Hive by April Doyle

Author:April Doyle
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Science fiction
Publisher: Troubador Publishing Ltd
Published: 2022-01-28T00:00:00+00:00

40

The first test was to check that the printers would produce viable drones. Scott chose five newly printed drones at random. Once their batteries were charged he cleared the paperwork and mugs from the coffee table and set them down. Emily laughed with delight when Scott demonstrated the take-off and landing.

‘It’s pretty clunky,’ said Scott. ‘But we’ll soon iron out the kinks.’ He grinned at Emily.

From the other side of the workshop, Annie watched them chatting happily, their heads close together, examining the drones, making sure they were evenly spaced prior to take-off. Under the bright, chilly lights, the tiny drones rose and hovered then landed perfectly, one after the other. Annie had a sudden queasy sense of foreboding. In Scott’s expert hands this was going to work – and there would be terrible consequences.

Emily turned to Annie, her eyes shining. ‘Did you see that?’

Annie stood completely still, her jaw set. She had been wrong to support Emily’s determination to come – she should have said something, put her off the idea of contacting him. It had all been a mistake.

‘Thoughts, Dr Abrams?’ said Scott in the same lazy way which always used to infuriate Annie. It had exactly the same effect on her now.

‘These… things… you’re making.’

‘We’re making,’ he said, oblivious.

‘If they work—’

‘They’ll work.’

‘If they work,’ she repeated, ‘then we’ll have no further use for pollinators, will we?’ Emily looked at her, open-mouthed. ‘Who will fight to protect the bees then,’ said Annie, her voice rising, ‘when we have machines to do it all for us? Don’t you see?’ How could she make him understand? He was so pleased with what he’d done. ‘We’re just going to carry blindly on towards our own oblivion, aren’t we? More animals driven to extinction, but it needn’t affect us.’

Scott threw his hands up in exasperation. ‘The only reason I’m doing this is because you fucking asked me to.’

Emily stepped between them with her hands held out placatingly. ‘It was me who asked,’ she said, facing Scott. Then she turned to Annie. ‘Dr Abrams, with the utmost respect, we have to try to make this work.’

Annie reached for the chair behind her and sat down. ‘You too, Emily?’ she said.

Behind Emily, Scott ran his fingers through his hair, then stood with his hands on his hips staring furiously at the ground.

‘Or people will starve, Dr Abrams.’ Emily held Annie’s gaze, pleading. ‘But… it doesn’t mean we have to stop fighting for the bees.’

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