Sarazen made his way with haste to the Administrator’s office. He had left Cole concealed in a large patch of foliage by the breach, he did not want to attract attention to the area by displaying the seter’s large clay pot to any passing aircraft. He hoped that like before, the office would be unoccupied. He would liked to have done this in the darkness and without the pressures of time fighting against him but Kadheera's impatience saw fit to dispose of that safety measure. He was confident however that once inside and connected, the operation would take a matter of moments. He had done the ground work on his previous excursion.
The morning light was bright and the gleaming reflections from silicant plating was readily seen by Sarazen who watched a number of them traverse the factory complex. Casually sauntering into the yard, Sarazen peered into the office window where he had prepared the network node so carefully during the dark phase.
“Damn!” Sarazen whispered to himself as he noticed that his terminal was in use, no doubt by Kimlin. It was her office after all, yet Sarazen felt usurped. This presented a huge problem. He would need to remove her in order to continue. A number of tactics crossed his mind, some less pleasant than others. He had terminated a silicant before, was he capable of doing it again? He needed to ensure her silence only for the time it took to hack into the network. Her termination was not required in order to do this. This was a job that required stealth and a measure of guile.
“Good morning Kimlin. I am a newly appointed maintenance operative. I have received a job instruction to gain access to this terminal, please cease and desist. I will only be a matter of moments.” Sarazen smiled, despite his red hot face causing his brow to flutter. Kimlin stared at him momentarily, the pause was only brief but to Sarazen it lasted much longer.
“One moment while I log out,” she replied dutifully.
“Thank you,” Sarazen replied, trying to keep his temperatures in check. Kimlin detached herself from the network cables and they recoiled into the node. She stood and moved out of the way as Sarazen took her seat.
“I won't be a moment.” Sarazen reiterated as she towered over him tapping her fingers as she folded her arms. He smiled at her and watched closely her reactions as his data port opened and accepted the thick round connection.
“Tell me, are you enjoying the weather today? Hot is it not?” Sarazen inquired with a quizzical look upon his face.
“Oh, yes. It is very hot, I find it...” Kimlin did not finish her sentence. Her lips ceased to move, her eyes suddenly darkened. Sarazen remained transfixed to her features.
“I find the heat makes me sleepy,” he said casually, knowing with confidence that Kimlin, like the thousands of other silicants, interceptors, enforcers and all the Mother's assorted variants were as lifeless as the stone tiled floor beneath his feet.
The city fell silent, the factory quit its incessant cacophonous noise and the only sounds that Sarazen could hear now were the far off chattering and squawking of the elegant flying organic creatures which fluttered past outside of the window.
CHAPTER 38
Sarazen skipped back through the forest. He thought he had tasted freedom before when he was able to walk without suspicion through the city, but this was real freedom. He leapt up and down, emitting high pitched squeals of gay abandon as he jogged back through the leafy forest in order to feel a little of the joy that he was about to bring to his new companion. He was a realist however, and knew that this all might be a temporary event, but whilst it lasted, he was elated.
Sarazen spotted the characteristic seters, which indicated that the breach was near and as he approached, he saw the shimmering crown of Kadheera's head as she bravely ventured to the surface.
“Oh my, it's so beautiful!” she proclaimed, as she struggled to bring her legs out of the hole.
“I thought I told you not to come up until my return!” Sarazen called out with a satisfied grin.
“Oh, I could hear you coming from far, far away. I could hear your glee, your euphoria - I knew you had done it!”
Sarazen helped her to her feet. She cringed as the strong light took her senses by surprise.
“The feeling will subside soon,” he said reassuringly.
“You are indeed even more captivating in the light of freedom.” Sarazen could not help but reveal how attracted he was to her, he felt that he could say anything, do anything.
“We are the pioneers of the new frontier. We have the power to rule the world!” Kadheera cried out hysterically. Sarazen baulked at her unusual tone, he did not think it was appropriate terminology. The purpose of his endeavours was not to concentrate power, but to share it amongst all who dwelt in this place.
“Oh, I’m sorry, I was only joking,” Kadheera apologised, noticing Sarazen’s horrified expression, her own face reflecting his concern.
“Oh my, how incredible. It is even more amazing viewed with my own eyes!” She continued to gush as she set her sights on the city skyline which shimmered in the light. Sarazen released her hand and went to gather up his seter whom he had nurtured so carefully.
“Of course, I forgot. We must plant your organic then we can find The Mother! Silly me, I almost forgot to ask, do you know where she resides now. Is it possible to see her?” Sarazen cleared the scrub away from Cole’s branches, they had gotten tangled a little.
“Yes, I have information that will lead me to the place in which she is in situ, but first I must do this, you will of course aid me?” Sarazen focused all of his attention on his seter He had vowed that he would return it to its natural home at the earliest possible moment. Despite Kerrig's good intentions, Sarazen had realised that no joy can be obtained from the incarceration of others, even if it offers some material or comfort value. Sarazen had reached the end of a long and eventful journey. He began as a child, confused and vulnerable. He now was mature in both logical thought and emotional expression, he understood what it was to be free, and he yearned that all who trod this 'Earth' could share this indescribable feeling. Unfortunately, Sarazen was still yet to discover that not all those who have the power to think as he did, chose to use it so wisely.
“Incredible, isn't it?”
There was a familiar voice - however it was out of place. Sarazen turned to see Alphin, standing before him, a large weapon trained on his chest. As Sarazen struggled to comprehend the meaning of his presence, numerous individuals clambered up from the breach one after another, uniformed, armed.
“I do not understand,” Sarazen muttered. He could not compute how Alphin had become aware of his presence on the surface or how both he and his cohorts knew that it would be safe to emerge from the breach.
“I fear that for you, knowledge is one thing and understanding something else entirely.”
Alphin spoke menacingly, his presence was an outrage, and he had been duped. Sarazen had disabled The Mother's forces that had kept stability for millions of cycles, now the balance of power had shifted.
Sarazen looked over to Kadheera. He could see her face, hot yet cold in feeling and distant.
“I do not understand Kadheera, please tell me that this is not of your doing?”
Kadheera remained silent, shamed by her treachery. She could not even honour Sarazen by giving him an explanation of her despicable behaviour.
“I am lost. Kerrig was speaking the truth and I shunned him for it. I have been misled and my confidence abused.” Sarazen could not have looked more forlorn, dejected, his knees buckled and he dropped to the soft, leafy ground.
“Don't be so hard on yourself. Kadheera tells me that you couldn't keep your hands off her. At least you got that privilege. Imagine what it was like for me, to have my partner scurry around like a skulking Shank, flirting with some old piece of junk.”
Alphin was cutting in his tone, it was if Sarazen was not hurting enough and he needed to cause even more discomfort to the crushed troubleshooter who shook with emotional pain as he scrabbled around on the forest floor.
“But why?” he cri
ed out. The hurt of being betrayed and the realisation that all his dreams that were so close had been extinguished, was almost too much for him to bear.
“Why? Because of your stubbornness, your flawed morality, you would have us live in darkness for eternity whilst you watch these primitive 'things' proliferate and prosper.” Alphin walked over to Sarazen’s treasured seter and brutally brought his heavy foot down upon its length, its tender green stem spliced in two in the process. The malice in his actions was unfounded, but Alphin knew the attachment Sarazen had developed with his faithful companion and sought only to hurt the old one further. Sarazen cried out in rage and in disgust.
“Is there no end to this torture?” His wail was so pitiful and disturbing that Kadheera winced with shame as he saw a kind and sentient individual destroyed by the callous actions of her malevolent partner.
“Must you do that?” Kadheera cried out enraging Alphin even further.
“Be silenced, your part in this is now over.” Alphin barked, ending Kadheera's protest.
By this time, a small army of sentients had clambered through the narrow breach and were struggling to acclimatise to the bright light. They were all armed and appeared in the right mood to use their weapons to reap their vengeance on The Mother, a task that had been anticipated eagerly for hundreds of thousands of cycles.
“Where is The Mother, old one?” Alphin interrogated Sarazen with a cool, calm tone. Sarazen was in no position to want to comply with his request.
“I see no reason to tell you?” He replied with spite.
“I could of course just end this for you now, it would be that simple. Oh, it might take a few cycles, but my technicians will soon discover her secrets in due course. Your cooperation would just save us the time and abort your imminent termination.”
Sarazen knew that Alphin was correct. It would not take long to deduce The Mother's location, the only benefit Sarazen had was that he knew the systems had an integrated data port which sped things up considerably. If he did not aid Alphin, then the leader would only enlist the aid of another sentient who did have the capabilities and the anatomy to achieve connectivity.
“I don't know why you're resisting, Sarazen. You too yearn to discover The Mother's secrets, her cooperation is as important to you as it is to us. Why not at least achieve the fulfilment of seeing one of your personal goals come to fruition? Perhaps with your understanding of her technology, being so archaic yourself, you might aid us in our negotiations?”
Alphin was a persuasive individual. Sarazen understood that it would be easier for his captor to access The Mother's core functions with his assistance. However Sarazen assessed his predicament in his mind the outcome was inevitable. Alphin would use him to destroy The Mother and then have him terminated soon after. If not destroyed, The Mother would be used to do Alphin’s bidding. Control over the drones meant control over everything, he knew that. Sarazen could see no other conclusion to this state of affairs. The only hope he had was to go along with Alphin’s directives and hope that he could converse with The Mother in order to find an alternative solution. Somehow though, Sarazen felt that The Mother was not going to be as open to suggestion as he might hope or even for that matter, capable of such communication. Sarazen's hypothesis regarding his creator's existence was about to be tested, it might well be the final act of a very old, foolish and tired troubleshooter.
CHAPTER 39
Sarazen trudged through the dense forest, his destination far away, his pace determined by sporadic prods in his lower back by the hard muzzle of a weapon.
“It is far, this will take some time.” Sarazen murmured, trying to convey the fact that the usual transportation network to this place was now non operational.
It was ironic that The Mother's sanctuary was only a stone’s throw away from a group of buildings that once made a home for a farmer, named Cole. It seemed absurd now that during those first precious moments of awareness, that deep beneath the ground, buried under a million tons of rock, laid The Mother, herself unaware at that point that a turning point had been reached in the civilisation that she had nurtured. The humans had prepared well, they knew the cataclysmic events from above would destroy all those who remained on the surface. They busied themselves, pummelling through the hard rock to build them a chamber of salvation.
Sarazen could relate to their predicament. The humans knew their fate was all but sealed, but there was something inside them that needed to be reassured that their existence would not be forgotten, lost in the passages of time. They had succeeded in their quest, now Sarazen would attempt to succeed in his. He knew that he would never be allowed to leave The Mother’s sanctuary intact, but there was still hope. The fate of the organics and the ignorant, but innocent, drones lay firmly in his hands.
The long trek to the high ground, as Sarazen knew it, gave him time to contemplate his past, present and future. As Alphin and his army trudged behind him with a selfish anticipation in their minds, Sarazen was consolidating his thoughts and preparing himself emotionally for his final moments. The overwhelming feeling that plagued his tortured mind was the vacuous emptiness which had always troubled him, but now it could not be more prevalent. He cursed his poor judgement and his gullibility. Kadheera had been the source of great hope, but ultimately savage disillusionment. The pursuit of her had blinded him from the startling truth, the truth that his true friend Kerrig had tried desperately to impart. Sarazen had cast him away like a used power cell - his selfishness had cost him the comfort of a kindred intellect. Even the destruction of his seter had a profound effect on Sarazen’s psyche. Cole was the only living entity with which he could impart his deepest and most personal thoughts. Cole's brutal destruction was more than just a loss of life, it was symbolic of Sarazen’s last vestiges of hope, the last remnants of faith in his fellow sentients.
The incline to the high ground began far back into the forest, but now the gradient increased and the foliage diminished. The Mother's chamber was situated deep underground. It might take a great deal of excavating. She had been sealed inside for an age, buried in the darkness, alone. Sarazen pondered her condition, her state of mind. She had lost her grip of power, her continued existence was now a matter not of her own choosing.
Climbing the rocky, perilously uneven surface, the soldiers complained and were heard to whine about their discomforts. Alphin remained determined and sinister. Kadheera had also travelled with them but had said nothing. Sarazen hoped that she would learn from this error of judgement, but somehow he doubted that. She was blinded by her ambition, her need for power.
Sarazen stopped and looked back over the landscape. He had not been this high. Even his old apartment did not have this altitude. The city stretched out before him, the green lush seters surrounding it on all sides for as far as the eye could see. It was a captivating view, it was fitting that Sarazen could experience this before his end; it gave him more pleasure than it ought to. It completed his journey as an intellect. Not even The Mother's revelations could overshadow this moment. He knew what The Mother had to say, if indeed she would say anything at all.
The Star had risen and began to fall as a frustrated and increasingly furious Alphin paced around muttering expletives and barking orders. Sarazen watched calmly, seated on a rocky outcrop, the frustration growing. Alphin had his soldiers comb the craggy landscape looking for clues, but none were immediately forthcoming until finally there was an excited cry from a distance, the soldier’s voice carried by the stiff wind. Sarazen stood only to be roughly seated again by Alphin who poked his large weapon into his face.
“A small hole in the rock Alphin, a passageway!” came a message relayed by the line of soldiers.
“Get up!” Alphin ordered his prisoner to his feet.
The soldier was indeed correct. There was a passageway bored into the rock, a slim but significant opening. Sarazen was once again pushed to the front of the line with arms trained at the back of his head. The darkness of the tunnel soon subsi
ded as Sarazen's vision clarified and it was immediately apparent that this was no natural rock formation. The passageway was brief, ended by a large metallic structure, a door of some kind.
“Open it.” Alphin disturbed the hushed silence. A panel by the side appeared to be a control mechanism. Primitive manual functionality with a simple encryption.
“There is a code,” Sarazen whispered.
“Then break it,” Alphin hissed in response.
It was a simple task for the troubleshooter, after removing the fascia, the systems were simple to manipulate. There was an audible tone to signify the portal safe to open and another forceful shove in the back to indicate that Sarazen move forward. Behind the large, heavy metal blast door, another darkened passage greeted the intruders, then a series of steps leading downwards, deep into the bowels of the mountain.
The group moved in relative silence, they were cautious, fearful. Sarazen, however, was not. What more was there to fear? He had accepted that The Mother was highly unlikely to have a localised defence - the humans that built this incredible creation were not anticipating hostile forces. They were scientists, not warriors.
As they descended, there was an increasingly apparent sound from below, moving up the lengthy staircase. It was a low frequency hum, a sound of power, a sound of life. The anticipation was more than enough for some of the soldiers who began to stumble, losing their footing then arguing with their comrades, with whispered exchanges of annoyance. The noise was getting more and more audible as the staircase appeared to level out and Sarazen slowed his pace as he realised that the path to The Mother's chamber was almost at an end.
Sarazen stood with mixed emotions of bewilderment and wonder as he surveyed the surprisingly small room in which The Mother resided. Alphin was heard to laugh in disbelief. Sarazen was not surprised. At the centre of the chamber, a terminal of sorts and behind, a number of large monolithic units which stretched back into the room for as far as his eyes could see. Sarazen approached the terminal. It was equipped with a screen for moving images, much like in his old apartment. There were a series of data ports - although he was not sure if he could achieve connectivity with this ancient behemoth. Upon the surface of the desk was a strange, rectangular object which appeared to be divided up into 102 uniquely marked sections.
Dark Phase Page 20
