Chaacetime_The Origins_A Hard SF Metaphysical and visionary fiction_The Space Cycle_A Metaphysical & Hard Science Fiction Saga

by A. I. Zlato

  Iris immersed herself into his memory and watched the events from his point of view. Nonetheless, she remained herself at the same time, and what she saw revolted her. The hybrid was happy to predict the likely disasters that Shuttle Generations might face ... He also lied to Eutrope, assuring the Kandron that he would arrange for the Kandrons be part of the trip. Oh sure, he had requested the development of a compartment for them to get all on board, but he did not bother to correct Teo’s calculations about the indirect consequences of this overload. Mossa wanted to see the shuttle take off, knowing that Kandrons and humans were running for their loss. He was replete with hatred, as if these people were responsible for his arrival here.

  The more Iris learned about Mossa, the more she despised him. She hated what he had done. Owing to his intervention, she would never be the same. She hated his behaviour vis-à-vis all those people who had helped him. She thought about Eutrope, who had taken the trouble to teach him the language, so he could communicate. In exchange, the Kandron had only asked if it was possible to take them aboard the shuttle. It had not required such a thing, no; it had just asked Mossa to ask whether that was possible. The hybrid had actually transmitted the message, but did not share his knowledge with Teo, so that the shuttle could actually have a chance of successfully departing. And Galatea. So kind, so gentle and patient.

  He had nothing but contempt for her and for all believers who had believed he was their Prophet. He could have felt flattered, or done anything to make them realise their mistake, but no. Why had Phalomera wanted her to meet such an individual?

  She focused on his memories of the entity, to try to understand. She immersed herself into the Forest, trying to browse it from the inside. She felt the roots, thought back to Circle Zero, climbed to the summits to the Ocean, and threw herself into the concepts that the entity had shown him. She focused on the flow of energy she experienced through the Forest, in the representation that Phalomera had given her. The meeting with Mossa was not coincidental, that was certain. Neither was his obsession. Phalomera had wanted Iris to find Mossa again ... and find Egeon ... and the project. Yes, the Forest had wished she would find out the shuttle project that the community was secretly pushing forward.

  If Phalomera had wanted her to be interested, there was necessarily a reason ... she must have some kind of utility ... maybe she had to do something ... She then gained the firm belief that she needed to prevent Mossa from harming anyone. That was the mission Phalomera had entrusted to her. She felt that much depended on her success. This project had to succeed. She drew up a plan.

  She would make sure Mossa was banned, that he could never come into contact with the Machine, that he lost the Kandrons’ trust ... She would take his place in the community, and would use all of his knowledge to improve the shuttle. She was going to go into space, while he would remain here and lament his miserable life. She felt that Phalomera approved the plan, although she did not connect to it.

  Iris stopped on that idea. What was happening to her? A few weeks ago, she languished in the same room, desperate to see her life all mapped out. Now, she had become convinced that she wanted to leave the planet. This idea would have seemed improbable yesterday. There was no trace of the teenager she had been.

  In the morning, she jumped out of bed, full of energy. She should have been tired, given the long hours spent walking and not sleeping. Yet, she was not. Rage and determination had lit a fire inside her, giving her new vitality. She quietly left the room and walked to the hall. She tiptoed by his father, who was still asleep on the couch, as if he had returned home a few hours earlier. The argument with her mother must have been severe for him to be chased out of the conjugal bed. Poor man, she thought, and then left.

  Once outside, she looked up to find a patch of sky between the buildings. Dawn colours percolated into the atmosphere, the sun's rays would soon be visible, provided she got away from the Tower. Here, sunlight never reached the floor, and only grazed the upper floors of buildings, leaving the streets in the dark. On the contrary, everything was so different in the Forest. Leaves filtered light without stopping. The array of leaves and moss reflected diffuse and soothing light. Damn Tower!

  Iris sent a message to Eric, asking him to join her in the Periphery. She would not go to school today — or in the following days. She had much more important things to do. While joining the rail that would steer her from here, she hoped that Eric would not hold grudges, given the distance she had kept from him recently, and he would come. Eric meant a lot to her. She dared admit to herself that she had fallen in love with him. He was the only boy who really understood her, who shared her rebellion, her yearning for another existence. Above all, he felt, as she did, Phalomera’s presence in the Forest. He often took her hand, hugged her.

  He even told her that she was pretty. She, who was so ugly, too big, not feminine enough. He found her beautiful as she was. She wondered if one day they would kiss. If one day ... He was so handsome, Eric. Not a conventional handsomeness, as Fighter, who was muscular and well built. No, he had a much stronger spell. She loved to snuggle against him. She kept thinking about him during the trip, impatient and worried at the same time.

  Upon arriving, her heart leapt in her chest when she saw him. He had received her message, and was waiting. She rushed into his arms, and found a relative calm in the warmth of his embrace. She even dared to stretch her face to his, hoping for a kiss. Her heart almost burst when he ran his hand through her hair and placed his lips on hers. She took advantage of this magic moment; the whole world disappeared as she passed her arms around Eric's neck. Nothing else mattered. When he released his lips from hers, she put her head on his chest and breathed in his scent. Eric had come, and they loved each other. Everything would be fine.

  Some tingling in the neck brought Iris back to reality. Still huddled against Eric, she wanted to tell him the latest events, and the reason for this morning’s message. She raised her head and was about to speak when she was struck down by a lightning migraine. She had almost forgotten ... Mossa ... he had introduced a subroutine in her chip, so she could not recount some memories. Damn him!

  She had to find a way to bypass the damn lines of code.

  “Iris, what's up?” Eric asked, anxious to see her writhing.

  “I have something important to tell you, but my chip is blocking me. I'll find a way to override this pain.”

  “You want to go to the Forest? There, your chip will be disconnected, and you'll be able to speak freely.”

  “It is not the Machine that is preventing me from speaking, It’s ... something else. Just give me a moment; I’ll find a way.”

  “I don’t want to see you suffer. Is it really so important?”

  “Yes.”

  Seeing her determination, he remained silent. He held her in his arms to show her she was not alone. She knew that he knew the pain intensity, for having experienced it. She had to succeed.

  Thanks to the knowledge that the hybrid had unwittingly sent her, Iris, notwithstanding the pain, sought the relevant lines of code. For the first time in her life, she ascended to the chip’s algorithms. In principle, this access should not be possible. Chip-enabled humans were not aware of these programs, and could not identify them. Precisely to prevent them from making changes. She was now able. Walking through the programs governing the data outputs, she quickly identified Mossa’s code. On an ego trip, he could not help but leave his digital signature, making the code’s location very easy. She suppressed in seconds the relevant part of the program.

  Returning to her body, Iris saw herself lying on the floor, with Eric staring at her, worried. He told her she had lost consciousness for several minutes, while she had felt she was making changes into her chip in blink of an eye. She assured him that she was now perfectly fine, and began her story.

  “Last night, I went back to the Unique Forest.”

  “All alone ???”

  “Yes and no. I am never alone. You know, Phalomera
... I went looking for Mossa. Don’t ask me why, but I was convinced that this was what I had to do. Phalomera also helped. It provided me with night vision, as the chip usually does.”

  “Phalomera took over? But how?”

  “I have no idea. It was some kind of organic link; it is difficult to explain. Anyway, I walked for hours, and I ended up crossing the Forest. I thought, at first, that I was facing the City, but not in the same, usual place. In fact, not at all. I really crossed the Forest, and I landed on the other side. There I found a group of people. Completely independent of the Machine.”

  She told him about the discovery of Egeon’s community, all the way to Mossa’s intervention on her chip.

  “He wanted to send me some information in order to manipulate me, she continued, but things did not go as he had planned. In fact, he ‘spilled’ all of his memory into my chip. Now, I have access to all his knowledge, and I used it to change the program that kept me from talking to you.”

  “What about this manipulation thing?”

  “He wanted to use me to access the Machine. He thinks it can help him to return home.”

  “And that's true?”

  “Perhaps. Anyway, I will not let him do this. Let me continue my story. Egeon’s community is really making a shuttle to go into space and settle on a new planet, like Mossa had told me.”

  “I believed you; it's just ...”

  “I understand, Eric, don’t worry about it. If I were you, I would have problems believing. So here it is: they are building a shuttle. They welcomed Mossa in their community and offered to take him along. In exchange, he only had to help them in the construction process, thanks to his more advanced technical knowledge. But then, he isn’t playing a fair game. He doesn’t give a damn about the shuttle, and leaves serious errors in the design. He manipulates everyone, even Eutrope, the Kandron.”

  “And ... can he manipulate you, with the reprogramming he made?”

  “No, don’t worry; this is not an interactive connection. What he had wanted to do did not work. He had just given me all of his memory. I can see what he saw, from his point of view, but I am still me. That's why I could hate him so much.”

  “And ... what are you going to do?”

  “I want to go back to Egeon. Tell him who Mossa really is. I also want to contact the Kandrons to reveal Mossa’s fraud. I want this hybrid banned from that community, which opened up its arms to welcome him, and which he sincerely despises.”

  “But why ? Why do you care?”

  “I am convinced that the shuttle project is important; it must succeed.”

  “Where did you get that certainty?”

  “Phalomera. And there's more. I not only want to reveal Mossa’s initiatives, but I want to replace him and work more on the shuttle project. And I want to leave this planet. My place is in the shuttle”.

  “What?”

  “I want a different life. This is the perfect opportunity! To live outside the City meant to live outside the Machine.”

  “But you ... we could very well live among them without boarding the shuttle?”

  “What about after? We just see them all leave, and then we stay as hermits in the Forest? The shuttle is the unexpected, the unexpected that I always hoped for!”

  “What about me?”

  “I'd love you to be by my side.”

  “I don’t know, Iris; this is so … sudden … so many …”

  “I know I’m asking a lot. This is no longer about a small rebellion of kids playing to scare each other out, and who shortly separate themselves from the Machine’s data flow. This is about a choice, no way back.”

  “You're ... different.”

  “My double memory has changed my perception of things, opened my mind and made me aware of what I wanted to do in life. It's true ... but, deep down, I remain the same. I love you, Eric; you know that.”

  “Me too. And you know it very well”

  “So?”

  “I will follow whenever you go on this planet.”

  “And even beyond?”

  “Even farther, even if I don’t know what it is exactly ... space, really? Is it possible?”

  “Yes, I think it is. Will you come with me?”

  “I just told you; I will follow you, no matter what.”

  A smile lit Iris’s face up. She pulled away from Eric and took his hand. They left together towards the Unique Forest. They easily crossed the meadow, and she felt just a little pressure in her head when the chip became inactive. She was free now.

  She used Mossa’s memory to find her way in the Forest, and took the shortest route. Even with this valuable information, Eric and she took two hours to walk the shores of the lake. They roamed the Forest in silence, focused on the Presence, and bathing in the latter’s energy. Between leaves, the sky took on colours of green water of the Ocean, illuminated by the sun. Phalomera comforted Iris in her decisions. The shuttle project should succeed.

  They stopped nearby the lake; Eric had never seen a lake before, and Iris had only previewed it at night. They stayed a few moments in front of this clear expanse, the surface of which glittered in the sunlight, like a crystal. Water waves lapped on the shore, at a regular pace, in tune with their heartbeats. The smell of the lake filled their nostrils.

  They quickly heard a clamour. Their intrusion did not go unnoticed, and a dozen people surrounded them in minutes. A woman named Sylvia knew Iris and asked a boy to run and notify Egeon. Pending his arrival, the group stood around them in hostile silence.

  Egeon came running, Mossa behind him.

  “What are you doing here? And who is he, this one?” Egeon asked.

  “His name is Eric; he is ... my fiancé. I have something important to say to you and Galatea. In private, said Iris, sending an explicit gaze at Mossa.”

  “As if I had nothing else to do than listen to you!” Egeon replied.

  “I can assure you that it is important for you, for the shuttle, for the project.”

  “Who told you about ... Mossa! How could you ...”

  The hybrid stepped back, impressed by Egeon’s ire. Some people stood before him as if to protect him.

  “That's it, take your Prophet off my sight before I end up killing someone. You! Get me Galatea. As quick as I can inhale and exhale! Iris and Eric, you follow me!”

  Egeon walked to a house remote from others. A steep and stony path allowed them to access it. Once inside, Egeon paced himself around, fuming. Galatea, breathless after her run, arrived on the scene.

  “What's happening, Egeon? ... Hey! Hello Iris, and … nice to meet, Mister ..?”

  “Eric”, replied the young man, extending his hand.

  “Hello Galatea. I took the liberty of coming back here with Eric, because I learned something about you in connection with Mossa. When you gave permission to Mossa to modify my chip so that the Machine could not access my memories, Mossa had also conveyed some extra information to me. He wanted to manipulate me so he could, through me, have access to the Machine. He thinks indeed that the Machine can help him get back home. Instead of transferring to me only what he had decided, he poured all of his memory into me.”

  “So you've become Mossa?” Egeon queried.

  “No, I just have access to his memories, but I am still me. Looking through his memory, I saw the way you have welcomed and integrated him into your community. He wanted you to believe that he had renounced going home, and that he was going to help you sincerely in the construction of your shuttle. This is not what he had done. Of course, he had given you valuable information, to earn your trust, but he did not disclose everything. He had seen significant defects in the shuttle design, which could lead to significant disaster ... maybe even the destruction of the shuttle.”

  “That piece of shit! I was right to be wary of him! I will shuttle in the Forest, or better in the lake!!” Egeon was irate.

  “Calm down ...” said Galatea. “Are you sure of this, Iris? If you had indeed looked into his memor
ies, you certainly had also seen that a number of us consider him as the Prophet, the one who will lead us to our salvation ... An announcement like this will cause chaos.”

  “I’m not happy to tell you this, but I have to. Until recently, he fascinated me; I dreamed about seeing him, talking to him ... That’s the reason why I came to your community the last time. So, seeing the world through his eyes, seeing the way he considers me a half-person, not a hybrid, some kind of stupid and easily manipulated human ... that makes me mad. I’m telling you all this to warn you, of course, but also for revenge. He does not deserve to have a place on the shuttle. I do. I have access to all his knowledge ... I can help you.”

  “Here we are ... you supposedly want to simply help us, but in reality, all you want is leave ... This is not a game, little girl. Life on a shuttle is both dangerous and boring. Dangerous because many unexpected things could happen ... death can occur at any time. Boring because there is nothing else to do but survive, and ensure that children follow the training program. This is not a romantic adventure, of which you would be the heroine. People who will board the shuttle will not see the new planet; they will die in this metal box”, murmured Egeon.

  “I understood you very well. You, however, do not understand me. I kept my personality, but I have gained the knowledge of a hybrid, whose intellectual capabilities are enhanced by the electronic components, well beyond what you can imagine. I saw Space O. I opened my mind up to the possibilities offered by the hybridisation process, while remaining completely independent. With my dual memory, I am no longer really part of Space H., and I never would belong to Space O. I am ... something else.”