Atherton #3: The Dark Planet (No. 3) (21 page)

touching the window. His hand was greasy and it left a smear.

"Don't touch the glass," snapped Commander Judix. "You know

how I hate that."

She watched in disgust as Red Eye tried hopelessly to remove

the smudge on the glass and only made it worse with his dirty

sleeve.

"Leave it, you imbecile!" said Commander Judix, rolling toward

Red Eye without a thought of slowing down so he could move

out of the way. "I hope you run the Silo with a little more care."

Smudged glass wasn't the only thing Commander Judix hated.

She loathed having to deal with Red Eye or his snarly younger

brother in person. In fact, she couldn't remember the last time

she'd actually seen either one of them up close.

Red Eye embodied every thing she hated about the Dark

Planet. The sick eyes set deep in their sockets, those revolting

goggles, and skin so unnaturally pale. At least Red Eye didn't

have that cackling laugh. How she hated it when Socket would

screech in his unbearable way.

"The new recruit, Commander, he'll be ready with the other

one," said Red Eye, so nervous he could hardly spit the words

out. But he had so wanted to play the hero just this once, and to

do it in person. He had even allowed himself to imagine there

might be a reward.

"How old is he?" Commander Judix stared aimlessly at the

forsaken wood through the giant window pane.

"4311," said Red Eye. It was the second time he'd said the

number and he couldn't for the life of him imagine why he'd

come up with the random digits to begin with. Why hadn't he

chosen something closer to 4200?

"That's a little older than Grammel likes them. Is he edgy like

you? Does he cackle?"

"No, ma'am, there's none of that with this one. He's not in the

least bit nervous. He's an odd one, healthier than we've seen in

a long time. But he's been trouble-free and hardly says a word."

"You could learn a thing or two from someone like that,"

Commander Judix said.

Red Eye thought of how Edgar was getting the beating of his

life in the machine room, and this made him feel a little better in

the presence of the commander's cruelty.

Commander Judix had already heard how healthy this new

recruit was once before, and something told her it was a

meaningful piece of information. But her heart and her mind

were so bitter and determined, she couldn't quite get at it.

"Does he have a name?" asked Commander Judix, thinking it

might jog something in her memory.

"I don't know," said Red Eye. He thought he might make up a

name but had some concern that he'd soon forget it and be

caught in a lie. He was having enough trouble remembering

4311 without adding more details to remember.

"Find out and tell Shelton," said Commander Judix. "I'll ask him

in the morning and I want an answer. Do you understand?"

"I do," said Red Eye, nervously tapping the metal sole of his

boot on the floor.

"You're sure about the number? It won't do for Grammel to get a

different reading when he arrives."

"One boy of 4200 and one of 4311, both ready to work. That's

what I'll deliver."

The boldfaced lie made his neck twitch dreadfully and

Commander Judix couldn't stand looking at him anymore. She

rolled away, calling over her shoulder, "Bring them to the usual

place tomorrow just before dark."

Red Eye wished he'd never made the trip to see Commander

Judix in person. He was in a cold sweat from head to toe as he

began walking back to the Silo. He could lie about the reading

when Grammel came. He could say it had worked before and

he didn't know why it wouldn't work now. Captain Grammel

would see this recruit and want him. Who wouldn't want a boy

like this one? Everything would be fine.

"Now, about that name," he said to himself, wishing for

something that would take his attention away from the pounding

in his head. "I do so hope I'll have to beat it out of him."

"The powder blocks go across the passageway of lies just like

the 4200s," said Landon. "Then we never see any of them

again."

"What's the passageway of lies?" asked Edgar.

He wanted to know what a 4200 was as well but didn't want to

ask too many questions all at once. The barracks door was still

open, but the boys were lying on their bunks in the dark. Faint

light crept into the room from the corridor that separated the

three barracks. There were six boys--seven including Edgar-and all but Vasher were younger than Edgar by a year or more.

It was hard work in the Silo and sleep was a marvelous escape

into a world of dreams that almost all the boys, including

Vasher, were quick to take advantage of. But in every group of

children there was always one who couldn't fall asleep until

after everyone else was softly snoring. In this group, that boy

was Landon.

"The passageway of lies is the corridor between the Silo and

Station Seven," continued Landon, happy to have a night

companion to talk to. "Red Eye and Socket say it leads to a

place better than the Silo, a place we go when we get old

enough, if we've worked really hard. But then other times, when

they don't think we're working fast enough, they tell us what a

party they'll have after we're gone and how our new home will

be full of horrible monsters and bad dreams. We can't tell when

they're lying, or if it's all lies, or if they have no idea where we

go and just make things up when they feel like it. So we call it a

passageway of lies. We're pretty sure it leads somewhere bad,

right, Vash?"

Two bunks down the line Vasher didn't answer.

"He sleeps really good," said Landon. "I think it helps him forget

he's next to go."

Edgar rolled a little to his left, trying to get comfortable. The

bender had been painful, but not as bad as he'd imagined it

would be. He had expected it to be awful, but it felt to Edgar like

Socket had looked at Edgar's back and for some reason

couldn't bring himself to scar it too badly. Still, he felt the welts

and bruises as he moved.

"You ever hear of a man named Grammel?" asked Landon.

Edgar shook his head no.

"That's how I got here. Everyone else got lost in the wood and

was brought here. Out looking for their parents is what they say.

I suppose it's true. I never had parents around, far as I can

remember. And I don't even remember how I got on the beach. I

think maybe I was sent out for something or snuck out of the

compound to see the water. This man, Grammel, found me. I

was only five or six. Anyway, Grammel picked me up in his boat

and dropped me here at the Silo. He said he'd come back and

get me someday and we'd have great big adventures, but I don't

think he's coming back."

Landon bit his fingernails for a few seconds but started talking

again before Edgar could say anything.

"They count the days around here, did you know that? So I'm

not seven and a half years old, I'm 2730 days old. A 4200 is

eleven and a half. That's when they send you packing. You get

used to the big numbers after a while. Not that you'll have a

chance to."

"Thanks a lot!" said Edgar, laughing softly despite the bad

news. Landon giggled, but he stopped short and glanced

across the bunk at Edgar.

"I'm sorry you can't stay longer. You're nice to have around."

"Don't count me out just yet," said Edgar. "I might have a trick or

two up my sleeve."

Landon was about to question Edgar when the familiar clanging

sound of metal-soled boots drew nearer from the passageway.

A moment later, the door creaked open and a dark shadow was

cast along the floor of the barracks.

Red Eye walked in, rubbing the deep sockets of his eyes with

his thumbs. He was glad to be back in the dim light of the Silo.

Red Eye took four strides--
bang, bang, bang, bang!
--and stood

in front of Edgar's bed. He pulled the bender from his back and

slapped it down across Edgar's shins with a loud
whish!
and a

snap!

"Tell me your name," said Red Eye.

Edgar cried out loudly enough to wake all the boys, but none of

them stirred. They all knew better than to get involved.

Edgar glanced at Landon in the pale light in a way that he

hoped the younger boy would understand.
Why does Red Eye

want to know my name? We better not tell him.

"Peter is my name," said Edgar. He remembered the name from

a story Samuel had used to help teach Edgar how to read.

"That's not what you told us before."

"What's that you say?" said Red Eye.

He walked three angry steps and lifted one of the bunks,

dropping it with a loud boom that left no question that everyone

was now awake. He stood in front of Vasher's bunk.

"He said his name was Edgar when we were in the drying

room. I don't know anyone called Peter."

Red Eye moved the bender along the front edge of the rusted

steel bunk where it made a noise like slowly ripping paper.

"How interesting," he said, glancing down the line of beds and

seeing that Edgar had sat up.

He sidled down the row of bunks, a little thrill in his step at the

prospect of attacking this healthy new worker who had caused

him so much humiliation with Commander Judix. Red Eye had

guzzled a tin of powdery water moments before and a chalky

film lay heavy in the corners of his mouth like froth from a mad

dog.

For whatever reason, he now placed all the blame for the

current state of his terrible life in the Silo on Edgar. The splitting

head ache was no longer Aggie's fault, it was Edgar's alone.

Touching the glass at Station Seven, the verbal abuse from the

commander, his endlessly annoying brother--he wanted to

destroy Edgar and now the little dirt ball had given him a reason

to do it.

"We don't turn a blind eye to liars in the Silo," said Red Eye,

arriving at the foot of Edgar's bed, his pulse quickening. "One

bad lie leads to another, and then another, and soon the whole

place is full of nothing but
LIARS
!"

Red Eye lifted the bender over his head and stared down at

Edgar.

"What seems to be the problem in here?"

A tall figure stood in the doorway with her hand on the latch.

Seeing he might lose his chance, Red Eye swung the bender

sideways over the bed with an aim to crack Edgar right across

the face, something even Red Eye had never done. But Edgar

was much faster than Red Eye had thought. He leaped back,

felt the wind from the bender and heard the tearing swish, but

Red Eye had missed.

"Get away from that bed!" said Hope. She had a voice of sheer

magic. It had the kind of power that made an enemy wish

against his own will to be on her side. For the first time Red Eye

seemed to lose his nerve. It wasn't that Hope had any authority

over him; it was the weapon she'd gotten from Max Harding

years ago that Red Eye feared.

Red Eye's breath shook with indecision, for he knew that Hope

could bring him under control if he wasn't careful.

"You shouldn't even be in here at this hour," she continued,

striding confidently into the room until she stood only a few feet

behind Red Eye. There was something in her hand, but Edgar

couldn't make out what it was.

"I was only tucking all the little monsters in for the night," said

Red Eye, dropping the bender on his back where it made a
flit!

and disappeared. "This new one's been giving us some trouble

today."

He turned to face Hope for the first time and a thick beam of red

light pointed into Red Eye's face. The dreaded thing in her hand

had been activated.

Like a tractor beam the light held Red Eye and wouldn't let him

go. Hope moved her arm down and Red Eye collapsed to his

knees.

"Let me go!"

It didn't sound like Red Eye was in pain, but rather afraid, like a

ghost had entered his mind and was trying to scare him to

death.

"I know you think you can torture these kids all you want," said

Hope. "But just remember what I've always said. You're going

to get what's coming to you in the end."

"Leave me alone!" Red Eye pleaded. "And I'll remind you once

more so you don't forget. If you ever try to get rid of me, every

child in the Silo will have one of these little gadgets. Young Dr.

Harding was pretty good about organizing things like this. He

had a gift for it."

Red Eye was pretty sure Hope wasn't bluffing. Max Harding

was legendary for protecting helpless kids in ways no one else

could have imagined.

"The barracks is all they have," said Hope. The light continued

to pour into Red Eye's sockets as he withered closer to the

floor. "It's the only place they can escape and rest. I won't have

you destroy it for them, not after how hard you push them."

"I won't come in again, I promise," said Red Eye.

The line of heavy, liquid red light fell away and Red Eye

staggered to his feet. He shook his head and looked every