The Omega Project

by Steve Alten

  “Andria, I used the rest of the water hemlock on those arrows. How the hell do you expect us to stop the octopeds without it?”

  “One arrow each to their skulls should do the trick.”

  Monique rolled her eyes at Andria’s bravado. “We’ve been at this forty-seven months and you’ve yet to come close to a nontoxin kill.”

  “Forty-seven months?” I gasped. “You ladies have been awake almost four years and this is all you have to show for it?”

  “We’re alive,” Bella said, shooting me a harsh look.

  “Ike, you have no idea what we’ve had to endure.”

  “Now’s not the time,” snapped Monique. “Lara, take the northwest post, Bella — the southeast. Andria, you and lover boy get some sleep, you and I will relieve the ladies at dawn.”

  Lara and Bella crossed the main room, each ascending a bamboo ladder that led to a loft and what I assumed was a sentry post on the roof.

  “Come on, Ike,” Andria said.

  The farmhouse was essentially a two-thousand-square-foot rectangular chamber illuminated by oil lamps. Semiprivate enclosures were set off in each corner, partitioned by what appeared to be bison hides dangling from the rafters. A large fireplace occupied the wall opposite the front door, a food prep area close by. Like the walls, the floor was limestone and shale, set in mortar.

  I followed Andie to the west corner of the house where she pulled back an animal skin, revealing the inner sanctum of her private sanctuary, a ten-by-twelve-foot space, lit by a single candle.

  “Give me your clothes, I’ll wring them out and dry them by the fire.”

  I obeyed, then waited inside the enclosure, away from Monique’s prying eyes.

  The two corner stone walls were covered with trophies from Andria’s hunts. There was a piranhalike fish jaw and a set of clawed hooves and an assortment of sharp animal teeth hanging from vine necklaces. Most of the floor space was occupied by her bed, the mattress being a foot-high pile of animal skins, the top quilt — a bear skin, its silky soft fur thick and reddish gray, unusual coloring for a bear.

  “You killed that thing?” I asked as she returned.

  Andria’s eyes glistened in the candlelight as she stared hungrily at my body. “It looks more impressive than it was. Three arrows, dipped in hemlock. The poison paralyzes the central nervous system within minutes. I shot it from the roof of the farmhouse; the bastard killed two of our nicest alpaca.”

  “Amazing how a grizzly could end up on this continent.”

  “Oh, this creature wasn’t a bear. Believe it or not, it was rodent. When it stood on its hind legs it was easily nine feet tall. Nasty fangs, plus it had a long tail that ended in a barbed hook. I cut the disgusting thing off when I skinned it. But the fur’s nice and soft.”

  She allowed the wool covering to slide away from her body, then lay down naked on the bed. “Will you make a baby with me now?”

  “Andie, why do you suddenly want to be pregnant?”

  “I thought it was what you wanted?”

  “Yeah … back in Florida, before all this happened. You really want to raise a child here? Among giant rats and land squids?”

  “We need to repopulate the planet. It’s what God wants.”

  Boy, if there’s two subjects that can just ruin the moment …

  “Andie, who told you God wants you to repopulate the planet?”

  “Don’t be an asshole, Ike. God told us when He spared our lives. When He brought you to me. Do you really want to leave the Earth to these murderous creatures?” Sitting up, she knelt on all fours, doggy-style. “Which position is best to conceive a girl? Back or front?”

  God, give me strength …

  “Andie, you sound like a character straight out of a bad sci-fi movie.”

  “Well, excuse me! I only asked because I thought that microchip in that micro brain of yours would know. But hey, if you don’t want me, maybe you’d prefer Lara, she obviously wants you.”

  “I don’t want Lara or Dharma, or anyone else for that matter. I just want you.”

  She turned to face me, her gaze harsh and penetrating. “Dharma? Why did you say Dharma?”

  Oops. ABE, help!

  BACK ON OCEANUS … YOU SEEMED LIKE YOU WERE JEALOUS OF LARA AND DHARMA.

  “Back on Oceanus … you seemed like you were jealous of Lara and Dharma.”

  “Maybe I was.” Her expression softened. “Forget the baby for now. Come to bed and snuggle with me.” Sliding beneath the fur quilt, she beckoned me with tantalizing bait.

  Who was I to argue with God?

  * * *

  A full bladder forced me awake. ABE’s chronometer greeted me with the time—11:07 A.M. Andria was gone, but she had left my clothes, dry and ironed with a hot stone — her most domestic act in the entire span of our relationship. I dressed quickly, wondering where the Omega women relieved themselves.

  Lara was cooking eggs on a flat stone. “Good morning, sleepyhead. Hungry?”

  “Yes, but I need to use the bathroom. Is there a bathroom?”

  “Exit the front door and turn left, you’ll see the outhouse. Don’t worry, it’s safe. Monique spotted the three octopeds last night nesting in a tree close by. Andria and Bella are setting a trap.”

  “A trap … uh, that’s great.”

  Unbolting the door, I hustled outside and located the outhouse — essentially a closet-size wooden frame over a hole in the ground, walled in by animal skins. I relieved myself, then realized I was being watched.

  Lara backed away from the gap between two leather hides as I pushed my way out of the privacy enclosure. “Sorry, Ike. I just wanted to let you know we have a shower if you need to use it.” She pointed to a rain barrel situated atop a wooden platform, a hose taken from one of the mini-subs serving as the showerhead. “It rained last night, so there should be plenty of water.”

  “Thanks. Think I’ll just take a quick look around, if that’s okay.”

  “Not too long, I don’t want your eggs to get cold. Come on, I’ll show you what we’ve accomplished in the last four years.”

  She led me around the back of the stone building, my eyes widening. Spread out before me were acres of crops, sandwiching a garden that rivaled the arboretum on Oceanus. Lara punched me playfully on the shoulder. “Not bad for a bunch of women, huh?”

  They had selected their location well, situating the farm in the middle of a valley of grassland, surrounded by a dark outline of forests. The valley’s slight decline in elevation helped channel rainwater to the crops. The farmhouse foundation was raised several feet to protect against flooding.

  We headed for the gated entrance of the garden, which was surrounded by a seven-foot hedge composed of the same needle-sharp thickets that were posted around the cattle pasture.

  “Thank God for Bella. She must have discovered a new vegetable or herb every day during the first three months when we arrived here. Then the octopeds found us, and it became too dangerous to explore the forests.”

  “Lara, how do you feel about killing these ceph … these land squid?”

  “Better them than us.”

  “I’m surprised to hear you say that, after working so closely with Oscar and Sophia.”

  “Who?”

  “The two Megaleledone setebos you brought on board Oceanus. You know? The octopus species ‘that never left home.’”

  “Right, Oscar and Sophia … it’s been so long I completely forgot. Ike, Oscar and Sophia were docile pets, these creatures are fiends. Our first summer here, they destroyed Bella’s garden and most of our food supply. They could have killed us at any time, only they wanted to make us suffer first.” She pointed to a grass-covered hill set behind the southeast corner of the farmhouse. “We keep everything underground now — seed stock, feed for the livestock, plus animal oils for the lanterns.”

  “You built that?”

  “The depression was already there, part of a dried-up riverbed. We lined it with stone and mortar, then framed
the hill using tree limbs and vines. Once the sod took root the shelter really solidified. When the summer wind season hits, it’s the safest place to be.”

  “Where are the three octopeds?”

  Handing me a palm-size pair of binoculars, she pointed south to a cluster of oak trees about two hundred yards away. Catching movement, I spotted Monique and Bella circling east and west respectively, the two women moving steadily yet clumsily through the tall grass. I knew Andie was close, but the huntress would not be seen.

  “Enough. Your breakfast is getting cold.” Snatching the glasses from my hand, Lara led me inside by my elbow.

  “Brown eggs?” I stared at the steaming concoction served on the plate-size leaf and felt ill.

  “They’re lizard eggs, now eat them; you need the protein.” Picking a glob up with her fingers, she guided the food into my mouth.

  I choked the scrambled yolks down, my mind still on Oscar — Lara’s mind obviously on something else. “We’re synchronized, you know.”

  “Who’s synchronized?”

  “Andie, Bella, and me. Not Monique, of course. Her menstrual cycle stopped months ago.”

  “You’re trying to tell me you’re ovulating.”

  “God sent you to us for a reason, Ike. Three beautiful women … you’re a lucky man.”

  ABE retrieved an excerpt of my conversation with Kyle Graulus back on Oceanus: “OMEGA DREAMS ARE THE MOST VIVID DREAMS YOU CAN IMAGINE. DURING MY SECOND STASIS, I FELL IN LOVE WITH A BEAUTIFUL SOUTH AFRICAN WOMAN. WE WERE MARRIED AND RAISED A FAMILY. SHE WAS PREGNANT WITH MY SECOND CHILD WHEN I WAS AWAKENED. I MISS MY OMEGA FAMILY, I AM HOPING THEY WILL BE WAITING FOR ME WHEN I RETURN.”

  Lara hugged me from behind, rubbing her greasy fingers over my lap.

  “Lara, I’m sorry, this isn’t right. What if Andria were to come in?”

  “Ike, whose idea do you think it was to leave us alone together? We already agreed that you’ll go to bed each night with Andria, but you’ll father all three of our families, just like they did during biblical times. Just think, your seed will birth a new nation.”

  I had to smile. Like it or not, Jason Sloan had cast me in a polygamist’s version of Little House on the Prairie.

  I stood, Lara leading me to her corner suite, the lizard egg aphrodisiac heating the circulation in my loins like a shot of Viagra.

  * * *

  ABE … time?

  LOCAL TIME IS 4:17 P.M.

  Hungover and groggy, I rolled out from Lara’s snuggle, only to discover the aftereffects of breakfast still lingering.

  WARNING: EISENBRAUN SEX GLANDS ARE OVERDILATED AND SWOLLEN.

  Reset my system before I poke myself in the eye. Climbing out of bed, I grabbed my sweat suit and running shoes, then shuffled, butt-naked, outside to shower.

  A brisk rainwater drenching woke me up while ABE recirculated my pooled blood to my more vital organs. Hungry, I headed for the garden, hoping to find something more nourishing to eat.

  Bella Maharaj had returned. The botanist was using a sharp piece of shale to prune what appeared to be a citrus tree, its baseball-size fruit a rich purple color.

  “Any chance of sampling some of that?

  She turned, staring at me with her indigo eyes. “I assume you are referring to the mangosteen.” She plucked one of the fruits, then sliced it in half, revealing its succulent white meat inside. “This is a hybrid of a popular specimen found in Thailand. Boil the peel in water and the elixir will alleviate an upset stomach, diarrhea, and dysentery.”

  “Better give me a double.” I glanced in the direction of the cluster of oak trees along the southern rise. “Where’s Andria and Monique?”

  “I prefer not to think about it.”

  My heart raced. “They caught the three creatures?”

  “Killed one, caught two. Listen…”

  A long, sullen wail bled across the valley, torturing my soul.

  Bella shook her head. “Before the night is done, all three will be dead.” Returning the tool to its homemade leather sheath, she offered me a wry smile. “So then, I suppose we are to couple.”

  “Pencil me in for later!” Fleeing the garden, I cut through a field ripe with corn, the crop changing to a pear-shaped red squash by the time I reached the plateau. Panting heavily, I hurried through the tall grass, homing in on the sounds of the tormented creature.

  Approaching the oak trees, I saw Monique. Drenched in sweat, my former supervisor was laboring to drag something heavy through the grass using a vine looped over her shoulder — the flattened path behind her streaked blue with cephaloped blood.

  “Eisenbraun, good, you can earn your supper by dragging this monster back to the farm.”

  Pushing her aside, I stood over the carcass of the dead creature — a young adult male — its tentacles bound, an arrow piercing its skull. The women had sliced off its eye shafts, torturing the poor beast before it had perished.

  “Where’s Andria?” I growled, my body trembling.

  “Follow the blood, you’ll find her. Better toughen up, Eisenbrains, this place eats schoolgirls like you for breakfast.”

  Ignoring the impulse to beat the masochism out of the sadist, I hurried up the ridge, the blood trail leading me through a small grove of trees — Oscar’s desperate pan flute exhalation sending me into an all-out sprint.

  My former cephaloped companion was hanging upside-down from a lower tree limb, the squid’s tentacles bound in a wire noose. Andria stood at eye level, torturing the poor creature, tracing an X in its dangling bulbous head with the sharp tip of her arrow. The third member of Oscar’s trio — another young male — was splayed by her feet, dead.

  “Andria, stop!”

  She turned to face me, her eyes wide and dancing as she licked the blue blood from the arrowhead. “Try some, Ike. It’s better than sex.”

  Snatching the arrow from her hand, I snapped it in half over my knee. “Cut him down.”

  “You’re crazy.”

  My eyes traced the wire holding Oscar from the limb of the oak down around the base of the tree trunk. Locating a stick, I shoved the narrower end inside the loop, attempting to snap the wire free.

  “Ike, what are you doing? Baby, these things want us dead.”

  “Dream or no dream, I am not going to allow you to torture him.”

  I never heard Monique, only the air whistling in my ear and the sickening craaaack as the back of my skull absorbed the impact from the oak baton.

  27

  After almost 15 years of work and $40 million, a team of scientists at the J. Craig Venter Institute says they have succeeded in creating the first living organism with a completely synthetic genome. This advance could be proof that genomes designed in a computer and assembled in a lab can function in a donor cell, eventually reproducing fully functional living creatures, that is, artificial life.

  — Christian Science Monitor, May 21, 2010

  When I came to, it was night and I was lying on my back. An invisible elephant sat on my chest, pinning my body to a hard, flat reverberating surface. I felt like a goldfish out of water, each breath a harsh gasp, each exhalation threatening to crush my rib cage.

  We were moving. I could tell we were moving from the passing cloud formations and the wind whipping against my sweat suit.

  ABE … do something!

  UNABLE TO COMPENSATE. THE PLATFORM TRANSPORTING ROBERT EISENBRAUN IS EMITTING AN ELECTROMAGNETIC PULSE IN EXCESS OF 32.1740 FEET PER SECOND SQUARED, EFFECTIVELY NEUTRALIZING THE EARTH’S GRAVITY. ACCELERATION AT ALTITUDE CREATES A GRAVITATIONAL BURBLE, PRODUCING FORCES THREE TIMES THOSE OF STANDARD GRAVITY. THESE G-FORCES ARE BEING USED TO PIN ROBERT EISENBRAUN TO THE PLATFORM SURFACE.

  Fighting to turn my head, I glanced to the left and saw Oscar. The cephaloped appeared to be alive, curled up on an egg-shaped acrylic pod anchored to the metallic platform.

  What is the platform’s power source?

  THE POWER SOURCE IS THE PLATFORM’S PHOTOVOLTAIC CELL, AUGMENTED BY A SMALL A
NEUTRONIC FUSION REACTOR LOCATED BENEATH THE PLATFORM BY THE REAR COUPLING.

  Fusion? Using what elements?

  DEUTERIUM AND HELIUM-3.

  Can it be shut down?

  THE UNIT CAN ONLY BE SHUT DOWN BY ITS TRANSHUMAN OPERATOR.

  Forcing my head to the right as far as I could, I stared at a life-form so bizarre it rendered the other Omega dream elements nothing more than a day at the local zoo.

  The term “transhuman” was first coined in 1927 by biologist Julian Huxley, who theorized that at some point in the future the human species could improve upon its genetic design by integrating advanced technology into the physical body in order for man to transcend the limitations of life. In a sense, ABE rendered me transhuman, though I was light-years from the medical science that yielded the being before me.

  The transhuman that ABE was referring to was the platform — part human, part machine, with the human element being the head, arms, and upper torso of a woman embedded into the bow of the transport like a masthead.

  She was hairless and as pale as moonlight, and where her eyes should have been there were only white lenses. Still, there was no doubt she had been cultivated from Andria’s DNA.

  ABE, is communication possible?

  ROBERT EISENBRAUN IS IN PHYSICAL CONTACT WITH THE SUBJECT, THEREFORE COMMUNICATION THROUGH THOUGHT ENERGY IS POSSIBLE.

  Andie? It’s me … Ike.

  No response.

  Perhaps you don’t recognize—

  I KNOW WHO YOU ARE. Her voice echoed in my mind, the tone and inflection identical to that of my fiancée.

  Where are you taking us?

  OUR DESTINATION IS THE HOLY CITY.

  That’s very exciting. Could you ease up on the g-force so I can breathe?

  THE CREATOR DOES NOT WISH IT.

  I’m sure the Creator wouldn’t mind. Please. I have a concussion, the g-forces could lead to a fatal blood clot. Would the Creator approve of my death before we arrived at the Holy City?

  The invisible elephant mercifully parted, allowing me to breathe normally again. Sitting up, I looked out over the platform’s edge where thick distortion waves curled the air. Farther out, I could see the treetops, allowing ABE to calculate our altitude at 1,700 feet, our air speed at 147 knots.