Immortality (60 page)

Alexander kicked open a partially broken door of a building which had been spared and walked inside. Crates of military ammunition and weapons were piled to the ceiling. There were sounds of yelling outside. Bits of glass and debris crunched under his boots. Smoke drifted through the building from the fires next door. He was hunting something, sensing its presence using the reptilian part of his human brain. To him, it was a kind of ‘mental scent’ he was following. Sarah knew he was using information subconsciously tapped from the god-machine. She watched as he came upon a female lying on the floor of a backroom. A rear door had been blown inward from an explosion. This was the quarry he’d sensed. Her leg was blood soaked and appeared useless. She’d apparently crawled inside for shelter. Strands of short blonde hair covered one of her green eyes. Her stare as she looked up at him was glassy and unblinking. Sarah was surprised, realizing this woman was also mentally linked with the god-machine. She could have seen through the woman’s eyes if the machine had allowed it. Sarah was struck by how similar her appearance was to this woman. They could have been sisters.

All Alexander saw was hate. He aimed his machine gun at one of the woman’s eyes. As his finger tightened on the trigger, powerful conflicts boiled up in what was left of his soul. There were warring thoughts of parasite and immunity and collaborator and worse. Sarah realized through the jumble of mental segues that Alexander was unaware of his similarities to this woman he was about execute. They both had some type of mental link to the god-machine, and yet he wanted to kill her because of her link.

Alexander was a breath away from murder. Sarah screamed for him to stop, knowing her mental cries reached a deaf mind. The female’s eyes lost their glassiness and blinked. The woman’s connection to the god-machine had dropped. She began crying – first softly, then louder. “Please,” she sobbed. Tears were streaming down her face. Alexander just looked at the woman, but Sarah could tell he was faltering. He was no longer sure this woman was one of ‘them.’ He lowered the barrel of the machine gun until it pointed at the floor then pressed the transmit button on his radio.

“Fox, I need someone in here to pick up a prisoner and get her some medical help… Now.”

The woman fainted. Sarah felt Alexander’s skin begin to crawl. His entire body tightened, ready for fight or flight. Was he going to shoot her anyway? Then Sarah realized he had sensed someone in the room behind him. He’d walked into a trap. He could hear someone breathing. He could smell her sweat. He spun around burning pure adrenaline, dropped to one knee, and zippered the wall with bullets. The entire move had been split second fast but no one was there. Crumbs of sheetrock fell to the floor amid a fine haze of dust and smoke.

Sarah withdrew like a flame that had been snuffed. She wasn’t sure how she’d fled, but she was gone. She’d realized the moment those bullets had been fired that this man had sensed her presence and tried to kill her. He hadn’t fully understood what was happening, but he’d felt her in the back of his mind. The lasting thought which she took from this hellish vision was that this soldier, even if he did not yet fully realize it, was hunting her. So far he’d only found surrogates, but she had little doubt that it was her who he was ultimately stalking – it was her who he was driven to kill; and when he had her, he would not hesitate from uncertainty as he just did with this other female.

Sarah was back in the motel room, her connection to the god-machine severed. The machine was clearly warning her about this soldier. She gasped air as if waking from suffocation. Her thoughts were spinning. She was being hunted: the realization changed her. There was nausea and an aching in her temples. She went into the bathroom and splashed cold water on her face until all remnants of the images were washed away. She dried herself and then looked into the mirror. Her expression was hardened. Her green eyes looked like they belonged to someone who was dangerous. She thought about the CDC volunteer application on which she’d scribbled her signature the other day. That paper was her passport to get inside the CDC and locate the man in her visions. Something deep inside had filled her with the belief that her life depended upon this plan working.

~

Sarah was experiencing disappointment now that she was at the CDC compound. It was as if the building itself was grieving from the kill zone that had hit here the previous day. Getting inside had been simple. She’d been rubberstamped into the volunteer program pending confirmation of her paperwork, and had been left alone to get acclimated to the surroundings. Most of the incoming security she’d expected to find at a heavily protected government facility like this was missing. There were metal detectors and x-ray machines at the entrances; but after that, instead of being searched, she was only asked to sign a declaration stating she didn’t have any items on a restricted list. Oddly, outgoing security at the fence seemed more rigorous where there had been a line of cars waiting to leave and a team of armed soldiers with dogs inspecting them.

Sarah was perched on her assigned cot in a dormitory that looked like a homeless shelter and smelled like one, too. Lodging had been worked out for Ralph in a tented Quonset hut maintained by the Army for their guard dogs. She was apparently not the first person to show up with a pet in tow. In some ways the Quonset hut had nicer accommodations than this makeshift dormitory. She was scheduled for a regiment of medical tests starting two days after confirmation of her records. The tests included some unpleasant items which required anesthesia. She had no intention of staying that long.

With a plastic access card dangling from her neck by a lanyard, Sarah set out to track down her purpose for being here, the scientist named Mark. She had a plan for capturing his attention once she found him; after that it might get messy if he didn’t believe what she’d rehearsed saying. The plastic card allowed her to come and go from the main entrance and gave her access to much of the first floor. She had a small map which showed restrooms, cafeteria, showers, and other areas on her floor. As best she could tell, there was nothing that looked promising on this level. Instead of a call button, the elevators had a metal plate which she’d recognized as a proximity card reader. A soldier with an M16 slung over his shoulder stood at attention by the bank of doors. Her medical tests were going to be conducted on the second floor; maybe if all else failed, she could bluff her way onto an elevator using that as an excuse. Lights above the bank of elevators indicated three stories above ground and four subbasements. The two upper floors were listed on building directories as offices and labs, while none of the basements were listed at all. There were eleven Ph.D.’s with first names of Mark listed as occupants of the upper floor offices.

Sarah walked to the bank of elevators as if she belonged there. She’d seen people dressed in casual clothing enter the elevators; the plastic cards all looked the same, so there was no reason for her appearance to raise questions. The soldier guarding the elevators smiled at her. His eye involuntarily slithered up and down her body. She smiled back weakly. She couldn’t stall for too long. She was hoping someone would show up to use the elevators and let her hitch a ride.

“Sure is funny to be here on Christmas Eve,” said Sarah.

“Everything’s funny nowadays,” said the soldier. “Orders are, Miss, you have to use the elevators or step away.”

“Oh, sorry… I’m new.”

Sarah held her card next to the metal plate. Maybe she could fake a worn out card or something. There was an electronic beep. A small screen over the reader displayed ‘access denied.’

“The card must be broken,” said Sarah.

“You have to step away from the elevators, Miss. You can get your card replaced at the security office near the main entrance.”

Sarah glanced down the hallway and spotted a blue sign marked with a symbol for stairs. There was a soldier stationed next to that door also. She suspected the stairwell offered the same arrangements as the elevators. Most of the doors on this floor had card readers next to them. Her first reconnaissance run was coming to a screeching halt. The doors to the cafeteria were open. No need for a card reader there. Sarah headed in that direction. She felt the guard’s eyes on her as she walked away.

The cafeteria was crowded. It seemed like everyone else had decided on the same destination that she had. Wasn’t there anything to do in this place except eat? Sarah purchased a cup of coffee and a bag of chips. She selected a seat with a direct line of sight to the elevators. She took a sip of her coffee – not bad. She had decided to camp out and watch in the hope her scientist exited one of the lifts.

The hands on the wall clock had been dragging for some time. The smell of sauerkraut had started filling the room a little while ago. People were coming off the cafeteria line with trays of hotdogs, chips, and soda. Sarah’s stomach grumbled. The air felt oppressively humid. She’d been sitting on the plastic chair for a very long time. Her legs were sore. The chips were gone and the coffee was a dried up stain on the bottom of her cup. She needed fresh air. She needed a better plan. Sarah got up and headed toward the main entrance of the facility.

The day had started out sunny but was now rainy and cold. Mid-afternoon was blending into twilight. Mark no longer noticed the low vibration of the generators as he walked through a metal detector and headed toward the revolving doors which led into the main hallway. His coat was damp with rain. His meeting with the new military commander had not gone well. Colonel White was part of BARDCOM and reported directly to General McKafferty. The new commander had chosen to keep his office inside one of the military trailers which now filled the parking lot. The Colonel was keeping his distance. Mark went through the revolving doors which he’d learned also functioned as a trap. If someone didn’t have the right access card, the door would let them enter a half revolution and then trap them. Mark felt nervous going through the damn things.

The main hallway was crowded. There was a soft din of conversations. Mark was stopped in mid-stride by a young woman standing in his path. He moved to walk around her, but she jumped back in front of him. He smiled at the comical dance they were having. The young woman had a peculiar look of recognition in her eyes. She wore jeans and an oversized baggy sweatshirt. Mark moved to the left, but so did the young woman. They were still trapped in lock-step.

“Mind if I lead?” he said.

“Hi, Mark… My name is Sarah Mayfair.”

“Do I know you?”

She was very pretty and did look a little familiar. He noticed her hair was blonde, her skin was light olive, and her eyes were green; he could not quite figure out her ethnicity. There was also something a little spooky about her, something that just didn’t add up all the way. He was lost in his thoughts and missed most of what she’d said next.

“… Do I look familiar?” asked the young woman.

“Honestly, no,” said Mark.

“I thought I might,” said the young woman. “Okay, anyway, here goes… You’ll either think I’m off my rocker or that I’m telling you stuff you already know.”

Mark must have been showing his distress or this young woman was noticeably odd, because one of the soldiers, a big guy named Jeremy who patrolled the halls and knew Mark, was walking over. The guard stationed at the elevators was staring.

“Hello, Professor Freedman, sir,” said Jeremy. “Do you need any assistance?”

“I know the bacteria are part of a thinking machine,” said the young woman. She began talking very quickly, as if she was afraid of being silenced. “It may be much smarter than you suspect.”

“Is this woman a problem?” asked Jeremy.

Mark was thrown off balance by what he’d just heard her say. He didn’t know how to respond to this woman or to the guard. He felt like he’d just stepped into an alternate reality. Who was this woman? It was highly classified information that nanotech seeds were inside COBIC. No outsiders knew about this.

“I’m a cop,” said the woman as she held out a police badge. “I’m not a nutcase. Please just listen to me.”

“It’s okay, Jeremy,” said Mark.

The guard raised an eyebrow and then walked away. Once the guard was out of hearing range, Mark took the woman by the arm.

“Okay Sarah. That’s your name, right? How did you know about the nanotech seeds?”

“The what?” said Sarah.

“You said the bacteria are a thinking machine.”

“I did and I’m right, or you would’ve given me to Jeremy by now,” said Sarah.

“Maybe?”

“I know things about the thinking machine,” said Sarah.

Mark shut the door to his office and then sat down at his desk. He motioned the young woman to have a seat in one of the chairs in front of his desk. She made him feel uncomfortable. He took a sip of coffee.

“So I’ve passed the test?” said Sarah.

“Let’s just say you’ve got my attention.”

“Okay, how do I keep your attention?”

“Explain to me how you know the bacterium is a thinking machine.”

The young woman looked like she was trying to decide something; then she leaned forward.

“You’ll think I’m nuts after I tell you this,” she said. “There’s a small colony of it inside my head.”

“And it tells you things?” guessed Mark.

“And it tells me things,” said Sarah. “It implants memories that aren’t mine inside my head.”

This woman was either a paranoid schizophrenic or she was a gift. Mark was betting on the former but hoping for the latter.
And it tells me things
– that was a gutsy admission if she turned out to be sane. Everyone tested had some COBIC inside their bodies; again, that knowledge was highly classified. Still, none of this proved a thing and none of this was new information. He had a very high concentration of COBIC in his brain and he’d experienced no little voices in his head; but he had been honest enough from the start to wonder if it was affecting him mentally. Maybe a communications channel could be opened? He was convinced that high concentrations of COBIC caused accelerated healing. A small amount can kill while a large amount may heal. Now that was counterintuitive.