understand it all that well, but several anchorpersons from the NewsBops explained how international economic panic had set in because of the extreme unpredictability. Three major economic systems had crashed over the past two weeks.
In Hong Kong, the chief of police transferred all of the enforcement personnel out of the metro area. Looters destroyed a major part of the largest shopping district.
In Mexico, progress against the drug trade, the result of a century of effort, was essentially erased by a series of changes to the law, passed in quick succession by several politicians whose views transformed overnight. Policy altered so rapidly that the drug cartels had taken over five cities before the public noticed what was going on.
Michael and his friends witnessed businesses collapsing, celebrities publicly killing spouses, and transit systems falling into disarray, and just like the man who’d slit his own throat in front of a waiting crowd of reporters, more and more of the cases involved Tangents announcing what they were before disaster struck.
Finally, not a moment too soon, Helga ended the show and brought them back to the now-comforting field of glass and geometric shapes. Michael wanted nothing more than to Lift to the Wake, find a corner, curl up into a ball, and push the world away. He was tired, and scared.
After a somber silence, Bryson spoke.
“Man, that’s all happened in the last couple of weeks?”
Helga nodded. “Now you see why we have to do something. Honestly, I’m worried that we’re too late. As you can see, it’s gotten out of control. To stop this, we’re going to need someone with a lot of power on our side. And like I said before, the Hive is the key. The Hive, and the Mortality Doctrine program itself.”
“So we need the VNS,” Bryson said, “even though we can’t trust Weber.”
“No, not the VNS,” Michael said. “No way. Before we try finding our way back to the Hallowed Ravine, we need totalk to actual world leaders—at least the ones who haven’t been taken over. Based on the news, there are still a lot of those left. Presidents, prime ministers…anyone but Agent Weber and the VNS.”
“But what is some president going to give us?” Sarah asked. “An army? A speech? What we need is a bunch of nerds, not presidents.”
Michael was nodding. “Right. And the nerdiest nerds of Nerdville usually end up working for the government. The ones that the VNS doesn’t steal, anyway.”
“Isn’t the VNS part of the government?” Bryson asked.
“No,” Helga responded. She was pacing around the others, hands clasped behind her back. “They’re a worldwide organization, funded by governments, but autonomous, separate. They’re beholden to nobody. And Michael’s right. We need three things from the government: manpower, the best technology money can buy, and protection. That’s what we need.”
“We also need to save Gabby,” Michael said. The comment seemed to come out of nowhere, but he’d been thinking about it for a long time. He addressed the doubtful looks from his friends. “I’m serious. We pulled her into this, and then she was hurt by that cop. If it even was a cop. We need to find her and make sure she’s okay. Maybe she can even help us. If she wants to.”
Bryson and Sarah nodded in agreement just as something strange happened beneath their feet. The countless geometric shapes began to coalesce, spinning and flipping and twirling until they merged, their outlines getting brighter andbrighter. Michael could barely look at the shape as it formed a massive square below the glass, at least fifty feet wide, surrounded by darkness.
“Helga?” Michael prompted. “I thought the history lesson was over.”
“It is,” she said. “I’m not making this happen.”
Michael glanced at her and saw her staring down at the glass, as confused as he felt.
“What’s going on, then?” he asked.
She could only shrug.
“Maybe we should go ahead and
In Hong Kong, the chief of police transferred all of the enforcement personnel out of the metro area. Looters destroyed a major part of the largest shopping district.
In Mexico, progress against the drug trade, the result of a century of effort, was essentially erased by a series of changes to the law, passed in quick succession by several politicians whose views transformed overnight. Policy altered so rapidly that the drug cartels had taken over five cities before the public noticed what was going on.
Michael and his friends witnessed businesses collapsing, celebrities publicly killing spouses, and transit systems falling into disarray, and just like the man who’d slit his own throat in front of a waiting crowd of reporters, more and more of the cases involved Tangents announcing what they were before disaster struck.
Finally, not a moment too soon, Helga ended the show and brought them back to the now-comforting field of glass and geometric shapes. Michael wanted nothing more than to Lift to the Wake, find a corner, curl up into a ball, and push the world away. He was tired, and scared.
After a somber silence, Bryson spoke.
“Man, that’s all happened in the last couple of weeks?”
Helga nodded. “Now you see why we have to do something. Honestly, I’m worried that we’re too late. As you can see, it’s gotten out of control. To stop this, we’re going to need someone with a lot of power on our side. And like I said before, the Hive is the key. The Hive, and the Mortality Doctrine program itself.”
“So we need the VNS,” Bryson said, “even though we can’t trust Weber.”
“No, not the VNS,” Michael said. “No way. Before we try finding our way back to the Hallowed Ravine, we need totalk to actual world leaders—at least the ones who haven’t been taken over. Based on the news, there are still a lot of those left. Presidents, prime ministers…anyone but Agent Weber and the VNS.”
“But what is some president going to give us?” Sarah asked. “An army? A speech? What we need is a bunch of nerds, not presidents.”
Michael was nodding. “Right. And the nerdiest nerds of Nerdville usually end up working for the government. The ones that the VNS doesn’t steal, anyway.”
“Isn’t the VNS part of the government?” Bryson asked.
“No,” Helga responded. She was pacing around the others, hands clasped behind her back. “They’re a worldwide organization, funded by governments, but autonomous, separate. They’re beholden to nobody. And Michael’s right. We need three things from the government: manpower, the best technology money can buy, and protection. That’s what we need.”
“We also need to save Gabby,” Michael said. The comment seemed to come out of nowhere, but he’d been thinking about it for a long time. He addressed the doubtful looks from his friends. “I’m serious. We pulled her into this, and then she was hurt by that cop. If it even was a cop. We need to find her and make sure she’s okay. Maybe she can even help us. If she wants to.”
Bryson and Sarah nodded in agreement just as something strange happened beneath their feet. The countless geometric shapes began to coalesce, spinning and flipping and twirling until they merged, their outlines getting brighter andbrighter. Michael could barely look at the shape as it formed a massive square below the glass, at least fifty feet wide, surrounded by darkness.
“Helga?” Michael prompted. “I thought the history lesson was over.”
“It is,” she said. “I’m not making this happen.”
Michael glanced at her and saw her staring down at the glass, as confused as he felt.
“What’s going on, then?” he asked.
She could only shrug.
“Maybe we should go ahead and
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