Falling & Uprising Read online

  “Now then.” Sophos taps the screen, and a holo map of the city floats above the coffee table. Tall buildings, a few scattered green parks, wide paths, and the monorail tracks weaving throughout. Surrounded on all sides by water. “What do you notice about Kaycie?”

  “It’s perfect.” It may be the safe answer, but it’s also honest. I love this island.

  The horrors that ended the pre-flood world have the detached sterility of history, and how could anyone regret events that would lead to our current way of life? Having the world be so big seems intimidating. I don’t mind Kaycie being the last little piece of dry land in the least.

  Sophos’ thin smile doesn’t reach his eyes. My answer was probably overkill.

  “Indeed it is. How do we maintain that perfection, Serenity?”

  “We maintain it by ensuring equality among all citizens. There is no poverty or hunger, and we all contribute our skills to the well-being of the city and the people. Everything is fair and equal.”

  “Very good. And where in the city do our equally shared resources come from? Food, for example.”

  Magic? How should I know? Kaycie provides us with everything we need. It’s known. I get the feeling he does not want me to recite that phrase, though. I stare at the holo of the city. “Are there laboratories producing our food? Indoor greenhouses and such?”

  “No.”

  I look at him expectantly. He pinches the map to zoom out, and another large island comes into view. My breath catches in my throat. The new addition is covered in fields and trees with small buildings sprinkled throughout.

  “Here,” he says, enlarging the island with a hand gesture, “is where crops are grown, and farming is done to feed the city. All our fruits and vegetables, herbs, leaves that make our tea, grapes that make our wine, even cotton and silk that make our fabrics comes from this island.”

  My heart beats faster. I don’t want my eyes to betray my incredible shock, so I keep them focused on this new island. There isn’t anything beyond our coastline. This can’t be.

  “There is another island?” My voice sounds small and childish despite my best attempts.

  Sophos returns the island to its proper size on the map and zooms out again. Another island appears. My heart pounds in my ears loud enough that I’d expect him to hear it.

  “This one is where our livestock is raised. All of the pigs, cows, poultry, sheep, and so on are raised here. Fish and crustaceans are farmed here as well.”

  A prickling feeling dances up my neck. I look at him incredulously, but I can’t find any words to say. I’m not sure I could form words in my mouth anyway. Silence is probably a better option right now.

  Sophos raps his fingers on his wrist. “You’ve eaten lamb, I presume?”

  I manage to nod, trying to control my breathing.

  “But have you ever seen sheep in Kaycie?”

  I stare back at the map. The third island has so much open space between its wooden buildings. It looks like a different world. Could this be real? Why don’t we know about these islands? Why let us believe we are alone here? The Establishment gives us everything. Why would they keep this from us?

  “Perhaps this is enough for one day,” Sophos says.

  I look up and try my best to sound calm and collected. “This feels like the crescendo, anyway. There can’t be anything more interesting.”

  Only the infinite list of questions ricocheting around my mind. They are too jumbled to form into words, and I don’t think I’m supposed to ask questions. Curiosity is not a valued trait.

  He smiles, and almost appears to laugh to himself.

  There is more.

  I look at the map, then close my eyes for a moment and take a breath. “If there is more, I can continue.” The world already tripled in size. How much more shocking could anything else be?

  Sophos looks at me tentatively, deciding if he thinks I can handle it, I guess. I look back at him—wholly composed—and try to keep my chest from heaving noticeably as my breaths come too fast. Perhaps Millie was right; looking confident might be the most important thing I can do here.

  Silently, he looks back at the map and with both hands, pinches it in. Zooming out until Kaycie is just one of eight islands.

  Chapter Three

  SERENITY

  A frigid wind cuts through my unbuttoned coat, but my hands refuse to help; they remain clenched in my pockets. Getting the coat on at all was an achievement. With every tap of my boot heels, I expect to wake up. This should be a bad dream. I need it to be a bad dream.

  All around me, people go on with their everyday lives. Ground levels of commercial buildings teem with life. As I walk along the street, people laugh and drink in restaurants and lounges, carry shopping bags out of boutiques, and judge their new hair colors in salons. Their worlds didn’t explode today. Everything they knew this morning remains the same. I knew the same things when I woke up. Now it would appear I knew nothing at all.

  Could it be possible that the Establishment lies to us, that our most basic history and foundations are false? They give us everything. Do they withhold the truth? My stomach twists as breaths come too fast.

  No, this was the trap. I was supposed to insist it couldn’t be true. Looking out for hidden snares distracted me. The questions about placement could seem innocent enough if I hadn’t been alert. The bombshell was too big, too outrageous to look like a trick at the time. I failed the test.

  There isn’t anything beyond the sea.

  It’s absurd. Seven other islands? Not only is Kaycie not alone, but it’s only a small fraction of what’s left? Only one of eight?

  Nonsense. There isn’t anything beyond the water.

  I’ve reached the water. My feet carried me to the boardwalk near the theater. I didn’t make a conscious decision about what I would do or where I would go when I left the Establishment Center. Why did I walk so far? I lean my elbows on the railing, happy to gain support before I collapse. Fortunately, it’s cold enough to keep the area free of curious eyes. Face in my hands, I take a deep breath. I lift my face, resting my chin on the heels of my hands to gaze across the water. The icy wind bites my face as waves spring to foamy white peaks.

  Could there be something else out there? Someone else looking back toward me?

  There isn’t anything beyond the sea. If I think it enough times, maybe I’ll believe it.

  If not out there—I twist to look back at the city—where does it all come from?

  Glass towers reflect the sun as it descends toward the sea. The skyline becomes a glowing watercolor as exterior lights activate, bathing the buildings in an array of colors. The boardwalk’s wooden planks catch my eye from underneath my gray boots. My lips scrunch to the side as I picture the wooden furniture and moldings in my home. There aren’t enough trees for all this. I drop my face back into my shaking hands.

  Why did he tell me this?

  “Serenity!”

  I jump and at the sound of my name. My heart races as I turn to see the source of the shock. “Adwin, for goodness sake! Don’t sneak up on me like that.” I catch my breath and lean back on the railing as he closes the gap between us in a few strides.

  “Sunbeam, what are you doing here?”

  “I don’t know.” It’s an honest answer and the best I can do right now. I forgot I was meeting him, but that would be later anyway.

  “Did you forget about me?” He buttons my coat, half-smiling. “Aren’t you freezing? I was waiting for you at the plaza, and you didn’t answer my calls. I checked your location and saw you were here. Are you all right?”

  “Yes, I’m fine. I forgot to switch my cuff back. It’s on do-not-disturb.” I was too numb to remember anything like that. “We weren’t supposed to meet until five-thirty, though.”

  “It’s six o’clock.” He narrows his eyes.

  “Really? No, it couldn’t be.” I glance at my cuff. It’s nine minutes past six, and I have several missed calls. “But I… I… just went for a wa
lk. I’m sorry.”

  Adwin pulls me in for a hug and kisses the top of my head. I breathe in his cologne. The bergamot and vanilla relax me, if only a little.

  “You walked all the way here from the Establishment Center?”

  “Yes…” The word drags out of me. I should say more, but I’m at a loss.

  He pulls away to hold my shoulders. Even in heels, I look up at his face. His blue eyes mesmerize me, but his eyebrows furrow now as he examines my face. My composure barely made it to the Establishment Center’s door; I can’t imagine how I look now. Maybe I can blame the wind for my red, teary eyes.

  “What’s the matter?”

  “Nothing.” I hope my thin smile is believable. “I’m tired, and I didn’t eat much today.” I need an excuse—but it happens to be true. My stomach tightens at the reminder. “How was your day?”

  Sophos told me to keep the information I learned confidential. It’s laughable. I couldn’t form the words in my mouth to tell anyone, even if I wanted to. Not to mention I’d sound like a lunatic. At least on the point of secrecy, I won’t disappoint my mentor.

  “It was fine.” He wraps an arm around my shoulders and guides me toward a bench. “We’ll turn this one over to post-production in a couple of months.”

  I clasp my hands together to keep them from shaking or fidgeting and sit close to him—leaning my head on his shoulder to conceal my face from his probing gaze. “I can’t wait to see the film. I’ll be distracted by your beautiful work, though.” How nice it would be to work there rather than the nightmare I fell into today.

  “Well, you’ll be the only person in the audience concerned with the environments. Don’t deflect, though. What happened to you today?”

  Any other day, his attentiveness toward me would be a comfort. At this particular moment, I wish he didn’t notice me at all. I can’t tell him anything, and I can’t lie to him. “I’m sorry I’m so preoccupied.”

  He turns my shoulders toward him, forcing me to look him in the eyes. “What happened?” The emphasis on each word tells me he won’t let me avoid the question again.

  “I’m just overwhelmed.” My hands burst from their grasp and sweep across me. “For everyone else, programs began at age ten, but mine is essentially starting now, and I feel like I’m behind, and I’m not sure if I’m going to be right for this.” Rambling will not convince him of my repose any more than my overactive hand gestures.

  “You were placed in Leadership. Being right for it isn’t even a question.” He tucks a loose lock of hair behind my ear. “You were concerned about not learning much in your academy, so there should be much more to come.”

  His words send a shudder through me. He means to encourage, but the thought that I have a lot to learn is terrifying. The little I’ve learned today has shaken me more than any other experience in my life. How much more can I handle?

  “Let’s get some dinner. That will mend you right up,” he says.

  I need to be alone. “I have homework of sorts, and I need to lie down.”

  “I suppose I can’t help with your homework”—he smiles mischievously as he leans his forehead and nose onto mine—“but I’m always available to tuck you into bed.”

  His kiss is soft, making my lips tingle with a minty coolness. Part of me yearns to let him whisk me away so I can forget this whole day. I’ve been so cautious with him—always keeping my behavior beyond reproach. My reputation has always come first. Now I have half a mind to throw caution to the wind. We’ve been moving toward the next step in our relationship, but using him to escape reality would be wrong.

  “It’s tempting,” I say against his lips before I pull myself back.

  “Ah, you passed the test. I was making sure you wouldn’t take advantage of me.”

  He can distract me without that anyway. I smile and give him another quick kiss.

  On his feet, he offers me his hand. “May I escort you home, my lady?”

  “How very kind of you, sir.” I take his hand as I stand, and he hooks my arm through his. Holding his gloved hand reminds me of how cold mine are. I don my gloves as we set off.

  Our arms slip down, leaving only our fingers intertwined. The sun dips below the horizon in what would be a beautiful sunset if I could appreciate it right now. Twinkling white lights still adorn the boardwalk and the adjoining buildings from Christmas. The whole scene should be romantic. It’s lost on me.

  Adwin lets me have my silence as we walk. I want to focus on my hand in his, but my thoughts block our touch far more than the gloves can. Reality billows in like a storm cloud to infringe upon my happiness.

  ***

  “Are you going to invite me in?” he asks when we reach my building. Lights glow from a sporadic array of windows above us, as they do from all the residential buildings.

  “No, I’m not. If you come up, I’ll never be rid of you. You’ll be chatting with my mother all night.”

  “Fine! Cast me off.” He winks, gives me a tender kiss, and takes his leave. I wish the rest of my life was still as simple as my relationship with Adwin. Amazing how much can change in a day.

  I lean my head back on the elevator wall as it ascends to my floor. I want to hold onto the happy feelings with Adwin, but once he is out of sight, the map floats in my mind’s eye. Kaycie and its seven sister islands. The weight of this larger world puts pressure on my chest that makes it hard to breathe.

  The elevator opens. “Serenity, is that you already?” my father asks.

  “Yes, it’s me.”

  Once my coat and gloves are stowed in the foyer closet, the sound of cellos playing leads me to the living room where my father sits in a teal armchair. The wall of windows behind him shows the night sky, filled with more stars than would be seen through plain glass. A holoScreen floats before his face, vanishing and stopping the music when he swipes it away. He wipes his glasses with a cloth from his breast pocket.

  Sometimes I imagine he keeps his glasses because they look artsy. Otherwise, why not have his vision corrected? If his hearing wasn’t perfect, he would fix it in a heartbeat. His eyes aren’t as important. He wouldn’t mind being blind so long as he had music.

  “Home so soon? I thought you were going out with Adwin.”

  “I decided to call it an early night.”

  “You can join us for dinner then. Your mother will be home soon.”

  “No, no, I’ll have something in my room.” I stroll over and give him a peck on the cheek.

  “I want to hear about your day at the Establishment Center. Was it everything you hoped for, starting your program?”

  I’m not sure what I had hoped for, but it wasn’t this. “Another day, Papá. I’m tired.”

  “All right,” he says with a frown. “You should try the pinot noir. It’s excellent.”

  “If you insist.” I snatch his wineglass on my way to my bedroom.

  “Very funny.”

  My windows activate upon my entrance. A sunset over the sea appears, triggering a tingling pressure behind my eyes. “Blackout windows.” It fades to black as I put the glass on my bedside table and collapse facedown onto my powder blue pillows. The sea is not a relaxing sight today. Speaking to other people since my meeting with Sophos may have been detrimental—the distraction was pleasant, but now I have to wrap my mind around it all over again. Or maybe it was good to have let myself calm down. I don’t know. I probably should have come straight home and locked myself in my room when I left.

  Nothing feels real now.

  Where do I even begin?

  Snowflake hops onto my bed and drops her squeaky ball next to me. I turn onto my side to prop my head on my hand.

  “I don’t suppose your day was as exciting as mine?”

  Her tail flutters back and forth as I stroke her fluffy white fur. I sit up and throw the ball through my bathroom and into my closet, sipping wine when she runs off. This is good. The world of hard liquor (legally) opened up for me when I turned sixteen in July, but I cherish go
od wine, which I’ve been having with dinner for years. The pinot boasts an aroma of cherries and raspberries with an herby edge and soft tannins. I imagine the vines’ roots reaching through chalky clay soil.

  In a field…

  On that island…

  The grapes that make our wine… The memory of Sophos’ statement chills me. I look at the glass as if it’s from another planet. It might as well be. It came from an island that wasn’t supposed to exist. I drink the rest too fast to taste it.

  Maybe I’m overreacting. I’m probably overreacting. I take a deep breath in an attempt to center myself. Once I process this, I’ll be fine. My emotions just need to be removed from the situation. Now, if I could only get my fluttering stomach on board.

  Tomorrow I’m supposed to ask questions. I may take hours with a million questions. However, there is an equal possibility that I will have none because my brain cannot handle this.

  No, I have to be able to handle it. If this is what I’m meant to do, then I am going to do it well. When I was placed, my mother didn’t even look surprised, though I was. She said no matter my placement, she knew I’d do great things.

  I project a holoScreen from my cuff and get to work organizing my thoughts.

  Chapter Four

  BRAM

  Invisibility suits me. The perfect consistency of eyes skimming past me as we walk out of the Establishment Center is… convenient. No one would see anything out of place even if they looked. I’m too well-trained. They’d see just another marshal, as blank and empty as any of them. But why take the time to contemplate the extras when the spotlights are on the stars?

  “What did you think of her?” Sophos asks when we enter his townhouse.

  “She remained conscious. That’s a start.” I unbutton the collar of my uniform and sit in a burgundy armchair in the living room. I can drop the robotic routine within these walls, but I’m not chatty even when I can be human. He’s going to waste our time talking about this as if Serenity Ward won’t be out of the picture in two days, tops.