Universal Code

by William Songy

  “Well, if they’re not, we are dead. You realize that?”

  Eerika, not willing to take the chance, pointed the Imil away from Aigi and engaged the thrusters. Immediately she could tell that the Imil was veering off course by just over a degree and adjusted their course to alter the discrepancy. In the blink of an eye, they were in celerity.

  Chapter 12

  “I’m waiting for you,” the voice said as bold green eyes stared back at her.

  “Where…how? Who are you? How do I get to you?” Sonia asked aloud as the distress of the vision was the death of any chance she had at a peaceful rest. Since arriving on Econ, this seemed to occur every time she gave in to the weariness of her body and attempted to sleep. The vision of the boy with radiant green eyes peppered with deep golden flakes and long black hair would appear robbing her of much needed rest. It was always him appealing to her for help. Two or three times a night, it was the same image that crept into her mind always seeking the same thing…her. At first, she doubted her psychological state and considered the possibility that she was going insane. Often times wondering if it was the side-effects of the treatments she had received during the recovery that was causing hallucinations. On several occasions, she considered asking Calder about it but always seemed to change her mind the second her mouth opened to speak. Sonia was unable to rationalize the cold feet when considering speaking to him about the vivid visions. Perhaps it was the thought of more treatments or sessions.

  Each time the boy appeared, he became increasingly real and less of a haunting spirit or figment of the imagination. On this particular evening, the vision or apparition seemed so real that Sonia felt as if she could reach out and touch him. In this vision, she was back in the ginn standing in the hallway looking into the cell where the boy was incarcerated. Sonia could feel the racing pulse, rapid beating of her heart, and cold sweat running down the sides of her face. Fear gripped her and she struggled to move. The black silhouette with green eyes that defied the darkness stood and walked to the edge of the cell where an invisible field forbade his escape. This time she could see all of him, ghostly white skin, emaciated features wearing nothing more than a loincloth. A bead of moisture slid down into her eye. Sonia blinked and the boy was suddenly standing in front of her no longer caged like an animal. She was dumbfounded, “How did you do that?” she asked.

  The boy reached out, “I need you to come for me.”

  Sonia sat up in bed and noticed that her hair and clothes were soaking wet from sweat. The linens were saturated and she realized that it was necessary to get up and change them if there was any hope of resting. Someone was maintaining the residence during her stay and she was clueless as to where the linens were and was too tired to find them. The thought occurred that perhaps she should sleep on the floor. Not that it was more comfortable or anything, it was just a way of life for so long. She had forgotten the comforts of a bed before being rescued. Perhaps in doing so, the boy would magically vacate her dreams and allow peace and rest.

  The dreams or visions, she wasn’t truly sure of the difference, seemed to start the night she could recall training at the SINSTER headquarters with Calder. The initial vision had caused her to fall to the ground from disorientation. Sleep never came easy despite all the amenities offered to her. The experiences seemed so real, so lifelike, that she couldn’t help but wonder if each time she had, by some unexplainable means, been transported to where the boy was. He always looked real and sounded as if she were standing in front of him.

  Sonia got out of bed and pulled off the saturated gown and dropped it on the stone floor. The air in the room was hot but she still felt the need to cover herself. After selecting a thin robe, she slipped it on. “Dator,” the verbal command activated the computer and a holographic image floated in front of her. She tapped on a box in the upper left-hand corner which activated the unit’s air conditioning system. “Sju,” she noted that while the room was in a comfortable range, the sensors designed to monitor her body’s temperature and adjust the room temperature accordingly, seemed to have failed. The temperature should have been decreased.

  She exited the bedroom and entered the unit’s living area. The exterior walls facing the south and east were constructed of a solid transparent substance she assumed was glass, but then this wasn’t Earth and she wasn’t sure. The opening in the wall reached sixteen feet from floor to ceiling and was frosted to prevent the outside world from seeing into the residence. In these hours the city was dark and natural lighting was minimal. Sonia touched the glass to her left and it began to glow under the tip of the finger. On each of the openings, she drug her finger across and down to the right drawing an illuminated four-foot square. The sections became clear and the outside world was alive despite the oppressive darkness of the night sky. The mountain range was to her left and the open waters of a vast ocean were facing the wall on her right. She tapped the window a second time and closed the mountains. Sonia touched the window on her right and highlighted the waves, which were magnified and filled the area of the glass giving the appearance that she was standing on the beach. A yellow light flashed on the border of the window and she tapped it. The sounds of the waves subtly caressing the rocks now filled the living area. She waited for the annoying sound of seagulls but they never came. A third button opened vents and let the breeze into the room.

  She moved to the corner where the two windows were fused together and sat on an elongated chair that was similar to what she remembered on Earth as a sixteenth-century chaise lounge. So far, during her stay, she had not bothered to use the chair. Sonia slid across and pressed her back against the rest and stared at her feet. The chair seemed to be perfectly matched to her body’s length as if custom made. It became apparent that all the furniture seemed to be made for someone of her height. This was unsettling and conjured a complete reassessment of the situation. All the inhabitants of the planet she had encountered, both male and female, on average were much taller than she was. As she looked around the room the furniture seemed to suit a person of her height. Sonia stood, walked over to a table, pulled out a chair, then sat. Her feet touched the ground perfectly. The furniture would have been of no use to most of the Viennians except for the younger ones who had not yet reached their full height. She considered the possibility that either they had given her children’s furniture, or they did not intend for her to leave. The thought seemed silly as she realized that just as on Earth, not everyone could be tall. Certainly, there were people her height regardless if she had not encountered them. The furnishings were made for them and the thoughts were perhaps a sign of paranoia.

  The gracious Viennian hosts offered her sanctuary, repaired the damage to her mind and body and had supplied everything according to her needs. It occurred that there was no substantive reason as to why. This seemed to go beyond charity. Nothing had been asked in return…yet. What did they want? Why were they helping? How long would their benevolence last? It was all very curious. They had invested in her when there was no obvious reason to do so. The Viennians could have shipped her back to Earth without doing anything medically. They were under no obligation to help, but they had been extremely generous.

  Despite leaving earth as a young girl, Sonia understood that nothing was ever truly free. She recalled her father saying that all the time. He taught them that laziness and dependency on another always led to an enslavement of some degree. A nearly crippling emptiness filled her soul at the thought of her parents. There was an overbearing desire to reach out and grab them as she searched her memories for every image that had been retained. Were they still alive? Where were they? The horror of losing a child must have taken a toll on them.

  A sudden weakness caused her to fall to the floor overtaken by another vision. She was back in the ginn surrounded by the agonizing screams of the other women as the Tisht experimented on them. She was looking up into the horrid face of one of the Tisht scientists conducting the experiments. It was standing over her. Two of its fou
r eyes stared coldly back as her body was filled with pain. She could feel herself screaming. The intensity of the pain subsided, and Sonia looked toward her torso. There was a baby. The Tisht lifted it up and examined it. It began to cry loudly. Instinctively, she reached for it wanting to see and to hold the child that she had given birth to. Sonia could see its arms and legs moving. It looked normal from her vantage point and wasn’t a deformed monster like so many of the others. The Tisht coldly turned and walked away with the newborn. She recalled pleading to see the child and pulling back empty hands clinging them to her chest. They would never let her see the child.

  The vision left and she pushed herself up off the floor. What had happened to that little baby…her son? What did the cruel Tisht do to him? A sudden transformation of emotion occurred as sorrow was filled with rage. Her heart was filled with hate for the barbaric creatures and for all that they had done. She wished for the power to destroy the ginn, the Erim of Tilhar…and to exterminate the Tisht. They were a scourge and needed to pay for the evil they had perpetrated. She looked down at the tight fists her shaking hands inadvertently formed.

  If what she was told came to fruition, the Code was little more than a fading ideology that would no longer protect Earth. They had taken her despite the Code; never being beholden to it. While other nations lived by the law, they never let it bridle their intentions. How many more of her kind would continue to be abducted? They would certainly have her home planet in their primary scope. How many little kids would be taken if they were allowed to continue? Soon they would be so bold as to forgo the natural disasters to shield their activities. They would simply abduct people openly without discretion.

  Sonia was just one person but did kill the Tilhar, so she wasn’t completely hopeless. There was certainly a way to at least kill others in leadership to send a message. The Viennians would probably always go by some ethical standard and would not fight in the same manner that the Tisht would. Despite having the power to do so, and regardless of the benefits of preventing future conflicts, they would never assassinate the leadership of the Tisht or use force to make a statement. They would not fight dirty which gave the Tisht a huge advantage as they would not follow any rules of engagement. They were vile monsters with powerful weapons and were not lacking in the desire to use them. She knew that they should be treated like the diseased animals they were. ‘Fight fire with fire,’ as she recalled the saying from Earth.

  “Dator,” she said aloud. The holographic image appeared before her. “Show me the planets where my kind are being enslaved.” The room filled to capacity with images of hundreds of star systems and planets with Econ being closest to her. As the hologram worked outward it condensed into galaxies. In each galaxy, there were inhabited planets with advanced life forms. She was distraught at how wide-spread slavery was despite what she had been told about the Universal Council. How much had they really accomplished? She wondered if it could have been any worse without them. The Baraza Zima was truly no more than a façade.

  “Earth,” the universe dissolved and a holographic image appeared with the moon in its current orbital position. Sonia stared at it and wondered if she would ever see it in person again, breathe the air, or see her family. “Home,” the orbital pattern stopped and the Earth turned until the North American continent was facing her. The Image of the continent became more visible. As it expanded, she followed the Gulf Coast to the mouth of the Mississippi River then inland past New Orleans. She could see the large agricultural areas where the sugar cane and soy were being farmed and knew that she was close. As it zoomed in further, she recognized Edgard, Louisiana. It had changed and not for the better. It was still recognizable, but the town looked older and more run down than she remembered. The hologram moved down Highway 18 and stopped on a white house a hundred feet off the main road facing the levee. Sonia recognized the house, but the image brought her no peace. The metal roof was covered with rust, the white paint was flaking off the wood siding, the front door was cracked open. It seemed to be abandoned. Grass and foliage were overgrown and it appeared that time and nature were having their way. Her family was no longer there.

  “Enter,” she commanded. The image pushed past the front door into a modest open area where the living room and kitchen, which had once been full of life, were now abandoned and empty. The pine flooring was worn, dirt and webs littered the walls. The rooms were empty, even the appliances were no longer there. The doors to the cabinetry were open and Sonia could see that they were empty. With her hand gestures, Sonia navigated the hologram and walked through the house. To her right was a hallway, and the first door on the right was a room with an open door. She entered, then was overtaken by emotion as she recognized the pink color on the otherwise barren wall. It was her old room. The old brass bed was gone. She recalled jumping on it and the noise the old bed and creaking wood framed sub-floor would make reverberating through the old structure. If Dad were home, he would always come in and make a comment about how it sounded as if she was tearing the house apart. She missed them dearly. Once again, Sonia felt lonely and empty. She felt robbed of her youth, of life with her family. The years and memories could never be recovered.

  Where are they? She wondered. Logan was fighting off death on top of a floating tree in the water somewhere. That, she knew for certain. Sonia’s emotion quickly morphed back into overwhelming anger for what they had done and were continuing to do to her family. Interwoven with the emotion of anger and hate was the reoccurring frustration of being trapped. There was no way off the planet, and even if there was, she had no idea how to get to Earth. It was literally a tiny dot in an endless universe. Even if it were possible to return, how would she find her family? Logan was still alive, but where? Maybe she could start by finding him. Were their parents alive? She needed to leave and move on with life but was unsure of how to do so. It was time to return home.

  The notion of revenge began to creep back into her thoughts. Tilhar was dead, but that wasn’t enough. What about Ningal? She was just as evil; just as guilty and needed to pay as well. But how?

  The image of the beach dissipated and the glass was once again frosted. The room was dark and quiet. The image of the boy returned. He was in her mind and she could see him.

  “I can help you. I am waiting for you,” he whispered.

  “Who are you? Why are you doing this to me?” Sonia asked aloud.

  “Why ask a question when you know the answer?” the boy asked.

  She paused for a second and wondered if it was some trick or game played on her by the Econ scientists, “I ask for I surely don’t know.”

  “I can help you,” said the voice in her mind.

  She realized that it was the boy from her dreams. Sonia hadn’t believed that he was a real living person. He was just a figment of her overactive imagination or the side-effect of the treatments she had received.

  “How? By haunting me? By driving me crazy?” she asked.

  “Come to me and I will show you how to get what it is you want,” he persisted.

  “How do you know what I want?”

  “To get back to Earth…your home, your family…and to stop those who hurt you,” the boy replied appealing to her thoughts.

  “How am I supposed to get to you? I don’t even know who you are,” Sonia replied with a bit of annoyance.

  “In the hanger, a transport is waiting for you. Go, get in. There is a guide waiting for you,” the voice replied undaunted by her annoyance.

  Sonia looked around and once again considered her circumstance, “You’re not real. My mind is playing tricks on me. How can I trust you when I don’t know who you are? This can be some sort of trick.”

  “Go to the hanger. A transport will be waiting for you,” the male voice insisted.

  “With a pilot? I can’t fly one of those things. Where am I going?” she said.

  “Yes, flight instructions have been installed. I have seen to it.”

  “This is highly illogical. Firs
t, I would be stealing the ship of the beings that helped me and gave me sanctuary. The last thing I want is to spend the rest of my days wandering aimlessly through space, or to fall back into captivity,” she wanted to pull the voice from her mind, toss it out of the window, and get rid of it forever.

  “I was the one who helped you. I helped you escape the first time. The telenium…did you wonder why out of the hundreds of pieces on the display, the only piece that wasn’t programmed fell to the ground. It didn’t simply leap from the table on its own. Did you ever wonder why the stranger was in the hanger at that exact time you were there?” the boy said.

  “You did that?” Sonia’s tone changed and she wondered how he knew such details.

  “When Tilhar went to strike you, I held his hand back long enough to let you get a firm grip on the telenium and stab him in the foot…do you remember?”

  “Yes, I do. How did you know that I stabbed him in the foot? No one was in the room with us. We were alone. I didn’t see you,” she paced for a second.

  Sonia was startled and turned around as a tapping sound came from the front entry. It was odd for a visitor to come around in the middle of the night. She assumed that someone had overheard the conversation she seemed to be having with herself. They would certainly think that she was mad and in need of counseling. If they had heard her replies in regard to taking a ship, they may think of her a disingenuous thief. Perhaps the notion that she had gone mad was the reality of her situation. A long-haired boy coming to her in her thoughts and speaking into her mind only happened since being on Econ. Was it not a characteristic of madness? Did they implant these visions into her mind?

  “I have sent you some help…a pilot,” the boy said.

  Sonia continued to look at the door and considered her options. A second round of tapping caused her to stand and give stronger consideration to the possibility of opening the door. A part of her wondered if the entire sequence was a trap or a test of loyalty on behalf of her hosts. Mistaken intentions may be seen as a betrayal leading to the dissolution of the liberties given to her. She would truly be a prisoner then.