The Sowing

“We’ve scaled higher drops than this,” I say, recalling our Recruit training at Infiernos. Of course we didn’t have to worry about being in plain view of anyone who might happen to be looking in this direction.

Digory sidles up to me and grins. Before I can say a word, he’s already grabbed onto the railing and swung his body over the edge in one fluid movement.

“Careful!” I whisper.

He pivots his body until his feet perch on the railing below. Then he steadies himself and releases one of his hands, using it to brace himself against the underside of the flooring of our balcony, which rests right above the balcony below.

I hold my breath, my heart racing as he lets go of the railing with his second hand and drops onto the landing beneath us.

Then he looks up at me with a sly grin, as if he’s wondering what’s taking me so long.

I shake my head and give him a wink. “Show-off.”

Taking a deep breath, I grab onto the railing just like Digory did—well, maybe I’m not as lithe—and in seconds I’ve joined him on the landing below, where he sweeps me into his arms.

His eyes swell with pride and he kisses my lips one more time before letting go and bounding down to the next balcony. I follow him as before, making sure not to stare at the drop but instead concentrate on him to steady me. Within ten minutes we reach the ground. “Let’s move,” I say.

We look left and right, then make a diagonal dash toward the processing plant. We reach the shadow of a communications tower, twenty feet or so from a metallic fence that extends the entire perimeter of the plant.

I scoop up a handful of pebbles and fling them at the fence. They’re instantly vaporized in a ball of sparks.

“You don’t fortify an abandoned plant,” I whisper. “This proves they’re hiding something, at least.”

A low vibration fills the air. Digory and I exchange a quick look, then peer in the direction of the sound.

Whizzing down the path leading to the front entrance of the plant is one of the glider transport vehicles. I barely have time to register it as Digory pulls me into the shadows of the tower.

We wait and watch, trying not to breathe too heavily as the vehicle slows and reaches the gate. There’s a burst of static from inside the craft, and a murmur of voices too low to hear. In seconds, the energized hum disappears and the gate begins to open.

Digory’s already grabbing my hand and we dart toward the back of the transport, leaping at the last possible moment and grabbing hold of the back fins as it goes through the gate. I grit my teeth and don’t dare to breathe, staring wordlessly at Digory opposite me and hoping our maneuver was smooth enough not to attract any unwanted attention.

We’re through the fence in seconds and there’s a crackle as it’s re-energized. We continue to hug the back of the carrier, pressed as flat against its hull as we can. It speeds down a diagonal ramp and disappears into the bowels of the processing plant.

As soon as we’re inside, the heavy steel doors slam shut. There’s no question they’re keeping something in here they don’t want anyone to see.

The transport continues its descent, one sub-level after another, as if we weren’t already far enough underground as it is. At least it doesn’t seem like anyone has noticed we’re still hitching a ride. But who knows how long that’s going to last.

A few minutes later, the transport begins to slow as it approaches a fork in the passage. I catch Digory’s eye, motioning with my head that the ride’s over.

He gets my signal and leaps off the vehicle, rolling across the ground and into a darkened side passage. I spring after him and hit the ground hard, banging my shoulder but continuing to unspool into the gloom.

Digory crawls up beside me and together we watch from the shadows as the vehicle stops. Straton disembarks, along with his Fleshers, who surround the transport as he enters a doorway that seals behind him.

Good thing we bailed when we did.

Digory touches my shoulder and I wince. He rests his palm on my cheek.

“It’s okay. I’m good,” I say.

I risk a peek from our hiding place. “There’s no way we can follow him inside.” Then I peer into the passage behind us. “But that doesn’t mean we can’t do some recon of the rest of this place.”

He nods and we slink down the passageway. The walls are dark and smooth except for every twenty-five feet or so, where supports jut from the walls all the way up to the arched ceiling like skeletal joints. The farther we go, the more humid and muggy it becomes. I wipe the sweat from my brow as a fine layer of mist begins to obscure the corridor ahead. There’s a low vibration in the air, getting stronger the farther we go. My ears detect a pulse, a throbbing sound. The walls become rougher, feeling almost like there’s a rough, thick coat on them. It’s almost like it’s elemental, natural, not man-made. Like a nest.

Or a hive.

I turn to Digory, who’s now barely a silhouette in my vision. “Wonder what the hell they’re keeping down here?”