Convergence: Genesis

by Flores Bermúdez, Heiner; Christina Hopkinson, Rachel;

  "Are you going to help me? Will you tell him that you believe me?"

  "I will, but don't think I'm going to participate in your attempt to turn yourself into a hero. I still don't like you, Bornew, I'm only doing this because I understand how it feels... That is all.”

  "I understand. I really appreciate it, Neil."

  Senlar came up to the riverbank. The expression on his face did not give Denn very high hopes; he gave him a somewhat bitter greeting and asked him to wait there. First he would talk with Neil.

  Denn sat back down on one of the large rocks along the river, whilst Senlar and Neil had their conversation. He was nervous; his future was about to be defined. After having caused so many problems for everyone, and although he did feel that what he had done had been for a greater end, perhaps he deserved some punishment. He did not feel he was in the position to demand anything.

  The conversation between Senlar and Neil went on longer and longer, whilst Denn waited anxiously. He was trying to understand something; some gesture that might help him know what they were talking about, but the only thing he managed to do was to worry himself more. They both looked very serious, Senlar especially.

  After some eternal minutes, Senlar and Neil finished their conversation. A decision had been made. Neil turned around to see him, with his particular and unpleasant gaze, and left.

  Senlar walked towards Denn, who got up from the rock with the face of a scared child. The moment had come to hear his decision.

  “I’ve read the diary,” said Senlar. Denn had never seen him like this, he seemed like a different person. He imagined the worst.

  “What have you decided?” he asked, fearful.

  “The diary doesn’t say much. From reading it, it’s obvious that the Colonisers have resentment against the humans, but that doesn’t prove anything. Perhaps the robots do want to destroy us, but it doesn’t mean that they will.”

  “Neil believed me, he knows I’m telling the truth.”

  “I know, he told me... To tell the truth, he’s surprised me since this morning, I never imagined he would step in for you.”

  “I’m telling the truth, Senlar. The robots are going to attack the Primary Systems.”

  “It’s possible,” he said, hesitating.

  “You believe me, then?”

  “What I believe is that everything you did is virtually unforgivable.”

  “I never wanted to hurt anybody.”

  “Perhaps... perhaps you never wanted to cause harm, but what’s happened has been because of you. It doesn’t matter whether you’re telling the truth or not.”

  “I feel terrible, the death of the captain and the others will torment me forever.”

  “You were reckless, Denn. All these people are trapped here because of you.”

  “I’m not trying to escape the consequences of my actions, but somehow I have to carry on. I have to prevent what’s coming.”

  “And how do you plan on doing that, Denn?”

  “I don’t know. Somebody will come someday. They must be looking for us. I know that, now we’re here, and if you’ll allow me, I’ll do whatever necessary for these people, because they’re my responsibility, but at some point I’ll have to leave. I don’t care how. I can’t allow the sacrifice of so many to have been in vain.”

  Senlar shook his head. He was clearly very affected.

  “Perhaps you are being sincere, Denn, but even so, I can’t approve of what you did. You should have turned to someone, before turning yourself into a criminal. “

  “I’ve already told you, Senlar, the person whose memories I received did that, and it only brought him trouble. In the end, he was not able to prevent anything. If I had told somebody what I saw, the same thing would have happened.”

  “That’s what I’m finding the most difficult to believe. I've heard of several minds in a single body, that what you're saying is unique. You received the memories of a person who was already a convergence."

  "I know it's strange, I myself researched into it, and didn't find anything. Sometimes I regret it having happened to me, but I can't ignore it. My intentions are good. I swear!"

  Senlar's look was disconcerting. Denn had a sense of foreboding.

  "When we went out, I sent the team far away, I wanted to have some time alone to read the diary you found. I took one of the vehicles and went to a hill I regularly go to in order to think, and I began to read. When I was barely halfway through, I had already made a decision. What you did is unforgivable. The captain and the others lost their lives. I didn’t need to read any more...”

  “Please, Senlar,” begged Denn.

  "... But it had become entertaining. In spite of my decision, I wanted to finish reading it; the Colonisers are fascinating. The owner of the diary wrote almost as if he were human, it was... interesting. You read it yourself, the robot liked the landscape of this planet, he loved the trees and the mountains, and told the story of how he would go to the hill to lie down on the grass and watch as the sunset. From there he could see a few of his most beloved friends, near to a shelter, in the distance, in a clearing. It was then that I realised... The description of the hill, it was the same hill that I was on when I was reading the diary,” Denn was looking at him, intrigued. He was immersed in the story he was being told. His curiosity increased with every word. "So I got up and began to look all around. From there, I could find the site the robot was talking about. I was amazed; I really could see the place where he would see his friends. I went down to there and I began looking. The vegetation has covered everything over, so it was not easy to find. But I did... A construction underground made by the Colonisers. I found the entrance, I opened it, and I went in."

  "What? But... What was inside?"

  "It was too big to check the whole thing. I couldn't stay long, because it was already afternoon, but even so I had time to see it."

  "See it? See what, Senlar? Please tell me."

  "When the Colonisers escaped the Solar System, they were still carrying with them several human hostages, remember? I found their remains, in a room. They had been tortured and massacred. That was not so bad; they were only bones, after all... No, that that was not bad... But the torturing... On some shelves I found a device that was still working, full of videos and photographs. That was when I realised."

  "What, Senlar? What was on that device? What did you realise?"

  "Some Coloniser robots take enjoyment from nature, and from a sunset. Some can be kind... Just like us, they love their friends, and dream of a good life; but just like with humans, others resent and hate... The Colonisers detest us, and if they really are still out there, they will not rest until they annihilate each and every one of us. Now I understand why you did it, Denn. They must be stopped. Because just like with humans, some are cruel monsters. Their leader is, without doubt, a merciless creature."

  Chapter XII

  The Boy Who Lost His Name

  Kani. That was his name. Just like his older brother, he had been born on an enormous moon of a gigantic planet, belonging to a Tertiary System in The Galactic Union, in a city that made its money from mining, and heavy jobs, and was full of pollution and grimy factories.

  In spite of the fact that he lived in poverty in that horrendous place, he had been very fortunate. His mother, his father, and his brother, who was barely five years older than him, always showed him their affection.

  From the point of his birth onwards, his parents redoubled their efforts for them. They now had two children, and they did not want them to continue growing up on the miserable moon. For eight long years, they worked day and night, saving what they could, with the aim of finding a better place to live.

  Sorrow came into their lives for the first time a couple of days before they were due to leave to carry out their dream. Kani's older brother died in an accident in that industrialised and overpopulated city.

  His parents descended into a tempestuous suffering. His older brother had died, just because they h
ad not been able to leave earlier; their effort had not been enough. His mother began to blame herself for not having given more of herself. His father knew that there was no way to change what had happened; they still had a son, and they needed to take him out that hellish place as soon as possible.

  In a hurry to leave, he acquired a large property on the outskirts of a tiny little town, on a nearby planet called Sak. It was a very pretty place, full of vegetation and extensive prairie land. It was the dream that he and his family had always had.

  Kani was happy; it was a fascinating place. He had never seen vegetation or animals. It was the first time that he was breathing such pure air.

  Their property was enormous. His father was planning on working the land, and to live off its fruits, taking what was necessary for them, and selling the rest in the town. They had invested all of their money. For the time being, there was no possibility of sending Kani to school. He was eight years old, and was able to help his father to cultivate the land until they could get enough money together for his studies. Their new life in Sak had begun.

  As time went by, his mother was appearing more and more distant. The depression over the death of her son had hit her hard, and his father's worry was growing upon seeing her so sad.

  Their situation did nothing but worsen. Unfortunately, the place they had chosen to live was not ideal for cultivating. The planet did not have very well defined seasons, especially in that area. Some summers could last a long time, and the winters could last even longer. The cold season was beginning to devastate the area, and the crops that they had spent months caring for began to die.

  Kani’s mother became gravely ill; the depression was killing her, and his father had not the money to help her. He searched in desperation for any employment in the village, but the winter was also wreaking havoc there. Everybody was going through difficult times. He could not find anything.

  The three of them lived on what little they had purchased at the beginning of their journey, but now the food was beginning to run out. Kani watched as his mother was slowly dying, whilst his father suffered without being able to do anything. The misfortune came one night, in the middle of a snowfall. In spite of all his father’s efforts, his mother had died.

  Despite of the cold, his father carried his mother to a nearby hill and buried her. From his bedroom window, Kani watched his father kneeling down, crying in the snow. His life plunged into suffering.

  He was still a little boy, he was nine years old, and could not do anything to animate his father. He powerlessly watched on as his father sank into a terrible depression, like his mother had done months before.

  The days passed by, and the conditions did not seem to be getting any better; his father was looking so very sad. Kani tried to cheer him up, to no avail; now it was the boy who was beginning to get worried. He did not blame him for the death of his mother, he had seen him fight to avoid it, but it was most likely that his father was harder on himself.

  As he did every week, his father went out into the village in the middle of the snow, trying to get work. They did not have much left by now, and if he did not do something, his son would go hungry. When he returned, he brought news for Kani: ‘There’s no work, son, and nobody can buy our property. I have no other option than to go to the moon where you were born and try to get my old job back’.

  Kani’s father would return to where it had all started, that miserable place they hated so much. If he did not, they were going to die of hunger. He prepared himself for the journey, and with what little they had left, he bought a ticket to the moon. There was only enough money to buy one. Kani would have to stay there and wait for a few days.

  After a bitter goodbye, the little boy watched his father leave. He was no longer the happy and affectionate man from before; the loss of his elder son and his wife, along with his failed dream, had changed him. Perhaps forever.

  Kani waited for his father in their little house, rationing out the last piece of bread he had left. The days passed by, and his father did not return, but Kani did not lose faith. ‘He’ll soon come with good news’, he thought, as he cuddled up under several blankets in order to combat the cold, beside a window, looking at the path on which he was sure that his father would appear at any moment.

  But the rest of the food was finished up, and his father had still not returned. Within the cold and solitary walls of their house, the boy was beginning to lose hope.

  He could not take the hunger any more, Kani was beginning to lose his strength. He decided to walk the long way to the village and ask there for his father; perhaps somebody knew something. He had never left him alone for such a long time before, and Kani imagined that something bad must have happened to him. When he finally arrived at the village, trembling from the cold, he began his search. ‘Have you seen my father?’ he asked everybody he saw, but nobody cared about the little boy. They all had their own problems; the winter had been hard for everyone.

  He wandered through the little town for hours asking for information on his father. ‘Maybe you could give me a piece of bread then, sir,’ he said. Nobody knew anything about his father, and nobody gave him anything to eat.

  At the highest point of his desperation, the purest of all survival instincts came to him. The boy did what he had to in order to survive. He stole some apples from a shop.

  Nobody had seen him, but all the same he felt very afraid. Kani ran without stopping until he reached his house. He had never felt so afraid; he was sure they would capture him. When he finally arrived, he quickly went inside, and over to the window where he sat every day, to see if anyone was chasing him.

  Once he was sure that nobody would be coming for him, he took the apples out of his pockets and began to eat. He could not avoid crying. He felt very guilty; his parents had taught him that stealing was bad, but hunger had forced him to do it.

  The weeks continued to pass, and his father was still not back. His circumstances had required it; now the boy had become an expert at stealing food from the town. A couple of times, he had been on the verge of being caught, but he had always managed to escape. Nobody knew where he lived, so nobody was ever going to come to his house.

  The cold winter was beginning to pass. Everything was becoming warmer again. Now Kani would no longer sleep shivering at night. Although things had improved a little for him, he still had no news of his father. The doubt was killing him. He felt very alone. He missed his family immeasurably.

  One day, after one of his journeys into the town, on his way back home, he came across a lean and hungry cat. Kani knew very well how it felt to go hungry. He did not hesitate in offering it some food: ‘Eat this, boy’, he said to the skittish and emaciated animal, and after putting a piece of meat on the floor, he carried on his way.

  After devouring the meat in a couple of mouthfuls, that white cat, with grey stripes, began to follow him. Kani tried shooing it away several times, but he always came back. They continued the whole way like that until they arrived at the house. He had no other option than to share the rest of the food with him. From that moment on, the grateful animal would never leave his side. ‘Your name will be Little’, he said to the small cat; a very appropriate name, the cat was very small, and did not seem like it was going to grow any more.

  Together, they had countless adventures. Little followed Kani everywhere; he even accompanied him to the town to steal food. They played and ran together outside their house, and when it was time to eat, they shared everything.

  Kani took him to see his mother’s grave, and told him how much he loved her. Now he did not feel so alone, he had found a friend. By now, he was ten years old, and beginning to forget about his father.

  One day, Kani woke up, and, like always, he looked for Little by his side to say good morning to him, but his friend was not there. He called him, and looked throughout the entire house without finding him. He thought that perhaps he had been hungry, and had gone in to the town to find something to eat, so he went of
f running in that direction, fearing that Little might have been captured. He searched and searched everywhere, but he could not find him.

  With nothing left to do, Kani returned to his house, very worried. Perhaps his friend was waiting for him there. He took heart from this, and he picked up his pace. As he was getting closer to his house, he saw from the distance a plume of black smoke rising up into the sky. He felt a wave of terrible fear. He ran as fast as he could, and he was finally able to see it. His little house was in flames.

  His surprise became even greater. His father was standing to the side of the house, gripping Little by the neck in his right hand.

  “Dad? What’s happened?” he asked, crying.

  “This is my house,” replied his father. “You can’t live here anymore.”

  “What? What’s going on, dad?” he asked, terrified, and took a few fearful steps towards his father.

  “You heard perfectly well, get out of here! You can’t live here anymore!” he yelled at him, with a horrendous look in his eyes, and hurled Little’s lifeless body in front of his feet.

  Kani’s father turned on his heel and left.

  Kani took his loyal friend Little in his arms, and moved him, trying to wake him up, but his friend was already dead. With Little in his arms, he cried inconsolably while his house burnt to the ground.

  The day began to die, and the night came, but Kani kept crying, still cuddling Little in front of his house that by now was beginning to go out. The fire had razed everything. Without realising, he fell asleep with his friend by his side. When he woke up, it was already morning. ‘It was a nightmare’, he thought incredulously, but upon taking one look he confirmed everything that had happened the previous day. He was devastated. After a few moments, he stood with Little in his arms, and made his way towards his mother’s grave. With his hands, he dug a hole to the side of her, and he buried his friend.

  He had nothing more to do there now. He had seen the atrocity that his father had committed; that place was no longer safe for him. He said goodbye to his mother and his friend, and he left.