The Deaths of Tao (40 page)

What the hell are those assholes doing?
 

Tao kept muttering that phrase over and over. It worried Roen to hear him say that. Tao was incensed to the point of being incoherent. Usually nothing rattled him. This was the alien who had conquered half the world several times.

Are they insane?
 

During those hours, Tao had retreated into a shell, staying silent for the most part save for a few random angry outbursts. Finally, during the tenth hour into their vigil around the radio, Tao made a disturbing proclamation.

We have lost.
 

Roen, dozing against the table, snapped his head up, suddenly alert and attentive. He glared at the others huddled in the room in various states of consciousness and snapped. “Who said that?” He climbed to his feet, nostrils flaring. “Which one of you said we’ve lost?” The other guys looked up at him with dull, blank stares.

“No one, Roen,” Ray said. “It must be Tao.”

“Tao would never...” Roen snarled and then stopped.

“Tao, did you say we lost?”

The war is over. Without the United States, the Prophus have lost.
 

“Come on, that’s bullshit. We’re not giving up.”

There is no longer a path to victory. Without support from a superpower in this world, we have no choice but to capitulate to the Genjix. It will save lives in the long run. We should advise the Keeper to consider the inevitable. Had we kept at least one superpower neutral, we might have been able to hold off the Genjix until we found a long-term solution, but with both China and the United States actively working against us, the war is lost.
 

Roen suddenly couldn’t breathe. He stormed out of the communication room and barreled past several startled crewman. He sprinted up the stairs and burst out onto the deck. He inhaled the cool night ocean air, taking in the salt and water as he stalked toward the bow of the ship. Between Tao’s shocking concession and his fear that Jill was dead, he couldn't take it anymore.

Roen leaned over the railing and screamed as loud and as long as he could. All he could think about was how he was half a world away from Jill. He should have been by her side. He should have been there to protect her! He rounded on the nearest inanimate victim, which happened to be a rusty ventilation shaft jutting up from the deck, and punched it as hard as he could. He followed up with another punch and then a kick that rang the round tube like a dull church bell.

“Ow.”

Careful. You might need that foot still. We could be on the run for a long time.
 

Roen was pretty sure his hand wasn’t broken, but he couldn’t say the same of his foot. If he had hurt the ventilation shaft, it didn’t show it. That shaft was a lot sturdier than it looked. Instead, Roen turned his back to it and sat down, leaning on it for support. He rubbed his injured hands and foot as his mind raced. Was Jill lying dead in her office? Maybe in a ditch? Had she been executed by the Genjix? Every thought tore out a little piece of him. Lin’s words echoed again in his head. His wife was probably dead, and he could be soon as well. His son would be an orphan. He should have been there! Roen slammed his fist into the deck.

Get ahold of yourself.
 

“This is your fault, Tao! I should have been by her side!”

There was a long pause.

You are right. I am sorry, Roen. When this is over, we will find Jill. I promise you. You have done enough for the Prophus. It is time we put your loved ones first.
 

Roen leaned against the railing. “You mean it?”

I do. Finish this mission, and we will catch the next plane out.
 

Then Roen saw a smattering of lights in the distance. The lights multiplied and grew larger and larger. A minute later, the outline of the city came into view.

We have reached the southern port of Kaohsiung. Get the men inside the container.
 

Roen didn’t move. His eyes followed the blinking lights as they got closer and closer. “What’s the point if it's all over?”

Until told otherwise, we still have a mission to carry out. And even if the war is lost, it is not like we can back out now. Prepare for infiltration.
 

 

THIRTY-SEVEN

EX-EXTINCTION

The eve of humanity’s evolution is coming to a close. Like the early primates that we sacrificed when we deemed their evolutionary worth was at usefulness’ end, so too are humans.
 

With that, the vessels who serve will continue on in another form. Those who do not will cease. Once Quasiform completes, it will only be the Quasing who will remain. And thus, the destiny of Earth will be fulfilled.
 

Zoras

 

Enzo scanned the black and green specks of the forest interior, searching for signs of movement. Somewhere in there, the enemy lay in wait. Last night’s razed eastern tree lines still glowed angry red, drifting thick black smoke into the otherwise pure blue air. After the disaster at the Prophus camp, the lines had once again been redrawn.

The Genjix had taken heavy losses and were no longer able to maintain the heavy escorts, base defenses, and widened perimeters. One of his tactical advantages had to go, so Enzo was now blind again in the forests and unable to go on the offensive. The Prophus had again pushed all the way to the edge of the forest. Yesterday, while his construction crews were working on the runway, the Prophus had attacked, massacring thirty.

The news coming in from America was much better. The United States government was now theirs, free of Prophus influence. The results of the cleansing had thrown the government into disarray. It would take months for their public relations arm to cover up the incident and calm the government. For now, the Genjix pushed the conspiracy of Middle Eastern terrorist attacks. Others thought it a military coup. Even more thought it was a religious fundamentalist rebellion.

Those fools could think what they wanted. As long as their attention was elsewhere, Enzo did not care. The situation would blow over in a few months, and by then the Genjix would have free rein over the country without the meddling Prophus getting in their way. It was a good trade off.

The Genjix Council had also finally come around. With the Genjix’s control of the United States assured, the ProGenesis project nearing completion, and his continuing successful defense of the camp, they had no choice but to offer him full status on the Council. When it was brought up during the last meeting, only Vinnick opposed his standing.

Well, Enzo planned to take care of the Russian billionaire soon after his business at the camp was complete. In fact, he considered neutralizing the old man’s power an important matter. The primary facilities for Phase III were based within Vinnick’s sphere of influence. With the ProGenesis near completion, all Genjix initiatives would shift toward Quasiform. Whoever controlled Quasiform controlled the Council. If Enzo was not careful, Vinnick could steal the project from underneath him.

Your ambitions are admirable. However, do not forget your goal or who you serve.
 

“I serve you and the Genjix, Zoras.”

As long as you serve our purpose. Power struggles are encouraged among the Genjix. It keeps the vessels strong and hungry, but do not overstep. You walked when you should be crawling. And now you want to run.
 

Palos walked up and bowed. “Chow is reporting in, Father.”

Enzo nodded without tearing his eyes away from the trees. This wasn’t their scheduled meeting. He must have good news, for there was little reason to report his continuing failure. Enzo trotted to the main building with Palos in tow.

He spared his first a regretful look. After their time in Tibet was over, he would have to release Palos from his duty as his personal guard and assign him to another role. Being a bodyguard was beneath a vessel. Of course Enzo would keep him under his command, but it would not be the same. He had become accustomed to Palos; it would be difficult to replace him.

He walked into the war room and saw Chow’s face already on the screen. He was sweating like a pig on a spit. He was excited though, moving about animatedly and shouting at his assistants off-screen. Enzo sat down and coughed. Chow gave a start and then began talking so fast Enzo couldn’t understand what he was saying. The only words he could make out were “three days” and “still alive”. As far as he was concerned, those were all the words he needed to hear.

He put up a hand to shut Chow up. “Are you saying ProGenesis is a success?”

Chow nodded so fast that he thought the man’s neck might snap. “Yes, Father. Three days. Tested among all six of our prisoners. All still alive.”

Has one of ours survived?
 

Enzo kept his rising excitement inside. There would be no celebration until everything was confirmed. “Have you done final verification?”

“I have not.” Chow replied. “That is what I’m calling you for. I need permission to do that.”

“Proceed. Quickly, and today. Do we have a volunteer?”

Chow nodded again. “Heisenberg, a lowly regarded vessel, and his Holy One Danli have volunteered to be the sacrifice. We are prepared to translate Quasing light signals.”

Enzo allowed a smile to break out on his face. “Very well then. Have Danli enter the vat immediately. You better pray you are successful, Chow. If so, your standing has been raised. Your place among all the Holy Ones is secured, and you will be honored for your accomplishments from this point on until the Eternal Sea. If this is another false positive though, I will have your hide.”

Then Enzo sat in front of the screen and waited, watching as the scientists scurried around, preparing the first Genjix volunteer to enter the vats. Then he watched Heisenberg jump into the vat. Interestingly, this current formula dissolved human flesh. Within minutes, Heisenberg was nothing more than a pile of bones floating in the container. Then he noticed Danli floating within the red liquid, blinking. A few minutes later, Chow reported in again with a simple message from Danli:

CONDITIONS ARE IDEAL INDISCERNIBLE FROM QUASAR PROCREATION POSSIBLE

“Get four other volunteers in quickly!” Enzo ordered. “I want results on an attempt immediately.”

The next six hours were the longest in Enzo’s life. He spent the entire time watching the screen, not leaving the war room unless he absolutely had to. Enzo cursed for not being back at Qingdao to witness this triumph in person. Still, he sat and waited and watched patiently as four other volunteer vessels sacrificed their lives in the vat alongside Danli. For those hours, he stayed glued to the screen while the five Quasing mingled. Even when the Prophus launched an attack, Enzo sent Palos to take care of the defense. He would not leave until this latest experiment was concluded. Finally, a message from Chow came through loud and clear. The five Quasing had successfully created life.

A new god had been born.

Unbelievable. It has happened.
 

Unbelievable was right. Enzo stared at the screen for a good five minutes as Chow relayed the news. Inside, he could feel Zoras churning with excitement. To Enzo personally, this was just a passing milestone, a step on his climb to leading all of the Genjix. He had only been involved in the project for a few months and while proud, he could not even begin to feel the jubilation his Holy One felt. He was simply the right vessel at the right time.

For Zoras, this was a milestone after millennia of maneuvering, the culmination of a century of planning from when the Genjix first realized that the Quasing might become extinct before they accomplished their original goal of returning to Quasar. With ProGenesis, Zoras had just ensured that the Quasing would continue on even if their numbers dwindled. This victory also sealed the Prophus’ fate. It wouldn’t be a surprise if the Prophus unconditionally capitulated once they learn that the Genjix had successfully birthed new Quasing.

“Your will, mighty Zoras. Your victory.”

A victory for the Genjix. For all Quasing.
 

Today was a great day. Enzo stood up, rubbed his tired eyes, and looked outside. It was dark except for the tower lights scanning the perimeter. He had been so focused on what was occurring in the labs that he had forgotten everything else. Not that anything else mattered. His mission was a success, and now the Genjix could move to the final phase: Catalyst.

The necessity of this camp was also now in question, as were the prisoners. These were just loose ends that needed to be cleaned up. He considered his options. He could just do it quietly and with little trouble, but it seemed a waste. Why not force the Prophus’ hand? Make them grind their forces toward certain death through no-man’s-land toward entrenched Genjix forces. It seemed to Enzo a fitting end to this conflict. He still owed Stephen a debt, after all.

Enzo turned to Palos leaning against the door. “Build a platform, gather all the prisoners, and then shoot them; publicly for all the Prophus to see.”

 

THIRTY-EIGHT

HIDEOUT

His death broke Dania, who immediately retired from active duty. She lived out the rest of her life in peace, raising young Sonya. During those years, I was kept out of the war. However, I did not mind. Dania had experienced great loss and deserved her peace. She developed cancer and died with Sonya by her side, and I enjoyed a rare peaceful transition.
 

I began to train Sonya. She benefitted from having known of us since she was a child. Even at a young age, Sonya proved gifted in all ways that a Prophus finds valuable. Beautiful, physically talented, intelligent, and forceful, she was extraordinary and showed potential for greatness.
 

Baji

 

Jill leaned into the microphone hidden within the recess of the stone wall and paused. Then she looked back at the sixty survivors, the remnants of the Prophus political operation in the United States. Out of nine senators, twenty-eight representatives, one cabinet member, twenty-four federal judges, and nearly three hundred aides and officials, only these scared and exhausted souls had made it out of the city alive.