As he felt himself entering deeper levels of relaxation, his eyes becoming heavy, Djoser considered the bit of brown scum from the lake that had hitched a ride on Lily’s naked ankle; the heat of the midday sun was baking it into a flaky crust. Groggily, he could smell her wet skin, and it made him wish that she was the one massaging him. But he decided not to request this just now. He could work on Lily later.
Djoser, you’re a pig, Lyra’s voice chided him over a blink. Djoser was startled back awake. Did I broadcast that last thought? he wondered.
Always thinking of yourself. Has not our advisor, the one you thought so inadequate, proven himself instrumental in our success thus far? Djoser caught the wink from Lyra, who was lying nearby on her back, her veil down so he could see her real face. Her wet hair was crumpled around her head.
Djoser let out a low groan of frustration. If it will shut you up, he sent back to her. Djoser then tugged on Amanda’s hair again, beckoning her down to his lips. He whispered in her ear.
Amanda crept up behind D_Light, who was lying on his side. “Your father asked me to thank you,” Amanda purred softly.
D_Light, who was in limbo between slumber and wakefulness, initially thought he was dreaming. The product’s long nails-lethal in other contexts-scratched softly and expertly over his scalp, her warm breath doing something wonderful to his ear that caused a shudder of pleasure up his spine. He wanted to ask her what Djoser was thanking him for, but her hands were moving over him now, going to all the right places. D_Light did nothing but groan quietly. His hands clenched into fists in the lawn. His eyes opened into slits. Lyra was smirking at him. She spoke softly, almost in a whisper. “You deserve this.”
D_Light felt conflicted. This was rather unexpected. Did he respectfully decline? Perhaps ask to delay his reward for a later time, a time when he was not out on a lawn surrounded by his teammates? But this indecisiveness lasted only a moment, for Amanda’s limbs began intensifying their play as her fangs gently raked his neck and her hot breath washed over him. I cannot risk insulting them, he thought. I do deserve this. He smiled back at his mother.
Lyra opened a conference blink with both D_Light and Djoser, which Smorgeous accepted instantly. Stick with us, D_Light, she sent. We’ll take good care of you. Her eyes sparkled as they flickered down suggestively to where Amanda had reached into the opening of his skinsuit.
We’re good friends to have. Djoser’s thought signature was faint, indicative of one drifting off to sleep.
I know. And- D_Light did not finish sending his thought before he whispered out loud, “Oh Soul!” D_Light decided it would be best if he expressed himself naturally. Certainly Djoser would like to know his gift was appreciated.
Lily turned over on her side and propped her head up with her arm to see better. Her brow was furrowed slightly, and her lips parted as though she were forming a question. Brian tapped her on her foot, and when she looked at him he rolled his eyes at D_Light. She gave him a faint smile as though the two of them were sharing a joke, and then she nodded her head in agreement.
It was a strain on Lily to force a smile. What she wanted to do was scream. Only hours ago, she had never engaged with any human besides the professor, and even that was purely in a clinical and professional manner. Now she was lying in a pool of them. They seemed friendly enough, they listened to her, and they even followed her into the lake. She sensed that some of them cared about her well-being. Nevertheless, they were insane-every last one of them-with their games, their thought speech, their peculiar facial expressions, and now this. What is she doing to him?
Lily understood what humans did to reproduce, and it was supposedly a normal and necessary thing, but this did not appear to be what was taking place. The mechanics were all wrong. She looked like she was eating him rather than mating with him. Perhaps it was a sort of courtship that would culminate in a proper union. Or perhaps she was witnessing how humans died. Despite her research at the lab, it was evident that these creatures still held many secrets. She turned away from D_Light and the fanged woman to stare out at the lake. She wondered if she should leave this group, or if ultimately these humans were inexplicably linked to her fate. Perhaps they could provide her a path into their world; therein, she could find what she was looking for, whatever that was.
The seeker let out a low growl as she stood at the water’s edge. Her prey had gone straight in. They had left their clothes on. Perhaps they swam off, or maybe a boat had picked them up.
No…not a boat, she realized after a moment. She no longer had their scent, but she had been tracking them long enough to know them. She was certain there was no boat because the trail they’d left was not that of a party with a good escape plan. Their scent and tracks spoke of anxiety and lack of resolve. Ironically for a killer, a seeker had an extraordinary sense of empathy. Such was needed to imagine themselves in the place of their prey. Now Treva imagined the party swimming in the frigid water, their fingers going numb while their clothes dragged. She imagined their disgust at the dark water and fear of what was beneath the surface.
Finally, there was the fact gleaned from the Cloud that most of those in the party were not strong swimmers. They will stay together. They did not swim far.
She stood still and concentrated on the scent threads that came to her. There were thousands of them-threads from the water itself, threads from the algae scum on its surface, threads from the thick aquatic plants that grew up from the heavy mud below. But there was no trace of her prey, not yet. Although irritating because it distracted from her work, she would now have to send word to the Divine Authority of this recent development.
Katria swore out loud, catching the attention of the waiter product that was busily wiping down a nearby table. The waiter bowed and asked if he could be of further service. She waved him off without looking at him.
So the little shitters ran straight to the water, Rhemus blinked in. Well, two points to them for doing the obvious.
Katria chuckled despite herself. Good thing I contracted the seeker for the job rather than by the hour, she returned.
Yeah, just think, if it doesn’t catch them, we don’t pay a point. He paused. You made the right call. Don’t sweat it. Once a seeker gets imprinted, they don’t give up. It’s just a matter of time.
What Rhemus said was more or less true; however, there was an eventual timeout clause in the contract. House Xando knew better than to sign a contract that took one of their precious seekers indefinitely out of operation.
Forget it, Rhemus said. Kick back and let it do its job. What’s that you’re eating?
I’m not sure, Katria replied. I never like to know. I just want it to taste good.
And here I thought you didn’t like surprises, Rhemus teased.
Only pleasant ones, Katria answered with a grin.
Earlier, Katria did have a pleasant surprise, a gift from the OverSoul. Having offered the necessary prayers and point sacrifice, the OverSoul dispensed the divine inspiration she needed through her familiar. It was so simple. Like a judo master, she would use the demons’ own weight against them, and they were bound to fall hard. No matter about the stymied seeker. Perhaps it was a blessing, for now she would have the opportunity to see this divinely inspired plan come to fruition.
CHAPTER 22
Human genetic engineering started in the United States. This was a surprise at the time to those who speculate on such things. The expectation was that China would fire the first shot. China, a newly minted superpower, had both the means and a seemingly unhindered view on ethically problematic issues. Nevertheless, many historians believe that the catalyst for America’s plunge into “accelerated human evolution” was in response to Asia’s economic rise to power. The West did not want to give up their hegemony. As the American middle and upper classes’ grip over exclusive and high-paying employment continued to erode in the global economy, so did their qualms about tampering with nature. Parents had always wanted to give their children an edge, but
then on the competitive international stage, “want” became “need.”
But let’s not be too harsh on these U.S. parents and their suppliers. Pandora’s box was destined to open eventually, and when it did, it did not even take a generation before nearly everyone in the world was saving their dollars, their yen, or their euros to level the playing field for their own child.
Improving the long-term health and attractiveness of their children was easy enough, but the real demand was for boosting intelligence. Historically, parents had always secretly hoped for a “gifted” child, and now this gift could be purchased.
Thanks to such market forces, it was only a few generations before much of the world was genetically homogenized. Now was the opportune time for a virus to strike. When the TerriLove virus exploited a weakness in our shared proteomic signature (one related to the nervous system, incidentally), it raged with abandon. We were like identical shafts of wheat, standing straight and immobile, awaiting the scythe.
Is it any wonder the OverSoul banned engineering on humans? Only through the seemingly random drunken walk of sexual reproduction do we gain the diversity needed to meet an unpredictable future.
— Excerpt from “Musings of an Immortal,” by Dr. Stoleff Monsa
I will find you. It is impossible to hide from me. You think you are clever, but your vanity is your undoing, Ascara the witch cooed as D_Light sank below the frothing waves.
It was then that D_Light woke, not because of the nightmare, but from the numbingly recognizable voice of his familiar. Master, your quest log has been updated.
Another nightmare? How is that possible? Smorgeous, analyze the dream…somehow. What’s that about my vanity?
Master, you have not experienced a dream state in the 23.4 minutes you have been asleep.
Not that again! What the hell is going on?
Master, you have another quest. You have made it clear that the MetaGame is your highest priority.
D_Light groaned. His head swimming, he cursed at his computer. He was sticky. He remembered where he was-remembered the lake-and wondered if he should go take another swim to wash off. Without waiting for permission, Smorgeous saturated his master’s optical senses with the quest log.
Quest: Seek out Dr. Monsa, great-grandfather of the House of Monsa. Dr. Monsa is the head patriarch of the House of Monsa. The House of Monsa is located at the following coordinates…
That is nearby, only thirteen kilometers from here, Lyra’s thought broke in. D_Light did not realize that Smorgeous had joined him into a blink with the nobles. Now the three of them were sharing thoughts as they reviewed the quest. It was more than a little disconcerting when his familiar shared his mind without explicit permission. Now he had to be careful to shield his thoughts in case something embarrassing cropped up in his head.
Finally, we get a softball, Djoser said. Go find a local immortal. What then? Say hello?
The doctor is by all accounts an elusive and unpredictable man, Lyra replied. Might not be so straightforward.
D_Light opened his eyes. Lyra stood over him, arching her back in a grandiose, catlike stretch. She spoke out loud, groggily and to no one in particular. “Let’s move out. We can work out the details on the way.”
After creeping out from behind the boathouse and through a yard overlooked by the large bay windows of an old-fashioned brick and mortar dwelling, they found their way onto one of the public trails. They walked quickly, trying to make good time. As they travelled they discussed how best to tackle the quest. According to what they could gather from the Cloud, the doctor would be very difficult to contact by remote means.
“Dr. Monsa is all about the biogames,” Djoser said. “He’s not going to talk to anyone that isn’t either a crack-shot wetgineer or otherwise on his short list.”
Lyra asked, “We will need to visit him in person then?”
Djoser nodded. “Yes, for outsiders like us, that would probably be the only shot at meeting him.” He frowned. “I blinked my mother about it. She won’t even try to arrange a meeting.”
“Same here,” Lyra said. “I tried to pull a few strings, call in a few favors, but nada.” Grinning, she added, “I think everyone who’s in the know is afraid of this guy. Afraid to piss him off or something.”
“No doubt,” D_Light joined in. “He’s holed up in his main house, the one not far from here. And by holed up I mean he’s in deep, in a part of the house called the inner sanctum.” He chuckled. “Sounds a little intimidating, eh? That’s where he does his research. Apparently, it’s some sort of Darwinian freak show in there and only the truly determined would want to enter-enter the sanctum.” D_Light did a mock shiver to feign fear.
“Well, I’m determined,” said Djoser with confidence.
“Have you seen the action on this MetaGame lately? A whole lot of people want to get a piece. The point spread is looking good, and the sweet pot is up to thirty large.” Djoser patted Amanda on her rump to add emphasis.
Thirty large! D_Light thought. The term “large” was not a denomination of one thousand as it was in the old days; it now meant million. If they won, even his tenth share of the pot would be worth more than what he’d made off fragging Fael. My Soul, this could be my week!
“Hey, by the way, when I contacted my people, I didn’t have to explain our fugitive situation to anyone,” Lyra said. “It looks like none of us is in the public demon database.”
“Yeah, but did you check your own private status?” D_Light asked.
Lyra replied, “That’s just it. I come up as a ‘suspected demon.’”
“At least you’re only suspected,” D_Light muttered.
“Curious though, don’t you think?” Lyra asked. “If the DA really wanted to catch us, why wouldn’t they make our status public?”
“I’d hate to think they were not chasing us,” Djoser grumbled. “That would mean I took a swim in that slime lake for no reason.” He gave Lily a hard look meant to be teasing, but she seemed to misunderstand it, at which point he patted her on the shoulder. Lily merely arched her eyebrows at him.
“Well, I for one have never been hunted by the Divine Authority before, so I’m not exactly sure what to expect,” Lyra said. “I say we proceed as though we are on the hot list. Better safe than stunned and reformatted.”
Night had fallen by the time the team neared House Monsa. Presently, they were crossing an immense suspension bridge, the railings and lines of which were overgrown by light-emitting vines that merged into a shimmering glow, a glow that stretched out over the kilometers of bridge ahead and behind.
Lily had hustled several bicycles from players using her paper hard currency bills, which were still wet and crumpled from the lake. Now all had bicycles, except for the bodyguards, who had to share one. With excellent balance, Amanda sat on the handlebars. Brian didn’t appear to mind the view.
The only automated transportation on the road was the commercial bots, heavily laden with goods. The team had entertained the idea of trying to hitch a ride on one of these, but the AI-controlled vehicles could not be bribed and moved too fast to hop on the way a drifter might catch a boxcar. Other House Monsa commuters either strolled on the pedestrian lane of the bridge, lost in their own virtual worlds, or hissed rapidly by overhead in liftcars. Renting a liftcar was out, so the team did a great deal of furious pedaling and eventually approached House Monsa, which loomed ahead like a mountain at the terminus of the great suspension bridge.
Using the enhanced vision of the familiars, which rode in saddlebags on the bikes, the party members could see the great house as though it were daytime. It was unlike anything any of them had ever seen. They stopped and silently regarded the sight before them.
The house itself was constructed of an unusual variety of dro-vine that was unfamiliar to the curious onlookers. Unlike the soft, green, spongy dro-vine of the spanker ghetto, this species was colored silver and its exoskeleton was hard with sharp edges. The splendid quality of this dro-vine, coupled
with an inordinate number of sparkling windows, made the castle’s sheer, jagged walls resemble an inverted cluster of icicles that jutted from the lake into a high-altitude display of splendor, the turrets and towers being the icicle tips. However, unlike the austere and barren ice found in high mountaintops, these soaring spires were sprinkled along the ridges with rich greens, luminous blues, blood reds, and every other color imaginable. The effect was as though a god, quite haphazardly, had thrown confetti across this mysterious structure. This confetti, however, actually represented private and public gardens, some of which clung precariously to their perches, hundreds of meters, if not a thousand, into the air. The garden lights were the product of a billion photo-emitting flowers.
Besides the photoflower gardens, there were lights lower down on the lake, artificial ones, used by the house marina to guide boats in and out. The marina was situated inside a sea wall where a few thousand boats were lashed to a network of dimly lit floating docks. Large commercial barges, lit with their own reds and greens, floated by soundlessly.
D_Light realized this was likely a romantic setting. Remembering the events of a few hours before, he smiled at Amanda, who rode arm’s length from him. “Hi there,” he said.
The ever-vigilant bodyguard detected his gesture, but she rested her eyes on him only momentarily and then moved them away without acknowledgment. He might as well have been one of the bridge railing posts.
That must be insects, Lily said in D_Light’s mind. Because they were sharing Smorgeous’s visual at the moment, Lily was able to blink D_Light without permission. It wasn’t polite to blink without first sending a request; nevertheless, D_Light let it go.
To show what she was talking about, she pinged on the vid feed a subtle, smoky mist that collected here and there about the spires.
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