Resolution

by Douglas E Roff

  “My Dad will suspect that something isn’t right. And Cindy will too.”

  “Cindy may figure it out, but even if she does, she won’t say anything. I know she won’t. She’ll know that if this is what we did, we did it for good reasons.”

  “Then maybe we should just bring Cindy in as our go between.”

  “Maybe. Let’s sleep on it and decide tomorrow. But I may not be very reliable in helping with the decision; this way I get six months with my guardian all to myself. And your acting was very believable. Moody and angry. Bad daddy. Very bad daddy. You’d win one of those meaningless acting awards you humans love so much.”

  “What about you? Best Actress, without question. Who knew you had such talent?”

  “In that case, those awards have deep cultural meaning and social significance. I accept my award on behalf of my species, the Creator and all the little people who made this adventure possible. Are you proud of me mister? I’m sure I won Best Actress!”

  “You did, and yes I am. Thanks for saving my life by the way. Nice piece of sleuthing.”

  “How do you spell that; that one isn’t in my dictionary yet?”

  “You’ll be finished with Grad School soon. Then you’ll be Dr. Hecate the Immortal St. James, Ph.D. once I adopt you.”

  “Do I get another award.”

  “Nope. Hug and a kiss from me and whatever the Creator enjoys giving out on special occasions. I hear you’re very smart.”

  “Just like my mentor and guardian.”

  “Spittin’ image, apple not far from the tree, and runs in the family, all rolled into one.” His tone suddenly changed. “I guess we start over again tomorrow, correct?”

  “Yes. Where shall we go?”

  “My cabin in Oregon. It’s vacant and I’ll put the caretaker on vacation for a while. Got gear, food and toys. There’s one hundred acres of solitude, access to the DL Main and all my electronic toys.”

  “I can’t wait to cuddle.”

  Adam smiled, “No, we might not have time for that. You are quite the little task-mistress. I may be too tired.”

  “Then I will take you to the planet Safira, in a little galaxy I know. The days are short, and the nights are extremely long. Perfect for cuddling.”

  “Oregon will have to do. We’ll cuddle as much as you want there.”

  “Promise?”

  “Promise.”

  ***

  They cuddled, much to the delight of Hecate, the next night after they arrived. Adam rented a 4x4 for transportation using a credit card from an offshore account nobody knew about. He retrieved a driver’s license from a small safe in the basement for Oregon he had hidden away for just such an occasion. Then he got the cabin set up for the work to be done. Hecate had been with him all night, so he thought her mysterious late-night absences were over finally. He had become much better at sensing her presence, a gift given, she said, from the Creator.

  When he woke to make breakfast, Hecate appeared. She immediately asked, “How much time do we have?” Hecate seemed nervous, almost panicky.

  “You know the answer to that as well as I do. Don’t think about it and be happy the Creator is doing this for me.”

  “But I’m scared. This training is dangerous for a mortal; most die. You may be in a coma for many months.”

  “First, I know you will be careful and perfect in performing the procedure. I trust you to do this and do it well. Second, the Creator said that She’s giving me something, a gift to help me heal, and accelerate what I need to learn. I don’t know what it is. Do you?”

  “No, just that it’s a part of her essence and it will protect you while you sleep. And you will heal faster; instead of four months, it may only be two; maybe even only one and a half. And she will visit your mind.”

  “So why worry? She likes me. Obviously. See? Don’t worry, I’ll be fine, you’ll be fine, and our dog Rover will be fine.”

  “We have a pet? How wonderful. I was going to make you my pet when we first met.”

  “No pets. Just you and me, kiddo. When I wake, we’ll be back together again.”

  “None of that matters if I botch the procedure. I’m scared and don’t want to do this. I’m afraid I might do something wrong and hurt you. I wish the Creator would do this for me or send another Immortal who has done it successfully. But she won’t. I don’t understand why.”

  “You’re smart and you are brilliant. Don’t worry. I trust you with my life.”

  “I’m still scared and don’t like this one bit. So, how many days?”

  “Six. Then you operate. Until then we will train physically and cuddle every night. You will watch over me and protect me until, you know …”

  “I have to kill you.”

  “Seems at cross purposes for the Creator. But She’s the boss, so we shall gratefully accept her help with joy and no question asked. And you, Hecate should stop worrying. Like I said, She likes me for some reason.”

  “I love you. I’m so sorry I must do what I must do. It breaks my heart.”

  “We have six days that are worry-free. Can you be happy for me until the day of surgery arrives?”

  “I will do everything in my power to make you happy and proud of me. Everything. See I have a huge smile on my face.”

  What Adam saw, momentarily, hardly looked like anything other than a false and concocted facsimile of a smile, but Adam knew that Hecate felt nothing but anxiety inside. Hecate the Immortal may have presented herself as a fully mature and all-powerful being, but Adam realized long ago that she was really no more than a teen had she been in human form. She had her own version of hormones to deal with, and Hecate had grown attached to a human. A human who cared for her, listened to her and yes, even loved her.

  Adam said, “Well, you’re invisible right now, so no. But I believe you. Let’s get me running and working hard for the next six days that I will hate. You’re the boss, so boss me. If I’m in a coma for months, when I come out my muscles will be atrophied, and I’ll have to rebuild muscle mass and strength. Exercise me while I’m out if you can.”

  Hecate was crying inside. She hated what was coming and couldn’t understand the contradictions in her feeling toward her human target. She felt something. Emotions? These never existed for Immortals; emotions were creations of weakness and failure. These were for mortals and weak ones at that. They weren’t for her; was she cursed?

  “By the way, the Creator now wants to be known as Liara to you and yours.”

  “Then, Liara the Creator it is.”

  ***

  Both Hecate and the newly renamed Creator, Liara, were certain that Adam needed some changes in brain physiology, chemistry and new neural pathways to accelerate his training. Physically he was fine, but he needed a cram course to be prepared for Enzo, and Paulo. His present brain couldn’t accommodate this requirement and process the information he needed to store, and later retrieve in his mind. Hence Liara decided it was time to use a rare technique to enhance his brain capacity very rapidly, so She could then download the information he needed through his brain and into his mind.

  It was risky though. Few beings survived the procedure; however, humans could be put in a coma and the changes done gradually enough followed by healing even more slowly. Other beings could only take the changes all at once; they were very likely to die quickly.

  Even so, and even with Adam’s already superior brain structure, it would take months, many months to complete the procedure. These were months that they didn’t have, so Liara decided to help.

  “Just this one time though,” she said. “The fight has to be fair, but he must win on his own.”

  “And afterward, if he is victorious?”

  “You will kill him. I will give you time to let him get his world in order, but his fate is decided. You’ve become attached to him, a human. It is beneath you.”

  “Then why …”

  “If he corrects my error, he will have served his purpose. But his arrogance was an affr
ont to me and for that he must perish on a date I shall set. You will help him set his plan in motion, allowing for error, but then his essence will be returned to the RealVerse as with all living things. After your duty is done, you will desist this infatuation with the Human. He is no concern of yours. This is my command and your duty.”

  “You’re using him and unfairly. You’re cruel.”

  “Perhaps, but he is a lower life form and not worthy of any of this attention. And one more thing, Hecate.”

  “Yes.”

  “Do not even think of running. You won’t get off this planet.”

  Chapter 27

  Before Adam and Hecate left, Adam wrote notes to those he loved, and knew would be worried, as well to Chel, and the Councils. Except for the Councils, the notes would be delivered weeks later. All were brief; most only a few words appropriate to the person receiving a note. His note to the Council was longer but gave nothing away.

  Two weeks after Adam underwent the procedure, a letter showed up in the City of Light addressed to Misti, who had returned home, and to Cindy, Rod and Kendra. It asked that they meet together to read the contents, after which the letter would dissolve. Only Misti would retain the contents of the letter in her mind.

  Misti, Kendra, Cindy and Rod

  I must apologize for the way I left and the chaos it must have caused to our family and friends. I am truly sorry for that, but given the circumstances, I had little choice. I am unavailable at present but expect to return to you within a few months’ time, if all goes well. If not, I’m dead and you must all carry on. I hope your anger will have diminished by then.

  Hecate and I are not at odds, and she is with me now protecting me and teaching me. She did not want to do what we did and deceive you into thinking that we had parted in anger, but I made her promise to act as though we had.

  I need to stress something that is essential and a large part of why we did as we have done. You cannot come looking for me. There is nothing you can do to help, and you cannot protect me. You will only be putting yourself in greater danger than you already are. I cannot stress this enough.

  There are governments, the Gens Collective and others arrayed against me, and us. I also suspect there still may be spies among us either back in Germany or in Paraiso; I doubt that Saldana acted alone but I do not have time to hunt down any of these traitors. In a matter of months, I will track down Enzo and fight him then Paulo. The Creator, who now wishes to be called Liara, told me through Hecate that both Enzo and Paulo are more powerful than I had imagined, and if things had continued the way they were, there was a good chance I would have been defeated. Hence, we have embarked upon a more radical approach to my training.

  I know that has caused pain to fort the women I love, my wives and those waiting to be, as well as you and all my family. I am sure that Alana and Misti have taken this in stride, but not all those who believe in me.

  As to Kendra, I have hurt you the most. I promised to never be apart from you and I broke my promise. I accept responsibility for my actions. I know you will act tough and not show your true feelings, but I can guess how you feel now and I will have to face your judgment and wrath when I return. I fear most the sadness and sorrow I will see in your eyes, and it breaks my heart every day. Misti, please talk to Kendra and try to explain. As to Beata, Verna and Lia, please just tell them I am safe and will see them soon. Be especially kind to Beata; she is more fragile than she looks and in need of emotional support and assurance.

  As to Cindy and my Dad, just do not try to track me down. I know you want to but don’t. I am safe and protected and you will not find me before I return anyway.

  As to Chel, who has saved my life along with Hecate, I thank you. Nobody shall disparage either of them for what they did. Hecate has no feelings about what she did; she is guided by new rules now. She exists to help me defeat the Fortizi Clan and kill my opponents. In this she has shown herself to be clever and ruthless.

  Chel knows everything except where I am. I ask that you go out of your way with him and bestow honor on him and his men. He will never acknowledge it, but he loves the attention. It is a small thing to ask.

  I have some requests I need fulfilled while I’m away; I am humbly asking for your help, not ordering you around.

  I need Misti, Cindy, Rod and the Gens who calls himself the “FBI Guy” to have a chat with Derek Nobilus who has suddenly become very important. What I need from Derek is his cooperation in designing what we will need to achieve after Paulo is defeated, but we need to start now as time is short. I doubt he will want to cooperate at first.

  You must be honest with him and tell him about transformation and mind union. He will not believe you, but he must. He must also understand that if he does not cooperate we will all die; the entire planet will die. FBI Guy is there to transform in front of him and to intimidate him. Misti will enter his mind but be careful. Derek is full blood Nobilus, not human or Gens. I did not know what power he has and cannot be sure he can’t stop you from searching his mind. I would ask Misti to transform, but I know with her pregnancy, she does not wish to do this. I understand. Bring Chel if necessary to transform too. This is a process, not an event.

  I need all the information Derek has on the numbers of Nobilus by pure bloods and mixed race. I am sure he has the records; we must get them and quickly before Derek falls into the wrong hands or is assassinated. In addition, I want everything he knows about everything he knows. This will take time even if he cooperates.

  I would tighten security in Paraiso and lock the entire country down. Nobody in or out without the approval of Rod, Cindy, Misti or Kendra. This includes all of Nabataea.

  Please instruct Chel to collect all his remaining men and move them to Paraiso. Chel is the only Gens or human who knows my true purpose.

  When his men arrive, ask Chel to help explore a small section of the Serengeti. Cindy, please assist him in locating the site at the coordinates below. He is to take Norman with him and a large contingent of his men too.

  Norman is to map the area, looking for hiding spots, caves and any physical geological anomalies. Normie needs to take photographs of all the territory, going out every day and returning every night. Stealth project. Chel and his men are to methodically search the area, while you should ask Alana to get snaps of every light spectrum possible of the area through satellite telemetry, day and night. Alana should then to upload everything to our joint drive on the DL Main.

  I am safe for now, but unreachable; I may call upon you later. I cannot emphasize enough the danger for us in the world. Things will only get worse from here.

  Misti my love, remember ‘oreja’. It was just like yesterday.

  Adam

  They all looked at each other as the letter slowly dissolved into dust and disappeared.

  Misti said, “He’s in trouble. We need to move fast to get to him and help him.”

  Cindy and Rod looked at her as if she had not read what they had all just read.

  Cindy said, “He said stay away. We can’t help or protect him. And we don’t know where he is even if we wanted to.”

  “I know where he is, and what you think you just read is not what he meant. There’s trouble, and he wants us to come to him.”

  “How can you possibly know that?”

  “Oreja. It’s an old family joke in Seattle. But I know its meaning, and now you will too. When Adam was little and read ‘Oregon’ he thought it was Orejon, which means ‘big ear’. It was a joke that Rafi played on him. It was years before he found out that Rafi was fucking with him, but by then everyone in the Eight Families knew the joke. He told me if he was ever in big trouble he would let me know by saying ‘oreja’. We need to get to the cabin in Oregon; that’s where he is with Hecate. But something’s got him scared, and Hecate can’t help him somehow. They both need our help.”

  “I’ll get the jet ready; we can be wheels up in two hours.”

  Misti said, “Get to Chel and Normie and get them goi
ng on their work. Rod, get FBI Guy, Alana and Noki and go visit Derek. You know what Adam wants. Cindy, go get Tar and a dozen of his men. Hurry, we have no time to lose.”

  “How could Adam …”

  “Adam didn’t write that letter; Hecate did. She wrote it and I don’t know how she did it. She can’t enter Adam’s mind, and I’m sure he is incapacitated right now. If she has that information, they aren’t alone. And someone else is in Adam’s mind. I’ll make the arrangements when we get to Portland; we’ll be going by helicopter from the airport and landing away from the cabin at a small clearing at a property nearby. We need the Huey’s in Portland ASAP. And the cargo plane, fully operational and loaded with nanotech. We need real guns and weapons, so get everything as fast a money can buy it. Go to our sources and if they can’t produce, we go to the armories at Camp Pendleton and Twenty-nine Palms. We need nanite weapons, all we have, and the tech and raw materials to make more. All that material is in South Dakota, so load up the barrels of pixie dust on as many transports as you can charter and bring the tech and software along. Get Mom and Pops on this right away. No explanations just do as you’re told. Everyone gets armed. Now, let’s get moving! Get every able-bodied man in our army on a flight no matter where they are. Call up the reserves.”

  They were focused immediately on their orders, with all arrangements made or in process; no explanations were requested or required.

  Misti said to Cindy “When we get in the air, you can call back to Rod and fill him in. We’ll conference in the rest of the family by video on the secure channel and make further plans when we’re wheels up. We will need your crew Cindy; please get them ready to roll. Give them these coordinates and get in the air. Tell them to drop everything and gear up for a combat mission.”

  “How many?”

  “All of them.”

  Chapter 28

  Misti made a stop on the way to the plane after calling ahead first. Kendra greeted her at her residence.