Chapter 43: Jak
No! No, no, no! Jak’s hands pressed against his temples as if he would crush the invader out of his head. It was all wrong! They had to—yes, both himself and that other creature inside him—they had to stop Toko and the God Core interface. For the first time, Jak found himself united with the strangeness, that piece of what Kamura called a Selok. They were separate and they were one, but Jak was in control. He sensed that the Selok wanted to be free of the God Core’s control just as much as he did. But fighting against that alien interface brought a return of the icy pain in his head.
He felt Tessa shake him, “Jak, what’s the matter?”
Warm arms around him, a scent of perfume; he was still leaning against Tessa. Teeth clenched, eyes closed against the pain in his head, Jak tried to stand. He felt Tessa stagger as she took his weight. No, don’t crush her! He grabbed the edge of the railing near him and they both slowly slid down until they sprawled on the cold tiles.
“Jak!”
“Can’t talk now.”
Cold sweat dripped down his face. He couldn’t get a deep breath. He felt the God Core pushing at his mind, crushing him. It was just like the first time, when the thing inside the Regent and Bolan had attacked him. Toko was trying to eat him. Jak forced himself to meet that other mind. But it wasn’t Toko he found; it was Toko’s omniphage. It had already absorbed the sentient bacteria that controlled the Regent’s body, now it wanted to control Jak and the Selok within him as well. Then there’d be more, Jak realized. What had been a weak, dormant form of the Selok inside Toko was now awake, aware, and thanks to the interface, able to take as many bodies as it wanted.
He would not allow that to happen. Not to him and, more important, not to Tessa. He felt his own version strangeness inside him, pushing him, no helping him, as he fought the interface-enhanced Selok that had taken over the bodies of Toko and the Regent. Panting, Jak leaned his head against Tessa’s soft shoulder as he struggled for control of his own mind and body.
He heard the moans and cries from the people all around him as more and more of the helpless human spectators were swept up in the battle. He had to stop this. But if he let his own Selok absorb the one inside Toko, would he just be replacing one alien devourer with another? No, what he needed to do was shut down the interface. Without the God Core, Toko’s Selok would once again be dormant, maybe even useful to the boy. But how could he shut down something that he’d seen flow into Toko’s body? Smash in his head, the way Tessa had smashed Bolon? He didn’t want to kill the boy. And he wasn’t sure he could even reach him. Control over his own body kept slipping away, as if he were made of sand and Toko’s Selok were a wind blowing him into nothing.
What good was the strength the strangeness gave him now? What good his ability to heal faster than normal? This wasn’t the kind of fight Jak was used to; this was a battle of the mind. Again, Jak felt the pressure from the creature inside him, a sense of pushing—this way. Not words, just a feeling; but it was all he had to work with. It was as if the creature was trying to show him a feeling, teach him to hear a color, or touch an idea. Jak felt his mind moving in ways he’d never imagined. With a sense of contact that was almost physical, he reached the goal. Was this the God Core? It was completely alien, with the shape of an idea, the color of an equation, but viewed through the perceptions of his internal Selok, it made sense. If he just willed here, and thought there, he could adjust it. To shut it down completely would kill Toko and probably many of those now linked to him. Best to just send it back to dormant mode, give Toko control of his own mind and body, of his own world. Jak saw with invisible hands, pushed with invisible fingers, and the pain in his head began to recede. He took a deep breath. Then gulped in still more air, gasping as if the effort had been physical.
He gasped and doubled over again as the lightning bolt of pain returned to his head. It was coming from inside him this time, from the outraged, furious force of his own Selok. It wanted the interface. It wanted the interface. It wanted life. It wanted power! Jak felt it tearing at the foundations of his mind, at his will. The bottomless pool of memories seemed to spread around him. He was falling into it again, loosing himself.
That would not happen! Not again. He was stronger now. Been there, done that, not doing it again. With an effort of will that sent agony through his whole body, Jak pulled himself back from the sea of memories. He grabbed? Wrapped? Pulled? Took control of the Selok mind. For the first time, Jak took control of the strangeness. There was a silent explosion within him, and suddenly there was only one being in his body. Jak gasped, gulping huge breaths of air, as if he’d been running for miles. Someone was calling his name. He opened his eyes, and Tessa’s beautiful face swam into view. Both her hands clutched the cloth of his tunic, and she shook him as if she were trying to shake him back into her reality.
“Jak! Say something! Say anything!”
He smiled and before he kissed her, he said the one thing that really mattered.
“Tessa, I love you.”
Epilogue: Jak
The little Morgan-Haruka was a gem. Small, tough, beautifully made; the ship reminded him of Tessa. They already had their first cargo loaded in the hold. It was worm crap, but it was still a cargo. Family Mobutu wanted it; they’d deliver it. They’d returned to Shadriss right after they picked up the Dayside. Kumara and Toko—Jak couldn’t think of the boy as Luan n’Chall—had selected enough Selok artifacts to keep Family Mobutu’s linguists busy for years translating the glyphs of the worms. The God Core wasn’t among them, though. It appeared that particular piece of alien technology had become a permanent part of the new Overlord of Shadriss, poor kid. At least Jak had managed to return it and the Selok within Toko to dormant form.
It was just that he was feeling a little strange about the whole adventure now that they were on their way. Still, they had their ship, and they had their cargo. And he and Tessa were never, ever under any circumstances going to return to Shadriss.
Once on Terra, they’d exchange the artifacts for a cargo of medical supplies that Kamura wanted delivered to one of the far outlying planets. The cargo was too small for Family Mobutu’s trading ships, the drop too remote to interest them, but it was perfect for the Dayside.
Twenty more hours, and they’d have completed their first transaction. They were well on their way to their new life together, and it was good. In their cabin, holding Tessa in his arms, Jak felt a contentment that he’d once thought impossible.
"We made it, babe," he murmured into her hair. "We’re alive. We have our ship."
"Pretty incredible," Tessa agreed with a sigh. "We even have our first cargo."
Jak laughed. "Worm crap. Never thought I’d be hauling a cargo bay full of that stuff around."
"It’s what Grandmother Mobutu wants."
Still, Jak would be glad to be rid of their current cargo. He hadn’t said anything to Tessa, but being around that much of the worms’ work made his skin crawl. Tessa stirred, lifting her head from his shoulder. They’d just made love but the movement of her skin on his still sent shivers of pleasure through him.
"It’s so strange," she murmured, her hand a warm caress on his bare shoulder. "It’s like I can sense where you are, tell what you’re feeling."
And that’s when the most unwelcome idea he’d ever had came to him. Jak drew in a deep shaky breath. He remembered how Bolon had tossed Tessa around on the barge and into the river, but she’d been only bruised. He remembered how she’d survived the trip through the Waste with nothing worse than raging thirst and dust reddened eyes. He remembered how he’d thought her dead, there in the Black Palace, when she’d lain broken and pale on cracked green tiles.
It didn’t mean anything. Tessa was stronger than she looked, and she’d been lucky. Of course, she was aware of him, as he was aware of her. They were in love. He hadn’t contaminated Tessa with the
strangeness, with the Selok omniphage within him. It was only love.
Wasn’t it?
"Jak, what’s wrong?"
"Sweetheart, we need to talk."
THE END
*****
About the Author
I've been a writer for most of my life, beginning with illustrated stories in grade school, and continuing with works in the science-fiction, fantasy, and horror genres. I live in Seattle with my cat, Baby, who frequently puts paw to keyboard to help with the story.
Thank you for reading my story. I hope you enjoyed it, and that you will take the time to write a review.
Claudette
January 2011
Omniphage Invasion Page 43
