The Sword of Gabriel: Ten Days on Earth

by Tom Holloway

  “Anna, you are right, their head and facial features are very refined, pleasing to look at, I think beautiful like angels. Their voices are also angelic and in perfect harmony, having a broad range of sounds. When they communicate by song, it is with rhythm, like poetry, sometimes communicating in remarkable lyrics when using their voices, telling a story. You can also hear it mentally, as they are telepathic, therefore guaranteeing little chance of miscommunication as you feel the words and the emotion. Deceit is not possible. You can hear their thoughts and ideas, yet they can also speak well vocally, sometimes using both together when talking. Their mouths, lips, and faces are without flaws, just exquisite. They can sing together perfectly. I could listen to them singing for hours!”

  “As for intelligence they are just brilliant, beyond interesting, witty, fun, and just delightful. It is like listening to the conversations of the angels of God. You can’t get enough of it.”

  “Anna, I confess, I love them because they have very similar emotions to us and even better than us, better than any culture I have met in my travels. They are always of high character. They are wise, kind, and compassionate, never malicious or causing harm if it can be helped. None are on board the Cyclone, as they do not harm others. The Cyclone is a military starship created to do what military ships do. Although they built the Cyclone thousands of years ago and they currently maintain it, they are not a warrior species. They do this for all the fleets, all military starships, constantly updating them, building new ones, making them better. Yet they are never the soldiers. They are nurturers, the teachers, the engineers, the leaders, and the creators.”

  “They have me for their military needs and my many clones. It has been that way for sixty years. I am not sure what they did before me. It might have been another me, someone like me. They don’t respond to this question, not sure if they ever will.”

  “Anna, I will never achieve their knowledge or skills, as they are much further down the road on the evolution path. Their race is many millions of years ahead of the human species. They must think of me as a primitive specimen from a lower species. I am not refined in their way, as I have deformities in their eyes. Plus, I am physically huge in comparison to them. They may see me as sort of a brute. I may be even overwhelming to them physically, maybe repulsive. Yet I am part of their family. Over all the years, they have stood by me, accepted me. They have been loyal to me and have cared for me as I have cared for them.”

  “Maybe at times they find it difficult to bring me up to their level. Their thought process is far advanced, yet they do not criticize me. They smile and are always patient with me. They treat me as an equal, with much respect, and have been very kind to me from the beginning, completely open; they have taught me so much. I live because of them, and they are my benefactors. They have given me almost unlimited resources. I have total respect and love for them. I would give my life to protect them.”

  Anna, with a perplexed expression on her face, looks at Henry and says, “The Allos are immortal and look so young. They remind me of you, Henry; you look so young. I know you are much older than you appear, and it occurs to me that you might be like them, immortal. If it is OK to ask you this, are you immortal, Henry? Do you ever get sick?”

  I am surprised, as I never thought of myself in that way. Technically I am not totally immortal; however, I know it is much more complicated than that. The clone thing would freak her out. I am not even comfortable with it. I need to explain the other thing, though, and this is my chance. She needs to know about herself, too. I cannot put it off any longer.

  I smile. “It is probably a good idea to talk about this. It is hard or too complicated to explain the whole biological process. I will try a short version. I’m not even used to it yet. I’ve been enhanced genetically, which means I’ll have a real long life. I’m not really sure how long, maybe at least two hundred years, maybe much more. The real problem for me is if I am killed in the line of duty. I can be killed; I have no real immunity there. They could then use my DNA to recreate me. You know about the concept of clones. The problem is memories, my experience, and values—or who I am. These do not transfer without the original model. You have to be alive, with a functioning brain. The second problem is who you are, your identity. As you know, the first ten years of a human child’s life is critical to their character. Plus, all the experiences in your life make you who you are. After living several hundred years, you lose some of your early memories. These memories do not transfer to a clone. You also start to forget more as the years pass. After a few hundred years, you change a lot; you’re not the same being. You do get smarter, yet there are some real issues. You must clone before you get too old, to save those early memories.”

  Anna nods her head. She has that confused look, a little dazed, like she does not believe she is here.

  “Anna, there’s more. Part of my enhancement needs to be explained. I was given an internal medical repair kit. That is the best way to explain it. You know about drones. You know they can be very small, like the size of cells. I have been given a drone medical cell package, as I carry these cells in my body always. My body nurtures these cells, as these are organic, yet they are drones. They are different from my other cells. These drone cells are intelligent, like little computers. They can think. These little satellites wander about my body fixing things, flowing in and out of problem areas. They diagnose the problem, then repair and fix. They repair severe wounds immediately, destroy invading diseases, even replace missing limbs with aggressive cell generators, engineering the rebuild, and turn water into blood as they need it. They also help prevent old age. I will stay younger much longer, extending my life by many years. They monitor all life cycles, including food intake and air breathing. They will alter or reject any poisons coming into the body, either by stomach or by the lungs.”

  Anna still looks perplexed, staring at Henry, starting to talk, then pausing.

  I am watching Anna. I raise my eyebrows, concerned, and smile a tender smile, with soft eyes. “Is this too much information?”

  Annoyed, Anna exclaims, “Henry, I understand what you’re saying, but you can be too much at times. Did your mother ever tell you that?”

  Continuing, she further explains, “This is wonderful for you! It’s amazing, and I’m happy for you. I wish we could sell this on Earth. We would be rich and help a lot of people, although I’m sure doctors and hospitals would complain. Actually I wish we could just give it to the people of Earth, as they sure could use this. It would prevent a lot of pain and suffering, especially in children.”

  Anna is eyeing me, has a look like she might cry. She looks away.

  I am alarmed. “Anna, what’s wrong?”

  She finally looks at me, and I see her tears. She explains, “Henry, I know this sounds silly, and I don’t know why I am acting this way, so irrational.” She pauses. “It occurs to me that you will outlive me by a long time, and as silly and stupid as this sounds, I miss you already.”

  I laugh, then smile, saying, “Not a problem. I have wanted to tell you, but I was afraid you would get spooked or become angry. When you came on board, you were given my same medical drone package. It is in you now. You never felt it. I had to do this to protect you. On board you have no immunities to any on board illnesses or possible radiation or injury. You could be dead by now if I had done nothing, and I am sorry I did not tell you sooner. You now have this medical repair kit inside you. You do not feel it, and you will never know it’s there. It’s for your own good, and it added at least two hundred years to your life, maybe a lot more. You will still age, yet much slower and look younger for a long time. We will be the same as we age.”

  Anna looks totally freaked, like when she came on board. Her eyes are big again, moist, ready to cry, and she is breathing fast.

  I am stunned and quickly react. “Anna, it’s like a fancy vaccine; think of it that way. It’s not a big deal. It really is a good thing, better than health insurance. Don’t worry. I can
extract it when we are back on Earth if you prefer. Please, I’m sorry!”

  Anna stares at me as if she just came out of a coma, then finally talks in a whisper: “Henry, it’s a fantastic gift. I don’t know how to thank you enough. It’s like a gift from God. I’m more than pleased. I am astounded and grateful. You have changed my life for a long time, protected me from much pain and suffering over the coming years. I don’t know what to say. With all my heart, thank you!”

  “Anna, thank God you’re OK with it. You’re welcome! Remember, it doesn’t make you immortal; you can still be killed. You still need to be careful. I wish we could do it for everyone on Earth. It is more complicated than you think. Never tell anyone. Your body is not quite the same, and no earth doctor would understand. No one can know this, please, for your own benefit.”

  Chapter 18

  Gabriel

  Anna and I are eating dinner and talking in my cabin. It is pot roast night, made like my mother would have made it; and, I prepared it, even with gravy. We have wine. I think this is good. Anna seems happy. I have finished and am drinking my third glass of wine.

  I look at her seriously, considering, and then say, “About your question about Gabriel. He’s hard to understand. He’s not like us or any species I know of. Maybe supernatural should be part of his description. He is also kind, thoughtful, generous, and wise. He really is beyond belief. Yet he is different from all others; the first thing, he is ageless. No one knows how old he is, just older than everyone, although there are elders that are ancient. The second observation, he is magical, maybe like Merlin in King Arthur’s court.”

  Anna laughs. “Henry, you do not need any more wine, and I thought I was losing it; tell me no more.”

  I respond, “Wait, give me a chance. For example, you didn’t see Gabriel in the vision I gave you, right? He does not translate well that way. He is so far advanced. I cannot transfer memories about him. Everything about him is, as you would say, top secret and classified. He is not like anyone. I think he’s from another ancient species that no one knows; amazing as this sounds, he may be the last of his kind. It’s difficult to comprehend. I think he may be millions of years old. He is very powerful and respected by all. When asked about his age, he does not respond to the question or talk much about himself. He just says, ‘It’s complicated.’”

  Anna looks surprised and shakes her head. “Henry, I think I’ve passed into another dimension and wonder if I’m going to wake up and find out this is all a second reality. Should I be afraid of Gabriel?”

  “No, Anna, it is not that way. You have nothing to fear. I’ve felt close to him from the beginning, and I’m sure he will be delighted to meet you. I can’t explain it. The best way to understand him is just to think of him as you would a very old elder in a very old church. He is more like a mentor to me than my boss. I like to think of him as the archangel in our Christian Bible. I think it says, ‘The Archangel, Gabriel, as picked by God as the head of his angels, shall descend from heaven with the cry of command as the trumpet of God.’”

  I pause, then serious, I look at Anna. “It makes me feel better about some of the things I have to do. It helps to think I might work for an archangel, as a little divine help is most useful in my line of work. If he is not the archangel, he should be. He knows everything, has guided me and taught me most of what I know; I mean the impossible stuff. First he gave me the starship technology, then the universe; a really complicated subject, a reality almost beyond my comprehension. He has shown me the way to deal with so many different cultures, then the solutions to control or destroy our enemies, plus the forecasting of future probabilities and looking at the game of life philosophically. He also taught me to know my limitations—and everyone else’s.”

  I continue, “He gave me the Cyclone, a gift beyond measure. Also, Gabriel is miraculous to see, bigger than me physically, or I think so, like a father figure. Wise and old is the aura he projects to me. It seems spiritual to me. The weird thing is he appears to those who look at him as the image they feel the most comfortable with. He makes the beholder feel safe with his appearance. He might even appear as a woman to you. Gabriel radiates warmth to me, makes me feel instantly at ease, which I think would be the same for you. He has been my guide and my boss all these years.”

  “Also, Anna, as hard as this is to believe, this means no one feels or sees the same image. It depends on you, what you need to see. I always see an incredibly wise old man, soulful and sad, and sometimes I feel blissfully happy when I am with him. Unfortunately this is not so good if you’re an enemy of his. Then the opposite occurs. He is the most fearful image the beholder will ever see, a glimpse of hell. I think there is a good chance you’ll meet him someday. He will be delighted with you. I want you to meet him, Anna; you will love him.”

  “Henry, to be honest, meeting Gabriel scares the hell out me, no humor intended. Just warn me when he’s coming to visit. By the way, just how did Gabriel teach you all that you know, the starship stuff, the languages, bringing you up to the level of intelligence equal to their civilization, their technology?”

  I shake my head. “I’m sorry about not making you feel good about Gabriel. That’s not my intent. He has been very kind to me, taught me patiently. As you would guess, my knowledge was like an infant’s at first in comparison to theirs, with no starship expertise, less intelligence, less wisdom, and no knowledge of their culture.”

  I continue, “The learning process is much different from the human process. The best description is a download of data you might do with your PC, which is only one-dimensional whereas my downloads, many of them, were multidimensional. The data I received was a complete visual, in color, even with sound, as if I was there. This included the depth of emotions, sorting or ranking the importance of the emotions and the data. Thus the pain, then the joy, the whole experience of their knowledge and culture were given to me. Even more, there were values, character, history, politics, languages, social views, and technology.”

  “The information and process transfers were massive, and, as strange as it sounds, it felt like I was listening to music during the hours of transition. It was pleasant, inspiring, stimulating, although I was extremely tired at the end of each session.”

  “I went through a mental transformation. My process of analyzing problems and creating solutions is much different from human or what I used to be. Because of this I have a much more sophisticated thought process, yet it’s still a small percentage in comparison to Gabriel’s. I am smarter because of it, thank goodness, yet I am still human.”

  “Anna, I feel all the same things you feel: frustration, sadness, happiness, despair, anger, passion, love, and desire.”

  I smile, pause, look intently at her. “I am still human, especially those emotions regarding my mating instincts.”

  Anna and I are looking deep into each other’s eyes, wondering. We both are really serious, then we both blush…Then we both smile…Then we both laugh until tears come to our eyes.

  Chapter 19

  Starships and Space Travel

  I smile a tender smile, looking at Anna, as we clean up the cabin from the meal, and say, “Enough of that. Let’s continue the ship’s tour. We can finish later. It won’t take that long.”

  Anna nods her head, visits the head, or bathroom, combs her hair a little, puts lipstick on, then looks at me with a smile. She pushes herself in the no gravity, jetting herself across the room my way, forcing me to catch her. We both laugh.

  As we head down the corridor, I explain the Cyclone is very small by starship standards, as many ships are miles long, like large cities built into a starship, some as massive as 650 miles long, like the big cargo starships. The Cyclone is five miles long, a couple of miles wide, and about a mile high, weighing thirty-four billion Earth tons. It is truly a miracle of technology built centuries ago, a military ship to provide guardianship and protection for trillions of beings across the universe. It has been my real home for years.


  In addition it provides room and board for 514 souls, including eight-two on the starship crew. It houses a laboratory and clinic medical staff of twenty-eight; a support crew of forty-four workers, including military; a commanders’ brigade, including officers; and a total of 360 troopers. The ship is a complicated maze of passage tunnels, connecting rooms containing the operations machinery, massive hydrogen fusion reactors, antimatter operation equipment and dark-energy-contained materials, antigravity energy generators, warp engine drives, polarized magnetism generators, massive electrical panels, solar energy conversion panels, communications and security shield energy panels, and massive energy weapon systems with operations control. There are assorted rooms for crew, equipment, weapons, supplies; also pipes, various control rooms, landing cargo ports with two ship’s tenders, and some extremely sophisticated flight accessories; and then general storage. I mention that Anna’s SUV, the one she rented, is in one of the landing ports.

  Anna asks me about the rental car and I respond, “It’s probably best we have the crew drop it off for you, using the Ship Tender tomorrow night, after dark, make it ready for an early morning pick-up in Richmond, maybe in front of the car rental branch there or close by their offices. I will have my law firm, Lindemann, Noakes & Beagle in New York, call them and handle it for you, including any extra expense due because of damage from the accident. They can rent another car for us at the same time, drop it off near where we are meeting your parents, at the restaurant, unlocked, and leave the keys under the seat.”