Birth of the Alliance (11 page)

“We've had this discussion already, Sebastian. We just opened two additional outposts on the Mediterranean coast. Our numbers are spread thin. We cannot afford to spread ourselves out even more until we add more people.”

Will's Energy cycling was enough to move him several miles through teleportation. Sebastian hadn't made a comment about it. Will cycled still more Energy.

“I understand that, Arthur. But if our goal is to both maximize our coverage of areas that can make us money,
and
to find Stark, shouldn’t we decide
now
that our next few expansion spots are in the Colonies? They have a few larger cities we could target. New York, Boston, Philadelphia…”

Will was certain he could teleport dozens of miles away at this point. If Sebastian had said nothing, had emoted no indication that he’d sensed Will’s presence, then he never would. The scutarium was a success.

“We'll add each of those cities to the list, Sebastian, when we're prepared to expand. Until then? If Stark is in the Colonies, so be it. Of course, given your lack of effort in developing your skill, he could be standing right next to us and you wouldn't notice.”

“I guarantee you, Arthur, that Stark is nowhere nearby. I’m telling you, he's in the Colonies.”

“Then I suggest you work on pinpointing his location even further. This conversation is over.”

Will waited until he was certain they were gone, then pulled all of the Energy loose inside the suit back inside himself. He established his own Energy Shield to ensure he didn't set off Sebastian's maligned Tracking skill, and then removed the mask and gloves, breathing in the fresh air, inhaling the fragrant scent of the trees around him. He eased himself out of the upper boughs of the tree using the nanos until he set foot once again upon the forest floor.

The scutarium worked. It was time to return to the submarine.

“Where did you come from?” Sebastian's shocked voice sounded behind him.

Will spun. Sebastian stared at him, slack-jawed, with Arthur right behind him.

Arthur slapped Sebastian in the head. “Didn't you just tell him he was in the Colonies? Then how is he here now, may I ask, you incompetent fool?”

“He wasn't there just a minute ago, I swear!”

“Funny, how I'm looking right at him then, isn't it?”

Will thought quickly. If he teleported, Sebastian would definitely find him. If he ran, they'd teleport ahead of him.

Instead, he packed the nanos around him and flew straight up into the air, intentionally leaking a small bit of Energy to give the impression that his flight was Energy-based. He accelerated his pace, feeling the wind whistling by him. Sebastian could track Energy; he couldn't track nanos. Will flew inland first, letting small bits of Energy leak, in the hopes that they’d chase him here. If they did, they'd be heading away from Hope and the
Nautilus
.

Will landed about twenty minutes later near a stream, and took a few moments to hydrate himself. He also wanted to give Sebastian a few minutes to start chasing him.

In fact… he could help that process out.

Will covered himself entirely with the scutarium clothing, then removed one glove, put his hand on the ground, and sent a large amount of Energy into the soil. He then replaced the glove so that he was fully shielded, and used the nanos to fly due west. Sebastian couldn’t help but notice that Energy burst; the Tracker would probably assume it was Energy from a long-range bit of teleportation. By the time Sebastian and other Aliomenti reached this spot, Will would have looped around, back to the shore near Waterloo.

Will arrived back near Waterloo, nearly two miles west of the outpost, and continued out over the Mediterranean Sea. He made a wide loop and flew back toward the shore in line with the submarine. He took a deep breath, and then flew below the surface of the sea, stopping only when he reached the side of the submarine. Only then did he teleport inside the vessel.

"You're late." Hope folded her arms across her chest, her look stern.

Will, remarkably dry for one who had just spent a full minute under water, pulled off the gloves, the mask, the cloak, and finally the boots. He took deep breaths of the familiar air of the
Nautilus
. “I… uh… ran into some old friends.”

Hope's look softened a bit. “What did they say?”

“That they'd had no idea I was there until they stumbled over me.”

“So… it works, then?”

Will grinned. “Oh, yes, it works perfectly. It doesn’t prevent them from
seeing
us if we’re right in front of them. But they were truly stunned that I was there when they saw me. The positive thing about all of this is that they’ll think I’m still living somewhere in Europe. Sebastian was convinced I was living in the Colonies, and wanted Arthur to pick a spot there for expansion. Arthur didn’t seem convinced before. Now? He might wait even longer. So we should still have several decades of peace.”

Hope smiled. With the scutarium now a proven commodity, they’d always have a safe haven somewhere nearby, a place where they could disappear from any type of detection by the Aliomenti. They’d be at risk only when they chose to step out of those shadows to make their change upon the world.

It was the type of risk they'd choose to make on a regular basis. It was only possible to do so much without stepping into the light.

VII

Discovery

1750 A.D.

The city of Philadelphia had grown steadily since Will’s last visit, and now boasted over twenty-five thousand residents. The humid summer air was thick and stale, and the smell of sweat and equine refuse was powerful. Crowds of people thronged on the streets, dodging carriages and the occasional child intent upon an errand or some outdoor game of tag. Few gave a second thought to the tall man with jet-black hair and spectacles, lost in their own concerns and worries. He glided smoothly through the clouds, his face a disinterested mask, his attentive green eyes missing nothing.

Will found the building he sought, one he’d last entered three decades earlier. Had it truly been that long? He pushed open the door and entered. The printer, a man in his mid-forties with long, thinning hair, glanced up. “Good day to you, sir. How may I be of service?”

“I am looking to purchase a copy of
Poor Richard’s Almanack.
It is my understanding that Mr. Saunders uses your shop to create the books, and hoped I might buy a copy here directly.

Benjamin Franklin considered Will for a moment, then nodded. “I should have a handful of copies of the
Almanack
available. I do fear the Mr. Saunders is unavailable to thank you in person.”

Will nodded. “Please pass along my compliments to Mr. Saunders when you see him again. I find it a valuable resource, full of useful information and bits of wisdom.”

Franklin nodded before disappearing into a back room. He emerged a moment later with a copy of the
Almanack
, and collected the appropriate fee from Will. “Many thanks, good sir.” He paused, his gaze narrowing on Will. “Have we met before, sir? You remind me of someone I met long ago.”

Will looked thoughtful, not because he was trying to remember if he’d met Franklin—he had—but because he was trying to remember if he’d actually erased that memory from Franklin’s mind. “I don't believe so, sir. I certainly hope, though, that the man you met previously, the one I reminded you of, was an agreeable sort.”

Franklin nodded. “He was.” He gazed at Will again. “My apologies sir, but I am noticing that there is an imperfection in the spectacles you wear. Does it not interfere with your vision, rather than correct it?”

Will shook his head. “I can angle my head to look above or below it. I will need to get the imperfection fixed in the near future, however.”

Franklin nodded, looking thoughtful. He tipped an imaginary hat at Will. “I thank you for your business sir, but I fear I must return to mine.”

Will nodded. “Of course.” He turned and left the printing shop. This time, Franklin wouldn’t remember his face.

Will walked down the street with his copy of the
Almanack
folded under his arm. “Did you get that, Charles?” he whispered.

“I did, Will.” Charles’ voice was audible through the small device in Will's right ear. “How do I sound?”

“There's a bit of buzzing, but I can understand you.”

They’d developed the first audio transmission devices—microphones, receivers, and speakers—a decade earlier, and had spent the past ten years reducing the size. As the devices continued to shrink, they’d added small portable batteries to the mix. Tests in the Cavern indicated a range of about two hundred yards. Charles was positioned two blocks away with an earpiece receiver and microphone identical to Will’s. The implications of this technology were immense: they could communicate in a manner reminiscent of telepathy without requiring the use of Energy. It was another tool to help them avoid Aliomenti interference with their work.

“Did you get the visual as well?” Will asked.

“Give me a moment. I need to… find a bit more privacy.”

“Understood.”

They’d begun a similar project for video capability, with comparable successes. Charles had a traveling bag containing a small viewscreen, much like those found aboard the fleet of submarines. It would display video transmitted from the tiny cameras embedded in Will’s eyeglasses. Franklin had noticed the “imperfection” in the spectacles the miniature cameras provided. Charles needed to move out of the sight of the residents of Philadelphia, who would take exceptional interest in the device… especially if they saw one of their better known residents moving around on it.

“Will, I’m looking now,” Charles’ voice came through the earpiece two minutes later. “Good news! The video came through just fine. It’s not perfectly clear by any stretch… but it’s clear enough.”

The cameras at this size would be useful in spying on the Aliomenti, and were another step along the miniaturization journey they’d need to complete to get inside cells and view the effects of ambrosia. They weren’t small enough yet, but the steady progression was encouraging. His nanos included miniature cameras and microphones that fed signals to the communication nanos in his head. The video images were blurred, though, and he had no means of determining the problems with those devices without knowing how they’d been made. Thus, he’d need to invent the nanos himself, figure out the reason the camera images were blurred, fix the images, use the images to decipher the riddle of ambrosia, then….

Hope had stopped him from this line of thinking, or at least slowed it down. Will didn't need to do everything himself. Others were becoming motivated to find what was referred to as the Reversal or the Cure, and for the same reason as Will. None had the deadline he did, but the motivation was there, nonetheless.

“We’re getting closer, Charles. I just know it. It won’t be long now.”

“I hope so, Will. Rachel and I… well, you know exactly what we’re going through.”

One of the core differences between the Alliance and the Aliomenti is that the members of the Alliance were encouraged to find love and start families if they wished. Recruits had no obligation to ever take morange and zirple. They were not required to take ambrosia. Not everyone found that opportunity right away, however, and many chose to accept the ambrosia believing that they’d have a better chance at some point in the future. Charles had joined the Alliance in 1720, and had taken the ambrosia five years later.

Rachel had joined the Alliance in 1740. The relationship had developed and deepened quickly, and they wanted nothing more than to start a family. But the ambrosia prevented them from doing so. Rachel, who had been 27 when she’d joined, had waited nearly a decade, but seeing no cure, she’d elected to take ambrosia as well, hoping she’d still be around when a cure was found. They were certainly eager, as eager as Will and Hope, to find that cure, and both worked on projects to guarantee success would come to them one day.

“I’m looking forward to being an uncle to the kids you and the Shadow have, Will. She’s a great woman.”

Will smiled, even though Charles couldn’t see him. “She most definitely is, Charles.”

Hope, known to the Alliance as the Shadow, had become an immensely popular member. Hope had gained tremendous stature in the hidden underground city of five hundred residents. She trained new recruits to use Energy, helped them identify their particular area of specialization, and perhaps most critically, she trained those preparing to go Outside to survive and thrive without raising suspicion among humans and without being detected by the Aliomenti.

She was also a popular babysitter for couples with children. In the forty years since the Alliance had started, they'd seen twenty children born to their group. Most couples were content with one child, and would take their ambrosia once their healthy child was born…. Most were quite happy with the choices they made in regards to taking or not taking ambrosia, and it was expected that the community would accept each choice without scorn, regardless of what it might be. That included those, like Charles and Rachel, who’d taken ambrosia and now wanted to reverse the effects, at least temporarily.