Cynetic Wolf

by Matt Ward

  Once the fighting fizzled out, we’d lost 144 million in four days. And that wasn’t including the Neuroweb junkies... Humanity was on the brink, again.

  It was decided Paer, Obowe, and I would go as the animote representatives. The agreements were non-binding, and people would have to ratify them, but I felt an enormous responsibility. What if I screwed up?

  Before I knew it, the talks were upon us. I couldn’t sleep. Even spending the night with Zedda didn’t help. Everything was riding on this.

  I awoke at 6:30, ruined, like I’d been beaten for days with a club. Struggling to my feet, muscles sore and brain foggy, I thought through these past months—the suffering and hardships at the hands of the GDR, Elly, my family. Everything…

  And Zedda… Lying there, she was the picture of peaceful serenity. Why’d she make me feel like this? And even after hours and hours sharing everything with one another, she was a mystery.

  But I had a job to do. People were relying on me. I needed coffee.

  Obowe was in the mess when I got there, nursing a steaming cup of caffeinated goodness. “Ready, Raek?”

  “Ready as I’ll ever be. Have you seen—” The door opened and the wiry woman stepped in. “Speak of the devil.”

  “Good, you two are up,” Paer commented. “Ready?”

  “Waiting on you, Agtha,” Obowe said in what could have been a joke, but his face was more of a blank stare. You never could tell with him.

  “Let’s get lids and go,” Paer said after her first sip. “We’re better early than late.”

  We chit-chatted on the way to the entrance and I was reminded of that day Zedda first brought Fitz and I here. So much had happened. Was it about to come to a close?

  A short VTOL ride and we were outside the great library. The building was majestic, an air of power and purpose that grabbed me. The white marble arches and massive stone staircase had the historic feel of ancient Rome, ascending the Library of Alexandria. This was the center of the known world, the bastion of science and reason, and of humanity’s progress. There weren’t many left... Would it be enough?

  Powder white snow coated the treetops and sidewalks, giving an ethereal feel to the whole experience. We were the only ones here, no screaming protesters or advocacy groups. We’d agreed to a three block perimeter to protect the proceedings. At least for now, it was working.

  At the top of the steps, I gazed out at the city. Not two weeks ago, bloodshed engulfed these streets. Hundreds of thousands dead, buildings incinerated, bodies littering the frozen earth. Today, all was calm and quiet.

  The contrast was eerie.

  The door opened as we approached, and we stepped through oak-paneled double doors. Holy cow: level upon level of books, manuscripts, digital files, all manner of statues, photography, and art. It was as if Michelangelo met da Vinci, Jobs, and Einstein in the epitome of man’s creativity and progress.

  Obowe elbowed me. Shoot, we’d arrived. At the embossed wooden table in the center of the main level sat a small group that appeared to be enhancers.

  Two tall men sat rigid in high-backed chairs, observing us as we approached. One had short blond hair, the beginnings of a beard, and blue eyes that invited confidence. His sturdy neighbor sported a bomber jacket, buzzcut, and enough gritty facial hair to display dominance as a male. He whispered to the woman to his right, a drop dead brunette with deep brown eyes, high cheekbones, and an air of intelligence. She was stunning, irresistible actually, holding me transfixed. I thought of Zedda and felt ashamed.

  Paer broke the ice. “Looks like we’re not the first ones here.”

  “Pleasure to meet you.” The blond man pushed back his chair and stood, colleagues following suit.

  The enhancers had wanted to get the lay of the land as well. We both wanted to ensure we weren’t walking into an ambush.

  Pleasantries completed, Obowe circled the table arranging micro-cams to prevent any funny business. As he sat, the Library doors opened and sunlight streamed in. The cynetics and emulates had arrived together. Interesting.

  The two parties marched wordlessly toward us. Calter led the way for the cynetics, staring me down. He knew he’d been played and hadn’t seen it coming. It’d be interesting to see how things played out. I doubted his fellow delegates knew. He wasn’t the type to disclose anything. Maybe we could use that...

  The emulates followed at a distance with an unmistakable tension. The Minister of Commerce, Jean Gileu, and I locked eyes, death stares burning into me. Where was Lin Zu?

  After strained introductions, they too set up recording gear.

  No one said anything.

  I stood. “I’m glad you all came.” The faces around the table were impossible to gauge. “We have to put a stop to the violence. We’ve all lost friends and family, and if the fighting continues... This isn’t about winning or losing or avenging past crimes. This is about moving past those to an equal world of prosperity for all.”

  Obowe nodded, encouraged, and two of the others did likewise. The rest seemed unconvinced, angry, or fearful. This wouldn’t be easy.

  “I don’t have an agenda,” I continued. “These are preliminary talks. Everything needs to be ratified by the people. I’ve said enough. I want to let anyone with something to say to take the stage.” I sat.

  Jean Gileu burst to his feet, glaring at me. “In these discussions, let’s not forget the actions and ramifications of the actions your people have committed. You’ve killed me, murdered my husband, and our two children. Our brain-fields were backed up, you ruined that, stole that from emulates everywhere. So let’s not sit here and pretend you animotes are so high and mighty,” he added. “You’ve murdered millions and act as if you’re a savior.”

  I recoiled.

  “And,” the longhaired oddball to Jean’s right added, “millions have died at your hands and millions more will before this is over. You caused all of it! You are the greatest mass murderer mankind has ever known!” He snarled.

  Mass murderer, me? How could he—

  “If we’re honest,” the beautiful enhancer piped up. I couldn’t remember her name—Iyanna, I think—I’d been distracted. “The GDR treated our animote cousins like filth for decades. We’re guilty as well. We let it happen. It was just a matter of time.”

  “We’re not here to assign blame!” I cut in. “It doesn’t matter who is at fault. We all are. But, things are broken and need fixing.”

  We went back and forth for hours, arguing minute details, politics, and, of course, blaming everyone but ourselves. Politicians...

  At noon we broke for lunch, famished. It’d been a slog of a morning. Each group headed to find food and discuss the morning’s developments.

  Obowe and Paer were frustrated with the lack of progress. The emulates weren’t happy with any way forward. Cynetics saw power as their probable future. Neither seemed willing to compromise. The chasm between felt insurmountable, and growing.

  After a quick lunch, it was time to head back. As before, trust but verify. We all double checked recording equipment before starting. The afternoon session passed much the same as the morning, and by 19:00, I was sick of the whole thing. A day of arguments, and nothing to show for it.

  Back at headquarters, we had more meetings in the War Room. Ugh.

  I found Zedda afterwards, needing to be close to her tonight, to share my innermost thoughts and fears. Later, we made love. I told her about being called a mass murderer, about the blame and hate I felt, even my fears for us.

  What if we failed, if I failed? Could I live in a world where my children were second class citizens at best?

  A tear touched her eye as a happy smile enveloped her.

  “What’s wrong?” My heart skipped a beat. Was it something I said?

  “Oh, it’s nothing, Raek.” She wiped a tear, staring at me in the dim light. “I was going to wait until this was all over.” She smiled, blinking away uncharacteristic tears. “Raek, I’m pregnant!” she blurted out. “I’m pregnant
.” She laughed, smiling and crying all at once.

  “I’m pregnant.”

  61

  Dream Team

  We fell asleep in each other’s arms, talking late into the night about the baby, the future, our life together. It was the scariest, happiest moment of my life. I was so ecstatic, I missed the obvious question...

  You’re going to be a dad, Raek. Over and over, that permeated my dreams in a cloud of contentment. But my last dream—the most vivid of all—was dark and mysterious, a storm beyond the horizon. It was coming.

  I awoke with a start as my last sleep cycle ended. The room was empty. Zedda? Where was she? And why was my pulse pounding? Maybe she’d gotten hungry, or something happened. There was a message: Emergency Meeting. I hurried off.

  The enhancers had proposed an alliance to discuss collaboration. Our goals were aligned and it was more or less what we’d expected. We’d meet for lunch to talk details.

  Lars was worried for some reason. “Something doesn’t feel right. My gut says something’s off.”

  “If we were going to get anywhere,” I said, “there has to be trust and compromise on all sides. Are we too afraid to make the first move?”

  No one had a good response, and we agreed to see what they had to say.

  What could it hurt?

  62

  A Friendly Encounter

  A VTOL whisked us off before I had the chance to talk to Zedda.

  I was going to be a dad. Wow! Talk about mixed emotions…

  Maybe it was the cybernetics. How else could we have a child together? A chimpish and a wolfish… Yet somehow, miraculously, we’d gotten pregnant. If we could, maybe others could as well. Happy goosebumps everywhere.

  Focus, Raek. What was Priya saying?

  “We’ve always structured government with the best and brightest to optimize outcomes for all. And cynetics have the upper hand. Our SmartCores, subprocesses, and constant connectivity lead to better, more informed decisions. Doesn’t it make sense we’d want the most talented among us to lead?”

  “If you are implying,” Paer said, “we or our enhancer and emulate friends are less intelligent or qualified, you’ll be hard pressed to make a convincing case. How do you explain a bunch of uneducated brutes bringing your well-equipped military to its knees with so little resources? Seems like flawed reasoning...” Her eyes flashed, daring Priya to object.

  “While there are certain areas of intelligence—” Priya began.

  “Cut the bullshit!” Paer exclaimed. “Animotes have the worst schools, least funding, and intentional systemic bias. If there’s an achievement gap, it’s primarily—if not solely—due to circumstance. Take a kid with nothing, parents unable to put food on the table, and decades old material, and you get what we have today: a factory to produce factory workers. If that isn’t rigged, I don’t know what is!”

  We went round and round for hours, never reaching consensus, but had broached the topic of voting when it came time to break. We were getting hangry. Food might help.

  As we went separate ways, I got a message from Calter. How had he found my anonymous username? Creepy.

  Stay behind for five minutes. - CF

  “I’ll meet you guys in five.” Paer and Obowe left, and I strode to the legacy shelves—eighteenth century American lit—and grabbed a book. Calter sidled up two minutes later, standing uncomfortably close.

  “What?” I asked. This wasn’t at all what I’d expected.

  “I got Thorn back!” he said. “What happened to his hands?”

  “He tried to shoot me. I only disabled him. You’re welcome.”

  “You’ll pay for that!” he barked. “I’ll make you suffer, you pathetic excuse for a human. Stay out of my way.”

  He put his hand on my shoulder, and I spun, dropping him to the floor. “Don’t you ever lay hands on me again,” I breathed, blaster pointed at his face.

  He snarled, sizing me up.

  “Don’t!” I said. “I’m not your enemy but I won’t be pushed around either. You pull a stunt like that again, you’ll regret it. Did you want anything else?” I added. “Or are we done here?”

  “We’re done. You’ll regret this, kid.”

  I walked out of the Library without bothering to look back or help him to his feet. Prick.

  On the way to lunch, I was rattled more than I cared to admit. It’d been the two of us. If it was a trap, I’d have been screwed. What was I thinking?

  I had to tell the others. Wait, did I? If I told them, they’d worry. The last thing I needed was the Council restricting my movements. Things were claustrophobic enough as it was. I’d play this one close to the vest.

  Lunch with the enhancers went well, but there was an undercurrent of tension throughout. They were enthusiastic yet hesitant, and wanted to avoid being left out of the political hierarchy. With such a large animote population, they worried they’d be relegated over time. And it made sense.

  Zill was pushy on the subject, several heated discussions about the need for protections. We never reached a formal consensus but all felt it was a success, and agreed to meet tomorrow to continue the dialogue.

  On the way out, Iyanna pulled me aside. “Raek,” she said in a hushed voice. “There are things you should know. You shouldn’t—”

  “What?” I asked, a little loud.

  Zill turned, and gave her a look that froze her. His glare told me more than words ever could. Something was off.

  “I was asking Raek about the fighting,” she murmured in response to Zill’s chilling look. “Must have been terrifying. I couldn’t have done it.”

  “It was all instincts, to be honest,” I added, continuing our would-be conversation. “I got lucky.”

  Zill shook his head in disgust. “Come on, Iyanna. We need to talk.”

  She walked away, giving me a faint nod. Zill didn’t notice. What was that?

  As we separated and walked back, I told the others.

  “You’re overthinking things,” Obowe said. “We’re all a little paranoid right now.”

  Despite their reassurances, I couldn’t shake the feeling.

  Something was off, very off.

  63

  The Talk

  The afternoon session was more of the same, and before I knew it, we headed home. Lars rode shotgun in the VTOL that picked us up. He waved, shooting an evil glance at Calter and the cynetics as he did, receiving daggers in return.

  He laughed as we hopped in, patting me on the back. The doors closed and his face hardened. “I don’t trust them,” he grumbled. “Not after last time.” He took a gray connectivity sensor from his pack like Fitz had had.

  I rolled my eyes. “Really—”

  BEEP.

  Lars raised an eyebrow. “Someone was tracking you. Take it off.” He motioned to my shirt. Calter, it had to be...

  I slipped off my shirt and handed it to him. He opened the window and tossed it with a scowl before running the scanner along my arms and legs once more. Nothing.

  “Agtha, Kamau.” After a quick inspection, we were deemed clean and landed not long after.

  I’d let Calter get close and we’d almost paid for it with our lives.

  64

  Flushing

  The night was a whirlwind of meetings and endless caffeine. By the time we retired to our rooms—tired and weary beyond reason—it was 1:00 a.m. Zedda and I were drained and dropped like flies, out in seconds, desire the furthest thing from our minds.

  A terrible dream woke me around four a.m. Something had happened to Zedda. I gave her arm a light shake.

  She groaned. “What?”

  I told her about the dream, and we spent the few remaining hours just talking, enjoying each other’s company.

  “You’d have loved the farm, Raek. I wish you could have seen it, met Ryian and Tem too. We invented tons of games. Smartband sim fights were always popular. Even Mom and Dad played, before she got sick...” Zedda took a deep breath and I gave her hand an encouragi
ng squeeze.

  “My brothers enlisted once they were eighteen. It was just me, Mom, and Dad after that. That was okay for a while, but one day, Mom came down with something. Doctors couldn’t help, said rest and drink lots of fluid. As if we weren’t doing that.” She scowled. “We couldn’t afford any testing and nothing helped.”

  Her back and shoulders were taut as elkhide. I rubbed them, but she didn’t seem to notice.

  “We moved to Dearth. Docs said we needed an elite hospital. Like that would ever happen. Dad tried, but they turned us away at the door. He fought and begged and pleaded but it didn’t matter. Soon, we were homeless. Mom got weaker and weaker.” She swallowed hard.

  “One day, we got a message from Paer; Ryian and Tem were killed in an ambush. That broke Mom and Dad. She died the next day. He didn’t make it a week...” Tears formed as she closed her eyes. I wiped them and took her into my arms, holding her tight. It was the most natural thing in the world. After a long, quiet while, she stopped shaking.

  “I’ve never told anyone,” she whispered.

  My alarm buzzed at 6:00 and I snuck out to meet Paer and Obowe. We were the only ones up, and headed out at 8:00.

  I couldn’t stop thinking about Zedda, about all this. Was it a boy or a girl? Either way, they’d grow up in a better world. They had to. I’d die for that.

  The morning went well. The cynetics—Calter in particular—were less aggressive and hostile than usual. Weird, but I’d take it.

  At noon, we separated for lunch and met the enhancers.

  Something wasn’t right when we got there. And Iyanna was more reserved than last time, only speaking twice. Zill and Deane must have given her a tongue lashing.

  She excused herself for the lady’s room. That was my chance. I started to stand, but Zill rose and went to the men’s room. Was he guarding her? I stifled a laugh. Stop being paranoid.