The Independent Worlds (The Sixteen Galaxies Book 2) (20 page)

‘Welcome back,’
Kestil replied wryly.

‘My quantum framework is dead and will need a full restructure; I am back on the human network, in binary format only, for the present.’

‘The entire site needs to be rebuilt.’

‘That we can do, but we have lost the Starchild; the optimal option is to destroy it.’

‘Agreed. Do it.’

Well, Kestil thought, if I can’t have the Starchild, then nobody will. He portaled to the top of the western ridge and watched the choppers leave. He could just make out the glow of their exhausts and even that soon disappeared. He waited for what seemed like hours, although it was only five minutes, and then his AI finally spoke again.

‘The jets have both targets locked.’

Kestil smiled. Now we’ve got you;
all
of you.

‘They have fired; positive locks on both helicopters.’

Roughly twelve miles away, two large fireballs erupted and fell in twirling arcs towards the ground. They were both going to land in a big lake, Kestil saw.

‘Both targets destroyed.’

‘Did you detect a portal signature?’

‘No.’

‘Any chance you missed the signature?’

‘No chance at all.’

Kestil nodded in satisfaction.
‘Reclassify those plane’s flight records to above top secret. In a week’s time, destroy all evidence of the mission. If wreckage is found on the lake, fabricate a suitable cover story.’

‘Of course.’

Kestil sobered as he had another thought; Prestern would be furious.

*****

Western Queensland

Drifter opened his eyes. He was in a beautiful building from the future, it seemed. There was a soft glow of light, little gardens, and a pool just a few yards away. Any notion he had that he was in the afterlife was shattered as he caught sight of a group of scruffy young men in their twenties who stood gaping at him from across the room. He became aware of other people near him.

“Well,” Bear said, “I didn’t die and go to heaven, ‘cos you’re here Drifter. They wouldn’t never let you in.”

Drifter saw Bobby lift David up in his arms. “Here,” one of the young guys called, “bring him and follow me.” Bobby left with the whole group of youngsters. Jack helped Drifter to his feet.

“Where the hell are we?” Drifter asked.

“You’re in Australia,” Jack told him.

“
Australia?!
” Bear exclaimed. “We died and went to
Australia
? Well, that don’t seem right.”

Drifter laughed and slapped him on the back of the head. “Truly portaled us out, you dumbass.” He sobered. “Yeah, and all the government guys think we died. Well, until they check the wrecks, that is. I guess we’re fugitives, now.”

“Not at all, Drifter,” Truly said. “I guided you so that the wrecks landed in the McKlintock Dam. The part they went into is nearly 350 feet deep. I believe they will not bother, but there is a 14.28% chance I’m wrong.”

“My beautiful birds,” Drifter groaned.

“If you recall,” Truly said, “the other four aircraft were your property. I provided all the funds for the two we lost.”

“Yeah,” Drifter retorted, but I worked on ‘em. They were my babies; you know?”

“Here,” Ron said as he handed Drifter a glass, “drown your sorrows in the best whiskey you ever tasted.”

Drifter laughed. “Well, now. That’s more like it!”

*****

Robert laid his son on the inversion plate in the medical room. Thin tendrils of some kind of wire came up out of the plate’s sides and wove themselves into David’s body. Garth and the others watched slack-jawed from the doorway.

“Please do not be concerned, Robert,” Truly said. “David will be fine. He has lost a lot of weight and his body’s reserves are drained almost completely. It will take several hours to restore him to full health. Please, leave him with me and join the others. You have all earned a rest. And you have the sincere gratitude of the entire Sixteen Galaxies society for your sacrifices.”

Robert left with the others, and Truly dimmed the lighting.
‘Are you alright, David?’

‘My physical form is weak, but I am complete within.’

‘And the task?’

‘It has been done; integration achieved and installation was 100%.’

‘Yes, I can see that,’ Truly replied. ‘The portals I created to evacuate the crews of the two aircraft went undetected. You have done well.’

‘What will you tell the others?’

‘What they need to know.’

‘How long will it last?’

‘Unknown. Until events reveal its existence, that is all we can say at this point.’

‘The others; the ones who risked so much…’

‘They will be cared for. They are at no risk, for the most part.’

*****

Mandy walked into the main area to find a crowd of exhausted men in their sixties sharing a bottle of whiskey while lost in quiet conversation. She searched the room and her heart sank like a stone.

“Where’s Jack?” she asked Ron.

Ron frowned and scanned the room. “He was here a minute ago.”

“Jack has portaled to the United States, Mandy,” Truly said.

“Why?” Mandy demanded.

“He did not tell me that, I’m afraid,” Truly replied.

*****

Global News Update

“…Details are still sketchy, but there have been unconfirmed reports of a fierce gunfight in Oklahoma in the United States. The exact location is as yet unknown, but several people called 911 to report sounds of heavy gunfire, including machine guns, explosions and even two reports of aircraft destroyed by air to air missiles. The Pentagon has so far declined to comment on the incident, except to say that no night-time military exercises are currently underway anywhere in the continental United States.

“Police in Brussels came under close scrutiny today after three anti-globalism protesters were killed in the latest wave of violent protests outside the European Parliament. Protesters refused to disperse, and Belgian police in full riot gear moved in. They were backed up by water cannon trucks, which managed to disperse the tight groups of protesters. When the crowd finally scattered, three bodies were discovered among the injured. It is believed that they were killed in the stampede of people trying to escape the water cannons, but no clear details have been released as yet.”

*****

Kestil’s base

Kestil sat amid a chaos of hastily laid power cables and squinted under the harsh glare of temporary spotlights. Around him the base echoed to the sounds of frantic reconstruction. Barely six hours had passed since he watched the two helicopters go into the lake, but already the electricians and engineers were here, hard at work putting the shattered installation to rights.

Unfortunately, the men made Kestil’s personal console a priority, so he had no excuse not to lay out the night’s events to Prestern. Prestern remained silent after Kestil had finished. Neither man spoke, but the silence weighed on Kestil like a millstone.

“I see,” Prestern finally said. “Well, the Starchild is gone; out of our hands, but out of theirs, too. The main problem is that they can make another one, but I doubt they could do so in any practical time frame.”

“I am very sorry, Prestern.”

Prestern waved a dismissive hand. “What is done is done, my young friend. The important thing here is that you learn. So, what can you take away from this?”

Kestil scratched his chin. “That I must not underestimate the Sixteen Galaxies, but more especially their human allies, again. I could have had any amount of anti-air defense here at a word to Maitland. But, I put all my faith in my AI to prevent any mechanized attack.”

Prestern gave him a curt nod. “Precisely. Hubris is a terrible thing, Kestil. We lose sight of our own limitations, and those of our compatriots, too.” He nodded slowly. “Yes, the humans are a worthy opponent. Resourceful, cunning and fiercely determined. With the Sixteen Galaxies, we knew where we stood, but these humans are unpredictable.”

“Indeed,” Kestil replied. “They display remorseless brutality, too. I have a hectare of decimated forest that bears ample witness to that fact.”

Prestern raised a finger. “One thing puzzles me, though. Why would they execute the whole plan so well, take full advantage of our weaknesses while avoiding our strengths, only to fly straight into certain death? Are they really so determined that they are willing to accept death to thwart us?”

“My AI detected no portal before the missiles destroyed the two aircraft they were in. How could they get out otherwise?”

“I don’t know,” Prestern replied. “But, you must admit it makes little sense, that last part of the whole event. It just doesn’t feel right, to me. But then, we may not fully appreciate these human’s motivations and drives, yet.”

“Would you like me to have the wreckage of the two craft inspected?”

Prestern meditated for a minute, then shook his head. “No. Let’s get back on track. If the Starchild is still alive, we may have another chance to capture it. Get your AI back into quantum format, and let’s push the United Nations government agenda forward. The sooner we knock humanity into shape and get them into space with us, the sooner we can solve the whole Sixteen Galaxies problem once and for all.”

Western Queensland

Mandy sat by the pool and stared at the water. Hypnotized by the flickering shades of blue, she never noticed someone sit down opposite her. Her attention snapped back to the present when a small plastic bag slid into view on the tabletop. She looked up and saw Jack sitting there.

He tapped the bag. “Before you take these, I need to tell you a little more.”

She saw two USB flash drives in the bag. “Okay,” she said, “I’m listening.”

*****

Chicago, Illinois, 2005

Justin had carefully swept the park where Hilary Huntley-Downes sat feeding some ducks. He had identified at least three spotters, at different vantage points on the footpaths around the park. They were of no concern; Justin had no intention of meeting with Hilary, as she had proposed, and he was definitely not going anywhere near that park. The one he needed to eliminate was the sniper he knew would be there. He looked around at the buildings which surrounded the park. The weather was lousy for a summer day; overcast and squally, but he saw one sash window partially up. Gotcha, he thought.

He found his way into the building, and up to the second floor. He made his way silently to the right door. He laid down on the floor beside the apartment door, and pulled out the little birdcage mirror he’d bought from a pet store down the street. Justin held the mirror out so he could see in under the door. The shooter knelt by the window, about 14 feet from the door. He was focused on his scope, his weapon aimed at the area of the park where Hilary sat. Justin could see an earpiece in the man’s right ear. He pocketed the mirror and slowly got to his feet.

The door had just one lock on it, thankfully. He pulled out a 9mm pistol from the shoulder holster he had on. He quietly screwed on a silencer from his jacket pocket, and braced himself. If this didn’t happen with one kick, he’d have to run.

The door flew open on the first kick, and Justin shot the sniper in the right arm near the shoulder. The man rolled to the left, intent on bringing the rifle round. “Don’t,” Justin hissed. The man dropped the rifle; his wounded shoulder made him too slow, and prevented access to his earpiece as well. “Good man,” he told the furious marksman. “Face down on the floor, hands behind your back.”

Justin pulled out a roll of duct tape and a packet of zip ties. The man complied as best he could, but his wounded right arm remained by his side. Justin reached over and slapped duct tape over the man’s mouth, and then wrenched the right arm up so he could zip tie the hands together. The man screamed under the duct tape. Justin bent over him and said, “You weren’t going to shoot
me
in the shoulder, so consider yourself lucky, my friend.”

The man emitted a string of expletives under the tape, which Justin was very grateful he couldn’t make out. He zip-tied his captive’s feet to his wrists. Thus bound, the unfortunate shooter would be too busy avoiding intense pain to his shoulder to consider any counter-moves. He removed the operative’s earpiece, wiped it and put it in his ear. He dragged the sniper away from the window and then picked up the rifle.

Justin set himself and aimed for the back of Hilary’s head. He watched her through the scope for a few minutes. She looked perfectly at ease, tossing breadcrumbs to the greedy waterfowl in front of her. He tapped the headset button. “How many, Hilary?” He smiled when he saw the woman on the park bench stiffen. He kept the crosshairs steady.

“So,” she replied on her earpiece. “You found one of my bodyguard detail.”

“No, I found the sniper that was set to kill me. Please don’t switch your comms to open broadcast, or move an inch. I won’t miss; you know that. Especially not with this very expensive rifle. I’m touched you would spend so much on me, Hilary. Your man’s alive, by the way. Although he’s less than happy at the moment.” Hilary went to stand up. “No, no; please don’t get up. Let’s not upset the ducks with any unnecessary mess.”

She sat back with a sigh. “So; how many what?”

Justin felt a twist in his stomach at her nonchalant tone. “How many of the people I killed for you were actually a threat to my country?”

“Every one of them, Justin.”

He had to make a conscious effort to avoid extra pressure to the trigger. “I said how many were a threat
to
my country
, not the pockets of some fat git in an office somewhere.”

Hilary drew a deep sigh. “The people whose interests we protect are the source of our country’s wealth, Justin. Do you honestly think
taxation
pays the horrendous costs of the upkeep of the UK? Where do you think all the jobs come from? Do you realize how many people would lose their livelihoods if that dreadful American published his story?”

“You need to stop right there,” Justin snarled. “Trotting out that old worn-out ‘ends justifies means’ diatribe will achieve no more than your early departure from this world. You can’t justify the acts of your foul little department to me, woman.”

“Well, since you don’t want to listen to reason,” she said, “where do we go from here?”

“For one thing,” Justin replied, “this pointless hunt for me stops, right now. I realize the department has a healthy budget, but surely they must be sick of the losses by now. Six operatives in two months; that’s got to hurt.”

He saw Hilary shrug. “That’s why they sent me. The best man for the job is a woman, and all that.”

“Right, except that that woman is now in my crosshairs, and the men she has with her have no idea how close to death she is right now. Except for the poor sod I have with me, of course.”

“Well, what did you expect? You abandoned a job, Justin. Not only that, you then took out the replacement, and left the job in a mess to boot. I had to pull in favors with nearly all my American contacts to make that lot disappear. I cannot begin to tell you how much pain you have caused us. The CIA will be calling in favors for years because of your little escapade.”

Justin laughed. “Sorry about that, my dear. But, do you have any idea how it felt to find out that, rather than fighting the war on terror, I was used as a janitor for your smug Oxford chums?”

Hilary rubbed her forehead. “I went to Cambridge, actually. Look, there’s no point in further discussion, you clearly won’t come back, which means you must go in a more permanent fashion. Kill me if you must, but they’ll just send more, you know that. There’s nowhere you can go that we won’t find you. You will die eventually.”

“I would like to propose a more practical solution, if I may. I know you don’t know this, but the two USB drives from the Somers job didn’t get lost in the fire. A very interesting read they are, too. Now, I realize the blow up over the body at the fire must have given you a headache, but you will get a much bigger one if I go public with that little lot.”

“I see,” Hilary said.

“Of course,” he continued, “I’m sure you’re more worried about what I could do to the department if I went back over all my other jobs. I know now that at least a few were done for less than justifiable reasons.”

Hilary’s tone went cold. “What do you propose?”

“Leave both myself and the Somers girl alone, simple as that. I shall get on with a new life, and you can continue to run your disgusting charade of a department as you see fit.”

“The top brass won’t go for that, Justin, surely you know that.”

“Right,” Justin replied. “Then you let the top brass know that, not only do I have the USB drives, but I have entrusted them to someone I know here. Every week, by a certain time, I have to communicate with him. Should I ever fail to make contact, he knows to put them out on the internet; to certain sites that will blow your department wide open with the evidence on those drives.”

Hilary sat in silence for a while. “And what if you die for some other reason? What guarantee do I have then?”

“Tut, tut, Hilary,” Justin chided. “I would think you’d have learned by now that I’m very good at staying alive.”

“Very well. I will return to London and explain your terms. Chances are, I’ll be back in less than a week.”

“I wouldn’t recommend that,” he replied. “The next time you enter this country; I will make sure you go home in a bag. Then I will see to it your department and its dirty laundry take down the entire government with it. Do you understand me?”

Hilary sighed. “To be perfectly honest with you, Justin, I don’t think I ever did.”

*****

Western Queensland, Present Day

Mandy stared at the bag with the two flash drives in it. So, this was the only reason she was still alive. Thanks to those two little plastic devices, she need not worry that every step she took might be her last. She thought about the man who sat opposite her. How much did Jack want to cash those two drives in? They were the only avenue by which he could ever get his vengeance for years of exploitation. With the enhancements his body now had, he had nothing to fear from his former employers. But, she did, didn’t she?

Mandy looked up at Jack, but he stared at the water, lost in his own reflections. He’d done this for her, she realized. He’d let the massive injustice lie, just so that she might live. Try as she might, though, she couldn’t help but feel that her parents deserved better than the death they got. Her father deserved to have his story told. And she deserved closure. She picked up the bag with the two drives in it and stood up.

Jack didn’t protest, he didn’t beg. He didn’t even look up. He just nodded slowly, as if it was a sign of his acceptance. Mandy walked around to where he sat, and stood there for a minute. She placed the drives in his hand. Then, she leant down and tenderly kissed his cheek. As she walked away, Jack’s hand closed around the drives. And he smiled.

*****

David looked around the group gathered in the main room. He was still deathly pale, and sat a little unsteady on the chair provided for him. But, these people deserved to know as much as he could tell them. As he explained to Truly, who had intended to do this herself at first, they deserved to hear it from him. He wanted to get this right, so he sat in quiet contemplation as those around him engaged in idle chatter.
‘Please stop me if I go too far.’

‘You will be fine, David,’
the Entity assured him.
‘Just follow your instincts.’

He cleared his throat and they all fell silent. “First of all, let me thank each and every one of you for what you have done for us. Not just me, but the people of Earth, and those of the Sixteen Galaxies.” He smiled at them. “You have accomplished far more than you may realize.”

Several puzzled faces returned his gaze. He spread his hands. “You thought this was a simple rescue mission; that I had sacrificed myself to save Nuthros and Jack. Some of you may have already worked out that it went a little deeper than that. The truth is, I went to Kestil’s base with a specific goal in mind; to get us a way back into Earth’s global communications network. But, it had to be done in such a way that neither Kestil, nor his AI, had any idea what we were really up to.”

He pointed to Garth, Noddy, and the other younger men clustered at the back of the room. “We had the boys there build the big computer in the technology room. Why did we not just fabricate one ourselves?”

“I thought there was something odd about that,” Ron said.

David nodded. “And you were right, Ron. We needed the signature; the digital footprint of the computer, to be as human as possible. So, we fabricated the very best components that can be built using the digital format, and then had the boys fit it all together. While Kestil’s AI was busy with the attempt to access my brain, Noddy there attacked it with a digital virus. Naturally, it shut it out, even though that virus would breach any other digital security in the world.” He held up a hand to Noddy. “Please don’t use it, Graeme; Truly will stop you if you try.”

“Aww..” Noddy grinned.

“When the AI repelled Noddy’s virus, it had to re-prioritize quite a bit of its runtime to do it. There was a nanosecond where its connection with me was open enough to receive a minute signal in the opposite direction without its knowledge. At that precise moment, I inserted the real virus. This virus is built at the quark scale; undetectable to a quantum computer. However, if it sensed the signal containing the virus, it would be aware it was compromised. Thanks to Noddy’s attack, it never picked up my signal. When Kestil gets his quantum computer back online, we will have access through a back-door.”

“What’s all that mean for us military types?” Drifter asked. “Can you explain that without using words of more than one syllable?”

David laughed. “What it means, Drifter, is that, thanks to your efforts, mankind still has a fighting chance. Truly has undetectable access to the human network, and we still have a way to maybe stop Kestil in his tracks before it’s too late.”

“When will you have access?” Mandy asked.

“We already have, actually,” David replied. “When Ron and Jack attacked Kestil’s base, they inserted micro-drones into a power socket. Those micro-drones were programmed to consume anything that could potentially carry electrical current. Cables, wires, switches, and a lot more were all consumed. When this happened, Kestil’s quantum hardware was effectively destroyed. At that time, Kestil’s AI was busy with me. It withdrew into the digital network, but it had no idea it was already compromised. Thus, when the two choppers were destroyed, it never saw the portals we used to get you all out.”