Drowning Utopia

Chapter 38: Vendettas of the Dead

"That's no good! Try the next one!" Tessa shouted down from the top of the power projector towering above Powerhouse Three. Donny, who stood on the roof below, nodded and in turn relayed the message through the open skylight to Gray. He was in the powerhouse at the switchboard with Lonny and Diana, trying to bypass the damaged systems and to get the grid to restart.

"How about now?" Donny called up.

Tessa once more threw the switch from closed to open, this time getting the green light she was hoping for. With a smile, she called back, "We're good! Just give me a moment to get down!" After scurrying off the service ladder to the roof, Tessa leaned over the open skylight and shouted to Gray, "We're all green! Start it up!"

"Finally! Dev Le-Ren! Open the turbines to full!" Gray ordered Diana. Standing at the ready near the pressure valve with Lonny, the two women managed to turn the massive wheel, allowing the water to flow once more through the turbines. The operating generators whined and complained. One of them started smoking, which Gray quickly isolated, but even as the system failure was averted, the kinetic energy of the water flowing through the turbines converted into electricity. Blue arcs of energy shot through the air from one pylon to the next as the Copperfield Power Grid was partially brought online.

From her vantage point on the roof, Tessa looked out past the flooded trees and at the city beyond. She could see a portion of the nearest district light up along with the Grand Spire.

"Would you look at that? It worked!" Donny said with a whistle.

As she turned to Donny, Tessa couldn't help but give him a hug, "I honestly didn't think it would."

"If anyone could have pulled all of this off, my dear, you would be the only logical choice."

"Because of my intellect?"

"No, because you are the only one crazy enough to do it."

"Tessa!" Gray shouted from below over the noise. "Go tell Miss Briggs to start broadcasting the signal! I don't know how long we can keep this thing running!"

"Right!" She rushed for the side of the building where Miss Briggs was.

Following Tessa quickly, Donny asked as they scampered down, "How long do you think we have until the Boomers make a counterattack?"

"I don't know. To be honest, I am surprised they haven't yet," she said, jogging toward the airship.

Tessa found Miss Briggs, Representative Pechkoff, Cornwall, and Vain, whose arm was in a sling, all on the main bridge of the commandeered airship. They, along with Colonel Veers and Captain Brine, were in the process of planning the next move when Tessa scurried up the gangplank and through the tight-quartered ship to the bridge.

"The power is back up," she reported. "Meriwether says we can start broadcasting the message."

"Of course! Excellent! Miss Briggs, if you would, please!" Sir Cornwall said as he pulled out a pipe and proceeded to light it.

Turning on the device, Miss Briggs punched in the message into the telegraph, every strike of the key, giving Tessa hope that their distress call would reach the outside world.

As she typed, Miss Briggs said the message aloud. "S.O.S. Utopia overrun. Stop. An armed militia has flooded the city. Stop. They are killing survivors. Stop. Send the army. Stop. Can't hold out much longer. Stop..."

After punching it out, she checked the ribbon to make sure that it was correct before broadcasting it. The device buzzed for a moment before a metal tag popped up with the words "Message Sent" on it.