by Chris Hechtl
“It's the A.I. I think. It's not talking though,” Doctor Thornby said.
Jethro glanced at Bast on his HUD. “Bast didn't talk much initially either, ma'am,” he volunteered. Bast flicked her ears. “They are like babies, ma'am. They need to grow into themselves,” he stated.
“I see,” the doctor replied with a thoughtful tone of voice. “Well, he's still showing tissue rejection and complications, but his internal nanites are fending off our attempts to handle the situation. I may need to call Admiral Irons in to get Proteus to intervene.”
“I'd say wait, ma'am. If you sent the data on what you are doing and why to the A.I., it might accept it,” Jethro said slowly. Bast flicked her ears and then nodded slowly. “I think Bast agrees with me,” he said.
“You think? You don't know?”
“Outside the suit she doesn't talk much, ma'am. It has to do with the limited processors she has within my body I believe,” Jethro stated.
“Oh. Somehow that makes sense … but yet doesn't. I know Admiral Irons didn't have a problem with Commander Sprite or his other A.I. Sometimes he had trouble shutting them up!” she said ruefully. Jethro snorted.
“I'm going to hang around until I'm certain he's on the mend,” Doctor Thornby stated then yawned. “Damn it,” she muttered.
“It was a stressful procedure, ma'am. It took a lot out of both of you,” Jethro said in sympathy.
“You can say that again,” the doctor replied, stifling another yawn. “I'm trying to access the nanites, but they are balking. Damn it, I'm a medic, I've got the overrides, but they are being overridden! Look, you self-important little shit! I'm the doctor here, not you!” she snarled, now annoyed.
“Trust takes time, ma'am. Bast was highly protective of me and aggressive,” Jethro said slowly. Bast raised his arm and then picked up his ODN cable. She awkwardly plugged it in to his arm port. He felt a surge of data. It piggybacked on the signal to the doctor.
“You've got help incoming, ma'am. Mama cat is coming to get Satet under control,” Jethro stated.
“Satet? That's its name?”
“You didn't know, ma'am?” Jethro asked.
“No one bothered to tell me,” Doctor Thornby replied, clearly aggrieved at being kept out of the loop. “When did that come about?”
“Last night, ma'am,” Jethro explained.
“Okay, she's letting me access the nanites. Damn it, Satet, let me see you. You can see me … is she playing coy?” the doctor demanded.
“No,” Bast replied.
“Was that …?”
“Bast, ma'am,” Bast replied as she accessed Satet. Satet cowered away for a moment before she recognized the source of the A.I. attempting to get her attention. She turned glowing eyes on Bast and then purred as she came out into the main data stream. “She is shy, as I am.”
“Ah,” the doctor said thoughtfully. “Well, there you are,” she said with a softer tone of voice. “Pretty little thing, aren't you? Gorgeous,” she murmured, admiring the kitten. “I wish I could cuddle you; you look so cute,” the doctor murmured. Jethro could hear the smile in her voice.
“Remember, she's based on a cat, ma'am. A show of teeth can be provocative,” he warned softly.
“I know,” the doctor replied in the same tone of voice. “We're not here to hurt you, young one, quite the contrary. I'm a doctor. I want to make sure you grow up to be big and strong. And Letanga needs my help, your help too,” she murmured.
Bast passed on the information about the implant rejection to Satet. Satet blinked and then made a soft yowl sound before she abruptly yawned and blinked sleepily.
“I think I overwhelmed her there. It is too much to grasp still,” she said.
“Well, whatever you did the nanites are now working with me. Ah, they are working on the problem on their own! Good. Should I leave them to it?” she asked.
“Continue to monitor, ma'am.”
“Good. They were destroying the medication we injected too. I think I'll hold off though … hmm …” the doctor said as Satet yawned again, then curled up on the screen and then faded out. “Goodness, that was quick,” she said. “Is she still there?”
“Just like a baby, ma'am,” Jethro said, remembering his own experiences with his kittens.
“I see. Well, it's been a while since I've worked with a child directly. Good practice if we can ever get this program running the way it should,” Doctor Thornby said cryptically.
“Ma'am?”
“Never mind. Problems. As we see here, no system is bullet proof.”
“Yes, ma'am,” Jethro replied with a dutiful nod. “Since Letanga has only a partial implant and Royal Jelly mix, should we try some of the others who have a full set next time?” he asked.
There was a long pause. Finally, the doctor grunted. “It's an idea,” she said after a moment of thought. “I thought there was a problem with their armor though? She asked suspiciously.
“There is. But we can figure it out, ma'am.”
“Okay. You work on reshaping the armor or whatever you are doing. I'll write a bot to make sure you are kept up-to-date on Letanga's progress. I'm curious if he's going to need rehabilitation therapy given the changes to his neural network. He hasn't fully woken either …,” she said worriedly.
“It's possible, ma'am.”
“I think we need him to wake-up, but I remember reading that the host and A.I. need to sleep to integrate themselves with each other,” Doctor Thornby mused. “Damn it,” she muttered. “The problem is he needs to wake-up. The longer he's under, the more there is a danger of his never waking,” she said.
“I think if you give him an incentive like I had you'll find he'll wake on his own,” Jethro replied with an ear flick.
“Incentive?”
“Hunger. Or in my case, bladder,” Jethro said as he felt Bast withdraw back into him.
“Oh,” the doctor said. After a moment, she chuckled softly. “I see. Yes, a full bladder can be quite the incentive. I'll give him some more fluids, and we'll see what the evening brings.”
“Yes, ma'am. If I remember right, Bast used the nanites to draw on my energy reserves a lot. She cleaned me out several times, and I thought I was starving after each round,” Jethro said. “I know Letanga has a healthy appetite,” he said.
“Maybe I'll have a nice juicy steak for him on a tray too. Let his olfactory senses take it from there,” the doctor chuckled. “Okay, thanks for the ideas, Jethro,” she said.
“Thank you for keeping me in the loop, ma'am. It was getting hard fending off the inquiries from the others here,” he said.
“Fending them off with a stick? You have my sympathies,” the doctor said. “Oh, that's John. I'll let him know. Take care, Jethro.”
“You too, ma'am,” Jethro replied with a nod and ear flick as the doctor disconnected the channel from her end.
<)>^<)>/
Word came in through an email that Letanga was awake later that evening, just before Jethro went to bed. He put a call in, but the nurse intercepted the call and quietly told him Letanga had nodded off after relieving his bladder and eating the steak.
“Good for him, ma'am. He's got nurses keeping him fed and watered. He's probably going to malinger for a while,” Jethro teased.
“Probably,” the nurse said darkly. “Doctor Thornby said he was going to do a lot of sleeping. He is.”
“Yes, ma'am. All part of recovery I believe.”
“Yes, I suppose it is. I'm not cleared to know why he's here or why he's so banged up so I guess I'll leave it at that,” the nurse said.
Jethro nodded. “Thank you, ma'am,” he said. He disconnected the circuit.
<)>^<)>/
The following morning cracked bright and early. Too early for Riley but for Jethro and Ox, it was perfect. Jethro checked on Letanga, then went about overseeing the move into the new armory. The move took all morning and disrupted their building schedule, but when they were done, they had plenty of room to expand. Riley f
inally quit grumbling and even cracked a smile once the process was complete.
The Cadre members pitched in with the move since they were all eager to get their own armor. They of course attracted attention, despite the attempt to do the move while others were off training or busy. Jethro ended up growling at a few nosey busybodies who should have known better.
It came through channels later that day that Tungulria had been chosen to be next since the black Neowolf had a complete set of Royal Jelly. Doctor Thornby's scans had found that some “of the blood” were purer than others. Those who were black like Jethro and Tungulria had the pure quill apparently. Jethro nodded.
“Lucky me,” the Neowolf growled.
“That means we need to figure out how to modify the frame and armor for your body somehow,” Ox said. “While you work on finishing your suit quals and basic training,” he said.
“Which is rather hard to do without a suit to train in,” Tungulria said pointedly.
“We're working on it,” Riley said as he went back to work.
<)>^<)>/
Letanga returned to the base quiet and tired two days later. He was mobbed by the other Cadre candidates the moment he entered the base perimeter. He didn't move far from the casket holding his armor, keeping a protective hand on it at all times.
“We weren't allowed to visit … you are okay though, right? You are still you?” Shiku demanded.
“As far as I can tell. I'm me but … more,” Letanga said cryptically. He then had to get into what he'd gone through.
Eventually the leopard's yawns got the better of him. Jethro had him escorted to his new quarters. “What's wrong with him?” Tungulria asked as he and the others who were still there turned to Jethro.
“He's going to be that way for a while. The process takes a lot out of you and the new A.I.”
“Satet,” Bast supplied.
“Satet will take time to grow. She's in him, in his implants, in the A.I. core, and in his mind, also in the suit. He'll need time to adjust. Each of you will,” Jethro explained. “Think of it as having your own kid. Now imagine that kid growing up inside you. You're going to go through everything all over again,” he said.
“Joy,” Tikaani growled.
<)>^<)>/
“I never knew,” Letanga said to Jethro two days later. He moved slow but with a purpose. Jethro knew it would pass in time. He also knew that the appetite wouldn't completely go away. The extra calories their modified bodies burned had to come from somewhere after all.
According to Bast, Satet had her own problems growing up. She was still young and small and was going through the usual growth phases. Integrating with her host was taking time.
Fortunately, they had plenty of time.
Letanga was the first of their group to move into the Cadre complex permanently. He had taken up shop in the armory and slept in his armor. Jethro knew from experience that it might seem creepy to Ox, Riley, and the others, but it was a vital part of the process.
“When do I start training again?” Letanga asked, then yawned. “Damn it!” he swore. “It seems all I do is sleep!” He shook his head as if to clear it. “Eat and sleep,” he said with another yawn. That one was loud, almost a roar.
“Don't kick yourself and don't rattle the walls,” Jethro replied. “It'll come eventually. Don't worry, I'll tie your tail in a knot and make you wish you were back in your rack in next to no time,” he said.
“Oh joy,” Letanga said, yawning a third time. He got up woozily. Jethro reached out to steady him, but Letanga caught himself. “I'm all right. I guess I need another nap,” Letanga said. He watched the Neoleopard lean against the wall as he made his way back to his armor. He practically fell into it as it opened for him.
“Out like a light,” Riley said in disgust. He reached over and hit the close button on the armor then turned to Jethro. “Are they all going to be like that? I seem to remember you took it better,” he said gruffly.
“We all take to this differently apparently,” Jethro replied with a shrug and ear flick.
<)>^<)>/
Admiral Irons checked on the progress at the end of the week. He was pleased by the training when he texted Jethro but wanted more A.I. time with the troops and more hands-on time for each of them with their armor.
“We're working on it, sir.”
“I know. And I know Rome, or in this case an elite unit, wasn't built in a day,” the admiral texted back. “Keep at it.”
“We will, sir,” Jethro replied. “We'll need your help to initialize and alter the next armor and those afterward,” Jethro warned. They'd come to that conclusion after attempting to alter some of the armor pieces from Jethro's to shapes that would better fit Tungulria. They hadn't worked out quite as well as hoped.
“Understood. If you can have more than one armor ready, I can maximize my time there,” the admiral stated.
“We'll do our best, sir,” Jethro replied. “Do you know when you are coming again?”
“I'll let you know,” the admiral stated before he disconnected the chat.
Chapter 20
After smuggling Tessa out, Jon and Vanessa became the local link in the underground railroad, not that they told anyone. The more distant farms further away from the invaders would hopefully keep them safe … though Jon grimly knew that safety was a relative term. Eventually the bastards would come calling everywhere he knew. If only to make a point that they could reach to every part of the globe … he shook his head.
After Tessa had left, he had made another trip around the house to hide all their valuables. He had buried their silver and his wife's few jewels despite her protests that it was unnecessary.
Life almost returned to normal around the planet as their location on the planet started to enter the late summer. Slowly the Horathians began to adapt to the planet, and the planet's population began to adapt to them. Vanessa attributed it to something called Stockholm syndrome. Jon had just sagely nodded his head. His wife had gone to school more than he had. She had continued her love of reading and tended to read to the kids at night. He only did so in winter when there was far less to do and they were mostly trapped indoors.
They took over two neighboring farms when the neighbors left the area. It was heartbreaking to see their friends and neighbors just up and leave like that, taking only what they could carry in the back of a wagon.
Jon had told Vanessa about one such procession. He'd talked to Beth Anne. She'd told him that her husband had gone to town with a load and not returned. Word was that he'd run afoul of the invaders.
She couldn't manage the farm with just her ten-year-old son, Pherb, and her three little ones, so she had packed up with the intention of heading to her sister's further inland before the fall hit. Jon had traded her a pair of draft horses, some supplies, and their old wagon for the title to the farm. Vanessa hadn't been certain it was legal, but they had Beth Anne's signature and written letter. She planned to run it past ole Buck when she got to town. The retired judge and attorney would file it all legal-like for them.
In the meantime, Jon had taken the boys to survey their new acquisition. Beth Anne's farm was smaller than their own, but it had greenhouses that Beth Anne had grown flowers and seedlings in. No one wanted the flowers, but the greenhouses would come in handy. He and the boys had rounded up what livestock that had remained and carted them all over to add to their own stocks. They'd taken the better part of a week going back and forth and running the draft animals ragged between the loads and the heat before they'd moved everything of value.
Vanessa put away many of the heirlooms with the intent of giving them to Beth Anne when she got the chance. Jon had informed her that the crops were pretty rough; he doubted there would be much of a yield. That was probably why Beth had given up. Vanessa went over and did her best to tidy up the tiny three-room house after the boys had ransacked it. She hid emergency supplies so they could turn it into a better hiding spot for their underground railroad.
Once she got to town and registered the deed with Buck, word got around that they were doing well. Some resented that, and she didn't like the dark looks that were shot her way. It wasn't fair, but no one said life was fair.
Four days after she got back from her latest town trip, they had an unexpected visitor. Mister Paterson, the elderly farmer on the other side of them, asked to sell them his farm. He dickered with Vanessa for an afternoon over cookies and cool lemonade. He'd left looking a bit younger with more of their things in exchange for the deed to his farm. He moved out over the next few days to his daughter's farm in the south.
Paterson's farm was on a hill with the land going up to the crest of the steep hill. Most of the hillside was heavily wooded. Jon had agreed to the purchase because of that wood. They had thinned out their own woods over the past three years; giving the woods time to recover would be beneficial to them long term. There were some good sugar maples there, and Paterson had one of the best maple distilleries and best moonshiner in the area. They'd used his maple distillery facilities for years, and she knew Jon had been in a friendly competition as far as rotgut was concerned. Keeping the equipment and keeping it up and running was important to them and to other neighboring farms … though Vanessa wasn't certain if Jon and the boys would be able to take on the extra trees come winter. They'd have to wait and see she thought.
The house itself was drafty and rather beaten. It was clear old Paterson had been barely getting on for some time. It might be good for him to head south where his daughter could care for him in his final years.
Once she registered the deed with old Buck the following week, they had another unexpected and this time unwanted visitor two days later. The invaders had taken notice of their acquisitions and came calling.
<)>^<)>/
Shen Lajoy was still feeling out his new job and bosses, but he liked what he saw. He was the man on the ground, but he was already supervising three towns. Mister Scalari had assured him that if he did his job right he'd get a larger district to supervise.
He had thought it was a lot of work and it was, but being hated was something he hadn't anticipated. But with that hate had come something else, fear. He'd like that. He'd liked the power too, and he'd quickly learned how to skim some of the taxes off for himself.