The Genesis Code 1: Lambda (45 page)

“I trust you can make time for this, Iscariot. Germany can wait,”
boomed the voice of Simon.

A man chuckled. “Still harsh as ever, I see. So, what does the Punisher wish to discuss regarding Project Lambda this time?”

Simon growled under his breath as his fingers dug into the table. “I will ignore the subtle jab there, Mathew.”

Another voice broke in. “We had expected you to have fixed the problem regarding the Lambda unit by now. It would appear leaving it all to the Lord of Pandemonium is proving unwise, as we warned.”

Simon grinded his teeth. “I care little for what a dog with no teeth has to say, Thomas.”

Thomas slammed his hand on the table. “How dare you disrespect me-”

“Gentlemen, please! Could we at least be civil? As accomplished diplomats, this is not how we should be using our limited time,” came a voice with stern authority behind it.

Simon took a breath to find his center. “You are right, Andrew. I will get to the point.”

Simon moved his hand over a small sphere next to him, altering the large display above the table. He brought up several monitors and grids.

Simon cracked his knuckles. “Simply put, Corson has revealed his hand. Not only does he now posses the Lambda unit, but as we feared, he knows too much. The movements we captured prove this.”

The monitors at the center enlarged so the twelve members could get a good look at what Simon was trying to show them.

“So, he is trying to wormhole hop to a location. Unfortunately for him, he underestimates our satellite imaging,” spoke another member of the table.

Simon agreed. “True, but it’s his projected destination that gives me cause for concern,” Simon said deeply. His words seemed to echo with trepidation.

Another man in shadow spoke up. “His plotted course appears to be heading to Limit Zone 246. You can’t mean that-”

Simon clenched his fists. “He’s after the Key again, Iscariot. He surely plans to use the Lambda unit to achieve his goal.”

The table grew silent for a moment.

“Then he knows of the existence of the Hex Cubes,” Iscariot said with worry.

“Yes,” Simon stated firmly. “However, he won’t be successful. I have already taken steps to ensure he fails. As I said, Dead Eye will succeed.”

“Forgive us if we seem skeptical, but Dead Eye hasn’t delivered. One would naturally question his ability to perform, despite him being one of the Three,” warned another shadow.

“You needn’t worry about that. I have given Dead Eye the proper tools to ensure this mission to be a success, Andrew,” reassured Simon.

A new voice broke in. “That is good to hear, Simon, but you seem to not be addressing an even greater concern.”

Simon groaned. “And what exactly are you concerned about, James?”

James’s shadow leaned forward. “Epsilon,” he echoed warningly.

The table began to whisper once more. Simon’s posture stiffened.

Mathew spoke up. “Well, Simon? Where do we stand on the matter?”

Simon face twitched. “Presently, the Epsilon unit has been tampered with. The lab and team in charge was sabotaged not long ago. The status of the unit is unclear as of now.”

The other members seemed to shift in their seats nervously.

“Simon, the last thing we need now is to have
two
of our projects running around, unable to be controlled,” barked Thomas. “Why didn’t you mention this sooner?”

Simon cursed under his breath. “For now, the Epsilon unit appears to be contained. I had hoped to settle the issue with the Lambda unit first. Focusing to take down one problem quickly was the best course of action.”

There was a pause before someone spoke up.

“It’s just another Enforcer defect. Surely it won’t be as much trouble as the Lambda-”

“Be quiet, Thomas. Have you forgotten why the Epsilon project was sealed?” shot James with warning.

Thomas seemed to clam up at the mentioning.

James continued. “Epsilon was only to be used as a last resort, but if it is to be released as it was before, it would far outclass the Lambda unit now. It would in turn only cause more problems and complications. We can’t let that happen.”

“It didn’t help that it was the only AI unit with enough functionality that could contend with Lambda’s advanced features,” added another voice from the darkness.

The dark room fell silent. Only the nervous tapping of fingers on the glass table broke the quiet.

“Simon,” came the voice of a woman speaking forthrightly. “We need to discuss a countermeasure should Epsilon’s contain break before Dead Eye retrieves Lambda.”

Simon was firm. “You are right, Thaddaeus.”

Thaddaeus continued. “Given Corson’s target, the Limit Zone will provide a cover that we can at least use to our advantage,” she added strictly.

Thaddaeus returned to her point. “Do we know the degree to which Epsilon has been tampered with?”

Simon’s eyes gleamed. “Epsilon has been programmed to seek and destroy the Lambda unit.”

The whole table seemed to erupt with small chatter.

Thaddaeus pressed on, ignoring the murmurs around her. “That serves as an advantage for us. However, citizens of the Limit Zones are still people too. Keeping this quiet will prove to be a challenge.”

Simon shook his head. “Perhaps you have forgotten the Limit Zone’s original goal, Thaddaeus,” he hissed.

Thaddaeus didn’t falter. “I have not, Simon. However, hiding the Hex Cubes under each Limit Zone requires us to at least monitor and control those in the Limit Zones. Thinking them to be mere sheep is blind arrogance.”

“Thaddaeus has a point,” Thomas interrupted. “If Epsilon is released, it will headhunt the Lambda unit. That can be used to our advantage should Dead Eye attain Lambda.” He leaned back in his chair. “Can we trust Dead Eye to handle this, or are we to seek the aid of the others?”

Simon scowled. “I’m sure you understand how the Three feel about that.”

Thomas frowned. “That hardly seems relevant at this stage, no?”

Simon drummed his fingers. “Dead Eye would never agree-”

“With all due respect, Simon, what the Three think is void in the eyes of the Twelve, correct?” interjected a stern voice from the shadows.

Simon eyed the man cautiously. “You are not wrong, Philip, but history has proven that the Three don’t necessarily work well together. If you could show that-”

A monitor screen quickly appeared above, the screen completely black. The Twelve all gazed at the monitor, unsure.

A voice echoed from the screen. “I will take point. You won’t have to worry,
much
. Besides, if you want it done right . . .”

Simon groaned. “Dead Eye won’t be pleased with this.”

Philip let out a loud cackle. “If all goes well, Dead Eye will never need to know.”

Simon peered at the man, and then to the screen. “To whom am I speaking?” he spoke sternly.

The monitor blinked and was filled with an eerie image of two half-circle eyes and a wide, saw-toothed vermilion grin. The source of the uncanny image didn’t speak.

Simon felt his body tighten. “So, the big one, huh?”

Philip smirked with triumph. “We all expect great things, don’t we?”

The Twelve all nodded. All was now set.
      

The screen filled with the razor grin vanished seconds later. Without another word, Simon vanished from the round table along with the other members. The twelve pillars of light then faded, eclipsing the vacant room in shadow. Only the dull hum of fans pierced the eerie silence as time continued to tick away.

*
      
*
      
*

[January 7th - Abingdon, Virginia - Stigma Black Hawk Helicopter - Night]

The sky split open as eight choppers blasted from the black chaos of the wormhole created in the air. With alarming speed, they raced onward, pressing the limits of their maximum potential.

Zack peered out the window of the racing machine that speared through the air, now grazing the treetops below at unimaginable speed. He liked it better when they were in the wormhole.

How fast are we even going?!

Zack was perplexed at how the machine he rested in could hit such speeds. The trees below zoomed by to the point where it all looked like a giant green blur. Even when he stared up at the cockpit, gazing out, it felt like he was being sucked into a black hole as his body crushed up against the steel wall behind him. Everyone appeared to be feeling the effects of the flight. All except Lambda.

Does she not notice this pressure?
Zack wondered as he gazed over at her. Her expression was alarmingly calm.

Lambda was lost in thought. Her mind continued to drift in and out, unaware of her surroundings. She kept on teetering back and forth in her mind to a simple question.

How does Zack feel about me?

She wanted to ask him straight out. It was bothering her much more than she thought. Originally, the idea appeared in her head as a simple generated question. However, the more she tried to analyze it, the more and more insecure she felt. She was certain he didn’t dislike her or hold feelings of hatred for her. Even so, she couldn’t help but wonder.

Am I just a machine in his eyes? Does he care about me? Do I care-

Lambda stopped at the end of her own question. She suddenly felt her chest begin to feel uneasy. Lambda placed her hand over her chest as she breathed slowly.

This feeling . . . I want to know.

Her eyes drifted to Zack. These feelings she had were for him. Somehow, she just knew. In that small window of realization, she felt at ease. But the feeling didn’t last long.

“We are one minute out, Leader. Reducing speed. Prepare for touchdown,” came the scratchy voice of the pilot.

Lambda broke from her trance and noticed the giant, steel machine begin to slow. The trees just outside slowly became visible once more as the helicopter prepared for its final descent.

Nerine spoke up. “Corson, have you informed the Elders regarding-”

“They are all aware of our arrival. How else did you think this was going to work if they didn’t know we were coming?” Corson cut in sarcastically.

Nerine said no more, returning to silence.

Zack didn’t quite catch what Corson said, but it made him wonder.

“We have arrived,” Corson announced triumphantly, cutting Zack’s thoughts short.

Zack moved to look through the front of the cockpit. What he saw was unimpressive.

This is a Limit Zone?

Zack was confused. It looked like your typical town, quite decent in size given the number of homes that lined the modest nook that it consisted of. It appeared to be in some sort of large valley and surrounded by thick woods on all sides.

Zack looked closer. He could see several large buildings further up in the valley from where all the houses were located. Off just a glance, he could see several shopping districts and what appeared to be the heart of the town marked with a traffic intersection. It was like a mini city, with all the necessities of life quite close and manageable. It hardly seemed as dreadful as Corson and Nerine said it would be.

“We will be breaking the Zero Barrier in just a few seconds, Leader,” echoed the voice of the pilot once more.

Corson nodded without another word.

Zack squinted his eyes in confusion.
Zero Barrier? Why would something like that be used here?

A blinding white light flashed before Zack’s eyes with all the softness of a cinder-block as the helicopter rattled with slight turbulence.

“Zero Barrier breached. Viper Leader to all Vipers, commencing landing procedures.”

“Roger that, Viper Leader. Viper 2, on your tail,” replied the pilot of the second chopper. The rest of the pilots all sounded off as the choppers began to descend.

Zack shook his head and blinked several times before the white glare finally dissipated from his field of vision. When he gazed out the cockpit once more, what he saw looked nothing like what he had just seen moments before.

Growing larger by the second was indeed a valley with a town at its core, but instead of serenity and tranquility, all he saw was smoke and gears.

The large shopping district that he saw before now looked like several steel factories strung together, and more than just one or two. Several of these large facilities made up most of the valley, along with smaller buildings, a few hundred yards long, that streamed large trucks in and out of them. As they got closer to the ground, Zack could see that the trucks were shipping large loads of raw materials.

Zack was speechless, but even more so when he looked to where he had seen the quiet little town of homes, neatly formed in what had looked like a pleasant neighborhood. Now, all he saw were buildings built of steel and hard lumber. The green lawns were brown and the roads connecting everything were of gravel mixed with large stones. Zack could see lights coming from the small houses and large condominiums of steel. There was life, but he could feel the air of oppression crushing down on the valley.

Many people could be seen below moving between the factories and steel housings. Dozens of moving dump trucks raced along the dirt roads beside the people, kicking up dust clouds as tall as the trees. The world looked so dirty now, so painful to look at.

As the chopper continued its descent to the dark world below, Zack noticed a large clearing just outside the run-down town. In the clearing, there was a large helipad, which looked surprisingly well maintained. He peered once more around the valley into the thick forest surrounding it, and the massive walls that encased the large city of factories and smoke.

Zack swallowed hard, not liking what he saw.
This is a prison.

At the far reaches of the forest, about twenty miles out, the huge steel walls stood hundreds of yards, scraping the valley tips, encasing the Limit Zone like some quarantined area. There looked to be no way out outside of flying. Zack felt a sudden chill of fear run down his spine.

It can’t be. All this time they were telling the truth?

Seconds later, their helicopter made contact with the helipad. The remaining choppers landed outside the helipad with grace and precision. Their fierce blades hummed and hissed as they slowed.