Another interview with Chairman Marcus Gray eased the grip of fear. Ioanna returned to her room and sat on the edge of the bed. The room seemed frozen in time while the guest was away. Only when the girl opened the door did the central control system activate, restoring the flow of time. This happened every time.
Ioanna didn't want to think about the unfair situation that fate had dealt her. But the thoughts began to rise again, and the destructive energy overwhelmed her. Her mind burned with this pain. She needed salvation — a help she couldn't find anywhere. She couldn't speak with Armando since it was still four days until they received the exact results. Only John remained — her brother, who always supported her. No matter what, he always reached out, even if that hand was bleeding.
Activating the Pulse, the girl touched her skin with her finger, and the call initiated. For a few seconds, silence reigned, but then a woman's voice informed her that the interlocutor's Pulse was turned off or in an area without a network. It was impossible. The Pulse operated on body heat, and the charge couldn't have drained. The network functioned throughout the Consolidated Nation. There was a chance he could have removed it, but that was also unlikely — John never took it off. As Ioanna knew, at the final stage of the Fracture Project, all Wanderers were required to wear their suits almost around the clock. They had to get used to it and adapt it to their daily routines. Therefore, John had to be in touch, as the suit was equipped with a kind of mass-model Pulse. Its extensive functionality distinguished it from standard model Pulses. But even on the third attempt, the woman's voice again stated that the Pulse was disconnected from the network.
Ioanna felt anxiety rising within her. Why wasn't John answering? Her heart raced, a premonition of something amiss wouldn't leave her. A rush of memory hit her, and she saw him immobilized in the hospital. How a machine pumped oxygen into his lungs. How she feared losing him again. A flash. And the power outage, messages about failures in the Cradle. The instability of the Rift Gates. She thought he had died. All night she mourned him until they informed her from the hospital that a child had been found. A doctor's call, and her brother returned from the dead. Some might say this was abnormal. But Ioanna was one of the few to whom the collapse returned someone close.
Without hesitation, Ioanna decided to call Professor Martha Crockford to find out the reason for her brother's disconnection. The girl touched the panel on the wall, and her Pulse synchronized with the hotel's network. A holographic screen appeared on the wall with call symbols. The professor didn't answer for a few seconds, but then the connection was established.
"Hello, Mrs. Averino," Martha stood beside her desk, arms crossed over her chest.
"I apologize for the disturbance," Ioanna began. "Do you know why John isn't responding? I've called several times, and each time he was offline."
The girl noticed that this question made the professor nervous. Martha looked exhausted, and the question seemed to have finally worn her down, as if she physically felt the weight of those words. Why was Ioanna calling her, and why now?
"Mr. Brooks is currently busy," the woman replied. "After the training drill, we decided to conduct additional tests and training."
"Training drill?"
"Yes, this morning we held an unscheduled training drill to prepare for any unexpected events."
"I see." This was too strange, especially considering the professor's previous behavior. Had Martha already checked everything? Changes in the schedule for the training drill? "Can I speak with John? It's very important."
"I understand that your call is important, Mrs. Averino," Martha Crockford replied coldly. "Unfortunately, Mr. Brooks cannot talk right now. The training and testing schedule is very tight; he is occupied."
"Why isn't the Pulse working?" Ioanna felt that the professor was withholding something.
"This could be related to a synchronization error with the Compound system. We will check it," Martha waited for the conversation to end. "During the drill, we simulated a communication blackout. When rebooting, his Pulse might have malfunctioned."
"You seem too nervous for a training drill, Professor," Ioanna observed. The woman turned to the screen. Ioanna knew the project's regulations, and there was nothing in them related to training after the project transitioned to its final stage. They had even been given time off to say goodbye to their families.
The professor remained silent. Her plan of silence was crumbling. She realized that Ioanna Averino would soon start asking Marcus Gray questions, and then the project would surely be shut down. She couldn't let that happen.
"Sorry, Mrs. Averino. Since the Fracture Project has moved to its final stage, it is necessary to check the systems of the Fracture Machine again for greater assurance. We will run various scenarios. Given that Mr. Brooks's plans changed at the last moment, he agreed to additional testing. I don't have time for discussions. Goodbye."
The video call ended.
"What the...!" Ioanna exclaimed.
Martha Crockford had always behaved rudely toward others and her interlocutors. Every time Ioanna interviewed her, she received only cold answers, with no explanations or any accountability. Ioanna had conducted numerous interviews with Professor Crockford, and her behavior now was not much different. But now she was more nervous than usual. She was afraid of something. Martha was hiding something.
Moreover, why had they decided to conduct a training check, and what did it entail? A training evacuation or an emergency shutdown of the Machine? Testing the systems of the reservoirs and energy supply? Ioanna couldn't find an answer. But she knew who could answer those questions.
Richard Robinson, Professor Crockford's right hand. Although he specialized in the Reservoirs, he had helped with the Machine with her, participated in creation the Wanderer Apparatus and suits. He had contributed to the plans and activities. But during the training drill, he was in the capital. If Martha had decided to conduct a training evacuation, he might not have known about it. He couldn't know. Besides, when had this check been conducted?
Ioanna could go to Professor Robinson and ask him those questions. But even if he knew what kind of check it was, he would hardly speak up. They were the leaders. They decided what to do and how to do it.
Marcus Gray. Could he respond? Maybe, but he was also in the capital. Martha Crockford was obliged to report any changes in plans, but if something went awry, she might conceal information from him. If Marcus Gray was unaware of the unscheduled training alert, then it made sense: Martha was definitely hiding something. And perhaps for that reason, John wasn't responding. Had something happened to him? Ioanna didn't know and couldn't know. Although...
Many years ago, after the collapse, when John was discharged from the hospital, Ioanna became his guardian. He moved in with her in Arkan. It was a challenging period for the girl. She was a student, studying, working, and taking care of her brother. They became the closest people to each other. At that time, new models of Pulses with a parental control feature were being released. In emergencies, it was possible to track the child if they went missing. Because of her experiences, Ioanna was afraid of losing her brother just as she had lost their parents and many friends from the Third District. As far as she knew, neither she nor John had turned off this feature, which could mean that Ioanna still had access to tracking. Most likely, her brother had forgotten about it. He had never been under strict control from his sister. But the question arose: had he removed his Pulse and was using a similar device built into his suit's system?
No. The account was tied to a person, not a device. Even if he had changed his device to one integrated into the suit's systems, synchronization should have still occurred. The parental control feature should still be enabled. Ioanna touched her wrist, and a halo screen opened on her forearm. After scrolling through the settings for several minutes, she finally found the tracking function. Opening the options, she placed her finger on the start symbol, and the search procedure began.
For four minutes, the system attempted to connect with towers ensuring a stable network, but it was all in vain. A message appeared on the screen stating that the contact was either out of network range or the device was turned off. Where could John be? She needed to ask someone who knew exactly what was happening in the Seventh District.
Ioanna left her room and quickly made her way to Marcus Gray, who was probably at a meeting in the Capitol or, if it had already ended, might be sipping his whiskey in the lounge. Unlike the Babylon restaurant, the other areas of the hotel resembled the outside world more. Metal replaced wood.
She decided to ask at the reception where she could find the chairman. When the elevator doors opened on the ground floor, Richard Robinson stood before her, diligently writing something on his tablet. Looking up, he noticed Ioanna Averino and answered her as he raised his gaze. At that moment, all plans changed, and she decided to ask Professor Robinson about the training alert.
"Oh, good afternoon, Professor," she said, stepping forward and exiting the elevator.
"I think it's already evening," the man smiled and glanced at his watch. "It's already five. How is the film work going? Do you need more interviews?" He was polite and amiable.
"Oh," the girl smiled nervously, "I've almost gathered the material, but I suddenly received new information that could be included in the record. Thomas is working on the editing."
"Really?" the man expressed interest. The elevator doors closed, and the lift ascended to the upper floors with another guest. "Well, I'll wait for the next one," he adjusted his shirt sleeves. "So, what did you find out?"
"This morning, Professor Crockford conducted an unscheduled training check. Do you know what this might be related to? There's not a word in the regulations about any training checks after the reservoirs are turned on."
"I don't know if I'll upset you or please you, but I'm not aware of any changes. Perhaps Martha decided to conduct additional checks since..." The man paused. "She created this project and has worked for several years to get to today. The efforts she put into the Fracture project are beyond description. She values the project and the Fracture Machine very much," Richard pondered whether Martha's actions would disrupt his plans.
"But you were also involved in building the machine?"
"Oh, ha-ha," the man laughed loudly. "I just helped. Yes, I put in a lot of effort into the project, but she did the main work. She built the Fracture Machine. I only worked on the Reservoirs and, of course, helped. And, of course, Darwin..."
"Darwin? Toapanta?" the girl asked again. She had once interviewed him. The guy delved deeply into the details of his implant code, which neither Ioanna nor anyone else could understand. "Did he create the implants?"
"Not exactly, but he wrote the main code for the implants and updated it many times. He's only twenty-eight, but he's already created something impossible."
"Oh, great. I think I should interview him again," Ioanna smiled. The elevator arrived again at the ground floor. "And yes, Professor..."
"I'm listening," Richard had already entered the lift.
"Do you know where the network blind spots for Pulses are? If a person isn't in the network, where could they be?"
"Most likely, he just took it off. Don't worry."
"But still? Where could the Pulse not work?"
"Hmmm," Richard pondered. "Either deep underground or outside the Consolidated Nation, which is impossible because of the dome."
"Oh, is it that simple?" the girl was delighted because John might be undergoing training on the lower levels of the Complex. Perhaps he was helping with the inspection of energy nodes and energy systems.
"Or in the Third District," the professor added. "Due to quarantine, we haven't restored the towers, so there's no network there either."
"What?" Ioanna hoped this wasn't the case.
"But don't worry. No one in their right mind would go there. The passage to the Third District is closed; it's a quarantine zone. Most likely, this person just removed his Pulse."
"I know, thank you, Professor."
"No problem," Richard pressed the button for one of the floors. "See you," the elevator doors closed.
"All the best," Ioanna replied, looking at the closed doors.
It's impossible. It's impossible for John to be in the Third District. But where is he? Even if he's in the lower levels of the Compound, his Pulse should connect to the overall network of the Compound. But the tracking program showed that he's not within the network. She was scared to think about how and why John could have gone to the Third District. This theory was indirectly confirmed by Martha Crockford's strange behavior. The last possibility — outside the Consolidated Nation —was also impossible. The energy field covering the entire territory of the Consolidated Nation cannot be crossed. A kilometer-thick layer of energy wouldn't allow anyone to pass the border.
"What happened, John?" Ioanna whispered quietly.
Logic told her that the likelihood of the Pulse being turned off was low. But the Third District seemed insane. There was no reason to think that the quarantine zone was somehow related to his disappearance. "But if John really ended up in the Third District... There had been rumors about events there, about a reality that was broken. The Center for Anomaly Research was closed years ago. The Third District might have changed even more," the girl thought. Fear touched her. Jonathan would likely perish if he found himself there.
She needed to understand what had really happened. The only person who could provide an answer was not in the capital but in the Fracture Compound. A person who was always in plain sight yet remained unnoticed. A person who unknowingly created the foundation of the project. Without his invention, the journey of the Wanderers would be impossible. Darwin Toapanta. The one who always knows what is happening. A man of science and reason.