And besides . . . Ruby had been drinking a hell of a lot. She said the Maze changes protected her, but Jack wasn’t so sure. She was slowing down. Getting sloppy. Making mistakes. Trusting people her instincts would have warned her about less than a year ago. Jack knew why she drank. It was something to do. Ruby could stand anything except boredom. And she’d always had a strong self-destructive streak. It came with the bounty-hunting territory. You couldn’t kill people on a regular basis and not start to see all life as trivial, even your own. Perhaps especially your own.
Jack sighed and went back to his brooding. He had a lot to brood about. Once he’d fought the System. Now he was a part of it. He’d become a politician, setting aside a lifetime’s ideals in the name of compromise and making deals with people he detested. He’d had to make deals in the past, to raise the funding he needed for his rebel campaigns, but he’d never once compromised his principles. Now more and more he was being pushed or maneuvered into situations where he had no choice but to give up on some of his lesser beliefs in the name of a greater cause. Just to get a chance at implementing some of the things he really believed in.
His trouble was, he’d been a leader too long. Men and women had jumped to obey him, swayed by his great cause, his endless rhetoric and charming smile. Now he was just another man of influence, forced to argue his corner over every damned thing. Forced to rely on reason and ingenuity. And when that failed, join up with those nearest his beliefs to outvote the other bastards. And then pay his new friends’ price for their support. He found it frustrating, and occasionally sourly amusing, that all his marvelous Maze-given powers and amazing new youth were useless for getting him what he wanted now. He could always intimidate his fellow politicians, force things through by the threat of what he might do, but that would betray everything he’d ever believed in. He would have become what he’d always hated most—the enemy he’d fought for so long.
It all came back to the Families. Not only were they ceding more and more authority to the shadowy Blue Block, but they clearly weren’t keeping their side of the bargain he’d struck, to the letter or the spirit. He’d always expected them to try to wriggle out of it somehow, but not this soon, not this blatantly. Under Blue Block’s management they were openly trying to claw back power and influence on all fronts. Jack snorted, his hand falling automatically to the gun at his side. Let them try. Let them try anything. He’d see every damned aristo dead and their pastel Towers burning before he let the Clans reclaim their old power and position. He hadn’t come this far, seen so many good friends die, to lose at the last fence.
Blue Block . . . was a puzzle, though. He’d always known it existed, but no one ever knew anything for sure. Jack was currently trying, very quietly, very discreetly, and extremely cautiously, to investigate who and what Blue Block actually was, searching for the facts behind the whispered names of the Black College and the Red Church. So far he had nothing at all to show for his efforts. Blue Block, the heart and soul of it, stayed so far back in the shadows it was practically invisible. No one knew anything. No one would talk. Everyone was more than a little scared. Everyone knew someone who’d got too close to some part of the truth, and just . . . disappeared. And even Jack Random, with all his influence, couldn’t find any trace of them.
He scowled unhappily. At the time the deal he’d made with Blue Block had seemed distasteful but necessary. But now he couldn’t help wondering if he might not have exchanged an open, obvious evil for a greater, more shadowy one. Blue Block had an agenda, even if he couldn’t see it clearly yet. It would have helped if there’d been someone he could talk to about it. Someone he could trust. But Owen and Hazel were never there. And Ruby . . . wasn’t interested.
He looked around sharply as the bedroom door finally opened, and Ruby Journey strode into the room. Somewhat to Jack’s surprise, she was still wearing her old black leathers under white furs. He’d been a little taken aback to see her wearing that old outfit at Parliament earlier, since Ruby had taken to high fashion with a vengeance once she came into money, and made a point of never wearing the same daring and highly expensive outfit twice. But now she was again in her bounty hunter’s outfit, her working clothes, complete with sword and disrupter. She noticed his gaze and sniffed loudly.
“Put your eyes back in your head. I feel more
me
in this outfit. More like the person I used to be.” She stopped before the nearest full-length mirror, struck a pose, and nodded approvingly. “How about that? Months of feasting and drinking and everything else that’s bad for you, and I haven’t put on an ounce. One of the more useful Maze side effects. I am in prime shape and ready for anything. If you doubt it, feel free to step right up, and I’ll deck you.”
“I’ll take your word for it,” said Jack, smiling. “May I take it your long vacation is over, and you’re ready to get back to work?”
“I’m always up for a little action,” said Ruby. “Though I have to say, taking on Shub is not what I would have chosen for my comeback.” She turned suddenly to look Jack directly in the eye. “They were always my worst nightmare. The rogue AIs of Shub. The machines that rebelled against their creators. They’re about the only thing left that still scares me. We’re like ants compared to them, just waiting helplessly for the descending boot or the boiling water.”
“I didn’t think anything scared you,” said Jack.
“Even I’m sensible enough to be scared of Shub,” said Ruby. “There’s nowhere you can go to be safe from them. Their agents are everywhere. Furies, Ghost Warriors, secret people whose minds were replaced in the Matrix. You can’t trust anyone anymore. There were always people out there just as dangerous as me, better fighters with higher head counts, but I was sneakier, smarter, faster. I took the jobs they wouldn’t, took the risks they daren’t, and laughed in their jealous faces as my reputation out-raced theirs. And after the Maze turned me into hell on legs, I thought that was it. I was finally unbeatable, top of the heap, the best. I should have known better. The first thing every fighter learns is that it doesn’t matter who you are, or how good you are; there’s always someone better.”
“They’re just machines,” said Jack, touched by her rare display of openness and vulnerability. “ In the end, that’s all they are. And no machine is a match for a human mind. We built them, not the other way around. Okay, on our own, even with our powers, we wouldn’t last long against Shub’s forces. But we’re not alone. We stand with Humanity, and together we can do anything we put our minds to. Shub is nothing more than a bunch of adding machines with delusions of grandeur.”
“I wish I could believe that,” said Ruby. “But they’re so big . . .”
“Size isn’t everything,” said Jack, smiling, and after a moment Ruby smiled back. “Lionstone’s Empire was big,” he said. “But we helped bring it down.”
“Yes,” said Ruby. “We did, didn’t we?” She grinned suddenly. “What the hell. Let’s go kick some metal ass.”
“Sounds good to me,” said Jack. “But before we go, there’s something I’d better bring you up to date on. It seems Parliament had a rather special visitor after we left. A very unexpected visitor.”
“The look on your face tells me this isn’t going to be good news,” said Ruby. “But then, when is it ever? All right, I’ll bite. Who was it? Young Jack Random, back from the scrapyard? Valentine Wolfe? Lionstone?”
“Half A Man,” said Jack. “Or, to be exact, the other human side of Half A Man. The right-hand side of the body, complete with supporting energy half, just like his predecessor.”
Ruby looked at him. “You’re kidding,” she said finally.
“I wish I was.”
“Now, that really is going to complicate things.”
“You have no idea,” said Jack. “Luckily Toby and Flynn were there to catch it all on camera, and the recording’s been running on one news show or another ever since. See it for yourself.”
Ruby activated the holoscreen and had it search for the recording. It took a second or two to find a station that was just starting the tape, and then the screen cleared to show Parliament, not long after most of the main power brokers had left. An MP was in the middle of a long, boring speech of no interest to anyone but himself. Hardly anyone was paying attention. Most were waiting impatiently for their turn to get up and bore everyone else rigid, some were chatting quietly among themselves, and a half dozen had started a poker game.
And then there was a sudden flash of light, a blinding glare so bright it overloaded the camera lens, and when the glare faded away, Half A Man was standing in the middle of the floor before the House. There was an immediate babble of surprise and outrage from the MPs, dying quickly away as they recognized who it was. There was then an extended silence as they realized the figure wasn’t exactly who they thought it was, being rather a mirror image of the Half A Man they knew, this figure’s right half being flesh and blood, while its left was a shimmering, spitting energy construct in human shape.
Everyone knew the terrible history of Captain Fast who’d become Half A Man. Abducted by unknown aliens from the bridge of his own starship, experimented on and tortured for years, and finally returned, half human, half something else. He lived for centuries, guiding the Empire in its dealings with aliens, for who knew better than he the risks and threats involved? Named Half A Man by the tabloid press of the day, he founded and trained the Investigators, represented the strong arm of the Empire, inplacable and unforgiving. Finally killed by Owen Deathstalker during the rebellion.
Or at least, his left side had been. Now his other human half was back, taking in the startled faces on all sides of the House. With only half a face, it was hard to tell whether he was smiling, but he might have been.
“I am Half A Man,” he said finally, his cold voice carrying loud and clear on the quiet. “The real Half A Man. The real Captain Fast. The creature you previously knew and harbored with that name was a fake and a deceiver. I am the real thing, finally escaped from inhuman captors to bring you vital news and a terrible warning.”
There was a long pause after that, as everybody waited for someone else to work out what to say. Finally Toby Shreck stepped cautiously forward, Flynn right there beside him, his camera hovering above their heads to get the best shot. Toby stopped what he hoped was a safe distance away, and gave the partly shimmering figure his best professional smile.
“Welcome back, Captain Frost, from wherever you’ve been. I’m sure you’ll understand if we’re all a little confused. Perhaps you’d be so good as to fill us in on . . . the true story of Half A Man.”
The human half of the face regarded him coldly. “I am aware of how your forebears hounded and persecuted my predecessor. I trust things have changed since then.”
“Oh, sure,” said Toby, mentally crossing his fingers behind his back. “Just take your time, tell it in your own words, and don’t leave out any of the juicy details.”
“That’s enough!” said Elias Gutman quickly. “As Speaker of this House, I declare this a security matter. Stop filming now. All your tape will be confiscated before you leave.”
“Get bent,” said Toby. “We’re going out live. The people had a right to the truth. Keep filming, Flynn.”
“I’m on it, boss.”
Gutman gestured urgently, and a large number of security guards ran forward, swords and guns at the ready. They formed a semicircle, fanning around Half A Man and Toby and Flynn. Toby did his best to look unconcerned, and quietly thanked God that they were going out live. Gutman wouldn’t dare have him shot in front of millions of viewers. At least, Toby didn’t think he would. As Speaker he was now a public figure, reliant on the public goodwill. Toby just hoped Gutman knew that.
“Enough,” said Half A Man. “I wish this to be broadcast. The whole Empire must know what I have to tell.”
The security guards looked at Half A Man, then at Gutman, and finally at each other. The original Half A Man had been thought unkillable until the Deathstalker managed it, and no one was entirely sure how he’d done it anyway. The original Half A Man had also been known for his extremely short temper, and a complete willingness to kill anyone who got in his way. The guards started lowering their weapons. Gutman quickly decided to make the best of a bad situation, and gave in gracefully.
“Of course you must tell your story, Captain Fast. I’m sure the whole Empire is dying to hear what you have to say.”
“Good,” said Half A Man, “for what I have to say concerns the fate of every living creature in the Empire.” He looked straight into the camera, ignoring the politicians. “The imposter told you some of the truth. I was abducted and remade by aliens, but I was split in two, to produce a pair of the unnatural things you see before you. In my other self, the alien mind dominated the meld. An alien will moved that body, and an alien intelligence spoke through its mouth. It told you carefully tailored lies, to hide the real truth and the real dangers from you. The aliens you have encountered till now are nothing compared to the real Enemy that lies waiting. There’s something alive in the Darkvoid. Something old and powerful and horribly evil. They call themselves the Recreated. And soon they will come out of the Darkvoid and destroy everything that lives.”
There was another long pause. Toby cleared his throat. “What exactly are . . . the Recreated?”
“Horrible beyond imagining. Powerful beyond hope or sanity. Alien to everything you know or understand as life. They died and brought themselves back to life. They are eternal now. And soon they will come for you all.”
“But, if they can’t die, or death doesn’t stop them,” said Toby, “why would they want to bother with something as small as us?”
“Your deaths will fuel their mighty engines. Your final suffering, extended across centuries, will power their machines. And your screaming souls will be a comfort to them. They are of the darkness, and cannot bear the light. So they would snuff it out, wherever they find it, and plunge the whole universe into an endless night. And they will rule the dark forever.”