Metak Fatigue Part 13

In an attempt to neutralise the threat, radio-triggered explosive charges had been laid around the foundations of the building. The berserker, aware of RSD's plan, had made an unexpected offer to negotiate. It would hand over the woman if it was allowed to leave the city. Three officers, one armed with the trigger for the explosives, had entered the building to negotiate. The officer with the trigger had been her father.

Barney had been seventeen and not yet a member of RSD, but Roads had been there. He had been in charge of one of the parties which searched through the rubble of the demolished building. The body of the hostage had been found the following day. The autopsy was inconclusive, but suggested that she had been dead for several hours before the explosives had gone off.

That had been enough for Roads to piece together a picture of what had happened to the negotiators. The berserker had wanted to go in style, not cornered like an animal. It might have waited until the negotiators had seen the body of the woman before attacking them, or it may well have attacked immediately. Either way, Barney's father had pressed the trigger, killing the berserker and himself in the process.

When Roads had told Barney of his theory, years later, she had disagreed. The berserker hadn't killed her father; machismo had. If he hadn't gone into the building in the first place, he would still have been alive.

And now, years late; she was in the same situation. "Don't blame him, Barney,"

Chappel had said, "or yourself. If he wants to do things alone, he will.

That's the way he is. Nothing you or I could say would A F6 him change his mind. tro the first time Barney noted the grief in the eyes of byri;Morgi of RSD: hidden behind the usual mask of V_ 'i but inescapably there, and -deep. 've known him longer than I have," she unable to put into words the question she [email protected] to ask. "fes." Chappel's expression softened. "But only '-And you were close, once." "We still are." Chappel frowned at that. "But we I lovers, if that's what you're driving at."

felt herself blush.

3.

Not long after that conversation had come the reply i the RSD mainframe. The search program had MIT-, Barney had settled down to read the results, IM for something to make her feel useful.

-LOV'Vii the list and the combined Kennedy/ U1.3%vif-Idatapool three matches had been made. The P- frightened her, the second seemed irrelevant, the She tried not to worry about Roads. He could look ..;(Q himself. Only now did she know exactly how true A ITT was.

That was when she had begun to pace. In the kitchen, with the mug held tightly between Melt, hands, she stared out from the confines of her complicated world. She wanted to go eii. and stand in the rain for a while, to literally @isv,,As. her sorrows. Instead she turned out the kitchen it- and watched the rain through the window. She drank the tea without noticing it, remembering oz;4 father standing in that very spot, years ago, bemoan- ,, the loss of smart cards. They had argued often whenshe was a teenager; so much that he had valued had seemed trivial to her, then. Who cared if e-money went the way of biochips and the World-Wide Web?

Was technology really that important? The tragedy was that he had died before she could ever tell him how right he had been.

The tea wasn't helping. She was tired, worried despite herself - both about Roads and the Rea.s.similation, despite her intellectual acceptance of the latter's inevitability - and alone.

Putting the mug upside-down in the sink, she turned around just as someone ran past the window. She gasped and jumped backward, almost tripping over her feet in surprise. The figure had only appeared' for an instant - vaguely man-shaped, unrecognisable in the shadows. But it had been there, in her yard.

She ran to the study and grabbed her gun from the bottom drawer of her desk.

Checking the windows in every room to ensure that they were locked, she tried to still her hammering heartbeat. If Roads' killers had come for her as well, she would put up a fight; she would not go down easily.

Back in the hallway, she listened to the hiss of the rain and pressed the pistol to her lips. Had she really seen light glinting in crystal eyes, or had that been her imagination?

Raoul's face came unbidden to mind, and her fear doubled.

Then a m.u.f.fled thump at the door made her jump again. Something slid damply along the thin wood veneer, and the handle turned.

Unconsciously deepening her voice, she called: "Who is it?"

The reply, when it came, was as unexpected as any she could have imagined: !iqs up, Barney - it's me. Phil."

J, was halfway to the door before she stopped, struck Mri;s doubt. "How do I know it's really you?" wrov', . . . what?" need to know you're not the Mole before I let you '06.- uttered a sound that might have been a laugh, said- "Ask me a question that only the Phil Roads know could answer."

had she told him and no-one else? Nothing t o mi d immediately. Her real first name was on in as was her birth-date.

it's raining out here, for Christ's sake." He 117-1 as though he was leaning against the door.

She held the gun in both hands, steeling herft(@- fire if she had to. "Tell me what the search found."

Ole search?" At the tone of his voice, she took a breath and raised the gun. "Do you mean the 1,77 through'O'Dell's datapool?"

A7 "Ye ." She gritted her teeth to keep her response "Tell me what it found, and I'll let you in." A silence followed, then Roads said: "It found me, Now, are you going to open the door or not?" She let free the breath she had been holding and MW the door. When she opened it, he fell forward slid to the floor before she could catch him. Lying on his back in a growing pool of pink-stained he managed a weak smile. "Philip G. Roads ... reporting for duty," he said.

She didn't know whether to laugh or to cry, so she his head in her hands and did both.

helped him to the bathroom, trying all the while to [email protected] looking at his eyes. The one glimpse she'd had ,,1i*- more than enough to confirm her fears.Roads' eyes were like perfectly transparent marbles filled with lenses* miniature gla.s.s onions, with layer concentric skins that retreated or upon layer of ze roved. When he looked at the light, advanced as his ga occurred in each orb to focus and half-seen processes t her, they occurred dim the glare; when he looked a ;again, but differently. uld see the backs of his She was afraid that she WO closely, they -sockets if she looked into them too eye zingly clear. All she saw was darkness5 were so ania the heart of a zoom [email protected] and a faint hint howeverg like of blue.

s biomodified. He had broken the Roads wa criminal, and it was her duty Humanity Laws. He was a to turn him in. ads, and he needed her help.

But he was still Phil Ro onvinced her to give him the That more than anything c chance to explain.

She turned on the shower, then peeled off his clothes the wounds beneath. He layer by layer, exposing stripped him, but not s.h.i.+vered uncontrollably while she from the cold- e said, eyelids flickering closed. -Blood "It's shock,@ h loss." '411m not surprised The wound to his shoulder was viciously deep and had bled profusely. it would require st.i.tches to heal cleanly. A variety of gashes and minor lacerations marred the skin of his face and hands; bruises scowled at her from the rest of his body. "What the h.e.l.l happened to you?" "They were waiting for me at my place, Chong and his buddies "'Waiting to kill you?" "Yes. I was hoping to catch the a.s.sa.s.sin; instead, all I got was that bunch of goons."

o judge. They surprised you, von't be so quick t ''A they?15 saw them before they saw me. I went in [email protected], Yes and I had to get something." He opened his e ed feverishly around. "The bag - I was carrying a wasn't I?" it's inside, in the hall. Do you want me to get it?"

No. just so long as I haven't lost it."

tripping him and tested the stream of he finished s the last er. Not too hot, and fairly clean; the rain of reservoir of its recent days had flushed the city's stepped back and )gestured. n colour. She @,"Get in." '""Wh Y_ you're filthy, that's why."

nto the cubicle5 winced as the jet @@,@:He stepped naked i n the t water stung his wounds. The water ran dow @ho in a swirl of deep red as it scoured away old, dried am d under od, then slowly lightened. He stuck his hea rubbed at his face with his hands.

d outside with a towel, waiting for him to She stoO him. He was even fitter than she had h, studying n made up cked in size he more tha pected; what he la culature was near-perfect: little r in strength- His mus of tone beneath it. From the &,el @ess body-fat, no lack rnight have been twenty-five, k down, at least, he i e the minor blemishes of a man ough his skin did hav his late forties.

so, she thought, he didn't look his age. Not ,,.,But even true age ...

e cubicle.

nd stepped out of th ;,,,,He shut off the taps a tt d himself dry, shes.h.i.+vering had stopped. As he pa e ght than simply favouring his ri iced that he was more 223arm. The knife-wound in his shoulder had obviously touched muscle - or, worse, a tendon. "We're going to have to get you to a hospital."

He shook his head. His eyes glittered in the bright overhead light. "Not necessary. All I need is food." "Why?" "I'm starving, that's why." "At a time like this?"

He held out his left hand. "You wouldn't know I'd shot my thumb off in the War, would you?"

She checked automatically, even though she knew the hand was whole, no fingers missing. "No. And if you told me you had, I wouldn't believe you." "Well, I did. And here it is, thanks to the wonders of tissue regeneration and micromachine technology. That's what keeps me looking so young. But you need to feed the process with raw materials, like carbohydrates, and fuel it with glucose. Do you have any chocolate ?" "No, I -" She stared at him. "Are you telling me you grew it back?" "It took me a week or two but, yes, I did."

"That's impossible - isn't it?" "No, but I'm not sure I can explain it properly. Maybe later." He handed her the blood-stained towel. "Do you have anything I can wear until I stop bleeding, or would you prefer me naked?"

"I'll get you something." She found an old cotton sheet that had narrowly escaped recycling and wrapped it around him. Directing him to the kitchen, she sat him on a stool and tore strips off another sheet to use as makes.h.i.+ft bandages. While she tended his injuries, he ate a plateful of soya-steak leftovers.

cc You haven't finished telling me what happened," she prompted. Between mouthfuls of food, he filled her in on the rest.

had only blacked out for a few minutes after the and had woken to find himself lying under the bodies. Disoriented by the shock, he had A!" [email protected]; =1 from the scene and fled the approaching 4'w- He had become lost and wandered for an o, time before recovering his senses to find MU near Barney's; part of him must have been track of where he was, and looking for shelter. o convinced he hadn't been followed, he had A0 .1, cautious enough to check Barney's building before on the door.

4, You scared the living s.h.i.+t out of me," she said, the in her voice half genuine. sorry, but I had to be sure you weren't stakedas well." "I know, I know." She sat in a chair opposite him.

let's see if I've got this straight. The Mole killed the right?" "Danny Chong, at least. I a.s.sume the others as well." "Wh Y. He s.h.i.+fted uncomfortably in the chair. "I think he k- e ending me."

d f "That doesn't make sense." "I know." "Did he survive the explosion?" Roads thought about it briefly. "He might have." "But you can't be certain. "No. I tried to tag the scene as it happened, but I tfors%- quite make it in time."

The reminder of his artificial eyes disturbed her. She To almost forgotten they we re there. "That's how you the picture of Cati, when you chased him from Old tol I Street?" "Exactly. The old concealed-camera trick went out li*[email protected] ago.""For you, maybe. Not for the rest of us mortals." She took away the plate and rinsed it, grateful for the chance to hide the flush she could feel creeping across her face. While at the sink, she poured them both a cup of coffee.

"Let's go into the lounge."

He lay down on the sofa and rested while she set up her laptop on a coffee table in front of him. He was looking stronger than he had half an hour earlier; his skin had lost some of its deathly pallor. "Just one more question," she said, sitting on the edge of the sofa with her back against his midriff. "Did you see Cati among the a.s.sa.s.sins?" "No. Should I have?" "I'd have bet money on it." She tapped at the keyboard. "Why? What did the search find?" "His name." She called up the file. "We didn't find it earlier because it's not really a name at all, or even a word. It's an abbreviation."

A single line of text appeared on the screen: "Cybernetic Augmentation -Technologies Inc."

Roads leaned forward. "Of course. I knew I'd heard the word before." In response to Barney's look of inquiry, he explained: "CATI was a military off-shoot. They handled special projects, mainly developmental technology and so on. I don't remember them producing anything noteworthy, though. Did they modify Cati?" "They built him." The next page was a long list of complicated scientific jargon. "As far as I can tell, they force-bred him from tailored genetic material and brought him to physical maturity in under twelve months.

The genetic tailoring amplified his size, strength, stamina and speed, reduced his brain size by five per cent, improved his senses of smell and touch, and raised his metabolic rate.

fiRg*[email protected] included abnormal skin-pigmentation, a of intelligence, muteness and the int reproduce." sterile?" than that. He's a metamale, Phil - a s.e.xless ,Jlt based on the male form ... but not male."

Again ov of wasps, and shuddered. on," Roads encouraged.

01;@ took a deep breath. "After his body matured, [email protected]* -modified it further. They reinforced his bones with t1iji& struts, and installed tylosine and [email protected] dispensers to reduce his stress and boost his 113mv. They took out his eyes and inner ears and them with implants, installed a short-range transmitter/receiver under his brain-stem so I re, communicate by radio, and damaged the rou centres in his cortex so he would IT, difficulty responding to normal speech. Then they 1jefftne W= him, took away what free will he might retained, and linked him to a microwave command IT, He has a control code to ensure his obedience. Amem- it, he won't even respond to orders, but with it @[email protected], do literally anything."

Barney vividly remembered the contents of the file, the horror she had felt upon reading it. Even before Z w turn of the twenty-first century, neuropsychologists C been aware of the effects of transcranial magnetic it P14(s) (TMS)- by applying rapid magnetic pulses i the cortex, it was possible to reset or influence cells, thereby making limbs twitch involuntarily or 11514141M appear from nowhere. But it wasn't until the AI )ject that such stimulation had been used to direct cognitive flow: @pecifically, the so-called path that Keith Morrow's scientists had UT-c in order to build a copy of his personality.If the human brain was comprised of many parts acting more or less in sympathy, and was essentially a chaotic system, then by nudging one of those many parts in just the right way, it was possible to change the future outcome of the brain's overall activity with a fair degree of accuracy.

The process didn't allow direct mind control, but it was still persuasive. And it was this that made Barney feel ill. The technique could have been employed to unscramble damaged psyches; instead it had been used to damage those already working perfectly, to alter the standing waves of children whose minds had yet to find their own, natural equilibria.

TMS was, essentially, a mild dose of electro-convulsive therapy, and if applied over long periods could be just as dangerous. Symptoms of overuse included memory damage, hallucinations, altered states of consciousness and brain seizures. By repeatedly applying pressure to the parts of the cortex used to guide Cati's consciousness - to make it obey - there was a risk of fatigue stress on that part of his mind; flexure cycles, where force was applied in one direction then another, could cause his mind to snap at a crucial moment, depending on how "elastic" his mind was, or how strongly he resisted his orders.

In other words, the more Cati fought the magnets in his head, the more dangerous the magnets became to his sanity - and therefore the more dangerous be became to those around him.

Barney had needed time to think it through, and she paused to give Roads the same. It didn't take him half as long, perhaps because he was more used to the concept of biomodification than she was. "Physically superior, perfectly obedient, unintelligent without being stupid . . ." Roads half-laughed, bitterly. "He sounds like the perfect combat soldier."

y, Phil. He's incredibly dangerous. Given tunn code he'll obey any order." I can see that. And, if the code existed, I would But he must have been a last-minute right before the end of the War; he might [email protected]@ been a prototype, an experimental model. The RV have been lost along with everything else, crow- it?" Noticing her expression, he grimaced. o going to tell me it wasn't, aren't you?" No built sixty like him, all clones, all identical.

they formed C-Brigade. The existence of C- t;@ was a closely-guarded secret, which is why you heard about it even though it was in operation for three years. In theory, it was designed for ground as a vanguard for 'normal' troops. In practice, used mainly on uprisings and for covert strikes.

in 2046, a gro up of high-ranking generals HM. They programmed a handful of CATIs to kill mi and her Chiefs of Staff. The rebellion itself but the a.s.sa.s.sination was a complete success. i:k prompted the VPs emergency government to order - . I and destruction of C-Brigade." .,"And ... ?" ."The records suggest that all were killed." 'ITI- one of them survived." "It looks like it. Or saved on purpose." She couldn't an edge from her voice. The possibility that Wq#)IN - something - like Cati was roaming the streets R-71, made her feet both frightened and angry. i now Someone's found the control code. Someone access to the old RSD files." "Wait - you're going too fast. Why RSD? Wasn't this [email protected], pulled from O'Dell's datapool?" "Most of it was - the top-secret parts - but not all." ,it;@ flicked to a new page. "I found this in the Mayoralty 0archives. It's all that remains of a file concerning the operation of the old CATI network. The rest was lost 'in the solar storm of "66."

The page was an excerpt from an instruction manual, with Cybernetic Augmentation Technology Inc's logo in the top right-hand corner. She waited while Roads skimmed through the text until he reached the part that had caught her eye: "For a list of control codes, including [CYPHER] and [PROTOCOL], see Appendix 7-2. . "When I checked the data from the States," she said, "their version was abbreviated. Only Kennedy had the file with the appendix." "You think there was a complete copy of the file somewhere else in Kennedy?"

441'm sure of it. It's the sort of thing RSD would have stored away in its own datapool." "But it's not there?" "Erased. I checked the access dates for that section. Someone took it six weeks ago."

Roads brushed his singed moustache with the back of a finger. "Someone with access to RSD archives and the authority to erase historical data."

"Obviously."

He leaned back and stared at the ceiling. The ramifications of the discovery were only slowly sinking in. "He'd make the perfect a.s.sa.s.sin." "My thought exactly. That's why I bet myself Can would be among the people who attacked you." "I didn't see him there. I don't think I'd be here now if he had been."

Roads rubbed at the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes. "And if he wasn't there, then he and the Mole must be working separately - unless whoever I'm getting close to didn't want to use Cati, for some reason. Maybe he thought the a.s.sa.s.sination would fail, tMi't want to waste both valuable a.s.sets on one lr4 She turned back to the screen. "But there's I haven't told you." roo. bad news?" iAT, afraid so. The CATI company was founded by a mism.- Schonberg in 2024, two years after his oki,, company, Boston CyberKinetic, folded."

was the company that designed the berserkers. a later and improved version of the same model." V, #Tm.. " Roads' gla.s.sy eyes zoomed in on her face.

MM- the control code, we'll never catch him." know." Again the memory of Kennedy's last bet- ,(;4 sprang to mind. She had never forgotten Roads'

o4s)i of the berserker's naked blood-l.u.s.t, its *rrinu invincibility. And Cati was a superior model. @C scares the c.r.a.p out of me, Phil. Promise me you go after him alone." you want an invite, I'll have to ask first 0 M*e joke about it. I'm serious."

His face looked haggard in the dim light of screen. "It's Roger's case, and therefore Roger's olvw I'll just stand back and watch, if that makes i 41k feel better." "Thanks. I'm not sure I believe you, but it's better [email protected] Moo nothing." IV His hand emerged from beneath the sheet and stroked f back. "Did you find anything else?" "Only one thing worth looking at now- a reference to zkffll EPA we. He blinked. "You did? Where?" "In O'Dell's file, on an invoice of goods that General Map.u will be bringing to town tomorrow."

"What are they?""Batteries; very powerful, very compact batteries." "Manufactured by the Reunited States . . ." Roads looked puzzled. "Why would they be in one of Morrow's hideaways?" "More importantly, why would the Mole want them?" "Well, that's easy enough to explain. His cloak of invisibility, or whatever it is, must require heaps of power. Any mobile source will do, I suppose, but the EPAs would be better than anything we've got." He looked thoughtful for a moment. "And it also explains why he waited so long before taking them: he didn't move on Old North Street until his power supply was running out." His hand moved up her back, to her neck. "At least that's one mystery explained." 'cone of many, unfortunately." Barney grabbed his hand and squeezed it. "I'm tired. Let's. .h.i.t the sack." "Are you sure? Don't you have anything you want to ask me first?" "Plenty, but we can talk about it in bed."

.'We' "Of course. I've only got one mattress." Her eyes grew warm. "And you don't really think I'd let you out of my sight again, do you?"

He shook his head. "At least let me see what else you found, first."

She sighed. Suddenly she didn't want his explanation. It made things too complicated, too fraught with contradictions. He was Phil Roads, not some sort of berserker to be feared or reviled, like Cati. "Please, Barney." "All right." Turning reluctantly back to the terminal, she retrieved the last of the three word-matches.

It was an old army record: facial and profile photos compressed from 3-D, plus a few biographical notes, a brief list of commendations and a genetic fingerprint.

The name on the top was: Major Philip Geoffrey Third Mobile Battalion. The last two lines in the file read: >>Missing In Action, presumed dead.<>>Dishonourable Discharge effected posthumously.< h.e.l.lo="" soldier,"="" said="" roads="" softly,="" eyes="" fixed="" on="" his="" image.="" another="" long="" story,="" right?"="" "very="" long.="" but="" you="" need="" to="" hear="" it.="" i="" want="" you="" to="" int="" we="" "okay."="" she="" turned="" off="" the="" terminal="" and="" helped="" him="" @c="" his="">

"But make it quick. We don't have all night."

shortly past four in the morning, Barney woke from unusually peaceful sleep to find Roads beside her, Mol only in the sheet. Unused to sharing her bed with 11V'Wvl:@, She lay still for a while, listening to him W .tt his every sound, no matter how faint, was 11mW by the darkness until it almost seemed to echo. When she finally tired of the situation, pleasantly novel though it was, she rolled to fit her body to his and an arm across his chest. He was instantly awake, grunting a half-intelligible inquiry. "You brute," she whispered into his ear.

"Me, Barney? What have I done now?" "Nothing. I fell asleep and you didn't wake me up." "That's right; you were tired. So?" "Did you finish the story?"

"More or less. The best bits, anyway." "Oh." She tried to remember, but was still too sleepfogged to recall more than the odd detail: something about Philadelphia, and blood. She was uncertain exactly how much of it was real, and how much theproduct of her dream. Or whether she really wanted to think about it just then.

Raising her hand in front of his face, she asked him: "How many fingers am I holding up?" He made no sound as his eyes s.h.i.+fted automatically, found the correct spectrum. "Two." "Now?" "Four."

Mischievously: "Now?" "Ali ... Does that count as a finger?" "Not really, I suppose." "None, then. Can I go back to sleep now?" "Definitely not, but I'll let you close your eyes." "I'd rather not." "if you don't, I'll be forced to turn on the lights." Giving in, he rolled to embrace her. Her hand stayed exactly where it was, for a while longer.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN.

golf a.m.

call came at eight that morning. Barney took it while oom, where Ii., listened in from the neighbouring r st&i terminal's lens would not pick up his image. Even he was unable to see the screen, he instantly recognised the voice.

it was Margaret Chappel. Barney was in charge of a SURMIM. squad during the parade later that day, although the two of them discussed it briefly, Roads K tell it wasn't the real reason for Chappel's call. iiit enough, she soon turned the subject to the ruin of 'his building, and the operation that was still searching through it.