BEYOND EXTINCTION

by John Keeble

  We're all here. All the animals of the world.

  He turns. Jabir has gone and Jackjack is irresistibly drawn forward, along a channel where no channel exists, through all the creatures murdered since humans first walked the Earth. Hours, days, months, years of walking, seeing, feeling the pain and burning in the agony of helpless compassion.

  Jackjack falls on his knees, into the blood of millenniums flowing across his path. I cannot go on. He sits there, covered in blood, the slain touching him, making him their own. Am I dead? Is this the afterlife? Am I the guilty witness to these horrors?

  As he sinks into immovability, something drives him. Something makes him get up and walk on. And as the days limp into weeks, his world changes.

  *

  Chapter 43

  "Jack!" shouts Aleksi as he runs up to Jack's unconscious body slumped against the log. "He's alive," he tells his wives, who are peering around him. "Find Alice and bring her here."

  "She went into the forest to find food," replies his senior wife. "That was hours ago."

  "Then two of you find her! Run! I need her here now." He tells the rest, "Help me carry him to his house. Careful! I think he's dying." He adds quietly, for himself and the unconscious Jack, "She should never have given you the whole upgrade in one dose. I told her it was dangerous."

  By the time Alice bursts into the house with Max, Jack is stretched out on a bed and Aleksi is checking his vital signs.

  "What happened?" Alice demands as Max leaps on the bed, knocking Aleksi aside to stare into Jack's face. "Max! Off!" Max ignores her.

  "We found him unconscious by the log where he sits," says Aleksi. "I told you it was a risk to administer the upgrade in one dose. His signs are bad. I think he's dying."

  "He's not going to die," she says.

  "How can we help him?" asks Aleksi.

  "There's nothing we can do. We can only monitor and wait. Max! Will you leave Jack alone?"

  Crisis on crisis, Kimon runs into the house and whispers to Alice, "A military scout drone is showing on my scan screen. Two hundred miles to the northwest. It must have seen us. An attack squadron could be here by tomorrow morning. We must evacuate."

  "We can't," says Alice. "It would kill Jack."

  *

  Jackjack can sense Alice and Max close but he cannot see them. Why are they here, in this place of the dead? He sees the dead millions fade as he is drawn on, not walking, not putting one foot in front of the other, simply breezed along without choice or resistance.

  Gradually the horrors around him lighten, the crowding animals fade into translucence and finally transparency. Relief fills him for a second before the backlash of guilt swipes across his face like a whip. I must not forget!

  Ahead, there is open space, green and calm, the sun shining without burning. A multitude of species – numans, humans, dogs, chimpanzees... so many. Nothing is being hunted or killed. Now I know I'm dead.

  "What do you think, Great Writer?"

  He stares. Alice. Walking towards him. How can this be?

  "This is my vision of the future, Jack. Can you trust me and help?"

  This is not possible. "How are you doing this?"

  But he gets no answer. He gasps and fights for breath. His eyes snap open. Max's face is in his, Alice is leaning in and Aleksi is half a pace behind her. He throws an arm around Max's shoulders and a reassuring tongue flashes across his face.

  "Welcome back," says Alice. "We'll do some tests later but I think we'll find the upgrade has worked very well."

  "Jack, you gave me a fright!" says Aleksi, as excited as anyone has ever seen him. "I was sure you were dying."

  Jack gathers his thoughts, almost instantaneously reviewing what Jackjack had witnessed and, at the same time, marveling at the new numan4 speed of his brain. "I thought I was dying, Aleksi. I saw the most amazing things. Alice! You were there with me!"

  "I should hope so," she says affectionately. "Did you see the future? Did you see my vision?"

  How did she do that? "Yes, I saw, just like you told me once. Maybe later you will tell me how—."

  "I can tell you now. Galen built some of himself into you as well as inserting the species memories. I took some of his DNA out of you and replaced it with mine, including memories of my intentions, plus a little DNA from Max to make you more trusting and lovable."

  "Oh, you make it sound as easy as baking a pmeat pie."

  "Jack, the military has found us. We expect them to land an attack force – maybe tomorrow."

  But Jack, exhausted, has dropped into unconsciousness.

  *

  Chapter 44

  Dusk envelopes the village, cloaking the buildings and masking the frantic preparations to evacuate at dawn tomorrow.

  Jack, conscious again, lifts himself off the pillow and sits up. Max and Xam jump up, Max barking and leaping towards him. Alice rushes in, hot and sticky after hours of dismantling her experiments and saving what can be crammed into the drone.

  "Alice!" says Jack. "I have Galen's memories and the memories of the World Council member you killed."

  Alice stops abruptly, hesitates. "Jack, we do not have time for this now. We expect a trooper attack tomorrow and we are evacuating at first light. We're going in the drone. Aleksi will lead the numan2s in four boats."

  Jack cannot focus on what she is saying. Who is speaking to me – Alice or Balen? "You knew, didn't you, about the numan2 genocide plan? And humans being forced into extinction."

  "There were new plans every week and each one was justified by absurd and cynical claims. Even the concept of truth was a lie – it was just a power word to build support. They perverted any evidence they didn't like and span deliberate lies into a 'truth' of their own kind. They were no different from the human animal elites of 60 years ago."

  "But you knew about the humans and numan2 genocide."

  "Yes, I knew! Now can we leave this until we are safe?"

  The woman I love. A genocidal maniac! "How could you live with it?"

  "You think I went along with it? Is that what you think of me?"

  "It's here. In Galen's memories."

  "Maybe I didn't give you enough of my memories!"

  "Meaning?"

  "Who do you think enabled the numan2s to rebel? To fight for their survival. It wasn't much of a chance against the military maniacs but at least numan2s would not be lulled into extinction like the human animals."

  Jack retreats into his mind. He can find no answer among Galen's memories. "I don't believe you."

  "Okay. This is what I did. I released enough of Galen's simulation computer's self-awareness to enable it to continue the Brotherhood's war against numans. I did not predict the extensive damage to numan2 control but I was not going to stop it. I was paying back Galen as well as giving the numan2s a chance to survive."

  It's possible. The machine couldn't have broken the controls by itself. "Why not do something more direct?" he asks. "You could have argued against the genocide plan."

  "They would have killed me and obliterated anything I might have said. My strength was stealth. I had access to Galen's communications. He always lied to me, as he lied to everyone, but I usually found out what was happening."

  "My clever Alice—."

  "You know, Jack, I'm really sick of you always thinking the worst of me. I've always done my best for you and Max."

  "I know, but—."

  "But nothing! I'm sick of it!"

  Jack looks at her. For a moment he thinks she might attack him with her fists.

  "Jack, the military is on its way. There's no time for this now!"

  Or any other time if the troopers catch us. "Alice, there are some of Galen's memories I need to tell you. Shocking memories."

  "Okay," she says and he can hear the resignation in her voice.

  "The rot death accident in Africa. Galen designed an unstoppable variation of the virus. It was being tested in FedAfrica when they lost control of it. If it had been perfected, all
numan4s would have been withdrawn to FedOz and the virus used to kill the world's numan2 population."

  Alice sinks onto the bed next to him. "I didn't know," she says.

  "I also have to tell you that the Galen-rebuild's determination to kill you comes from your husband."

  "My ex-husband!"

  "He knew about Aini and your son. He wanted revenge."

  Surprisingly, she laughs. "He wanted to kill me! Of course he wanted to kill me. But it wasn't because of my son. He experimented on me with an untried numan6 upgrade. Later, he tried a simulated version on himself. Mine worked; his didn't. He knew I would find a way to break his control."

  I can see that now. But why didn't she tell me? "He downgraded your emotions to human and upgraded your intellect to numan6?"

  "Jack! The military is coming. An attack unit it probably droning here now. We must evacuate. We must find somewhere safe."

  He heaves himself off the bed. "I can work in the drone."

  *

  Chapter 45

  The night is still and silent beyond the sluggish gurgle of the swollen Euphrates and the hushed tones of the Delta Attack Squadron of the elite Military High Command Guards. The navigator in the lead boat keeps them in a deep water channel, his soundings scanner accurate to the millimeter amid the shifting banks of the river's bottom. Two boats follow in automatic thrall to the alpha boat's control system.

  Twenty numan2 troopers, faces and hands blackened, nurse their weapons nervously in each boat. It is their first operation since the rot death plague. Their weapons are for show: only their three officers and the commander carry ammunition.

  "Contact in three minutes," Subcommander Solon says through their combat ear pods. "No one, repeat no one, is to be killed or seriously injured during capture. You will not use lethal force." They know their orders: if necessary, sacrifice themselves rather than damage Commander Galen's test animals.

  From inside the boats, the world is an endless sea with a strange and unusual glow. The moon, full and free of storm clouds, lights up Delta Attack Squadron like targets waiting to be destroyed.

  "One minute to contact," says Solon.

  An unease eddies through the boats, hearts beating faster, sweat dripping from scalps and trickling down lean, hard bodies unafraid of combat but terrified of rot death and facing an enemy without ammunition. For them, it is like going naked into battle.

  The boats turn towards the blackness of jungle edging the water by the village and grind to a halt in the stony mud. The troopers ease themselves over the sides and slip into the village.

  "Silent approach to your targets," Solon says quietly through the ear pods.

  The troopers separate, each platoon going for homes identified by the scout drone. The soft squish of their boots is lost in the night.

  "They won't know what has hit them," Solon says to himself. But then the first dog barks an alarm, the troopers run forward, and the night turns to madness.

  *

  Max jumps up when he hears Jeb, a numan2 dog, bark. He turns to face the noise, his deep growl vibrating in the hot and humid air of the bedroom he shares with Xam, Alice and Jack.

  "What is it, Max?" says Alice. I'm so tired. Why doesn't Jack see why Max is growling? Then Xam barks. "Jack, it's your turn to see what's wrong with them."

  They are too late. Their bedroom door is flung open and figures, with blinding flashlights, burst in. Only Max and Xam are fast enough to attack the intruders.

  The room bursts into brilliance from an area illuminator. Two troopers pounce on Jack, a third grabs Alice. Three more net Max and Xam. Alice cannot free herself. We don't stand a chance!

  Jack kicks into the bed as he is hauled up and his head explodes into the face of a trooper.

  "Jack! No!" shouts Alice but Jack is already shaking free of the other trooper and slamming his fist into him. The third trooper drags Alice off the bed. Outside, shouts of fear and warning carry on the still air. Too late! A blaster explodes on the other side of the village and screams rip the night.

  Two troopers leave the netted dogs and pile into Jack, pinning him to the bed by sheer weight and brawn.

  "Jack!" shouts Alice. "Stop it! They'll kill you!"

  "Actually, we won't, Miss Balen," says a young officer as he walks into the room. "Professor Galen wants Mr. Jack and Max alive."

  The voice! He's someone I know. "Who are you?" she says. Black camouflage hides his face but his youthful slimness is familiar.

  "Trooper, let Miss Balen get dressed."

  "I said: Who are you?"

  The officer watches impassively as the troopers bind and hobble the naked Jack, and Alice snatches at her gown and throws it on.

  "Take them to the sala," he orders his troopers. "Take the dogs too. The golden retriever is a priority target as important as Mr. Jack. Make sure he is not damaged."

  He turns to Alice. "You and everyone in this village are now the property of Professor Galen. Your days of running from the Military High Command are over."

  *

  Professor Galen watches the Euphrates events unfold from his laboratory suite in the military's Andes fastness. "Perfect," he says.

  "Ah, Professor Galen. Talking to yourself? Your madness becomes ever more apparent."

  "Why are you coming into my suite without permission?" he says. Damned idiot. I've no time for him!

  Commander Father Lasaro, the Digipope and Father Dick's representative on Earth, draws himself up to his full height. An annoying couple of inches taller than Galen.

  "I'm told that you have sent our brave young troopers on a suicide mission to capture people for your experiments and numan4 production."

  "Get out of here, you idiot. I'm busy."

  Galen's eye is caught by an attack squadron body video transmission. He almost gasps. Balen. So beautiful! Herded like the rest into a sala. Maybe I'll rebuild her into what I want.

  "Professor! I'm speaking to you!"

  "Lasaro, go away!" Galen's eyes are gulping in the video scenes.

  "I'm here to tell you that my staff will monitor and record every person brought in," shouts Lasaro. "You will submit them to the Animalization Ritual before you use them. If you fail to do this, I, the Digipope, will begin Disconnection proceedings against you. You will be separated from Father Dick, your soul will be cast into virtual darkness, and your property will be forfeited to the Church."

  Galen hardly hears the ranting cant of the Digipope. The latest video stream has his full attention. Jack Janus, trussed like the animal I made. Max safely netted. And Balen, finally beaten. They are all there. I have them. And another hundred numan2s for my production line.

  "Close the door on your way out, Lucifer," he tosses over his shoulder.

  *

  Aleksi and his wives are crushed into the sala with the rest of the numan2s. Even the Galen-rebuild has been freed from his cage and left dazed among the crowd. Kimon, who blasted a platoon of troopers, is unhurt but tightly bound to a sala support. Thirty or more troopers ring the sala's open sides while others scour the night-shrouded village for anyone in hiding.

  Aleksi tells his wives to remain still and calm, and edges towards Ali and Jack. I must find out what they know.

  "Jack, Ali – what is happening?" he asks as they see him forcing his way through the packed numan2s.

  "Galen has sent the military," says Alice. "Do you know why there was no drone alarm?"

  "No. Kimon killed a squad of troopers before they captured him. They have him tied to a sala post."

  Aleksi tries Jack's bindings but they are too tight to move. He scans the ring of trooper steel around them. There's no escape. We are defeated.

  He looks up, by chance catching the eye of an officer. "Where is your son?" the officer says, moving closer. "Is he in the sala?"

  How does he know about Aapeli? "I don't know where he is," says Aleksi. He studies the officer more closely, trying to see beyond the black camouflage smeared on his face. I recognize him! "Ar
e you the officer who saved us when the mob attacked our home?"

  "Yes, and gave you the drone to escape in. Where is your son? Is he hiding?"

  "He does not live with me now. What will happen to us?"

  "Four transport drones will land at daybreak to evacuate everyone. They are carrying special forces commandos. It will be better for your son to give himself up before they arrive."

  Thank Dick that Aapeli and his wives are safe. For us... only death awaits.

  *

  Chapter 46

  Subcommander Solon likes Aleksi and he hopes Aapeli is safely out of the area. But he has his orders. No one is to escape. If Aapeli is hiding near the village, how many others are with him?

  He turns away from Alice and Aleksi. "Drone officer," he says into his combat communications mic. "Launch a surveillance drone now. Do not wait for dawn. Search for any warm bodies not under our control."

  Ambi Balen does not recognize me but that changes nothing – she's still family and Jack is just what Galen told me: an experiment out of control. Rather like myself.

  There had been a time when Ambi Balen would have recognized Solon. That was when he was a child. He had half hoped she would recognize him when Galen had him posted to Abbotsford but she had passed him many times without a flicker of recognition.

  Solon had not been surprised. It was exactly as Galen had predicted. After all, Galen had changed his appearance and upgraded his computational speed. Galen had eliminated the unreliable genes and distinctive looks that Solon had inherited from his father. And, of course, Galen fast-tracked him through the military and that gave him a confidence beyond his years. Where is Papa Aindrea now? Galen says he's dead.

  He looks around, eyes everywhere. Everything is under control. The whole operation is working perfectly. Seven troopers killed and one injured – well within the casualties we predicted. If nothing is wrong, why do I feel so strange?

  "Subcommander Solon," says a voice in his ear pod. "This is the reconnaissance drone officer. We have detected nine warm bodies near the village. Troopers are interdicting now."