“Fine,” Talon said.
He took a moment to collect himself and then began, “Peers Lindberg, Teodor Lindberg, Erna Lindberg, Robert Kelemen, Daniel Kelemen, Axel Kelemen, Morgan Kelemen, John Kelemen, Tucker Kelemen, Xander Kelemen, Granger Kelemen, Talon Clearwater. Their strength is why I am alive, I honor them when I thrive, in turn these words I will retain, to teach my kin the names again.” Talon said the last phrase reluctantly, almost sheepishly.
Flora added, “This was passed down from generation to generation, for every Kelemen. Talon has memorized it, as a sign of respect to them.”
There was no immediate response. Flora called out, louder now, “Are you listening Sentinel, or sanctuary, or whatever you are?”
“Yes,” the walls intoned. “I know the ritual. It is remarkable that it has survived this many generations. This is an acceptable demonstration.”
The wall in front of them promptly fell way, and they were met by an intense light. Owen had to shield his eyes and look away. Eventually, after their eyes adjusted, they took cautious steps into the brilliant glow of the sanctuary.
MONUMENTS
Madison stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Duncan in Court Square, facing the Meriwether Lewis statue. A heavy wind buffeted them, and colorful fall leaves swirled in the air.
Crowded around them were about two hundred Adherents chanting and waving signs. For the moment they were shouting, “Novation is damnation! Novation is damnation!” Occasionally Duncan would turn around and join them, or he would pump his fist in the air in tandem with the chant. With Alastair gone, Duncan had neatly filled the void as their spiritual leader.
A few Yorktown and Quebecois men were also present, watching and waiting. She had made sure they were armed and ready. Anything could happen at this council meeting.
The city had continued to transform. The Lamps of Liberty were countless, adding an army of blue protrusions to the skyline. There were even some electric cars, navigating the streets with quiet stealth.
But these were the least impactful of the changes. The Barnyard area had tripled in size, leveling whole city blocks and eating up nearby housing. Great plumes of smoke churned out of chimneys on these new buildings, and trucks made of patchworks of Old World materials roared through the streets, choking inhabitants with their exhaust.
Eeriest were the guardians. Madison had only seen one so far, walking on the downtown mall. From a distance, it looked vaguely human, but up close it was much more disturbing. The one she saw had a hard, skin-colored casing. It looked naked except for painted-on denim pants and gray shirt. What was most unnerving was its face, or rather lack of a face. Its head was entirely featureless. The uncanny void sent a shiver down her spine.
And these droids were all purpose and no play. The guardian was tagging along with a small spidery robot on the downtown mall. The spider robot was installing some electrical components along the walls of stores and other establishments. It could be some kind of new electrical network or surveillance system. Either way, no one interfered, and everyone gave the droids a wide berth.
If this wasn’t enough disruption for the city, there were also thousands of new faces arriving from different parts of the Spoke lands, some to see the new wonders of Seeville, but most to swell the ranks of Meeker’s enforcers. Many of these men and women were looking for adventure, and some were just looking for a fight. More than a few altercations had happened between these men and the growing number of Adherent supporters. At least thirty people had been reported missing.
“Any word from Cecile?” Madison asked Duncan, raising her voice over the chanting of the crowd.
“No. Nothing,” Duncan responded. His eyes remained focused on the Adherent gathering.
“Not even about the Broken Spoke?” Madison asked. “Is that still the plan?”
Before the expedition left, they’d agreed that, absent any other communication to the contrary, they would meet at a tavern outside of town in five days’ time.
“As far as I know. If they’re still alive.” Duncan nodded.
Kline arrived at the courthouse in a two-seated bike assembly, along with his scribe. He worked his way through the crowd of Adherents to shake their hands. He looked uncomfortable, grimacing at the masses surrounding them.
“What is it you wanted to show me here, Madison?” Kline asked, raising his voice over the crowd.
Duncan made a calming gesture to the Adherents. The noise died down to a more tolerable level.
Madison smiled. “Thank you for coming, Lord Kline. You had asked why I often sit next to the statue. I wanted to explain.”
“Okay,” he said, keeping a wary eye on the Adherent gathering.
Madison said, “I used to sit here because the Meriwether Lewis statue felt like home to me. It reminded me of the time of the founding fathers, a time I have researched avidly, where I have spent much of my imagination, where my faculties dwell just as much as the present.”
He looked up at the statue. “I can understand that. It’s definitely an impressive monument.”
“Unfortunately, there is another monument that is more impressive. It’s this other monument that now rules my thoughts.”
“Which one is that?”
“We sometimes forget that the Detonation is the greatest monument of all, Kline. The fever lands, the plagues, the retchers—we are ignoring this monument that is scorched into the earth by our ancestors.”
Kline’s brow was wrinkled in contemplation. He glanced off into the crowd briefly. The chanting continued unabated.
Madison took his hand in hers, cradling it. This finally drew his eyes away from the Adherents to focus squarely on her. “And here we are, about to push forward on a path we know has dreadful consequences—that history has given us a harsh slap in the face for pursuing.”
He could have disagreed with her, but he didn’t. Instead, Kline frowned and nodded, so she pushed further.
“We won’t have another chance, Kline. It will all be gone if Gail wins. Not just this statue, but us—everything, all of human history. We will be forgotten chess pieces in the game of some cold unfeeling machine, all because we were unable to see the risks, because of our own lack of humility in the face of clear warning signs. All because we were too distracted by the railroad’s bright, shiny objects to see our own history staring us in the face.”
Kline nodded grimly and squeezed her hands. “Don’t worry, I’m still with you.”
Madison smiled, returned a firm squeeze, and then let go.
This was the culmination of several meetings with Kline, systematically going through evidence, citing logical arguments, even bringing in eyewitness accounts. He still might not believe in the risks posed by Gail, but he knew enough to understand that Bartz and his crew were up to no good, and that many of the changes in Seeville were dangerous. On that account, they had found common ground.
A cavalcade of bikes and electric cars arrived shortly after. Bartz, Meeker, and their crews exited. They had no shortage of security with them. A number of enforcers ran to take strategic positions around court square. At least twenty remained around Bartz and Meeker.
The Adherent chants increased in volume. Arms were thrust out together in unison, now in the direction of Meeker and Bartz.
“Here we go,” Duncan said.
Duncan, Kline, and Madison made their way through the tangle of Adherents to face Bartz and Meeker.
“What is the meaning of this?” Duncan said, gesturing to the barricaded doors of the courthouse and the construction sign next to it.