The City of Hope: A SMAC Legend - Story Thread

[Velociryx]

Mission Year 4126:

The old man sat gazing into the crackling campfire. His face was weathered and wrinkled, a rarity on Chiron with all the technology available. A man or woman could live practically forever, and appear to be any age they wished. Few ever chose old age, but Gordon had always been comfortable with it. He smiled as the image of his parents floated into his mind. They both looked in their middle thirties, making him appear old enough to be their father. His smile grew. They always told him he had an old soul.

“Professor Baxter, would you….tell us another story.” One of his charges said, breaking him gently out of his reverie.

He looked around, as if seeing them for the first time. Six children….young adults really, ranging in ages from fourteen to nineteen, off on a Philosphico-Botanical field trip to study the fungus and gain a deeper understanding of it. Gordon Baxter’s Botany class was the most popular at U.N. Information Agency, and not because the children of that place had an unusually high level of interest in Botany.

It was the stories.

Gordon cleared his throat and his eyes searched the night sky for nothing in particular. “A story you say? And what would you have me tell you?”

None of his students answered. It was all part of the game. The stories would come on their own.

“Some would say that the air we now breath is a function of our mastery of this place….our tireless efforts at terraforming which have created a more highly oxygenated atmosphere.” He met each one of their gazes. “Some would say that.”

For a moment, the stillness of the night spoke for him.

“Others would say that we have the Gaians to thank for this gift….that our science would have taken millennia to do what they have been able to accomplish much more quickly.”

“But the Gaians vanished more than a thousand years ago.” One of the older students said quietly.

“Aye. They did indeed, but their legacy will be with us always….and we are only now coming to a complete understanding of their wisdom.”

“But if they were so wise, why did they disappear? And where did they go?”

The old man smiled and shook his head. “Much of what we knew of the Gaians was lost in the great Datacore Meltdown of 3522. That event set us back centuries, and some would say that we are only just now beginning to recover….but the stories remain. Stories passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth, in the old traditions of Earth.”

He smiled knowingly at each of them in turn. “Close your eyes, my young students….close your eyes and hear the tale of the City of Hope. The shining citadel of the ancient Gaian civilization…..theirs is a tale of hope and love, treachery and betrayal, of adventure and intrigue….it is in short, the stuff of Legend.”

He looked around the campfire. All eyes were closed. His students leaning forward as if straining to hear. Not wanting to miss so much as a single syllable.

He smiled, and began weaving out his tale, and as he did so, the world seemed to fall away….out of focus for a time, and then into a different focus entirely. So vivid were Gordon Baxter’s words that his students could practically see the ancient world materializing right before their eyes.

His voice was little more than a raspy whisper as he began: “And every good Legend needs a dastardly villain and a place of beginning….”

&&&

[Velociryx]

Episode One: From One Prison To Another – Mission Year 2158
Psi-Lock College - Sparta Command

The bomb had done its work well. The building that had housed one of the most terrifying projects envisioned since Planetfall had been destroyed. Had the research been allowed to continue unchecked, the Spartans could well have created an all-but invincible army of Psi-talented men and women. Trained legions of human soldiery whose mental talents went well beyond even what the Mindworms had proved capable of.

Chairman Sheng-Ji Yang of the Human Hive studied the images with the watchful, narrow eyes of a hunter. Eyes that missed nothing.

“Doctor Banks?” He asked after a long moment, eyes flickering briefly to the Assassin who stood before him.

“Killed in the blast, and their data core was completely destroyed as well. If they ever rebuilt the project, it will be from scratch.”

Yang nodded. A barely perceptible nod of his head. “Which gives us time to do our own research....excellent. A commendable job, Commander.”

“Thank you sir.” The black-clad Commander whispered as he bowed deeply. He maintained that position for a long moment, feeling Yang’s awful, penetrating eyes on him.

His heart nearly stopped beating.

He is going to ask.... the tortured thought barely escaped his mind before Yang spoke again. “That will be all, Commander. Dismissed.”

Relief flood like an almost tangible thing through the Assassin’s body, but he took great care not to let his face betray anything he was feeling. Chairman Yang had an uncanny knack for being able to root out gray truths and white lies, but not this time apparently.

Still, he did not breathe his sigh of relief until he was safely out of the Chairman’s inner chamber and headed for his bunker. Only then did he feel safe enough even to bring the image to his mind.

It was a small thing. Probably, it would amount to nothing at all, but it was a loose end.

The intelligence report detailed eight test subjects at the center. Eight native born Chironians, genetically altered to suppress self-awareness and to enhance their Psi-Potential.

Before he detonated the bomb, he had only verified the locations of seven, so he couldn’t be sure....

He retraced every step he had taken in his mind’s eye.

No.

If he had it to do over again, he would have done it the same way. There had been no time to find the eighth....not if he had wanted to get out.

Besides, even if the eighth was not in the building when the bomb leveled it, he’d would never be any use to anyone. Doctor Banks had been the Psi-Master, and with that link severed, the surviving eighth would be little more than a drooling, psychotic vegetable. Not the kind of person who’d last terribly long in Chiron’s unforgiving environment.

Satisfied with that conclusion, the assassin/demolitions expert known only as ‘Sand’ shrugged off the last of his misgivings about it, and by the time he reached the Hab-Wards, there was a lightness in his step. It was the sure stride of a completely confident man.

&&&

[This message has been edited by Velociryx (edited November 08, 1999).]

[Velociryx]

Gaian Science Patrol 6B - Gamma Sector - Near the Spartan Border
Kevin Aldridge - Science Officer
Gayle McGinnes – Pilot


“Bring us to a stop, Gayle, and swing ‘round to two-five-seven.”

“Two-five-seven, roger that.” She said with an impish grin. “God I love all this military talk.....turns me on like you wouldn’t believe.”

Kevin looked away from his viewfinder long enough to shoot his pilot a wry grin. “Marry me.” He said simply, which illicited the now-expected eye-roll in response.

He held her gaze for a moment, and then dropped back to work, fiddling with the controls, murmuring and muttering to himself all the while, and Gayle watched him. An attractive man, no doubt. Sort of a rakish, dangerous look about him, which was completely at odds with the person he truly was. A classic, timid researcher. If she were ever to act on her occasional impulses toward him, it’d probably give him a heart attack.

The smile returned to her lips as she traced the lines of concentration in Kevin’s forehead with her eyes. Dark, bold features. A handsome man, by any definition.

Her thoughts were about to drift in a delicious, more dangerous direction when he looked up and smiled like a bright-eyed child at her, completely ruining the image forming in her head. “Found it!”

She turned around to face her console again and put her mind firmly on her work. “What are we out here looking for again, and where do you want me?”

“Keep this heading for another six hundred meters, ahead one third, then change to one-one-six.”

She quickly plotted their course, then turned partway around. “But won’t that take us too close to the Fungal Beds? After the incident at Cutter’s Canyon all the science teams were told....”

Kevin waved her concern away. “This is bigger than some stupid regulation....we’ve got a live one out there.”

“Live....what?” She asked pensively.

“Human. Or at least, we think it’s Human. Showed up all weird on our scans, but that might be interference from the Fungal Beds. The call came in from Science Station Two last night, which is why I rolled you out of bed to come with me.”

Gayle considered saying something about wishing he’d come over to join her rather than whisking her off to the outer edges of Gaian land, but only shrugged in response. “So what’s the big deal. We’ve got another Cryo-Pod. I don’t get why all the excitement.”

Kevin shook his head. “Long range sensors indicate no debris in the area, and, according to our heat-signature scan, he’s not armed, and appears to be wounded. My guess, a refugee.”

Now Gayle’s eyebrows arched slightly. “From Sparta? But I thought their people were loyal almost to the point of fanaticism. Why would?....How?”

He shrugged elaborately. “Don’t know....but the fact is, he’s lying over there in the edge of the Fungal Bed, about a thousand meters away.....I want to approach slow so we don’t scare him.”

Gayle nodded and turned once more to her console, her own excitement building. A refugee! If it turned out to be true, it would be the first such incident since Planetfall. Inside news on what life in another faction might be like could be invaluable to say the least, as up til now, the Gaians had only infrequent contacts with the Peace Keepers. They knew the Spartans were out there, sure, and had seen their territory markers clearly enough, but all attempts to contact them had met with an ominous silence. This was big. This was very big.

&&&

An angry, growling sound, growing closer. It set off an alarm bell in his head. His eyes snapped open and the machine portion of his brain took over.

Defense Option Zulu-Three. Psi-Tracking activated. Target Acquisition.....waiting.....waiting....waiting.... .

No valid targets. Partial stand-down.

Attempting to establish like with Psi-Command for further instructions....

Attempt two.....

Attempt three....

Attempt four.....

Psi-Link failed.....emergency shutdown sequence commencing.....

In order to prevent their capture and study, the Psi-Trained warriors were created with their own built-in destruct code. If ever there was a time when they could not establish a link with the Psi-Master, they were designed to go into meltdown. Vital functions were shut down one after another until death resulted, and then the body was flooded with programmed free-radicals which quickly devoured the “experimental” organs of the warrior’s body. The success of this self-destruct code, however, was dependent on the central computer and datacore at the Psi-College. Without the raw power of the central computer to override the Human survival instinct, the imbedded processor found itself much more evenly matched with the Human Will, and as the computer began shutting his body down, he fought back against it. Eyes still open, staring blankly up at Chiron’s twin-sunned sky, betraying nothing of the titanic struggle taking place within him.

&&&

“I think I see him but....Christ, he’s really wedged in here....Gayle, break out that cutter-stick, will you? I can’t make any headway against this damned Fungus.” And that was certainly true. The stranger seemd almost….submerged in the stuff, one very large, and several smaller vines lay over his chest, almost as if they meant to strap him to the ground.

“Here you are, Doctor.” She said with a characteristic smile as she handed him the laser cutter. “What’s the prognosis?”

“Well I think if I can get this big trunk vine off of him, I’ll....”

Without any warning at all, the stranger’s hand shifted, parting the stubborn Fungus as though it were a flimsy curtain. Unlike Kevin Alderidge, the stranger seemed to have no difficulty moving among the Fungus.

Target acquired.

The stranger’s eyes narrowed as they met Kevin’s, and the Gaian Researcher clutched the sides of his head and started screaming.

&&&

For a moment, Gayle couldn’t make sense of what she was seeing.

Kevin had been struggling with the Fungus, hardly able to move it at all, and the stranger....

Then Kevin started screaming.

She looked around frantically for a worm-boil, expecting to see the terrifying creatures writhing up out of the Fungal Bed, but she saw nothing.

Then how?

She looked back at Kevin with tears in her eyes, knowing he was in agony, and knowing that if she didn’t do something quickly the pain would spiral up and up and up until it killed him.

Then she noticed where he was looking.

Right into the narrowed, focused eyes of the stranger.

So somehow the stranger must be....

Nevermind that it didn’t make any sense. Nevermind that no Human had ever been Psi-talented. This one was, apparently, and he was killing Kevin.

Thinking quickly, she pried the cutter-stick out of Kevin’s hand and deftly flipped it around. Raised it high, and then brought it crashing down against the stranger’s temple. Hard. “Leave him alone you bastard, we’re trying to help!” She hissed.

The light in the stranger’s eyes went out, and Kevin’s screaming stopped. He sank slowly to his knees with a weak groan, still clutching his head.

Silence reigned for a long moment, and Gayle knelt beside Kevin, wrapping a protective arm across his shoulders. “How bad is it?” She asked quietly.

He waved her off. “I’ll be okay....it was a weak attack....I think if he hadn’t been wounded he could have killed me in a second with that, but....” Kevin shook his head. “That shouldn’t even be possible....in fifty-eight years there hasn’t been a single case of a Human being able to....”

“I know....” She half-whispered, and her words hung ominously in the air.

“Is he....”

She shook her head. “I think I just knocked him out, but if we’re going to get him back to base, then we’ve got to sedate him.”

Kevin nodded. “Let’s do it. Deirdre’s going to want to see him.”

Gayle helped him to his feet. Steadied him, and then they turned their attention to the mysterious stranger in the Fungal Bed.

The mysterious and apparently deadly stranger.

&&&

[Velociryx]

The City of Hope: A SMAC Legend - Story Thread

The City of Hope: A SMAC Legend

Author’s Introduction:
For those of you who have been here a while, the first part of this story will, no doubt, be familiar to you. The tale itself is based on one of my abortive attempts to meet the OCC-Ultimate rules (abortive because, although I won the game, it took me four re-loads to succeed, and I was not happy with that), back when I was pursuing that particular challenge. There was something magical about that game….I don’t know if it was the way it developed, or the positioning, or what exactly, but something….and it prompted the story that will follow.

As much as possible, I have tried to hold true to the fabric of the SMAC universe we all know and love, but I have taken some creative licenses in the making of the story, and I hope you do not find them….excessive. ::grin::

Also, and I say this for the benefit of those who read the early version of this work. A lot is the same, but a lot has changed, so do not be surprised to find entire new scenes created out of thin air. Originally, when I was crafting this story, I was doing it “serialized style” which put me on a tight deadline to get the next part out. As such, some development suffered, and I’ve taken steps to fix that. I hope you enjoy it….

Okay, I’ll shut up now. The story awaits!

[This message has been edited by Velociryx (edited November 05, 1999).]

[Velociryx]

Episode Two: The Lady of Light
Gaian Central Research Lab, Sublevel 3

The two technicians stood outside his room, staring in on him through the one-way, lead-lined glassteel wall. The Stranger (at some point his “name” had acquired Capital Letters, as if to accentuate the force of his presence. You could almost hear the caps, everytime someone talked about him: The Stranger) paced back and forth across the length of the room, stopping occassionally to sniff the air or to stare directly at them. Somehow, he always seemed to know precisely where they were, relying on senses far more primative than sight, and judging by the look on The Stranger’s face, if not for the lead-lining in the wall, both of them would be writhing in Psi-Agony as their minds boiled away under the relentless attack.

“He’s truly a remarkable specimin, you know?”

“A perfect killing machine....and look at his rate of recovery. Out of surgery just over a month and already nearly back to full health. That limp he had only a week ago is nearly gone now, and look at the scar tissue. Already fading. Another month, you’ll be hard pressed to tell he was in any kind of accident at all.”

The other Tech. Nodded in agreement. “And he’s getting more vicious with every passing day. Did you hear what happened to Hobbs?”

“No.”

“Went in to sedate him so they could do a follow-up exam....Your friend there bit through the leaded pressure suit and ripped the helmet off.”

“Psi’d him?”

“He did....almost killed him. Would have if Gayle and Kevin hadn’t showed up.”

“So strange about that.....he’s never attacked them again, since that very first time.”

“I know....I’m at a loss to explain that....especially considering how savage he is toward everyone else....look at him now, looking at us.....don’t you know he’d like nothing more than the chance to....”

Gayle McGinnes startled them with a friendly tap on each of their shoulders. “Hey guys....how’s my favorite patient?”

“See for yourself.”

She looked, then smiled at them. “I see he’s got nothing but love for the two of you.” She handed them a clipboard. “Time for the tiger’s shots....unless one of you want to go give them to him?”

She waited for a moment, to see if either of them moved toward the door. “No?” An exaggerated sigh. “Looks like chivalry really is dead then....making me go in there with the mean old Psi-Man.”

Before either of them could say anything at all, she winked at them and headed toward the Prep-Room. “Gonna get the meds ready....watch him for me....I’ll be there in a minute.”

“We’re watching him, but he’s watching you.....or at least he would be if he could see through the walls, which sometimes I wonder about....Has been since you arrived....He knows.”

“He always knows.” She called from the Prep-Room. “Wierd, huh?”

The silence that followed told her just how much they agreed.

She emerged a moment later with a syringe. “Ready?” Despite the light cheeriness in her voice, they could both read the nervousness in her eyes. Just a trace, mind you, but it was there, and why not? Everyone in the compound knew what The Stranger was capable of. Even if they had never seen it, they knew.

Gayle drew in a deep breath and pushed the outer door open. Shut it securely behind her and checked to make sure it was locked, and then turned to open the inner door.

[This message has been edited by Velociryx (edited November 08, 1999).]

[Velociryx]

Through the small window, she could see him. Watching her, watching him. Eyes deep set and penetrating. Appraising. Searching. For what, exactly, she did not know. He was both highly magnetic and repulsive in the same moment, and she was utterly fascinated by that. The fact that he somehow managed to evoke such extreme and contradictory feelings in her (and, truth be told, in everyone who worked with him....she could see it in their faces) was nothing short of amazing, as far as she was concerned.

She opened the door, and though The Stranger did not flinch or move at all, something in his eyes changed. A flash of uncertainty, followed by a flash of recognition.

“Hi there, big fellow. It’s me again....It’s Gayle.”

He visibly relaxed a notch, and cocked his head to one side, staring suspiciously at the syringe she held in front of her.

“I know....I know you don’t like this part....but there’s medicine in here....medicine that will help you get better faster. You want to get better, don’t you?”

His eyes narrowed as he took the needle in, and she knew the routine by now.

He took a step forward, hand outstretched.

She gave him the syringe, fighting hard to chase the image from her mind of him suddenly turning on her, using the weapon she’d just handed over.

He studied it closely. Sniffed it. Drew out a drop of the fluid it contained and let it fall on his tongue.

In a moment, satisfied with whatever he had learned, he gave it back to her and held his arm out for the shot to be administered.

No protests. No sound at all.

And when she was finished, she patted his arm. He turned to face her. Not a particularly handsome face, but not unattractive, either. And there was a burning intelligence in his eyes. A fierceness. They were brilliant, mesmerizing blue, and something else, besides. It had taken her several days watching observation vids of him, and a number of these face to face visits to reach the conclusion, but now, feeling those eyes on her, there was no mistaking it.

He understood.

He was not just a mindless killing machine. Maybe he had been at first, but the more time she spent watching him, the more certain she became that he was changing. Metamorphing right before their eyes. Into what, she could not say, and a part of her didn’t want to know. It was both exhilerating and terrifying in the same moment. They had never encountered anyone like him before, and there was no predicting what he might be able to teach them. What they could learn from him. The excitement in her was almost tangible.

“I....I can’t stay....have to go now, but I’ll come visit you again soon....okay?”

He watched her with those amazing eyes. Unmoving.

She smiled.

He did not smile back.

“I’ll be back.”

She started backing from the room, and he watched her go.

Eyes locked on hers until she had to turn part way around to open the first door. He moved then, reaching his cot in two long, graceful strides and sitting down.

The sudden motion made her heart skip a beat, and she had horrible visions of him breaking out of his “cell,” and extracting revenge for a month of captivity. True, they had treated him well, but there was no mistaking his status. He was their prisoner. Very special, there was no doubting that, but a prisoner nonetheless. It made her shudder to think what might happen if he somehow managed to escape. The colony was unarmed, save for a small police force armed with short range tasers, and she wasn’t entirely sure those would even work on The Stranger.

“How is he responding to the treatment?” The voice floated to her like music, and her head snapped up. The Lady Deirdre had promised to come see their “guest” (as she termed him) as soon as she returned from her diplomatic mission, but Gayle had no idea she was even back yet. She looked in surprise and saw the Leader of their colony staring serenely at her, a ghost of a smile playing at the corners of her mouth.

“I....Uh.....very well, actually.” She said, recovering from the surprise. “His metabolism is 42% elevated from baseline, and as you might imagine, it makes his recuperative powers nothing short of remarkable.”

Deirdre nodded. “Has he communicated in any way?”

“N....no. I don’t think he can.....I don’t think he understands speech.” That was a simple answer, she knew. She had seen the understanding in his eyes.

“I would like to see him for myself.”

Just then, the two technicians came into the Prep-Room. “Are you sure, M’Lady? He is Psi-Talented, and he has attacked two of our people....Aldridge and Hobbs, there’s nothing to indica....”

“I will see him just the same.” She said simply and started for the outer door.

The room fell silent as she opened the outer door and stepped inside. Finally, as the door was closing, Gayle found her voice again and ran forward, catching the door. “My Lady Deirdre....you should know that so far the only two people The Stranger has not attacked since we brought him here have been Mr. Aldridge and myself.....I.....please be careful.”

Deirdre nodded. “Have faith, child. I have spoken with Planet about this one. I understand him even if he does not understand himself.”

And with that, she opened the inner door.

The Stranger was on his feet in an instant. He snarled at this new presence and locked eyes with her. His eyes narrowed and the Psi-Indicators connected to his room shot off the chart as he powered up for his attack.

“Get her out of there!” One of the technicians screamed as Gayle ripped the outer door open.

Deirdre crossed the room calmly, one hand outstretched.

The Stranger cocked his head and backed away, but did not strike.

“Psi-Levels are at 306....my God, I’ve never seen anything like it....the highest ever recorded from a Worm-Boil is 182....even if he doesn’t attack, it’s a wonder the exposure alone doesn’t kill her.” The Tech at the monitoring station said breathlessly.

Gayle stood at the inner door but did not open it. “Should I try?” She called back.

“No....not now....don’t open the door....it could kill us all.”

They watched, and waited.

Deirdre took another step toward him.

He did not back away, but still he did not strike.

Her hand reached out to him, and as she drew closer, the proximity to all that Psi-Energy began having some effect, directed or not. A vessel in her right eye broke and a crimson fairy tear began rolling down her cheek.

She touched his cheek. “Be at peace....be at peace....”

Suddenly, the Psi-Pressure abated. All at once. Gone.

Gayle had to remind herself to breathe.

“Levels just dropped to nothing....like flipping a lightswitch. I can’t believe he was able to maintain it for that long and then just let it go....that’s unbelievable.”

The others only half heard him, they were watching their Lady with rapt attention.

Deirdre closed her eyes and tried to open a communal channel. It was something she had been fairly successful at with Planet, and she had hoped to do the same with The Stranger, but right away she felt the block. It was cold, calculating.

Mechanical.

She opened her eyes and held his gaze, feeling that same awareness and understanding that Gayle had felt earlier.

“This man is cybernetically-enhanced.” She called out to them, her eyes not leaving his. “He is at war with himself. I can feel the tension in him, even if I cannot establish a communal channel.”

They maintained that intense eye contact for a long moment.

“Do we know if he is self-aware?” She asked.

“Do we what?” One of the Techs asked. No one had even considered it. He was essentially a Human Being....of course he was self-aware.

“Do we know if this man is self-aware?” She repeated.

“No I....uh....we just assumed....”

“Bring me a mirror.” She commanded, and in a few moments, Gayle opened the door slightly and slid in a good sized mirror, perhaps eighteen inches square.

Deirdre went to it and picked it up.

The Stranger watched her every move.

She brought it toward him, reflective side down, hidden from his view.

Closer.

Closer still.

Then brought it up for him to see.

His reaction was immediate. The Psi-Indicators went berserk again and he snarled as he backed away.

“He just hit 511!….529!….545! My God, Deirdre get out of there, he’ll kill you if it keeps spiking up like that!”

Deirdre Skye, nearly in a trance, barely felt it as more vessels in her eyes burst, sending still more fairy tears down her cheeks. Vaguely, she was aware that her eardrums were close to bursting with the pressure. She knew without even thinking it that a Psi-Attack right now would kill her instantly.

Calmly, deliberately, she set the mirror aside, reflective side against the wall.

The Psi-Levels fell away as quickly as before, and The Stranger stood up straight.....approached her cautiously, and touched her cheek as she had done to him earlier. Smeared her blood into her ivory skin, and then brought his reddened fingertips up to examine them.

“Yes....I bleed.” She said softly. “As do you....we are the same.”

He stared at her with those burning eyes.

“You understand me, don’t you....or at least you desperately want to....perhaps the machinery is blocking you. Keeping you from your humanity and filling you with hate.” She smiled faintly. “Well....we shall see about that.”

“Miss McGinnes....please have some music piped in here. Something airy and soothing.”

“Yes M’Lady.” She responded shakily, and in a moment, there was music.

The effect was as immediate as it had been with the mirror. His legs seemed to melt out from under him and he sat roughly on the floor, listening with rapt attention and rocking back and forth. Suddenly and completely lost in the music.

Deirdre watched him for a long moment, and then turned toward the door. “He is not self-aware, and his Will is being suppressed by artificial means. Once we overcome these two obstacles, we can save him.”

Gayle and the two technicians with her were stunned. They had worked with The Stranger for a month and had managed to do little more than study his abilities from afar and treat his injuries. In less than ten minutes time, Deirdre had accomplished more than all their collective efforts.

She turned back to The Stranger and knelt down. “We will speak again soon....I promise you.” Ran her fingers through his hair, and then patted his head gently. “We will save you from yourself.”

Then she turned to leave.

The Stranger did not move as the inner door opened. He was focused on the sounds of the beautiful music that filtered into the room. That, and nothing more.

Once outside, Deirdre went immediately to the others. “We must change the treatment plan for this man....begin self-awareness training as we might do for an infant, and keep music in here at all times. Once he is self aware, unlock the door and give him access to the entire level. Make what arrangements you can to protect the staff, and move as many off the floor as possible. We will not be this man’s jailors....my guess is, he has had enough of those to last him two lifetimes.”

Without waiting for or expecting any kind of response, she strode gracefully out of the room. “I will be back in three days time to check on his progress.”

Gayle McGinnes stood in silence with the two technicians for a long moment, and then rushed from the room to find Kevin. What started out as big news for the Gaian colony seemed to be getting bigger by the minute.

&&&

[Velociryx]

Later that evening
The Apartments of Lady Deirdre Skye

The spiritual and political leader of the Gaian People was worried.

No, it went well beyond worry, Deirdre was mortified. Quaking inside at what it all might mean. To her People, anything she said was taken as the gospel truth (She supressed a slight smile and thought of Miriam, as that flitted across her mind). This of course, had its ups and downs, and it generally made her very careful to temper what she said publically. She had slipped today though. Made two statements in particular that she knew could easily come back to haunt her. Even now, the words danced on the forefront of her brain, almost mockingly:

”….we will save you from yourself.”
But was that a good idea? After a month of studying him, her science teams were no closer now to figuring out how he was put together than they had been on day one. He was years….decades ahead of anything even Zakharov’s minions admitted to being able to produce….so how had the Spartans gotten ahold of him? (and who else could it be? He was found near the Spartan Border, and no other group had any claim to that area) Where had he come from? And then there was the question: Did he want to be saved?

”….we will not be this man’s jailors….”
But what would his official status be then? A Ward of the state? And what if those who created him….changed him….whatever they had done….what if they came looking for him, demanding him back? His capabilities represented a wonderful opportunity for the Gaians, but also an enormous risk, and it weighed heavily on her mind.

A crossroads then, and she sighed heavily at the realization.

Decision time, and the central, burning question was this: Was this one man, this Stranger, valuable enough to risk the ire of the Spartans? Her people were unarmed and peace-loving. They would not stand a chance against the Spartans. Was he worth dying for? Risking everything her People had built so far, and everything they stood for? It could easily come to that if and when the Spartans discovered where he was.

Suddenly, she felt cold, and stood to find a throw for her shoulders. So many questions. So many unknowns, and in her position, a wrong guess could cause deaths. A great many deaths.

She had been utterly self-assured earlier, because her People expected nothing less of her, but in her heart, and in the privacy of her own chambers….that was another matter entirely. When she was all alone in the darkness, she was just another poor little lost Earth girl, too far from a home she could never go back to, alone and afraid. Life on Chiron, in practice, was vastly different from what Zakharov and the others had theorized it might be while they were all living in their comfortable apartments in the Unity Complex.

In theory, the seed pods would have done the bulk of the work, leaving them to concentrated their collected efforts on pulling the people out of Cryo-sleep, and getting the government up and running.

In practice, they had fought one another bitterly while their ship blew apart around them. Most of the equipment had been lost when the Unity exploded, and what little they managed to get abord the escape pods had been smashed and ruined….They’d had to build everything from scratch. There hadn’t even been time to perform a surface scan to map the place, and the seed pods they had planned to rely heavily on had been emergency-jettisoned before they could be activated. Now they were scattered randomly around Chiron, rusting and getting buried by Fungus. Waiting to be found.

She closed her eyes, seeking peace from those wearying thoughts. Life here might have been unbearable if not for the PlanetVoice.

That thought made her smile. It was a fairly recent development actually, or perhaps it had been there all the while, but they had been, collectively, so focused on the simple act of survival that the whisperings were lost to them, and only now, nearly sixty years after Planetfall, were they able to pause from their fight for simple survival and settle back to enjoy the fruits of their long years of labor. And in the breath of silence that followed, the whispers came.

Validation.

The people who chose to follow her had always believed in environmental harmony and “intelligent industry” which minimized ecological damages even while it provided for basic Human needs, and when the voice began its whisperings, suddenly their ideals seemed even more important than ever.

She had no idea if any of the other leaders heard it, nor a clear picture of how many of her own people heard the whisperings, but it did not matter. It was there…and its implications were staggering.

Earth had never been as alive as Chiron seemed to be.

In the beginning, she questioned her own sanity. It seemed the only reasonable explanation for hearing voices in her head.

But, like most things on Chiron, it was not so simple as that after all. The Voice continued, and in time, she began to not only hear the whisperings, but to listen to them as well.

And what she found was wisdom. Not the wizened and cracked wisdom from threadbare ancients like Zakharov and those who served him….it was their kind that led to Earth’s demise. That was the kind of wisdom they didn’t need more of.

This though, was a different, more innocent wisdom. It was that of a wondering child who has just awakened from some marvellous dream and wants to share it with anyone who will listen.

She closed her eyes, and opened her mind to the Voice of Planet….seeking….searching.

EarthDeirdre. It said simply, welcoming her.

Planet, She began, and then faltered, uncertain of exactly how to proceed….what to ask.

Infinitely patient, Planet waited for her.

I must speak with you again about the stranger we discovered some time ago….the one who was found in the Fungus….

Again, Planet waited.

He can do many things we cannot, and I cannot decide if his coming to us will herald a shining new age, or the brutal destruction of my People by the hand of those who turned him into what he is….I cannot discern what to do in this case.

He is what he is, EarthDeirdre….a son of Chiron. Like you in some ways….like his brothers and sisters of the Fungus in others….a giant who sleeps….one day, he will awaken.

Deirdre nodded. I sense that in him, and that is what frightens me….but I wish to learn more….I must learn more if I am to determine what is best for my People….tell me about this son of Chiron….

Their conversation stretched far into the night….


[This message has been edited by Velociryx (edited November 08, 1999).]

[Velociryx]

Episode Three – Freedom
Town Square, Garden Café

They sat at the corner table, barely touching their food.

“I miss you.” Kevin Aldridge told her plainly. “The Pilot they’ve stuck me with now doesn’t know what the hell he’s doing half the time, and he’s not nearly as much fun.”

Gayle smiled at him, reached over and tousled his hair. “I know....but I’ll be back soon.”

“I still can’t believe they pulled you off the Science Division to work in the Daycare.”

She rolled her eyes at him. “You know why....with the manpower shortage we’ve got, we all have to wear several different hats, and it’s not Daycare per se, but we really have had to start from scratch with him.”

“I know....” His voice trailed off and he looked sullenly at his food.

“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were jealous.”

He sighed. “Yeah well, maybe I am....just a little.”

She laughed. “Well you shouldn’t be....actually I think he sees me more a mother-figure than anything.”

Kevin smiled, heartened at that news. He nodded and leaned partway across the table. “So how’s he doing, anyway?”

Her words practically gushed out in her excitement to talk about him. “Oh Kevin you wouldn’t believe it….he’s so smart and coming along so quickly….nobody has ever seen anything like it….he can force himself to stay awake indefinitely….I guess at some point he’d have to shut down, but he’s been going for two weeks solid. When his human brain needs to sleep, the cybernetic portion simply takes over for him....he’s got enough control over it now that he can trust it while he’s napping, and that’s greatly speeding the learning process.”

“You still reading to him?”

She blushed slightly and laughed. “Actually yes....he is reading at about High School level right now, so he certainly doesn’t need it, but he seems to enjoy it, so....”

Something about the look on her face concerned him. “What?” He asked. “What is it?”

“I don’t know....he’s just so....dark. Brooding.....I worry about him.”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you know what his first word was?”

Kevin shook his head.

“I was reading “Beauty and the Beast” to him, and he looked up at me, touched my cheek and said ‘Pretty.....Beauty.’ Then he touched his chest and said ‘Beast.’....you could almost feel the hatred he has for himself…He says he still can’t remember anything about his past, but I’m not sure that’s true….even if he can’t remember specifics, I think he remembers something, and it must have been horrible….it made me want to cry for him.”

They were both quiet for a long moment, their food still untouched.

“You need to get back to him, don’t you?”

“Yes.” She said with a nod. “I should probably go.”

“Well….I might have to stop in and say hello to your star pupil.”

“He’d like that….he asks about you all the time.”

“He does?” Kevin was flattered, and found himself grinning.

“Yes, he….I think he still feels guilty.”

The researcher waved it off. “Bah….what’s a little errant Psi-energy between friends?”

They laughed together for a moment, and Kevin took her hand. Found her eyes with his. “Stop by my place when you finish for the day, will you?”

She smiled at him as she stood. “Sure thing.”

&&&

[Velociryx]

Gaian Central Research Lab, Sublevel 2

“How is he today?” Gayle asked the technician at the monitoring station, watching The Stranger one level below.

“Very well, and he has guest.”

Gayle wandered over to the monitor to see. There he was, sitting at his table, staring intently and talking with the Lady Deirdre. A stab of jealousy ran through her, and she sat on the edge of the technician’s desk with a heavy sigh. “Guess I’ll just have to wait my turn then.”

&&&

Any time they talked, Lady Deirdre and The Stranger, they seemed to completely consume each other, shutting the rest of the world out. Eyes locked together in intense and unbroken contact. Voices low. Leaning towards each other almost conspiratorially.

“I understand you asked for me specifically?”

He nodded. “Yes. My speech was not so good at that time, but I’ve been making myself stay awake to learn more quickly. I called you the Sky Lady.”

She smiled that wonderfully serene smile at him. “Well, it was clear enough that the others knew what you meant, and it brought me here. Now tell me, have you chosen a name for yourself yet?”

He nodded.

She waited patiently.

“I have been reading datalink entries on Ancient Earth history....I like dinosaurs....especially Velociraptors.”

“Hunters.”

He nodded. “Strong and cunning....I admire them.”

“And your name is drawn from that?”

“Yes....and the word velocity....I just like the sound of it.”

She touched his arm. “So....what shall we call you then?”

“Velociryx. The name I have chosen for myself is Velociryx.”

Lady Deirdre nodded. “An unusual name, and very creative. Velociryx you shall be.”

They were quiet for a long moment, staring at each other.

“You know you cannot stay here much longer.”

“Yes. I....I am in the way here.”

“We must devote this space to scientific research, but you are a special case....I have already declared you a ward of the colony….all that remains is to arrange other housing for you.”

He was silent and she studied him a moment. “There is something else though, isn’t there?”

“Yes....I....” He looked momentarily lost. “The music.”

She nodded. “You enjoy it?”

“I do, but I....I wish to…..no….I need to....make my own music.” There was clearly more he wanted to say about that, but could not seem to find the words for his request, and so he looked meaningfully into Lady Deirdre’s eyes.

She smiled knowingly. “Not an easy request, but I will see what I can arrange.”

He smiled back then. It was a fragile, tentative thing, but as it spread across his features, his whole face changed. For the first time since she had known him, he looked at peace. Content. And even handsome, in a rugged, craggy sort of way.

“There is much we can learn from each other, I believe.”

Now it was his turn to study her, and it occurred to him as he watched her that their conversation seemed to be characterized as much by what was said as by what went unsaid. Interesting, and it made him wonder if that would continue on into the future.

Probably so.

It also made him wonder if she noticed it too. Again, probably. “You want me to teach you and your people to walk the Fungus.” He spoke it as a statement, not a question, and she nodded.

“Yes, but as the Fungus and Planet are so intricately bound together, perhaps a better term would be ‘Walk the Planet.’” She looked thoughtful for a long moment. “Yes....Walk the Planet....I like that....a good phrase.”

He said nothing, sensing that she wanted to say more, and in a moment, he was proven correct.

“Up until now, my People have had the belief that Planet was sacred and should not be despoiled. We have worked hard to live in harmony with the native Eco-system, even though there is still much of it we do not understand.”

“What do you know of it so far?”

“Biology. Chemistry. We know, for example, the fungal spores are in some way responsible for the slowdown we’ve all seen in the aging process, but we don’t yet know exactly how it works.”

“And the PlanetVoice?”

She fought off a shiver as he mentioned it. “I have heard the voice….and I know some others have as well, but the bulk of my People have not.”

“Can you fully understand a man by studying his biology and chemistry?”

She saw immediately where he was going with the thought, and smiled. “No….and I see I was not wrong about you….there is much we can learn from each other.”

He nodded, and that tentative smile returned once more to his face. “It is the same with Chiron….and I will teach you.”

&&&

[Velociryx]

The plan for the training had been his idea, and Lady Deirdre Skye had been impressed with its elegant efficiency. It spoke volumes about the quality of the man’s mind. The approach was simple, straightforward, and effective. He would teach fifty of her people to “Walk the Planet,” and then they could each teach fifty, and so forth, until every Gaian Citizen knew how. It worked out well for a number of reasons. Logistically, it was far easier to cope with the population in batches of fifty, and besides that, the fact was, a good many people were still frightened of the enigmatic stranger in their midst.

No. Perhaps frightened was too strong a term. They were curious, of course. There was no doubting that, but it was a curiosity tinged with a bit of edgy nervousness. There was the sense that even though he was no longer their prisoner, he was still in many ways a caged tiger, and a number of her people were….wary. Open, friendly, and accepting as was the way of the Gaian People….but wary. Despite that, she had no difficulty in finding fifty volunteers to go with Velociryx to learn what he could teach them. In fact, Deirdre, Gayle, and Kevin were all in the first group.

He checked out thirty-two breathing masks from the ‘field hospital,’ which was still little more than a few inflatable modules linked haphazardly together, cramped and totally incapable of handling a true, base-wide emergency (it did well enough to handle the usual array of cuts, breaks and scrapes, and ran out of even the most basic supplies on a near-constant basis—which was why some of his students had to share their breathing masks--but despite that, the one thing they were rightly proud of was the fact that they had not had a child-birth related fatality in more than a decade).

So he checked out what masks were available, and led them away from the base on foot, hiking the distance (several kilometers) to the edges of a massive Fungal wall which partially enclosed and bounded their city. It was, in fact, not far from where Kevin and Gayle had first found him, though if he realized that fact, he made no mention of it.

When the arrived at the edge of the Fungal field, he had them fan out, and then turned to face them.

“The first thing you must understand is that the Fungus can feel you….Do not see it as an obstacle in your path, the Fungus is alive. It can sense you. If you treat it as the enemy, it will impede you. If you greet it as a brother, it will welcome you into its stalks.”

Kevin Aldridge looked skeptical. He was a researcher, through and through, and that news didn’t sit well with him. “That’s not a terribly scientific approach.” He muttered softly.

Velociryx smiled. “No….but it is the truth….and science will only take you so far in your understanding.” He motioned for Kevin to step forward, and the rakish young scientist found himself blushing hotly. He had forgotten that Velociryx was cybernetically enhanced. He could probably hear a whisper in a crowded room.

But, if he was offended in any way, he did not show it. Rather, he gently clasped Kevin’s shoulder and smiled tentatively at him. “I chose you for this example because it is your chance to get even with me.”

“What do you….”

Velociryx nodded, and actually winked at him. “Do not think that we only “accidentally” ended up in this particular place. The first time we met was in the Fungus….this fungus to be specific.” He pulled out a laser cutter similar to the one Gayle had hit him in the head with on that day. “It is not possible for me to get lost.” He said, tapping his skull with an index finger, even as he turned the device on and extended the laser as far as it would go (perhaps two and a half feet from the pommel, making it look something like a miniature light saber).

He handed it carefully to Kevin and smiled again. “I want you to hit me with that….and I’d like your permission to use my Psi-ability on you.”

Kevin looked at him incredulously. “You can’t be serious.”

Velociryx nodded. “Not to cause pain, but to alter your mood. I want to heighten your aggressiveness….make you attack me with everything you’ve got….I don’t want to worry that you might be holding back.”

“If you want me to hit you, I’ll hit you….no holding back, but if it will make you feel better to heighten my aggressiveness, I don’t see what it could hurt.” His eyes were shining, and it was clear that the researcher in him was actually looking forward to the upcoming experiment. Not for the prospect of violence, but for the potential of discovery. It was a threshold, he knew, and he was about to cross it. “Better be careful though….I’ll admit this is not much of a weapon, but a good strike could nearly take off your arm!”

“Then I’ll just have to make sure I don’t get hit.” Velociryx said as he took a few steps back and met Kevin’s gaze.

“Attack!”

A single word, spoken with an almost guttural sound. There was something in his voice. Some power which Kevin had never felt before. It was so….commanding that he found himself unable to resist. The moment it had been uttered, Kevin found himself raising the cutter tool and rushing forward before he even realized what he was doing. And of course, by that time he was committed to the attack, so he simply carried it out, wincing at the thought that he might hit Velociryx. True, he owed him one in a way, but once they’d taught him to speak, he was actually a rather interesting person. More than just another lab rat. The thought made him close his eyes. Not wanting to see, in case he really did connect with the intended blow.

The cutter tool bit nothing but air.

Kevin re-opened his eyes and looked about. Stunned.

He almost couldn’t have missed. He had only been a few feet away and the blade was long enough to…..

Velociryx held up a hand and nodded.

He had stepped back into the Fungal patch.

It hadn’t made the slightest sound as it parted for him.

“Again!” Velociryx commanded, and again, Kevin found himself almost compelled to attack.

He charged, so focused on the attack that he completely forgot about the Fungus.

He was reminded three steps later when he ran headlong into it, the cutter tool burning its way into some of the younger, more delicate Fungal stalks.

It was like hitting a stone wall.

No….it was more than that….it was like hitting a living wall, and it stopped him cold.

He started to take a step back, but then stopped. Mesmerized.

The stalks were moving….twitching.

And there was no wind.

He pressed the cutter tool more firmly into the stalks.

Yes.

It was trying to squirm away.

His eyes widened in disbelief. Certainly he’d heard the stories. Everybody had. They mysterious music with no source that some claimed to hear. The whispered sounds in your mind when you were walking alone in the wilderness. Stories and rumors that the worms and the fungus were somehow linked together in some type of symbiotic relationship, but so far, none of their research efforts had revealed much of interest.

Suddenly, the veil that had shrouded the truth and clouded Kevin’s thinking was lifted away. Velociryx was right, and the research teams had been studying the Fungus in the wrong way. If it was squirming away from the cutter tool, then it could actively sense the tool’s presence, and that implied that it found the contact uncomfortable, which further implied…..

The full weight of it hit him as he stumbled across the threshold of understanding.

Sentience.

And in that moment, beginning with those first fifty souls, the Gaian People arrived.

Suddenly, Kevin realized what he was doing and jerked the cutter tool away from the Fungal stalks.

“I’m sorry.” He whispered to them, stroking the damaged stalk gently, wishing he knew more about their makeup so he could fix it. Undo the damage he had done.

Like many good scientists, when he was in the midst of an important discovery, Kevin could block the rest of the world out, and he had. He forgot he was not alone until he felt Velociryx’s strong hand on his shoulder.

“Not to worry….the stalks cannot feel pain….it is not the same thing as cutting into my arm….you have caused no harm here.”

“Then why was it trying to squirm away?”

“The cutter was touching it….and it was….” He considered for a moment at what word to use.

Everyone seemed to lean in closer to hear, waiting expectantly.

“Othermind.” He said finally.

“Othermind?” Deirdre asked, but the look on her face told him that she already knew the answer and was asking for the benefit of the others.

Velociryx nodded. "Planetmind and Othermind. The Fungus and the Worms are of Planetmind, and anything that cannot meld with them is seen as Othermind.”

“So….when you Walk the Planet….” Gayle began tentatively. “It really is a state of mind….you give yourself to the Planetmind, and are able to move among the stalks?”

“Exactly.”

Gayle smiled and closed her eyes. She was nervous….he could sense it in her, but he could also feel her opening herself up to the Planetmind.

She took a step forward.

Then another.

And another.

Soon, she was walking at a normal pace, but she felt nothing…..no that wasn’t quite right.

There was something different, but she could not quite put her finger on what it was.

Whispers?

Before she could focus more fully on them, she heard the sound of applause behind her and opened her eyes.

There was Fungus all around her.

She had walked a good thirty yards into the Fungal field…..it had parted for her like the air itself.

She turned around and waved at them, making her way out slowly and carefully.

“Come….the rest of you try!” Velociryx said heartily as he took Gayle’s hand and guided her last step out of the Fungus. She looked up at him with shining eyes, and had an almost conspiratorial look on her face, as though he had just shared some marvelous and magical secret with her….and in a way, he had.

“That was wonderful.” She whispered. “It was like….a tickle on my mind.”

He nodded as the others began approaching the Fungus. “Yes….and there is more….much more.”

For the next several hours, Velociryx worked with them, showing them how to manipulate the Fungal stalks to make their going easier, and teaching them how to blank their minds, and open themselves up to Planet’s neural network. Even if he could not teach them to do some of the things he was capable of, he could at least show them how to be more sensitive to the subtle vibrations which reached out to each other across all of Chiron, intertwining and interconnecting….combining to form the Planetary Consciousness.

The fifty with him had varying degrees of success, but the real naturals at it were Gayle and Deirdre. They took to the Fungus like they were born for it, and could move in and out of it much more easily than the others.

Kevin was frustrated by that. He would try to follow Gayle as she threaded her way effortlessly through the stalks. For a time, he would move fluidly enough, and then….something went awry, and he’d find himself tangled up in it. All but stranded.

“You’re trying too hard.” She told him as she ruffled his hair. “It’s that great big analytical brain of yours….”

He blushed at that, and blushed further when she kissed him on the cheek and ran off into the Fungus.

He tried to follow, but found himself even more tangled than before, and she laughed at him.

He laughed with her, and the afternoon wore on.

The Fungus was not the only thing being studied, however.

All afternoon, Deirdre watched her new ward closely, marveling at him, and how far he had come in such a short span of time.

From mindless killer intent on Psi-attacking everyone who got in range, to teacher, frolicking and laughing in the Fungus. A cybernetically enhanced, Psi-talented human. As far as she knew, the only one of his kind on all of Chiron….and that troubled her, for it brought back the dark notion that the people he had escaped from would want him back all the more.

She had wrestled with the decision about what to do with him for most of the night, and in the end, concluded that he represented something she could not ignore. The chance at a deeper understanding of Chiron. Planet had even referred to him as a Son of Chiron and in the end, that had been what cinched it for her. How could she turn her back on a Son of Chiron without violating every principle she and her followers held dear? She could not, and she had not. Still, Deirdre was relieved to see how much and how rapidly he had progressed. It seemed to validate the decision she had made when she’d announced him as a ward of the Gaian People.

&&&


[This message has been edited by Velociryx (edited November 09, 1999).]

[Velociryx]

By the time the suns were setting, everyone was pleasantly exhausted, and most had become proficient at (and some had mastered) the art of Walking the Planet.

Velociryx gathered them up in a circle, and sat with them.

“You see,” he began. “Chiron is a life form unto itself….and the fungus is as cells in that body….we represent an outside agent which has been introduced to the body.”

Kevin nodded. “We could be seen as a virus then.”

“Yes.”

“And the worms represent the Planetary immune system.”

Silence ruled the night.

“In my last trip to U. N. Headquarters, the Worm-Boils attacked at the western edge of the base.” Deirdre said quietly. “I had not made the connection at that time, but that’s where the bulk of their heavy industry is located.”

Kevin drew in a deep breath and started talking excitedly then, and Gayle looked at his eyes. Wide and bright….almost feverish, like an excited child. She glanced over at Velociryx and smiled.

He smiled back and nodded.

“….just as the fungal stalks detected the cutter tool! Planet can sense those things that are disconnected from it and simply tries to root them out! We’ve got to verify this and spread the word!”

Deirdre shook her head at him and smiled. “He has not yet contacted me himself yet, but I hear from Lal that Zakharov already accuses me of dancing naked through the trees….even if we were to offer up ironclad proof, it would just be seen as ‘tree-crazy prattle.’”

Kevin seemed suddenly deflated. “They really don’t like us, do they?”

“They don’t like anyone who thinks differently, that’s all. And Morgan, who only recently contacted us to expand his customer base, would be no more interested in our findings than Zakharov….theirs are narrowly defined worlds….Morgan’s by his relentless pursuit of energy credits, and Zakharov by his beloved research labs.”

“And imagining you dancing naked through the trees.” Gayle added lightly, making everyone in the group roar with laughter.

“Yes….and that too.” Deirdre said, once she had found her voice again.

&&&

[Velociryx]

Six weeks later:

Velociryx wandered through his new apartment, reaching out to touch his various possessions. An A/V unit (with surround-sound speakers that Kevin had picked out from the Morgan Electronics Catalog), sturdy hardwood furniture, made from hand cut Chironian Oaks and padded with synthetic down, and a smattering of pottery donated from the Children’s Crèche. Gayle and Kevin watched him from the front door, beaming like proud parents.

When he looked over at them, there were tears shining in his eyes. “My....my neighbors are not afraid of me?”

“No....they welcome you into their community….You’ve come a long way from the days when everyone was afraid to be near you.”

His smiles were becoming more and more commonplace, and Gayle decided that, when one of them lit up his face, it was just about the best thing on Chiron. “And these are....my things? Mine?”

“All yours big guy.” Kevin told him. “You’re really on your way now.”

He stood in the center of his living room, awed into speechlessness by it all. He had never had anything….including people who cared about him….it was all so new. Bewildering, but wonderful just the same.

“Oh, and I almost forgot the best part!” Gayle said, practically jumping up and down. “A present from our Lady Deirdre.” She pointed down the hall, and he went.

Cautiously.

Tentatively.

When he made his way into the tiny kitchen where they had hidden the Morgan Music Master 3000 (a massive tri-level keyboard with every musical instrument in the Datalinks system programmed into it, and a customization routine to create utterly unique sounds, besides), he literally broke down sobbing. “She....she did it....I can....create the music now....”

Gayle and Kevin joined him in the tiny kitchen as he powered the machine up and gently touched the controls.

When his hands finally made their ways to the keys, the room was filled with strange, unbelievably beautiful sounds.

Gayle’s mouth opened in astonishment. “Kevin do you recognize that?”

He looked deeply into her eyes. “Yes.”

It was a sound they had become more and more accustomed to hearing since their afternoon with him in the Fungus. PlanetSong. The strange music that some people heard when communing with Chiron. No one had ever been able to record or reproduce it.

Until now.

It was the most fragile, heart-wrenching, wonderful sound they had ever heard.
&&&

[Velociryx]

Episode Five - At the Crossroads

He was on a roll and he knew it, so he did not stop. His rowdy dance number had no sooner come to an end than he launched into another piece he’d written. It was slower and sultry. Almost bluesy. The crowd settled down and began swaying more slowly on the floor, couples holding each other close. Those not dancing watched the musician on the stage, his eyes closed, brow creased in concentration, head down, pouring his essence out, channeling it through the instrument before him and enthralling the crowd with the sounds he created.

They were captivated, and his bluesy piece was so soulful that by the end of it, there were tears shining in several people’s eyes. Gayle’s too, he noticed, and it made him smile.

As his third number came to an end, he was treated to another standing ovation, and Gayle waved at him in the midst of it. He read her lips as she whispered “I’m proud of you” over the applause and blew him a kiss.

Right then, something changed in him. A fluttery, quivery sensation ran all through him, and it took several seconds for him to realize what it was. He had never felt love before. He stood and blushed crimson, intending to make his way through the crowd and to her.

Before he could even stand completely though, something shattered the front window and thick, white smoke began filling the room.

Then things got worse.

More glass broke.

Someone screamed.

People began to panic.

As a single group, the audience he had captivated only moments earlier turned into a panicked, stampeding herd, and they all tried to make for the exit at the same time.

Frantically, he glanced around the room, trying to get a fix on Kevin and Gayle. He saw them in the corner, being shoved mercilessly toward the door by the surging mass of humanity all around them. Kevin tried to grab Gayle’s arm to stay with her, but she was shoved ahead and out of his reach, and then he was tripped up and fell.

No one stopped to help him to his feet.

He tried to stand on his own, but was trampled back down.

Velociryx saw him try to rise again, a nasty cut on his forehead. “Kevin! Gayle!” He screamed from the stage as he leapt into the crowd.

He was a fairly large, imposing man, but even considering his size and strength, he had trouble forcing his way through the crowd and keeping his balance.

After what felt like an eternity, he managed to make his way to Kevin’s side and hauled him to his feet. “Kevin....is it bad? Can you walk?”

He nodded weakly. “Find....Gayle....I....I tried to keep her with me, but....” He shook his head, sobbing now. “What’s happening?”

“I don’t know, but I’ll find her and then I’ll find out.....are you going to be okay?”

He nodded, wiping some of the blood from his forehead onto his shirtsleeve.

Velociryx nodded and turned away, striding into the depths of the crowd again, making his way to the door.

His breathing and heart rate were both elevated, and it was getting harder and harder to control his Psi-talents, but he fought it. Now was not the time. The crowd was already in a frenzy, and if he lost control....

Someone shoved him hard from behind and he stumbled forward, caught himself, and then choked off his instinctive Psi-Defense. He punched the offender instead and continued on his way. “Gayle!” He called out to her above the noise, but there was no answer.

Finally he made the door, and blinked in confusion. Everything was in chaos. People were running through the streets smashing things and each other. Fighting. Looting. It was insanity in physical form. He scanned the crowd for Gayle, hoping to find her quickly and get her away from all the craziness, but then his Cybernetic enhancements kicked in.

Firearm detected....twenty meters. Category - hand gun, Classification - Shredder Pistol, Model MK-9, Defense option Zulu-Prime, Psi-Blast, Maximum Intensity

He felt his Psi-Defenses powering up, and he tried to fight them back down, but found his control slipping. The Cybernetic portion of him had detected a threat, and would not be so easily thwarted. “No!” He shouted to himself in frustration. But his control slipped further.

Then he saw her. Gayle. His beautiful Gayle.

Their eyes met.

His control began to reassert itself. He could control it. He could control it for her, if nothing else.

He waved. “Stay there, I’m coming!”

She smiled nervously and waved back. There were tears in her eyes, and she had a cut on her cheek, but she was okay. It was all going to be okay.

Firearm detected, ten meters and closing

“Not now,” he muttered, and continued shoving his way through the crowd.

They surged forward again, and Gayle was shoved further away from him. For a moment he lost sight of her and thought she might have been shoved down as Kevin had been before, but then he caught a glimpse of her, pressed in among a number of heaving, sweating bodies all trying to occupy the same space at the same time. He growled and animalistic growl, deep in his throat and two people near him stepped away.

They were hurting her.

Scaring her.

His Psi-Defenses began ratcheting up again.

He shoved his way closer.

Twenty feet.

Then ten.

Now just over five.

And then the crowd began to part, and he could see her clearly. She was frightened, but she never looked so lovely to him as she did right then.

Firearm detected, proximity warning, proximity warning, alert, alert, alert....

There was a shout behind him. Two people fighting. Arguing.

He spun about to look.

The one facing him, less than five feet away had a pistol. He raised it.

Took aim at his adversary.

Someone jostled him from behind.

He fired.

The popping noise was small, and almost comical sounding considering how deadly the weapon really was. Velociryx flinched and glanced down at his chest just to make sure. He was not hit.

Neither was the man the gunman had been arguing with.

The gunman took aim again.

“Ve....” The voice behind him sounded strange. It was Gayle’s voice, but thicker. Almost liquid.

His heart dropped a foot in his chest and his stomach turned a flip. He did not want to turn around, but he felt himself moving.

Turning.

He saw her, and the grimly beautiful patch of red blossoming out from her chest and throat where the shredder bullets had found their mark.

“Gayle?” He said softly, not quite comprehending.

She stumbled forward, toward him, and he reflexively reached out to her. Caught her.

Felt her essence soaking into his shirt, hot and sticky. Her life blood.

It began to sink in then.

“Oh Gayle, no....no....”

She looked up at him. Touched his cheek.

Tried to speak but wound up coughing. Choking on her words and the trickle of blood which ran from the corner of her mouth.

She tried again. “You are....Beauty.” She whispered.

He felt her slip away a moment later. Eyes still open, staring at him as he held her, but there was a moment when she felt different. Less alive. And then there was nothing.

Nothing at all.

For a long moment, he stared into those lovely, now lifeless eyes. “No.....” He whispered.

“No!” Louder now, and several people around him looked over at him in a mixture of surprise and fear.

“Noooooo!” And this time, when his Psi-Defenses began building, he did not even try to stop them.

He gathered Gayle’s lifeless body up in his arms and turned around to face the gunman.

Their eyes met and Velociryx locked the other man’s gaze down. Forced him not to look away.

Target Acquired....Psi-Levels at 315.....355.....400....435....490....525....

The Psi-Energy began taking on a tangible force, and the people around him were shoved back a step by its strength and intensity.

Psi-Levels at 565....580....605....

The crowd around him stepped back again, and now several people near him began experiencing the effects of exposure to that much Psi-Energy. Several noses began to bleed, and more than one person had Fairy Tears running down their cheeks.

Psi-Levels at 660....700...725....775.....Peak Level reached

He held it there, eyes narrowly slitted, glaring at the gunman with pure hatred. It would have been so easy just to let it go. Crush the terrified man in front of him. Boil his brain right out of his head and leave him as he had left Gayle.

Beautiful Gayle.

Gone.

He looked down at her, lying in his arms, eyes still open. Growing cooler by the second.

Another wave of hatred washed over him, this one even blacker and more vile than the last.

He locked eyes with the gunman again and took a step closer, growling that deep, feral growl in his throat again.

“Drop it or die where you stand.” His voice was barely intelligible over the growl in his throat, but the man understood.

He dropped the pistol.

Velociryx’s stare intensified and the man grabbed his temples, then sank to his knees, groaning softly.

He was shaking from head to toe with the effort to control himself, but he did not attack. He stared at the man for a long moment, and then let out a long, anguished wail, which he punctuated by kicking the gunman in the sternum, hard enough to crack several ribs.

Then he ran, the crowd parting for him as he carried Gayle’s body away....

&&&

[This message has been edited by Velociryx (edited November 11, 1999).]

[Velociryx]

Episode Four – Triumph, And Dangers Unseen – Mission Year 2159
Hab-Unit 15B - Residence of Velociryx

He punched in Gayle’s number on the VidComm unit, fingers trembling. She answered on the third chime and could instantly see the excitement burning almost feverish in his eyes. Automatically, her mind did a quick compare of the two men in her life. When Kevin had that look, he had an almost child-like quality…not so with Velociryx. It made him look….restless. Dangerous. She liked it. The look suited him well.

“What is it?” She asked, smiling hopefully. She thought she already knew the answer, but she didn’t want to get her hopes up too high.

“I got it! I’m booked for a performance down at the Rec. Commons tomorrow night! And if they like me, the night manager said he’d talk about making me part of the permanent lineup!”

“Vel that’s....that’s incredible....I’m so proud of you!”

“I....I did it.” His voice was softer now. A contrast to the dangerous look in his eye, it really did have a child-like quality. A strange contrast to see and hear. “I can’t believe it.” He half-whispered.

“I can believe it....you’re a natural, and you’re really, really good.”

“Do you think you and Kevin might be able to....”

“You don’t even have to ask....there’s nothing that could keep us away.”

Just then a raucous cheer erupted from somewhere behind him and he turned around, startled.

“What’s going on over there?” Gayle asked, mildly concerned at the sudden outburst.

He turned back to the viewscreen, blushing a deep shade of red. “My neighbors....they’re having a party for me....” He looked sheepish.

“Well, you go enjoy the party....what time tomorrow?”

“Eight o’clock.”

She nodded, still beaming at him. “We’ll be there, I promise.”

Velociryx broke the connection and turned around to face his neighbors, who had begun to crowd into his apartment to offer their congratulations.

He had never been happier.

&&&

[Velociryx]

Gaian Central Command:

“I fear we may have made a mistake, M’Lady.” Interior Minister Shenn said in a subdued voice.

“How so?” She inquired, eyebrows arching slightly.

“The populace is growing more rapidly than we anticipated, and our infrastructure development has been so focused on finalizing plans for the Research Hospital that we’ve been lagging in other areas. There have been rumblings....murmurs of unrest in parts of the city.”

“Are you saying riots are a possibility? Here?” She looked shocked.

The Minister nodded slowly. “We are pushing the Hospital construction schedule back for the time being, and planning to begin construction of a Hologram Theater in two weeks time….I hope that the announcement of its construction will quiet these unsettling rumblings, but I cannot be certain.”

She nodded gravely and turned to her Constable. “Commander McDonnaugh, I want you to put your men on alert. Stagger your shifts so that you have at least ten officers on duty at all times....I do not wish to see violence erupt in our shining city.”

The craggy officer nodded. “Aye, Lady. It will be as you say, but be aware that my manpower is most limited. If violence does erupt, we will be hard pressed to contain it.”

“Then I will see what I can do to increase your staff in the short term, but I will not turn our city into a Police-State. That runs against everything we have worked for thus far.”

Commander McDonnaugh nodded curtly in agreement. “Aye.”

“We will just have to keep our fingers crossed and hope the announcement of the Theater soothes the unruly elements.”

Lady Deirdre sighed heavily. “I do not like relying on such an intangible thing as that. This should not even be a concern. We must plan more carefully in the future.” She gave her Interior Minister a stern look, which almost seemed to shatter him. The Lady did not need to raise her voice. It was enough for him to know that she was displeased.

“No more mistakes M’Lady.” He said hastily, head low. “I swear it.”

With a grace and elegance that was so beautiful it was almost painful to watch, Lady Deirdre Sky rose and glided across the room to the window which overlooked the city. She rested her head against the cool glass as she took in the sight, whispering a silent prayer that all would remain well with her People.

&&&