Down in the Bottomlands
By Harry Turtledove, first published in Analog
In a futuristic world, one of the members of a tour group is murdered. Nobody knows who the murderer is, and as the police try to solve the case, they discover that this murderer has far more nefarious plans that can alter the world.
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Plot Summary
Radnal is a tour guide leading a group through the Barrier in the futuristic world. Mountain ranges surround the Barrier, and these mountain ranges prevent the sea from flooding the area. At first, everything goes well until one of the members, a general, is discovered murdered. Raymond contacts authorities and detectives arrive at the scene.
When the detectives inspect the body, they discover that the general had been a spy searching for people who had planned to bomb the canyon. The bomb is located underground, and the detectives desperately need to know who's behind this. If the bomb is set off, the Barriers will be flooded. The detectives suspect the murderer is a member of the group.
When the detectives decide to call for backup, two group members named Evillia and Lofoso leave in the middle of the night. They take all the supplies and destroy the transportation stranding the other tourists and detectives. The detectives determine that these girls are the killers. If the girls aren't found, the detectives fear that they'll set off the bomb.
The tour group desperately tries to find the bomb until the guide discovers that a bird has the girls' necklaces. Raymond grabs the necklaces from the bird and realizes it is a detonated wire disguised as jewelry. The girls, Raymond surmises, disguised the wire as jewelry to sneak it into the Barriers. This type of bird likes shiny objects and, as a result, stole the wire since it was colorful. Learning that the bomb won't go off, the tour group celebrates. Evillia and Lofoso commit suicide before they are caught, and the tour group is saved by a rescue plane. In the end, Radnal and the rest of the tour group are awarded for their services.