The Deserter by Peadar O Guilin

Author:Peadar O Guilin [Guilin, Peadar O]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
ISBN: 9781409048763
Publisher: RHCB Digital
Published: 2011-05-04T17:00:00+00:00

12. THE UNEATEN

IN THE ENDLESS darkness they tripped over uneaten bodies, with only the light cast by the Talker for company. Stopmouth’s painful boots gradually loosened as slime rotted them away. His face and body ached with bruises, his stomach rumbled with hunger. And Indrani kept muttering about her need to get back to the Roof, every word perfectly translated by the magic sphere that lit their way. It was all like the old days again. Except for the baby’s whimpers and the cold air sneaking through rips in his stolen uniform. None of it sufficed to distract him from what he’d done.

He’d never killed another human being before except to bring mercy. Oh, he’d tried – Varaha came to mind – and had dreamed many times of his own brother’s demise.

But now the hunter couldn’t close his eyes without seeing the blood spurt from Krishnan’s neck. He could still taste it, and sometimes his hands brushed against patches of it crusted on his clothing. It always made him shudder.

After many tenths they came to a door similar to the one through which he’d entered the Upstairs. Indrani pressed some buttons on the adjacent wall, but the only result was a dull voice that made them both jump. ‘Authorization required,’ it said, its words translated by the Talker. Stopmouth drew his knife, jerking his head this way and that to peer into the darkness.

‘It’s just a machine,’ said Indrani, and kicked the door. ‘A stupid one too or the Virus might have eaten it.’

‘I think … I think I know what we need to do,’ he said. He ignored his wife’s surprise and lifted the shivering Jagadamba gently from his shoulder. She was wheezing again as she had when he’d first met her. He suspected the sleeping smoke might have had something to do with that.

He touched her left hand to the cold metal surface. A green glow outlined the gaps between her fingers and the door hummed. It slid open the width of an arm, then jammed on something. It closed and opened several times before coming to rest.

‘We have to get out,’ said Indrani. She reached her hand through the gap in the door, presumably in search of whatever was blocking it. Scabs and bruises covered her beautiful face. Somehow, they made her look heroic – to overcome so much and still fight on. But she couldn’t find any blockage and the door stayed put.

‘If we could just get down,’ she said, frustration clear in every word. ‘I could study my memories in detail, learn what they wanted to steal from me. I finally know where to look. The warship – the—’

‘We don’t care about that now,’ said Stopmouth. ‘It’s the surface we need to get to! Listen’ – he grabbed her arm, more roughly than he intended – ‘Hiresh—’

‘You mean, the spy?’

Stopmouth shook his head. ‘I think he meant to be my friend too. But forget that for now. He asked the Roof how long it would take the Diggers to reach our people down there.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.