The Variables

“He said they all had a linked genome. They were immune.”

Scott nodded. “And he had the benefit of having multiple bodies to test. You wanted me to test Grant with whom? Against whom?”

“Against anyone...clearly...Seamus said the marker was clear.”

“Seamus is a moron,” Scott mumbled.

“I asked if there could be more like him. You said no.”

“I did the best I could. I thought—” he started, but he couldn’t think of anything else to say. “I believed Grant could have been an anomaly. Without proof otherwise, I made the best decision I could with data...”

“Now we have all the data,” Huck answered. “And it’s settled.”

“Does everyone agree to this?” Claude asked. He turned his attention sharply to Gordy who shook his head and rolled his eyes toward his father.

“We do not have to agree on this. It is my decision and I have decided he goes to Copia. He doesn’t belong on Kymberlin or anywhere else. He belongs on Copia,” Huck said, giving the conversation a feeling of forced finality.

“You’re right that he doesn’t belong here,” Scott pushed. “But I have vouched for him. He is good for my family, for my daughter. You think that’s easy for me to admit? Look, if you send him to Copia, you risk more that just a random teenager muddying the purified waters...”

“Scott is right,” Claude interjected. “Cass, too, is fond of the boy. They have become friends.”

“My dad’s decision is final,” Gordy said, yawning. “Trust me.” He turned back to the screens and prepared for their meeting.

“He’s one boy,” Claude said, waving his hand like he was swatting at a fly. “I agree that you should reconsider his placement—”

Huck raised both his hands in the air. “Quiet,” he said in a smooth, calm voice. “We will deal with this later. I have a Board meeting to run.” He turned the volume on his monitor to high and began to speak to the Elektos in a booming voice, his eyes twinkling, his mouth upturned in a brilliant smile. It was amazing how fast Huck could transform his moods.

“Good afternoon, morning or evening,” he said, his voice chipper, warm. The timbre of it sent a tremor down Scott’s spine. “Thank you for congregating. It is with great joy that I tell you that we are ready. We may begin our evacuation of The Systems and our journey to the Islands. Have you been sent your itineraries? Our pilots have been trained for our beach landings. The runways are short, so be prepared for an intense drop. Everyone will land on the east coast and then be transported to their respective Islands. It is so exciting to know that our dreams are becoming a reality. And I’m thrilled to meet all your constituents in person. Our time has come.” He bowed to the camera, his hands prostrate.

Roman cleared his throat and leaned in closer to the camera. “That’s good news, Huck. But where are our Saudi members? You brought them back online; they were presented their Island manifests? So why haven’t they been invited to the table?”

“There must be a technical glitch,” Huck said breezily. He looked to Gordy and snapped his fingers. Gordy examined the monitors and shrugged. “They were invited, clearly. We are all one...our differences have been put aside. They have agreed to the plan in its entirety...we have most certainly been in contact with them.”

“We’ll wait for them,” Victor a

The room went still.

Huck leaned over to his son and whispered in his ear. Gordy continued tinkering with the panel; all eyes of the Elektos were trained on him.

“They aren’t logged in to the chat,” Gordy said after a second.

“Get them,” Huck demanded. “Hack in.” Gordy grumbled, but obliged and in less than a minute the EUS Four cameras clicked on.

They displayed an empty room: an empty table and two empty chairs—the EUS Four boardroom behind them, dark, and still.

“Well?” Roman asked.

“Can you call them?” Morowa joined in the questioning.

“I can also hack into the a

“Do it.” Huck crossed his arms and waited.

“It’ll broadcast to the entire System—”

“We’d like them to be present. It’s just like a page,” Victor said. “My people are used to System-wide a

Gordy clicked more on his computer and then leaned close to the attached microphone. “Calling Muuez and Shay to the boardroom. An emergency Elektos session is in progress. Calling Muuez and Shay to the boardroom.”

Then they waited.

Five minutes passed. Then ten. And still the room remained empty. The Board members talked amongst themselves. Some looked anxious, but most were disinterested.

“Page them again,” Huck demanded when enough time has passed, and Gordy went to send the message again, but as he began his second attempt, the door to the boardroom burst open and Muuez stumbled forward, his face white, and his clothes askew. He propelled himself to the monitor and his fear loomed in front of the Elektos board. With wild eyes and shaking hands, he shocked them all to attention. Every face on the monitor watched him with confused concern.

“I don’t know how much time I have,” Muuez said, his breathing ragged.

Huck stood up and leaned down at his monitor. “What is going on there?”

“After the energy was turned back on,” Muuez replied, “the people...they were mad. They’ve been plotting to overthrow the leadership. They wanted to get to the surface, Huck. And this morning,” his voice broke, “they revolted.”

“Revolted?” Claude asked.

The Elektos whispered among themselves, then they began a barrage of questions.

Finally Kazuma’s voice rose above them all, “Where is Shay?”

Muuez shook his head and looked down. He balled his right hand into a fist and covered his mouth. “They’re determined to escape...Shay tried to intervene, speak for you...”

“Dear God,” Gordy said and he slumped backward in the chair.

“They are going to get to the surface. I won’t be able to stop them. We have all our armed guards at the elevator, but it won’t be long—”

“How many are revolting?” Huck asked. He turned to Gordy, “Get the General. Get a team.”

“To go to Saudi Arabia now?” Gordy asked with great incredulity. “Dad—”

“How many?” Huck asked again, his voice tense.

Muuez shook his head again. “There’s no use, Huck. The Islands hold no hope for them. Our Copia crowd convinced the others, you see? And they weren’t impressed with future promises. Punishing us punished them! Can’t you see? You lost them after we lost power. You lost their trust. You can’t get them back.”

It was the wrong thing to say and Muuez knew it, but despite the fear on his face, Scott also noticed the man’s resolve. He wouldn’t lie to save his life because Muuez already knew the outcome to his own story. There was no way Huck would let the Saudi System fail. There is no way he’d let a group get to the surface. With the end near, the truth was all Muuez had left. Still facing the camera, he closed his eyes and began to pray. He mumbled his prayers at first and the Elektos strained to hear. The computer microphone picked up on the distant cries and shouts of people in the hallway.

Muuez opened his eyes as people began pounding on the door.

“Shut them down,” Huck commanded. “If we shut them down before they breach the elevator, they’ll never get to the surface. Shut them down.”

The Elektos erupted.

“We must vote!”

“There are still our men inside that EUS!”

“We have specialists there! People worth saving.”

“I demand a vote!”

Huck cried above them all. “So, then vote, dammit! Vote! All in favor of terminating support to EUS Four say aye.” A chorus of ayes. “All opposed?”

Gabriel and Claude voiced their disapproval. Victor chimed in late. No one had noticed that Scott remained silent.