimilation hadn’t eradicated racial differences yet. Kaela was just about a month younger than Raven and the two had known each other as small children, though it was highly unlikely either remembered. Both had had extremely traumatic childhoods and Medane knew that Raven at least had blocked most of his early memories.

“Medane,” Raven said, “this is—”

“Kaela. I know.”

Medane remained silent and knew that Raven must be worried. The girl glanced between them uncomfortably. It was out of respect for her that Medane finally turned and led them back to his office. She wasn’t to blame for Raven’s actions and once Atheus found out what she had allowed to happen to the moon base, she would likely be killed.

As soon as they reached the privacy of Medane’s personal office, some of Raven’s calm exterior cracked and he grabbed Medane’s arm.

“I know this looks bad but I was acting on my own and I’ll take any blame for it.”

“Yes,” Medane said, meeting the other man’s gaze before removing his hand. “You will.”

Raven visibly gulped and glanced at the girl, who was alternating between watching them and staring out the window. Medane’s office faced Díamont Crater, the place where the final bomb of the Last War had decimated the city. Medane had chosen NeoLondon as the capital of the United Eastern World for personal as well as political reasons. It was the site of the last battle of the Last War, the place where Medane had deliberately set off a nuclear weapon in order to stop Soren. He wanted to remember the strife and sacrifice of those days so that he would never allow the world to fall into a similar conflict.

Seoul was the most logical choice to have the Eastern World’s capital, Medane knew, not NeoLondon. Seoul had been one of the largest cities in the world before the Last War and it was the only major metropolis that wasn’t bombed or attacked. With a population of over 43 million people, it was by far the largest single city in the world. Seoul was also closer to the large Chinese and Indian states, where the majority of the Eastern World’s population lived. But when Medane first proposed Seoul as the capital, the European state had refused. They threatened to join the Western World unless the capital were located somewhere in Europe. He and Atheus had agreed that using oceans as borders was the safest way to avoid conflict and Medane could not afford to have a continent split between world governments.

After generous concessions to the Asian state, NeoLondon became the capital. It was not a large city and most of the original city site had been destroyed, but the Europeans were able to accept the choice and the other Eastern states had few qualms. Much of the East had at one point in history been under the control of old London, but Medane gave each state far more independence and control than the old empire had.

Díamont Crater, monument to the Last War, was nearly a mile wide and water had filled much of it to create Lake Thames. Locks built at the start of the century prevented tidal movement and instead of a shore, the remains of destroyed buildings surrounded the lake. The area was preserved as a global monument to the Last War, a reminder of evil and a warning to future generations. Medane had specifically designed his office to face the crater so that he would never forget the sacrifices he had made to protect the people of Earth. Kaela had probably seen pictures of it, but it was entirely different to see in person the flattened landscape, charred and twisted metal beams and the brackish water at the center.

Raven wasn’t looking at the crater; he had lived here for years now. He was waiting for Medane. At the moment, Medane couldn’t see a way for these two to survive. Kaela belonged to the Western World and Atheus could do whatever he wanted with her. Once Atheus found out that Raven was responsible, the only way to avoid war was to forfeit the Eastern World’s claim to him.

“Why isn’t the moon in contact with satellites here?” Medane asked.

“Communication was temporarily disabled,” Raven said. He sounded confident, but Medane noticed that his hands were clenched into fists. “The moon will be in contact again at the end of the dark phase.”

Medane nodded and allowed himself to relax. Atheus wouldn’t know anything for sure for nearly two weeks. Nearly two weeks to figure out how to protect Raven.

“And what did you do on the moon base?”

Raven flushed and glanced at the girl. “I destroyed as much of the immoral research there as I could, sir.”

The ‘sir’ was an interesting choice, as Raven rarely acknowledged Medane as his superior. Raven preferred to think of himself as a free agent who happened to regularly take jobs with the government, and for the most part, Medane didn’t try to disillusion him. It was part of the tacit agreement both made when he was hired, and the only way that Medane could get Raven—formerly a leader of the rebellion now being led by the new díamont—to work for the government he had nearly succeeded in toppling.

“Anything involving the creation of díamonts?”

Raven met his eyes as if startled. “There was research on díamonts,” he said slowly, casting a glance at the girl.

She was pale, as she should be, Medane thought. She had allowed such research to take place and done nothing to stop it. But he was beginning to see a way out of this situation. If Lethe decided to investigate whether or not Atheus was responsible, the first place he would look would be the moon base. If Raven had already deleted the data, then there would be nothing for Lethe to find. Atheus would probably escape without any blame, thanks to Raven. Medane was sure he could convince Atheus to let Raven live in those circumstances, and possibly Kaela as well. He just needed to spin the story well so that Lethe didn’t think that Medane was helping to cover evidence.

“I have a job for you,” Medane announced, gesturing to both of them.

Raven seemed to relax, as if he knew that Medane had found a way to get him out of this mess. Kaela watched him warily, but with interest. Medane wondered what had happened to finally drive her into Atheus’ employment and hoped she wouldn’t try to contact him before Medane could discuss this.

“There’s a new díamont in NeoLondon.” He ignored their surprise. “I want you to track him down and catch him. He probably spends most of his time in human form. Once you locate him, contact me immediately. His powers can be neutralized, and you will need to kill him.”

Raven and Kaela nodded together and Medane paused, looking straight at Raven. They both understood how dangerous a rogue díamont was and Kaela was probably prepared to locate and kill him no matter who he was, but Raven was different. There was even a chance that Raven would know the díamont, and sending his favorite agent into the slums was the last thing Medane wanted to do. But he didn’t quite trust Kaela to be capable on her own. He needed Raven.