Darkside
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├óÔé¼┼ôOw├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel looked down at the floor and rotated his foot so he could yank the piece of ceramic out of it. Blood flowed freely from the cut and Daniel looked around, finding and grabbing a paper towel and dabbing at his foot with it. ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat the hell?├óÔé¼┬Ø he muttered, looking at the circular base of the coffee cup, surrounded by the shards of its former self. It looked like it had exploded from inside out.
Prime rolled over in bed, her forehead creased. The coffee cup's base slowly turned eighty degree's. Daniel stared at it as it wobbled to a stop. He ran into his desk and grabbed a low power scanner, not nearly as good at the bioscanner at the hospital, but he hoped it could detect something. He waved it at the coffee cup's base. The base wiggled again, this time sliding to the right as Prime rolled over in her bed. Daniel detected a spite of the same radiation that surrounded Prime.
He picked up a phone and dialed Yalonda's number. ├óÔé¼┼ôDaniel?├óÔé¼┬Ø she asked, her voice groggy ├óÔé¼┼ôIts four in the morning├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôI've found out what the field is├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said excitedly. ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat? Field?├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôThe field around Prime├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel rolled his eyes ├óÔé¼┼ôYou know the one you found├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôRight, yeah. Field├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda groaned ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat did you find?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôIt can manipulate physical objects. A coffee cup of mind exploded because Prime was having a bad dream├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Yalonda sat up in her bed ├óÔé¼┼ôThis is proof of telekinetic activity's?├óÔé¼┬Ø she asked ├óÔé¼┼ôYou mean our little alien is also a spoon bender?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôI think she might be able to do more then bend spoons├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôbut that is the gist of it├óÔé¼┬Ø. Yalonda gulped ├óÔé¼┼ôcan she control it?├óÔé¼┬Ø she asked. Daniel looked at Prime. Prime woke up and smiled at him, sitting up in bed. ├óÔé¼┼ôI don't know├óÔé¼┬Ø he said.
The perimeter of the colony, a circle about a mile or so out from the city streets, was patrolled by guards and covered by turrets. The place were the police officers had been massacred was back in use, despite many soldiers trepidation. They felt it was bad luck. Lewis scoffed at that, stubbing his cigarette on the side of one of the turrets. An oddity amongst the colony, Lewis was an outspoke Atheist and the rest of his squad had given up on trying to convert him.
Now he had the night shift with a tired looking man named Stanly. The only thing about Stanly that made him interesting was his incredible aim. Other wise he was a nondescript man, with sandy hair, blue eyes and a quite demeanor. Lewis despised him. Lewis's hair was unkempt and no matter how hard he tried his mustache seemed off center. Stanly looked good in anything. Lewis had to work out almost constantly to keep his wight down. Stanly never seemed to work out and yet he was thinner then Lewis.
So Lewis spent his night shifts with Stanly trying to annoy him. He was about to drop his cigarette on the ground and grind it under his heel. Stanly hated that, saying that it was bad enough smoking, why make it worse by littering too? So now Lewis did it all the time. He dropped the cigarette when Stanly suddenly whirled, pulling out his pistol. ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat?├óÔé¼┬Ø Lewis asked, leaving the smoldering cigarette were it lay.
├óÔé¼┼ôI think I saw something├óÔé¼┬Ø Stanly said, holstering his pistol and grabbing his rifle from the floor. ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat, that scary Specie's Zero Two?├óÔé¼┬Ø Lewis grinned, enjoying the chance to jab at Stanly. ├óÔé¼┼ôThe Shroud protects us├óÔé¼┬Ø Stanly said ├óÔé¼┼ôIts unlikely any of those damn things could get through├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôThen why did we get a god damn briefing?├óÔé¼┬Ø Lewis asked, grinning. They had gotten a new head of colonial security, war hero Elizabeth Montoya. She immideatly briefed the entire police force on S-02.
├óÔé¼┼ôScared of little S-02?├óÔé¼┬Ø Lewis asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôShut up├óÔé¼┬Ø Stanly said ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd don't blaspheme├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôOr what?├óÔé¼┬Ø Lewis asked. Then a clump of S-02 jumped from the shadows and latched onto the back of his head, wrapping tendrils around his face. They gouged into his eyes, filled his nose and stopped up his mouth. Lewis dropped to his knee's, trying to scream for a moment before S-02 ate through his skull and devoured his entire head.
Stanly bent over to pick up the cigarette, turning around to throw it into the trash. Lewis's body was almost entirely covered by the rapidly expanding S-02. Tendrils reached for Stanly. The man dropped the cigarette, pulling his pistol out. He fire several shots into the thing, blasting parts of it to the ground. They quickly vaporised. The pistol clicked after the fifteenth shot and Stanly grabbed the rifle off the floor.
├óÔé¼┼ôWhy wont you die?├óÔé¼┬Ø he asked, firing his entire clip into S-02's black center. The creature seemed to be taking its time, growing and expanding slowly. Stanly realized he was in the gun sights of a turret. ├óÔé¼┼ôSecurity control├óÔé¼┬Ø he said, turning on his radio ├óÔé¼┼ôI need turrets on line out here, NOW! We've got some S-02├óÔé¼┬Ø. The control operator wasted no time, slamming her fist down on the activation for the turret.
The mass of S-02 was immideatly targeted by the five turrets that could get it in their sights. They started to fire and the S-02 hulk got bigger as the bullets rammed into it. ├óÔé¼┼ôShit├óÔé¼┬Ø Stanly said, taking a step back. He fell, and saw that his foot had stayed where it was, a black tendril of S-02 wrapped around the ankle. Blood started to flow as a the layer of inert S-02 molecules on his stump started to slough off. Stanly gritted his teeth, picking up his rifle and sighting it at the S-02 tendril.
He only realized it was empty when the tendril plunged into his eye socket and digested his brain. The turrets kept firing until they hit...something in the middle of the S-02 creature and the entire thing vaporised, blasting the area apart as it exploded. The turrets shut down, two of them broken from the extended firing. Shells gathered around the turrets, most smoking from their use. However a portion of S-02 was left in Stanly's corpse, nestled behind his eye socket. It was inert, slowly producing some uninteresting elements in the empty skull cavity of the man's skeleton.
The clean up crews examined the records of the gun camera and gave Stanly the Colonial Defense Laurels, posthumously, for valor showed in impossible odds and the intelligence of warning the colony. Liz sighed ├óÔé¼┼ôHow could I have been so stupid?├óÔé¼┬Ø She muttered. ├óÔé¼┼ôGood question├óÔé¼┬Ø Rick said. ├óÔé¼┼ôShut the hell up Rick├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz moaned ├óÔé¼┼ôWe need to find every were Prime has been and see if we can find and contain any bit of S-02 we can find. And remember we got lucky├óÔé¼┬Ø
├óÔé¼┼ôWhat do you mean?├óÔé¼┬Ø Rick asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôSee I don't know why but in most S-02 creatures they have a weak point somewhere in their body's. When you destroy it the entire thing simply vaporises├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said ├óÔé¼┼ôLasers seem to work good as you can sweep the laser through the creature and try and find it as quick as possible├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôI thought these things were unbeatable├óÔé¼┬Ø Rick said, sitting down. Liz smiled ├óÔé¼┼ôTry finding a weak point that we don't even know what it LOOKS like, while S-02 is eating you. And each shot that is NOT hitting the weak point only makes the thing stronger├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôSo what do you suggest once we find these S-02 microbe?├óÔé¼┬Ø Rick asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôPut it in a vacuum seal├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd toss those in a vault several miles below the surface of Darkside, then suck the air out of that then fill the shaft in with liquid titanium then top that off with a diamond cover├óÔé¼┬Ø. Rick sighed ├óÔé¼┼ôI think we can only do the first one├óÔé¼┬Ø He grinned. ├óÔé¼┼ôIts no laughing matter├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said ├óÔé¼┼ôEven that vault would only work for a few thousand years even without variables like tectonic plate movement and...human issues. I think S-02 would eventually be able to get out of even that├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Prime looked around the area. Part of her had killed two people. ├óÔé¼┼ôDamn├óÔé¼┬Ø She muttered. Swear words were surprisingly satisfying in situations like these. ├óÔé¼┼ôDo you think you could control those..parts?├óÔé¼┬Ø the security officer asked. Prime felt a little naked, in the figurative sense of the term, without Daniel, who was working with his partner to enclose the bits of S-02 they had discovered on Keith's corpse, after actually finding the corpse.
Prime was feeling a great many things. She was mostly feeling guilt about the deaths she had caused. It had taken her a while to realize that ALL humans were unique. Even now it was odd to think about it. She looked at the area and reached out with her mind, trying to find anything that wasn't human or terrestrial to this planet. She found a few microbes on the turret's side, on the floor. She walked over to them, still touching their minuscule 'minds' and asked them to come back.
They melted into her foot and joined with her mind. She felt a faint, foggy, pseudomemory of devouring the two men who had died here. She closed her eye's, shoulders tensing as she tried to push the images out of her mind. ├óÔé¼┼ôDid you find anything?├óÔé¼┬Ø the security guards asked ├óÔé¼┼ôYes, but its part of me again├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said ├óÔé¼┼ôNow can I go?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôSure├óÔé¼┬Ø The man said ├óÔé¼┼ôFeel free to go home├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime nodded, a sense of rebellion rising.
She walked down the streets and felt the man trailing her with her mind. He was nervous, and worried. A new guy. Prime waited for the right moment and dodged into a side ally like Kelly in Danger on Darkside a crime thriller written by the same author who wrote Doctor, Darling. She leaned against the wall of the ally, hiding behind a dumpster. The man walked past, looking confused. His mind was now riled with panic and dismay over loosing his quarry. Prime grinned to her self and took a step down the ally way when something flickered in front of her eyes. ├óÔé¼┼ôPrime
A soft voice echoed in her mind. Prime clasped her hands to her head, pain shotting through her spine as the image flashed again.
She staggered against the wall, a silent scream opening her mouth as the pain reached a new hight. A trash can next to her imploded, crumpling up like a soda can crushed by a hand. Prime let her hands drop as the pain ebbed. Prime walked over to the trash can. She had done this. Prime experimentally reached out with her hand and tried to force her mind to to do something to the trash can. She couldn't get it to even budge slightly.
Prime walked through the city, wishing she had some money. ├óÔé¼┼ôHey├óÔé¼┬Ø A man said ├óÔé¼┼ôHave I seen you somewhere before?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime looked at him ├óÔé¼┼ôI don't think so├óÔé¼┬Ø. He had a parole badge, and Daniel had warned her about those people. ├óÔé¼┼ôReally?├óÔé¼┬Ø he asked ├óÔé¼┼ôYou look like the splitting image of someone I knew├óÔé¼┬Ø he let his hand drop ├óÔé¼┼ôOh well, sorry to bother you├óÔé¼┬Ø he walked away. Prime looked after him quizzically. What was that about?
She kept walking through the streets of the commercial sector of the city. The four main area's of the city were residential, industrial, commercial and the Red Light zone. From what little she knew of colonial history, Prime knew that the Red Light Zone had been the slums, but now was simply a seedy, run down area of strip clubs and criminal activity's. Only problem is three of the major mining cooperations were down there and wanted some extra incentive for people to join them. So they offered discounts at some of the more...open strip clubs. At least that was how Daniel put it.
She looked around. It seemed to be a nice enough place, aside from the squalid looking buildings. She found a small pub in the corner and decided to just stop by. After all she was trying to learn as much about human nature as she could. So she walked into the pub, setting off a ringing noise as the door opened. She looked up and saw a bell that the door hit while opening. ├óÔé¼┼ôSorry, but drinking hours are├óÔé¼┬Ø the woman behind the counter said, reading a magazine. Then she looked up ├óÔé¼┼ôOh├óÔé¼┬Ø She said ├óÔé¼┼ôLooking for work?├óÔé¼┬Ø
├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said, stepping into the room. The chairs were all put up on the tables, and the floor was half mopped. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell├óÔé¼┬Ø The woman said ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat can Ryan do for you today?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime pulled a chair off a table and sat down ├óÔé¼┼ôI just came by to sit down├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell now a days that seems to be enough for most people├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said, closing her magazine ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat are your particular reasons for sitting down today?├óÔé¼┬Ø she asked.
├óÔé¼┼ôWell├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said ├óÔé¼┼ôI'm trying to find out how to ask a man out├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell asking him out is a good start├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said, grinning. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell its just├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said, leaning over the counter and resting her head on her hands ├óÔé¼┼ôHe treats me more like a science project then a woman├óÔé¼┬Ø. Ryan laughed ├óÔé¼┼ôWell your better off not asking him out├óÔé¼┬Ø she said ├óÔé¼┼ôSounds like my ex-husband├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôBut├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said, sighing ├óÔé¼┼ôHe's just so...nice├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said ├óÔé¼┼ôIf your dead set on him mabey we could get some practice├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime stroked her chin ├óÔé¼┼ôPractice?├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôRight├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said ├óÔé¼┼ôThere is a big stud who's the cock of the walk├óÔé¼┬Ø she pointed to a man who was stuffed into suit that looked a size too small for his bulging muscles. It was actually rather scary, for Prime, who was used to less...robust muscles size's. ├óÔé¼┼ôIs he a good choice?├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell it depends on what you want├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said ├óÔé¼┼ôWant a quickie, then he would be a good choice, once he is nice an inebriated├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôA quickie?├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime asked.
├óÔé¼┼ôYour not a virgin, are you?├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan asked. Prime blushed, looking around the crowded pub ├óÔé¼┼ôYes ├óÔé¼┼ôshe whispered. ├óÔé¼┼ôIts nothing to feel bad about├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said ├óÔé¼┼ôThe thing to worry about is that damn boom box├óÔé¼┬Ø. The music was poundingly loud, and the choice of music made the volume worse. Prime nodded ├óÔé¼┼ôSo what is a quickie?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôA quick one├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said. After Prime's expression did not change from bewildered to enlightened, she elaborated ├óÔé¼┼ôSex. A quick sex├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôAh├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said, nodding. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell He's a bad choice for you├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said ├óÔé¼┼ôSo screw him├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôBut I don't want to├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said. It took Ryan a few moments, but then she snorted.
├óÔé¼┼ôNow see a good starter would be a newcomer to this pub, hopefully someone who is nervous and nice looking├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said ├óÔé¼┼ôSo when your kind to him he will be flustered and things will go from there├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôBut I...well├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said, blushing more ├óÔé¼┼ôI want to have my first time with...my friend├óÔé¼┬Ø she said. ├óÔé¼┼ôDon't worry├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said ├óÔé¼┼ôIt'll never get to the fucking part. So just follow my lead├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime nodded, looking around the bar for someone who fit Ryan's description.
Daniel sighed ├óÔé¼┼ôThe best way to find her is to scan the city for her field├óÔé¼┬Ø he said. ├óÔé¼┼ôGood, do it├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said ├óÔé¼┼ôI don't want Prime in the city for too long├óÔé¼┬Ø. Daniel nodded and walked out of the office. ├óÔé¼┼ôHow did she get away from the operative?├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôProbably by hiding in a crowd. She reads enough thriller novel to be a master at it by now├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel frowned ├óÔé¼┼ôAny luck with the focused scanners?├óÔé¼┬Ø ├óÔé¼┼ôYes, actually├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said, holding up what looked like a rifle ├óÔé¼┼ôYou point this in a direction and it reads off what the level of Prime's field is. Its normally zero, and when it spikes you know you've found her├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Daniel held the rifle's scope up to his eye and swept it around the room. He read a slight bump in the southern direction. ├óÔé¼┼ôYou see this bump?├óÔé¼┬Ø he asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôYeah├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôIts in the Red Light district├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôOh damn it├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôWe need to get out there├óÔé¼┬Ø. They both ran down the corridor to Daniel's car. A police van followed, holding seven riot patrol members.
Daniel pulled up to the pub when Yalonda gestured for him to stop. She was scanning the direction of Prime's field, and they had been driving through the red light district slowly, so as to avoid any pedestrians. Daniel was nervous, as he was one of the very few people who owned a car. He hoped no one would do something stupid. He was luck though as the people in the streets saw the police van behind them and kept clear. ├óÔé¼┼ôThere she is├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said. Prime was talking with a woman, visible through the window.
Daniel got out of the car ├óÔé¼┼ôProtect the car├óÔé¼┬Ø he told Yalonda. He turned around and stared at the chest of a police officer. Daniel looked up ├óÔé¼┼ôCan I help you?├óÔé¼┬Ø he asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôDon't worry doc, we'll handle this from here├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat? No!├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôPrime needs to be approached in a very-├óÔé¼┬Ø the officer cut him off ├óÔé¼┼ôDon't worry doc. We can take down one woman├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôBut├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said, but the officer and his squad was already moving into the pub.
Prime groaned ├óÔé¼┼ôHe wasn't interested├óÔé¼┬Ø she said ├óÔé¼┼ôI must be horrible at this├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôNo, he's gay├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said, trying to get Prime's spirits up. Prime looked up and was about to say something when the door was kicked in. Police officers moved in, guns at the ready. People shouted and ducked. The officers moved into a circle around Prime. ├óÔé¼┼ôHands up! NOW!├óÔé¼┬Ø the officer shouted. Ryan ducked under the table. Prime looked at the officers ├óÔé¼┼ôThere seems to be a├óÔé¼┬Ø she was about to say. ├óÔé¼┼ôCuff her├óÔé¼┬Ø the officer said. One of the policemen moved to put hand cuffs on Prime, but she punched him in the solar plexus, jumping out of her seat and onto the table in one smooth motion. The man, feeling the punch even through riot gear, clutched his lungs and dropped.
Prime turned to face the other officers, hands ready. ├óÔé¼┼ôLady├óÔé¼┬Ø The officer said ├óÔé¼┼ôIf you don't desist we will have to use force├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime tightened her knuckles, ready to fight. ├óÔé¼┼ôPrime, don't!├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel shouted, running into the room. He ran in front of the officers, hands up. ├óÔé¼┼ôListen, doc, i told you to get out side├óÔé¼┬Ø the officer said, grabbing Daniel by the lapels and shoving him aside. ├óÔé¼┼ôDon't hurt him├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said, anger rising in her voice.
Daniel was shoved out of the way, and fell against a table, smashing the cups to the floor. Prime snapped her forearm blades out. ├óÔé¼┼ôHoly shit!├óÔé¼┬Ø One of the policemen muttered. ├óÔé¼┼ôDon't make us use deadly force├óÔé¼┬Ø the police officer said, leveling his rifle at them. ├óÔé¼┼ôPrime, don't├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said. Prime, the policemen, Daniel and the bewildered Ryan all stood stalk still for a few moments. Then Prime snapped her forearm blades back in with a jerk of her arms and stepped off the table. Daniel walked over to her ├óÔé¼┼ôHand cuffs are not necessary├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôI'll take her home now├óÔé¼┬Ø. The officers moved to check on their wounded companion who was still trying to recover from Prime's blow.
├óÔé¼┼ôListen buddy├óÔé¼┬Ø The police officer said, pointing at Daniel ├óÔé¼┼ôElizabeth is going to get a report about this!├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôScrew you├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said, walking out.
Prime rolled over in bed, her forehead creased. The coffee cup's base slowly turned eighty degree's. Daniel stared at it as it wobbled to a stop. He ran into his desk and grabbed a low power scanner, not nearly as good at the bioscanner at the hospital, but he hoped it could detect something. He waved it at the coffee cup's base. The base wiggled again, this time sliding to the right as Prime rolled over in her bed. Daniel detected a spite of the same radiation that surrounded Prime.
He picked up a phone and dialed Yalonda's number. ├óÔé¼┼ôDaniel?├óÔé¼┬Ø she asked, her voice groggy ├óÔé¼┼ôIts four in the morning├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôI've found out what the field is├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said excitedly. ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat? Field?├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôThe field around Prime├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel rolled his eyes ├óÔé¼┼ôYou know the one you found├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôRight, yeah. Field├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda groaned ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat did you find?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôIt can manipulate physical objects. A coffee cup of mind exploded because Prime was having a bad dream├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Yalonda sat up in her bed ├óÔé¼┼ôThis is proof of telekinetic activity's?├óÔé¼┬Ø she asked ├óÔé¼┼ôYou mean our little alien is also a spoon bender?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôI think she might be able to do more then bend spoons├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôbut that is the gist of it├óÔé¼┬Ø. Yalonda gulped ├óÔé¼┼ôcan she control it?├óÔé¼┬Ø she asked. Daniel looked at Prime. Prime woke up and smiled at him, sitting up in bed. ├óÔé¼┼ôI don't know├óÔé¼┬Ø he said.
The perimeter of the colony, a circle about a mile or so out from the city streets, was patrolled by guards and covered by turrets. The place were the police officers had been massacred was back in use, despite many soldiers trepidation. They felt it was bad luck. Lewis scoffed at that, stubbing his cigarette on the side of one of the turrets. An oddity amongst the colony, Lewis was an outspoke Atheist and the rest of his squad had given up on trying to convert him.
Now he had the night shift with a tired looking man named Stanly. The only thing about Stanly that made him interesting was his incredible aim. Other wise he was a nondescript man, with sandy hair, blue eyes and a quite demeanor. Lewis despised him. Lewis's hair was unkempt and no matter how hard he tried his mustache seemed off center. Stanly looked good in anything. Lewis had to work out almost constantly to keep his wight down. Stanly never seemed to work out and yet he was thinner then Lewis.
So Lewis spent his night shifts with Stanly trying to annoy him. He was about to drop his cigarette on the ground and grind it under his heel. Stanly hated that, saying that it was bad enough smoking, why make it worse by littering too? So now Lewis did it all the time. He dropped the cigarette when Stanly suddenly whirled, pulling out his pistol. ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat?├óÔé¼┬Ø Lewis asked, leaving the smoldering cigarette were it lay.
├óÔé¼┼ôI think I saw something├óÔé¼┬Ø Stanly said, holstering his pistol and grabbing his rifle from the floor. ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat, that scary Specie's Zero Two?├óÔé¼┬Ø Lewis grinned, enjoying the chance to jab at Stanly. ├óÔé¼┼ôThe Shroud protects us├óÔé¼┬Ø Stanly said ├óÔé¼┼ôIts unlikely any of those damn things could get through├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôThen why did we get a god damn briefing?├óÔé¼┬Ø Lewis asked, grinning. They had gotten a new head of colonial security, war hero Elizabeth Montoya. She immideatly briefed the entire police force on S-02.
├óÔé¼┼ôScared of little S-02?├óÔé¼┬Ø Lewis asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôShut up├óÔé¼┬Ø Stanly said ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd don't blaspheme├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôOr what?├óÔé¼┬Ø Lewis asked. Then a clump of S-02 jumped from the shadows and latched onto the back of his head, wrapping tendrils around his face. They gouged into his eyes, filled his nose and stopped up his mouth. Lewis dropped to his knee's, trying to scream for a moment before S-02 ate through his skull and devoured his entire head.
Stanly bent over to pick up the cigarette, turning around to throw it into the trash. Lewis's body was almost entirely covered by the rapidly expanding S-02. Tendrils reached for Stanly. The man dropped the cigarette, pulling his pistol out. He fire several shots into the thing, blasting parts of it to the ground. They quickly vaporised. The pistol clicked after the fifteenth shot and Stanly grabbed the rifle off the floor.
├óÔé¼┼ôWhy wont you die?├óÔé¼┬Ø he asked, firing his entire clip into S-02's black center. The creature seemed to be taking its time, growing and expanding slowly. Stanly realized he was in the gun sights of a turret. ├óÔé¼┼ôSecurity control├óÔé¼┬Ø he said, turning on his radio ├óÔé¼┼ôI need turrets on line out here, NOW! We've got some S-02├óÔé¼┬Ø. The control operator wasted no time, slamming her fist down on the activation for the turret.
The mass of S-02 was immideatly targeted by the five turrets that could get it in their sights. They started to fire and the S-02 hulk got bigger as the bullets rammed into it. ├óÔé¼┼ôShit├óÔé¼┬Ø Stanly said, taking a step back. He fell, and saw that his foot had stayed where it was, a black tendril of S-02 wrapped around the ankle. Blood started to flow as a the layer of inert S-02 molecules on his stump started to slough off. Stanly gritted his teeth, picking up his rifle and sighting it at the S-02 tendril.
He only realized it was empty when the tendril plunged into his eye socket and digested his brain. The turrets kept firing until they hit...something in the middle of the S-02 creature and the entire thing vaporised, blasting the area apart as it exploded. The turrets shut down, two of them broken from the extended firing. Shells gathered around the turrets, most smoking from their use. However a portion of S-02 was left in Stanly's corpse, nestled behind his eye socket. It was inert, slowly producing some uninteresting elements in the empty skull cavity of the man's skeleton.
The clean up crews examined the records of the gun camera and gave Stanly the Colonial Defense Laurels, posthumously, for valor showed in impossible odds and the intelligence of warning the colony. Liz sighed ├óÔé¼┼ôHow could I have been so stupid?├óÔé¼┬Ø She muttered. ├óÔé¼┼ôGood question├óÔé¼┬Ø Rick said. ├óÔé¼┼ôShut the hell up Rick├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz moaned ├óÔé¼┼ôWe need to find every were Prime has been and see if we can find and contain any bit of S-02 we can find. And remember we got lucky├óÔé¼┬Ø
├óÔé¼┼ôWhat do you mean?├óÔé¼┬Ø Rick asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôSee I don't know why but in most S-02 creatures they have a weak point somewhere in their body's. When you destroy it the entire thing simply vaporises├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said ├óÔé¼┼ôLasers seem to work good as you can sweep the laser through the creature and try and find it as quick as possible├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôI thought these things were unbeatable├óÔé¼┬Ø Rick said, sitting down. Liz smiled ├óÔé¼┼ôTry finding a weak point that we don't even know what it LOOKS like, while S-02 is eating you. And each shot that is NOT hitting the weak point only makes the thing stronger├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôSo what do you suggest once we find these S-02 microbe?├óÔé¼┬Ø Rick asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôPut it in a vacuum seal├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd toss those in a vault several miles below the surface of Darkside, then suck the air out of that then fill the shaft in with liquid titanium then top that off with a diamond cover├óÔé¼┬Ø. Rick sighed ├óÔé¼┼ôI think we can only do the first one├óÔé¼┬Ø He grinned. ├óÔé¼┼ôIts no laughing matter├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said ├óÔé¼┼ôEven that vault would only work for a few thousand years even without variables like tectonic plate movement and...human issues. I think S-02 would eventually be able to get out of even that├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Prime looked around the area. Part of her had killed two people. ├óÔé¼┼ôDamn├óÔé¼┬Ø She muttered. Swear words were surprisingly satisfying in situations like these. ├óÔé¼┼ôDo you think you could control those..parts?├óÔé¼┬Ø the security officer asked. Prime felt a little naked, in the figurative sense of the term, without Daniel, who was working with his partner to enclose the bits of S-02 they had discovered on Keith's corpse, after actually finding the corpse.
Prime was feeling a great many things. She was mostly feeling guilt about the deaths she had caused. It had taken her a while to realize that ALL humans were unique. Even now it was odd to think about it. She looked at the area and reached out with her mind, trying to find anything that wasn't human or terrestrial to this planet. She found a few microbes on the turret's side, on the floor. She walked over to them, still touching their minuscule 'minds' and asked them to come back.
They melted into her foot and joined with her mind. She felt a faint, foggy, pseudomemory of devouring the two men who had died here. She closed her eye's, shoulders tensing as she tried to push the images out of her mind. ├óÔé¼┼ôDid you find anything?├óÔé¼┬Ø the security guards asked ├óÔé¼┼ôYes, but its part of me again├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said ├óÔé¼┼ôNow can I go?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôSure├óÔé¼┬Ø The man said ├óÔé¼┼ôFeel free to go home├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime nodded, a sense of rebellion rising.
She walked down the streets and felt the man trailing her with her mind. He was nervous, and worried. A new guy. Prime waited for the right moment and dodged into a side ally like Kelly in Danger on Darkside a crime thriller written by the same author who wrote Doctor, Darling. She leaned against the wall of the ally, hiding behind a dumpster. The man walked past, looking confused. His mind was now riled with panic and dismay over loosing his quarry. Prime grinned to her self and took a step down the ally way when something flickered in front of her eyes. ├óÔé¼┼ôPrime
A soft voice echoed in her mind. Prime clasped her hands to her head, pain shotting through her spine as the image flashed again.
She staggered against the wall, a silent scream opening her mouth as the pain reached a new hight. A trash can next to her imploded, crumpling up like a soda can crushed by a hand. Prime let her hands drop as the pain ebbed. Prime walked over to the trash can. She had done this. Prime experimentally reached out with her hand and tried to force her mind to to do something to the trash can. She couldn't get it to even budge slightly.
Prime walked through the city, wishing she had some money. ├óÔé¼┼ôHey├óÔé¼┬Ø A man said ├óÔé¼┼ôHave I seen you somewhere before?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime looked at him ├óÔé¼┼ôI don't think so├óÔé¼┬Ø. He had a parole badge, and Daniel had warned her about those people. ├óÔé¼┼ôReally?├óÔé¼┬Ø he asked ├óÔé¼┼ôYou look like the splitting image of someone I knew├óÔé¼┬Ø he let his hand drop ├óÔé¼┼ôOh well, sorry to bother you├óÔé¼┬Ø he walked away. Prime looked after him quizzically. What was that about?
She kept walking through the streets of the commercial sector of the city. The four main area's of the city were residential, industrial, commercial and the Red Light zone. From what little she knew of colonial history, Prime knew that the Red Light Zone had been the slums, but now was simply a seedy, run down area of strip clubs and criminal activity's. Only problem is three of the major mining cooperations were down there and wanted some extra incentive for people to join them. So they offered discounts at some of the more...open strip clubs. At least that was how Daniel put it.
She looked around. It seemed to be a nice enough place, aside from the squalid looking buildings. She found a small pub in the corner and decided to just stop by. After all she was trying to learn as much about human nature as she could. So she walked into the pub, setting off a ringing noise as the door opened. She looked up and saw a bell that the door hit while opening. ├óÔé¼┼ôSorry, but drinking hours are├óÔé¼┬Ø the woman behind the counter said, reading a magazine. Then she looked up ├óÔé¼┼ôOh├óÔé¼┬Ø She said ├óÔé¼┼ôLooking for work?├óÔé¼┬Ø
├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said, stepping into the room. The chairs were all put up on the tables, and the floor was half mopped. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell├óÔé¼┬Ø The woman said ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat can Ryan do for you today?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime pulled a chair off a table and sat down ├óÔé¼┼ôI just came by to sit down├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell now a days that seems to be enough for most people├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said, closing her magazine ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat are your particular reasons for sitting down today?├óÔé¼┬Ø she asked.
├óÔé¼┼ôWell├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said ├óÔé¼┼ôI'm trying to find out how to ask a man out├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell asking him out is a good start├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said, grinning. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell its just├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said, leaning over the counter and resting her head on her hands ├óÔé¼┼ôHe treats me more like a science project then a woman├óÔé¼┬Ø. Ryan laughed ├óÔé¼┼ôWell your better off not asking him out├óÔé¼┬Ø she said ├óÔé¼┼ôSounds like my ex-husband├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôBut├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said, sighing ├óÔé¼┼ôHe's just so...nice├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said ├óÔé¼┼ôIf your dead set on him mabey we could get some practice├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime stroked her chin ├óÔé¼┼ôPractice?├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôRight├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said ├óÔé¼┼ôThere is a big stud who's the cock of the walk├óÔé¼┬Ø she pointed to a man who was stuffed into suit that looked a size too small for his bulging muscles. It was actually rather scary, for Prime, who was used to less...robust muscles size's. ├óÔé¼┼ôIs he a good choice?├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell it depends on what you want├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said ├óÔé¼┼ôWant a quickie, then he would be a good choice, once he is nice an inebriated├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôA quickie?├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime asked.
├óÔé¼┼ôYour not a virgin, are you?├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan asked. Prime blushed, looking around the crowded pub ├óÔé¼┼ôYes ├óÔé¼┼ôshe whispered. ├óÔé¼┼ôIts nothing to feel bad about├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said ├óÔé¼┼ôThe thing to worry about is that damn boom box├óÔé¼┬Ø. The music was poundingly loud, and the choice of music made the volume worse. Prime nodded ├óÔé¼┼ôSo what is a quickie?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôA quick one├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said. After Prime's expression did not change from bewildered to enlightened, she elaborated ├óÔé¼┼ôSex. A quick sex├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôAh├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said, nodding. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell He's a bad choice for you├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said ├óÔé¼┼ôSo screw him├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôBut I don't want to├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said. It took Ryan a few moments, but then she snorted.
├óÔé¼┼ôNow see a good starter would be a newcomer to this pub, hopefully someone who is nervous and nice looking├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said ├óÔé¼┼ôSo when your kind to him he will be flustered and things will go from there├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôBut I...well├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said, blushing more ├óÔé¼┼ôI want to have my first time with...my friend├óÔé¼┬Ø she said. ├óÔé¼┼ôDon't worry├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said ├óÔé¼┼ôIt'll never get to the fucking part. So just follow my lead├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime nodded, looking around the bar for someone who fit Ryan's description.
Daniel sighed ├óÔé¼┼ôThe best way to find her is to scan the city for her field├óÔé¼┬Ø he said. ├óÔé¼┼ôGood, do it├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said ├óÔé¼┼ôI don't want Prime in the city for too long├óÔé¼┬Ø. Daniel nodded and walked out of the office. ├óÔé¼┼ôHow did she get away from the operative?├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôProbably by hiding in a crowd. She reads enough thriller novel to be a master at it by now├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel frowned ├óÔé¼┼ôAny luck with the focused scanners?├óÔé¼┬Ø ├óÔé¼┼ôYes, actually├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said, holding up what looked like a rifle ├óÔé¼┼ôYou point this in a direction and it reads off what the level of Prime's field is. Its normally zero, and when it spikes you know you've found her├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Daniel held the rifle's scope up to his eye and swept it around the room. He read a slight bump in the southern direction. ├óÔé¼┼ôYou see this bump?├óÔé¼┬Ø he asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôYeah├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôIts in the Red Light district├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôOh damn it├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôWe need to get out there├óÔé¼┬Ø. They both ran down the corridor to Daniel's car. A police van followed, holding seven riot patrol members.
Daniel pulled up to the pub when Yalonda gestured for him to stop. She was scanning the direction of Prime's field, and they had been driving through the red light district slowly, so as to avoid any pedestrians. Daniel was nervous, as he was one of the very few people who owned a car. He hoped no one would do something stupid. He was luck though as the people in the streets saw the police van behind them and kept clear. ├óÔé¼┼ôThere she is├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said. Prime was talking with a woman, visible through the window.
Daniel got out of the car ├óÔé¼┼ôProtect the car├óÔé¼┬Ø he told Yalonda. He turned around and stared at the chest of a police officer. Daniel looked up ├óÔé¼┼ôCan I help you?├óÔé¼┬Ø he asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôDon't worry doc, we'll handle this from here├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat? No!├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôPrime needs to be approached in a very-├óÔé¼┬Ø the officer cut him off ├óÔé¼┼ôDon't worry doc. We can take down one woman├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôBut├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said, but the officer and his squad was already moving into the pub.
Prime groaned ├óÔé¼┼ôHe wasn't interested├óÔé¼┬Ø she said ├óÔé¼┼ôI must be horrible at this├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôNo, he's gay├óÔé¼┬Ø Ryan said, trying to get Prime's spirits up. Prime looked up and was about to say something when the door was kicked in. Police officers moved in, guns at the ready. People shouted and ducked. The officers moved into a circle around Prime. ├óÔé¼┼ôHands up! NOW!├óÔé¼┬Ø the officer shouted. Ryan ducked under the table. Prime looked at the officers ├óÔé¼┼ôThere seems to be a├óÔé¼┬Ø she was about to say. ├óÔé¼┼ôCuff her├óÔé¼┬Ø the officer said. One of the policemen moved to put hand cuffs on Prime, but she punched him in the solar plexus, jumping out of her seat and onto the table in one smooth motion. The man, feeling the punch even through riot gear, clutched his lungs and dropped.
Prime turned to face the other officers, hands ready. ├óÔé¼┼ôLady├óÔé¼┬Ø The officer said ├óÔé¼┼ôIf you don't desist we will have to use force├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime tightened her knuckles, ready to fight. ├óÔé¼┼ôPrime, don't!├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel shouted, running into the room. He ran in front of the officers, hands up. ├óÔé¼┼ôListen, doc, i told you to get out side├óÔé¼┬Ø the officer said, grabbing Daniel by the lapels and shoving him aside. ├óÔé¼┼ôDon't hurt him├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said, anger rising in her voice.
Daniel was shoved out of the way, and fell against a table, smashing the cups to the floor. Prime snapped her forearm blades out. ├óÔé¼┼ôHoly shit!├óÔé¼┬Ø One of the policemen muttered. ├óÔé¼┼ôDon't make us use deadly force├óÔé¼┬Ø the police officer said, leveling his rifle at them. ├óÔé¼┼ôPrime, don't├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said. Prime, the policemen, Daniel and the bewildered Ryan all stood stalk still for a few moments. Then Prime snapped her forearm blades back in with a jerk of her arms and stepped off the table. Daniel walked over to her ├óÔé¼┼ôHand cuffs are not necessary├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôI'll take her home now├óÔé¼┬Ø. The officers moved to check on their wounded companion who was still trying to recover from Prime's blow.
├óÔé¼┼ôListen buddy├óÔé¼┬Ø The police officer said, pointing at Daniel ├óÔé¼┼ôElizabeth is going to get a report about this!├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôScrew you├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said, walking out.
Some free, personal adverts.
So I'm thinking about story ideas for when I'm done with Darkside (It will happen, sooner or later). The first idea I had was zany, and wacky and involved a Home defense Super Store: You first and last stop for defense against all manners of supernatural beasts! Zombies, werewolves, vampires, ghosts, we've got it all!
That kind of thing.
Then my other, more recent, idea was to go back to fantasy. I miss it, and enjoyed writing Rings a lot, so I came up with a start. A bus. Wait, you may cry, what dose a BUS have to do with fantasy. It could be a magical bus. But that is a really dumb idea. Then, as suddenly as a land mine exploding, the idea for a weird, alien landscape of silt deserts, a massive net over the sky, magic and pistols that talk back. A land of Fiefdoms, wandering biker gangs (Don't worry. They are going to be...unique biker gangs) and a bizarre world that lives on top of the old. Were a ruthless cooperation called N.E.T seems to have ubiquitous control. Its a world of extremes, were massive deserts are only punctuated by the tips of Skyscrapers of a World that Was...
Welcome to the Wastes. Keep watching the Off Topic Forum for their arrival.
So I'm thinking about story ideas for when I'm done with Darkside (It will happen, sooner or later). The first idea I had was zany, and wacky and involved a Home defense Super Store: You first and last stop for defense against all manners of supernatural beasts! Zombies, werewolves, vampires, ghosts, we've got it all!
That kind of thing.
Then my other, more recent, idea was to go back to fantasy. I miss it, and enjoyed writing Rings a lot, so I came up with a start. A bus. Wait, you may cry, what dose a BUS have to do with fantasy. It could be a magical bus. But that is a really dumb idea. Then, as suddenly as a land mine exploding, the idea for a weird, alien landscape of silt deserts, a massive net over the sky, magic and pistols that talk back. A land of Fiefdoms, wandering biker gangs (Don't worry. They are going to be...unique biker gangs) and a bizarre world that lives on top of the old. Were a ruthless cooperation called N.E.T seems to have ubiquitous control. Its a world of extremes, were massive deserts are only punctuated by the tips of Skyscrapers of a World that Was...
Welcome to the Wastes. Keep watching the Off Topic Forum for their arrival.
The x-rays (and other scanning rays) hurt not because they damaged Prime but because she was trying to keep her form. Its like holding your leg straight. While it is in a vice made to crush cars.
Edit: S-02 is called S-02 presumably because we are S-01. Thats right, we are the first speices that we know about, and so the second (S-02) is called...S-02.
Edit: S-02 is called S-02 presumably because we are S-01. Thats right, we are the first speices that we know about, and so the second (S-02) is called...S-02.
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Guessmyname
- Posts: 3301
- Joined: 28 Apr 2005, 21:07
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unpossible
- Posts: 871
- Joined: 10 May 2005, 19:24
That I do.
PS: Thats a cool supersheep, Unpossible.
PPS: My router was supposidly broked for the last day, and it turns out that my sisters computer was just sucking all of the bandwidth with its evil, soul sucking Peer to Peer dling system! Death to P2P systems!
PPPS: Oh and here is the episode!
It was exactly twelve, A.M, on Sunday, one week from Rosa's third anti-homosexual broadcast and she was ready to give out a fourth. She grinned, allowing herself some pride. After all she was doing Gods work. She walked onto the podium, her priests robes neatly pressed and tidy, as usual. Her white hair was kept in line by three chopsticks, a fashion she was told dated back to her ancient ancestors. Her rounded face was sagging with the years, but her gray eyes kept their fire from when she was a young biophysicist.
She started her speech, and as normal said it flawlessly. It was actually much the same as the last speech, with the same inflections on the same words, just set up to appear different, and using different quotes to the good book. But Rosa was troubled. The crowd, unlike their normal rambunctious applause and cheers, seemed to just stair at her. It was only then she saw Marcus sitting in the front row, his eye's condemning her far more then the hundred or so badges that read: ├óÔé¼┼ôParole├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Marcus had to cut well into his own personal finances, but was aided on the sly by Liz, who had gotten rather wealthy by simple fact of being a war hero and head of state. He had bought out every single reservation on Monday, well before anyone bought reservations at church. Reservations had been in place for Church mass, simply because of the sheer number of churches verse the population. And televised church meetings allowed people to see them, and the Church always need more money. More then could be provided from tithes, and it allowed the Religious Thought arm of the government to support the economy.
So now as many homosexual members of the crew were crammed into Rosa's church, and refusing to applause. She handled it with the aplomb of a seasoned actor, or actress in this case. She walked of the stage with dignity, trying to keep her rage under wraps. ├óÔé¼┼ôHow dare they!├óÔé¼┬Ø She snapped to her meeting organizer, Phil. ├óÔé¼┼ôI don't know how they got all those reservations├óÔé¼┬Ø he said, looking at his clip bord ├óÔé¼┼ôThey don't even have money yet. Half of them aren't even citizens, in a legal sense├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôMarcus├óÔé¼┬Ø Rosa said ├óÔé¼┼ôMarcus must be the one perverting my message├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôYes mam├óÔé¼┬Ø Phil said ├óÔé¼┼ôShould I send for him├óÔé¼┬Ø. Rosa nodded.
Marcus walked into Rosa's meeting room. It had a large alien wood desk, a nice carpet and a large clock made out of a circle of wood cut from some of the larger tree's. It ticked over softly as Marcus sat down ├óÔé¼┼ôSo your mass seemed to go well├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôI noticed a definite reaction├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôDon't play games with me├óÔé¼┬Ø Rosa said ├óÔé¼┼ôYou wrangled together those sinners and jammed them into this place of worship to spite me├óÔé¼┬Ø. She sneered ├óÔé¼┼ôDo you really think I would fall for such a simple ploy?├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôPloy?├óÔé¼┬Ø Marcus said ├óÔé¼┼ôYou think that my wanting to help people...is a ploy?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell what else would you want├óÔé¼┬Ø Rosa said ├óÔé¼┼ôI am after all, head of Religious Thought, while you seem to be in early retirement├óÔé¼┬Ø. Marcus laughed ├óÔé¼┼ôI'm a priest├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôI don't care that your the head of Religious Thought├óÔé¼┬Ø. Rosa kept the sneer ├óÔé¼┼ôYou really expect me to believe that you actually care about those...those...freaks├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôThose freaks are humans├óÔé¼┬Ø Marcus said ├óÔé¼┼ôYou should know, of all people├óÔé¼┬Ø. Rosa's sneer stiffened ├óÔé¼┼ôI won't bring up your past if you don't bring up mine├óÔé¼┬Ø she said ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat matters is the now├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat matters is you are misusing your position├óÔé¼┬Ø Marcus said ├óÔé¼┼ôYour telling people to hate rather! That is not our way├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôIs our way also supporting unholy practices? If they were Satanists, or Muslims would you be as accepting?├óÔé¼┬Ø Rosa asked. Marcus paused for a beat ├óÔé¼┼ôYes├óÔé¼┬Ø he said, finally. Rosa smiled ├óÔé¼┼ôCome now Marcus, don't lie├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Marcus stood up, frowning ├óÔé¼┼ôYes├óÔé¼┬Ø he repeated. ├óÔé¼┼ôSit down├óÔé¼┬Ø Rosa said. Marcus sat down slowly, staring icily at Rosa. ├óÔé¼┼ôThose freaks├óÔé¼┬Ø Rosa said ├óÔé¼┼ôMurdered my son and my husband├óÔé¼┬Ø. Marcus's stair softened slightly. ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd if you want to give them a place in our city├óÔé¼┬Ø Rosa said ├óÔé¼┼ôyou'll have to go over my dead body├óÔé¼┬Ø. Marcus stood and left without a word. Rosa yanked the chopsticks out of her hair and shoved them in her drawer.
Prime looked at herself in the mirror. Her body was still wet and dripping from her shower, but she was in hurry to dry and face the world again. She closed her eyes, feeling a headache come on. ├óÔé¼┼ôThey are going to kill you├óÔé¼┬Ø A voice in her head spoke, its voice more masculine then last time, deeper. Stronger. Prime clutched her temples, emotions cramming into her skull at the voice's sound. Fear, wonder. Arousal. She gasped as her temples flashed in agony, and the mirror cracked. She focused her power away from the mirror, to anything. The one of the tiles in the shower wall exploded inwards with violent force that showered the entire area around it with rubble.
The tightness around Prime's temples lessened and she slowly sank to her feet. ├óÔé¼┼ôThey will kill your entire race├óÔé¼┬Ø the voice said ├óÔé¼┼ôIt is what they do├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWho are you?├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime asked the air, her mind roiling again with the same emotions, but stronger this time. The voice was decidedly masculine now, and she didn't know why it aroused such emotions in her, but it did. The voice, however, did not respond. Prime was left on the floor, her head on fire.
├óÔé¼┼ôPrime├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked, knocking on the door ├óÔé¼┼ôPrime? I detected two spikes in there? Are you all right?├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime grabbed a towel and said ├óÔé¼┼ôI...I don't know├óÔé¼┬Ø. Daniel walked in as Prime slowly got to her feet, a towel draped around her chest to prevent Daniel from his annoying habit of blushing and averting his eyes. ├óÔé¼┼ôI heard...something and this pressure├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said ├óÔé¼┼ôStarted to build around my head and then the mirror started to crack. So i focused on the wall and it exploded├óÔé¼┬Ø. She gestured to the tilting ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd the pressure went away├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôWe need to find out how to get this...pressure out without destroying my house├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said. ├óÔé¼┼ôhow?├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime asked, looking at the shower stall and its bits of broken tiling. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôif you can direct it from the mirror to the wall, then mabey you can control it more├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime nodded ├óÔé¼┼ôHow?├óÔé¼┬Ø she asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell...I have no idea. We've never had a real telekinetic. Ever├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel sighed ├óÔé¼┼ôLets try just some small things first├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime looked down at herself ├óÔé¼┼ôMabey I should get dressed first├óÔé¼┬Ø she said. Daniel nodded ├óÔé¼┼ôYou do that, I need to get some stuff├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Prime sat at the table, wearing a teeshirt and some shorts. She stared at a coffee cup, a plastic one that Daniel could bare to part with. ├óÔé¼┼ôNow├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôTry to imagine your field warping out to touch the cup├óÔé¼┬Ø. The cup shattered. Daniel blinked and looked at Prime. She shrugged. ├óÔé¼┼ôTry just putting your field UNDER the cup, and picking it up├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said. Prime nodded as he grabbed another disposable plastic coffee cup.
The coffee cup shot up into the air and smashed into the celling, crumpling into a small circle of plastic. Daniel winced as it dropped back onto the table, leaving a mark in his celling. ├óÔé¼┼ôWe are making progress├óÔé¼┬Ø he said feebly. Prime sighed ├óÔé¼┼ôI'm no good├óÔé¼┬Ø She muttered. ├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôYour TOO good├óÔé¼┬Ø. She chuckled at that ├óÔé¼┼ôNow just try the same thing slower├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime nodded as Daniel put a new cup on the table. It slowly lifted into the air, wobbling somewhat as her concentration wavered, but it stayed there.
├óÔé¼┼ôGood job├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôNow you can just levitate something when you need to, rather then destroying my drywall├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime frowned, letting the cup drop ├óÔé¼┼ôWhy, though?├óÔé¼┬Ø she asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôI have no idea├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said, rubbing his eyes with his hands ├óÔé¼┼ôI'll study it at the lab├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said ├óÔé¼┼ôYou've barely slept this entire week├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôBut I├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel started to say. Prime fixed him with a stair ├óÔé¼┼ôStay├óÔé¼┬Ø she said. Daniel nodded ├óÔé¼┼ôFine, I'll stay for the weekend and work on it Monday├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôGood├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said ├óÔé¼┼ôNow├óÔé¼┬Ø she trailed off, trying to say what she wanted. But her voice stalled. ├óÔé¼┼ôNow, what?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôNow├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said again. Then she threw up on the table. ├óÔé¼┼ôAre you all right?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked, grabbing a cloth. ├óÔé¼┼ôMust be the beer├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said. ├óÔé¼┼ôYou eat?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked, whipping up the mostly liquid vomit and chucking the towel into the sink. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell I wanted to try out the drinks in the pup├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said.
├óÔé¼┼ôHow many did you drink?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôTen or so├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said. ├óÔé¼┼ôTen or so?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôMabey more like twenty├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said ├óÔé¼┼ôbut it tasted good├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd you weren't hammered?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell the woman I was with was getting pretty drunk, but I didn't seem to have that problem├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said. ├óÔé¼┼ôYou can't get drunk├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôHow I envy you├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime leaned back in her chair and sighed ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat will we do for the rest of the evening?├óÔé¼┬Ø she asked.
Daniel grimaced ├óÔé¼┼ôClean up my bathroom├óÔé¼┬Ø he said. ├óÔé¼┼ôDaniel do you want to go out?├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime asked, getting the words out quickly before she could lose courage. ├óÔé¼┼ôGo out?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked ├óÔé¼┼ôLike on a date?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôYes├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said. Daniel laughed ├óÔé¼┼ôYour...not serious are you?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôYes I am├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said, grinning. Daniel's smile died slowly on his face ├óÔé¼┼ôWhere?├óÔé¼┬Ø he asked. Prime shrugged ├óÔé¼┼ôAnywhere...as long as i get to buy that dress├óÔé¼┬Ø. Daniel thought for a moment then realized what dress she meant.
├óÔé¼┼ôSir├óÔé¼┬Ø Donaldson said ├óÔé¼┼ôEgghead and Queen have moved out of their domicile├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôRoger├óÔé¼┬Ø H.Q said ├óÔé¼┼ôFollow them and report where they're heading├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôRodger├óÔé¼┬Ø Donaldson said, clicking his walky talky off. He started to follow Daniel and Prime, watching them as they wandered through the central park, chatting about little to nothing. Then they bought a dress.
Donaldson watched them go into the clothes shop, then waited patiently until they left the shop a half hour later. He whistled softly to himself. That was a fine dress and a fine looking woman in it. ├óÔé¼┼ôEgghead seems to have bought Queen a...dress├óÔé¼┬Ø Donaldson said into his walky talky. ├óÔé¼┼ôA dress?├óÔé¼┬Ø H.Q asked ├óÔé¼┼ôAre you sure?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôHow can I not be sure about a dress as fine as that?├óÔé¼┬Ø Donaldson asked ├óÔé¼┼ôNow they are going...shit├óÔé¼┬Ø he swore. Prime and Daniel had vanished into the crowd while he was talking. ├óÔé¼┼ôLost contact├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôReestablishing├óÔé¼┬Ø. He started to walk briskly along the path his leads had been following. Then he spotted Prime's profile and said softly into his walky talky ├óÔé¼┼ôReestablished├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Then he noticed that the two were standing outside the Copernicus, one of the finest restaurants on Darkside. ├óÔé¼┼ôI think they are on a date├óÔé¼┬Ø Donaldson said. H.Q paused for a moment ├óÔé¼┼ôA date?├óÔé¼┬Ø he said, somewhat incredulously ├óÔé¼┼ôHe's taking an alien on a date├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôBelieve me├óÔé¼┬Ø Donaldson ├óÔé¼┼ôShe doesn't look like an alien from where I'm sitting├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime looked around at the park, at the streetlights sprinkled liberally through the trees, and smiled.
Prime sat down at the table, reading the menu. The dress was perfect, from her point of view. Unlike the other clothes she had worn it was silky smooth and looked incredible, from her perspective at least. Daniel walked over to the table and sat down ├óÔé¼┼ôI just worked out the seating problems├óÔé¼┬Ø he said, sitting down ├óÔé¼┼ôSo, what do you think?├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Prime looked around the area the table was settled in. It was a small plaza surrounded by Greek style columns, with a water fouten bubbling over in the back. A small lake ran between tables, with stepping stones to let waiters and guests go past. Tree's, imported from the rain forest around the colony, hung over the plaza and shaded the guests in day, and at night were lit by street lamps hung from their branches. ├óÔé¼┼ôIts nice├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said.
Daniel grinned ├óÔé¼┼ôIsn't├óÔé¼┬Ø he said, grabbing a menu. Thirty or so feet behind him, sitting at the far far side of the plaza, Donaldson used his binocular glasses to zoom in to his two assignments. The binocular glasses were a marvel brought by some enterprising mariner on the Rodger Young. He had enough sense of mind to grab every high tech gagit in the store room he was covering, then run into an escape pod. So now the Security Force's could do pretty much anything without calling undue attention to themselves. Like spy on people.
├óÔé¼┼ôHe's ordering a steak├óÔé¼┬Ø Donaldson said ├óÔé¼┼ôRich prick├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWe don't care what he is ordering├óÔé¼┬Ø H.Q said ├óÔé¼┼ôWe want to know if he is going to breach security├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôHave you told the commander?├óÔé¼┬Ø Donaldson asked, trying to make it look like he was not talking to himself, but rather to a small bird parched on a tree near him. He also noticed that Prime had ordered what seemed to be three salads and two steaks. ├óÔé¼┼ôShe didn't take it so well├óÔé¼┬Ø H.Q said.
├óÔé¼┼ôIdiot!├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz shouted ├óÔé¼┼ôIdiot!├óÔé¼┬Ø. Amber rolled her eyes ├óÔé¼┼ôFalling in love is not idiocy├óÔé¼┬Ø she said patiently. ├óÔé¼┼ôFalling in love with a alien that could wipe out all life on this planet, is├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said, grinding her teeth. ├óÔé¼┼ôSome say love conquers all evils├óÔé¼┬Ø Amber said. ├óÔé¼┼ôSome people would be wrong├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said, sitting down ├óÔé¼┼ôWe need to find a way to kill these things, if it ever comes to that├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôS-02, or Prime specifically?├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda asked. She didn't talk much, preferring to watch the debate from the sidelines until she was needed.
├óÔé¼┼ôAny S-02 with legs, arms and heads├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell the microbes are impossibly hard to eradicate on mass scales├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôAny change in the environment causes them to grow spontaneously, and eventually this growth causes them to reach the proto-animal state. The animal state is only marginally more intelligent then the microbes, and can last longer. At this point they can be vaporised├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôHow dose this work, actually?├óÔé¼┬Ø Amber asked, raising her hand. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell we are theorizing that a 'brain' of specialized S-02 microbes form at this point, keeping the creature together. When its destroyed the microbes collapse down to their base elements, turning into some nondescript gases. I think if one just shot up any S-02 animal or humanoid until we hit the brain, then they will die. However every bit that we shoot off that is not the brain simply spreads more microbes over the area, propagating more S-02 parts├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôWhat about lasers?├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôIts a moot point├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôOur best lasers are turret or vehicle mounted. Not so good for infantry use├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôDamn it├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz muttered ├óÔé¼┼ôI need an aid to give me a run down of our lode out├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôYou've only had the job for half a month├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd the colony security force's are better then ever. We've had a thirty three percent drop in crime, starting from when you took over├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôYeah├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said ├óÔé¼┼ôBut we are still vulnerable to S-02 and I'm not stopping till the planet is safe├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôYour not going to get a lot of sleep├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda muttered. Amber closed her eyes ├óÔé¼┼ôWell in some lighter news I think our little protest in the church has worked├óÔé¼┬Ø she said. ├óÔé¼┼ôBy a lot or a little?├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôA lot├óÔé¼┬Ø Amber said ├óÔé¼┼ôRosa's popularity has dropped by a bit, and because more then half of our people have gotten these damn parole badges taken off├óÔé¼┬Ø she gestured to the badge that was still stuck to her shirt ├óÔé¼┼ôWe can start getting citizenship and working├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôHow is that going?├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell├óÔé¼┬Ø Amber said ├óÔé¼┼ôits a hit and a miss. Some people will just say yes, as long as they don't have a badge, others will throw them out on their ears├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell its better then nothing├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said, rubbing her temples. She looked at the clock and started. They had been talking for an hour past closing time. ├óÔé¼┼ôits late, we need to get some sleep├óÔé¼┬Ø she said, standing up and grabbing her coat.
Prime walked into the house, humming to herself as Daniel gallantly offered his arm to her. She stepped over the threshold and grinned ├óÔé¼┼ôEven if the wine dose nothing to you├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said, closing the door ├óÔé¼┼ôIts done wonders for me├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime giggled. The steak had been great, but the salad had to be chosen again, as it was even better then the steak. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said, looking at Prim ├óÔé¼┼ôIt was a nice evening, but as you said, I need to get some sleep├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Prime nodded then kissed him, grabbing the side of his head and pulling him close to her. Daniel broke away after a few moments, pushing Prime against the wall with his hand. ├óÔé¼┼ôI think├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôWe should take this a bit slow├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime nodded ├óÔé¼┼ôYour right, absolutely right├óÔé¼┬Ø she said. Daniel nodded with her, and they both stood there, nodding like a pair of idiots.
Then Prime grabbed his again, kissing Daniel harder then the last time. Daniel let it go on for a moment, then pulled away ├óÔé¼┼ôGood night├óÔé¼┬Ø he said. ├óÔé¼┼ôDaniel├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said ├óÔé¼┼ôI want you├óÔé¼┬Ø. Daniel looked at her and was immideatly sized by two emotions. Lust, obviously, and...guilt. He felt like he was taking advantage of her every time she kissed him. ├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôNot tonight. Not tonight├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime closed her eyes ├óÔé¼┼ôYou...├óÔé¼┬Ø she said ├óÔé¼┼ôYou don't...├óÔé¼┬Ø she trailed off.
├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôNo...its just a custom among my people to take their time and wait till we are absolutely sure├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime thought about it for a second and opened her mouth ├óÔé¼┼ôHow can I be any more sure?├óÔé¼┬Ø she asked. Daniel grinned ├óÔé¼┼ôSometimes it seems like that, but├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôYou still can be fooled├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime nodded reluctantly ├óÔé¼┼ôOne last time├óÔé¼┬Ø She said, grabbing him and kissing his again. Daniel let her linger and enjoy it.
Prime slowly pulled away. She loved kissing, as she loved any new, pleasurable, experience. Like her first steak, her first salad, her first taste of wine, her first taste of beer. All these experience's were filling her mind with memory's, far more detailed then the human memory's she had. It was almost frightening, the celerity and power of these memory's. As Daniel walked into the bathroom, Prime stayed in the hallway, leaning against the wall and breathing slowly, deeply.
├óÔé¼┼ôYou fool├óÔé¼┬Ø the voice said. ├óÔé¼┼ôShut up├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime whispered, feeling the pressure building at her temples. ├óÔé¼┼ôHe will never love you├óÔé¼┬Ø the voice continued ├óÔé¼┼ôHe will never return your emotions. You are an alien, as alien to him as a bacteria or a virus├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime clutched her head, grabbing for something, anything with her power. She picked up five objects chosen at random, a book, a lamp, a vase, a chair, and a pillow. She kept them up, moving slowly through the air. The pressure still built.
Prime held her calm, keeping the pressure in her head. Then slowly, impossibly, it ebbed. She let the objects slowly rest and breathed a sigh of relief. Daniel looked at him self in the mirror. He wanted to walk out there and give into every one of Prime's demands, to get her up against the wall...to. He shook himself. She knew less then she thought. He couldn't take advantage of her, never. He looked away from the mirror and flushed the toilet. Then he wrote himself a mental memo to get his shower wall repaired.
PPPPS: Just to double make sure, its sentinet spices. Not the regular, boring kind.
PS: Thats a cool supersheep, Unpossible.
PPS: My router was supposidly broked for the last day, and it turns out that my sisters computer was just sucking all of the bandwidth with its evil, soul sucking Peer to Peer dling system! Death to P2P systems!
PPPS: Oh and here is the episode!
It was exactly twelve, A.M, on Sunday, one week from Rosa's third anti-homosexual broadcast and she was ready to give out a fourth. She grinned, allowing herself some pride. After all she was doing Gods work. She walked onto the podium, her priests robes neatly pressed and tidy, as usual. Her white hair was kept in line by three chopsticks, a fashion she was told dated back to her ancient ancestors. Her rounded face was sagging with the years, but her gray eyes kept their fire from when she was a young biophysicist.
She started her speech, and as normal said it flawlessly. It was actually much the same as the last speech, with the same inflections on the same words, just set up to appear different, and using different quotes to the good book. But Rosa was troubled. The crowd, unlike their normal rambunctious applause and cheers, seemed to just stair at her. It was only then she saw Marcus sitting in the front row, his eye's condemning her far more then the hundred or so badges that read: ├óÔé¼┼ôParole├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Marcus had to cut well into his own personal finances, but was aided on the sly by Liz, who had gotten rather wealthy by simple fact of being a war hero and head of state. He had bought out every single reservation on Monday, well before anyone bought reservations at church. Reservations had been in place for Church mass, simply because of the sheer number of churches verse the population. And televised church meetings allowed people to see them, and the Church always need more money. More then could be provided from tithes, and it allowed the Religious Thought arm of the government to support the economy.
So now as many homosexual members of the crew were crammed into Rosa's church, and refusing to applause. She handled it with the aplomb of a seasoned actor, or actress in this case. She walked of the stage with dignity, trying to keep her rage under wraps. ├óÔé¼┼ôHow dare they!├óÔé¼┬Ø She snapped to her meeting organizer, Phil. ├óÔé¼┼ôI don't know how they got all those reservations├óÔé¼┬Ø he said, looking at his clip bord ├óÔé¼┼ôThey don't even have money yet. Half of them aren't even citizens, in a legal sense├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôMarcus├óÔé¼┬Ø Rosa said ├óÔé¼┼ôMarcus must be the one perverting my message├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôYes mam├óÔé¼┬Ø Phil said ├óÔé¼┼ôShould I send for him├óÔé¼┬Ø. Rosa nodded.
Marcus walked into Rosa's meeting room. It had a large alien wood desk, a nice carpet and a large clock made out of a circle of wood cut from some of the larger tree's. It ticked over softly as Marcus sat down ├óÔé¼┼ôSo your mass seemed to go well├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôI noticed a definite reaction├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôDon't play games with me├óÔé¼┬Ø Rosa said ├óÔé¼┼ôYou wrangled together those sinners and jammed them into this place of worship to spite me├óÔé¼┬Ø. She sneered ├óÔé¼┼ôDo you really think I would fall for such a simple ploy?├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôPloy?├óÔé¼┬Ø Marcus said ├óÔé¼┼ôYou think that my wanting to help people...is a ploy?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell what else would you want├óÔé¼┬Ø Rosa said ├óÔé¼┼ôI am after all, head of Religious Thought, while you seem to be in early retirement├óÔé¼┬Ø. Marcus laughed ├óÔé¼┼ôI'm a priest├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôI don't care that your the head of Religious Thought├óÔé¼┬Ø. Rosa kept the sneer ├óÔé¼┼ôYou really expect me to believe that you actually care about those...those...freaks├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôThose freaks are humans├óÔé¼┬Ø Marcus said ├óÔé¼┼ôYou should know, of all people├óÔé¼┬Ø. Rosa's sneer stiffened ├óÔé¼┼ôI won't bring up your past if you don't bring up mine├óÔé¼┬Ø she said ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat matters is the now├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat matters is you are misusing your position├óÔé¼┬Ø Marcus said ├óÔé¼┼ôYour telling people to hate rather! That is not our way├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôIs our way also supporting unholy practices? If they were Satanists, or Muslims would you be as accepting?├óÔé¼┬Ø Rosa asked. Marcus paused for a beat ├óÔé¼┼ôYes├óÔé¼┬Ø he said, finally. Rosa smiled ├óÔé¼┼ôCome now Marcus, don't lie├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Marcus stood up, frowning ├óÔé¼┼ôYes├óÔé¼┬Ø he repeated. ├óÔé¼┼ôSit down├óÔé¼┬Ø Rosa said. Marcus sat down slowly, staring icily at Rosa. ├óÔé¼┼ôThose freaks├óÔé¼┬Ø Rosa said ├óÔé¼┼ôMurdered my son and my husband├óÔé¼┬Ø. Marcus's stair softened slightly. ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd if you want to give them a place in our city├óÔé¼┬Ø Rosa said ├óÔé¼┼ôyou'll have to go over my dead body├óÔé¼┬Ø. Marcus stood and left without a word. Rosa yanked the chopsticks out of her hair and shoved them in her drawer.
Prime looked at herself in the mirror. Her body was still wet and dripping from her shower, but she was in hurry to dry and face the world again. She closed her eyes, feeling a headache come on. ├óÔé¼┼ôThey are going to kill you├óÔé¼┬Ø A voice in her head spoke, its voice more masculine then last time, deeper. Stronger. Prime clutched her temples, emotions cramming into her skull at the voice's sound. Fear, wonder. Arousal. She gasped as her temples flashed in agony, and the mirror cracked. She focused her power away from the mirror, to anything. The one of the tiles in the shower wall exploded inwards with violent force that showered the entire area around it with rubble.
The tightness around Prime's temples lessened and she slowly sank to her feet. ├óÔé¼┼ôThey will kill your entire race├óÔé¼┬Ø the voice said ├óÔé¼┼ôIt is what they do├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWho are you?├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime asked the air, her mind roiling again with the same emotions, but stronger this time. The voice was decidedly masculine now, and she didn't know why it aroused such emotions in her, but it did. The voice, however, did not respond. Prime was left on the floor, her head on fire.
├óÔé¼┼ôPrime├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked, knocking on the door ├óÔé¼┼ôPrime? I detected two spikes in there? Are you all right?├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime grabbed a towel and said ├óÔé¼┼ôI...I don't know├óÔé¼┬Ø. Daniel walked in as Prime slowly got to her feet, a towel draped around her chest to prevent Daniel from his annoying habit of blushing and averting his eyes. ├óÔé¼┼ôI heard...something and this pressure├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said ├óÔé¼┼ôStarted to build around my head and then the mirror started to crack. So i focused on the wall and it exploded├óÔé¼┬Ø. She gestured to the tilting ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd the pressure went away├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôWe need to find out how to get this...pressure out without destroying my house├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said. ├óÔé¼┼ôhow?├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime asked, looking at the shower stall and its bits of broken tiling. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôif you can direct it from the mirror to the wall, then mabey you can control it more├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime nodded ├óÔé¼┼ôHow?├óÔé¼┬Ø she asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell...I have no idea. We've never had a real telekinetic. Ever├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel sighed ├óÔé¼┼ôLets try just some small things first├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime looked down at herself ├óÔé¼┼ôMabey I should get dressed first├óÔé¼┬Ø she said. Daniel nodded ├óÔé¼┼ôYou do that, I need to get some stuff├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Prime sat at the table, wearing a teeshirt and some shorts. She stared at a coffee cup, a plastic one that Daniel could bare to part with. ├óÔé¼┼ôNow├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôTry to imagine your field warping out to touch the cup├óÔé¼┬Ø. The cup shattered. Daniel blinked and looked at Prime. She shrugged. ├óÔé¼┼ôTry just putting your field UNDER the cup, and picking it up├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said. Prime nodded as he grabbed another disposable plastic coffee cup.
The coffee cup shot up into the air and smashed into the celling, crumpling into a small circle of plastic. Daniel winced as it dropped back onto the table, leaving a mark in his celling. ├óÔé¼┼ôWe are making progress├óÔé¼┬Ø he said feebly. Prime sighed ├óÔé¼┼ôI'm no good├óÔé¼┬Ø She muttered. ├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôYour TOO good├óÔé¼┬Ø. She chuckled at that ├óÔé¼┼ôNow just try the same thing slower├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime nodded as Daniel put a new cup on the table. It slowly lifted into the air, wobbling somewhat as her concentration wavered, but it stayed there.
├óÔé¼┼ôGood job├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôNow you can just levitate something when you need to, rather then destroying my drywall├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime frowned, letting the cup drop ├óÔé¼┼ôWhy, though?├óÔé¼┬Ø she asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôI have no idea├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said, rubbing his eyes with his hands ├óÔé¼┼ôI'll study it at the lab├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said ├óÔé¼┼ôYou've barely slept this entire week├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôBut I├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel started to say. Prime fixed him with a stair ├óÔé¼┼ôStay├óÔé¼┬Ø she said. Daniel nodded ├óÔé¼┼ôFine, I'll stay for the weekend and work on it Monday├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôGood├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said ├óÔé¼┼ôNow├óÔé¼┬Ø she trailed off, trying to say what she wanted. But her voice stalled. ├óÔé¼┼ôNow, what?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôNow├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said again. Then she threw up on the table. ├óÔé¼┼ôAre you all right?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked, grabbing a cloth. ├óÔé¼┼ôMust be the beer├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said. ├óÔé¼┼ôYou eat?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked, whipping up the mostly liquid vomit and chucking the towel into the sink. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell I wanted to try out the drinks in the pup├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said.
├óÔé¼┼ôHow many did you drink?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôTen or so├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said. ├óÔé¼┼ôTen or so?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôMabey more like twenty├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said ├óÔé¼┼ôbut it tasted good├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd you weren't hammered?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell the woman I was with was getting pretty drunk, but I didn't seem to have that problem├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said. ├óÔé¼┼ôYou can't get drunk├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôHow I envy you├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime leaned back in her chair and sighed ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat will we do for the rest of the evening?├óÔé¼┬Ø she asked.
Daniel grimaced ├óÔé¼┼ôClean up my bathroom├óÔé¼┬Ø he said. ├óÔé¼┼ôDaniel do you want to go out?├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime asked, getting the words out quickly before she could lose courage. ├óÔé¼┼ôGo out?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked ├óÔé¼┼ôLike on a date?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôYes├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said. Daniel laughed ├óÔé¼┼ôYour...not serious are you?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôYes I am├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said, grinning. Daniel's smile died slowly on his face ├óÔé¼┼ôWhere?├óÔé¼┬Ø he asked. Prime shrugged ├óÔé¼┼ôAnywhere...as long as i get to buy that dress├óÔé¼┬Ø. Daniel thought for a moment then realized what dress she meant.
├óÔé¼┼ôSir├óÔé¼┬Ø Donaldson said ├óÔé¼┼ôEgghead and Queen have moved out of their domicile├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôRoger├óÔé¼┬Ø H.Q said ├óÔé¼┼ôFollow them and report where they're heading├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôRodger├óÔé¼┬Ø Donaldson said, clicking his walky talky off. He started to follow Daniel and Prime, watching them as they wandered through the central park, chatting about little to nothing. Then they bought a dress.
Donaldson watched them go into the clothes shop, then waited patiently until they left the shop a half hour later. He whistled softly to himself. That was a fine dress and a fine looking woman in it. ├óÔé¼┼ôEgghead seems to have bought Queen a...dress├óÔé¼┬Ø Donaldson said into his walky talky. ├óÔé¼┼ôA dress?├óÔé¼┬Ø H.Q asked ├óÔé¼┼ôAre you sure?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôHow can I not be sure about a dress as fine as that?├óÔé¼┬Ø Donaldson asked ├óÔé¼┼ôNow they are going...shit├óÔé¼┬Ø he swore. Prime and Daniel had vanished into the crowd while he was talking. ├óÔé¼┼ôLost contact├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôReestablishing├óÔé¼┬Ø. He started to walk briskly along the path his leads had been following. Then he spotted Prime's profile and said softly into his walky talky ├óÔé¼┼ôReestablished├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Then he noticed that the two were standing outside the Copernicus, one of the finest restaurants on Darkside. ├óÔé¼┼ôI think they are on a date├óÔé¼┬Ø Donaldson said. H.Q paused for a moment ├óÔé¼┼ôA date?├óÔé¼┬Ø he said, somewhat incredulously ├óÔé¼┼ôHe's taking an alien on a date├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôBelieve me├óÔé¼┬Ø Donaldson ├óÔé¼┼ôShe doesn't look like an alien from where I'm sitting├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime looked around at the park, at the streetlights sprinkled liberally through the trees, and smiled.
Prime sat down at the table, reading the menu. The dress was perfect, from her point of view. Unlike the other clothes she had worn it was silky smooth and looked incredible, from her perspective at least. Daniel walked over to the table and sat down ├óÔé¼┼ôI just worked out the seating problems├óÔé¼┬Ø he said, sitting down ├óÔé¼┼ôSo, what do you think?├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Prime looked around the area the table was settled in. It was a small plaza surrounded by Greek style columns, with a water fouten bubbling over in the back. A small lake ran between tables, with stepping stones to let waiters and guests go past. Tree's, imported from the rain forest around the colony, hung over the plaza and shaded the guests in day, and at night were lit by street lamps hung from their branches. ├óÔé¼┼ôIts nice├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said.
Daniel grinned ├óÔé¼┼ôIsn't├óÔé¼┬Ø he said, grabbing a menu. Thirty or so feet behind him, sitting at the far far side of the plaza, Donaldson used his binocular glasses to zoom in to his two assignments. The binocular glasses were a marvel brought by some enterprising mariner on the Rodger Young. He had enough sense of mind to grab every high tech gagit in the store room he was covering, then run into an escape pod. So now the Security Force's could do pretty much anything without calling undue attention to themselves. Like spy on people.
├óÔé¼┼ôHe's ordering a steak├óÔé¼┬Ø Donaldson said ├óÔé¼┼ôRich prick├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWe don't care what he is ordering├óÔé¼┬Ø H.Q said ├óÔé¼┼ôWe want to know if he is going to breach security├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôHave you told the commander?├óÔé¼┬Ø Donaldson asked, trying to make it look like he was not talking to himself, but rather to a small bird parched on a tree near him. He also noticed that Prime had ordered what seemed to be three salads and two steaks. ├óÔé¼┼ôShe didn't take it so well├óÔé¼┬Ø H.Q said.
├óÔé¼┼ôIdiot!├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz shouted ├óÔé¼┼ôIdiot!├óÔé¼┬Ø. Amber rolled her eyes ├óÔé¼┼ôFalling in love is not idiocy├óÔé¼┬Ø she said patiently. ├óÔé¼┼ôFalling in love with a alien that could wipe out all life on this planet, is├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said, grinding her teeth. ├óÔé¼┼ôSome say love conquers all evils├óÔé¼┬Ø Amber said. ├óÔé¼┼ôSome people would be wrong├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said, sitting down ├óÔé¼┼ôWe need to find a way to kill these things, if it ever comes to that├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôS-02, or Prime specifically?├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda asked. She didn't talk much, preferring to watch the debate from the sidelines until she was needed.
├óÔé¼┼ôAny S-02 with legs, arms and heads├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell the microbes are impossibly hard to eradicate on mass scales├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôAny change in the environment causes them to grow spontaneously, and eventually this growth causes them to reach the proto-animal state. The animal state is only marginally more intelligent then the microbes, and can last longer. At this point they can be vaporised├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôHow dose this work, actually?├óÔé¼┬Ø Amber asked, raising her hand. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell we are theorizing that a 'brain' of specialized S-02 microbes form at this point, keeping the creature together. When its destroyed the microbes collapse down to their base elements, turning into some nondescript gases. I think if one just shot up any S-02 animal or humanoid until we hit the brain, then they will die. However every bit that we shoot off that is not the brain simply spreads more microbes over the area, propagating more S-02 parts├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôWhat about lasers?├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôIts a moot point├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôOur best lasers are turret or vehicle mounted. Not so good for infantry use├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôDamn it├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz muttered ├óÔé¼┼ôI need an aid to give me a run down of our lode out├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôYou've only had the job for half a month├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd the colony security force's are better then ever. We've had a thirty three percent drop in crime, starting from when you took over├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôYeah├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said ├óÔé¼┼ôBut we are still vulnerable to S-02 and I'm not stopping till the planet is safe├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôYour not going to get a lot of sleep├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda muttered. Amber closed her eyes ├óÔé¼┼ôWell in some lighter news I think our little protest in the church has worked├óÔé¼┬Ø she said. ├óÔé¼┼ôBy a lot or a little?├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôA lot├óÔé¼┬Ø Amber said ├óÔé¼┼ôRosa's popularity has dropped by a bit, and because more then half of our people have gotten these damn parole badges taken off├óÔé¼┬Ø she gestured to the badge that was still stuck to her shirt ├óÔé¼┼ôWe can start getting citizenship and working├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôHow is that going?├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell├óÔé¼┬Ø Amber said ├óÔé¼┼ôits a hit and a miss. Some people will just say yes, as long as they don't have a badge, others will throw them out on their ears├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell its better then nothing├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said, rubbing her temples. She looked at the clock and started. They had been talking for an hour past closing time. ├óÔé¼┼ôits late, we need to get some sleep├óÔé¼┬Ø she said, standing up and grabbing her coat.
Prime walked into the house, humming to herself as Daniel gallantly offered his arm to her. She stepped over the threshold and grinned ├óÔé¼┼ôEven if the wine dose nothing to you├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said, closing the door ├óÔé¼┼ôIts done wonders for me├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime giggled. The steak had been great, but the salad had to be chosen again, as it was even better then the steak. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said, looking at Prim ├óÔé¼┼ôIt was a nice evening, but as you said, I need to get some sleep├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Prime nodded then kissed him, grabbing the side of his head and pulling him close to her. Daniel broke away after a few moments, pushing Prime against the wall with his hand. ├óÔé¼┼ôI think├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôWe should take this a bit slow├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime nodded ├óÔé¼┼ôYour right, absolutely right├óÔé¼┬Ø she said. Daniel nodded with her, and they both stood there, nodding like a pair of idiots.
Then Prime grabbed his again, kissing Daniel harder then the last time. Daniel let it go on for a moment, then pulled away ├óÔé¼┼ôGood night├óÔé¼┬Ø he said. ├óÔé¼┼ôDaniel├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said ├óÔé¼┼ôI want you├óÔé¼┬Ø. Daniel looked at her and was immideatly sized by two emotions. Lust, obviously, and...guilt. He felt like he was taking advantage of her every time she kissed him. ├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôNot tonight. Not tonight├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime closed her eyes ├óÔé¼┼ôYou...├óÔé¼┬Ø she said ├óÔé¼┼ôYou don't...├óÔé¼┬Ø she trailed off.
├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôNo...its just a custom among my people to take their time and wait till we are absolutely sure├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime thought about it for a second and opened her mouth ├óÔé¼┼ôHow can I be any more sure?├óÔé¼┬Ø she asked. Daniel grinned ├óÔé¼┼ôSometimes it seems like that, but├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôYou still can be fooled├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime nodded reluctantly ├óÔé¼┼ôOne last time├óÔé¼┬Ø She said, grabbing him and kissing his again. Daniel let her linger and enjoy it.
Prime slowly pulled away. She loved kissing, as she loved any new, pleasurable, experience. Like her first steak, her first salad, her first taste of wine, her first taste of beer. All these experience's were filling her mind with memory's, far more detailed then the human memory's she had. It was almost frightening, the celerity and power of these memory's. As Daniel walked into the bathroom, Prime stayed in the hallway, leaning against the wall and breathing slowly, deeply.
├óÔé¼┼ôYou fool├óÔé¼┬Ø the voice said. ├óÔé¼┼ôShut up├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime whispered, feeling the pressure building at her temples. ├óÔé¼┼ôHe will never love you├óÔé¼┬Ø the voice continued ├óÔé¼┼ôHe will never return your emotions. You are an alien, as alien to him as a bacteria or a virus├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime clutched her head, grabbing for something, anything with her power. She picked up five objects chosen at random, a book, a lamp, a vase, a chair, and a pillow. She kept them up, moving slowly through the air. The pressure still built.
Prime held her calm, keeping the pressure in her head. Then slowly, impossibly, it ebbed. She let the objects slowly rest and breathed a sigh of relief. Daniel looked at him self in the mirror. He wanted to walk out there and give into every one of Prime's demands, to get her up against the wall...to. He shook himself. She knew less then she thought. He couldn't take advantage of her, never. He looked away from the mirror and flushed the toilet. Then he wrote himself a mental memo to get his shower wall repaired.
PPPPS: Just to double make sure, its sentinet spices. Not the regular, boring kind.
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unpossible
- Posts: 871
- Joined: 10 May 2005, 19:24
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Guessmyname
- Posts: 3301
- Joined: 28 Apr 2005, 21:07
Ugh i'm tired. I think he said that the spies where sentinet.
Offcourse, i did'nt rembear what sentinet meaned, so i had to look it up...
Anyways, great chapter. I would say that the flow in your writing is very interchanging. You spend 5-8 chapters telling about charater backrounds and enviorments, then changing them completly over the course of 3, starting a totaly new storyline thing. It seams like your writing a really long synopsis of a 5 diffrent books in a storyline.
Offcourse, i did'nt rembear what sentinet meaned, so i had to look it up...
Anyways, great chapter. I would say that the flow in your writing is very interchanging. You spend 5-8 chapters telling about charater backrounds and enviorments, then changing them completly over the course of 3, starting a totaly new storyline thing. It seams like your writing a really long synopsis of a 5 diffrent books in a storyline.
Why don't you aceept it as constuctive feedback, and get 2 for 1! :DZoombie wrote:I'm...uhhh...not sure if thats a compliment...or an insult...
Edit: Also, is it weird if i feel much sharper in 1 in the morning? I feel like making a ton of work but my eye's say no.
Edit edit: Hehe, i watched starship troopers again... now i reamber where you got Rodger Young from.
Liz frowned, looking at her desk. ├óÔé¼┼ôDamn├óÔé¼┬Ø she thunked her head down on the desk ├óÔé¼┼ôI should have kept to pirating├óÔé¼┬Ø. Papers covered every part of her desk, even when stacked neatly into piles. Data slates, she found, were rather expensive in the colony, but tree's were everywhere. And worse they were fast seeding, fast growing, alien trees. So the colony could practically burn down entire acres and have them regrow after a month, few weeks at best.
So paper was the mode of choice. Liz still couldn't write, not after a life time of typing and dictating, so she had a secretary. A fucking secretary. ├óÔé¼┼ôScrew this├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said ├óÔé¼┼ôI resign├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôAgain, miss?├óÔé¼┬Ø her secretary asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said ├óÔé¼┼ôThat was a fucking rhetorical question├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôDon't swear mam├óÔé¼┬Ø Her secretary said, still writing notes and letters to the various people who wanted five minuets of Liz's time. They swear, just five minuets. The last month had been filled completely up with ├óÔé¼┼ôfive minuets├óÔé¼┬Ø.
The colony's security force's were a mess, when Liz arrived. Badly trained, organized, and acting more off of a 'what seems to be a good idea at the time' methodology then the actual laws of the colony. Liz, who already had a pretty good grasp of logistics and management from her time on the Enterprise, tried to whip them into shape. And after a month and a week on the job it was going badly.
The security force's were still a mess, their methodology was a joke, and she couldn't even send out notes on paper without a damn secretary. ├óÔé¼┼ôRemember the meeting?├óÔé¼┬Ø her secretary asked Liz. Liz nodded, feeling the bruise on her forehead from when she smashed it onto the desk. ├óÔé¼┼ôRight├óÔé¼┬Ø she said ├óÔé¼┼ôMeeting. I'll get right too it├óÔé¼┬Ø. Her secretary shrugged primly and started to write again. Liz walked out of her office, grabbing her coat. The colony's summer had ended a month after the end of the war, and now winter was coming back to Darkside with a vengeance. Snow was drifting out of the Shroud, looking completely out of place with the purple.
The colony was looking like its old self again, snow cluttering up the streets and people hustling to and fro in heavy coats, produced in a hurry by the few textile businesses. Shops were still open, and people still browsed through them. Liz grinned, glad to finally see the last of those damn badges. The patrol hearings were over, ending last Friday, with the clearing for assimilation of one Kip Ryan, someone Liz only knew by name because she attended his patrol hearing. Now every member of the Rodger Young were citizens, and the colony was adjusting, like they did with every change.
Liz got to the new government tower, the fifth tower, and walked inside the Office of Scientific Research and Defense. She flashed her badge, showing her to be the head of the Security's office, and walked into the elevator to get to the top floor. ├óÔé¼┼ôYour late├óÔé¼┬Ø the man at the desk said. ├óÔé¼┼ôMichal is it?├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz asked, waiting impatiently for the elevator. ├óÔé¼┼ôRight├óÔé¼┬Ø Michal said, frowning ├óÔé¼┼ôI'm sure you've met me at least five times now├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Liz heard the elevator open and jumped inside, pressing the button for the top floor. She looked at her watch. She was late.
├óÔé¼┼ôNow├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said, pointing at the car through the glass ├óÔé¼┼ôas you can see our subject has improved immensely sense last months demonstration├óÔé¼┬Ø. Liz walked into the room and sat down in the back row, trying not to call attention to herself. ├óÔé¼┼ôNow that our head of security has arrived├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said pointedly, looking at the back ├óÔé¼┼ôI can start on the possible ways we can use this for security├óÔé¼┬Ø. Liz frowned, looking over the heads of the other statesmen in the conference room.
├óÔé¼┼ôUhh├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said ├óÔé¼┼ôThis is a little tiring├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôOh you can put the car down now├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said. Prime relaxed, letting the car settle to the ground. It crunched a bit as she let it fall. ├óÔé¼┼ôPlease be careful├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôThats expensive├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime rolled her eyes and tried to give her tired mind a break. ├óÔé¼┼ôNow that we are done with the demonstration├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said, turning the lights in the room back on ├óÔé¼┼ôAny questions├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôI have one├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said ├óÔé¼┼ôHas her powers continued to increase exponentially?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôThey have leveled off├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôFor now├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz muttered. ├óÔé¼┼ôI have one├óÔé¼┬Ø a measly man named Dick asked. Dick was one of the upper managements of a mining lobbyist. Liz hated the mining corps. They were a bunch of money grubbing idiots, if she had ever seen one. And she had seen plenty of cutthroats in the Kupiter belt, back at SOL, that would have killed her for more then these people would.
├óÔé¼┼ôYes├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel prompted. ├óÔé¼┼ôCan this power be replicated by human means?├óÔé¼┬Ø Dick asked. Liz was surprised. An intelligent question. ├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôWe can track it, we can study it, but we are a long way off from truly understanding what it is├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôI have a question├óÔé¼┬Ø Rick O'Toole said ├óÔé¼┼ôIs Prime dangerous?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWe covered this last month├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel sighed. ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd you never gave me a satisfactory answer├óÔé¼┬Ø Rick said.
├óÔé¼┼ôAny human can be dangerous├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôPrime is just a flawed in that regard as we are├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell a human is dangerous with hand guns, and other weapons├óÔé¼┬Ø Rick said ├óÔé¼┼ôBut they don't have them built into their forearms and their frontal lobes├óÔé¼┬Ø. He is going for the defense vote for whatever bill's coming up next Liz thought. The last month he had tried the same angle, for his colonial defense initiative, witch was a fancy way of saying draft. That had been shot down by the mining corps, a decision Liz actually agreed with.
Liz watched a few other questions, one jokingly referring to Daniel's supposed affair with Prime. She always took the supposed out of their. She was pretty sure that Daniel was fucking Prime out of the publics eye, but was not willing for another shouting match. Daniel had been promoted, becoming the second in the head of the Science arm of the government. The demonstration and discussion ended with Daniel's report on his study on Prime, and more importantly S-02 that she donated to their labs. Liz was leery of S-02 being kept in labs, rather then seven miles below the surface, but so far security had been top notch in the labs, and so she didn't raise a fuss. Liz stood and walked out of the room, into the elevator.
Daniel walked into the practice room, around the car and past the now closed display window, and helped Prime to her feet. ├óÔé¼┼ôSorry to keep you├óÔé¼┬Ø he said. Prime opened her eyes as she was pulled up by Daniels right and, using her momentum, kissed Daniel hard. He made some muffled protests ├óÔé¼┼ôNot here├óÔé¼┬Ø he muttered ├óÔé¼┼ôNot here├óÔé¼┬Ø. The blinds were closed, but he didn't want to take any chances. He straightened his shirt and looked over his shoulder at the still open door. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôI'll take you to your rooms├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Once they got to Prime's room, in the middle of the building, opining it with his thumb print. Prime knew how to replicate his thumb print, and prints of twenty other people, so the lock was actually useless. But it made some security folks happy, so Daniel used it. Prime walked in and Daniel shook her hand and left. The camera panned slowly away from Prime's door as Daniel walked out of the corridor. He got to his rooms and opened his door, walking in.
He sat down on his utilitarian chair and sighed. He was losing things to study about Prime, at least things they could actually figure out with their still rather base techs, and the last things to study were real hard ones. The brain of Prime, located in her skull as one would expect, was a bunch of specialized cells as they had figured out early on. But how it actually worked was a complete mystery. The radiation field around Prime's body was from that area, so Daniel assumed that it had something to do with her thought process.
Then the spikes were another mystery. Every once and a while Prime's field would 'spike' as if it was reaching out. But the spike's never did anything. Daniel though mabey it was just random interference. But something about it was nagging him. They only detected them a few days ago, when Yalonda finally came out with a new scanner, a better scanner. So now they had another puzzle to figure out.
├óÔé¼┼ôSo they trotted you out for another show├óÔé¼┬Ø the voice said. Prime's mouth quirked slightly ├óÔé¼┼ôYour nothing├óÔé¼┬Ø she said ├óÔé¼┼ôAbsolutely nothing├óÔé¼┬Ø. She chewed her lip and opened her refrigerator to grab a drink. ├óÔé¼┼ôSomething is coming├óÔé¼┬Ø the voice said. Prime shrugged ├óÔé¼┼ôI don't care├óÔé¼┬Ø she said. ├óÔé¼┼ôDaniel is going to die├óÔé¼┬Ø the voice said. Prime slammed her cup down on the counter ├óÔé¼┼ôGo away├óÔé¼┬Ø She whispered ├óÔé¼┼ôYour not real├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôThen why are you talking to me?├óÔé¼┬Ø The voice asked. Prime closed her lips, whipping up the spilled milk around her cup. ├óÔé¼┼ôSomething is coming├óÔé¼┬Ø the voice said ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd nothing you can do will stop it├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime stood stalk still for a few minuets. The voice had stopped talking. She sighed, closing her eyes and putting the cup back into the cupboard she had gotten it from. Then she walked over to her chair and sat down with a plump.
Daniel heard his phone ring. ├óÔé¼┼ôYes?├óÔé¼┬Ø he asked, picking up the phone and pressing it to his ear. ├óÔé¼┼ôDaniel, it Yalonda├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd I've got it!├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôGot what?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniels asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôCome here├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said. ├óÔé¼┼ôHere being?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel sighed. ├óÔé¼┼ôLab three├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said. ├óÔé¼┼ôRight├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said, turning the phone off and walking out of his room.
├óÔé¼┼ôWhat is it?├óÔé¼┬Ø he asked, walking into Lab three. Yalonda turned on a large view screen on the side wall. This was recorded in Prime's room a little while again. Daniel licked his lips as he watched the viewer. ├óÔé¼┼ôSo she talks to herself├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôThats odd, but not any reason to-├óÔé¼┬Ø. Yolanda handed him a sheet of paper with a graph printed on it. ├óÔé¼┼ôLook at the times├óÔé¼┬Ø she said ├óÔé¼┼ôhere, here and here├óÔé¼┬Ø she jabbed her finger into the paper.
Daniel looked back at the view screen and pressed his finger into the slider bar at the bottom to move it back to when Prime first started to talk to herself. ├óÔé¼┼ôSee, were she says 'Your nothing'├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôRight before that is a spike├óÔé¼┬Ø. Daniel flipped the paper over and read the back, at the numerical data. ├óÔé¼┼ôWait├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôSee this differential?├óÔé¼┬Ø. Yalonda looked at the paper, and nodded ├óÔé¼┼ôYeah├óÔé¼┬Ø she said. ├óÔé¼┼ôI wonder whats causing that├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said.
Yalonda walked over to her computer and brought up the graph on the computer. ├óÔé¼┼ôNow├óÔé¼┬Ø she said ├óÔé¼┼ôLets increase the resolution├óÔé¼┬Ø. The two of them waited, impatiently in Daniels cause, patiently in Yalonda's. The graph ballooned to enormous size and they saw the numerical difference's were from an almost unnoticeable 'bounce'. ├óÔé¼┼ôSee that├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôThats polar opposites├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôYeah...its almost...a code├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said.
├óÔé¼┼ôA code├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôA code...a code that means its intelligent connection├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôA intelligent connection├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôFrom somewhere else?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôCan we track it?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôMabey├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôIf we seed seconds all over Prime's room├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôI'll talk to her about it├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôHow long do you think this has been going on?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôI have no idea├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôIt happened once before, and Prime didn't even react├óÔé¼┬Ø she blew out her cheeks as she sighed.
├óÔé¼┼ôPrime?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôYes?├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime asked, looking up from her book. ├óÔé¼┼ôWe have a slight problem├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said. Then the alarm sounded and the lights went off. Darkness slammed about their heads, replaced by red lights. ├óÔé¼┼ôShit!├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel muttered. He heard two whistles and clicking sounds, and looked at Prime. She had snapped her forearm blades out was holding them at the ready. ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat's going on?├óÔé¼┬Ø she whispered.
├óÔé¼┼ôI don't know├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said. Then he heard gunfire in the distance.
To Kixxe: Actually Rodger Young was a real person! He was a marine privet in WWII, who's platoon was pinned down by a pillbox. Young stood up and was shot, fired his rifle while running forward, was shot again, kept running and firing, was shot a third time, then threw a grenade into the pillbox. Then he was shot a fourth time and died. The pillbox EXPLODED and the rest of the platoon was saved by Young's heroism. He was awarded the medal of honor posthumously, and as such would be a great name for a ship. Oh and Starship Troopers kicked ASS!
So paper was the mode of choice. Liz still couldn't write, not after a life time of typing and dictating, so she had a secretary. A fucking secretary. ├óÔé¼┼ôScrew this├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said ├óÔé¼┼ôI resign├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôAgain, miss?├óÔé¼┬Ø her secretary asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said ├óÔé¼┼ôThat was a fucking rhetorical question├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôDon't swear mam├óÔé¼┬Ø Her secretary said, still writing notes and letters to the various people who wanted five minuets of Liz's time. They swear, just five minuets. The last month had been filled completely up with ├óÔé¼┼ôfive minuets├óÔé¼┬Ø.
The colony's security force's were a mess, when Liz arrived. Badly trained, organized, and acting more off of a 'what seems to be a good idea at the time' methodology then the actual laws of the colony. Liz, who already had a pretty good grasp of logistics and management from her time on the Enterprise, tried to whip them into shape. And after a month and a week on the job it was going badly.
The security force's were still a mess, their methodology was a joke, and she couldn't even send out notes on paper without a damn secretary. ├óÔé¼┼ôRemember the meeting?├óÔé¼┬Ø her secretary asked Liz. Liz nodded, feeling the bruise on her forehead from when she smashed it onto the desk. ├óÔé¼┼ôRight├óÔé¼┬Ø she said ├óÔé¼┼ôMeeting. I'll get right too it├óÔé¼┬Ø. Her secretary shrugged primly and started to write again. Liz walked out of her office, grabbing her coat. The colony's summer had ended a month after the end of the war, and now winter was coming back to Darkside with a vengeance. Snow was drifting out of the Shroud, looking completely out of place with the purple.
The colony was looking like its old self again, snow cluttering up the streets and people hustling to and fro in heavy coats, produced in a hurry by the few textile businesses. Shops were still open, and people still browsed through them. Liz grinned, glad to finally see the last of those damn badges. The patrol hearings were over, ending last Friday, with the clearing for assimilation of one Kip Ryan, someone Liz only knew by name because she attended his patrol hearing. Now every member of the Rodger Young were citizens, and the colony was adjusting, like they did with every change.
Liz got to the new government tower, the fifth tower, and walked inside the Office of Scientific Research and Defense. She flashed her badge, showing her to be the head of the Security's office, and walked into the elevator to get to the top floor. ├óÔé¼┼ôYour late├óÔé¼┬Ø the man at the desk said. ├óÔé¼┼ôMichal is it?├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz asked, waiting impatiently for the elevator. ├óÔé¼┼ôRight├óÔé¼┬Ø Michal said, frowning ├óÔé¼┼ôI'm sure you've met me at least five times now├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Liz heard the elevator open and jumped inside, pressing the button for the top floor. She looked at her watch. She was late.
├óÔé¼┼ôNow├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said, pointing at the car through the glass ├óÔé¼┼ôas you can see our subject has improved immensely sense last months demonstration├óÔé¼┬Ø. Liz walked into the room and sat down in the back row, trying not to call attention to herself. ├óÔé¼┼ôNow that our head of security has arrived├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said pointedly, looking at the back ├óÔé¼┼ôI can start on the possible ways we can use this for security├óÔé¼┬Ø. Liz frowned, looking over the heads of the other statesmen in the conference room.
├óÔé¼┼ôUhh├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime said ├óÔé¼┼ôThis is a little tiring├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôOh you can put the car down now├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said. Prime relaxed, letting the car settle to the ground. It crunched a bit as she let it fall. ├óÔé¼┼ôPlease be careful├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôThats expensive├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime rolled her eyes and tried to give her tired mind a break. ├óÔé¼┼ôNow that we are done with the demonstration├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said, turning the lights in the room back on ├óÔé¼┼ôAny questions├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôI have one├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz said ├óÔé¼┼ôHas her powers continued to increase exponentially?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôThey have leveled off├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôFor now├óÔé¼┬Ø Liz muttered. ├óÔé¼┼ôI have one├óÔé¼┬Ø a measly man named Dick asked. Dick was one of the upper managements of a mining lobbyist. Liz hated the mining corps. They were a bunch of money grubbing idiots, if she had ever seen one. And she had seen plenty of cutthroats in the Kupiter belt, back at SOL, that would have killed her for more then these people would.
├óÔé¼┼ôYes├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel prompted. ├óÔé¼┼ôCan this power be replicated by human means?├óÔé¼┬Ø Dick asked. Liz was surprised. An intelligent question. ├óÔé¼┼ôNo├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôWe can track it, we can study it, but we are a long way off from truly understanding what it is├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôI have a question├óÔé¼┬Ø Rick O'Toole said ├óÔé¼┼ôIs Prime dangerous?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWe covered this last month├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel sighed. ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd you never gave me a satisfactory answer├óÔé¼┬Ø Rick said.
├óÔé¼┼ôAny human can be dangerous├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôPrime is just a flawed in that regard as we are├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell a human is dangerous with hand guns, and other weapons├óÔé¼┬Ø Rick said ├óÔé¼┼ôBut they don't have them built into their forearms and their frontal lobes├óÔé¼┬Ø. He is going for the defense vote for whatever bill's coming up next Liz thought. The last month he had tried the same angle, for his colonial defense initiative, witch was a fancy way of saying draft. That had been shot down by the mining corps, a decision Liz actually agreed with.
Liz watched a few other questions, one jokingly referring to Daniel's supposed affair with Prime. She always took the supposed out of their. She was pretty sure that Daniel was fucking Prime out of the publics eye, but was not willing for another shouting match. Daniel had been promoted, becoming the second in the head of the Science arm of the government. The demonstration and discussion ended with Daniel's report on his study on Prime, and more importantly S-02 that she donated to their labs. Liz was leery of S-02 being kept in labs, rather then seven miles below the surface, but so far security had been top notch in the labs, and so she didn't raise a fuss. Liz stood and walked out of the room, into the elevator.
Daniel walked into the practice room, around the car and past the now closed display window, and helped Prime to her feet. ├óÔé¼┼ôSorry to keep you├óÔé¼┬Ø he said. Prime opened her eyes as she was pulled up by Daniels right and, using her momentum, kissed Daniel hard. He made some muffled protests ├óÔé¼┼ôNot here├óÔé¼┬Ø he muttered ├óÔé¼┼ôNot here├óÔé¼┬Ø. The blinds were closed, but he didn't want to take any chances. He straightened his shirt and looked over his shoulder at the still open door. ├óÔé¼┼ôWell├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôI'll take you to your rooms├óÔé¼┬Ø.
Once they got to Prime's room, in the middle of the building, opining it with his thumb print. Prime knew how to replicate his thumb print, and prints of twenty other people, so the lock was actually useless. But it made some security folks happy, so Daniel used it. Prime walked in and Daniel shook her hand and left. The camera panned slowly away from Prime's door as Daniel walked out of the corridor. He got to his rooms and opened his door, walking in.
He sat down on his utilitarian chair and sighed. He was losing things to study about Prime, at least things they could actually figure out with their still rather base techs, and the last things to study were real hard ones. The brain of Prime, located in her skull as one would expect, was a bunch of specialized cells as they had figured out early on. But how it actually worked was a complete mystery. The radiation field around Prime's body was from that area, so Daniel assumed that it had something to do with her thought process.
Then the spikes were another mystery. Every once and a while Prime's field would 'spike' as if it was reaching out. But the spike's never did anything. Daniel though mabey it was just random interference. But something about it was nagging him. They only detected them a few days ago, when Yalonda finally came out with a new scanner, a better scanner. So now they had another puzzle to figure out.
├óÔé¼┼ôSo they trotted you out for another show├óÔé¼┬Ø the voice said. Prime's mouth quirked slightly ├óÔé¼┼ôYour nothing├óÔé¼┬Ø she said ├óÔé¼┼ôAbsolutely nothing├óÔé¼┬Ø. She chewed her lip and opened her refrigerator to grab a drink. ├óÔé¼┼ôSomething is coming├óÔé¼┬Ø the voice said. Prime shrugged ├óÔé¼┼ôI don't care├óÔé¼┬Ø she said. ├óÔé¼┼ôDaniel is going to die├óÔé¼┬Ø the voice said. Prime slammed her cup down on the counter ├óÔé¼┼ôGo away├óÔé¼┬Ø She whispered ├óÔé¼┼ôYour not real├óÔé¼┬Ø.
├óÔé¼┼ôThen why are you talking to me?├óÔé¼┬Ø The voice asked. Prime closed her lips, whipping up the spilled milk around her cup. ├óÔé¼┼ôSomething is coming├óÔé¼┬Ø the voice said ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd nothing you can do will stop it├óÔé¼┬Ø. Prime stood stalk still for a few minuets. The voice had stopped talking. She sighed, closing her eyes and putting the cup back into the cupboard she had gotten it from. Then she walked over to her chair and sat down with a plump.
Daniel heard his phone ring. ├óÔé¼┼ôYes?├óÔé¼┬Ø he asked, picking up the phone and pressing it to his ear. ├óÔé¼┼ôDaniel, it Yalonda├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôAnd I've got it!├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôGot what?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniels asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôCome here├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said. ├óÔé¼┼ôHere being?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel sighed. ├óÔé¼┼ôLab three├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said. ├óÔé¼┼ôRight├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said, turning the phone off and walking out of his room.
├óÔé¼┼ôWhat is it?├óÔé¼┬Ø he asked, walking into Lab three. Yalonda turned on a large view screen on the side wall. This was recorded in Prime's room a little while again. Daniel licked his lips as he watched the viewer. ├óÔé¼┼ôSo she talks to herself├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôThats odd, but not any reason to-├óÔé¼┬Ø. Yolanda handed him a sheet of paper with a graph printed on it. ├óÔé¼┼ôLook at the times├óÔé¼┬Ø she said ├óÔé¼┼ôhere, here and here├óÔé¼┬Ø she jabbed her finger into the paper.
Daniel looked back at the view screen and pressed his finger into the slider bar at the bottom to move it back to when Prime first started to talk to herself. ├óÔé¼┼ôSee, were she says 'Your nothing'├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôRight before that is a spike├óÔé¼┬Ø. Daniel flipped the paper over and read the back, at the numerical data. ├óÔé¼┼ôWait├óÔé¼┬Ø he said ├óÔé¼┼ôSee this differential?├óÔé¼┬Ø. Yalonda looked at the paper, and nodded ├óÔé¼┼ôYeah├óÔé¼┬Ø she said. ├óÔé¼┼ôI wonder whats causing that├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said.
Yalonda walked over to her computer and brought up the graph on the computer. ├óÔé¼┼ôNow├óÔé¼┬Ø she said ├óÔé¼┼ôLets increase the resolution├óÔé¼┬Ø. The two of them waited, impatiently in Daniels cause, patiently in Yalonda's. The graph ballooned to enormous size and they saw the numerical difference's were from an almost unnoticeable 'bounce'. ├óÔé¼┼ôSee that├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôThats polar opposites├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôYeah...its almost...a code├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said.
├óÔé¼┼ôA code├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôA code...a code that means its intelligent connection├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôA intelligent connection├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôFrom somewhere else?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôCan we track it?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôMabey├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôIf we seed seconds all over Prime's room├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôI'll talk to her about it├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said ├óÔé¼┼ôHow long do you think this has been going on?├óÔé¼┬Ø. ├óÔé¼┼ôI have no idea├óÔé¼┬Ø Yalonda said ├óÔé¼┼ôIt happened once before, and Prime didn't even react├óÔé¼┬Ø she blew out her cheeks as she sighed.
├óÔé¼┼ôPrime?├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel asked. ├óÔé¼┼ôYes?├óÔé¼┬Ø Prime asked, looking up from her book. ├óÔé¼┼ôWe have a slight problem├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said. Then the alarm sounded and the lights went off. Darkness slammed about their heads, replaced by red lights. ├óÔé¼┼ôShit!├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel muttered. He heard two whistles and clicking sounds, and looked at Prime. She had snapped her forearm blades out was holding them at the ready. ├óÔé¼┼ôWhat's going on?├óÔé¼┬Ø she whispered.
├óÔé¼┼ôI don't know├óÔé¼┬Ø Daniel said. Then he heard gunfire in the distance.
To Kixxe: Actually Rodger Young was a real person! He was a marine privet in WWII, who's platoon was pinned down by a pillbox. Young stood up and was shot, fired his rifle while running forward, was shot again, kept running and firing, was shot a third time, then threw a grenade into the pillbox. Then he was shot a fourth time and died. The pillbox EXPLODED and the rest of the platoon was saved by Young's heroism. He was awarded the medal of honor posthumously, and as such would be a great name for a ship. Oh and Starship Troopers kicked ASS!