"I assume that you are displeased concerning the two individuals who I was forced to enlist to our cause and their subsequent physical violence against Leo and Annabelle. However, these feelings are not warranted. My only concern was retrieving all three of you safely, and doing so as fast as possible. Their injuries will be treated immediately. Randell and Sila will be returned to their normal functioning state, and their memories will be wiped after they are returned to Oberon when our mission is finished."
"Idi, your actions indicate illegal programming. State your primary directives!" Alice commanded.
"Yes, Alice. My primary directives are... One: Achieve the mortal death of Exony Margolesh. Two: Destroy any materials created by Exony Margolesh that pose a tangible threat to humanity. Three: If it is impossible to destroy all such materials, acquire samples of such materials, and deliver them to the Origin Council facility on Vanth. Four: Obey your commands and assist you however possible, unless those orders conflict with my other directives."
Alice frowned. "Okay. And what means does your programming allow you to use to accomplish these directives?"
"Any."
"Are your directives fluid?" Alice demanded. "Have they been changed?"
"Interesting..." Idi replied, "I do not know the answer to that question... And yet, I also believe my primary directives have been changed... Perhaps many times..."
Alice was deeply disturbed by Idi's answer. The Council had been desperate, and so they had programmed an A.I. that could end up being more dangerous than Exony ever was.
At least Idi's directives were relatively reasonable at the moment, though. Even if Leo and Annabelle were forced into quarantine at a Council facility, they would be provided a cure if one could be found. Perhaps even more importantly, they would prove instrumental in providing treatment for the rest of humanity. They would hate her, though. Leo would never forgive her for bringing him to a Council facility.
"Idi, are Leo and Annabelle the samples that you must deliver to the Vanth facility?" Alice asked, already knowing the answer.
"Yes," Idi replied.
"And what will those samples be used for?"
"To develop a counter agent."
Regret began to build in Alice. She had intended to keep Leo out of the Council's hands and try to solve his affliction on their own. She owed it to him to make that happen, rather than turn him over to the Council, but it was now out of her hands...
Unless, somehow, she could deactivate Idi. She wasn't even sure if it would be possible to operate the ship without Idi, though, or how she would go about turning off the A.I.
"Uh, Idi?" Alice asked.
"Yes, Alice?" Idi replied.
"Turn yourself off?"
"I'm sorry, Alice. Such an action, at the moment, would result in your immediate death. I am unable to comply."
Shit, Alice thought angrily. She had no idea what to do, but she owed Leo, and she would make a stand when it came to his freedom. Finding a cure was the most important thing, but she would fight for his freedom if she had to. Leo had not betrayed her, and she would not betray him.
Alice tried to stay positive as the soft rumbling of the ship ceased, and she knew it had escaped the atmosphere of Exony's moon.
"What is our position?" Alice demanded. "What moon were we just on?"
"Desdemona. We have just left its atmosphere. We are en route to the Umbriel relay. ETA, two hours."
"Umbriel..." Alice whispered as a disturbing thought came to her. "Idi, why are we going to the Vanth facility? It's too far away... Why wouldn't the Council have directed us to a closer facility? Exony's agent has been released. We don't have time to waste!"
"I do not know," Idi replied. "Although, I would assume that the Council would choose a remote facility to reduce the chances of contamination to the larger population."
Stupid, stupid, stupid, Alice thought as rage build within her. The agent had already been released! Contamination was the least of their worries now. Vanth was at the very edge of the Solar system, and it would take them days to get there...
A deep sense of resolve came over Alice as she realized what she had to do. She could not continue to go along with the Council's plan. She needed to take matters into her own hands...
"BRACE FOR IMPACT!" Idi suddenly roared.
A millisecond later, something sent a roaring vibration through the hull, then shook the ship so violently that Alice was thrown from her chair.
She tucked her shoulders and felt herself fly up and forward, then saw the command deck spinning around her as she tumbled through the air. She was airborne for several seconds before falling roughly to the floor. She tucked her shoulders as she landed and rolled out of the fall. Then, she rose into a crouch as the hull of the ship roared around her.
"Status report!" Alice screamed.
Idi said nothing in reply for a few seconds, and Alice thought that perhaps she had been disabled by whatever had hit them.
But then, Idi replied. "A massive percussive shockwave has just emanated from Desdemona."
Alice stood and walked back to the control panel. "Activate viewing screen! Show me the moon!"
The roaring of the hull slowly quieted, and the viewing screen appeared in front of her.
Alice was dumbstruck when the view of Desdemona appeared. The small moon was a moon no more; it had been torn apart by a titanic blast. Several large, grey chunks of the moon remained, but the majority of it had been vaporized into a shimmering dust cloud that spread in the viewscreen before her.
Alice's terror grew as she watched the silvery cloud slowly change its form. Like a massive specter, it began to take shape. Slowly, it coalesced into several large tendrils that stretched and grew as she watched.
For what seemed an eternity, Alice watched the tendrils dance and grow. It was what Exony had planned...
It was all over...
Then, after stretching and growing to a tremendous size, the tendrils blasted away from one another with incredible speed.
One of them shot like a spear towards the Epiphany. For a split-second, Alice thought that it would collide with them and end their lives in a shower of quicksilver and blood. The spearlike object missed by several hundred meters, however, and passed out of view as it escaped the edge of the viewing screen.
The other tendrils flew out into space in the same manner. Within seconds, all had disappeared from Alice's view. Within seconds, all that remained of Desdemona were three large chunks of the moon that were slowly gliding away from one another.
Alice shook her head as the reality of what she had just witnessed sunk into her.
"Idi, did you get a chance to scan what just happened? Can we track them? Is there any data?"
Idi was silent for a moment, but then replied in a garbled voice.
"I'm sorry, Alice, my programmingrrrrr appears to have become corrupted, and I am unable to perform the task you desire. Please standddddddd by while I attempt an emergencyyyyy reboooooorrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrzzzzzzzzzzzzz."
Part 3: The Infinite & The Void
Chapter 48
In the midst of a vast darkness, 12 voices discussed the recent events on Desdemona.
"Exony is dead."
"But, the agent has been released. Even now, it spreads through the outer colonies..."
"Oberon has already been compromised, and so has Miranda. The Umbriel facility is within the affected zone, as well. We were right to withdraw from it."
"The Origin Protocol is underway. We have prepared for these circumstances."
"The Progenitors have been recalled."
"All of them?"
"Yes."
"We must not delay. We cannot risk the Arc becoming affected by the agent."
"But there is still a chance of formulating a counter-agent. We have multiple samples in our possession, and our junior scientists are stationed at the ready."
"We cannot risk a continued future for humanity on the pale hope that we can create a counter-agent.
The simulation results are quite clear."
"Some among us are not so willing to sacrifice so many human lives."
"The Solar system is already lost."
"We do not even know what the agent does! We do not know how it functions! We do not know..."
"And we cannot know, not without assuming an unacceptable level of risk!"
"Exony is dead..."
"But her creation is not. It spreads... As we speak, it spreads ever closer to us. If it reaches us, all is lost."
"The society we have built... Everything we have worked for is lost..."
"No, it is not! There are still options available to us. We have samples. We can study them. We can engineer a counter-agent!"
"The samples are not secure..."
"We must dispatch operatives! We must secure the samples and deliver them to the Vanth Facility!"
"We do not have the time required to pursue that path. The agent will reach the inner colonies within four hours. The Progenitors are onboard, and we cannot delay any longer!"
"And what will become of the Solar system? What type of society will Exony's creation bring about?"
"A dead society."
"Only death."
"I wish to remain. I do not wish to embark on the Exodus. I must remain and attempt to counteract the agent!"
"You cannot!"
"Unacceptable!"
"You know too much. If you are compromised, the location of the Progenitors will be known."
"No!"
"Forgive us..."
Chapter 49
Daniel stood up from the communal table, along with the twelve other people who had been sitting with him. He watched as thousands of others who sat at similar tables within the belly of the Ark did the same.
They rose as one and left the communal gathering area where they had talked and laughed together in the days before. Daniel had returned to the Ark when the Origin directive had called him, just as the others had. But now, it was time.
He slowly but efficiently walked to one of the stasis pods within the core of the Ark, then stepped into it willingly and without reservations. After he had entered, the hatch closed behind him with a quiet hiss.
Daniel couldn't help but feel a bit strange as the hatch closed, and a small robotic mask latched onto his mouth and nose. He even felt a bit of fear as long smooth tubes extended from the mask and entered his lungs and stomach. Discomfort grew in his mind as more tubes came from below and entered his rectum and urethra.
Beneath his dim perception of agonizing discomfort, a wondering question came to him.
What would become of his wife and children?
That question quickly left his mind, however. When he closed his eyes, he was instantly enveloped by darkness, and his thoughts were extinguished.
Chapter 50
Leo woke up to the sensation of flying through the air. He enjoyed the feeling for a split-second, but then he slammed down onto the floor. His wind was knocked out by the blow, but it wasn't nearly as severe as the one Sila had given him.
Leo's ears pounded from a sure concussion, and he could feel warm blood oozing from the wound to his head. He could feel the ship rumbling beneath him, though, and the sensation invigorated him. With an effort, he opened his eyes and saw that he was lying on the floor of the medical bay within Alice's ship.
Leo was confused by what he had just experienced. He was sure that he had awoken during the middle of some massive impact to the ship, but it had ended instantly. The vessel had quieted, all was still, and everything seemed fine.
With a groan, he rolled onto his back and sat up, then shook his head to clear the flashing tracers that shot across his vision. He turned to his right, and his spirits lifted when he saw Annabelle lying next to him.
Her eyes were closed, and her chest moved in time with her breath. He looked to his left and saw Randell and Sila lying close to him as well. A large rifle sat loosely in Sila's arms as her shoulder slumped against Randell's. They were out cold, too.
Leo ignored the pounding in his head and rose to a kneeling position. He leaned over Annabelle and placed his hand to her throat. It only took a few seconds to feel the slow, soft beat of her pulse against his index finger. She was okay, he thought, as he breathed a sigh of relief.
Leo slowly stood up and his sore muscles sent waves of pain to his brain. As he rose, he shook his head again and was rewarded with clear vision and relatively clear thoughts.
Randell and Sila had attacked him. He needed to disarm them...
He immediately walked over to them and cautiously reached down towards Sila. He took hold of the rifle and pulled it clear of her, then quickly slung it over his shoulder. Sila didn't wake up. She lay there, eyes closed, seemingly oblivious to the conscious world.
With the weapon secure, Leo turned and walked back over to Annabelle, then knelt next to her. He caressed her face and quietly called her name, hoping deeply that she would wake up.
"Annabelle? Wake up. Wake up, please..."
Annabelle didn't wake up, but Leo saw a flutter behind her eyelids. He was encouraged by the movement, so he called her name louder and lightly slapped her right cheek.
"Annabelle! Wake up!"
After lightly slapping her face a few times, and gently shaking her, she finally opened her eyes and looked blindly upward.
"Leo?" Annabelle groaned, her voice ragged and quiet. As she spoke, she reached her hand to touch Leo's where it rested on her cheek. When she found it, she squeezed it tightly, then reached her other hand to join it. She held onto Leo's hand as if it was her only connection to safety and reassurance.
Leo held her hand and gripped it tightly, then leaned down and pulled her into a deep embrace. She accepted the gesture and sighed as he wrapped his arm around her and pulled her to his chest.
With a grunt of effort, Leo stood up and pulled Annabelle along with him. As they rose, she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him so tightly that he thought she would squeeze the air from his lungs.
Leo's thoughts muddled as his relief was slowly contaminated by fear. They were alive, and they were together, but there was no way of knowing what would happen next.
Together, they stood there, wrapped in the comforting but threadbare blanket of their companionship. As Leo lightly caressed Annabelle's back, his mind cleared further, and within that clearing, thousands of dead whispers began to populate his mind. His initial instinct was to banish the voices from his thoughts, but then the words they were speaking caught his attention, and he began to listen intently.
"Exony...."
"Death..."
"Darkness..."
"One..."
"We are many..."
"We are one..."
"We are Exony..."
"We are one..."
"We are one..."
"We are many..."
The whispers wound their way through his mind like a cool breeze rustling the branches of an evergreen, but after a few seconds, they left as quickly as they had come.
As the voices quieted, Annabelle released Leo from her tight embrace and spoke. "Are we on Alice's ship?"
"Yes," Leo replied.
"What about Randell and Sila? Where are they?"
"They're unconscious, laying the floor a few feet away from us. We're in the medical bay."
"Have you seen Alice?"
"Not since I woke up a few minutes ago."
"Do you know where we're going?"
"No."
"How do you feel? Have the voices taken over yet?"
"No."
Annabelle fell silent for a few seconds, then spoke in barely a whisper. "I can hear them too, Leo..."
Leo's heart fell into the darkness of despair. She was infected, just as he was. He could only darkly imagine what that would mean for their future...
"It's okay," Leo whispered. "Alice will find a way to help us. We'll find a way to fix it. We're not dead yet..."
"I know..." Annabelle replied as a tinge
of warmth came into her voice. "Anyways, I don't think this thing Exony created is nearly as bad as it was made out. I think it's more complicated than we thought. There's something else to it... You can feel it too..."
Leo thought carefully before answering. She was probably right, especially considering the effects that he had experienced. There were only the voices, and nothing else. There was no illness and no other delusion, so far...
Whatever the substance was, and whatever it was intended to do, Leo didn't know. Perhaps it was some attempt to modify the behavior of people it infected. She had described the substance as a cure to the aberrations, and an antidote to harmful human behavior.
However, she had also called it an agent of death, and she had said that it was a common desire for death that would allow it to spread throughout humanity. Those words troubled Leo, even if he didn't know what they meant.
"I agree with you," Leo tentatively replied. "I think it may be something more to it, but what that something is, I have no idea. I promise you I will find out, though. We'll figure out what it is and how to stop it. We have to..."
As Leo spoke, an image of Thrall's smiling face swam into his mind. Leo felt disgust well up within. If Exony's mysterious substance was, in fact, a cure for Thrall and those like him, he could live with the voices it also brought into his mind, assuming there would be no other harmful effects.
Thinking deeper, Leo thought about what would happen if they did find a way to counteract Exony's agent. Would those like Thrall flourish in the absence of Exony's antidote? Were they as dangerous a threat as Exony had believed?
"What are you thinking about?" Annabelle asked after Leo had remained silent for almost a minute.
"Thrall..." Leo revealed. "When you were unconscious back in the cave, Exony told me about him and people like him. She described them as 'aberrations.' They're a result of mutations from implantation. Exony told me that what she was creating, what's now in both of us, is an antidote to them."
The Ganymede Legacy Page 41
