Chapter Sixteen
Upon entering the enforcement dome, Arga tossed their prisoner into the empty middle section. “Activate cell,” he said.
The only sign that the drone was now within an incarceration barrier came from the slight shimmer in the air around it. Kren barely noted it happening because he was busy searching for Jeannie.
“Jeannie? Jeannie, where are you?”
His call got the attention of the other officers. There was no sign of her. Kren’s guts churned.
Arga put a hand on his shoulder. “Just because we were distracted capturing this hunk of garbage doesn’t mean anything. Monsuda and their drones can’t get through the barrier unless we carry them in as I did this one. They didn’t capture Jeannie.”
The chance of such happening had only worried Kren for a bare second. His thoughts went in another direction. “Maybe she ran.”
Arga gave him a perplexed look. “Why? She has to know we would protect her from the Monsuda.”
“Maybe it wasn’t the Monsuda she ran from.”
Arga’s expression turned grave. “The Assembly will not destroy her. They have to realize she is real.”
“She doesn’t know that, not for certain. Jeannie doesn’t believe in anyone.” Including me, Kren thought ruefully. “Her track record with her own family wouldn’t lend her to being trusting.” He wondered where she might go. Outside the barrier? But surely not, what with the drones threatening. Still, if she thought she was in danger...
“We’ll be able to track her. She can’t have gotten far.”
“Then let’s go.”
“Bort, keep an eye on things,” Kren said.
He and Arga headed for the door. Before they’d taken more than a couple of steps, it opened. Jeannie walked in.
Kren’s hearts flooded with joy and relief. She was safe.
She hunched as her gaze met his. “I went out for some air. I, uh, walked a little farther than I’d intended. I heard your vehicles return and came as quick as I could. Is everything all right?”
She talked fast, and her face flushed with pink. Kren thought perhaps she had started to run away.
The important thing is, she came back. Was it for me? Has she found a bit of faith? He would take it, even if it was so shaky that she’d entertained a moment of uncertainty.
She’d come back. That was all that counted.
Not caring that Arga and the rest were there, Kren held his arms out to her. Hopeful joy lit her face with a smile. She came to him and let him hold her, leaning into his body.
He said, “I am glad you are here. So very glad.”
She started to say something, but her gaze happened upon where the drone had been imprisoned. Her gasp rang out. “You brought one in. Is it broken?”
“Incapacitated. Once it recovers from the momentary shut down, it will function well enough to answer our questions.”
“It’s making a sort of humming noise now,” Bort said, staring with undisguised hatred at the unblinking mirror-black eye sensors. “It may have come online.”
Kren stepped toward the cell. “Are you aware, drone?”
“I am,” it replied in Risnarish. The slot that approximated a mouth did not move, but the dead, emotionless voice emitted from it.
Kren tugged Jeannie forward. “Do you recognize this Earthling?”
“I do. It is the property of my makers. We will reclaim the Earth organism.”
Kren scowled at it. “She, not it. She is not a soulless device like you.” A sudden inspiration hit, and he was glad to have so many witnesses. He said, “She is not of Monsudan origin.”
“Irrelevant. We brought her here from her planet. She is the subject of decades-long research. She is Monsudan property.”
There was the intake of many breaths from the watching officers. The drone had confirmed Jeannie was not a false creation. Nex caught Kren’s eye and grinned as he pointed to a blinking sensor on one of the computer consoles. He’d recorded the exchange.
It took all of Kren’s self-control to not yell in triumph. Whether or not the drone answered any questions now was almost immaterial to him. Capturing the thing had already paid off.
Meanwhile, Jeannie fixated on the drone’s intentions rather than the proof it gave for her origin. She stared at the mechanism, her lip curling in hatred. “You had no right to bring me to this planet. I don’t belong here,” she said in a low, angry voice.
Kren wanted to contradict her. His soul insisted she did belong on Risnar. With him.
Except she didn’t agree. Pain filled him as she added, “I belong on Earth.”
The drone spoke the unthinkable. “By escaping, the specimen has violated code. It will be restored to our hive. It will be retained for intensive study and experimentation. It will never be returned to Earth.”
Jeannie’s eyes went wide. “I have a life on Earth. I have a home. You can’t keep me!”
“You are a lower creature and a Monsudan specimen. You will be made to submit to experimentation until you die.”
Kren eyed the drone with fury. At that moment, with Jeannie’s lower lip trembling and her eyes filling with tears, he wanted to rip the Monsudan abomination apart.
It had threatened her. It had fucking threatened her.
The other officers had surrounded the cell and demonstrated their anger as well. Fists clenched. Lips wrinkled in snarls. Brows creased and lowered over narrowed eyes. Somehow seeing his rage reflected by his friends helped Kren find a measure of control. He drew a couple of deep breaths to calm himself.
How should he proceed with the questioning? Drones were always destroyed on sight, but now he needed information.
Settling on what intelligence seemed most important, he asked, “Is Jeannie’s presence in our village why you keep trying our boundaries?”
The thing’s dead voice said, “According to your customs, the Monsudan specimen should have been destroyed upon discovery. The transmitter showed us it still lived. We wished to investigate.”
“The first time they showed up to the barrier,” Arga mused. “But you came to where we found her, not close to where she was.”
“Systematic investigation,” the drone replied. “We are not lower beasts. We proceed from logic.”
“You proceed on the orders of the soulless abominations that built you,” Bort snarled.
Kren waved him quiet. “Continue to explain your interest in the Earthling,” he ordered the drone.
“We knew when you removed the transmitter from the organism. We came to verify that the experiment had been eradicated afterward. Yet it still lives. Why?”
Kren’s stomachs twisted. The horror in Jeannie’s eyes made him sick. Not only had they kept tabs on her whereabouts, but they’d known she was alive and when the tracker was removed. That level of surveillance frightened him.
Kren’s anger rose anew at the way the Monsuda had victimized Jeannie. “We do not kill sentient beings. Particularly not those who share in the Spirit.”
The drone had no interest outside of its masters’ clinical outrages. “You have testing protocols that confirmed the Earthling is not of our making. The masters will want to know that. Release me.”
Arga responded to the ridiculous directive. “No chance, egghead.”
After her initial shock, Jeannie had recovered some measure of equilibrium. In a voice that shook only a little she asked, “Why have you been abducting me all these years? What gives you the right to take me, to scare me, to hurt me?”
“The specimen has no significance. It is lower, as is all its kind. Rights for such a creature do not exist,” the drone maintained. It dismissed Jeannie, directing its comments to Kren. “You Risnarish have assumed command of this unit’s liberty. This is not acceptable. You will release me at once so that my mission can be completed. Any failure to do so will result in consequences for your village.”
Kren snarled, “You aren’t going anywhere. You will answer our questions.”
“You do not release me?”
Arga barked a disbelieving laugh. “Are you stupid as well as ugly? No!”
“System shutdown.” At that abrupt announcement, the drone’s black lenses turned milky white. It spoke no more.
“Hey. Drone! Talk!” Kren yelled at the unresponsive mechanism.
In his frustration, Arga kicked at it, forgetting the barrier surrounding it. His foot bounced harmlessly off the containment, sending ripples of reaction along its otherwise invisible surface.
“I think it self-destructed.” Bort sighed.
Kren shook his head and went to his next option. “Let’s take its head off and see if we can download any commands or memories.”
Jeannie looked at him in surprise. “You can do that?”
“Maybe. Drones are nothing more than machines.”
Jeannie’s shoulders drooped. “It talked about me as if I were the machine. Like I was nothing more than an unfeeling object.”
Kren hugged her close. “The Monsuda have no respect for any lives but their own.”
He pulled her away as Arga deactivated the cell. The other officers stood armed and ready around the drone, watching for any sign of re-activation. The drone lay where Arga had dumped it, its eyes still milky.
Squaring his shoulders, Arga marched up to it and yanked its head free of its body. Bort and Pon took the body to the disposal unit while he put the drone’s head on a computer podium and began to connect it with cables.
The dome door to the outside opened. Kren stared to see the Elders Council, led by Yees, walk in. Jeannie moved close to him, watching the new arrivals with obvious alarm. Kren darted a look at Mekay. His guardian’s face was composed as were the faces of all the elders, but he gave Kren an almost imperceptible nod.
Kren felt dizzy for a moment before his hearts surged with triumph. Jeannie was safe. They had judged in her favor.
Yees’ always serene demeanor cracked for an instant as her gaze fell on the drone’s head that Arga worked on. In a voice left breathless from shock, she asked, “What is this? I’d heard our barrier was being contested, but why do you have one of these monstrosities?”
Kren moved forward and made the traditional gesture of respect. He was so relieved to know Jeannie would be okay that he did not care what discipline he might face for taking a drone prisoner. “From my spirit to yours, welcome to the Elders Council. In answer to your question, Elder Yees, I commanded this abomination’s capture to discover why the Monsuda keep testing our defenses. I wished to know if they are trying to retake Jeannie, and if so, why.”
Jeannie stayed glued to him, and he kept himself between her and the council. Fetla glowered like a thunderstorm. Whether it was because Kren had broken with protocol or that Jeannie had been judged sentient, Kren wasn’t sure.
Meanwhile, Yees had recovered her composure. She asked in her quiet voice, “And what have you discovered?”
Kren recounted the interrogation, adding he would send the recording Nex had made to the council for their contemplation. As he described all that had happened, Arga continued to hook up the drone’s head to the computer.
Just as Kren finished getting the council up to speed, the system’s voice filled the air. “Interface completed. Information loaded. How would you like to proceed?”
“With your permission, Elder Yees?” Kren asked.
“Continue.” Her eyes gleamed with interest despite her tranquil expression. Kren had the idea she was burning with curiosity.
Kren addressed the system. “Is there any information on the Earthling Jeannie Gardner in the drone’s data files?”
“Information is as follows: primary mission is to recapture escaped experimental organism. Upon re-acquisition, remand to permanent laboratory intake as perpetual specimen. There will be no return to place of origin. Failing to re-acquire, destroy it.”
Everyone exchanged horrified looks. Even Fetla seemed disturbed by the information.
The system wasn’t done. “There is an additional link to active Monsudan files. Shall I download?”
“Yes,” Kren and Yees said simultaneously. The council leader’s attention was rapt on the drone’s head.
“Loading. Loading interrupted. Link broken at source.”
“They’re on to us,” Kren muttered. “System, did you get any information specific to Jeannie?”
“Limited amount of information specific to Jeannie Gardner, designated Subject Enajeod. It appears to be an addendum to a larger file, which was not obtained. It reads: thorough brain remolding to commence upon return. Objective is to test limits of modifications before death occurs.”
Jeannie shuddered. Kren croaked his next order. “Share other data relating to Earthlings.”
“One complete file was downloaded, titled ‘Collection Protocols.’ Collection protocol file is large. Time to relate verbally, one hour. One partial file was downloaded, titled ‘Experimentation on Humanoid Earth Organisms.’ Experimentation files are extensive. Time to relate verbally, seven hours. Do you wish to proceed with either file?”
“Someone get some brew and send for catering,” Pon muttered.
“We only need a few questions answered for immediate purposes,” Yees said. “System, can you tell us the reason for experimentations on Earthlings?”
“Experimentation is to chronicle ongoing modifications of Earthlings for slave labor force. Final design modifications to be finalized for Monsudan purpose of migration and colonization of Earth.”
The room erupted into shouts of anger from the men. Next to Kren, Jeannie went pale. She rocked on her feet and Kren grabbed her. She shook her head as if to throw off the terrible report, managing to stay upright.
“They want to take over Earth?” she cried.
The system answered. “Confirmed.”
Arga raked three fingers through his mane. “How would they get there? How are they bringing Earthlings to Risnar?”
“Through the interstellar portal.”
More outcry. Over it, Mekay called, “Explain this portal and how the Monsuda use it.”
Everyone quieted to hear the system’s reply. “A crease in space exists, commonly referred to as a vortex. Such portals are possible to manufacture, though only for short distances of a few miles at this time. However, larger vortices may happen naturally, as one has between Risnar and Earth. The portal draws the distances together. An access point, discovered millennia ago, opens into this phenomenon in space. Another is opened on Earth. The Monsuda and their drones pass through the door on board a ship made for this mode of travel. They collect their laboratory subjects on Earth and return to Risnar. When experimentation is complete, the sample’s memory of its time in the laboratories is suppressed. It is then restored to Earth until its next scheduled procedure.”
Kren’s mind boggled at the idea of a doorway between two worlds. “A portal. It takes away the need for ships capable of interstellar travel. So the Monsuda still don’t have space travel as we do.”
Comprehension filled Jeannie’s expression. “I remember something now. I remember being taken from my home into what looked like a ship. It floated above the ground. A beam of light came from it, a small platform came down, and I floated up into it.”
Vot, one of the female elders, nodded her understanding. “We have worked on such technology with little success so far. The theory is there, but implementation eludes us for now.”
Nex edged forward. “The big problem is keeping such a portal stable. That requires vast amounts of carefully measured energy, with no deviations. Otherwise, an unpowered object collapses the access. If you send through anything that’s powered, it would amplify with explosive results.”
Vot dipped her head with approval. “That has been our biggest hurdle. We’ve concentrated our efforts on short-range portals, which would require no containing object to keep a living organism safe. Yet traveling safely through a larger interstellar portal in an unpowered protective vehicle is theoretically possible.”
Yees waved off the conversation, still focused on the drone’s head. “How long have these preparations for colonizing Earth been going on? How long have the Monsuda been experimenting on the Earthlings?”
“Experimentation has occurred since the first successful portal crossing two hundred thousand, four hundred, thirty-three years ago. Colonization plans went into effect in the last century as Risnar’s resources are close to being stripped.”
“They’ve been grooming the Earthlings all this time?” Fetla blustered.
“Wait a moment,” Mekay said, his eyes widening. “Are the Monsuda responsible for the problems we’ve noted with Risnar? The loss of habitats, the massive climate fluctuations?”
“The answer to all questions is affirmative,” the system said.
Yees sighed, a rare view of the pressure she felt. “We have suspected the Monsuda were behind the climate irregularities that have led to the dying off of huge swaths of our planet. They’ve destroyed enough ecosystems that perhaps they can no longer survive here.”
Mekay’s face darkened with anger. “While we have resisted annihilation by staying safe behind our barriers, they have prepared a second world for themselves, complete with a race of slaves.”
“System, expand on these suppositions,” Yees said.
“Risnar’s natural reserves are plummeting. The planet is near the tipping point where recovery may not be possible. Massive die-offs of current species are already occurring. The Risnarish are no longer safe behind their barriers for this reason.
“Supposition for colony on Earth: Monsudan technology has been at a standstill for many decades. Their infrastructure is crumbling due to loss of their massive resource needs. Risnarish resistance has proven intractable, preventing the Monsuda from gaining protected grounds.”
“Good for us,” Chal sneered.
“The bottom line,” Jeannie said. “Is Earth going to be invaded by the Monsuda?”
The system answered, “Earth is now the primary candidate for colonization. Preparations for full-scale invasion are under way.”
The council elders’ faces were grave. Kren’s hearts pounded in his chest. Earth was in trouble, and its inhabitants had no idea of the threat. Risnar was in trouble too, and their discovery of that knowledge had perhaps come too late.
Jeannie’s voice shook. “Is there a timetable as to when the Monsuda will carry out their plan?”
“Final acquisition as agreed upon by all hives is on schedule for two years, seven months, and fifteen days. At that time, any humans older than the age of twelve and younger than five will be exterminated. Those left will be kept as slave subjects to the Monsuda.”
This time when Jeannie staggered, her knees gave out. Kren barely kept her from hitting the floor.
The room rocked as he held her up. Horrified but angry at herself for the weakness, Jeannie forced herself to focus. This was not the time to play the damsel in distress.
“I’m okay,” she told Kren. She tensed her calves to make her legs stop shaking and hold her up.
The news that the Monsuda planned to destroy so many of her people and enslave the rest in less than three years was more than she could contemplate at that moment. She needed time to absorb this latest shock. Pushing away a feeling of unstoppable doom, she switched her attention to more immediate concerns.
She looked to Yees. “Before we go any farther with the Monsuda’s plan to take over Earth, let’s discuss the here and now. You came to give me your verdict.”
She fancied Yees appeared relieved at the subject change. “We did. Our interviews with you have satisfied the majority of the Assembly that you are a sentient being. Moreover, you are thought to be a product of the All-Spirit, the same force we believe created us. Our medical tests also confirm your species was formed independently of Monsudan influence, at least at the beginning.”
“At the beginning?” Kren asked.
Mekay took up the explanation. “Genetic material analysis links Jeannie to Sisneg Man. Her race is indeed descended from his. However, something else has been introduced into her makeup. Some as far back as Sisneg Man, perhaps, but other strains showed up more recently.”
“I’m not a scientist,” Jeannie said. “You’re going to have to use small words to explain this to me.”
Mekay nodded. “I will do my best. You are not the first of your race to be victimized by the Monsuda, Jeannie. They have been tampering with your people for a long time.”
Yees shook her head, her usual calm visibly disturbed. “An entire species, altered and experimented on against their will. Without their knowledge, for the most part. It is a travesty, one that must be stopped before the Monsuda succeed in their terrible plan to take your world from you.”
“Jeannie will live. You have judged her to be real.” Kren’s declaration filled the room. He was the only person who seemed to find any joy in the moment.
Yees offered a bow to Jeannie. “I am sorry you were treated as if you were a non-being. I regret any fear or grief you endured because of our fear and suspicions.”
Mekay added, “Particularly since a portion of the Monsudan tampering has to do with us.”
“With you?”
Jeannie’s surprise doubled when Fetla answered, “Some of your genetic material is Risnarish. No doubt the Monsuda introduced portions of our DNA to that of the Earthlings during their experiments.”
“We are your brothers and sisters, Jeannie,” Yees said. “Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say we are distant cousins. You are a descendant of Sisneg Man and those like him. The Risnarish influence is there, but slight.”
Jeannie tried to absorb this news. She was part Risnarish? Somehow she doubted the genealogy websites would have picked that up.
Trying to give her whirling mind something to latch on to, she asked Yees, “Now what happens?”
“We must get you where you belong, on your own world among your own people.”
Mekay mused, “The trick is in how to accomplish this task. We now know the way, but it is in the hive of the enemy.”
Jeannie forced herself not to look at Kren. How did he feel about her leaving? She focused on what everyone thought must happen. “I’ll have to go through the portal.”
Yees frowned. “Which must be located at any cost. Located so we can send you back, and then captured for study. Or destroyed so that it can’t be used again. The Monsuda must be stopped from not just bringing your people here. Their plans for invasion cannot be allowed to succeed.”
Arga’s brow creased. “If the portal access device is mechanical, a power surge might be enough to do the job of destroying it. Nex, you did say it amplifies energy.”
“Is there just the one?” Jeannie wondered.
Yees’ attitude turned graver. “Doubtful. The Monsuda are housed in many different hives all over our world, each with its own queen. Yet we have seen them throughout history work with each other for a common cause. It would seem the takeover of Earth is such an endeavor.”
Kren stared at her, his face registering horror. “If each hive has a portal, we’re talking about access points in the thousands.”
The men surrounding Jeannie wore identical grim looks. The women had their own attitudes of concern.
Yees spoke to the council. “We must go to the Assembly and tell them of all we’ve discovered here. Earth and Risnar now share a common enemy. Moreover, the Earthlings are now of our flesh, bone, blood, and spirit. We must do what we can to prevent the Monsudan infestation of the world of our sisters and brothers.”
The others nodded. They formed a grave procession as they filed out of the dome. Jeannie supposed they were on their way to do as Yees had directed.
The head elder turned to Kren for a final word before she followed the council out. “Remain ready, Kren Zvanhahz Bolep. As head enforcement authority of Hahz, you will be called upon to help secure this first portal, the one Jeannie came from. For now, keep her safe from our enemies until the time comes to send her home.”
She left them. It was only after the door closed behind her that Jeannie realized that she’d been holding her breath.