The Tomb--A Novel

  She chose another recording, which appeared to be completely about Space Venture, and its founder, Liam Trask. Other than brief footage of a tall, wiry man in a gray suit descending from the steps of a private jet, the billionaire himself did not speak. The piece strayed into gossip territory when it mentioned his messy divorce and the record settlement after a lengthy and nasty fight over a very valuable collection of emerald jewelry.

  Kiva paused the vid-doc.

  She wasn’t exactly convinced that Trask seemed like someone an entire government would rely upon to save their citizens.

  But, in the end, they hadn’t saved all that many, had they?

  The US government had never even planned to save the general populace, only the people they could fit on four ships. People they deemed worthy of saving.

  Kiva’s pulse raced.

  Her mother wasn’t one of them.

  Thus, neither was she.

  There were so many questions.

  How did her mother manage to get on board the Krakatoa? And if she had been born on the airship after it left Earth, then who was her father?

  In all those years of Alexandria, virtual reality, she had never asked, there had never been a need. She had been told that her father was dead, died of a plague that also took many others. There was no reason to doubt her mother.

  Since she was out of torpor, she wondered if her father was dead of a sickness on the Krakatoa, the story about the plague fitting their Egyptian reality.

  But if the rest of her life was a lie, perhaps that was too?

  Was her mother alone when she boarded the ship? Technically a stowaway, she required some sort of help, didn’t she?

  Was her father a passenger on the Krakatoa? Invited or not?

  Kiva searched for her mother’s vid-doc. “There you are.” She leaned back against the lone pillow and tried to get comfortable. “What, Mr. Trask, you couldn’t spring for more than one pillow?” She resumed playback.

  Sabra began with apologies and explanations, then went back to the beginning. “I want to tell you my story. How I ended up on the Krakatoa.” Her mother shifted in her chair and wiped her forehead.

  “I was twenty-two, in grad school in Texas, assisting my geology professor with research for the summer. We were studying limestone near Big Hill.” She shrugged. “I knew about the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. There are fourteen cavities, each one about two thousand feet in height, two hundred feet wide, each meant to hold about twelve million barrels of oil.” Her eyes looked off to the left for a moment before returning to straight-ahead. “We were in this crappy little motel, and the housekeeper told me she saw trucks going in late at night now and then, hauling something other than oil.”

  Kiva whispered, “Space Venture. The Krakatoa.”

  Sabra scratched her nose. “I’d been obsessed with the NEO. Oh, you won’t know what that is. Near Earth Object. The asteroid. I thought the near miss would be pretty cool.” Her smile was forlorn. “Young and naive, I guess. Didn’t realize how defenseless Earth really was when it came to the universe.” She paused a moment. “Anyway, that weekend my professor had gone to Dallas for a conference. I’d met a marine named Jack who was working out at Big Hill. He was very tight-lipped about the job, but he asked me out and he was cute.” She shrugged. “I said yes.”

  Kiva tried to picture her mother, not that many years older than she. On her own in Texas for the summer, with the freedom to do whatever she wanted with whomever she wanted.

  Sabra squeezed her eyes shut for second. “I can’t believe this is the first talk I have with you about dating. I mean, you’re on a shuttle out in space, God knows where.” She sighed. “We’ll have a talk when you get back, I promise.”

  “Right.” Dating, restaurants, the freedom to live on her own?

  That was as much a part of Kiva’s reality as dinosaurs.

  That very moment, sitting in that cabin on the Tomb, was the first time she had truly been alone in her life.

  The rest had been spent in torpor.

  In Alexandria. A controlled life of studies, preparing for a future in space.

  Her mother’s life back on Earth? Her experiences?

  Kiva would never come close to having them.

  Her mother continued. “Sirens started going off during dessert.” Her smile was forlorn. “Best—and last—tiramisu ever.” Then she breathed out, long and harsh. “The NEO passed Earth by as expected. But the magnetic dust cloud surrounding it shrouded a meteorite. They barely had time to name it. Holocene turned out to be massive. Impact happened somewhere in Europe. Dust and ash were already blocking radiation from the sun. Global temperatures began to drop. Impact winter was inevitable.”

  Sabra stared off into space for a moment. “Jack drove us to Big Hill.” She shook her head. “Crazy there. People running around. Jack took me right inside where … I can’t even describe that first time I saw the Krakatoa. It was like a kind of blimp, but so huge.” She smiled. “You’ll have to find the schematics to fathom it.”

  Kiva frowned. Really? The Earth is crashing down around them and she’s impressed by Trask’s ship?

  Her mother kept going. “Jack explained that the Krakatoa was in preparation for the super eruption, not some random meteorite. That’s why it was so chaotic. They weren’t ready.” She swallowed. “Once we boarded, Jack left—”

  The screen froze with Sabra’s mouth half open, still speaking.

  “What?” Kiva tapped on the computer. “No, come on.” She pushed a few buttons, nothing happened. She tucked the computer under one arm and padded over to the door. She punched the green button and the panel slid open. “Be there…”

  The floor pulsed beneath her feet on the way to the bridge, and as soon as the doors opened, the same cacophony as before assaulted her.

  “What is that?” she yelled over the din.

  Seth shut off the sound. “Music.”

  They had music in Alexandria. There was plenty of singing, and some of the adults made string instruments. “Not like any I’ve heard.”

  “Trust me, you haven’t heard much.” Seth turned it back on, but not as loud.

  Again, the voices yelling.

  Kiva shook her head. “But they’re not even singing.”

  “They are. It’s punk from the early part of the century.”

  She listened to the words for a moment. “They sound angry.”

  He shrugged. “Maybe I enjoy rage and discontent.”

  She smiled.

  “There’s a lot more music in the computer. Do you need something?”

  Kiva sat down in her chair. “This froze. I can’t get it to go again.”

  He tried a few things, then handed the device back. “It may have happened when she recorded it. She was in a hurry.”

  “I suppose.” Kiva stared down at the device. “Can you find out the names of the original passengers on the Krakatoa?”

  “I think so. Looking for anyone in particular?”

  Kiva tightened her grip on the device. “Someone named Jack.”

  Seth frowned at her. “Why?”

  Kiva met his gaze. “I think he may be my father.”

  9

  Kiva anticipated that Seth would have some reason why she shouldn’t look for her father. Or perhaps he was already aware of him; yet another item for the endless list of things he knew that she did not.

  But her father was personal.

  His truth was her truth.

  Still, if Seth had any information …

  “Do you know anything … about my father?”

  Seth tapped his tabletop screen. “A little.”

  “And you didn’t think I’d want to know?”

  “You didn’t ask until now. And like I said, I don’t know very much.” Seth focused on the screen and slid his finger down. “Certainly not enough to make you happy.”

  She was annoyed that he might know anything about her father that she didn’t. “Who is he?”

  “I don??
?t know who he is.” His gaze lifted to hers. “But I might know where he is.”

  Kiva’s heart pounded. “Did my mom tell you? Your dad?”

  Seth straightened up in his chair. “The adults didn’t tell me a lot.”

  Kiva narrowed her eyes. “No, just that our life was a lie and how to run the ship and—”

  “Okay.” Seth held up his hand. “Believe me, other than that, it wasn’t exactly an intel open house. Conversations tended to stop when I showed up.”

  “Is my father alive? Is he—”

  Seth crossed his arms.

  Kiva forced herself to stay silent.

  “When the four ships left Earth—”

  Kiva bit her lip.

  Seth sighed. “What? I can tell you want to say something.”

  “You mentioned the Krakatoa and Tambora. What were the others?”

  Seth rattled off the names. “Vesuvius and Pinatubo. All volcanoes. Trask had a sense of humor, apparently.” He raised his eyebrows.

  “Got it. Go on.”

  “The four ships stayed together orbiting Earth for months. But then one was hit by orbital debris—”

  “You mean like trash in space?” Kiva had to ask.

  “Yeah. Like old satellites orbiting Earth at seventeen thousand miles per hour. Anyway, the ship tried to evade more of the mess and nearly collided with another ship. The president was still alive back then and realized the potential for a Kessler syndrome was too great.” He stopped and raised an eyebrow.

  She shook her head.

  “Kessler syndrome is if there is enough debris in orbit that it all starts colliding and then causes a cascade—”

  “Domino effect?”

  Seth nodded. “All four ships could be taken out at once. The president ordered them out of orbit to give each a better chance of survival.” Seth shifted in his chair. “They separated, tens of thousands of miles apart, all headed for Home Base.”

  “But I thought it wasn’t ready yet.”

  “It wasn’t. They set a very slow, steady course.” He scratched his chin. “I guess, picture four swimmers all headed for the same shore. They’re parallel, but far apart.”

  “And right now, you and I are going sideways, like from one swimmer to another.”

  He nodded.

  “Things were fine after that?”

  “I only know about Krakatoa for certain. Someone brought an illness on board that killed a dozen or so of the older people.” He shrugged. “That’s when the leadership shifted. My dad—”

  “The Pharaoh?”

  “The General. General Hawk.” His words dripped with pride. “He set up a council. Picked your mom for it.”

  “Why? She wasn’t even supposed to be on the ship.”

  Seth’s forehead wrinkled a little. “Space can freak some people out. And others simply didn’t make it to the launch in time.” He shrugged. “There was room for smart individuals with ambition.”

  Kiva liked hearing that. She was proud of her mom for finding her place. “And my dad?”

  “He maybe came up once.”

  “His name?”

  Seth shook his head. “Your mom was talking to another adult and they didn’t see me. The way she talked made it pretty clear she missed him, and more than just as a coworker.”

  “Missed him? So he is dead?”

  “Not necessarily. Apparently, when the Krakatoa council found out that the space station wouldn’t be ready for another decade, they slowed down the speed even more and—”

  “They put everyone in torpor, you told me that.” Her eyes widened. “Wait, is my dad in torpor?”

  “No.”

  Kiva’s shoulders slumped. That would have been so easy.

  “But they were skeptical about the facts. The space station is a joint effort between several countries and a few private entities, including Space Venture. Since Trask hadn’t always been forthright with the US government, a precedent for deception was there. They began to wonder if Home Base was actually complete and they were trying to prevent others from arriving.”

  Kiva frowned. “Why?”

  Seth shrugged. “Wanted to keep it for themselves and their families? Who knows? Anyway, the Krakatoa council decided to send a shuttle to get more information.”

  Kiva glanced around. “Like this one?”

  “Each of the airships has two.” Seth leaned forward, elbows on his knees. “Kiva, your dad, or the man who might be your dad, went. Alone.”

  “He’s on another ship?” She stood up. “On the space station?”

  Seth glanced away, not meeting her eyes. “Krakatoa never heard from him again.”

  Kiva dropped back into the chair. “So, him being dead wasn’t a lie after all.” She stared down at the floor.

  “You don’t know that for sure.” His tone was only somewhat patronizing, as if a small part of him believed in a possibility her father could be alive.

  She asked, “What are the chances he’s still out there somewhere? Wouldn’t they have heard from him after all this time?”

  “Not necessarily. Communications don’t always work. The Krakatoa hasn’t been in touch with the Pinatubo for nearly a decade, the other ships for at least a few years. Maybe someone heard from him.”

  Kiva wondered something. “How old was I when that happened?”

  “I guess”—his forehead wrinkled—“we were probably around three or four.”

  “I must have known him.” Kiva put a hand on her chest. “Until then, I knew my father.”

  “Do you remember him?”

  “I don’t.” Tears welled up. “I don’t remember him at all.” She had lost her father again, before she even knew she had him.

  Seth’s tone was soft, almost kind. “Kiva, he could be out there. We don’t know.”

  Tears spilled down one cheek. She smeared them away and stood up. “No, he’s gone. That’s fine.” She grabbed the device and headed for the door.

  “Wait,” he called. “Do you still want to find out his name?”

  She locked eyes with Seth, not caring that he could see how upset she was. “Does it even matter?”

  “I…” His head tilted to the side a little. “I think that I would want to know.”

  Kiva felt a lump in her throat and more tears coming. “What good would it do?”

  Seth looked down at his hands. “When my mom died, I was exactly like you. I had thought one thing my whole life, living in the palace, going to school. Having friends.” His voice broke a little. “When she was gone and I found out that none of what I knew was true…” His eyes grew shiny. “I wanted to know who she was. Before the Krakatoa, before Alexandria. And it helped.” He lifted and lowered a shoulder. “A little.”

  “But in the end, she’s still gone.” The words were sharper than Kiva intended. They also could not be taken back.

  Seth glared at her. “Right.” He shoved off with a foot and whirled his chair around, his back to her.

  Kiva stood there a moment, then headed back to her cabin.

  The events and emotions exacted their price, and Kiva fell asleep with another vid-doc still running. She woke up a little while later, pushed the device aside, and crawled under the covers, not emerging until she’d slept for several hours.

  At some point during her slumber, the lights dimmed, but brightened again as soon as she stirred and began moving about. After a yawn and a stretch, she felt much more clearheaded than the last time she’d awoken.

  Freshly brushed teeth and cold water splashed on her face gave her new resolve. She told her reflection, “Even if it doesn’t matter, I want to know about my father.”

  On the bridge, Seth wasn’t in sight.

  Was he sleeping too?

  What time was it, actually?

  Did that even make a difference?

  After being in torpor for years, her body might not even care if it was night or day. Was there even a night and day in space? Perhaps being awake and alert was all she could ask for. r />
  “Good enough, anyway.” She sat down in her chair and tapped the tabletop screen.

  A plethora of options popped up. She managed to find the voice command switch. She said, “Krakatoa passengers” and waited.

  Hermione, that strange, calm, voice again. “Searching for Krakatoa manifest.” A few seconds later, a long list of names filled the screen. “Manifest found. Manual or assist mode?”

  Kiva wasn’t sure what that meant. “Assist?”

  “Which passenger do you seek?”

  Would this even work? “Jack.”

  “Searching for Jack.” A few seconds passed. “No Jack found.”

  Kiva set her elbows on the console. Maybe Jack was a nickname. “All names that start with J.”

  In rapid-fire fashion, Hermione’s voice announced several names, both of the first and last variety, all starting with J. None even sounded close to Jack.

  “Stop!”

  Hermione was silent.

  Kiva leaned forward, chin in one hand. “What about Sabra?”

  Hermione said, “There is one.”

  A visual of her mother filled the screen.

  Kiva sighed. “I wish you were here to answer my questions.”

  Hermione responded, “I can answer any question you like.”

  Kiva muttered, “I didn’t mean you.” She deactivated the voice command before running a finger over her mother’s face, which was instantly replaced by a series of other photos.

  “Oh.” Kiva scanned the thumbnails and touched the first.

  A smiling, long-haired Sabra, in faded blue pants and a red top. Underneath the image, the words S. Stone.

  “Sabra Stone?”

  She swiped the image and another appeared. Her mother and several others. She recognized a younger Fai, as well as both of Seth’s parents. All of their names appeared below.

  F. Maxwell. N. Hawk. G. Hawk.

  It was so strange to see the last names she never knew.

  Was she Kiva Stone? Or was she something else? Her father’s name, whatever it was?

  The next photo was the same group, as was the next. She sped up and kept scrolling through photos. They were definitely from the early days on the Krakatoa, because her mother had long hair. Then they stopped.