BLUE GENDER
"Children of the Blue"
19. Interloper
"No! No it can't be!" Yuji dropped to his knees and clamped his hands over the sides of his head as if he might block out the carnival of the grotesque that paraded around him.
The Elysians crawled along the walls like oversized roaches; slithered like maggots through their fine art work and elegantly sculptured architecture; cried out in inhuman tongues; all in a insane dance that stood in the very face of all things natural.
Yuji was horrified and sickened. This was beyond any Blue: beyond any man-made horror. It was a sight that had to only have come from the darkest corners of Hell. Even the cannibalistic mutations on Second Earth seemed more human than these…these…abominations.
"Now you see, Yuji Kaido," the Professor—sporting spindly spider's legs and his human head dangling from a worm-like neck—spoke in a somewhat garbled voice. "We have outsmarted evolution. I knew the answer to survival was a missing link between the Blue and humanity.
"Years ago I developed a DNA binding agent—instant evolution. Do you want blonde hair? Want to grow another six inches tall or have a darker complexion? Give me the DNA you want and, with my binding agent, I can instantly change your appearance."
"No! No this is all wrong," Yuji shut his eyes tight. He was sickened to the point of weeping; weeping for this crime against nature.
"I created the Sleeper program when I saw the genetic mutations inside those with the b-cells. I stopped evolution then and used my DNA binding agent to explore the mystery of the b-cells. Then, one day, in my laboratory I injected b-cell genes into a test-rabbit. It instantly—INSTANTLY! —became the first Blue to ever be born.
"I exposed the Earth's plan back then. Ever since I have been trying to find the right genetic combination to take man to the next step in his evolution. To outsmart nature and survive the Blue apocalypse.
"My results have been outstanding, but still the Blue attack us. Now, even as we speak, I am preparing a new mixture of my binding agent with Takashi's DNA. When it is compete, all of my people will be like Takashi. I am not willing to wait generations for evolution to do its work.
"We are like Gods! We will be immortal!"
---
The creature inside the observation room was half-human and half…half something else. A blob-like monstrosity with half a man's head and arm as well as a torso. The rest a scaly translucent goop that had no business being alive.
Marlene had to turn away.
"Your—your brother?"
"I don't think he meant that we were really brothers," Takashi said plainly. "I think he meant more like in spirit. The Prof calls it a hy-a hy—a hy-bread or something like that. He says he was trying to make something like I am; he calls me the perfect combination or something like that."
"What are you doing in here?"
It was a female Elysian in her perfect human form and barely fitting skirt.
Marlene did not hesitate. She was getting them out of there…now.
She grabbed Takashi by the hand and led him toward the exit. The woman got in the way.
Marlene, once again, did not hesitate.
A punch, an elbow, a sidekick.
But the woman barely moved.
"What…the—?" Marlene was stunned.
The woman's arms morphed into tentacles. They reached out and grabbed Marlene Angel, then threw her across the room and against a wall. She hit hard and fell to the floor unconscious.
---
Professor Gorski—in his perfect human facade—walked along the hallway with Dr. Gamble.
It was a new morning. The Kaidos had spent the night locked away in their quarters. They probably weren't going anywhere anytime soon—they were too busy recovering from their shock.
Gamble: "They will attempt to cause trouble. Marlene will fight. It's all she really knows."
Gorski answered: "That's understandable. It's in her genetic make up. It's who she is. When we're done extracting samples of their genome perhaps we'll bind some new DNA to her—make her more docile. That would be nice."
They came to a door, opened it, and entered. It was the observation area above Takashi's playroom. The boy was down there putting the finishing touches on his building block project.
The structure was comprised of two thin lines winding around each other. Between the lines were a series of strands that reached to other side as if they were rungs on a ladder.
Gorski scratched his chin with amazement: "I see Takashi has completed what he was making with his building blocks. Is that—is that what I think it is?"
Dr. Gamble was also quite amazed at the completed piece.
"Professor, that looks like a Double Helix—a model of DNA."
"Yes, it is. What a clever little boy. I wonder if he doesn't know more than any of us."
The two men were pleased at the boy's ingenuity and understanding. They smiled at one another.
"He is very intelligent," Gorski said. "Perhaps more so than we realize."
Takashi's playful manner suddenly changed. He grew a stern look and gazed directly up at the observation window, locking eyes with Professor Gorski.
The boy then deliberately reached over and pulled one bottom piece away from his creation.
The entire Double Helix collapsed into a pile of rubble.
---
The radio crackled.
The red and white clad mercenary patrol leader stopped his three-man team as they moved through the tortured trees of the warped woodlands.
The men got out of their patrol car—a closed-roof utility vehicle—and waited for their next move while their leader called in.
"This is Patrol Group Two—we've completed our eastern sweep. No sign of anything that could've caused that radar glitch. We're heading back now."
He turned off the communication device and began to order his team to turn around. He stopped, however, when he saw three more of his brethren (dressed in red and white body armor) approach from a position further east than theirs.
"Hey," the patrol leader called to the newcomers. "Why the Hell am I all the way out here if Deeves sent you guys, too."
The leader of the new group looked familiar to the patrol commander. He couldn't quite place the face in the helmet, though. He was an older gentleman.
The man shrugged as he approached.
"Hey," the patrol leader said again and he pointed to the newcomer's uniform. "Why does your suit have bullet holes in it?"
Captain William Junker answered the mercenary: "Gosh daggit, and here I thought you wouldn't notice…oh by the way, could I have your security codes?"
---
Yuji sat on the floor, his knees curled to his chin, staring at the ground in their quarters. Marlene sat on the end of the bed. They were both wearing their loose Elysian garb but those clothes felt disgusting and warped, not comfortable and especially not sexy, no matter how revealing.
They had been sitting there for hours. Waiting for the next round of blood samples to be taken. So far they had not been harmed—little more than pinpricks. But who knew how long that would last.
For what must have been the thousandth time, Marlene asked Yuji: "So Gorski can actually change DNA—the genetic structure of a person or thing—instantaneously?"
"Yes," Yuji's proverbial tail remained between his legs. He had been drawn to the Professor and his answers. He had allowed himself to think that maybe man could understand all of nature's plan. He had been wrong.
Yuji explained, once again, "Something he calls a 'binding agent.' From what I can tell, he's spent the last fifteen years trying to find a genetic code that would keep them safe from the Blue all while helping them live in harmony with the planet. He's been trying to evolve his people without waiting for evolution."
Marlene observed: "He said Takashi was like that, right?"
Yuji nodded.
"But Takashi…" Marlene stuttered. "He's not…he's not a monster…not like them…he's our son…"
"No, he is no monster," Yuji stated. "Because Takashi is the natural product of evolution—not some warped experiment. He is a boy, plain and simple, with some amazing qualities. But he's one hundred percent human.
"That's why Gorski kidnapped him. He wants Takashi's DNA to evolve himself instead of more guesswork."
"I've seen the results of his guess work," Marlene noted.
"Me too," Yuji reminded her. "Remember, all these people were human once. Then they tried to unlock the secrets of creation. They think they're like Gods, but they're monsters."
Takashi walked in the room from his own quarters. He heard the last part of the conversation.
"It's a backlash, daddy," Takashi said. "Like the Blue were. Mess'in around with this stuff and you make nature mad. The Professor thinks he knows what he's doing, but he doesn't. He'll see. He'll find out."
Yuji asked: "Takashi, what do you mean—"
The door to the quarters opened. Two red and white clad mercenaries stood there in full battle uniform.
"What the hell is this? More tests?" Marlene grunted.
"Some one here call for a taxi?"
It was Captain Junker and Gunther Gerhardt.
---
The group made it much further than they thought they could before the alarm sounded. In fact, they were outside the walls of the complex heading east in a 'borrowed' closed-roofed Jeep when the first shots rang down from the walls.
But it wasn't the turrets that fired—it was the small arms of the mercs.
---
"We had a deal, Professor," General Deeves was with Gorski and Dr. Gamble in the Great Hall. "I want my final payment."
"Patience, General," Gorski told him. "Your order is almost complete. It's just a matter of hours now until your…your weapon is ready for use."
A communicator on the General's utility belt buzzed. He answered it.
"What? When? Wait a moment…" Deeves lowered the device and spoke to Gorski: "My men just spotted the Kaidos leaving the compound in a vehicle. I told you I should be in charge of internal security."
"What?" The Professor raised to his feet. "Send your men after them, at once. But I want Takashi back alive, do you understand? The boy must NOT be harmed."
Deeves nodded then spoke to his men via the radio.
Dr. Gamble looked over at his comrade, Professor Gorski. The two exchanged a communication of their own—an unspoken one.
Dr. Charles Gamble raised from the table and walked away all while Deeves barked orders into his communicator.
---
A gate on the eastern wall of the compound raised. A pursuit team of mercenaries, supported by one modified Heavy Duty shrike, raced out. They headed across the plains and toward the forest to the east. They were a few minutes behind their quarry.
About a dozen armed mercenary soldiers were in two cars that followed the shrike.
General Deeves arrived at the wall of the compound. He called his lieutenant to his side.
"How did this happen?"
"I'm not sure, sir," the man said. "But it looks as they had help from the outside. Maybe the others that were left on Second Earth. They got a hold of some of our uniforms and a patrol vehicle. I think they must've ambushed one of our patrols and got their security codes. The guards on the wall just let them pass without confirming their identity."
Deeves should've been mad, but the truth was that security had been lax because they hadn't expected any problems with humans. The gun turrets were automatically set to find and destroy Blue based on their bio magnetic signature. It had been up to Deeves' men to watch for other types of intruders.
Still, they had not expected anyone else way up in that God-forsaken land.
"That radar blip," Deeves understood. "Must've been a shuttle landing. It seems our opponents are more resourceful than we had anticipated. I will inform the Professor. No one else gets back in here without proper clearance, understand?"
The lieutenant nodded.
---
"They're coming after us," Yuji observed as their vehicle entered he forest. Behind him, across the open space, he could see the outline of a shrike and the dust path of other vehicles.
"Not to worry," Junker told them. "We have a surprise waiting for them."
"Moss and Pistol?" Marlene wondered as she shivered in the loose outfit.
Junker didn't need to explain, the tone of his answer said it all: "Just Pistol."
---
The mercenary pursuit team knew they were catching up. They entered the forest only a minute or two after their prey had done so.
The pilot of the shrike powered all his weapons and prepared for battle. The infantry in the two cars double checked ammunition.
Deeves' voice came over the radio reminded each of them: "Kill all of them, except the boy. He must be unharmed."
The mercenaries—as unprofessional as they were—would follow those orders because General Deeves would hold them accountable if they didn't. They knew what had happened to the last man who had disobeyed orders. He had been gravely wounded and left to bleed to death at a supply depot in Houston.
The shrike led them into the forest. The road—little more than a path of dirt and rocks—stretched forward between two rows of heavy forest.
The shrike pilot peered forward carefully. He could see a dust cloud ahead of them. He hit is accelerator and—
WHAM!
Another shrike stepped right out in front of him. It had been hiding in the brush on the side of the road. It had been hiding so still that it had not registered on the motion detectors until it was too late.
It was a modified Grapple—that meant missile armaments and a heavy gun. The pilot of the red and white painted merc shrike saw the phrase; "Rolling Thunder" painted on the surface of his enemy.
But that was about all he saw because one heavy fist from the grapple smashed into the cockpit of the merc's shrike, pulverizing the driver much like a shrike tries to pulverize the core of a Blue.
The infantry stopped their vehicles and tried to pile out. But Gunther Gerhardt—who had bailed from the escape vehicle at the pre-determined point—held a rocket launcher aloft. It fried one full vehicle of infantry.
The grapple took a few small arms shots from dismounting infantry before it mowed them down with its own gun.
---
Deeves' lieutenant couldn't see everything from the wall of the compound, but he could see enough: a cloud of smoke rising from the forest in the distance.
He tried to radio the pursuit team but received only static.
His men had been defeated.
He did not want to be the one to inform the General, but he had no choice.
---
The pursuit team was wiped out. Pistol Jones drove the Grapple toward the shuttle while Gunther drove the merc's own red and white shrike (after having cleaned the sloppy remains from its cockpit).
They arrived at the shuttle; the shuttle Captain Junker had expertly landed on a wide plain on the far side of the forest.
The shuttle was loaded with shrikes Junker, Gerhardt, and Jones had re-assembled from the 'Rolling Thunder' area on Second Earth. It had taken them hours to put together four fully operational shrikes (including the Grapple Jones had been piloting).
They had still had a fair amount of supplies in their shuttle, supplies given by Amick Hendar or taken from the spaceport outside of Kingsville in Texas; all courtesy of Mr. Estes and his doomed thugs.
So the repaired shrikes were well armed.
They had one other resource at the shuttle: The three mercenaries from the original patrol. The ones who had so graciously coughed up their security codes to Junker a few hours before.
Those prisoners were bound tightly in the cargo hold. Junker anticipated letting them free as the group prepared to make their final escape.
The Captain spoke to Marlene and Yuji as they entered the shuttlecraft.
"We can't get orbital, no launch catapult here," he stated the obvious. "But there's enough fuel that I can get her airborne. It'll be really heavy but still, probably can get us a couple hundred miles away from here."
Marlene walked over to the storage lockers in the cargo hold. She opened one and found what she was looking for—a fresh set of shrike battle armor.
She showed no modesty as she tore off the horrid garb she had been stuck in and began to change. Of course, she was stark naked in front of them all.
"Geez," Pistol Jones muttered.
Gunther punched him in the arm and asked: "What, Piz-tol? You never seen a tit before?"
Marlene paid them no attention. She spoke as she suited up: "Good, let's get the hell out of this place."
"No."
It was Yuji. He too was changing into battle dress.
"What?" Marlene was shocked.
Takashi stepped forward and answered for his daddy: "He can't go yet, mommy."
"Oh yes we can," Marlene said. "We can get the Hell out of here, now."
"I…I can't," Yuji told her. "I don't think any of us should."
"Whoa, big fella," Pistol Jones jumped in. "I'd rather not stick around. We weren't in there but we read all about what this Professor guy was work'in on. I know I don't want to stick around for the up close 'n personal tour."
"We have to go back," Yuji said. "We have to go back and wipe them out. We have to kill all of them."
Captain Junker became very serious.
"Yuji, I understand why you're mad. I'll kill anyone to get Takashi safe. But he's safe now. Goin' back for vengeance…that just isn't right."
"Not vengeance," Yuji said. "If we don't stop Gorski, he's going to force nature to counter balance what he's doing even more. The only full nest I've seen in five years is right here, southwest of Elysium. It's there for one reason—to destroy the Professor's work.
"The Blue have failed to do that so far. But it's more than that. I have a feeling. I have a feeling that maybe nature is challenging us—challenging us to clean up our own house. Challenging us to renounce the type of horrific experiments the Professor is doing."
Surprisingly, Takashi told Captain Junker: "You're a nice man, Captain. I like you."
"Thank you, Takashi."
"But my dad is right. If you don't stop the Professor, things will get worse. They have my DNA now. He thinks he knows what he's doing, but he doesn't. You have to kill them all and destroy what they're creating. Before it's too late."
Yuji realized something. Something very important.
He told them all: "If that's not enough to convince you, consider this. Professor Ivan Gorski was responsible for the Blue apocalypse."
"What?" Marlene didn't know why Yuji would say that.
Yuji finished: "He has the blood of billions of people on his hands. He was responsible. Not nature. And he'll do it again if he has the chance."
Takashi took his father's hand: "Don't give him that chance again, daddy. Don't give him that chance."
NEXT FACTOR:
20. Götterdämmerung
Computer: "HOSTILE FORCE ENGAGED…ENEMY UNIT ESTIMATE UNAVAILABLE…PRIMARY DEFENSIVE EMPLACEMENTS OPERATING AT 85%…95%…110%…WARNING…PRIMARY DEFENSIVE EMPLACEMENT FAILURE IMMINENT…THE BLUE HAVE PENETRATED INTERNAL DEFENSIVE PERIMETER…"