Written on the 15th Sept 2003
Bad Genes? year 2021
Set after " Exposure" but before " Love Among The Runes"
Sandeman motives explored. Ames' thoughts.
WARNING contains multiple mentions of miscarriage!
Ames White hurried into his home carrying a briefcase full of the last batch of deciphered Manticore disks. He quickly shrugged off his coat and sat at his computer. These have to contain the data I need! Ames thought desperately as he loaded the first disk. The priestess is wrong! I know Ray's alive! I know he passed the test! My son isn't Weak! Ames quickly scanned the data. Nothing! He angrily switched disks. Damn it! He must have filed the data! It's why he betrayed us! Me! Ames' thoughts turned to the traitor Sandeman, his father, and what drove him to betray his people. It was all in the Conclave's records, everything that made his father turn traitor. Ames instantly recalled the pertinent facts in those damming files on the traitor Sandeman!
1954
First wife
Married at 18
Married for 2 1/2 years
Two forced miscarriages
Daughter Natalia born 1956
Killed her when Natalia was weaned at 6 Months
1957
Second wife
Married at 21
Married for 4 years
Two forced miscarriages
Three natural miscarriages
Killed her after third natural miscarriage
He started out as the epitome of Familiar behaviour! Why the hell couldn't he remain that way! Ames fumed
1962
Natalia takes test and fails
He accepted her death! Blamed her mother's genes! Why couldn't he accept the others! Why did he betray me!
1963
Third wife
Married at 27
Married for 3 years
Two forced miscarriages
Son Thomas and daughter Theresa born 1965
Killed her when twins, Thomas and Theresa were weaned at 6 Months
He followed our practices for years, even after many others got the Conclave to agree to lessen the number of marriages. He stuck to the male tradition of having as many wives as possible until your sixty. Ames starred at the screen, not really seeing it, lost in thought. How could he become so weak as to let love rule his actions?
1969
Fourth wife
Married at 33
Married for 2 years
Two forced miscarriages
Son Peter born 1970
Killed in car crash when Peter was 2 Months
1971
Thomas and Theresa take the test and fail
Thomas dies
Theresa is left brain damaged and removed to an asylum
Would've been kinder to kill her Ames thought Stupid policy to allow the brain damaged and those made insane by the test to live. Even dumber to let those who are unbalanced but who never took the test, live! Ames paused Living with father's constant prattle about the meek inheriting the Earth would drive anyone insane! I'm glad I only got a few of the lectures before the senile old fool deserted!
1971
Fifth wife
Married at 35
Married for 3 1/2 years
Two forced miscarriages
Son John born 1974
Killed her when John was weaned at 6 Months
1976
Peter takes test and fails
Peter! Ames thought disgustedly His death was the one that started fathers obsession with using genetic engineering to create the immunity rather than selective breeding. The one that caused father to ultimately betray us by creating transgenic filth! By creating 452! Ames slammed his fist onto his desk.
1977
Sixth wife
Married at 41
Married 3 Months
Dies natural causes
Ames removed another useless disk from his laptop. Damn it where is the information! He mentally fumed but refrained from hitting the desk again. He didn't need the hassle right now of replacing it. I need to go hunting! Ames grinned evilly to himself. thinking of the pain he would inflict on the transgenic scum unfortunate enough to be caught by him. Hopefully I'll catch 452 or 494. I'll make them tell me what happened to Ray as I slowly dismember them! Ames cheerfully thought. And with renewed spirit he returned to the files. His mind replaying the last pieces of data on his father.
1979
Seventh wife
Married at 42
Married for 3 years
Two forced miscarriages
Son Robert born 1981
Killed her when Robert was weaned at 6 Months
1980
John takes the test and fails
He is rendered insane and sent to an asylum
1981
Theresa finally succumbs
Sandeman refuses to marry again
Familiar telepaths work on him
Why the hell didn't the telepaths spot that he was going to betray us! Ames wondered as he'd done countless times since he first gained access to his fathers file. They let him work on his gene splicing theories! Why didn't they curb this errant behaviour as they had his refusal to remarry? Ames shrugged and shook his head knowing that this line of thought was useless as always. No one was ever going to explain that oversight. And I'm left to pick up the mess my father made! Ames glared at the computer screen and removed another useless disk.
1985
Telepathic conditioning worked
Ames' lips quirked in sardonic amusement as he remembered the line in his fathers file that preceded his fathers marriage to his mother. 'Telepathic conditioning worked' No he thought Father had discovered the faulty gene in my siblings and other failed familiars. He concocted a test to perform in utero. I passed Ames smiled then became sombre remembering. But it wasn't always accurate, something went wrong with it and C.J was born. He was two when I passed the initiation and father decided to try an improved version of his test on him. He failed. He failed every test father devised. So they ran. Father, C.J and mother, he couldn't kill her he loved her. Ames paused thinking of his fathers falling in love with his mother and he with Wendy. But I came to my senses! Ray no longer needed her so I no longer loved her!
1986
Eighth Wife
Married at 50
Married for 20 years
Two forced miscarriages
Ames born 1988
Eight terminations
C.J born 1992
Father went against standard practice when he decided to father another child with mother. Ames recalled She wanted another child so he capitulated! One live birth per mate is the norm, few flout the convention. Those that do don't do so for love of their mate!
1987
Robert takes the test and fails
Good job he was living at one of the nurseries. Ames thought Or I might not be here! At least the Conclave had the sense to enforce the practice of bringing up earlier children whose human parent is deceased in Priest and Priestess run creches and only allowing supervised access to biological parents once every other month. Mother would've talked father into not allowing Robert to take the test. Ames shook his head at another pointer to his fathers senility. Marrying someone for love then telling them about us!
Why didn't psi-ops pick up his weakness!
1994
Ames passes the test
I pass the test and seven months later my father turns traitor Ames sourly thought School was hard enough without being the traitor's son! At least the conclave approved of my eight year old initiative in changing my surname and believed in my desire to wipe out the stain of Sandeman's betrayal!
2006
Sandeman traced to Manticore but escapes
Wife killed
C.J caught
C.J is mentally unstable sent to an asylum
Idiotic tradition that no one over six can be tested. Ames griped to himself. Eighteen doing well at collage the Conclave are extremely pleased with me, then those idiot Phalanx manage to lose Sandeman, and capture C.J. Fourteen and crazy. It would have been better if he'd died with mother. Ames finished looking at the last file on the last Manticore disk and scowled. He kept detailed files on his freaks, but nothing on the faulty gene! Ames fumed hitting the desk again, in his anger forgetting that he'd vowed not to. The force of the blow broke the desk, Ames' exceptional reflexes meant he snagged the laptop before it slid to the floor, placing it safely on a shelf. Ames surveyed the desk, now in two pieces and the pens, papers, disks and other things now on the floor.
"Damn!" Ames yelled and continued to mutter curses as he retrieved the disks and other items, placing these with the laptop. He took three deep breaths forcing himself to calm down. He started planing his next move. Okay, so Sandeman didn't leave a DNA profile of the faulty gene at Manticore, so I can't check it against Ray's DNA to prove he survived. Ames thought stormily Fine I'll hunt down 452 and extract the information slowly and painfully! A smile began to play on his lips as he visualised how he would go about extracting the information in the most painful ways possible. I'll have her chained from the ceiling, forced to stand stretched out, her toes just touching the floor, her legs securely chained. Ames grinned. Then a tazer......
The End
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