They were using mosquitoes—vampires of the insect world—to get rid of psychopaths, vampires of the human world, Sophia thought. ‘It sounds hard to pull off,’ she said.
‘Actually, it’s quite a simple delivery method. And the most efficient and effective way to deliver the Chimera vector to the population.’
‘Once you have the Chimera vector codes, how long will it take?’
‘The code will be transmitted to every Akhana base in the world where we have the equipment to manufacture the vectors. We’ll inject them into volunteers, take blood samples from them and feed the blood to the mosquitoes. We’ve conducted time trials from when we get the code to the time we release the mosquitoes. We’re looking at forty to forty-five minutes.’
Sophia exhaled sharply, which made her feel slightly dizzy. ‘That’s fast.’
‘There’s one problem,’ Cecilia said. ‘I discovered during my Project GATE trials that if you inject both Chimera vectors into the same person—psychopath or otherwise—it creates an unanticipated synergy. One where two pseudogene clusters are expressed adjacent to each other. When this happens, they produce a third transcript as well as their own.’
‘So there are
three
Chimera vectors?’ Sophia said.
‘In a sense.’ Cecilia smiled. ‘I suppose that suits, since the Chimera had three heads. This third transcript, I call it the Methuselah effect. It switches on pseudogene clusters responsible for heightened DNA repair, hormone production, superior protection against free radicals and a considerable range of functions that slow down the aging process.’
‘It turbo-boosts the Axolotl Chimera vector?’ Sophia said.
‘Sure. Cut off a finger and it grows back a week later. But more than that, when these genes turn on, people that should be old—’ Cecilia eyed Sophia carefully ‘—become young again. And stay that way for a protracted amount of time.’
Sophia’s mouth felt dry. ‘They can live forever.’
Cecilia seemed hesitant. She looked down at the polished concrete floor between them. ‘Not forever. But definitely longer. It started with yeast and worms, and then in the 1980s we quadrupled the lifespan of mice. We tested elderly humans in the nineties and restored their appearance to someone of approximately your age. They were exceptionally healthy and resistant to disease. We can only guess at how long they will live for, but our conservative estimates place them at 360 years. It could be more. It could be a lot more.’
Sophia shivered at the thought. ‘If the Fifth Column get access to that—’
‘Then there’s no point using the anti-psychopath vector,’ Cecilia finished for her. ‘Because the psychopaths—’
‘Will never die,’ Sophia said. ‘The Methuselah effect works on psychopaths too?’
Cecilia nodded. ‘It works on everyone. That’s the problem.’
Sophia shook her head. ‘You should’ve destroyed it. No one should be able to live forever.’
‘The Chimera vector codes are stored on a supercomputer in the Desecheo Island facility,’ Cecilia said. ‘The only way to be certain it is destroyed would be to destroy
everything
.’ She shook her head. ‘We can’t do that. We
won’t
do that. The anti-psychopath vector is too important.’
‘That’s an incredible risk.’
Cecilia held Sophia’s gaze. ‘I’m aware of the risks.’
‘So you want the anti-psychopath vector, but the Fifth Column want both?’
‘Correct.’
‘And they know that combining the Chimera vectors gives them immortality?’ Sophia said.
‘Immortality is an incorrect term: it implies they can never die and you can never kill them. The Methuselah effect grants an indefinite lifespan. The Fifth Column is aware of the effect. And Denton is more than just aware. He took an . . . unnatural interest in this; an obsession almost. As any psychopath would. He wanted it refined for Project GATE.’
‘Wait a second,’ Sophia said. ‘You want to release the anti-psychopath vector worldwide to sterilize anyone who carries the gene, which is OK in theory, but then all the Fifth Column need to do is get hold of the Axolotl vector and—’
‘And inject themselves,’ Cecilia said. ‘Sure, you’re a sterile psychopath, but you’ve boosted your healing, your organ repair and limb regeneration and you have an extended lifespan. You don’t care about sterility. You care about yourself.’
‘It’s a double-edged sword,’ Sophia said.
‘Not for them,’ Cecilia said. ‘But for us it is. So now you understand the gravity of the situation. That’s why, when the time comes for you to steal the codes and decrypt them—that is, if you choose to help us—your first action will be to encrypt the code with
another
segment of my DNA. One that no one—not even you—can access. That’s our insurance policy in case you are captured.
‘Once you have done that, you must electronically transmit the codes to me and destroy your copy immediately. Either way, from the moment you have it, the code will self-annihilate in twenty-four hours. So it’s important I have it immediately. I will be on standby near the facility, in Puerto Rico. Once you’ve transmitted it to me, you’re free to put a bullet through Denton’s head. If you like.’
Cecilia stood abruptly. ‘We have the opportunity to rid the planet of Denton and psychopaths like him permanently. For the first time in hundreds, if not thousands, of years we can have a world without evil.’ She paced the room, chillingly focused. ‘A world without war. Can you imagine what that would feel like?’
‘No,’ Sophia said.
‘Precisely.’ Cecilia drew to a halt. ‘Because we’ve never had peace.’
She turned to her desk. ‘Oh, before I forget.’ Her voice was soft again as she reached into a drawer and retrieved a plastic container, which she handed to Sophia. ‘This was yours, I believe.’
Sophia opened it. Inside she found her cassette player and earphones, David Bowie tapes, her clock radio, hairbrush, toothbrush and folded-up purple pillowcase. Her hands trembled.
‘I brought it with me from Desecheo Island,’ Cecilia said.
‘I can’t believe the Fifth Column kept all this.’ Sophia picked up one of the tapes and smiled. ‘This was my favorite song: “Yassassin”. Only one letter away from assassin.’
Cecilia smiled too. ‘Actually, it’s Turkish for wishing someone a long life.
Yassassin
literally means “may he or she live”.’
Sophia placed the tape back in the container.
‘We can talk more about this tomorrow,’ Cecilia said. ‘If you’re still uncomfortable with the plan, then we can evaluate other options. That room you slept in is yours now. Once we have the chance, we’ll make it a bit more homely. I’ll have Ursula show you the way back.’
‘I can find my own way.’ Sophia stood, and paused in the doorway. ‘Thank you for trying to find me.’
Cecilia nodded curtly. ‘We’ll speak again over breakfast.’
***
Sophia returned to her new sleeping quarters with her container of childhood possessions to find her bag, still full, and a stack of four MRE field-ration packs by her bed. The top one was chicken fajita, which she considered the worst-tasting ration pack ever made.
She was too exhausted to check her bag for all the possessions—and there wasn’t anything of value in there. Instead, she placed her canteen beside the ration packs and pulled the pencil flashlight from her bag. She removed its batteries and exchanged them with the old ones in her cassette player. She drank half the canteen to rehydrate, put her earphones in her ears and lay down on the bed.
She hit play.
Chapter 20
‘Good morning,’ Cecilia said. She was sitting on her chair again. It looked almost as though she hadn’t moved since the day before. She wet her lips. ‘Operatives. I’ve given it some thought, Sophia, and I think it’s far too dangerous.’
‘I can deprogram operatives in the field and bring them in. They can join the resistance.’
‘We don’t have that much time,’ Cecilia said.
‘I can engage an operative’s slave mode inside of ten minutes,’ Sophia said. ‘I’ve refined the entire deprogramming procedure to inside of a week. If I’m going to pull this off, I need operatives. The best.’
Cecilia appeared to consider her proposal for a moment. ‘You’ll need a complete list of operatives and their abilities, both vector induced and natural,’ she said. ‘You can build your team based on what abilities you need. Do you have anyone in mind?’
‘Damien and Jay.’
Cecilia shook her head. ‘Not a chance.’
Sophia did her best to remain calm. ‘Why not?’
‘That is precisely what Denton will expect you to do.’
‘Fine. I want Grace,’ Sophia said. ‘Her ability will be useful.’
Cecilia fell silent.
‘She’s not dead, is she?’
Cecilia shook her head. ‘Oh no, she’s not dead. She’s a shocktrooper now.’
‘So?’ Sophia said. ‘I can still deprogram her, can’t I?’
‘You can. But I wouldn’t recommend it.’
Sophia folded her arms. ‘Why?’
‘Deprogramming her would be unpredictable. They are the beta operatives. Her programming is just as experimental as her pseudogenes.’
‘What pseudogenes?’
‘The shocktroopers were the first successful recipients of the Axolotl Chimera vector. Before I encrypted it along with the anti-psychopath Chimera vector, anyway. Like the other shocktroopers, Grace has a more powerful version of the hyperequilibrioception and hyperproprioception vectors. Her balance, acceleration, coordination and speed are greatly enhanced. Add that to the Axolotl Chimera vector and her innate ability, and she’s near unstoppable.’
‘We need her.’
Chapter 21
The intruder had inch-long copper hair that Sophia instantly recognized. Partly swathed in shadow, she entered the bathroom and leveled a SIG Sauer P229 at Sophia.
Sophia, sitting on the lip of the bathtub in near-darkness, had her own pistol in hand. ‘I was beginning to think you weren’t going to make it.’
The intruder stiffened slightly. ‘I know you.’
Sophia smiled. She had been waiting patiently for over two hours in this tiny Moroccan apartment. The intruder’s target, a wafer-thin male college student with a shaved head, lay bound and sedated in the bathtub beside her, wide electrical tape spread over his mouth.
‘Children three that nestle near, eager eye and willing ear, pleased a simple tale to hear,’ Sophia said.
Something behind the intruder’s eyes shifted, clicked into place. ‘Access permitted,’ she said.
‘Nasira, I’d like you to empty the rounds from your magazine and place them in the basin,’ Sophia said. ‘And your pistol too.’
Nasira released her magazine. The rounds clattered loudly as she dropped them in the sink. Sophia knew they were too large to slip down the pipe. Nasira rested her pistol on top of the rounds, then stared at nothing in particular.
Sophia dipped into her bag with her free hand. She removed a notepad, the pages cluttered with her own handwriting. ‘Nasira. Confirm neopsyche designation Alcyone.’
‘Alcyone confirmed.’
False personality confirmed. Good.
‘Execute Alcyone. Confirm parapsyche listing,’ Sophia said.
‘Alcyone loaded. Listing restricted,’ Nasira said.
Sophia exhaled. ‘Confirm parapsyche designation Celaeno.’
‘Celaeno confirmed.’
Now for the code architecture interface.
‘Execute Celaeno,’ Sophia said.
‘Celaeno loaded,’ Nasira said. ‘Request command.’
‘Compile subprogram Acis to interface with parapsyche Celaeno,’ Sophia said.
‘Compilation successful.’ Nasira remained perfectly still. ‘Acis loaded. Request command.’
‘Activate debugging mode,’ Sophia said. ‘List all parapsyches and their functions.’
‘Parapsyche Celaeno; function: code architecture interface,’ Nasira said. ‘Parapsyche Ares; function: assassination. Parapsyche Auto-Thanatos; function: self-destruction. Parapsyche Lycaon; function: slave mode. Parapsyche Orthrus; function: programming defense. Parapsyche Oranos; function: parapsyche partition management—’
‘Halt,’ Sophia said. ‘Execute parapsyche designation Oranos.’
‘Oranos loaded. Request command.’
‘Confirm access restrictions,’ Sophia said.
‘Command is non-specific. Please rephrase.’
Sophia chewed her lip. ‘Confirm erasure command access restrictions.’
‘Erasure commands unrestricted,’ Nasira said.
‘Long had paled the sunny sky,’ Sophia said.
‘Command not recognized.’
She’d just tripped Orthrus, the programming defense parapsyche. Not good.
‘Execute parapsyche Celaeno,’ Sophia said. Back to the code architecture.
‘Celaeno loaded. Request command,’ Nasira said.
‘Search for Orthrus commands. List results.’
‘Search complete,’ Nasira said. ‘Three entries. Entry one: deactivate Orthrus: Summer. Entry two: activate Orthrus: Autumn. Entry three: calibrate Orthrus: Winter.’
The deactivate function was a trick, Sophia knew. All of the deactivate functions were. It wasn’t going to be that easy.
‘Execute parapsyche designation Oranos.’
‘Oranos loaded.’ Nasira’s gaze remained on the wall behind Sophia. ‘Request command.’
The student in the bathtub stirred. Sophia ignored him. This had better work.
‘Autumn frosts have slain July,’ she said.
July was the code for calibrating parapsyche Ares. If this worked, she’d just commanded one part of Nasira’s programming to attack another part.
Nasira started shaking. Her cocoa skin prickled with goose bumps. She looked like she was about to cry.
Sophia wet her lips. She checked the bound college student. His eyes were wide and he was watching her intently. She raised a finger to her lips.
‘Parapsyche Ares erased . . .’ Nasira’s lips trembled. ‘It hurts.’ She brought her hands to her ears and shut her eyes. Dropping to her knees, she twisted and writhed. ‘Make it stop,’ she said. ‘Make it stop!’
Sophia leaned forward. Her notepad slipped onto the tiles. ‘Echo status.’
Nasira stopped moving. She was hunkered over, eerily still, cloaked in shadow.
The student moaned through the electrical tape.
Sophia stood over Nasira, screamed, ‘Echo status!’