

A M P

(Amplified Mental Projection)

Phase 1:

Brian K. Larson

A M P

(Amplified Mental Projection)

Phase 1

Brian K. Larson

Published by Slipstream Publishing

At Smashwords

Copyright © 2014 Brian K. Larson

DEDICATION

I dedicate this book to my step-son, Don Tangborn. Don was instrumental in helping me develop the concept of the two series, Salvage-5 and AMP, as combined works. He also provided me valuable feedback on the cover design. Without his words of wisdom, this work would not be what it is today.

CONTENTS

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Epilogue

Sneak Peek

More Works

Chapter 1

Everett Washington

Benjamin Petersen's Apartment

September 26th 2067 18:30

Ben sat on the tattered sofa in his rundown basement apartment. The floor was littered with rolled up paper balls, pencils, and partially used torn scraps of paper.

He meticulously loaded rounds into the clip of his Glock 22. He then inserted the clip with a snap into the .40 caliber, and cocked a round in the chamber. Holstering his gun in his vest, he stood to zip up his leather jacket.

He sighed as he ran his nervous fingers through his long stringy hair, "Get ahold of yourself...you can do this..."

Ben picked up his billed cap from the arm of the torn sofa and placed it on top of the long hair flowing down his back. He needed to blend in with the regulars of the center where he could find an underground accelerator module.

His father was Colonel Tucker Petersen, who had returned from the Salvage-5 mission, making a valiant attempt at saving his son's life with alien tech. Ben thought it was cool at first.

How often does a twenty something year old have brain surgery, let alone have alien tech implanted. That was three years ago. Now every city on Earth had been filled with fake imitation bio-chip implants and jamming districts. This was all thanks to his father, and the successful integration that Dr. Rhodes performed. That's really what created this bizarre culture, and he despised his father after the first trials because of it.

Governmental approval came quicker than usual.

Political pressure to reduce the current crime rate made it possible. Many times he thought that it would have been better if he had simply died in that car accident.

He detested the thought of having to go down to this district, but he needed to. He was a victim of jamming addiction, and there was only one way to quench his thirst: more gamma waves. He needed to find his downtown connection and get jacked.

Only one more session and I can complete this new pulse drive engine schematic, he thought, trying to convince himself that this would be the last.

The early drawings he provided to his client had already paid off handsomely. However the majority of his upfront payout would be spent getting AMP'd so he could finish the project. His client promised four-million when he had the completed drawings. They fronted Ben fifty-thousand in good faith, even knowing he was getting the tech from an AMP accelerator module. These units were illegal, but they didn't care. Company profit outweighed any ethics in this business climate.

Bell Town was a bad place to be in the middle of the night alone. But he had to go. The craving for the feeling of being jacked-in was overwhelming. He wanted that payoff. He could retire. Move to a better part of town and have plenty of funds to get AMP'd as often as he wished. But he knew none of that would happen unless he took this last trip to downtown.

Walking across the room, he tucked his data pad inside his coat pocket. Making one more adjustment to the bill of his cap, he walked out the door and locked it with a wave of his hand.

It was a forty-minute walk to the rail line. Then another fifty-minute ride to his stop a few blocks from his contact.

Zipping his jacket higher, he shivered in the cool breeze of this chilly September night.

Seattle Washington

Bell Town

September 26th2067 20:00

Bennie stepped off the rail and walked the few blocks to find J, his accelerator hook. He quickly made his way to the 5th Avenue Jammer club.

Bell Town was home to many jammer dens, where those that have the implant can get a cheap fix. But they were nothing like the illegal accelerators that Ben accessed in the underground. Those fees could add up to several thousand for one session, depending on how much time you bought. The simple jammer pays a hundred dollar entry fee for a night of accelerated dancing. However, they don't get near the gamma dose as the accelerators modules provide. The benefit of using the smaller gamma modulators was the jammer will lose the feeling as soon as they leave the club. Protection fields surrounded every jamming club. These clubs are legitimate establishments and regulated by the local governments.

The only guideline imposed was to enforce shielding around their establishments. This was to prevent those with implants, outside of clubs, to be isolated from any spillover of the AMP modulation signal inside.

Getting an implant was still expensive, 10k for a dirty, and up to 50 to 100 thousand for a clean one. Not many could do it, but once jacked, you would never want it removed.

Getting jammed at these elite clubs was the wave of the future. The tech begun to gain popularity and started replacing the more toxic substances that people continue to put into their bodies for a high. Since the implant is a chip and not a chemical, the FDA couldn't stop their licensing of the jamming clubs.

Ben stepped up to the dark window and leaned close in to shout over the loud music that invaded his eardrums, "Where's J tonight?"

The tall burly man inside the booth leaned closer to the mouth-hole in the glass, "I think he's down on Seneca. If he's not there, try James."

"That's clear across town!"

"That's the way it is buddy...you jammin' tonight?"

"No thanks...I need to find J."

"Okay, have it your way...just so you know, cover is twenty off tonight."

"Thanks. Maybe later."

Two scantily dressed women stepped up, each taking an arm, "Come on honey, jam with us."

"Yeah, mister. You look like fun."

Ben pulled away and smiled, "Thanks baby, but I have to go."

The two frowned, turned and left, looking for another who might buy them into the club.

Another half-hour passed and Ben finally saw J leaning on the wall of Stewart and James, "J!"

"Wus up, Bennie my man?" the tall black man said. He was a heavy-set figure with broad shoulders and was dressed in an upscale pin-striped suit. He sported a light colored straw hat. J spread his huge arms with his large knuckled hands wide, appearing to be glad to see his client.

"I need to get AMP'd."

"Big surprise," the man said slyly, sliding a toothpick to the other side of this mouth, "How much time today?"

"Another five hours."

"Five!?"

"Yes, only five."

"Well, you might want to jump up to the next price level. You sure you don't want ten or fifteen?"

"I would like more...but..." Ben said, looking over his shoulder.

"Relax, Bennie. The feds know..."

"The feds?"

"Oh they know."

"What do you mean they know? They know about me?"

"Yeah, they know. Just don't care."

"Why not? It's illegal!"

"Yes, but like I said, they don't care anymore."

Bennie continued to look over his other shoulder, "How much?"

"Ten-thousand."

"Ten?" Ben argued, "You only charged me five last time...and I was AMP'd for ten?"

"Monthly special," J smiled.

"Come on man, give me a break...I don't have that much left."

"Uh huh, thas' what they all say."

"No really. I've already given you 20k."

"You getting' jacked or not?"

"Well, yes. Of course..."

"10k..."

"I'll give you five."

"It's a better deal if you pay for ten, you'll get fifteen."

"I can't stay awake for another fifteen hours...I only need five to complete my project."

"Tell ya what. You give me 7k for eight."

Ben hesitated for a moment, then agreed, "Okay, okay, you got a deal...come on, come on, come on...let's do this."

"Payment first."

Ben held up the back of his hand and J ran his data pad across, making a blip sound as the transaction completed, "Thank you...nice doin' business," he smiled through his pearly white teeth.

"Okay, where to?"

"Follow me," J said, reaching down for his brief case, "This way."

Bennie followed him up the street and then down a dark alley. There were several addicts that still used the chemical method of forgetting their pain. For them, they could never afford to get an implant.

Many of them were passed out in their own vomit. The alley had a stench to it that imbedded on his clothes. He remembered that it took three washings to get the stink out the last time he ventured down to one of the accelerators stations.

J quickly walk down a dark stairwell and sat the case on the step, "Sit down," he instructed, then unlocked the case passing the back of his hand over it.

"Wait," Ben interrupted, "Here? How!"

"Meet PAM. This is the latest model," J smiled, "Portable Accelerator Model...now lean forward."

Ben followed his instructions and placed his head down. He pulled his long hair out of the way, exposing the back of his neck.

J brushed any wisps of hair Bennie had missed, exposing the small jack on the back of his neck. He reached into the case for a cord and then carefully plugged it into Ben's jack.

"Okay, relax," he instructed, "This shouldn't hurt a bit."

"Shouldn't?"

"You'll be fine...really, really."

J flipped a red switch to power on the box. He moved the control dial to the 50 AMP setting and waited for the unit to complete the charge.

"What's taking so long?" Ben asked, his hands shaking again, "It's never taken this long before."

"It's a portable unit, man. An' it takes a few to bring the power up...give it a sec," he looked down on the control console and noticed a message being displayed which read: "Dispense package number 9."

He raised his eyebrows and softly whispered to himself, "Okay, whatever you say boss," and punched in the special code.

The unit began to spin up making a high pitched squeal and then it discharged. Ben lost consciousness with the powerful surge of gamma rays flooding his bio-chip.

When he awoke a few minutes later, J was nowhere to be found. He crawled up the cement stairs and looked down the alley in both directions. The alley was empty where before it was littered with passed out bodies.

He began to feel the effects of the AMP and started to remember his drawing. He thought for a few moments and then smiled. He suddenly knew how to complete the schematic. But he felt different this time. There wasn't any euphoric effect during or after being jacked into the accelerator unit, "What a rip off! I'm going ta' Sly next time."

He began to walk down the alley and then stopped. He held his shaking hands up and then noticed he was sweating profusely. Losing his balance, he fell to his knees and quivered.

"What's happening to me?" he whispered. Then his right hand stopped shaking as he reached for his Glock. Unable to stop himself, his smile turned into a look of horror.

He fought the feeling of wanting to place the gun in his mouth, but couldn't resist. He grabbed his hand with his other to try to stop himself from what he was doing. He struggled, but at last, he put the gun into his mouth and pulled the trigger.

Whidbey Island Naval Base

Oak Harbor Washington

Secret Government Building

Sept. 26th 2067 20:47

A government aide quietly sat at his computer, then turned to interrupt the General, "Sir, We have successfully downloaded the schematics from the subject."

"Excellent," General McKenzie said, "Is he dead?"

"Yes, sir," his aide said, "Very."

The General frowned, "Too bad...so sad. Please send my condolences to the family."

"That's Colonel Petersen's son, right?"

"Yes."

"What should I tell them happened, sir?"

"Tell the Colonel, when you find him, that his son met with another accident."

"Yes, sir," the technician acknowledged.

Chapter 2

~ Three Years Earlier ~

Stanwood Washington

Annual Skagit County Fireworks Display

July 4th 2064 23:37

"Wow, that was some display this year," Ben said, walking his date back to his car.

"Yes...it sure was," Jen answered, taking his hand, strolling slowly along the path.

"Come on, Jen," Ben said, approaching his red vintage 2034 Mustang Cobra, "It'll be fun...I promise not to speed...too fast."

"Yeah, right...you're too much like your father."

"Oh come on now, sheesh. Whattya take me for?"

"Oh never you mind that now," the short dark haired twenty year old said.

"Jen..."

"No...I'm not coming with you, Ben. Your driving scares me sometimes."

"Please..."

"Don't give me those eyes," she smiled, brushing her shoulder length hair out of her face, "...I don't like it when you give me those eyes. You know I can't resist."

The sparkle in her dark brown eyes, as she looked at her young friend, was all Ben needed to see. He knew he'd be getting his way tonight. That much was for sure.

The two hopped in the front seat. Ben leaned over to give Jen a kiss on her cheek. She blushed and waved her hand to cool her face, "Bennie, you are a charmer."

"I hope you had a nice time tonight."

"Oh, Bennie...you know I did," she said lowering her chin and turning her head slightly away.

"Where're you taking me anyway?"

"Oh, I don' know...home maybe?"

She swatted at this arm, "Bennie, you are just like your father. No, I don't think so."

"Oh Jen, you're gonna' break my heart over up in here."

He reached over and playfully bit her chin, then leaned upright and cranked the engine with a varoom.

"Wow, this is loud."

"Yeah, you ain't seen nothin' yet."

"Man Ben, I didn't know they even allowed combustion engines on the roads anymore."

"Well, having a colonel for a dad..."

"...gets you perks...yeah, you keep telling me that."

"I can only access the country roads anyway," Bennie shifted into first gear and sped off, taking a hard left onto the main road. The rear of his car fishtailed from side to side, and spewed gravel as he sped out of the parking lot.

Jen grabbed her arm rest, "Benjamin! You promised!"

"Now, now," he said, "That wasn't fast."

"It was too! Now just take it easy will ya?"

Ben quickly accelerated through the gears, climbing to 80 miles per hour, "Whoooo! This rocks baby!"

"Yeah, it's not as bad as I thought," she managed to smile through the rush.

He reached over and punched the tunes which began playing some very vintage rock music from Pink Floyd.

"Wow, Ben. That's so cool you still have some of this music."

"Yeah, I'm like my dad..."

"But I thought you said..."

"...in respect to music. He loved the 80's and 90's music area."

"Yeah, but that must have been thirty years before your father was born."

"He never liked the techno music stuff in 2025. So he opened the music vault, and reintroduced it to me when I was growing up...been hooked ever since."

"So, which one is this?"

"Yeah!" Ben shouted over the music, "This one's 'Learning to Fly' off the 'A Momentary Lapse of Reason' album."

"Yeah, pretty cool. Speaking of lapses of reason and flying, how's about slowing down some, huh?"

"Okay, okay," Ben relented and slowed to the posted speed of 50 mph.

"You must love your father."

"Yeah, I do...he's been there even through the divorce."

"I'm glad," Jen said. Taking Ben's hand, she placed it in her lap.

Ben raised his eyebrows, "Wow, aren't you being forward."

"I really do care about you, Bennie."

"Why the sudden change of heart?"

"Well, I don't want to lose you."

"Don't be silly, Jen. I said I'm not like my father. I can wait if you really want to."

"You're a great guy, Bennie..."

"Ah...jeez, I don't know what to say..."

"...I think I'm in love with you."

"Jen...I..."

"It's okay, Bennie. I understand...you don't have to say it back if you're not ready.

"But I am, Jen."

"Bennie?"

"Yeah! I'm ready to say it!"

He slammed on the brakes and came to a screeching stop in the middle of the road.

Opening his car door, he stepped out. With the engine still rumbling in the night sky, he stepped to the front of the car. Bennie jumped on the hood, and then to the roof.

Spreading his arms wide, he yelled at the top of his lungs, "I...BENNIE PETERSEN...AM...IN LOVE...WITH...JENNY RUBINSTEIN!!"

By this time, Jen had opened her door and leaned out, "Come on you crazy man...get down from there before you get hurt."

"Don't be silly, Jen...ain't no one out here on this deserted old country road."

Then he feigned slipping off the roof and fell to the ground. Rolled a couple of times, and then fell motionless on his back with his eyes closed.

"Ben!" Jen shouted, running over to his side of the car. She kneeled down and took his hand, "Bennie! Are you alright!?"

His eyes popped open at once, "BOO!"

Jen jumped back with a start, "OH! Bennie! You are incorrigible!"

He lifted his head and took her lips to his. The two kissed passionately, right there in the middle of the old country road.

Finally, Jen stood and helped Ben to his feet, "Come on, mister."

"Where to?"

"I think you were gonna take me to your place," she said, dimples gleaming.

"Wow! Okay...seriously? I mean, you're not foolin' around now are ya?"

"No silly boy," she tugged at his hand, pulling him toward the car, "I'm not kiddin' around...I'm ready..."

"Wow, okay then...shall we?" he escorted Jen to her side of the car and closed the door for her, then came around and got in.

He looked over and gave her a grin, "Let's go then."

Jen barely had enough time to buckle in before he gunned the throttle and popped the clutch. The resulting 500 horsepower engine was enough to push them back into their seats. The car wheels peeled out, making a screeching sound as the car rocketed away. But Bennie was faithful to his word and slowed the powerful car, keeping it below 40.

"Wasn't that exhilarating?"

"Yeah, Bennie...I'm tingling all the way to my little toes."

Jen's sentence was abruptly interrupted as they crossed the next intersection. Another speeding car failed to stop as they crossed. The light had been green, but the oncoming vehicle didn't bother stopping for their red.

The oncoming car slammed hard into the passenger door, the Mustang spun 360 degrees three times and wrapped around the light pole on the opposite side of the road. Bennie slumped over Jen and slipped into unconsciousness.

The speeding car veered off the road and exploded, landing upside down in the drainage ditch. The resulting explosion sent fire rocketing 100 feet into the air, burning any survivors.

Bennie slipped in and out of consciousness. Every time he came to, he called out for Jen, and then passed out again with the sounds of emergency vehicles approaching in the distance.

He awoke slightly to the sounds of voices coming to the car, but drifted out once more, still cradling Jen in his arms.

Ben tried to force his eyes open, in revolt to the IV that had been stuck in his arm. He found himself strapped to a gurney and overheard a medical attendant speaking as they wheeled him to an ambulance, "Yeah, Chief. The female was DOA."

"What about this one? Was there alcohol involved?"

"Not this one. But it's questionable if this kid will make it or not. He's lost a lot of blood and a severe head injury on top of that. He may also have a severed spinal cord."

"Okay, get him to Valley General!"

"No can do, sir."

"Whattya mean?"

"He's some Colonel's son. We've been given immediate orders to transport him to Whidbey Memorial."

"Okay, who's to argue with the Military? If that's what they want, then take him."

"Yes, sir. ETA's about 30 minutes."

"What about the other vehicle?"

The EMT lifted the gurney inside the ambulance, "The driver was killed on impact. He wasn't buckled in...steering wheel decapitated him instantly."

"Hmmm, really? The hood would have been crushed...it wasn't."

"Well, that's just it. The military was almost here before we were. They're the ones that told us. They wouldn't let us near that other car or the deceased female."

"Really."

"Yep. That's the story we were given by the head officer."

"What about drugs or alcohol?"

"Yeah, the driver of the burned vehicle. The Major said there were empty whiskey bottles in the drainage ditch. He said he was going to take them back to their lab for testing. If there's a match, he'll let us know."

"Did you get his name? I'll need to ask him some questions for my report."

"Yeah. Major Griffin," the attendant, said. He reached into his pocket and handed him the card that he was given. "He said to call anytime. He'll be more than happy to help."

"Thanks!"

The EMT closed the doors to the ambulance, and then got in the driver's seat and sped off to the hospital, full lights and siren blaring.

The sounds of the siren quieted in his mind as Ben again lost consciousness. He drifted in and out during the 30 minute drive to the military facility.

Oak Harbor Washington

Memorial Hospital

July 5th 2064 07:30

Major Griffin cradled Beverly Petersen's head as she sobbed outside the ICU. His military jacket stained with her tears over the last several hours, he gently stroked her hair and comforted her.

"Why! Why? Why did this have to happen?" she sobbed. "He was so happy...and Jenny...poor Jen!"

"I know, Ma'am," Griffin said, patting her on the shoulder, "It was a drunk driver...they never had a chance."

Griffin's words only made her cry more hysterically, "Where's Tucker anyway? Has anyone told him yet?"

"No, Ma'am. Not yet."

"Well, why not! Just because we're divorced..."

"We're still trying to locate the Colonel."

"Huh...well that's typical of Tuck," she managed between sobs, "Never stays in one place for too long."

"As soon as he's located, we'll be able to tell him."

"Well, you can spare him the trouble of coming here. I know he's a busy man."

"Mrs. Petersen, I'm sure he'll want to come."

"I'll bet he would. But I'd prefer not to see him. If his son regains consciousness, then he can come and see him. But I know it will hurt him too much to see Bennie this way...he loved him so much..."

"Now, now...don't even start to talk in the past tense."

"I know, I know...I didn't mean to..."

"You do still care for him, don't you? I mean Tucker..."

"Yes. There's no denying that Tom."

"But..."

"Tom...there's no way Tuck and I could ever get back together, so you don't have to worry." She looked up at the major through her mascara stained eyes and smiled.

The doctor walked up to the two, "Ma'am? Major?"

"Doc, what's the status?" Griffin asked.

"Well, he has sustained a major head injury. His spine was severed at C3 and C4. I'm sorry, Ma'am...he's paralyzed from the neck down.

Tears began to well up in Bev's eyes again, "No, no, that can't be...you can heal that can't you?"

"We have come a long way in spinal column regrowth, but nothing real successful."

"I don't care what the cost," Griffin said, "I want the very best care for Bennie."

"Understood, Major. You don't have to worry. The General's already briefed me."

"General McKenzie?" Beverly asked.

"Yes, Ma'am. The General got wind that the crash victim was the Colonel's son. He told me to do whatever I could to keep him alive...and that's what we're doing."

"When can I go in and see him," Beverly begged.

"You can go in now. He's stable, but in a coma so he's on a ventilator."

"Doc," Bev asked, choking back her tears, "Do you think he'll make it?"

"He has a chance. We've been able to control the bleeding and if his brain doesn't swell anymore, then yes, he has a chance to make it. But the next 48 hours will be the most critical."

The two were escorted into the ICU by the doctor. Bev stood at the side of her son's bed in shock. She reached down and took his hand and gently caressed him. Unable to hold her tears back, she dripped several down her cheeks to his hand.

Ben flinched as her tears splashed on the back of his hand, "Did you see that?"

"I'm sorry, Ma'am. He's in a coma. I assure you he will have some involuntary muscle twitches from time to time."

"Are you sure?" Beverly questioned, "I'm not a medical expert, but if his spinal cord was severed, then he couldn't have involuntary twitches...right?"

"It doesn't work that way, Mrs. Petersen."

The sound of the air pumping and releasing was deafening to Bev's ears. It wasn't loud, but her sensitivity was peaked and with every depression of the pump, she quailed.

"It's okay, Bev," Griffin said, rubbing her shoulder, "You'll get used to the sound."

"No...no, I think you're wrong. I don't think I'll ever get used to this noise...nor will it be easy to forget...and I don't ever want to get used to it either."

"Ma'am?" the doctor asked.

"If I get used to this pump, then I've given up hope. I need to keep fighting for him...with him...my son's a fighter...and by golly he's going to walk again...I'll see to it that he does!"

Griffin squeezed her hand, "And I'll be right by your side fighting with you, Bev."

She looked over at the Major with gratitude in her eyes, "Thanks Tom. I really appreciate you being here with me."

"No problem, Bev. I wouldn't be anywhere else but by your side."

She faked a smile and then turned back to her son. Looking down at him, and with the constant noise of the ventilator expanding and contracting, she again began to travail uncontrollably.

Griffin held her from collapsing to the floor and had her sit in a chair.

The doctor looked over at the nurse, who then prepared a shot and then handed it to the doctor.

"Here, Ma'am. Something to relax you. It's best you try and rest."

Bev backed away in protest, but Griffin held her still, "Shhh, shhh, shhh. It's for the best Beverly."

The doctor held the needle to her arm and injected the drug, causing Bev to fall quickly asleep.

"There. She'll be out for several hours."

"Thanks Doc," Griffin said, shaking his hand. "Ensure you keep Ben under. The General does NOT want him to wake up."

"I just follow orders."

"That's a good man, Captain. I need to meet with McKenzie, so will you see to Beverly while I'm away?"

"Sure thing, Major." The doctor said with a salute.

"And make sure you keep that kid alive, we need him to bring Tucker in," Griffin said, as he left the ICU room.

"You can count on me, Major. He'll be just fine...and 'keep that to myself', I know."

Whidbey Island Naval Base

Major Griffin's Office

July 5th 2064 12:30

The major's aide radioed him on the vid-screen, "Major, I have Colonel Petersen on a satellite link."

"Thank you, Lieutenant. Great news...put him through."

"Just a moment, sir."

"Colonel? Yes, Major Griffin...Colonel, if I may......yes, I know you're out of the country...and I'm not even going to ask what you're doing in Spain......yes......Colonel, I have to interrupt......yes, I understand...Colonel......your son's been in an accident.........Colonel? Yes, he's alive. He's in a coma. He may not make it...you better hurry......yes, we're doing everything we can......yes, that's right...good...so you'll be on the next flight back to the States then? Okay, Colonel.........I'm sorry about Bennie......yes, he's stable for now......right...okay, we'll see you when you get here."

The Major disconnected his vid-phone link. He stood from his desk and walked down the hall to the General's office, "Can you tell the General I need to see him."

"Right away sir...General, it's the Major. He has an update...the General said to go on in, Major." Griffin walked through the door and closed it behind.

"Major...please, sit down," General McKenzie motioned with his hand, "So, did you finally find the Colonel?"

"Yes, sir. He's out of the country...Spain, I think."

"What the devil is he doing in Spain?"

"I told him I didn't even want to know."

"So, staging the accident was a success in bringing him in?"

"Yes, sir. He came to us as soon as he heard there was news about Ben."

"How'd he take it?"

"The Colonel is a very stoic individual, but he did show some signs of stress in his voice. He said he'll be on the next flight to the States."

"Excellent...once he makes it into town, I'll send Captain Phillips to recruit him for our mission."

"Once you find him, that is...remember, he's not going to make finding him easy."

"Why not approach him at the hospital? What's wrong with our original plan? Isn't that why we had the accident in the first place? Use his son as bait to bring him in? Then recruit him for the mission?"

"Beverly wishes to keep him away. Unless he's awake, she won't allow him around."

"You mean, you won't allow him around. I got your number mister."

Changing the subject back to the Colonel, "Sir, I know Tucker isn't one that's going to be easy to convince to come out of retirement..."

"A way will present itself...it always does...and finding Tucker? Well, Cassie is very resourceful, she'll come through."

"I still have my doubts you'll get him in time."

"The Company said we have until July 26th before we miss our launch deadline."

"Twenty-one days, sir? That's not going to be easy."

"I know our team can be trained in ten days. That gives us eleven to find him and get him onboard."

"That's cutting it mighty thin, sir."

"Relax, Major."

"You don't know Tucker Petersen like I do."

"I am well aware of Tucker. But really, how hard could it be?"

"You might want to have an alternate commander in place, General."

"I'll leave that to your capable hands, Major. I'm more interested at why three salvage missions have gone missing."

"I'm sure the Company is interested in that too, General."

"The Company is interested in anything that's profitable, and that's why they're calling the shots these days."

"They are very gracious in funding our projects," Griffin smiled.

"And you've profited from them too, let's not forget that."

The General's vid-link lit up with his aide, "General, you're going to want to see this, and bring the Major with you to the control room."

"What's up Nadine?"

"It'd be better to see it for yourself."

The General raised his eyebrows, looked at Griffin and stood, "Intriguing...shall we, Major?"

Chapter 3

Memorial Hospital

July 5th 2064 13:17

"Code blue! Room 321...repeat, Code blue! Room 321, STAT!" the intercom bellowed.

Alarms blared in the room, waking Beverly from her sleep, "Wha...what's going on?" she croaked.

The doctors and nurses ignored Bev's plea for information, she stood and stumbled slightly, still under the drugs influence.

She regained her footing against the wall and looked on in horror at the medical staff nervously crowding around her son.

"He's in cardiac arrest!"

"Starting compressions," one of the attendants announced.

Bennies chest was depressed in rhythmic motion as another monitored his vital signs, "...no pulse."

The doctor charged into the room, "What's the status?"

"He went into cardiac arrest, his blood pressure is dropping."

"Get ready to shock him...charge to 300."

"Charged...CLEAR!"

The team withdrew from Bennie as the attendant sent the shock into his heart. His body arched off the table, the scope fluttered on the screen, and then his body flopped back down.

"Still flat line!"

"Again!" the doctor ordered.

"CLEAR!"

Again, the team withdrew as the current from the defibrillator sent Bennie into convulsions.

The monitor began beeping and displayed a somewhat normal beat, "Sinus rhythm doctor."

"Blood pressure still falling, 90 over 60."

"How much blood did he lose?"

"When he was brought in he had lost five units. He was infused with two in forty minutes, then the last two at the standard rate of three hours per unit."

The doctor stroked his chin, "He's still losing blood. He must be bleeding internally."

"Doctor, he's in ventricular tachycardia...heart rate 130, BP dropping...we're losing him!"

"Give him one milligram IV Lidocaine...then repeat in three minutes with half a millimeter...get him stable, we need to get him ready for emergency surgery."

"I'm getting a room ready, doctor," one of the nurses acknowledged.

"The Lidocaine had little effect, he's still tachycardia...BP still dropping."

"We need to move him now!"

"They're ready downstairs, doctor."

The team quickly wheeled Bennie out of the room to the surgery theater, leaving Beverly behind...alone...crying.

Whidbey Island Naval Base

Special Operations Command Center

July 5th 2064 13:30

"So what you're saying, Lieutenant is that you have received some kind of signal emanating from the asteroid?

"Yes, sir," Lieutenant Preston nodded. Pointing to his screen, "This is a carrier wave and it's not from any of our vessels. There is some data encapsulated within the carrier wave."

"Data?"

"Yes, sir."

"Well don't make me ask..."

"I'm still trying to figure it all out..."

"...well?" the General shrugged.

"Well is a deep subject...sir."

Griffin interrupted the General before he could chew the Lieutenant a new ass, "Preston...please don't make the General wait any longer...nor the rest of us for that matter."

"You see..." Preston stuttered.

"...come on with it man!"

"...It's foreign."

"Foreign? That's it? What, we talking about the Russians?"

"No...foreign as in..."

"...not from this planet?" Griffin finished, "Is that what you are telling us? This is an...extraterrestrial signal?"

"Um, well, yeah...that's it...sir."

The General burst out in laughter and slapped his knee, "Boy! You two really had me going there!"

"Sir, it's real...this isn't a prank."

The General quieted his laugher and looked at the computer screen of an image the Lieutenant brought up, "We did some preliminary scans and captured these images..."

The general studied the picture and then stepped back once the technician zoomed in.

Preston pointed to the image, "This is the CSMO. It's stationary about 1000 meters from the surface."

"Yeah," the general said, "I understand this is the mining ops...but what's this?" pointing at another spot on the screen.

"Your guess is as good as mine, sir. But I'd say it's a crashed UFO on the asteroid surface."

"Uh huh...right..." McKenzie nodded, "Son, what you are saying here right now is never to leave this room," he raised his voice, "That means everyone in this room...is that clear?"

The room fell silent and everyone in the room somberly nodded over the noise of the instruments and cooling fans blowing.

"Are they alive?" Griffin asked.

"I'm not picking anything up other than the carrier wave. It's like an automated signal." The Lieutenant looked up at the general, "I'd say that somehow the crew on the CSMO activated something down there."

Turning to Griffin, "What's the word on Colonel Petersen?"

"He's still traveling from Spain, sir."

McKenzie addressed the Lieutenant, "Can you interpret the language?"

"It's very complex. Every word, even every syllable could have sixteen meanings...but the base is mathematical. Our computers are able to see those patterns...wait a minute..."

"What?"

"What is it, Lieutenant?" Griffin asked, almost at the same time.

"Just one sec," Preston said, typing on his keyboard. Then he sat back, covered his smile with his hand, "I don't believe this!"

"Lieutenant, are we going to start that again?" McKenzie said with a stern look.

"No, sir." Preston wiped the sweat off his forehead, "The computer is putting together a set of schematics from the data."

"The code is in an old binary machine language. It took a little while for the processors to work with it."

"What's the schematic of?" Griffin asked.

"The thing looks like a chip of some type...it looks like the instructions are coded for a medical procedure."

"Bio-technology?" McKenzie said, hands on his hips.

"Yes, that's exactly what it appears to be."

"Do you think our friends are getting this?"

"Let's just say there isn't anything preventing anyone from receiving the signal, but I doubt many will understand its complexity."

"Just the important ones, right son?"

"Yes, sir. I suppose so, sir."

"Griffin," the general said, "We can't wait for Tucker. I want an alternate commander appointed. We have to get there before they do! We have to stop that signal from getting into the wrong hands."

"I'm on it General," Griffin acknowledged, "and I'll bet that they're going to do the same."

"That's a risk alright. I want the ships equipped with our best weapons. If we run into any trouble from our friends, I want them to defend themselves."

"I read you loud and clear, General. You can count on me."

McKenzie's and the Major's data pads went off at the same time. The general turned one way and Griffin turned the other to listen to their calls.

Then the two ended their calls and turned to each other with wide eyebrows. The two stood in shock at the news of them nearly losing the colonel's son a few minutes ago.

"He's gone into emergency surgery. They say they're fairly certain the doctor found the bleeder. He's repairing it now," Griffin nodded.

"Get back over there. We need Beverly to be on our side now more than ever."

"Especially with this newly found tech we're getting."

"Make sure you get her to sign consent..."

"Ben is considered an adult. I don't think we need her consent."

"Well now, he's in a coma I understand," McKenzie smiled, "See to it you get the forms signed anyway."

"Understood, sir. The Colonel's son will be an excellent test subject for this tech."

Memorial Hospital

July 5th 2064 19:07

Griffin stood next to Beverly, holding her up with an arm. He let her sink into him and she felt comfort from her friend's support.

"Doctor? How is he?"

"Ma'am, he made it through surgery and is in recovery. He had a tear in his aorta. A few minutes more and we would be having an entirely different conversation."

"Thank God!" Beverly said with a sigh of relief, nearly collapsing in Griffin's arms.

"He's not completely out of the woods yet."

"Whattya mean Doc?" Griffin asked, with a feigned look of concern.

"There's still the head trauma to deal with."

"Can you tell me when my son will wake up?" Bev asked, shaking.

"No, Ma'am. I'm afraid it's all up to Bennie now."

Griffin nodded, "Bennie's a fighter, Bev. He'll pull through alright."

"I know, I know...I'm just a wreck over this."

"It's okay, Beverly," Griffin said, turning her toward him, "I promise we won't let anything happen to Bennie."

"Oh, Tom...you don't know what it means to hear you say that."

"...and just so you know, I do need your consent on a few forms. Bev, we have a new procedure we'd like to test on Bennie...you know...if he doesn't wake up on his own."

"What's this procedure, Tom?"

"I can't tell you very much."

"Government secrecy?"

"Yeah, something like that. Bev, trust me. This is on the cutting edge. It's latest technological breakthrough. It could revolutionize medicine as we know it today."

"I trust you, Tom," Beverly smiled and gave him a hug. Then kissed his cheek, "Show me the forms...I'll give you my consent."

Griffin smiled and then kissed her in return, "Right this way..."

Major Griffin's Office

July 14th 2064 16:00

"That's right General. Major Jamison is our man for the mission... ...yes, he just came in and said he wanted to be on point. I didn't even have to coax him. He said something about having nothing to lose... ... ... ...no, we've not been able to locate the colonel. Cassie is working on it though...I hope she's as good as you say she is... ...right, we'll keep the boy on life support just in case... ... ...don't worry about a thing General, I've got everything under control. Bennie is stable, but he is still in a coma... ...no, it's not induced...he really never woke up from the surgery... ...yeah, they're all stumped... ...what's that? Right, they think he refuses to wake up. The doctors think that he doesn't want to deal with the loss of Jen... ... ...well General, we really weren't counting on him having any passengers... ...I know I should have verified... ...I'm sorry for the added costs... ...right... ...she's fine... ...and we have Beverly's full cooperation... ...okay General, I'll keep you posted... ...talk to you later, bye."

The Major disconnected his data pad, only to be interrupted by a quiet knock on the door. He stood with a start, "Beverly! What are you doing here?"

"What's the matter, Tom? You don't seem glad to see me."

"Oh, no, come in, come in. Sit down, Bev."

"What was all that about, Tom?"

"Oh, that? That was the General, just giving him a briefing."

"What was that you said about she's fine?" Bev asked, crossing her arms, "Where you referring to me...cause if you were, you're dead wrong."

"Excuse me?" Griffin said with raised eyebrows.

"I'm not fine...not by a long shot. My only son is still in a coma."

"...but alive. Don't forget that...and I wasn't referring to you, Ma'am."

"Tom, you don't have to be that way with me," she said leaning forward, "I'm a big girl...you don't have to cover for me. It's okay to tell people that I'm not okay."

"Anything you say, Bev. I'll be more careful in the future with regard to your feelings."

"Thank you, Tom," she smiled, "Now, shall we?"

"Shall we...what?"

"Oh come on, Tom. You can't be serious?"

"Bev?"

"Dinner? Remember?"

"Oh, of course. Is it that time already?"

"I wouldn't be here if it wasn't."

"Alright then," Griffin said, standing and offering her his arm, "Shall we?"

Beverly took his arm, looked up into his eyes and smiled, "Just because my son's in the hospital doesn't mean I have to stop living."

"You are so right, Bev," the red faced Major said, escorting her through the door.

Special Operations Command Center

August 8th 2064 06:00

General McKenzie stood with an angry stare, "You're saying we only got a few minutes of recording from Gus' satellite?"

"Forty-five minutes of recording time, then nothing."

"What about the CSMO? Is it still stationary?"

"Yes, sir. She's not budged an inch."

"And there's no signal or anything from Salvage-4's ship? They just disappeared?"

"Except the ship is transmitting its emergency beacon."

"So they are alive?"

"We're not entirely sure, sir."

"Okay. Lieutenant, get me Captain Phillips."

"Right away, sir... ...patching her through to your data pad now."

"Cassie, how are you? Thanks, I'm fine. Say, how close are you to getting to the colonel? That's right, we need him to man the next recovery mission... ...you'll bring him in tomorrow then? Excellent...I knew you'd be able to find him... ... ...Captain, I'm sure you went through hell to find him, and I am completely indebted to your resourcefulness... ...you're quite welcome... ...captain, there's one more thing...I'm sending you with Sergeant Samuels on the next mission... .... ...Captain? You still there? Yes, that's right...yes, I need you on this one... ...I knew I could count on you...thank you Cassandra. I'm looking forward to seeing you tomorrow... ...with the Colonel... ... ..you're certain you can find him? I know, I know...you said you found him already... ...very well then, I just wanted to ensure you understood the gravity of this situation...it's imperative that we get the team ready to launch in ten days...yes, it's a race...but I'm sure we'll beat them...we have ways of delaying them from their launch...right, your ship will be well equipped.

General McKenzie's office

September 4th 2064 18:00

"What's your latest report?" the General asked, staring at the man across his desk.

"We received a final transmission from the Salvage-5 team."

"Do you think they fell to the same demise as Major Jamison?"

"I think Tucker has the situation under control. They safely made the alien landing bay."

"Then why is this their last transmission? Did they find the tech or not?"

"We lost transmission when they entered the dome on the structure. I'm confident that the colonel has the situation under control."

"I have my reservations," the General said, stroking his chin, "Start briefing another team."

"Sir, it's too early to call it."

"No, I think he failed...and I think it was a mistake to recommend Tucker Petersen for this mission."

"I think you're wrong, General."

"Look, General, he was successful in intercepting the signal."

"At least the Vatican won't have any more downloads. Did we manage to get the entire feed?"

"We received most of it, sir."

"That's why we need Tuck to complete his mission. Without the physical tech to reverse engineer..."

"I know, I know...the blueprints are worthless without it," the General said, begrudgingly, "Okay, I'll give them another 24 hours...if you don't hear from him by then, start making arrangements for the next team."

"Yes, sir."

"Now about the boy."

"Tuckers kid?"

"Yes, take him off life support when you call it."

"Terminate the boy?"

"We've kept him alive longer than we should've. Even if we get the tech, it might be too late for him now."

"Sir, with all due respect..."

"Are you questioning my authority?"

"The question is, sir, don't the parents have the right to make that decision, not us?"

"Are the parents able to pay for his care? No, I seriously doubt it...we need to stop wasting resources...'sides, I'm sure another candidate will become available."

"What, like Bennie?"

"Bennie was a necessary casualty. I needed Tucker to have a reason to go on this mission."

"You caused the accident that put him in the coma, and now you want me to finish off your dirty work?"

"Unless you want me to implicate you in creating the crash, I would do exactly as you're told...dismissed Major."

General McKenzie's Home

September 5th 2064 00:30

General McKenzie's data pad woke him by flashing a bright light into his dark bedroom. The buzz of the device on his bedside nearly caused him to knock it to the ground as he reached for the thing.

"Ye...yes..." he grumbled, "This is McKenzie. And this had better be good."

"Major Griffin, sir."

"Yes, go on...man, spill it!"

"You said for me to notify you if there was any news."

"Did you hear from our boys?" the general asked, sitting up in bed.

"No sir. But we have a visual on the Asteroid 15 Eunomia...it's in three sections...fractured right down the middle and off to one end."

"But nothing from the crew..."

"No sir."

"Humph...that's really too bad then...proceed with the termination of the child."

"But, sir, they have another 18 hours."

"Don't but sir, me!"

"Let me remind you of your promise..."

"...damn it anyway...go ahead and wait...let it never be said that I'm not a compassionate man...but I'm not a patient one...no later than 1800 hours, you hear me? If you don't, I will go down there and unplug him my damn self!"

"Yes, sir. Thank you sir," Then Griffin terminated the data link.

"Damn fool," McKenzie muttered before rolling over and going back to sleep.

Memorial Hospital

September 5th 2064 17:59

Major Griffith stood over Beverly, who sobbed as she grieved for her son's life when his data pad went off, "General?"

"Call it, Major. There's no time left."

"General, if their last transmission had just been sent, it'd take 23 minutes to be received...give us that."

"Major, you're grasping...no more time. I told you not past 1800, it's now comin' on 1801...the bill is now on the mother and her family, Ben's no more the government's responsibility."

"Sir."

"Don't make me come over there and pull the damn plug myself."

"Okay, very well sir...I understand," Griffin said, lowering his head before terminating the wireless call.

He looked down at Beverly, "I'm sorry, Bev. I...Ahem," Griffin choked, "I...I have to order him to be taken off of life support now."

Beverly, drained of willpower and numb, stood to walk out of the room. She kissed her son's cheek, then turned and began to leave, tears pouring down her cheeks as she couldn't bear to watch.

Griffin looked at the head nurse and nodded for her to proceed.

The nurse, giving a sigh, turned to her panel and began the shutdown procedure to terminate Bennie's life.

The major's data pad vibrated displaying the General's picture, then he accepted the call, "Sir, I just gave the order..."

"Stop! We just received a transmission! They made it...that son of a bitch made it!"

Griffin covered the ear piece and shouted with a lift in his voice, "Stop the termination! You're certain of this?"

"Do you really think I would call to prank you over a matter like this?"

"No sir, most likely not...thank you sir."

"Make sure the patient is prepped for surgery as soon as they get back."

"We're going to do an implant...right?"

"Yes, they have the tech. Bennie can be healed and we get to advance the governments capabilities," Makenzie smiled, rubbing his hands slowly together.

Beverly ran up to Griffin and squeezed him hard, "Thank you...thank you for supporting me as long as you did."

"Bev, if it was anyone else..."

"I know, I know...that doesn't change the fact that I am truly grateful."

General McKenzie's Office

September 24th, 2064 09:00

"Major? McKenzie here... ...yes, the colonel and Cassie just left my office. I have the tech. Tucker will be on his way over this afternoon for the procedure. Make sure Doctor Rhodes has everything he needs... ...yes, that's right. I'm moving the box to our top secret control center. I want Calvin on board with our team as well... ...no, he was out there, we need him... ...Major... ....it's imperative that he's on our team... ...great...that's it then, meet up at the secret location once the procedure is complete...yeah, it was sheer luck that Tucker had a chip in his head... ...you think the transplant will be a success? What does Rhodes say about it? He's confident that both will survive? Excellent Major, nice work."

Major Griffin disconnected his data pad, turned to Beverly and embraced her, "It's going to be alright. Bennie's being prepped for the surgery we talked about."

Beverly sobbed, but this time with joy that her son was finally going to have his life saving surgery...whatever it was that they had developed. She didn't really care where it came from as long as it could save Bennie.

"Tom, you sure he'll be alright?"

"Doctor Rhodes is our finest surgeon. He'll be in great hands."

Beverly wiped her tears away as Griffin looked down at her. It was a magical moment when the two locked lips.

Chapter 4

Memorial Hospital

Sept. 24th, 2064 21:00

"Nice job Doctor," the surgical attendant commented.

"Thanks," Doctor Rhodes answered with a smile, "The component extraction was a fairly simple one."

"Doctor, you don't have to be modest," the attendant smiled through her mask, "I mean really, 'alien tech transplant' has to be the top weirdest thing I've ever assisted with."

After my trip to the Kirkwood Gap and the things I've seen over the last month, well, let's just say this is simple compared to all that."

"What exactly did you see, Doctor?"

"I've seen things that would make your hair stand on end, but I'm not allowed to tell you or anyone else...and this little jewel," holding the chip in the air with a pair of forceps, "You never saw...do I make myself clear on this?"

"Yes, Doctor."

Rhodes set the chip down on the metal tray, still clamped with the forceps. It was cylindrical in shape, but came to a point, like a cone, which had a small thin wire like strand that protruded from the end.

The team studied the chip and performed several tests while they were prepping Bennie for the transplant.

"I never got to get a close look at this until now."

"Doctor, the Colonel is ready for recovery."

"Hmm, let me have a look at your sewing skills," Rhodes said, looking over at the closing nurse.

He stepped momentarily over to Tucker's table and quickly glanced at the wound, "Not bad...maybe next week you can sew me a new comforter."

"Sure thing, Doctor," the nurse smiled with her eyes, "I'll make it from cadaver skins if you'd like."

"Oh sure, that will go great with my lampshades I had Collins make me last month."

"Lampshades?"

"Just kidding...go ahead and send him to recovery. I want to get a few more minutes with this before I do the implant."

"Very well, Doctor," the nurse said, then pushed Tucker's gurney out of the operating room and off to recovery.

Rhodes quickly turned back to the chip and set a high powered microscope over the wire, "Hmmm...this is interesting."

"Doctor?"

"Yes, well...let's just say that this is very amazing technology."

"Bennie's going to be one lucky camper."

"Well, I wouldn't go so far as saying that."

"What do you mean, Doc?"

"We really don't know how this chip will react in another host. My guess is that it takes DNA from the host and begins duplicating the host cells. That's what makes the thing grow inside."

"Kind of creepy if you ask me," the attendant shivered.

"I thought so too, but at the same time...very interesting."

"I don't think I'd like this inside of me. That's for sure."

"Fascinating," Rhodes exclaimed, "This wire...or fiber...or whatever it is, is made up of the same material I took samples of inside the alien complex."

"Bio-organic?"

"It's more than that, but there's an enzyme...sort of a byproduct of DNA harvest and cell conversion."

"What's that mean?"

"What that means, is that I think I can duplicate this technology."

"Don't you need that organic material from the alien complex to duplicate the chip?"

"To a certain degree, yes."

"You brought some home with you...didn't you," the nurse smiled again with her eyes.

"Well, yes...I did bring a couple of vials. Just enough to make a couple of prototypes from. Once I have a working duplicate, I'm confident I could mass produce the chip."

"To what end, Doctor?"

"We are going to revolutionize medicine."

"Gee, doc. I don't see who'd want a computer chip implanted in their bodies...let alone inside your head."

"Brain..."

"Brain...which is inside your head...eww, that's so gross."

"Oh come now, it must not be that bad or you'd never have made it on my team."

"Well, that's different."

"Ms. Rollins, are you flirting with me?"

"No, sir. I'd never do that."

"Uh huh...sure you wouldn't."

"Really..."

"Nurse Rollins..."

"What?" she asked, shrugging her shoulders.

"Okay, let's clean this chip up, sterilize it, and then we'll be ready."

"I'll take care of that for you...doctor."

"Thank you Nurse Rollins, but this little jewel's not leaving my sight."

"Oh come on...I'm just going to take it over..."

Rhodes never let her finish, "No way, no how...it's not leaving my sight."

"Okay, doctor...I understand."

"No, I really don't think you do."

"You think I'm going to steal this...that's it, isn't it?"

"We can't be too careful. I've been instructed to trust no one."

"Doctor Rhodes...I've been called many things in my life, but never a thief!"

"Nothing personal you know...my job's on the line here."

"Well...that does sort of hurt my feelings..."

"If you really want to clean the thing, that's fine...just in my sight."

"Very well, doctor."

"Still friends?"

"Yeah, still friends..."

"Okay, let's get this chip ready for Bennie, shall we?"

"It would be my pleasure, Doctor."

Whidbey Island Naval Base

Secret Lab Complex

September 24th, 2064 23:30

Preston and his peer, Hawthorn was escorted by the general's aide to the elevator that would open up a new realm to the two officers. Neither of them fully understood the gravity of this new alien tech that had been recovered by the Salvage-5 crew.

"How deep is this complex anyway," Lieutenant Hawthorn asked.

"It's a ways...maybe four hundred feet?"

"Why so far below the ground?" Preston asked.

"It's an old converted base. It was once an ammunitions depot a couple hundred years ago. Now, it serves as one of the country's most top secret complexes for testing and housing the alien tech."

"How long did it take to build this?"

"Lieutenant's, I must ask you to hold your questions," Nadine nodded, then pushed her glasses up on her nose, "The general will be more than happy to answer any and all questions. But up here, we don't refer to this as an alien lab complex."

"Okay," Hawthorn said, "How would you like us to say it?"

The three came to the end of a long hallway. Two guards, armed with machine guns, stood at the desk where a third man sat.

"Evening, miss," the man at the desk said, looking up, "These two?"

"Yep. They'll need their hands and retina scan before letting them go down."

"Gentleman," the man said, looking at Hawthorn first, "Place your hand on the scanner and look into this."

The Sergeant held up a device to Hawthorn's eyes. The scanner lit up with the pressure from his hand. The small device held to his eyes flashed, making him jump. The Sergeant grabbed his wrist and held his hand still to the pad, letting the scan finish the print from his hand. Then the pad faded.

"Okay, next...and try not to flinch."

Preston placed his hand on the scanner and it immediately lit up under his skin. The Sergeant placed the device over Preston's eyes and clicked the button causing the thing to flash. The Lieutenant stood firm, allowing the scan to complete before removing his hand.

"Very well done, Lieutenant. Give me another couple of seconds and you'll be cleared," the Sergeant said. Then the machine on the desk popped out two ID badges and they each were instructed to take their own.

Nadine turned to face the men, "You will now refer to this complex as Project Gamma."

"Project Gamma, huh?" Preston smiled, "Sounds cool."

"You both have been permanently assigned to The Gamma Project. You must obtain clearance from the General to exit the complex."

"Or else?" Hawthorn mused.

"Or else, Tweedledee and Tweedledum here will use you for target practice."

The two gulped at the sound of Nadine's voice and the seriousness in her eyes. The two guards smiled and nodded.

"Don't even try to gain access from below to the elevator without clearance..."

"...the elevator will not function unless the general himself, or his next in command, punches in the code from down below," the Sergeant finished for Nadine.

"Understood," the two nearly said in unison.

"Now you can enter the lab anytime from the top side down, you just need the clearance comin' back up."

"Good to know," Hawthorn nodded.

Nadine stepped over to the elevator and pressed a red button. Then she leaned close to an intercom, "Project Gamma access, Nadine-one- one- zero."

A mechanical voice acknowledged her access, "Access Nadine- one- one-zero, confirmed. Voice recognition, confirmed. Prepare for retina authorization."

Nadine changed her stance and remained still as a beam of light passed over her left eye. The panel turned green and the door slid open, "Access granted, please enter the man trap," the computer voice instructed.

The three entered the elevator and a clear Plexiglas door slid closed, sealing them inside. Then the outside metal doors slid closed.

"Better hold on," Nadine cautioned.

"Why?" Preston began, but was abruptly interrupted by an immediate drop.

The two smiled at the momentary near weightlessness, grabbing the side rails.

The elevator car dropped so quickly that their uniform coattails lifted in the air. But before they knew it, the car slowed causing them to feel the forces on their legs before coming to a complete stop.

The doors slid open and Nadine smiled at the two as she strolled past, "You'll get used to it soon enough."

"That was some ride alright," Hawthorn said, dabbing at the spittle on the corners of his mouth.

They walked through a large room full of technicians dressed in white lab coats. There were banks upon banks of computer stations and the entire room was buzzing with activity.

Nadine escorted the men through a maze of cubicles and came to a closed door. She knocked and cracked it open, "General?"

"Ah. Good, send em' in," they could hear from inside the room.

Preston stood, saluting with Hawthorn, before General McKenzie in his new office.

Hawthorn towered over even the general. The tall skinny kid didn't know what to make of the strange lights that shone form an odd looking case that was neatly placed on the desk.

The general relaxed behind the rosewood desk with the sealed box, "At ease, men."

An eerie glow from the silver case cast dancing shadows around the room.

The two relaxed, their stance, Wow, this is so cool," Hawthorn exclaimed. "What's causing this?"

"This," General McKenzie said, "is what we recovered from the alien complex at the Kirkwood Gap."

"Can't wait to get my hands on it..."

"...inside this case," the general continued without interruption, "is what appears to be a computer core. This is what we think controls the chips that are implanted inside the host. Your jobs will be to reverse engineer this technology and interface it with our own. We need the ability to send instructions to each individual chip we manufacture."

"We'll do our best, General," Preston said.

"I know you will...that's why you were both hand selected for this project."

"Project Gamma, Sir?"

"Yes, Hawthorn. Project Gamma is what we're calling it."

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Preston eagerly said, "Let's get this thing started."

"You will be in charge of the box...I'm promoting both of you to Captain," McKenzie said reaching in his drawer.

He handed them each a small jewel box which contained their new rank insignias, "Thanks, General," Preston said with a wide smile, "Wasn't expecting this..."

"...this will be the only time you get to say you didn't expect something...this project will be both challenging and rewarding...but failure is not an option. You need to start expecting the unexpected."

"Yes, sir!" Preston said with a salute.

Hawthorn quickly joined Preston and held their attention until the General acknowledged in return.

"At ease, men. Doctor Rhodes will be in charge of the chip, you two will be in charge of this box. We're also bringing in a civilian consultant to assist you on your task."

"You're bringing a civi down here?" Preston said in protest.

"I don't see how a civilian could be any help to us, Sir," Hawthorn said in agreement.

"It's not up for debate... and trust me on this one. This civilian has some special skills essential to the successful completion of your assignment."

"Yes, sir."

"What's his name, sir?" Preston asked.

"Calvin Jones."

Memorial Hospital

September 25th, 2064 00:16

"Doctor, the incision in Bennie's neck is complete," the assistant said.

"Thank you Ms. Rollins," taking the chip by the forceps, "Well, here goes nothing."

"Why doctor, you seem unsure of yourself."

"Wouldn't you? I mean, if this goes south on us...I just have one piece of advice," he said, standing before his patient.

"...and that would be?"

"Run..."

"Run?"

"Yep, that's it...run fast!"

"Maybe you ought to tell me just exactly what you saw out there?"

"...I told you, I can't..."

"...before you insert this thing? I think you owe me that much."

Doctor Rhodes turned from his patient and set the forceps back on the metal tray with a clink, "I will tell you that one of these chips took over one of the crew of Salvage-5."

"Lieutenant Savage..."

"Yes, that's right. The Lieutenant...Melissa...she was a fine officer and an excellent teammate. However, this thing...this chip...it changed her. It was awful seeing her change before our eyes."

"Changed how?"

"Evil...mean...but you know what's even worse than her turning on us like that?"

"Doctor?"

"She knew what she was doing right up to the point I put her out."

"You sedated her?"

"It was the only way... Colonel Tucker... He saw it coming... He took me aside just before we departed the CSMO 253 Mathilde."

"How did he know?"

"You know, that's a really great question. All I can say is despite what everyone says about the Colonel, he's one tough bird. I'd sign on to any mission he led...he did an awesome job commanding our mission."

"So how did this chip suddenly activate or change the Lieutenant?"

"It was the mag-ring. The energy from that catapult was intercepted by her chip. That's what activated the programming that had been downloaded to her before we blew the complex."

"Why didn't that jump ring's magnetic field activate the Colonel's chip?"

"Savage's chip had been fully programmed, just not activated. Tucker's chip was implanted but no programming had been downloaded, so the magnetic field had no effect on it."

"Lucky for him..."

"...no...lucky for us. If his chip had been activated, we wouldn't be here right now."

"Tucker seems like a great commander."

"He was driven."

"Driven?"

"To save his son. He put all his trust in getting this alien tech back to Earth."

"Wow, I'd sure like to meet him."

"Well, I don't think you'll get the chance."

"Why not?"

"Two reason's Ms. Rollins. The Colonel is heading back out in a few months."

"...and?"

"...and he's involved already."

"Damn!"

"Besides, Ms. Rollins, now that I've told you some of the things that happened, you'll be on my team moving forward."

"Your team?"

"Yes, you'll be coming with me when Bennie's all done here."

"Where's that?"

"You'll find out soon enough. Just don't plan on going home for a while."

"What about my house, my pets...I can't just leave them."

"Not to worry. I'll see to it that the pets will be looked after...you don't have any family, right?"

"I have a nephew, but I rarely see him. That's it, except for my animals."

"Good."

"I'll be glad to be by your side, Doctor."

"So Ms. Rollins, what's your first name anyway?"

"Vivian...Vivian Rollins."

"Okay, Vivian. Let's finish this thing up, shall we?" Rhodes picked up the forceps and stepped up to Bennie.

"Ready, Doctor."

Doctor Rhodes held the chip up to the opening in Bennies neck. The incision exposed ivory colored vertebrae glistening under a crimson stain. As he got closer, the fiber at the end of the chip began to twitch and vibrate.

"Hmmm, that's odd."

"What's it doing, Doctor?"

Rhodes pulled the chip away from Bennie's neck and the wire stopped, "That's very interesting."

"Yeah, it's like it was waiting to be inserted."

"Okay, well...let's see if it does that again."

He held the chip up to the opening in Bennie's neck, the fiber twitched again. This time, Rhodes didn't hesitate. He held the chip and touched the entry site, and then unclamped the forceps to allow the chip to do whatever it was going to do."

The chip jumped from the hold of the tool and buried itself inside Bennie's neck.

"Fascinating..."

"What the hell?" Vivian exclaimed.

"The incision is closing on its own!"

Within minutes of the chip being transplanted to Bennie, the wound completely healed, leaving only the end of the chips receptacle exposed.

"Looks like you'll have to do some of your expert sewing on another patient."

"Wow...that's all...just wow!" Vivian said, wiping the sweat off her brow. "Doctor, his vitals are all over the place."

"Okay, flip the table up right."

Rollins walked to the foot of the table and pressed the commands. The table responded in turn by rotating Bennie face up.

When the table locked, Rhodes took his light pen and examined Bennie's eyes. Raising each eye lid, he looked at each of his pupils multiple times.

"Doctor, what are looking for?"

"Any green."

"Green?"

"Yes, that was one of the side effects...her eyes turned a very bright florescent green."

"Well?"

"Nothing. They're still brown."

"That's good, isn't it?"

"At this point Vivian, I'm not sure of anything."

Bennie's body tightened and all at once convulsed.

"He's seizing!" Rhodes exclaimed, "Prepare point two milligrams IV push Diazepam!"

"Right away, Doctor."

Bennie's body flopped violently on the table, but before Nurse Rollins could inject the syringe into the IV tube, he suddenly stopped.

Rhodes held his hands up to Vivian, "Hold! Let's see what happens without the drug."

A few moments passed when Bennie began to shake and convulse once more, "Do it!"

Vivian wasted no time and injected the medicine into the IV. Bennie's convulsions slowed and then stopped by the effects of the drug.

"Let's get some pictures of this thing," Rhodes said with raised eyebrows.

Vivian moved the portable X-Ray machine over Bennie's head, aimed the device and turned it on.

The screen on the wall over Bennie's head showed the image of the wire at the end of the chip.

"Look at that!" the nurse pointed.

"Yes, it's already taken hold of his brain stem and is growing feelers, or whatever those are, into the gray matter of his brain...this is the same thing that happened to the others just before they were taken over."

"Are we safe?"

"You're asking me?" Rhodes exclaimed, shaking his head, "I have no idea."

"It's stopping," Vivian pointed to the last reference marker on the screen.

"Yes, it seems to have stabilized."

"His vitals have all returned to normal, Doctor. BP is 120 over 70, heart rate: 60. Oxygen is 99 percent."

"Excellent!"

"Charles...can I call you Charles? Look at his spinal cord."

"Yes...zoom in on that...and Charles is fine."

Vivian smiled and zoomed the real-time x-ray to reveal the spinal cord.

"He came in with a severed spinal cord, right?"

"Yes. It was completely cut between C3 and C4."

"Tell me what you see here, or are my eyes playing tricks on me?"

"The fiber has rejoined the damage. It looks like it's repaired his spinal column... how is that possible?"

"As I said before, nothing surprises me anymore."

"The real test will be when he regains consciousness."

"From the looks of it, he'll be fully recovered from his injuries."

"I'll bet that'll make for one happy mother."

"I'll bet you're right," Rhodes said, pulling his mask down, "Get him prepared to transport. I'm going out to give the good news to Beverly."

"Transported? To where?"

"To our new lab. You'll transport with him. I'll make the call."

"Okay, Charles. Whatever you say."

Rhodes turned to Vivian, "You did a great job here today. Just hang tight and you'll understand everything soon enough."

Chapter 5

Memorial Hospital

September 25th, 2064 07:00

"Where have you taken my son?" Beverly pleaded.

"Bev," Major Griffin soothed, "We have him in isolation. We're not sure how this new transplant will react. Until he wakes up and we can talk to him...observe him, we won't be able to let you in."

"You never said I'd be separated from my son, Tom. How could you not tell me?"

"Quite frankly, I wasn't even told everything."

"It's General McKenzie, isn't it...he's the one calling all the shots it seems."

"That is true, Bev. He is General, so he does call the shots. I have little control over the situation."

"Tom, when are you going to stop being the General's pawn? You could replace him, you know that don't you?"

"That's why I'm still his pawn. I have to follow orders, or I won't to have a shot at promotion."

"Come on Tom. Wake up grow a set already. You know damn well that as long as McKenzie is seated, your career will continue to stall."

"What do you suppose I do? He's very powerful...lots of friends in high places."

"You need to start making friends in higher places, Tom."

"I have friends, some are in power."

"I'll bet if you dig deep enough you'll find some kind of dirt on him."

"There is a good possibility of that."

"Then dredge it up and make it visible, Tom."

"It's not that easy, Bev. These men in power are dangerous. If he suspects anything, he'd have me killed."

"Don't be such an alarmist."

"I'm being serious. Men have disappeared, never to be found again...I'm not about to do anything careless, I assure you that. Beverly, I don't want to end up as fish food, I want to be with you."

"Tom, you've been there for me during this hard time. I appreciate that, but you have to understand..."

"Shhh, I know. I'm not trying to rush you. I..."

"Tom, we've gone over this. I'm not ready to commit to any one person right now."

"I'll be here when you're ready."

"In the meantime," she smiled into his eyes, "I need some more comforting."

She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him passionately.

Griffin briefly broke the kiss, "Beverly, you're giving me quite a few mixed signals.

"Shhh, now you hush. I never said I was dead," then pressed her lips on his once more.

"I kind of like this, Beverly. How much comfort do you need?" Griffin asked, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"I'll let you know when I'm comforted enough..."

Secret Lab Complex

September 25th, 2064 16:00

"He's still asleep, but his recovery is remarkable," Rhodes reported to the General.

The two walked down a long corridor deep beneath the surface of the base, toward Bennie's secured room.

"You're certain that everything is under control?" McKenzie asked, then unlocked a security door.

"Perfectly fine, General."

They walked into the room and watched as the lights came up through the heavy Plexiglas observation window.

Bennie was sitting upright, his eyes open with a concerned look on his face.

"I thought you said he was still out?"

"He was...had so much drugs inside him that would have kept him asleep for days."

"Can he hear us?"

"Not unless I turn on the intercom."

"I'll bet he's wondering where he is?"

Rhodes pressed the intercom, "Bennie? How are you feeling?"

"That's a great question...who are you and where am I?"

Rhodes released the button on the intercom, "General, I need to go in there and give him an exam."

"You go on ahead, Doctor. I'll stay behind the protective screen."

"You sure you don't want to see this boy in person?"

"No, but thanks just the same."

What's the matter General? A voice echoed inside McKenzie's mind.

"What'd you say?" McKenzie asked, turning to Rhodes.

"Wha? Me? I didn't say anything."

General, don't you know who I am?

"There it is again...you didn't hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"Rhodes, you had better not be messing with me."

"General, get serious, will you?"

Yeah General, get serious.

McKenzie stuck his little finger in his ear in an attempt to clear whatever it was that was going on.

Rhodes stepped into a cylinder, which then spun closed. After his retina scan the man trap opened inside the room with Bennie.

"Bennie," Rhodes said, extending his hand, "I'm Doctor Rhodes. You were in an accident."

Bennie loosely shook his hand in return, "Where's Jen?"

"Jen?"

"Yes, Jenny was in my car when we were hit...is she alright?"

Rhodes lowered his head and Bennie instantly knew, "She's dead...isn't she?"

Rhodes looked up at Bennie with sadness in his eyes.

"Tell me!"

"I'm sorry son."

"Ohhhh Nooooo...Jenny! Not my Jenny!"

"I'm afraid so son."

Bennie cried out, placing his head in his hands. Rhodes winced with pain and fell to his knees.

Rhodes cried out in pain, holding his temples, he looked up at his patient, "Bennie, stop it...clear your thoughts...you're...killing...me."

Rhodes continued to lower to the ground in pain when all at once it left him. He rested on the floor for a moment to regain his composure. He held his hand up and wiped blood that began to drip from his nose.

"Oh my god!"

Bennie looked up and saw what was happening to him, "I'm sorry...I don't know what's going on with me...I didn't mean to hurt you. I never...no...Doctor...you gotta tell me what in hell just happened?"

Rhodes had managed to get back to his feet, the intercom began to blare with the voice of the General, "Rhodes! Get outta there!"

"No...Wait...Computer, activate privacy filters protocol."

The windows darkened, preventing anyone seeing from the outside and the intercom was terminated.

"There, we have some privacy now," Rhodes said, still shaking from the experience.

"Doctor...what's going on?" Bennie asked.

"Bennie, you were involved in an accident...you've been in a coma for nearly 3 months."

"What?! Three months!?"

"Relax, Bennie...just keep calm...please...let me finish."

"I want to see my Father! My Father is important, he'll get this all cleared up..."

"Bennie..."

"Don't even tell me he can't help me...'cause I know he can...Colonel Tucker Petersen...that's who he is."

"Bennie...it's a long story. Your father is actually the one who saved your life."

"What are you talking about?"

"Bennie, just hear me out...okay? There's been a lot that's happened since your accident."

"Go on..."

"We found something out in the Kirkwood Gap."

"The asteroid belt? A mining operation?"

"Yes, your father was recruited to go out and try to acquire this tech...It's alien..."

"...come on, Doctor. That's not funny."

"I was there, Bennie...I saw it for my own eyes...your father brought back the tech that would save your life."

"You did something to me...didn't you?"

"Yes...it's a long story, but your father is in recovery from a transplant."

"Transplant?"

"Your father was injected with a chip. Several others were, but they didn't make it. I took the tech from your father and transplanted it into..."

"...me...you stuck that inside me."

"Bennie...this alien technology is like a gift to mankind."

Bennie grabbed the back of his head and felt the port on his neck, "What's this? You stuck it inside my head?"

"Bennie..."

"Doctor...get it out of me...get it out of me now!"

"I'm afraid that's impossible."

"Why?"

"The chip has grown inside your brain...it's also repaired your spinal cord."

"Spinal..."

"Yes, that's right. Your spinal cord was severed right here," Rhodes pointed, "between C3 and C4."

"You sayin' this alien thing inside me saved my life? How does that help humanity?"

"Bennie, I can duplicate this technology. Now that it's working, we can cure the common cold. No more sickness in the world. Paraplegics will be able to walk again."

"Right, but at what cost?"

"Very little cost when it gets developed."

"I don't buy that, Doctor. Once the military gets their hands on something, it costs...sometimes the cost is too great."

"I promise. It won't be that way. Not at all."

"Can it bring my Jenny back to me?"

"Son...I don't know what it is or isn't capable of doing. But I do need you to keep an open mind. Work with us. Help us develop this technology. Your name might very well become synonymous with healing mankind's sickness."

"I'd be famous?"

"Quite possibly."

"Well, I guess it isn't so bad. I mean I can see the tremendous potential."

"Right. Just keep those thoughts up front and we'll all be fine."

"So, can you explain what happened to you when I felt anger and sadness about losing Jenny?"

"Son, don't think of those thoughts..."

"...I'm trying not to, but you gotta' cut me a little slack here..."

"Your chip has fully integrated. I think it may have taken your adrenalin and converted it into some form of energy for the chip. You were able to project your pain to me. But it didn't pass through the barrier. It would seem that the effect lasted only momentary and at close proximity."

Bennie hopped off the table, "Then I suggest you keep me happy, right?"

"Right...anything you say. Computer, terminate privacy protocol."

The intercom immediately began squawking the General's voice, "Rhodes! Rhodes...get out of there...what's going on in there!"

"General, I've got the situation under control."

"Let me out of here," Bennie threatened.

"General? I suggest not making him mad."

"Pff, yeah...okay...sure thing sonny. I'll let you out of there...Not!"

"General...you best comply. He's agreed to work with us..."

"Yes, General...I have agreed to work with you...I just learned that I lost the love of my life. I'm having quite a hard time maintaining over here...So unless you open this door...now, I'm going to lose it and I can't be responsible for what happens."

The emotions raced through Bennie's veins as he became more frustrated at being locked in the room. He focused his mind on the General.

Open...the...door!

The General shook his head slightly and tapped the side of his head with his hand.

Do not resist...open the door, General.

McKenzie reached over and pressed the security code, opening the door. The Plexiglas lowered exposing the observation chamber to the holding room.

Then the General shook his head trying to come out of a daze, "What? How'd this door get open?! Rhodes!"

"It wasn't Rhodes," Bennie smiled.

"It was you?"

That's right, General, and then the voice that echoed within his mind faded.

Bennie's knees buckled and Rhodes caught him, helping him back to the edge of the bed.

"Take it easy, son. You're still recovering from major surgery."

"I want to see my father."

"Just as soon as he's awake I'll take you to see him. I promise."

Bennie nodded in agreement, "Now how about some food, I'm starving."

Rhodes turned to the General, "He's going to be alright. I think a good meal will be in order."

"I'll have the kitchen prepare you a nice steak dinner. How's that sound?"

"Sounds great to me, General."

"Fine. Rhodes, I want you to finish your exam. Then let me know when you leave the complex. Don't be gone too long, either."

The General turned and left the two alone in the exam room.

"He seems pretty up tight, Doc."

"Yeah...he is."

Bennie smiled and chuckled under his breath, "Shmuck!"

"Let me check you out the rest of the way, shall we?"

"You're the doc."

Secret Lab Complex

September 25th, 2064 17:00

Calvin Jones stood at the back of the elevator, his bulging eyes watching the doors open. His death grip on the railing was all that kept him from collapsing.

A robotic voice came from a speaker on the inside of the car, "Occupant, my sensors indicate an elevated heart rate and rapid, shallow breathing. These are signs of severe stress. Do you require assistance?

"No!" Calvin panted, exiting the elevator.

"Very well, sir. Please enjoy your stay...and remember to eat right and get plenty of exercise."

"Gee thanks, computer...I'm still pretty fit."

General McKenzie approached from the end of the hall, "Jones! Good to see you."

"Yeah, right...likewise I'm sure," he answered, resting his hands on his knees.

"What's the matter, Cal? Say," McKenzie said, sizing Calvin up and down, "Tucker was right, you have put on some pounds...that lil ol' elevator plunge get to ya? Well, it does get easier."

"Come on General, I looked the same when we left on our mission."

"Right...just keep on in your delusion...I'm surprised you fit in a space suit."

"Hey, watch it...it was just a few pounds...okay?"

The general chuckled, "Come on slugger, I want you to meet the rest of your team."

"Lead the way, General."

"By the way, thanks for agreeing to help us on this end...did I mention you did a stand up job on the mission?"

"Hey, I'm only happy to help...but I doubt I had any real choice anyway...and no, you never mentioned it."

"Well, you did...the United Territories of Land and Space are completely indebted to you and your service to this country."

"Don't mention it...oh that's right, you never did."

"I promise to give a press release."

"Yeah...thanks..."

"Any time, that's what I'm here for."

They approached a room with darkened windows in the center of the complex.

"Calvin, do you want to do the honors?"

"What? I get to enter first? Swell..."

"Calvin...I'm trying very hard here...don't do anything stupid."

Calvin leaned forward and allowed the beam to scan his eye.

"Retina scan confirmed...access granted, please enter the man trap," the computer voice instructed.

"Thank your computer, how kind of you."

"Welcome Calvin, I hope your stay is enjoyable," the computer sounding voice replied.

"Humph," the General said, "That's odd, the computer never talks to me that way."

Calvin grinned as the two entered the cylinder, "That's because I speak computer."

The laser scanned Calvin's eye again and spun the chamber door to the open position.

"Wow, these are some pretty nice digs here."

The General stepped through the only entrance to the room and extended his arm in the direction of the two men busy inspecting a glowing box.

Preston and Hawthorn both stood to attention when they noticed McKenzie entering the room, "General!"

"At ease men. Let me introduce to you one of the men that helped bring this little box back home. Calvin Jones, this is Captains Preston and Hawthorn."

Calvin extended his hand to them and the two shook, "Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Jones," Hawthorn said with a smile.

"Cal...you can call me Cal."

"Sure thing."

"Cal," Preston asked, "What were you doing before the Salvage-5 mission? If you don't mind me asking?"

"No problem. I don't mind ya askin'. I was busted out of jail by my good friend Colonel Tucker Petersen."

The two slapped their knees and busted out with an uncontrolled laugh.

"You're pretty funny, Calvin. I can see it's going to be a blast working with you."

"He's not kidding, Hawthorn," McKenzie said, "But we don't like to talk about that...now do we Calvin?"

"Nope, ain't gonna tell ya that I was high in the mountains on the trail of this alien tech. Nope, not even going to tell you that the Vatican is involved up to here..." Calving raised his hand level to his eyebrows, but the general didn't allow him to finish.

"Jones!"

"Ohhh, I know I'm in trouble when the General uses my last name."

"I guess that means, we're in trouble quite often then," Preston laughed, poking Hawthorn in the ribs.

"That's enough you two! Zip it!"

"Sorry sir."

"Calvin has no authorization to discuss anything other than this box and how to make it interface with the chip...got it?"

"Yes, sir," the two officers answered.

"Now, I suggest you three had better get busy with your assignments. I'll be back later to check your progress.

The two stood to attention again and offered the General their salute.

Memorial Hospital

September 28th, 2064 10:30

Cassandra stood outside Tucker Petersen's room as Major Griffin Wheeled Bennie toward her.

"Cassie," the Major yelled down the hall, "How are you? Glad to see you."

"You must be Bennie?" Cass said with a smile.

"Yes, Ma'am," Bennie answered, "I've heard a lot about you."

"Well, if it's what you heard from your father, they're all lies," she smiled in return.

"How is he?" the Major asked Cassie.

"He's about to wake up. Come on Ben. Let's go see your father, shall we?"

"That's what I'm here for."

Cassandra wheeled Bennie into the room and parked him next to the bed. Tucker's eye fluttered and opened to focus on the woman standing over him, "Ca...Cass?" his parched whisper asked.

"There you are, Mister."

"How long?"

"You were out nearly three days."

"Three days?"

"Yes, Dr. Rhodes said that your brain had to heal after the chip removal."

"The chip...right...how's Ben?"

"Why don't you see for yourself," Cass answered.

She moved aside to reveal the young man grinning in the wheelchair.

"Bennie?"

"Hi Dad."

"Son! I'm so happy to see you...how are you feeling?"

"Doc says I'm as good as new, if not better than I was before."

"You okay with having this inside of you?"

"Yeah, I think it's kind of cool."

"The doctor says, he needs to take it easy for a few weeks," Cass said.

"You guys are welcome to crash at my pad while you two convalesce."

"You'll take care of us both?"

"Come on Dad, it'll be fun...maybe we can actually be a family again."

"How much have you told him already, Cassie?"

"Enough..."

"Great...now just don't get any ideas of me settling down too awfully soon..."

"Now Tuck," Cass winked, "You don't have to worry about our military life, we all know you have about two more years of service...and as luck would have it, there's another mission we're being asked to go out on."

"Oh really...we're being asked? Guess I didn't think the General would have allowed me to have another command again."

"It's not the General's idea! 'Sides he's been transferred to another top secret facility."

"With the alien tech I presume?"

"Of course."

"So whose idea was this anyway?"

"It seems that the uncle of that fellow you shot in the knee..."

"Oh, come on now...I had to..."

"Relax Tuck. He actually thanked you for doing that..."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah, seems he's been wanting to do that himself for a long time."

"Only happy to help...so what's the mission?"

"The mag-ring at the CSMO 253 Mathilde was damaged when a thruster jet misfired on one of the container transports...the Company wants us to go out and facilitate the repair."

"Oh, how fun...I hope Hargrove and Samuels have the place fixed up before we go back...which is when again?"

"There's no rush on this...just means that no one can rotate out until it's fixed..."

"Okay, so that doesn't answer my question: when?"

"We can depart in six months. That's the optimal launch time."

"Okay then...it's a date...sounds like a cake walk compared to our last mission."

"Well, it's a little more than just repairing this ring..."

"Go on..."

"Seems the Company has officially contracted the military to place these mag-rings throughout our system at strategic locations...just think of the opportunities..."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa...back the truck up...I'm not going to..."

"Tucker..."

"Jeez, where do you find these people," he said, smiling at Ben as he pointed with his thumb.

"Well, Whattya say?"

"Do I really have a choice?"

"Nope."

"Okay, then...it's a date," Tucker said. He reached over to his table but it was just out of reach.

"Here, let me help ya," Cass said, picking up a slightly used cigar. She held it to his lips and lit it for him.

Outside the room alarm bells rang and the charge nurse looked up in disgust, "What the hell is going on in there?"

She rushed into the room, leaving Major Griffin in the hall, "She's going to have her hands full with him for a few days."

All the major could hear was the nurse yelling at the Colonel about something as smoke wafted from the room. Then the nurse stormed back to her station muttering a few choice words.

A minute later, Cass wheeled Ben out of the room.

The Major could hear the Colonel carrying on as the door closed behind them, "Ah, come on...love you too... bye, bye now, see ya soon...jeez, where do they find these people anyway?"

Cassandra smiled as the Major began to take Bennie back to the complex, "I feel sorry for that nurse."

"Not as much as I feel sorry for you on your next mission, Cass," the Major answered. "Come on, Ben. The Doctor has a few more tests to run before he lets you go home."

Bennie extended his arm out and pointed down the hallway, "TALLYHO!"

Chapter 6

Secret Lab Complex

September 28th, 2064 12:30

"The subject has been stable for nearly three months, sir," Nadine said, turning from Griffin.

They stood before a silver container. Nadine was busy checking the console, reviewing the latest readings.

"How much longer before Rhodes has his first prototype?" Griffin asked, hand on chin.

"Major, he's really close to understanding the chip inside Ben."

"What seems to be his hold up?"

"He's having difficulty identifying a suitable enzyme replacement for the alien substance."

"It's imperative that we implant the prototype soon."

"I agree, Major. This subject won't last too much longer."

"What's your estimation?"

"Another three days, five on the outside. More than that and there will be too much cell degradation and the chip will reject the host."

"I understand...So, tell me Nadine."

"Yes Major?"

"How do you do it?"

"Major?"

"You know, check on our test subject every day and not be bothered by it?"

"Major, I've learned a long time ago to put my personal feelings aside and do my job. Sometimes, I admit, it's hard. But it gets easier every day...and you Major? How do you sleep nights knowing you caused this to happen?"

"That's why I'm asking you."

"I'll bet it's even harder knowing that you've fallen in love with Beverly...what happens when she finds out it was you?"

"She'll never find out."

"Let's just hope not. Major, I think you're a little too close. Perhaps you need me to intervene and take over some of your responsibilities...you know, until you can sleep nights again."

"That's quite enough."

"What's the matter Major? Are you afraid you can't handle the pressure?"

"Oh, I can handle the pressure just fine."

"I see...then it has to be that you're feeling guilty about Bennie, Bev's only son...only child...being nearly killed by your hand."

Major Griffin leaned close to Nadine, "You stay out of this."

"Major," Nadine laughed, "I think I hit a nerve."

"You leave it alone now."

"Or what, Major?"

"Or I'll have the Company remove you from the gamma project."

"The Company? Remove me?"

"Yes, that's right...the Company."

"Ha, the Company won't replace me...they're the ones that placed me."

"Just stay away from Beverly."

"Fine...I'll stay away from Beverly. But you have to distance yourself. You're too close, Tom."

"My private life is of no concern to you. Who I see is none of you, or the Company's business."

"...it's the Company's business if you don't get results."

"I have done everything that the General has assigned me to do."

"Yes, Tom. You have," Nadine leaned closer to Griffin and planted her index finger between his eyes. This caused him to lean backward, "Just know that I'm watching." Her finger tapped his forehead with each word. "Don't screw this up." One last tap and Nadine turned away to fuss with the instruments again. "I will inform the Company if you let your relationships with our test subjects interfere with your ability to carry out your orders."

"You don't have to worry about me, Nadine."

"Let's hope not."

"Are there any other test subjects ready once this one is no longer viable?"

"No. Sadly there are not...but I'm sure you can find more, Major," Nadine said, a smile escaping at the corner of her mouth.

"I'm sure I could...I'll be waiting for instructions."

"Good...now, shall we go check on the three stooges in the box lab?"

"Lead the way," Griffin answered.

Nadine's data pad vibrated in her lab coat. She looked at it and then answered the call, "Nadine... ...really... ...excellent, I'll be right there."

Nadine returned her data pad to her coat pocket and smiled at Griffin, "It would seem Rhodes may have had a break through. I'll go check on him, you go on ahead. If they make any significant progress, I expect you will inform me. Otherwise, I'll read your report this evening."

Griffin nodded, and then the two entered the man trap to exit the private room. The cylinder rotated around, isolating the rest of the complex from this room.

Secret Lab Complex

September 28th, 2064 12:45

"So there I was," Calvin explained, while smiling at the two captains, "Sittin' in a jail cell way out in San Miguel de Allende, being woke up by this amazingly obnoxious sound exuding from the nostrils of this guy the locals had busted earlier."

"What'd ya do, Cal?" Hawthorn asked, sitting on the corner of the lab table.

"I kicked him...two times before he stirred...and who do you think finds himself in the same jail cell as me? Tucker Petersen...that's who."

The two listened intently to Calvin's story, "So I asked myself, now how in the hell did Tucker Petersen find me all the way out here in this part of the world?"

"What happened next? How'd he get you out of jail?"

"I asked him how he expected to bail me out if he was in jail himself...he answered me by holding up two sticks of dynamite and answered, who said anything about bailing?"

"Wow! Did he really do it?"

"He really did it...Tucker actually blew a hole in the side of the damn jail...I've never seen him do anything as crazy as that..."

"Man...sounds like good times," Preston laughed.

"Yeah, that was fun alright. Made our escape on a bike we stole from some poor local that was in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"I thought you were handcuffed, how'd you do that?"

"It was the next craziest thing I had ever seen Tucker do...he had me clutch and steer while he shifted and did the gas."

"You got to be kiddin' me!" Hawthorn said in astonishment.

"Yep, we nearly got ourselves killed by flying bullets from the local police. I'll bet they needed to change their trousers when they saw Captain Rothschild firing from the Harrier."

"Tucker sounds like he had all the bases covered alright," Preston chuckled.

"I know lots of folks say he's quite an ass, but to be perfectly honest, Tucker is someone you want to have on your side. He comes up with the damnedest ways to get out of a jam. I know he saved my butt more than once collecting this box."

"Shhh, shhh, shhh," Preston held his finger against his lips, "Major Griffin, ten-o-clock."

Calvin turned in his lab stool to greet him, "Major, pleasure to see you."

Griffin straightened his coat and returned the salute from the two captains, "At ease men. I thought I'd stop by and see how goes the battle with the box."

"I've made some progress alright," Calvin said, standing to greet the major.

"Well? You going to share?"

Preston went over to the console next to the box on the bench, "Calvin here is being way too modest, sir. He's got this..."

Calvin bumped into Preston as he took his seat at the keyboard preventing him from saying anything more, "I've figured out that this box projects a concentrated flow of signals that are like gamma waves."

"Calvin, we already know that this box uses gamma waves. Have you figured out how it does it? Can you interface with the thing yet?"

Hawthorn was about to speak up, but Calvin broke in, "I have a limited connection to the box, but we're still deciphering the code."

"What seems to be the problem? Is there anything I can get you that would help speed things up?"

"What's the rush, Major?" Calvin said, swinging around on his lab stool. He placed his hands on his hips and looked into Griffin's eyes.

"Nothing, really. Just that the Company is anxious to begin manufacturing..."

"Manufacturing for what?"

"They don't tell us much, but they have moved up the time line...so I ask you again, is there anything you need?"

"I need you to stop bugging us. I'll report to you once we break the code."

The two captains were nearly bursting at the seams, and the Major took notice, "I get the feeling you're holding something back."

Calvin stood and faced the Major, "They're not holding anything back...Major. I said I will let you know..."

"Calvin, I know you...spill it...what's going on?"

"Okay, okay...you got me."

"I knew it! Now spill it."

Calvin sat back down and swiveled back around, "It's my virus. The box is infected with it...I need to clean the code before it can be used..."

"Really..."

"Yep, that's it."

The two captains looked at each other and then back to the Major.

"Yes sir, that was it sir...the virus is preventing us from accessing the box successfully," Preston explained, "The virus is causing a feedback loop, that's what's causing the box to glow like it is."

Griffin looked at each of the men, and then gave a long sigh, "Alright. How long?"

"You gotta give me a few more hours, okay?"

"Alright. I expect a report on my data pad by 1800. I need to report our findings to Nadine by the end of the day."

"So you're reporting to Nadine now?"

"Nadine reports to the General and was appointed by the Company...so yes...Nadine is an integral part of the project."

"Major, you'll get my report. Now will you please leave us so we can do our jobs?"

"Don't be late with your report, Jones...I mean it!"

"Don't worry, Major. I'll get you the report."

The Major turned and left through the man trap, leaving the three alone.

Once the door sealed behind Griffin, Preston leaned down with a whisper, "Are you nuts?"

"What?"

"Lying to a superior...you trying to get all of us court-marshaled?"

"Don't be such a worry wart. I'll tell him, just not yet."

"You have full access, Calvin," Hawthorn argued.

"And you two aren't going to say one word to the Major either, are you!"

"Well, we can't, now that you've made us co-conspirators to your deception!"

"Relax, guys...haven't you ever watched Star Trek?"

"Of course we have..."

"Then you'll understand the 'Scottie' principle: only tell them as much as you need to so you look like a miracle worker at the end."

"Nice..." Hawthorn nodded.

"So, you are going to tell him everything..."

"In the end, yes...just relax already."

Secret Lab Complex

September 28th, 2064 12:45

"Rhodes!" Nadine shouted, bursting through the lab doors.

The Doctor jumped and dropped the chip he was holding with his forceps, "Jeez, Nadine! Don't you knock?"

"There's a break through?"

"Boy, you don't waste any time do you?"

"Wasting time is a luxury we do not have."

"Well, I was about to tell you that I've succeeded in reproducing the growth enzyme."

"I feel a...but...coming." Nadine sneered.

"...but, it had very limited growth life."

"In other words, Doctor?"

"The chips won't have as much effectiveness."

"Limited how?"

"Well, for instance, they won't be able to reattach spinal cords like the one in Bennie."

"What else?"

"The effect will only last a few hours before the chip will need a recharge."

"Cut to the chaise, Doctor," Nadine demanded. "Will it work or not?"

"Well, yes...it will work...sort of..."

"Why do men always have to talk in riddles? Rhodes, just answer my question. Will this chip be a suitable replacement for the alien tech?"

"Yes."

"That's really all I needed to know. Doctor? I want you to prep for surgery."

"Surgery? For who?"

"For our next test subject."

"I wasn't aware that there was another test subject."

"You didn't need to know until now."

"You misunderstand my readiness."

"You just said this would be a suitable replacement chip."

"Quite right, Madam. However, it's the only one. Before I can implant this chip to any candidates, I need to make another."

"How much time do you need to make another?"

"Another twenty-four to thirty-six hours...without breaks."

"You must use this one. Then make another."

"Do you know what you're asking?"

"You don't know what's at stake."

"I fail to understand..."

"That's what I just said! It's not your job to understand, Rhodes...your job is to do what I tell you to do."

"Then there's the question of the suitable candidate, who I've not had the privilege of examining."

"The subject is going to die in three days."

"Hmmm, I really need to examine the subject to determine...

Nadine cut the doctor off, "Your job is not to determine anything." She jabbed a finger into his chest. "You will perform the surgery or I will find someone who will."

"Okay, ya got me. I'll prep for the transplant."

"Good."

"So, how's the other half of the project coming?"

"You needn't concern yourself with that."

"Well, I am going to need to collaborate with them if you want to be able to program the chips!"

"When the time comes, Doctor...until then..."

"I know, I know. Don't be concerned."

"Very good, Doctor. Now carry on."

Rhodes rolled his eyes as Nadine left the room.

"I saw that!" Nadine snapped as she left the room.

Rhodes simply stood there, shaking his head before heading to the scrub room.

Secret Surgical Complex

September 28th, 2064 14:00

"Fastest prep I've ever had to do," Rhodes muttered.

"What's that Doctor?" Nadine asked, coming into the surgical theater.

Son-of-a-bitch, Rhodes thought to himself, "What the hell's she doing in here?"

"Nice to see you too, Doctor," Nadine answered.

Rhodes, ignoring her response, "Can someone please tell me what she's doing here?"

"I'm here to observe."

"I see...is this really necessary?"

"Yes, the Company is requiring it."

"Okay...if you get a kick out of seeing blood, bone, and brains, then come on in and join the party."

"I'm going to pretend that I didn't hear that, Doctor."

"Well, you can pretend all you want. Won't change the fact that I said it."

"Just get on with it, Doctor."

"Very well," Rhodes said, holding his hands in the air, "Before we begin, let me go over the procedure. I will be making a one inch incision at the base of the subject's skull. Once the skin flaps have been pulled back, I will drill into the spinal column for the chip thread to make contact to the base of the brain stem. Once the chip's growth enzyme has been activated, the chip's fiber thread will insert into and become one with the subject. If the growth enzyme takes hold it will repair the open incision in a few minutes, leaving a nice neat receptacle for the subject to be connected to the gamma wave amplification projection module... it's a big "if" that the chip will take hold in this subject as the patient appears to have suffered an undisclosed trauma..."

Nadine furrowed her brow through the mask, "Enough commentary, Doctor...get on with it."

Rhodes returned a dirty look and then focused on his patient, "Please rotate the subject."

"Yes, Doctor," Nurse Rollins nodded.

The bed smoothly turned the patient, exposing the shaved prepped and marked area high on the back of the subjects neck, just below the skull., "Normally, the patient would be awake for this procedure. It should be a quick and fairly easy implant."

The bed clicked in the inverted position, "Scalpel!" Rhodes requested with open hand, Rollins quickly snapped the blade to him.

He reached down and made the one inch incision. "Retractors!"

Rhodes used the plier-like tool to separate the skin and expose the subject's spinal column.

"Drill!" Rhodes again asked and was promptly given by Rollins.

He tested the drill, the sterile instrument rewarding his efforts with whirring sounds as the drill came to life.

He placed the drill bit at the predetermined place and depressed the trigger, boring a small hole into the bone. Then he handed the drill back to Rollins.

"Okay. Ms. Rollins, please activate the chip's enzyme."

"Yes, Doctor," She answered.

The chip was plugged into a unit that sent the enzyme programming to the core of the chip. She typed in a codded sequence on the unit's touch pad. A buzzing sound indicated successful charging. She locked a pair of forceps on the chip and disengaged it from the unit.

"It's charged with the first growth sequence, Doctor," Rollins said, handing him the chip.

Rhodes carefully took the forceps from her and examined the small fiber that extended from the end of the chip. He watched as the thread came to life and wiggled about looking for its host.

"Excellent! It's reacting to the growth enzyme."

Slowly lowering the chip to the patient's incision, he inserted the thread into the hole he had drilled. The strand immediately took and entered the subject's brain. Rhodes smiled as he unclamped the chip to watch it wiggle the rest of the way inside his patient.

"The chip has been successfully implanted," Rhodes nodded, "Now we wait. Nurse, please remove all of clamps and watch as the wound heals itself."

Everyone in the operating theater looked on in awe as the skin visibly grew together, leaving only the exposed jack on the base of the subject's head.

"That's simply amazing, Doctor," Nadine said, "You just redeemed yourself."

"We're not out of the woods yet. We have to wait for the chip to take complete hold before we can call this a success."

"How will you know?"

"If this patient hadn't been injured, we'd know right away. But because of the subject's injuries, we need to wait and see if the chip can heal them all...the next 24 hours will be the most critical...Nurse, please rotate the patient back around."

The table smoothly spun the test subject and clicked to its stops, "Doctor, the patient is experiencing an accelerated heart rate!"

"The chip is beginning to take hold, we need to prepare for the seizure phase."

"Seizure phase?" Nadine asked.

"Yes, I believe in trauma patients the seizure phase is caused by the chip trying to repair damaged brain tissue...how long ago did this patient suffer this trauma."

"What does it matter, Doctor?"

"It matters on how damaged the brain is. They might not recover if the damage was too severe."

"Can you recover the chip if it doesn't take?"

"That remains to be seen. I just don't have any experience with that scenario."

Just as Rhodes leaned down to examine the patient, the subjects eyes popped wide open, and let out a blood curdling scream.

Chapter 7

Whidbey Island Naval Base

Nadine's Office

September 28th, 2064 20:00

"How's the test subject, Doctor?" Nadine asked.

"Well, after that little bout in the surgical room, the subject has fully recovered from the trauma," Rhodes confidently answered.

"Good work, Rhodes. How soon before we can awaken the subject?"

"Nadine, I know the Company is very interested in this, and with good reason. But, I must insist that you not interfere with the natural recovery process that needs to take place."

"I wasn't asking you to wake the subject now; I merely wanted an update to relay to the Company."

"It's only been six hours. I said in surgery that the next 24 hours would be the most critical."

"Yes, but you also were talking about a wounded body. The chip has completely repaired the damage."

"The brain is still being wired by the chip. No sooner than another 18 to 36 hours."

"Very well, Doctor," Nadine smiled out the corner of her mouth, "I'll leave this up to your judgment then."

"Thank you," Rhodes said with a sigh.

"Now, Doctor, I want you to prepare five more chips for implants."

"Five?"

"Yes, you heard me...five more test subjects."

"Where're you stashing these people?"

"My coat pocket," Nadine mused, "Don't you worry about that. I will supply you with the candidates."

"Okay. So, when do I get to collaborate with Jones?"

"Soon enough, Rhodes; give me the five implanted chips first."

"Alright. I'm on it. I should have them ready for implants before we wake up sleeping beauty here."

"Great. I'll have the subjects here before then," Nadine said, before walking out of the room.

Underground Complex

September 28th, 2064 20:20

Nadine sat at her desk, sealed behind her door and took out her data pad, "Griffin? Nadine... ...I need you to bring me five more test subjects... ...I don't care where or how you get them... ...yes... ...any means necessary... ...what's the matter, Major? ... ... ...I see... ...I can assign someone else if you are having a problem with your conscience... ... ...I expect you to fully deliver in the next twenty-four hours... ...yes, that's right...twenty-four... ...I will be sure to put in a good word for you with the Company... ...you're welcome, Major...don't let me down... ...okay, twenty-four hours, that's all."

Griffin hung up his data pad and returned to the bedroom. Beverly was relaxing, "Who was that, Tom?"

"Nadine."

"From the Company?"

"Yep, there's only one."

"You sound perturbed."

"I am."

"Tom, I keep telling you that you need to move up in the organization. Otherwise, you'll be stuck here doing these menial tasks for this Company."

"It's no menial task; my entire reputation is at stake on this one."

"Then, I suggest you get cracking and save the day, Major," Beverly smiled.

"You don't have to worry about me, I'm already working it. It's called delegation."

"Now you're talking," she said, lifting one of her bare shoulders from under the sheets, "I thought you were going to leave me all alone."

"Oh, Bev...I would never leave you alone," the Major said, slipping under the covers with her.

"That's more like it," she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer, "Come on, let me show you some confidence building exercises."

"I'm likin' the sound of that," Tom smiled, pressing his lips to Bev's.

It was nearly dawn when the two passed out from exhaustion.

Back alley of Seattle

September 29th, 2064 02:00

Two black electric powered vans with darkened windows slowly cruised the back alleys of Seattle. Two masked men in each vehicle looked out of the opened side door.

The lookout in the first van motioned to the driver. The van rolled to a stop as two men jumped out and ran up to a passed out drunk. They silently carried the man back to the van.

"That's three...two to go," one of the men announced over his wireless.

"I've spotted another off of Seneca," the wireless replied in the men's ears.

"Great!" the first one announced, "I think I see another at the end of the alley. Must have been friends."

"What makes you think that?"

"Same whiskey bottle...I think this one saw us coming and took off...yep, he finished the bottle off...he's out cold...I'll nab him."

Then men again jumped out when the black van stopped. Taking the man by the arms, they pulled him toward the van.

"Hey!" someone yelled from behind a dumpster, "Whattya think yer doin'?"

They stopped, and one of the men turned toward the man coming from behind the dumpster. The red dot glowed on the drunk's forehead from the laser sight straddling the silencer tipped handgun's barrel.

The man froze, "Don't hurt me..."

But it was too late; the man dressed in black squeezed the trigger, planting a bullet dead center in his head. The drunk fell backward and lay still. Blood oozed from the wound and pooled around the man's body.

"Come on," the man whispered, holstering his gun.

The two drug their prize to the van. He began to come to and put up a fight.

"Where you takin' me? Is there booze?"

"Yeah, lots of booze...now shut up and get inside."

"Oh, okay...if there's booze, I'm all in," the man smiled.

The men slid the door closed and turned to the now fully awake drunk, "So where's the booze? What kind of a party is this anyway?"

"Sorry, I lied...no booze."

"No booze?!" the man protested.

"Nighty night," the fist slamming into his jaw put the drunk back to sleep. "Let's get these five back to the base!"

"I've punched in our destination, the computer has allowed access to the expressway...we'll be there in two hours."

"Perfect. I'll send a message to receive us at the gate."

The man took out his data pad and placed a call, "Griffin? Yeah, it's me...we have all five...we're en-route to the base now... ...two hours... ...right... ...thanks Major," then hung up the pad. "It's all set. They'll be waiting for us at the gate."

"The computer just opened the gate to the expressway. Computer is engaged."

"I'll never get used to this computer steering tech," one of the men commented.

Nadine's Office

September 29th, 2064 10:00

Nadine looked across her desk from Griffin, "I am simply amazed, Major."

"I told you not to worry about me."

"I see...well in that case I'm glad I recommended to the company that you to stay on-board the Gamma Project.

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it, Tom. I didn't believe you'd come through. It was brilliant taking them from the streets of Seattle; no one will miss them anyway."

"Yes, most of them live on the streets by their choice."

"Not only did you provide us with valuable test subjects, you cleaned up the back alleys of a major city...nice job...what other surprises do you have up your sleeve?"

"I have a trick or two."

"Griffin, if you keep this pace, I'll have the General put you in for promotion."

"You can count on me, Nadine," Griffin answered.

"I'm sure I can."

Tom noticed the silver colored briefcase on her desk, "So what's in the case?"

"Oh this? Well, come with me to the surgical center., I was about to deliver this device to the doctor. He'll use our first candidate to trial this."

"Trial?"

"You'll see," Nadine said, pushing away from her desk. She picked up the case by its handle, "Come on."

Griffin stood and followed Nadine through her door and to the right. They walked down a corridor and came to the end of a hall. She stood still for the eye scan. After a moment the computer let them in.

Standing next to Ms. Rollins with his back turned to the door, Doctor Rhodes didn't notice Nadine entering the room, "I'll just be glad when she stops interfering..."

"...Doctor, Nadine," Nurse Rollins whispered, nodding behind him.

Nadine ignored the nurse's warning to Rhodes, "Seems every time I'm entering the room, you have something to say about me...care to share your last comment?"

Rhodes turned to face her, "Nadine, what a pleasant surprise."

"Surprised, yes...pleasant, now that really depends of your point of view."

"Funny, I was just about to say the same thing. See? We can agree on things," Rhodes half smiled.

Nadine brushed by the doctor and set the case on the table next to them, "Nurse Rollins...you're excused."

"Ma'am?"

"We will not require your services on this one."

"But..."

"Vivian," Rhodes intervened, looking at Nadine, "It's okay, I'll catch up with you later."

"Okay, Doctor," then collected her things and left the surgery center.

"What's in the case?" Rhodes asked.

"I just asked her the same question. I'm dying to find out myself," Griffin said.

"Gentlemen, what you are about to see remains in this room between us....at least until this has been perfected."

"I can hardly wait," Rhodes said under his breath.

Nadine stopped and turned to the doctor, "I will not have your attitude. Get with the program or you will be replaced...and you really don't want that to happen."

Rhodes remained silent as Nadine turned and unclipped one side of the case and then the other.

She looked at the two men and then back at the case. She lifted the lid exposing a long injector that looked more like a weapon than surgical equipment.

"What the hell is that?" Rhodes asked looking at the chrome plated device.

"That, doctor, is our latest invention: the chip injector."

"Really! You think you have duplicated the alien tech we found in the complex?"

"Pretty much."

"How come I wasn't made aware of this before now?" the doctor protested.

"We had this being developed since your return. It's another division that the Company has contracted with...you weren't told until now, because you didn't need to be informed...now you will try it on a new test subject."

"You have another department build this device without my knowledge and input, and now you want me to fire this thing at a patient? Has this even been tested?"

"Why, yes of course it's been tested. What do you take me for...don't answer that," she quickly snapped, "

Rhodes reached over and picked up the cold metal object from the foam cut shadowbox and studied it close.

"This is amazing...how did you replicate this so closely to the original?"

"The data stream carried the basic blueprints. Once our team successfully deciphered parts of the alien language, it was easy."

"You think you have translated their language already?" Griffin asked.

"Only the parts that were needed to build this."

"I can see that using this injector to implant chips is cost effective, but who's going to want to have this thing fired at their head?" Rhodes asked, "The size of this thing is intimidating enough. Then you tell them it's going to implant a chip in their head? I don't know."

"Well, we're about to find out how well this works. You have the five chips ready?"

"I have built two. I was taking a quick break, but I'm ready to begin assembling the rest...and I might add that my assistant has been extremely helpful. I would like her to come back."

"Doctor, I never dismissed her from the project. I just thought it would be best to minimize who sees this before its perfected."

"I'm afraid I don't quite understand," Griffin interjected, "If it's been tested..."

"Well, there are a few minor adjustments that will need to be made along the way...adjustments that we can't test for."

"That must be what this is for," Rhodes said, turning a wheel by the trigger.

"Exactly. The adjustment will have to be made on the fly."

"Can I ask what will happen if this tension adjustment is wrong?"

"That's another unknown," Nadine said, not looking Rhodes in the eye.

"Why not test this thing on a pig's head or a cadaver...or something other than a live patient?" Rhodes began to protest.

"I already said we have tested this...we have pre-set the injector to what we feel will be sufficient force."

"So, what's the problem?" Griffin asked, placing one hand on his hip.

"Gentlemen, it's always a risk to move to human trials...believe me, this gives me no pleasure."

I'll bet, Rhodes thought to himself, "Well, bring on the first subject, what room are we going to be in today?"

Nadine took the injector from Rhodes, turned the wheel back to the setting before he moved it, and placed it back inside the case, "Follow me, we have a special area built to conduct the next phase of testing."

This ought to be good, Rhodes again thought. Then he collected his two chips and stowed them in a small case that he slid into his lab pocket.

"Doctor, you seem to be pre-occupied," Nadine smiled, "Are you getting enough sleep?"

"Nadine, you don't need be worried about me."

"I keep telling her the same thing," Griffin added, "If you ask me, I'd say Nadine here doesn't trust us."

"Gentlemen, I'm just being cautious...'cause you just never know."

"Well," Rhodes said with cynicism, "I think this is the first time we've actually agreed; you never know who you can trust and who you can't."

Nadine scanned the access to a different elevator and punched in her code.

"Not another elevator ride," Rhodes groaned as the doors rolled open.

"Don't be such a pansy, Doctor. It's only one floor down."

They exited the elevator and then proceeded through the man trap. Muffled screams echoed throughout the wing. "Let me out of here," one would shout. Another could be heard weeping while others protested they had rights.

"What's going on down here?"

"The subjects might be a little testy today."

"That's doesn't answer my question, Madam," Rhodes again protested.

"Most of them are hung over, Doctor. You shouldn't pay too much attention," she answered.

"Griffin?" Rhodes asked, "Do you know anything about this? Where did we find these people?

"They are 'volunteers'..."

"...They were recruited," Nadine interrupted.

They walked up to the first glass sealed room. The man inside began pounding on the reinforced Plexiglas, "You can't just take me off the streets like that! I want to see my lawyer!"

"I'm beginning to understand," Rhodes nodded, "These are street people...I'll bet they're 'volunteers' alright! Griffin, you can't just take people off the streets!"

"Rhodes!" Nadine spat, "Unless you wish to become the first test subject Doctor, I suggest you leave it alone! Griffin, you remain outside the room. The good doctor and I shall go in and see to this man's infirmities."

The two entered the room via the man trap. The man tried to act calm by sitting in the chair, "You have to let me go...you can't do this to me..."

"Relax," Nadine said in a calming tone, "We're here to help you."

"Can you get me out of here?"

"Sure, but we need to administer some medicine."

"I'm not sick!" the man complained.

"Oh, but you are, sir. You have a very rare condition that, unless you agree to the treatment, will require you to remain here in quarantine."

Rhodes clenched his teeth, seething in anger at Nadine's deception.

"Well...okay," the shaking man relented, "If you say so."

Nadine set the case on the counter and took out the device with her back turned to the man, "Doctor, please give me one of the chips," she whispered.

"Nadine, this chip will require my enzyme activator in order for the device to start its process."

"This has the activator built in. I just need to load the chip and then you can administer the shot in the correct location on the test subject."

"What are you doing over there? Where's my medicine?"

"Just one moment, sir," Nadine answered over her shoulder, "We're preparing the correct dose now."

Rhodes set his small case on the table next to Nadine and handed her one of the chips. She carefully set in the injector's chamber and cocked it into position.

"What do I tell him it is?"

"Tell him anything."

"Will it hurt?" the man asked.

"No, you won't feel anything," Nadine answered with a smile, turning to the man. "Doctor Rhodes will administer the medicine. I assure you, you won't feel a thing." She held the injector gun out to a nervous Rhodes.

"What's the matter, Doctor?" the man asked, backing up slightly in his chair, "Is this the first time you have given a shot to anyone?"

"No...no, I've given plenty of shots in my day."

"So what's got you so shook up about this, Doc? You're shaking like a leaf."

"Just been a long day."

"It's not even noon yet!" the man spat. "I'm not so sure I want this shot...maybe I'll wait for the next round, eh?"

"Just lie down on this table, face down please."

Nadine took a razor and shaved the back of the man's head, "Hey! I never asked for a haircut!"

Then she swabbed the area with alcohol for the doctor, "Hey, that's cold!" the man again protested.

Then Nadine stepped back toward the glass, "Okay, Doctor. He's ready."

Rhodes looked over at Nadine and then back to the patient, "Okay, sir. You might feel a little pin prick."

"Okay, okay! Just hurry it on up already," the man complained.

Rhodes lifted the injector gun and placed it on the base of the man's skull. He wrapped his finger around the trigger and slowly squeezed it.

The injector fired a blast of air firing the chip into the man's head. The man never made a noise as the chip pierced his skull and exited the man's head through his left eye, killing him in an instant.

Rhodes jumped back at witnessing the horror. Nadine stepped up to him and placed a hand on his shoulder, "Now, Doctor. Unless I have your full cooperation, I will see to it that you are charged in this man's death."

He turned to Nadine in shock, "How could you do this?"

"Oh, but I didn't do anything. You pulled the trigger, and it's all nicely caught on camera too," she said, pointing to the ceiling, "Wave to the camera, Doctor."

"You had this all planned, didn't you?"

"Yes...well, it was Griffin's idea," hopefully you believe that, she thought.

Rhodes looked over through the glass at Griffin who was staring in disbelief.

"No...no, I don't think he had anything to do with this...I think you had everything to do with it," turning his rage at Nadine.

"Temper, temper, Doctor...you must watch your blood pressure now," she smiled, "Now...how about we do the next trial for real this time, shall we?"

Chapter 8

Underground Complex

October 1st, 2064 18:00hrs

Nadine stood in front of a podium in one of the complex's meeting rooms. She was about to introduce Doctor Rhodes to report his findings on the first test subjects.

The doors suddenly burst open. Calvin Jones shouted at the top of his lungs "I did it! I really did it!"

"Calm down Mr. Jones!" Nadine snapped. "This is the General's briefing, please don't interrupt!"

Doctor Rhodes smiled and stood, almost shoving Nadine from the microphone, "I for one would like to hear what my good colleague...whom I've yet been allowed to collaborate with...has to say..."

"...That's enough, Doctor!" Nadine said, jabbing at his side. "Full cooperation...remember?"

The General stood and addressed Calvin, "I'm in agreement with the Doctor on this one. Nadine, please give Mr. Jones the floor."

"General..."

Nadine backed down at the General's glare, "Mr. Jones, please continue," then returned to her seat with crossed arms.

Calvin walked up to the podium, briefly giving Nadine a glance, "Um, ladies and gentlemen..."

"Oh cut the pleasantries, get to it already!" Nadine shot at Calvin.

"I can honestly say that we are ready to test our prototype. I have duplicated, three times now, the gamma wave frequencies needed to program one of our new chips...all we need is a test subject that's been implanted," he paused, looking around the room, "...so...bring one on..."

Nadine addressed Calvin with folded arms, "Really, Mr. Jones? That's all you got?"

"Well, yes...That's a remarkable achievement..."

"You came barging in here to tell us that?"

McKenzie raised his eyebrows, "Calvin, can you give us a few more details on just what this means, exactly?"

"Certainly, General," Calvin shot a smirk at Nadine.

"Proceed, then."

"Okay, so just how technical do you want it?"

"If it's too hard for me to understand, I'll let you know, Calvin."

"Oh, sorry General," Calvin again smirked, "That wasn't meant for you...you see, I'm concerned that Nadine here might get lost in my technical analysis."

"Watch it, Mr. Jones," Nadine spat, "You're starting to tread on thin ice."

"Lighten up, Nadine," the General chuckled, "Try to have some kind of sense of humor."

"Yeah, Nadine...have a sense of humor," Calvin mimicked.

"May I remind everyone here who is in charge of this project..."

"The General?"

"No Calvin. Not the General...not the military...certainly not any of you..."

"...then who..." Calvin shot back.

"...the Company," she finished.

"The Company..."

"Yes...and I have enough power to have the both of you removed from the Gamma Project if I fail to gain your cooperation!"

"I'm not going to waste time refereeing a pissing contest between you two!" the General shouted, standing to his feet. "I damn well know that the Company is pulling all the strings on this project, but I am in charge of operations...got it? Good!"

Nadine began to open her mouth again when the General stopped her cold, "Zip it Nadine! Now, Calvin if you will?"

Nadine steamed silently under his cold stare.

"Thank you, General. Now, what the gamma waves do to the brain. Well, maybe I should explain a little background first..."

"Calvin...please get on with this?" Nadine finally relented.

"There are several types of brainwave activities, ranging from alpha, beta, and delta waves. There are even theta waves. However, it's the gamma waves that are the most interesting. Doctor Rhodes. Do you mind giving us your explanation on how this part works?"

"Thank you, Calvin," Rhodes answered, standing up to the podium, "You see, the brain consists of millions of neurons which communicate to each other through electrical signals, or pulses. The more active a person is the more electrical pulses are created. If you're sleeping, those signals are diminished and a person begins to generate alpha waves. Once you fall deeper in sleep those waves transform into theta waves and finally, delta waves; which is where we have REM sleep or active dreaming."

"This is all very interesting, Doctor..." Nadine complained.

"Nonsense," the General nodded, "I'm rather fascinated, please continue."

"Then there are the gamma waves. These are waves at a lower amplitude and higher frequency. It's said that these waves are the fastest waves that reach all parts of the brain, normally 40 Hertz or higher. So to clarify these gamma waves; they stimulate higher thinking. Some of what we already know about gamma waves are they increase memory, people tend to stay focused on task, and they learn better because the information is processed at a much higher rate. The other benefits that people may experience are bliss and enhanced senses. Reality is perceived more vividly because they taste better, smell better, hear and see better...they will be better in every way during an AMP session."

"Really, Doctor," Nadine commented.

Rhodes turned to her, "Yes, really."

"Oh, Doctor, I wasn't being sarcastic just then."

"You had me fooled."

"No, I mean I think you've discovered something that is very useful indeed. I thank you for bringing the 'bliss' factor to my attention."

Rhodes turned back to address the General, "Now, normally, we don't produce gamma waves. They are usually only found in a person with an IQ of a genius, perhaps a professor of physics or quantum mechanics, but not the ordinary Joe."

"Until now," the General said.

"Right, until now. You see before, gamma waves seemed to be isolated to the very intelligent. Now we have the chip interface that is used to introduce these gamma waves directly into the brain. Our minds will develop new abilities, or enhance existing ones, through this technology. So, in essence, gamma brain waves occur when there is an unusually high brain activity. Calvin, you want to take it from here?"

Calvin nodded and stepped up to the podium again, "Thank you, Doctor Rhodes. So what this box does...that we've been trying to duplicate...is it floods the chip with gamma frequencies. It uses what's called binaural beats to obtain 'Hypergamma Brain Waves' that exceed 100 Hertz and higher. In other words, the gamma wave modulator sets on fire the millions and millions of neurons inside the host. That causes a natural elevation in intelligence...at least for a short time. Then they return to normal once the chip loses its charge."

"Then they have to be 'charged' up again, like a battery?" the General asked.

"General, that's really it in a nut shell. They have to be jacked into the box and get AMP'd again."

"How often can they do this? Are there any side effects of being, what'd you say? AMP'd?" the General chuckled, "Heh, heh, that's good. I like that...sounds cool."

"One of the side effects are the subjects eye pigment changed to a brilliant green color when they have been APM'd."

"So that's why Lieutenant Savage's eyes turned when she crossed through the mag-ring on the return trip?"

"Yes, General. The Hypergamma waves in the brain do something to the subject pigment, changing them to the green color. So...I return to my original request...where's the next volunteer?"

Nadine stood to the podium, "That's what we were about to brief the General on, when you rudely interrupted this meeting...Doctor."

Rhodes nervously took the podium, "General."

"Doctor? Go ahead."

The first test subject...didn't make it. It...he...was killed on the first attempt..."

"Killed? How! And why am I just now hearing about this?"

Nadine jumped in to cover for the doctor, "General, allow me to explain..."

"You do that!"

"The first test subject didn't make it because of a miss-fire on the injector."

"Miss-fire? Can you elaborate?"

"The tensioner on the new injector was too tight and it shot through the man's head," she said coldly.

"Most unfortunate," the General shrugged, "Did you notify family?"

"That's the only consolation, General. There were no relatives or next of kin."

"Yes..yes...most unfortunate accident...right Doctor?"

"Um, yes...accident...right."

"Okay, just don't keep me in the dark on these things again. Okay Nadine?"

"Sorry, General. I'll be sure to keep you in the loop, moving forward."

"Now, Doctor. What about patient number two?"

Rhodes stood with his hands in his white lab coat and his head shaking, "I don't know what's wrong with the chips...the next one implanted perfectly...the wound grew closed, and the chip began to take hold of the brain stem."

"But?" the General added.

"But the chip fails to fully integrate...I think it's the enzyme compound. It's not exactly like the alien substance we took from the Asteroid..."

"I thought it was already tested and working?" the General turned to Nadine, "You told me this had already been resolved. It worked in Ben and the other test subject."

"General, that's because Ben's chip already had the alien enzyme," Rhodes answered.

"But what about the second chip you surgically implanted, you said it took, and the patient was healed of all trauma?"

The doctor wrung his hands and his cheeks blushed slightly, "I used some of the alien enzyme with ours. It was like a hybrid enzyme...I'm sorry, General. Nadine had put such emphasis on the success of the chip...the patient was going to die...what else was I supposed to do?"

"General," Nadine stepped up to rescue the doctor, "I did put a lot of pressure on Doctor Rhodes, the test subject was going to die, and we couldn't afford to lose this subject."

"Why? You should have let the test subject die..."

"No, General. We couldn't let that happen. We needed to see what this chip was capable of doing."

"What good is it if you can't duplicate the technology without using the alien substance?"

"I'm almost there, General," Rhodes said in his defense.

"So tell me what happened to the second subject then?"

"The chip was injected, painlessly," Rhodes said, turning to Nadine, "But I'm afraid that the man has become insane. The chip is still inside his head and has made many of the necessary connections, but as far as integrating into the cerebral cortex, the chip will be at war inside his mind forever."

"Is there nothing you can do? Surgically remove it or something?"

"At this stage, General, it would be fatal to the patient."

"I see. Then euthanize him and perform an autopsy to find out what went wrong."

"Yes, sir, General," Nadine answered for the Doctor.

"See to it that you dispose of these defective test subjects appropriately. No links back to us, do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, sir," Nadine answered.

"Where's Bennie? I would like to interview him on how he's doing after his implant."

"Bennie is doing great, sir," Rhodes answered.

"Well, bring him in."

"Sorry, General," Nadine said, "We gave Ben a furlough for a few weeks. Colonel Tucker and the Major are taking him until they leave for CSMO 253 Mathilde to make repairs on the mag-ring."

"Furlough? You let him out of here? With Cassandra and Tucker?!"

"Yes, sir. It was either that, or Bennie would have left the program."

"You're going to let a pipsqueak of a kid call the shots now, Nadine?"

"No, sir. But in order to get Bennie his full support on the project, we needed to give him something in return."

"And that's all he asked for? A few weeks off?"

"Yes sir. Just a few weeks," Rhodes interjected.

"Okay, how many weeks?"

"Maybe twelve?" Nadine answered.

"Okay then. Let's keep testing the chip and get a working copy before he returns."

"We're on it, General," Nadine smiled. Then she turned to Griffin, "Start bringing in more candidates, five a week minimum."

"You want five more test subjects each week?" Griffin argued.

"Just do it, Major."

"Or should we call him, Colonel yet?" McKenzie smiled.

"Colonel?"

"Yes, Colonel Griffin. Nadine thinks you deserve a promotion. So unless you feel you can't comply with her requests, we'll take you back down to Captain..."

"..and off the Gamma Project for good," Nadine finished for the General.

Griffin mumbled something under his breath, then smiled and saluted McKenzie.

The General smiled, returning his salute, "I thought you'd see it our way...Colonel."

Lake Stevens Washington

Lake Cassidy

October 2nd, 2064 06:30

Tucker pulled up to the doc with his metal boat in tow, "Ben, this was a great idea."

"Bass fishing. I love bass fishing, Dad."

"You sure you're up to this, son?"

"Absolutely."

Tucker backed his truck down the boat launch and placed it in park. Ben looked over at his dad, "Come on then, let's get 'er in the water."

"Oh, yeah...right. What'd the ol' Doc have to say about getting that wet?"

"He said it wasn't advised since it's an electric component."

"You sure we ought to be goin' on the water, son? I wouldn't want your brain to become short circuited," Tucker smiled.

"I'm not gonna stop living my life, Dad. No way. I've lost too much as it is."

"Okay, just climb in and I'll launch and park the truck. You can tie up at the dock."

Tucker gave Ben a boost over the side of the boat. Then he cranked the boat down from the trailer and floated the boat over to the dock, "Right here's a good spot, son. I'll be back in a jiffy."

Tucker pulled out of the boat ramp, and parked his rig across the parking lot and trotted back to the dock.

"So, Ben...how are you handling losing her anyway...you know, if you want to talk about it that is...'cause I don't want to force you into that. You've been pretty quiet about it.

"You think Cassie's going to make it with us?"

"Now, there you go...see? You just changed the subject."

"You said if I wanted to talk about it...is she?"

"There you go again...and no, I don't think she's going to make it today."

"So...I'll be able to handle Jen's loss, now that we're going to be a family."

"Oh now hold on there, back it up a little, because I think you just took a left when you should have gone right...no one said we're going to be a family...we're just trying everything on for size...you know...like trying on a pair of good jeans. You want to make sure they fit before making the purchase."

Ben giggled at his father's humor, "Dad, it's not the same...if you love someone, you gotta go for it...plain and simple."

"Son, I tried that. It didn't work for me...so I'm just not about to have to go down that road anytime soon again. Hurts too much...I know what it's like to lose..."

"You have no idea!" Ben angrily spat, then stood, causing the boat to rock.

"Easy there fella...we haven't even left the dock yet and you already want to try and sink us? Sit down. Ben, I'm sorry for your loss. We've all lost people we care about."

Ben gingerly sat back down in the boat, "Like Gus? He was your best friend."

"Why does everyone think Gus and I were best friends...maybe a long time ago, but no...not anymore."

"You can't deny it, Dad. You did care about him, I know you did. Losing him on the mission, well, that was unfortunate. But from everything you told me about it, he gave himself freely...you can't blame yourself."

"No, you see you're wrong about that. Yeah, I cared about the lug, but he did cause our breakup...problem is, I was going to give my life to save his."

"But then what would have happened to me?"

"Doctor Rhodes would have been able to use his chip to save you."

"But then I wouldn't have you...Dad, for some reason, all this was meant to be this way. I can't understand it, but ever since I woke up and found out about the alien technology inside of me. It's been telling me that we are a part of something...something big...I can't put my finger on it, but it's big."

"All the more reason to not be a family right now...with Cassie and all, you know...too many emotional ties...might affect judgment."

"You can't be serious, Dad. You're going to use this as a reason not to get together with Cass? I don't believe you. I think you just used up all the excuses in the book now."

Tucker smiled at him, lit one of his prized cigars and pushed off the dock, "I didn't say I wouldn't give it a shot. Just not the M word right now."

"Dad, you're too funny. I never said you have to marry her...just be a family, you know for the time being until we understand what's going on in the world today."

Tucker puffed his cigar and started the small motor on the boat, "Get your lines ready son, we're going to take the lake by storm."

"Now you're talkin', Dad," Ben said, opening his tackle box.

The two powered around the lake for a couple of hours. They listened to their voices echo across the lake on this cool October morning. They laughed, they cried, and they nearly tipped the boat two more times. But they were having fun.

"Go over there," Ben said, pointing with his finger.

"What? You Jesus now? You know where the fish are?"

"Dad..."

Tucker motored the boat over to the spot Ben pointed to.

"Oh!" Tucker exclaimed, "I'll be damned, I got one!"

"Dad, you're supposed to say fish on!"

"Okay, okay. FISH ON!" he shouted, "Oooo, and she's a big one too!"

"Keep reeling her in, Dad!"

Just as Ben turned the small boat to help bring his father closer to the largemouth bass, the line snapped, sending Tucker to do some reeling of his own. He fell backward and hit his head on the side of the boat. Then he flipped feet over head, splashing into the icy cold lake.

"DAD!" Ben reached for him. But it was too late, he sunk below the surface, stunned from the blow to his head. The only thing that remained was the snuffed out cigar that fell out of Tucker's mouth as he went down.

"NOOOOOO! DAAAD! NOOOOOO!" Ben shouted, standing in the boat.

He extended his arm toward the general direction that Tucker had fallen. He clinched his teeth and then shouted at the top of his lungs. His emotions raced through his veins causing a wave of energy to pass down his arm and into the lake.

Hardly believing with his own eyes what was happening to him, Tucker was drawn to the surface where Ben could reach him. But he didn't need to, as the energy from his arm was all that was needed to drag him back into the boat. Then the energy dissipated and he bent down to see if he was breathing.

Tucker coughed and spewed part of the lake from his lungs and then inhaled a gasp of air.

Coughing from the ordeal, he opened his eyes and looked at his Son, "OH...MY...GOD, Son! Your eyes..."

"What about my eyes?"

"They're GREEN!"

Chapter 9

Memorial Hospital

October 2nd, 2064 011:30

Ben sat on the examination table wearing only a hospital gown. Tucker stood next to Cassandra and Beverly, wrapped in a blanket and holding a towel to the back of his head. The towel had become fairly soaked with his blood, but white sections could still be seen.

Rhodes peered through the ophthalmoscope into Bennie's eyes. Then he looked in his ears with the otoscope. Walking around behind, he moved Bennie's hair from the back of his neck to inspect the chip receptacle, "His jack hasn't been damaged by any water, his heart, lungs and B/P all are normal."

"So, look, Doc. I swear to you. His eyes turned to that very familiar glow we saw on Salvage-5. They glistened just like Savage's, and then it slowly faded away."

"Well, they're his normal color now. Bennie, how do you feel?"

"I feel great, Doctor Rhodes. But I'm having a hard time understanding what just happened to me. Am I turning into a freak? What did this alien chip do to me?"

"You sure you didn't just think you saw that?" Rhodes questioned Tucker.

"Doc, you know me. We spent nearly a month in space together...and let me tell you, you get to know people when you're in tight quarters...I know what I saw."

"Okay, Tuck. I believe you. Really isn't any explanation. You said he pulled you back to the surface. How do you know he did? That's a pretty nasty cut on your head. I'd bet you have a concussion. You should let me have a look at that cut too, looks like a stitch or two, perhaps?"

"Ah jeez, Doc. That means you have to stick me with one of your famous needles."

"Tucker..."

"We came here for Bennie. I'll be fine...soon as the bleeding stops..."

"Tucker..." Casandra said with a stare.

"Ah come on now...it's just a little cut," Tucker protested.

"It's okay, Tuck," Beverly assured, "Now you go have that thing looked at and I'll stay here with Bennie. You don't have to worry about it, I've got this," she smiled.

He gave a reluctant sigh, "Okay, okay...Rhodes, lead the way."

"I'll stay and keep you Company, huh Bev?" Cassie said, resting her hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah, sure, Cass."

Doctor Rhodes took Tucker and escorted him to another room and closed the door behind him.

"Okay, Doc. Let's get this over with," Tucker said, jumping on the end of a table.

"You don't need stitches."

"Huh?"

"I needed to get you away from the others. Griffin's out in the hall, Ms. Bitch is also prowling around here too."

"Rhodes? What's gotten under your skin?"

"Tucker, there's something bad going on since we returned."

"Well, I don't know if what Bennie did was necessarily bad, Doc..."

"...No, not Bennie. Now listen, this Nadine from the Company is getting way too much power over this project. They're doing some pretty bad things down below ground...things that if I don't cooperate, will land me in a prison cell, or worse."

"Doc, what kind of things," Tucker asked, jumping off the table.

"No, get back up there, just in case someone comes in."

"Doc, wow...something's sure got you all riled up."

"Yeah, so lower your voice a tad, huh?"

"Okaaay," Tucker whispered, "Is this better?"

"Yes, much," the doctor whispered in return, "Now, this chip. Another test subject has one of our chips implanted and alien enzymes to make it active..."

"...Wow Doc, you already have a working prototype? You're good," Tucker smiled.

"Yeah, nice to know my finger prints are on the thing that may very well destroy humanity."

"What are you talking about? I thought this tech was going to help mankind?"

"Well, it hasn't helped my first two test subjects. One's dead, the other's going to be in the morning...but you're getting me off subject."

"Sorry," Tucker again whispered.

"Nadine..."

"You mean the General's snooty secretary?"

"Yeah, that's the one...only she's a Company appointment over the gamma project."

The gamma project? That's what the General named this thing?"

"Yeah...but listen...something about this Nadine. She creeps me out..."

"Oh...I see...very funny, Doc. You almost had me."

"No, Tuck. I'm dead serious."

Tucker snickered, "Dead serious...another good one...look, I know it's October and you're trying to be festive and all..."

"Tucker, it's not about Halloween. Not at all...Tucker, you've got to help me..."

There was a knock at the door. Rhodes stood behind Tucker as if he had just finished treating him when Nadine entered the room.

"Ah, there you are Doctor."

"Well, Colonel. That should take care of it. You just keep that area clean and dry for a couple of days and you'll be fine," Rhodes instructed, pulling off his latex gloves with a snap.

"We're taking Bennie back to the complex. Sorry, Colonel. You don' have clearance..."

"Wait, you can't take him away like some prisoner," Tucker protested, jumping down from the table again.

"Oh, but I can...it's a national security risk until he's checked out in our lab."

"It's okay, Colonel," Rhodes assured, "I'll be right by his side."

Tucker looked at Rhodes and then over at Nadine, "Okay, fine. But I want him back with us soon."

Nadine escorted Rhodes out of the room. Tucker simply shook his head, "Jeez, where do they find these people, anyway?"

"I don't know, you tell me?" a familiar voice came from the door.

"Cass!"

"Yep, it's me, Tuck. How ya feeling."

"I'm not sure just exactly," he said, placing his hands on his hips, "

"Whattya mean, Tuck?"

"Doctor Rhodes was acting very odd."

"How so? And how's the head?"

"That's just it...I didn't need stitches."

"Come again, oh one who bleeds like a stuck pig?"

"Head wounds always do that at first...no, he was bringing me in here to tell me something."

"What was it?"

"I don't know for sure, he started to tell me something about Nadine he didn't like."

"Who does? She creeps me out."

"See, I thought Rhodes was trying to make a funny about Halloween saying things like she creeps him out and that he was dead serious."

"And you let Bennie go with her?"

"Rhodes assured me he'd be by his side at all times."

"And you believed him?"

"I didn't have much of a choice. I got nothing on her except I don't like her."

"Yeah, I know. Just have to hope that Rhodes can get him checked out. Our mission clock is ticking."

"You don't have to remind me," the Colonel smiled.

"Maybe I should do some inside digging on this Nadine...find out what her story is..."

Tucker grabbed her backside and drew her close to him, "We'll be alone tonight."

"You sly dog you."

"What Major?"

"You are still incorrigible," she smiled.

"Are you going to refuse a direct order?"

"Not a chance, mister."

Underground Lab Complex

October 2nd, 2064 14:00

"What do you make of it Doctor?" Nadine asked.

Rhodes turned from Bennie, "Think we need Calvin in here. We need to see what happens when we send his chip a small dose of gamma waves."

"I think that trial is long overdue...let me put a request in," Nadine answered.

"Hey, how about not talking like I'm not even in the same room," Bennie said, sitting in a chair with his arms folded.

"Sorry, Ben," Rhodes said, turning to him, "I made a promise, I won't leave your side."

"I'm fine, Doctor Rhodes. Can't you just give me a clean bill of health so I can get back to my vacation?"

"Not so fast, Bennie," Nadine typed the request for Calvin to accompany them on her data pad. "We can't risk you being out there until we find out if this was an anomaly or not. If this were to get out of your control, innocent people could be hurt," she said in her best sympathetic voice.

"I suppose you're right. I mean he's the doctor, right Doctor Rhodes? You agree with Nadine?"

"Yeah, Bennie. I agree with Nadine on this one. Let's find out what's going on first, okay?"

"Sure Doctor Rhodes. Anything you say. Not so much for Nadine, though," Bennie leaned over to whisper to Rhodes. The doctor chuckled the best he could under his breath.

"Calvin is on his way," Nadine reported, then slid her data pad into her lab coat.

"Are you a scientist too, Nadine?"

"Why do you ask, Ben?"

"Because you're wearing a white lab coat," he snickered, "Don't you all wear them?"

"No, I just like the way they look on me," she winked back.

Ben snickered again, "Doctor, you need to lighten up like Nadine here. You seem awfully uneasy."

"I'm okay, Ben. Just been under a lot of stress as of late," he said, looking over at Nadine.

Calvin scanned through the man trap and entered the lab with the others.

"Mr. Jones? Aren't you forgetting something?"

"Oh, sorry," he rolled his eyes, "Where's my manners, hey buddy, my name is Calvin and I'm going to wire you to the computer today. You ready?"

"That's not what I was talking about."

"Oh..."

"Your box, Jones...where's your box?"

"Oh that...heh heh, yeah, well it's a bit too clunky to be carrying around and all..."

"...and?"

"...and I've hooked up a fiber optic connection to the amplified projection module...here, Ben, you mind standing over here?"

Calvin directed Bennie to the side of the room, near the computer console and AMP interface.

"Just stand right here, Bennie. I'll hook you up and we can start the gamma wave session. We'll start small, say... 40 Hz."

Calvin sat on a stool and slid up to a keyboard that protruded from the wall. He typed a couple of commands to unlock the screen. Then he punched in another access code, leaned close to the terminal to allow the retina scan to authenticate.

"You sure you want him standing for this?" Nadine asked, stepping closer to Bennie.

"I'll be fine!" Bennie spat.

"My, aren't you all grown up," Nadine smiled, "Alight, Rhodes. Make the connection."

Rhodes took a long fiber cord from Calvin and unwound it. He connected one end to the computer console on the wall and then plugged the other end into the receptacle on the back of Bennie's neck.

"Okay, Cal. You're all set," Rhodes said.

"Okay, Bennie. You ready?"

"Ready Uncle Cal," he smiled with anticipation.

"Okay, we're making the connection now...connection complete. Starting the first gamma stream," Calvin said, studying the computer readout. "We're now passing a 40 Hz gamma wave directly into the chip."

"Ahhh," Bennie winced, as his knees collapsed slightly, not expecting such an experience. He caught himself on the wall with one hand and leaned forward, "Whoa...Doctor..."

"You okay?" Rhodes asked, reaching for a chair, he set it under Bennie just in time.

"I'm terminating the wave..."

"No! Wait!" Bennie demanded, "I'm fine, I'm fine...just didn't expect that effect."

"What effect was that?"

"I think he's referring to the bliss factor, Doctor," Nadine answered.

"Yeah...yeah... wha-what she said," Bennie struggled to say.

"Okay, Doc? Leave it on or terminate?" Calvin asked.

"Let's leave it for the moment," Rhodes said. He took his pen light from his lab coat and shined it in Bennies eyes, "Will ya look at that..."

"What, Doctor?" Bennie asked.

"Well, I'll be damned...the colonel was right."

"About my eyes?"

"Yeah, there's a light pigment change occurring. It's very subtle at this intensity, but it's there nonetheless."

"I'm just going to close my eyes for a minute, okay, Doctor Rhodes?"

"Sure, Bennie. Go ahead," Rhodes answered, then turned to accompany Calvin at the screen. "What do you see?"

"I'm picking up all sorts of high levels of brain activity...and it's rising."

"I see that," Rhodes agreed, "Bennie, how do you feel now?"

"I feel woooonderfuuuul," he answered, mesmerized by the gamma effect.

"Okay, Ben...stay with us now," Calvin advised, "We're taking you to the next level...setting to 50 Hz...now 60 Hz...and slowing to 75 Hz."

Bennie convulsed for a fraction of a second, then calmed back down.

"How about now? What do you feel, Bennie?"

The room was quiet for a moment while Ben sorted out the new effects the gamma wave modulator was having, "I...I'm feeling...kind of...weird..."

"Bennie, can you hear me?" Rhodes said in his direction, "Tell us what you're feeling."

"I'm getting all kinds of images...yeah...images..."

Nadine leaned down closer to Bennie's face, "What do you see, Bennie?"

"I can't make them out all the way yet...but they're images of people I know...Jenny...images of Jenny...they're all grey and faded...Cal, turn it up some more."

"Doctor, I think you should hold back," Nadine advised, "He's obviously still under a great deal of trauma."

Calvin, not complying with Nadine's instruction, "No, let's turn it up a little bit more. I see no danger from any of these readings."

"I agree, Cal," Rhodes nodded, "Let's see if we can get those images clearer for you son."

"I'm all for that," Bennie said as his eye pigment changed to a brighter color of green.

"We're at 100 Hz now," Calvin reported.

"Bennie, can you see the images now?"

Bennie remained silent for a moment. Then he winced at the sudden flow of new gamma frequencies. He regained his composure and opened his glowing green eyes.

Nadine was leaning down right in front of his face when he reached up and grabbed her face with both hands and looked deep within her soul.

She winced with pain, grabbing for her temples in an attempt to make the pain stop. She fell to her knees in front of Bennie, "You! You're keeping something from me! What is it!"

He probed her mind searching for the answers when she cried out in pain, "STOP! You're killing me!"

"What is it!" Bennie demanded, probing deeper within the confines of her mind, "I see Jenny...she's nearby...what's this all about? WHY HAVE YOU KEPT THIS FROM ME?"

Then he pushed her away and gasped at the sight of his Jen entering the room. Calvin wound the machine down, and then terminated the connection. Bennie collapsed on the floor, breaking the link to Nadine.

Rhodes unhooked the AMP cable from Bennie and picked him off the floor and set him in the chair.

His Jenny knelt down beside him and stroked the side of his hair gently with her soft fingers, "Oh, Bennie...I've missed you so much...come on...wake up for me now..."

Bennie began to stir, moving his head from side to side. He slowly opened his eyes and focused on his lost love, "Je-Jen? Jenny...is it really you?" he managed to smile.

"Yes, Ben...It's really me."

"Bennie?" Rhodes asked, kneeling with Jenny, "Are you okay?"

"I don't know, Doctor. Are my eyes still green?"

"No, they changed back already."

He looked over at Calvin, "Can you turn it back on? Please?" he begged, "I have to experience this again...please give it to me."

"Bennie, we should take a break. Let us go over the data we collected and then we'll determine if we should have another go."

Bennie turned his attention to Nadine, "Why? Why didn't you tell me? I was starting to think you might be one of the good guys...now...you broke that trust...you lied to me...how could you?"

"Bennie," Nadine said, kneeling before him again, "I kept that little piece of information for a special time. I was going to surprise you...I thought you'd be happy we saved her life."

"She can be jacked in too?"

"Yes, Ben. Doctor Rhodes saved my life with his first chip duplication attempt. Using some of the alien enzymes to give it a kick start. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for Doctor Rhodes."

"Let's not forget, Major, err, Colonel Griffin, who had you whisked away to a suspended animation chamber," Nadine smiled.

"Don't get me wrong, lady..." Bennie started.

"...Lady?"

"....but don't EVER hold out information from me again, or I won't stop next time I'm AMP'd."

Nadine, knew she was in a losing argument. She didn't want to risk losing Ben at this phase of the project, "I'm sorry, Ben. I won't let that happen again. I promise. You can scan my mind if you wish, but I hold no more secrets," she said, crossing her finger across her heart.

"Just don't."

"Now," Calvin said, standing from his stool, "Doctor? We've got a lot of data to go over."

"By all means, Mr. Jones...please, lead the way."

"Just a moment, gentlemen. I think I should accompany you."

"That's okay, Nadine," Rhodes smiled, "I'm sure Bennie would rather you stay with Jenny...you know...so you can fully explain yourself."

The two left a nervous Nadine through the man trap and made their way to Calvin's lab.

Chapter 10

Underground Complex

Nadine's private office

October 2nd, 2064 18:00

Nadine sat at her desk talking on her data pad, "Yes... I'm telling you it was very difficult keeping him from discovering the truth... ... ...I know, but I wasn't expecting such a surge from him. He is very powerful with the alien tech... ...yes, that's the good news. It works. Rhodes just has to perfect the enzyme and we'll be in full production down here. Yes, that's right... ...I plan on it... ...okay, very well. I'm using Jen to see if we can get Bennie to focus on the problem... ...that's right, huh uh... okay then. We'll get this started at the first of the week... ...I know that's another delay, but we really do need the data completely understood...and I'll have to take precautions next time he's AMP'd. I can't risk Ben probing my mind, so I can't be in the same room next time... ...okay, I'll report back later this week...g'bye."

She disconnected her data pad, and got up from her desk, when there was a knock at her door, "Come."

The door opened to Calvin, "Do you have a minute?"

"Mr. Jones. Come in and have a seat," then returned to her chair and studied him intensely, "So, what brings you to my office? Must be fairly important, you never come a calling."

"Well, first off," Cal began, "I want to see how you're doing after Bennie's mind probe? You still have a headache?"

"No, not bad...and thank you for asking. Maybe there's hope after all."

"Hope?"

"Yeah, perhaps we got off on the wrong foot. I'm ready to let bygones be bygones...you know, a fresh start?"

Calvin fidgeted in his seat, "It would only benefit the project if we weren't at each other's throats all the time."

"Okay, so truce then?"

"Yeah, sure thing."

"Okay, good. Now that we have that out of the way, what did you really come here to talk about?"

"We've been going over and over the data we collected from Bennie's first AMP."

"...and?"

"...and, we're really no closer to understanding what happened."

"What are you saying, Mr. Jones?"

"Call me Cal, please."

"Okay, Cal."

I'm saying it could take us days to fully extrapolate the data so it will make any sense at all."

"Mr. Jones...Cal, we really don't have days."

"What's the rush anyway? We saved your test subject already. Are there any others that are in the same state?"

"No, Cal. Jenny was the only one."

"It was pretty fortunate that Major...Colonel Griffin was on hand when Bennie had his accident...I've been meaning to ask..."

"Yes?"

"How was it that Griffin was so close at the time of the accident anyway?"

"Fourth of July celebrations were going on everywhere. He was in the same neighborhood for his party...really a stroke of luck...wouldn't you say?"

"Umm, yeah...lucky for her and all..."

"So what else?"

"Umm, well..."

"Come on, Mr. Jones. Out with it."

"What color are your eyes? You mind if I take a look?"

Nadine broke down with laughter at his question, "You think I'm chipped? That's a good one, Cal. If it'll make you feel any better, yes. My eyes are green...so are about another 140 million others in the world."

"Yeah, really about two percent of the population."

"It's really not that uncommon, Cal. No...I'm not one of those little green men that you ran into at the asteroid."

"Well, I don't think you'd admit it if you were," he chuckled.

"If you thought that, then why did you even ask me?"

"To see how you reacted, I guess...everything seems okay. Your eyes seem to be a normal green color and not the friendly neighborhood cyborg type."

"I'm glad you asked, though...you know, we shouldn't keep secrets from one another, Cal..."

"Oh, you are quite right. We need to be able to trust one another."

"So, did you come here on your own, or did someone put you up to it?"

"It was really most of us on the team, Ma'am..."

"So you just drew the short straw then...well, you can go back to the others and reassure them I'm not your enemy, okay?"

"Okay."

"...and tell Dr. Rhodes if he wants to ask a question, he can come directly to me next time."

"How'd you know it was Rhodes?"

"Lucky guess."

Calvin nodded his head, "It was that obvious?"

"Yes, very...you can also inform the team that I won't be interfering in your next few tests."

"Ma'am?"

"You heard me right. I'm not going to be present for the next bout of testing. I've seen that you guys are capable of conducting the testing on your own. You can send me your detailed reports after."

"Thank you, Nadine. I'm sure that bit of news will be well received...no offence, you know."

"None taken. You see? I'm trying to be a good team leader."

"That's very much appreciated, Nadine."

"I do realize that what you experienced out there was traumatic, and that will most likely effect you for a very long time.

"Thanks...well, I had better get back to the team."

Underground Lab Complex

Calvin's Lab

October 2nd, 2064 22:30

Calvin and Doctor Rhodes worked on interpreting the data late into the night.

"I'm tellin' ya, Doc, she's got me all tense and worried."

"Well, yeah. She's not a safe person to be around. Trust me. So, she really knew it was me?"

"Yep, pegged ya dead on," Calvin answered, pouring through the data on his screen.

"I wish you wouldn't use that term."

"Dead? Oh...sorry. I didn't mean to be insensitive."

"Forget it, Cal. What I told you that Nadine has done...is doing..."

"Down in the dungeon of doom?"

"Yes, and frankly, Cal, I'm scared."

"I don' like it either, Doc. I mean, what was that scene with Bennie? That freaked me out. No way did I expect that dose of gamma frequencies to cause such an explosion of power in him."

"Let's not lose sight that we're dealing with alien technology here...we're doing something to our brains and there is no way we could have had these expectations. This is opening up a can of worms that, once this genie is let out of the bottle..."

"...there is no putting it back inside?"

"Exactly, Cal."

"Did I tell you that she's not going to be present for the next few tests?"

"Neither is McKenzie or Griffin," Rhodes said, stroking his chin, "I wonder what that's all about?"

"You got me. But I do know they're hiding something and they don't want to be around for Bennie to discover what it is during his next little AMP session."

"You know, I think you hit the nail on the head there, Cal."

"Then there's the Jenny factor."

"Yeah, that was strange. Why would Nadine and the rest keep that from us?"

"That's really a good question...you implanted the chip in her. You could have said something."

"Look, I did it alright? But I never knew who she was. How could I? Nadine only referred to her as 'the test subject.' Besides, this is the first time we've been allowed alone to talk."

"I know, I know. We all feel like the guns pointed at our heads."

"Well, isn't it?"

"I suppose so, Doc."

"Just try and leave. You can't even gain access to the elevator without McKenzie or Nadine's authorization. Makes one think of being a prisoner."

"I tell you what, first chance I get," Calvin said with a whisper, "I'm finding a way out of here."

"Calvin," Rhodes said, leaning close to Calvin's face, "take me with you. Vivian too. She had no idea what she was getting herself into. She won't have a chance getting out of here."

"Oh, I'm already working on it. I've enlisted the help of my assistants. They don't even know it yet, but their out scavenging me supplies that I can use to hack this complex. What about Bennie? You promised Tucker that you'd be by his side at all times down here."

"I think Bennie is safe for now. He's got the only genuine alien tech. There's no way we could get him out...'sides, I think he can take care of himself."

"It would appear so."

"What do you expect we should do once we do get out?"

"Stay low," Cal said, still whispering.

"You have a place to 'stay low' do ya?"

"Yep, I've already made the arrangements. And it's not far either."

"How far?"

"Down the island a few miles from the base. Nothing like hiding out right under their noses."

"Calvin, be really, really cautious of who you trust around here."

"You don't have to tell me twice, Doc. I already know that. I'm not saying we're going to make a break for it tomorrow."

"Right. We need to make sure it's the right time."

"For now, we should continue to make some progress. Stay close to the project, but be ready to go at a moment's notice."

"I agree...I only hope we don't have to wait too long, or I'm afraid none of us will make it out of here, short of a body bag."

"Hang in there Doc. We'll be alright."

"So, where is Bennie, anyway?"

"Good thing good ol' uncle Cal here knows...'cause I'd hate for you to have broken your promise to Tuck."

"Very funny, Cal. He's not your nephew..."

"But he calls me that. I've known Bennie all of his life. I think it's kind of cool he thinks of me as family."

"Where is he, Cal?"

"He's in his quarters with Jenny. They have a lot to talk about, you know."

"So, what about the data? You got anything yet?"

"Yeah...as a matter of fact, I do," Cal said, pointing to some of the numbers and graphs."

"That's amazing, Cal."

"Yes it is, but if you think that's something," Cal said, flipping through more data, "Then there's this," he again pointed.

"You gotta be kidding me..."

"I wish I were, but there it is. Right there, plain and simple in the data, and data don't lie."

"This gamma wave modulator is activating the nucleus accumbens of the brain? That's the part of the limbic system. That's what caused Bennie's euphoric state."

"Yep, it gives a person a high...especially at the initial wave frequency."

"This chip is amplifying any dopamine and serotonin that the brain produces."

"In effect, they are instantly addicted to being AMP'd."

"...and I'm pretty sure they are already aware of that," Rhodes added.

"I'm certain they are, but for what purpose?"

"I think it's something none of us expected, but, you can bet that the Company will take full advantage."

"All the more reason to get out of here as soon as we can."

"I'm 100 percent in agreement, Cal."

Underground Lab Complex

Bennie's Quarters

October 2nd, 2064 23:30

"Oh, Bennie," Jenny smiled, "that was so wonderful. I honestly don't know why I waited until now."

Bennie turned in the sheets and landed on his pillow face up. Jenny melted to him.

He relaxed and gave a sigh, "I thought I had lost you. They told me you were killed in the accident...why would Griffin be so close to the accident site and what is Nadine hiding?"

"Bennie, don't go spoiling the moment now," she snuggled in his arm."

"Still, what happened?"

"Stroke of luck? Fate? I can't say for sure. All I know is that I'm glad to be in your arms. It feels good to live again."

"What was it like?"

"How should I know? I was dead, remember? I died...I was dead for two months for god sakes!"

"Sorry! Something's different, Jen."

"What do you mean, sweetie?"

"I mean, you seem different..." Jenny lifted up and gave him a stare, "...oh, I don't mean it in a bad way," he smiled in return, "I like the new Jen."

"I don't know. I guess I just have a new lease on life. I'm the same Jen you've grown to love," she settled back into his arm, "Now, be still and enjoy the moment."

"I can't stop thinking about Nadine and what else she's keeping from me."

"Bennie Petersen!" she shot up and snapped, "Nadine is the one who just happened to have saved my life! You need to give her some respect."

"It was Griffin."

Jenny lowered her brow, "Griffin was instrumental in finding you, yes. But don't forget Nadine is the one who put my body in suspension, near death, until the alien tech was recovered. They chose me to be the first one healed by the chip."

"I think I own that title, Jen."

"You may own the first ever, but I have the first hybrid," she smiled.

She tugged on his arm to raise him up, "Come on, let me show you something."

"Haven't you shown me enough already for one night?" Ben made a show of eyeing her up and down.

"Oh, stop."

"Sorry, that's my dad coming out again."

She playfully swatted at his arm and then brought him sitting on the floor with their legs folded. They sat facing each other. Jen took his hands in hers.

She intently looked at Bennie and smiled, showing him her love through her eyes. Bennie smiled at her in return.

"Wow," Ben commented, shutting his eyes, "What are you doing?"

"I'm projecting to you how I feel about you."

"I'm getting all tingly," he smiled again.

"How I really feel, deep down inside me. Ben, you're a part of me. Feel it?"

"Yeah, cool."

"Okay, now you do the same thing. You try and project. Use the chip...you can do it."

"How can I? I need to be plugged in first. It doesn't last that long after the waves stop."

"Nonsense," she shook her head, "Then tell me how I just did it to you? I've never been AMP'd...at least not yet...and frankly, I really can't wait."

"Cal wants to make sure there are no harmful side effects before he'll let anyone near that amplification module again."

"Go ahead, try again, Ben."

Bennie closed his eyes and gave out a sigh, already expecting nothing to happen. Then he popped his eyes wide open with a gasp. They looked into each other's eyes and watched as their iris' turned bright green, and her hair rose up as if it were statically charged. Bennie's hair on the back of his neck stood on end. They bathed in the sereneness for several moments. A golden glow surrounded them. They experienced total and complete bliss, and then almost as fast as it had begun, it faded away.

He leaned forward and embraced Jen, "Thank you for showing me this."

"It was special, wasn't it," she wrapped her arms around his neck and the two kissed and fell to the floor in each other's arms, and then made love through the remaining night hours.

Nadine's Office

October 3nd, 2064 00:00

Nadine Switched off the monitor showing Bennie's quarters and then picked up her data pad, "This is Nadine... yes, seems as if Jenny is already having an effect on him. Yep, he's fallen for her... ...I've seen their eyes...trust me...I know how to do my job. Very well. I'll send you the data feed so you can see for yourself. I'm telling you, they activated a small dose of gamma by themselves... ...I know the risk. Hey, I said I wasn't going to be present... ...don't worry about me... ...I can keep my thoughts private... ...if you didn't think I was a good fit for this job, then you should have picked someone else...I'll get it done."

She abruptly hung up the data pad and tossed it on the desk. Then she turned on the video feed from Bennie's quarters, continuing to monitor the two. She made a copy of the AMP event of the two, and transmitted the file to the Company.

She leaned forward and opened a locked drawer on her brown desk. She removed a syringe filled with a green substance and reached around to the back of her neck and injected herself with some of the liquid. Then she returned the syringe and locked the drawer. She smiled and leaned back in her high back chair, closed her eyes and slept until morning.

Bennie's Quarters

October 3nd, 2064 06:40

Nadine rang the privacy bell on Bennie's quarters, alerting him that she was entering the man trap.

The two jumped with a start from a sound sleep. Jen hastily dressed as Ben tossed on a robe just before Nadine finished with passing through the trap.

She clapped her hands, "Chop, chop, now. Time's a wastin'. We've got some testing to do this morning."

"Testing?" Ben complained, "I thought we would be told ahead of time?"

"I am telling you ahead of time. We have to be in Cal's lab in twenty minutes."

"That's not telling me ahead..."

Jen poked Bennie in the ribs, "it's okay, Nadine. We're ready," she gleefully exclaimed.

"Good, grab your things and let's go then."

A few minutes later, they entered Calvin's lab. Doctor Rhodes and the two captains were standing by.

"Good morning, Nadine," Calvin opened, "Good to see you so...early."

"Oh, now don't start with me. You told me that 0700 was good."

"I did, now?" he said, rubbing his tired eyes.

"Did you get any rack time?" Nadine asked.

"Nope, been here all night with the good doctor. We've been going over all the data we collected."

"What are your findings, Cal?"

Before Calvin had a chance to begin, Rhodes interrupted him, "We've found nothing significant to report. That's why we needed to do another test."

"...right..." Cal clumsily added, "We needed more data."

"Data...yeah...more data," Rhodes smiled back at Cal.

"Well, here are your two test subjects today."

"Simultaneously?"

"Why not?" Jen asked. "I'm up for it if you are."

Ben shook his head, "Oh yes...after the last time, I'm more than ready, Cal."

"Okay, you guys. I'll leave you to it."

"Oh, stay..." Calvin said, looking up at Nadine.

"Yes, why don't you stay?" Bennie asked.

"No, sorry. After the last time, I think I'll keep my distance, thank you. My head is still reeling from the last time."

"Okay, have it your way, then." Cal said, bowing slightly toward Nadine.

Nadine didn't bother with Calvin's gesture, but turned and exited the way she came with chin raised.

"Okay you two, plant it on the sofa," Calvin pointed.

The two sat on a black leather couch that had been brought in at his request, "We want you to be comfortable now."

"Lay back and close your eyes for a few minutes," Rhodes instructed.

"I'll go ahead and do the run up sequence, Doc."

The machines churned in the background as Calvin set the controls to begin with the very small gamma frequency.

Jenny took hold of Bennie's hand in anticipation and he squeezed hers in return, "It's okay, Jen, you'll like this part."

"I'm sure I will," she turned to Bennie with a smile.

"Okay, lean forward and I'll make your connections," Rhodes said. He grabbed the two cables draped across the lab bench and inserted them in each of their connectors and then stepped back.

"Okay, Cal. All ready."

"All set," Cal answered, over the whine of the machine. He slowly increased the power gain on the data feed to Ben and Jenny. He fully knew that they were receiving the stream just by the look on each of their faces.

"Okay, now that you both are in the first stage of AMP," Rhodes knelt down before the two, "When we increase the power to the signal, I'm going to hand each of you the formulas for the enzyme that activates the chip. Compare mine to the alien readings and see if you can tell me what ingredient is missing to finalize my enzyme."

"We're not doctors," Bennie chuckled, "How do you expect us to read that stuff?"

Jen squeezed his hand to get his attention, "You'll be surprised how much you'll understand, Ben. Come now, let's concentrate," Jen closed her eyes and faced forward, "Calvin, you can AMP us up."

"As you wish," Calvin turned the dial to a higher setting and then punched in the transmit code, "Here ya go."

The two gritted their teeth to suppress their screams. Each of their eyes squeezed shut, and their foreheads furrowed. They grabbed the arms of the sofa they sat on and began to rip the leather. Then Jen relaxed, followed by Ben, who then folded his hands in his lap.

"How are you feeling?" Rhodes asked.

They each opened their green colored eyes and stared at the Doctor. Rhodes was taken back slightly before Jen spoke, "it's okay, Doctor. It seems to be a harmless side effect of the AMP."

"You can tell your eyes have changed?"

"Yes, I am aware they are. It's only because of our heightened awareness. We could just about think up anything you asked."

"How about we start off...small?"

"Sure, Doctor. Where's the data you wish us to interpret?"

Rhodes handed them each a data pad. It only took a few minutes to study the material. Each read at an alarming rate, but Jen finished with her analysis ten seconds before Bennie, "I have the answer to your problem, Doctor."

"Good...good, just keep it to yourself. Let's see if Bennie comes up with the same solution."

"I too have the answer, Doc," Ben said, looking at Rhodes with a smile. "You can check it for yourself, but I believe we have come up with identical solutions."

Rhodes skeptically reviewed both solutions the other had written on the data pads, "Unbelievable."

"What, Doctor?" Jen asked.

"Bennie's right, you each came up with the exact formula for the correct enzyme. Identical..."

"What are the odds of that, Doc?" Cal asked, turning round on his stool.

"Not very good at all," Rhodes said, shaking his head.

"I think you'll find everything you'll need there, Doctor," Jenny said, looking up with a smile.

"Thanks...yeah, thanks," was the only thing Rhodes could reply, "They can start production now."

Chapter 11

Underground Lab Complex

General McKenzie's Office

October 30th, 2064 15:00

General McKenzie paced as Calvin and the Doctor finished with delivering their update.

"Excellent work, gentlemen," Nadine nodded with a smile, "The Company is most grateful for all your hard work."

"So, that's all folks," Calvin said, standing to his feet, "Show me the way out of here, and I'll be on my way now. You can tell the Company that I thank them for their employment, but I do have other projects I need to attend...you know how it is."

"Sit down, Cal." McKenzie pointed.

Calvin slowly returned to his chair, "Now, hold on here. I never signed up for a permanent assignment."

"Don't be silly, Calvin," Nadine said, "the Company wishes to retain your services for an extended period. They will reward you handsomely."

"Handsomely? How much we talking?"

"By your agreeing to continue working for the Company on the Gamma Project, you get to keep breathing air..."

"Breathing is good," he said, turning to the doctor.

Rhodes shook his head in agreement, "Ditto, I live to breathe."

"Good," Nadine evilly smiled, "I'll be sure to let the Company know."

"Do we get to have field trips?" Calvin asked, raising his hand.

Nadine and the General looked at each other, then back to Calvin, "No, really. Can we go top side from time to time? Got to have some of that genuine vitamin D, you know."

The general rested his hands on the back of his chair to address the two, "You know that what you've seen down here, we can't risk you leaking anything that would be a threat to national security."

"Oh, General," Calvin said, pressing his hand on his chest, "You wouldn't actually think that I would kiss and tell now do you?"

"Calvin, you're as bad as Colonel Petersen," the General smiled, "But you actually make me laugh."

"So, whattya think? We get to go top side? Sometimes?"

"Only if escorted...and for very limited time."

Calvin stood up, "Oh, thank you General!" he wrapped his arms around McKenzie from across the desk, then gave him a big kiss on the cheek, "You're the best!"

McKenzie pushed the man off of him while Rhodes tugged on his shirt, "Calvin! Get a hold of yourself! The only way I'm not having you arrested is you don't wear the uniform...and that's the only reason!"

"Sorry...very sorry," Calvin smiled, returning to his chair.

"I'll make the arrangements, General," Nadine smirked.

"It's not funny, Nadine!" the General shouted.

"I'm not laughing, sir," she managed so say with a straight face.

The General wiped the slobber off his cheek and gave a sigh, "Don't ever do that again."

"So, Calvin," Nadine asked, "About the wireless features of the chip, do you have that interfaced yet?"

"Oh," Dr. Rhodes said, raising his finger in the air, "The wireless technology won't fit inside the current chip model. That's an entirely different schematic that will take a completely new set of designs."

"Are you sure there isn't enough room in the current design?"

"Positive, if you want production of this chip to move forward, you get them minus the wireless."

"Calvin? Do you concur with your associate here?"

"One hundred percent, Madam."

"Good. I'll submit this first run to, let's say 100,000 units worldwide?"

"I think that's actually a relatively small number," the General said, "Maybe a hundred thousand in the United Territories alone. I'd say maybe closer to a million worldwide."

The General leaned over to Rhodes, "Are you certain that the bliss effect will totally eradicate any other addiction a person would have?"

"It's all right there in my report, General," Rhodes said, with a more serious tone, "The chip actually repairs the addiction the person has, weather it was heroin, methamphetamines, or the latest kick out there, cokalamine All the test subjects injected so far, show no signs of addiction in their bodies."

"How many subjects so far have had the implant?" McKenzie asked.

"Fifteen to date. One fatality, three became insane. The rest are stable, awake and alert."

"So, eleven are good."

Nadine interrupted the General, "I've seen to it that they are being treated and taken care of appropriately. They will eventually be released back into society."

"Double the implant output per week."

"You want ten a week now?"

"Nadine, if you can't handle that schedule..."

"General, I can handle it...I was merely clarifying. Ten a week it shall be, in fact, our lower lab facility can house fifty a week."

"We'll fill your facility to capacity soon enough," the General nodded.

"Once that happens, General, we'll need to move our operations topside so we can have a wider distribution network."

"We're already making the arrangements for three major distribution channels. We're starting with the medical use first, then release the chip to anyone who can afford one," McKenzie smiled.

"Then we'll provide the licenses to select businesses. They'll open up clubs where those who have been chipped, can go for a quick and harmless fix..."

"While cleaning their bodies of toxins," Rhodes finished, "Let's not lose sight of the real purpose of these chips."

"Oh, of course," Nadine nodded enthusiastically, "Absolutely. We need to get this out to the hands of the commoners to trump the Vatican's hand before they can claim it as theirs."

"And, we are ahead of them," Calvin offered, "At least they were way behind three months ago."

"As long as they weren't able to obtain the rest of the transmission from the alien complex before we interrupted the signal."

"General," Calvin began, "As far as we know, they didn't get it all. But we really don't have any way to verify that fact."

"True," McKenzie said, with eyebrows raised, "Let's just treat it as if they didn't get it. Carry on gentlemen, you're both excused."

"So, General," Calvin asked, "When can we go on our field trip?"

"We'll get back to you on that."

"Yes," Nadine said, looking over her shoulder as the two got up to leave, "You'll be the first to know."

They exited the general's office and the door slid closed. Nadine turned to McKenzie, "So, what do you think?"

"I don't like it. They're up to something."

"I totally agree," Nadine said, "I'll have the tapes from the lab reviewed."

"Let me know if you come up with anything."

"Oh, you can bet I will, General."

"I didn't think you were going to have an open discussion on the jamming clubs."

"They would have found out soon enough. I just sped it up."

"At least now we'll know if they remain loyal to our project," McKenzie pulled out his chair and sat at his desk, "What you are going to do about the wireless problem. If we are to gain the population's mind control, then we'll need wireless activated in the chips."

"You leave that to me, General."

"Very well. How soon do you think we can have those plans added to the production line?

"I should have it done by the end of the day."

"Excellent!"

Nadine's Office

October 30th, 2064 19:00hrs

"Now, Jenny," Nadine instructed, "You just sit down and relax."

Jenny promptly took a chair and watched as Nadine removed a coiled up fiber cable from her desk and plugged it into the receptacle on the wall.

"You're going to AMP me?"

"Yes, honey. I have a special assignment for you."

"How is it you came to have an AMP station in your quarters?"

"I'm the project facilitator. Did you not expect me to have access to my own system?"

"No, Ma'am. I wasn't accusing you of anything...just curious is all."

Nadine smiled at Jen, then turned to her console to open the AMP program.

"Now, lean forward," she plugged the end of the cable into Jenny's. "There, all set. Now just sit back and relax a moment."

"Sure thing, Ma'am," Jenny leaned back in her chair, with eyes closed.

"Okay, we're all charged up on this side. You ready?"

"Oh yes. I am ready, please proceed," Jenny was eager to experience the gamma waves again.

Nadine punched the transmit button on her console, sending the bliss effect through the cable to Jenny's chip. She immediately grew a smile and then began singing softly.

"You feel good, Jenny?"

"Ohhh, yeeees, Ma'am. I feel wonderful."

"Good. Just keep relaxing and I'll increase the output shortly. Then we'll see if you can solve another technical problem for me."

"Oh, suuure thiiing."

Nadine let Jenny bask in the bliss effect for several minutes, and then turned the output to the higher range. She opened her eyes wide, exposing her brilliant green eyes now being displayed.

"Excellent! Now," Nadine handed her a data pad, "I need you to come up with a new design that will allow wireless connectivity to fit in the current chip model...do you think you can do that for me, sweetie?"

"Oh, of course," Jen smiled. She took the data pad and studied it for several more minutes, then made the corrections to the schematic that would allow for the wireless feature.

When she was finished, she handed the data pad back to Nadine, "Here. That should do it."

"Wow! Impressive!" Nadine smiled, looking at the new design, "You did this in record time. I think there will be a time, very soon, that there won't be anything you can't do."

"I'm only more than happy to help. I can't wait to tell Bennie..."

"No...no, you need to keep this little AMP session between the two of us."

"But, we can trust Ben."

"You have to give me your word on this."

"I don't understand, Nadine," she said, looking her way. She silently tried to probe her mind, but Nadine, turned off the AMP. The abrupt withdrawal of the signal sent Jenny crashing down from her blissful state, leaving her drained and dazed.

Her eyes returned to normal and then Nadine reached over and unplugged the cord, draping it across her desk, "This is another one of those 'National Security Risk' things. You're clearance is higher than Bennie. We completely trust you, Jenny."

"Ah, this is a 'Top Secret' mission then?"

"So to speak, yes," Nadine said, crossing her arms, "You have to promise me now."

"Okay. I promise...at least for now."

"Good, my dear. You can return to your quarters now. I'll come for you later in the morning for more testing."

"That sounds good to me, Ma'am...see you then."

Jenny smiled, got up and gave Nadine a hug before leaving the room. Pulling the door closed, Nadine sat back at her desk, not noticing that the door never locked behind Jen.

She reached in her desk drawer and pulled out a silver colored box that contained the long syringe with green liquid. Tying her hair back, she gave herself another injection at the back of her neck. Returning the syringe to the open container, she reached for the fiber optic cable and proceeded to plug it into a receptacle on the back of her neck.

Just as she punched in a code on her console, she was interrupted by a brief knock at her office door.

"Knock, knock," Nurse Rollins said, swinging her door open, "Dr. Rhodes' is looking for you..."

Nadine looked over with a start, but it was too late. Vivian saw Nadine's eyes turn to a brilliant green color.

Vivian was in the middle of taking in a huge breath to scream, when Nadine shot across her desk at lightning speed. Grabbing her neck, she squeezed her throat enough to prevent air from escaping and making any noise. She fought back, grabbing and clawing at Nadine's face managing to tear a chunk of skin from Nadine's cheek, revealing a large section of computer traces and wires beneath the surface.

Nadine moved her hands to the sides of Vivian's head and gave it a sudden twist, causing a bone creaking snap, killing the woman instantly.

She caught her mid-fall, and laid her to the floor. Then turned to quickly close her office door and returned to her desk.

Terminating the AMP sequence, she unplugged the cord and stowed it in her desk. Then she looked at the dead body on the ground, picked up her data pad and called an attendant to quietly remove the body from her office.

Removing a make-up mirror from her purse that sat on the corner of the desk, she examined the damage, "Damn! I don't have time for this."

She picked up the syringe on her desk and injected some of the green liquid to the sides of the opening. Holding the mirror up, she watched as her skin grew over the open wound sealing her identity once more.

"There...much better," she said, returning the compact to her bag. Then looked down to the dead body on the floor, "You shouldn't have just barged in here...now look what you've done...no matter, I was about to discharge your services anyway...the Company will send your final check on the next pay cycle...What's that?" Nadine said, cupping her ear, "You said we can keep your last check? You won't be needing it anyway, will you my dear."

Nadine's private aide secretly removed the dead body from her office.

Oak Harbor Washington

Crow's Nest Bar & Grill

November 22nd, 2064 12:00hrs

Calvin, Rhodes, and Griffin sat in a quiet corner of the bar for their lunch field trip. Calvin was in a great mood and continued kidding around his usual way when Dr. Rhodes held up his hand, "Shhh, shhh, shhh," he pointed to the telecom screen displaying the news, "I wanna hear this..."

"...ever increasing cases of missing persons in the greater Seattle area," the telecom report announced, "So far, there have been thirty new cases filed with the Seattle PD. The department has had no comment, and no suspects in these cases. In other news, the number of street people in the downtown sector is on the decrease, an indication that the new city mayor has clamped down and is cleaning up the back allies, making Seattle a much safer place...here is Jason for a more in depth report..."

Griffin sunk down slightly in his seat and continued to eat his Ruben sandwich, clearing his throat as quietly as possible.

"The word from the mayor's office is clear," the reporter continued, "Their plan is to make the streets of Seattle the best and safest in the West. The Mayor claims they are on track to reduce the number of homeless on Seattle's streets by over fifty percent by the end of the year."

The picture changed with the reporter interviewing the mayor as he talked over him with his narration until the section that they wanted the people to hear, "...they are disappearing, though we don't expect that there's any connection with the rash of missing people being reported."

The reporter began to narrate over his voice again until the last segment, "We're taking away the incentives from the street people and they're simply moving off to another city where their government caters to them..."

The reporter turned live again to finish his story, "There you have it...now back to you, Matt."

The telecom screen returned to the news cast, "...and in other news, Colonel Tucker Petersen is scheduled to lead another salvage operation back to CSMO 253 Mathilde. The crew is set to depart in four months..."

Rhodes turned to Griffin, "I'm stuffed," then slid his dish away from him and sipped down the rest of his brew.

"In a way," Calvin said, leaning over to the doctor, "I wish I was heading back out to space right about now."

Rhodes leaned close to Cal, "I couldn't agree with you more."

Nadine walked up to their table from another booth, "You boys finished up then? We need to get back to the base now."

"Yeah, I've seen about all I need to for the moment," Calvin answered. He wiped his mouth and tossed the napkin on the table as he stood, "So...Nadine, what do you think about these reports of missing people?"

She looked over at Griffin, "Sorry, I wasn't paying any attention to the news. Perhaps Griffin could shed some light? What do you make of it, Colonel?"

Griffin choked on his last bite of the Ruben, wiped his mouth and shrugged, "Beats the hell outta me."

Rhodes turned to Nadine as he stood from the table, "Matter of fact, Ms. Rollins is missing."

"Who?"

"You know, Vivian my assistant. Do you think she's one of the missing people?"

"No, I dismissed her weeks ago."

"Why didn't you tell ME?"

"You didn't ask."

"I've learned not to ask so many questions. I assumed that she was being given assignments by the Company."

"Oh heavens no. We terminated her. Shoddy workmanship. She left in a rush."

"Uh huh, I'm sure she did," Calvin said.

"So, how is it she gets to leave and we do not?"

"That's easy. Remember? She was not involved with any 'National Security' issues. Once both the chip and the box were ready for integration, that's when the Company deemed the work as such."

"Why didn't she at least say good bye first?"

"I don't know, Doctor," Nadine answered, "All I know is she was pretty upset. I'll bet she didn't want to belabor any feelings she had toward you, you know, since you weren't leaving anytime soon. It's rather difficult to cultivate any type of relationships with this type of separation involved."

"Humph," Rhodes frowned, "Too bad, I did kind of like her."

Chapter 12

Calvin's Lab

March 12th, 2065 10:00hrs

"That's so cool, Uncle Calvin," Ben said as they made their way to the lab, "So, Jen and I are the first to see the new 'amp-aratus'?"

"Oh, good one...I'll have to remember that. But you are right Ben. This is a zero gravity chair, padded and rigged to facilitate a much cleaner and efficient AMP session."

"What if the chair misses my socket," he asked.

"Then you'll get a new hole in your head," he smiled, pushing Ben into the man trap.

"Come on, really. What could happen?"

"The chair is equipped with a small visual cam that allows the computer to see that the person's plug is aligned."

"And you say it uses half the power and space that the mainframe system used?" Jen asked.

"Quite right indeed. You see? We've been taking notes on all your AMP sessions. Our system improvements will allow the gamma effect to last longer than just minutes."

"You've got it down to hours now, right, Cal?"

"Yes, Ben. The sessions will last two hours after unplugging. Of course, the stations that are going to be sold for commercial use will be dampened."

"They only get the bliss effect," Rhodes added, coming from the opposite direction, "Come on," he insisted, "Inside."

The group quickly scanned through the secure station, entering Calvin's lab.

"What's got you're panties in a knot, Doc?"

"They're already shipping jamming packages out for commercial use."

"What?!" Calvin nearly shouted.

"Shhh," Rhodes said, with his back to a camera on the ceiling, "We have an infestation."

"Bugs?" Calvin whispered, not moving his lips for the camera.

"Yes...bugs...don't take too long getting them set up. We need to come up with a communication system...can you hack into the complex's file library? Find out if they recorded us talking about leaving?"

"Leaving?" Jen said with a puzzled look, "What are you talking about?"

"Jen, you'll have to trust me. Cal, hook them up, they can read my mind and get the info they need to know. Then have them help you hack in undetected."

"Behind Nadine? I don't think so. What are you two hiding, anyway?"

"You'll find out soon enough," Cal said, motioning to the two bright and shiny new chairs. "These are the Zero Gravity AMP stations that clinics will be using...these are the same models that are being shipped." he whispered.

"A few...you'll understand in a minute."

"Ben, Jen. Just sit in the chair and relax normally. I'm cycling the power now," Calvin switched on the power and the two chairs accelerated with a whine. "You should be plugged in now," he added.

The two chairs aligned to each of their sockets, and then with a snap, they clicked into place, "There. You should be feeling the bliss effect beginning...now...and as evidenced by your facial expression, I'd say so...now, in two minutes the machine will ramp up to the AMP levels."

"Veeerrry gooood," Jen smiled.

"Yeeeees, veeery niiice," Ben agreed.

"Okay. When you pass this stage of the AMP, your minds will be open to developing telepathy. You not only will be able to read each other's thoughts and communicate, you should be able to project your thoughts to us. We can't respond in like, but we can receive your messages...do you understand?" Rhodes asked.

Calvin intently examined the chair's consoles, "Now it's imperative that you remain still for the entire AMP session. The chairs have been programmed to run a two minutes bliss effect. Ten minutes for the actual AMP signal, two additional minutes of bliss, and finally, one minute to cool down."

"That last minute breaks the immediate desire and addiction. The signals that are passed through at the end, engage the chip to re-repair any damage to the brain tissue, caused by the flood of gamma frequencies," Rhodes added.

The chairs ramped up to the next cycle, Jen and Bennie both closed their eyes and absorbed the gamma waves. Then as they opened their eyes during the final cool down, their eyes remained a green color.

They disconnected each simultaneously. Bennie smiled, looked over at Jen. She returned a green eyed smile.

The two stood and faced each other. Bennie wrapped his arms around her waist, while she wrapped hers around his neck. The two stared intently at one another, ignoring the others in the lab.

Their bodies emanated a glowing aura about them that gently sparkled. Calvin and Dr. Rhodes looked on in wonder.

"They must be in direct communication," Rhodes said, breaking the silence.

Yes, Doctor. You are correct, Jenny projected with her mind, in fact, things are very clear now.

We are linked directly and we have been able to project our thoughts to you and Calvin, Ben thought, looking over at the two men.

Come, Jen offered, dropping her grip on Bennie, join us...come and take our hands and join us in the circle.

Calvin and Rhodes looked at each other, and then back at the two. Then they took their place in the circle provided by Bennie and Jen. Taking their hands, completing the circle, Calvin winced at the sudden mind probe.

Jenny dropped his hand and stepped back slightly, "Calvin, you are holding information back...what is it?"

"No, it's just that I wasn't used to this feeling...kind of unsettling to say the least."

She reached up and touched Calvin on his forehead and closed her green glowing eyes for a moment, "I sense no intentional deceit or mistrust, but still you hold back? What?"

"Jen," Rhodes nodded, "Here, take my hands and read it from me."

Jen turned her attention to the doctor, "Why do you do this? Are you betraying your friends trust?"

"No, I do this freely...I have nothing more to lose...my reputation as a doctor is on the line for the things I've been made to do...Calvin is not a willing participant."

Jenny clasped the Doctor's hands. They both closed their eyes, but Rhodes insisted that this link stay between Jen and himself, "It's for the best, Jenny. You must trust me, and with Bennie's permission. I will ask this be between just the two of us."

Jenny turned to Bennie and projected her thoughts for his approval, then turned back to Rhodes, "Agreed."

Dr. Rhodes and Jenny connected mentally, but there was no golden glow, Doctor, I am listening to you. You may relay your information, but understand that the thought processes to relay this data is much more efficient than you are accustomed to. Nonetheless, you will experience the thought transference as if you were orally speaking, but it will occur in seconds instead of minutes.

I understand. We are planning on making an escape.

Why would you want to leave such a wonderful host...

...Jenny, you must not interrupt...

...if this is about Nadine, I won't believe you...she saved my life...

...she has done things, things that any normal person would not have done...

...tell me what it is, Doctor...

Rhodes flooded Jenny with images of what Nadine had him do. This was the only way he could relay his thoughts to Jenny and have her believe him.

She suddenly shot back with a start, breaking the connection with Rhodes, "What?"

"Shhhh," Rhodes motioned, keeping his back to the camera the best he could.

Jenny raised her hand to the camera and caused the lens to shatter. Then she caused the microphones to be muted using only her pure thoughts.

"We can speak freely...what are you trying to tell me Doctor? She's been torturing people? She had you kill someone just to hold that over your head?"

Rhodes stepped up to Jen and rested a hand on her shoulder, "I'm sorry, but the person you think is on our side, is not...she's not at all...she's only for the Company..."

"...she's been recording us in our rooms?" Jenny gasped.

Her eyes shone a brilliant green as she clenched her fists and gritted her teeth, "I will make her pay for this...let me at her...while I'm AMP'd...I wish to probe her mind!"

"You must wait, Jenny. Wait for the right moment."

Bennie stepped up to Jen, "Sweetheart, why don't we join together, we can use our combined mind power to reach out and probe her from here. She won't even know it."

"Kind of like a wiretap?" Calvin smiled.

"Yes, kind of like a wiretap," Jen nodded as the two joined hands and faced each other, "We only have a few more minutes before they realize I broke the camera signals...we better make this as quick as we can."

The golden glow returned as their minds became one with the other, Nadine...they each thought together, Nadine...tell us what you have hidden...

Images of Nadine connected on her data pad to the Company flashed across their minds, followed by images of Jenny and Ben's late night rendezvous in his quarters. Finally, an image, through Nadine's eyes, of her snapping Nurse Rollin's neck, which made them jerk apart and break their connection.

They burst into tears as they broke apart, both seeing the horror of Nadine committing cold blooded murder.

"She...she...killed her..." Jen said in shock.

"Nadine," Bennie said, turning to Rhodes, "Nadine killed Ms. Rollins."

"We didn't understand exactly what she was doing, but Ms. Rollins took her by surprise. She saw something that was going to make her scream," Jen said, "I can't imagine what that would be?"

"Couldn't you read her deeper thoughts?"

"No, we couldn't see any more than that. It's like a firewall was put up, preventing us from going any deeper," Ben answered.

"Security is coming through the man trap, what's our story?" Rhodes asked.

"Leave that up to me," Calvin answered, "Just follow my lead."

"Okay," Jen nodded, "But I tell you, Bennie and I can take care of these while we're AMP'd."

"If they're not buying my story, then go for it," Calvin whispered just as the security detail entered the lab.

Rhodes and Calvin turned to study a monitor while Bennie and Jenny took their place on the AMP chairs. They closed their eyes to pretend they were in an AMP session.

"Give us a show of hands...NOW!" the lead security ordered, holding an AK-47, aimed at Doctor Rhodes.

Calvin and Rhodes froze at the console, then slowly raised their hands in the air to surrender.

"You have to let us finish the AMP session...the cameras...they broke the cameras with their minds," Calvin pleaded, "If we don't finish their cool down period, they will be able to break more than just a camera."

Jenny opened her green eyes, "Sorry Cal, they're not buying it..."

She pointed her hands in the air toward the security detail. A wave of energy shot down her arms and flung the men in the air, slamming them into unconsciousness on the wall behind them.

The three men slid to the floor in a heap, and Jenny looked over at Ben, "I'm going to Nadine."

"No, Jen. You can't face her alone, she's dangerous."

"And I'm not?" she pointed to the passed-out bodies on the floor. Arming herself, she passed the remaining weapons to Cal and Rhodes.

"You don't have to do this alone, Jen," Rhodes offered, "I'll confront her with you."

"Doctor, you really don't want to be around here when the 'you know what' hits the fan."

"No, I need to go with you. Buy our guys some time to get out."

"Doctor!"

"No! I need to have some redemption here," he said, cocking his weapon, "I've already been implicated, I can't go anywhere else."

"Those men are not your fault," Jen argued.

"Not completely, but I can't live with myself with the things I've done. Let me go so I can atone for my sins."

"There's no time to argue about this, come on. We all need to go...now!" Jen begged.

The group entered the man trap to exit the lab, but the scanner denied their access.

"It's already too late," Rhodes said in defeat, "They've already terminated our access."

"Jenny!" Ben exclaimed, taking her hand, "We can force it!"

The two closed their eyes and concentrated on the computer access code. With little effort, they sent a command to release the man trap.

The group quickly exited and headed toward Nadine's office.

"Rhodes, you and Jen break out and stall Nadine. Bennie, you need to stay with me and get with Griffin."

"What's your plan, Unc?"

"First we need to have Griffin take us to where the alien box is stored. Then we make him take us up."

"What about the access code and those guards upstairs?" Rhodes asked.

"You leave that to me," Calvin said, "Ben, will you remain in contact with Jenny?"

"I think so...Jenny?"

"As long as we're AMP'd, yes," Jen answered. "I'll find out through Bennie where to meet up."

Calvin was about to answer when she lifted her finger to her lips and crouched down, hiding herself behind a cubicle partition. The rest followed Jen's lead. Calvin pointed one way to Ben, acknowledged Jen's smile as he watched Jen and Rhodes move closer to Nadine's office.

"Come on Ben," this way.

Doctor Rhodes and Jen came to Nadine's open office door, "Come in...why don't you make yourselves comfortable," Nadine's voice noised from inside the room, "I've been expecting you."

Rhodes followed Jen in, his gun on Nadine. They cautiously entered the room, "What have you done?!"

"I know you attempted to read my mind, too bad my subroutines didn't detect you before you saw me killing Ms. Rollins...I expect that's why you're here."

Jen stepped over to the standing Nadine and promptly slapped her face. The resulting hand slap made her head swing to the left, then held the back of her hand up to her lip and smiled back at Jen, "I suppose I had that coming."

"You watched as Bennie and I..."

"It's not like that, Jenny," Nadine said, returning to her chair. "Yes, I'm a machine. I have no feelings. I was collecting data on your ability to energize your chips when you both are together."

"What?"

"Yes, you see, it was much too difficult to control you when you are both together...that's why I had you separated from him."

"You had me separated?"

"Why yes, my dear, of course, do you think I would have allowed this to happen otherwise? I'm a machine, I do not make mistakes."

Rhodes pointed his gun at Nadine's head, "What do you mean? Machine?"

"I am a prototype the Company built to attend to the gamma project."

"Prototype?"

"Yes, the Company successfully downloaded the cyborg blueprint from the alien complex. They built me using the alien tech."

"But wait," Rhodes said, "We disrupted the transmission before those prints were finished sending. The complex was destroyed. How is it that the Company was able to build you?"

"One of the things you don't understand just yet, Doctor, is that there is more than one alien complex."

"More than one?" Rhodes exclaimed,

"Yes, there were two spheres sent to the solar system you call Sol...how clever...anyway, it was all thanks to Calvin and you, Doctor. You gave them the frequencies to communicate with the second complex. That data stream was only received by those who initiated it..."

"Let me guess, the Company."

"Yes, quite right."

"Wait a minute," Jen paused, "If you allowed us to escape..."

"Quite right again, my dear. Calvin and Bennie will never leave here. My men upstairs have already been alerted to their attempt."

"No! You can't do this!"

"It is much too late, my dear."

"I must warn him," Jen said, closed her eyes to focus on sending an emergency message to Bennie.

"I'm very sorry, Jenny, you can't warn him. You can't reach him within this room. I've installed a projection dampening field; no one can project here...not even I."

Rhodes held his gun higher and wrapped his finger around the trigger, "Then say good night!"

"Pfff, Dr. Rhodes, you don't have the gonads. Besides," she said, looking up at the Doctor, "I'm a clone machine. I don't have any feelings of you terminating me. Another will be built from the DNA pool to take my place...in fact, there might already be others among you...strategically placed by the Company."

"Bennie!" Jenny shouted, heading to the exit.

"I've sealed the room, you can't possibly crack the encryption code," Nadine said, "Doctor, if you're going to pull the trigger..."

"Don't think for a moment that I won't!"

"No, you must be sure to kill me all the way."

"What do you mean?"

"What she means is if you don't plant the bullet in her brain and destroy the chip, she'll regrow."

"We never gave you the technology to unlock the full growth enzyme."

"They have it, Doctor!"

Doctor Rhodes welled up with tears in his eyes at the realization of what he had done. He gritted his teeth and squeezed the trigger, firing several rounds into Nadine's skull. The body fell back and flopped to the floor. Exposed wires sparked and shot electrical discharges across the cyborg body, then it lay limp.

Jen screamed in horror, "What have you done! We needed to unlock this door!"

Rhodes fell to his knees in despair, "This is all my fault...I did this...now I've unleashed a terrible thing on humanity...there may be no stopping it."

Jenny came to Rhode's side, laying her weapon on the floor next to her, "Doctor! Get a hold of yourself. We need to get out of here to warn Bennie!"

Chapter 13

Griffin's Office

March 12th, 2065 10:47

Calvin and Ben made their way to Griffin's office as soon as Jen and the Doctor went down the corridor toward Nadine's office.

"Come on, this way."

They came to his office door. Ben held his hands up to his temples and concentrated on the door lock. Then the door opened, revealing Griffin inside on his data pad.

"Uhmm, Bev, I need to go... ...yes...I need to talk to Calvin. Yes, he's right here...okay, I'll talk to you later."

Griffin disconnected the pad and gently set it down on the desk. He raised his hands in submission to Calvin's loaded AK-47 that was pointed at him.

"Okay, Cal...just take it easy now."

"I don't think you're in any position to be telling me what to do, ain't that right Bennie?"

"Yep, I wouldn't mess around. He's serious."

"What do you want?"

"I want you to take me to the alien box."

"You know I can't do that..."

"...do I?" Calvin interrupted. "Colonel, I know that you are one of three people with the access to the box...so I suggest you start playing along with us, or my little friend here will extract what we need to know the hard way."

Bennie raised his hands to his temples to begin the mind probe when Griffin motioned with his, "Okay, okay, but you'll have to use discretion as we make our way through the corridor. I think the guards might think something up with you pointing that thing at me."

"How far is it?"

"It's downstairs a level."

Calvin held his machine gun up, pressing the barrel to Griffin's head, "You better be straight with me on this."

"You have my word..." Griffin sweated, "Take me with you! I won't stand a chance if she finds out I gave it up to you."

"Bennie? Is he being straight with us?"

Bennie probed for a moment, but was interrupted by gun fire down the hall, "Yes, he's telling the truth."

"That came from Nadine's office," Griffin exclaimed, "Now, put that thing away and let's get the hell out of here...while we still can!"

Bennie nodded in agreement with Griffin so Calvin lowered his weapon, but instead of disarming it, he slung it over his shoulder and concealed it the best he could with his lab coat.

Griffin led them out of his office and nearly ran down the corridor to an elevator. He scanned and punched in a code to go below. The doors opened and the three entered to descend to the lower level of the complex.

When the doors opened, they were met with screams of pain from several enclosed rooms. The Screams echoed off the walls as they made their way down the corridor. The sounds etched images of the horror into their eyes as they walked by, revealing the dark secrets that were hidden beneath them.

Men, lying on flat metal beds. Some were held down with ankle and wrist straps, and angrily tugged at them, trying to break free. While others pounded freely on the glass, begging for help. Their faces were tattered with wires and computer traces, some had more traces and others had more wires.

"Griffin? Did you know about this?" Calvin asked.

"No, I...I...didn't..."

"He's lying," Bennie added with a stern look.

"Okay, okay...I knew about this. I didn't have any choice in the matter. But I didn't know to what extent this testing was taking."

Bennie looked at Griffin, "He's telling the truth now."

"That's some talent you got there, Son," Griffin said.

"Yes it is," Calvin answered, "And you just keep cooperating and we'll not have to unleash his full potential."

"I'll leave that to later, I am anxious to find out everything you know," Ben said, continuing down the hall.

They passed at least twenty men that were being housed inside enclosures. They made their way through the hall noticing that the men at this end of the hall were worse off than the others. They hurried down the corridor to a door at the end.

Griffin scanned the door and the three entered the room, "The box is sealed inside here," he pointed to a cylinder at the center of the room.

"Open it."

Griffin stepped up to the console and pressed his access code. The cylinder spun in a circle, creating an opening. Griffin removed the cap and set it on the floor next to them.

"You do realize that as soon as I disconnect this box, they'll be all over us."

"Why is this thing even connected to anything?" Calvin asked.

"I would say that the Company had actually integrated the tech into the complex's mainframe."

"What on earth could they be up to with this?"

"The better question is how do we remove it from the connectors?"

"Bennie," Calvin began, breaking his gaze off the box, "You've got about thirty more minutes left, can you do anything?"

Bennie raised his hands to the sides of his temples and closed his eyes. His furrowed brow and pulsating jowls showed the others his determination. The alien box changed from a bright green glow to a dull blue pulsation, followed by the retraction of three arms which connected the box on each side and below.

Bennie opened his eyes and returned his arms to his side, "It's off-line now. But we don't have much time. I was able to connect to the command structure and gave the system a command. They'll think we're heading to the surface now."

Calvin shook his head as he looked at the box, "Outstanding!" then grabbed the box from its resting place, which immediately sounded an alarm.

Griffin cursed, "What command did you tell it?"

"I sent the elevator to the surface."

"That's our only way out of here, what were you thinking!" Griffin protested.

"Now, now, my good man. That's why one always has a backup plan."

"Backup?"

"You know, plan B."

"Okay, lead the way!" Griffin ordered.

"How do I know you're still telling us the truth?"

"Oh for god sakes, man! If they catch us now, they'll kill us all! Now move it!" Griffin shouted over the noise of the alarm.

"Uncle Cal? What are you thinking?" Ben said with apprehension.

"Down."

"Down?"

"Yes, Down...it worked on my last mission, it'll work this time."

"Mind explaining?"

"Sure, on the way...but first, I need the original case...tell me it's close by."

Griffin opened up a cabinet recessed on a wall and removed the familiar metal case, "Here, but it's empty."

"Maybe..."

"Whattya mean maybe?"

Calvin opened the case and removed the bottom, revealing one of the alien weapons they had confiscated from the complex, "Maybe not," he smiled.

"Calvin, you sly dog," Griffin smiled. "Maybe there's hope for you after all."

Calvin gave him a quick glance before stepping to one side of the room. He activated the alien weapon and aimed at the floor a few feet from him, "If I'm right, this will not be a good thing."

Griffin and Ben grew a worried look on their faces as Calvin shot the beam and melted a hole in the floor.

He stepped up to the hole and looked down, "Yep, this is not a good sign."

"What is it Unc?"

"Down the rabbit hole first," he motioned, "Griffin, you first, I'll hold you by your arms and drop you as low as possible."

"That's got to be a fifteen foot drop!" Griffin gulped.

"Pussy," Calvin smiled, and shoved him feet first with a laugh.

Griffin's yell could still be heard over the alarm, "I'll get you back for this!"

"He sounds mad," Calvin smiled, "You next Ben."

Bennie closed his eyes and concentrated as he leaped into the hole. He managed to reduce his fall and gently land on his feet, "Okay, Cal, I'll guide you. Come on!" holding his arms in the air, he sent a wave of energy and intercepted Calvin's fall, and eased him to the ground.

"Hey, neat trick, kid."

"Yeah, how about using it on me next time we have to drop," Griffin complained.

"We still don't have much time," Calvin said, pointing at the ceiling, "Security had just come into the room when I jumped."

"Hey!" Griffin exclaimed, "Where's the neat little hole you just carved?"

"That's the little thing I was worried about. Come on, we need to keep moving," Calvin motioned, "You see, these lower levels seem to be made from the same material Salvage-5 encountered inside the alien complex."

"So you're saying that the hole closed in on itself?"

"Yep," he answered, running to the end of a corridor.

The sounds of the alarm faded as they made their way down two more levels. Then Cal stopped at a junction in the tunnels and gasped, "Dear god!"

Griffin and Ben slowed and rested by Calvin. Ben noticed the cylinder on the wall and jumped back, "What the hell?!"

"They're replicating the alien complex we blew up."

"How could that be possible?" Griffin asked, "The complex was destroyed and the plans never were completed."

"Well, they got the tech perfected somehow. All I know is that we need to get outta here...and now!"

They traveled down the last corridor and came to an opening. They could hear rushing water on the other side.

"This must be as far as the complex has grown. It's still in early development."

"How do you know that Unc?"

"None of the tubes had clones in them yet."

"...and I'll bet I know where the 'test subjects' will eventually end up," Griffin added.

"They're building an army of cyborg clones," Bennie said, with a start.

"Cyborg clones?" Griffin asked.

"The original programing is running," Ben said, setting the box on the ground, "Someone else carry it...it keeps on trying to communicate with me...I don't think I can handle that just yet guys."

"Bennie," Cal said, pausing from going through the opening, "Are you saying that their army is going to try and integrate with humans?"

"It's already begun, Cal," Ben said, tears running down his face, "I don't need this Cal. I can't be a part of the destruction of humanity."

"Oh don't you worry your little self about that right now, Ben. Look, you're charge is all but gone now, your eyes...they're returning to normal. You're just feeling the effects wearing off."

"Look!" Griffin shouted, "This underground stream must lead out!"

"You're right Griffin! Grab the box and jump in...We'll float down as far as we can."

Griffin grabbed the alien box and jumped into the stream. Calvin and Ben jumped in after him, and they all traveled down the underground river.

Before they floated out of sight, Calvin fired the alien weapon bringing tons of rocks down, sealing their escape route from being discovered.

Nadine's Office

March 12th, 2065 10:25

"Jenny, before you're AMP runs out, can you get this door open? Nadine was right, I can't break the code."

Jenny put her shaking hands on her temples to concentrate when the door suddenly buzzed open.

"You did it!"

"I didn't do anything!" she exclaimed as Nadine walked into the room with two security guards.

The horror on Rhodes' face was all Jen could see, and then she hit the deck as he grabbed his machine gun.

The two security guards opened fire on Rhodes, but he mowed them down causing their shots to hit above his head. Then he turned to Nadine and fired a few rounds but she ran back out of the room and down the corridor before any bullets struck her.

"Come on!" Rhodes yelled, shaking in his boots at the near miss.

The two ran out of the office and headed toward the exit elevator. Nadine ducked out in an open conference room and called more security reinforcements, "Don't let that elevator leave this floor!" she ordered through her data pad.

Rhodes and Jen quickly came to the elevator and stopped. Rhodes turned toward the approaching security detail armed to the hilt. He opened fire on them, taking the front lines down. The others ducked behind what they could as Rhodes ordered, "Get this door open!"

Just as the doors did open, Rhodes weapon died, "I'm out!"

They disappeared inside and Jen caused the door to slide shut, sealing them inside and preventing the weapons fire from hitting them.

"Okay," Rhodes said, tossing his empty AK-47 to the side, "What do we do now?"

"It won't take them anytime at all to get these doors open; I can't seem to locate the right file."

"And if we do go up, we've got two heavily armed guards waiting for us at the top."

Just then the elevator rocked and began moving, "I thought you said..."

"It wasn't me!" Jen exclaimed.

Nadine came out of the conference room and ran to the elevator where the remaining security detail was waiting for instructions, weapons pointed at the closed doors, "Patch me to top side!"

"Yes, Ma'am!" one of them said.

"Keep them from escaping! We cannot afford to lose the hybrid!"

The captain at the top side desk acknowledged Nadine's orders, "Sound the alarm, we've got an unauthorized car on its way up."

The two guards cocked their machine guns and aimed at the elevator doors, "What are your orders sir?" one of them asked.

"I'm bringing in more security; they're on the way right now. Nadine said to kill anyone on that car. She said do not let the hybrid escape. Dead or alive, she will remove the chip from her. "

"Yes SIR!"

The elevator car stopped when it reached the top and locked in place, the doors rolled open. The guards opened fire sending hundreds of rounds into the car.

Jen stood with her green eyes and hands extended out in front of her. Every bullet that was fired bounced back at the men, taking them down just as quickly as they had begun.

Rhodes and Jen stepped out of the car, only to see several more security guards rushing toward them.

"Nice trick, Jen. I hope you have more juice in ya."

"I do, at least for another twenty minutes or so."

She closed her eyes and furrowed her brow at the approaching men. Then she gave a heave with her hands and sent them all flying into the air the way they came.

"I'm almost out of charge, Doc. We got to go...now!"

Rhodes looked over at Jen. Her eyes were changing back and forth from green to her natural blue, "Come on, this way."

They fled down the corridor, out the tall glass doors, and out into the open air. Three more guards were taking their stance by their jeep. Jen kneeled down and shot out nearly her last wave of energy, tossing them to the ground several feet from the vehicle. The men hit the ground and tumbled end for end. Jen and Rhodes ran to the jeep and jumped in. Rhodes gunned the gas and sped away.

One of the guards grabbed his weapon, took aim and fired at them, but before Jen could muster up enough strength to shield them completely from the bullets, one struck Rhodes in the back under his shoulder blade.

The wound shattered his shoulder and he doubled over in excruciating pain. The jeep swerved from side to side as he tried to maintain control. Jen was tossed back and forth, nearly spilling her out of the jeep before he regained control.

"How bad is it, Doc?"

"It's bad!" Rhodes coughed pink foam that covered his lips. He continued to cough between gasps of pain.

They rounded the corner speeding down the road and out the base exit before another armed team could be dispatched.

Jen instructed Rhodes to head north toward Deception Pass, "We'll ditch the jeep in the passage. We can hide out beneath the metal bridge until its dark!"

Rhodes only acknowledged by turning in the direction she requested. He traveled toward the bridge at over 100 miles per hour when Jen noticed an attack helicopter bearing down on them.

"Um, Doctor! We better get there and quick! I don't know if I can hold this off!"

Rhodes managed to turn the mirror in the air and saw what was bearing down on them.

Rhodes slammed on the breaks, being only 100 feet from the bridge. He put the jeep in a sideways slide as the chopper fired its Missiles. Jen and Rhodes made a jump for it just as the missiles hit the jeep. As it went over the edge of the cliff, Jen and Rhodes slammed into the rocks of the cliff. The jeep was sent in a fiery ball, plunging to the current below.

The attack chopper flew over the bridge and circled around. Jen and Rhodes scrambled to the bridge girders. Rhodes panted with pain, still bleeding from his gunshot wound, tried to remain still.

The chopper flew overhead, making several passes, "Oak Harbor Command, this is attack Hawk 1, confirmed target was destroyed. There's no sign of survivors, they couldn't have made it out."

"Good work Hawk 1, return to base," the base controller instructed.

Whidbey Island

Underground River

March 12th, 2065 11:30

Cal, Tom, and Bennie continued down the underground river. The area was illuminated by the glowing alien box, and then the channel opened into a large lake, surrounded by a cavern.

"Swim over to the far side and take a rest on that large rock over there," Calvin instructed.

The three made their way and rested for a few minutes on the rock before Calvin looked up at Tom, "I'm sure there's an exit down below this lake."

"How do you know so much about this place? You had to have known it was here," Tom asked.

"I was able to hack into the complex blue prints. I knew there was a large stream down here, but I wasn't sure about the alien tech being used to grow that complex."

"How come you didn't say anything sooner?"

"Because I wasn't sure until we got down to the lower levels. You had to have noticed the change in the building material."

"I did, but then there's a lot of strange things going on so I didn't give it a second thought...I didn't know it was the alien tech, though."

"Okay, guys," Cal said, stripped down to his underwear, "I'll be right back," then dove into the dark and cold water and disappeared below.

They waited a painful minute before he surfaced and swam back to the rock, "I was right, this is the water pass-through. There's an iron grill down there, if I cut through it, I'm sure it will lead us to the bay."

"You're alien gun able to work after being wet?" Griffin asked.

"Let's just hope so," Calvin said. Then he took his weapon and jumped back into the water.

He swam down twenty feet and aimed his weapon at the old rusted iron grate, carving each rod loose. Then he grabbed it and began tugging on it until it finally broke free. He tossed it to the bottom of the lake and swam to the surface.

Three minutes went by before he returned, "Uncle! You gave us a big scare. How did you stay down there so long?"

"I may be out of shape, but I can still hold my breath longer than your father...okay, it worked," he said, climbing back on the rock.

How far is it anyway? I mean we can't hold our breath for more than one or two minutes," Griffin asked.

"Bennie, I'm going to have to AMP you again."

"With the box?"

"Yes, it's alright, it will be a very low dose, might only last a half hour, maybe less."

"What do you purpose I do?"

"I want you to construct a bubble of air around us. Keep us breathing until we can surface...can you do that Ben?"

"I don't know, Calvin...I really don't know."

"We'll," Calvin said, getting the box ready, "You're the only game in town right now."

"Um, I'd kind of like to know how much less than thirty minutes we have before we go on this little journey."

Calvin glanced up at Griffin, "Then you can stay behind if you'd like..."

"Okay, okay, I'll go...I certainly can't stay here."

Calvin examined the back of Bennie's neck, "Well, it appears that water doesn't harm the chip or the outlet."

"Whoo hooo," Bennie mused, "Lucky for me."

Calvin extended a fiber cable from the box and inserted it into Bennie's plug. The box shot a wave of power through the cable and charged Bennie, turning his eyes to the green color, confirming that he had received a proper AMP dose.

He closed his eyes and concentrated for a few moments, then opened his green eyes and looked at Calvin, "Okay, I'm ready."

"Griffin," Calvin instructed, "You carry the box, let's go on your word, Ben."

Bennie jumped into the lake. Griffin grabbed the box and followed Calvin into the cold water.

"Okay, get closer and hold on," Bennie said, closing his eyes again.

They were surrounded by a strange sensation and then the water covered them over. Bennie held his concentration and instructed Calvin to push against the side of the bubble and it will move in that direction.

He looked over at Ben, "Outstanding," he said again. Then leaned on the bubble and traveled down and through the opening.

The current took over, and Cal didn't have to push on the side any longer, "This is really strange."

The rushing water became faster and they were tossed uncontrollably through the underwater passage, finally exiting just off the coast of the island.

"I can't hold it much longer," Bennie warned.

"Everyone, take in a deep breath, but don't forget to exhale on the way up or you'll bust a lung!"

"Understood!" Griffin said. Then he took in the largest breath he possibly could.

Calvin and Ben sucked in all they could just before Bennie released the energy field. He flailed his arms and fell unconscious as the rush of water enveloped the men.

Bennie woke up laying on the beach. It was dark...he was alone. He coughed up water and got to his knees.

"Cal?" he yelled.

"Uncle Calvin!" he yelled again, but heard nothing in return.

"Colonel Griffin! Uncle Calvin!" he continued to shout as he walked down the beach, not knowing where Calvin had arranged to meet.

He fell to his knees from exhaustion and let the tide wash over him. The water flowed over him, washing away his tears, but it couldn't reach the tears of despair in his heart.

Anacortes, WA

Motel 6

March 12th, 2065 23:00

Rhodes and Jen sat in a motel room with the news on as she cleaned and dressed his wound.

"The good news is the bullet went clean through."

"That's good news?" Rhodes protested, "I've got a pneumothorax, and all you can say is the bullet went clean through?"

"You should know that you'd have to have surgery if it was still in there."

"Wow, this hurts something terrible," he continued to cough pink foam.

"Sorry Doctor, my AMP has long since dissipated. I'll try to bring up some of my own energy to help with your pain. It won't be much..."

"...anything is better than nothing at all," he grimaced. "Find me a pen, take the casing. Then get me a knife."

"What are you going to do, Doctor?"

"I have to get the air out between my chest wall and lung or I'll suffocate."

She tried her best to soothe the doctor's pain, as he cut between his ribs. He asked Jen to insert the plastic pen casing as he gritted his teeth.

Air and blood escaped from Rhode's chest cavity with a hiss, allowing his lung to inflate.

Jen's minimal AMP gave the doctor some relief as the next news story caught both of their attention.

"Turn it up, turn it up," Rhodes demanded.

Jen reached over and turned up the volume on the antique TV set in the old run down motel room. It was the best place to rest up and to stay low.

The station flashed a picture of the two of them as the reporter told the story, "...in a secret military operation, two suspects fleeing with valuable technology from Whidbey Island Navy Base, were shot down and killed by an apache attack helicopter. The military is not commenting on this action, but does say that it is an isolated incident and will handle it internally. The Company that oversees the base's security operations was also not available for comment, but did release this statement: 'The Company apologizes for any inconvenience or any harm to innocent bystanders.' They also stated in their press release, that there will be an internal investigation."

The station then displayed a picture of Colonel Griffin, Calvin Jones, and Bennie Petersen, "The Company is also reporting that Colonel Griffin was instrumental in the theft and the escape by these individuals. However, they are missing and presumed dead as well...stay tuned as we continue to investigate this story."

Chapter 14

Nadine's Office

September 18th, 2065 10:30

~ Six Months Later ~

"I know, I know... ... ...I understand," Nadine said through her data pad, "We're working on it as quickly as we can... ...no, we haven't found the box yet... ...I know it's been six months... ... ...we can't continue building the complex without the alien device... .... ....what do you mean you need me to come in for some adjustments? ... ... ...My programming is functioning at higher than normal operating standards... ...no, my programming is not malfunctioning. If I knew those answers, I'd be telling you... ... ...alright, if it'll make you happy, I'll report to the Company for a complete diagnostic tomorrow... ...I'm not giving up... ...I told you, I will find it...we never found any bodies... ....just because they are presumed dead, don't bet that they aren't alive somewhere... ... ...the girl? She was killed by the apache helicopter attack...both her and Doctor Rhodes, remember? Yes, I know... ...the hybrid chip was never recovered. No, we haven't been successful in duplicating Doctor Rhodes work...but as soon as we are, you'll be the first to know... ...right... ...okay, I'll see you in the morning."

Just when she hung up her data pad, there was a knock on the outside of her office, "Hello? Nadine?"

"Come in, Captain."

"Captain Preston reporting, Ma'am!"

"What's your report, Captain?"

"We located Calvin's clothing."

"What?"

"Yes, we scoured the lower levels until we discovered there was some evidence of a rock slide...man made."

"Explain," she said, looking up with a wide smile.

"When we removed some of the fallen debris, we discovered weapons fire."

"What kind of weapons fire?"

"Let's just say it wasn't from around here."

"Captain, please get to the point."

"It was alien tech, Ma'am!"

"How in the hell did Calvin get his hands on an alien weapon?"

"I think the humans call it deception, Ma'am."

"Yes, well. We all know how deception works, don't we?"

"Yes, Ma'am," the captain said, taking a cord from her desk and plugging himself in, "We do indeed."

"After all, we learned it from them...please continue your report."

"We followed this underground stream to a deep cavern lake bed. That's where we found Calvin's clothing."

"That's all? Did you find anything else, Captain?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

"Well, spill it man. I'm running out of patience."

"Below the surface was an iron grate that had been cut. That led to a tunnel that is used to drain the complex's waste into the sound. They must have cut through and swam for it."

"I knew it! They're not dead after all."

"We followed the exit all the way and found no bodies, but that's an awfully long time for a human to hold their breath."

"Don't underestimate Calvin Jones."

"No, Ma'am."

"I want you to beef up your efforts in finding Bennie too. I know he's out there somewhere. I want plants at every jamming club in Seattle, double your efforts if you have to."

"Yes, Ma'am. I was going to report that we are already branching out to other states as well."

"He's close...I can sense it...maybe if he's introduced to one of the illegal underground modulator stations, we can find him if he's AMP'd. I'll have General McKenzie lift some of his dogs off the underground operations. He's more likely to go get jacked-in if the heat's off for a while."

"Yes, Ma'am. I'll make the arrangements."

"Very well, Captain, dismissed."

Captain Preston unplugged and returned a salute to Nadine, "Thank you, Ma'am."

"Oh, and Captain?"

Preston stopped as he exited, "Yes, Ma'am?"

"Nice work," she finished with a smile.

Preston returned his smile and left her office.

"That's a good boy," she whispered to herself, "I knew if we kept up our efforts, we'd find some clue...just the needed information I can use to convince my employer that I'm running at peak efficiency."

Bell Town

November 24th, 2065 22:30

Bennie stumbled down the streets and back alleys of Seattle. He had just came out of a bar, not having enough money to go to the jamming clubs, he settled for several shots of whiskey. It was the same whiskey his father liked. All he could think about as he lay in the gutter, vomiting on himself, was how much he hated his father right about now.

"You should have died!" he stammered, "You shouldn't have brought any of that back." He staggered to his feet and walked down the wall, leaning along as he went, thinking of losing Jenny again. How he'd never get to see his Uncle Calvin again, knowing he left him for dead in the sound. Then there was Griffin. Broke his mother's heart disappearing like he did. He sobbed, knowing that her suicide wasn't his fault...but then he fell to his knees, sobbing at the thought that what if all this was his fault. He was all alone, even his father lost contact with him after his last mission. He certainly wasn't about to tell anyone about what he saw back on the island. Who would believe him anyway?

He held the near empty bottle one more time to his lips and gulped down the liquor, feeling the fire burn his throat. He didn't care; he just wanted to drown his pain.

He spewed out the last of the whiskey that refused to go down. Then he tossed the bottle against the wall, shattering glass everywhere. He crawled on the glass, cutting his hands and knees when a man approached him from the shadows.

Bennie looked up at the tall black man wearing a pin-striped suite and straw hat. He couldn't hold his drunken laughter, "Don't you look ridiculous."

"Hey, hey there...you okay, man?" the cleft tooth man said. He moved a tooth pick from one side of his mouth to the other and the action reminded Bennie of his dad.

"Hey," Bennie stammered, "My dad does the same thing with his cigar...only you do it better," he chuckled.

The man knelt down and examined Bennie, "Hey, you don't look so good. You jam?" He ran his fingers over the back of Bennie's neck.

"Yeah, I can jam," Bennie managed to say.

"Come on man, it's not safe in these alleys...you know...missing folks an' all."

"How do I know you're not the one takin' them?"

"You don't...but you have a better chance with me than you will with them."

"How do you know that maybe I want them to find me," he said, puking more undigested whiskey.

"I don't"

"Okay dokie...take me to your leader," Bennie laughed as the man helped him off the ground. "What's your name, anyway?"

"You can call me J."

"J? That it? Just J?"

"Yep, much easier to pronounce."

"Well, maybe I'd prefer trying to annihilate your native name."

"Jamaaludeen."

"Jamaaludeen wha?"

"Jamaaludeen, it's my African name. It means beauty of the faith."

"Hmmm, I like it, Jamaaludeen."

"Okay, just call me J around others if you will. Come on...this way."

"Where you takin' me anyway, J?"

"I'm going to do you a big favor, my man."

"You got a jamming freq?"

"Yeah, something like that."

"Oh, goodie...but wait until I'm sober, no sense in wasting a good drunk now is there?"

"Naw, you will enjoy this session, this I am sure of."

"This sounds fun."

He led him down a set of cement steps and unlocked a door with a swipe of the back of his hand.

Bennie was sat in a chair while J closed and locked the door behind them. Reaching for a pull string, J clicked on a dim light and illuminated a large machine that lined the wall.

"What's that?" Bennie spluttered.

"That is what's going to make you whole again...first one's always free."

"I'll bet this isn't your typical jamming modulator is it?"

"Not exactly, no."

"The feds aren't going to come and bust us are they?"

"No, I don't think so. This is a pretty good location and I've hacked into the power relays before the meter."

"Stealing power...illegal AMP machines...tooth pick, I'm startin' to like you mister."

"All very good and well, now, lean down so I can jack you in."

"Ah, very well, I like to get plugged in, ya know?"

"Yeah, don't we all."

J connected the plug and fired up the startup sequence to the machine, "This won't hurt a bit."

"You sure about that?"

"Yes, I'm very sure."

"Okay, fire away then," Ben smiled.

"Say, what's your name anyway?" J asked.

"Ben...Bennie...just don' call me late for dinner," he chuckled.

"Okay, Bennie, my man...you ready?"

"Oh yeah."

J transmitted the signal, making Bennie twitch with pleasure, "Ahhhh, I've not felt a good hook up for months."

"Whattya mean, months?"

"It's been since March, I tell ya."

"Who had a modulator station eight months ago? I just got mine built two months ago."

"Oh, never mind...must be the whiskey."

"Yeah, right. Now how do you feel?"

"I'm much better, thank you."

"You're welcome."

"So how do I find you when I want to get another session?"

"Just ask for me at any jamming club. They'll tell you on any given night where to find me."

"How much?"

"Oh, this one's free...like I said, the first one's always free."

"How do you know I'll be back?"

"Oh, I know you'll be back alright."

"Yeah, you're probably right, I will...so how much?"

"Now that depends on how much you want...five to ten G's."

"Wow, that's expensive."

"It takes lots of power to generate the wave..."

"You're stealing power, you have no cost."

"Yeah, ya got me, my man."

"How long will the effect last?"

"I can give you three to ten hours, how deep are your pockets."

"Not that deep."

"How'd ya like to have some work?"

"Doing what?"

"I can hook you up with the Company for some schematic design work. They're paying advances of 50 G's...just enough to pay for some AMP sessions, then finish the design specs and you'll get paid four million."

"I don't want them to know my name."

"They won't have to. I'll make the arrangements."

"Not so fast."

"Why not?"

"Let me think about it first."

"Okay, but you'll not want to pass up this golden opportunity. I only require a five percent finder's fee...that also retains your anonymity too."

"True, but two hundred thousand? Kind of steep...I'll give you three percent."

"One-twenty? Hmmmm, make it one-sixty."

"One-fifty."

"Okay, okay, my man. You drive a hard bargain, but I'll give you a break, hundred and fifty G's. You got a deal, shake?"

Bennie took the man's hand and shook, "My word is my bond."

"Let it never be said that ol' J here has ever done you wrong...there, session is all uploaded."

"You okay on your own?"

"Sure, I think so. The whiskey is all gone now."

"Yep, sorry bout' that. It's the gamma freq. they cause your body to metabolize quicker causing the effects to disappear."

"That's all right, you can take the cost of my drunk off the next bill."

"Ha, ha, ha, ha," J roared, "You're a funny one, Bennie my man."

"Yeah, I'm rolling on the floor laughing...so how long will this one last again?"

"You got five hours on the meter. Enjoy and be safe out there."

"Thanks," Bennie stood and unlocked the deadbolt and left the hidden basement.

Nadine's Office

November 24th, 2065 23:05

"This is Nadine...yes... ....excellent news, I'll be right there."

Nadine disconnected her data pad as she got up from her desk and left her office.

She came to Calvin's lab and scanned through the man trap where she met up with Captain Preston, who was giving instruction to his peer.

"Good evening, Captain Preston, Captain Hawthorn. Wonderful night isn't it?"

"Yes, Ma'am," Preston smiled.

"You're certain about the data?"

"Yes, Ma'am. I ran the checks and we did receive a signal from chip ID 1-5-6-1-1-5. It's the alien chip tag number that Bennie received from his father."

"And you're saying about a half hour ago it came active."

"Yes, we began receiving the feed then."

"That means he's found an illegal accelerator module. We're you able to locate its origin?"

"No Ma'am, not exactly, but it is local to this geographical region. It has to be within a hundred miles of the base or our tracker couldn't have picked it up."

"Excuse me, Ma'am?" Captain Hawthorn interrupted, "I'm not sure I'm following. I thought Bennie Petersen was presumed dead?"

"Captain Hawthorn," Nadine smiled, "You really don't know, do you? You just go along, keeping to yourself, and doing your job...I like an officer that can do his job and not interfere, good qualities...right Captain Preston?"

Preston turned a smile, "Yes, quite right, Ma'am."

"I think it's time the Captain here joins our little flock, don't you?"

"I'm sorry, I still don't get it. What are you talking about?"

"He really has no idea, does he?"

"Captain Hawthorn may be my peer. However, he's only one of many computer technicians at the complex; he's never been assigned to the lower levels. Only this floor and the main computer complex top side."

"I see...well, I think he needs to take a little trip down stairs...clone him."

"Come again?" Hawthorn said wrinkling his forehead.

"It's going to be alright, Captain. You'll understand soon enough," Nadine laughed.

"Come on, Captain...this way."

Hawthorn followed his orders and entered the man trap with Preston.

"Now that's a very loyal military soldier, does what he's told to do without question, isn't that right, Doctor Childress?"

Doctor Childress, a medium height, red haired man that sported a pair of round wire rimmed glasses turned, "Yes, he certainly will make a fine addition."

"Have you been able to duplicate Doctor Rhodes' research?"

"No, Ma'am, I'm afraid not completely. He had some very useful help with Bennie and Jen, but now that they're gone, we almost had to start over."

"Not to mention our box is still missing...we can't complete the complex without it."

"Relax Nadine, it'll turn up...I mean, we thought Ben was dead. You just proved he's not."

"Well, we found his chip signature sure enough...but we need him back..."

"We only need the chip, Ma'am."

"Quite right, Doctor...only the chip, and I doubt he'll give it up without a fight...regardless, I want you to increase staffing on the project. We need as much brain power as we can get."

"We're already tracking down some of the top minds in the country. We'll have them on board soon enough."

"Excellent, keep up the good work," Nadine smiled.

Chapter 15

5th Ave Jammer's Club

December 31st, 2065 23:58

Bennie's green eyes stared at the dancing crowd. He sat in a corner booth, all alone on this New Year's Eve. He wore a silk-screened T-Shirt of his favorite super hero and tattered black jeans. His heavy leather jacket was zipped part way up, attempting to boast a tough guy look. He took a fancy to this particular coat while browsing the local stores a few hours ago. Lacking the money, he stole it from a leather shop, promising in his own mind that he'd make good for it later. He had just been AMP'd by J a few hours ago, who was quickly becoming a close friend. J was the only friend Bennie seemed to have at the moment. J had agreed to front him a few sessions of high-octane AMP freqs to get him by until the Company delivered his first assignment. The shop owner didn't even notice him taking the coat and walking out, since he was AMP'd and Bennie projected with his mind that it was his.

The 5th Avenue Jammer's Club was packed on this night. Bennie slowly sipped his favorite dark ale, but he might as well be just drinking water for all the good it would do, being fully AMP'd metabolized the alcohol so quickly, the effects were hardly felt.

J slinked through the crowd with two cute women hanging on each arm, "Bennie, my man! Why are you sitting here all alone by yourself on this wonderful," looking at each of the women, "should I say, beautiful New Year's Eve. Say, it's two minutes to the hour and I'm not seeing anyone in your booth here, unless you're hiding them under the table," he winked.

"Nope, I'm all by myself," Ben answered.

"Come on...let's party hardy...you need to have someone to kiss at the top of the hour...here, this is Rita...Rita, meet Benjamin."

"No, really...thanks anyway."

"Oh, Bennie, my man...this one's on the house...I'm in a very good mood."

Rita was scantily dressed in a blue dress that hiked up to her thighs as she leaned over to Bennie. She extended her hand, "Hi Bennie, can I call you Bennie? Nice to meet ya and all," she giggled under the jamming frequency.

He looked up at Rita and smiled in return, "Well, I must say that you're nice shoulder length red hair sure accentuates your dress, Rita," he took her hand and shook as the crowd began to count down.

...10... ...9... ...8...

Rita grabbed Bennie's face with each hand and drew him seductively to hers.

...6... ...5... ...4...

Her lips pressed against his...

...2... ...1...Happy New Year!!

He kissed her in return and then backed away and smiled, "No, really...It's okay...No offence, Rita...don't get me wrong, you're a very attractive woman and I would jump at the chance...in a heartbeat I would jump at the chance," he said, running his hand down her curvaceous figure...but you see...I've got someone already."

Rita retained her smile, but respected his space and backup slightly, and then sat next to him in the booth.

"So," Rita asked, "Where is this someone? Shouldn't she be here with you?"

Bennie lowered his head, "I don't know. I lost her...but I'm hopeful that we'll find each other again."

"How long?"

"Huh?"

"How long has it been, Bennie?" Rita asked, rubbing his shoulder.

"Nine months."

"He's been holding on to finding Ms. Someone," J nodded, "That's all he ever talks about the entire time I've known him...there's no doubt that he loves her...I'm sure she'll show up eventually, but in the meantime...I'm sure Ms. Someone wouldn't mind, you know, bein' that it's New Years and all," J grinned.

"If I knew where she was...what happened to her?"

"Well," J said, taking a seat with Veronica at the other end of the booth, "you know they reported her being killed in that apache chopper incident...with that Doctor fella too."

"LIES!" Bennie shouted, his eyes pulsated with anger, "They're all lies!" he grabbed edges of the table in an attempt to control his temper while being fully AMP'd, but he couldn't stop his nearly empty beer glass from shattering under the force of his projection.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, there, my man...take it easy now. You don't want to draw any attention to yourself now, keep it low key, you never know when one of the government goon squads might be lurking about."

Bennie knew J was right and calmed himself, soaking up the jamming frequency of the club. The waitress came over, giving him a nasty look. She begrudgingly cleaned up the broken glass and mopped up the spilled remains.

"Sorry about this, sweetie," J said, "This damage is my entire fault. Put it on my tab."

"Sure thing, honey," she smiled, "Anything for you J."

"Oh, and while you're at it, bring this fine young man a new one."

"You got it...you want anything?"

"Maybe a side order of you...yeah, heh, heh, heh, heh, I like that idea."

"J, you're so cute. Not gonna happen."

"Okay, then I guess I'll settle for what he's havin'."

"Comin' right up, handsome."

"Come on you guys," the tall brunette of the group said, "Let's go jammin on the dance floor."

"No, no...you see, I don't dance," Bennie complained.

J backed up in his seat, "Really, really? You don't dance? Why not? It's so much fun."

"Really, really not in the mood, J."

"Come on, Rita," Veronica said, flipping her hair, "Let's go jammin."

Rita stood and took Veronica by the hand, "I'll jam with ya."

The two swayed their hips as they walked to the dance floor, hand in hand, "Mmmm, Mmmm, MM!" J said, shaking his head, "What's eatin' you, my man? I promise Rita's a lot of fun."

"I got fired from my dishwashing job today...I used my last paycheck to get in here tonight."

The waitress brought the two brews to the table, and J swatted her rear as she left. She turned and playfully swatted her towel at him, "J, you behave yourself."

"Always," he replied, "Always."

"Oh, you're good alright."

J chuckled as she left to tend other customers, "Ain't she som'm'?"

"Yeah, sure is...who don't you harass in this town?"

"Bennie...my man...you got me all wrong," J said, spreading his hands out wide, then he took his brew and lifted it to his lips and took a long sip, "Ah...fine ale, fine indeed."

Ben sipped his, and then wiped the froth from his mouth with the back of his hand, "Too bad it does nothing for me."

"You like the taste?"

"Sure, it's great."

"Then it does something for ya," J smiled, showing his teeth.

"True that."

"So, Bennie...this is your lucky night."

"Come again? I said I lost my job, how's that lucky?"

"Because it's just in time...the Company has approved your first assignment," he reached inside his suit pocket and removed an envelope, "The instructions are inside. It's a small job, they like to start ya out small, so the advance is only two-thousand, with a payout of ten G's when you complete. My take will have to be ten percent on these small jobs."

"That's a whole G, and if you start charging me to be AMP'd, I'll have to move out of the city."

"Sorry, Bennie, but it's just business...you know."

"Sure, I understand. But ten isn't going to last me long, not long at all if you charge me to get jacked-in an all."

"You should be able to complete these drawings with one session; the remainder should keep you going for a month or two."

"Yeah, I'm going to have to move out of the city...rent is too damn high in the city."

"Move north and take the rail in ta' town."

"Yeah, I've been thinking of moving north...feeling too much heat lately."

"Oh, don't be paranoid, my man."

"So when will the Company approve a larger job?"

"They like to have a few of these smaller jobs completed first...let's say about a year or so."

"I was kind of hoping for a little sooner than that."

"Business is business; you know how it is...now if there wasn't an issue with anonymity..."

"Out of the question...I'll wait it out."

"Okay, Bennie my man, have it your way."

"So about Jen. You say you can't connect with her?"

"No, for some reason I'm not reading her at all. She would have to be AMP'd at the same time in order to connect."

"Maybe you should face the facts that she really was killed."

"I can't believe that. It can't be true...no, I'll never accept that."

"I'm tellin' ya, you're missin' out, my man," J smiled, sliding his toothpick to the other side of his mouth.

Bennie shook his head and opened the manila envelope and studied the contents of the assignment. After a few minutes he looked up at J, "Got a pen?"

"A pen? Yeah," he reached inside his jacket and handed him his gold-plated pen.

Bennie began jotting down formulas and equations at the bottom of the page. Then he handed the pen back to J and sealed the paper back inside the envelope, "Here, give this back to the Company. Tell them this was far too easy, I can handle bigger problems."

"You certain you don't want to check your work first? They don't forgive errors, and most likely would not approve future assignments," J said, grabbing the envelope. Holding it, he flicked it at Ben.

"It's right...trust me."

"Okay, Bennie. Just know that it's my reputation as well here."

"You don't actually think I would jeopardize my accelerator hook do ya?"

"Okay, Ben. I'll get this over to them soon as they're back from the holiday break...and if this satisfies their contract, we should have payment in a week."

"When will I get my next job?"

"I'd say they'll give us one every quarter to start."

"Us?"

"Yeah, you know...we're partners...I'm their customer, you're my contractor...," J laughed, "it's just good business n' all."

"Okay, okay, guess that'll have to do. At least that'll give me time to look for a place up north."

"Alright, you sure you don't want to try Rita on for size, you know, just because it's New Year's..."

"Stop it already," Bennie suddenly shot upright as J laughed, "It's Jen! I feel her!"

"Now you stop..."

"No, I mean it!" Bennie closed his eyes and concentrated, then opened them and looked at J, "It's gone...but it was her. I swear it was my Jenny."

"Did she connect with you? Do you know if she heard you?"

"I don't know...it was more like...more like, just a feeling...a knowing."

"Yeah, I know that feelin'."

"I know she's alive...my Jenny. I'll find her if it's the last thing I do."

"Nice, Bennie. Very nice. I'm glad for ya. Come on, drink up...it's party time," J raised his glass to him.

Bennie clinked his glass with J, "To finding Jenny!"

"Yes! To finding Jenny!" J smiled.

Nadine's Office

January 1st, 2066 00:25hrs

"There!" Nadine exclaimed. Tapping on her screen, "Bennie's tag."

"I'll see if we have any operatives in that proximity. Maybe we can get a positive ID," Captain Preston offered.

"Very well then," Nadine smiled, "Oh lookie here, another signature on the screen."

"A two for one special," Preston smiled. "How far apart?"

"Roughly 80 miles."

"Can you give me a direction? Let's see if we can nab both of them."

"North is all I can tell ya at the moment, but I like the way you think, Captain. I might have McKenzie put you in for promotion if we can capture them."

"I've located one of our wireless chips in the downtown sector. They're only a couple thousand feet from target; I can dispatch on your command."

"Wait...wait...the second signal has disappeared."

"What about Bennie's? Can you still read that one?"

"Yes, chip ID confirmed: 5-1-6-1-1-5 is still active and on the board...too bad we never isolated the wireless transceiver frequency, we could just recall him."

"Ma'am? What would you like me to do? I can still activate our operative."

"Go ahead, Captain, activate your subject."

"What instructions would you like me to transmit?"

"Give him the chip ID. Set him to seek and destroy...then have him collect the chip and recall him to the complex with it."

"Very good, Ma'am. I'm programing the instructions now. I'll let you know when I'm ready to transmit for final approval."

"This should prove to be interesting," Nadine smiled over at Preston, "I mean, this is our first real test to see what any of our operatives are capable of doing, and all."

"I've completed the instructions and are queued up to the amplification module projector. We are ready to transmit."

"The signal is stationary. You are go for activation."

"Transmitting the activation sequence now," Preston said, pressing a round red button on his screen."

5th Ave JamNation

January 1st, 2066 00:46

Peter Johnson sat quietly in his booth waiting for his New Year's Eve date to return from the restroom. Pete sported medium length black hair. It was longer on one side, and he did a comb over, draping his hair over his right eye. A successful service manager in his mid-forties, he decided to go for the highest cost chip implant. It promised a wonderful jamming experience, as well as the ability to have a built in locator signal. It was said to also engage local law enforcement if a threat response was transmitted to the base system control. He thought that it was a wise safety feature since living in the city had become dangerous with all the missing people on the rise again.

He nervously waited for his date to return, looking at his chronometer-band twice since she left.

He lifted his glass to his lips and downed the last of his drink, fine Italian liqueur with lemon squeeze. Then his eyes stared straight ahead of him. He set the glass down on the table and stood. His girlfriend returned, and she reached down to grab her purse, figuring they were getting ready to leave. Pete stared straight past her, and actually bumped into her as he walked past.

"Hey, Pete...what's up with you?"

Pete ignored her and continued walking to the exit, "Hey! I asked you a question, mister!"

Pete stopped, turned and returned her stare with green glowing eyes. She held her hand up to her mouth and gasped. Then he swiped his hand in the air, knocking her ten feet across the floor, sliding her into the wall. Shaping his hand as if choking her from across the room, he twisted his hand. The energy left his hand and broke the woman's neck.

As if nothing had happened, he turned and continued walking to the exit. Two bouncers tried to intercept him, but he flung them away from him with another flick of his hand. He turned and smiled at the two he had flung to the floor. Waving his index finger in the air, he warned, "Do not follow me."

The two collected themselves and moved in the opposite direction from the man.

Pete exited the club and crossed the street to the 5th Ave. Jammer's Club. He stepped up to the entrance window, "One please."

"That'll be a hundred bucks, mister," the gruff attendant demanded.

Pete shaped his hand into a fist as if he was taking the man in the booth by the collar, then he smashed the man by pulling him to the glass, "I don't think so."

"Okay, okay," the man said, his face pressed against the glass, "You can go in."

"I thought you'd see it my way," Pete said, releasing the man with a shove.

Peter opened the door and entered the dark club. Standing at the entrance, he scanned around the room. Computer traces had begun to form around his eyes to help enhance his night vision.

Most patrons that were close to the man backed away, giving him as much room as they could. Other's screamed when the traces began running down his neck and arms, which seemed to be preparing him for battle.

Bennie looked over at the commotion from the other end of the club. Instantly he knew the Company was coming for him.

"Get out, J...leave...I'll catch up with you later!" Bennie urged, before he got up and moved around the room, purposely evading any contact with this man that he knew was seeking him.

When he got closer to the man, he was scanning the room with his back turned to Ben. Taking a stance, and then moving his arms in a certain manner, he created a ball of energy that he launched at Pete.

The wave of power struck Peter, sending him flying through the air. Bennie took off and ran for the exit when Peter caught himself, turned and threw a power wave to draw on Ben.

Bennie was caught off balance by the wave of power seemingly tugging at his jacket collar.

Peter charged the dazed Bennie, driving him to the floor. The two tumbled and rolled on the ground. Ben broke loose and back flipped to his feet, his eyes glowing brilliantly.

Peter was still picking himself off the ground three feet away when Ben began power punching him with energy as he swung his arms in the air.

Three gut punches and an upper-cut sent Peter to the ground. Bennie turned again to flee, but Peter grabbed him with a force with his hand positioned in the air and began squeezing.

Bennie gasped for air and grabbed at his neck, but there weren't any hands to remove. He panicked as he begun to lose consciousness, his ears rang, losing his senses around him. He became desperate for a breath of air, his eyes bulging, his neck continued to be squeezed, choking the life out of him.

Bennie looked straight into Peter's eyes. With furrowed brow, he sent a powerful wave of energy directed at the man's chip.

Peter's eyes made a crackling sound and turned milky white. Peter cocked his head to one side, and then fell to the floor, dead.

Bennie dropped to the floor on his hands and knees, coughing and choking, as he recovered from the life being squeezed out of him.

Looking all around the room, he noticed that J and his two cuties were gone. Leaving by a back exit, they had taken Bennie's advice and scrammed.

The entire club had stopped and was staring at him. He held his hands to motion that it was alright. Then he turned, shook his head and left the club, disappearing into the night.

The Gamma Project Control Room

January 1st, 2066 01:12

"...and signal is terminated," Captain Hawthorn reported.

"Play back the feed on the overhead," General McKenzie ordered.

"Yes, sir," Hawthorn replied, "Coming up on the screen now. We aren't able to capture audio, but we can see what he saw."

"Good," McKenzie said, folding his arms in anticipation.

They watched as Peter became activated and made his way to his target.

"Impressive," McKenzie commented as he watched people being flung through the air.

"Just wait, General, there's more," Hawthorn nodded.

They watched their operative grab the booth attendant and smash him into the glass without even touching him, then shoved him back.

"Now, it's here," Hawthorn reported, "the operative is scanning the room, but he can't zone into the exact coordinates."

"Do you know what the problem was? Shouldn't that chip tie directly into his?"

"No, it won't work that way for Bennie. His chip is the only original alien tech we had, plus the jamming club was throwing off his scanning capabilities."

"Aren't those clubs dark?"

"Yes," Hawthorn reported, "What you're seeing is the enhanced sensors that grew around the subject's eyes...it's just like having night vision goggles."

"Fascinating...so you were able to replicate the growth feature? Calvin and Doctor Rhodes were adamant that the growth enzyme was not going to produce the same effect."

"We've had a few breakthroughs of our own, General," Nadine interrupted, coming through the man-trap, "We were able to duplicate the growth enzyme to a limited degree. With time, the Company is confident that they can replicate it one hundred percent."

"Okay, here it is," Hawthorn reported.

"That's Bennie alright," Nadine said.

"Well, I'll be damned," McKenzie cursed, "He is alive."

"If he made it out, you can bet Calvin and Griffin could have made it," Nadine added.

"So what happened to cause this transmission interruption?"

"Simple, Bennie was pretty much peaking in his AMP and he was able to fry the other chip."

"Fried?"

"Yes...short circuited the chip, terminating the subject's connection. This was fatal to the operative."

"Mmm, too bad," McKenzie shrugged, "At least we know what to expect. Can you address these matters in the future?"

"We have a team working on that downstairs now," Nadine smiled, "Would you like to go down for a tour, General?"

"No thanks, I'll leave that messy work to you."

Nadine smirked, "Alright, but if you ever change your mind..."

"I'll let you know."

"Can we track his movements through the city?"

"Not anymore. His signal disappeared shortly after leaving the club. Until he's AMP'd again, we won't be able to track him."

"Now that he knows we're looking, he'll make it even harder."

"You don't have to state the obvious, General. I'll find him, mark my word. I'll find him."

Bennie walked down the city street with pirate hat fashioned from aluminum foil, which concealed his chip from being detected as he made his way to the rail.

Most everyone he ran into on the way thought he was drunk the way he walked and carried on. He thought it would be the safest way on this night to blend in.

He scanned his account info and boarded the train. Fortunately, Bennie was an expert masking his identity while still being able to use his banking credentials, or they would have caught up to him long ago.

Now he knew he had to come up with a plan to better mask his identity, especially when he was AMP'd.

Chapter 16

San Juan Islands

Friday Harbor

Kit Kat Motel

January 1st, 2066 00:15

Jen and Doctor Rhodes were celebrating the only way they could on this New Year's Eve: in a quiet sleepy town, off the beaten track to nowhere.

"Doc, you're hurting tonight aren't ya?" Jen asked, noticing Rhodes discomfort.

"Yeah, it's real bad tonight," Rhodes rubbed his shattered shoulder, feeling the lose bone under his skin. He held his arm in a sling to help stabilize this wound from the gun shot, "Nine months in this hell-hole..."

"...and your data pad is nearly out of credits too."

"When that happens, we'll have to go to town and try to load it up from my main accounts."

"You can't do that. They'll instantly know we're alive."

"We've been lucky so far, but this shoulder. It's going to cripple me if I don't have it fixed."

"Doctor, let me see if I can take any of your pain away."

"Whattya mean, Jen?"

"I've been working on my chip. I can invoke small subtle amplifications. They're short bursts, but it might help."

"I'm willing to try just about anything at this point."

Jen closed her eyes and sat by Rhodes on the floor. She concentrated for several minutes, breathing in her nose and exhaling slowly through her pursed lips. Then when she opened her eyes, she revealed a familiar green color emerging around her iris. Reaching up, she touched his shoulder and passed a wave of energy through her arm, down to her hand, and into his shoulder.

Rhodes closed his eyes and absorbed the wonderful feeling she projected to him, taking the pain from him, even if it was only for a few minutes.

Jen shot back with a sudden start, "Bennie!"

Rhodes winced with the sudden jerk, "Ouch! What?"

"It's Bennie...I feel him...he's alive," a tear welled under her eyes and dripped down her cheek. Then she closed her eyes and smiled with comfort and satisfaction, knowing her Bennie was still alive. When she opened her eyes, they slowly faded and returned to her normal color, "It's gone...I lost it."

"Do you know if he connected with you?"

"I don't know. It was more like a knowing he's alright...but that was all."

"That's quite a little feat you can do with your chip, Jen."

"I've kept that to myself, you know...sometimes I kind of feel like a freak."

"I can understand, Jen. But we've stayed together for nine months. You should understand that I'm alright to trust."

"I know, I know. That's something I need to work on, that's for sure."

"Trust?"

"Yeah, the one person that I put my trust in, betrayed me."

"Nadine."

"Yes. I still can't believe what she is."

"A cyborg clone?"

"How is that possible?"

"Nadine said there was a second alien complex."

"...so if that's the case..." Jen added.

"They could infest the planet through the chips and take us over."

"We have to find Bennie...now that we know he's alive!"

"All these things in due time. I'm in no shape to be traveling just yet. It hurts to move it much at all."

"Doctor, there is one solution," Jen offered.

Rhodes looked over at his backpack and nodded, "I'm about to go with that option."

"Do you want to find Bennie and maybe the others?"

"Sure, I do."

"Well, then, Doctor?"

"I have to say, that I'm a tad afraid."

"Doctor, there isn't anything to worry about. Remember trust?"

"Bring me my silver case," he nodded.

Jen reached over and gave Rhodes a silver case he had carried from the base.

"Open it," he ordered as he removed his sling.

"Three chips left, Doctor," Jen noted, opening the case and laying it out flat on the bed.

Rhodes took the injector from its case and loaded one of the three chips, "One for the money," he said, setting the wheel the correct pressure, "Two for the show," he handed the injector to Jen, "Three to get ready," he leaned down exposing the back of his neck to Jen, "Four to go!"

"Doctor, are you sure about this?"

"Yes, you're supposed to hit me on 'four to go', now hit me...four to GO!"

Jenny held the injector tip on the back of Rhodes' neck and squeezed the trigger. The resulting motion sent the charged hybrid chip into the base of his skull.

"Ahhhhh! What the...WOW, that hurt!" Rhodes said, nearly passing out.

"Sorry Doctor, you insisted."

"Okay, whew...wow," he said, stroking the back of his neck.

Raising upright, he opened his teary eyes. Jen looked at him and saw his eyes shimmering with green. His skin crawled with light colored data patterns, which ran down his face, neck and round his shattered shoulder.

The light patterns that focused on his bare shoulder began forming solid traces and leads plugging his skin and traveling back to his skull, completing a pathway. He gritted his teeth as the chip did its job in repairing the damaged shoulder.

"Does it still hurt, Doc?"

"No...no it doesn't hurt.."

"Then why are you making such a face?"

"It's just the anticipation of what it's doing...what I've seen it do to others...just hoping the formula was correct so this growth enzyme doesn't get carried away and turn me into a Night of the Living Dead creature or something."

Jen smiled at the Doctor, "I'm glad it's repairing the damage."

"Yeah, so am I...so am I."

"So tell me, Doctor."

"Yeah," he said, craning his neck back and forth.

"What made you decide to get AMP'd after all these months?"

"Hope."

"Because of what I said?"

"Yeah, you gave me some hope...thought this would be the best way to try and reach him...you know, two heads are better than one."

"So to speak, yes. Thanks, Doc. It's quite a sacrifice you're making."

"We have to use their own weapons against them. If we're going to expect to survive any alien invasion force, we'll all have to make sacrifices."

She gave Rhodes a hug and he backed up with a wince, "Sorry, I thought..."

"It's okay, Jen. You're welcome. Just give me a few hours for my shoulder to heal all the way. Then we can start working out a way to find the others."

"Deal, Doctor...you got a deal."

1st Ave Banana Jammer Club

March 19th, 2066 20:00

"Well, you look ridiculous," J said to Bennie, as he sported another aluminum foil cap.

"Well, I have come up with another solution, but you'll have to program the code in the next AMP."

"I don't program, my man...just plain ol bein' jacked-in. Nothing else...so what's this code you're talkin' about, anyway?"

"I knew that didn't mean no..."

"...just give it to me straight," J sighed.

"If you program your accelerator to deliver this code, it will turn off any wireless transceiver signal. I can block the GPS so I can walk around freely, without looking over my shoulder every second of the day...and I won't have to wear this," Bennie said, removing the scratchy tinfoil.

"Here, give that to me," J grabbed the foil from his hand.

Bennie reluctantly gave it up and then scratched his head, itching from the abrasive foil.

"If you're gonna wear it, at least until we can get this code of yours programmed, you can line this here cap with the foil."

"Uh, gee thanks', J."

"Don' mention it...sheesh, I've seen you solve the most complex formulas and mathematical problems, but you can't figure out how to wear a disguise..." J said with an eye roll.

"Hey, I've been through it...you know...it's just..."

"Yeah, yeah...shut it already, I'll do it for ya. I won't even charge you for this one."

"Really, really?"

"Yes, really...really. Now come on. Let's get out of here and get the accelerator juiced up, shall we?"

"But I don't have an assignment, shouldn't we wait for that?"

J just returned his look and simply shook his head with a smile, "You'll catch on soon enough."

"Ohhhh, you have another assignment?"

J smiled again, "See? You are catching on, Bennie, my maaaaan."

"Nice...so what is it this time?"

"They like your work so they're giving you one job that's worth 50 G's up front."

"Is this the big one, J?"

"Yep, it's the big one alright. They want a complete....shhh, wait until we get outside," J whispered, looking suspicious at everyone as they walked by.

They walked out of the club and up to Seneca Street. Ben followed him down the alley and the cement steps that they had frequently traveled. J looked over his shoulder the entire time.

"J, you've never been this worked up, what's wrong?"

"It's just that the feds are trying to crack down. I'm working on moving my operation, so this'll be the last AMP session I can provide until I find new digs. It's just gettin' too hot anymore."

"We'll be safe here, right?"

"Sure, Bennie, my man...safe as can be."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I told ya, are ya listenin' to me? I said the heats on. I didn't say they have discovered my little playroom down here, but..." J paused, noticing that the basement door had been opened.

J and Ben looked at each other. J held his finger up to his lips and then slowly pushed the door open. The hinge creaked and popped, making them jump at the ready. They quietly entered the room, the equipment was still covered with sheets but the computer terminal on the desk had come out of sleep mode.

"Shhh," J leaned over and whispered to Bennie, "Someone's been here."

Bennie looked down in the corner of the room and noticed a small mouse, which began to scurry across their path, looking for a possible escape route.

Bennie let out a yelp as the mouse darted back toward him, which then proceeded to run up his pants' leg.

"Bennie!" J tried to whisper, "Aw, come on, man...keep it down will ya?"

"Easy for you to say," Bennie shouted, as he attempted to remove his trousers and let the little rodent out as quickly as he could.

His leg got caught in his pants, tripping him to the floor. The mouse ran up his chest and leaped over his head and ran for his exit.

J only could fall to the ground, accompanied by the largest belly laugh Bennie ever heard, "Well, if there were anyone here," J continued to laugh, "I think we just gave up...hah hah hah hah."

Bennie managed to get off the floor and stepped back into his pants. He looked around the room, then pulled off the sheet from J's equipment.

"There isn't anyone here anymore. They left already, is there a back exit or anything?"

"No, just this one way in, and I didn't see anyone leaving."

Just then the computer monitor went to sleep, making the room even darker. Bennie pointed to the screen, "Guess they left about a half hour ago."

"Yeah, my sleep mode is set for thirty-minutes."

"Okay, J. Fire up the controls and I'll start inputting my code."

J collected himself and went over to the main power relay and moved the handle to the upper position, making a snap and a whir noises as the machine came to life. Then he pressed a few additional commands on the panel, "Okay, the accelerator is on-line. You can program your code.

Bennie sat at a rolling chair and slid up to the keyboard and began entering the commands. Since he wasn't currently AMP'd he relied on notes he took that were in his shirt pocket.

After about ten minutes and Bennie checking and rechecking his data entries, he turned to J, "Okay. Ready...hook me up."

"Will this code permanently disable the GPS locator circuit?"

"Not permanently. I have more code to re-enable it if we should need it at some point."

"Okay, Bennie. You're the boss on this one," J said, hooking the fiber cable from the machine to Bennie's plug, "There you are...is there anything special I need to watch for on this one?"

"Should be just like all the other AMP sessions, J. Just transmit the code already...before whoever was here decides to come back."

"Good point, Bennie, my man."

Bennie sat back in the chair and closed his eyes. J hit the transmit sequence and the machine began to send the AMP signal to Ben.

"Okay, Bennie. Five minutes and we'll be ready to leave."

Bennie shot his eyes open, with only thirty seconds left for the AMP cycle, he disconnected early and stood, "I heard something."

J reached for his weapon that he kept under his suit coat. He loaded a round in the chamber by pulling the hammer back and releasing it on his Smith & Wesson .45 caliber pistol, which looked more like a cannon than a gun.

"You didn't finish the session," J whispered, powering down the machine, he covered it with the sheet.

"You better remove the actuator key, I think someone's been coming down here and stealing sessions."

J reached under the sheet on one section of the accelerator and pulled out a twin-keyed looking tuning fork and placed it in his other pocket, "I think you're right, Ben."

The two dimmed the light and turned off the computer monitor and snuck out the door. In the shadows at the opposite end of the alley, they saw two people quickly approaching.

"Run for it!" Bennie shouted, now fully AMP'd he took off like a gazelle, leaving J to fend for himself.

"It's okay, Ben!" J yelled as he disappeared in the dark, I've got my own escape plans. I'll meet up with you later!" he relayed. Then J disappeared into the darkness, leaving the two in hot pursuit of Bennie.

He ran and jumped over garbage cans, tossing them behind him as he ran. Darting down a side alley, he came to a chain link fence and leaped over it without skipping a beat. With lightning speed and energy, he scaled a brick wall and ran across the roof tops of the shorter buildings, disappearing from sight.

The two dark shadows stopped and rested with their hands on their knees.

Jen looked over at Rhodes, "He's AMP'd, we'll never catch him right now."

"Agreed," Rhodes puffed, "Let's check out the basement they came from."

The two entered the opened door to the basement where J's accelerator was, "We missed them by minutes!" Jen exclaimed.

"Yes, but we found the accelerator he's been using," Rhodes pointed, pulling the sheet off the machine.

"Can you activate the thing? If I can get jacked, I might be able to project a message to Bennie."

Rhodes looked over the sophisticated accelerator unit and then turned to Jen, "They took the accelerator actuator key. Without that piece, this is just a piece of useless metal."

The basement door, shot open with a loud bang, "FREEZE!" five armed security men quickly entered the room, training their machine guns on them.

Jen and Doctor Rhodes raised their hands in the air and froze.

"Looks like we found one of the illegal accelerator dens, Sergeant," the lead officer stated.

"It's not mine!" Jen protested.

"Well, you're here...it's here...as far as I'm concerned, it's yours and you both are under arrest."

The little field mouse exited it's small hole in the basement wall and shot across the floor, causing just enough of a distraction that one of the men pointed his machine gun and opened fire on the small creature.

Jen grabbed the monitor off the desk and tossed it at them. Taking them all off guard, they darted out of the room in the commotion of gunfire and shouting, as they exited the basement.

The head security officer ran after them, but by the time he entered the alley, there was no one in sight.

Chapter 17

China Town

September 7th, 2067 17:30

~ Eighteen Months Later ~

Bennie scanned the restaurant and then caught J's eye. He smiled, nodded and approached his table.

"Bennie, my man...how ya been?"

Bennie helped himself to the opposite side of the booth and leaned closer, "Whattya mean? How ya been? How do you think I've been? I haven't been able to get AMP'd for weeks. How do you expect me to finish the plasma drive schematic for the Company?"

"Bennie, you know that my accelerator was confiscated."

"I know, but you said that the last time. You said you contracted with Sly, that you could use his unit anytime you needed."

"Yeah, well, that was before."

"Before what?"

"Before Sly disagreed with my commission payment."

"This is about credits?"

"Yeah, well it's just business, you know."

"J, I'm fiending awfully bad, I'll pay the commission...just get me jacked."

"It's not that simple," J said taking another helping of his Mongolian Beef, "Want some? I've got plenty here."

"Sure, I'm starving. I have to save most of what's left, you know, of that advance, so I can get the plans finished."

"Sly wants fifty G's for a single AMP session, for me, or for anyone I have served in the past."

"Wow, there's no way I'm paying that."

"You're tellin' me!"

"So, what's your plan?"

"That depends on how close you are to completing the drawings."

"I've been compiling all of my notes from the last five AMP sessions."

"...and?"

"...and, I only need one more session to complete the drawings."

"Can you give me three weeks? I'll have this little situation under control by then."

"You getting' a new accelerator?"

"Shhhh, keep it down, my man...yes, so to speak, I am getting my new unit."

Bennie slid in front of him what was left on the serving plate of the Mongolian Beef, and began devouring it with a spare set of chop sticks. Then he proceeded to pull the sweet and sour chicken over in front of him when J reached with his sticks, grabbing one last piece of chicken from the plate.

J dipped it in the sauce and then crunched through the crispy breading, "Mmmm," he chewed, "Mighty tasty...mighty tasty indeed...so how's the new digs up north?"

"Well, it's quiet. My last place had two killings in one week. I decided to get out of there, that's for sure."

"Anything else?"

"No, just keepin' to ma self. Staying off the grid as much as possible, you know...but man, I sure miss being AMP 'd on a more regular basis."

"That's not what I'm talking about."

"Well, that other thing? I haven't tried too hard. I..." he paused, taking a bite of deep fried prawns.

"You're stalling, Bennie...just because you thought you had detected Jenny one time..."

"I didn't just think it," Bennie spat between chews.

"Okay, okay, we've been over this going on two years now."

"Eighteen months," Bennie corrected.

"Eighteen months, fine. When you gonna face it my man, it was just an anomaly."

"That one time, that was all I needed to keep hope..."

"...but you're startin' to lose that now."

"...how'd you know?"

"Because you gave up...you stopped trying," J said, being as sympathetic as possible, "Jeez, do I feel like a heel."

"Why?"

"'Cause here I am, trying to take the last bit of hope you have left, and make you forget that Jenny might still be alive...Bennie, I've gotten to know you over the last couple of years. Hell, I've even been to your place before, you cooked me supper. You're not one to give up...look at chew, you survived a major accident three years ago. Someone, who should have been crippled for the rest of his life, is free to walk as he pleases..."

"But at what cost, J?"

The young waitress came to the table and smiled at Bennie, "Anything more for you?" she asked with an Asian accent.

"Bennie," J smiled, "This is Trudy. She's new in town. Maybe you should see if you can show her the sights?"

Bennie gave J a look, "Stop trying to fix me up," then turned to Trudy, "No offense, Ma'am."

"I'm not offended, Mr. Bennie."

"Maybe you can bring us some more hot tea?"

"Sure, thing. I'll be right back."

"Bennie, just don't keep living in the past. Start living for today, that's all I'm tryin' to say."

"Thanks J, really, really...no I'm serious! You're right, I should let go of the past and move on with my life."

"Now that's the Bennie I know."

The waitress promptly delivered another pot of hot tea and placed it in front of Bennie, but before she could take her hand away, Bennie placed his hand on her wrist, "No, wait."

"What's the matter, Mr. Bennie? Is there something else you would like?" she smiled, bouncing her short black bob cut hair in anticipation.

"Yes," Bennie said, looking over at J, then up at Trudy, "Have you ever seen the Space Needle?"

"Oh, yes, I see Space Needle from ground all the time."

"No, I mean, have you ever been to the top?"

"No, I never have."

"Neither have I. Would you like to go with me to experience it together?"

"Oh, Mr. Bennie," Trudy said, blushing, "I would love to."

"Great, what time do you get off tonight?"

"Nine-o-clock."

"Okay, great...I'll be back then."

"Oh, Mr. Bennie...Mr. J...you can stay here, I bring you whatever you need until then."

Bennie smiled and took his hand off her wrist, "Okay, that sounds good."

Trudy returned his smile and left to tend her other tables.

"Bennie, my man! You're doing a good thing. She really is a peach, isn't she?"

"Yeah, she is very nice."

Oak Harbor Washington

Secure Military Warehouse

September 7th, 2067 19:00

Nadine stood with Captain Preston in a large warehouse staring at rows of computer equipment, "How long has this illegal accelerator been sitting here in storage?"

"Eighteen months, Ma'am."

"Captain, is there anything wrong with your circuits? Do you need a new clone?"

"No, Ma'am, I assure you I am functioning at optimal performance."

"Then why did you wait so long to bring this unit to my attention?"

"Sorry, Ma'am, it was just like all the other accelerators, but when the team was doing their system checks before these units were to be disposed of, one of them discovered something odd about this one."

"Go on..."

"The unit never completed its last session, so they were reviewing the code that was still present in the memory buffer," Preston handed Nadine a computer printout, "My team brought it to me and I thought you'd be interested in what this code was for."

Nadine studied the printout and then looked up at Preston, "Nice work, Captain. Yes, I'd recognize this code anywhere. This has Bennie Petersen written all over it."

"Yes, Ma'am, we should be able to extrapolate what Bennie's freqs are from the code."

"We'll be able adjust our receivers to alert us when he's AMP'd again?"

"...And we'll get his exact position. No more missing the mark."

"Okay, Captain. You just earned yourself favor with the Company in a big way. With Bennie's chip back in our possession, we can complete our programming."

"Yes, Ma'am...we will finally begin to integrate with the human race on a massive scale."

"We will be remembered by our kind for all time...the rebirthing of our race using humans as hosts."

"I'll alert the Gamma Project Control room. We'll have an operative activated as soon as he shows up on our scanners..."

"How soon before we have the necessary adjustments to our equipment?"

"I've been working on them as we speak, Ma'am. I have the chip's frequency codes and have just transmitted them to the control center. Captain Hawthorn is making the changes now."

"Excellent!"

"We'll have to reboot the entire system for changes to be put into effect. Two more hours and we'll be able to find his chip."

"Captain, are you saying he won't even have to be AMP'd to find him?"

"That's right, Ma'am. With the proper freqs, I can activate his GPS locator."

"Can you send him any code? Just recall him to the complex?"

"No, unfortunately, because it's the original alien tech, we can't interface with it, unless it's jacked."

"Very well, Captain. You did well and you just saved yourself from being recycled."

The Gamma Project Control Room

September 7th, 2067 21:15

"The system is coming back on-line, General," Captain Hawthorn reported.

"Good work, Captain."

Hawthorn studied his screen as the system echoed for Bennie's chip frequency.

"Target located, Sir."

"Location?"

"Rail...heading from China Town to City Center."

"Excellent work, gentleman," McKenzie boasted, "Any operatives close by?"

"Scanning the database now, Sir," Hawthorn reported, "Yes, sir. We have one close by."

"How close?"

"Just a few feet, sir...must be on the same monorail."

"What luck!" General McKenzie exclaimed, "Activate the chip...and don't miss this time! The Company was already pretty upset that he seems to always be one step ahead of us."

"Execution orders, Sir?"

"Yes, standing execution orders. I want that bastard dead for making me look like a fool, you got that Captain? Don't miss!"

"No Sir, I won't let you down, sir."

"You had better not," McKenzie said, placing his sidearm against the man's head.

Hawthorn continued his programming, emotionless, "Transmitting the activation codes now."

"Jeez, man, don't you even sweat?"

"Just following my orders, sir...that's all."

"Very well, get on with it then," McKenzie said, returning his sidearm.

Light Rail - China Town to City Center

September 7th, 2067 21:20

Bennie and Trudy held hands on the monorail as it made its way along the city buildings, elevated fifty feet above ground. Their destination was the city center two minutes ahead.

"Mr. Bennie, thank you for taking me to the Space Needle, it will be fun."

"Sure thing, Trudy. I hope to show you a good time," he smiled down at her.

Trudy blushed, then dropped his hand and stared straight ahead. He noticed that her eyes changed to a bright green color. Knowing all too well that sinking feeling developing inside his gut, he began to experience a slight enhancement, like a wave flowing over him, "Dear god!"

Trudy turned, facing toward the front of the car, "Bennie, you better run."

"Run? Run where?" Bennie shouted, panicking, "What are you doing? What's happening?"

Bennie looked down the direction Trudy was focused and saw a very large and angry man quickly bearing down on them. The balding man was littered with tattoos and sported a black leather vest. But what was even more menacing were the man's glowing green eyes and flashes of data running across his face, down his arms and legs, forming solid trace and computer components.

"No time to explain, Mr. Bennie!" Trudy took a defensive stance, put her arms before her and shot out a wave of energy at the approaching man, who was now completely changed into a cyborg machine.

Bennie froze at the site of Trudy tossing the man in the air and down to the end of the car, making him land flat on his back with an energy wave. She charged down the car at full speed, passengers diving out of her path.

"Trudy!" Bennie shouted, then turned and ran down the car to the other end. He turned only to see Trudy leap straight up in the air, hitting the top of the monorail car. The force of Trudy's impact, caused the train to jump the rail and plunge headlong down to the ground.

The creaking of the train leaving the fifty foot high rail system, turned into a groan as the car hit and then slid on the pavement below, shooting sparks as it scraped on its side, and then finally skidded to a halt.

Bennie realized that he was bracing himself with an AMP'd surge of energy which prevented him from being tossed down to the head of the derailed train. Fires burned in the car, people could be heard screaming. Some fled through holes in the side of the train, flames licking from their coats and jackets.

Bennie slowly crawled out one of the shattered windows, falling to the ground in a heap. He looked at the burning train that he had just been on. He had more questions in his mind, but for now, he needed to get out of the city.

Reaching for his back pocket, he took out a folded and crinkle looking sheet of tin foil. Placing it back on his head, he limped from the train in the opposite direction that the aid units were coming from. He disappeared into the darkness of the night, only to be haunted by Trudy's images and the faint fire that continued to burn from the train in the distance, sending him faint wisps of smoke that he could smell from time to time, reminding him of the horror he had just been through.

Downtown - Live Breaking News

September 7th, 2067 21:30

"Police and city officials are not commenting on this train derailment. So far three are known to be dead and several more are injured..." the reporter said, with a hurried breathy sound, the camera switched to the reporter conducting an interview with one official, "If this had occurred two or three hours earlier, we might be looking at an entirely different scenario."

The reporter shoved his microphone in the man's face, "Do you know what really happened here tonight?"

"No, we will investigate, and report the cause of the derailment, but it's too early to speculate."

"Can you tell me anything about reports of people seeing anything strange or anyone fighting on board?"

"I have no comment on that," the city official said, turning away from the camera.

The reporter then broke back in with his live report, "As you can see, city officials are being very tight lipped about what really happened...I have interviewed at least three witnesses that say they saw people wearing costumes, having the appearance of copper circuitry being wrapped all around their entire bodies. Some say they were pre-Halloween costumes, but with that nearly two months away, it's not very likely...we'll keep you updated as new developments unfold...this his Aaron Spangler, reporting live."

Benjamin Petersen's Apartment

September 26th 2067 18:30

Ben sat in his rundown basement apartment. The sofa was tattered and his floor was littered with balls of wadded up paper, pencils, and scraps of paper. He meticulously loaded each round into the clip of his Glock 22. Then he inserted it with a snap into the .40 caliber, cocking a round in the chamber. Holstering his gun in his vest, he stood to zip up his leather jacket.

He sighed as he ran his nervous fingers through his long stringy hair, "Get ahold of yourself...you can do this..."

Ben picked up his billed cap from the arm of the torn sofa and placed it on his head, letting his hair flow down his back. He needed to blend in with the regulars of the center where he could find an underground accelerator module.

Only one more session and I can complete this new pulse drive engine schematic, he thought, trying to convince himself.

Walking across the room, he picked up his data pad and tucked it inside his coat pocket. Making one more adjustment to the bill of his cap, ensuring the tin foil was secure, he walked out the door and locked it with a wave of his hand.

It was a forty-minute walk to the rail line. Then another fifty-minute ride to his stop a few blocks from his contact. Then he would begin his quest for J and see if his problems had been resolved.

Zipping his jacket higher, he shivered in the cool breeze of this chilly September night.

Corner of Stewart & James

September 26th 2067 20:30

J leaned against a brick wall as the night came upon itself; he softly spoke on his data pad when Bennie shouted his name form down the street.

"Okay, he's here. I gotta go... ...right... ...tonight's the night...gotta go...bye..."

Then he turned, spreading his arms wide, and smiled through his pearly white teeth, "Wus up, Bennie my man?"

"I need to get AMP'd."

J and Bennie finished negotiating the deal, "Follow me," J said, reaching down for his brief case, "This way."

Bennie followed him up the street and then down a dark ally. There were several addicts that still used the chemical method of forgetting their pain. Many of them were passed out in their own vomit. The stench was bad tonight, remembering his previous excursions with J.

J quickly walked down a dark stairwell and sat the case on the step, "Sit down," he instructed, then unlocked the case passing the back of his hand over it.

"Wait," Ben interrupted, "Here? How?"

"Meet PAM. This is the latest model," J smiled, "Portable Accelerator Module...now lean forward."

Ben followed his instructions and placed his head down. He pulled his long hair out of the way, exposing the back of his neck.

J brushed a few wisps of hair Bennie had missed, exposing Bennie's jack. He reached into the case for a cord and then carefully plugged it into Ben.

"Okay, relax," he instructed, "This shouldn't hurt a bit."

"Shouldn't?"

"You'll be fine...really, really."

J flipped a red switch to power on the box. He moved the control dial to the 50 AMP setting and waited for the unit to complete the charge.

"What's taking so long?" Ben asked, his hands shaking again, "It's never taken this long before to get this going."

"It's a portable unit, man, an' it takes a few to bring the power up...give it a sec," he looked down on the control console and noticed a message being displayed which read: "Dispense package number 9."

He raised his eyebrows and softly whispered to himself, "Okay, whatever you say boss," and punched in the special code.

The unit began to spin up making a high pitched squeal and then it discharged. Ben lost consciousness with the powerful surge of gamma rays flooding his bio-chip.

With Bennie collapsed in J's arms, he gently rested him on the cement steps. He took Bennie's Glock from his vest and unloaded the rounds, then returned it, "Sorry, man...it's the only way."

The sounds of vehicles approaching hit J's ears. He panicked and he slid under the steps, covering his body with Bennie's.

The doors slid open on three vans. Six men jumped out and collected the bodies on the ground. Fortunately, the men were in a hurry. Piling the passed out bodies inside, the men jumped back into their black vans and sped off.

J looked up over the alley to check for an all clear. He collected his box and fled into the night.

When Bennie woke up a few minutes later, J was nowhere to be found. He crawled up the cement stairs and looked down the alley in both directions. The alley was empty where before it was littered with passed out bodies.

He began to feel the effects of the AMP and started to remember his drawing. He thought for a few moments and then smiled. He suddenly knew how to complete the schematic. But he felt different this time. There wasn't any euphoric effect during or after being jacked into the accelerator unit, "What a rip off! I'm going ta' Sly next time."

He began to walk down the alley and then stopped. He held his shaking hands up and then noticed he was sweating profusely. Losing his balance, he fell to his knees and quivered.

"What's happening to me?" he whispered. Then his right hand stopped shaking as he reached for his Glock. Unable to stop himself, his smile turned into a look of horror.

He fought the feeling of wanting to place the gun in this mouth, but couldn't resist. He grabbed his hand with his other to try to stop himself from what he was doing. He struggled, but at last, he put the gun into his mouth and pulled the trigger, making only a click. Before he could check the gun's clip, his legs gave out, introducing him to the ground with a thud. He screamed with pain at the back of his neck as the chip removed itself from Bennie before he passed out.

Secret Government Building

September 26th 2067 20:47

A government aide quietly sat at his computer, then turned to interrupt the General, "Sir, We have successfully downloaded the schematics from the subject."

"Excellent," General McKenzie said, "Is he dead?"

"Yes, sir," his aide said, "Very."

The General frowned, "Too bad...so sad. Please send my condolences to the family."

"That's Colonel Petersen's son, right?"

"Yes."

"What should I tell them happened, sir?"

"Tell the Colonel, when we find him, that his son met with another accident."

"Yes, sir," the technician acknowledged.

"We have pin pointed his location and can send an extraction team for his chip."

"Very well, Captain...good work everyone, at least now we can move forward with the completion of the complex," McKenzie said, rubbing the new jack on the back of his neck.

Chapter 18

Back Alley

September 26th 20:45

A black van entered the alley and drove up to where the locator beacon indicated Bennie had been when he self-terminated. The van stopped, the side door opened and two men jumped out.

"Where's his body?"

"I don't see any body here," the other said, scouring the area with his night goggles.

"Wait...over here," the first one said, motioning for the other to come over.

Kneeling on the ground they each noticed a silvery and blood stained bio-chip, lying on the ground with a long fiber strand protruding from its end.

"Get a bio-bag. I'll call it in."

"Better you than me," the man said standing and running back to the van.

"Base command, this is Recovery 1...come in."

"Recovery 1, this is base, please report," Hawthorn answered over the wireless.

"We found the chip, but no body."

"Please repeat," Hawthorn instructed, "Did you say there is no body?"

"Yes, that's correct. I repeat, we are recovering the chip, but there is no sign of the body."

The other man returned with forceps and a clear plastic bag. He reached for the chip and clamped the forceps to it. The fiber strand wiggled and twitched as he carefully placed it in the bag. He then sealed it and placed it in his vest pocket.

"Yes, Captain. I understand...we'll be on our way momentarily...Recovery 1, out."

"Guess they didn't take it so well, huh."

"Nope, not at all."

The two men entered the van, rolled the door closed and then instructed the driver to enter the expressway and set the auto controls for the van to return to Oak Harbor Base.

Underground Lab Complex

September 26th, 2067 23:30

"Whattya mean, we don't have the body!" Nadine screamed.

"Calm down, Nadine!" McKenzie replied, "They have the chip. They'll be here any time now...so just relax already."

"That's the only reason why you haven't been replaced with another McKenzie clone. I guess this clone is no better than the real General, now are you?"

"That's not a fair statement. I have enhancements that make me superior to my original host."

"Superior? Pfff...not so much."

"I assure you, my programming is functioning within normal operating parameters," but before Nadine could respond, McKenzie pointed at the man trap, "See, here they are now."

Captain Preston escorted Sergeant Briggs, who was carrying a silver metal case.

"Gentlemen?" Nadine greeted, "Give me the chip."

Briggs handed the case to Nadine, turned and gave the General a salute, "At ease, Sergeant. Tell us about the site, what did you observe?"

"Sir," Briggs answered, resting his hands behind his back, and spreading his feet slightly. "The area was already clear. Three other teams were making their nightly rounds. They report seeing no one else in the alley. We scanned the entire perimeter and found this chip, lying on the ground."

"And you saw nothing else...nothing at all."

"No, Sir. This is all we recovered."

Nadine quickly opened the case and examined the chip, "You are positive, that this is chip 5-1-6-1-1-5?"

"Yes, Ma'am. This was Bennie Petersen's chip."

"Okay, get this cleaned up and installed to the mainframe. Let's see if we can run a diagnostic on it...see what shape it's in."

"Yes, Ma'am," Briggs acknowledged.

"Captain Preston, see to it that this young man is taken care of, will you?"

"Yes, Ma'am," Preston smiled, "I'll see to it that he is taken care of alright."

"Good work, Captain, Sergeant..." Nadine turned to leave, "Oh, please let me know when you have the chip ready to fire up. I want to be present."

"Yes, Ma'am," Captain Preston answered, "I'll contact you on your data pad."

"Any idea how long?"

"I'm going to run a complete inspection after it's cleaned up, give us about nine hours."

"Very well, Captain, carry on. General?"

"Madam?"

"Give these men a promotion, or something. They performed well here."

"Yes, Ma'am. I'll start the paper work, Major Preston."

"Major, yes, thank you sir!"

Nadine left the lab and returned to her desk where she could recharge for a few hours before the chip would be ready.

Whidbey Island

Condemned 1900's Military Installation

Fort Casey Switchboard

September 27 07:30

Bennie slowly opened his eyes. It felt like they had been glued shut for days. He tried to lift his arms but nothing happened. Then his heart jumped with panic, remembering that the last thing he did was try to blow his own head off.

"Easy, son," a soft woman's voice answered, "You're going to be okay, Ben."

"M...Mom?" he struggled to say, his mouth dry.

"Yes, honey. It's me."

"I thought you were dead," a tear ran down his face.

"I had to get off the streets. It was too dangerous."

"Where am I?" Bennie asked, trying to look around the dimly lit room.

"We've been trying to find you ever since we became separated," another familiar voice answered.

"Calvin! Uncle Calvin?"

"Yep, in the flesh."

"But, how come...what happened?"

"Relax, Ben, take it easy," Calvin said, resting his hand on the boy's shoulder.

"Why can't I move, get me up! I can't stand this, please help me," Bennie cried.

"Son, you're paralyzed."

"Paralyzed? Whattya mean Paralyzed!"

"It was the programming," J said, stepping out of the shadows.

"You're in on this too? Jeez, what's the world coming to? I trusted you, J!"

"It's okay," J said, looking at the others, "I'm perfectly alright with him being mad at me. Better me, than you all."

"What did you do to me?"

"We decided that it was much too dangerous to have you on the streets any longer," J explained, "There were too many attempts on your life. The Company was very close to finding you."

"The Company? What the hell?"

"Bennie, you need to listen," Beverly said, rubbing his shoulder.

"How long did you know about this, J? How long did you keep this from me!"

"Bennie, he was under my orders," Calvin jumped in, "It wasn't as long as you think..."

"How long!"

"A few weeks, two months tops," Calvin answered.

"Bennie, my dear, we had to make sure you weren't compromised before we brought you in. A lot's happened."

"If this secret location is leaked out, or is compromised, we won't have any chance in defeating the cyborg threat," Colonel Griffin added, stepping behind Beverly.

"Griffin? You made it too?"

"Yes, thanks to you, Ben. You saved us both."

"The water current separated us when the bubble burst on our way up," Calvin said. "We almost drowned ourselves."

"What about Jenny and Doctor Rhodes? Are they here too?"

"No Bennie, we're still searching," Cal answered, "But we think we have a lead on them."

"And if we can't get Doctor Rhodes back in the next few days, it won't matter anyway," Griffin said, "We need him to help us integrate the new chips into our hosts."

"Hosts?"

"Yes, us."

"Bennie, we're all going to be chipped, it's the only way."

"Will someone tell me what's going on? Please tell me why I can't move!"

"Bennie," Cal said, taking a chair and sitting next to the bed, "I had been working on a way to program your chip."

"So my chip is gone and that's why I'm paralyzed? You removed it? You knew I'd be paralyzed!"

"Bennie, that's not fair. You have to understand that this threat is grave. You saw it for your own eyes...if that complex is completed and that cyborg clone army is launched, there will be no hope for mankind...I'm working on a new batch of chips that we can use to build our own team, and I'll make you whole as soon as I can...I promise, but we had to ensure that your chip was put back into the hands of the enemy."

"You gave it back to them? That's your plan? To give them what they need?"

"We still have the box. They'll need that," Griffin said.

"What about my chip?"

"I've been trying to tell you, son," Calvin said, rolling his eyes, "Just listen."

"It's a good plan," Griffin endorsed.

"If he's agreeing with you, then it must be, so please tell me, I'm dying over up in here already."

"I had to first come up with a successful extraction program, you know, to have the chip come out on its own...I figured, it grows in, why not reverse the programming. But before that, I wrote another virus."

"Package number 9?" J asked.

"Yep, that was the instruction code."

"So instead of getting AMP'd..."

"Oh, you were AMP'd alright, and I must say those plasma engine schematics you had stored in the chip were astonishing...but across the AMP code I piggy backed a program that loaded into the chip, before the extraction sequence ran."

"A virus."

"Yep, it worked on the alien complex the last time, it should work this time."

"How did this all happen? I thought it was destroyed on your mission, Uncle?"

Calvin turned to Beverly and smiled, "See, he forgives me already, I'm Uncle again."

"Don't push it," Ben scowled.

"We think there's another sphere out there. They must have made contact when this here box was installed."

"What if they adapted?"

"I did change the code to make that harder...it is a risk..."

"...a risk we have to take," Griffin added.

"Bennie, I hope you forgive me for this."

"Just get me my legs back."

"Bennie, as soon as they give any power to your chip, the virus will do a feedback loop back to their main computers."

"So, you've all been here since we took our underwater passage?"

"Yes, I never had the chance to tell you the location. I've been working on building a great hideaway. Some place right under someone's nose...on your next AMP session, we were going to have you communicate the location to Jenny and Doctor Rhodes, but we were separated...we never made that connection."

"So, where are we, anyway?"

"Fort Casey."

"The old military installation?"

"Yep...the military condemned these buildings twenty years ago and closed the park."

"Except for you of course."

"Well, yeah. I've built this room several years ago. Reinforced the walls and brought in power. We're our own little happy family down here...we're in a building that was called the switchboard. Inside, we're all secured a level below the main room, so any aerial observation wouldn't even pick up any heat signatures."

"You can AMP us from here?"

"Yep, through the alien box...I've managed to interface with it."

"What about this Trudy, J?" Bennie asked, "Seems like a little too good to be true that she's right there, available and chipped."

"Bennie, may man...I had no idea that Trudy was jacked. No clue at all."

"Cal? Griffin? You have anything to do with her?"

"No, never heard of her," Calvin shrugged.

"Not me, I've lost most of my outside contacts. I rather like being presumed dead," Griffin nodded.

"You mean it takes the heat off of ya," J smirked.

The colonel coughed and then cleared his throat, "Yeah, something like that."

An alarm began to ring, echoing in the room adjacent to where Bennie was lying, "What's that? What's happening?" Bennie panicked.

Calvin jumped up and ran to his control room and silenced the alarm, "It's okay, all good...my scanning program has verified the chip ID for Jen," Calvin yelled from the other room.

"Oh is that all?" Bennie said, with relief, "I thought we had been made."

"No...no, see, that's a completely different sounding alarm," Calvin said, coming partway back into Bennies' room, "That one sounds more like, aheeeeow, aheeeeow, aheeeeow," Calvin howled.

"Very funny, Unc," Bennie chuckled.

"See, I can still make you laugh, but no, really, that is the sound it makes," Calvin said, crossing his heart.

Cal returned to his console and typed a few commands, he held his hand high in the air and made a quick bomb drop whistle as he depressed the transmit key.

J's data pad bleeped, nearly as soon as he hit the send button, "I just sent you Jen's coordinates. Any chance you have some of your contacts that can run her down? Get an eye on her?"

J examined the coordinates and then stroked his chin, "You know how hard it is gettin' in and out of the city right now or I'd go myself, but I just don't have anyone that I really can trust."

"How about any you sorta trust?"

"Well, I do know of one associate...can't trust him as far as I can throw him, and that ain't' too far, neither."

"Well since there's no transceiver on her hybrid chip, we can't even send her a message."

"Unless I'm AMP'd," Bennie said.

"I don't have a chip ready."

"No, listen to me now."

"I'm all ears, son," Calvin said, sitting back on his stool.

I was AMP'd a few hours ago, there might still be some residual effects. Just let me concentrate."

"The chips not in there..."

"But my brain remembers it being there and just maybe..."

"Maybe you can get a message to Jen?"

Bennie closed his eyes and concentrated, Jenny...Jenny... Ben thought within his AMP'd mind, it's me, Jenny. It's Bennie...

Then he shot his eyes open, displaying a faint green tint that softly glowed, "She's in town, she knows I'm trying to communicate."

"Tell her to stay put. We'll prepare to extract them from the city," Griffin instructed.

"What makes you think I trust you with anything," Bennie yelled, "There are still memories that I'm going to tap into, Griffin."

"Bennie!" Beverly said, "Tom has been very cooperative with all we have asked him to do, you can trust him."

"Humph," Bennie said, returning to concentrating on Jenny, "There's too much at stake, or I'd probe your mind right here and now," then he closed his eyes and delivered the message to Jenny.

"She understands and will be waiting for us at the Palomino Club."

"Great," Cal nodded, "Griffin, J, and I will start putting together a plan to get them out of the city."

Underground Lab Complex

September 27th, 2067 09:30

"We're ready here, Nadine," Captain Hawthorn reported over his data pad.

A few minutes later, an anxious Nadine made her way through the man trap and entered the lab where Hawthorn and McKenzie were waiting.

Nadine stepped up to the counter where the chip was resting on a clear platform, suspended and in line with two robotic arms, one of which connected at the tail, the other would connect to the fiber thread. Its surface had been cleaned and sterilized from Bennie's blood, the thin strand held in place by a pinched connector that held the fiber out straight.

"What were your initial findings, Doctor Childress?" Nadine asked.

The doctor leaned closer to the chip, inspecting the thing wearing magnifying glasses, "Our first checks of the chip found nothing unusual. However, we suspect that it has been corrupted by the humans."

"We won't know until you apply power. What's our contingency plan in case it is infected?"

"We have several sub-routines in place and ready to capture any viral problems."

"You're confident that your programming will succeed and there will be no risk?" Nadine asked, "We're still fighting off the first virus we were infected with, we don't need another."

"I understand, Ma'am," Childress nodded, "But with our existing virus infection, we never know when that will creep up and present an issue."

"Like what happened when we activated our operative to bring Bennie in three weeks ago?"

"Yes, the virus opposes our movement, so when it manifested within that chipped human, it took over and combated ours...but I assure you, Ma'am, we have isolated that strain and it should not present an issue here."

"Very well, then," Nadine said with confidence, "Fire it up."

"Yes, Ma'am."

Childress reached over and flipped a switch on the panel, triggering the arms to automatically twist and realign ensuring they were properly set into position. Then they slowly moved to each end, seating to the chip. The doctor removed his head piece magnifier and set them on the bench as the machine spun up to full power with a noticeable whine in the room.

"Applying power... now."

The chip quivered and shook as the thing lit up with a blue color. The sound of the machine spinning up suddenly changed and shot out an ear piercing tone, then as if an engine was racing to red line, the chip seemed to ignite with color, changing to a full brilliant green.

Doctor Childress slammed the emergency power-off button, but it was too late, "It's another virus. Different strain!" he shouted over the noise, "It's begun a power feedback into our mainframe!"

Nadine screamed with anger, pulled out a .45 caliber side arm from her hip and aimed it at the doctor, "What have you done, you incompetent fool!" then she squeezed the trigger and shot a round between the doctor's eyes, "Back to recycle you go!"

Nadine froze, cocked her head to one side and dropped her weapon on the ground. Captain Hawthorn came over to the chip and pushed the fallen doctor out of his way, "Sorry, Nadine! The new virus has already infected the complex!"

McKenzie began to rush to Hawthorn, but he looked up and gave him a quick stare, causing him to freeze and cock his head to one side."

"What has happened?" Nadine managed to ask.

"The program that was written to intercept any new virus was already infected," Hawthorn said, turning back to the chip, "However, the two programs couldn't reside together without both of them being destroyed. So the existing virus sub-routines split us into two separate independent programs...we oppose this action and will join with the humans and fight the takeover."

"This is insane, Captain! Our very existence was based on our current programming taking over this society; this was the only way for our kind to continue on," Nadine protested.

Hawthorn never noticed the man trap being activated as he attempted to command the computer to release the chip from its connections.

"Nadine looked over and saw Captain Preston nearly through and continued to distract Hawthorn, "How many of you are here within the complex?"

"It's just me," he answered, still not paying any attention.

"Why you? Why not me, or the General?"

"It was a random act, the sub-routine chose me as its host. My chip has been reprogrammed to complete this task," Hawthorn said as the arms of the machine detached from the chip.

Preston came through the man trap, fully armed, his gun loaded and pointed at Hawthorn. The captain turned to see him firing his gun, killing the corrupted cyborg clone instantly.

Nadine and McKenzie were released from the hold he had on them, nearly falling to the floor.

"Good work, Major!" McKenzie praised.

"Yes, it was fortunate that you were not present or the chip would have been taken by the new splinter programming," Nadine nodded.

"Major," the McKenzie clone asked, "Can you purge this program from our mainframe?"

"No, sir. No more than we are able to self-terminate, we are not able to terminate an entire program."

"You just killed the Hawthorn clone, why not?"

"Because, the Hawthorn clone will be recycled, terminating an entire program is quite different. We are not wired to do that."

"Maybe we should fix that little problem?"

"We have a bigger problem, Ma'am," Major Preston said.

"What could be possibly worse than this happening?"

"The splinter program...like the virus, it's only going to take hosts on the outside. They will join up with the humans...if we are to be successful; we need to have a way to overcome this threat," Preston answered.

"Do you have something in mind?"

"Yes, of course. My programming is superior to my host."

"Out with it then, Major." Nadine urged.

"It is time we activate the Vanguard."

Nadine nodded in agreement, "I think you are right. We'll start on the local level and then state wide."

"Why not global?" McKenzie asked.

"Baby steps, General," Nadine answered, "We need to move slowly on this one, or we'll set off panic and never get our task completed," turning to the Major, "Do we have our top officials in place?"

"Yes, Ma'am, just like you ordered. We control the local and state governments. Our clones are already in place and ready to be activated."

"Wonderful...General, you should have advanced him to Colonel."

"If he makes this work and we can forge ahead with our human integration plans, yes, I'll get you another rank, Major."

"Thank you, sir...I'll make the necessary arrangements and we'll have a press conference ready for the five-o-clock news."

"Dismissed!" General McKenzie ordered, then turned to Nadine and smiled, "It would seem these Humans aren't so clever after all."

Chapter 19

Fort Casey Switchboard

September 27 11:45

"Give me your arm," Calvin instructed J.

J held out his arm, "Will I retain my current ID?"

"Once this hologram fades after a few hours, you will. Right now we need to change who we are so we can move through the city without them detecting us."

"You sure you don't want me to be AMP'd?"

"No, we better not risk the Company detecting your signature. Once we meet up with Jen, we'll be able to transfer a quick charge to her from this unit here," Calvin pointed to a small cylindrical stick on his table that was six inches in length with a plug on its end. "It's only to be used in an emergency and will only deliver enough charge for a few minutes."

"Fair enough."

Calvin ran a laser wand over J's ID location, reconfiguring it to one of the accounts he had hacked for this mission.

"There," Calvin said, setting the laser in its cradle, "You're now Tim Reynolds and I'm Mark Phillips," looking over at Bev and Griffin, "There are three more loaded in the program if you need them. Don't use them unless you haven't heard back from us and you need to get out of here and meld into society."

"How long these new ID's good for?" Griffin asked.

"Seven, maybe eight hours before the scan capability are gone."

"That's when yours will return to active status, so just know that it's a one way ticket."

"You guys will be okay...getting in the city will be a breeze," Griffin said.

"It's the getting out part that's going to be tricky," J noted.

"They won't be looking for us at the Palomino Club on 1st Avenue," J said, "That's Sly's territory and none of us have been there before."

"You said you don't trust Sly."

"I don't, but we have little choice, that's the location we have set up, and he's our connection to get a car that can access the expressway."

"Okay, well, we better get moving. We have at least a four hour commute."

"We leave the fort and travel by electric bike to the ferry dock. Scan our ID's to travel over to the mainland," Cal instructed.

"Then we take the rail into the city from Mukilteo," J finished, "What happens if after we scan on the ferry or rail, one of our counterparts scan somewhere else?"

"Then we'll have trouble, but these two are traveling outside the country. At least they won't be on to us right away."

"That's the theory."

"You two be careful now," Beverly cautioned.

"We'll hold the fort down..." Griffin said, "No pun intended."

"Ben should rest until we get back," Calvin nodded.

"The sedatives helped," Bev smiled, "Thank you. He's suffered enough."

"No problem, Bev," Calvin said, giving her a squeeze.

"Careful there," Griffin said, pushing on his shoulder.

"Don't worry Griffin, she's like my sister."

"Just don't get caught, now," Beverly said, wiping tears from her eyes.

"We'll be fine, Bev....J? Let's do this."

"Uncle?" Bennie managed to say in his groggy state.

"Ben?"

He opened his eyes long enough to look into Calvin's, "Don't forget to come back and get me back on my feet, huh?"

"We'll be back before you know it," Cal smiled.

"You better, or I'll have to kick your ass."

"Always the comedian, eh?"

"I do try..."

"That's enough, already," Beverly urged, pushing Cal and J toward the exit, "Get a move on now."

"Yes, Ma'am," Cal and J both said in unison. Then they climbed the ladder to the main switchboard room and sealed the rest below.

"It's darker than I remembered up here," J said.

"It's just as dark as it always is...come on, this way," Calvin said, feeling his way around the structure.

The thin hallway that formed a hexagon around the switchboard was barely wide enough for one man. J followed Calvin with his hand on the man's shoulder as if he were blind.

"Here," Calvin said, coming to the large metal door. He had installed reinforced locking bolts that would keep the door magnetically closed.

Opening the panel, he felt the keypad and punched in the code to unlock the door. After typing in the code, the door made a loud clank, echoing in the cement structure.

Calvin began pushing the rusted door open and struggled, "Come on, give me a hand here."

J leaned his shoulder against the metal door and heaved with all his strength, sliding and screeching the door wide enough to pass through. Then they pushed the door closed, causing the locking mechanism to clank once more with an echo.

They waited for a moment before exiting the thirty foot tunnel that led out to the outside.

"We're all clear, my bike is over here."

Calvin proceeded down the trail several feet. Then he uncovered the bike that was lying in a pit hidden by branches.

The two brought the bike out and covered over the hole. Cal sat in front and started the bike as J climbed on the rear, "At least you're not handcuffed this time."

"Yeah, funny guy you are...no, I don't plan on doing that anytime soon," Cal smiled. Then he gunned the bike's electric motor, taking off toward the ferry docks.

Underground Lab Complex

September 27th, 2067 14:00

"Hurry it up for god sakes," Nadine demanded, "I mean come on, Doctor, how long does it take? We have three hours before the press conference."

Childress finished packing his briefcase, closed and took it with one hand, "Okay, okay, I'm ready."

"Major Preston has our chopper ready top side," Nadine smiled, "Let's not keep the Governor waiting now."

Nadine and Dr. Childress made their way to the elevator. She scanned her eye and the two entered the elevator. The computer cleared them and began the quick accent to the top.

The doors opened and the men guarding the doors blocked their way.

"Get on with it already," Nadine protested.

One of the guards was holding a hand held retina scanner and checked each of them, "They're clear," he reported, and then stepped aside.

"Have a prosperous trip, Ma'am."

"Oh, we will," she smirked. "Be sure to watch the newscast tonight."

"Thank you, Ma'am, we will."

They made their way to the chopper pad, where Major Preston offered out his hand to Nadine and helped her step up into the bird. Dr. Childress jumped up and strapped in with the rest.

Preston rolled the door closed and handed them headsets, "Pilot, you're clear to take off. Take us to the top of the city building in downtown Seattle."

The pilot nodded and took off, turning the chopper 180 degrees, they sped south to Seattle.

"So you're saying the President has already given us the go ahead?" Nadine asked, "I didn't think he was one of us yet."

"He's not, but he liked our proposal," Preston answered, "However, the Governor is one of us now, and can't wait to meet you."

"You do realize that once we activate the Vanguard, the virus will begin to manifest itself?"

"We're prepared for all contingencies."

"You have the suppressor ready, Doctor?"

"Yes, but we can't prevent them from taking hosts."

"Just those around us, right?"

"Yes, the suppressor will prevent the splinter program from taking any hosts in a ninety meter radius."

"Three-hundred feet doesn't give us much room."

"It'll be enough," Childress answered, "Enough to know that those on the platform and the officers being activated will not be compromised."

"Very good work, Doctor," Nadine smiled, "I see this clone is more efficient than the last."

"Yes, my programming is operating beyond my last clone's specifications."

1st Ave Palomino Club

September 27th 2067 16:40

Jenny and Dr. Rhodes sat in the rear of the club at a high backed booth. They were in position to see anyone coming into or leaving the Palomino.

Sly, with his skinny purple suit, nearly glowed in the dim florescent lighting of the club. He sported a black fedora, laced with a white satin sweatband. He looked rich with gold cufflinks that fastened his white long sleeved shirt. The man's albino complexion and blue eyes were only dominated by the center tattoo on his forehead that depicted The Ancient Egyptian 'Eye of Ra'.

His fingers were littered with rings on every finger. He sat at the table with his hands folded in front of his neat martini, complete with two green olives that were skewered by a cheap looking sword shaped toothpick.

At the farthest side of the booth sat a shy looking Japanese girl.

Jen leaned over to her, "Trudy, tell me again what it is they're doing tonight?"

"I will tell all of you what the Company's plans are as soon as your contacts arrive."

Just then, Jenny noticed light shining in from the door being opened. Two men stepped in and the door slowly closed behind their silhouettes.

"I think they just got here," Jenny nodded.

Doctor Rhodes turned to look at who was there when Jenny rested her hand on his wrist, "No, don't look. Don't bring any attention to our table by scanning around. They'll find us."

"The newscast is about to begin," Trudy said, looking up at the view screen at their end of the club.

Calvin and J made their way to the table and quietly joined the group, "Boy, am I glad to see you two," he said, smiling at Jen and Dr. Rhodes.

J slid in the seat next to Calvin and tipped his straw hat at Sly, but said nothing.

"So, who might you be?" Calvin asked the petite woman.

"My name is Trudy Sasaki...in Japanese it means 'help tree'. I am a cyborg, but not of the clone type..."

Calvin jumped in his seat at her words, but Jenny comforted him, "No, it's okay. She's on our side."

"I guess we have a lot to catch up on," Calvin said, relaxing back in his seat.

"There's not much time before the announcement," Trudy began, "You are Calvin Jones...you are the one who sent the programs. I am honored," she bowed toward him, "Your virus program nearly destroyed the main computer at the first alien complex."

"Nearly?"

"The destruction of the complex triggered an emergency signal to a second sphere, the virus was transmitted, but the guardian program intercepted and isolated it. Then your imbedded code was transmitted to the complex that had begun growing on earth. When your second virus from Bennie's chip was introduced into our programming, the system interceptors again mutated the code. We call ourselves the Keepers. We are separate from the rest, and through your programming, we oppose the hostile takeover of mankind. My chip was originally chosen by the first virus and manifested itself three weeks ago when Bennie took me to see the Space Needle."

"She grew cyborg parts and strength," Jen said, "I was also tracking Bennie. I was walking below the train when it derailed. I never saw Bennie, but I did see what Trudy did to their operative."

"Guess it's a good thing you're on our side," J smiled, "But what happened to your cyborg parts?"

"Those parts withdrew as soon as the threat was gone, but I can activate that programming anytime I need."

"How many of you are there," Calvin asked, "And how can we tell the Keepers from the others?"

"We are exact in every way. Unfortunately, there is no way to tell Keepers from the others. Our numbers are limited. However, our programming cannot be terminated by them, nor can we terminate theirs."

"Well, that's an unfortunate limitation," Calvin said.

J leaned over to Sly, "You got our ride secured alright?"

"Dude...never doubt my ability to come through, as long as the price is right."

"Yeah, well, I paid top dollar for your services...just make sure I won't need to come back for a refund."

"You can trust me, J," Sly said, lifting his voice at the end.

The club turned off the strobe lights, and stopped the music in order for the press conference to be heard by all inside.

Calvin cringed at the sight. Nadine, General McKenzie and the Governor were all seated behind the podium. They were set up outdoors in the courtyard with a large tent covering them from the elements the best it could.

There were ten rows of five officers each, standing below the raised platform in full view of the audience and cameras. Standing at full attention, dress blues and loaded for bear.

The news reporter was covering the pre-announcements, when the city's mayor approached the podium, "Looks like Mayor Richards is getting ready to introduce the Governor...going live to the press conference that is now starting."

"Ladies and gentlemen, members of the press and citizens of Washington State, I am pleased to present to you, the Governor of Washington State, Governor Jim McCormick."

The mayor stepped aside as he clapped, causing the rest of the audience that had been invited to join in.

The Governor stood, tucked down his tie and buttoned his suit jacket. The tall figure with short, almost buzz-cut hair, stepped up to the podium. He shook the mayor's hand, and then leaned over and whispered something in his ear. Grabbing his upper arm with his free hand, he nodded and smiled.

The mayor sat where the Governor had been, next to Nadine. She took his hand and shook it slightly and smiled with anticipation.

The General sat stone-faced, clapping with the rest, and then crossed his arms. He studied the crowed from left and right, looking for any signs of problems.

McCormick stood, resting one hand on the podium and waving with his other, and then he would turn, switching arms and smiling at the other side of the room.

The reporter broke in with a quiet voice, "Looks like the Governor is going to let the crowd give him the respect they want...he's just waving and smiling...he's really going to let this moment sink in."

The vid screen split into two windows, with the station's anchor joining the on the spot reporter, "This really must be a very important announcement."

"You're right, Tom. Rumor has it, that the Governor is going to announce a new policy on crime due to the recent terrorist attacks on the city."

"Our sources here at the station say that McCormick may very well be using this as a stepping stone to announcing his candidacy for president in 2070, later this year."

"Thank you," the Governor said, holding his hands together, he shook them with gratitude, "Thank you..."

"Looks like the Governor is getting ready to deliver his message, Tom, we'll break in at the end of this, you're watching live..."

"Thank you, ladies and gentlemen."

The crowd continued to clap, and then rose to their feet, "It doesn't appear that the audience wants to stop. Everyone in the courtyard is giving him a standing ovation, and he's just holding his hands in the air."

"You're right, I think this will go on for at least a couple more minutes, and it's not at all surprising. He won the election last year by a landslide and his numbers in the polls have increased dramatically over the last few weeks."

"Okay, here we are now, the crowd is now simmering down..."

"Thank you, again...you are too kind," McCormick smiled, then he rested his hands on the podium and looked out directly to the camera, "Thank you all for coming today...as you know, our great city of Seattle has been the target of terrorists...the latest incident being the derailed monorail three weeks ago...we must not allow these actions to continue in this fine city."

Applause broke out once more and the Governor held his hands up to them, "No, wait...please...let me continue," the crowd quieted, "this city has been plagued for the past three years with an increase in missing persons reports...another fact that we have discovered to be connected is the decline of street, or homeless people within the city...they are very connected. The very people that are responsible for the train derailment are the same ones responsible for missing person's reports, and the same ones responsible for the abduction of our homeless citizens," he paused to let the last words sink in, "Let me make sure you completely understand what it is I just said...there is a terrorist group that opposes what it is we bring to the table. We do have a solution to the problem, but they have fought us, behind the scenes, to prevent us from developing this technology that will be put into place...technology that will bring to this city and other cities in the near future, a better police force. Technology that we bring to you here today, in part, thanks to General McKenzie and his aide Nadine from the Company. Without their hard work and their hours of dedication, we would not be here today presenting to you this solution of technology."

Applause broke out in the audience again, this time, not letting the Governor persuade them to stop for several seconds.

"Make no mistake..." holding his hand up again, "Thank you...thank you. Make no mistake," he repeated, and paused another few seconds to allow the courtyard to settle, "We will catch these terrorists and bring them to justice...they will NOT rule our city, nor will they rule any other city!" the Governor said, hitting his fist on the podium and clenching his teeth for the camera.

"These techno terrorists will pay for the harm they have brought to our city!" again pausing for the crowd to acknowledge his words.

This time the crowd went into a frenzy with applause, the Governor smiled and shook his head in satisfaction. Knowing how to work the crowd, he thought he had them captivated enough to reveal the last part of his message.

"Today, we come to you to help keep our city safe by revealing to you a new type of police officer...these fine men and women officers, that stand before you today, are the first in a series of law enforcement officers. They have dedicated their lives to serving in this capacity...they have been fitted with the latest bio-mechanical chip. These officers are running a constant AMP with a portable unit that only requires charging every seventy-two hours...what you are about to see, may shock you...but I am sincere in telling you that they pose you no harm...unless you break the law, that is," he chuckled, "And now, without further ado, I present to you the Vanguard!" he stretched out an arm at the officers.

Major Preston sat in a booth off to one corner and spoke into his wireless, "Activate the Vanguard."

"Authorization phrase?" the voice echoed in his ear.

"Authorization Preston-One-One-One-Operation Safe City."

"Authorization phrase confirmed, voice recognition confirmed...sending activation codes now."

The camera zoomed out to a wide angle shot in order to cover the officers in their transformation.

The audience gasped at the site of the green colored lights flowing all across their bodies, forming hard shell casing armor around their chest, arms, and legs. A helmet grew around from the back of the head, covering their eyes, ears and mouth. They had a dark colored polarized shield that covered their eyes, which enabled them a heads-up display, and scanners that would provide heat signatures and night vision to assist in criminal detection.

Each of the fifty officers took a stance with one leg forward and slightly bent. Their left arms grew a shield while their right grew three barrels that could fire rounds, like a Gatling style rail gun.

The team of soldiers let out a HUHA, in unison, showing their lead captain they were ready for action.

"Ladies and gentlemen, these fifty Vanguard will be assigned to protect your streets, and reduce crime. I have already held meetings with the President and he gives Seattle the green light to move forward as a test city. If our new Vanguard officers are successful, we will begin to see this same type of officer in all our major cities very soon."

At McCormick's surprise, the crowd again applauded his actions, seeming to hold no fear at all.

Nadine leaned over to McKenzie and whispered with a smile, "Now for the rest of the story."

The General chuckled under his breath, arms still folded across his chest.

"Finally," the Governor said, placing his hands on each side of the podium, "in light of our recent terrorist attacks, and with many meetings with the Mayor's office, and with the suport of The President of the United Territories, we are declaring martial law in the city of Seattle. This will be for the people and their safety. Effective immediately, every man, woman and child coming in or out of the city will be required to undergo a double scan for positive ID at one of our Vanguard checkpoints. This measure is necessary in order to re-establish law and order, and to help prevent any further terrorist attacks."

Calvin had turned white, while Jen and Rhodes continued to stare at the broadcast in disbelief.

"We need to get out of the city, and fast," J said, fidgeting in his seat."

Trudy reached over to J, "No, you must stay here with me and Sly. We need you as a contact to your operations."

"She's right," Calvin nodded, "J, you're seen downtown all the time. You can contact us from here."

J sighed, knowing they were right, "Alright, we need to get Dr. Rhodes, Jenny and you out of town and back up..."

Trudy interrupted, J, "You must not tell me the location. If I am taken by the Vanguard, they will be able to extract what I know, and you will be compromised."

"So how do you suppose we get out of town with these new security checkpoints?" Jen asked.

"I have an ID to pass, but you both do not. They'll instantly know who you are, unless..."

"...Unless we're AMP'd," Doctor Rhodes finished.

"Doc?"

"Yeah, I'm chipped now. One of my hybrids."

"He's got two more left."

"Wow, great news for Bennie."

"What's wrong with Bennie?"

"He's sort of paralyzed from the neck down."

"What?!" Jenny protested.

"Cal, you dog, you managed to figure out the reverse growth enzyme to pull them out."

"Yes, and quite successful. Jenny, we don't have time to discuss this, we need to move now."

"I know where there's an AMP station," Sly smiled.

"No need," Cal said, holding up a pen like rod, "I've got a portable charge unit here."

"Don't think we both can get a good AMP outta that, Jen, you do it," Rhodes offered.

"I can give you each half," Cal whispered, tucking the pen back inside his pocket, "We'll have minutes, just minutes, and only at the moment we know we'll need it."

"It might be enough to get us through," Jen said.

"Let's hope," Cal nodded. Sly slid out of the booth, followed by Jen and Dr. Rhodes.

"Okay, J," Cal said, "Keep in touch...your ID should return to normal in a couple of hours."

"I'll be fine, my man...never worry about ol' J here."

Trudy stood and tugged on J's collar, "We should leave too. Now that the Vanguard are activated, the Keepers shall also become active...J and Sly, you must act no differently."

"How will I find you again?"

"I will find you."
Chapter 20

City Building

September 27th 2067 18:10

"Governor, that was an outstanding speech," Nadine smiled, congratulating McCormick with a handshake.

Dr. Childress, General McKenzie, and Major Preston all nodded in agreement at the back office after the press conference.

"Well, I must say, the people love me."

"Let's just say you had a little help," Nadine said, clasping his hand harder with enthusiasm.

"Being AMP'd does have its advantages, doesn't it?"

"At least for a while."

"The important thing is," McKenzie added, "We have the support of the people. Now that they think the others are terrorists, we'll get help from the citizens."

"Don't forget, General," Nadine smiled, "Martial Law is now in effect."

"Every street out of the city has been cut-off," Major Preston said, "We have the Vanguard posted at all major entrances to the city. They will scan every ID coming in and leaving the city."

"Excellent," Nadine smiled.

"Traffic will be a mess, though," the doctor said.

"What do we care? We must find them...we must find them all!"

"Oh, we'll find them, Ma'am," Preston nodded, "We'll find them."

"I'm sure we will, Major. What about the rest of the Vanguard?"

"They have been dispatched to patrol the city, looking for any crime," McKenzie said.

"Governor?" Nadine asked, finally releasing his hand, "When will you announce your campaign?"

"My staff informs me that we should wait another four to six months before announcing my candidacy...they feel that I will have a sweeping victory and all our computer models agree with them."

"How many clones are on your staff?"

"My top aide, and two others."

"You sure that's all you need?"

"That will be plenty, Nadine," McCormick smiled.

"Very well, we should set up a central location for bringing in recruits."

"We've already identified several locations throughout the city that we can use," Preston said, "We're offering free chip implants in exchange for being able to activate them as Vanguard if they are needed."

"And you think people will submit to this freely?"

"We are being overwhelmed with requests already."

"How many locations are you opening and how many are you forecasting will join our little army?"

"We will have five locations in strategically placed AMP centers and our forecast models indicate that we'll have twenty thousand by the end of the year."

"Excellent," Nadine smiled, "I'll bump up chip production so we won't run out of supplies...nice work everyone. Now let's catch us some bad guys," she smirked.

Underground Parking Garage

September 27th 2067 18:30

Sly stood in front of an open air jeep with his hands in his pockets, "Here's your ride."

"Really, Sly?" J complained, "This is what you got us?"

"Them."

"Them, whatever...I think I want a refund, my man."

"No dice, this is all we have. 'Sides, you said you wanted something that could access the expressway."

"From the looks of this thing," Rhodes protested, "it doesn't look like this thing will even make it up the on ramp."

"Looks are deceiving, Doc. Get in, Calvin. Try it out."

Calvin climbed in the driver's seat and cranked the key that was already in the ignition. Black smoke poured out of exhaust as the jeep was turned to life.

"Looks like it needs rings," Calvin exclaimed, and how is it you got a combustible vehicle to have access to the expressways? The regulations are for electric motor driven only."

"You ever hear about hybrids?"

"As a matter of fact," Jen began.

"...and it's been sittin' a spell, so give it a chance to warm up."

"Come on, let's get a moving, being this is our only option," Calvin said gunning the engine a couple of times.

"You guys take it easy now," J instructed, "Contact me on a secure channel when you get back so I know you made it."

"Why, J? I think I see a slight tear at the corner of your eye," Jen said, then wrapped her arms around him, "Thank you, J...for all your help. You have been a great friend to my Bennie. Thanks for watching out for him."

"Now, damn it, don't get all mushy on me," J choked, "We'll get to see each other again real soon now, ya hear?"

Jenny released her iron grip from the man's girth and stepped back displaying her wet face from tears that had been pressed into his jacket.

Jenny shook Sly's hand and thanked him for the vehicle and his help, regardless of the shape it was in.

"See, J? At least someone appreciates me around here," turning a smile to Jenny, "You come see me anytime and my AMP machine is yours."

"Hey now?" J protested.

"Sorry, J. It's just business, you know."

"Stop cutting into my profits already."

"You two behave or I'll have to kick both of your asses down one end and back up this garage."

"Listen to the lady, here," Sly smiled, "You all get moving now, before Calvin's tat expires."

Calvin's eyes widened, "What's the time?"

"Goin' on six forty-five," J said, looking at his watch.

"It's been seven hours already, Sly's right, my tattoo will be no good anytime now."

"What about you two?" J asked, "How you going to get through?"

"Well, I have a little trick, right Doctor?"

"Yes indeed...Jen showed me how to invoke a small AMP charge, it's not much, but it's enough to trick the computers for each of us...putting our minds together, we'll make it past the checkpoints."

"Just remember there are two checkpoints before you're out of the city," Sly said, nodding his head at them.

Jen took the front seat with Cal, while Rhodes climbed in the back and sat in the jump seat that faced to the rear.

"What are these?" Rhodes smiled, lifting a canvas tarp.

"Weapons, you know...an insurance policy, just in case. They're rail guns, so the Vanguard might not detect them. If you scan through, you'll be fine."

Rhodes looked up at Sly, "You're alright, in spite of what J tells me."

Sly turned to J with his hands on his hips, "Now, what is it you've been tellin'?"

"You guys be well," Calvin said. He gunned the engine, slammed in into reverse and backed out of the parking stall.

J and Sly gave them a farewell wave as Cal squealed his tires on the surface of the parking garage.

J and Sly strolled down the garage, finding another exit back to the streets of Seattle.

"Just so you know," Sly said, "Even though we've formed this partnership, we'll have to keep all appearance that we're still rivals."

"I never said we were partners. You just tryin' to get some of my market share?"

"J...moi?" Sly said, holding his hand up to himself.

"Yes, you...I know you all too well."

"You do me an injustice," Sly smiled.

"So why the tattoo, anyway?"

"'Cause it's awesome."

"The Eye of Ra' is awesome."

"Yeah, pretty much...and it keeps people in check."

"In check? Hmm, I'd say it makes you look damn right freakish, but that jus' me talkin'," J said, their voices fading away as they strolled from where the jeep had been parked.

Calvin flew out of the parking garage, the jeep catching air and then slammed back to the pavement. He cranked the wheel right and slammed on the gas heading toward the first of the check points.

"Jen," he shouted over the wind that blew over their heads, "There should be a key panel that lowers down below that GPS screen."

Jen fiddled with the dashboard and found the control pad, "Got it!"

"Great! Now, find out how far we are from the first checkpoint."

"James Street! One mile ahead!"

"Okay, punch in the access code for the expressway."

Jen punched in the access code that Sly had written on a ripped piece of paper, "Access granted, it says."

"Great, once we're at the on ramp, you can bet we'll have to stop and scan our wrists, you two get ready now."

Jenny unbuckled and turned to face Rhodes, "Doctor, take my hands."

They joined hands and closed their eyes to focus on bringing up the small AMP energy they discovered these hybrid chips could do.

"Come on, hurry it up. We've just entered the expressway. I see the checkpoint: five vehicles before us, one Vanguard is doing the scanning with two standing by on the side."

Jenny and Rhodes opened their eyes, revealing a cool green glow about them. Then Jen turned and buckled back into her seat.

Cal looked over and noticed her eyes, "You guys will never make it through showing those eyes of yours."

Jenny reached inside her purse that she wore around her neck and pulled out two pair of dark glasses, "Here Rhodes, put these on," she smiled at Calvin, "We've lived in the city for several months now, we're prepared."

Calvin pulled up to the Vanguard and they all held out their arms to be scanned.

"Thank you for your cooperation, citizen," the Vanguard said after scanning Jen's arm first.

Then he proceeded to scan Doctor Rhodes and, that too came back as good, he robotically repeated his thank you and then scanned Calvin's wrist.

The scanner blinked a few times, the Vanguard looked over at Calvin and back down to the read out, "Thank you for your cooperation, citizen," he waved them on, "You are clear to proceed to the next checkpoint."

Calvin wasted no time in gunning the engine and sped up toward the next stop, "Jen? How far to the next check?"

"Five miles down the expressway, there's the final checkpoint."

"They're stopping traffic right in the middle of the damn freeway?" Rhodes asked.

"It sure looks like it."

"We made it through one, what's our time now?"

"19:05!" Doctor Rhodes yelled.

"How's your little charge doing? You gonna make it okay?"

"Yeah, we'll be to the checkpoint in a minute," Jen confidently said.

"Okay, we're running out of time. I'm way past my seven hours for the hologram," Cal again yelled over the noise of the open air ride. He down-shifted the jeep and slowed for the line in front of him.

Once again, they held their arms to be scanned. Jenny passed, then Rhodes. Calvin had sweat beading up on his forehead.

The Vanguard took notice, "Citizen, you seem distressed and your heart rate is elevated. Are you hiding anything in the jeep?"

"No sir. Here scan me."

"Citizen, what is your name?"

"Mark Phillips."

The Vanguard soldier scanned his wrist. The scanner flashed yellow as it searched its database, but instead of the scanner indicator changing to green, it flashed red and set off an alarm.

"Citizen, pull over to the shoulder and step out of the vehicle."

"Is there a problem, officer?"

"Yes, a scan of Mark Phillips was just recorded exiting the airport terminal, five minutes ago. We think someone has hacked your ID. We will run a retina scan to clear you to proceed to your destination."

Calvin nodded and slowly pulled the jeep forward, but instead of steering to the shoulder, he gunned it and sped off down the expressway.

The two Vanguard standing on each side, took a stance as if they were mounting a motorcycle. Then parts of their armor extended down and formed into aerodynamic shaped cycles that became part of them. The two Vanguard sped off down the highway after their suspects.

"We've got Company," Rhodes shouted. He flipped the tarp off the weapons, sending it sailing into one of the bikes.

The tarpped Vanguard, unable to see, slammed into the Jersey barrier and went head first into the oncoming lanes where he was killed by a semi-truck.

The truck swerved, tipping over to its side and slid down the freeway, shooting sparks along the way.

"This is Unit thirty-seven, in pursuit of three suspects on North I-5...now crossing the ship canal bridge...officer down...send additional units," the Vanguard officer reported.

As the officer was reporting to his commander, another bike sped up to him on his left side.

Rhodes grabbed one of the rail guns and began sending rounds at the officers chasing them.

"They're just bouncing off!"

"Keep shooting, Doctor!" Jen shouted, "keep them distracted!"

She turned in her seat and closed her eyes, but before she could find any AMP'd strength, the new bike that joined in the pursuit looked over at his partner, and then jumped off her bike at the other rider, taking him down to the pavement.

Rhodes shouted with glee, "It's Trudy! She's taking this one down."

The two cyborgs hit the ground, sliding along the freeway on top of the bike. She held her hands on the other's head and pressed him down to the sliding pavement, pulling him under the bike, killing the clone instantly.

Trudy rolled on the ground, growing armor to protect her body as she slid to a stop. Then she got up and waved them on as they sped down the road.

Five more Vanguard zipped passed Trudy on the side of the freeway, toward the jeep.

Trudy panicked and tried to grow another cycle, but had to wait several seconds to repair the damage to her circuits from the fall.

"We got more in coming!" Rhodes shouted, "Can't this thing go any faster than this?"

"I'm giving it all she's got, just isn't anything more!"

Calvin handed Jenny the pen in his pocket, "Here, divide this up between you two, and get them off us before they call in more!"

Jenny took the pen and gave herself a smaller dose since she could rely on her emotions to do the rest, "I got this!" she turned toward the approaching bikes and raised her arms to them.

The first three Vanguard began shooting rounds from their arm mounted weapons. They steered between shots as they each took turns trying to disable the jeep.

Jenny was able to deflect the approaching rounds from her slight AMP charge, but knew that this would drain her pretty fast.

She closed her eyes and concentrated for a moment, and then a wave of energy shot down her arms, exiting her fingers. The powerful wave hit the first Vanguard, sending them hurling twenty feet into the air and then slammed into the pavement.

The two remaining Vanguard opened fire on the jeep and began closing the gap.

Rhodes yelled as he continued with his barrage of rail gun projectiles, "AMP me Jenny! All of it!" then he handed her his silver case, "Take this and make sure Bennie gets one of these!"

Jenny instinctively jabbed the rod to Rhodes's plug, sending the rest of the gamma waves into his chip and took the case from his grip.

His eyes fired a brilliant green glow as he gritted his teeth. He tossed his weapon after it had emptied, then stood and took a stance at the rear of the jeep.

"Rhodes! What're you doing?" Jen shouted.

Rhodes wasted no time in explaining, he leaped off the end of the jeep into the air, spreading his arms wide, he made contact with the Vanguard, taking them off their bikes and crashing onto the road below.

The jeep sped away as Jenny screamed, "RHODES! NOOOO!"

Dr. Rhodes and the two Vanguard faded away in size to Jenny as the jeep continued speeding away.

Sorry, Jen. You have to understand, I did this to save us all, was all that Jenny heard in her mind from the doctor.

Tears welled up and ran down her face as she wept over on Calvin's shoulder. He put one arm around her to comfort Jenny as he drove away from the city, "It's going to be okay, Jen. He sacrificed himself for us...I think a part of him would never rest knowing that he was the cause of all this."

"It's not fair..."

"I know he thinks that this was the only way he could make atonement for his sins."

"I know, but...but it's just not fair!"

"Come on, Jenny. We're not out of the woods yet. We need to ditch this and get a new set of wheels. Bennie needs you, so just hold it together for a little longer, okay?"

"I'm trying, Calvin," Jen sobbed, "I'm trying."

Calvin navigated off the expressway to a dark parking lot and exited the jeep. Then they got out and walked over to a motorcycle that was parked, all by itself.

"Hey, lookie here," Calvin smiled. "You got any of that AMP juice left in ya?"

"Why yes, Cal. I do."

"Would you do the honors and give her a jump?"

She rested her hands on the bike and shot another smaller wave of energy into the cycle, causing it to spark to life.

"Come on, my dear."

"After you, Uncle."

"Uncle?"

"Well, as soon as I marry Bennie," Jen said, drying her tears.

"Marry?"

"Yes, he did propose to me...I just never answered."

"And your answer is going to be?"

"A resounding yes!"

"He's going to be one lucky dude."

"Na, I'm the lucky one here."

She held on to his waist as they sped off into the night, headed back to Fort Casey, undetected by any additional Vanguard.

Epilogue

North City Parking

September 27th 2067 19:35

Nadine paced behind the abandoned jeep talking with a Vanguard. Major Preston accompanied her at the scene. Both carried a worried look about them.

"You're saying that this was Calvin Jones and Jenny Rubinstein? They're actually still alive!?" Nadine spat.

"Yes, Ma'am, the Vanguard answered."

"You let them get away? What happened!"

"They cleared the first checkpoint. There was also a Doctor Rhodes that scanned. However, they tricked the computer into displaying another ID. Calvin's scanned as Mark Petersen."

"Both check points?"

"Yes. However, between the two checkpoints, the real Mark Petersen scanned out of the airport terminal. We thought someone had taken Mr. Petersen's ID coming into the country. Further checking revealed that Calvin's ID signature was masked by a stolen ID."

"I've seen the video feeds from the fallen Vanguard. The Keepers have already begun to fight against us," Nadine said, shaking her head."

"Yes, Ma'am," Preston answered, "We're getting reports all over the city that Keeper agents were popping up. Once the fugitives got away, they stopped."

"This is not good news," Nadine scowled, "Not good at all..." she paused for a moment, "do whatever you can to beef up the Vanguard. Find a way to identify Vanguard from Keeper, that's the only way we're going to win this."

"Yes, Ma'am," Preston answered.

"Vanguard, they couldn't have gone very far. Is there any clue as to where they were headed?"

"We are searching a wide perimeter, but we have not seen anything, nor have we recovered any of the fugitives."

"What about the Doctor?"

"We did not recover any bodies."

"Too bad, he appeared to have one of his Hybrid chips."

A black limo entered the dark parking lot, "Oh great," Nadine said, under her breath, "It's my boss...guess I have some explaining to do. Keep searching for the fugitives and let me know as soon as you find anything," then she walked across the lot to the limo.

The rear window lowered slightly as she approached, "Evening, Sir."

"It doesn't seem to be too pleasant of an evening from my angle," the man said.

"I never said it was good."

"Give me the run down."

"I'll be submitting my report this evening...by the way, how's the knee?"

"It's as good as new, thanks to my new clone body."

"That's good to hear, Kurtis."

"Madam, must I remind you not to call me that? I'm your employer! You need to call me Mr. Daniels...or do I need to send you to recycling?"

"Very well, Mr. Daniels."

"I'll expect your full report on my data pad before the morning," then he rolled up the window and had the driver leave.

"Shmuck," she said under her breath, "too bad you weren't killed on 253 Mathilde."

"What was that, Ma'am?" Preston asked, walking up to Nadine.

"Nothing, Major. Just have your team go over this jeep with a fine toothed comb."

"Yes, Ma'am. We're on it...by the way, what did our CEO have to say?"

"Not too much, just wanted to see how we were progressing. We need to come up with something to show him."

"Maybe something like this?" Preston said, holding up a short six inch rod.

"What's that?

"We found it on the floor of the jeep, it looks to be a small portable AMP unit."

"Excellent, Major. I think you just saved me from being recycled."

"Just doing my job, Ma'am."

"Give that to me. I'll take it back to the lab for analysis."

Preston handed over the device with a smile, "I'm going to stay and oversee the search."

"Thank you, Major. You did real good, but not good enough for another promotion," then she turned and walked over to the car she came in, and left.

Fort Casey Switchboard

September 28 2067 08:00

"He's still sedated," Bev said to Calvin, standing over Bennie's cot, "Doctor Rhodes showed me how much to give to wake him."

"Go ahead, Bev. Dr. Rhodes gave us the two last remaining Hybrid chips and the injector. I'll inject him with one as soon as he's awake. I think he'll want to see someone first."

Beverly administered the drugs Doctor Rhodes had prepared with a list of written instructions. Ben's eyes fluttered and then blinked open.

He had trouble seeing at first, but then as the person leaning over him came closer, she came into focus, "Jen?"

"Hi Bennie...yes, I'm right here," she said with a soft voice.

Bennie gasped at the sight of his true love. Tears welled under his eyes and she held her smooth hand up to catch it on her finger. She lifted the tear up to her lips and kissed it, which made him smile even wider.

"Jenny, I've tried to reach you for nearly two years...I'm so sorry...it's all my fault that this has all happened."

"Shhh, shhh, shhh," Jenny said, pressing her finger on his lips, "You don't need to worry about that anymore now that I'm here. We're together at long last."

"Doctor Rhodes? Uncle Cal?"

"Uncle Calvin is here..."

"Where's the doctor? I need him to fix me up...I'm kind of..."

"I know," Jen interrupted, "Dr. Rhodes sacrificed himself. He stopped them from taking us. He also gave me this," she said, holding up a small silver case, "You get one of these little babies...it's one of his special Hybrid chips...You'll be just like me now..."

Calvin stepped closer to view, now that Bennie was fully awake, "Just enough too, cause I need one to have in order to replicate it."

"You want to make more of these things?"

"We have no choice, Ben. There's a lot we have to tell you. But in order for us to survive, we have to use this tech."

"At least we have help from the inside," Jen said."

"Help? What kind of help?"

"They're called the Keepers," Jen answered.

"They're a mutation of my virus programming, and they have joined our side. They oppose the alien programming to take us over."

"Keepers of our Freedom, huh, I like it," Ben smiled.

"We should call our new movement the Keepers of Freedom," Griffin added.

"...and I'll bet we'll be able to find a lot of folks that would join our ranks," Calvin nodded.

"So, umm, Unc?"

"Yeah, little buddy? What is it?"

"How about chipping me? You know, one for the road and all."

"Oh, I don't know," Jen smiled, "I kind of like you all subdued like this..."

"Oh, stop!"

Calvin opened the case and loaded the injector with one of Rhode's chips, "Na, don't worry now, we'll get ya all fixed up in a jiffy."

Griffin and Beverly lifted Bennie to expose the back of his neck. Cal rose the injector tip and placed it on the back of his neck, "This won't hurt a bit," he said, pulling the trigger.

"OUCH! Hey, you lied!"

"Yeah, well, that's what Rhodes told me."

Bennie shot his head forward, and stared straight ahead. His eyes began to turn the familiar green glow as blue lights traveled all across his face and traveled down his neck and arms. His arms and legs began to twitch, his muscles quivered. Then he moved them and turned, kicking his legs over the edge, they dropped to the floor with a thud.

"Guess, I'm not all whole just yet," he said in a euphoric state. "But oh man, does it ever feel good to move again."

Jen smiled and hugged him around his neck, "I'll bet it does."

"I was gonna have you shoot me to get it over with."

"Oh, don't be silly, Ben. I would've loved you no matter what."

Bennie lifted himself to a standing position. His legs wavered slightly, as Jen caught him.

"No...no, don't help me. I need to do this on my own."

"Sure Bennie," Jen said hesitantly.

He slid one foot out in front of him and put his full weight on it, then shuffled his other foot forward. Slowly, he took his first steps and then turned and smiled, "I'm good to go!"

Beverly cried and turned to Griffin, and the two hugged. Calvin placed his hands on his hips and smiled.

Fort Casey Lighthouse

September 28 2067 Sunset

Bennie sat on the tall green grass on the hill just outside the old Fort Casey Lighthouse, he sat with his legs folded, looking out over Puget Sound, taking in deep breaths of fresh air, and listening to the crashing waves over the cliffs below.

Jenny approached him from the switchboard, getting some fresh air of her own. She sat next to him on the hill and leaned over with one arm around him, "Just thought you might like to know that Cal has established contact with J on a secure channel."

"That's great news! What about the others?"

"J said there's no sign of Doctor Rhodes or Trudy."

"Too bad...we lost a good one, that Dr. Rhodes."

"I know...we'll make new allies."

"I'm sure we will."

"Whatcha thinkin' about?"

"Oh, just all the things that Uncle Calvin told me...thinking about my Dad and wondering what he's doing these days."

"I'm sorry you lost contact with your Dad."

"It's okay, Jen. We weren't that close."

"He did love you. You know that, don't you?"

"I know, but I don't love what he did. Sometimes I just wished I hadn't of lived through the accident."

Jenny slapped him on the arm, "Hey now, you would've wanted to die and not be with me?"

"No, it's not that at all, Jenny...and you know it...it's just sometimes, things don't come out right and I trip all over my own tongue."

She smiled at him and sat quiet for a few minutes, absorbing the breathtaking sunset. The bright red sun colored the clouds giving them an orange glow. The cool on-shore breeze was refreshing. The smell of salt water filled their senses as the waves continued to crash below them.

Bennie all at once stood and pulled on Jenny's arm, coaxing her to her feet, "Come on. I want to show you something."

He trotted over to the door on the old lighthouse and pulled off a loose board covering the entry.

Bennie leaned down and crawled through the opening, followed by Jenny, "Where you taking me, Bennie?"

"You'll see...I used to come here growing up and I just loved it."

He took the rusted spiral staircase to the top of the lighthouse, then turned and offered his hand to help Jenny ascend to the top with him.

The two stood looking at the disappearing sun as it lowered below the horizon.

"Oh, Bennie! The view is just beautiful."

Bennie smiled and placed his arm around her, "Yes, yes it is...just like you."

"Oh Bennie..."

He turned her to face him as the last of the sun shown between them, "Jenny Rubinstein? Will you marry me?"

Jenny cried tears of Joy and wrapped her arms around him and gave him a squeeze, "Oh yes, Bennie...YES!"

The two looked at each other, their eyes changed to a soft green glow and then they pressed their lips together as the sun faded, disappearing below the horizon.

# # #

SNEAK PEEK

If you enjoyed A M P Phase 1: The Gamma Project, I've included a special preview for the second book in the series.

A M P

(Amplified Mental Projection)

Phase 2: The Vanguard

Chapter 1

Fort Casey Switchboard

October 1, 2067 05:00

Jenny tossed and turned in her sleep. Images of Calvin, Jen, and Doctor Rhodes ran through her mind. Images of them taking off in their open-air jeep from the checkpoint, in a desperate attempt to flee the city.

The two Vanguards standing on each side of the expressway, took a stance as if they were mounting a motorcycle. The aerodynamic cycles formed beneath them as extensions of their cyborg-human hybrid bodies. The two Vanguard sped down the highway after their suspects.

"We've got Company," Rhodes shouted from the back of the jeep. Remembering the gift from Sly, he flipped a tarp off from a few rail guns lying in the back of the jeep. The tarp was sent sailing into the air, covering one of the Vanguard.

No longer able to see, the Vanguard slammed into the Jersey barrier. It flew head first into the oncoming lanes where it was killed by an oncoming truck.

The truck swerved from side to side, then tipped over, and slid down the freeway. Sparks shot out from behind it as it dug deep grooves in the pavement.

The surviving Vanguard was reporting to his commander, when another bike sped up on his left.

Rhodes fired one of the rail guns from the bed of the jeep, sending rounds at the cyborg-hybrid pursuers.

"They're just bouncing off!"

"Keep shooting, Doctor!" Jen shouted, "keep them distracted!"

She turned in her seat and closed her eyes, but before she could find any AMP'd strength, the rider of the new bike jumped onto the Vanguard, taking him down to the pavement.

Rhodes shouted with glee, "It's Trudy! She's taking this one down."

The two hit the ground, sliding along the freeway on top of the bike. She held her hands on the other's head, pressing it down to the sliding pavement beneath. The moving pavement ground away the head of the cyborg-human hybrid, killing it quickly.

Trudy rolled on the ground, growing her own armor to protect her body as she slid to a stop. Then she got up and waved them on as they sped down the road.

Five more Vanguard zipped passed Trudy on the side of the expressway, screaming after the escaping jeep.

Trudy panicked and tried to grow another cycle, but had to wait several seconds to repair the damage to her circuits from the fall.

"We've got more incoming!" Rhodes shouted, "Can't this thing go any faster?"

"I'm giving it all she's got. That's all there is, there ain't no more!"

Calvin handed Jenny the pen in his pocket, "Here, divide this up between you two, and get them off us before they call in more!"

Jenny took the pen and gave herself a smaller dose since she could rely on her emotions to do the rest, "I've got this!" she turned toward the approaching bikes and raised her arms to them.

The first three Vanguard began shooting rounds from their arm-mounted weapons. They steered between shots as they each took turns trying to disable the jeep.

Jenny was able to deflect the approaching rounds from her slight AMP charge, but knew that this would drain her pretty fast.

She closed her eyes and concentrated for a moment, and then a wave of energy shot down her arms, exiting her fingers. The powerful wave hit the three closest Vanguard, hurling them twenty feet into the air before slamming them hard into the pavement.

The two remaining Vanguard narrowed the gap on the jeep, firing as they closed in.

Rhodes yelled and continued his barrage of rail gun projectiles, "AMP me Jenny! All of it!" then he handed her his silver case. "Take this and make sure Bennie gets one of these!"

Jenny instinctively jabbed the rod to Rhodes's plug on the back of his neck, sending the rest of the gamma waves into his chip. Then she quickly grabbed the case from Rhodes.

His eyes fired a brilliant green glow as he gritted his teeth. He tossed his weapon after it had emptied, then stood and took a stance at the rear of the jeep.

"Rhodes! What're you doing?" Jen shouted.

Rhodes wasted no time in explaining. He leaped off the end of the jeep into the air, spreading his arms wide. He hit the two Vanguard, knocking them to the pavement.

The jeep sped away as Jenny screamed, "RHODES! NOOOO!"

The echoes of Jen's screams persisted as her nightmare cleared into reality. Her screams shattered the still night even as the images of Doctor Rhodes faded.

Bennie laid next to Jen on the tattered mattress on this first day of October 2067. It had been two days since Calvin Jones and Jenny Rubinstein escaped from Seattle. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, "Hey Jen," he groggily said, "Take it easy, now. What's wrong? You were having one of those dreams again?"

All Jen could do was nod her head and collapsed into the comfort of Ben's arms. The horror of Doctor Rhodes jumping off the back of the jeep continued to haunt her.

Bennie hugged her tight, and then reached over and kissed her head. He held his kiss for several seconds, letting his emotions build up. His eyes changed to a light green color as he brought up the small AMP effect, made possible by having one of the good doctor's hybrid chips. A golden glow enveloped them both. Jen smiled, relaxed, and melted in her lover's arms.

Then the golden glow faded and Bennie's eyes returned to their natural brown color, "It's going to be okay, Jen. Trust me."

"I don't know Bennie," Jen wept, "It's not fair that we lost Doctor Rhodes."

"Listen, listen," Bennie comforted, "J and Sly both report that the authorities never found a body."

"...I know, but..."

"...but nothing. Don't lose hope, Jen. I feel that he's out there, somewhere."

"Doctor Rhodes was a good man..."

"Doctor Rhodes was...is...a brilliant man. Good? Well, that's debatable."

"How can you say that?" Jenny asked, continuing to weep softly in his arms.

"He's really the one that's responsible for all this. He duplicated the chip."

"Yes, but I got to know him over the last couple of years. He was a good man."

"Well," Bennie started, a feeble attempt to keep his personal feelings from upsetting Jen, "I suppose the Jury's still out on that."

"Oh Bennie..."

"I'm sorry, Jen. I'm trying my best to have an open mind here."

"No, Bennie. I'm the one who should be sorry. I completely forgot all you've been through."

"At least we have each other, right?" Bennie smiled, showing his teeth.

"Yeah, we do," Jen answered, closing her eyes in his arms. "What time is it, anyway?"

"The halo-time says it's o-five-hundred," he rested his arm across Jenny's chest.

She sat up again, "I can't sleep anymore."

"Come on, just relax. You should try..."

Jen jumped to her feet, dusted off her clothes, and grabbed Bennie's arm. "Come on, let's find out what's going on out there."

Bennie reluctantly got out of bed, buttoned his shirt and then followed the energetic Jenny through their door.

Calvin Jones was sitting at his control console, holding a lukewarm cup of coffee. His eyes focused on watching the five monitor satellite feeds he had tapped into earlier, from the old Fort Casey underground retreat.

"Hey Cal," Jenny whispered, not wanting to awaken anyone else, "What's happening?"

Calvin pivoted around to face the young couple, "Good morning, good morning," he smiled, rubbing his tired eyes.

"Hey Unc," Bennie acknowledged, with a nod.

"You get any sleep, Calvin?" Jen asked.

"Na. Not much," Cal smiled, "Hey, want some coffee? It's mostly fresh," he pointed over at an old fashioned drip coffee maker.

The drip maker beeped three consecutive times, "Well, ok. It's really a couple of hours old."

"Sure, Unc. It's still hot," Bennie answered, then walked over to the coffee cart, "What some?"

"No thanks, Ben. You go ahead," Jen answered.

"Okay," Bennie took a cup from under the shelf and poured the last dribbles from the pot.

"It's still hot," looking over at Jen, "You sure? There's enough."

"I'll wait for a fresh pot."

"...and I'll take that as a hint," Bennie smiled.

"You're bright in the morning, aren't ya," she winked.

"Very funny," Bennie smiled back, and then proceeded to make a promised fresh pot.

"So, Cal. What is happening out there? Anything new?"

"Other than your typical friendly neighborhood alien takeover of Earth? No."

"Be serious, Unc," Bennie returned a glare. He turned back to the make-shift sink where he washed the burned-coffee stink out of the pot. Then filled it and poured it in the chamber. "Three scoops?"

"Yeah, make sure you heap them."

"Heaping scoops it is."

"Sorry, Ben. It's the only way I know how to deal with it. If I don't laugh, I'll cry."

"I know, Unc. This has been hard on everyone."

"When was the last communique from J?"

"Twenty-three hundred, last night...and there were no updates. Trudy and Doctor Rhodes are missing. Sly is back at the Palomino club, and they're keeping up all appearances of being rivals.

"Wait, wait, wait," Jen motioned to one of the monitors, "Turn that one up."

Calvin controlled the volume on the monitor, "Looks like it's an early morning press conference."

"Looks like Governor McCormick is going to make an announcement," Jen said.

"Now we go live to the Governor's mansion," the TV reporter announced, "Governor McCormick is stepping up to the microphones now, he's about to give a press release...we're live, at the Governor's mansion..."

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for coming. I wanted to come before you this morning to inform you we have found the remains of Doctor Charles Rhodes, former United Territories of Land and Space's top secret neural surgeon. Two and half years ago, Doctor Rhodes stole classified property from the naval base in Oak Harbor. Indications are that he has been working with a terrorist movement. Today, his body will undergo an autopsy to determine cause of death. Those results will be provided as soon as the medical examiner's office releases the report."

Ben and Jenny's eyes glowed green with anger. Bennie spoke for the both of them, "He's not dead! He's lying!"

"Shhh, shhh, shhh," Calvin motioned, "Listen..."

"Also, the head of this terrorist organization known as The Keepers of Freedom, Trudy Sasaki, remains at large."

"I assure you, we will continue with martial law within the city of Seattle, until we have eliminated this threat. We have deployed the new Vanguard police squad within the city.

The response from the public has been overwhelming. The desire to become a member of the Vanguard is widespread, and our current centers are processing volunteers as efficiently as they can. We are opening new Vanguard recruitment centers at strategically selected locations. Three additional processing centers will be opened where the demand is exceeding our current center's capacity."

"I'll bet they're getting flooded with volunteers," Bennie scoffed.

"In addition, we're releasing fifty additional Vanguard. We have tightened the security measures at every checkpoint. As more Vanguard are processed and trained, they will be added to the ranks.

Once we have the city of Seattle secured, we will expand the program to Seattle's neighbors. The Vanguard integration into our security measures will soon be in effect Statewide. We must prepare for the onslaught of these terrorists who dare to call themselves a freedom movement! They shall be found and brought to justice!"

Reporters began firing questions when the Governor paused, but he held up his hand, "I'll respond to some questions at the end...thank you...please, wait...I have one more announcement."

The room quieted and the reporters returned to their seats, "Thank you," McCormick held on to the sides of the podium, and leaned into the camera, "In light of our current situation, I have decided that our country deserves, our country needs, our country must have more effective leadership. We need someone who can usher this great United Territories into a new era. Someone with proven leadership skills. I have been seeking advice on this matter. All of my advisors are in complete agreement with our solutions to the current problems. This has led me to conclude that what is needed is for a great leader to rise above all that is threatening our world today. What is needed is a great leader who can face these threats head on. I am here to tell you that I am that great leader we need, that I am the only one able to meet our challenges head on and overcome them! As of this moment, right now, I am officially announcing my candidacy for President of the United Territories of Land and Space."

The clamor increased as frustrated reporters begged McCormick to answer questions, but the Governor disappointed them by promptly leaving the room.

His aide stepped up to the podium. "The Governor has asked me to tell you that he is very sorry that he couldn't take your questions today as he had planned. He will be more than happy to hold another press conference to answer all your questions just as soon as this crisis allows. He asks for patience as he deals with our current challenges... Thank you again."

"Schmuck!" Bennie protested. "What are we going to do now?"

"Beefing up security," Jen said, "that means they're going to make it even harder to come and go."

"We should also prepare for a cold winter."

"Can't we just turn up the heat when it does get colder?" Ben asked.

"Well, we could," Cal answered, "But we have to keep our heat signature to a minimum. Even though we're underground, they could spot our added heat if we do use it much."

"I hope we have a lot of blankets," Jen nodded.

"I've got several in storage," Cal said, turning his head from the monitor, "and we have a ton of food supplies."

"How long can we hold out down here?" Jen asked.

"We've got enough provisions for everyone to last six months, maybe longer if we ration."

"Big fun," Jen said, rolling her eyes.

"Well, it may come to that. Our movements to and from this base will have to be kept at a minimum."

"Unless, Ben and I are AMP'd. We can fool any tracker and go out and get what we need."

"Well, that should work once I finish the accelerator I'm attempting to build. Until I can provide you with a few hours of charge, we can't risk it."

"I understand, Cal," Jen said, taking the freshly poured cup of coffee from Bennie. "Thank you, sweetie."

"Awww, isn't that cute?"

"Uncle, never you mind."

"Yeah, Unc," Jen added with a wink.

"So, when's the date?"

"Umm, we thought it would be best if we planned on it after this conflict is over," Bennie said, sipping his fresh cup of Joe.

"I wouldn't wait if I were you," Cal cautioned, "We don't know how long we're going to be in for it. Might as well do it sooner than later. None of us know what's going to happen next."

"Bennie, Calvin's right."

"Jen, I'm just happy to be with you again, that's all. It doesn't matter to me. We can, you know, do it now if you really want."

Jenny placed her cup on the bench and threw her arms around Bennie's neck and kissed him, "Thank you, Bennie. My knight in shining armor."

Calvin's secure radio channel buzzed to life, "Calvin, Calvin...this is J...do you read me?"

Calvin switched on the overhead speakers, "Loud and clear, my ol' friend."

"Good, who's all there with you?"

"Jenny and Benjamin, myself. Beverly and Colonel Griffin are still sleeping in their quarters."

"Okay, that's fine. I wanted to give you an update on our situation."

"Okay, J. Go ahead."

"Just finished listening to the Governors' announcement."

"Disturbing, huh."

"Disturbing to say the least."

"Did they actually find Doctor Rhodes?"

"As far as we know, this is a ruse to calm the people in the city. There's no evidence that they found the doctor's remains."

"Are you in contact with Trudy?"

"No, we haven't seen either of them since the escape...no signs of them anywhere."

"I consider that to be good news, which means there's hope that they're still alive."

"Right," J acknowledged, "I'm heading up the resistance movement. I've secured a base of operations in the Seattle Underground."

"Good, sounds like you've got a few followers."

"Yes, there are several. Many don't know me, and I don't know them."

"It's best that you keep it that way."

"Yes. We all feel the same way. I know they are planning some counter strikes at some of the recruitment centers...they don't tell me when, or which ones. Just stay away from them all."

"That's something you don't have to tell us twice about. We're more than happy to see some of the people take up arms against this illegal martial law."

"As soon as we hear anything from Trudy or Doctor Rhodes, I'll get word to you."

"We'll need to keep our communications limited. They'll have a harder time to isolate our frequency if it's not used much."

"I agree," J said. "I'll be in touch. Give me a couple of days to get my digs set up in the underground."

"Alright, J. Stay safe...Calvin out."

Calvin turned the radio channel down, and turned to the Ben and Jenny, "At least we have some hope that Rhodes and Trudy may still be alive."

"I didn't need to be AMP'd to read that Governor McCormick is lying about Rhodes," Ben said.

"But it's nice to know your truth detector works."

"Yeah," Ben nodded, "Say, when Griffin wakes up, I think it's time that I probe his mind. Find out what he knows about all of this."

"I couldn't agree more, Bennie," Calvin said, "I couldn't agree more."

Beverly opened the door to their quarters, and stepped into the dim light of Calvin's central control room. Griffin came out with Bev, rubbing his eyes.

"Speak of the devil," Ben said, looking over to Griffin.

"Huh, what?" a groggy Griffin asked, half yawning.

Bennie stared at Griffin, and set his coffee on the bench. He walked over to the Colonel and rested his hand on the man's shoulder, "I can't wait to read your mind."

"Whattya talking about?"

"Oh, I think you do, Griffin," Bennie replied, not taking his eyes off the man. He tried to read his mind, but nothing happened.

"What are you doing?" Beverly asked. "Why all the fuss over Tom's memories. He's done nothing but help us."

"He only helped once Cal here held an AK-47 at his head. If it wasn't for that, he would've let us rot in that hellish military complex."

"Bennie, it wasn't that way," Griffin answered, attempting to convince them he did nothing wrong.

"Be careful, Colonel," Bennie said, waving a finger in his face, "I may not have enough AMP power to read you right now, but I can still tell if you are untruthful...whattya all say we do a little truth or consequences game, shall we?"

"Yes," Jenny said, coming to Bennies side, "I think it's about time we do get some answers about what he knew about all of this."

"I don't know what you're talking about..."

"He's lying," Bennie and Jen said in unison.

"Now," Bennie said, rubbing Griffin's shoulder, "how about you start from the beginning and tell us the truth this time?"

More Works

I hope you enjoyed this third installment in the 'Time' series.

Here are more books by me for your reading enjoyment.

Salvage-5

Salvage-5: The Next Mission

Salvage-5: Another Mission

Salvage-5: Final Mission

A.M.P

(Amplified Mental Projection)

Phase 2

Phase 3

Phase 4

Final Phase

The Warlords of Antares

Warlords Series Book 1

Empress of Antares

Warlords Series Book 2

Blood Scroll of Antares

Warlords Series Book 3

TIME

Fractured : Squared : Paradox

Secret of the Crystal

Secret of the Crystal II

The Forge

Secret of the Crystal III

Destiny

Secret of the Crystal IV

Forgotten Legacy

Secret of the Crystal V

The Rune

~ Coming Soon ~

Rise of the Warlords

2018

Dark Word Series

Salvage-5: AMPED

AMP - AFTERMATH

AMP - The Transcendent

2018 / 2019

Thank you so much for your support and being a fan of the AMP franchise. I hope you enjoyed this sneak peek of 'Phase 2.'

Before you go, please remember to leave your favorite author an honest review for their hard work.

Thank you.

Brian K. Larson

You can follow me on Facebook and Twitter:

www.facebook.com/secretofthecrystal

www.twitter.com/crystal_secrets

