2041 Sanctuary (Genesis)

by Robert Storey

  ‘I understand. As Intelligence Director, and an incumbent on the GMRC’s Directorate, you are used to complete control, your power is absolute. But as a member of the Committee your external position counts for nothing. You need to earn your right to ascension and the knowledge that brings, and that right will not come easily.’

  Joiner tried to get his head round his newly acquired status as a self-aware member of the Committee, but after his recent ordeal he was having trouble processing his abrupt change in fortune, not least because those who’d been responsible for his mental and physical torment were now purporting to be his sworn kin.

  ‘You must also accept,’ Selene continued, ‘that our goals are now aligned. We must work in harmony, not discord, or the Committee, and subsequently its members, will suffer. Commit yourself to this ethic and you will find all your problems will fade away.’

  She held out her hand and helped him to his feet. ‘Come, she said, ‘walk with me.’

  Without another word she moved towards the exit and its double doors, which swung open at her approach. Joiner weighed up his options before deciding to follow.

  A moment later he’d caught up with her and they walked back through the grand atrium and into an equally immense adjoining corridor. Behind them, two armoured soldiers emerged from the shadows to accompany them at a discreet distance.

  At the end of the long passage Selene stopped before a massive panel of glass that had been installed into an opening in the side of the Anakim edifice.

  Joiner gazed out at a puzzling sight. Blue skies and blazing light stretched into the distance, while below the curvature of the twenty mile wide dome of USSB Sanctuary could be seen suspended beneath the immense ceiling of the chamber above. Where darkness should have reigned only the purest of lights remained and the vision made him question if what he was experiencing was actually real.

  ‘It is curious, don’t you think,’ Selene said, ‘that such a wonder happens now, when the world above awaits its fate in darkness?’

  ‘I don’t understand,’ Joiner said, ‘how is this possible?’

  Selene glanced at him. ‘Sanctuary has awoken, its power returned.’

  ‘But how?’

  ‘We don’t know. Twenty-six hours ago a wave of energy was recorded passing through the chamber and the tunnels beyond. The base has been experiencing power failures ever since. Recent reports from the SED indicate the ceiling has activated throughout Sanctuary.’

  ‘Throughout?’ Joiner said in disbelief.

  Selene took a step forward and pressed her hand against the glass as if trying to bring herself closer to the vista’s magnificence. ‘From the past,’ she murmured.

  Joiner frowned. The Committee member suddenly seemed human, a flash of weakness in an otherwise ironclad façade. She was exposed – vulnerable. He glanced behind at the two armed guards who watched his every move. When he turned back it was to see Selene studying him.

  ‘It is time to decide, Director,’ she said. ‘We are moving through pivotal times, a new age is dawning and you can help us shape its future – if – you join us.’

  ‘What changes if I agree?’

  ‘You will be called to attend scheduled meetings and to report on the tasks allocated.’

  ‘Tasks?’

  ‘Think of them as ad hoc projects.’

  ‘Like the Steadfast deception?’

  ‘Yes, exactly,’ Selene said. ‘But since you facilitated USSB Steadfast’s destruction, that issue has been solved and we now require a more … cerebral application of your skills.’

  ‘Such as?’ he said, remaining wary.

  ‘You mentioned the hacker was inside the GMRC’s servers, we will need a full report on your findings.’

  Joiner nodded. That I can do, he thought. ‘What else?’

  ‘This event,’ – Selene gestured at the radiant Anakim ceiling – ‘we need to know how the technology was activated and its implications for this base and those residing within.’

  ‘I will need to maintain control of the SED.’

  ‘Yes,’ she said, ‘and you will also need to liaise with Dagmar Sørensen.’

  Joiner looked down at his injured arm. Sørensen, he thought, the man responsible for creating the torture device. And the man behind Project Ares, he reminded himself.

  ‘Will that be a problem?’ Selene said.

  ‘No.’ Joiner looked her in the eye. ‘Not at all.’

  ‘Good – very good. Then all that remains is that you pledge yourself to the Committee and your ascension is complete.’

  ‘Pledge?’

  Selene held out her hand palm up and reached out to take his hand and placed it atop hers, palm down.

  ‘Repeat after me,’ Selene said, ‘I, Malcolm Joiner, pledge my life, heart and mind to the Committee.’

  Joiner searched her face to see if she spoke in jest, but her expression was deadly serious. ‘I, Malcolm Joiner,’ he said, ‘pledge my life, heart and mind to the Committee.’

  ‘And I will uphold and protect the Committee’s ideals, laws and tradition until the end of days.’

  ‘And I will uphold and protect the Committee’s ideals, laws and tradition until the end of days.’

  ‘And if my pledge is broken and my word is false I will endure endless torment.’

  Joiner hesitated, his eyes locked to hers. ‘And if my pledge is broken and my word is false I will endure endless torment.’

  ‘So say I,’ she said.

  ‘So say I.’

  ‘There is no going back now, Director,’ Selene said, ‘your life is ours, and ours, yours. Welcome, Malcolm Joiner,’ – she enclosed his hand within hers – ‘to the Committee.’

  Chapter Seventy Four

  Malcolm Joiner walked back through the halls of Tower Central as a newly pledged member of the Committee. His thoughts, understandably, were many, and after parting ways with Selene Dubois, he was led back to the atrium where the familiar figures of two men waited – much as he had – for an audience inside the great hall.

  Neither man had noticed his approach, immersed as they were in conversation and facing the other way.

  Joiner signalled for his armed escort to stop and the soldier, clad in his lustrous purple armour, did so without question. Joiner gave an inward smile at his new-found power and approached his prey.

  ‘Gentleman,’ he said.

  Dagmar Sørensen glanced round, while the other man visibly tensed at the sound of Joiner’s voice.

  General Stevens turned to face him and Joiner revelled at the exquisite sight of the man’s suppressed horror, which spread across his cretinous mug.

  ‘Intelligence Director,’ Dagmar said in greeting, ‘how are you feeling?’

  Joiner held Stevens’ gaze for a moment longer, eking out the man’s discomfort like fingernails down a chalkboard. He then switched his attention to the R&D director, who couldn’t stop his eyes from flicking down to Joiner’s sling and his injured arm within.

  Joiner felt a sudden surge of fury at the unspoken recognition of his wound, but he kept his emotions ice cool. The age old adage was very true and he was a past master in refining its deliverance, and so he knew – when it came – the dish would be freezing and his revenge sublime. ‘Dagmar,’ he said, ‘what brings you to Sanctuary?’

  Sørensen raised a handkerchief to his mouth and produced a racking cough. ‘I was called in to inspect the anomaly,’ – he wiped away a fleck of blood – ‘it was quite unexpected.’

  ‘You mean the chamber’s ceiling?’

  ‘You’ve seen it?’

  ‘Of course.’ Joiner glanced up through the tower’s transparent spire at the blue skies beyond. ‘It’s impressive.’

  ‘These are exciting times for us all,’ Dagmar said, ‘isn’t that so, General?’

  Stevens grunted something unintelligible.

  ‘You’re probably wondering how my evaluation went.’ Joiner touched his broken arm. ‘The initial exchanges were quite heated, but the outco
me was amicable, beneficial even.’

  The hint of a smile creased Dagmar’s features. ‘It’s good to be part of something bigger, to have your burdens released. Why fight the mind when you can just give in and obey?’

  ‘It’s funny,’ Joiner said, realising the man thought he was under the thrall of his mind-altering machine, ‘I feel like a great weight has been lifted; it’s intoxicating.’

  ‘I’m sure that feeling will only continue,’ Dagmar said. ‘The mind is a beautiful thing, analysing it is one of my greatest pleasures.’

  I bet it is, Joiner thought, you pasty-faced fuck.

  The towering red doors to the Anakim hall swung open and Joiner beckoned the soldier to rejoin him, a motion not lost on Stevens, who frowned.

  ‘The Committee awaits,’ Dagmar said. ‘Until we meet again, Director.’

  Joiner gave him the faintest of nods before looking to Stevens. ‘I hope you enjoy speaking to my associates, General. Selene said she’ll be with you shortly.’

  ‘Associates?’ Stevens said.

  ‘Didn’t they tell you?’ Joiner smiled a malevolent smile.

  ‘Tell me what?’

  ‘That I’m now a fully-fledged member of the Committee.’

  General Stevens’ face dropped a mile while Joiner’s euphoria soared.

  ‘I’ll also be operating out of the SED for the foreseeable future,’ Joiner said, his expression hardening into murderous intent, ‘so I expect we’ll cross paths again … very soon.’ He let that information sink in as far as it would go and then waited some more before he broke the spell by walking away with his armed guard in tow.

  ♦

  Dumbstruck, General Stevens watched until Malcolm Joiner had disappeared from sight. And there the army officer remained, his exterior frozen in shock while his interior broiled in a sea of dread.

  A distant sound brought Stevens out of his trance and he glanced round to see Dagmar disappearing into the adjoining hall.

  With a final look back at the empty corridor into which Joiner had previously entered, General Stevens turned and followed the R&D director into the Committee’s conclave, his mind furiously seeking a way out of the prison that had become his life.

  ♦

  Malcolm Joiner breathed a deep sigh of satisfaction as he slowed his pace to a measured stroll. That couldn’t have been more enjoyable if I’d planned it, he thought. He touched his jaw; it still smarted from the General’s sucker punch. I’ll make the bloated oaf rue the day he ever crossed me.

  Walking on through the undulating halls of the Anakim tower’s crystalline interior, Joiner finally reached the human installation that would take him back down to the base’s Dome level far below. Two other people waited at the elevator, an armed guard and the nurse who’d warned him about the Committee’s plan to brainwash him.

  A couple of minutes passed before the lift arrived and Joiner boarded, while his guide remained behind to guard the entrance alongside his armed colleague. The nurse, however – without showing any sign of recognition – joined him on the platform and a moment later they descended the tower together, safely ensconced within their glass clad transport.

  A minute of silence ensued before the nurse spoke.

  ‘I hear they’ve managed to get the base’s power grids back up.’

  Joiner glanced in her direction, but the woman remained staring out at the spectacle beyond. He followed her gaze and the interior of the great dome glided by as they continued their descent.

  ‘The dome is still down, though,’ she continued. ‘It’s said it might take another day to get it working again.’

  Joiner despised small talk; however this woman was responsible for helping him and he couldn’t help but wonder why. And that she was with him now defied the odds of chance. Is she trying to communicate something to me? If she is, he thought, this is neither the time nor the place. The Committee’s surveillance will be listening.

  The elevator slowed to a stop and with it so did his chance at attempting to breach the invisible divide between them. The doors slid back and Joiner moved forward, but as he did so the nurse brushed past him in a rush.

  Joiner felt something heavy drop into his pocket and his hand reached in to close around his personal computer. The woman walked away down a floodlit path towards the nearest transport hub, while a retinue of black-suited intelligence agents fell into step alongside him.

  ‘Sir,’ the lead agent said, glancing at his director’s injured arm, ‘are you okay?’

  ‘Why wouldn’t I be, agent?’ Joiner held out his hand and the man passed him a set of snap-on shades, which he attached to his spectacles.

  ‘We lost contact with you at the SED. Agent Myers was shot and Grant Debden was found dead soon after. We had the entire office out searching for you when the whole power grid went down. We feared it was some kind of terrorist attack.’

  ‘Your inability to locate my whereabouts will be reviewed,’ Joiner said, ‘but for now just take me back to my office. I’ve had a stressful couple of weeks.’

  The agent opened the door to a blacked out SUV. Joiner climbed in and eased himself into comfort. The door closed behind him with a soft thud and seconds later the five-strong motorcade was speeding through the streets of USSB Sanctuary towards the GMRC Command Complex.

  Joiner settled into his seat and allowed his head to sink back onto the headrest. He was back in his world, surrounded by armed agents and shielded within a bulletproof cage of steel and glass. He closed his eyes and realised it was good to be home. It’s good to be me.

  The soft scent of the leather interior caressed his senses while the directionless motion induced by the car lulled him towards sleep. But before the hands of slumber could enclose him in its welcome embrace, a subtle pain made itself known at the base of his skull. The throbbing annoyance grew stronger as he concentrated on it and then he remembered his personal computer. No doubt he would have a thousand messages waiting to be read. And since Debden had selfishly died, it would be up to him to vet his replacement. He heaved a sigh and reached down to extract the device.

  He frowned and raised his shades. The display screen was already unlocked; the complex web of biometrics, passwords and inbuilt artificial intelligence having somehow been breached. He accessed the security guardian and a digitised, metallic face appeared on-screen.

  ‘Hello, Director,’ the A.I. said in a bland voice, ‘how can I be of assistance?’

  ‘This device has been hacked. Why are there no warnings?’

  The simulated face feigned a look of surprise before it disappeared to be replaced by a flashing message:

  SYSTEM DIAGNOSTIC

 

  A moment later the face reappeared. ‘You are correct, Director. This device was breached three hours, twenty-seven minutes and three seconds ago. Preliminary scans indicate high level decryption software was utilised.’

  ‘Source?’

  ‘Unknown. Although I have determined the attack originated from a large scale quantum array.’

  ‘What’s been accessed?’

  ‘Your schedules, files and correspondence are all secure. No data has been downloaded or accessed.’

  ‘None at all?’

  The A.I.’s expression became confused. ‘No, Director, none.’

  ‘Then what was the target of the attack – software?’

  ‘On further analysis there appears to be only one abnormality detected.’

  ‘And what’s that?’

  ‘A line of code has been inserted into the operating system shell. It has been designed to activate at a specific set of coordinates located in USSB Sanctuary.’

  Joiner leaned forward in concern. ‘Show me.’

  A three dimensional map of the base appeared and the view zoomed in to a series of interconnecting roads.

  ‘Overlay our location.’

  A moving red dot appeared on-screen showing the motorcade heading straight for the coordinates. Joiner’s eyes widened and he looke
d up to see an intersection looming large.

  He slammed down the intercom. ‘STOP THE CAR!’

  But it was too late; his computer beeped and the first SUV exploded into the air. The second SUV barrelled into the falling wreck and Joiner’s vision filled with the fireball. His driver swerved. Men shouted, brakes screeched, and they went airborne.

  Chapter Seventy Five

  Malcolm Joiner’s SUV spiralled through the air before slamming down on its side. Glass exploded, safety foam deployed and the vehicle ploughed into an oncoming lorry. The front end disappeared in twisted steel and they were thrust backwards in a shower of sparks and flame. An instant later the motion ceased and Joiner tried to clear his disorientation with a shake of the head. He was upside down, and he rolled onto his front as smoke filled the cabin. He saw a way out through the smashed rear window and crawled forward to escape the building heat, and emerged into fresh air. The sound of the car’s electric engine whined loudly while its wheels spun without traction. Joiner leaned against the rear bumper as his head swam.

  The first two SUV’s continued to burn, while the two that had been following Joiner’s had skidded to a stop behind. Intelligence agents swarmed out, guns raised, and shouted commands as they ran towards him.

  ‘Sir,’ one said, grabbing his arm, ‘this way!’

  Joiner was dragged towards the nearest vehicle before automatic gunfire exploded all around and the man who’d been guiding him dropped to the ground, dead.

  Joiner staggered towards the open door of the SUV as his agents were gunned down all around. He turned back to see armoured Terra Force soldiers bearing down on him.

  Realising there was no escape; Joiner stood his ground as the lead man approached, and two Humvees skidded to a halt behind.

  ‘Malcolm Joiner.’ The soldier grasped his arm. ‘Get in.’

  Joiner was forced into the back of one of the vehicles while the military squad piled in around him. Wheels spun and the two Humvees sped off into the night.