Evolution's Essence (9 page)

Renee smiled and said “Yes, Emperor. I can’t
get sick. Just like my Match can’t get drunk.”

“
Lucky bastard.” Emperor
Coleson smirked as he look in the room. “Are the lions
tame?”

“
I control them.” Oliver
stood in his battle armor, adjusting the cape over the spikes. He
came forward. Despite the unease of the guards, the Emperor didn’t
shy when he extended a hand. “It is an honor to meet
you.”

“
Pleasure is all mine, Big
Fella.” He shook the bare hand and watched as it was covered in a
gauntlet. “Before we get started, is there anything I need to be
aware of that is dangerous?”

“
Yes, My daughter is
upstairs as are my Pride’s cubs with two adults. No one is allowed
up those steps. My instinct is to kill anyone who is near my child.
If you or your men try, I will be unable to stop
myself.”

Emperor Coleson turned to
his men filing in. “No one goes
near
the steps.”

“
Sir, we need to check for
danger.”

“
Do as I say.”

“
Sir.” The man nodded and
the agents moved to check the room, securing the entire main floor
and stood uncertainly by the great cats. Only Nova sat proudly
beside the head of the table Oliver sat at. The rest stood in
lethal armor, blue eyes alert and ready to attack at the first sign
of danger to their master. The androids positioned themselves
outside and the Drakes and their riders flew circles, making a
perimeter.

“
Greetings. I am Beyleez
Netul.”
He introduced himself, as did
everyone else as the room filled.

“
A pleasure, I can assure
your reputations precede you all. I’d like to introduce my wife
Trinna.” The Empress came forward and her wondrous expression met
only calculating amber and abrasive emerald trying to be polite.
“You know all the Elder Hunters I’m sure.”

“
We’ve met.” Vanishing Claw
took a seat at the main table and leaned the stone chair back onto
its back legs, propping his feet up on the tabletop. “I see you’ve
mastered the fighting style I taught you, Brother. You did well
utilizing it against this Ten K in the recordings you
sent.”

“
It was difficult, but it is
enjoyable.”

“
But you made it your own.
Netul, in the vids he moved like you.”

“
I too trained him, My
Friend.”

“
No wonder.” Talon sat
beside her man and drew a sword to begin cleaning it.

“
We’ll speak later on Mr.
Took, but these are my topmost scientists.” The Emperor gave their
names and the men and women in lab coats all shook Oliver’s large
gauntleted hand. The Medic Johnny was properly introduced after,
now with his helmet off. “And last but certainly not least
is…”

The brunette came forward. “Amanda Lockwell
of GNN. Is it true you are an eighty three million year old
Solarian?”

“
Did you give her full
access?” Oliver’s anger spiked and his hair unintentionally shot up
bright yellow and his eyes burned.

“
I did, but she will not
expose this monumental story till you get the last puzzle piece.
She has signed a confidentially contract with me present to keep
your privacy safe for a little while longer. It
will
come out eventually, especially
after the risen city on Mereddia was released publically eight
hours ago.”

Excess power flowed into his arm and he
calmed down. As did his hair and eyes. “What? Who did it?”

“
Someone uploaded it to the
net and GNN had no choice except to run with it and how it’s under
the Preservation Act and Pirate King Jake Dorgen is currently
responsible. GNN traced it to a Marine’s account and he has been
fined for the breach and demoted back to private.” Amanda Lockwell
said, now that his danger lowered and the Hunters relaxed and moved
to sit at the table too.

“
Damn, the captain did say
it would happen, but I’m surprised, Claw said you’d be a bit
more…”

The emperor laughed “Of a pain in the ass?
I’m sure he did, but with Ms. Lockwell recording everything I need
to be the Empire’s leader, not my true self. I’ve got to act the
part in this official capacity. Later I’ll be my obnoxious self
over a drink.”

“
He’s not lying. My husband
is quite forward.”

“
Not as forward as my woman,
I can assure you.”

Renee’s white dress changed to battle form in
front of everyone and she punched him in the arm. “Asshole.” Then
changed it back to the dress and strutted happily away to sit
between Rose and Sparky.

“
See.” Oliver chuckled, but
the Emperor gave a raspy deep laugh.

“
How did her clothes change
like that?” Empress Coleson wanted to know.

His own armor altered into a white shirt and
blue jeans. “It’s a function of our Valek when we apply armor coded
to our DNA.” Oliver reached and touched the hidden device beneath
the Emperor’s left sleeve.

“
My Multi-tool can do it
too?”

“
No, you are human. Your
mind would be destroyed if you tried making our armor. Your species
is close to mine, but the differences are too great even through
splicing. Come, sit. I’m actually desigining something more
suitable for you humans.”

Oliver sat at the head of the table, the
guests taking the other end. The Hunters and scientists sat on
either side. Netul and Vanishing Claw sat across from each other,
clearly conversing privately. Only Amanda Lockwell stood with the
floating recording orb. Nova sat on Oliver’s right side, staring at
everyone intelligently. Oliver though manipulated the Valek to
carefully grab the delicate parts still on the table.

First to break the silence was the reporter.
“Mr. Void, is it true?”

“
My age again?” he didn’t
look up as he tinkered.

“
Yes, I need it on
record.”

“
Between the Archivers of
the Creelin who knew me as General Mantiv and the derelict battle
cruiser Solarian ship’s records, yes. My body is that old. Who I am
now in E.S. is over a year old after I was rescued by Stephanie
Menann’s keen observation.” Jessica’s painted lips smiled as her
wife was given credit because it was true. “I was entombed for over
twenty five thousand years after having my DNA scrubbed along with
every memory and every bit of knowledge I had. It’s why I’m
searching for answers. If you have access, you would have seen my
condition when Renee Dorgen, Stephanie Menann, Stone Calliko,” Who
wasn’t here by Hunter council decision. “Deegen Castor and Steven
Metts discovered me in a stasis chamber of a sort. I was less than
an animal mentally.” Still he didn’t look up as he continued
working at his own careful pace. Though he did look through his
Pride’s eyes to find the reporter’s mouth agape. “But when my Valek
allowed me to take Deegen Castor’s memories of words and
association, I began to learn at an exponential rate. By
calculating how fast humans gather memory and retain it, mentally
I’m already roughly about four thousand years old, but my mind
surpasses both Creelin and Human mathematics and technology
creation.”

“
While my mind makes me
about nine thousand and I surpass all current medical knowledge and
genetics. With my own body I can cure the illnesses of a thousand
humans at a time and can kill them with poisons that take only two
adrenaline fueled heartbeats.” Renee said calmly
confident.

“
How is that possible?” the
Empress this time asked, a slight tint of fear lacing her
voice.

“
With this deceiving
bracelet.” She showed off. “This is a woman’s Multi-tool version
though it’s true name is a Valek. To know it is to know my mother.
Isabelle Dorgen modified an ovum using the Geo Record as a template
to make it into a Solarian after being infected by the blood of a
Defiler. Like me, she was a geneticist and survived long enough to
carry me to full term. I am a human born Solarian, but to protect
me my father, the pirate king, spliced a gene suppressant that made
it possible for me to pass as a human. It kept my bones, ligaments
and brain from its true potential. After being rid of the splicing,
my Valek recognized my genetics and began hollowing my bones where
I store deadly concentrations of hormones and poisons. My bones are
ten times denser than a natural human’s and risks that my bones may
break aren’t an issue due to my own biology. With it and nanites,
even
if
my bones
are breached, I have no risk of death by what I carry.”

“
I’m glad you bring this
up.” A scientist said and sat a box atop the table and removed the
lid to reveal laboratory mice. Nine of them in acrylic clear blocks
with air holes. “Five of these mice hold incurable diseases that
have been designed to kill them in the next two hours. Can you
identify and cure…”

From four meters away Renee raised an arm and
nine hair thin needles pierced the clear acrylic wall, took a
sample and withdrew. She closed her smoking eyes for a few moments
and said “Sneaky bastard. Six have deadly diseases and one has a
tracer that you could use to know where I’m at on any planet linked
to the terran network.” The man paled and gulped. “You boys
certainly are trying to see how good I am. Three of the fuzzy
critters have a genetic deficiency that will break down their
cells. Nasty. The others have diseases more virulent than is
naturally occurring. If you hadn’t tinkered with the strains you
would have killed near everyone in this room. Only Olly, his Pride,
my daughter and I would walk out of here. Well my little girl can’t
walk yet, but you get my point.” Eyes watched as the bracelet
vanished under the skin and came back in a minute to spear the
mice. “All done!” she said cheerfully. “No more disease and just so
you know, I also broke down the radioactive tracer you tried to
slip in me.” She winked, but Nova growled low and deep. All of them
did.

It was because Oliver was mad and he finally
looked up. “Mason, leave right now before I kick you out.”

“
Agreed. I
specifically
forbade any
underhanded tests that will anger them.” The Emperor sounded calm,
but his flinty eyes told otherwise.

“
But they need to be
studied!”

Emperor Coleson held up a
hand to his elite detail and said “They aren’t
your
lab rats, Mason. They are not
human and are more powerful than our Beyleez ambassador if I’m
correct.” Netul inclined his head. “If I didn’t know you meant no
harm and merely wished to study them for their own safety as purely
an intellectual basis you would undergo retraining. They are
our
hosts and he could
likely have killed you. I’m a gifted telepath so I know he read you
and is letting you off with a warning. Do not test him.” When he
looked back at the rest of his scientists he added “If any of you
have done similarly as Mason for the tests I ordered, you may also
leave.”

A woman went to excuse
herself, flushed cheeks telling she was embarrassed, but was being
honest about it. Sparky hissed as the man was escorted out.
“Not you, Siblia. You were intending to request
it, not deceive like that man. Sit.”

“
What request?” Oliver
asked, not intruding on others as is courtesy.

“
Spit it out.” Renee added
when the woman went still. The Hunters all lazily smirked at the
table, enjoying the show.

“
I was hoping to… to ask… if
you would.”

“
Stars!” Renee threw her
wrist out and shot out a solution that had an instant effect on the
nervous woman.

“
What did you just do?” The
woman’s trembling stilled.

“
Gave you an adrenaline
suppressant and released a mild endorphin into your bloodstream so
you would calm down and be understood. I’m still a Medic… only
more.” Came the wolfish grin. “Now what do you want that makes
Sparky stand up for you?”

Siblia swallowed and sat, oddly at ease and
lifted a case on the table to open it and set out two vials. “In
these are synthesized microbes that give a pheromone signature that
can be picked up by a specific magnetic frequency so you could be
found in event of an emergency. You are truly an endangered species
and your loss will be too great to ignore as the Creelin seem to
believe by letting you free to be in great danger… no offense of
course.”

“
None taken.”
Netul said.
“If you
understood them as my people do you would not fear their well
being. You cannot gauge their abilities because you are a young
species. We fear not for them, but we keep a constant visual on
them at all times because we too know accidents cause more deaths
than battle. Know that in event they are in danger they cannot
defend against, we plan to bring them to a healing center
immediately. So long as we can save the head, we can repair their
body. Not as fast or as well as Renee can, but certainly danger to
them is also a concern.”

“
We didn’t know you could do
that. Sorry.” She said.

“
Sorry, but microbes will be
killed in our bodies.” Renee said before one vial flew across the
table and into her hand. She unscrewed the lid and downed it. “Scan
until you can’t see me anymore.”

The scientist lifted a crystal tablet,
activated it and used a means to detect the pheromones and her
readings were baffling. In just twelve seconds “You’re clean
already… the resonance inside you is gone. Did you do something
with your Multi-tool?”