“Subjugate?”
He hesitated. “Subjugation of the body. Where they remove core meta essence and assume the physical shell. The meta essence becomes lost.”
She recoiled. “Like a ghost? They can do that?”
“Yes. Their attempt half-failed in that Clare was bumped from her body but her essence was not lost. Sadly, she lost both her body and you, her baby daughter.”
“Me?” The spacious study constricted as her world suddenly shifted. Her mother’s name was Margaret, not Clare. “Then who raised me?”
“I’m sorry, Anki. The mother you know was a standin, though no less loving and genuine a person. Margaret was happy to inherit the life she did and she did love you.”
“Are you saying she was Comannda?”
“More like ex-Comannda but that’s a story for another time. Relax. Please. Yes, there are some things that I cannot share with you yet. I know this is difficult but it is absolutely necessary. You must trust me.”
“Um, I have a problem. There’s a lot more you’re not telling me. I can feel it.” She rose to her feet and paced, overwhelmed by what he’d said and afraid of what he hadn’t. She felt twelve again and she didn’t like it. Sitting in the school counselor’s office listening to a police chaplain explain how a burglar had killed her mother. Only it wasn’t her mother – or was it? It was so long ago but keen empathy made for vivid memories. Margaret had loved her as a mother. Absolutely had.
She focused again on Edward. “You’re holding something back, a really big something and that scares me.”
Edward nodded, as much to himself as to her. “At conception, Clare and Steffan shared in the creation of your meta. Just as the body is a result of two bodies combining, so is the meta a result of two metas combining at the same moment, however briefly. Clare and Steffan are your parents and you are inextricably linked to them.”
She nodded, absorbing. “But what happened to Clare? Her essence? And where did Steffan go? My father?”
He shored up noticeably before answering. “Stefan was killed trying to protect you and Clare. When Clare was knocked free of her body, Steffan’s last act was to help hide her essence somewhere safe.”
She froze, feeling an immense truth bubbling up within him.
“And where was that?”
He leaned forward and held her gaze.
“Within you.”
Chapter 12
Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to
test a man’s character, give him power.
- Abraham Lincoln
After dinner the group gathered at a conference table in the library. Johan was subdued, wondering what Edward and Anki were meeting about. Sean sat listening to Soldado and Austin go around and around about Johan’s breakin at InterGen.
“Well, look at it this way: he was about to plunder your facility and that could’ve cost you your job anyway. I see it all the time.” Soldado’s beguiling smile offset his frankness. “That Rocom hack was high level NSA shit, man. Never seen a backdoor like it. Crafted so sweet. Permission to walk on water, worldwide. Jesus fucking Christ. Then ol’ Johan here had to fuck it up. That’s legend. Pure legend.”
Johan shook his head, only half minding the talk. “Blame Austin.”
“Um, there was a packet storm on the inside port,” Austin said. “You couldn’t have knocked on the door any louder.”
Soldado slapped the table and pointed at Johan. “Ah ha! You did fuck up. And I know just what you did. You used the first binary for the flash, didn’t you? Someone didn’t read the fucking readme!”
Johan shook his head again, quietly embarrassed. “I know for a fact I’m not the only one who doesn’t read instructions.”
“Ha!” Soldado barked. “Shit, don’t sweat it. I’m just knockin’ yer balls. We all make mistakes.” He gulped more wine before adding, “Of course, some are bigger than others. God this is good juice.”
Edward and Anki entered the study and joined them at the table. Williams filed in behind and opened cabinet doors in the wall to reveal a projector and a laptop. A screen descended from the ceiling. Anki sat next to Johan and slid her hand into his with a short nod to say everything was okay.
“What is left in the bottle is the last for the time being so don’t fight over it.” Edward said. “I will need your undivided attention, please, thank you. Your time in training has purposefully lacked significant details about the Comannda. Let’s make it all simple and clear, shall we? This rock has landlords of the worst kind. By controlling the attention of the human animal and by selectively focusing its development they have stunted natural evolutionary processes for ages, all to maintain the keys to the kingdom. They are the very definition of tyrants, the corrupt elite behind all corrupted systems. What was meant to be ours by ancient design is not. Instead, we have inferior development and inferior understanding of ourselves and that of the world around us. Most people cannot yet imagine what they are being deprived of. Human awareness is like a lens that has never been properly focused. That... that is the legacy of the Comannda.
“There are the exceptions, as you are aware. You might consider the Runa Korda to be a kind of accomplice – aware of so many of the secrets, yet holding on to them. The fact is, humanity is hostage. There are so many trip wires in place that if I began to name them, you’d likely despair and walk out on us. Yes, it is bad. Yes, we are gravely challenged not to trigger those safeguards by releasing truths. But there is no excuse for giving up or giving in. We must evolve our tactics so that one day we can disable those safeguards and overcome them. Note that I said ‘must evolve’. At no point in the foreseeable future is dumping the High Truths on the public a viable plan. Already aspects of the truths have been de-vitalized, made out to be the realm of kooks and bad science fiction. Further exposure now would only serve their agenda which is why we work to avoid it. That said, certain segments of humanity are closer to being ready than ever before. Though fractured and disorganized, some have begun to tap the source of their consciousness and experiment. They see through the cultural smokescreens and recognize the possibilities. They are intermingling in the grid with increased intimacy, though still ignorant of its complexity. One’s fantasy seeds the reality of others, a mechanism that is predictable and which can lead to eventual catalytic evolution in consciousness.
“The Commanda are aware of all this. Conventional control bases are fragmenting as the previous programs lose their effectiveness. Intelligence has blossomed in the masses. Free thinking is on the rise. Rogue culture is breaking the bindings. Efforts to restore pre-Information Age levels of control are failing. Religion is diluting as fast as spring waters run and the supplemental institutions are not taking hold. Their ‘science of the mind’ concept has so far failed to capture the imagination of the monje, or free thinkers, so acceptance is low. The more creative monje are tapping media such as movies and books to promote wide-scale elevation of metaphysical thinking. Mankind is beginning to bloom like a weed under concrete, finding the cracks and pressing upward to the light. This growth is being offset once more with guerrilla tactics: global economic downturn, extreme class division, political upheaval, terrorism, viral disease, drug addictions, food supply tampering, and unprecedented cultural poisoning and redirection using technology and media.”
“But that’s not enough, is it?” Austin asked. “Those things have solutions, especially if people figure out they are all avoidable.”
“Or intentionally created,” Anki added.
Edward nodded. “Quite so. The global mind is beginning to grasp what is wrong and what is possible.”
“The global mind?” Soldado asked.
“It is what governs the eventual actions of the species. Up until now it has been consumed largely by chaos. It has begun to understand that a very few with great power are behind what’s wrong with the world. The Comannda cannot allow action on that understanding. Chaos and their fictions must prevail for them to remain in control.�
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“So what are they planning? More chaos?” Anki asked. “World War Three?”
“That is an option. The underlying framework is certainly primed. However, seeding justification for war on that scale is much harder today than it was fifty years ago. People are more aware. Transparency in the information age makes too many details visible. Communication allows for verification. Stories are harder to sell.”
“Then what’s their plan?”
“That is what we are trying to learn.”
“Obviously they want to keep people from learning the truths and uniting,” Johan said. “Unification at the level of the mind would open gates they could never close. I’m curious about the Runa Korda, though. What are its plans?”
Edward regarded him. “The secrets are like fire, the unaware like children. At first you protect them from fire, using it to insure their survival. When they are ready, you teach them to handle it themselves. Thus far, we have been insuring mankind’s survival. Slowly, we are teaching. If the secrets go out now, humanity will burn under its own flame.”
“Teaching?” Johan pressed. “A few stragglers like us at a time? What about the other nine billion?”
Edward pursed his lips before answering. “Like the monje, we move awareness towards truth. Unlike the monje, we know the end lesson and the dangers in reaching for it too soon. We work at the lower levels with knowledge the Comannda do not have and try to undo the damage they inflict upon the people. We stir and spice the waters of culture. We protect and build the foundation for meta awareness and someday, meta intelligence. The monje can be incendiary, reckless, distracting. Their methods are like grenades. Oftentimes their message is destroyed by the medium, only serving the Comannda.”
Again Johan responded. “Why don’t you work with these monje then? Influence them if nothing else–”
“Do you suppose we don’t?” Edward interrupted, his demeanor finally less than cordial. “That we haven’t?”
“I’m sorry, it’s just not easy to see your work. The world’s a mess.”
Edward looked down at the table and allowed impulse to pass. When he looked up it was with a measure of patience. “I have spent the last hundred and sixty-four years of my life on this effort, Johan. At some point you will be given the chance to review what we have done. Until then, I can only hope you will become more trusting of my lead and learn something along the way.”
The room fell silent. Austin and Johan shared a glance. Soldado let out a whistle and mouthed ‘a hundred and sixty-four’.
“How long have the Commanda been in control?” Anki asked[M1] .
“They began over four thousand years ago. Think Sumeria. The first cities, first writings, and first with the wheel. Mathematics, irrigation, laws, and astronomy. A sudden and prolithic advancement that included the discovery of meta and Saoghal. They knew to keep it to themselves and as a result the world would never be the same.” Edward offered a critical eye to his guests. “Yes, we work with the monje as best we can. It is very dangerous, for them as well as us. We work in key areas where culture is defined and mass propagated. The news media is the front we are losing on the most. Journalism is being hedged more severely than almost any time in history and it’s being done without the obvious trappings of oppressive government.”
Sean joined in. “They control the governments, the industries, the political landscape, the monetary systems, the media, and the most important technologies. Through all that, they bind culture and thus the highest level of group minds. The Runa Korda is laying a foundation I can assure you, but in ways you might not recognize. We have grown the Confrere, a network that includes key members of state, industry, and military that help in many ways. We are making real progress.”
“They’re holding back medical technology as well?” Anki asked. “Cures, medicines?”
Sean nodded. “To a degree that is tragic. Same with energy. Everything is orchestrated to leave mankind wanting. They both create and satisfy the needs. They are in control.”
Johan asked, “What are the safeguards? The tripwires you mentioned.”
“That is not for you to know yet. When the need arises, you will know them.”
“Their numbers then? How many Comannda are there?”
Edward considered the question. “Speaking in terms of organization, their Group Three appear at the top of every government, military, and industry. They are the scene manipulators, the fabricators, and the rule changers – the elite corruptors. They control with money and fear, just as they themselves are controlled. They are typical human animals, keyed to the needs of their handlers and are not very meta aware, if at all. Their Group Two are far fewer and are trained in meta specialties and the arts of coercion. G2 are involved in every major campaign, every significant development that shapes history. They assure execution of the plans and make it all ‘fit’ in the accepted public narrative. Group One is the inner ring, comprising the central planning and core operations body. We have no idea their number but it must be relatively small, likely in the low hundreds, maybe less. Above them, we know of the High Comannda, a body of twelve that oversee everything.”
“Where do they operate from? They have to have bases.”
“All over the world. Command and control is designed redundantly and insures survivability. There is a central base, however, that they call the Core. We know only that it is underground and one of the most secure and defensible places on the planet. The ultimate goal is to learn its location but right now our focus is on their network and their plans.” He looked at the group. “I know you are curious but we need to continue. Time is short.”
Despite a growing list of questions, Johan raised his glass. “To longevity.” Hesitant smiles spread around the table. He sipped his wine. A group with such power could exist indefinitely, theoretically. That the Runa Korda had managed to hold on in defiance of the Comannda seemed suspect unless they’d made a pact. In that case, either the pact protected them somehow or they were subservient to the Comannda in some way. The latter would make Edward a liar and them pawns. He smoothed his thoughts. There wasn’t sufficient knowledge to judge.
Soldado muttered something about wanting a bus ticket to the Fountain of Youth.
Edward continued. “The trends we see support the idea they are planning something unprecedented. Something to reposition man’s attention on survival, on the basics.”
“Enter the digital world.” Soldado emptied the last of his wine.
Sean nodded. “Their plans require movement in the material world. Political changes, financial transactions, contracts, equipment deals, and so on. Analysis of such movement provides pieces to the puzzle but the foundations for their plans are stored in their systems. They rely heavily on technology and keep it ahead of the mainstream. However, we’re catching up in key areas and are close to climbing up their tailpipe and looking around the engine. Soldado has agreed to work with our teams to finally break into their network. The goal is to intercept and interpret Comannda communications directly from their own wire. A presence there could change everything.”
“And it could lead us to the core of Totem,” Edward added. “Which takes us to the present. Soldado, Mr. Lathrop is waiting in the room at the top of the stairs. He has a special briefing for you and some new concepts that need your review.”
Soldado made a face. “Eh, work. Let’s all hook up around another bottle of the good stuff later on.” He pushed back from the table and headed for the door.
Edward said to Anki, “I need to speak privately with Johan and Austin. You’ll find the great room offers diversions, as does the game room and library.”
Johan looked at Edward, asking if it were necessary she leave. Edward nodded.
She stood and squeezed Johan’s shoulder on her way out. “Later you won’t choose Condrieu over me, I hope?”
“A bottle of Condrieu and you. I shouldn’t be too long,” he said.
Edward waited until she left. “William
s, the door please. Alright then. First with you, Johan. During my time, no one, Korda-born or not, has ever shut out a squad of korjé without extensive training.”
Korjé were the hunters, the thought police. Groups one and two.
Johan spread his hands. “Well, I guess that makes me special.”
“It makes you valuable.” Edward tossed a small wooden block onto the table. “You know what that is, Gerrit Bartel.”
Stunned, Johan faltered, trapped in a moment. He tried to recover. “And you’re a carnival ride, Edward. What can I say?”
“There’s more to your story, Johan. Vincent and Juliana Bartel were gifted members of our family. They were Instructors.”
Johan went still.
“You witnessed their murder. Eight years old, two years shy of Initiation. Your grandfather, not one for the Family, chose to keep you from us and raised you without our involvement. We honor those decisions. When you disappeared, you did so quite effectively. That was fifteen years ago. We thought you’d been killed and so imagine our surprise when your DNA threw a match. Not quite a prodigal son but nonetheless we are glad you are with us. It explains your gift.”
He closed his eyes. The dreams, the old hunted feeling, the paths he’d been led down. The circle was complete, the healing a rising chorus in his soul. There were no accidents, just as he’d always believed.
“What about my gift?”
“Just as you learned to speak by listening to their speech, you also learned how to think by their unique way of thinking. Between two Korda flows a language unto itself. You were raised with and impressed by that flow. It explains why you were so distant from everyone else growing up, why you drew judgment on people that others couldn’t understand and why some people felt uncomfortable around you. You looked right through them. It is why you are so good at shifting identity, adapting to people’s needs. It is how you isolate wrong doers and sustain a nomadic life, or I should say ‘lives’. You know the multitude of ways people can think and be and you can emulate them like a skilled stage actor. You are tuned to the meta field, to the true nature of people. A typical Korda child. You had wonderful parents.”
System Seven Page 22