Reclamation(107)

“Murderer!” she heard abruptly. “You killed them! You killed them!”

The little one clawed at the sides of the capsule, its snout opening and closing maniacally as if it would bite its way through to get to her. The other grabbed at it with all four hands and twined their long bodies together until her sister was smothered into silence and could only lie still, with her sides trembling.

“Help us,” she pleaded. “I know it’s not your fault, but she’s going crazy. Please help us.”

“Oh, little ones,” Arla laid her hands on the capsule. “We’re trapped together unless you can you show me how to open the doors.”

“I can.”

“Then we’re gone.” Arla hefted the capsule. It weighed less than she thought it would. She balanced it on one shoulder. “Close your eyes,” she told them, and hoped they obeyed as she stepped over the remains of their family. Her stomach roiled and heaved and she forced her gorge back down. She had to get out of here. She had to get them out of here. She could hear one of them keening in a sound that she couldn’t imagine meant anything but pain.

Under the child’s instructions, she punched in the override code for the door lock. Arla had them all out in the hallway before the door had opened all the way. She avoided the elevators. Machines were the enemy now. Any or all of them might be in the hands of the Vitae. But the doors to the stairs were open and the stairway was clear.

“What are your names?” Arla asked as she negotiated the doorway with her cargo.

“I’m … I will be Kiv when we get back home, but until then, I’m named Ere,” said the one who was trying to calm her sister. “And Ri is my … my …” Whatever it was, Ere didn’t seem able to finish her sentence.

“Ere.” The stairs turned a corner and Arla had to juggle the capsule to keep from standing the children on their heads. “Is there a safe place I can take you?”

“The Embassy,” Ere said immediately. “They can … take care of us and …”

“Good.” Arla cut her off before she had to try to finish that sentence. “How far is it?”

“Across the city. I know the address. We all knew, in case of emergencies and …”

“And this is one, yes. I tell you what we’ll do. We’ll go to a public terminal and put in a call, let them know we’re coming …” She stopped. The Vitae might be listening to the lines and a call from her to the Shessel would let them know where she was going.

After another three flights of stairs, they came to a door labeled EXIT. Arla backed against the door to open it. The portal led straight out onto the main street, which was good, because it also led straight into a pair of Vitae. A young one and a tall one stood frozen in mid-stride, heading for the door.

Arla froze too, but her heart pounded. Backing up was no good, they’d hunt her like a rat. There was no way she could hide with the children in her arms. Running was already no good; they’d spread apart in front of her, ready to spring.

The weird scene was attracting attention. Passersby, probably on their way to warehouses or ship docks, turned their heads to see what was going to happen next. A few of them actually stopped dead.

The children also got a look at who blocked their way.

“Murderers!” screeched Ri. The capsule shuddered in Arla’s arms as Ri threw herself against the side. This time her sister made no move to stop her. “Murderers!”

Some people in the gathering crowd must have had translator disks, judging from their expressions.

“These children seem to have a grievance against you,” remarked Arla slowly.

“Your body is Vitae property,” said Young One. “You have no legal recourse to grievance committee or to council.”

Arla shook her head. “I am not making a grievance. These two of the Shessel race are.”

It was an old trick. Hide behind a superior rank whenever you could.

“You killed our parent!” Ri’s voice rose so high Arla’s eardrums responded with pain. “You slashed the membrane, shut the power, you left our sisters for dead, you suffocated our family, you …”

“Ere, calm her!” ordered Arla. Ri was going to hurt herself if she kept up her pounding. Worse, her shuddering would make Arla drop the capsule.

Ere wound herself around her sister again, but with less success. The capsule shook in Arla’s arms and she began to feel the strain of holding it.

“I am going to take these children to the Shessel Embassy.” She shifted her grip on the capsule. “You are welcome to come along and make whatever claim you have in there. If I don’t get them there, there will be two more deaths, this time in front of witnesses, because I can’t hold them much longer and if I drop them, and if this casing cracks, they’ll smother.”