The Fall

Eren avoided my gaze with the precision of a fighter pilot. “Adam had no reason not to kill him, Charlotte. And there was opportunity, motive.”

“I’m not sure about that. It was chaos the day of the attack.” I should know. As far as I was concerned, it happened yesterday. “He had a strike team after him, and his Remnant headquarters were obliterated, obviously. There was a big lag between when he lost Isaiah and when you and I got here, which was when he had control of the speaker system.” I paused, reliving the moment, and sucked in a deep breath. “And the oxygen.”

Eren settled himself at his desk, and I sat, robot-like, in a nearby chair.

“Anyway,” I continued, monotone, “I’m not totally convinced he’d take the shot even if he had it. He didn’t know Amiel was dead at that point.”

“Depends on when your dad tried to leave, doesn’t it?” said Eren. “And let’s just agree to disagree on whether he’d take the shot either way. But here’s the real problem: you can’t ping him. You don’t know where he is.”

He had me there. I had no way of knowing where they’d gone.

But I had a pretty good guess.

“Is there a shipment or anything headed toward the European Ark today? I assume we have a good relationship with them, right?”

“To the extent that you could call it a relationship, yes. Adam sends them things from time to time. Usually tech-related. They reciprocate. A bunch of our doctors disappeared right after he started drugging people. There was talk of a strike among the medics, but instead, they just vanished. When our sick bay filled up, Europe stepped in.”

“Europe sent us doctors? Willingly?”

“No, they refuse to give him any personnel. But they accept patients.”

I glanced around the room. By some miracle, no one was paying any attention to us. I guess after five years of puppethood, I had become completely invisible. Predictable, even.

I could work with that.

“So,” I said softly. “When’s the next shipment of patients going out?”

“Not for another week.”

A week. That was a long time to dodge Adam. “I don’t think I can wait that long. He’ll know something’s up any minute now. Certainly by morning.”

“I don’t see that you have any choice. You can’t stay here,” he said, his voice more urgent than before. “He’s going to drug you again.”

“Look who’s suddenly on Team Char.”

“The way I see it, you need to get off this Ark. You can’t hide here. No one can. We have to depose Adam before we land. If he drugs you again, that’s another year gone. We’ll miss our window. Get out. Get some support. Come back and stage a coup.”

Five years ago, Eren would never have dreamed of supporting a coup. I had the sudden, slippery feeling that I was talking to a stranger, that I’d lost something I cared for, and I shivered. I couldn’t think about that right now. “I can’t possibly—”

“If anyone can do it, it’s you.”

“Is there even any support still left around here? Maybe people want Adam in charge. I mean, he destroyed the Remnant and overthrew the Commander. He’s probably not anyone’s firstchoice, but you never know.”

“I have no idea,” said Eren. “No one talks to me. I’m too close to Adam. And I’m married to you, remember? You’re not exactly popular with either group, either, you know.”

He was probably referring to the fact that I’d killed the Commander and betrayed Isaiah, putting me squarely at odds with both Central Command and the Remnant. That would also account for the depressing fact that in five years, no one had bothered rescuing me, rebellion or not.

“Can you arrange another patient transport? Say, tonight?”

“Charlotte. We have no allies. No resources.”

“Aren’t you the Lieutenant Commander? I seem to remember something about that from my hospital stay.”

He gave me a long look, then turned back to fiddle with the control panel. “I was, for a little while. The position changed hands a few years ago.”

“Yeah, yeah. I met her. Early thirties, kinda stabby, likes to play with needles? Arms like a bear trap.”

“No. I mean, yes, she’s the real LC. But that’s a secret. Officially, on paper, it’s someone else.”

“Anyone I know?” I scanned my brain for candidates, but Eren had stopped dinking around and sat still instead, staring at the constellation hologram. It was disconcerting. “Earth to Eren.”

“Yeah, Char. It’s you.”

I snorted. “Me.”

“Lieutenant Everest,” he said, using our married name. His voice was blank, but there was a sad softness in his eyes that made me reach for his hand. He pulled away, and I whisked air. It was like falling through an unseen crack in the middle of a familiar street.

“Eren, please. We can’t just—”

“Lieutenant!” a voice pierced our conversation, and I forced myself not to jump.

“Mnmm.” I glanced up sleepily. A uniformed man strode toward us, insignia blazing, and my hand wandered toward the emblems on my own uniform. His mouth concealed a sneer. It hit me that he’d probably been in the military all his life, and I, to all the world an idiot, outranked him. Adam played a dangerous game.

He saluted, an action I did not return, and a look of disdain, or pity, crept over his face. “Inform the High Commander that the day’s operations are completed.”

Now, how in the heck was I supposed to talk to Adam?

I sat there, dumb as a stump, until Eren laid a hand on mine. It was warm, and for a moment, I felt secure again. “Here,” he said, his voice gentle and slow. He slid my fingers across the control panel in front of us and pressed my finger over an iridescent plate an inch wide. Fingerprint scanner, I supposed. “InterArk Comm Con to headquarters.”

There was a pause, then a rustle, and Adam spoke.

“Command.”

The two men looked at me, and I used my best sleepy voice. “The day’s operations are complete. Comp-leted,” I corrected myself with a slur.

“Dismiss the crew. Send her over, Everest,” came the reply. “Command out.”

The man in uniform scoffed and trooped away.

The crew filed out of the room without a second glance at me, and when the door closed behind them, Eren cleared his throat. “So.”

“So,” I replied expectantly. “Ideas. Thinking. We need a plan.” He continued to look at me, and I felt a little trill of panic. “Quickly, please.”

“You’re wanted at headquarters,” he said.

I stared at him. “Yeah. That’s why the hurry, slick.” A look I couldn’t place crossed over his face, and I felt myself get angry. He still wouldn’t meet my eye. Another moment passed, and my hands went cold. I was finally free from stasis. Why was he just sitting there? “Look, Eren. I know I can’t imagine what you’ve been through in the last five years, but please. Get it together. If Adam figures out that I’m awake right now, he’ll put me under for another year. That can’t be what you really want.” I heard my voice crack, and it sounded like it belonged to someone else. “Surely.”

“Charlotte,” he said gently. “He’s—”