The Darwin Elevator

Chapter Forty-six

Approaching Anchor Station

17.FEB.2283

Spaceflight, Skyler discovered, was not very exciting.

After leaving Gateway he drifted a few hundred meters away from the station, aligned himself with the Elevator cord, and fired the thrusters until he’d reached a decent cruising speed. His gut wanted to push the little ship faster, but he knew he’d need fuel to slow down at the other end, and he didn’t want to risk overshooting the station and spending the rest of his life drifting out into space. A life that would last a week, according to the readout that showed his air supply status.

He made only a few small course corrections during the flight, in order to avoid a collision with the much larger farm platforms clustered in groups at various intervals along the cord. He’d even slept a bit, and combined with the rations he found below the seat, he felt refreshed and alert when Anchor Station finally loomed ahead. He turned around and decelerated.

The state of affairs within the station was a total mystery. Blackfield had left, that much Skyler knew. For a time, during the trip, he had debated removing his Nightcliff uniform, in case the local station staff was back in control. He nixed the idea when he realized he had nothing else to wear. Wrinkling his nose, Skyler realized clean clothes should be near the top of his list once inside.

Feeling more confident with the controls of the tiny ship, he used the maneuvering thrusters to push out farther from the massive rotating rings. The small craft drifted toward the ring at the middle. He noticed there were large gaps between the center ring and those above and below it, and he quickly realized why.

The Darwin Elevator ended here. Surrounded by the slowly rotating central ring of the station, he could see, were the remnants of the Builders’ ship, at the very tip. He’d seen pictures, everyone had, but the sight still awed him.

He allowed himself a moment to take in the spectacular view.

The Builders’ ship, resting there like a fossil, unsettled him. What purpose had been served, sending a craft across the vast emptiness to build a space elevator? Had they picked Earth specifically, or was it blind luck? He doubted anyone would ever know.

Earth loomed out his port-side window, gently spinning in all her grandeur. The sight calmed him.

He focused, scanning the station rings for docking ports or cargo bays. The ring closest to Earth had a port, of course, but Skyler guessed it would be heavily guarded.

The uppermost ring also appeared to have a cargo bay, too, but that level sat out beyond the end of the Elevator’s cord, and thus probably never received traffic at all. He wondered if it even functioned as a result, and he decided to keep looking.

The level immediately below the central ring was the only other choice. He spotted a pair of cargo doors on the side of the inner hub. Skyler took a long breath, oriented his craft, and pulsed the thrusters, wondering how he would open it.



Fifty meters from the station, a panel lit up on the cockpit window, marking the door and offering docking options.

“How kind of you,” Skyler said. He tapped the option for manual door override, which required a secondary confirmation. Once done, he sat back and watched as the computer handled everything.

The door slid open in silent welcome. His craft eased inside at a precise, slow pace, spinning to face out toward space at the last possible second.

A backward-view image appeared on a panel below his window. Skyler let out his breath at the sight of an empty bay.

The ship halted with perfect smoothness, in the far corner of the small bay. Skyler waited for the lights on each side of the bay door to turn green before unbuckling himself and switching off the small craft.

He gulped the last of the water and ate a Preservall packet of applesauce mixed with some kind of grain. It tasted like air. Then he sat there for a long minute, eyes closed. If anyone came to investigate the cargo door opening, he would say he’d been on the verge of a joyride but had thought better of it.

No one came. Skyler crawled out of the repair ship and smoothed the wrinkles from his clothes. He ran a hand through his hair before placing the Nightcliff helmet back on. Then he shook the lethargy from his limbs. In the back of the ship’s small cockpit a sealed container held his urine and excrement from the flight, the only real evidence he’d been in there for so long. He debated finding a place to stash it, or simply venting the entire bay, to cover up his use of the ship. The idea the ship would be searched that thoroughly seemed absurd, so he left it there and exited the bay.

From the start, Anchor Station felt decidedly more modern than Gateway. Skyler guessed it had been built from a careful plan, not haphazardly like the lowest station. He floated, then climbed, down the tunnel that led to the outer section of the ring he’d entered. Gravity, at least the illusion of it, was a welcome sensation after two weightless days inside the tiny repair craft.

Skyler stepped off the ladder onto a floor of forest-green tiles.

“Who the hell are you?”

He turned at the voice, his heart racing. A Nightcliff guard stood just a few meters away.

“Nera,” Skyler said. “Who the hell are you?”

“You with the relief squad?”

Skyler took the opening like a surprise birthday gift, and nodded. “I was told to patrol here.”

The man shifted on his feet, eyes narrow now. “Who told you that?”

Careful now. “Probably just a mix-up.”

“Well,” the guard said, “I don’t need any help. Go get a different assignment.”

“Will do. Um, which way back?”

The guard sighed, and jerked his head to Skyler’s right.



“You have no special skills?”

Skyler stood in the security office on a level with green floors, in front of the man Russell Blackfield had placed in charge. “I always complete my patrols on time,” Skyler said.

“Whoop-dee-effin’-do.” The man threw his pen down and ran a sweaty hand over his long face. “Some post this is, the ass end of the ladder with a bunch of idiots.”

“Yes, sir.”

“I wasn’t talking to you.”

“Yes, sir.”

The man leaned back in his chair, rubbing his eyes. “Well … go patrol then, since you’re so punctual at it. Pick a level; they’re all understaffed even with you newcomers.”

“Anywhere?”

“Except White Level; I don’t need anyone else there. Everybody wants to see the whatever-the-f*ck.”

Skyler had seen a map of the station, briefly, in the hall outside, but he had no idea where Tania would be. He needed to find a local who could tell him. “Okay. Which one has the cafeteria?”

“Jesus,” the man said. “I’m surrounded by lazy morons.” He punched the keys of the terminal on the desk. Skyler suspected the man had no idea how to use it. “You can eat when everyone else does. Go patrol Black Level, as far away from me as possible. One rule, though. Blackfield said nobody touches the scientist named Sharma. He’s got ‘dibs.’ Christ. Whatever, just keep away from her. You feel any urge that way, go to the monitoring room. They’ve got a vid of her in the shower.”

She’s here, at least there’s that. Skyler didn’t want to think about the last part. He fought an urge to strangle the man. “Yes, sir.”

“The next bloke who walks in here better know how to fix a goddamn terminal.”

Skyler saluted, a motion that went unnoticed, and marched from the room.

The man’s words rattled in Skyler’s head. Blackfield had left behind a claim on Tania. The comment made his skin crawl, as did the implication they had taken some kind of lewd video of her.

At the security console outside, he stopped. A panel on the wall nearby had been left ajar.

He could hear voices in the distance, out of sight. Someone laughed. Behind, Skyler heard the administrator curse and bang a fist on the terminal keyboard.

Skyler didn’t want to get caught poking around, but the security panel tempted him. He opened it and found a series of key cards hanging inside.

Moving swiftly, Skyler plucked one from its hook and stuffed it in his pocket.

He continued on, as fast as he dared, through the halls. The levels of Anchor Station were more spread out than Gateway, especially White Level, where they apparently studied the Builders’ Shell. He saw only Nightcliff guards moving about, and they were few and far between. Blackfield had left only a skeleton crew behind.

After White Level, he entered the one called Wheat. The tile floor had an earthy, golden color to it.

A large mural on the entryway hall depicted a cutaway view of one of the giant agriculture platforms, carpeted with hundreds of crop sections in every shade of green and gold.

Skyler couldn’t help but be impressed by the quality of the artwork, and the engineering marvel it depicted. The Platz Space-Ag logo took prominent position on the side.

He continued on, not stopping again until he entered Black Level.

He went to the nearest door in the curved hall and turned the handle. It clicked as the lock disengaged.

“Hello?” Skyler pushed the door in slightly.

A man sat on a bunk, wearing a T-shirt and underwear. He looked ill, staring at Skyler with tired eyes.

“I’m on your side,” Skyler said in a quiet voice.

The man’s expression turned slowly to hope, like a light turning on.

“Are you okay? Can you walk?”

His voice cracked as he spoke. “Do you have any food?”

“Sorry,” Skyler said.

“Are you part of the resistance?”

Whatever that meant, it held promise, and fell near enough the mark. “Yes. I’m looking for Tania Sharma.”

The man stared toward some vague point near Skyler. Dark bags hung under his unfocused eyes. “I heard Blackfield strangled her.”

Skyler felt a pulse of dread rip through him and fought to control it. The words rang like rumor, and they didn’t match what the administrator had said.

“Do you know where her room is?”

“Two-ten, I think. Take me with you,” he said.

“How many other guards patrol this level?”

“Take me with you!”

Skyler put a hand on the man’s shoulder. “I will, but not yet. I can’t afford for an alert to be raised.”

The feeble man searched Skyler’s face. He dipped his head, and nodded slowly.



The door had “210” on a plaque next it. Skyler swiped the card he’d stolen, and heard the lock disengage.

“Tania?” he asked. The room was dark. “It’s Skyler. Remember, from Hawaii?” His voice sounded stupid to his ears.

Tania Sharma turned on a light next to the bed. Eyes like saucers, she stood on shaking legs. Her lower lip quivered as tears began to run freely down her cheeks.

Skyler caught her just as she started to collapse. She gripped his shirtsleeves fiercely and sobbed into his chest. Skyler gathered her into a fierce embrace, easing her to a sitting position on the floor in front of the bed.

“I’m so glad to see a friendly face,” she said between sobs and sharp breaths.

“Likewise.”

“Your uniform,” she said with sudden numbness.

“I’ll burn it the first chance I get,” he said. “For now it’s proving pretty useful.”

“You’re the last person I thought … how did you …?”

“Where there’s a will,” he said, leaving the cliché unfinished.

“That’s some will …”

“It’s about all I have left.”

She smiled. A feeble smile, but so full of gratitude that Skyler felt an instant and overwhelming love for her. “Thank you,” she managed.

Skyler wiped a tear from her cheek. “We need to get out of here, Tania. Quickly. I have a ship—”

“No,” she said.

Skyler frowned, puzzled.

Her face had a sudden expression of determination. “We can’t leave; we need to retake the station. It’s critical. Don’t worry, I have a plan.”



Skyler peaked into the hallway outside her cabin and saw no one. “Where to?”

“I need to use the restroom,” Tania said. “It’s to the left.”

He moved out into the hall, taking her by the arm as if escorting her as a prisoner, hoping his guise as a Nightcliff guard would continue to hold.

“Wait,” she said.

He let her go, and she jogged a short distance to a door down the hall, knocking forcefully. “Nat? Natalie?”

Skyler could hear the depth of her concern. He watched as she knocked again, then moved to stand next to her. “Let me,” he said. He swiped the key card again and pushed the door open after the lock released.

The bed was made, unused. A pair of night slippers rested on the floor in perfect alignment.

“Who are we looking for?” Skyler asked.

“My assistant, Natalie. She was with Blackfield when I last saw her.”

“He left, Tania. For Gateway. Took most of his men, too.”

“Then our lie worked better than expected.”

Skyler arched an eyebrow at that.

“I’ll explain later.”

He nodded and took her arm once again, gently clasping her elbow with his hand. They walked a short distance to the communal restrooms.

A minute later she emerged looking refreshed: face clean, black hair pulled into a severe bun, and no sign of tears on her cheeks.

She went straight to Skyler and kissed him.

“I’m finished crying,” she said when their lips parted. “I’m finished feeling weak. Thank you, again, for finding me.”

Skyler had no response. He simply smiled. “Where to?”

“First,” she said, “if I don’t eat something, I’m going to faint.”

“Where’s the cafeteria?”

She shook her head. “Too far. Too dangerous. We keep snacks in the observatory.”

“Lead the way,” he said.

Despite the hallway being empty, Skyler kept his voice low. “Tania, did they … did Russell hurt you? Or …”

“No,” she said, “not directly.”

Her choice of words filled him with dread. “What do you mean?”

“Natalie. He made allusions to mistreating her, because of my silence. Lies, I think, meant to encourage me to cooperate.”

“Are you sure? Blackfield has a reputation …”

Tania’s face grew still, her eyes unfocused. “Lies of a different sort. Natalie was duty-bound to cooperate. Turns out she’s been working for Alex Warthen for some time.”

“God,” Skyler whispered. He tried to imagine one of his own crew turning out to be on Blackfield’s payroll. The very idea made his blood boil. “How did you find out?”

Tania grew quiet for a while. “She wanted to explain, but they never left us alone. My imagination ran wild, of course. To be honest, I was ready to give him whatever he wanted in exchange for her safety.”

“I can understand that.”

The woman nodded. “Then she got the idea to tell Russell that she and I were lovers. Turned his perversion against him.”

“Ah. The shower.”

Tania looked at him. “How did you …?”

Skyler sighed. “The rat currently in charge of the station mentioned it. Seems you’ve become quite famous on the local video circuit.”

“Oh, wonderful.”

“Think of it this way,” Skyler said: “At least it’s kept them away from you. Well, that and Blackfield’s orders.”

“Did, um, did you …”

“No,” Skyler said. “No, I’m not like that.”

She gave his arm a squeeze. “In here,” she said at a double door. It led to a large circular room dominated by the viewing apparatus of a telescope. Computer terminals lined one-half of the room, and metal cabinets the other. Tania went straight to one cabinet in particular. “Hungry?”

“I could eat,” Skyler said.

She popped it open and began to rummage through the contents. “See if those terminals will turn on, will you?”

Skyler tried each one, but the power button on each produced no result. “Dead.”

“That’s our next task.” She held a plastic container, filled with nutrition bars sealed in Preservall bags. She set the container down and tore one open. The bar vanished into her mouth with astonishing speed. Then she remembered herself and tossed one to Skyler.

He caught it, then motioned to the row of blank monitors. “Can we fix these?”

Tania went back to the cabinet, emerging with two stainless steel bottles. She handed one of these to him as well. The water inside had a metallic taste, but he felt grateful for it. He gulped half the bottle down before putting the cap back on.

“They’re probably locked out from the security center,” Tania said.

“Why do you have a stash of food and water in here?” Skyler asked.

She crooked an eyebrow at him. “It’s our shelter in the event of a solar storm. That and we’re all workaholics. People do research in here all night sometimes. It’s usually crowded.”

They both ate in silence for a time. He spoke first. “Tania, has there been any more subhumans up here recently? Power fluctuations on the cord?”

“No,” she said. “At least, none that I’m aware of. Why?”

Skyler told her about Neil’s request, and what happened in the pit below Nightcliff. “I have no idea how,” Skyler concluded, “but I think I fixed it. It’s like the thing just needed to … eat.”

She stared at him. Then her brow furrowed. “That might not be far from the truth. No, I mean it. Assume these subhumans had some new, rare strain of the disease. Cleary the Aura had trouble dealing with that, until your visit. Maybe all it needed was a …” She paused, searching for the right word. “Sample.”

He gave a grudging nod. “Whatever the case, it sure didn’t like how I tasted.”

“Which makes sense,” she said, and smiled at the objection on his face. “You’re immune. What need does it have of you?”

Skyler ate the rest of his bar. The water left a metallic taste in his mouth, but he finished it all the same. “What was on those data cubes, anyway?”

The energy drained from her face. “Evidence,” she said. “Neil and I thought the Builders would come back someday, and I realized if I knew where in the sky to look, I might be able to spot them early. For that I needed data from the prior events.”

“And you were right, I’m guessing?”

She nodded, and yet he saw a flash of doubt in her eyes. “I thought they’d be years away, but they were right on top of us. We’re lucky Neil decided to hire you when he did, or we would have missed them.”

From her tone, Skyler guessed she didn’t entirely believe that. The timing did seem uncanny. “They’re back, then? Another care package, or did they show up in person this time?”

“As far as we can tell,” Tania said, “the ship is building a new space elevator.”

He almost laughed. Humankind could barely keep one of the damned things running. What good would a second do?

The answer hit him instantly: Start again. Do it right.

“So, what’s our plan?”

“It’s critical I get to a terminal,” she said. “One that works, I mean.” She walked the rest of the way around the circular room and stopped in front of Skyler. “Platz made the plan. He sent it to me before he died.”

“Time to clue me in,” Skyler said. “To everything.”

She did. His eyes grew wider with each word.



“What in God’s name is she doing here?”

Skyler winced at the shrill voice of the station commander. He held Tania’s right arm behind her back, as if she was being moved against her will.

“You said … I thought you said to bring her to you?” Skyler scratched his ear.

“I never said anything of the sort, you imbecile!”

Skyler scratched his ear again. Sighed. “When I was leaving, you said ‘unless she can fix a terminal.’”

The man fumed. “I wasn’t talking about her, idiot, I … wait, can she? Can you?” he said to Tania.

“Can I what?”

“Fix a terminal.”

Tania paused. Skyler gave her arm a subtle squeeze, for reassurance. “I refuse,” she said.

The man leaned on his borrowed desk and absently crushed a piece of paper in his fist. “If you do not,” he said, “I will have you beaten.”

“You wouldn’t dare,” Tania said.

“Excuse me?”

“Oh,” Skyler said, “I already explained we were not to lay a finger on her. Blackfield’s orders, as you said.”

The commander closed his eyes in frustration. “What else did you share with her?”

Skyler looked to the ceiling. “Hmm … Just that she was even lovelier than you described.”

“Which confused me,” Tania said. “Have we met before?”

Skyler spoke before the nervous man could. “He said he saw you in a video—”

“That’s enough, Nera.” He read the name off Skyler’s uniform. “I’m going to put you to work cleaning the waste containers.”

Tania coughed, politely. “I’ll make you a deal,” she said.

He turned his attention to her. “Go on.”

“Two things. As I understand it, the station crew has not been fed or allowed to the restrooms in nearly twenty-four hours.”

“I’m understaffed. Even with the relief squad that arrived yesterday. They sent me jackasses like this bloke—”

“I understand, but my people are all locked up, so your patrols are pointless.”

“Is that so?”

Tania ignored him and went on. “Release the janitorial crew so they can deliver food and perform basic services, under guard of course. Allow our people bathroom breaks, then return them to their rooms. Level by level, so you can have ample security on hand.”

He blinked.

Skyler thought she’d delivered the demand with perfect intonation. Just shy of an order, slightly more than a suggestion.

The weasel ran a hand over his balding head. “And the second thing?”

“My assistant, Natalie Ammon. I’d like to see her. I want to know she is okay.”

He shifted in his chair, uncomfortable. The request was impossible, and Skyler enjoyed watching the man squirm.

“Fix the terminal first,” he said.

“I’ll fix the terminal,” Tania said with confidence, “after you feed Black Level and bring my assistant here.”

Skyler watched the man, sensed his machinations. Tania’s brilliant idea just might work: make two requests, one impossible so the other becomes more palatable.

“Your second request cannot be done,” he said evenly.

Tania surged forward. “You goddamn monsters—”

“Hold on,” the man said, raising his hands. “She’s fine, she’s just not here.”

“Where is she?” Tania rasped.

“Blackfield took her.”

A tense silence fell over the room.

“Where?” Skyler asked.

“None of your business, Nera.”

“Fine,” Tania said, “fine. Feed my staff then, at least. Let the janitors clean up a bit.”

The man’s lower lip curled into the hint of a frown. “I’ll give the order now if you start immediately, and you can stay here and monitor the progress. Fair enough?”

“Deal.”

“Deal,” Skyler said.

“Nera, piss off,” the man said. “Go find a hole and crawl in—”

Tania took a half step forward and stood firm between them. “He stays.”

“Why?”

“He’s the only one of you who has treated me with dignity.”

“Oh great,” he groaned. “Just the quality I look for in a jailer.”

Skyler smiled proudly.

“Paul!” the commander shouted. A few seconds later another guard, whom Skyler and Tania had passed on the way in, entered and gave a vague salute. “Have we found the food storage yet?”

“It’s a big station,” Paul said.

“Red Level,” Tania said. “Room eight.”

The administrator shrank back in his seat. He rubbed his temples with his index fingers. “I need a bloody drink. All right, I want all available guards to secure their areas, then report to Red Level. Food and water are to be delivered to any occupied rooms starting with the janitorial staff, understand?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Let the janitors haul food and water after that, to every level. Allow use of the restroom to the station personnel. One level at a time, under surveillance.”

“Roger.”

“I want regular status updates. Dismissed.” The soldier named Paul saluted, turned on his heel, and left the room. The commander shot a glance at Skyler. “You see, Nera? That’s called competence.”

“You did handle it well, sir.”

“I meant him—Jesus, forget it.” He stepped away from the desk and held the back of the chair, motioned to Tania. “Dr. Sharma, the terminal?”

“What do I call you? Captain?”

“Edgar will do.”

“Captain Edgar, then.”

He grimaced. “Administrator, if you must.”

Tania took a seat at the desk, while Skyler hovered near the door. He watched the administrator position himself behind Tania, watching her every keystroke.

Tania worked at the keyboard for a long time, in silence. Occasionally she would shake her head in frustration, and mumble some jargon that Edgar pretended to understand.

A handheld radio on the desk crackled to life. The guard Paul’s voice came through. “Administrator?”

Edgar picked it up. “Go ahead.”

“I’ve gathered most of the men. We’ll start unpacking the food now.”

“Proceed. Keep me posted.” He set the radio back down.

The report marked Skyler’s cue. A pulse of nervous energy coursed through him and he gave it a few seconds to subside. Relax, here goes.

“Hey,” Skyler said, “about that shower video. Can I see—”

Edgar laughed nervously. “Nera, may I speak with you outside for a moment?”

“Of course.”

The balding man stepped around the table and barreled past Skyler without making eye contact. Skyler offered a wink to Tania, then turned and followed him out into the hallway.

“What is your problem?” he hissed at Skyler.

“Sir?”

“Do you have no filter on that stupid mouth of yours?”

Skyler feigned surprise. “Filter? What did I say?”

“The video, you idiot.”

“Of her bridal shower?”

A stream of profanity gushed from Edgar’s mouth as he stomped across the hall and back. “Her goddamn shower. Not a bridal shower, an actual shower.”

Skyler kept his face blank.

“Water? Soap?”

Skyler slowly raised his eyebrows. “Oh … Oh!”

“Finally he understands! It’s a f*cking miracle!”

They stood facing each other. Skyler thought the man might be on the verge of a heart attack, the way his breathing came in such short bursts.

“So,” Skyler said, “can I see it?”

He thought the man might try to hit him then. He might have, if an alarm had not sounded. Edgar turned to face the office, a word forming on his lips.

He never saw the punch Skyler threw. The blow landed squarely on Edgar’s cheek. Completely unprepared for it, the punch spun him halfway around. Skyler moved fast, pressed the advantage. He threw an uppercut that only glanced off Edgar’s neck.

On unsteady footing, Edgar lashed out. The fist caught Skyler just under the nose, splitting his upper lip.

Skyler tasted blood. He grabbed Edgar by the collar of his shirt and threw the man’s head forward, simultaneously bringing up his own knee to meet it. A savage impact, the bone of Skyler’s kneecap crunching into Edgar’s face. The man bleated. He collapsed on the floor, moaned, and fell silent.

Tania’s eyes were wide with horror when Skyler pulled the body, feetfirst, into the office.

“Your lip,” she said.

“It’s nothing. What’s with the alarm?”

She swallowed. Skyler realized that the fear in her expression was not from Edgar’s limp body. “I sealed Red Level.”

“Good thinking.”

She remained impassive. “I wasn’t lying about the location of the stores.”

“Ah.” Skyler began to think through the ramifications. Basic sundries would be critical in the coming weeks. “So we scavenge, then. From the other levels. Drain the water pipes, pack whatever food people have stashed in their rooms.”

“It might not be enough.”

Skyler knelt by her. “People can be resourceful. Trust me.”

“There’s no time. The guards will find the manual override.”

He thought she looked pale, exhausted. “Maybe. They’re not the brightest chaps.”

“Your lip looks terrible.”

Skyler went back to Edgar’s body and tore a chunk of the man’s shirtsleeve off. He pressed it to his lip, wincing with the stab of pain. “I’ll get someone to look at it later. Don’t change the subject.”

She smiled at that. It was something, and Skyler smiled back.

Tania said, “Now that the system hard-lock is removed, I need to restart the interstation mesh from the Computer Lab.”

“How far?”

“This level. Not far.”

He went back to Edgar’s body and unholstered the man’s pistol. He handed it to Tania. “Know how to use that?”

“You asked me before, in Hawaii.”

“Right, I forgot. And you haven’t learned in the meantime?”

She frowned at the sarcasm. “It’s not in my nature, Skyler.”

“I know. I think it’s why I like you so much.”

He smiled at her as she returned the weapon.



Skyler rounded the door frame of the main computer lab, sweeping his gun across the semidark room. “Empty,” he said.

Tania followed him inside. “Back there,” she said, pointing toward a door at the far end of the room.

Skyler moved to and opened the door. Also empty. He let Tania in and guarded the door as she set to work on the computer systems.

“Sixty seconds,” she said over angry beeps emanating from the machine.

“What’s after this?”

She tapped the edge of the desk, waiting for the process to complete. “I’ll unlock all the doors. Can you make an announcement on the intercom? We need everyone to get to Black Level as quickly as they can. My janitor friends can coordinate it.”

“You’d better make the speech. They know you.”

Tania considered this. “Second time someone told me that. I suppose you’re right,” she said. A slightly sinister expression crossed her face. “You’d better find something else to wear,” she said, “unless you want to be mistakenly tossed out the airlock.”

Skyler looked down at himself. The disheveled Nightcliff uniform had bloodstains from the split lip he had suffered. He glanced up to find that Tania had already refocused on the terminal.

He felt a growing admiration for her. The bold plan Neil provided had serious, world-changing ramifications. There would be no turning back. And yet she worked with determined efficiency, so much so that Skyler had refrained from questioning the plan.

“Watch,” Tania said.

The large screen on the wall came to life. Skyler saw a schematic view of the Elevator, each station along the cord represented by icons. Having flown the entire length of it over the last few days, he recognized the layout.

“The farm platforms are clumped in groups of four,” she said, tapping rapidly on the keyboard. “There’s twenty in all.”

Skyler focused on them, remembering how massive they were, much bigger than the other stations. They resembled snowflakes, he thought, with numerous branching arms each made up of huge tube-shaped segments.

As he watched the screen, one after another turned red.

Skyler swallowed. “Are there people on those?”

“Minimally staffed,” Tania said. “I’ve instructed them to proceed immediately to the personnel sections.”

“At least they won’t have to worry about food,” Skyler said.

Over the next few minutes, Skyler and Tania watched in silence as the agriculture platforms separated from the Elevator. They all drifted at the exact same speed, in the same direction.

All except one.

“I’m so sorry, Natalie,” Tania whispered. A tear rolled down her cheek.

Skyler had no words to comfort her. The plan she’d concocted with her assistant did not factor Russell taking one of them to the surface.

Tania sat back and wiped her tears away with the palms of her hands. “I suppose it’s our turn now.”

“We still have Nightcliff guards aboard.”

“I’m terrified, Skyler.” Her voice distant, shaky. “We’re leaving Darwin to starve. I … my God, I’ve doomed them.”

He grasped her shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. “No, you have not. The only way Darwin will starve is if the council, or whoever is in charge, refuses to talk.” The words sounded trite out of his mouth. She remained still, unconvinced. “Neil anticipated all of this,” he added. “He devised this plan because it will work. Believe that, and see it through.”

The statement registered. Tania began to nod, and wiped away another tear forming at the corner of her eye.

“We should hurry,” Skyler said.

“Okay. You’re right. Just one last thing.”

Skyler watched the screen as Tania composed a broadcast message containing nothing but a set of coordinates. She encrypted the text with a key Skyler guessed Neil Platz had provided her. “So Neil’s people will know where to go?” he asked.

“If they don’t show up, we’re dead,” she said, and sent the message. Then she pushed back the chair and stood. “Let’s get everyone to Black Level and seal it off.”