by L M Lacee
‘I am sure I will not be, but I feel this is something you have a solution for already. Am I wrong Lady Darby?’
‘No, you are not wrong. I have the answers but the solution you may have to find for us. Anyway, when I was downloading the information about the implants and how you were all created. I found out about the ones in stasis pods.’
‘Who?’ Kerol asked perplexed.
Darby frowned as she said. ‘It seems that the Emperor of Jenersar or someone close to him has placed Warriors into stasis pods or tubes and hidden them in your universe.’ At their confused looks, she explained further. ‘It seems that the governing council of Jenersar believes their Emperor terminated the Warriors program many years before it was halted. To cover up that fact the Emperor has placed Warriors in an induced coma and as I said hidden them. It also appears as though Warriors who have been reported killed in action or have just gone missing have also been placed in stasis.’
Silence filled the house as Peyton nudged Darby and mouthed, go on.
Darby cleared her throat. ‘I have one question before I tell you more. I wonder if you know how many Warriors were originally created.’
Commander Roeah drummed his fingers on the table for a minute. ‘Yes, there were two hundred thousand Warriors created over the course of one hundred and twenty-five of your years.’
Darby was shaking her head no before he had stopped talking as her fingers flew over her tablet.
‘I am sorry, they lied to you. There were never any more than fifty thousand Warriors created over a seventy-five-year period.’
Melody asked. ‘Why were no more created?’
Kerol the Commander’s second, answered absently. ‘I would assume, that would be due to the fire in the creation section of the compound. This is where we were created and housed. I heard everything was destroyed. I would say that stopped the program.’
Melody asked. ‘Who was held responsible?’
With a slight smirk Kerol replied. ‘It was said that those who opposed the Warriors program where responsible. No one has been held accountable to this day.’
‘Very strange.’ Heather quietly stated as Melody frowned and asked. ‘Why can’t they just start up another program?’
Darby answered her absently. ‘Oh they try, but the scientist that came up with the program died, apparently taking his notes to the grave with him. Along with all one hundred and forty members of his tea. No one made it out of the complex. The funny thing about that fire is that not one Warrior was found, not even the embryos. It was hypothesized that the volatile liquids fed the fires and totally destroyed any trace of organic matter as well as demolishing the compound. In other words there was nothing remaining to allow them to recreate what he had done.’
Melody asked. ‘But the fires did not destroy the scientists or assistants bodies, right?’
Darby shook her head. ‘No, intriguing don’t you think?’
Peyton said. ‘I find it beyond interesting.’
Kerol said quietly. ‘Unless the scientists were not actually there that night?’
‘See, that makes sense.’ Peyton said thoughtfully as she eyed Kerol.
Melody narrowed her eyes at Peyton asking. ‘How does that make sense?’
‘I’m thinking they were killed somewhere else and returned to the buildings after the fires had died down as a warning by the true killers.’
Kerol nodded. ‘That is a good theory.’
‘Yep, it is.’ Peyton crowed as Melody sighed.
Heather hypothesized. ‘So, I am guessing without that data, they would be hard pressed to duplicate this scientist’s work.’
‘This is true!’ Kerol stated with a twinkle in his eyes.
Heather looked confused as she asked. ‘Okay, one thing I don’t understand?’
Peyton moaned. ‘Only one thing, I find heaps I don’t understand about all of this.’
‘Yes, well, that is you and your limited capacity for thinking. Now hush!’ Heather retorted.
‘Wow! That was a good one.’ Darby quietly said to Melody, who grinned as she nodded. ‘Yep.’
Heather said in a voice that brooked no more interruptions, while giving the women a meaningful look each. ‘As I was saying, there must be other planets out there that clone people, so why not use their methods?’
Darby snorted. ‘They cannot, there are Warriors that are just about impervious to everything apart from dismemberment or death by removing their heads. The rest are just plain hard to kill, diseases do not affect them. They have more organs than us humans, for example, they have two hearts but only one is used and no one can understand what the other is for. Unless it is a replacement but so far that has not been established by the Coalition scientists. They also have four lungs, four livers and four kidneys and their own bodies can use any of them as a replacement if needed or so the data says. The mad bastard that created them made them from a cocktail of genes. Also he found a component or substance in their DNA that he could find no use for, nor could he eradicate or duplicate it and believe me he tried to do both. They never found a name for it or where it came from.’
Melody asked. ‘How do you know this?’
Darby shrugged. ‘Some notes were in the Ambassador transmissions. I am guessing they were reports sent to the Emperor.’
Peyton asked. ‘What do you think it does?’
‘I don’t know. From what I gleaned from the notes it remained unknown even after the fire. Truthfully I cannot even make a guess as to why it is there.’
Melody said. ‘So, let’s just concentrate on the fact they genetically altered the embryos.’
‘Yes.’
‘Okay, so we do that here.’
Darby nodded her head. ‘Yes, we do, and I am sure other planets do to. But regardless of what we do and they do, no one can reproduce what he did. Because when he altered the embryos, it appears as though he then sliced and diced them. Doing ground breaking experiments, forcing the genes to develop inside the embryos in differing ways. For example there are some Warriors created to fade not camouflage but actually fade. Then others were made to take on the hardness of what we call granite. There are other Warriors whose skeletal form and muscles were built to withstand almost anything, their bones are like chromium.’
She explained for the Warriors. ‘Which is the hardest metal there is on Earth so far.’
She shook her head in wonder. ‘From what I could decode from the data I obtained. The same component I was talking about earlier, made a select few embryos develop and take on the status of Elites. Even I could not find out what they are completely capable of, although I do know like Commander Roeah, they have a gold eye ring, again I could not find out why.’ She held her hand up as she saw a question forming on Peyton’s lips. ‘Before you ask, yes even the Warriors eye ring color has a purpose, what that is I have no idea. I assumed from what I could discover it was whimsy of the lead scientist, but I am revising that. Look everything and anything you can imagine appears to have been tested on those embryos, and they succeeded more than they failed, evidenced by all the Warriors alive today.’
She smiled at the Warriors as she told them. ‘As an added bonus they made every Warrior the same height and weight with very little variation. Which I have to assume, they decided was the optimum physique for a Warrior which in itself was an amazing feat. Many Warriors if not all, have some kind of ability. Then there is the added compound the scientist mixed in that altered their skin and eye color, and if that wasn’t enough. They made their own bodies develop the switch to render themselves unconscious or dead. On top of all that, the lead scientist or someone, discovered a way to halt their desire to have intercourse. And if by some miracle they could have eventually overcome that conditioning, which apparently they have not. He made it so they were unable to reproduce, but thankfully he did not make it irreversible. The man was a genius!’
She suddenly realized they were all staring at her and sighed. ‘He and his people were geniuses; it
is sad people like that do what they do, but on the other hand you are here and we are very glad you are.’
Willian the other young Warrior, very hesitantly asked Darby. ‘Lady Darby... could you do what he did?’
Darby wanted to lie, she really did but Peyton gently interrupted her before she tried too. ‘Darby hon` don’t be ashamed of who and what you are. Just remember you are our Darby. No one thinks you are like them or could be capable of doing what they did. You are far more ethical than that. We, your family know this.’
Darby gave her head a quick jerk as she answered the Warrior’s question. ‘Yes, I can or at least most of it, the mysterious substances are still unknown, so there would be some missing components and data. What I could develop would not be a complete Warrior like you but close enough. Once you get pass the enormous amount of code, it is easy to break it down or it would have been. If I had not flushed what I found from the computers, I discovered it in.’
At their looks of skepticism, she vowed. ‘I swear I found and destroyed all references to it. There is no possible way for anyone to be able to reproduce the program from the data I found.’
‘Except for you?’ Challenged Commander Roeah.
‘Except for me!’ She agreed as she squinted at him trying to determine what he was inferring.
‘And the data stream?’ Kerol mused out loud. Darby’s eyes whipped to his as she demanded. ‘What is that?’
‘The universal computer, we will show you when you board our ships. Lady Darby, will it be possible for you to flush it from there as well?’ Kerol inquired.
With a nod of her head, she assured him. ‘I am sure I will be able to, after some time to study this computer. Although that won’t help if someone has already downloaded it.’
Kerol agreed. ‘That is something we will deal with when and if we must.’
‘True.’
Commander Roeah changed the subject. ‘So, if as you say only fifty thousand Warriors were created, how did they hide that fact?’
‘Easy, really?’ Heather answered, giving Darby a moment to collect herself. Peyton squeezed her hand reminding her she was not alone.
‘They rotated the Warriors, placed some in sleep and woke others, are there people in your universe that can make someone forget they have been asleep or implant memories, you know information like that?’
Kerol answered. ‘Yes, they are called Masters or Mind Walkers, deadly males. They can destroy your mind or add or take things away; they are killers and worse.’
‘What is worse?’ Heather asked him, but he just shook his head and would not reply. She vowed to look them up later.
Melody asked. ‘Well there you go, they probably employ them. I know when I was in command I did not meet every soldier in the army, just like you probably have not met every Warrior.’
The males all nodded in agreement as the Commander stated. ‘I have not, that would be impossible.’
FIFTEEN:
A sort of maudlin atmosphere entered the room as they all sat and thought about how easy it was for the deception to have happened. Finally Kerol voiced what they were all thinking, dispelling the feeling.
‘We were told two hundred thousand Warriors, why would we doubt them. If they wanted to hide us from the council and each other, they succeeded, we never questioned them, ever.’
‘Of course they did,’ Peyton said, ‘think about it. You were definitely programmed while you were growing and I for one do not see why they would have stopped at that. It seems easy for me to believe they made it so you never even thought to ask questions or at least not to ask questions about that. As for the council, politicians never ask relevant questions because what they don’t know they cannot be responsible for.’
All three women stared at her a little bemused at her reasoning, for Peyton it was fairly succinct, which they had learned since living together was unusual. Noticing where the three women’s eyes were, she growled.
‘Why are you looking at me like that?’
All three women grinned as Heather replied. ‘No reason.’
Melody muttered. ‘Surprised you understand politics.’
‘Just so rude.’
While they bickered, Hawk thought about what Peyton and the others said and decided they were more than likely right. He asked Darby cutting off the argument brewing. ‘Do you know where these Warriors are and did you find out how many of us there are in actuality, awake and functioning?’
‘Yes and yes, out of the fifty-thousand that are recorded as being created. On assignment are just over fifteen-thousand Warriors. From what I found on the Ambassadors computer it appears that there are around thirty-five thousand in tubes somewhere. You realize there are probably more. Also I do not know how many were reportedly saved from the fire. I am hoping you will enlighten me on that number. Obviously Warriors Lukkas and Willian are young. So I am guessing they were matured after the destruction of the compound.’
Hawk nodded to Kerol who told her. ‘Add another fifty- thousand to your list, we have placed them on differing worlds.’
Unsurprised Darby asked him. ‘You can contact them?’
‘Some, not all.’
‘Good.’ She tapped on her tablet then told them. ‘The Warriors in stasis still count as thirty-five thousand. Now with the added fifty-thousand, we should have sixty- five thousand active. I would be unsurprised if more Warriors were not placed in stasis as you said you are unable to contact them all. So the possibility is there.’
‘Agreed.’ Commander Roeah stated.
Melody asked. ‘So Darby and Heather’s supposition, that no Warriors were killed in the attack on the compound was correct.’
Kerol smiled and inclined his head. ‘That is so, all Warriors created as well as embryos were saved before the fires destroyed the compound.’
Melody asked him but her eyes remained on the Commander. ‘Was it you, who did that?’
Kerol shook his head. ‘No, we were not there.’
‘I see, thank you.’
Hawk was the one to tip his head as he stated. ‘You are worth the truth, so I will tell you as Kerol said, we did not attack the compound but we do know who did. I will not give you their names.’
Melody smiled conspiratorially. ‘I will not ask for them.’
Hawk let go the breath he was holding and said to his Warriors. ‘We are going to need ships, lots of ships if we are to leave this world and rescue our Warriors.’
‘As to that!’ Peyton said. ‘I agree we do need ships for transport and for protection, but for finding our Warriors. Hopefully we will have help in locating them?’
They all looked at her as she tapped her head. ‘We have a network of stars and planets to hunt our Warriors for us. What we don’t have is a plan to get off this rock?’
Every one of the four Warriors smiled as Hawk Roeah reassured the women. ‘That is as easy as sending communications to my people. I have put in place many, many plans, in the hope that the day would come, when I could take my Warriors safely out from under the yoke of our oppressors. Although I will admit this situation, I do not have a plan for.’
Kerol assured them. ‘With a small amount of rearranging we should be able to leave this rock as the Star Daughter says, by the end of four weeks.’
SIXTEEN:
What seemed to the women to be a monumental task, was in fact quite simple once the Commander and his Warriors got on board. The systems they had put in place over many years took only a few, well-placed communiqués to the right Warriors and allies. Once the orders were verified as genuine, Commanders started evacuating Warriors from worlds and sending ships and personnel to Earth.
Darby supplied the code to Hawk so he could disable the kill switch for all the Warriors on Earth. Then he reached out to as many of his Warriors off world as he could, who reached out to others and the chain started and continued up into the heavens. Where the Stars picked up the importance of the missive and broadcast it further into the Indorino Universe.
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Encoded starlight spread into hidden valleys on moons and planets and even on dead stars, in the hope it would reach sleepers and render the kill switch inert. It was a fine piece of surgery, to disable the switch but not wake the occupants of the tubes. The Stars remained smug in their accomplishment, even more so when Peyton told them how very grateful she was.
They had been a long time without a Star Daughter; it was gratifying to see the one chosen was full of praise and willing to share it with them.
Two nights after the meeting with the Warriors, Darby was in one of her favorite places, sitting on the flat section of their roof, overlooking the town. From there she could see the night skies and watch the ever present shuttles overhead, although she had to admit there were fewer tonight than previous nights. It looked like the frightening Commander Roeah was starting his withdrawal already.
She took a sip of her drink and sighed when it gave her a slight burn. She loved the hundred-year-old scotch, Peyton somehow obtained for her and Melody. With at least half a glass gone already, she felt melancholy and took the brakes off her thoughts. Allowing her mind to wander back over the past two years and how she had change the world.
Her heart hurt for what she had helped achieve but looking back on it now, she wondered as she had many times, had there really been any choice? Even now it seemed as though a program was running and they were all just caught up in someone else’s experiment.
It was almost eighteen months since a representative from the Government commissioned her to research the possibility of sending a message for help out into the universe. She shook her head in disbelief at her naivety and arrogance, then snorted as she realized Peyton’s honesty was rubbing off on her. She could see now how blinded by the challenge she had been, not once had she stopped to think of the consequences. Honesty compelled her to admit a few words to stroke her ego, and she became the Government’s puppet. Anger at how she allowed herself to fall into line, annoyed her and added to her sorrow.
Heather called her unworldly, and she was probably right, but damn it. She should have known it was never going to be that simple, even with a new Government in control. They were never going to pass up the chance to have more, to know more. She took another drink and thought sarcastically, well I didn’t, so why would they!