Everything about Tem conveyed masculine power. The way he sat his horse, the unflinching confidence of his brown eyes, and even the deep tone of his voice. She stole glances at him like a voyeur, then blushed at her timidity.
They passed an old-fashioned convertible that she recognized from the dreams she’d been having about Peter. The driver waved at them as he bumped along the uneven ground of the tunnel, beeping his horn to warn those in front of him. Two ram’s horns curved out of his forehead and around his ears. Kayla waved back.
But now and then, someone frowned as they went by, or turned their back on her without replying to her greeting. It became clear that not everyone agreed with Ohg’s decision to let her stay. How much might it take for Ohg to change his mind?
“How many people … I mean … residents, live here?” she asked.
“There were two thousand three hundred seventy-two yesterday.” He glanced at her and Puck. “Today, we have two more.” His smile transformed the intimidating features of his face into something like a poet or a philosopher.
“Are there ever any new generations?”
“There have been no new Gene-Freaks created since the Gene Purity Laws went into effect over four centuries ago. Most genetically modified life-forms were engineered with natural reproduction disabled to guard against copyright infringement.”
“And everyone lives underground in these passages?”
“These are the social, communal residents, but others prefer isolation, while a few must be kept separate from the rest.”
“You mean imprisoned?”
Tem hesitated. “Some of those Ohg rescued are … dangerous.”
“Can I see them?”
Tem appraised her for a moment. Was there a hint of suspicion there? Maybe he wasn’t as dismissive of the cat’s view of her as he’d let on? He’d said a “few” opposed her presence. Did that mean two, or several hundred? I must be careful what I say.
“Okay, I’ll show you.” Tem led the way into a new section of less-populated tunnels. They passed an assortment of simple cabins along a gentle stream similar to the one she’d shared with the monk.
“Don’t those in the cabins envy the bigger houses?” she asked.
“With robots able to replicate any material—food, clothing, jewelry, mansions, or whatever you desire—everyone lives exactly where and how they want. Most mansions are nothing more than status symbols. When everyone can have a gold-plated sink if they choose, what’s the point of having one at all? Envy, at least of anything material, doesn’t exist in Middilgard.”
Kayla looked around in wonder. “So this is paradise.”
“Ohg thinks so. But some of us question his course for Middilgard’s future.”
The passageway ended at a metal doorway twenty feet tall. Tem typed a series of numbers into a keypad, and the door groaned open, revealing a long passageway with another door at the end. Once they entered, it swung shut with a clang, and Tem repeated the process on another keypad.
“Numbered squares seem so primitive compared to everything else here.”
“All the security in this section is offline. It takes a physical body and the codes to open any door or barrier.”
“You fear things that don’t have bodies?” Kayla asked. Have they imprisoned ghosts?
“As long as you’re with me, you’re safe.” She returned his smile, but her heart rate ticked up a notch.
When the second door opened, they turned into a side tunnel, through another security doorway, and then into a spacious cavern with a pool of water in the center of a grass-covered floor. The smell of fresh blood assaulted her nostrils, and she froze. Across the pool, several creatures crouched astride the dead carcass of a deer. Kayla’s eyes zoomed in on faces that appeared a combination of chimpanzee and human. A male and two females.
“Are they hybrids?” she asked.
“No.” Tem guided his horse to the far end of the cavern. “They were cloned with DNA extracted from the three-million-year-old ancestors of humans.”
“You can’t know they’re our ancestors,” she said.
“Are you familiar with the concept of evolution?”
“I’ve read sections of Darwin,” she said, “but I’m doubtful. No one has ever witnessed one species turn into another.”
“I’ve never seen electrons with my own eyes either.”
“Both are just theories.”
“As is the theory of gravity, or electromagnetism. A theory becomes proven when enough facts back it up that we know with a high degree of probability that it’s correct.”
“So you admit that the Genesis story in the Bible might be true?”
“That is also a theory written down thousands of years ago by a Bronze-Age tribe that didn’t even know Earth was round. But, yes, I’ll admit it could be true, just like any of the countless such religious creation stories believed by someone, somewhere throughout history.”
“It’s the word of God,” she said. “That’s more authoritative than science.”
“Science self-corrects based on experiment and new facts, while religion self-perpetuates based on superstition, wishful thinking, and fear.”
Heat rose to her face. His arrogance was infuriating.
She turned from his scrutiny and studied the ape-like creatures. Could I be staring into the eyes of one of my own ancestors?
The male swayed from side to side, accompanied by low grunting noises. The hair along its spine rose.
Tem backed up his horse, and hers followed. “Archaeological clones enabled scientists to study mental capacity, the ability to speak, reason, and a host of other factors.”
“If you think they’re human,” Kayla asked, “isn’t it unethical to experiment on them?”
“You are assuming a divide between the treatment of animals versus humans. Maybe there is, but would you class these creatures as human?”
“If they’re our ancestors, like you suggest, they’re partly human.”
“How far back in our evolution do you go until our ancestors become animals? Darwin showed that evolution works in incremental changes, so it’s impossible to choose one generation that suddenly became human.”
The eyes of the primitive creatures watched them with what might be termed intelligence. What sort of thoughts went through their smaller brains? Did they feel love?
“How can anyone justify playing God like this?” Kayla asked. “To raise someone from the dead against their will seems … unnatural.”
“They haven’t been raised from the dead but are like identical twins born millions of years apart.” A touch of melancholy entered his voice. “It’s a common misconception.”
“It’s still wrong.”
“You’ve seen the world above,” Tem said. “Nearly every species of animal on the planet has vanished. Would you oppose bringing them back from DNA remains?”
“That’s different. Humans are responsible for their extinction.”
Tem nodded toward the group of early human ancestors. “Are not humans responsible for replacing their own pre-human ancestors? Why is bringing back an extinct gorilla any different than bringing back the extinct species of Homo habilis, or an extinct mammoth hunted to death by early humans?”
A howl announced the male’s attack. It charged, and Kayla gave a short, involuntary yelp. She jerked her horse’s reins, and the mare reared back onto its hind legs. When it righted itself, it took a moment for Kayla to regain her balance.
Tem remained motionless, impassive. When the ancestral human came within twenty yards of them, it pulled its arm back to throw a large rock. Tem’s forehead tensed, and the creature’s body stiffened. The rock fell from its hand, and it howled in pain. When the Mongolian boy’s forehead relaxed, the creature retreated across the river, eyeing them warily.
“Are you a wizard?” Kayla asked. Maybe this is what made him a Gene-Freak.
“No more than anyone else with a Mind-Link.” He guided his horse wide of the group of p
rimitive humans.
“A Mind-Link?”
“It’s a miniature computer implanted in my brain. It does a lot of things, but in this case, I used it to trigger an implant Ohg installed within the prisoner’s skull to simulate pain. It’s the most humane way of keeping them from hurting us, while still allowing maximum freedom. It causes no actual harm.”
“Why did it attack us?”
“The aggressiveness of these precursors to Homo erectus surprised scientists, since most historians and sociologists believed warfare originated with civilization and the first farming settlements. These clones, and the hundreds of others scientists once created from all stages of human evolution, proved that our kind have been far more violent than other primate lines. It is possibly what drove the evolution of a large brain in the first place.”
“ ‘And it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.’ ”
“A good analogy of the competition of man against man in the struggle for survival,” Tem said. “Genesis claims that Cain went on to have many children, while Able’s early death made him a genetic dead end. That is evolution in a nutshell.”
“How many like these are here?” Kayla asked as the three hominids resumed tearing at the carcass and eating the meat raw.
“Ohg rescued two other clones from a million years ago, and three Neanderthals with larger brains than a modern human, though the tiny frontal lobe inhibits their abstract thinking and language abilities.”
“They can speak?”
“Yes, but it’s like talking to a four-year-old. It’s rare to spot them, since they hide when anyone approaches their enclosure.”
The words of Minister Coglin rang in her mind. Abominations!
Another doorway loomed, this one reminiscent of the Wall sealing Potemia.
“Do you mind me asking why you’re here?” Kayla asked.
For a moment he said nothing, but then he turned to her, the sadness evident in every surface of his face. “I am like them.” He motioned back the way they’d come.
“You’re a clone?”
Tem nodded. “The government pronounced all clones Gene-Freaks, but since my genes appear normal, no test could tell me apart from a Pure. I passed for ten years after the imposition of the Purification Laws, and even lived through the Neo-Luddite Plague before coming to Middilgard.”
Kayla’s heart raced. An image of Peter opening the vial beneath the air vent in the airport flashed through her mind. Should I tell him? No, not yet.
“How did they catch you?” Kayla asked, but Tem punched at the door’s keypad without answering.
Massive bolts along the door’s edge slid free of their casings, resounding like hammer-strikes. The door swung open. Their horses moved forward into the gloom, the geometric starkness at odds with the rest of Middilgard.
“Has something happened?” she whispered. “Why is it so dark?”
“I’ll have to ask Ohg the reason for that the next time I see him.”
A distant roar echoed through the metal corridors, and an even stranger roar answered.
“What was that?” she whispered.
“The first belonged to a dinosaur, followed by the answering challenge of a dragon.”
“A dragon!”
“Before mankind put a stop to species engineering, genetic engineering achieved dramatic results.”
Tem led her past a series of cave entryways, each with a yellow line painted on the ground in front of it. “Don’t get near those yellow lines,” he cautioned her. “It’s an extremely painful energy barrier.”
“Hello, Tem,” sneered a gaunt, angular man leaning casually against the entrance to one of the cells. Behind him, Kayla glimpsed the rooms of a villa similar to her own, with tables, lights, bookcases, and other doorways leading into more rooms. The man wore a suit, tie, and polished shoes—all white.
“New girlfriend?” he leered. “Mind if I share this one with you too? I enjoyed Fatima a great deal, and this one looks so innocent.” The man’s eyes studied her with such a penetrating appraisal that her cheeks flushed.
Tem ignored him and kept their horses at the same steady pace, but a vein along his neck pulsed.
The man in white smiled broadly. “It is too bad Ohg didn’t let you kill me, isn’t it? Must be hard, a man like you reduced to taking orders from a freak like him. But we all must obey our superiors, and you’ve proven he is your master.”
Tem maintained his silence until well beyond earshot. “That was Trickster Jack. He can act normal when he wants to, and he fooled everyone when Ohg first brought him here.”
“You mean he used to live freely in Middilgard?”
“For almost a decade,” Tem said. “He planted seeds of discord so subtle that the source remained invisible. The misunderstandings transformed into feuds, and finally, bloody fights between close friends that persist even now.”
“He caused it on purpose?”
“Jack’s mind revels in fomenting strife, jealousy, and the maximum possible mayhem. As one conflict bled into another, it seemed a civil war might rupture Middilgard permanently. It took years before anyone suspected his role.”
“Where does he come from?” Kayla asked.
“Ohg never found out.”
Tem stopped his horse before a large cave, and Kayla peered inside. A shallow pool of light illuminated the first few yards of the stone floor, while the rest receded into blackness.
Without warning, a large mass of metal surged out of the gloomy depths. Kayla screamed, and her horse reared and pawed the air. Lightning-like flashes and a roar of pain added to the sound of crackling energy. With three gleaming legs and five arms, the ten-foot-tall metallic creature attacked the energy field again and again.
Each assault encased it in electricity and wrung a new cry of fury from within its helmeted head. When the energy and pain subsided, it attacked again, with the same result. The smell of burnt metal wafted through the air.
Finally, it stepped back and surveyed them. “I shall kill you one day, Tem,” a voice growled from deep within its metal chest.
“Why do you want to kill me, Valac?” Tem asked.
“Because it will give me pleasure.”
Tem guided his horse forward, and Kayla followed.
“Was that a robot?”
“A cyborg. Its body is machine, but its brain is human, though genetically engineered for killing. It represents one of the American military’s early attempts at creating an indestructible soldier. The results proved disappointing. By eliminating all the brain’s moderating functions, The Black Ops Research Consortium created Valac as a soldier whose one purpose for existence is to kill without remorse. The problem became distinguishing between friend or foe.”
“Trickster Jack said Ohg stopped you from killing him.”
“It is one of many points of contention between Ohg and myself. He treasures all life, in every form, and abhors killing if there exists any alternative.”
“A noble sentiment.”
“I think it is naive,” Tem said. “But Ohg has a point. Who are we to judge who is deviant and who is normal?”
“Isn’t it obvious?”
“Is it? You and I may call these creatures deviants, while others call Gene-Freaks deviants.”
Kayla nodded. “The people of my village pronounced me a deviant and sought to cleanse me in flames.” She shuddered.
Tem’s brow furrowed as he gazed at her. “But you ran away before they burned you?”
“Uh … yes,” she said quickly. “I escaped.”
“What was your crime?”
Kayla looked away. Why am I hiding the truth from him? They’re all outcasts just like me. But they knew who’d created them, while she did not. “My crime was disobedience. I read ancient books on science that were forbidden by God.”
“I see,” Tem said. Was there skepticism in his tone? What would he think if he knew the truth?
Kayla motio
ned to the cell. “But to keep something alive that intends to kill you? Isn’t that like protecting a mass murderer?”
Tem flinched. “Should I kill all lions because they would kill me if given the chance?”
“That’s different, and you know it. These creatures are evil. If freed, they would massacre millions.”
“You speak as though you or I are incapable of such acts ourselves.”
“I would never do something like that—” Kayla stopped in mid-sentence, remembering the pleasure when she broke Elias’s leg—her longing to destroy the entire village in revenge. But that was different, wasn’t it? She had good reason to kill him. And yet, I let him live.
“Don’t deceive yourself,” Tem said. “Murderous potential lurks within us all. Violent tendencies are pre-installed genetic tools that manifest as necessity and environment dictates. We are no different in construction than the worst dictators of history. Given the right conditions, we might act the same.”
His words stung, and she averted her eyes from the grotesque nightmares they passed in silence.
Know thyself … the monk’s words echoed in her memory once again.
From her right, a soft voice spoke. “So you do exist after all—Nihala.”
The name Nihala struck her like a blow.
“Nihala,” she whispered, recalling the formless entities of her dream. What had they said as they observed the crippled newborn?
“…she is called Nihala, the Creator’s tool of destruction for us all.” The words had been spoken by the one called Melchi.
Kayla pulled her horse to a halt and gazed into the cave, searching for the next monster. Instead, a beautiful little girl with long red hair sat cross-legged on the floor of the chamber. Orange robes clothed her diminutive body, and her warm green eyes gazed at Kayla with a calm that seemed unnatural given the surroundings. Her right hand cradled a well-worn set of prayer beads.
In addition to the yellow line marking the energy field, there stood a ring of metal bars for further security.
“Why would you call me Nihala?” Kayla said to the little girl. Can she read my mind?
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