Transcend

by Sandra R Neeley

  “Can you protect her?” Kol asked.

  “There are safe rooms built into the museum that can be accessed if necessary, but in all the years it’s been here, we’ve never had to use them,” Pastor Douglas answered.

  Kol turned to Ada Jane. “Will you let me teach you to use a weapon?” he asked.

  “Yes!” she answered, willing to do anything necessary to be able to stay here close to her original home.

  “Come along, then,” Kol said, holding his hand out for Ada to take. “Let us see the options for housing.”

  Ada started to move toward Kol, then realized she still had the quilt draped over her shoulder and falling down the front of her body. She looked down at it, smoothing her hands down the soft squares of patchwork that made up the quilt. She needed to put it back so she could go see the cottages with Kol and Pastor Douglas, but she couldn’t seem to let it go.

  “Ada Jane, why don’t you just take the quilt with you? It can be the first item you reclaim,” Pastor Douglas offered.

  Ada nodded. “I’ll get you a photo of it soon as I can,” Ada answered.

  “That’d be fine,” Pastor Douglas answered.

  Ada hurried to Kol’s side with her quilt draped around her, and took his hand as together they followed Pastor Douglas outside. There were two cottages on the property along with the parsonage, which was actually just a little larger cottage than the other two. The parsonage was situated to the left of the church if you were standing looking at the church, and set just a few feet further back than the church itself was. It was a good forty feet from the church and had its own small private yard, fenced in with white picket fencing that was no more than hip high. “This is the parsonage,” Pastor Douglas said, leading them up the front steps and into the small house he called home. “Feel free to look around,” he invited.

  Ada Jane started to refuse, but Kol had no problem taking a quick tour of the small home. He needed to know exactly what was on the property he was planning to leave his female on.

  “It’s very nice,” Ada said, making conversation while Kol explored.

  “Thank you. It’s small, but since my wife passed, it’s just me. It fit us just fine when she was still here, and it’s more than enough for me on my own,” Pastor Douglas said.

  “No children?” Kol asked, coming back into the living room.

  “No, it just wasn’t in the cards for us,” Pastor Douglas said, though not bitterly.

  “May we see the other cottage homes?” Kol asked.

  “Of course, right this way,” the pastor said, leading them out of his home.

  He led them to a small cottage that was set back beyond the back of the church. It still shared the same plot of land as the church and the parsonage, but was set a little further back, actually sitting behind both.

  Pastor Douglas led them up onto the small front porch, unlocked the front door and let them into the small cottage. Kol walked in first and quickly went through the small cottage. He wandered through the bathroom, the one bedroom, and then through the surprisingly cozy kitchen before coming back into the living room to wait with Pastor Douglas as Ada Jane walked through the home exploring it.

  “It is truly a miracle that this young lady is walking among us today,” Pastor Douglas said to Kol.

  “It is. It is as amazing that I managed to find her. She is my only female, the one created solely as my match. I will not allow any harm to come to her,” Kol said matter of factly.

  “I would say that after all I’d imagine she’s been through, she’s lucky to have you,” the pastor commented.

  Ada Jane had been through the bedroom and the bathroom. She’d turned on the water and made sure it ran clear, and was now in the kitchen opening and closing cabinets. “Kol! Did you see? There are still dishes and pots and pans in here! I can actually cook my own meals!” she called out excitedly.

  “I did not see that, but I am pleased that you are pleased,” Kol answered.

  She opened the refrigerator and poked around inside it for a few moments, before closing the door. “I don’t think the refrigerator works,” she called out in general.

  “Let’s take a look,” Pastor Douglas answered. He checked the outlet, and the freezer section of the refrigerator and nodded. “I think you’re right. This one seems to have gone kaput. But, there’s one in the other cottage we can move over here if you like this cottage better. Or, who knows, you may like that one better.”

  He led them over to the other cottage. It was about the same size as the first, but was on the opposite side of the church and out of view of the other two cottages. They walked around it and looked at it. Kol didn’t say anything, but he really didn’t want her on this side of the church by herself. He was hoping she’d make the same decision.

  “What do you think about this cottage, Ada Jane?” Kol asked.

  “I don’t know. It’s the same as the other, but I really like the placement of the other better. And, it just feels homier than this one,” she answered.

  “Very well. I will move the cold box to the other cottage,” Kol said, relieved that she’d chosen the same one he had.

  “Are you sure you don’t mind me being here?” Ada Jane asked Pastor Douglas.

  The pastor smiled. “Look at me. I’m 86 years old. I’ve taken care of this property for so long that it’s not just a property to me. It’s my home. I’ve looked at the photo of that young girl in there,” he said, pointing to the church museum, “wondering what ever happened to her so many times I have your face memorized. Now you’re here, back where you belong. And I’m old, alone, needing help taking care of this place. It seems like destiny to me. I’d appreciate the company,” he said earnestly.

  Ada Jane smiled. “Okay, then. I’d like to have the other cottage, if you don’t mind me living so near to you.”

  “Done! It’s yours,” the pastor answered, smiling.

  “It is a good choice, my Ehlealah. You will be safe here, and at peace here. I can visit you whenever you allow and it is only twenty minutes from my base to this place,” Kol said, feeling good at her choice of a home for now.

  “I think it’s a good choice as well,” Ada agreed.

  “Remind me to advise Bart that he should stop looking for a place for you to reside,” Kol said.

  “I will,” Ada Jane answered with a big smile on her face.

  Chapter 14

  By the end of the day, Kol had moved the working refrigerator to Ada’s cottage, the non-working one to the extra cottage, helped her move her clothing and toiletries inside her cottage and helped her get them put away in her bedroom and bathroom. He helped her move whichever photos she wanted from her family’s display to her new home and put them on the walls for her along with any of the other items that she felt she wanted near her. He’d left her the communicator he’d brought for her, and a tablet for her to access in any way she wanted and instructed her in the use of both.

  The only thing left was to teach her to fire a weapon.

  There was an old, mangled piece of steel on the edge of the property with weeds and greenery growing up through and around it. Some leftover piece of wreckage that no one had ever removed, and that was the item Kol decided to use as a target.

  “What is that?” Ada asked as Kol stood behind her, preparing to show her how to stand and how to aim one of his spare weapons.

  “It looks to be a piece of a transport,” Kol answered.

  “I was told it was the last part of a ship that crashed, but it was so big, it would have to wait to be removed until they could get a private company to cut it up and haul it away,” Pastor Douglas said, as he stood nearby and watched curiously. “It didn’t bother me very much and it was out of the way so I just didn’t worry about it after they took away all the other pieces of it.”

  “We will take care of it for you today,” Kol said.

  The pastor’s eyebrows bunched up in confusion. “Okay,” he answered, not quite sure what Kol meant.

  Ko
l reached into his pocket. “This is a disintegrater,” he said, handing her what looked to her to be a very thin, flat, egg-shaped channel selector. It was smooth on the top and the bottom, with the exception of a slight indention where it seemed that a finger or thumb would go. There were three lines running over the indention, evenly spaced, and it felt as though they would depress if you tried to push them.

  “Can I press the lines?” she asked.

  “Yes, the weapon has not been programmed for you yet, so you can press them with no action occurring,” Kol answered.

  Ada Jane experimented with the weapon. It fit in the palm of her hand. If she maneuvered it just so, she found she could end up holding it against the palm side of her hand with her fingers beneath it and her thumb resting in the depression with the three lines across it.

  “It’s very lightweight. I’m surprised it’ll be able to do much of anything,” she said, testing the weight of the weapon on her hand.

  “It is extremely dangerous and effective,” Kol said. “Now, I need you to practice standing as I do, and holding the weapon like I do.”

  “Okay,” she answered, going to stand beside him.

  “When you have time to aim your shot, you should stand sheltered behind something, or at the very least turn your body sideways so that you are a more slender target yourself. Then aim at the target, and do you feel this?” he asked, using his own thumb to slide hers over a rough patch on the top of the small weapon she held in her hands.

  “Yes, it feels like the three lines,” Ada Jane answered.

  “It is. When you first think you may need to use the weapon, or if you are preparing to use it, you should take it in hand and alternately press the three lines, one at a time, in whatever order you choose to prep it for firing.”

  “How do I know what order to press them in?” she asked.

  “Once I assign it to you, you will choose a pattern. That pattern will be unique to you and no one else will know it. That along with your unique fingerprint, and your DNA is what will allow the weapon to fire. The pattern you choose is a safety mechanism to prevent it from firing accidentally while being carried. The fingerprint and DNA are to ensure that no one but you can fire the weapon regardless of the circumstances. Do you understand?”

  “Yes. How will it test my DNA?” Ada Jane asked.

  “Once the weapon is familiarized with your fingerprint, it will not scan for DNA unless your body temperature is less than it should be. The first initial time, it will prick your finger. But it is only slightly uncomfortable. Is that okay?”

  “If that’s what’s necessary to protect myself, then yes.”

  “Now, press your thumb onto those three lines all at the same time, then let up and do it again. The weapon will know it is preparing to be reprogrammed.”

  Ada Jane nodded. “Okay.”

  “Is there any recoil in the weapon? Will it knock you backwards like a rifle will?” Pastor Douglas asked from where he stood watching.

  “No, none at all. If anything, it may drive your hand higher, but only by a small amount, inches at most. Once you are prepared for it, it is easily controlled,” Kol answered. Then he looked back at Ada Jane. “Are you ready?”

  “Yes,” Ada Jane said, grinning.

  “Missy,” Kol said aloud. “Program this weapon for my Ehlealah’s DNA print, please,” Kol asked.

  The handheld unit on Kol’s belt responded. “Please standby, Ambassador Kol.”

  Only a few seconds later the handheld communicator spoke. “I am prepared to program the weapon. Standby.”

  “Don’t let go of the weapon, my Ada Jane,” Kol said by way of warning her the finger stick was coming. “The finger stick is done with a very intensely focused puff of air, there is no needle used,” Kol explained.

  Kol saw her wince slightly, but she didn’t change her hold on the disintegrater.

  “Still stings,” she complained, but offered him a smile.

  “I have aligned your weapon for use by Ada Jane Ra’ Don Tol, formerly Andersen, Ehlealah to Elite Force Commander Ambassador Kol Ra’ Don Tol. Her DNA was matched to records aboard Command Warship 1. Only Ada Jane Andersen will have the ability to fire the weapon assigned to her. Please program the safety features as necessary,” Missy reported.

  “Thank you, Missy,” Kol responded.

  “Ada Jane, press the lines in a pattern, one at a time. Be sure you can remember the pattern as you will need to repeat it any time you wish to fire the weapon.”

  Ada moved her thumb over the lines a few times to see what pattern she could perform quickly without it feeling too awkward. Choosing one, she proceeded to depress the lines in that order as Kol had instructed.

  “Okay, done,” she said.

  “It is live now, my Ehlealah. Be very careful where you aim it, and do not put your thumb over the lines unless you are ready to fire.”

  “Okay,” Ada answered, looking down at the weapon and becoming excited about learning to use it. She moved her thumb to the side of the weapon so she couldn’t press the lines on accident.

  “Now, stand like this,” Kol said, adopting the position he wanted Ada to stand in.

  Ada mimicked his stance.

  “Your weapon is live, do not point it at anything other than the target,” Kol warned again.

  “I won’t,” she answered, grinning at him.

  “Raise your arm like this,” he said, showing her how to move and aim. “Take aim at the top half of the target, and when you’re comfortable with your aim, press on all three lines at the same time. Be prepared for your arm to be lifted very slightly into the air. You have already entered your pattern to unlock it, so the next step is to simply fire it.”

  “Okay,” Ada answered, still grinning ear-to-ear.

  Kol moved behind her to stand with Pastor Douglas as she prepared to take her first shot.

  Ada felt she was properly lined up with the target, rubbed her thumb just slightly across the three lines to be sure she was touching all three, then pressed her thumb into them. The weapon responded immediately. An almost imperceptible beam of light shot out from the front of the weapon, struck the metal target, and before their eyes the metal became white hot and was absolutely disintegrated.

  “Oh my gosh!” Ada Jane exclaimed. “I killed it!” she shouted happily.

  Kol laughed, and Pastor Douglas even chuckled.

  “Did you feel it attempt to raise your arm slightly?” Kol asked.

  “Yes, but just a little. I can control it,” Ada Jane responded.

  “Very well. Would you like to fire it again?” Kol asked.

  “Uhh, yes!” she shrieked happily.

  “Go ahead when ready,” Kol said, smiling indulgently at Ada Jane.

  Ada Jane got in her stance, aimed her weapon and fired. Half of what remained of the scrap metal glowed white hot, then disappeared.

  “Now, I want you to fire at it, while crouching down without time to stop and aim,” Kol said.

  Ada looked at him, knowing he was preparing her for if she was actually having to protect herself. She nodded then walked about twenty feet toward the church.

  Kol and Pastor Douglas had moved far aside, out of her way and watched to see what she’d do.

  “Assume the target is searching for you, my Ada Jane. What do you do?” Kol asked.

  Ada Jane nodded. Then she crouched low and hurried across the ground through the high grasses and came to a stop, kneeling on one knee as she brought up her weapon at the same time, firing at the remaining scrap metal. As soon as she’d fired, she was up and running while she crouched low to minimize herself as a target.

  Kol looked around and realized there were several sheets of old, rusted aluminum leaning against the trees just a few feet further toward the fence line. “What of the metal sheets?” he asked the pastor.

  “They are scrap, not needed,” Pastor Douglas answered.

  “There are more coming after you from the fence line. They are the metal sheets lea
ning on the trees,” Kol shouted to Ada Jane.

  Ada didn’t hesitate, she continued her run in the direction she’d been running parallel to the fence, but didn’t hesitate to raise her weapon and fire at the sheets of scrap aluminum she saw there. She kept running until she was safely hidden away behind the well-house.

  “Most excellent!” Kol said, raising his voice so he could be heard by Ada Jane who was just now coming out from behind the small structure that housed the water well the property used. “You could easily earn a sniper’s position among my team. Of that I have no doubt!” he said, giving her plenty of praise.

  Ada Jane walked back over to them, grinning, her heart beating wildly and with a great deal more confidence in her stride. “I know how Vivi feels as she walks around with her chain and her dagger now. It is very empowering, very freeing, to know that you are capable of defending yourself.”

  “I am very proud of you, Ada Jane. I have always been proud of you, but even more so now as I watch you discover who you truly are. I am honored to be your male,” Kol said, smiling lovingly at Ada Jane.

  Ada walked until she was in his arms. She hugged him tightly to her and pressed her face into his chest. “Thank you, Kol, for everything. I’d still be so lost without you here to help guide me.”

  “I am not guiding you. I’m simply watching over you as your heart guides you.”

  Ada Jane smiled up at him as he looked down at her and pressed his lips to her forehead.

  “Ambassador Kol,” his communicator interrupted.

  “Yes, Missy,” Kol answered.

  “You are needed on Base 28, sir.”

  “What is happening?” Kol asked.

  “Viceroy Buchanan and Patroon Zhuxi have the situation in hand, but your presence is requested,” Missy answered.

  “And Elisher?” Kol asked.

  “Is in your quarters as per your instructions. Viceroy Buchanan, Patroon Zhuxi and several trusted males are preventing the Consul from entering.”