Kevin stood to one side with Sam and Josh, both also from his grade, watching the daily boarding mêlée around the school bus. When God had finished creating people, He found Himself with lots of legs and pimples left over, Kevin decided. So He threw them together in clumps and called the results teenagers.
Vanessa thought that Kevin ought to attend private school. It had the right social image. Eric said that learning how to mix and get along with anybody was more important.
"Would you get a load of that assignment," Sam grumbled. "Five pages! What do I care about the dumb English and their dumb king? They should have chopped all their heads off, like the French did."
"When do we get to see this boat of yours, Kev?" Josh asked. "Are there any islands along the inlet? Maybe we could fix up a swimming party at one of them."
"Let me think about it," Kevin said. "I've got a lot going on right now."
Taki appeared, picking his way through the throng, a blue school-bag slung over one shoulder. "Ah, Kev. I was beginning to wonder if you were in today. I was looking for you at lunch time but couldn't find you."
"Oh, there was something I needed to get finished." Actually, Kevin had spent the break in the library. He had wanted to be on his own and think.
"Did you bring the mecs?"
"I've got them here." The two that Kevin had put in Vanessa's car were not the flying versions that he and Taki were trying to develop.
"And the relay too?"
"Er, no. There's something else"
"Gee, darn it, Kev. You said last night that you would. I wanted to try adding something tonight."
"Something else has come up that I needed it for. I'll tell you about it later."
He had to talk to somebody, he had decidedabout the whole situation. Somebody who could share his viewpoint as an equal without going into lecture mode. While he knew that Michelle and Doug were on his side, adults had this propensity for letting themselves be hemmed in by rules. Their reflex seemed always to see only the restrictions by saying, "You can't do anything because . . ." Negative. He wanted to talk to somebody who could listen and say, "Hey, we could do something if . . ." Positive. That was what being American was supposed to be all about, wasn't it?
"See you, guys," Kevin said to Sam and Josh. He and Taki boarded the bus behind two girls talking about the clothes that you could buy in thrift stores. One of them had a happy face on the seat of her jeans, that someone had stuck there. Kevin followed Taki to the back, where he found a seat wedged next to a younger boy with freckles, nursing a cage containing a bat that he had brought in to show the class. Kevin wondered if it might be possible to equip a mec with sonar and process the echo signals so that they could be perceived as vision. Now that would be really neat, he told himself. He said to the kid that it was a weird looking bat. The kid blew a bubble of gum at him and didn't answer.
The bus pulled away and began threading its way through the suburbs: white oblongs, regularly spaced; each surrounded by its patch of green with flowers; no people. Eric always said they looked like graveyards.
Hiroyuki's house had what had once been a basement family room, which Taki had taken over bit by bit like an encroaching plague and transformed into his private workshop. It included a mec control setup, with a coupler in the form of a barber's chair that one of the innumerable relatives had acquired as part of a job lot at an auction and had no use for. Taki sat hunched in it, legs crossed and arms wrapped around his knees, the mec-control headset and collar set aside on the cubicle adjacent. One of the winged mecs lay on the bench beside him. Above the bench was a shelf with parts, drawer units containing components, and an assortment of mecs, including several of the larger, earlier models. Kevin sprawled on the bar stool in front of a console. Both of them had managed to keep the winged mec aloft semicontrollablymore or lessfor periods of up to several seconds, which was an encouraging step forward, but that had been earlier. For the best part of an hour now it had been inactive and eventually forgotten as Kevin divulged the full meaning of the events that Taki had witnessed the previous Friday and recounted the further developments that had taken place since.
Taki's initial astonishment changed to disbelief, and then was replaced by a temporary numbness that echoed Kevin's own before the full shock of what he was hearing sank in. His features still betrayed a hint of part of him trying to reject it when Kevin concluded, ". . . I figured there might be more chances like on the boat last Fridayto find out more about what's going on. Or at least, if they happened, we ought to be ready for them. So I fixed a box with Toad and Tigger inside in the trunk of her car this morningit's right up at the back; you won't see it unless you go looking. And that's why I don't have the relay. I put that in with them too."
Taki's features, which had communicated nothing for the past several minutes, expressed skepticism. "Isn't that a long shot, Kev? Who's going to sit there in the car and shout about all their plans, just to oblige you?"
"No, I know. We'll still have to send them with her, or maybe someone else, when she goes placeslike on the boat. But at least they'll be there."
Taki nodded distantly.
Kevin shrugged. "And who knows? There's always the chance that we might pick something useful up in the car."
Taki didn't seem hopeful. "It's still passive though. It still means sitting and having to wait for some kind of lucky break that may not even happen. The odds aren't something that I'd want to bet money on."
Kevin sighed and showed both his hands imploringly. "Hell, Taki, what else do you want in the course of one whole day? It might not be much, but it's more than anyone else has been able to come up with. Give me a break, for heaven's sakes. It'll get better. We'll work on it." The tension that had been building in him vented itself in his voice. The strain he felt showed on his face. It didn't matter that what he had done was grab wildly at a straw, with chances of achieving anything useful probably as near zero as made no difference. He had done something. Taki understood, nodded, and didn't press the point.
"I just don't believe it can be that much of a problem," Taki said. "I mean, what about the police? Isn't that what they're there for? What's the use if all they can do is show up to draw chalk marks around dead bodies? Aren't they supposed to stop people being turned into dead bodies in the first place?"
"You'd think so. I said more or less the same thing to Michelle and Doug, but she says it isn't so simple." Kevin massaged his brow with a hand. "When did grown-ups ever come up with anything simple? Half of them would lose their jobs."
"But it's right there on the tape," Taki insisted. "They're gonna change your dad's will to cut you out, and he won't be around to argue about it. What else could it mean?"
"That's what I said too. But when you really listen to it, it doesn't actually say a hell of a lot. Most of what you think you hear is in your head. It doesn't mention any names except 'Phil,' which could mean anything. And even assuming it is Garstenwhich it is, obviously, although how do you prove it?we don't have anything he's actually done that we could show as evidenceno document or something. It's all guesses."
Taki shook his head. "And Michelle won't even go talk to the police? I still can't believe it."
"Well, that could be on account of her job somehow, too, I guess."
"What about Doug, then? Won't he even try? He always struck me as the kind of guy who doesn't mess aroundwho'd go right in and tell it like it is if he thought there was a chance it might do any good."
"Hm." Kevin rotated the stool he was sitting on through a half circle toward the far wall, then back to face Taki again. "I think he might want to do more than that," he said in a serious voice.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, from some of the things he said this morning when he ran me into school, he doesn't seem to think that involving the police solves much, anywayit would just put everyone on their guard, and they'd just lie low for a while. The risk would still always be there. It wouldn't have gone away."
"What does he want, then?"
Kevin shrugged. "An answer that'll be more permanent, I guess."
Taki stared, clearly trying hard not to show the alarm that he just as clearly felt at the way this was starting to sound. "Like what?"
"He doesn't know."
A silence fell while they mulled over what had been said, both looking for a constructive continuation and not finding one. Taki unfolded his legs, reached out to pick the mec up off the bench, and turned it over between his fingers, regarding it thoughtfully. "What do you think we should call it?" he asked, looking up. "Now we're getting it close to working, it ought to get a name to celebrate."
"I dunno. Any ideas?"
"How about, maybe, Icarus or Orville?"
"I vote for Icarus. It's got wings."
"Okay, Icarus it is. Hi, Icarus. Now we have to get the colors right. What colors did Icarus have?"
"I'm not sure. White sheet-things and ballet tunics? You know, Greek kinda stuff."
The phone rang on the console behind Kevin. "Oh, flip it to speaker mode," Taki said. "I can't be bothered to get up." Kevin turned and pressed a button. "Hello?" Taki said.
The voice of Taki's older sister, Nakisha, came through, giggling. "It's your girlfriends in Tacoma."
"Hey, wait a minute. No. We're"
Click. "Hello? Is this Taki?"
"Oh . . . hi, Janna."
"Hi. Avril's here with me. She's helping me paint my room. We just thought we'd give you a call to say what a terrific time we had with you guys over at Kevin's on Sunday. Those little mecs are absolutely incredible! We haven't been able to stop talking about them. The things you could do with them are just endless. Your uncle's got the right idea. They'd be an absolute sensation. There's no question about it."
"Well, I'm glad you enjoyed yourselves. . . . It was fun."
"You sound as if you're on speaker."
"That's right."
"Your sister said Kevin was there too. Hi, Kev. Are you there? Can you hear me?"
Kevin sent Taki a resigned look. "Hello, Janna. I'm here. Yes, just fine."
"Wanna say hello to Avril?" Before Kevin could say anything, the voice changed.
"Kevin? Hi, this is Avril."
"Hi again. Got your balance back yet?"
"Wow! I was beginning to think I'd never walk straight again . . . but it might have been more the boat. Do you know, we had such a good time. And you guys get into such really interesting stuff."
"Part of the service. We try to please."
"What do we have to do to borrow a couple of mecs? We could be a real sensation showing something like those around."
Kevin glanced at Taki and rolled his eyes upward. "I wish it were that easy. You'd need to have the gear to control them, for a start."
"Okay, I know, I know. Just kidding. Janna wants us to enroll in an electronics basics class next semester. What do you think?"
"Sure, why not? I think it's a great idea."
"Would we be up to it?"
"There's no other way to find out, is there? Go for it. You'd be surprised what you can do. Think positive."
"Did you do any more yet with those mecs you said you were trying to get to fly?"
"That's what we're working on right now."
"Hey! Can we get to try those too?"
"Well, give us a chance to get it working right first." Kevin directed what was meant to be an exasperated look at Taki, but Taki was staring fixedly at the shelf where the mecs were and seemed to have floated away on thoughts of his own.
"We're with this club here that's having a hike up in the mountains next Saturday," Avril went on. "And we thought you and Taki might want to come along. I asked the guy who's organizing it, and he said it would be okay. Do you think you might be able to make it? Do you like going on hikes? We'd really love to have you along."
"Sure . . . when I can fit them in." Kevin looked over at Taki again for an input. No response.
"Have you got something else fixed for the holiday weekend?"
"Oh, I like the idea. But there's a lot going on right now that I can't really go into. I don't know if it's going to be possible to get away."
"You will let us know, though? You've got the number, right?"
"You bet. . . . And thanks."
"Great. Well, I seem to be hogging the phone here. I'm going to sign off and let Janna say a few more words. You take care. So we'll hear from you soon, Kev?"
"Right. Bye for now."
"See you, Taki. . . ."
Then Janna was back. "Hello, is this still Kevin?"
"Wait a second. I'll kick him. . . . Taki. . . . Taki, your girlfriend is back. Aren't you gonna talk to her?"
"What? . . . Oh, hi again, Janna. This is Taki. Sorry, I got a bit carried away by something."
"Do you think you might be able to make it Saturday?"
"Saturday?"
"The hike."
"What hike?"
"The hike that Avril just"
Kevin interrupted. "It's okay, I'll tell him about it. Don't worry. He's having one of his withdrawals. You know, Orientalsretreating into the inner world. Meditation, contemplation, all that stuff."
"Are you serious?"
"No."
"Gee, then maybe it's not a good time. You sound like you could be pretty busy."
"Well, now you come to mention it, actually there is that, you could say so, yes. . . ."
"Okay, we'll leave you to it. But you will let us know before the weekend, yes?"
"You've got it."
"So long then, Kev. We'll see you around, anyhow. And goodbye, Taki."
"See you, Janna," Taki managed from the background. The voice gave way to a steady, echoing tone, which ceased as Kevin reset the phone.
"Is it hot or cold there?" Kevin asked, turning back. "What color is the sky? Which planet are you on, Taki?"
Taki stared back at him for several seconds, his mouth making silent chewing motions. Then he said, "So, this guy Garsten hasn't been very helpful and left documents lying around for anyone to use as evidence. I think that's really inconsiderate of him. But you know, Kev, I bet there is one place they'll beif they exist. And it wouldn't mean having to sit around waiting for someone else to give you what you want. You go there yourself and get it."
"Where's that?"
"Inside the computer in his office. He's bound to have one."
For a moment, Kevin started to sit up and look interested. Then he slumped down again, as if having expected better. "Oh, great. So what do we do, dress up as meter readers so we can sneak a look, like in some stupid movie? . . . And I'm sure he leaves it on a dial-in line overnight, with the files organized to be accessible just so as people like us can hack into it. Come on, Taki, get real. Even if you're right, what good does it do us?"
Taki got up from the barber's chair and walked over to lift one of the mecs down from the shelf above the bench. It was one of the older "telebot" designs, like Ironsideheavy-powered, sturdy, about the size of a quart can. Its name was Sir Real. Taki set it down on the console, facing the screen and keyboard like an organist confronting the controls of a gigantic Wurlitzer.
"What are you doing?" Kevin asked, straightening up again on the stool and looking baffled.
Taki moved the mec closer to the keys, estimating the range of its arm with his eye. "Can you move into the coupler and tune in?" he said to Kevin, still distantly. "I want to try something. I've just thought of another way of getting at what's inside somebody's computer."