CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
"A jury too often has at least one member more ready to hang the panel than to hang the traitor." - Abraham Lincoln
"Any problems?" asked Carlos of the two men who delivered the scanner.
"No contact, Captain."
"Good. Put the scanner over here," he ordered, gesturing to a small portable table and chair next to a larger metal table.
The scanner, about the size of a small suitcase, was portable enough for two Shadows to transport the device easily anywhere it was needed; its cold metal and plastic didn't need Stealth since it only generated heat when it was being used. The two men responsible for its transport stood at attention awaiting further instructions. Carlos could tell by the flicker of their Shadows that neither man was thrilled to be in the presence of the scanner when humans were being scanned.
A wave of his hand brought relief as he silently signaled them to take their places on the perimeter. Carlos covered the scanner almost completely with Stealth, leaving room for the monitor to be seen. He motioned for Harry to get on top of the large metal table that his men had scrounged from another room in this ancient building. The table reminded Harry of his dreams.
"Security? Jammer set?" Carlos' Shadow stood motionless while the leader received his reply.
The walls of the room were streaked with huge tears of iridescent greenish mold that streamed to the floor, shrouding a past of dust and possibly deadly bacteria. Harry mused that the wall was crying for its previous inhabitants, or its current ones. In an odd sort of way, it was proof that life could exist Outside without Makr. Primitive life.
When they first entered this room, it had seemed lifeless because it was cold and uninviting, but Harry couldn't resist the urge to give the room a life, hence the tears. This must have been the sanctuary of an ancient home no longer under Makr's watchful eye, he decided, and the bacteria were ironic, concrete proof that it still lived.
Feeling uncomfortable, he almost expected the room to adapt to his comfort need. He noticed the reality of the environment, the cold dampness, the humidity, but especially the smells, which were horrible.
He could distinguish at least two. Each was an odor that Makr would not have been likely to share with a Bio who had no need to smell it. Odor identification was hardly necessary while Makr was protecting you from harm. Harry recognized the odors that the others did not, nor seemed to care about. Makr had wanted to see a Bio's reaction to the smells since Cyberts had no need of this ability, so he had experimented on Harry. Now, Harry needed to know. He couldn't help his constant analytical look at reality whenever he found it.
Mildew? You'd expect that. It goes with the moisture. But the other? Urine? Not quite, but similar. Ammonia? Probably. Maybe something else, too. Definitely chemical. A cleansing agent. Alcohol? Or something more dangerous like methane?
He remembered one of the early SensaVision vids contained a cornucopia of scents for educational purposes.
A blinding flash!
No, not now!
The dream! Or was it?
The stainless steel table was cold and wet. Bravely, he opened his eyes to view what appeared, unbelievably, to be a reality of his own making. The "wet" he was experiencing was colorless and odorless. Cold metal sweats. He took in the stark white walls and floors. He was calmly sitting on the table turning over a donut-shaped ring that Kieran had given him.
Attached to the top of the scanner was a flat monitor with the screen facing out, so only Carlos and his Shadows can see it.
"Been living the easy life, have we?" Kieran teased Harry. "Your organs all seem in good shape."
"I try to take care of myself."
"Exercise?"
"Well, no. Makr..."
"I thought so." Kieran interrupted, her voice mocking him. "I, for one, had hoped we had found a man of character."
Harry wasn't getting the joke.
"That's not fair, Kieran." Carlos interjected. "He only just found the Touchables before we found him."
"I just can't tolerate the Touchables or Insiders—such weaklings. Worthless!" Her very words almost made her spit as she vehemently whispered to Carlos.
"I know. I know. I feel the same way sometimes, but go easy, Kieran. Try to be more understanding. You're my lieutenant now. I need you to be strong, but also wise. I have a feeling this one's different."
To Harry, this was reminiscent of another cop vid he viewed in his collection: Good cop, bad cop. He was betting the lieutenant was the bad cop.
"Is that true, puny man? Are you different?" Kieran taunted.
Carlos, ignoring her, turned teacher. "This is a Bio scanner," he said to Harry and Marlene. "It scans Bio tissue and bones for foreign bodies. It used to be used to identify cancerous or fibrous tissue, broken bones, as well as projectiles, 'bullets,' I think they're called, from the first millennium. We destroyed the cybercom components in the scanner and salvaged the rest. It'll tell us if you are all flesh and blood with nothing extra. So far, your internal organs look fine and healthy."
"Cyber parts. Manipulator implants. Backbone," added Kieran with a sardonic smile.
"Lieutenant O'Shea, that's enough!" Carlos glared at Kieran who stood her ground for the moment then backed away, hands raised over her head as if conceding defeat for the moment.
Harry stammered, "If I'm not all human...?"
"You don't really want to know," Carlos said, not looking at him. "We're scanning your brain next."
Harry looked at Kieran who smiled sardonically and shrugged. Her eyes had a cold look about them—even when she smiled. He heard the scanner hum briefly as something traveled along a path inside it.
"Primitive, I know, but it'll do the trick. What the...! Damn!" Carlos' face twisted to grimace. "Kieran, take a look at this!"
In an instant she was back by his side, looking over his shoulder.
As Harry started up, Carlos pushed him back down with one hand. "Stay down for a moment," he ordered with the gentleness of a physician as he moved the scanner so Kieran could see the image.
"That square object at the base of his brain?"
"That's not unusual, Carlos." Kieran was not terribly impressed. "We all have them or had them."
"Look at it again. Ever seen one this big before? Magnify."
Kieran turned a knob on the monitor to adjust the picture to one hundred times, then a thousand times. "Wow! Look at that detail. Looks like a miniature city."
"If it's what I think it is, it gets worse. Angle. Change the angle. Virtual 3-D image. Magnify."
"Damn!" she said. "It's not just a flat square; it's a cube!"
"That's a very advanced chip."
"Understatement," Kieran offered. "That is a hundred times more complex than even the double sided chips we've been seeing lately."
"It could be worse. It could be one of the layered cube chips I've heard about from our Touchable operatives. Supposedly it carries enough programming to run one of Makr's Cyber factories—all by itself."
"Or provide a direct communication link to Makr from anywhere on this planet."
"Better get the girl up here quickly," he said to Kieran. To Harry: "You can get up now, but don't go anywhere."
.
"She has a larger chip, too. Not as large as Harry's, not exactly a cube either, but larger than any we've seen."
Kieran had made an image copy of Harry's chip and was comparing it with Marlene's image on the virtual monitor.
"The bigger question is why?" asked Carlos. "What does it all mean?"
Although his question was rhetorical, Kieran was thinking aloud.
"We know Makr uses those chips to transmit SensaVision images, but why make them larger instead of smaller? I thought this technology is getting smaller and smaller... Unless..."
She looked at Carlos who finished the sentence.
"Unless the chips are designed to do something else—perform other functions as well as the usual. I don't like what I'm thinking."
"Chips that s
ize..." Kieran suggested, "A communication device? A geophysical positioning device?
"What do you mean by that?"
"Look at the location of both of these chips. Centered directly on the brain stem."
"Meaning Makr not only knows where they are, but may be in touch with every thought and experience they have," concluded Carlos. "Makr, when did this happen!"
"Makr, Carlos. You said 'Makr'."
"No, I didn't."
"Well, if you didn't, I'm hearing things and that's just as bad. Makr is getting in our heads and we no longer have chips."
"Transmitting sensors?"
"Do you think they're spies now?"
Marlene was sitting up, glaring at both of them. "Why don't you ask me? I know something about 'chips'?"
"Really?" asked Kieran smugly.
Marlene spoke to Carlos. "I was a direct link. The newer chips add to Makr's ability to evaluate impressions firsthand without relying on the Bio verbal reports. It's a sensor and transmitting chip—a two-way conduit."
"You know an awful lot about satisfying Makr's needs, don't you?"
Carlos interrupted to calm the situation. "Not now, Kieran. Ease up."
"No, I'll answer her question."
Marlene turned to face her.
"Yes, I do know a lot about Makr's needs and wants because I was a direct link to Him. That was my job as chief prosecutor for the State."
"Damn, Carlos! A Cyberlink? Two of 'em!" She tried to whisper but her agitation made it impossible. "You sure know how to pick 'em! You better let me kill 'em!"
Hearing but ignoring Kieran's remarks, Carlos studied Marlene carefully as if he had known all along. Marlene's quiet intensity communicated to him a confidence and presence of mind that only a few days ago would have gotten her killed on the spot. He wasn't ready to trust her yet, but he was willing to test her if that was possible.
"Why is Harry's chip different from yours?"
"I don't know," she said. "To be honest I always thought we direct cyberlinks had the most advanced chips."
"Is he a direct cyberlink?"
"Not that I know of."
"She'll give us away!" Kieran was seething. "Carlos? Are you listening to me? This has gone too far too fast! We're out of our depth here!"
"Calm down, Lieutenant. That may have already happened. A chip that evaluates input directly from the environment could certainly be used to spy on us without the jammer in place, but I see no evidence of that yet. A little patience, Kieran."
"We don't have a choice," Kieran insisted.
"Killing can't be our answer to everything. That may be Makr's way, but not ours—not anymore."
Kieran raised her hand, palm out, once again being overruled by Carlos.
"When did you get so respectful of the living dead?" she said, retreating into a shadow along the wall to sulk for a minute or two.
Poor Carlos. He needs me to keep him focused on the mission, she thought. Don't worry Mother-General, your son's safe. Of course, up until now, she hadn't had a couple of strangers to complicate the situation.
"Tell me something, Harry," Carlos said. Harry just looked at him, silent. "How's your head?"
"I think I'm going out of my mind. Other than that? Fine. Why?"
Ignoring Harry, Carlos went straight to Marlene. "How about you? Headache?"
"Now that you mention, yeah, a big one. It started when I got here. I was a little distracted to pay too much attention to it."
"Well, that's something," he said for Kieran, who had her back to him but had heard every word. "Could be our jamming signal. What do you think, Kieran?"
He had always known how to get her attention, appealing to the scientist in her. It had been like that since they were kids. She'd get mad at him for playing with someone else, or by playing by different rules. She'd skulk away from him and he'd lure her back with an interesting discovery.
"As much as I'd like to kill them both," she proposed calmly, "we have to find out more about the functions of those chips and how many more are out there."
"I agree. So far, Makr must be limiting the cybert technological changes out here. Of course, we have no way of knowing what is happening Inside in that regard since we've been so isolated. These two could have some answers."
"Her headache could mean the shock wave—or the jammer disabled it."
"It could. Or, it could mean the incident with Leach was stressful enough to give her a headache."
"Leach could give anyone a headache. But he never would've gotten that far with me."
"She was tied up, for Makr's sake!" The reference to Makr had not gone unnoticed by anyone, especially Kieran. Damn, I'm beginning to talk like an Insider now, he thought.
"It's just..."
"Let's stay on task, shall we?" ordered Carlos. When his voice was a little steadier, he stated, "If we assume her 'homing device' has been disabled, then we only have to worry about him."
"We could remove the chip."
"It might kill him."
"So. Better him than us. When he's dead we cut it out and examine it then."
"Maybe. If we can't remove it, disintegrate or dissolve it, we could try to disable it. It wouldn't cause us any harm that way. Of course, we wouldn't learn anything from it either. Who knows what program is already fixed in his brain."
Harry inserted himself into the discussion. "Excuse me. If you two are coldly plotting my demise about whatever is fixed in my brain, don't I have say here?"
Kieran scowled, but Carlos looked at Harry calmly and replied, "You aren't in much of a position to offer any advice. For all we know, you may be transmitting our location and conversation right now."
"You could be right about that, but I don't think so."
"This better be good," warned Kieran.
"I don't know if this will help," he said, "but from what I know of SensaVision transmissions, the steel alloy and composite materials that probably went into the construction of this building create interference—noise, reverberation, garbled signals, what-have-you. If He receives anything, it would be bits and pieces of data. Makr thinks it is normal for transmission. Not useful for PerSoc, so it's not important enough to fix. Without triangulation and relays, the transmission won't have the desired effect. We'd probably act on the information if we thought we had enough, but not Cyber; Makr can't act on inference—or interference in this case. SensaVision is based on the principle that with enough data present, some information can be assumed to form the whole. He doesn't have enough information."
It isn't the whole truth, Harry thought to himself. He knew Makr could easily penetrate these walls if He knew they were here... However, if Carlos believed He couldn't, it might buy them some time to figure a way out.
"He's right, you know," volunteered Marlene, taking Harry's lead. "He should know. Harry's not just a cyberlink; He's high up in the SensaVision org chart, a spokesperson."
Carlos was taking this in. "A spokesperson? For whom?"
"The State," Marlene admitted.
"You mean Makr?"
"Er...yes."
"Let me see if I've got it straight," checked Kieran. "You're telling me that two people who link directly to the mainframe are not willing spies? Both receive and send Makr's orders and we shouldn't kill them for that?"
"We didn't know any better," Harry said.
"And now you do? That's rich!"
"Captain, can't you see they're stalling?" added Kieran. "I'll bet cyberts are on the way, Carlos."
Carlos turned briefly, melting his presence into the natural shadows in the room.
He pulled his cowl back, exposing his face, and asked Harry point blank, "Are you?"
"What?"
"Stalling."
"Yes," he confessed. "We don't want to die any more than you do. Given a choice at the moment, it would seem we are in more danger in this room than out there with Makr's army."
"We wouldn't kill you without good reason."
"Is there a good r
eason for killing fellow Bios?"
"You don't know anything about being sick with fear because you never know when a machine may come waltzing by and decide you are a nuisance to productivity, and blast you into a million pieces. You don't know what it's like to die out here."
"True, but I know what it's like not to live Inside."
"And you came out of your own free will?"
"I needed to see the truth."
"Captain," Kieran jumped in, "I hate to break this up, but perimeter has a contact with a cybert force coming this way on our right flank."
Carlos' eyes narrowed in anger. Kieran was right! They are spies! He raised a laser ax and pointed it at Harry first, then Marlene. It's as if he was considering where he would make the first cut before slicing them in half.
"Carlos, the cybert force has turned away from our flank."
Carlos was still pointing the ax.
"Carlos!"
"I know you may not expect this of me right now...but let's think rationally," he said to Kieran.
"What's your point?"
"That what they say could be true."
"Our Shadows won't buy it."
"Then, let's not tell them."
"It just so happens that both have unusually large chips? They are found together alive where all their comrades were killed? No, it won't make sense to them; it sure doesn't make sense to me."
"If it is true, we've still got to have those chips with or without their permission."
"We could try to remove the chips here."
"Not here, it's too big a risk."
"Discovery, or death!"
"Both, and you know it."
"I agree with you that it's risky, Carlos, but we need to know more about what's going on out here. We could learn more from these two chips than with any number of scavenger hunts and salvage operations. We can't just leave them here alive."
"We won't leave them."
"You aren't thinking of taking them to the Nest? I say either use 'em alive or cut 'em and take the chips."
"I love it when you talk tough." He smiled. "Cut 'em is a bit harsh, don't you think?"
"Either way the results are the same." Kieran's eyes were cold, lifeless again. "You really aren't thinking of bringing them back with us, are you?"
"We could learn a lot," Carlos conceded. "I think we have to."
"And the danger..."
"Minimal, especially if we can disable Harry's chip as soon as we get back to the Nest. For right now, if we believe him, we're protected from detection by sheer volume of steel and composite structures surrounding us. We can blindfold them and cover their ears and mouths. If they are transmitting, the data will be limited. If he's telling us the truth, that is."
Kieran gave him a stern look.
"Don't worry," her captain said defensively. "I'm not giving anything away. He doesn't know where I'm talking about."
"Unless Makr can read minds through him. I don't know," she hesitated. "I don't like it."
"You can do this, Kieran. You have a far better chance at cracking these chips at the Nest than out here."
"We'll put the Nest at risk."
"I think it's worth the risk."
"All right, you're the boss."
Her concession was too quick. Carlos was suspicious.
"Yes, that's right, I am the boss. Do you have a problem about it?"
"No, of course not, it's...," she started, then hesitated before finishing. "There's something else. Just a bad feeling. We don't know anything about this cube chip. We know zero about what it does."
"And you don't think you can analyze the technology properly? For Makr's sake, Kieran, it's not a laser ax. The chips won't blow up."
Overhearing most of the conversation, Harry was wondering if there was anything he could say that might save their lives. He could say something about his ability to thought-blink, but thought better of it.
"If we find a way to bring these two to the Nest with us, how are we going to disable the chips?" she asked.
Carlos sneaked a look at Harry and Marlene just to let them know he hadn't forgotten them. Always good to let prisoners know you reserve an option to change your mind.
"That's easy," he said. "Remember the ultrasound laser we salvaged a few weeks ago? We thought it might be useful to penetrate and disrupt the smaller automated systems. It uses compressed sound as one would use a laser, but without destroying the rest of the system."
"We've never used it on a human," she argued.
"I know. But if more and more Bio cyberlinks have these advanced chips, we best find some way to defeat them, and fast."
"If we can't disable the chips, you know what we have to do?"
"Okay, Lieutenant, you're on. Now, how do we get home from here without going topside?"
"That I leave in your capable hands, Captain."