Penticore Prime

by Mark Chevalier

  “I’ll not abide the fodder of a brutal and sadistic, human?”

  Jinx gasped, as did others who were standing around them.

  “You thought that it was just the prattling imaginations of a tale-smith, you fool!”

  “I do not know what manner of species thee is,” replied Demast. “But I know that you shall not be allowed to harm anyone else.”

  “What are you going to do? Guard me forever, exile me outside the dome? Just give me a chance, and I’ll show your people what a holocaust really looks like!”

  Seiss Demast raised his hand to touch Candor’s forehead again, and then paused. “We are not ‘people,’ we are Penticorian’s. Sleep now, until your fate can be decided.”

  With that, Seiss Demast touched him. Jeremiah wasn’t afforded the opportunity to scream. Neither was Candor Shuveen, because in an instant everything went still.

  Yes, thought Candor in his final moment of consciousness. Now I shall have peace.

  “Little one,” a soothing voice called to him from the clouded mist in his dreams. “Little one, you must wake up now.”

  “Mother, is that you?”

  “Yes, Candor. Long ago I came to you as such. Do you remember?”

  “I remember, Mother. It was after my last rejuvenation.”

  “Yes, only now your wife awaits you. Thalia is here, along with your father, and your children.”

  “I thought I was dead. Why didn’t Seiss Demast kill me? I wanted him to kill me.”

  “Hush now. Do not think that you are worthy of such a fate, little one. Vesspa has made you whole again, come see for yourself.”

  Candor opened his eyes, and found the faces of his mother, wife, and daughter, standing over him. He looked around, noting that he was lying on a physician’s table. He knew in an instant that he was home in his daughter’s office. Yet more than that, he felt good. And even more than good, he felt excellent, wonderful. He didn’t want to believe it at first, as he bent his knees, expecting the familiar pains that had become common over the last five-hundred years. But his knees didn’t bother him, and when he lifted his hands to look at them, he saw that they were young again.

  “I’ve been incarnated, haven’t I?”

  “Yes, Father,” said Vesspa. “I performed the incarnation myself.”

  “And more importantly,” said the voice of Seiss Demast. “You are free of that fiend, Jeremiah Strange.”

  Candor turned his head to see the old Seiss reclining on a chair near Vesspa’s pressure chamber. It was the same type of chamber used to heal citizens who were exposed to the oxygen outside the dome. Both he and Thalia spent time in a similar device after the final Chain of Ascension. However, what he found disturbing was Seiss Demast’s appearance. He looked haggard and worn, even though his body was young again.

  “Are you well, my son?” Sador asked him.

  Candor smiled at his father, who was standing at the foot of the table. “I feel well, Father. In fact, I feel better than I have in centuries. I’m relieved to still be here. I always feared that if I died, or was incarnated, that I would wake up to find myself somewhere else, or someone else.”

  Sador nodded, as if he understood what Candor meant. With that knowing glance, Candor felt a glimmer of apprehension begin to grow inside of him. His eyes scanned the room, and suddenly an alarming fear gripped him.

  “Where is my body, my old body?”

  Everyone remained silent. The only answer he received was from Seiss Demast. And even then, it was not verbal, as he pointed toward the chamber to his left.

  “Jeremiah, he’s alive?”

  The old Seiss nodded. “I am containing the monster. Even now he struggles to break free and destroy me.”

  “Why didn’t you kill him, Seiss Demast?”

  “Your incarnation was difficult, Father,” replied Vesspa. “I was able to separate your fadosh from that of Jeremiah’s. I did not think that he would survive the process, but he did.”

  Candor’s voice was rife with anger as his jaw tightened involuntarily. “He’s a survivor, and has a way of showing up when you least expect it.”

  “We don’t murder,” added Seiss Demast, who had now gone a pale shade of gray. “Not even when it is a murderer that is being judged. We must first see if a way can be found to reeducate him.”

  Candor got to his feet, the anger inside of him growing with each passing moment. “You can’t fix him! Trust me, I know! Jeremiah is without reason, and without mercy. All he knows is how to kill, and how to survive. He will never stop, and he will never be controlled.”

  “For better or worse, Jeremiah was a part of you, Candor. And that part of you must be given the opportunity to live, and change. It is our way,” said Sador, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

  Candor took a few steps back. He stumbled, and Jinx was there in an instant. Yet his mind was fixed on the task at hand, and he began to take the measure of all those in the room. Seiss Demast looks like he’s nearly drained. Whatever he’s doing, he must remain focused to contain Jeremiah. And since he’s the only other one in the room besides me with the mind-gift…

  “I want to see him, face-to-face,” Candor grumbled as he moved toward the chamber. “I want to look upon the face of my tormentor.”

  No one stopped him, as in silence he approached the outside wall of the chamber. His new young hand reached up and activated a control, and a section of the wall flickered. Then it melted away, revealing a window that looked inside a large room with bare walls and floors. In the center, sitting in meditative repose, was a smiling and very confident looking Jeremiah Strange. Candor felt his blood boil, and he realized that Jeremiah was indeed the cause of Seiss Demast’s distress.

  “Jeremiah, stop this at once!”

  At first his old body didn’t move, but then the smile on his doppelganger began to fade, and he opened his eyes and said. “I can’t talk to you right now, Candy. I’m busy breaking Seiss Demast. I don’t know how long he can keep resisting me, but I can keep this up for as long as it takes. It’s a shame, really, he should have killed me when he had the chance. Then again, Penticorian’s are a noble race. It’s their defining characteristic, and their greatest weakness. Don’t you think so?”

  Candor bit his lower lip, staring at the floor in rage. He, above all others, understood how Jeremiah’s mind worked. “You’re right, Jeremiah, Penticorian’s are noble. And you’ll never understand them, because you can’t feel anything other than hate. You possess neither sympathy, nor empathy.”

  “I protected us!” Jeremiah exclaimed in anger. While at the same moment, Candor heard a moan of pain coming from Seiss Demast.

  Okay, he thought. The angrier I make Jeremiah, the more powerful he gets. So, I’ll have to be careful. One misstep and he’ll kill us all.

  “I know you did, Jeremiah, and I thank you for it. But think about it, you’re a Penticorian now. You can choose to be more than what you are. You can choose a life that you never could have dreamed. Please stop this reckless behavior, and your assault on Seiss Demast.”

  “No-can-do, Candy,” Jeremiah spat. “Although I’m a murderer and a killer, you need to remember that you are me, and we are us.”

  “Don’t listen to him, my son,” said Sador. “His, are the demented words of a twisted fadosh. You are Candor Shuveen, of Penticore Prime! This animal is not you.”

  Candor beat his fists upon the window, and Seiss Demast cried out in agony as Jeremiah came closer to breaking him.

  “Stop it, Jeremiah! This is your last chance, you bastard!”

  “Or what, are you going to kill me, Candy! You don’t have the balls, you never did! That’s why you needed me, and that’s why you still need me!”

  “Jinx,” Candor shouted.

  “Yes, Seiss Candor,” replied the simulacrum.

  “Swear in the presence of the Goddess to follow my command!”

  Jinx looked confused, because in his mind there was no doubt at all. “Yes, Seiss Candor,
I swear it.”

  “Let no one interfere.”

  “Interfere with what?”

  Before anyone could stop him, Candor activated a control that flooded Jeremiah’s chamber with oxygen. Candor knew that Penticorian technology could revive him, or worse, incarnate him. He had to do more, so he did, as his hand tapped a second control that added negative ions. Under normal circumstances, positive ions fused to carbon dioxide molecules. Those molecules would then add pressure, and expunge the oxygen from the bloodstream. Yet now, coupled to the oxygen, the negative ions became unstable. And just like acid, they began to eat away Jeremiah’s flesh from the inside out.

  Thalia screamed. “No, Candor, you can’t!”

  Candor uttered an angry growl, and with all the strength he possessed, plus his added mind gift, he smashed the controls with his fist. He could feel the bones in his hand bend and then break. Yet the pain was nothing to him, and he didn’t care about anything. All he wanted was to kill Jeremiah, and free Seiss Demast from the battle he had been maintaining for hours.

  The crystalline controls shattered, and the lights in the room faded. Jeremiah stood up, a mix of shock and horror on his face, Candor’s old face. Sador and Thalia rushed in, but Jinx was there to stop them. He took great care not to harm them in any way, only halted their progress so they couldn’t intervene.

  “What have you done?” Sador shouted.

  Candor kept his eyes fixed on Jeremiah. He had to know for certain that he was gone forever. Jeremiah’s eyes began bulging from their sockets, and tremors overtook him as he let out a tormented scream. Slowly, holes began to appear on his face and arms. Blood began pouring from his wounds, until finally the gelatin of his eyes ruptured like two punctured water balloons. He fell to his knees, and oddly enough, his screaming ended. The silence was eerie as he smiled in Candor’s direction, even though he couldn’t see him.

  “I guess you did have it in you after all, Candor,” he gurgled through faltering vocal chords. “Good boy, Candy. Good boy…”

  Jeremiah’s skull collapsed as he fell to the floor, a gooey mass of flesh. The negative ions had done their work. The soft tissue of his brain had been eaten away, making rejuvenation or incarnation impossible.

  “Rest in peace, Jeremiah. Rest in hell,” Candor said.

  He stood silent until Seiss Demast said. “You are a murderer, Candor Shuveen. I must now call upon the Law Givers to take you into custody.

  “I’m not a killer,” Candor replied. “Jeremiah was me, and I was him. I didn’t murder anyone, I committed suicide. And to my knowledge, there’s no law among us that forbids it.”

  “Yes, that is true. And I am certain that verity will provide you with a great deal of solace in the days ahead. Yet the fact remains that you took a life,” replied Demast.

  “He was a life that was going to murder you, Seiss Demast! A life that would have murdered everyone in Tulacoss, if given the opportunity! And don’t tell me that he wouldn’t have, because you touched him, and you know that I speak the truth!”

  Demast arose unsteadily, clearly he had not recovered from Jeremiah’s attack. For a moment it looked like he was going to say something, when he stopped. Instead he folded his arms over his chest and began to pace the floor in a large slow arc, and once or twice Candor and the others heard him mumbling to himself.

  Thalia went to Candor, and embraced him. “I know that you only acted in the best interest of all our lives, etts esstoné. I believe in you, and stand with you always.”

  “That’s only partially true, etts imád. Jeremiah was a part of me that I never could face, and a part of me that I despised. And more, he’s undeniable evidence that my dreams were not dreams. I wanted him dead for that, because he proves that I was human, Thalia! I was nothing but a wretched murdering human!”

  “You don’t know that, my son. And neither do I,” said Sador.

  His eyes narrowed as he looked to his father. Without thinking he let go of Thalia and said. “You act as though you wield knowledge that I do not! You suspect something?”

  Sador pursed his lips, while Janesska came to his side. “We both have, little one. Only we have not been able to isolate the cause.”

  “Isolate the cause of what, Mother?”

  “We shall get to that in a moment,” Seiss Demast interrupted.

  Everyone turned towards Demast, and waited for him to speak. Candor knew there was a distinct possibility that he would take him away for judgment. Over the centuries, the leading Senedos Seiss displayed an unwavering adherence to Penticorian law. To think that he would now do otherwise would have been folly on Candor’s part.

  “I want all of you to listen to me very carefully. For if this ever becomes public in any manner I shall deny all knowledge, and I will be forced to carry out the edicts of Eos. Is that understood?”

  Candor hesitated, unsure of Seiss Demast’s intent. Yet he was the leader of their civilization, and by that measure alone all citizens were obligated to obey him. One by one they gave their oath to secrecy. Once he was satisfied, Demast told them. “This shall be the second time that I have overlooked your transgressions, Seiss Candor. Mark me I say, for there shall not be a third. So listen to me, Candor Shuveen. You were the victim of a seizure that addled your mind, and caused an amplification of our inherent telepathic abilities. You subsequently died, and were incarnated, so there is no threat of repeating that offense. You shall make a public apology for the damage you inflicted upon those in the Great Hall. Over two-hundred citizens have required incarnation, with another four-hundred receiving rejuvenation therapy. By the Goddess, you have caused a ghastly mess!

  “You will make amends for your transgressions. And as for Jeremiah Strange, he never existed. You did not put an end to him, and none of us shall ever speak of this again. Do I make myself perfectly clear?”

  They all agreed, even though they were puzzled that the leader of the Senedos Seiss was eager to forget the events that transpired. He appeared to sense their misgivings, adding, “There is more going on than you know, and those things require the full attention of the Senedos Seiss. We have The Exodus to consider, and securing ourselves in the future. This incident cannot be allowed to derail those efforts, or divert our focus. And as for this, humanity, I agree with your father. There is no evidence that it exists, or that you were one of them. It could very well be the product of your imagination.”

  “I’m afraid that is not what Seiss Sador meant. Nor is it true,” said a different voice.

  They turned toward the source of the sound, and were shocked to see the photonic image of Amron. She was standing at the far side of the room, her hands clasped in front of her. Candor was confused to see his avatar, not to mention her claim that he was a human. He approached Amron, and as he did, Vesspa injected his arm with a dose of Healers.

  “What is that for, my daughter?”

  She inclined her head toward his hand. Candor knew that it was broken, even though the pain had not begun to register. His mind was in a frenzy since confronting Jeremiah, and it took all his focus just to keep from descending into madness. He thanked her as the Healers went to work repairing the damage. Wincing in pain as bones cracked back into place, and muscles creaked like thick rubber bands. Yet he pushed forward to confront Amron.

  “What do you know of this?”

  “Intervention is strictly forbidden, Candor. However, at this juncture we felt that action must be taken.”

  “Who is ‘we’?”

  “We,” said Amron, “are your ancestors from the future.”

  “You are corrupting the timeline!” declared Sador. “You should not be here!”

  “The damage has already been done, Seiss Sador. You know this.”

  Now Candor was really confused. “What damage to the timeline? What do you know, Father?”

  “The superstrings of the spacetime continuum are constricted. There is an anomaly that appears to be centered on you.”

  “And you didn’t think
that this was important enough to tell me? How long have you known about this?”

  Sador cast his gaze upon the floor, ashamed of his answer. “I have known for many centuries, my son.”

  “Eos in heaven, who am I?” Candor cried out. “Am I your son?”

  Janesska came forward, and though he was distraught, Candor allowed her embrace. “You are our son, Candor,” she told him. “It has always been so! Have we not loved one another for countless decades? Have we not laughed, cried, and suffered together? Is that not what a family is?”

  “It is, Mother,” he replied. Then he kissed her on the forehead and said. “But it’s time that I know the truth. I need to know who I am.”

  Before Sador could respond, Amron answered. “You are Candor Shuveen, Penticorian, and you are also Candor Shubin, human being. You are here through an act of fate, or perhaps as some in my time speculate, the direct intervention of the Goddess. Although, Seiss Sador and I both know that fate was given some assistance.”

  They all looked at Sador. Janesska was quickly by his side, giving him the strength to make the choice that they both knew was coming.

  “I believe that it has something to do with the Ekoss Caspularuss,” said Sador.

  “And what is that?” inquired Seiss Demast.

  Amron extended her hand, and a photonic image appeared. It was an image that stopped Candor, bringing back memories that he had tried to forget. “It’s the icosahedron! It’s the object that I touched on Sumatra! Father, what is it?”

  “It is something that I have kept secret, at the behest of Seiss Theniass. He labored over it for many centuries before The Exodus. He believed that once we departed, another race may one day visit Penticore Prime. And although nothing of us was to be left behind, he wanted to send this welcome message.

  “Seiss Theniass imprinted the memories of a Penticorian into its matrix, although I do not know what template was used. However, any species that possesses a physiology like ours would be susceptible. The life experiences of a Penticorian would then be imprinted onto the cerebral and occipital cortex, and the hippocampus.”