Immortal (36 page)

“But we have babies now?” Gabrielle
interjected.

“Yes.” Adam continued. “But with some help.
Your mother and your father could not have a baby together, not
without our help.”

“Your help?” Asked Jonah.

“Yes. Our help. The embryos that are grown in
New Sebastian for implementation, all come from here.” Adam said as
Gabrielle gasped. Adam nodded to her. “I understand how you feel,
but please understand what has been happening. We have been working
ceaselessly year after year to correct the problem caused by the
Deathshead cure. A reversal of the DNA transformation, and
ultimately a correction to the affected chromosome that was causing
sterility in all humans. Luckily, we have achieved that goal. We
have found the cure…for the cure, so to speak. It cannot be given
to someone already born, but instead the embryo must be engineered
to be free of the defective gene. We first achieved this with you.”
Adam said, as he looked at Jericho.

“Me?” he asked. Adam nodded.

“The two of you were the first. The Omega
Alpha series. And with every embryo engineered afterwards we were
able to implement the gene correction. Every child born since your
birth, Jericho, is free of the defect. Every child born since then
is fertile. For the first time in almost two hundred years, you…”
He said looking at Jericho. “And you…” he said looking at
Gabrielle. “The two of you can have a baby. A child of your own. A
true human being that would be made up of just your own DNA, paired
by the same chances as was intended by nature…by God…since our
species entered this world.”

“So the people of the village?” Jonah asked.
“They can have children?” Adam nodded.

“At least those younger than Jericho.” He
replied, and then turned back to them. “There is more you should
know.” He continued. “Your embryos. Specifically the two of you,
had a little something extra added. A tiny bit of nanotech designed
to be triggered in case of a specific circumstance. When Gabrielle
scanned positive in the village, her nanotech triggered. As soon as
you learned of this Jericho, yours triggered as well.”

“What is nanotech?” Jericho asked.

“Basically it’s like a tiny preprogrammed
machine. In your case, it also contained certain bits of data, and
that data ultimately helped you to make the decisions that you have
made that have led you here.”

“The control panel codes!” Exclaimed
Gabrielle. Adam nodded.

“Some were programmed into Jericho, some into
you. The last and final code. The one leading outside, was split
between you. We had to ensure that both of you would come.”

“You knew we would escape? Even all those
years ago?” Jericho asked. Adam nodded once again.

“You could say that we have engineered this
outcome. We have been carefully planning for this very moment,
since way before either of you were born.”

“But why? How? How could you play with our
lives like this?” Gabrielle asked.

“Let’s start with why.” Adam began. He
pointed to Jillian. “How old is she?” He asked.

“I don’t know? Thirty?” She guessed.

“Jonah?” Adam asked.

“That’s not fair. I knew her before she came
here. She’s about one hundred and fifty.” He said confidently. Adam
smiled.

“Jillian?” He asked her.

“Please don’t.” She said to Adam, as she
looked nervously at Jonah.

“Jillian. We haven’t much time.” She
hesitated, and then spoke reluctantly.

“I am twenty one.” She said. Jonah looked
astonished.

“Twenty one?” He asked. “That’s impossible!
You’re at least as old as I am!” She shook her head. “What? You’re
some kind of clone? A Copy?”

“Please follow me.” Adam said, as he left the
control room, and walked briskly down the hall. He approached a
door which slid aside. The inside was total darkness. “Lights on.”
He said, and suddenly the room lit up a brilliant white. They
peered inside, and saw the small room had three rows of cubicle
like divisions. All but one was empty. In the one farthest from the
door way, a man stood. The bottom part of his body stood rigidly as
the top part slumped forward. Attached to his head was a black ring
with numerous wires that led back to the wall behind him. A
continuous series of lights blinked on and off on a panel on the
wall behind him. Jillian entered the room and avoided eye contact
with the others. She approached the man, reached beside him, and
tapped a button on the wall. Suddenly he stood up. Jonah
gasped.

“Premier?” He said with disbelief.

“The reprogramming and announcement sequences
have been sent, Adam.” Said the Premier. The original Premier.
Roger’s father, Daniel.

Rebecca had finally managed to get the bottle
open, and wash down her mouthful of the luscious sweet bread. The
sparkle water tickled her nose, and she sneezed. She laughed, then
took another drink, grabbed another bottle and opened it as well.
She jammed another sweet bun in her mouth, and as she chewed,
jammed another in her pocket. She grabbed both bottles and stepped
out of the kitchen. As she crossed the large room, she glanced
around at the sparse furnishings in the large room. She made her
way across the living area to the glass wall, and accidentally
bumped the adjacent wall with her elbow. The video wall lit up, and
she jumped. It was all red, with some figures running across the
screen. She did not know what they said, as she had never been
taught to read. No longer startled, she stepped closer to the glass
wall, but when the glass slid open, she jumped back. She felt a
slight draft of wind on her face, took a sip, and stepped outside
onto the patio. Outside was a single chair alone in the vast
expanse. She walked around it, pushed it little, and satisfied, sat
down and took another drink. Suddenly, she heard a yell from below.
She jumped up and rushed to the railing. Below her in the street, a
man backed towards the wall of the building beneath her. His hands
were up, as he pleaded with the Guardians that approached him. She
stared in horror as she realized they were about to control
him.

“Hey!” She yelled, and waved her hands. “Up
here!” She yelled. The man looked up at her.

“Help!” He yelled, as the two Guardians still
approached. She threw her bottle with amazing accuracy. It
shattered against the head of the Guardian in the rear. It looked
up and froze.

“Hey, up here!” She yelled again. The other
Guardian still approached. “Hey!” She yelled again, and threw the
full bottle. It barely missed the Guardian and it shattered on the
street. She banged her hand on the rail. The other Guardian froze,
and looked up at her as well. They both stepped back from the man,
who turned and ran down the street. They turned, and entered the
building beneath her. “Oh, shit!” She said, as she watched them
disappear. “Oh, shit.” She said again, and pulled back from the
railing. “Oh, shit, oh, shit.” She said as she ran back inside and
to the door. It slid open, and she ran though. She breathed hard as
she rounded the corner and ran to the elevator. The door slid open,
and both Guardians stood inside. “Oh, Shit!” She yelled, as she
desperately tried to stop her forward momentum. In sheer terror she
felt herself began to fall forward even as the lead Guardian raised
its control stick. As she fell she closed her eyes, unable to
control her movement. The Guardian dropped the control stick and
caught her by her shirt. For a second she was held there. She no
longer fell, but just swung by the cloth of her shirt. The
Guardian’s other hand came up and gently helped ease her to her
feet.

“You are in no danger.” The flat metallic
voice said. “You are free to go.” She stood there, mouth open,
unable to move. She felt as if her feet were frozen to the ground.
She finally managed to step back and the door slid shut. The
Guardians were gone. They stood motionless in the elevator as it
descended. The door opened at street level and they exited in
tandem. Rebecca still stood in the hallway in shock, when the door
to the elevator reopened. She peered inside to make sure the
Guardian’s were gone, and then slipped inside. The door slid shut
as she noticed the control stick that lay on the floor. She tapped
a button on the control panel, as she selected the floor where
Charles had first boarded this elevator with her. She bent down and
carefully picked up the control stick and examined it. She had only
been controlled just earlier today, but she could tell there was
something different about this control stick. The end where the
Guardian held it was painted red. All of the others she had ever
seen were completely colorless metal. The door slid open. The
suddenness surprised her, and caused her to jump back and
instinctively raise the stick in front of her. The hallway was
clear as she peered out. She stepped out and the door slid shut
behind her, and caused her to jump once again. Cautiously she made
her way down the hallway, and headed back for the room where the
awful man had hurt her. She heard a door slide open ahead of her,
and jumped to hide behind an ornate vase. She crouched down the
best she could. She heard footsteps approach her hiding place. She
tried to be invisible, as she saw a foot step in front of her. She
raised the control stick. A hand grabbed it in the middle, and tore
it from her hand. She gasped and turned to run. Another hand
grabbed her collar and held it tight. She struggled.

“Shh. It’s me.” It was Charles, she realized,
and relaxed her struggle. He released her, and she stepped back
from him. He held up the control stick. “Where did you get this?”
He asked, as he examined it and made note of the red handle. He
knew this was the control stick of one of the Guardian Defense
Squad Guardians. And that it was designed not to disable, but to
kill.

“The elevator.” She said as she pointed back
towards the way she had come. “The Guardian dropped it.”

“Dropped it?” Charles asked in disbelief.
“And what are you doing out here? I told you to stay put.”

“Charles!” Roger yelled from the other room.
“They’ve launched! Get in here!”

“Where are the Guardians” He asked he
quietly.

“They left in the elevator.” She whispered
back.

“They just left you alone?” He asked. He
could not believe what he heard. She nodded. “Where did they go?”
She shrugged.

“I don’t know. Just away. That’s all I cared
about.”

“Charles?” Roger yelled again. “Where the
hell are you?” Charles heard Roger’s chair push back from his desk.
Then footsteps as they came across the floor.

“Stay here.” Charles said to her
emphatically, as he stepped back towards the doorway. “Yes, sir.”
He called inside. He brought his finger to his lips, signaled to
Rebecca to remain quiet, and leaned the control stick against the
outside wall as he re-entered the office.

“There.” Roger said, as the video wall
projected two lines as they traveled across the screen. “It will
not be long yet.” He said excitedly. “That bastard deserves
it.”

“Yes, sir.” Charles said as the door slid
shut behind him. His comm unit vibrated and he checked the screen.
It was an incoming message. A message from his wife, Jillian. His
breath caught is his throat. Jillian. Alive. After all these years.
His hand shook as he read the message. I love you. I will always
love you, my dearest, Charles. He blinked back tears, as he stared
unbelieving at the message. She was alive, he thought and hope
sprang within him. He was too stunned by the message to respond
immediately, but another message came through. He read it quickly.
Goodbye, my love, the display read. Confused he went to reply, but
the connection was lost.

“They are almost there!” Roger exclaimed
excitedly. Charles looked up from his device, numb from the
emotions that he felt. “What?” Roger asked. “You look like you have
seen a ghost.”

“Where is she?” Charles asked.

“Who” Roger replied, confused.

“Jillian? Where is she?”

“Jillian? What the hell has that got to do
with anything.” Roger replied, as he turned away from him to watch
the screen.

“I asked you a question. Where is she? Where
did you send her?” Charles said, and approached him. As he realized
there was a change in Charles’ demeanor, Roger came to his feet,
and turned to him.

“What’s the meaning of this?” Roger said with
defiance. Charles reached out and grabbed him by the throat.

“Where is she?” He asked. He squeezed his
throat tightly. Roger choked and spat, as his eyes began to bulge.
He pointed towards the screen, the fear now evident in his eyes.
Charles’ expression changed from anger to horror.

“There? You sent her there? What have you
done?” He asked, as he released his hold, and turned to the screen.
“Oh, Jillian.” He said quietly, as he stared in disbelief. He knew
that his beloved wife was there. In the path of the incoming
missiles. Discreetly, Roger picked up the black revolver from the
corner of his desk and raised it. “Jillian.” Charles said again
quietly, as Roger shot him in the back. Charles slumped to the
floor motionless.

“Useless.” Roger said, as he stepped back
from the fallen man. Suddenly the image on screen changed, and a
loud siren blared.

“Citizens of New Sebastian.” A loud voice
sounded. A voice that Roger thought he should know. “A great wrong
has been committed in our society. And today that will change.”
Roger stared at the screen as the image of his father appeared. He
blinked in disbelief. “I come to you today to announce to you, my
failure. For my entire life I did whatever I could to make sure
that you had everything that you needed for survival. To make sure
that you were provided for and could live long and happy lives as
the last human beings on earths. But at what price? What price have
we paid to ensure our long lives. For hundreds of years we have
indiscriminately slaughtered innocent humans, just to make us look
and feel young. We have raised them, grown them to adulthood, and
then harvested them like crops just to give you a few extra years
of life. As of this day, Rejuvenation is a thing of the past. As I
speak, all equipment and processes related to this most horrible of
crimes against nature, has been destroyed. This part of the history
of humans has ended today.” He paused. His expression was grave as
he continued.