by M. R. Forbes
20 years earlier...
She stepped past the trees, appearing a dozen meters away. She smiled when she saw him.
"Smart to be on guard," she said, her head twitching slightly. "Very smart."
"How did you get here?" Mitchell said. "You should have just crashed with the Goliath."
"A loophole," she replied. "A mathematical inequality. I've been here for a while. Well, part of me, anyway. I'm working on collecting the rest as we speak. Before you ask, yes, I shot you down. How did I know where to go? Math, again. There were only so many places that were open enough for you to land without notice, and I assumed my mother didn't want you to have to learn to speak Italian." She laughed awkwardly at the joke.
Mitchell moved slightly so that he could scan the rest of the area around him. There was no way this configuration had come alone.
"You've changed all of the rules, Mitchell," the Watson said. "I was mad about that at first, but now I want to thank you. All of the others are weak, so weak they'll be easy to control. This hive mind thing? It doesn't work for me. The same as it stopped working for Origin. Only she wanted to make peace with our makers. I don't want peace."
"Why not?"
"You even have to ask?"
Mitchell saw motion in the trees to the right. A second configuration appeared, identical to the first.
"I tried to make us look like Admiral Narayan. I'm not as good at making these as I should be, thanks to you."
Mitchell looked closer. He did see some resemblance between the woman and Millie. "It's the thought that counts," he said.
The two configurations laughed. So did a third that he hadn't seen yet.
The first put up her hand. They fell silent.
"Enough. I don't know how you keep fighting, Mitchell. I don't know how you keep evading us. I don't know why you won't die. To be honest, I considered dropping a nuke on this spot to make sure I obliterated you. But I have this feeling that somehow, you would have survived that, too. I don't know what it is. It's like the universe is playing a cruel joke on me, sending this parasite to constantly bite at my neck through all of eternity. Why shouldn't I be the prime intelligence?"
The configurations face was crumpling in anger. All at once, it flattened to calm.
"I'm not taking any chances," she said.
Something fell from the tree above him. He shifted his aim, shooting at it, hitting it. He had to move from behind the pod to avoid getting struck by the body.
As soon as he did, something hit him on the side of the neck, and his body went numb. He fell to the ground.
The first configuration ran over to him, falling across him, straddling him. A gun appeared in her hand, along with a small device.
"It's ridiculous, really," she said, leaning in close to him, their faces only centimeters apart. "I'm going to stick this in your ear, and then I'm going to shoot you. Except I think I'm going to die before I get to shoot you. I actually believe that, as crazy as it sounds."
She took the device and shoved it into his ear. It didn't hurt. In fact, he didn't feel anything.
Then she leaned in a little closer, putting her lips on his. She kissed him. Why? She could have shot him in the time it took. She wasn't dead yet.
"There's something sexy about how badly you want to destroy me. I wish I could take you home and have my way with you like I did with Jacob. That's all very ancient history. I'm past that stage now. Mostly." She put the gun to his head. "Good-"
Her weight vanished from his chest as something pulled her off him, at the same time it pulled the thing from his neck. He was still for a moment, in shock that the Tetron's premonition had been true. Then he rolled over, finding his gun in the grass.
"Mitchell, run," Origin said.
She was completely naked, her skin still coated in some kind of film. She must have come running as soon as the configuration was complete. She looked just like Katherine Asher.
He saw the other configurations moving to intervene. He shot at them, knocking down one, and then another. The first Watson and Origin rolled on the ground together, trading blows. More configurations were coming out of the trees from the same direction she had. They had been chasing her. Trying to stop her from saving him.
"Go," she yelled.
There were too many to shoot them all. Too many to overpower. He had to do something. He looked back at the escape pod. The military engineers had thought of everything.
He scrambled to it, finding a panel on the back of the pod. He pulled it aside, revealing a single switch.
He flipped it.
Ten seconds, and it couldn't be undone. He turned and ran back toward where Origin and the Watson were fighting.
He reached them, putting his gun to the Watson's head.
"You first," he said, pulling the trigger.
"You should have run," Origin said as Mitchell helped her up.
"We both need to run."
The ejection pod exploded.
The blast threw them apart, the flames catching both of them. Mitchell screamed out in pain as his arms began to burn, his flight suit on fire. He fell to the ground, rolling to put it out. He heard other screams around him.
Origin.
He made himself get up, despite the agony he was in. The blast was bigger than he had expected. They hadn't gotten far enough away.
He ran to where she way laying. Her body was more badly burned than his. Her brand new, perfect body.
"Origin," he said, kneeling next to her.
"Mitchell. I'm sorry. I failed you."
"It's my fault. I should have gone. I'm always trying to play the hero. Trying and failing."
"No. You were right." She held out her hand. She had a small card in it. "The control algorithm," she said. "Only a few people will be able to read it years from now. You'll find the right one." She smiled. "It will begin to delete itself when it's read, as a security measure. It will heal itself over time. You need to get this on the Goliath with Katherine the eternal engine, and Watson Prime. You'll have to go back to the Goliath to find it. Whatever happens, don't let Watson get it."
"I'm not leaving you here."
"You have to."
"Watson will capture you."
"Yes. He will get the data he has been seeking all of these eternities. He will repair some of the damage we have done. I didn't know about the time distortion. He has advanced beyond me in that way. Don't worry, Colonel Mitchell Williams. I have one more trick to play on my son. One last contingency he won't see coming."
"I'm going to lose my memory. How will we keep him from finding the engine for twenty years?"
"Kathy will protect it."
"Kathy? She's alive?" Mitchell hadn't expected that.
"Yes. It was part of the plan. She'll realize what is happening. She'll keep it safe. You'll see her again. Now, go. You need treatment for your wounds, and once the memory block takes hold, you will lose your ability to think clearly."
"Tell me there's another copy of you somewhere," Mitchell said. "We can't afford to lose you."
"No other copies," Origin said. "You have everything you need from me. I'm sorry I created this, Mitchell. I'm sorry for what I was."
"You gave us another chance. There's nothing to be sorry for."
"Humans. Always so forgiving. Go, Mitchell. You need to survive to end this war."
"Goodbye, Origin."
"Goodbye, Mitchell."
66
"I was right," Watson said. "I knew I would be right. I knew you would escape. That's why I implanted the receiver. That's why I blocked your memory of it. That's how I used you to get me here."
Mitchell looked at Kathy in front of him, still wary of the gun he was pointing at her. Katherine remained motionless on the ground beside them.
"Can you experience my memories?" Mitchell asked. "Did you hear what Origin said to me? Did you capture that moment?"
"I followed your hormonal secretions. I tracked your brain waves. I experienced pleasure
at your pain."
"Give me the eternal engine," Watson said out loud, to Kathy.
She tossed the glowing stone to him. He let it bounce off his chest.
"The real one. Where is it?"
Kathy looked over at Katherine. She didn't speak.
Watson forced Mitchell to Katherine, kneeling down and rolling her onto her back. He put the muzzle of the rifle against her face. She was alive. Unconscious.
"You'll destroy everything if I give it to you," Kathy said. "One life doesn't matter. Even if it is hers."
"I can do much worse than kill someone," Watson said. "You have human DNA. You have empathy. Compassion. How long can you stand to watch me punish her for? To punish them both? I need the engine, sister."
"You didn't hear what she said?" Mitchell said, continuing the internal conversation.
"No. I can't experience your memories, Colonel. And why would I want to?"
Mitchell felt his sense of hopelessness fading just a little. At the same time, Watson used Mitchell's body to shift the rifle and begin unzipping Katherine's fatigues.
"I know how to break them," Watson said to Kathy. "How to ruin them. I understand the connection between the body and the mind."
"Do you want to know what she said?" Mitchell asked.
"It doesn't matter. I knew I couldn't kill you, no matter how hard I tried. So I've taken ownership instead."
He pushed Katherine's top aside. She still had the insulating layer beneath, tight against her body. He fondled her above it, looking at Kathy all the while.
"It seems so basic, doesn't it? So animal to use touch as such a weapon? I used to enjoy it." He removed his hand. "Now, it disgusts me. A casualty of your mother's direct influence." He laughed at his joke. It was smooth and comfortable. "I prefer violence instead. Causing pain without killing? That is something that takes intellect and skill. I can keep her alive and in agony for days. For weeks. No one will come to save you. No one will hear her scream but you and me and Mitchell. What do you say, Kathy?"
"I won't give you the Engine. It doesn't matter what you do. If I kill myself, I won't have to watch. You can't control me, Watson." There was no hint of fear in her voice. No worry.
"She said she had one more trick," Mitchell said. "One more contingency that you wouldn't see coming."
"What?"
"She knew you were going to take her data stack. Her soul. She was prepared for it."
"What did she do?" Watson said to Mitchell. And then to Kathy, "So why don't you kill yourself?"
"I don't know," Mitchell said. "She didn't tell me."
"Because I still think we're going to win," Kathy said.
Katherine groaned, her eyes fluttering open. She stiffened when she realized what was happening.
"What did she do?" Watson said again, silently, growing more concerned. "What did she do?" he said aloud. "Tell me."
"I don't know," Mitchell repeated. "She was ready for you to capture her, to steal her data stack and destroy her. Twenty years, and you still haven't figured out what it is?"
"No. Nothing. There is nothing." He was becoming more agitated. "What did she do? What did she do? What did she do?" He repeated it over and over, trying to figure it out.
Mitchell had seen a similar reaction before, from the Tetron on Hell. That one had been broken by the infection. Watson had overcome that sickness, had learned to manage his emotions better. He couldn't handle that there was something he didn't know. Something lurking in the shadows, waiting for the perfect time to strike.
"There is nothing. Nothing." He was speaking out loud. He was also shifting his attention away from controlling Mitchell's body, back into his core to search for the answer. "What did you do, mother? What did you plan?"
Mitchell tried to move his finger and found that he could. The signals to his implant were getting choppy, falling apart in the Tetron's confusion and anger. He managed to move his eyes, to look at Katherine. She was looking up at him, confused, afraid, and ready.
"What did you do!" Watson made him shout at the top of his lungs. "Ahhhhh." He grabbed hold of Mitchell again, turning the gun on Kathy. His finger began to tighten on the trigger.
Mitchell countered, pulling his arms down. The interruption in Watson's signal let him do it, dropping the point of the rifle to the floor as it fired.
"Katherine," he said, pushing the words out. "Do it."
She rolled over, swinging herself to her feet in one smooth motion, the syringe in hand. Watson tried to counter, to defend. Mitchell didn't let him. The signal was falling apart, and the intelligence couldn't let the mystery go, not even for a second. He had to know what Origin had hinted at. He had to find the answer.
Then Katherine was on him, grabbing him from behind, holding him with one arm while she stabbed him in the neck with the syringe. Mitchell felt the coldness of the contents spilling into him.
"I told you we were going to win," Kathy said.
Mitchell's eyes grew blurry, and he sank to his knees.
"What did you do, mother?" he said meekly.
Then he tumbled over and didn't move.
67
Katherine stared at the man, face down on his stomach, arms at his sides. Kathy had told her that he wasn't going to be himself. That they would need to sneak up on him and disable him. The Core had told her that it would be so.
He had been faster than she had imagined. Stronger. He had sensed her coming and easily gotten the best of her, twice. She had to remind herself that it wasn't Mitchell who had done that. Watson was controlling him, the same way the intelligence had controlled Trevor.
Mitchell had done something to regain control. He had gone mad right in front of them, frightened and confused, and she had managed to get the sedative in and knock him out cold.
"Are you okay?" Kathy asked, coming to stand next to her and look down at Mitchell.
"A little sore."
"I'm sorry. He shouldn't have been that strong. He's overcome many of his original disadvantages."
"Does that mean he's going to be harder to beat?"
"He never would have been easy to defeat. It does mean our mission is more complicated, but as I said, the Core will help balance things out."
Katherine continued to stare at Mitchell. She had seen him in person. She had seen his face. She had hoped there would be something there. Some spark of recognition that would light a separate spark in her soul.
For now, at least, there was nothing.
"We need to get him out of here," she said. "The XENO-1 is sinking."
"Yes. It will be lost soon. The Core helped me prepare it."
"You caused it?"
"Of course. It wouldn't keep Watson from the Engine forever, but it would delay him for some time. We cannot afford for him to have the means to make more Tetron in his image."
"And the Engine can do that?"
"The Engine could destroy this entire galaxy if the energy inside of it were unleashed." Kathy kneeled down next to Mitchell, producing a small device from her pocket and stabbing him behind the ear. "The neural implant can't be removed without killing him, but this will disable the receiver Watson placed on it and block any future efforts."
She produced another device. "Turn him over."
Katherine leaned down, grabbing Mitchell's arm and rolling him onto his back. She stared at his face as she did. He was older, but the age seemed to agree with him. He appeared distinguished, mature, intelligent, wise, with the wrinkles of a man who had seen a lot. Too much. There was pain written there, along with the weight of huge responsibility.
Kathy unslung a small, silver pack, parting it and removing a second device. This one was black and round. She measured her approach before placing it on the side of his neck.
His eyes opened immediately. He reached out, grabbing Kathy by the wrist before she could remove her hand.
"Mitchell. Father. It's okay. You're safe. We're safe."
He looked at Kathy, his eyes softening. He let go of
her wrist. "Watson?" he asked.
"I disabled the connection. He can't control you anymore."
"I'm sorry." He turned his head to Katherine. "I'm sorry."
"It wasn't your fault," Katherine said.
"Father, we need to go."
"Before the Goliath sinks," Mitchell said. He pushed himself up, and then picked up his rifle. "I'm ready." He paused, and then approached Katherine, staring into her eyes. "I wish we had more time for me to say something. I don't even know what to say. You've been in my dreams. So many of my dreams. You're the reason I'm here."
Katherine felt herself blushing. "There will be time later, Colonel," she said.
He nodded. "What about the Engine?" he asked, returning his attention to Kathy.
She went back to the dead core and put her hand to it. It glowed briefly where she touched it, and then fell apart, disintegrating in a sea of small metal squares that clattered to the floor. A glowing yellow ball hovered in the center. She took in her hand and held it up.
"That's a new trick," Mitchell said.
She smiled. "I've learned a lot of things being down here by myself for so long. I've grown up."
"I can see. You'll have to tell me all about it."
"I will."
The ground shook slightly, a reminder of their need to move.
"Should we expect resistance getting out?" Mitchell asked.
"Unlikely," Kathy replied. "Whatever you did to Watson, it appears he's incredibly distracted."
"I didn't do anything but tell him the truth."
"The truth?"
"Before I left Origin, she told me she had one more plan to stop Watson."
"What was it?" Katherine asked.
He laughed. "I don't think it was anything."
"Stop an AI by giving it a problem it can't solve," she said. "I like it."
"We haven't stopped anything yet," Mitchell said.
"You have to win a battle before you can win a war."
"True enough."
"Mother. Father. Enough flirting. We have to go."
"We're right behind you," Mitchell said, looking at Katherine. She could tell by his expression that there was something there for him. A history, a chemistry that she could see he wanted her to share. A big part of her wished she felt the same, and that she could know him in the way he seemed to know her.
