The Other by Matthew Buscemi

Author:Matthew Buscemi [Buscemi, Matthew]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781628020205
Publisher: Matthew Buscemi Publishing
Published: 2020-04-23T22:00:00+00:00

Trust

“Charles?”

“…”

“Charles!”

“Yes?”

“What did you think of that just now?”

“… I’m a copy.”

“You’re a human being with free will and agency.”

“I knew that this body had formed from the wall, you know. But I had no idea that there was a real Charles still out there.”

“But, do you see what this means? There’s a group out there that wants contact.”

“They’re small. Much too small. Like Catherine said. All the parties rightward of hers are like me. I’m not here to communicate with you. I’m here to be you. And the ones leftward are like the ones you remember from before the walls, but worse. They’re angry, bitter, and even more convinced that they’re right in spite of everything that’s happened.”

“But it’s something. Catherine reached out. She broke a century of silence.”

“I’m tired, Saahan. I want to lie down.”

“Okay.”

“Just one thing before I do.”

“What’s that?”

“About Samantha. What did she do?”

“She released evolvers into her environment. They’ve been contained.”

“Did she evolve anyone?”

“Yes.”

“I’m sorry that happened. Make sure the evolved have access to both water and electricity. They will need a lot of electricity.”

“This wasn’t your fault, Charles.”

“In a way, indirectly, it was.”

“Oh?”

“I’m remembering more now. A lot more. He, the real Charles, was the one who figured out how to transform the walls.”

~

The surface of the Citrine base had changed much from Sahaan’s first visit here. Before it had been largely empty, save for the few military personnel then assigned to it. Now, an enormous ring of military had encircled the spot where Sahaan stood, the base of the stairwell leading down to where Charles lay sleeping. The two sergeants who had been following in Sahaan’s wake saluted him, then strode off toward the bustling encampment.

Sahaan pulled out his handheld and dialed Bharo. The line rang for perhaps over a minute, and Sahaan had just begun to wonder if his friend were all right, when Bharo’s voice suddenly burst through the speaker.

“Sahaan! Sorry about that. I was on the phone with the president.”

“The president will need a speech, I’m sure.”

“He said to have you come back to Portal City right away.”

Sahaan grimaced. He’d anticipated this. He’d called Bharo hoping he could get an update without getting that order relayed. “And how will we keep Charles safe?”

“I’m sure the president thinks this is a whole lot bigger than Charles now.”

“Charles is key to this. He’s remembering things. Someone’s got to keep an eye on him.”

A long silence. “Tell you what. The doctor had me walking last night, so I’ll pull your little stunt on them tonight, meaning I can be in Citrine by tomorrow. I can probably fend off the president for another day. Just tell me what you think Charles has left to tell us.”

“He’s the one who figured out how to turn the walls into people.”

A pause. “Well, I’ll be… Sure. Yup. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

“Thanks. How’s everything else?”

“Well, about half of Portal City has applied for a visa to Alterra. The president shut down travel through the portal

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