Cutlass Sharpened

by H. Lee Morgan, Jr

  “Why would you help me? You’ve yet to say.” Davan finally found his voice, though it still shook noticeably.

  “Because I’ve had me suspicions for some time after hearing a similar incident over two centuries ago in the same field of research ye unknowingly thought up again.”

  “What do you mean, Papa?” Renee shook her head to clear the memories not hers.

  “Back then the study was simply called the vacuum-propulsion theory and like Took here, the head researcher murdered his assistants and was hung two days later when the proof was incontrovertible. Davan, tell me I’m wrong in thinking yer Time-space Energy and Warp Technology involves the idea of traveling through a level above even subspace in which ye can match the human wavelength with that of a psionic bridge between the person and a designated point, systems away, can travel there instantly with the requirement being someone of class four and above achieving the physical endurance to survive the warp. Furthermore ye concluded the vibrations our body feels when gathering can be intensified to the point we become out of sync with this universe for less than a millionth or so of a single millisecond to be on the other side of the anchor point, thus eliminating the dependence on FTL travel as well as Inferno Fruit that is expensive.”

  “H… How did…”

  “Thought so.” Jake nodded sagely. “I may look like a barbarian, but ye are not the only genius here. Your IQ is actually sixteen points below mine and a point above me sister Jessica.” He took a breath that made his chest swell more than usual. Davan was speechless. “But I do hate to inform ye of this undeniable truth…”

  “Just tell me to the point. Don’t dance around it.”

  Jake leveled an indescribable look to the short man. “I got the original footage from me source and can say without a doubt the assistants were all murdered by yer hand.”

  Davan’s blue skin paled as he shook his head. “I didn’t. I couldn’t… you must have been fooled.”

  “No one would dare live if they fooled me. On that, Lad, ye can have me word as king.” Jake’s vein showed up again. “Next time, do not think me one. Now keep yer loose lips closed before they and me fist get intimate.” Said fist popped as sausage thick fingers clenched. “They did die by yer hands, but not by yer will.”

  “Papa?”

  “Renee, ye be quiet too and let me finish.” Her red lips pressed firmly together. “Davan Took. Tell me, what day is it?”

  “May sixteenth.”

  “Sorry, Lad, but ye’re a day behind. There is a good reason. I spent a full day going over the cameras on ye as a high profile scientist of the past week up till the murder and when ye went to sleep the night before the massacre ye moved normally and spoke to everyone, asking them about their families and got invited to some party planned for the weekend.” The bridge was silent and staring at Davan about ready to faint. “Except the fateful morning when I saw ye get out of bed and forgo your daily ritual of drinking coffee, eating a pastry and watching the news in the scientific community for any new ideas ye can incorporate into yer work. Ye simply changed clothes, put on yer coat and left. No one changes a routine so suddenly, nor do their motions resemble jerking ramrod straight backs when they slouch slightly.

  “When ye arrived at the office ye barely spoke to anyone and when some of the assistants asked why ye were distant, ye always replied the same way ‘I’ve had a bad night.’ Nothing more for the man who loves to talk. They left it alone, but ye were always cheerful even after yer mate cheated last year without doing the courtesy of offering thanks for two years together.

  “After a few hours, when ye told everyone to get to work did they not realize ye pulled out an assassin’s micro-blaster and killed each and every person with specific knowledge of yer idea. Then ye woke up in blood the next morn in the office. By then the blood was dry and all around ye. To further prove it, the cleaners didn’t function. Had they, the blood would have been cleaned.”

  “Papa, he was hijacked?!” Renee gasped.

  “Most certainly. It explains the disorientation and missing a whole day.”

  “I need to sit down before I pass out.” A chair suddenly dropped from the ceiling and Davan took it to put his head between his knees to keep from hyperventilating. He still listened though.

  “I was actually in the factory since yesterday invisible.” Jake said. “I made use of yer distraction when I felt yer signature.” He told his daughter who understood the context. “I figured he wouldn’t be stupid enough to hide behind the bulkhead servers so I moved around without tripping alarms with Steven and Visor doing recon for me on another front. I got lucky soon as he started talking and it led me to the floor above the server. Eventually he was going to come out as soon as he said yer name lass and cursed an acrobat Hunter which I could only imagine as Oliver. So I waited till his defenses were down, when his plans went bust and he came out for me to shock him asleep.

  “Before I was certain he was a scapegoat, I checked his nanite level and verified he had five times the recommended amount and they were keyed not to his biorhythms, but to a different exterior program. Someone kept him asleep and used Davan as the actual murder weapon.”

  “But who would do something so… so heinous?” Oliver bristled and got angry. What if I were him and suddenly woke up in Renee’s blood. Should someone take over me and I lose control… Nothing could be more terrifying or malicious. He thought as he saw silent tears hitting the ground from the seated man who lost everything. Droplets on the floor did not lie.

  “Someone who can make much more money selling starship fleets and Booster Oil than see instant teleportation planet to planet at practically no cost or maintenance since warp technology would rely on the person, not the tech nor fuel. Someone with intimate knowledge of his strides and competition to find better means to transport. Someone with the finances to bury the idea for several more centuries.”

  “Someone like you?” Davan asked bitterly.

  To the surprise of those listening Jake spoke with compassion rather than get angry at the accusation. Even he knew when a person needed someone to blame. “Aye, being king of the pirates I do fit that category, but I’m not interested in warping. I prefer sailing the stars, Lad. Enjoying the travels. Besides, I have another mistress’ secrets to uncover. It has been me goal for over nine centuries.”

  “How old are you?” Davan choked out as the oldest person he knew was three centuries younger and that was old.

  “I passed a thousand, eight years ago. Perhaps ye would know me better as the sixteen year old lad who bled on the Geo Record.”

  Oliver’s jaw dropped about as far as Davan’s hearing this. Oliver saw Renee nod for him to believe it.

  “Aye, it was me who stumbled upon her skirt to peek under for the glimpse of paradise.” Jake thumped his chest with a flat palm. “I was that lad who was key to the advancement and discoverer of the Solarians farewell gift and decipherer of the notes left behind. And until I learn everything I’ll never rest till I get all their spoils. I was the first psionic person in human history and to this day I remain the strongest in raw power too. I’ve fought both great Creelin warriors and Keptl swarms. So if ye can remember who I was ye can understand that if my pursuits weren’t still on the Geo Record I could shit out yer invention in a few weeks.” Jake put a hand on the man’s shoulder and looked him dead in the eyes. “I didn’t risk me neck pulling ye back to me ship after the stunt ye pulled, could it even slightly come back to bite me in the arse.

  “I don’t want another good mind killed by someone who goes against what science stands for. But what I can do is give ye a chance to complete yer life’s work to this point. I want ye to finish what yer predecessor could not before having his neck strangled by the noose. I could not retrieve yer confiscated data, but I did already buy every piece of equipment ye had in your lab so ye can work without fear of being hung for a crime someone made ye commit. All I ask is that ye take that gaping hole ripped in yer chest and fill it with anger.
Use that anger to complete what yer family started. Use it to make sure they didn’t die in vain. If ye require anything, ask. Ye need to lay low for a couple years. Besides, I have too much money as it is from all me patents alone. I want ye to do this not for me, but for them. I have no need for further fame and ye need to regain the pride of yer own name. This I promise.

  “Ye become part of my crew in secret for now… and later we’ll find the assholes responsible for denying the free exchange of ideas on which this empire stands.”

  Davan wiped his teary eyes and nodded. “For my family. I’ll do it for them.”

  “Good lad.” Jake pat his back. “Now go with me daughter to get those nanites flushed from yer system so ye don’t endanger me family.” He turned. “Lass, after ye settle in I want ye and Oliver to eat at me table for supper tonight.”

  “I’d love that, Papa. Oh, before I forget… I’m having a thousand lab rats delivered courtesy of the army for our aid today. Make sure it’s sent to my lab on level eight rather than med bay.”

  “Ye take care of the new crewmember and come to supper. I’ll make sure yer pets arrive safely. And make sure whatever ye plan for yer boyfriend doesn’t compromise his availability tonight.”

  “Almost forgot about that! Thanks, Papa.”

  “Yeah, thanks.” Oliver’s sarcasm was thick as he walked away, standing between Davan and Renee.

  Jake watched as his only child took Oliver’s hand in her own and it looked so natural neither realized they had done it, but Renee took Oliver’s right hand, leaving the left free to use the sword. The elevator shut and they were gone. Behind Abdul said “Jake, we’ve been friends going on four centuries. What is going on? Who is that guy? I know you well enough to know you’d never see anyone good enough for Renee. What makes him different?”

  “That is me secret, Laddie. Now I can at last uncover the final secrets and know me girl is no longer alone. Make the call and tell the crew to be back by nine hundred or be left behind.”

  “Aye, aye!”

  The elevator ride was done in silence, but mainly so Davan could be alone to process just how much his life had been turned upside down. Renee stuck to Oliver’s side and didn’t let him go. Eventually though the doors opened on level nine and she said “Davan, go left.” He looked up, his gaze haunted yet mildly angry.

  Oliver stayed close as they entered the med bay and she said “Lay down.” as a gel cushioned bed slid from the clean wall and an orb dropped. Oliver didn’t let danger near Renee as his sword hand was at the ready to strike. His helmet stayed on and Davan didn’t look in his direction with other things plaguing his mind. Oliver felt a pain in his chest for the man, but didn’t let it affect his nature to see his woman safe.

  The orb began a full body scan and Renee said almost right away “Papa was right, Davan. I see the nanite levels and even if all you were left with nothing but more than your head you still would not die right away. Right now they are dormant. Without knowing the range, the real murderer needs to take control, I need to take them out.”

  “Do it.” The man said, turning to her. “Please.”

  “Hold on, Red.” Oliver spoke up. “I don’t know how the nanites were introduced, but if the foreign nanites have a different programming than biorhythm then what if those have a self-destruct function to shut down his internal organs to cover up the identity when you run a serial number search on the nanites you plan to extract.”

  “I didn’t think of that.” Renee bit her bottom lip. “It would make sense in that context. They could also kill him if we do nothing if they believe he can’t be captured. I don’t want to risk time trying to create nanites to counteract what you brought up.”

  “Renee, flash me a data packet on nanite removal from hijacked victims and reprogramming nanites.”

  “Give me a minute to link to the Medic network.” Through her new chip she found it faster than she dreamed and downloaded the packet just as fast to look and see he had the palm size tablet aglow in his hand. She linked to it and transferred the files in what is known as flash transfer or flash for short.

  Fifteen squares appeared and his unfocused gaze absorbed the blurring screens as his left hand on the holographic instruments moved rapidly all the while standing.

  Davan stood and asked “What the hell are you doing?”

  “He’s learning everything there is on nanites and how to save your indigo ass. I don’t have time to wait and get them out of you safely so he is doing it.”

  “That is not possible. Nanite study took even me three years to fully comprehend.”

  “You’ll find Oliver is superior in many ways to what we think we know. Just be quiet for a few more moments.” Renee glared, but he got the message and didn’t say another word.

  Forty three seconds later he shoved the tablet in a pocket and turned to Renee and said “Make me a point zero three six two nanite solution of Davan’s rhythms.” Renee turned to the wall where her synthesizer was placed inside and a few seconds later a clear vial came out filled with a clear liquid having swimming nanites too small for the human eye to see inside. She handed him the vial which his vambrace snatched.

  “A multi-tool!” Davan gasped from the bed as he recognized it for what it was.

  Oliver closed his eyes and let what he learned reprogram the active shards for a full minute before the thumb thick and long vial came out. “Here. This should now trick the foreign nanites into believing these are his natural biological cells that will bond to the others and strip them of all preprogramming and make absolutely sure there is no risk of a failsafe program.”

  “Thanks.” She took the vial, inserted it into the injector chamber of the small pistol and came over to Davan to shoot him in the carotid artery without him feeling so much as a pinch. Aside from the cool feel of metal, the needle was too fine to be felt. “Now we wait.”

  “Who are you?” Davan asked as he sat up and peered at the man covered in armor. “And how did you come by a multi-tool as well as a star-saber?”

  “Maybe some other day. Right now you need to take care of one issue at a time.” Renee said directly. “You are not ready to learn about my man or of his capabilities. Right now you need to grieve and go through the stages. We aren’t going anywhere so just take it easy.”

  “You’re right.” Davan deflated. “Too much will make me more numb than I’m already enduring. How long must I wait?”

  “Lay back down so I can check the percentages of the deactivation.” She told him and he did so. She restarted the orb’s in-depth scan and only through her eyes she said “About seventeen percent so far have been nullified.” She gave updates at every ten percent more, watching Oliver’s little helpers search out each and every microscopic shard. Both foreign and original. Eighteen minutes later she said “That is full hundred percent deactivation. Now to get them all out.”

  Renee turned the dial of her injector and a scalpel came out. She used the thin blade to slice open his thumb rather deeply before turning it again and shooting him in the neck again with another vial of cleansing nanites made with the sole purpose of seeking out every cellular sized crystal. She held a cup under his bleeding thumb and after just a couple seconds the thick crimson flow turned much more clear as the cleaners collected and disposed of the others before finding more to deliver and expel from the deep wound.

  Point three one liters later Renee saw through the scan to speak while sealing the second cup. “All done. You are nanite free. Would you like some fresh ones?”

  “I think I’ll go natural for a few weeks if you do not mind.”

  “I completely understand, but come back by nine tomorrow for a check-up.” She said as she sealed his still bleeding thumb with a coagulant solution and disinfectant before wrapping it tightly.

  Heads turned as the med bay doors opened and in walked the spear carrying Steven. “You called, Brother?”

  “Yeah, please escort Davan to his quarters and make sure he gets some sleep. Do you kno
w where he’s staying?”

  “Captain told me. Come on, Blue Balls. Follow me.” Davan didn’t say anything else as he followed the shortest yet still tall Hunter out.

  “Poor bastard is heartbroken.” Renee commented as the door closed.

  “Can’t blame him. Everything he knew was just stolen from him.”

  Renee took the nanites saturated in blood to her desk and sat down. She took a generous sample before a hole opened up in the wall and she threw the first and second cups away. Nothing was wasted on the ship. The nanites would be broken down and rebuilt later while the blood would go through processors to end up where it would be put to better use, much like waste.

  She took the sample and let out a drop to do another scan, this time she searched for the serial number given to all individuals for verification. In it she found the Dorgenox’s med bay sequence as well as read Davan’s original from Verard administered fifty four years prior. The two nanite types she administered were easy to spot. Then she located the ones that took over physical control and growled “Damn, they covered their tracks well. Whoever manufactured these did so off the grid and knew what they were doing. The crystals are as common as they come and I doubt they could be traced. I’ll see if Jessica can figure it out. I cannot.”

  “Want me to go deliver it?”

  “No, we can swing by when we go to supper with papa tonight.” She turned the swivel chair to him. “What I want is a nice hot bath and you back inside me.”

  Oliver’s helmet was already down and he smiled enough to show off the dimples. “I’m glad you are so insatiable.”

  “I’ve missed ten years of not having a big throbbing cock making me scream in pleasure. And I intend to do a lot of catching up.” Renee stood and before Oliver could react, he didn’t see Renee’s injector till it was too late. He backed away with wide eyes.

  “What did you just do? What have you done?”

  Renee giggled and put the gun in the stand in her desk. “You think I want to get fucked after you scared the shit out of me by talking to Papa and making him mad? When I tell you to let me do the talking I mean it. You could have gotten yourself killed and left me alone again. I love you and Papa so I don’t want any more confrontation between you two. I might not be like my ma, but I don’t have a frying pan. What I do have though is profound knowledge on the human body and the way it functions.” Just to taunt him she willed herself completely naked for his eyes to feast. “And for the next sixteen hours you won’t be able to get stiff where it counts.”