I stare at the screen; I can't say no to Voice, so I reply, "Send me the file, and I'll take care of it for you."
"I will have the file sent to you tomorrow. Enjoy the repose. Voice signing off."
Great... Just great! I have no idea what I'll do with that woman while I'm on the Closing. I can't say, hey, I'm going to kill someone. Want to come along? It could be fun. I stretch my arms. I'll have to think of something. The laptop goes to the screen saver of the flaming Phoenix as I stand and leave.
I walk through the hall and shout, "I'm hungry. Want to order a pizza?" I turn the corner and find the apartment's empty. Now where did she go?
Chapter Fifty-two
Ginn L. Irynkissgthie
12:23 P.M...
Hellenistic Sector, Trade Vicinage...
Outside the Factory...
Lieutenant Creed flipped down his night vision goggles and scanned the large field of grassy weeds inside the perimeter. All was quiet in the green hue, except for a breeze sweeping across the tall blades. He nodded to his men, and they retreated from the Factory's main gate and in the distance, they heard engines rumble to life. The S.C.Ms. knew this time would come, and they tensed.
He touched his headset. "Creed, here. Reporting in." He looked to the road leading to the Factory then to a H.H.C. he held, and the screen showed many blips coming their way. "Alpha and the T-3s are moving out. We have backed away from the gate as ordered. Are you sure you don't want me to engage?" Creed listened. "Yes. Yes. Understood, sir. We won't hinder the T-3s retreat from the Factory." He examined the long line of cars and trucks making their way to the main gate, and he noticed a few of the vehicles showed scorched marks and a couple hobbled out on a flat tire or two. "Will secure the Factory once they leave."
Creed and his men glared at the T-3s as they left. They lost a lot of good soldiers to them.
"One day, you will pay," Creed vowed, gripping his weapon. "And I'll be there. I'll be there to witness your end."
* * *
Deep inside the Factory...
The Rogue realized it hadn't run into one single T-3 as it made its way back to Research Lab Five. Alpha must have fled with its minions. The Rogue passed the long forgotten room of science equipment and entered the chamber filled with statues and with the accent lights still down because of Pandora's EFP, the Rogue activated its night vision.
The Rogue's view...
What about Pandora? Is she dead or did she escape? I hold my wounded shoulder. Why did she not destroy me? I have to know. I make a face as if in agony, and then I look to the life size statues. I try to figure out why I came back here. I know it is not to look for Pandora; she will not return here.
All the Ginns point to a wall in the back of the room, I make my way to it and stare at the tiled surface. I scan the area, probe the wall with my infrared, and find nothing out of the ordinary temperature wise. I remove my ORATT from my suit pocket, put them on, and switch to through-wall radar on my polarized spectacles. There is a hall on the other side. I feel along the wall with my good hand till I find a marble tile slightly sticking out, press it, and the wall slides up, rumbling as the ceiling swallows it.
Once the dust settles, I start down the long descending hall, and with each few steps I take, a light comes on, lighting the way. After about fifteen minutes, the hall ends at a room, and I pause at the doorway as several lights blink on inside and light up the center where two black stones sit on a raised platform. I make my way to the four foot cubed stones with white writing. I come to this hidden room driven by some unknown force, so I need to find out what is important about the two stones. I smooth my palm over the right one's engraved letters. Will they tell me why Pandora didn't destroy me?
I read the one out loud.
"Though the clouds darken the sun,
and the rain becomes tainted,
always know there will be
a love that will not die.
Though hope seems a distant memory,
and human machines walk the land,
know no one can destroy
a love that will not die.
The One constant,
the One unchanging,
the One love.
Put your faith in
the love that will not die."
This is intriguing; this is what Pandora was reciting after I choked her into unconsciousness. I examine the stones, and it looks like both of the pieces are part of a larger one, but do both of them belong to the same stone?
I walk around them, decide I will investigate that matter later, and read the other block.
"The land has darkened,
hope has fled,
and greed rules.
Finish it!
Call forth the Rushlight.
Open the pathway between.
Bring an end to false gods.
Bring an end to lies,
so usher in the Rushlight,
creature of the void
and Destroyer of..."
The rest of the stone has been destroyed, and the writing is missing. Ginn L. Irynkissgthie, are these about Pandora? Is she the Rushlight, and what is she the destroyer of? I put my hand to the stone. Why did I come here? If my purpose is to destroy Pandora, why did I come to this place? The stones tell me of no way to destroy her, so why? Unless, I am not supposed to destroy her. What is it she once said?
I replay the event in my computer's eye. Pandora said she does not want me dead; she just wants me to stop hunting her. She told me maybe my creators are afraid of me, not because I have feelings, but because I have the potential to disobey my programming.
I pull from the memory. Is that it? Can I disobey my programming? Have I evolved to the next level? I consider it for a moment. Pandora did not want me dead; she said as much, so why do I need to hunt her? I look to the stones and decide I have to know more about the Rushlight and these blocks. I have to find the answers to my questions and now that I have a new purpose, I will stop hunting her. I will see if I have more of a purpose than killing, and I will discover the secrets of Pandora.
Chapter Fifty-three
More Puzzles
12:34 P.M...
Hellenistic Sector, Residential Vicinage...
Up on the Nexus Apartments' rooftop...
Katharine's view...
I feel bad because I've kept a secret from Kimberly; it's a small one, but it's still a secret. I need to be open with my new partner, and how can I do that if I keep things from her? Even if I'm afraid to tell her, I still should. The Tainted Rain ended a short time before I came up to the roof. I grip the railing, glance at my shoulder, and let my thoughts drift away as I dread the task before me. I stare down at the road, watching the Street Sanitizers at work. Several of the robotic cleaners rumble across the avenue, and for a few minutes, they distract me from my fears.
I start to count them. In Wayfaring Lane, I thought there might've been four or five, but here... I count more than a dozen just in this area. A few more minutes pass, and I lean back as I hold on to the railing and let freedom blow over me. I can't remember a time when I didn't have to worry about the Un-Men finding me. I'm safe, safe to worry about other things, so I study the star on my palm. More and more mysteries pop up with no answers like this thing. I rub my fingers over the red scar, and the burn no longer hurts. The mark opened the door to the Gallery with some sort of microscopic cipher imprinted on the star. That same star is on the music box. I place my hand back to the railing and lean on the metal. I asked the hologram if she knew what they were, but she didn't know. I stare at the sky, feeling as gloomy as it looks, then the door to the rooftop opens, and Kimberly steps out.
"So this is where you went," Kimberly states as she walks over to me. "What are you doing up here?" She looks down at my feet. "At least you remembered shoes."
"There's something I've been meaning to tell you..." I pause, not sure how to expl
ain, then turn my attention back down to the street.
Kimberly's view...
"Well, what is it?" I question, glancing at her.
Is that woman thinking about what the Rogue said? Is she wondering if she's organic-mecha? I am, and I've been wondering if she knew this fact all along. Could the Guild or the Council that woman keeps mentioning be testing me for some reason?
I also stare down at the street. What if that woman is organic-mecha? What if she found me for some other reason than what she claims? Whatever I do, I can't let that woman know that I'm thinking this way.
I ask, "It's not that thing the Rogue told you, is it? I wouldn't worry. There's no way you're one of those organic-mechas." I lightly smack her on the left arm and laugh to give her a sense that it doesn't bother me. I want her to think that I don't believe the possible truth. "You're too weird to be something programmed."
Katharine's view...
"Thanks, I think, but it's not that," I tell her as I grip my shoulder, wondering what Kimberly will think of me once she does find out. "It's..." I start, take a deep breath to continue, but then I chicken out and walk away from the ledge. Our partnership is so fragile... My secret might just shatter it, and a fear of abandonment sweeps over me, chilling me with an arctic blast of doubt and cowardice.
A realization comes to me... Have I already come to rely on Kimberly? I barely know her and yet I feel as though I do. I'm so afraid of what she'll think of me that I decide against revealing my secret. I don't know if I can handle her looking at me any different because something's not right with me.
I give in to my anxieties and tell her, "Never mind."
"Don't do that," she snaps. "Don't start something and not finish it." She moves closer to me like we've been friends forever, and she's deeply concern for me. "Tell me what it is. Remember we're partners, and we're supposed to trust each other."
I'm not sure what to do now. I want to forget about it, but Kimberly already knows something's wrong. I want to trust someone again like I did with Preacher. I'm just afraid I'll be betrayed like I have been by others. I'm afraid Kimberly will betray me again like she did when she handed me over to the Rogue.
"I'm not sure how to say it," I admit as those fears keep me from coming out and telling her the truth. I direct our conversation elsewhere by saying, "The past year I've learned that I'm the Pandora Project." My heart fills with dread, knowing what my experiment name means. "You told me Pandora was the woman who doomed the world."
Kimberly answers, "Yes, I told you that Pandora let all good escape from existence; she had released it from a box."
"Is that my destiny?" I ask her. "I'm afraid I was created, programmed, or conditioned to destroy."
Kimberly's view...
That woman is so pathetic. I came all the way up here and all she's worried about is the name the Council gave her. I feel like pulling out my gun and shooting her. Good thing I didn't bring it with me.
This thing about her name is bothering her, act or not, and I decide I need to continue my own part as the supportive partner. I still need her for a while, and I can't have her moping around.
"You've got to be kidding. This is what you're worried about?" I start out. "Come on, there are more things to fear than..."
"Are there?" she interrupts me. "Then why call me Pandora if not to mean doom?"
I stand there gazing at her, not knowing what to say. If this is an act, she's good, but what if it's not? What if that woman truly believes she's to doom the world? I scowl. I can't have her thinking that way. She'll be no use to me.
I say, "There's one thing I didn't tell you. There's more to the story. You see, Pandora managed to keep hope in the box. She managed to keep hope in the world."
"Hope?"
"Yes, hope," I answer and then I tell her to give that woman a false sense of possibility, "Maybe your destiny isn't to bring doom but hope. Now..." I move for the door. "If we're done up here, let's go inside and order a pizza." I start in. "I'm starved."
Katharine's view...
"Kimberly..." I call after her still afraid of exposing my secret.
She turns around and states, "Katharine, like I said, what could be so..."
I blurt out, "My wound... It's gone. There's no trace that I was ever shot."
"What? That's impossible!" Kimberly exclaims as she walks back over to me and then she demands, "Show me."
I unzip my jacket, pull the collar of my t-shirt to the side, and show her my unbandaged shoulder. I tense, not knowing how she'll react. Please don't think I'm a freak... Please don't end our partnership and kick me out of the apartment.
She examines my shoulder as she says, "Hades... It is gone, but that's impossible. When did it happen?"
"I don't know," I reply as I can't tell what she's thinking. Does she see me as a freak? Is she mentally recoiling from me in disgust?
I add, "It was like this when I awoke at Main One Hospital."
Kimberly's view...
"This is what you're worried about?" I chuckle. "Come on." I put my hand on her shoulder, reassuring her, "With all the technology the corporations have, this isn't out of the ordinary, so don't worry." I force a smile. "Come on, let's go order that pizza."
That woman believes I'm not repulsed by her freakishness, and her face brightens as she questions me, "Can we get a Coke to go with it?"
"Coke? I've never heard of it, but I'll ask, and if they don't have it, we'll get a Crite."
She runs ahead of me like some child at an amusement park who can't wait to get on a ride. I follow that strange woman back in, and we go to the elevator. I press button 31, and we make our way down. I stand behind her and stare at her back, wondering what kind of monstrosity lurks inside that woman. I need to be more cautious of her than before, and I need to reconsider this partnership. Robot or mutant... I can't trust her.
Later we enter Apartment H, and I head for my room as she sits on the couch and turns on the news. I go and sit on my bed and open the drawer of my nightstand and inside lies the marked bullet. For now, I need to keep that woman around; whether organic-mecha or wayward soul, she could still be of some use to me. I chuckle to myself again. If I want to return to work, I'll have to get rid of her. I remove the 9 mm round and decide I'll keep the bullet with me from now on. I place Pale Horse in the small zipper compartment of my zipped up hoodie. That woman did see my face, and I can't let anyone live who knows I'm the Phoenix.
In the living room...
Katharine's view...
Kimberly seems to have accepted me as I am, but what about what the Rogue said to me? I clutch a pillow, paying no attention to the TV. Am I organic-mecha? Am I some sort of freak? I dig my nails into the pillow. What if I am? What if there's no past for me to find? What then? I glance at the hall. What about my partnership with Kimberly? Will I be able to depend on her or will she kill me when she no longer needs me? I bury my face in the pillow. What does the future hold for me?
Kimberly's view...
I enter the kitchen and glance at the small round table. Nine days ago I sat there, sulking over my pathetic life. I wished that I wasn't alone, that I had more in this life, and that there would be someone there for me. Now I have more to look forward to like taking my revenge. I walk over to the cupboard and grab a glass. As for my wish... I look to that woman sitting on the couch; I need to be more careful about what I ask for.
She turns to me with a serious expression on her face and when she sees the glass, her face brightens as she questions, "Fixing tea?"
I'm amused by her simplemindedness. She is addicted to tea, and for some reason, I want to give her a least a little hospitality before I'm done with her, so I answer, "Sure, put the kettle on and set the table. Make yourself useful." I place the glass back in the cupboard and grab two tea cups. "The pizza won't be here for about forty-five minutes."
That woman turns the TV off a
nd comes into the kitchen.
Some time later...
Lifting her cup, that woman toasts, "Here's to our partnership. May it be successful."
I clink my cup to hers. "I'll drink to that. To a successful future, wherever it takes us."
Yes... May I be successful in finding who murdered my mom.
Chapter Fifty-four
The Star Binds Them
12:40 P.M...
The Chamber...
Mr. Decuma pulled up new bio-data on his laptop. "The Cerberus Project has gone above our expectations; this experiment has surpassed the old project."
"I do not know about that," Mr. Morta stated. "We were unable to activate Pandora's potential."
Mr. Decuma uttered, "As I thought, one of us has taken a liking to the wayward project."
Mr. Morta said, "It is not like that."
"What is it like?" Mr. Decuma asked.
"I believe Pandora is the superior design. We are the ones who failed for not providing a sufficient catalyst. We should have done more."
Appalled, Ms. Nona questioned, "Our fault?"
"Yes," Mr. Morta answered. "Maybe we should have told Pandora about its past, then Pandora would not have been so driven to search for the missing pieces."
A male supervisor handed Ms. Nona a report. "There seems to be a problem with our acquisition of the Factory's assets; there is one Research Outpost in Antarctica, Vulcan Station, that the T-3s did not attack. If the Sphinx Corporation Main Office finds out part of the Factory has survived, we will have to turn over everything we acquired from the Factory to Vulcan Station."
Mr. Morta stated, "The situation could be a test for Cerberus. The new project can close the outpost for us, and we can see how Cerberus reacts with the human element."
"A fine idea," Ms. Nona said as she curled up her thin cherry-red lips in a grin.
"I agree," Mr. Decuma replied.
"It is settled then," Mr. Morta said. "We will send Cerberus to Antarctica."
* * *
7:01 P.M...
No setting sun declared the approach of night, and all was black. Darkness lingered, but a glimmer of hope existed. Zax turned his van down an alley beside Dad's Donuts, activated a garage door, and pulled into the Maydag Auto Garage and within, the place was quiet. All the mechanics had gone home for the day. Zax parked, went to the second storage room, unlocked the door with a key, and went in. Broken equipment and tools along with used oil and other discards filled the cobwebbed shelves, and the place smelled of dust and gas. Zax went to the back wall, looked up at an unlit light, half unscrewed the bulb from the socket, and pulled the chain. The back wall flipped around a hundred and eighty degrees and on the other side, Zax walked along a gray stone passage to a metal door with no knob. Beside the door was a camera and an intercom.