System Seven (31 page)

“I can’t....”

“Nor can I. Be brave,
Mug. Come!”

The older druid led
them towards the trees just as mounted soldiers appeared through the grove’s
entrance. One stood in his stirrups, balanced a long pole, and hefted it with
all his might. Mug turned and deftly
palmed the pole midflight to direct its force into the ground. Shouts erupted
from all directions. Soldiers appeared from between the trees and filled the
gaps. The clanging of swords on shields created an unnerving cacophony. The
elder druid halted. They were surrounded.

A gray-bearded rider
in elaborate armor stayed his horse and shouted over the din, “Aha! Yes! Yes!
Quiet!
”

The sword beating and
shouts fell away.

“Cathbad, leader of
the Runa Korda! I am honored at your presence. Simply delighted. You’ve made
this foot chase much more interesting. And why
are
you here?” He appraised Austin visibly. “I cannot wait to learn
of the youngster’s abilities. Do you care to share them with me here, in a
pleasant space? Or would you rather wait for the hell I’ve designed especially
for you?”

• • •

Sean gave the warning.

“I know, I know.”
Edward rose and removed the glasses. “Better to submit him to Gwynvyd where he
might one day come again.”

“What? You’re going to
kill him?” Anki asked.

“Look for yourself. He
doesn’t realize his power, he isn’t mastering the dream. If Cathbad can’t help
him escape they are worse than dead. Would you have him become a puppet? A
weapon against the world?” He looked back to the screen. “They have them, it is
unmistakable. Now leave, go. Bràthair are losing ground.”

Johan stood. “I don’t
believe it. There is a way, I feel it. Put me in. Sean, give me one of those
dream pills. I can get him out.”

Sean brushed him off.
“You’ve not the skill for this. Leave now or witness the death.”

Johan crossed to stand
in front of Edward.

“
Listen
, old man.
Something’s
telling me I can save them. I just
know
I can. Put me in now, while there’s a chance. If you need to, if I fail, then
kill me, too. If Austin is the Change, if he’s the only chance to beat these
devils, then I have to try.
You
have
to try. Give me the damn pill and take me there, now.”

Edward scanned then,
searching for Johan’s motivation. Indeed there was certainty there, and a
coiled, familiar energy. Above all else there was altruism, pure selflessness,
beyond what he could imagine even from himself.

“Send word to
Cathbad’s carriers and raise more for this one.” He silently blessed Johan.
“Deliver him to the dream, quickly.”

• • •

Blood flowed in a
steady trickle above Austin’s swollen right eye. His hands tingled numb from
the wrist bindings. Rib fractures made breathing difficult. No longer a dream
or a nightmare, reality had been recast. Edward’s warning traveled across time.
This is not a job. This is a life choice.
This
was
happening. Troops encircled
the clearing. Their long shadows darkened its grass. The Runa Korda leader,
Cathbad, knelt nearby, tied and held by soldiers. The younger man was strung up
to a makeshift gallows. The Roman general’s droning litany completed the
elaborately staged scene.

He looked away. The
agony of his body couldn’t compare to the suffering at knowing he’d failed
everyone that mattered, including the world itself. Somewhere across the
kaleidoscope of reality, Kaiya waited for his next email, ignorant of his
impending death. Somewhere his father existed, aware or unaware of the events
unfolding. He grieved for life and for what it could have been, for everyone.

“Young man!” The
general called to him. “I sense you could use a shot in the arm. The guest!
Make way for our guest!”

A black horse emerged
from the other steeds at the opening of the clearing. Sitting atop, wearing
armor similar to the general’s, was a vision of Kaiya, her hair drawn back in a
regal manner to emphasize the graceful lines of her face. Her beauty
complimented the original nature of the glade and accentuated the evil soiling
it. She guided her horse next to the general’s and looked at the dark-souled
bastard in a familiar way.

He gloated. “I’m sure
they didn’t tell you, boy. Shortly after you spoke with her on the phone we saved
her from the death her body met. She has since learned what real living is
about. In fact, she helped us reach you. Don’t be too critical of her. She
wants the best for you, just as we all do.”

Captured? Body dead?
Fear and rage filled his core.

Nearby, Cathbad
muttered, “Just a dream.” A guard kicked him in the face.

“I’m sorry, Austin,”
she called out. “I know this is a shock, but it’s amazing, just amazing what’s
coming. Just don’t resist and everything will be okay. Trust me, babe, it’s
amazing, just amazing what’s in store. Say you’ll give me a chance to show
you.”

He glanced at Cathbad.
His face was half-buried in the ground under the weight of a soldier’s knee.
Mug, rope tied about his neck, stood perched on a shield held up by a pair of
soldiers, awaiting his fate.
All the
world’s a stage and we are merely players.
The druids were likely the only
chance of rescue yet were helpless. Bargaining felt pointless but seemed the
only way of controlling the outcome.

“Only if he allows
these two to live and go free.”

“No!
No!
” Again the soldiers beat Cathbad
silent.

The general appeared
to weigh the offer. Too soon, he nodded. “Agreed. Let the laundry down.” The soldiers complied and lowered Mug to the
ground.

Kaiya turned to ask
the general something. Receiving a nod, she bowed her head in thanks and
dismounted to join Austin. She approached and knelt before him. As in the
basement of the bar, she filled his senses. Her eyes searched his. In a low,
quick voice she said, “Break free now, babe,
now
.”

In response, she was
flung backward the distance to her horse. Before she struck the steed, she
vanished, leaving her clothes to flop to the ground.

The sky exploded in
billowing clouds that stole the sun and turned the air cold. The general’s
voice echoed to the heavens.

“Find her! Find the
ignorant whore who might have been queen!”

Thunder pounded the
air so it seemed about to shatter. “Prepare to die Cathbad, leader of druids.
But first, behold.” He gestured to the guards surrounding Mug. In a uniform movement,
they pulled back on the rope and propelled Mug into the air by his neck. His
body recoiled wildly as they jerked the rope. “There hangs the second most
powerful of the secret family. His attendants have done the deed for us.” The
general turned to Cathbad. “Bring him to me!”

“No,” Austin shouted,
“
Don’t do this.
”

The guards lifted the
old druid and dragged him across the ground. Hope left at last. The forest
clearing would be his last memory of life. He cringed as they dragged Cathbad
by.

The druid turned his
head and said, “It’s coming.”

A scream pierced the
gloom, the wind suddenly rising. The scream sounded again, a banshee seeking
souls. Soldiers turned outward as one to form a shield around the clearing. The
general swung about on his horse to seek the source. The guards bearing Cathbad
dropped him and drew their swords.

“Come one, come all!”
The general yelled. “Yes! Come find your leader! He’s awaiting your rescue!”

The wind. He closed
his eyes and focused only on the wind. It played across his face, rising and
falling, as if probing.
I need your help.
Please, hear me, understand me. Dream or not, you are the force I seek. Help us
.

Rising in response to
every word, the wind rushed through the trees and flowed in ever stronger gusts
until it became a howling force, tearing leaves from trees and pageants from
poles. The soldiers looked to their general. His own bluster receded, the
biting concern clear in his eyes. The scream sounded again, unnatural above the
roaring wind. The general panicked.

“Kill them, kill them
both now! Now!
Now!
”

The nearest soldiers
prepared to hack.

The scream exploded
once more. Bodies flew away from a shimmering outline, the shape unclear until
it ran headlong into the line of horses just behind the general. Suddenly
visible, a large white horse rammed them. Its squatting rider launched into the
air on impact. Adorned in black leather armor, the rider soared over the
general and landed in a tumbling roll in front of Cathbad.

Johan shouted,
gripping the sword hand of the nearest soldier. He plunged the blade into the
Imperial’s groin and issued a hell kick to drop a pair of soldiers. He grabbed
Cathbad’s collar and heaved him towards Austin ahead of the attackers. Troops
rushed to close the circle while others notched arrows and drew to fire.

Lightning crackled and
forked in the air above Johan, lancing out to strike the nearest soldiers dead.
With another soul-piercing scream, he reached for Austin as a volley of arrows
let fly from the rim.

His palm braced his
head and the madness ceased.

Silence carried echoes
of the violence in a dizzying stillness. Light from attic windows revealed an
old man at the head of a stairwell, staring on in approval.

Cathbad slowly stood,
taking in the scene. “Vincent?”

“Cathbad. A battle,
then?”

He nodded. “A friend
has fallen.”

“Fallen from their
grip, I pray the Wild Wood. It was close for you, no?”

“Aye, it was. None
closer. Your son saved us.”

Johan strode forward.
“Father, you were right. It is a noble fight.”

“And you are learning.
I’m proud. So very proud, Gerrit.” He turned to Cathbad. “It has begun?”

Cathbad confirmed.
“The Words are once more correct but in an imprecise way.”

“How is that?”

“Your son, and this
one,” he indicated a still-shaken Austin on the floor with his back against a
trunk. “
They
are the Change.”

Against stupidity the gods themselves contend in vain.
- Friedrich von Schiller

Austin surfaced to the
murmur of conversation. Memories trailed from the dimness of sleep. A stab of
loss and panic shot through him upon recalling news of Kaiya’s death. He
shifted his head to find Anki sitting next to him. Johan and Edward stood with
Sean by the French doors. Conversation halted.

“Is she alive or
dead?” he asked them. “The truth this time.”

Edward neared. “Forgot
to take your pills, did we?”

“God damn it, tell
me.”

Edward leaned in
close, eyes sharp as daggers. “Before you dare raise your voice, you will
consider what your desires have cost us
this
time
. One of the greatest druids ever to advance the Family is gone, having
tried to save your life. What I choose to tell you is this: I sorely wonder now
if it was worth it.”

The bite of Edward’s words
paled compared to what followed. Edward jammed the true meaning of Mug’s life
hard into his mind, obliterating ego and birthing a guilt that threatened to
consume him. Mug had helped pioneer technology, avert wars, cured diseases,
created new defenses in the dream world, and most lately discovered the
quantum-physical mechanisms behind telekinesis. A legend in time had been
forced to sacrifice everything simply because he’d wanted to see Kaiya again.
Mug’s death was his fault.

He recoiled when
released, battered by the knowing.

“We don’t know her
fate,” Edward answered. “They may have her or they may not. But yes, her body
was lost at the safe house. The same with Mac and our brothers.”

He pushed up onto an
elbow. “You knew? All this time? Is that what the future holds with the Korda?
Lies? Games within games?”

“She may still be
alive, Austin,” Anki said quietly, “just not with a body.”

“The ‘game’ is to
prepare you, to preserve your continuity,” Edward said, his vibe narrow and
sharp. “Your progress is vital, the timing everything. As for Kaiya, we don’t
know. There is a chance she escaped their hold when Johan broke into the
dream.”

“You never mentioned
they could do that. Stealing souls from their bodies? That’s a hell of thing to
leave out, don’t you think?” He shook his head, struggling to keep up. “Look,
you have no idea how sorry I am about Mug, but why lose both? We have to find
her.”

Sean stepped forward.
“He said there’s a
chance
she
escaped. It’s more likely they have her still. If so, there is little we can
do. Then again, she may have gone on to Gwynvyd. There are fates much worse, Austin,
though we hope she is within reach. There’s no telling at this point.”

“And if you do find
her?” he asked. “What then?”

“Hopefully we’ll cross
that bridge. You need to focus on the here and now.” He went to unplug the
monitor cart.

“Will she have a body
again?”

Edward crossed his
arms. “You wanted the truth and that is we will do our best.”

He looked to Johan.
“You’ve got the power. Edward just said it. You can help find her and bring her
back.”

“He already offered,”
Edward replied. “His success tonight was due in part to the element of
surprise. Until we better understand his abilities, he won’t be out on anyone’s
behalf.”

“If she’s free then
she’s just wandering. I have to go back to find her. I have to.”

“You require much work
before you’ll be allowed back.”

“Really? And what if
she’s running out of options?” He imagined her swimming under a sheet of ice,
just visible but unable to break through the surface. “I need to find her. She
needs me, I can feel it.”

Sean shook his head.
“Meta contact is only half the battle. There is the matter of binding her to a
body again. Not an uncomplicated matter.”

Edward pressed his
displeasure into the moment. “Understand, too, your girlfriend is not the only
life we are trying to save.”

He stifled a stream of
replies born of desperation and frustration. Yes, there was much more at stake
than just Kaiya’s life, but it was maddening to know Johan could help find her
and wouldn’t.

“We’re not giving up, Austin,”
Sean said. “We’re already working on a plan.”

Edward headed for the
door. “We will resume briefing an hour after sunrise. Also,” he looked to Austin,
“until further notice, we will meet every night to take the pills.”

Anki stood and
squeezed Austin’s shoulder. “I’m glad you’re okay.”

Everyone but Johan
left the room. He crossed his arms and said, “Looks like we’re on the hook for
saving the world.”

“
Right
. I couldn’t save Kaiya. Hell, I couldn’t even save myself.”

“Bullshit. You did
what you were supposed to. If you hadn’t, I wouldn’t have learned what I did.
And listen, I may be some kind of dream weaver but you, man, you’re going to
turn their world upside down. We’ll do this together. You heard him. It’s
prophecy. Have a little faith.”

He couldn’t help but
recall Meng’s instructions on forming an island in his mind to call home:
If you don’t, you will drown in the pain of
loss and of memory.

He drew a sharp breath
and let it out slowly. “I’m trying.”

“You are right, Austin,”
Edward said when they gathered again in the library. “No one told you about
soul stealing. It is not easy to do and does not happen that often.”

“So what does it
mean?” he asked.

“Subjugation. The bond
of meta is severed from the body and the essence captured. The latter step is difficult
and requires specific knowledge to perform. There are only a handful of us that
can do it and for good reason.”

“You’ll be able to
recapture Kaiya then? What about a body?”

“It is possible to
join meta essence to a body. The process and ethics involved are topics for
another time. We will address Kaiya’s fate when it becomes necessary to. Right
now, a briefing before we split up. Our time here is almost done.”

On the table sat a
silver attaché case. He rested a hand on it. “I spoke briefly of the Change but
there is more to know. Prophesied over five hundred years ago, the Change was
to be a person with powers allowing the Runa Korda a chance at altering the
course of history. By that I mean at least stemming the worst of what the
Comannda does, though most believe the Change will allow us to topple the
Comannda altogether. How that would play out is debated as the Words are not
clear. Some believe it can be done without exposing the secrets all at once.
Others believe it will trigger Armageddon. Certainly the Conflict is shown as
being a tumultuous and grave period. I think it is safe to say it has begun. We
now know the Change consists of you two and that you are both with us. Our goal
is to keep you safe and help you master your abilities. Alignments are
occurring that offer confidence we are on the right track. We will do our best
to prepare you for whatever lies ahead.”

Anki nodded. “Prepared
is good.”

“To start, you need to
know more about your modifications.” He
popped the latches on the attaché case and turned it to face them. Inside,
several gray metal tubes of various diameters and lengths lay ensconced in fitted
rubber molding. He withdrew a small penlight from the case and shined its light
at them. Unscrewing the lid revealed the battery compartment. He slid out the
three tiny disc shaped batteries, flipped each, and re-inserted them. “Reverse
polarity. The light won’t work. But the more important functions of the pen now
will.”

He stood and held the
pen light against his belly, which earned him looks.

“Press and hold the
clip for three seconds. The signals emitted will start a reaction according to
the setting you select. There are four settings, the first always being
‘neutral’ or your natural state. The second is olive, as found in Asians.
Third, brown as found in Hispanics and the fourth is mulatto. Each setting has
a shade parameter determined by screwing the pen’s clip right to left, lightest
to darkest. You will have up to two minutes of conversion time while the
melanocyte alteration occurs and pigmentation becomes uniform to the
programming.” He held up the penlight. “First function then, is to alter your
skin color.”

Austin shook his head
in amazement.

Edward stowed the
penlight in his shirt pocket and retrieved a pencil-thin aluminum tube from the
case.

“Anki, you asked about
the holes at the top of your gum lines. Our answer was contrived; they aren’t
for sinus drainage in case of infection.” He lifted the briefcase’s rubber
molding to expose a screen and keypad. It powered up at a touch, revealing a computer generated image of his
profile. He tapped a few keys and placed the tube near the screen.

“Low power signal for
program download.” He unscrewed the cap from the tube and slipped the open end
between his teeth and lips. At the top of his gum line his face bulged and
began to throb as things moved, sliding rapidly from the tube into his face. He
emptied another tube in the same fashion at the other hole.

“What the...?” Anki
stared. Johan watched, mesmerized as the druid’s face pulsated with the
movement of whatever crawled around inside it.

“While grotesque,
these are my personal biocats. Like caterpillars but created specifically for
this service. They will traverse catacombs woven under my face to a pre-set
location and then expand and stretch themselves according to the program, thus
shaping my face. They will even act as temporary tie-offs, cinching muscles and
tensioning cartilage to help reshape areas such as my nose, eyes and lips.”

“Biological?”

“Yes, our own basic
lifeforms.”

Edward’s skin had
become noticeably darker and areas of his face had smoothed into a different
shape. His brow appeared fuller, his lips and cheeks ample, and his eyes more
oval. “Once in place, they will lock and retain their shape and position. Their
cellular cohesion and function is maintained by absorbing nutrients from the
walls of the catacombs, which are membranic. Their energy source for motor systems
and locking is achieved through bioelectromagnetic effect and is boosted when
you are in urban areas where heavier fields exist.”

Anki put her hands to
her cheeks. “I’m supposed to put bugs in my face?”

Edward nodded. “You
will get used to it. It helps that the biocats are coated in a mild local
anesthesia in the tubes. But even dry they are not intolerable in motion. There
are also creams that induce localized swelling to achieve a desired facial
topology, though the effects are time-limited. Now, this pen also drives four
more functions.”

Edward’s
demonstrations revealed the other bio-tweaks made to the three at the table.

“Dynamic retensioning
of muscle within the vocal folds allow for pitch alterations. After voice
training, you will be able to vary your voiceprint by assignment.”

Fingerprints were also
dynamic although the cellular perforation process was unbearable for some
without a local anesthetic. Pain and itching could persist for an hour or
longer depending on the individual.

He twisted the cap to
enter another mode. “The pigmentary layers of the eye’s iris contain cells with
pigment granules. Each of you have irises with modified cells that respond to
nano-transmitters which in turn receive orders by this signal. Chromatophoric
alterations recolor the eye within seconds.”

He replaced the pen in its slot. “You’ll have
your own cats, pens, and the unit to program them, called a deck. There is also
a two-in-one smart phone if you can’t use the pens.”

The three stared at
the stranger before them. The now-black man with a baritone voice and a slight
French accent continued.

“The ability to change
these physical properties extends your field usefulness by many factors. You
will be trained how to gracefully make the changes in different situations
without revealing yourself. Take careful notes. You are in a most valued group.
You are now Atharrachdainn. May your secret serve you well.”

• • •

Director Tomov stood
on a dais at the front of the conference room running the debrief. Orb cameras
rose from the table on thin stalks to allow the Executive Board telepresence.
Behind them stood two G1 agents replete in black, their faces hidden behind
formless masks. They scanned continuously, reading him to his core.

The conference rooms’
black glass walls and tabletop displayed imagery and video from the operation
in question. Stills of the various subjects lined the walls. Videos looped
scenes and one large video at the front of the room was paused, showing the
outstretched form of Peter Brusse mid-air, moments before his dream rescue of
the druid leader and his charge, Austin.

“Extensive analysis
has failed to explain how A2, Peter Brusse, initiated this level of control.
There was suggestion that it was made to appear as Brusse but in fact managed by
some other method, possibly combining.”

An Executive with a
Saudi accent spoke into the room. “What does this mean?”