Warship (The Outsider Series Book 3)

by Steven Oaks

  “It's alright Michael. You are still safely inside Athene,” he said smiling kindly.

  I blew out the deep breath of air I had inhaled when he awoke me and said, “Yeah, I know. I just haven't been woken up by someone in a very long time. Last time it happened Mr. Thompson was peering in at me. I didn't like it then, and I don't really like it now. But anyway, what's going on? Have we arrived?”

  “We are in Cuiabá, Brazil. At least we are right outside the city. Right now the Abihail duplicate is out trying to convince their Adam to inspect Athene with it,” he said.

  “Don't you think it'll be a shock to him when he sees you?” I asked.

  “I don't believe so. I am known to be aboard. I suspect he is just as curious about me as we are about him. How often do you get to meet your duplicate?” he said smiling.

  “I thought you weren't exact duplicates.” I said, looking confused.

  “On the surface we do have differences. Skin and eye color, and perhaps the shape of the eyes themselves. But for all other purposes we should look very similar,” he said with a laugh.

  “And yet you are not Adam. We don't even have any of his memories. How long do you think we can keep the charade going?” I asked.

  “It won't have to be long. He will simply enter and then Athene will shut her doors and he'll be trapped. As there are three of us who are stronger than he could possibly be, he will be taken immediately. Again it may take time to sort through his memories, but we'll have another Adam stepping out within the hour,” he said.

  “Since we don't have his memories we don't know how he'll react. I suspect he'll be just as violent as the one I've had to deal with all this time. We had best prepare for combat, even if Athene can capture him quickly,” I instructed.

  “I am ready Michael. Do not worry though, you won't become trapped like you were last time. All preparations have been made to subdue him,” this new Adam smiled unlike anything the original would have.

  “Abihail is returning with the Brazilian Adam,” Athene announced.

  “Alright, let's at least look like inviting hosts,” I said to Adam as I stood up to face the entrance.

  The door irised open revealing the same expansive and stark white area that the United States hangar had appeared. There walking beside Abihail was another. He was just as tall and bald as the Adam next to me, but his skin was slightly darker. There was nothing about him that would make me think Brazilian, but then again I had no notion what a person should look like from this area.

  Stepping inside Abihail said, “Adam please meet Michael, and Adam from the facility in North America.”

  Somehow I could see the desire to grumble in this new Adam's eyes, but he put out his hand when I offered mine. He squeezed my hand just as firmly as mine had all those times in the past, but I refused to attempt to crush this ones hand. Subtlety has never been my strong point, but I figured I would let this situation play out as peacefully as I could.

  When he was done with me, he looked at our Adam with a sneer. They too shook hands, then I guided us all to the two pieces of furniture in the room. I sat with both Adams as Abihail had taken the chair I had recently vacated.

  “So what is it you wish to show me,” this new Adam spoke, and surprised me by not having an accent. Though I supposed if they were all based upon the same original Adam that might not be so strange after all.

  Abihail looked to the ceiling and said, “Athene if you would show him what you showed me.”

  Slowly the familiar white cylinder descended to encompass Adam. He did not shout, but he did ask, “What is this all about?”

  “Something happened on the new colony, and this is the best way to explain it.” Abihail said.

  Finding himself engulfed completely did not seem to startle him, though as his feet disappeared I could tell he was trying to stand up.

  “Did you actually try to show him something?” I asked.

  Abihail answered, “At first we show them the colony viewed from Athene's perspective. Then slowly we explain how Mr. Thompson failed to do as he was directed. By the time he becomes aware that he is being infiltrated it will be too late for him to resist Athene.”

  I noticed the copy of Adam was beginning to change. His skin grew darker, and he seemed to take up the grumpy expression I had become used to from these Adams.

  He noticed I was staring and said, “It will be quicker for me to replace this Adam than it will be for Athene to try to install a personality into a new body. As soon as she is done downloading his memory she will transfer it to me and I will be able to go about his business here as him.”

  “Who will fly Athene to our next stop then?” I asked.

  “I will of course. I am fully versed in the ability, as I not only contain Abihail's memories but also that of Athene. Have no concern, my personality now is that of your friend. We shall rid the Earth of these intruders, though I appear as one myself.” Abihail said in emotionless tones.

  This was all happening so fast. On one hand, that was good as we did not want to alert the Outsider vessel hovering above Earth of our intent; however, it was making it difficult for me to adjust to all that was happening.

  “I have completed extraction of this Adam's memory, prepare yourself to have it downloaded into your mind,” Athene alerted the Adam next to me.

  “I am ready,” he said. I watched his face to see if any change happened, but he did not move, though he did close his eyes.

  When his eyes snapped open he glanced at me, then at Abihail. Slowly he stood and began walking towards the door.

  Before the door opened he turned to us and said, “I will await your return. By the time the other Athenes make it here I shall have this hangar under my control and all pilots grounded. That should limit the ability for anyone to strike against us.” With that he turned away and walked out of the door as it irised opened.

  “Have we learned anything new?” I asked of anyone who was willing to answer.

  “There is little gained from this one's capture. We did learn how the hangars are managed, at least here, but that is unimportant to us in the long run. This Adam had no knowledge of the bigger picture and was only told that it would be destroyed if it failed to operate successfully. That would explain the constant anger that he showed. Perhaps we could have simply offered it protection from the other Outsiders and it would have agreed to work with us, but he had no faith in humanity's abilities,” Athene reported.

  “Then we will have to continue to capture the others until they are all replaced by the ones you create. Shall we head to the next hangar?” I asked.

  “I will be in the control room if you need me. Do not bother Athene now, she is still in the process of creating more bodies, though an Adam may join you shortly,” Abihail said coldly.

  I grimaced at such abrupt words, but I felt I should not complain as it spoke the truth. Seeing it leave, I decided to get off of the couch and began pacing the room again.

  I was agitated by such curt dismissal. I felt as though I was not involved in any of this anymore. I was a mere figurehead again while Athene and her new bodies did all the work. Would I even have a place among them when this was all finished?

  What would life be like when the Outsiders were taken care of? We would still have to be vigilant at all times to ensure the entity in the other universe did not send another such vessel into ours. Might it be the jobs of these pilots then to patrol each planet we colonized to safeguard them from such intrusions? It would be just as solitary, but I still did not know if each was equipped with personalities like Athene. Might it be the other ships were happy with their lot and try to take us over themselves once these Outsiders were taken care of?

  Luckily a new Adam decided to make his appearance then so I could see if I could find an answer to some of these questions. He looked like the first one, and I thought that might be because he was to play the roll of him when another Adam came aboard.

  “Adam, do the other ships like Athene h
ave personalities?” I asked.

  “They do, though the newest of them have been made more simplistically than we are. They only follow direct orders, and will not be good conversationalists. Any that were not destroyed on that first day of collection have not been altered however. They should be like Athene in that they were matched to their pilots. I do not have the information about each ship; however, those that are at the Brazilian hangar are mostly of the new variety as not only were some destroyed, but several pilots quit. There are two such there, and what I know of them is that they are loners like yourself, though they have more violent tendencies than you've ever shown,” he droned, looking thoughtful.

  “Will they try to fight back if we are successful in destroying the main Outsider ship?” I asked quickly.

  “I have no memory of them being agitated at how they are treated. Then again they may be like you and are keeping that to themselves. As they are violent in nature, I have no notion what they may do when the news reaches them. For now I think it would be best to have everyone grounded,” he explained.

  “But if we do that, and are not supplying the Outsiders with the dead the ship will notice something is going on. Just let them all do as they have been until the other Athenes get here. At that point you should have them all stay in the hangar. Tell them it is something to do with maintenance, then interview each one to see if they can be reintegrated into society,” I insisted, hoping there were no more enemies for us to deal with.

  “We will then have to keep sending the dead to them for five days for the others to catch up with us. Are you okay with that?” he asked.

  “I'm not okay with it of course. Otherwise, why would I be trying to stop them in the first place? But we can only do so much until the fleet arrives. If something went wrong we can still try to infiltrate the Outsider ship and see about taking it over, but without them this will take much longer. I just hope they're on their way,” I said, beginning to grow worried about those Athenes we had left behind.

  “You should not be concerned with anything going wrong with their arrival. There is no reason to assume they were unable to follow us. They know the plan will fail without their presence, so even if they decided on a different plan they would not sacrifice you for it,” he assured calmly.

  “What if for some reason they sent another Outsider to check on the colony?” I asked, growing fearful.

  “They would handle it much like we did with Mr. Thompson. It would be captured and replaced. The Outsiders will not become aware of anything until we strike back directly,” this Adam said sounding more like Athene than before.

  “If an Outsider is sent and is like Adam or the other originals, without me being there when Athene was trying to absorb him she would have been taken over, even with all the precautions in place,” I warned.

  “Our Mr. Thompson is there as well. He may not be as powerful as you are, but with him, and with the facility Athene there to ensure success, they are likely not to fail. However, we have seen no sign that another Outsider was sent. You are merely making scenarios up and causing yourself worry. I suggest you get some sleep, if you can, while we handle collecting the other Adams,” he said.

  “And how am I suppose to sleep when I know an Adam might escape from Athene's clutches?” I asked incredulously.

  “There will always be Abihail and a version of Adam on our side to ensure nothing goes wrong. Do not worry about one of them escaping. We have more power than any of them do now. Nothing will go wrong,” he reassured.

  “Oh now you've done it. Murphy's law and all,” I smirked.

  “I am unfamiliar with that law, please explain,” he said, tilting his head in confusion.

  “Basically anything that can go wrong, will go wrong,” I said, puzzled that Athene or her duplicates would not know this.

  “Ah; however, there is nothing that can go wrong. Fail-safes such as myself and Abihail are there to ensure this,” he said.

  “And yet we had all that when Adam was taken the first time,” I objected.

  “That is not entirely true. There are two now to back up Athene if anything goes wrong. Even then you alone were enough to subdue Adam, with Athene's assistance,” he emphasized.

  “I suppose, though it was tentative there at the end,” I shrugged in defeat.

  “Please Michael, I really do think it would be best if you rested. We still have only a little more than four days to wait for the others to return. That and it will be by the end of tomorrow before we have replaced all the other Adams. There is no reason for you to be awake at all times to oversee this,” he said sounding worried.

  “Fine. I suppose I'm really not necessary for any of this,” I said standing up, frustrated at my own uselessness.

  “You are the reason we are able to do this,” he reminded me.

  “Yeah, but now that I've played my part I have nothing else to give you,” I said agitatedly.

  “Your support and insight is always welcome. You are our friend and will always be necessary,” he said smiling. It was strangely wider than what a normal person would emote, and it made him look deranged.

  “You still have to work on that smile Adam. It's not quite right. But I suppose I'll go lay down for a bit. If something happens try to wake me up so I'm able to help,” I said, waving over my shoulder as I turned around to leave the room.

  As I entered the bedroom, I saw everything was in its place. I do not know why but I expected the bed to be unmade or at least something to show I had slept there just hours before. Athene had always taken care of it in the past, but I felt her being distracted may have made her forget. Apparently not, as everything was tucked in neatly.

  I pulled the covers down to expose the mound of pillows at the headboard and slipped beneath it all to try to relax. Usually I would have taken my clothing off but I wanted to still feel like a part of Athene was with me. Though I did think it was strange that it had not spoken to me since the incident with Adam.

  Tossing around fitfully I eventually was able to fall asleep, though it was not very deep. I dreamed of being attacked again by an Adam, and felt like I was being smothered by him surrounding me once more.

  When I woke up, I had no idea how long I had been laying there. I was uncomfortably warm and wrapped up in not only the sheets but the clothing I had refused to remove. I worked my self free after a few moments and headed to the bathroom to relieve the pressure that was the cause of my waking.

  After I cleaned my self up in the sink, I wondered if the need to use the bathroom was all in my mind, or was I just too unfamiliar with my new body. Shrugging my shoulders, I thought I should probably eat something. Though I no longer felt hunger, I still wanted to work on the pretense of being human. I felt Athene was right about that, so I made my way to the lounge to discover Adam sitting alone.

  “Care to join me for breakfast?” I asked.

  “It is in the middle of the night Michael. I do not believe it would be considered breakfast at this time,” he said, tilting his head in confusion.

  “It would be the first meal after I've awoken. In that scenario it would be a breakfast to me,” I said just as puzzled by his reaction.

  “Ah, I see. Breakfast is then the first meal taken after a rest period,” he said brightening up.

  “To me at least, yes,” I said, and began to walk to the dining room.

  Following me he announced, “I will join you.”

  “Thank you,” I said.

  “Do you feel hungry then?” he inquired.

  Reaching the table I pulled out the chair at the head and said, “No, you know I don't have that particular feeling anymore.”

  “Of course not; however, there may still be lingering feelings that you would experience, much like an amputee who still feels phantom limbs,” he said, taking a seat next to me.

  “I feel none of that. I just have my old habits to rely on to appear as normal as possible. So while I've only eaten once today, I assume as I don't know how long I was asl
eep, to keep up appearances I wish to take a meal,” I explained.

  “According to your own internal clock it is still today, though we have flown across the globe and it would be nearly 5 am at our next stop,” he said.

  “How is it then the middle of the night?” I asked.

  “Time zones are a strange thing to get used to. The universal time we are using is from the hangar in Plato. Currently it is almost 5pm there. However, to split the difference I described the time as from the last place we left. In Pakistan it is 2am now,” he explained, all the while looking into the distance.

  “Just tell me time by the ships clock. If that is based on Plato I can deal with that,” I shook my head. These Adams seemed less Athene, and more something else. “Now what shall we eat?” I continued.

  “That would be up to you. I have no preferences as this Adam has never eaten,” he said.

  “Don't you also have Athene's memories as well?” I asked.

  “Of course, but while her memories dominate the decision making process, my personality is that of the last Adam we took control of. Would you like something from Pakistan for a meal then?” he asked.

  “Uh, I'm not sure if that would be something I would enjoy. I'm more of a sweet breakfast type of person,” I countered.

  “There are several things to choose that would be sweet, but you do not have to partake of anything from Pakistan,” he said.

  “How about some pancakes then? Sweet maple syrup and a thick pat of butter melted across their surface?” I asked.

  “If that is your wish. One moment while I rouse Athene from her exertions.” he said, and then took on a far away look.

  “I see you have decided to try to eat again Michael. And you seem not to be adventurous enough to dine on cuisine other than what you are familiar with,” Athene spoke.

  “I'm just not in the mood for adventures when I first wake up Athene,” I chided.

  “Is it an adventure when you come to no harm? Very well, pancakes it is,” she said as a stack of four pancakes appeared in front of Adam and then myself.

  They were already dripping with butter and syrup. The melted mixture was too much for the layers of cooked batter and began to pool around the mound nearly sloshing off the plate when I grabbed a fork to begin eating. Taking a small bite all I could taste was the maple and butter flavored concoction from the soaked pile.