The Forsaken

Is he still alive? ”
    It picks up on my final word. “All specimens are alive, and suitable for shipping.”
    “Where is he, then!” I yell, feeling like my chest is about to burst. If I know where he is, I can try to get to him.
    “Specimen number 112-782-B is currently being held on level twenty, which is viewable from this gallery window. That specimen has not been shipped for processing yet.” The voice pauses. “However, his pod is scheduled to depart this station in fifty-six minutes, on Airbus Gamma.”
    I barely hear what the voice is saying.
    Liam is still here.
    Alive.
    There is hope.
    Gadya and I clutch each other.
    “We have to save him!” I yell.
    “I know.”
    Then, as we look out the window, I see a light begin to glow in the distance. It’s very faint, way out there in the rows of bodies, hanging in endless darkness. The light is about two hundred feet down, and slightly off to our left.
    “I have illuminated your requested specimen,” the voice tell us, sounding pleased with itself. For once I don’t mind.
    “Liam,” I murmur, staring out the window at the distant light far below us. “They haven’t dissected him yet. But we’ve only got fifty-six minutes.”
    “I can’t believe it.” Gadya looks like she’s going to cry.
    “We have to get to him,” I say, swallowing over the lump in my throat. “Then try to rescue the others, too.”
    Gadya and I start rapidly punching in dates, giving information and physical descriptions as fast as we can. Rika. Markus. David. Even James. Everyone we can think of.
    Scattered dots light up in the vast dark space, as images of their faces flit past on the computer screen. None of them have time restrictions like Liam does. He’s the only one whose pod is scheduled to leave the wheel today.
    But one of the four is completely absent.
    David.
    “How can he not be here?” I ask. Neither the computer nor Gadya knows. It’s like there’s no trace of him. “Has he already been taken to another facility?” I wonder out loud, scared for him.
    We try everything, but the computer refuses to recognize anything we say. There is no match for David whatsoever. It’s another mystery. Where else could the feeler have taken him but here?
    “How long do we have until Liam—I mean, the first specimen—departs?” I ask, desperate to keep track of the time, trying to focus on what’s most important to me now.
    “Forty-nine minutes and thirty-five seconds,” the voice replies. I stare out at Liam’s faint light, shining like a star in the darkness.
    “We need to thaw him out and bring him back,” Gadya tells the voice. “How do we do that?”
    There’s a brief silence.
    Then the words crash in. “Thawing is only possible using the manual controls on each pod.”
    “Then we need to get down there.”
    “Your request cannot be granted.”
    “Why not?” I challenge.
    “Guests cannot enter the specimen archive without authorized supervision,” the voice replies. “The subzero temperature necessitates the use of an LS-8 zone suit inside, which can only be operated by a qualified staff member.”
    “Like we told you, there aren’t any staff members,” I say. “There’s just you and there’s us. It’s an emergency!”
    “I’m sorry,” the voice begins again, but I’m already looking around. A zone suit, I’m thinking. What is that, and where can I find one?
    Gadya and I quickly answer that question once we start exploring. There are a number of white doors farther around the curve of the horseshoe. One of them is marked LS-8’S/SERVICE ELEVATOR FIVE. I rush over to it and put my hands on its wheel handle, trying to turn it. But just as I reach it, I hear clicking noises and realize that it has just been locked. By Clara.
    “Open this door right now!” I yell.
    “I’m sorry,” the voice says sharply. “You are attempting to enter a restricted area.”
    I begin yanking harder on the wheel. Gadya hobbles over and joins me.
    “Cease your actions immediately,” the voice admonishes us. “If you do not, I will be forced to request security personnel.”
    “Good luck with that,” I mutter as we keep trying to open the door. But it remains locked.
    “You are breaking Silver Shore protocol. I will enact security measures if you do not desist.”
    Gadya grabs my arm. I turn to her, and she puts a finger to her lips. I don’t understand at first. Then she points at a red switch a few feet away, encased in a glass-paneled box