“An excellent idea,” says the Head. She gestures toward the door behind her. “Go. Reunification moves fast, so we must move faster if we are going to stay on top of them and predict their every move before they make it.”
Konoa nods and stands up from his chair. He then dashes around the table toward the door, which he opens and disappears through. He then slams the door shut, which seems unnecessary to me, although I say nothing about it.
“What about us, ma'am?” says Nacina, gesturing at herself, Rina, and Rozan. “Should we go and help Konoa recruit as many able-bodied agents as possible?”
“No,” says the Head, shaking her head. “I have different plans for you three. Konoa can do this job on his own.”
“Then what do you want us to do?” says Rozan, who apparently is unable to stay silent. “Sit here and be quiet little agents, like children told to sit here by their mommy?”
“Of course not,” says the Head. “Rina, I need you to go and ensure that all of the witches and wizards have their skyras rings and are ready to use them at a moment's notice.”
Rina nods, and the next instant she's gone, leaving behind no sign at all that she had been sitting there moments ago. I do not even sense her presence anymore, though I suspect that is due to the Head's own overwhelming skyras energy levels completely eclipsing the levels of everyone else.
“As for you two, go and help prepare the bodies of the deceased agents for the mass burial,” says the Head. “We will not be able to give them a proper burial at the moment due to the current situation, but at least make sure that all of the bodies are gathered up, taken to the morgue, and identified so we know exactly who we lost.”
“Yes, ma'am,” says Nacina as she stands up. “Come on, Rozan.”
Rozan does not appear happy about this, but he does stand up and walk with Nacina to the door. Once they are gone, it is now just the Head and me, who is still sitting on her chair with her head lowered, as if she is thinking.
I do not want to stand around here and do nothing, even though boredom is not as much of a problem for me as it is for organics. But I cannot leave, either, as the Head has already said that she wants to keep me here, where she can keep an eye on me.
But perhaps this is not as bad as it appears. By speaking with the Head, I might be able to learn more about the Foundation and Reunification. If I cannot leave this place, then I can at least learn more about these two organizations so I can understand better what is going on here, and possibly collect information for the Database once I return to Xeeo. Then again, the Head doesn't look like she is in the mood to tell me anything.
Without warning, the Head raises her head and looks at me with stern eyes. She seems displeased with me, although why, I do not know. After all, I have not done anything to bother her. Maybe I unintentionally offended her somehow.
Then the Head says, “J997, what do you think about this recent series of events?”
I do not know why she asks that question. I doubt she sincerely wants to know my opinion, considering how she does not know me well at all, but if I refuse to answer her question, then I might anger her. If I actually knew her or had information on her in the mobile Database, it would be a lot easier to know what to say.
Deciding that answering her question is better than not, I say, “It is all very confusing. When I came to Dela a couple of days ago, I did not think I would end up in a place like this. I thought I would only need to help the Knights of Se-Dela arrest Jornan ah Kona and bring her before the court of law to be judged for her crimes.”
“I understand,” says the Head. “Even I do not completely understand what is going on here. Reunification has rarely directly attacked us like this. It disturbs me more than I have been disturbed in many years. It makes me question myself.”
As the Head speaks, I do a brief scan of her body, something I have not been able to do thanks to the hurried-ness of the last few hours, in order to understand her biology better. She appears human on the surface, but the immense amount of skyras energy she radiates, as well as her oddly-swollen back, make me doubt that she is in any way mortal.
But despite my best efforts, my scan comes up incomplete. Apparently my scanner is unable to tell me anything about her, aside from her skyras energy levels. Perhaps she has some kind of device she is using to block my scanner or maybe it is the skyras energy itself blocking my scan.
“I know you just attempted to scan me, J997,” says the Head, snapping me out of my thoughts. “I can tell. You robots are not very hard to figure out.”
“I only scanned you to find out what you are,” I say; there is no reason for me to lie, so I do not. “You appear human, but at the same time, different.”
“I know how unusual I am,” says the Head. “But I won't let you find out what I am just yet. That is information you do not need to know at the moment, especially because not even my agents know my true nature.”
“Are you a genetically-modified human?” I ask. “Or did you use Delanian magic to change you?”
The Head shakes her head. “Neither, but that is where I will leave it for now. You know how tight-lipped we Foundation agents are about our secrets.”
“I know,” I say. “But I still do not like not knowing what you are. Ignorance has caused more harm in the two worlds than anything else in the world.”
“I would say that well-intentioned extremism has caused more harm than anything ignorance has ever done,” says the Head. “But I am not in a mood to discuss complicated and lengthy philosophical issues with you. I have something more important for you to do. Would you like to know what that is?”
“Of course,” I say. “Ever since you sent out your agents, I have wondered why you kept me here. Do you have a mission for me to accomplish?”
“No,” says the Head, shaking her head. “As you are not an agent of the Foundation, I have no missions for you to take. Instead, I am going to have you help me in other ways.”
I fold my arms over my chest. “Other ways? What might those 'other ways' be?”
The Head chuckles, which makes no sense to me, because I did not make any jokes this time. “You remind me of another robot I once knew years ago. I was just chuckling at the resemblance between you and him. And I thank you for it, because it has been a long time since I've been able to chuckle about anything.”
I still do not see what is so humorous about any similarities between me and this other robot she once knew, but I decide not to ask. On the other hand, if I can find out what is so humorous about it, then maybe that will help me tell better jokes.
Before I can ask for further clarification, the Head says, “Now I know I said I wanted to keep you here in the base so that you do not compromise our secrecy, but there are still ways you can help us. Of course, I won't tell you too much detail about these ways, seeing as you are not an agent, but I will give you just enough information to make you useful.”
“I dislike going into any situation without complete knowledge of it,” I say. “It is unwise to enter a situation without knowing all of the facts.”
The Head frowns. “I expected that, though I must say, the robot I once knew would have agreed without question. I suppose the two of you are not quite the same after all.”
“I will consider helping you if you tell me what you need or want me to do,” I say. “As it is, you have been speaking very vaguely about all of it. This makes me suspect that you want me to do something that is illegal and unlawful.”
“It is nothing of the sort,” says the Head. “While the Foundation does operate outside of the law to achieve our goals, what I am going to have you do is perfectly legal under Delanian and Xeeonite laws.”
“Are you certain of that?” I ask. “You do not seem like a lawyer to me.”
“I am certain of it,” says the Head, nodding. “Now, do you want to hear my offer or not?”
“Very well,” I say. “I am listening.”
The Head laces her fingers together, a thoughtf
ul look on her face. She appears to be thinking about what to say to me, which means she is deciding what information to share with me and what not to. If I had telepathy, I would be able to read her mind, but J bots were not designed with the ability to read non-mechanical minds, so I must wait for her to speak in order to find out what she is thinking.
Then she looks at me with a more focused look and says, “All right. I want you to go down and help the other agents examine the corpses of the lizard creatures that attacked earlier. You can use your scanning technology to help us better understand how these creatures are put together and search for any weaknesses in them that we may be unaware of.”
That sounds like a simple, reasonable request. I, too, am interested in learning more about these creatures, which, based on the evidence I have gathered so far, are not natural creatures from Dela or Xeeo. Mostly, I want to find out more about them so I can put their information in the Database when I return to Xeeo in order that the Database will continue to be the most perfect and up-to-date record of every species on both worlds.
On the other hand, the Head has already said that she is not going to give me all of the information about the job she wants me to do. That means she has her own hidden agenda for why she wants me to examine these creatures and understand their genetic makeup, although what it is I do not know. The most likely explanation is that she wants to know more about them so the Foundation can fight them more effectively in the future; however, she likely has other reasons for doing this, too, and perhaps not noble or good-intentioned reasons, either.
I detest helping people who refuse to share their true intentions with me, but the only other alternative, it seems to me, is to remain here as a virtual prisoner while the Foundation battles against the mysterious Reunification organization. At least if I accept her offer I stand a chance of learning information that will help to complete the Database's records, if nothing else.
So I nod and say, “All right. I will do as you ask. I will not ask you further about why you want me to do it, but I will do it nonetheless.”
“That is good to hear,” says the Head. “Your cooperation is much appreciated. Now, it's time to send you to the—”
The Head ceases speaking. She looks around, like she thinks someone might be eavesdropping on our conversation, although my optics and sensors alike confirm that we are the only two beings in this room.
“Head?” I say. “What is the problem? Did you hear something? If so, what was it?”
The Head stands up from her chair with a serious look on her face. She looks this way and that, but again I do not see what she thinks she sees or hears. I wonder if this is some sort of test on her part, although what she is testing me on, I do not know.
Finally, however, the Head stops looking around and then looks at me. A frown crosses her thin lips and her skin seems unusually pale, as though she is afraid of something.
“What?” I say. “I do not know what you think you hear, but you and I are the only two beings in this room.”
“I know we are alone in this room,” says the Head, although her voice is almost a whisper now. “Do you sense that?”
I check my skyras sensors, but aside from the Head's unusually large skyras levels, I sense nothing out of the ordinary.
“No,” I say. “What do you sense?”
The Head gulps. She jumps off her chair, lands on the ground gracefully, and then stands up.
She looks at me again, only this time, she says, “I sense an army about to batter down the doors of this very base. And if we are not fast, then they will succeed, and we will be destroyed.”
***
Chapter 8
Before I can ask what army she is referring to, the Head says, “You stay here. I don't want to lose you in the battle that is probably already starting below.”
“Hold on,” I say, holding out a hand toward her. “What is this army that you speak of? Is it from Reunification? More of those lizard creatures, perhaps?”
“Probably,” says the Head. She puts one hand on her forehead and frowns. “But I can't tell for certain. If you could feel it yourself, then you would understand why I want you to stay here. This army is too big and powerful to risk losing you to. That is why you must stay here.”
“But I am a J bot,” I say. “I can fight and take care of myself. My energy level is only at seventy-six percent now, after all, and I am still in good shape from the previous fight.”
“What about that hole in your chest?” says the Head, pointing at my chest. “The one that looks like one of those lizard creatures from earlier made it?”
I look down at my chest. The hole is still there and still needs to be looked at by a certified J bot technician, but I completely forgot about it until now.
“I will be fine,” I say, covering my hole with my hand. “It is not a debilitating wound; it is what you organics might call a 'flesh wound,' if I had flesh. I can still move and fight without trouble.”
“No,” says the Head. “Stay here. If the battle is successful, then I will be back shortly. Right now, I need to rally the surviving agents into whatever fighting force I can gather.”
In the blinking of an optic, the Head is gone, leaving me all alone in this room. Even so, I can still sense her skyras level, which is intriguing because she should probably be out of my range by now. Of course, her aura is fainter now, but the fact that I can feel it at all means that she is even stronger than my sensors indicate (although that could be because the Foundation agents altered my skyras sensors, of course).
I am now the only entity left in this room. I consider simply standing here and waiting for the Head's return, or the return of one of the other Foundation agents, but then I decide that this is the perfect opportunity to attempt to make an escape.
With no one to stop me, I dash over to the door and attempt to open it. Unfortunately, I soon discover that the door is still locked with skyras energy, even after I punch it as hard as I can, which fails to even create a dent in the door. The door looks normal, but the skyras energy protecting it must be reinforcing its strength.
I turn around, hoping to find another way out of here that I might have missed earlier. That seems doubtful, but I am aware that the Foundation has many secrets and I would not put it past them to have secret doors or rooms hidden in their base. Especially in this place, which appears to be an important meeting room, which would undoubtedly require a secret exit for members to escape through in the event of an attack like this one.
The only question is, how do I find these secret passageways, if they actually exist? I have no x-ray vision, after all, nor am I familiar enough with Delanian architecture to search for the telltale signs of hidden passages. The mobile Database has few articles on the subject, though that does not surprise me, seeing as the mobile Database does not contain articles on every obscure subject in the two worlds.
Therefore, if I am going to find out how to escape this place (and by this place, I do not mean merely this room, but the base in general, because I have no reason to stay around here any longer), then I must search by hand. That will take time, no doubt, but right now all I have is time, so it is not much of an issue for me.
I begin walking along the room's perimeter, my eyes scanning the bookshelves that curve with the room's walls. I do not recognize the titles of any of these books—Prophecy's End, Man of My Own Heart, The Tiller's Tale, Rise and Fall of the Old Gods—but they appear to be fiction titles, oddly enough. I compare their titles to the list of Delanian novels in the mobile Database, but I find no match for any of these titles. This makes me wonder just how far these Foundation agents are willing to go to keep their secrecy if even their own books apparently do not exist.
In any case, none of the book titles catch my interest or appear highly unusual, aside from not existing within the mobile Database. I consider the possibility that some of these books may be fakes, with their true nature being switches or levers used to open secret passageways, but the
re are so many books that I doubt it is worth my time to try each and every one in my attempt to find the fake ones.
Another thing I notice about these books is how old they appear. Their spines are worn and aged, their titles barely legible even to my sharp optics. I find it strange how the Head has apparently decided to keep all of these big, thick tomes rather than digitize them all and put them on a portable computer. I suppose it is the general Delanian aversion to Xeeonite technology at work here, which makes me wonder if the Head is a Delanian native herself.
That is when I notice a single piece of paper stuck between two particularly thick books. I almost miss it because it is so thin, but one of its corners pokes out, which makes me stop and reach for it to see if it might help me find a way out of here. I gently tug the paper out of the place between the two books and look down at it out of curiosity.
The paper is old and crinkly, with one of its corners bitten off, probably by some kind of rodent, although I am unable to identify what species of rodent exactly due to the odd shape of the bite mark. In addition, there is a strange, dried green liquid that looks like dried blood, although my scanner fails to match the green liquid with any known Delanian or Xeeonite species recorded in the mobile Database.
On the paper itself is an old, faded drawing. The drawing is so faded that even I, with my superior optics, am unable to make out all of its details in full. A quick scan reveals that its paint—like the green blood above—has no match in the mobile Database, so I cannot trace its paint to its source.
From what I can make out of the drawing itself, it shows a poorly-drawn young human female, not older than eight-years-old, sitting on a blanket in the middle of a green field, with curly blonde hair (although I do not know if that color is indeed green or if it is simply faded due to its age). Sitting next to the young human female is a robot similar in size, with two big lantern-like red eyes and what appears to be a bandanna tied around its neck. And on the robot's right is a young human male, close in age to the girl, with bright blue eyes.
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