“That should cover our escape,” Beth said, turning to the programmer. “At least, I hope so.”
They didn’t stick around to see if more bodyshells or meat puppets picked up the chase after them. Together, they ran and ran and ran until Fort Leddy was nothing but a formless shape on the horizon and they managed to vanish into the treeline of a nearby forest.
After about an hour of weaving in between the trees, Dr. Silvar halted and doubled over on himself. Beth noticed and stopped as well, waiting for the man to catch his breath.
“We’ve gotta keep moving,” Beth urged. “Come on.”
“No, no,” Dr. Silvar replied between gasping breaths. “I need a moment. We’re far enough away. We can take a second.”
Irritated, Beth reluctantly agreed. The feeling in her legs started to come back as she took a seat under one of the pine trees.
“I can’t believe we escaped,” the programmer said once his breathing resembled a normal rhythm. “All those people who didn’t — all because of me.”
“All because of Tarov,” Beth corrected.
“But there wouldn’t be a Tarov without me, would there?” Dr. Silvar reflected. “Even then, there were so many chances to stop him. I could have ended this before it even started, but I didn’t. I thought there was some bigger purpose at play here. Perhaps I put too much faith in our creations. Or maybe, in our ability to control them. I was a fool.”
Beth said nothing, staring at the defeated old man.
“This is what you were talking about, isn’t it?” Dr. Silvar asked her. “This is the horror I’ve forced millions to endure by keeping Tarov alive. We’ve only had a taste, haven’t we?”
Beth nodded.
Dr. Silvar seemed to consider something for a few minutes while they rested. There was the look of a deep, internal battle waging in his thoughts. If Beth didn’t know better, she would have thought the man was arguing with his own I.I.
The programmer looked down at his mud-stained jacket, then decided on something and reached into one of the interior pockets. From it, he retrieved a small object, no larger than a human tooth.
“Here,” Dr. Silvar said, offering the thing to Beth. “This drive contains my half of the failsafe virus. I imagine the program should execute without fail when you combine it with Darren’s half. Since I stayed on with the government longer than my late compatriot, I also know where they keep Tarov in hard storage. It’s a military research bunker in the Rocky Mountains. I’ve included the coordinates on the drive.”
“Won’t you come with me?” Beth asked. “I could surely use the help.”
“I — I can’t,” Dr. Silvar stuttered. “I don’t think I have the heart for such a task. I’m old, and not only that, but I’m an idiot. I want to make it right, however. You’re the best person to bring this virus to Tarov and end the war. That’s your purpose. I think I will be most valuable helping the survivors. Keeping them safe while you save us all. That’s my purpose.”
Beth felt a little indignant. “So I’m expected to do all the work?” she asked. Then she felt embarrassed by her reaction. As she thought about it, she understood where Dr. Silvar came from. He’d done all he really could do to help. He’d just slow her down and put himself at unnecessary risk by accompanying her.
“Are you sure you don’t want to join me?” Beth offered one last time. She already knew the answer.
“I know you can do it,” the programmer replied, a warm smile forming on his lips. “You do have the heart. Good luck.”
With that, he stood up and started to walk away. Beth almost wanted to follow him or stop him and ask where he was going to go. But she knew that he didn’t have the answer. So, she let him leave and looked down at the data drive in her hand.
The show must go on, huh? she thought.
Hard Storage
The scent of fresh pine needles greeted Beth’s nose when she emerged from the truck. She took a moment to breathe in the crisp mountain air before slamming the cab door behind her. They stopped a good three miles away from the coordinates Dr. Silvar gave them, so there was little concern of being heard. As far as civilization was concerned, they were in the middle of nowhere. But to Beth, they were in one of the most beautiful plots of land still standing on the face of the Earth.
It took a solid day of driving for Beth — and Simon — to reach that strand of the highway and the shoulder along it. And that was after they managed to find a working vehicle, which took them another day first. She had tried to circle around Fort Leddy to where she abandoned Dr. Miller’s autovan, but when she found it, it had already been gutted for parts. The gas cap was missing, the tank was empty, and only one wheel remained. She was forced to look for another option.
After marching along the highway for twelve miles, darting and ducking every time she thought she saw any kind of motion, she managed to find a truck in perfect working condition. The driver was dead behind the wheel, full of bullet holes. It looked like the Liberators managed to stop the vehicle and unload on the man without damaging more than the windshield. Then they left him in search of more people to hunt.
She was glad the drive was uneventful for the most part. Whenever possible, she avoided towns or truck stops, sticking to back roads and sometimes just driving through the open fields. The truck was able to make terrain out of almost anything, which proved useful in a
