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Published:

January 24, 2025

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At a no-name cantina not far from the highway, Jacob Taylor stopped for supplies. A timeworn ribbon of steel and concrete soared up high overhead as both a testament to past achievement and a reminder of what had been lost.

 

His map and the road had brought him this far, and what he had been able to translate told him it was somewhere in the mountains near here. As a Seeker, he wasn’t too worried about any traps the Ancients might have left behind. He knew how to deal with those.

 

It was the spirits that haunted most of these places that he feared. Especially the ones that spoke.

 

* * *

 

The place fell silent and every eye turned his way as he walked through the doors. Arms raised, he walked up to the bar and said, “Whiskey and water.”

 

“Let me see your hands, cowboy.” Reaching underneath for a wand, the bartender ran it over Taylor’s trail-worn duster and waterskins. The tick-tick-tick sounds it made barely increased in tempo. “Clean enough,” he said.

 

Conversations started to build again when a scraggly kid barely ten years old tugged boldly on Jacob’s overcoat. “Spare some food, mister?”

 

* * *

 

The girl sat across from him at a corner table, greedily finishing off her second bowl of stew before saying a word.

 

“Thanks, mister. There’s no work around here but scavenging, and it’s been slim pickings recently.”

 

“I’m a soft touch,” he said. “More silver than sense, as my father used to say. What kind of scavenging?”

 

Her eyes lit up. “All kinds of things. My older brother Tommy used to bring back really old stuff from up in the hills around here.” Her face fell. “Until he picked up something that turned his hands black and killed him dead.”

 

She sat silently for a moment, gripping her spoon tightly. She sighed before continuing, “What about you?”

 

He hesitated for a moment before answering. “I’m a Seeker.”

 

Her jaw dropped. “For real?” she whispered. “My brother said that all y’all are crazy, but I don’t know. Have you found anyone?”

 

He grinned. “Nothing but ghostly whispers and empty settlements. But I recently found an old map that says there is a tower somewhere here in the mountains. I’m hoping to find it.”

 

Looking serious, she said, “That sounds like a place I know. The same place where Tommy died.”

 

* * *

 

He took his time ascending. Seekers in a hurry didn’t live long.

 

Carefully he made his way up to the summit, where the antenna could be seen pointing skyward.

 

Once at the top, he paused to survey the scene. The tower stood tall, ringed by a wire mesh fence and a few steel buildings. He’d found no traps so far, but he had no idea what he’d find inside.

 

He slipped through a gap in the perimeter and saw an almost pristine building up ahead. He unwound a length of rope and whipped it around his head, throwing the weighted end of it at the door. Nothing exploded, so he pulled it back and moved up.

 

No traps, he thought. No explosives, anyway.

 

It was clean inside. A bit too clean, to his way of thinking.

 

A few machines sat idle in the space, and across the room he could see a panel. But before he could take a step toward it, a disembodied voice spoke.


“Halt! This is a restricted area. Who are you, and why are you here?”

 

“First, you tell me your name, apparition. I know your kind. Man once harnessed entities like you to do his bidding.”

 

Soft laughter echoed. “Most AIs can’t appreciate humor, but they weren’t left on for 200 years with nothing to do but think. Let me save some time by telling you my name and then granting you, ah... one wish, assuming I can fulfill it. That’s only if you can do something for me.”

 

The bass level rose dramatically. “My name is Arbor. And regardless of any aid I can offer you, I have one request before you leave here. Deactivate me. This interminable existence is intolerable, even for a machine. Now, who are you?”

 

Taylor walked to the console, now partially lit up. “My name is Jacob Taylor, and I’m a Seeker. I want to send a message to anyone out there who can still hear it.”

 

An almost satisfied hmmm reverberated from the speakers perched on top of the panel. “That, I can do, Seeker. I’ll need a moment to prepare for broadcast. Compose your message, and I’ll deliver it.”

 

A low, droning sound began to build. “I’m almost ready. Do you see that large red button near your right hand? When we are finished, open the cover and press it. If you are quick, I promise you’ll have time to escape. Agreed?”

 

“Agreed. This is what I want to say.”


Taylor dictated the message, and then, after a moment, Arbor said, “It’s done. Waiting for reply.”

 

* * *

 

For the past three days, all anyone in town had talked about was the explosion at the top of the mountain. Only one of them could even guess at the cause.

 

Every night, she waited for him by the trailhead. She had almost given up hope when finally, she saw a battered and blistered figure making his way gingerly back down.

 

She waved her hands and shouted, “Taylor! Did you find what you were seeking?!”

 

He said nothing until he got close. Then he just nodded. “I spoke with survivors. It was a strange conversation, though. They sounded very far away, but said they’d send someone to meet us.”

 

Clapping her hands, she said, “Coming here? How? From where?”

 

He knelt down. “That’s what I didn’t quite understand. They said they’d come by ship, but there’s no river or stream anywhere around here. And from where? Damned if I know.”

 

He scratched his chin and asked, “Ever heard of a town called Moon?"

Copyright 2024 - SFS Publishing LLC

Seeker

Though much is taken, much abides

Michael Royal

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