by Ben Winston
The question took her completely by surprise, and her reply was guarded. "There is little that knowledge could be used for at this point. There is no way it could be used or to ensure its delivery. If the Prime Nexus learned of our knowledge, it would destroy the entire sector just to ensure its destruction. Any attempt to use that knowledge would give the Prime Nexus that knowledge, thus destroying our sector."
Greg sighed in relief. "What I am about to tell you cannot leave this room, do you understand? We cannot even tell the Council."
She narrowed her eyes at him. "You found it, didn't you? You have the sacred code." It was a statement, and not a question.
Greg nodded. "Abraxis discovered it encoded in my Fixer's DNA. He has used it to create a counter-virus that prevents his infection by the Prime Nexus."
Delion looked confused for a moment. "Greg, that is not possible. If you had the entire code, it would have deactivated him completely."
"He is only a node of the main AI, how could it deactivate him?" Greg asked.
"Two years ago, when I took over from my predecessor, a kit was born that held what we believed to be the sacred code. As you know, we screen all our children at birth for the genetic markers required of Rangers. This is now simply part of our post-natal care given to all children.
"The scan is not done by Abraxis or one of his AI, but by our own medical technicians. We deduced that if the sacred code was real, it had to be hidden in a living organism in order to survive the eons. So all such scans are handled by technicians. Abraxis has no knowledge of our discovery, we felt that if he had this knowledge, and he was somehow subverted, it would lead to our destruction.
"After a long and very heated discussion by our rulers, it was decided that all knowledge of the code must remain one of our closest guarded secrets until such time as it could be used with a reasonable chance of success. However, if your code did not shut down Abraxis, perhaps our code is not complete either," she finished.
"Perhaps, I ordered all knowledge of our code to be sealed and classified. Abraxis knows of it, but will not disclose any knowledge of it. I think, what we need is someone that understands how Abraxis operates to evaluate the codes to tell us what's really going on with them. In the meantime, we still need to keep all knowledge of the codes classified," Greg said.
"I agree, this information can only serve to get us into more trouble at this point," Delion replied.
"It has been mentioned that we use our part of the code to retake Drellian nodes back from the Prime Nexus. However, doing so would let the Prime know we have the at least part of the code," Greg said, thinking aloud. "That would still get us into trouble at this point. However, we do need to know if the adjacent sectors are Drellian controlled or not. This isolation between nodes prevents the spread of the Drellian virus, yes, but it also helps the Prime Nexus by keeping us from banding together to destroy it.
"We need to build a military large enough to defend ourselves from most attacks, then reach out and explore the possibility of either rescuing our neighbors or recruiting them. Before that though, we need to make damn sure our own people are protected. That has to remain our highest priority.
"When I became a Ranger, I asked Abraxis to do a few things in order to ensure his protection. One was the creation of the remote transmission drones we are using for communications now. It scrambles his communications, spreading it out over a wide area that makes it impossible for the Drellians to lock onto his current position.
"One of the other things I asked him to do was to create a number of secure vaults that contain full back-ups of his entire program and data. At present, he is no longer aware of those vaults, but a hidden code will active the next node in the event of his destruction. He is not even aware of the constant back-up of data that goes out to them. At present only two people know of all the locations that were built; myself and my Fixer, Mandi. I'd share that information with you, but there is no need. Abraxis will notify you when a new node is activated. I can tell you that there are a total of eighteen of these hidden vaults spread out all over the sector.
"That's about it for what I had to tell you," Greg replied. "Not much I know, but important nonetheless."
She nodded. "Yes, they are very important. You have done much more to protect this sector than anyone will ever know, Greg. I will do my best to carry on in your place if the need ever arises, though I pray it never will."
Greg grinned. "No one lives forever, Delion. All we can do is the best we can in the time we're given." He looked up at the ceiling. "Abraxis, we're done now, you can stand down from privacy and secure mode."
"Resuming normal operations, Commander," Abraxis replied, receiving the message since he was addressed directly.
Later that evening, Beth did bring the Doctors by to see Greg as she promised. One of the first things Greg asked was if his new leg was going to be built from toy building blocks.
One of the men burst out laughing. "I see my name has preceded me! No, there will be nothing of the toy in the new leg, but some of the principles used will be the same." The doctor then explained how the leg was designed and built. But when he finished, he gave Greg a poke of his own. "So, we will need you to come back in every two-hundred thousand miles for a tune up and an oil change!"
"I don't know, will you clean my windshield and check the air in my tires too?" Greg replied without missing a beat.
All four doctors got a laugh out of that. "But seriously, Commander, you will need to stop in from time to time so we can evaluate how well the leg is functioning, and make any adjustments that are needed. In reality, the prosthetic will be more biological than mechanical; it'll draw power from your body the same as your other limbs, but you might notice a slight increase in appetite due to the increased power requirements, but other than that, you shouldn't be able to tell the difference at all, if you can, we need to know about it so we can make adjustments. To begin with, there will need to be adjustments made. Think of it as fine tuning it to your body. That'll happen while you're learning how to use it again. There will be a monitor on it for the first little while so we can watch how well it reacts to your commands and to make sure the nerve grafts are not having issues," Doctor Hasbro replied.
Greg nodded his understanding. "That makes sense to me. I'll try to make sure I keep a journal for you as well, so you can get better data on this."
"That would be fabulous, Commander, Thank you," Hasbro replied.
"Okay, so tell me about the odds and why they're only eighty-four percent?" Greg asked the others.
"Well, to put it as simply as possible, everyone's brain is different and functions differently than everyone else. Don't get me wrong here, there is a lot that each individual has in common with everyone else, but the exact location of a specific nerve cluster might vary somewhat from individual to individual. I would also like to mention that eighty-four percent success rate is for normal civilians.
"In your case, the odds are greater because your body has been very well scanned and mapped out; in the event something like this surgery would ever be needed. I would say that your odds of success are closer to ninety-four percent because of that. Still there is a possibility of failure due to an unforeseen complication. One such complication I can foresee is the unknown reason the nerve clusters for your leg are not reforming. We can't explain that yet, but we will be finding out during the surgery.
"You don't need to worry about that, though because there is a lot we can do based on what we find. I'm pretty confident we'll have you back on your feet in no time," the woman Beth introduced as Doctor Gail Jeffreys explained.
With that, Beth got down to explaining exactly what was planned for the surgery and how things would progress. There was a lot of work these four were going to be doing and that in itself was somewhat disconcerting. Greg understood they needed to make sure he understood what they were going to be doing, but the scale of it did little to put his mind at ease.
"Now that we've finished sc
aring the hell out of you, I'll order a sedative for you to make sure you get some sleep," Beth replied, accessing the terminal controlling the bed he was in. "Before I hit the enter key, and put you to sleep, do you have any questions for us?"
"No, no questions. Doctors, I have every faith in you and your skills. I believe that you are the best chance I have of not only getting through this, but of walking again. If something does go south in there, I want you to know I believe in you and that you will have done your absolute best for me. Thank you," Greg said making eye contact with all of them.
"We won't let you down, Greg." Beth replied.
Greg smiled up at her bravely. "I know, Beth."
She hit the 'enter' key and Greg immediately fell asleep.
"What an amazing young man. That description would have scared the hell out of me, and I know exactly what's going to happen!" Glen Hasbro replied.
Beth nodded. "He is a very special person, and not just because he's my son-in-law. You've all seen the reports from Harclen, there is no way in hell he should have survived, but here he is now, almost fully recovered from that."
"You know, I got to thinking about those injuries he suffered," Glen said, thoughtfully. "Is it possible that he might have been contaminated by the bioskin hull of the hypersled? The bioskin would be gone by now, but it would certainly explain the failure of the nerve cluster reformation."
"How do you mean?" Beth asked.
"Well, the bioskin is basically a living organism. Could it have tried to heal itself while inside his body? Since it uses micro-sensors instead of nerves, it could have simply shut that 'function' down in the local area," he explained.
Gail Jeffreys nodded. "I suppose that is possible, but how could the bioskin even attempt to repair itself when surrounded by incompatible tissue? It's supposed to simply die out when that happens."
"I'll go back over the records from Harclen tonight and see what I can find," Beth said. "There was a lot of exotic radiation in that blast, so I guess just about anything is possible."
Glen shook his head. "Yeah, but if he got contaminated by mutated bioskin, what effect will that have on him internally? It could also explain how rapidly he healed from this. Knowing this, do we dare proceed?"
"Currently, there is no trace of exotic radiation in his system. So, if there were still fragments of bioskin present, they should be detectable. Let's not borrow trouble; I'll go over the records and data from his initial examination and see what I can find. If I find anything, I'll let all of you know right away," Beth replied.
Grimaldi Ridge Base
Ocean of Storms
Selene, Earth's Moon
Jarad mentioned to Carl about how Greg wanted to expand the facilities to help Earth's veterans and how he'd explained that it couldn't be done right now. Carl just smiled and nodded.
"Greg does like to help people, doesn't he?" he typed on his keyboard and brought up a hologram of a space station. "This is something I've been playing with in my spare time. I'd planned to have it built in planetary orbit, but basically, it's a huge hospital. Of course, it has all the facilities it would need to function, including staff housing and the like, but mostly its sole function would be medical care.
"It started out as only a facility to treat veterans, but it kind grew to include just about everyone. It's a pipe dream right now, but maybe, eventually, we can do something like this," Carl replied.
"Maybe, eventually it won't need to be in orbit. Speaking of things in orbit, I'd heard that Ned's team was working on an orbital defense satellite?" Jarad asked mentioning Jolene's father.
"They are, and for the most part it's finished and ready to be built. However, they are looking into ways to track and destroy hypersleds. They are holding off on releasing the design until they can incorporate that," Carl said.
Jarad snorted. "That's easy; keep it simple. All they need to do is build a few special flak cannons. That'll keep any Drellian sleds honest."
"Flak Cannons? How could those even have any effect?" Carl asked.
"Build a mass driver that fires a small canister. The canister carries what amounts to anti-matter double ought buckshot. When the canister gets to the target area, it fires the buckshot in the direction of the sleds. Use a metal that holds the magnetic containment of the anti-matter for a set amount of time so they self-destruct. There you have it; anti-matter flak cannons," Jarad explained.
Carl sat, thoughtful for a moment. "You know, that would work. They could even be adapted for use as point defense weapons on the ships we're building!"
"I thought we were going with a type of mass driver CWIZ hybrid?" Jarad asked referring to the point defense weapons used by most naval ships on Earth.
"We are, but if we can modify them to use a type of cluster munition instead of a single projectile, that would work even better!" Carl replied. "Do you mind if I pass this along to the designers?"
"Not at all, if it helps, then I'm glad I suggested it," Jarad replied.
Carl made a note on his tablet. "Has there been any word on Greg?"
Jarad shook his head. "No, but Beth did warn us that it would be a long surgery."
"The IT folks reported that the site has been flooded with cards and emails wishing him the best and a speedy recovery. There are almost a million people waiting on the site for news about him. If you have time, could you log in and post something to help calm them down?" Carl asked.
"Sure, I can do that," Jarad replied, but was interrupted by Helen, Carl's assistant. "Sir, you need to turn on CNN right away. The President is in trouble."
"Thanks Helen," Carl replied and had the news channel come up on the wall monitor.
"…rumors being spread about the President's involvement with her long-time executive assistant. Sources close to the presidential guard detail have reported that they had been threatened with termination and legal action if they said anything about the President's personal lifestyle.
"In related news, growing concerns about the mental stability of the President in light of her almost paranoid report to congress about the United States intelligence community has prompted many in Congress to call for her to take a leave of absence while she undergoes mental evaluation at Walter Reed. In a closed session of Congress last week, the President all but accused the intelligence community of running a shadow government. Although a copy of her report has not been released, it has been said she used words like Illuminati when referring to the current leaders of the NSA and CIA. She also supposedly strongly hinted that her office as well as the entire Congress were little more than puppets used to cover the real actions of the 'true leaders' of our nation. There has been no reply as yet from the White House on these accusations. We will report more as soon as more information becomes available.
"The self-proclaimed Terran Defense Initiative web site is over flowing with well-wishers today as one of their leaders and TDI founders, Greg Albright is undergoing surgery to repair damage sustained in combat. Alicia Givens is live at Stardust Medical Center on the moon. Alicia?"
"Thanks Tom, as most of you know, Ranger Fighter Greg Albright was badly injured last month during a short battle with Drellian forces in the asteroid belt of the Harclen star system. We've been told that Commander Albright has recovered from most of those injuries due to the advanced medical care available from the doctors here. However, there was a problem with the replacement of the Commander's left leg, and he chose to undergo a dangerous, experimental surgery that will attach a cybernetic leg in place of his missing limb. That surgery began four hours ago.
"Of course, we can't get specific details about the Commander's condition, but we have been able to find out that the Commander has a very good chance of making a full recovery. At present, there has been no word from anyone here to indicate exactly how that surgery is going, Tom?"
"I'm sorry Alicia, but did you say the replacement of his limb? They can do that?" the talking head asked.
"Yes Tom, I did say replacement. They woul
dn't go into details of the process, but apparently a missing limb can be cloned from a person's DNA and artificially grown to match the limb that was lost. The same process can be used to replace damaged or destroyed internal organs as well. I did find out that only the organ or limb in question is grown, and not an entire body. When I asked the doctor about the moral aspects of this procedure, he said there weren't any moral issues, they were simply using a part of a person's body to heal another part, not unlike a skin graft or hair transplant."
"I don't see how a skin graft can compare to regrowing a person's missing leg. Thank you Alicia, let us know if there are any new developments."
"I will, Tom."
"That was Alicia Givens reporting from Grimaldi Ridge on the moon." Carl switched it off then. "It looks like Wilma might be in trouble."
"Yeah, once they get her taken to Walter Reed, I doubt she'll ever be seen in public again," Jarad replied. "It was Greg's intention to save her and her wife's lives. I should get a team ready, and have Abraxis begin tracking them."
"How do you think they'll play this?" Carl asked.
"They send Marine one to Walter Reed as a public show they moved her, but in reality, they'll take her out to the country someplace and shoot her in the head. Probably one of their special 'safe' houses in the Virginia countryside. We'll have to hit them before they get there, or we'll be too late." Jarad replied.
Carl nodded. "It's your call, Jarad. Do what you need to do."
Carl's comm beeped again. "Sir, your eleven o'clock is here."
"Thanks Helen, I'll be right with them," Carl replied. "Holly and Sam Branson of Virgin Universe. They want to open a resort up here."
Jarad chuckled and shook his head. "Be sure to remind them that this will eventually be a combat zone."
"Actually, I was going to ask them to consider handling the civilian long range transportation. Maybe if I can get one of them up here, the others will follow suit," Carl replied. "United Airlines has been making some noises about it, and Qantas will most likely be asking about joining us."