He sighed.
"Hey, even if we're wrong, Uncle Jack, what have we got to lose?" Julian said.
"Uncle Jack?" I smiled at him. "It's three against one."
"All right, but…" He held up both hands to stop us interrupting. "There has to be a time limit." He dropped his hands.
"But…" Julian tried.
"No. No buts. My terms and conditions are; I will give you forty-eight hours, after which, regardless of the outcome, we will all go back to sleep. It's simple. No agreement––no help. In my opinion, it's a waste of time. As designated section leader in the event of an emergency, I'm in charge, so you're all bound to obey my orders for the duration. Okay?" His expression remained, determined and officious.
We could see it would be pointless to argue with him. Three heads nodded simultaneously.
#
We sat around the table and discussed how we were going to tackle the problem. Jack ducked out and tried the easy option of searching for Logan Williamson and Kiera by name, just on the off chance he and Kiera were hiding in plain sight. He had also searched for Kiera, using facial recognition and normal bio-parameters. It had come up negative. Jack failed to find any information in the ship's computer about Williamson. Neither Jack nor I could remember his face that well, but we did think we would recognise him if we saw him.
"He mightn't be on the ship," Jack said, taking a sip of his coffee.
"I have a strong feeling he's here somewhere, but he may have changed his appearance. I doubt he's transitioned to a sapioid form, yet. He enjoyed his humanness too much, or should I say lack thereof. As a control freak, he'd be worried about being forced to undergo GM. Remember, everybody's genome was screened as part of the selection process. They wouldn't have selected Williamson, unless he'd agreed to, or had already had genetic modifications. He wouldn't have got on board carrying the same glaring psychological traits that we all knew so well. He'll only become a sapioid when he's out of viable alternatives," I said.
Jack nodded his head in agreement.
"So, are we looking for his clone?" Julian asked.
"Absolutely. The question is, did he opt for an identical copy, or has he done all sorts of physical modifications, in which case, it will be difficult to recognise him." I finished eating my energy bar and mopped up the crumbs with my fingers.
"I have an idea." Tiani leaned back in her chair and looked thoughtful.
"Let's have it," Jack said, before he drained his cup.
"If there is some sort of psychic link between Julian, myself and Mum and Dad, what if we all linked up in Virtual and went deeper into the matrix to search?"
I watched as she began, absentmindedly, twisting her hair again. In some ways it was reassuring to see her performing one of her normal, everyday habits. Normal––nothing would ever be normal again. A wave of sadness broke over me, and I struggled to contain it. I pulled my mind back to the current conversation.
"It can't be done, Tiani. The human mind can't cope with the whole matrix. It's too powerful. It wouldn't be possible to do that using Virtual, anyway. When we link to Virtual, it's peripheral. We're using our minds to issue commands instead of speaking to the computer or keying them in. When we go into Immersive Virtual, which is a lot deeper, it's via an avatar. It's totally different from the direct link your dad established with you, Julian and your mum. The depth of that is probably somewhere in between.
Anybody that has attempted to link with the matrix has ended up dead or a vegetable." Jack's face took on a sombre expression. "I lost a good friend that way a couple of years ago. He ended up dead, with bits of his memory embedded all over the matrix."
Tiani wasn't about to be put off that easily. "But they were all single people efforts, Uncle Jack. We would be a group of three, and two of us have android brains. If we joined together, it might make us strong enough to be able to cope."
"No, it's too risky, Tiani, and I can't see how that would help to find Williamson."
"But we wouldn't be looking for Williamson."
"Oh?" I raised my eyebrows.
"We would be looking for Mum. Tell me the exact words of the message again, Dad."
"'Kiera is with me now, you won't find us.'" I shivered with the memory of it.
Tiani leant across and gave my hand a gentle squeeze. "What if he copied her onto a chip or some other storage device and hid it somewhere on his own body?"
Could it be that simple? Far from it. It would mean we would be back to uploading Kiera (if possible) into an android. It still left the issue of Kiera's body––my body now—dangling.
Jack thought for a moment before saying, "Probably a Higgs boson chase. Chips complex enough to hold the whole human consciousness haven't been perfected yet, besides, copying a human's consciousness is illegal. That law was designed to stop any further research, but it's a possibility, considering Logan Williamson's past history.
You wouldn't need to go into the matrix, Tiani. If it's been secreted in Williamson's body, a search through human and clone bodies for one containing a foreign body, other than the identity spherule, would suffice. You could use the password test to identify Kiera, Luke, just as you've done previously."
"Except, we can't check it against her bio-parameters."
"No, but who else would know the password? Williamson wouldn't." Jack straightened in his chair and grinned.
"He might, if he's been able to get into her mind somehow, Jack." I met his eyes.
"It's unlikely. If we find something, I'm prepared to take the risk, Luke. Are you?"
I nodded.
Jack sat silent for a moment. "Technically, I've committed an offence by uploading and saving you two kids to the ship's computer. It could be considered making copies, although it was only temporary. I deleted them once I was sure your uploads had been successful."
"Under the circumstances, Jack, I think we could say it was justified. My understanding is, it refers to permanent copies on computers and storage devices, doesn't it?''
Jack shrugged. "Let's hope so, Luke." He turned to Tiani and patted her arm. "Bloody hell Tiani you're a genius. I don't know why I didn't think of a chip or device search. Okay, let's get to it." He leapt up and darted towards the door.
We filed out after him. Tiani was almost bubbling over with enthusiasm and Julian's smile lit his face from ear to ear. I just hoped. I knew we were grasping for a remote possibility, but at least it gave us something to focus on. I followed them out, my own spirits buoyed up by theirs.
Chapter 32
Jack linked in and set up the search. Now, it was just a matter of waiting. He'd set up an alarm that would alert us to a positive result. Since only one of us needed to stay awake, Jack decided the rest of us could grab some sleep. Tiani volunteered for the first shift.
When people were first uploaded into sapioids, we'd thought they wouldn't need sleep. To everyone's surprise, even though sapioids didn't get physically tired, their human minds still required it. A further revelation was that they were able to dream.
Interfering with their sleep caused them to exhibit the same symptoms as sleep deprived humans; loss of concentration, memory problems and personality changes. Sleep for humans was an essential part of the functioning brain. It allowed the processing, sorting and consolidation of information gained during waking hours. Unwanted material was discarded and the brain was flushed clean of clogging amyloid, tau and other proteins.
Since there were only two bunks in the living module, Julian volunteered to sleep on the floor. He settled himself comfortably by lying on a blanket with another one rolled up under his head. He fell asleep in minutes. So did Jack. I laid there listening to his slow, relaxed breathing. My mind still raced with thoughts of Kiera; of my children trapped in machines. The finality of it, Julian, and possibly Tiani, didn't yet realise. The sentence of forever, of never being able to have children. I would have to tell them, and I dreaded it.
Roused by a loud buzzing, I opened my eyes, and shook away
the muzzy feeling of sleep. Julian's excited face hovered over me. "Hey, Dad. We've found her."
I sat up and rubbed my eyes.
The buzzing ceased abruptly, and presently, Jack stuck his head around the door. "We found a body with an FB on deck twenty-eight P."
"FB?" I queried.
"Foreign body, Dad," Julian's eyes radiated hope, excitement and expectation.
"It's a male clone, recorded as Peter Cales," Jack said.
I swung my legs to the floor and stood up. "Is it Williamson?"
"I can't tell. The photographs are probably not reliable, Williamson could easily have inserted a fake. It appears hopeful, the biological parameters fit––dark hair, brown eyes, right height as far as I can remember."
"Do you want me to go down and look?" I focused on him, and just for an instant could see pain in his eyes, but in a flash it vanished.
"I think we should both go. We need to wake Mr Cales to scan the FB. Perhaps he could be persuaded to tell us about it." Jack frowned and tightened his fists. "I wouldn't be beyond using force."
My mouth dropped open. Jack's last comment was totally out of character. "I don't think that would be wise. You might damage the chip, or whatever it is."
"It depends on what I do, doesn't it?" He flashed me an evil grin. "There are so many options, I really don't know which to choose."
Shock reverberated through me, and my skin crawled. I had never seen Jack resort to violence.
"Hey, I'll be in that," Julian said.
I put my hand on his arm. "No you won't." It was one thing for Jack, or me, to entertain using violence, but I wasn't going to let Julian go down that track.
"Dad." His face took on a pained expression.
"It's not necessary! If he doesn't talk, we'll access the chip. I have no objection to restraining him, if he refuses, but I do have an issue with you or Jack using violence."
"You sound just like Kiera." Jack frowned and gave me a sour look.
"Not funny." I was in no mood for his humour.
"Can I come too?" Tiani asked.
An insistent buzzer sounded again. Jack cocked his head to one side, puzzled. "I turned that off, unless…" He shot out the door. Filled with a sinking feeling, I filed out behind Tiani and Julian. We hurried over to the console. "We have another body with an FB. It's on deck twenty-nine P," Jack said, as he silenced the buzzer.
"Why would anybody have inclusions? What could they possibly be?" I asked Jack.
"I don't know. I'm just searching this person's parameters. "This one is a woman whose parameters fit Kiera's but…" He fiddled with the keyboard. "It's not Kiera.
We peered at the photograph displayed on screen. It bore no resemblance to Kiera.
"That's not her." Tiani crinkled up her face in disappointment.
"I agree." Julian bit his lip.
"Definitely not, but how can we be certain? Williamson is capable of anything. What do we do now, Jack?" I wrapped my arms around myself, suddenly feeling cold. Jack appeared calm, almost detached.
"We can't assume the first one is her. We're going to have to scan all the FBs we find, to rule them out. You know how I feel, but you've raised a remote possibility, so because we're family I'm prepared to see this through."
Tiani burst into tears. Julian put his arm around her shoulders. "Hey, Ti, the first one might be her." He tried, unsuccessfully, to look hopeful.
"Great Universe, Jack. How far through the search are we?"
"The computer's conducting the search deck by deck. It's just started on twenty-nine." He consulted the screen. "According to this it will take another four hours and twenty-six minutes. I suggest we start looking at the ones that have already come up. Tiani and Julian should stay here. It will be easier to coordinate pressurising the sections where these people are located. I'll need to show you two how to do it."
"Are they stable enough?"…I trailed off, embarrassed at discussing my children's stability in front of them.
"Dad?" Although Tiani's face registered annoyance, I sensed fear in her voice.
"Hey, we're okay, aren't we Tiani?" Julian leant over and gave her a quick, one arm hug.
Tiani turned to Jack. "Are we, Uncle Jack?" She screwed up her face, fighting back tears.
Jack put his arms around her. "Yes, Tiani." He turned to me and said, "They'll be fine, they're well and truly stabilised now, Luke. There won't be any dramas. Okay, kids, come over to the console, and I'll show you how everything works and what programs you'll need to access."
Julian sat down in the chair, and Tiani sat opposite him at the console on the other side. I stood by and watched as Jack filled Tiani and Julian in on what the various buttons did and how to set up the necessary protocols for pressurising a section and reviving people.
After allowing enough time for the pressurisation of our first section to be almost complete by the time we got there, Jack said, "Let's suit up and get going, Luke. I'm starting us off with deck twenty-eight P, and we'll work up from there if we need to."
Julian and Tiani waved as we set off. I followed Jack down to the bulkhead where the suits were hanging.
My emotions were in limbo.
Chapter 33
After making our way through numerous airlocks, we finally reached the lift closest to our destination. Jack summoned it, and we waited for it to come down from its default position on deck five. We could hear Julian and Tiani chattering away in the background. As we stood bathed in the green light from the display screen, Jack tapped my visor and indicated we should switch to our private suit-to-suit communication. I pressed the button located in the mini control panel on my sleeve and observed the red icon light up on my HUD display just in time to hear Jack say, "We're just going off-line, you two, we'll be back in about ten minutes, okay?"
"Okay," Tiani and Julian chorused back.
"Finally, we've got some of privacy. I need to clear the air with you, Luke. Where the hell did your comment come from? It's left me bloody gutted."
At first, I couldn't see his face through the visor, but a light came on inside his helmet and he held up his wrist, indicating the button I should press to do the same. In an instant, brightness flooded my face.
"I…" my muscles tensed, as I struggled to answer him. An intense anger bubbled up from somewhere inside and I exploded. "I feel like the three of us are…were in a Zarking ménage a trois, Jack." I swallowed, suddenly aware that I was shaking. "Kiera was always going on about the special connection between the two of you. It made me feel threatened and excluded." I stopped to catch my breath. "She didn't discuss you joining Sapioid Inc. with me, she just went ahead and asked you."
I heard Jack's fast intake of breath, as his face registered shock.
"I didn't know that, Luke."
I could hear my own ragged breathing. I needed to calm down. Jack stood watching me, as I took a couple of deep breaths. "Look, I know we're both drowning in emotion because of what's happened. Somehow, it's raked up my past, and brought back stuff I thought I'd laid to rest. I'm ashamed and deeply sorry, Jack." I went to run my fingers through my hair but instead whacked my hand on my helmet. I heard Jack clear his throat, so I kept quiet and waited for him to speak.
"I obviously need to explain a few things, Luke. When I first saw you and Kiera together, I made up my mind to walk away again after everything was over. I'd already done that once. I'd accepted there was no chance of a relationship with her. As her youth counsellor, it would have been unprofessional and unethical, and besides she didn't love me."
"And the connection, Jack?" I said, more tersely than I had intended.
"Yes, Kiera and I do have a special connection. It developed during our counselling sessions. We had a lot in common, plus there were a multitude of intense emotional issues I helped Kiera work through. We developed a deep, enduring understanding of one another." Jack paused, and I nodded in acknowledgement.
"After the trial, Kiera changed my mind when she told me how far the upload pro
gram had advanced and what your plans were. I had no idea she hadn't discussed it with you, Luke."
His earnest, open expression convinced me he was telling the truth, so I simply nodded again.
"I jumped at the chance to take my life in a different direction. No matter what I did, I always had a feeling of incompleteness."
"Jack, I…"
Jack held up his hands. "Let me finish, Luke. It's ironic really, working on the upload program wasn't where I found satisfaction and serenity. It was being with you, Kiera, and the kids, Luke. Being part of your family and being included in your world. I love you all dearly—you've given me exactly what I craved."
My insides knotted up, and I could feel my throat tightening. I could see tears shining in Jack's eyes.
"I was never a threat to you, Luke. The only thing I'm guilty of is that I once loved Kiera the way you do. That's well and truly in the past, so can we put this to rest once and for all?" He reached up and touched my shoulder, and I could see the anguish in his face.
"Absolutely, Jack." I reached out and patted his shoulder. "I promise never to mention the subject again."
"And if we find Kiera, please don't mention our conversation."
"Of course not, Jack."
Jack managed a grin before he continued, "Good, I'm glad that's sorted." He flicked off his helmet light. "Right, we had better switch back to general com before we panic Tiani." He pressed his wrist. "We're back, you two."
I pressed my switch just in time to hear Julian say, "Deck twenty-seven S."
"Say again Julian, I didn't catch that," I said.
"We found another person with an FB on deck twenty-seven S."
"What the hell can this mean, Dad?" chimed in Tiani's excited voice. "How can there be so many people with extra stuff? This is so weird."
"Interesting," Jack said, "I hope we don't find too many more because there is an awake protocol I was hoping I didn't have to mention."
"What do you mean?" Julian's voice suddenly sounded strained.
"There are rules about how long we are allowed to remain out of suspension at any one time, once an emergency has been addressed." Jack's tone became serious.
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