Chapter 108 The Signal
Day two of the siege began not with a sunrise, but with a drop in calorie count.
The Spire was a fortress of glass and steel, hermetically sealed against the toxic city outside. Inside, the air was clean—sharp with the scent of bleach and ammonia from Ryker’s raid—but the mood was suffocating.
I occupied the floor space of the temporary command station which operated within the lobby area while I fixed my gaze on a protein bar. The bar had a length which measured half of my palm's dimensions.
Jaxon gave out identical bars to the soldiers surrounding us while he said, "That’s breakfast." "And lunch. Try not to run too much today."
I turned my gaze toward Ryker who stood at the barricaded doors while he looked through a narrow opening in the metal door. His body had remained in a state of hunger since he had not consumed any food. I watched him take his food allowance and quietly place it into the resting space of a wolf pup sleeping against the wall.
He felt my eyes studying him so he turned to face me. He appeared to be extremely tired. His Alpha traits allowed him to heal from chest burns while his body remained in a state of exhaustion which showed through the deep wrinkles on his face.
Ryker said to me, "Don't look at me like that," as he walked closer.
I whispered to him while breaking my bar in half, "You’re starving yourself." "Eat."
Ryker said, "The King eats last," as he gently pushed my hand away from him. "It’s the law of the Pack. Besides, I run on spite."
He dropped his body weight down to the floor next to me. The outside area produced a low sound which struck the blast doors. The sound repeated itself with the arrival of another thud.
Ryker said, "They’re testing the hinges" as he studied the door. "The testing occurs every hour exactly on the hour. The group of people you see is not mindless zombies because they possess knowledge about structural engineering. They understand how to identify the vulnerable areas of a structure."
I asked, "How long until they break through?"
Ryker stated that "The doors will hold for a week." "But the people... maybe three days. People are becoming less optimistic. I had to stop a physical fight between a Human and a New Citizen over bottle water. The population is experiencing fear. People who feel scared will act in a foolish manner.
I said, "We need a win" as I rested my head on his shoulder. "Just a small one."
Ryker corrected me by saying "We need a miracle."
Vane occupied a corner of the room while he created a work area from radio components which included wires and abandoned radio equipment. He had completed the disassembly of three police scanners and one microwave to construct a high-gain antenna. He had spent his entire duration of two days wearing headphones to listen to static.
Ryker raised his voice by asking "Anything?"
Vane remained silent while he kept his gaze fixed on the oscilloscope display. His mechanical eye rotated at a slow pace.
Ryker shouted "Vane?"
Vane had a panic response when he heard the command he ripped off his headphones and his skin appeared ghostly white.
Vane began to hiss, "Shut up," to everyone who made noise. "Everyone, shut up!"
The lobby went silent. The children ceased their crying.
Vane whispered, "I got something," while he continued to turn the dial which moved at an excruciatingly slow speed. "It’s faint. Buried in the background radiation. But it’s structured."
I asked him, "Is it the Titan?" "Is it the Hive Mind talking to itself?"
Vane shook his head, "No," while he responded, "The Hive speaks in digital screaming". "This... this is analog. It’s old school. It’s a radio wave."
Ryker moved to the console to give the command "Put it on speakers."
Vane flipped a switch.
The room filled with a loud static sound. Hiss. Pop. Crackle.
The sound resembled white noise. The world produced only the sound of its complete silence.
Jaxon said, "There’s nothing there," while he expressed his disappointment.
Vane pointed to the visual wave on the screen and said "Listen to the gaps." "The silence is the message."
We listened.
...crackle... (pause) ...hiss... (pause) ...pop...
The pattern created by the signals contained two types of entities. Long. Short. Long. Short.
Ryker asked, "Morse code?"
Kael responded, "Older," as he joined our group. He pushed his glasses up his nose, analyzing the pattern. "It’s binary. Ones and zeros encoded in sound bursts. It’s a data packet."
Ryker asked, "Can you decode it?"
"I can try," Vane said. He started typing furiously with his one good hand. "It’s encrypted. Military grade. But the encryption key... it looks familiar."
Vane paused. He looked at Ryker.
"It’s a Coalition key," Vane said. "From the old war. The keys my father used to use."
Ryker stiffened. "The Coalition is dead. We destroyed them."
Vane whispered his thoughts that somebody missed important information. He pressed the ENTER key to finish his command.
The speakers produced static sounds that transitioned into a clearer signal. The white noise vanished to reveal a human voice.
The system operated with a woman as its core. The woman spoke in a raspy dry voice which indicated she had not spoken for many years.
"Dr. Sato is repeating the transmission. This is Doctor Sato. Priority Alpha status. Is there anyone remaining? If you can hear this... the containment has failed. The Queen is awake.
The room experienced complete silence.
"I am sending from the Black Site location which has coordinates of 45-North 90-West. I possess the sequence that enables me to kill the target. My current situation prevents me from moving because I am stuck. The Key must be brought to bring an end to the situation that currently exists with the survivors who remain to exist between Hollow existence.
The transmission ended. The static sounds returned.
"Dr. Sato" Kael said with wide eyes. "That cannot happen."
"Who is she? Ryker demanded.
"Vespera and she were opponents" Kael said while he walked back and forth. "She worked as the Anti-Magic Division leader before the war. She developed the theory that Void energy functioned as more than magic because it operated as a biological parasite. The girl disappeared from existence in the year 10 BCE because we assumed Vespera had her executed.
"I have the Black Site location where she currently operates" I informed the group. "What is the Black Site location?
Ryker approached the wall map to view the Spire. He drew a path from the Spire that extended through the destroyed North Wall and continued through the Titan wreckage until it reached the empty space of the map.
"The Deadlands" Ryker stated. "Beyond the crater lies the area where old mines existed in the mountains.
The hostile area measures 50 miles according to Jaxon. "The main swarm body needs to be crossed.
"She said she possesses the sequence" I told her with my heart racing. "She knows how to eliminate the Queen.
Baron growled "It might be a trap. "The Rot is smart, Ryker. It learns. The creature learned radio operation. The creature wants to grab the Queen of Light because it wants to eat her.
"Ryker considered three mind control systems operating under different identities. "A chorus refers to multiple voices, yet one person spoke with evidence of fear.
"She requested the Origin" Vane pointed out. "She possesses information about Elara.
Ryker turned away from the map. The refugees in the lobby caught his attention when he observed their presence. The dwindling supplies attracted his attention. The air scrubbers operated at their maximum capacity to maintain the atmosphere.
"We die if we stay here" Ryker said. "It is a mathematical certainty. The three methods of death will occur through starvation or air depletion or door destruction. The probability of survival is zero.
He turned to me.
"The probability of dying decreases when we go outside" he stated.
"You want to mount an expedition? Jaxon asked, incredulous. Sir, we have no vehicles. The hover-cars are dead without the grid.
"Hover-cars are not necessary" Ryker stated.
He looked at Vane.
"Vane can you get the heavy hauler operational? The armored transport in the garage? The vehicle requires combustion for its operations.
"Vane raised an eyebrow. "The Beast has remained inactive at that location for five years. The vehicle currently lacks tires while its engine has stopped functioning.
"Ryker ordered the group to collect vehicle components from all garage vehicles. "The vehicle must be armored to protect against attacks. "The project requires the construction of a protective barrier which will involve welding steel plates to cover the windows while adding a plow to the front.
"Vane corrected me by saying "You want me to create a tank.
"Ryker requested you to create a battering ram which would advance through a sea of spiders.
He turned to Baron.
"Select your ten best wolves who can fight in the dark. Your role will be to escort them.
"Baron agreed to watch the metal box.
Ryker looked at me.
"And you" he said. "You must come because she requested the Origin.
"I know" I said. I was not scared. I felt relieved because the destination provided me with a direct path to my target.
"Kael interrupted as Ryker spoke. "Removing the Origin Stone will cause the beacon to shut down which will subsequently make the Spire lose its light.
The room went quiet again. The beacon operated as the sole force which prevented spiders from invading the upper levels. The beacon functioned as the only source of optimism for the people.
Ryker examined the refugees. He observed their facial expressions which showed signs of exhaustion and dirtiness and fear.
"Dead people cannot view the light" Ryker said.
He walked to the center of the room.
"Listen to me! he yelled at the crowd.
"We have received a signal. There is a way to end this. The method will not only allow survival but it will also lead to total extermination.
He pointed to the heavy blast doors.
"We are leaving. We are going to the source. The journey will be perilous because the light will vanish. You will find yourself back in complete darkness.
The audience reacted with fear.
"But" Ryker continued "you will not be defenseless. "You have Jaxon. You have the militia. You have the walls. You just have to hold on.
He drew his sword. It was cold, grey Star-Metal.
"Ryker swore to you "I will not return until a clean city emerges under the sun. He promised to stay away from the city until the sun started shining over the clean city.
The room fell silent. A pause began before one person started to clap. A second person joined the first clapper in creating a solemn sound. The clapping functioned as a bid farewell to soldiers who were departing for battle.
"Vane" Ryker said to her while sheathing his sword. "Go to the garage and create the Beast for me.
"Vane responded to his leader. "I want to play Mad Max so I will take my toolbox to start building the character.
"Kael" Ryker ordered "Download those coordinates. And pack every explosive we have left. "If Dr. Sato is lying... we blow the mountain.
I walked over to the window. I looked out at the dark city. The distant fires resembled eyes that were staring at us.
"Queen we will come to your location" I said while whispering.
I touched the ring on my finger. The blue seed pulsed.
"Let's go to take a drive.