The Variables

“Wonderful,” Maxine replied and she rolled her eyes as Blair turned her back and sauntered up toward her family at the main stage. When Maxine turned to catch Scott’s attention, Lucy saw that her father shifted his body so she was no longer in his peripheral vision. It was a subtle move, a turn of just a fraction of an inch—but it made all the difference. Maxine eyed him, while rubbing Teddy’s back and lulling him peacefully to rest against her body.

“What was that about?” Lucy whispered, turning back to Cass.

Cass put a hand on Lucy’s back. “Blair happened,” was all she said. “Shhhh,” she added. “Look. Here we go.” The overhead lights dimmed.

Gordy took his place at the microphone and the residents fell silent with anticipation. The music faded and the video ceased.

“We have called you here today to a

“Everything that we have been through, everything that we have suffered through will be redeemed. My father’s plan from the begi

Lucy turned to her father and stared at him. His eyes stared unblinkingly at Gordy; he must have felt Lucy’s gaze, but he remained facing forward, resolute in his power to ignore her. Gordy continued.

“The Islands were partially constructed prior to the Great Divide.”

That was the first time Lucy had heard that expression: The Great Divide. The co

“Once we knew it was safe to continue our work, the great architects and engineers were put to work,” Gordy continued. “Eventually, we will have nine Islands. Only eight are ready for the move. Each Island is its own entity, with its own specialties, and its own diverse population.” Gordy paused, waiting for his audience to process, and then he smiled. “Yes, yes. Diverse. Meaning...when you are assigned your Island location, you might be saying goodbye to some of the faces you have come to know here in our temporary home.”

This a

Gordy turned and motioned behind him to where Claude stood tall. With self-assured poise and a calmness that Lucy had come to admire in all of the Salvants, Claude rooted his feet on the stage, his hands clasped behind him, his head high.

“Claude Salvant is the man who designed and engineered this marvel of modern day architecture. He created our System, and together with the world’s best scientists and i

Lucy looked to the ground. Grant’s hand was sweating against hers. She pulled her hand back and wiped it on her pants and then resumed holding his hand. He smiled.

“Buoy technology, wave energy...you’ve heard about it in your newspapers, buried under the conflict of wars and failing governments. It slipped by u

Gordy clapped his hands together and taking his cue, the rest of the Center began to applaud. Grant, unwilling to let go of Lucy’s hand again, out of love or in mockery, clapped their clasped hands together. Claude stepped forward, his towering form dwarfed Gordy as he took his position; he adjusted the microphone and leaned down.

“No, please, thank you,” Claude said to the crowd, raising his hand to silence them. “The Islands are indeed a feat of engineering. Using technology that is so new no one in the old world had perfected it yet, we have crafted fully functional, moveable, but anchored cities. Powered by wave technology and solar power, they are like giant luxury liners built for sustaining life for hundreds of years.”

People began to whisper and lean in to one another.

“That was my mission, based on Huck Truman’s fearless goal. While we let the Earth heal, while we let nature reclaim her health, we had to create a place for us to go. Certainly you are here for a reason. You were chosen. So, your value is high and we want to please you. This is not a temporary holding place while we figure out the next steps, no, these Islands are our permanent home.” The “p” punctuated against the microphone, a shriek of feedback squealed out. People covered their ears and Claude drew back, tapped the microphone, and then continued. “We wish we could have taken you there first, but they weren’t quite ready. Plus, we admit, we worried that they might have been accessible to outsiders had we led you there first. Therefore, it was imperative that the System was our first step. The Islands are our second.”

Cass leaned in and whispered in Lucy’s ear, her breath warm, “Claude Salvant, the architect,” she said. “He wears his pride so well. You can’t even tell what he really believes.” Lucy turned to ask Cass what she meant, but Cass had pushed herself back into her chair.

“Your first look,” Claude a

The camera zoomed in on the towers that they had all seen when they first entered, and then the narrator intoned:

“The hub of the New World will be Kymberlin. The center of science, industry, and economy. It will act as the center of our new government: a central place for the Elektos board to meet, and a place where people of every Island can congregate for Founder’s Day or other joyous celebrations. Its dormitories are built both above and below the sea, co

Someone from another pod shouted something indecipherable to the crowd. Jeers and laughter erupted around it, and Lucy watched as Huck motioned for guards to settle themselves in front of the offending area, their hands on their guns. Huck looked personally wounded that someone would interrupt the glorious video; he eyed them with contempt.

Lucy tugged on her father’s shirt and he leaned his ear in to her.

“Founder’s Day?”

Scott nodded.

“Only bullies earn their support through fear,” she whispered and she looked up at the armed guards, who now stepped into the seating area, pacing among them. “He can’t stop them from saying those things. Not even with guns.”

Scott put his hand on his daughter’s knee and looked at her for the first time since they had entered the Center. He leaned in for an awkward side-hug, his wordless response to her observation. She had always enjoyed being the little girl who leaped into her father’s arms, but her great protector and adviser had lost his stronghold in her heart. While freeing Grant had earned him credit, her father had recently retreated into a steady darkness. She had watched it happen; Ethan’s arrival, Teddy’s nightmarish evenings, and more and more evenings called away to the Elektos.