“And Adam?” Daniel continued. “The Failsafe launch is confirmed. They are incoming.” He said sadly, as he removed the black ring from his head and placed it in its holder on the wall. He followed Jillian out of the room, and the door slid shut behind them. Jonah stared at him with total disbelief.
“Sir.” He said, as his lips barely moved.
“No need to call me sir, Jonah. It has been a long time. Good to see you again.” He said and patted him on his uninjured shoulder.
“I thought you were-” Jonah began.
“Don’t even say it.” Daniel interrupted. “Dead. You thought I was dead. I guess you haven’t quite figured it out yet have you. Adam?”
“Jonah, you are actually quite right. He was dead. Or maybe I should say he is dead. And in a way, so is Jillian here. I guess if you get right down to it, So am I. By your definition, all of us here at Speros are dead.” Jonah shook his head, as he was overcome by confusion.
“No, I don’t get it. What the hell are you talking about?” He said, both confused and now angry.
“Daniel here, did die. He died in New Sebastian just as you thought. In fact his body is still there. The man you see before you is the new Daniel. Follow me please, we haven’t much time now.” He said as he led them back to the elevator. “When it became apparent that he would eventually die, Daniel and I talked, as we often did in those days. I advised him of my research progress. You see…” He began as they entered the elevator and the door slid shut. “When I first got here, Daniel tasked me to find an answer to the organ replacement solution that New Sebastian used. He disagreed with it from the beginning, to the point that he himself only submitted to rejuvenation for truly life threatening issues. When he had learned that I had made dramatic headway into nanomechanical biophysiology, he agreed to help. Between the two of us, working via satellite link, we were able to build our first prototype.” The door slid open, and they exited the elevator. “Jillian, here was the first. The first human of her kind.”
“So she’s a clone.” Said Jonah.
“Oh, no. Not in the least.” Daniel said. Adam led them down another hallway, to a door which slid open as he approached.
“In here please.” He said, as he stepped aside so that could enter. One by one, Jonah, Jericho, and Gabrielle entered. The others remained in the hall. Suddenly the door slid shut. Jericho leapt at the door and started to bang against it.
“Hey!” He yelled. “Let us out of here!” Gabrielle stepped up beside him and began to bang on the door as well.
“Adam!” Yelled Jonah. A video screen came to life inside the room.
“Please be calm.” Adam said. There was no smile on his face now.
“Let us out of here right now!” Jonah yelled to the screen, as Jericho and Gabrielle continued to beat at the door.
“Please be calm. You are in no danger, and I suggest you do not use your weapons inside the room. To do so would mean certain death for all of you. I apologize for your temporary captivity, but please rest assured, this is for your own safety.”
“Damn it, let us out of here.” Jonah said.
“Jonah. Please listen to me, as we do not have much time left.” Adam pulled a comm unit from his tunic, and suddenly the image on the screen in the room changed. The view shifted from a straight forward view of Adam, Jillian and Daniel, to a closer view of just Adam’s face. The background behind him changed as he began to walk. “There are incoming missiles as we speak, and in a matter of minutes they will explode overhead.” Adam said.
“Then let us out of here!” Jonah yelled again.
“The floor you are on. The very room you are in, is specially shielded against these incoming missiles. You will be safe, I assure you.”
“But what about you?” Asked Gabrielle.
“Our safety is not a concern.” Adam replied. “Now please. Calm down and let me complete what I must say to you.” The background surrounding his face continued to change as Adam walked.
“Go on.” Jonah said, with Gabrielle and Jericho now both huddled next to him as they watched the screen.
“Thank you, my friend.” Adam replied, as a slight smile entered his expression again. “We…the residents of Speros…are not human in the traditional sense. And no, we are not clones. Far from it in fact. We are mechanical beings, with the exception of our brains. What passes in us for intellect is a collection of lab grown brain tissues, and microscopic computers, working together to form a human personality, utterly indistinguishable from a normal human, but operating at a much faster rate.”
“You’re like Guardians?” Asked Gabrielle.
“Very good, Gabrielle. Yes, like the Guardians in a way. Instead of replacing the failing organs of a human, we created a completely new type of life form. And we did so without harming anyone or anything. And then, at the appropriate time, when the human form could no longer survive, we transferred the consciousness of our human form into the new mechanical body.”
“And what happens to the real you?” Jericho asked.
“That life form ceases to live. Not immediately, and not by our hand. Jillian’s body lived for almost a year afterwards, even in its poor degraded state. She sat with it every day. Talked to it. And did the best she could to ease its passing. When it finally did pass away, we committed the body to the sea. It was both a sad day, and a day of hope. Jillian lived on, with no further worry about mortal illness or physical failures.”
“But if that’s the answer-” Gabrielle began.
“It is not the answer.” Adam replied. “It was simply a direction that our research took. Jillian and I built my body, and transferred my consciousness into it when the time came. Daniel was a little more difficult. We transferred his consciousness from a great distance, but when his mortal body finally died, he knew that he lived on here, just as you saw him earlier.”
“But if it has been so successful, then why isn’t it the solution?” Jonah asked.
“Because for all the technology that we have discovered and created…we are not human. We can never be human. We cannot taste. We cannot smell. And though we can tell if we grasp something too hard or too soft, we do not have a true sense of touch. I do not know how Jillian’s skin feels. Whether it is soft, or rough. Warm or cold. You see, though we are conscious, we are not truly alive. We cannot love. You’ve seen my face today. I smiled, I frowned. At times I looked confused. They are all preprogrammed subroutines executed by my emotional programming. My expression relayed those emotions to you.” His expression turned sad. “But I could not feel them.”
“So if you are not the solution. What is?” Gabrielle asked.
“Why…you are. You and Jericho are the answer. And all of the children born since then.”
“But the other children are back at New Sebastian.” Gabrielle exclaimed.
“Yes. And they are safe.”
“Safe, until they are butchered for the next rejuvenation.” Jonah replied.
“Oh no.” Adam replied. “They are quite safe. The Guardians are loading all of the residents of the village aboard the ship as we speak. There will be no more rejuvenations. Once we had confirmed that the launch sequence had been activated, we sent execution instructions to a dormant virus that had been implanted in their systems years ago. Even as we speak, the rejuvenation systems have been destroyed, and their programming has been irreparably erased. The machines that track and store the body parts are busily destroying that product. As of this day, this most shameful of all human histories has come to an end.”
“And what about the babies? The tiny babies?’ Asked Gabrielle.
“The embryos? They are safe. They are being loaded aboard as well.” Adam replied. “As is the implantation equipment. And they will remain so, until each of those fetuses has been implanted. Each of them is a new human being, and fully capable of natural reproduction.” He paused. “If you are looking for a solution. It is with them.”
“Why aren’t you in h
ere with us?” Asked Jericho.
“Because this part of human evolution must end as well. There is only one future for mankind. One successful future. And it lies in your hands.”
“If we’re safe here…what will happen to you?” Gabrielle asked.
“To us? We will simply cease to be. And with it, the methods used to create us. The incoming missiles will soon explode over head, emitting a powerful electromagnetic pulse wave, which will permeate most everything around, and leave us inoperable. We have shielded certain systems from this pulse. The food factories, the lower floors where you currently are. The library and the growth chamber. The control room and the databases. They are all protected.”
“T minus 60 seconds.” Came Daniel’s voice, and Adam turned away briefly.
“Thank you, Daniel.” Adam replied, and turned back. He smiled. They could hear a door slide open, and suddenly the image was much brighter, and wind blew through Adams hair. “Jericho. Gabrielle. I give you the future. It is in your hands now.”
“T minus 45 seconds.” Daniel said.
“And Jonah?” Adam asked.
“Yes?”
“It was good to see you my friend.” Adam said.
“T minus 30 seconds.”
“But why must you die?” Jonah asked.
“They must be free of our influence. Of our technologies.” Adam replied. “They must learn how to live. How to love. How to be free. They must do it without us. Without any of us.”
“T minus 15 seconds.”
“They must not be contaminated by our mistakes. They must learn to raise their children into adults, that will have more children. It’s not that difficult really.” He paused, as he looked at them. “And God blessed them and said to them, be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it.”
“T minus zero.” Daniel said.
“May God bless you, my children.” Adam said to Gabrielle and Jericho. Suddenly his image went extremely bright, a loud boom sounded, and the screen went blank. The room vibrated, the lights flickered, and then darkness enveloped them.
Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
Matthew 5:5
A Word From The Author
Alas, we can only hope that Jericho and Gabrielle have survived the ending, and who is to say that if they did, that their journey stops here. Be fruitful and multiply has a nice ring to it, so maybe, just maybe, we might hear from them again. But it would have to be another epic journey in order for me to seriously consider the thought. As I went through their journey with them, so often I was amazed with their innocence, and sheer goodness at heart. But even when things looked dire, they still forged ahead, driven by their love and their sense of need to right the wrongs committed against their society. Oh, and I cannot forget Roger, bless his evil narcissistic soul. As dynamic an antagonist as he was, I could not help but to think of many painful ways to finish him off. It felt awfully good when he finally got what he deserved.
About the concept of Immortal, it is a true “Have” versus “Have Not” story if there ever was one. From the very beginning I was enthralled with the idea that in a post-apocalyptic world, man could find not just one, but two ways to endure the survival of the species. But the essence of Man is much more than just about survival. To survive, is only to be blessed with the opportunity to continue to explore what it means to be human. And it is this exploration, this expansion of mind and soul, that is truly the collection of wealth that we call humanity.
Coming Soon
Also by Kelvin Kelley
VirtuaScape
As the wife of a front running presidential candidate, Grace Alexander knows all too well the sacrifices required in a race for the highest office. In a future where candidates face frequent deadly attacks, she reluctantly embraces a new fully immersive virtual technology that allows her to remotely interact with her family, while they remain at a safe distance.
But when she uncovers evidence that her husband is not the man she thought he was, and is bent on wiping out a third of the population once he wins the election, she must make the impossible choice between her loyalty to the man she once loved, and the future of not only her family, but the entire country.
**Bonus**
Read on for a free sample of VirtuaScape.
Chapter 1
Immortal Page 49