Year: 771
A little more than 3 years after the Cell Game
Protect nature and the animals I love so much
Flashback year 765 - Dr gero's laboratory
- 17 ! 17 ! Can you hear me?
- ...
- I am talking to you, 17.
- This is not my name.
- You really are a particularly stubborn and stupid kid, but I've known that for a long time. When you're done with your ridiculous little rebellion, you'll accept your fate. My cyberization process is a masterpiece! Do you realize how lucky, how honored you and your stupid sister were? You were nothing, and I'm going to give you an immeasurable power! You should thank me on your knees for giving you such a gift.
- Don't talk like that about my sister or...
- Or what? Don't forget the bomb. One word too strong and I'll blow up your sister.
- You stupid ...
- What?
- ... nothing.
- There, that's good. I prefer you like this 17, obedient to your creator.
- I already told you that my name is not 17! I have a name!
- And what is that name? Go on, tell me. What is your name?
- My name is... My name is... I...
- Yeah, tell me. I'm curious.
- I don't... remember...
- Perfect. I admit that you gave me a hard time, I had to do it several times, but you see, in the end, any struggle is useless. Accept your fate, 17. Because you can't do anything against your creator.
- I am not your creation! I am a human!
- Not anymore.
End of the flashback
Standing on the deck, 17 was watching the peaceful movement of the waves shaking the surface of the ocean, when this memory had suddenly come back to him.
Why this one ? He didn't know. This kind of thing was usual for him after all.
This moment in his life was not, however, insignificant. It was indeed precisely at that moment that he had understood. Since the first day after their abduction, Gero had methodically undertaken to make him lose his memory. Day after day.
To subject him, because he had not stopped resisting him.
To take away from him any desire to escape.
To let him no place where he could think of leaving.
The process had been long. 17 and 18 had struggled with all their strength, spending long hours talking, telling, questioning. But retaining their memories had proven to be as futile as holding a handful of sand in their hands. Inexorably, one by one, they had lost them all. Only the knowledge of their blood ties and the visceral certainty that they were human remained.
And the ultimate proof was their names.
That's why, by managing to make him forget his, Gero had completely destroyed the teenager he was. From that day on, desperate and obsessed with the idea of being able to kill his kidnapper one day, he had accepted to receive the power of this new cybernetic body. And slowly, it had intoxicated him. He had loved to feel this strength, this impression of invincibility. He had let the flame of his humanity die out, whose embers had only been fanned by rage and the desire for freedom, to embrace the identity of 17.
Not being a human anymore.
Being a cyborg.
So many years had passed since he had made that choice.
So many years... Until that night.
He surprised himself by not feeling as much pain as he used to when faced with the resurgence of his past. Ruri had definitely changed many things in his life. She especially brought him a kind of serenity that he had never known. An ability to look at the world and his own history differently.
Why had this memory returned? Probably because never since that day, more than 7 years ago, 17 had felt a little... human again.
What was he in the end?
17 had long since come to terms with his past life. He knew Gero well enough to be sure that he would never have risked letting people look for him and his sister, and thus have his secret plan to build weapons to kill Goku discovered. Family. Friends. If people had meant anything to them, they were undoubtedly dead.
So what was the point of remembering a past of which there was nothing left? What was the point of still thinking of himself as human? What was the point of fighting, when there was nothing left to save?
But tonight, he was not so sure. He had loved, more than anything, the pleasure he had experienced with Ruri. The sensations. The looks they had exchanged. That warmth in his heart, the softness of her skin, her smell, her smile. He loved to see her smile. He liked so much to laugh, too.
He knew what they had done.
Make love.
A human thing. Terribly human. And that he had craved. Like something deeply buried in him, and so pleasant.
So, cyborg? Human? 17 didn't know anymore.
He and Ruri lay there for many minutes, both silent, almost motionless, before she finally fell asleep. 17 had stayed there, looking at her, feeling a very special feeling in front of the beauty of her sleeping face. A desire that wasn't physical anymore. A desire to simply take care of her, and to stay close to her.
18's presence by his side had always seemed natural, normal, logical, his twin being like a part of himself. So much that he had suffered, and was still suffering, from their separation. But what he felt for this human was both very different, and very similar. Different, because she was another person, he didn't have the same kind of connection with Ruri as he had with his sister. But similar, because as much as 18, the company of the young woman was for him an obviousness. From the very first second after their meeting it was as if he had always known her, as if they had always traveled together. Nothing was forced, with her he was natural, relaxed, like with no one else.
In the distance, the sun was just beginning to appear. Faint rays were coming from the horizon, gradually chasing away the shadows of the night. He then saw the outline of the island where 18 lived.
"You should give her your number, now that you have one!"
17 remembered this suggestion from Ruri.
How long had 18 told him she was having a baby? He couldn't remember, but it had been a while. Maybe now...
"Should I go see her?" he suddenly asked himself.
Never before had he felt so strongly the desire to go and talk to his sister. She was so close... But to tell her what?
A loud crash from behind him brought 17 back to reality.
The noise came from the kitchen, and its origin was very clear to him : Ruri must have gotten up and tried to get something to eat. With her convalescent leg, she was still limping and must have spilled something.
An amused smile appeared on his face.
- Not yet, he finally murmured, before turning back to join Ruri.
Yes.
He would go to see 18.
He would go and talk to her.
But later. For now, for the first time in a long time, he knew where he belonged. And he had plenty to do. The most important thing was indeed to continue the expedition.
17 and Ruri were in complete agreement on this point.
They spent the next two weeks preparing for their next dive. For 17, the days were mainly devoted to training in the use of his new barrier. And Ruri took a lot of rest to make sure that she would be able to get back in the water quickly. In the evening, as it had now become their ritual, both discussed for long hours to refine their strategy, untill the young woman was exhausted.
And finally when Ruri finally recovered, approaching and studying the Krakens proved to be child's play. After spotting and following an individual as it emerged from the underwater cave, 17 had no difficulty in immobilizing it using a long stick, which he forced the animal to bite. Immediately afterwards, 17 activated his shield, which allowed him to protect himself effectively from the monster's tentacles.
Thus stuck, the Kraken focused its attacks on him, forgetting in fact totally the presence of Ruri. The young woman could thus without any risk approach, climbing even on the back part of the animal, covered with a thick carapace. She could collect precious samples and study the giant octopus as no human had ever been able to do.
Especially since after long minutes of struggle, he ended up being exhausted, becoming more docile, as the couple had expected.
Their plan had worked perfectly, and it was with great joy that they released the kraken as soon as Ruri had finished. They repeated the experiment several days in a row, until she finally concluded that she now had all the answers to her questions.
After having let the last specimen they had captured go, both of them watched it leave as quickly as possible towards the obscure depths. Satisfied, happy, more complicit than ever, neither 17 nor Ruri wanted to return to reality. Without a word, they began to swim, randomly, in the immensity of the ocean.
Side by side, they drifted with the currents for almost 2 hours.
17 could not take his eyes off Ruri's slender body, whose supple movements followed the slightest ripple in the surrounding water, her long hair swirling around her. She seemed to be so comfortable, swimming was so easy for her.
Suddenly, with a sudden movement, she turned around to stand right under him.
- Are you enjoying the journey? she asked him with a smile.
- Yes. And you? Not too tired?
- Oh no, I love swimming so much, I could go on for hours.
- You swim really well, I admit it. Much better than me.
- I'm used to it, I spent almost all my childhood in the water.
- Really?
- Sort of. But that's not a big deal, right? Shall we continue?
17 nodded, not knowing how to interpret the slight confusion that had appeared in Ruri's eyes. The young woman then started to turn around him, laughing. Amused, he imitated her, starting with her a kind of dance in the waves, still without saying a word.
Suddenly, he heard a strange whistling sound in the distance.
Intrigued, he stopped dead in his tracks, holding Ruri by the arm and bringing her close to him.
- What ? What's wrong ? she immediately questioned him.
- Did you hear that?
- Heard what?
- The whistle.
Ruri did not answer immediately, but listened carefully. But the truth was : she couldn't hear a single sound. This was not surprising, since human hearing was so bad underwater. However, 17 was not a human "just like the others". She took his remark very seriously and asked him about it:
- What kind of whistle?
- I don't know, I've never heard anything like it. It's a clicking sound. Can't you hear it?
- No 17, I don't hear anything. Does the noise seem far away? Which direction is it coming from?
- That way, replied 17, pointing his arm to their right.
Of course, Ruri could not see anything in the direction he was pointing. But she trusted him completely. In the time they had been traveling together, he had learned a lot about nature and animals. Beyond his extraordinary strength, and although he still had a lot of theoretical knowledge to acquire, his behavior, his analysis and his reflexes were now those of a zoologist.
If he had stopped, it was not for nothing.
- I cannot see anything, my vision is not as developed as yours, she said to him after a short silence. For now, we should remain at a distance. If you use the cameras that you have in the eyes, do you see something?
17 immediately activated them and looked as carefully as possible at the place where the noise came from.
At first, he saw nothing special.
The noise was still there, but now there was another sound. A sound that had nothing to do with it. Much softer and melodious. Like a song, tinged with a slight melancholy.
Then, slowly, he began to distinguish moving forms.
- I see something! he exclaimed.
- What is it?
- Big fish. With a large dorsal fin in triangle.
- Dorsal fin ?
- The big thing on the back.
- I know, 17, thank you. But where do you know this word from?
- From your book on phylogenetic classification.
- Wow, I am impressed! You remembered and used the right term!
- And what is so impressive about that?
- Haha nothing 17. You're just learning to use your brain, that's good! For a man, frankly, it's a good start.
- You little ...
- What color is the fish? interrupted Ruri with malice.
- Black and white it seems.
- Ah, then we are not dealing with fish.
- Really?
- If I tell you that they are odontoceti cetacean, can you guess?
17 suddenly became silent. Almost every night he took some time to read Ruri's books. Sometimes he attended some of her classes. And mostly, he listened to her talk for hours about everything she knew. Meticulously, he set out to learn. At first, for practical reasons, to be more efficient during the expedition. But very quickly because he had felt a real interest in all these things. Even though he had trouble remembering all the complicated words of the human scientific jargon, he loved to store up all his knowledge.
So he thought, as quickly as possible, before answering:
- Dolphins?
- BRAVO! Indeed, dolphins. But let's say, very, very big dolphins. I think we can take a cautious risk. Are you in?
- Of course!
It was indeed orcas that 17 had seen and heard the cries of.
They were huge animals, but Ruri explained to him that they did not represent a great danger, because they did not usually attack humans. They were also of great intelligence, coupled with a curiosity without equal. So by being discerning and careful it was possible to approach them.
And indeed, while advancing towards the right, they met a troop composed of 5 adults and 2 babies. They were able to observe them for some minutes without the animals seeming to be disturbed by their presence.
And after that, they were able to swim closer to these gigantic creatures. 17 was quickly fascinated by the killer whales. They were big, but their streamlined bodies were incredibly flexible and built for speed. He even tried to understand their language, as Ruri had taught him to do with elephants. When an orca waved a flipper in his direction, he did the same with his arm, to which the orca responded by reproducing the gesture. They continued for a long time, approaching the adults and then cautiously the younger ones.
It was only when they ran out of oxygen that they had to decide to head back to the boat.
After spending most of the evening putting away their equipment and analyzing all the samples they had recovered from the Kraken, everyone went doing their business until Ruri decided to go to bed in her room.
Seeing her leave, 17 hesitated for a brief moment.
Since everything had returned to normal between them, they had focused on continuing the mission and had not spent a single night together. But tonight, he wanted to. To be near her, to touch her, to feel her. Without really understanding why. He felt "nostalgic", as if something was missing terribly.
He then followed her, passed her, and gently grabbed her hand before she had time to understand what was happening.
- What are you doing? she asked, surprised.
For only answer, 17 smiles to her, before resuming the walk.
- Where are we going? insisted the young woman.
- It's time to go to bed, isn't it?
- But you never sleep 17, why do you come with me?
She had asked this question with this usual naivety which pleased 17 so much. With a gesture, he brought her close to him, hugging her before murmuring, in an amused tone that betrayed a slight excitement:
- I never said anything about sleeping, human.
Red of shame, Ruri did not know what to answer him, but she did not oppose absolutely any resistance when he kissed her. She just smiled to him, before following him, in her room.
- 17, can I ask you a question?
- Yes.
Huddled against her companion, Ruri had just broken the silence which occupied the room.
After entering, neither of them had spoken a word. As when they moved together in the nature, as when they swam together in the ocean, a particular alchemy had settled between them. Their bodies spoke for them, in perfect harmony.
In symbiosis with each other. Instantly reacting to each other's movements. Feeding off each other.
Their glances intimately mixed, they had made love with tenderness and softness, freed this time of any fear, of any pain.
Only invaded by the pleasure, purely carnal, of being with each other.
Then they had laid down on the bed. Ruri had hesitated for a few seconds before finally laying her head against 17's chest. He had responded by placing his hand in her hair, which he had been gently stroking for many minutes. In everyday life, 17's gestures of affection were very rare, but sometimes he was able to be very considerat. Ruri had seen it when he had tried to comfort her after the death of the elephant killed by the poachers. But she knew now that he wasn't really "conscious" when he did this. It was like old reflexes resurfacing.
She had however made the choice not to systematically point it out to him anymore. Seeing him behave in such a human way without him noticing it made her laugh a lot inside, and she didn't want to make him uncomfortable and stop.
However, something was bothering her, and she wanted to be sure.
- I was wondering if you were okay? she said to him then.
- Why?
- Let's just say that it surprised me a little that you asked that you and I ... well ... that we ...
- Make love.
- Uh, yeah.
- Does it seem strange to you that I desire you?
- No. But why now?
- Do I need a reason?
- No, not a reason. But since we came back from the dive you're a little different.
- Different?
17 didn't feel like he was, but he couldn't deny that he felt almost sad since he got back to the boat. Was that why he had suddenly felt such a need? Perhaps. He didn't know how to explain to Ruri what he was feeling, but he had made her a promise: not to hide anymore feelings that might be obscure to him. So he spoke again:
- In fact I don't know ...
- Oh my god I hate that sentence.
- Yes, I know that, continued 17, laughing. It's probably strange, but I felt a void earlier.
- Void?
- Yes. But I don't know why.
- Did anything remind you of your past? Like with the kraken?
- No, nothing special.
- You seemed to have loved diving with the orcas, didn't you?
- Yes, it was really extraordinary. I didn't know these animals, they are beautiful. They are really interesting creatures.
- Oh, that's right. They are formidable predators, but they are also intelligent, sensitive, able to communicate with each other and with humans too.
- Really?
- Yes. One of my teachers told me a story about an ancient tribe of fishermen living in the north. One day, some explorers from the western capital found out that this tribe had managed to build a kind of partnership with a family of orcas. Once a year, the tribe went to a small cove, a point of the sea surrounded by very steep cliffs. And the explorers discovered that the orcas were also going there. In fact, they were bringing seals back to the humans. Do you see what seals are?
- Yes.
- Great. And so the humans would just wait for the seals to come out of the water and kill them. And they would throw half of their catch back into the water, to share equally with the orcas. No one in the tribe could explain when or how this arrangement was made, but it had been going on for years. The secret was passed down from generation to generation.
- Extraordinary!
- Yes. Well, the rest is less so.
- Why?
Ruri let out a long sigh, before continuing:
- When the explorers told this story back home, it attracted the attention of poachers.
17 felt his heart clench strongly in his chest.
Poachers.
These humans who were hunting animals, out of all need and control. With a voice that had become harder, he questioned Ruri.
- What did they do?
- They went to the tribe's territory. And when the orcas came, they killed some of the adults and captured some of the young to sell to dolphinariums. Tribal members intervened, the police even came and eventually arrested most of the poachers. But it was too late. The bond of trust had been broken, and as far as I know, the orcas never returned to the cove. Never.
In the darkness, 17 could see Ruri's eyes fogging up slightly. She had tears in her eyes. Seeing her cry was really something unbearable for him, but he knew now that he had to contain his fury when she was like that.
- Does that make you sad?
- Yes. It's such a waste. I can't understand how anyone could hurt the animals so badly. The poachers only killed the adults to capture and sell the babies. All this for money. There is nothing vital about it, it is not for food, in an exchange with nature. The cruelty of these men amazes me.
- What is a dolphinarium?
- Oh. You'd hate a place like this. It's an amusement park for marine animals. Basically, they capture or breed animals there and keep them in big pools for people to come and watch.
- Are these prisons?
- Humans don't see them that way, but you can tell.
- Why do this? Nobody has the right to deprive a being of his freedom!
17's voice had changed. He was now clearly angry.
To deprive a being of its freedom? Ruri understood immediately what this sentence was referring to. Of course she did. No doubt that the fate of the orcs echoed in him his own history. The young woman was a little reassured not to be alone in being revolted by what was happening in these places. But she hated to see him suffer. Then, she put a shy kiss on his cheek.
- Not all humans are bad, you know that, don't you? I want to study them to better protect them. Like my teachers. And the rangers too.
- Yes, I know, said 17. But still. If I ever see a dolphinarium...
- You're not going to kill the humans inside, I hope!
- I've only killed one human in my entire life, Gero. Compared to my future self, I'm entitled to a little extra quota, aren't I?
- 17 !
- Just kidding.
- Your sense of humor will REALLY need to be addressed at some point. Like REALLY.
- Don't worry. I won't kill, I promise. But I will burn this thing to the ground and free all the animals in it.
- Some may die, especially those who have never known the wild.
- Better to die free than to live in a cage and suffer forever, right?
Ruri straightened up slightly, to get a better look at 17's face. The blue of his eyes was more vivid and piercing than ever. An idea came to her. She grabbed a small notebook and tore out a page, before scribbling a few lines on it.
- It's late, and I really need to sleep, tomorrow I have a lot of things to do, she told him when she had finished.
- Ah?
- You see, I just remembered where the nearest dolphinarium is. So as not to forget, I wrote down the address on this paper that I put here.
- ... ok.
- And so, I'm going to go to sleep. Deeply. Without waking up.
- Uh ... okay.
- So that even if SOMEONE took this paper and went to the dolphinarium to do anything perfectly illegal according to human laws, I would not know about it. Got it, tin can?
It took 17 a few seconds to understand. But as soon as he did, he smiled.
"Not bad, human," he thought, before answering her:
- Perfectly.
- Well, it took you a long time ! Well, good night !
Ruri had not lied. She closed her eyes and fell asleep in a few minutes. 17 waited until he was sure she was asleep, then he took the piece of paper and went to the bridge. The address written was not far away, a few kilometers to the east.
However, he wondered what he should do. Ruri had undoubtedly implied that he could go, if that was what he wanted. But was that what he really wanted to do? And why did he want to do it? Why did it bother him so much to know that animals could live like this?
Before he met Ruri, he never cared about what could happen to anyone but himself and 18.
Even less animals.
And yet...
When he had swum with the orcas, he had been captivated by their beauty. Streamlined for speed, powerful, but also so intelligent. He had read in their eyes a curiosity similar to that of a human. He had even seemed to be able to read their minds.
The more his knowledge increased, the more he felt overwhelmed by the extent of his past ignorance. He really didn't know anything about the greatness of this world, and the richness of its wild life.
"Did 16 know about orcas?"
Suddenly, this question crossed his mind.
16.
Why was he suddenly thinking about him again?
"He probably would have loved to see them. That jerk would have spent hours trying to talk to them."
Why now?
"What would you have thought about these dolphinariums? Mr. Kindness incarnate, what would you do in my place? Ruri said it was cruel to keep animals away from nature. What should I do? What would you do if you were here?"
Why?
Why couldn't he stop thinking about him?
"She wants to protect the animals. That's her goal. Just like..."
Suddenly, like a punch in the gut, this image came back to him.
Trapped inside Cell, he could do nothing.
He could not prevent 16 from dying.
He could only see him. And especially hear him.
"Protect nature and the animals I love so much"
To protect. At the time of his death, this was all he had thought about.
17 then remembered Ruri's tears when they had finished off the wounded elephant.
Tears of helplessness. Of weakness.
She wanted to protect the animals, but what could she do, alone, against overarmed poachers? She didn't have the strength to stop them from doing harm. She didn't have the power to break the bars of the cages that held the living creatures that humans captured for their own selfish pleasure.
But he did.
Suddenly, everything seemed clear to him.
Suddenly, 17 understood.
The encounter with the orcs was a brutal reminder of the loss of 16, and the memory of his last words.
And without waiting any longer, 17 flew away, determined as never before.
To the east.
