Log 1 Matter | Antimatter (7 page)

“Jamie Livio Raner, you are one of the
Sentinel Program called the Dragon’s Teeth.”

His heart swelled. It was an older order with
much mystery—one that, apparently, his father was a part of.

“Listen to this. A PuG has been created.”

“There hasn’t been one for a thousand
years.”

Jamie almost laughed remembering Marc’s
rendition of Maya cruising in the Cardinal Unit asking for a fill
of Chaos to churn out a PuG. He glanced at the newly initiated
black ops team. He was to work solo and/or in command, and hadn’t
received the attache offer Marc had spoken of. In fact, he hadn’t
heard any more about it until that very morning. He heard his
desktop beep from his chair in the common room and walked into his
room, scanning it first, and checked his messages. His assignment
was in.

“What the crap?” Jamie was fuming. “A damned
babysitting mission.” He almost left the organization.

As if feeling a disturbance in Jamie’s
general energy, his handler visited him. “Jamie.”

“Simon.” Habit made him polite.

The redhead smiled, his real pale face and
freckles well known to Jamie now. Simon looked around. “You’ve
already packed up your room. You are either keen or don’t like your
assignment.”

“It’s a babysitting mission.” His voice
betrayed his disgust.

“It is. Let me tell you about it before you
leave.” Simon closed the door, activated a Bulwark Mark Six, and
launched into a description of the mission.

Jamie’s mouth gaped open. “And you want me to
look after her security?”

Simon nodded. “You will have all the
resources you want, and however many people you need. Full security
teams. You’ll be liaising with all Aryan agencies, queens and
kings, and the Cradle Warlords. You need to meet her adopted
family. They aren’t what they seem, and Marc is going to become her
‘brother’. She cannot know who she is.”

“What do you mean?”

“There are strict instructions from Maya via
the CU. She is to be raised by Inferors, below Avatara…”

Jamie stiffened a little and cracked a
finger.

“In time she will know but that’s not your
job.” Simon glanced down at Jamie’s hands. “I thought you had that
under control.”

Jamie ignored his comment but surged with
annoyance again, his nice illusion destroyed. He cracked his
knuckles and snapped, saying, “I may leave so who cares?”

“Jamie—”

He lifted his hand to stop Simon. “But she’s
a Pure-Gen.”

“You will have full access to the
instructions. We are … cheating the Maya.”

Jamie thought quickly while also thinking
about what jobs he could do with his current qualifications.
“Because you are installing Aether beings to be her family.”

Simon nodded and leaned back. “Only three in
the AG know of what we do, half the Warlords, highest level
AMs.”

“So … government, military, and warlords, and
Energy-matter Beings?” He’d have to work five years for the AM in
some mundane job but it might be worth it.

“Triaxial Milieu in the Aether, top officials
only. Her adopted family is not the most powerful of the
combinations, but they live in the buffer, closer to the Core. The
longer they live in Aryan Space the less Aether they become.”

“I don’t understand.” Estancia Station would
be the best place for him to find good work. He might even return
to Lyon 3 and be closer to Michael who was now a programmer in
gaming tech.

“They were specially chosen for another
mission. Already living on one of our planets, having adapted to
live outside their energy realm, they have some of our matter
already. Their children are even closer to the Aryan forms, but the
Aether pairs, you’ll meet them, are still unique. A powerful pair
cannot be her guardians; they cannot form to solid state well.”

“And that’s why you need me; I mean they need
us to perform a function that they can’t meet?” Dicks.

“Yes. And before you ask, we are allowing
them to raise the girl because of our … agreement to becoming the
Fourth Empire and Grand.”

“What has the girl to do with that?” Poor
kid.

“Nothing, actually. But there is another
being fabricated with Aether markers. Maya has instructions for
that one to be sent to the three empires, she’ll be treated like a
princess.”

“The other one?” Only twice, as far as Jamie
knew, had a pair of Pure-Gen been created. The famous Kavela and
Sibella were just one pair.

“A farmer’s daughter.”

“I see.” Again, poor kid.

Simon scratched his head. “You’re wiser than
me then because none of us understand it.”

Jamie laughed then, relaxing.

“There is another element. It is thought the
Establishment, a clandestine operation consisting of all races and
headed by Pure-Gens, is involved somewhere.” Simon was trying not
to smile now.

Jamie’s eyes narrowed as he tried not to show
his interest was piqued. “So, we’re allowing the Aether to help
with our girl, and she’s a security risk then?”

“We don’t know but since finding out we are …
plain matter beings, not yet fully defined like the Dark Matter,
Energy-matter, and Antimatter Beings, we can’t risk being
vulnerable. We’re worried it will mean genocide. The girl is
designated a Mobile Unit, whatever that is.”

“I see.” He felt some excitement now, and
nerves. “I’m reversing on my previous annoyance and now wondering
why the hell you’ve chosen me.”

“We didn’t exactly, though you were high on
the list; the Aether chose you.”

“From the Repco. Marc.”

Simon nodded. “It started there. You’re at
the top of our list too so don’t feel too privileged.”

Jamie laughed. It was an old game they
played. Simon would increase honesty the more he picked up. He
vacillated for a few moments. And the mission seemed like a fusion
warfare catalyst. He’d considered the other triggers and having a
mobile unit linked to genocide was going to stretch all elements of
society. “I accept.”

“Good. I thought that once you learned how it
overlaps into your favorite passion you’d accept.”

Jamie laughed. “I’m not sure it’s my favorite
passion but it’s nice to know all those hot debates about
developing a truly new Aryan Society will—” Jamie nodded noting
Simon’s sly grin. “That’s why I was chosen.”

“You’re about to be embroiled in the messiest
affair of all time and we need someone who is not well known, but
well trained.” Simon leaned back in his chair. “The babes are still
being fabricated, growing in embryonic sacs, and you’ve got five
months but I’d start right away. Saratoga is your destination.
There’s a homestead and you’ll need a place to live.” Simon sighed.
“I’m a bit disappointed in you though.”

Jamie studied his face, unable to work out if
he was being serious or not. Simon leaned over and plucked up the
pen and paper that Jamie decided to leave behind. He wrote
something on the pad and held it up for Jamie to see.

“Idiot?”

Simon slapped the paper of the pad on Jamie’s
bare arm and pulled it off. The words had disappeared. “You found
all the secrets of the cell but you didn’t find out about the pen
and pad.”

Jamie snatched back the pen and pad with a
snort, and studied them. He lifted and stared at his arm with the
word “idiot” rising to the surface. “What the hell?”

“It’s new nanite technology, nanites in the
pen transfer to the pad where they bond, you place it on any
surface and they rise keyed to your specific Superlunary
signature.” Simon smiled. “You can even change the color just by
speaking the words aloud. So, ‘blue’ and then you can adjust it by
saying ‘cooler’ or ‘warmer’ or ‘darker’ etc.”

After Simon left, Jamie returned to sit on
the chair in the lounge. He looked around the room.

“So, what does it all mean? Why’d the Maya
even stop making Pure-Gens anyway?”

The group kept talking but Jamie only half
listened. This was it, his main assignment. A baby. A girl. A
farmer’s girl. His first job was to move to mountainous Saratoga
where he would be working. The Pure-Gen baby would live on the
planet in Perza Station. The family was already living there in a
homestead provided by Queen Silvia. Jamie had seen her images; she
was a beautiful queen married to a doctor named Jon. He also
accessed the region he’d be living; the mountains were wild looking
with thick forests. Temperatures were cool with storms. He felt
better already.

***

Iota

Station: Perza

Galactic System: Sarato (Spiral Galaxy)

Planetary System: N/A to Saratoga

Perza Space Hub to Jamie’s Cabin

Four months later—in a tent on his land as he
built his cabin—Jamie was to pick up his new ranger from Perza
Space Hub. The hub was populated by people from all over Perza
Universe. He sat on the steps, outside his cabin, drinking a
steaming mug of coffee. The air was crisp with birds tweeting
loudly high in the trees around him. Jamie read his itinerary for
his return trip balancing his EBrain on one leg. Once he left the
hub, which was situated on one of the spiral tips of the Sarato
Galaxy, he then just needed to range home to Saratoga’s solar
system. Thankfully, this meant a shorter HaV trip. It would be one
intra-galactic HaV of nine days plus the intra-system HaV of nine
hours to reach Saratoga Orbital Station.

Next to Jamie sat his new personal
transportal pack containing a flexible dovetail mat with four
box-like nodes smaller than his palm. Deciding not to open the pack
he lifted his technical controller, most just called it a techcon,
a piece of technology only Pure-Gens and First-Gens used. It looked
like a standard slim remote control for his entertainment unit but
had a white screen instead of a black one. While he’d seen Simon
use one, he was a little nervous. Jamie was accustomed to accessing
the public transportals at stringently maintained terminus
locations. He finished his coffee eyeing off the techcon. “Suck it
up, idiot.”

After his chores were complete he used his
Voice and contacted the space hub for clearance. They gave him
coordinates that he pressed into the techcon pad; a portal formed
swirling in front of him and taking a deep breath he stepped
through. Nine seconds later he deactivated his device after being
greeted, staring around at the busy space station hub that looked
more like a market. Voices babbled around him and he was asked to
move from the dovetail pad. Feeling only mildly queasy from the HaV
journey he nodded in apology, moved out and checked where his
ranger was docked. He stopped at the main port office and entered
the quiet room. He came in the off peak hours but a voice called
out to him.

“Jamie?”

He nodded and followed a trim woman into a
cubicle. He sat down. He was going to be pleasant but she started
talking.

“You’ve been briefed but I have your special
instructions ready”—she slid over a bound folder with two seals,
Queen Silvia’s seal and King Cyrus’s—“along with keys to enter the
Security Net at specific coordinates. You are unique because I
don’t have those coordinates. They aren’t registered.” Her voice
became a bit steely and her eyes hard. “But orders are orders. Once
you reach the security barrier you use this”—she slid across a
round, flat disk—“and it will connect, trigger, and deactivate the
shield. You must always use the same coordinates.”

Jamie opened his mouth but then closed it
because she might not have been aware but anger flashed across her
face and she held up her narrow hand and pointed a finger with red
nails at him.

“However, apparently you can repeat this
action to keep your coming and goings random. But you must only do
this in an emergency. You are cleared to enter Saratoga space and
then land at your designated space pad. After this, if not an
emergency, you must use the Space Lift.”

He nodded occasionally as she continued her
spiel, ended it abruptly, and flounced out, disapproval showing in
her every step. Jamie couldn’t care less.

Excitement filled his every step as he
left.

He had a license for this ranger and he’d
studied the specifications again over breakfast. “Definitely a
male.” What to call him? He was a Kulindros shape, so long oval.
Cigar? Cig? Bullet?

Jamie reached the docking bays and walked
along for a good half hour thinking he should jump on one of the
buggies that trundled by before finally finding ‘EG6’ in big
letters arching over a closed hatch. He found a control panel on a
pedestal, labeled “EG6”, and laid a hand on the GELpad, which also
took an SNA sample. The hatch opened revealing a tube. The sound
his shoes had made was now muffled by the spongy grate. Good for
sneaking up on people. He palmed the dark colored hatch on the
ranger, hearing the hatch behind close. After he walked through the
connecting tube he checked the cabins, ran checks that included
inspecting the two sable engines, environmental systems, filtration
and sewer units; there was even a tiny hydroponics bay, empty. The
main cabin was of decent size, with another tiny cabin containing
bunks and not much else. Jamie went to the new, shiny bridge and
sat in the pilot’s chair. Set around him in a horseshoe shape,
consoles waited to be activated. Pre-ranger checks checked, with a
flick he started the engines eying off the data now showing on his
main monitor. Engine output looked good.

“Perza Station Control, this is ranger KE2JR
preparing to initiate undock procedures. Am I cleared?”

“Ranger KE2JR, you are cleared to begin
undocking procedures. Slight adjustment please, gentle thrust two
par, drift for five minutes before full forward thrust.”

“Affirm, two par thrust, five-minute drift
then burn at the arse.”

There was a laugh. “Affirmative.”