I cannot believe it has been three years since I updated this story. I've decided instead of bemoaning my intermittent writers block to push forward and stop worrying about chapter length or scene count. To the followers of this story, I'm sorry for the long gap between updates and I hope you are still out there and interested.
The Progeny
Chapter 11
Loss
After the all-clear signal sounds, Mellie dashes from her underground shelter to her conveyance. "Link computer."
The automated voice confirms, "Computer link established, proceed."
"Computer, locate patriarch's conveyance," Mellie commands frantically, fearing the worse.
"Patriarch located, transferring location and directions to conveyance."
"Driver, proceed to patriarch's location."
"The fastest travel pathway is blocked, secondary route confirmed. Estimated arrival 45 clicks. Activating safety restraints, temperature control and ambient lighting. Will there be anything else Representative?"
"No, no, just go! Activate viscom."
"Viscom activated."
"Contact matriarch." Static initially hampers communication reception, it takes a few moments for the screen resolution to clear up. A clearly worried woman with raven color hair and striking features fades into view.
"Mellie, thank goodness you are alright. Where are you?"
"On my way to father's last known location. We were speaking when his transmission was disrupted. Have you heard from him?" Mellie tries to hide the fear in her voice.
"Mellie come home."
"No, I have to find father."
"Mellie, the recovery drones located your father a few clicks ago. Please come home daughter."
"Is father okay? Where is the rescue team taking him?"
"Mellie, I said recovery drone, not rescue team. We both know the meaning of this. Please come home daughter."
"No, no…I have to go to him. The drones can make mistakes!"
"Mellie…daughter…plea…" Mellie cuts off the viscom, she bawls uncontrollably, dreading the worst.
"Representative, do wish to continue to the patriarch's last known location."
"Yes, do not alter course unless you can get me there sooner."
Forty clicks later Mellie arrives on site. Recovery drones are circling the park identifying casualties to recovery ground teams. A team, dressed in purple, surrounding her father's conveyance is about to move on to the next casualty identified by the recovery drones.
"Wait, why are you leaving? He could be alive?" Team members block her advance as she tries to reach her father.
"Do you know this man?"
"Yes, he's my patriarch!" Mellie pushes hard against the purple body wall, determined to prove her father is alive.
"Our condolences."
"No, I want you to lift off that rock and check on my father! Can't you see his hand! Did you scan for life signs? The drones may be malfunctioning!"
"The meteor fragment instantly fused with the conveyance and everything within the conveyance. No one could have survived the impact. We have recovered a DNA sample. The Ancestry Bureau will notify your family once his identity is confirmed. I'm sorry."
"No! You have to try! Call the practitioners! You have to aid him!"
A female team member leads a grief-stricken Mellie away from the site and helps her into her conveyance.
"I am sorry. May fond memories sustain your family during these mournful days."
"Will the patriarch be joining you Representative?"
"No…no he will not, he won't ever join me again, Mellie whispers."
"New destination Representative?"
"Patriarch's domicile. Mute driver audio." The robot driver plots the route to the Doyle ancestral home and engages. Mellie reclines in the back seat, weeping bitterly.
Aftermath
Fitz contacts the Turret for a status report while Olivia dresses. Cyrus via viscom quickly rattles off the number of causalities, general planetary structural damage, ship manufacturing facilities damage on Hadar, and the status of the orbital constructions bays and the various moons monitoring stations.
"AB Pope and I will be returning shortly, I've already spoken with the other doyens, once planetary communication is restored to all regions, we will address the people. Please be prepared to give a full report upon our arrival."
"Yes doyen. And congratulations on your bonding to AB Pope." Cyrus bows and ends the transmission.
Olivia hugs Fitz from behind and sighs. "We were too late, Mellie's father", she whispers.
"Yes, it is unfortunate, I sense the light of hundreds were extinguished.
"If not for our new powers, the damage and lives lost would be much greater."
"Yes, it would. However, I sense Presdan's loss is necessary for what must unfold in the coming days. My father is unaware the true intent driving Presdan's plan. It is specious, praetorian and a threat to Hadar's natural order."
"I see it clearly too. In the end, the natural order will prevail and the recalcitrant ilk vanquished once and for all."
"Yes, their bellicose spirit is incongruent with the symbiotic consciousness of the new home world."
"We must choose the two hundred as soon as possible. The cultivation of our united powers is imperative to the successful relocation of our people. Hadarian specie transformation must begin before the first ships depart for Dukarie, Amarie and Sukarie."
"Agreed. The departure timeline must be accelerated, the sun's absorption rate of stellar matter into its' core is increasing. Its' instability is growing faster than anticipated. Gravitational forces will continue to draw stellar debris into Hadar's atmosphere taxing planetary defenses."
"Defenses the Wayward can help improve, at a great price."
"A cost we must pay to save many."
"And consequences our progeny will deal with for what, a yonks? An epoch?"
"Olivia, what is time to us now? The past, the present, the future is all the same to us. In the end, the consciousness which binds the universe will eliminate the malignant rebellious consciousness steeped in the Wayward posterity and restore balance."
"Mellie will assume her father's role as head of the consortium and campaign for the Wayward."
"Yes, I can see it, as will your father."
"The Wayward cannot be trusted nor counted among the chosen; ever!"
"Agreed, they are socially and genetically incompatible with us and our new home world. It will take many more millennia to breed the warmongering heart out of their genetic lines. The gene-splicing experiments to strengthen their weakened immune system and intellectual shortcomings have proven marginally successful. Unfortunately, the most useful genetic material comes from the most ruthless and mulish."
Sitting in Fitz's conveyance, he and Olivia hold hands communicating in precognitive communion seeing the events destined to unfold in the days ahead. Thinking as one, the united voice in their heads reaffirms, Balance and order must always be maintained. The two hundred must be chosen and the progeny council established without delay.
They make their way back to the Turret. The evidence of the meteor incursion dots the landscape. Gray smoke funnels twist upward into the sky from smoldering stellar stones. Public address systems broadcast safety instructions and aerial drones crisscross the planet surveying the damage, looking for the injured and dead. Emergency services mobilize and all Hadar springs into action in the aftermath of the global disaster.
The damage from the meteor shower is extensive but considerably less than expected due to Fitz and Olivia's intervention. The newly bonded couple return to the Turret within spans of the event. Cyrus and Quinn are the first to greet them.
"Doyen, AB Grant-Pope welcome back. It is regrettable you had to cut your days of consummation short," Cyrus sympathizes. However, it is fortunate our defenses were able to obliterate the larger meteors or the loss of life would be far greater. Our sun's accretion to its' neighboring star is accelerating, the increased gravitational force will increase the frequency of stellar matter incursions with our planet significantly." Fitz and Olivia nod as Cyrus details the developments the Exodus team has determined thus far, even though it is unnecessary, they know planet's status and what needs to be done.
Olivia asks Quinn, "What is the status of the deflection grid protecting the ships?"
"Operating at ninety percent functional capacity. One unoccupied ship bay sustained severe damage but the consortium is already executing repairs, the bay should be fully operational within three solar days."
"Have all sectors reported in?"
"Yes, the other doyens are being briefed in the operations chamber."
Fitz thanks Cyrus and Quinn and tells them he will join the other doyens shortly.
He gazes into Olivia's eyes, never saying a word and Olivia nods her head several times before leaving to join the other astrobiologists.
Pasha Moon, the senior satellite technician pulls Quinn to the side.
"Have you noticed something odd about Doyen Grant and AB Pope?"
"What do you mean odd?"
"They seem to understand each other without saying a word."
"I hadn't noticed. But love tends to need no words to communicate."
"Watch."
The two women observe Olivia going over to Fitz. She hands him the report tablet. She points to highlighted sections never verbalizing an explanation yet Fitz nods as though she's speaking to him.
"Maybe he simply understands the data she's pointing out."
"No, watch closer."
Olivia looks at Fitz, they stare knowingly into each other's eyes. He grins, caresses her cheek and nods.
"You see they don't speak yet they seem to understand each without words. It is almost as if they're reading each other's mind."
"Oh Pasha, that's love. When you love deeply no words are necessary. Come, time to check the calibration on the northern sensor array."
Quinn returns to her monitoring station. Once seated she glances back at Fitz and Olivia and smiles.
Memorials and Superpowers
Mellie gazes out the front window of her parent's domicile staring at nothing imparticular, lost in her thoughts. A lone tear falls slowly from her red puffy eyes. Her patriarch is gone, he now resides with the ancestors and she feels more alone than ever. She has no mate to wipe away her tears or console her in her sorrow. No prospect waiting patiently for her days of mourning to end so he can speak the vow inviting her to share his life.
Fitz is happily mated to Olivia, without a single doubt haunting his decision to choose Olivia over her. He will spend his evenings loving her, listening to her, providing comfort and strength to her in times such as these. They will share a life filled with love, laughter and younglings. Mellie knows he will never so much as give a thought to her, unless it is in the context of the Exodus project. Olivia is his true love and Mellie wonders if she'll ever find true love for herself.
"Mellie, my daughter, come it is time to depart for the memorial ceremony at the Hall of Remembrance." Brecka Doyle, wraps her arm around her daughter's guiding her to the waiting conveyance. After settling in the seat, Brecka takes Mellie's hand.
"Daughter, your father loved you a great deal. His final thoughts were of you", she says tenderly with unmasked disappointment.
"Mother," Mellie comforts patting Brecka's hand.
"No daughter, I accepted long ago your father's love for me was not a reflection of a true bond. Our joining was arranged by our families to strengthen our influence in the manufacturing guild. Our courtship was friendly but not founded in love. We spoke the vows at the behest of our patriarchs. You my daughter are what added a dimension of love to our bond of affection."
"Is this why you initially opposed the plan to encourage my pairing with Doyen Grant? Did you suspect all along his heart belonged to another?"
"Yes, but I wasn't sure my perceptions were accurate. When you two began to spend time together I began to doubt my initial observations. Your desire for him was unmistakable and I thought, the doyen a man of great conviction, if he agreed to the pairing, I believed he loved you beyond mere affection. Mellie you are steadfast, have a beautiful spirit and a loving heart. I had hoped the doyen saw these intrinsic qualities in you and desired you for them. The joining of our two houses would have resulted a legacy of influence on Hadar for generations to come, but more importantly, you would have been happy and loved."
"Mother, you and father are biased."
"No daughter, attend my words. Your position in the consortium required you to project a persona different from your true self. You are so much more than you think Mellie. You are truly beautiful inside and out, and it's time to let the real Mellie interact with the world. The doyen's loss is another's gain. Your true bond mate awaits your awakening. He is waiting for you to exhibit and express the admiral qualities I see within you. Cast off the old dream and let your heart lead to your true vision. Promise me you will bond in love, not settle for affection or expedient convenience. My daughter a bonding based on love can influence just as many as a strategic alliance designed to accomplish the same." Brecka kisses Mellie's brow, both her hands, then presses Mellie's hands against her cheek.
"I love you mother." Mellie's tears gush, she feels relief, freedom and sadness all at the same time. As her tears dry, she feels something else, hope.
Atop the highest hill overlooking the capital sits the Great Hall of Remembrance. It is a massive shimmering prismatic structure made of a crystal polymer. The front façade is divided by 25 entrance doors made of azote, a rare metal that is a mix of gold, rhodium and palladium. The doors are 30 skids (50 feet) high and require four attendants to open and close them. Fifty towering stone columns with inscriptions depicting historical events line the front of the structure and neutralize the prism effect within the Hall grounds. An immense stone staircase leads up to the columns.
The Hall is a solemn place for memorials and for commemorating significant events in the peoples lives. The four doyens, Davis, Grant, Langston and Reston, with their respective councils behind them, stand at the main entrance to the Hall. Wreath bearers, 600 in all, one for each life lost, line both sides of the staircase leading up to the hall. Clad in red with white sashes and gold and white skullcaps, their heads are down in honor of the dead and the floral wreaths are pressed against their chests. At the top of the stairs a two hundred voice choir softly sings the song of mourning as the families of those lost in the meteor shower file into the hall. Dressed in the traditional dark grey, the doyens bow and offer condolences to every family. The loss of 600 lives seems insignificant in a population numbering in the millions yet every life on Hadar is considered precious, sacred and integral to the vitality and strength of the planet as a whole.
Inside the hall, the names and images of the dead are read and displayed on giant view screens. Each doyen speaks and reminds the families attending the days ahead will be difficult but the people of Hadar are hearty, determined and resilient. They will overcome this tragedy and will always remember their lost loved ones. At the end of the memorial the wreaths are set adrift in the River of Life flowing behind the hall.
Fitz and Olivia approach Mellie and Brecka after the memorial. All four bow at once.
Fitz offers condolences, "May the memories of your patriarch bring you comfort during this time for mourning".
"Thank you doyen for your kind words, we are indeed in need of comfort these days. This unexpected loss weighs heavily on our hearts. Presdan had such a commanding presence, even in the quietest moments. His absence is felt in every nook and cranny of our home, our consortium and specially in our lives." Brecka wipes a tear from her eye and squeezes Mellie's hand.
"Mellie, please take your full mourning period. Your second can brief the Exodus team for next few meetings or longer if need be."
Mellie just nods and smiles meekly. Seeing Fitz and Olivia together, being in their presence, unexpectedly crushes her newfound hope from moments ago. Fitz is changed, being in love and bonded to his true mate has made him even more imposing and captivating. Mellie fears if she speaks the buried hurt from his rejection, the hurt she holds at bay, will return overwhelming her emotions pushing her to brink of despair. No, she must remain silent, for in silence there is strength and she trusts, renewed hope.
"Please, if there is anything we can do to assist either of you during your bereavement, please call upon us. We and our families are at your disposal." The four bow again and go their separate ways.
Mellie turns back to watch Fitz and Olivia depart. They walk away holding hands, stepping in sync, giving off an unmistakable love imbued aura. How she wishes it was her hand in his, his arms comforting her at night, reassuring her. Alas, Fitz was never meant to be more than a friend to her, she can accept it or at least try to.
Fitz and Olivia speak with more mourners, council members and their families before leaving the Hall. After saying their final goodbyes, they head home in their conveyance. Home for now will be Fitz's domicile. Once the other progenitors are chosen, they will relocate to a more remote location.
Olivia rests against Fitz's side, his arm is around her waist. "Mellie mourns her father and you as well. Her sadness makes her vulnerable and a liability. The Wayward's plight will consume her, cloud her judgment, make her susceptible to dangerous illogical actions."
"I sense this too. We will put stringent safeguards in place to protect her and Hadar. The Wayward will make limited inroads, but every advance will only lead to where we and the two hundred direct." He kisses her head.
"My time draws near, Olivia sighs."
Fitz places his free hand her belly. "Yes, your body is almost ready for insemination. I think two more couplings should do it."
"Confident, aren't you?"
"Beloved you know I am very adept at using my superpowers," he growls deep and seductively.
"Are you sure that wasn't fluke?" Olivia teases, nipping at his ear.
"Driver privacy", Fitz orders.
"Yes doyen, raising partition."
"Driver, time to the doyen's domicile?"
"Thirty clicks."
"Doyen Grant, time to show me how super your powers are."
Fitz eyes turn deep blue with specks of charged particles. He eases Olivia down onto the seat, positioning his body on top hers. His hand ascends her bare leg, rubbing her soft skin firmly in an arousing pattern. At the entrance to her folds his hand hoovers above her already throbbing nub. He's teasing her. The heat from his hand ignites the nerve endings above her rapidly moistening folds. An unseen force parts her folds and enters her core, slowly, methodically, sending rapturous sensation after rapturous sensation to female bundle. Compulsory contractions radiate throughout her body drawing her knees to Fitz's hips, arching her back, tightening her arms around his neck. The force plunges in and out her sexual corridor, going deeper with each thrust. Her walls try to tighten but the force is too strong, it grazes the surface of her insides stroking, stimulating, sending her senses into overload. Her arms flail over her head looking for something to grasp, anything to hold onto. Her body jerks and shakes rocked by seismic event level orgasmic tremors. Screams of pleasure launch from her toes, shoot through her body and burst from her mouth. She grabs Fitz by the neck drawing him down to her hot voracious mouth. Devouring him, gorging herself on his lips, his tongue, his mouth becomes a wanton obsession.
The sexual delirium consumes Fitz as well, he suddenly pulls back, not for want of air but for want of more. Clothes disappear without the aid of hands, hands too busy scouring arms, legs, breasts, and any exposed skin with rapacious desire. The unseen force lessens in intensity before fading altogether. Fitz grabs Olivia's hands, restraining them above her head. His mouth latches onto her breasts alternating between licking, sucking, biting, and blowing. He rams into her giving her no time to catch her breath. His back muscles ripple with every thrust. His pace is steady, unrelenting. The penile tendril emerges from his tip, swirling about seeking a place to embed itself in Olivia's inner walls. Finding its' mark, it attaches like a harpoon immediately sending a charge that surges through their joined bodies. Fitz's strokes become frenzied, forceful, his seed erupts seeping into Olivia's permeable walls forming a layer just underneath her lining's surface. The tendril delivers another charge, then another, sending them both into an unimaginable state of ecstasy. Unhinged screams and roars of bliss thicken the partitioned airspace. Gradually, the sinuous tendril retracts back into Fitz's penis and the sweaty lovers collapse breathless.
"Doyen Grant, I capitulate. You are indeed quite adept at using your superpowers," Olivia rasps huskily.
He kisses her softly, languidly, lovingly. His mouth leaves her lips slowly tongue pecking its way down her neck, across her collarbone to spend time lapping her jugular notch.
"Oh no doyen, time to take our coupling activities indoors", Olivia weakly protests. Despite her half-hearted attempt at modesty, her body craves her mate with an insatiable desire pulsating and spreading her lower region. More, she has to have more of him immediately.
"The conveyance isn't moving, we must have arrived. Driver have we arrived at the doyen's domicile?"
"Yes, AB Pope, two spans ago."
"What!", they both say with surprise. Looking out the window, stars and the Hadarian twin moons fill the evening sky.
Fitz pulls Olivia into his arms, "superpowers", he whispers.
"Superpowers", she repeats patting his chest.
Consider the Cost
Two days later, the Turret is abuzz with activity by the time Mellie and Gerry arrive. Probe scans indicate solar flare output increasing faster than anticipated and defense engineers are discussing bringing the next generation solar deflection satellite net online sooner.
Engineer Tines briefs the doyens who are assembled near the satellite monitors. "The problem is the next series solar net deployment is not scheduled for several cycles. Deploying the network this early will shorten the operational effectiveness the satellites, which means we will need divert resources to build stronger replacements to withstand greater interstellar incursions. However, the satellite network will not be enough. The frequency and intensity of the stellar matter incursions will tax the network shielding reinforcement will also be necessary. Of course, this will impact the ships in orbit and the orbital construction bays. Essentially, deflection shielding everywhere must be upgraded immediately."
"It appears we've arrived at an opportune time." Gerry announces approaching the surprised group.
"Father, Mellie what are you doing here?" Fitz looks at Mellie and his father with suspicion. He knows exactly why they are here.
Dispensing with salutatory pleasantries, Gerry gets to the point of the surprise visit. "Doyen Grant, Doyen Davis may we converse with you?"
Fitz and Edison approach the two.
"Mellie again my condolences on the loss of your patriarch he was great man. May his transition be along the committed path."
"I appreciate your words Doyen Davis. I am not alone in grieving the loss of someone dear before the natural order of time. We all must abbreviate our grief for Hadar's days grow shorter and dimmer. Our focus, our energy, our very lives must be spent preparing for the journey to out new home world."
"Mellie, the loss of your patriarch diminishes us all. His light will be missed. Why are you here? We're surprised by your presence, you have not completed your time of mourning."
"Thank you for your condolences Doyen Grant but circumstances have cut short my appointed time for mourning. I must speak to the full council."
"May I ask why reason for the urgency?"
"Please I must be allowed to speak on an important production matter."
"Son, please let her address the council," Gerry pleads lightly grasping Fitz's forearm.
The other doyens overhearing Mellie's request on their way to the meeting chamber.
"I have no objection to hearing Mellie's report seeing she believes it relevant to our current discussion," Doyen Reston offers.
The other council members concur and Fitz yields the floor to Mellie.
"Before my father passed away, he was in negotiations with the Wayward to mine a new ore with incredible deflection capabilities." The moment the Wayward are mentioned loud murmuring ensues.
Mellie holds up her hand. "Please may I continue. I am aware any communication with the Wayward outside prescribed channels is unsanctioned and subject to extreme censure; however, the manufacturing consortium has been searching throughout our galaxy for stable materials to both reinforce ship hull integrity and improve deflector capabilities."
The murmuring quiets down but the stern expressions on the doyens faces remain.
"Quite by accident, but fortuitous in hindsight, my father had an unexpected encounter with a Wayward cargo ship. He was testing a transport shuttle when sensors picked up a distress signal. He and his crew responded and located the Wayward vessel adrift above the second moon. Before approaching the Wayward ship, the shuttle crew performed a standard scan. Scans confirmed engine failure and something unusual, extraordinary in fact, about repair patch panels on the ship."
"Extraordinary and unusual? How so", Doyen Langston queries.
"At first my father suspected a scanner malfunction so he ordered a system-wide diagnostic. The scanners and all systems were functioning normally at optimum efficiency. Additional scans confirmed the patchwork on the Wayward ship hull was composed of a dense yet light weight ore possessing concentrated highly deflective properties a thousand times greater than the deflection matter being used to construct our generational spacecraft. Given the importance of this new discovery, my father thought it imperative to enter into a trade dialogue with the Wayward to secure as much of this ore material as possible."
"Your father initiated unsanctioned negotiations with the Wayward," Representative
Reston decries.
The other doyens, except for Fitz, are up in arms as well, voicing Presdan's actions are nothing short of treason.
"Yes, Mellie interrupts. My father violated Hadar's most impermissive foundational law, a contravention punishable by extreme censure, even exile. I beg the council to overlook his transgression as he believed he was acting in the best interest of our people."
"Mellie this a disturbing turn of events. Presdan of all people violating our most axiomatic law…"
"Son, these are informal conversations with merchants and other trade members. No interaction with the government took place I can assure you."
"Patriarch Grant, you too are admitting to being a party to this violation", Doyen Davis accuses.
"Not intentionally. Presdan gave me an ore sample for testing. I only learned the sample's origins after the fact. You have my word, it was always the consortiums intent to inform the council. Please hear Mellie out, the new applications consortium has tested the ore and can confirm the shield density claims."
"The charted course to the new home world will be long and perilous. My father took this risk in order to give our people the best chance at surviving the journey."
"What do the Wayward want in exchange for the ore?"
"A generational ship and mining drones to extract the ore. It is no secret their technology is substandard, antiquated. They do not have the ability to mine the ore fast enough or in sufficient amounts to cover our ships vital areas. There is not enough time for complete retrofits, only to apply the shielding to the hull areas protecting engineering, navigation, life support and the living quarters."
"Typical Wayward behavior, they've made no provision for escaping the cataclysm to come. They expect us to take care of them as usual for another millennium," Doyen Langston grumbles.
Squaring her shoulders, Mellie adds, "There's more."
"What more can the Wayward possibly want? Doyen Davis smirks, leaning forward.
"During the trade talks, another group approached my father. It is an group independent from the government, meeting in secret and at great risk working on an wayward reconciliation initiative. An initiative designed to be mutually beneficial to both Hadar and the Wayward."
"Mellie, you're not suggesting the Wayward be allowed to co-exist among us during the journey or inhabit the new world with us?"
"I'm not suggesting anything. The impetus for the initiative is completely Wayward in original."
"You know what this request is actually asking for?"
"Yes, reunification."
AN –
Do you think Mellie knows a lot more than Gerry about the Wayward agenda?
If you recall in a previous chapter Gerry questioned why the Wayward ship request was tied to reunification as opposed to humanitarian reasons. Do you think he's suspicious or all-in on the reunification initiative?
Hope you enjoyed this update. Please let me hear your thoughts in a review and hopefully a follow.
Take care and have a blessed week.