CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
To the tune of his mix of classic rock and metal, Callen sunk the needle of the last medical implant into Niknak's skin. One of Niknak's nerves twitched as a charge of electricity ran through the newly established connection. He reached into the pocket of his jeans and pulled out the old Lego figure he had made of Niknak all those years ago and placed it in Niknak's hand. As he closed Niknak's hand around the toy. He touched the copper metal markings that swirled Niknak’s left arm.
Callen looked at the metal marks on his own arm and began to wonder what exactly had been done to the both of them. Hopefully, fixing Niknak would give him a better idea, because he wasn't sure if he wanted to include Dr. Brewer in evaluating his father's creation. He wanted to know everything, including what had been done to create it. He removed his hand from Niknak's. Whatever had been done, he wondered the cost. What had Niknak experienced to help save his life? He had no words that he could give the mix of emotions swirling inside him, but he did feel a tear roll down his cheek. He stepped back from the medical tank that was no longer idle. He touched a few of the holographic buttons that could only be seen on his goggles.
His goggles were synced with Mavis through his father's old computer, rather than a personal wrist computer, given that his processor and several of other components were destroyed. However, despite the damage, he was happy to learn that the hard-drive was intact. So, he had all the information, programs, and applications that he had stored on it which he was going to install on version two. That included the program that he managed to isolate, and deduce was responsible for allowing a connection between his mind and his computer.
He traced the origins of the program to the flash-drive that came with the firmware for the special touch screen that he received from Dr. James and his son Matt when he left the hospital in Boston. Ultimately, he found the combination of his own mind and the firmware kept his computer from shutting down in the presence of the nalkori.
Based on what he discovered, he had given Mavis quite a few redesigned specifications for version two of his wrist computer. However, it still wasn't perfect and there were limits. He needed to find a better way of building a system in order to handle his thoughts. Even still, this next iteration was moving in the right direction and it wouldn't be long before it was finished.
The weird visions from the Harbinger signal incoherently haunted his nightmares. He had his speculations on their meaning. The Harbingers had the intentions of decimating this world. The question had crossed his mind that with the decay and corruption in modern society if that was a bad thing. However, everyone he cared about would die if they were allowed to complete their plans. His choices were limited and he had made his decision.
Admiring his handy work, he watched the lid slide closed and the tank angled upright into a socket built into the wall near his electronic workbench. He sighed as he watched the tank fill with the medical fluid. The monitors soon blinked on with Niknak's vital data and the program he took from his father's computer expanded on one of his screens. Of course, there were no alchemical symbols this time around, but it would soon have new data to help him restore his fallen brother.
As he watched the pulse of Niknak's heart monitor, the rhythmic sound brought memories of the calming melody and the woman's voice singing to him. Her beautiful face hung in his thoughts. He wondered if Niknak experienced something similar. He hoped Niknak fell in such heavenly arms when the twisted world faded to black and pull him from the grasp of the deepest nightmare. He knew that the woman had something to do with panacea, and whatever it was, it calmed him, and it saved him. He hoped that he would receive visits from her again and he promised himself, if he could, he would find out who she was.
He kept her pictured in his mind until he felt a pull on one of his earbuds that jolted him out of his thoughts. As the white cord fell to his shoulder, he saw Ania standing next to him.
"I bet Dr. Brewer would be interested in one of these..." Ania said as she put her hand on her hip and looked over Niknak's jury-rigged medical tank.
"Yeah." Callen agreed. He looked at the mess of tangled wires and tubes that he had run to the medical tank. "I got some ideas from the lab and the journal, with some of my own mods...but hey, it wasn't about style...it's about haste."
"I know," Ania said. "I just hope it works."
"Me too," Callen said. "After everything, I owe him, this is the least I can do. For Dr. Brewer, treating Niknak wasn't exactly a priority with Sadie and Tende to examine. Anything back on what Derrick did to them?"
"There's a change in their nervous system. Tende, well, he didn't say much." Ania said. "But, Sadie said Dr. Brewer described the change as...well, how do I put this? Its like her body is slowly growing a new type of nervous tissue, and genetically, it is Sadie. But, whatever it is, it's growing incredibly slow, and will grow slower since Dr. Brewer removed the metal parts that were in there as well...but its function isn't clear yet."
"That doesn't sound good," Callen said. "Can the new nerve tissue be removed?"
"I don't know," Ania said. "The results are only preliminary."
"Any changes in...?"
"No," Ania said. "No changes in either Tende or Sadie's colors. I get the feeling that's a good thing."
"How about the other kids?" Callen asked.
"We don't have the facilities to take care of that many patients," Ania explained. "So, grandpa and the others used an herbal memory wipe potion and got them all home. But, as for the ones that were kidnaped over the year before we were, there's no way for us to track them, but at least those kids can't remember what happened. Hopefully, anyone who decides to ask questions will jump on the media bandwagon of mass alien abductions." She laughed. "I suppose that is as good an explanation as any for normal people."
"Might as well just say magic." Callen scoffed. "Some people are just ignorant and need to stay that way."
"Maybe," Ania said. "I don't know." She looked around the room. "I guess Sprocket left?"
Callen nodded. "Yeah, she has her people to pull together. But, she did what she could once I repaired all the damage that Virette did to her electronics. Learned a bit about how gremlin biology works too, and it helped us rig the tank for Niknak. He's more advanced, but it's the best I could do...for now."
"I got the feeling she's gonna wait for him," Ania said. "It was written in her colors."
"He'll be a king when I fix him," Callen said. "And we got ourselves an ally in the depths beneath this place."
"I guess nothing will be sneaking up and kidnapping us again?" Ania asked.
"Well, not unless they kill all the gremlins first and they don't manage to contact us..." Callen said. "They also agreed to help us out here, whenever they are stabilized again...but, that shouldn't take long...especially since they have a cure...and are united under Sprocket's leadership."
"They still think you're a god?" Ania giggled.
"They see us both as heroes." Callen corrected. "They’re already telling stories about us around their fires."
"That's a cool feeling," Ania admitted.
"Yeah, but too much went wrong," Callen said. "Now, we got Derrick and whoever the Harbingers are out there in the shadows planning something, and it can't be good...some of those things that Derrick said...I have a bad feeling about what lies ahead."
"Well, at least you took out a pair of nalkori," Ania said. "Their bodies are on their way to Europe to be examined."
"I know," Callen said. "We're analyzing the molecular makeup of their armor now so we can begin weapons testing."
"How do you know?" Ania asked. "I thought you haven't been debriefed yet."
"I haven't. I told them I had more important things to do first. Cole was pissed." Callen said, with a grin. "But, I noticed the nalkori material analysis process commands being run by Mavis."
"Oh," Ania said. "Well, Dr. Brewer also has a poison sample and is working on curing mom. He said he should know something soon."
Callen smiled. He felt a weight lifted off his shoulders. "I can't wait to tell her about all of this."
"Not my colors though," Ania said. "Not yet."
"That's yours to tell people, not mine," Callen said. "But, I do have a secret of my own to tell you...something...happened down there..."
"What?" Ania asked. "Is it related to Panacea?"
"No," Callen said slowly. He felt himself take the first step out on a limb. "It was there before we even got attacked by the nalkori in the first place." She trusted him with her color vision. He had to do the same.
"What do you mean?" Ania asked.
"Well, my brain...sometimes...well, connects to my computer," Callen said. "Not just any computer...this my broken wrist computer...and my old laptop. I looked deeper and found there's some kind of software that allows my brain to interface with a computer I'm synced to. It came from Matt's present."
"From the day you left the hospital?" Ania asked.
Callen nodded. "Yeah, and I made some changes in version two of my wrist computer to allow it to function better computer side, but still...I don't know how I do it...or why...it feels like flexing a muscle you never used...just in your head."
"I know how that feels," Ania said, smiling. "I guess you can understand how I feel now when it comes to me seeing the aura colors of living things."
"Yeah, and neither are magic." Callen reminded her, with a half-grin.
"I know," Ania said. "But it might as well be...some things are better left unknown."
"I hope you're kidding." Callen said.
"Of course." Ania grinned. "And it looks like we have a mystery to solve. So, you get the mystery machine and I'll get Scooby Doo..."
"You're getting better at this sarcasm thing." Callen laughed. "Though, you just need more work on the condescension piece..."
"Well, one good thing deserves another." Ania laughed. "And I do have the best teacher for both..."
"Too true..." Callen laughed and turned towards the computer screens on his workbench. He pulled up a few programs and began running tests on Niknak. "All right, guess it's time to see what I can do for Niknak...I just wish I had Dad's files."
"Well, we didn't have much of a chance," Ania said. "We were kinda in a rush, remember? And besides, maybe writing your own will be better, Dad's could have been part of the problem or disturbed by the Many, whatever it is."
"You're right." Callen agreed. "But, it’s gonna take time. And as for the Many and the Harbingers, something tells me we will find out what they are…whether we like it or not."
"Callen, do you think they will come for us again?" Ania asked.
"I don't think so," Callen said. "I think they were just after Dad's cross to free the Many. Derrick just took the coin and left. So, whatever is on that coin, has gotta be what they wanted from us. But, if not, we'll be ready."
"I hope so."
"But there's more..." Callen said. Ania gave him an inquisitive look and let him continue. "I used the brain interface to hack the nalkori and Derrick. In the process..." He paused and felt a shiver roll up his spine. "Their signal...it went through my brain. I saw things...horrible things...the majority of which I don't understand. The feelings I got about their plans are...disturbing..."
"Wow," Ania said, as though she didn't know what else to say. "Hopefully, you will sort through what you saw and whatever it is, we'll be ready, as you said." She was trying to sound tough. "I'll help you however I can." She glanced down at his workbench, and saw the leather bound book that had been seared with runes. "Hey, what's that? I remember that from somewhere...but, not here...that wasn't here before..."
She was obviously trying to change the subject, and Callen didn't want to talk about what he said anymore anyway. He let her have it, but he was happy to know she was with him. "It's Dad's," Callen said. "Virette had it...I took it off her altar after I killed her, right before Grandpa, Sir Reeves and...the bitc...er...Cole showed up just in time to clean up the mess. I put it in my bag. I didn't want Cole to know I have it."
"Does it say..." Ania asked.
"I can't read it, and my programs can't translate it," Callen said. "Hell, I'm not even a hundred percent sure it is Dad's. But, one thing is for sure, Virette couldn't read it either...at least not entirely. She stuck pieces of paper in it marking specific pages. It looks like she only managed to translate a few of the symbols and she was experimenting. So, I guess she mixed that stuff up with her whole crazy religion.”
"I would need to see more than what you have to even begin trying to research it," Ania said. "A bunch of knights cleaned up her stuff fast...so checking the bodies of the victims she sacrificed is out of the question."
"More knights?" Callen asked. "Is that what I heard Felix swearing about?"
Ania nodded. "They were just to help clean up. But, Sir Reeves and Lady Cole have been re-stationed here. From what grandpa said, this is serious...their case plate is stocked full again...I don't know the details, but there are more problems with unseelie fey..."
"Well, I guess that's it then...but, hopefully, Sprocket got her mom's notes before the knights did." He sighed. "Either way, there's no more going back to how things were pre-nalkori."
"Yeah, isn't that the truth. But, as much darkness that is out there, I feel better knowing that we can face it together..."
Callen smiled and touched his arm. "Yeah, me too." He pulled up some specs and diagrams on a pistol, a few different melee weapons, including a sword and some inconspicuous street clothing built from advanced materials that acted as body armor. "Guess I should get to work then."
Ania nodded. "I want the sword. It's a more elegant weapon for a more civilized age."
"Okay, Obi-Wan." Callen laughed. "We'll see if it works the way I want it to first."
Ania nodded. "I'm sure it will." She smiled. "I'll leave you to it then. I just wanted to check up with you before I left with Sir Reeves to pick up his son, Malcolm at the airport. He's my age...so, Sir Reeves thought it would be a good idea to have him meet a friend when he got here."
"Alright," Callen said. "Back to Niknak and more engineering."
"You should see Sadie when you have a chance."
"Yeah," Callen said. "I will...once I'm sure Niknak's stable."
"Just don't forget," Ania said. "She might need you."
"Why?" Callen asked.
Ania rolled her eyes. "Just go talk to her.”