Unity and Destiny Pt. 09

They met Lukas in Reno again, this time in some sort of warehouse set at the ragged edge of the city. Lukas didn't have many people with him, and Esther explained it was just as well.

"You are very stealthy," she said. "But your men are not, not in the way they think they are. Not enough to help me very much when I must conceal them from the Mexican."

But of the four men with him, all were well-trained in combat, and Oscar and Frederick had modest Changes to help them. Better yet, Oscar and Felipe could pass for Mexican, something they might sorely need. Javier spoke only Spanish with Esther for the day, and she gritted her teeth, trying to make the words come out without her sounding like an idiot tourist, or someone who'd dropped out of the nineteenth century. Javier said her accent was impeccable, so at least there was that. Grace and Selena couldn't pass for Mexican any better than she could, but their Spanish was a lot more idiomatic.

Nicola knew Oscar, from the time she'd been with Lukas. Of Lukas's men he was the only one who didn't seem initially disdainful of their group. There were some padded mats that Oscar and the others had been using for training, and it gave Esther a guilty satisfaction to see Mark handle all of them with ease, even Lukas, who as Nicola indicated was a much better fighter than appearances suggested. Even Nicola fared acceptably against Lukas's men. Javier didn't bother to try, though, and Esther appreciated that decision. No one expected Grace and Kat to fight, or Raj, but she was learning it wasn't so easy for most men to be realistic like that.

Then it was time for Nicola to test her subsonic disorientation, and finally for Esther to practice freezing them. She was so much better at it now, after all the practice the others had made her go through. She could hold the entire group of them frozen for nearly a minute, and she could have managed much longer if not for Mark and Selena. Those two required more focused effort.

After that demonstration, there were no more smirks from the men.

It was when talk turned to the actual plan that they hit their first major argument.

"There are no commercial flights allowed except to a few designated cities," Lukas said. "Mexico City is not one of them. This is why I asked Jackson for help."

"You told her where the Mexican is?" Esther asked, her voice rising.

He frowned. "I told her what I know, which as I said is very vague. Somewhere south or east of Mexico City, but not all the way to the Yucatan. It's still a vast area. Half of California in size, I suppose. It will aid planning tremendously if you would give a more precise location."

"I won't be precise until we're in Mexico. And we're not working with Jackson."

Lukas stared at her in his blank fashion. But she wasn't backing down on this.

"Jackson trusts me," he said finally. "After Black Christmas, I began feeding her intelligence again. And she trusts you. Of course she is dangerous, as the incident with Mark showed, but she has resources and power that I no longer have access to. It will be much harder to operate in Mexico without tacit approval of at least some part of the American government."

"Virtually impossible," Oscar added. "I'm not sure it's even worth trying, if we'll be dodging American military the whole way there, along with the Mexican's supporters and all the other factions."

"I hesitate to bring up our previous raid," Selena said. "But remember, we found a way to collaborate without giving up control of the mission. Esther, keep those separate in your head: how we worked during the mission, versus how she used what we gave her. There may be a compromise here."

"We get her to authorize us somehow," Javier said, nodding. "We fly commercially, or just cross the border on foot. Then we rent generic Mexican vehicles. We move stealthily and tell her only the general area we'll be operating in."

Lukas looked off in the distance. "We could ask her for identification documents beforehand, and a way to contact her in the event the identification proves insufficient. Yes, there are some advantages to that approach. It would limit the risk of interference from Jackson, and especially other elements of the government who may be under the Mexican's influence."

"It will be much slower," Oscar argued. "And we were thinking of asking for other military aid. I understand you won't allow a bombing run, or even heavy weaponry, but what about updated tactical equipment? What we have is a mishmash."

"I'll see what I can do," Lukas said. "But I agree, this crisis is moving too fast for delay. Has Geoff given you all updated documents?"

Esther started. How did Lukas know about that? She supposed it was easy to guess, if he knew where Geoff had landed. "Yes," she replied. "And we have unused anonymous cellular phones, though I don't know how much good they'll where we're going."

"The radios will be more useful," said Oscar. "And Raj already knows how they work better than any of us. You all need to practice proper signals."

Esther nodded, accepting these men's expertise. The rest of them were amateurs, after all, reinventing the wheel. And she'd already taught them her own simple signals, the same ones she'd taught Grace and Kat. The men had been stunned when she said it worked easily over many miles. She knew Javier hated that she was giving away so much, but it all followed from the stakes of this mission.

For that matter, Oscar was also right to worry about their speed. She hoped it wasn't a mistake to refuse more direct help from Jackson. Even now she could distantly sense the efforts of the Mexican, more furious than ever.

When their meeting broke up, Lukas asked to speak to Esther in private. Nervously, she followed him to his office, closing the door behind her, and taking a moment to compose herself before turning back. No doubt Lukas noticed every detail, nonetheless. However his perception worked, it seemed more subtle than Selena's abilities, and she wasn't sure what it would take to hide herself fully from him.

Lukas sat at his desk, watching the information flash by on his computer screen, seeming to pay little attention to her. But she'd spent enough time with him to know he was considering what to say.

"How did you become aware of the Mexican?"

Esther blinked in surprise. It wasn't what she'd expected. Surely he knew about Tanaka—and if he didn't, she didn't like the idea of telling him. If nothing else, Tomiko deserved privacy from Lukas's scrutiny. And he must know about Castillo, via whatever channels he still had with Myra Jackson and her group.

"I—well, it was no one thing," Esther stammered. "I sensed the strangeness in Mexico, where he hides himself. But that was just one piece of evidence. I assume it was something like with you."

"And you did not direct my attention towards him."

Esther gaped. What exactly was he suggesting? That she'd manipulated him? Or was he annoyed that she hadn't shared her information earlier? That didn't make sense.

Lukas nodded, and then looked at her more directly, something like resignation briefly flashing on his face. "We have not been entirely open with each other about our strengths, and perhaps that has led you to believe I understand more than I do about the upcoming confrontation. Your sensitivity astonishes me, and I cannot believe there are more than a handful in the world who share it. As you have gathered, my abilities involve synthesis of vast quantities of knowledge, rather than extracting detail with anything like your sensitivity. But much of this synthesis happens beneath the level of conscious thought, and this leaves me particularly wary of a danger you may be able to guess."

Esther thought about that. "If the processing is happening outside your conscious control, you wonder if someone very subtle could be influencing you. The way Franklin did."

Lukas frowned in distaste. "Franklin was powerful, but not subtle. For years I had assumed he was among the most dangerous of our kind, and he certainly was dangerous. But I suspect the woman you studied under was more dangerous in her own way. And you yourself are far more subtle than Franklin ever was. I do not have your gifts to perceive other Changed easily. Despite all my precautions, I know full well how vulnerable I could be to a sufficiently cautious adversary."

Esther shook her head unhappily. "I am not manipulating you," she said. "I did not want to confront the Mexican, not after—well, it was as it seemed. You convinced me that we needed to do this."

Lukas watched her a moment longer, and then his eyes focused somewhere past her. "Yes, it seems I did," he agreed. "And once again I have been tracing my own pattern of discovery. You see, I did not truly understand your capabilities for a long while, and I am sure I only know a portion of them now. This is because you hide yourself well from scrutiny, but in this regard you are not unique. I have learned to identify a certain pattern of absences: webs of effect without obvious cause. In a few instances I have inferred the existence of a powerful Changed person who is otherwise invisible from my scrutiny, their influence like a black hole, detectable solely from its effects on matter around it."

"And that is how you found the Mexican," said Esther, nodding.

"No. His influence was too wide-ranging, both too omnipresent and too subtle, at least until his recent behavior. And that is what discomfits me. For years, I have had a nagging sense that I was missing something in Mexico. Yet if the Mexican is as skilled in deception as you believe, I should not have been able to localize him in that fashion."

Esther swallowed. "You think someone else was pointing you in his direction."

"Yes. And is it such a surprise? There are other powers in this world. Any who have lived long enough would have learned caution in their overt actions. The Mexican has become a threat to all, no matter their agendas. I could easily have come to their attention over the years when I was narrow-mindedly focused on defeating Franklin. And perhaps you did, as well, after that confrontation. We would be obvious tools to defeat the Mexican: powerful, and reckless enough to act directly. I detest the thought of being manipulated in such a fashion."

It was no wonder that he would, after his experience with Franklin. Esther felt a sudden sympathy for Lukas. And he deserved a certain reassurance.

"I first learned of the Mexican by that name from a man named Tanaka," she said. "He was the one who sent the disabling vision of nuclear holocaust. He was attacked by the Mexican immediately afterwards, and he had lost much of his memory, but he was able to remember enough. But he was killed by an assassin named Castillo. Those circumstances are what led me to understand the Mexican's power."

Lukas nodded slowly. "Ah. That is a link I did not understand. Tanaka must have been very powerful, indeed, to have done what he did. I did not know his name, but he was the one I most suspected of pointing me at the Mexican."

"I doubt it was him. He was extremely cautious, and I don't believe he ever did more than listen, until Black Christmas."

"He must have learned a great deal," Lukas said blandly.

"As I said, he'd lost most of his memory," Esther said uncomfortably. "In any case, I don't believe I was manipulated into looking at the Mexican. I had resolved not to do anything more about him."

Lukas nodded. "Well, your story allays my worries slightly. In truth my greatest fear was not Tanaka, but that perhaps the Mexican himself was already expecting me, and that this was a trap of some sort."

Esther's mouth fell open. A trap? She hadn't even considered that possibility. Selena was right. She was far too naive in so many ways. But the more she thought about it, the less it made sense.

"I don't think it's a trap," she said. "Maybe someone else did point you towards the Mexican. Maybe that means they're helping, from afar."

She felt like an idiot even as she said it. But she couldn't help thinking of the anonymous person who'd cautioned her about her direct intervention in the bombings. There were others who understood the dangers they were facing, and at least sympathized.

"I suppose it makes little difference," Lukas said eventually. "The Mexican needs to be stopped. Perhaps we will have help, or perhaps not. But in any event, we need to pool what strength we have. It may be that our abilities complement each other's more than we have realized."

It was a clear opening, for Esther to tell him about what else she could do. Her manipulation of matter, her subtle changes at a distance. But she couldn't bring himself to trust him with that. Lukas didn't say any more, and eventually she stood up, awkwardly excusing herself to leave the office. Outside, Frederick gave her a suspicious look. Maybe he was annoyed she'd prevented him from eavesdropping.

Perhaps she didn't trust Lukas entirely, and his men even less. But it was past time to share her burden with her loved ones.

Javier, she sent silently. We are going to Oaxaca. In the mountains north of the city. I will let the others know, but I want us to keep this among our family for now.

* * *

It was almost time. Javier hadn't slept well, but he when he walked by the little warehouse office, he saw Lukas doing exactly what he'd done last night: watching information fly past on his computer screen, and occasionally sending a message. Esther said he'd made a few phone calls overnight, speaking perfect Spanish. Arranging certain things in advance, he'd said.

Finally Lukas came out of the office.

"I need to make a decision," he told Esther. "Will you at least tell me if our destination is more than two hours from Mexico City? We need to pick an available airport, and I'm arranging to have cars ready with our equipment, so we can enter the country with the least suspicion."

Esther nodded, considering.

"Yes, it is more than two hours," she said.

"Very well." Lukas walked back into his office.

Raj was asking Oscar something about his childhood. Apparently he'd lived near Mexico City until he was six. It didn't sound like he remembered it much, but he was being polite, at least. Felipe and Berthold were more subdued, talking to each other or lost in their own thoughts. On the other hand, Frederick had briefly tried to flirt with Nicola. She'd been impeccably polite by her standards, simply glaring and then ignoring him. Frederick did seem to have taken the hint, at least.

When it was finally time, they gathered up their small personal bags. Javier wondered if Lukas was going to give a speech of some sort.

"It is important that we decide now who is in command, during the mission itself," said Lukas. "We can't have more than one."

"I will," said Esther. "I have to be able to make my own decisions and react to what I sense immediately. I have done this before, but I am not experienced, and I may make mistakes or overlook the obvious. I expect to be corrected, but *only* when it is necessary."

The other men looked uncomfortable, but Lukas nodded. "I trust that is acceptable to everyone," he said. "We would do well to remember this mission is impossible without Esther's skills, both in hiding us and in neutralizing the Mexican so we may capture him. And capturing him alive is Esther's condition for proceeding at all."

"We all agreed to these terms," Oscar said. "We all know how to shut up and do our jobs, don't we?"

The others nodded, looking serious.

"Our tickets are waiting for us," Lukas said. "It is time."

* * *

"Guatemala?" Kat blurted. "Look, we're not even on the same planes."

"He did it for a reason," Javier said, willing Kat to keep her voice lower. "He asked us to trust the arrangements he'd made. If it surprised us, it will surprise others, right?"

Javier thought it made sense. He was embarrassingly vague on his southern Mexican geography, though he'd tried to stuff a lot of maps into his head overnight. Oaxaca was pretty safe from American bombings and ground troops, but there were a lot of Zapatistas around there. Not to mention they'd be going right through Chiapas, if they were coming from Guatemala. But it was a lot closer than the airports in northern Mexico, or coming over the US border.

To his relief, he'd be on the plane with Esther. To lower their profile, Lukas had split them across three itineraries, all arriving within an hour of each other in Guatemala. It was neatly done, but he shouldn't have expected any less.

They said their brief goodbyes, and then the groups separated. They split again on the way, and at the gate he sat with Esther, letting Oscar, Raj, and Selena form their own group.

Esther told him silently that she sensed no obvious surveillance. Of course, they knew it wasn't so easy as that. Someone could watch video footage from the airport and identify them that way. But Lukas had explained that evading surveillance was all about taking enough independent precautions. Make every step take enough extra work, and eventually you would exhaust the resources of whoever was looking for you.

Lukas would be an unstoppable criminal, Javier realized. It was lucky they were on the same side, or close enough. As Raj said, there were always more sides than you think.

They had a short first leg, and then a long wait in Houston. All to get the landing times right. Javier supposed Lukas had already worked out all the contingencies if something got delayed.

He fell asleep several times during the final flight, but they were stuck without a view in the middle of a big plane anyway. Lots of people who looked like tourists, or college kids going on spring break or something. What a different world he'd fallen into, that he was doing this rather than getting drunk on a beach somewhere.

Maybe some were even going to Mexico, like them. The Yucatan was pretty safe as far as the war went, and probably cheap now, especially with the airports up there closed. He realized that he and Esther blended in more than he'd expected. Another point in favor of Lukas's plan.

When he finally spilled out of the plane in Guatemala City, bleary-eyed, he saw Mark and Nicola waiting for them. They smiled, but as planned, they wandered off. They wouldn't join up as a group until they were near the border.

"Everyone's safe," Esther said softly. "The last plane's only twenty minutes off."

"I'll never get used to the way you do that," Javier said, smiling.

She giggled. "Javier, I read it off the board behind you. Have to be efficient, like Mark always says."

He kissed her, because they were in an airport, in Guatemala, and it was after midnight local time, and he couldn't even remember if the time zone made that worse or better. But it was so ridiculous. Saving the whole world should be a lot more glamorous than this. If they failed, no one would understand what the fuck they were doing anyway. If they succeeded, hardly anyone would even know.

So he kissed her again. And again, until even the vacationing students looked at them with amusement. Let them have their spring break. He had everything he needed.

* * *

Esther breathed a sigh of relief when the last plane landed. But then Lukas gave her the warning signal, and she watched in otherspace while he entered the men's room, feeling odd about the whole thing.

Of course Lukas wasn't actually using the toilet. When he sat in the stall, he began tapping out on his palm the binary encrypted code that they'd agreed on with Raj. It was too much calculation for the others, but a lot safer than Morse code, and clearly Lukas took no unnecessary chances.

Have to adjust plans. Americans are being aggressive at road border crossings and our drivers won't cross for any money. Fastest alternative is to cross on foot. I have a few places in mind. Agents inside will pick us up, if you can make sure we avoid Americans.