The corridor was narrow and its stone walls within touching distance. In one fluid movement he spun and used his right foot to spring off of the adjacent wall and bring himself around three hundred and sixty degrees, directing an aerial kick at the tulpa’s face. The tulpa ducked under its trajectory as calmly as if it was crouching beneath a low hanging door frame.
When Esteban landed, he had to take a moment to catch his breath. He was yet to fully acclimatise to the thin mountain air and he had put all his energy into the kick. Rather than allowing him to carry on and risk injuring himself, the tulpa realigned its form to that of the scientist controlling it.
‘Don’t take it as a reflection on your ability,’ she told him. ‘It’s a reflex. I could dodge you all day and not even break into a sweat. Hell, I could probably dodge a bullet if I put my mind to it.’
Esteban had been wearing his pistol on his belt since the dog attack and he also had an idea, as dangerous as that idea may be. He thought back to how he had captured another individual seemingly capable of dodging bullets. With Jimmy, all it had taken was the right distraction.
A little further down the hall was a small table with a vase of flowers resting on it. He coolly took a step back and then quickly spun on his heels, scooping up the vase and launching it at Emmy’s tulpa in one fluid movement. As she instinctively extended her arms to catch the projectile, he put a bullet into her chest.
This time the reflex was entirely different to what had gone before. The vase fell to ground, smashing into a hundred pieces. Emmy froze and looked at Esteban in stunned horror. A delicate wisp of smoke from the nuzzle of his weapon hung in the air. He had shot her. Betrayal was written in her eyes.
‘I’m sorry,’ said Esteban. ‘I assumed it could not harm you. You’re not hurt, are you?’
She was not sure. She felt no pain, but she did feel something. Something more than simply shock. The space where her heart would be on her living body, felt tight, as if it was being squeezed. She looked down, not sure what to expect.
In tulpa form she was able to discern her surrounds with far greater clarity than with a purely astral view, but she could still see through matter as if the world around her was composed of one large three dimensional x-ray.
The bullet was inside her.
Without even questioning if it was even a possibility, she reached in and plucked it from her being. She then looked back to the soldier. When he saw that she was unharmed he relaxed.
‘I guess that answers that question,’ he said.
‘Yes,’ she replied. ‘This answers a lot of questions. Like Jimmy before me, I can finally see my purpose. In this form I am indestructible. I am a...’
Before completing the sentence her expression changed. Esteban could see dread spread across her features and then she vanished into nothingness.
‘Emmy!’ he cried out, re-holstering his gun and running to her room.
When he got there, she was sat on the bed with her back in the corner and her knees pulled up to her chin in a protective ball.
‘Are you okay?’ he asked.
She nodded.
What about the tulpa – where did it go and can you still project?’
‘Yes,’ she replied, this time finding the words. ‘The tulpa is fine. Like I said – it’s virtually indestructible.’
‘So what’s wrong? - you look terrible.’
She closed her eyes, facing the awful realisation one more time before pushing it to the recesses of her mind. Once she felt like she was back in control, she looked to the soldier.
‘Back then, just before I let go. I was about to say that I was a Goddess. Then it hit me. That’s exactly how he thought of himself in the end. Well, not as a Goddess so much, but the masculine equivalent. This is too much power. I don’t want it. I’m not Jimmy. He’s an innocent, incapable of doing harm. I’m different. No matter what intentions I have, this kind of power will never fully be under my control. I’ve made mistakes in the past because I let my emotions rule me. It’s only a matter of time before the tulpa and its promises of immortality turn me into the very thing I despise.’
Esteban sat down on the corner of the bed. He looked deep into her eyes. So deep that he could see himself reflected back in her pupils.
‘I don’t believe that,’ he said. ‘You’re a good person. Earlier you told me that you thought your grandfather spared Charlie for a reason. Perhaps you gaining these powers from him was also no accident. Maybe he transferred something to you on purpose.’
She shook her head.
‘His final act on this earth was to try and kill me. By that point, all of the good in him had been completely eradicated by the poisonous radiation I created.’
‘Not all our actions are intentional,’ said Esteban. ‘Surely you of all people understand this. Take your friend, Charlie. At this moment you are enemies, yet you sent Lucy to him. You didn’t even know you were doing it.’
She wanted to believe Esteban. She really did. In her heart though, she could not. Jimmy had previously told her that he did not expect to survive the mission. It now seemed likely that her fate would be the same. If she had to choose between dying and becoming an instrument of mass destruction, she would choose death every time.
‘I can only do this if you promise me one thing,’ she said. ‘Promise me you will not let me become what my grandfather became. If this power begins to control me – I need to know you’ll stop it, no matter what that entails.’
He held her gaze for an extended moment. She was not bluffing.
‘Just so we’re clear; you’re asking me to kill you – is that right?’
‘Yes,’ she replied, ‘but only if there’s no alternative.’
‘Of course,’ he said. ‘I’ve never killed anybody without it being absolutely necessary, so why start now?’
Chapter 37
Such was the insanity of the general’s plan that Charlie actually longed for the solitude of his cell. Having witnessed firsthand the extent of Jackson Fox’s trail of destruction, the scientist could not begin to contemplate what kind of damage these nine imitators could do. The worst part was that unlike his old mentor, this new batch of radiation infected supermen were not crazy. The stabilising property of Jimmy’s blood was shielding them from the horrors inflicted on his townsfolk.
‘You do not understand the danger in meddling with these powers,’ he told the general. ‘Do you really expect these men to obey you when they realise what they are capable of? They will destroy everything that either of us has ever cared about.’
‘You could not be more wrong,’ the general replied. ‘These men are going to protect both of our interests. That is, of course, if you still care about your ancestral homeland.’
Charlie felt a sickly feeling in the pit of his stomach. He was expecting more bad news, but now the general’s tone had taken on a much more sinister flavour. There was finality to his words that could only pre-empt an atrocity of world changing magnitude.
‘Exactly what are you planning?’ he asked.
The general looked at the younger man. Perceiving no threat, he saw no reason not to divulge his plans. In less than twenty four hours they would become known to the whole world anyway.
‘Major Heng, if you please.’
The general’s number two officer picked up a tablet computer and used it to bring up a world map on a large screen that dominated the control centre. It consisted of a basic outline with only the largest national borders showing. There were eight bright red dots spread sporadically around the globe. Charlie did not need identifiers to know what locations these represented. Half were on the US mainland and the others were made up of Tokyo, London, Jerusalem and Seoul.
‘You’re crazy,’ said Charlie. ‘Whatever you are planning can only end in war. Sending your radioactive super soldiers into these territories is an act of suicide.’
‘Exactly,’ replied the general.
The response was unexpected and only served to worry C
harlie even more. He suspected the full picture was yet to be revealed.
‘What about number nine?’ he asked, dreading what the answer may be.
The general smiled.
‘Surely that is obvious,’ he replied. ‘You’re the scientist - I’d be surprised if you cannot figure it out. This technology you provided us with is still relatively new. We have to be sure that it works.’
Charlie figured it out.
‘You need a trial run – but where?’
The general once more nodded to his number two. Major Heng ran his fingers over his handheld device and another red dot appeared on the map. It was the last place where Charlie had expected it to be.
‘That’s here. That’s the exact location of this base – I don’t understand.’
‘That is because your thinking is too narrow. Look more closely. It is not the exact location of this base. It is actually a few miles west of here.’
As realisation dawned, Charlie finally lost all hope.
‘That’s where Emmy is,’ he said. ‘This time you are going to kill her.’
‘No,’ the general replied. ‘Not I. Well, not personally, at least.’
He nodded once more to the major and this time the tablet was used to open an automated chamber built into the side of the command centre. A solitary man dressed in military uniform stepped out. This soldier wore not the fatigues of battle, but the smart dress of ceremony. A full complement of medals adorned his chest. Something was not right, however. The man projected an air of pestilence. He was like an animated corpse, rotting from the inside out.
‘Dr Nguyen, I would like you to meet, Lieutenant Colonel Jing Fan, he is about to usher in a glorious new age for our mighty People’s Republic.’
Then without warning, the man standing before them vanished into thin air.
Just like the great Jackson Fox, he had acquired the ability to teleport at will. And just like Jackson Fox, he intended to do something terrible.
Chapter 38
Everyone was more relaxed with the tulpa no longer around. Its absence allowed them to better focus on coming up with a plan to shut down the Chinese and find a way home.
Using Emmy’s projected subconscious was going to be extremely risky. It was unpredictable and difficult to control. There was no way to reliably factor it into any strategy and Emmy was terrified where it may lead her. Absolute power corrupts absolutely and past experience had taught her that she was just as susceptible to giving in to her darker side as anybody. Like Jimmy, she did not want her gift and if she made it out of the mountains alive, her priority would be to find a cure.
Without the tools at her disposal to scientifically explore her condition, she was left to approach it from a purely philosophical angle. This led her back to the murals Yonten had shown her of the ancient astral travellers and their tulpa. She hoped to find some sort of a clue among the images in front of her. Anything that could explain her new power. Without her noticing, Esteban had entered the chamber.
‘I was starting to worry about you,’ he said, drawing her attention.
‘You mean you want to keep an eye on me,’ she replied. ‘Let me guess – you’re afraid I’m going to bring Lucy back and do something stupid.’
‘No. I’m concerned that you’ve only had one meal in the last forty eight hours. You need to keep your strength up.’ When she did not respond, he thought it prudent to try to lighten the mood, so he added; ‘You are now eating for two, after all.’
His attempt at levity proved successful. She turned to face him.
‘I’m not pregnant and implying that I look it is not going to inspire a girl to eat, you know.’
‘So what does inspire you?’
She briefly looked away.
‘I’m sorry,’ he quickly added. ‘I didn’t mean to...’
‘It’s okay – I understand. I’m just finding it really difficult not to blame myself for everything that’s happened. If I hadn’t been feeling so inspired to begin with, none of us would be here now.’
‘Is that not your way? – scientists, I mean. When progress comes about through trial and error the path to success is paved with mistakes. It’s no different to my line of work. There is no freedom without sacrifice.’
‘Is this supposed to be motivational?’
‘I don’t know. You can probably guess I’m a man of action rather than words and science was never my strongest subject.’
Emmy laughed, through cynicism rather than amusement.
‘I don’t think science has anything to do with my current predicament. For the first time in my life, I’m at a complete loss. Back in the lab we used to talk about souls and ghosts, but we never actually believed any of it. Everything we discovered could be explained rationally. The astral program was all based around technology. Even when it all got out of hand with the radiation, it was still a consequence of the technology – the science. But this?’ She swept her arm in front of the pictograms. ‘This is nothing but magic and superstition. How can I put my trust in something I don’t even believe in?’
‘Magic is just science we’re yet to understand,’ said Esteban.
Emmy laughed once more and this time she was amused.
‘Oh, please – I’ve heard that one before. There’s a distinct line between technology and magic, believe me.’
‘Tell me,’ he began, ‘what has been the most successful piece of technology created by man?’
‘I don’t know. It’s certainly not my machine after all that’s happened. You’re going to try to convince me it’s something counterintuitive, aren’t you – like gunpowder?’
‘Not at all. The answer is much more elegant. Mankind’s greatest invention is the dog.’
She tilted her head, displaying her scepticism.
‘Not all technology requires circuit boards,’ Esteban hastily added. ‘Whether it is a Rottweiler or a poodle, the dog is not something to have occurred naturally. We made them. They’re as genetically modified as any piece of fruit you’d find on a supermarket shelf, yet they came without a test-tube or Petri dish in sight.’
‘And your point is?’
‘Not all progress is made in a laboratory. If something is possible – it is possible. If your machine can bestow you with certain abilities then why can’t nature do the same? Jimmy got his special power from exposure to radiation, but maybe it’s something that is dormant in all of us and the radiation merely brought it out. What happened between you and your grandfather that could have caused such a change in you?’
After a long pause, she replied; ‘he killed me.’
***
The pain of dematerialisation caught Jing Fan by surprise. His new body had been like a gift from the ancestors. It was strong, healthy and so much more besides. Yet when he emerged from his teleportation it felt weak and decrepit. It was almost as if he could feel his life force being drained from every cell. Above all, he felt an insatiable hunger. Not for nutritional nourishment, but for something stronger – he craved pure energy. He knew that if this appetite was not sated, he would certainly die.
The only intel he had on the monastery had been gathered from a single astral pass. His masters were nervous of arousing suspicion by detection and so they acted cautiously. There had not been time to confirm the exact position of his targets, but he knew they would be near.
He knew what he needed to do.
Once he had visual confirmation of Emmy Rayne, he was to execute his order and in doing so – her. First though, he needed to deal with the crippling hunger.
He had materialised next to the stables. No large livestock were being looked after as horses and oxen were unable to scale the mountainside. Only indigenous mountain goats were capable of making the cold and inhospitable trip to this perfectly isolated locale. It was not ideal, but they would have to do. He approached the nearest animal and placed his hand on the back of its neck.
As soon as his skin made contact with the animal, he felt a connection wit
h it. He could feel its breathing, but through his own lungs. He could feel its heart beating in his own chest. Most of all, he could feel its strength and he wanted that to be a part of him too, so he took it. He absorbed the creature’s life energy and in doing so, replenished his own. Once again, he felt strong. He felt invincible.
It was time.
***
Jimmy had been dozing in and out of sleep all through the morning. It was the cold. He hated what it did to him. His skin stung where it penetrated the gaps in his clothes. The only way to escape was to curl into a tight ball and hope that sleep would spare him from its discomfort. The monks just left him to it. Since the discovery of Lucy, they were not so overwrought by his powers anymore.
Just as his eyelids were about to give way and send him on another respite from his harsh frozen surrounds, a large crash jolted him back to full alertness. It took a moment, but he soon deduced the source of the interruption to be breaking glass. The dining hall was overlooked by a large window, one of only a few in the monastery. He rose from his seat and turned to see that it had been almost completely demolished.
One of the frequent snowstorms raged outside, but that could not have been the cause. The way the remaining shards of glass protruded out into the abyss could only mean that the window had been destroyed from the inside. Something had been thrown through it. Esteban stood, badly bruised and with a deep laceration above his right eye, looking out onto the storm outside.
Jimmy ran to join his friend and protector. When he got to the opening, he attempted to lean out to take a look, but found that his forehead rebounded off the empty space in front of him. He tilted his head to the left and saw himself standing opposite, signalling that this was one of his frequent temporal overlaps. It was a vision and just as unexpectedly as it had begun, it dissolved into nothingness.
Emerald Sky Page 23