Brainstorming

Peng-24 strained his senses, pushing out against his own mental limits until it hurt. So far, he'd never been able to Watch anything further than Veratsnund, about sixty lightyears from Earth. And that was with the benefit of the Southern Lights active. Even when the Aurora was invisible to the human eye, the Alfvén waves had the effect of enhancing the awareness of any Watcher projecting their mind through them. Without that, Peng could barely Watch as far as Keç, which was thirty-eight lightyears out.

But there was vengeance to be had.

Peng didn't really believe in higher causes. Bettering humanity meant little to him, as he'd never felt humanity deserved his help. But Klaus had been murdered, and the killer was out there. Beyond his current reach. A freakish little girl, able to walk through walls, pull people through the air, deliver killing blows with a mere pencil, and abduct Watchers… She needed to die. Peng didn't flatter himself. When the time for vengeance came, he probably wouldn't be the one holding the gun, no matter how much he wanted to be. But he was one of only six people on Earth whose awareness could ignore the lightspeed barrier. If he could double his natural range, or even just increase his aurora-enhanced range by a fifth, he'd be able to help Charlotte and Niko. They needed data. They needed to observe that monster, no matter how dangerous the prospect of doing so. They needed the scientists pouring over a mountain of footage, and collaborating with the brightest minds all over the Solar System.

If they could find a way to send Watchers physically to Elpis, then maybe Peng would get to fire a gun. He couldn't imagine that frail little thing surviving a gauss round to the back of the head. But he doubted he'd be allowed to take such a risk.

Or… what if they could bring that little monster here? It wasn't so farfetched. If she'd dragged 21 across space in the blink of an eye, maybe they could do the same to her.

An image of Klaus drifted to the forefront of Peng's mind. The only man Peng could trust without reservation. The only person who fully accepted him, that made him want to share his deepest thoughts and needs. And he was gone.

Peng gritted his teeth, even as he drove his mind ever harder, pushing out into the depths of space. Right now, he would love to see that evil little Lamia girl locked in a cage match with a fully-armed and armored Captain Martins…

Renya Baldwin, Head of the Science Division, poured over all available astronomical data regarding the space surrounding Elpis. When the colony fleet had been dispatched to that distant world, it was believed that safe proximity to a very small black hole might one day allow incredibly high-yield energy generation. Even fusion couldn't match such potential. True, the technology to utilize it didn't exist yet, but it paid to plan ahead.

However, by the time the colonists arrived, decades of observation had resulted in a highly unexpected discovery: the small celestial body in question was not a black hole… but a white hole. It periodically emitted bursts of light or even matter, proving that it could not be what they had originally thought. So small, even its relatively close proximity to earth hadn't been enough for such events to be noticed. At least, not until a colony fleet was in transit, and the astronomical interest in that area of space increased a thousandfold.

Despite two hundred forty years of theorizing, science still hadn't reached many definitive conclusions about such mysterious objects. Mathematically, they were in some ways the opposite of black holes, in that light, matter and energy can exit them, but nothing can enter them. It would be another twenty years before the news of this discovery could reach Elpis, and it was unlikely the Colony had made the discovery on their own.

Despite being so much closer, Elpis lacked the technology, or the societal drive for progress, needed to easily identify their mysterious neighbor. All of the Watcher footage suggested that the tech level on Elpis was no more advanced than when the colony fleet first launched. If anything, their technological infrastructure was regressing. The prevailing theory was societal decay and stagnation resulting from the unprecedented pressure of the Unwanted phenomenon. Adults on Elpis would have seen six or more "outdated" versions of themselves being left behind as they grew up. All of these Unwanted would, at best, be severely limited in their ability to interact with others, and would thus be largely unproductive. Far more likely though, these would have been disposed of. Seeing multiple copies of yourself abandoned or murdered would have to leave serious psychological scars. Anyone who then proceeded to dispose of their own Unwanted children would have their humanity corroded even further.

This theory was further supported by the catastrophically low birthrate on Elpis. Despite a population in the tens of millions, it appeared that children made up less than one percent of that total. Renya could easily imagine why. A society with such a high rate of short-sighted, narcissistic behavior would put little if any emphasis on the next generation. And if one hoped to get useful work out of a child, good luck securing their cooperation. By its nature, the Unwanted phenomenon couldn't be hidden from children. And if a preteen knew their parent would throw them away, or worse, after two or three years, that child would be highly unlikely to be hardworking and helpful. It might have taken a decade or two for this trend to become so pervasive, but if nothing changed, their society would eventually die out. If it doesn't destroy itself outright from a collapse of public order…

Perhaps more important from the perspective of technological development, it appeared that the vast majority of the adult population took great pains to avoid growth, learning, or improvement. Greatly increasing a skill, learning a new language, or progressing athletically could all risk the creation of a duplicate… and leaving the original as an Unwanted.

These people are, astronomically speaking, next door to a celestial body long believed to be merely theoretical. But they're in no position to study it, or perhaps even identify it.

Though no direct evidence yet existed, many assumed that the anomaly responsible for Unwanted creation must relate in some way to that white hole. Renya tried very hard to resist the temptation to be influenced by this assumption. The hypothesis depended entirely on the seeming unlikelihood of such a coincidence: only one colony experienced such disruptive temporal anomalies, and it also happened to be the only one anywhere near a white hole. Personally, Renya did feel that a connection seemed likely, but this was an emotional reaction that must not be considered conclusive. Association doesn't prove connection. More importantly, to blindly accept that coincidence must also imply causality… it disincentivises stringent observation and dutiful application of the scientific method. Even if there is a connection, we must establish it rigorously through observable fact.

The white hole, identified as NEA-α, may well be related to the Unwanted anomalies. But until they knew more, such associations would lead to superstitious thinking, unsubstantiated leaps in logic, and just generally bad science. If there was a connection, they needed to understand it before they could take meaningful action. Anything else might be no more than useless flailing.

Thus far, the Organization had accepted the need to Classify all information regarding the Unwanted phenomenon. The archivists and doctors agreed: The general public would not take well to such knowledge. Psychologically, the existential implications and uncertainties raised by the issue could cause widespread disruption. Especially without any understanding of the cause of this anomaly, identical copies of people simply manifesting, and leaving the original trapped in a stagnant state where they cannot learn or grow… Many would find the very notion horrifying, and the issue could easily grow to the point of panic.

Two days before Klaus-21's disappearance, the Organization had experienced something of a scare in this regard. A Head of State had failed to properly secure a memo, and some tabloids had rushed out articles raving about the "Doppelgangers of Elpis." Fortunately, it was seen as so outlandish and impossible that only the most deranged conspiracy theorists were taking it seriously. According to the analysis of Tácito's archivists, the ideas presented in those articles had even fewer proponents than the Flat Galaxy Theory.

A message marked as urgent appeared in the corner of her holofield. It wasn't related to the Elpis situation, or the death of Klaus, so she initially ignored it. But when a reminder notification popped up five minutes later, she noticed it had also been sent to Head Doctor Sharma.

I'm beating my head against a wall anyway. A brief break from the temporal anomalies might actually help.

She opened the message. It was from Nurse Wilma Taibei, who'd been put in charge of the autopsy of Samantha Gross. Renya felt a stab of guilt. With everything related to the deaths on Elpis, she'd completely forgotten the other death HQ had suffered recently. She vaguely remembered that the initial analysis suggested a drug overdose. This isn't going to be a fun read…

Before she even opened the first of the attached files, she and Wilma both received a reply from Doctor Sharma. They were to meet in ten minutes, and she was requesting that Duri-22 join them.

Heart racing, Charlotte-17 prepared to take a very stupid risk. Though she wasn't aware of her physical body, she knew that two devoted soldiers were handcuffed to her back at HQ. Shallow gashes on her forearms allowed blood to blood contact with wounds of their own, and they had plugged into her neural interface chair. She was vaguely aware of some instability in her thought processes, but not enough to disrupt her Trance. Of course, those soldiers were not aware of what she was actually observing. Their nervous systems might be loosely tied to hers, but their minds could not join hers at the far end of human civilization. If something physically transported her to Elpis, everyone hoped those soldiers would go with her. But for now, as usual, she was effectively alone.

She hovered over the disgusting stream, the site of Klaus-21's violent death. It had rained, and a large part of the blood had washed away. But the concrete was still stained in many places, and most of his shredded remains still littered the area. For whatever reason, the Lamia girl preferred this place when she executed the Unwanted. The Elpis population was numbered in the millions, and it seemed that most children produced a duplicate every two or three years. Charlotte might need to wait hours, but probably not days. She feared what this might do to her, intending to observe Lamia's murders with no way to intervene. It was far too soon for them to even consider how they might help the Unwanted. For now, nothing could be done for them except to Watch their demise and learn all they could.

But what would she do if Lamia brought an infant here?

Refusing to let herself dwell on that, she focused on her goal. As the most powerful of the Watchers, she had, on several occasions, managed to detect the faintest hints of sensation other than sight or sound. The scientists and archivists insisted she must be imagining it, since nothing in her brain scans had ever shown hints of smell, taste, or touch. But she knew. When she projected her mind through a person, specifically through their brain, it affected her thoughts. The scientists couldn't confirm this, since it didn't really stand out. But she'd sometimes get distracted, her thoughts wandering. And on the one occasion that she'd gone a little wild and projected her mind through Duri's brain, she could have sworn he twitched.

If she was wrong, then the only danger would be Lamia seeing her. She already intended to end her Watch immediately after performing this little test. But if she was right…

The concrete near the deflated bouncy house began to shimmer and distort. Charlotte moved her perspective near it, her anticipation rapidly building.

Lamia rose out of the ground, and a moment later, a young woman shot out of the ground as well. Perhaps twenty years old, she hit the concrete in a controlled roll, rising back to her feet in a single fluid motion. Anya would have approved. Without hesitation, she launched herself at Lamia, pulling back one fist in preparation for a punch.

The little girl didn't move, but the Unwanted woman came to an abrupt stop in midair. Her fist especially seemed locked in place, for the rest of her body shook and thrashed, but her hand didn't budge. Shrieking, she spit into Lamia's face.

And scored a direct hit.

Charlotte's jaw would have dropped had she been there in person. So whatever this Lamia girl was, her unnatural abilities weren't infallible.

Emboldened, the Unwanted girl tried spitting again. This time though, it was as if an invisible wall hung in the air between the two figures.

Finally, the young woman's face showed fear.

Angered to see someone so brave turned so helpless, Charlotte made her move. Her perspective had been off to the side, and now she shot right through Lamia's head.

The results were not what she expected.

At most, she hoped to get a vague impression. A sense that her mind had changed subjects without her choosing to. And maybe the evil little Watcher might be briefly distracted from her prey.

Instead, Charlotte felt a spike of terror, misery, hatred…

…and a timeless, eternal, hunger.

Against her better judgment, Charlotte did not cancel her Watch. She stopped, spun her perspective around…

And froze.

Lamia had dropped to her knees. With her frail arms wrapped around herself, she shivered, crying.

And the invisible grip on the Unwanted girl slipped.

For a moment, Charlotte feared the young woman would waste this chance, moving to attack Lamia again. Despite this strange shift in the little girl's attitude, Charlotte had no doubt how such a fight would go.

Mercifully, the young woman's broken confidence led to a much more reasonable choice.

She ran.

Blitzing away with the speed of a trained athlete, the Unwanted woman dashed toward the alien forests.

Lamia let her go.

Confusion and triumph rose up within Charlotte, and she contemplated taking another pass, but then…

The girl started to change.

Lamia's pale skin rippled, shifting, and it took on a slick sheen. Revulsion soon gave way to horror in Charlotte's heart when barbed, fanglike protrusions started to emerge all over the girl's body. Lamia rose to her feet, and her limbs began to thicken and expand…

Then she turned toward Charlotte.

Those brilliant blue eyes had now shifted to a sickly pale yellow, and when they locked onto Charlotte, the Watcher felt something dreadful grasping for her.

Charlotte's first attempt to end her Watch failed. Something tugged at her mind, and for a moment, she felt her own body, as if huge hands were wrapping around her.

With the absolute focus that had made her the strongest Watcher in history, Charlotte poured her thoughts back into her own body. The foreign force snatching at her slipped away… and her Watch ended.

Charlotte pulled off her SenDep helmet, and pushed away from her console. Her heart pounded, and she was drenched with sweat. She curled up in her chair and let the fear pass through her.

The two soldiers had drawn their sidearms, and they looked ready for a fight.

"Stand down," Charlotte whispered. "Crisis averted. You won't be required to fight a monster on another planet… At least not today."

Still on high alert, they didn't holster their weapons just yet.

"Thanks for your willingness though," Charlotte said, still collecting herself. "Oh… by any chance: Did you feel anything strange just before I ended my Watch?"

"No ma'am," Second Lieutenant Blanchet answered. "Other than your whole body starting to quiver." Grudgingly, she holstered her sidearm, though she was clearly still on edge.

"No tugging sensation?" Charlotte pressed. "No sense of being held, or even watched?"

Young Private Anderson shook his head. "Nothing."

Good, Charlotte thought. She had a plan for gathering more intel and taking greater action than any of the others could likely manage. It would represent great personal risk. If she succeeded in putting this plan in action, she'd rather not involve two brave soldiers. Her mission could very easily turn into a one-way trip. If so, she'd prefer to spend one life than three.

Doctor Sharma paused as she passed by the Infirmary. No fewer than twenty security personnel were receiving treatment. Ever since Niko-29's call to arms, all of their soldiers had stepped up their training to levels that bordered on fanaticism. Overexertion, training injuries, even two minor accidents at the shooting range all showed how dedicated Rakoto's troops were to facing the new threat. Hasina had earned her position for more than just strategic insight and tactical brilliance. She could inspire soldiers to the same degree that Klaus-21 had been able to inspire Watchers. And when Captain Martins joined the team, he'd inspired the men still further.

But for the moment, Supriya's doctors could handle it. She had a different priority.

She entered the small meeting room, to find Nurse Taibei and Renya Baldwin already present. The nurse looked eager, proud, and even a little smug. Supriya chose to be encouraged by this. If the autopsy of Samantha Gross had merely proven the woman had been cooking up her own drugs and accidentally killed herself, Wilma Taibei surely wouldn't look so happy. "You have my attention, Nurse Taibei. What do you have for me?"

"I feel it would be best to include a Watcher in this conversation. Duri-22 is on his way."

Supriya frowned. She wasn't any kind of tyrant in how she led her medical personnel, but she still rarely received anything other than prompt compliance. You didn't get to be Chief Medical Officer of Watcher HQ without first earning the respect of the global medical community, especially when you were only a meter tall. But she pondered before responding. Nurse Taibei had handled an autopsy alone while the rest of HQ focused on the more urgent issue, and clearly she'd learned something important. Supriya wouldn't rain on her parade over an issue that would, essentially, be quite petty. Instead, she nodded, and took a seat, which automatically rose thirty centimeters for her benefit. If a subordinate had performed a solo task admirably, some active constructive responding was in order. "Was your task a hardship, with no doctors available to assist?"

"I work quite well alone," Wilma answered. She couldn't hide her anticipation for what would come soon.

It's as hard for her to wait as it is for me. Smiling, Supriya said, "I'll admit I'd budgeted at least one more day for you. It's impressive to have you ready for a full report so soon.

The younger woman's smile easily matched Supriya's own. "I take my duties seriously. Being assigned to this facility was a dream come true."

The door opened. "Thank you for your patience," Duri-22 said, quickly taking a seat. "It's been a while since I've been consulted on an issue not directly related to Watching."

Renya Baldwin gestured to Wilma. "Nurse Taibei is eager to share her findings, and she was insistent that your presence would be valued."

"You may proceed," Supriya said.

Wilma stood and activated a holo. "Samantha Gross was mixing up a drug off the books, and she took considerable effort to keep her work hidden… but not because anything about her work was illegal…"

She activated the holo field. Charts of data, including complex chemical equations and Watcher brain scans, spread across the space between them. "Rather, she was only secretive… because she wanted to be the first to try the compound out."

"Are you saying the drug's legal, because it's a new creation, and thus new laws would need to be drafted to make it illegal?" Supriya didn't actually think this was the case. She just wanted her subordinate to have a chance to savor this moment.

"Oh… I doubt this drug will be made illegal at all." Wilma subvocalized several commands, and new data appeared. "This medication, if deemed safe, will surely be declared one of the greatest inventions in human history… though I fear it won't do exactly what Miss Gross hoped."

"It's clearly related to Watchers," Duri said, making Supriya wince. She wished he hadn't taken some of the wind from Wilma's sails.

Thankfully, Miss Taibei was capable of keeping the drama intact. "It is. Though it's original purpose was particularly audacious…"

A new set of data appeared, which Duri probably couldn't follow, and which even Supriya struggled to interpret. But Renya Baldwin gasped. "Is this… was she…?"

Wilma positively beamed. "Yes. She called this drug 'myalogenesis.' Though she didn't achieve what she wished for…she intended… to create Watchers."

Supriya's jaw dropped. Glancing at Duri, she saw he'd reacted the same way.

After taking a moment to allow the lofty ambition of that goal to sink in, Wilma continued. "Sadly, not just for the world, but also for Miss Gross herself, the medication proved to be lethal. Her research on Watcher brain function was remarkably advanced for someone in Chemical Processing, and I still don't know how she accessed so much classified data… but she missed some vital details. While this drug is meant to stimulate all the right areas of the brain and nervous system, the changes are deadly during normal brain function. Samantha Gross believed she'd succeeded, but when she tested her new drug on herself… well…"

For a moment, Wilma's elation and pride wavered. Clearly, the weight of this small-scale tragedy had just sunk in. A woman had poured herself into an endeavor that, if successful, could have done more for humanity than any other single breakthrough. Instead, she had paid with her life. But then Nurse Taibei collected herself. "Miss Gross may have failed in her ultimate goal, but her efforts will still be of great use."

The holo projection shifted to the most complex data so far. "When a Watcher enters their Trance, multiple regions of their brain experience dramatic changes in their electrochemical activity. I think that Samantha Gross designed her drug with this in mind… but didn't consider what it would mean to a brain during normal activity."

"So…" Supriya said, trying to wrap her brain around all the data and equations, "you think she died because this drug is toxic to any brain experiencing typical function… but it would not be toxic to a Watcher's brain during their Trance?"

Wilma smiled eagerly. "I've run multiple simulations. During active Watching, this drug doesn't impair brain function… it enhances it."

Renya jumped to her feet. "That's what this final column means?" She took control of the hologram, zooming in on key equations. "So… while trying to become a Watcher, she created a medication for strengthening Watchers…"

Wilma nodded. "As this was her fourth major iteration of the drug, I've been calling it 'Myalodynami Delta, or MD-Δ for short.'"

"This makes her death an even greater tragedy," Supriya said. "Though her motives were partially self-centered, she's nevertheless gifted humanity with an incredibly valuable tool. How soon will it be ready for live testing?"

Duri cut in. "I assume it's ready now. That's part of why I was invited to this little meeting, right? You wanted a Watcher with a background in science."

"Correct," Wilma said, positively beaming. "All a Watcher needs in order to be safe is to maintain their Watch until the dose wears off. And even if the drug is still in your system when your Watch ends, perhaps prematurely–"

"Like if Lamia's trying to abduct a Watcher and they have to end their Watch just to survive?" Duri interrupted.

Wilma paused. "Wait, what? Who's Lamia?"

"We'll get you up to speed later," Supriya said. "Suffice it to say that Watchers won't always be able to safely maintain their Watch for a planned period of time. So what happens then?"

"Ah, in my simulations, as a Watcher Trance ends, the chemical is rapidly metabolized as the brain's function returns to normal. Ending a Watch early should merely produce some unpleasant minor side effects, such as nausea or dizziness. It shouldn't be dangerous unless a Watcher takes a very high dose and then immediately exits their Trance.."

"That shouldn't ever be an issue," Supriya said. "If this medication proves to be everything you hope, we'll develop implants to maintain a stable level in the Watcher's system, so they never risk a high dose."

Renya spoke up. "I hate to dampen everyone's enthusiasm, but we can't risk human testing quite yet. Especially with the first test subject dead, we'll need approval of Chief Rakoto, Fawzia-11, and multiple international agencies."

"We need to expedite this," Duri insisted. "Push for such approval, and fast. Every day, lives are being lost on Elpis. If this drug can let more Watchers gather data directly, we need that advantage soon."

"Understood," Supriya said. "I'll contact Hasina."

Renya strode toward the door. "I'll inform the Global Scientific Collaboration Foundation."

Duri rose. "I'll assemble the other Watchers."

Before leaving, Supriya turned to address her subordinate. "Thank you, Nurse Taibei. For your diligence and work ethic. Right now, time's of the essence, and the amount you were able to discover so quickly… it's nothing short of brilliant. Expect a promotion, a raise, and a very impressive bonus in the near future. But I suspect that you'll be even more eager to know that you'll henceforth have full involvement in the current crisis. I will brief you soon."