The Formation Code

The Adam Cain Saga #7

T.R. Harris

Set in The Human Chronicles Universe

THC

Tom Harris Creations

Copyright 2020

by Tom Harris Creations, LLC

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Novels by T.R. Harris

The Adam Cain Saga

The Dead Worlds

Empires

Battle Plan

Galactic Vortex

Dark Energy

Universal Law

The Formation Code

The Quantum Enigma

Children of the Aris

The Human Chronicles

The Fringe Worlds

Alien Assassin

The War of Pawns

The Tactics of Revenge

The Legend of Earth

Cain’s Crusaders

The Apex Predator

A Galaxy to Conquer

The Masters of War

Prelude to War

The Unreachable Stars

When Earth Reigned Supreme

A Clash of Aliens

Battlelines

The Copernicus Deception

Scorched Earth

Alien Games

The Cain Legacy

The Andromeda Mission

Last Species Standing

Invasion Force

Force of Gravity

Mission Critical

The Lost Universe

The Immortal War

Destroyer of Worlds

Phantoms

Terminus Rising

The Last Aris

The Human Chronicles Box Set Series

Box Set #1 – Books 1-5 in the series

Box Set #2 – Books 6-10 in the series

Box Set #3 – Books 11-15 in the series

Box Set #4 – Books 16-20 in the series

Box Set #5—Books 21-25 in the series

REV Warriors Series

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REV: Renegades

REV: Rebirth

REV: Revolution

REV: Retribution

REV: Revelations (coming soon)

REV Warriors Box Set #1 – Books 1-3 in the series

Jason King – Agent to the Stars Series

The Enclaves of Sylox

Treasure of the Galactic Lights

The Drone Wars Series

Day of the Drone

In collaboration with Co-Author George Wier…

The Liberation Series

Captains Malicious

Available exclusively on Amazon.com and FREE to members of Kindle Unlimited.

Contents

The alien with an attitude is back!

Prologue

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

Epilogue

The Quantum Enigma

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Novels by T.R. Harris

The alien with an attitude is back!

The Adam Cain Saga Continues

In this latest adventure…

With a new and diabolical foe causing trouble for Adam Cain and his friends, the team sets out on a desperate mission to find and recover the mysterious Formation Code, an ancient device, and supposedly the key to making the Formation come to life. And if it does, what then?

That’s the mystery Adam is trying to solve. What is the Formation, and what does it do? Why is the evil Aris service module so anxious to find the Code, as is the powerful Maris-Kliss Director Wolfgang Stimmel? Why do they both want the Formation? It must be for power. That’s the only thing creatures like Kanan and Stimmel desire. The question: Will anyone else survive the aftermath of the Formation?

But there’s more here than meets the eye. Friends become foes and foes become friends in this latest chapter in The Adam Cain Saga.

Once again, it’s Tuesday, and the universe needs saving. Who are you going to call?

Adam Cain and friends are back!

Let the adventure begin!

Prologue

Although the results were not as he hoped, Kanan did have to look at the positive effects of the experiment. At least now he knew how to kill a lot of biologics, and in a most horrific manner.

Disrupting DNA formation in the body had a profound effect and one that came on suddenly and with dramatic results. It was encouraging, if not messy.

Kanan’s latest robotic body had a full range of sensory receptors, including smell. It was his way of experiencing what it was like to be alive in the sense of organic beings. He’d programmed the carrier to respond to stimuli, to the point where the android vomited a few moments before. Now the foul taste permeated his senses. He would have to rethink the programming. Such input was distracting—and in another part of his mind—disgusting. But it did give him a better sense of what he was facing. To understand the reactions of biologics to a variety of stimuli would help him in his research. He did not want to kill all life in the galaxy, and knowing what it would take to affect the sensibilities of the masses was crucial. It made the sacrifices of these rotting, foul-smelling piles of organic material an essential cog in a much larger wheel, even though that was not the initial purpose of the experiment.

The indigenous species were not of a Prime classification; however, they shared a similar genetic makeup to the majority of advanced life in the galaxy. The demise of this small group would be noticed, but not missed. They contributed nothing to the welfare of the galaxy.

Kanan was expecting a more positive reaction to the strain, something that would transform the native Riaols rather than melt them. He was studying combinations and attempting to learn from them. This was his seventh such experiment, each with similar results. But what bothered Kanan most was the realization that there were a near-infinite number of combinations possible. So far—both here in the field, as well as in his laboratory—no pattern had yet been detected. He’d spent a standard year with his experiments, and he was no closer to a solution than the first day he created the stack.

He had to accept the inevitable. At the pace of his experiments, it would take thousands—if not millions of years—to test every combination. That wasn’t practical and for a variety of reasons.

Kanan took one last look at the wind-swept remains of the village as his mechanical mind reached a conclusion:

He needed the Code.

And from that moment on, all his efforts were spent in its acquisition.

Chapter 1

As a general rule, Humans can run faster than most aliens. However, Adam Cain was learning there were always exceptions to the rule.

The thing chasing him was fast, damn fast. And it was catching up to him as he sprinted down the seemingly-endless underground corridor, clutching the prize he held in the small satchel across his chest, keeping it safe. He knew it was fragile, so he wasn’t about to take any chances that it could get damaged. He’d risked his life to get it, and he wasn’t about to blow it now.

He was approaching a short stairway leading up to the next level with the fleet-footed alien breathing heavily only steps behind. This seemed as good a time as any to try something radical.

As he raced up to the first step, Adam put on the brakes, sliding along the smooth floor until his right foot contacted the base of the first step. He came to a sudden stop, much more immediate than the creature behind was expecting. Adam leaned back, making his body rigid. Something hard hit the back of his skull, while the long arms of the lanky beast wrapped around him. Adam bent over, taking one of the arms and pulling it forward. It wasn’t hard to flip the alien—its momentum helped with that—and a moment later, the fur-covered creature was on its back, thrashing about as Adam held it pinned against the first five steps of the stairway. Adam smashed down with his right fist into the face of the alien, collapsing the short snout into the skull. That was when Adam realized why his pursuer was so fast. It was tall, limber and with extraordinarily long legs. But its bones were wafer-thin, reducing the creature’s overall weight. Even the thin layer of tense muscles covering the body wasn’t enough to resist the strike from the Human. The crunch of breaking bone was distinctive—and familiar—and a moment later, Adam was up and running again, leaving the corpse behind.

Adam Cain, why do you insist on interfering in my business? said an accented voice in his head. Adam was only vaguely aware that his ATD could detect accents, giving the mental voice an identifiable quality.

Because you interfered in mine. If you remember, you stole the disk from us originally.

And you took it from the Gracilians initially. I can play this game all day long.

There were noises up ahead—shouts of command. More of Stimmel’s henchmen were closing in. The chase animal did its job, herding Adam into the kill zone.

Through his new ATD, Adam could detect the energy signatures of six weapons located in corridors to the side of the main tunnel. They came from a combination of MK and Xan-fis. He’d already discovered that the guns in Stimmel’s underground complex came fitted with proprietary firing circuits, which meant a standard Formilian ATD couldn’t affect them. That was fine. Panur and Lila built his new brain-interface device to overcome that deficit.

Adam mentally located the battery packs in the devices. All energy weapons needed batteries, and Adam’s ATD could sever the power from the source. Even more, if he had time, he could route the electricity back into the units until they overloaded, becoming miniature bombs. The problem was Stimmel’s troops also carried projection blades, deadly swords that had two-thousand-degree laser filaments running along the edges. If their energy weapons became inert, they would revert to the swords.

Adam would have to blow the weapons; however, there were six of them. If they all went off at once, it would destroy a large chunk of the tunnel and create a catastrophic cave-in, potentially trapping him inside. He smiled. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t overload a couple of the pistols and let the resulting explosions take out the other members of the ambush team.

You know what I’ll do next, Stimmel said in Adam’s mind. Beyond the projection swords, I’ll use ballistic weapons, devices you can’t affect with your ADD, no matter what upgrades you may have.

It’s not an ADD. It’s called an A-T-D. If you’re going to have one, you could at least call it by the right name.

Through all the years I’ve studied you, I’ve never known you to take anything seriously. I can see you’re the same old Adam Cain.

You mean witty and charming to a fault?

To the end, that’s more appropriate.

Adam could sense the anger in Stimmel’s thoughts. He had a lot of experience communicating through his interface device, but he couldn’t remember ever having such a clear read on another person’s thoughts. He could almost see what Stimmel was seeing.

Please, Herr Cain, just return the disk. If you do, I’ll let you and Riyad Tarazi go. The galaxy is a lot more interesting with you in it.

I think I’ll take my chances.

I offered, Stimmel thought. You do know you have another kilometer of tunnel before you reach the surface? After that, you have to go up against my mobile units. I’m sure you weren’t anticipating having to fight your way out of my bunker; otherwise, you would have brought an army.

I always assume things will go to shit. Nothing I do is easy or according to plan. You’ve studied me long enough to know that much is true. But here I am, still alive and kicking.

Not for long.

Adam had a working knowledge of the underground complex of corridors, offices and workspaces that the former Regional Director for Maris-Kliss took over as his new headquarters. They were part of the old Gracilian dark matter research facility, where the original DE starships had been designed and built. The mutants, Panur and Lila, found schematics of the complex on Navarus, yet it was more from his reading of the weapons signatures coming from the hundred or so foot-soldiers Stimmel had on-site that told him most about the complex. He followed their movements in his mind’s eye, tracing intersecting corridors and attack positions, such as the one he was quickly approaching. And if Adam did manage to make it to the surface, Stimmel had even more troops waiting for him topside. There had to be a hundred or more and clustered in eight separate spots, which could be tanks or armored vehicles. Adam wasn’t sure of the exact number, but Stimmel had somewhere around eighty thousand mercenaries making up his security force on the twenty-six worlds he now owned in the Dead Zone. Most would be here on Gracilia with their employer.

Adam smiled again. Yes, an army would come in handy about now. But he didn’t have one, only his friend Riyad waiting outside. The smile quickly vanished.

I see you coming, Riyad said in Adam’s mind. His thoughts came in on a different frequency than Stimmel’s, keeping the conversation private between the two friends. There’s a welcoming party for you out here. I would suggest an alternative exit.

What do you have in mind?

A small service elevator, about two hundred meters ahead and to your right. But first, you have a roadblock to get past.

I see them. I’m about to take care of that.

A voice broke into Adam’s thoughts, strong and with a slight echo in its resonance. Collapse the exit if he gets past the ambush, said Stimmel’s heavily-German accented voice. And use minimal force to subdue. He has something of value that cannot be damaged.

Adam laughed in his mind.

What’s so funny? Riyad asked.

It’s Stimmel. He doesn’t know how to use my old ATD well enough that he’s broadcasting his thoughts in the clear, even while he’s giving orders to his troops. Whatta jerk.

That could come in handy, Riyad said. His ATD isn’t completely tuned to his brainwaves yet. It’s still tuned to yours. We’re just lucky he doesn’t know how to use it well enough to track our movements.

That’s just a matter of time, Adam thought. He has the best scientists money can buy on his payroll. I’d be surprised if there weren’t even a few Formilians among them. Even then, he hasn’t had any formal training on how to use the ATD. It could take him a while to figure it out.

Let’s hope so.

Okay, get ready. Things are about to go boom down here.

Adam didn’t break stride as two simultaneous explosions rocked the tunnel in front of him. Smoke and fire billowed out from both sides of the intersection, littering the main corridor in bloody alien body parts. Adam hurdled them and ran into the hot smoke cloud before bursting out of it farther along the tunnel.

Where to now? he asked Riyad.

Turn right at the next intersection. I’m looking at the schematics. If they’re accurate, there’s a service elevator at the end that will bring you to the surface. You’ll still be within a hundred feet or so of the troops waiting outside, but you’ll be behind them. I’m moving into position. You’ll be in the open and able to take full advantage of Panur’s ATD upgrades … the bastard.

Riyad was still upset that he only had a stripped-down version of an artificial telepathy device—the ATD—while Adam had the super-deluxe, top-shelf unit, recently designed by the mutant geniuses. It had every bell and whistle Panur and Lila could think of, and Adam was still discovering little things it could do. According to Riyad, it wasn’t fair that Adam always got the Porsche, while he and Sherri had to settle for the Civic.

Adam made a mental note to insist on an upgrade for Riyad and Sherri. Although he liked being treated special by the mutants, having his friends—and frequent comrades in arms—equipped with the most advanced ATDs could come in handy … like now. About all Riyad could do was track energy signals and talk to him telepathically. That left the heavy fighting up to Adam. He was getting tired of having to do everything himself.

Adam was surprised that this new corridor wasn’t guarded. He detected security cameras in the overhead and quickly disabled them with a mental command. Although Stimmel couldn’t track him through the ATD, he could through the cameras.

Adam began to question Riyad’s directions. If there was an exit here, he should see it by now. Elevators ran on electricity, but Adam wasn’t detecting anything other than ceiling lights. A minute later, he found out why.

It’s not an elevator, dickhead, he said to Riyad through his ATD. It’s an air vent of some kind.

It looks like an elevator shaft on the drawings. Blame the architect, not me.

Scanning back along the corridor, he could see another dozen troops coming his way. They’d closed on the site of the explosion and then fanned out, checking the side corridors when Adam failed to continue along the main tunnel.

Adam examined the metal grate covering the air vent. The assembly complex was in the desert, but being buried deep underground allowed it to avoid the radical temperature swings from outside. Fresh air still had to be brought in, and stale air vented. This station was but one of dozens throughout the complex.

Adam ripped off the screen and looked inside. There was a long shaft extending both below his current level and then to the surface in the other direction. No natural light filtered down from above, meaning there would be impediments on his way up. He moved inside the shaft. There was a service ladder embedded in the concrete wall to his right. He scampered up.

The main tunnel for the complex was located a hundred feet below the surface, with three other levels above. At each floor, Adam passed through a pressure hatch and into a circular work area where technicians could service the pumps and fans of the ventilation system. Fortunately, none of the doorways were locked. He made steady progress toward the surface.

* * *

Adam and Riyad came to the planet Gracilia a month after Stimmel made it his new home base. With the Dark Matter Collector scandal out in the open, Maris-Kliss had no choice but to ask Stimmel to step down from his position as Regional Director and leave the planet Woken. Stimmel obliged, and moved to the Dead Zone, to settle on Gracilia, one of the twenty-six worlds the company owned in the region. The fabulously wealthy and influential former MK executive came with a full entourage, comprised of attendants, advisors and a massive security force. He already had thousands of mercenaries occupying the worlds he owned. Gracilia was no exception.

In light of the scandal, Adam expected that MK would reclaim their property. The Director purchased them on behalf of the company, but after being terminated, MK summarily transferred ownership to him. They even gave him the two hundred thousand employees who worked the planets, along with the security detail. And for all this, the company got nothing in return. That wasn’t like MK. They always got their pound of flesh in every transaction, except this one. Apparently, having two Dark Matter Collectors in his possession gave Stimmel an inordinate amount of negotiating power.

Once on the planet, Stimmel made an exception to a rule he had in place on the other twenty-five worlds: He would allow the native Gracilians to return to their homeworld. The move came as a surprise to the rest of the Dead Zone and gave hope to other refugee groups that he might amend his moratorium and allow them to return to their homes, as well. That didn’t happen. Instead, he continued to populate the other planets with only mercs and employees. And in return for his magnanimous gesture, the Gracilians were now his loyal allies and confidants, something Adam feared because of their knowledge of the Aris, dark matter … and the Formation.

* * *

Adam and Riyad’s primary mission was to retrieve the remaining two dark matter collectors Stimmel stole from the mutants. Adam’s team had already recovered one. But the two remaining DMCs were still enough to destroy the galaxy if properly configured. They needed to get them back.

But they were nowhere to be found in the vast underground complex. Adam’s new ATD could detect dark matter, and he’d struck out in identifying any beyond the small readings associated with DE starships. Either Stimmel had them somewhere else on the planet, or they weren’t on Gracilia.

So, instead of recovering the DMCs, Adam had to settle for the solitary Formation disk the Director’s thieves had taken from the mutant’s laboratory at Camp Forrester three months before. Even so, the mission was a bust. The mutants already had a disk; Adam wasn’t sure what a second one would do for them. But he didn’t want to leave empty-handed—if he could leave at all.

There was still the matter of the troops waiting for him on the surface…

* * *

Hurry up! Riyad screamed into Adam’s mind. The troops are repositioning; Stimmel knows you’re in the shaft.

I’m escaping as fast as I can.

I’ll see if I can distract them.

Riyad was lying atop a low dune overlooking the valley where the mercenaries clustered. Below was the primary access into the underground complex, a massive elevator designed to lift dark-energy starships from their assembly areas. Here was to be Adam’s exit point, but it wasn’t going to turn out like that. A hundred troops now sat atop armored personnel carriers, waiting for him to emerge.

The Director, Wolfgang Stimmel, knew of Adam’s abilities, and he was taking no chances with the enhanced Human.

It was mid-morning on this part of Gracilia. Four hours earlier, Adam had slipped inside the complex. But when his mission to find the DMCs went bust, he took the extra time to track down the missing Formation disk. The delay cost him the cover of darkness, and now Adam would be emerging into daylight and in full view of the waiting troops. This was not good.

Riyad lay on the rapidly heating sand watching the troops regroup. The word was out that Adam was on his way to the surface through a secondary exit located at the base of the hill. Riyad had placed four BARs—Big Ass Rifles—along the ridgeline, each separated by forty feet or so. BARS were the most powerful hand-held energy weapons in the galaxy. They would help, but how much against a hundred seasoned troops and eight APCs?

Riyad had one of the weapons pressed against his cheek, spotting through the magnified viewfinder. The enemy troops were within the range of the BAR, and the rifle did carry a bolt capacity of ninety. He was about to find out what the rate of fire was for the weapon, as well as how fast he could run in the light gravity of Gracilia.

Riyad began firing, saturating the nearest APC with tight blue energy bolts. The balls of concentrated plasma travel at such high velocity that their passage appeared more like a ray than a separate shot. This helped with targeting, but it also drew a direct line back to the shooter.

Pandemonium broke out on the field below. The powerful bolts penetrated the armor like it was butter; the troops were even less of a concern. An APC exploded, throwing body parts high into the air. Riyad continued pressing the trigger—right up to the moment several long-barrel flash cannons locked onto his position and prepared to fire.

Riyad was off a moment later, discarding the BAR and sprinting below the ridgeline and out of sight of the troops. A moment later, the spot where he’d been laying exploded, as a half a dozen starship-rated cannon bolts plowed into the sand. He was barely far enough away to survive the concussion.

Riyad plopped down in the sand at the next BAR and lifted the weapon, sighting on one of the flash cannon below. More blue beams flared out, taking out more troops and more equipment.

The enemy was better prepared this time. They knew the general vicinity of the opposition, so it didn’t take long to readjust their aim. Riyad was off again before firing even twenty bolts from the second BAR.

Adam! Get your ass up here! I’m running out of hill.

I’m here, off to your left.

No time for sightseeing. The ship is at the base of the dune. Get to it.

By the time Riyad reached the third BAR, Stimmel’s troops had figured out his strategy. Riyad didn’t make it to the spot before the hill exploded from multiple bolt impacts.

Riyad was thrown into the air, flipping over several times before landing twenty feet down the steep incline of the hill. The sand was soft and cushioning, and he was up a moment later, unharmed sprinting for the speeder at the base of the dune. Adam was angling in from his right.

Can’t you disable the friggin’ cannon? Riyad asked through his ATD.

I could if I had the time. It’s a little hard to concentrate while running for your life. But I can get the speeder fired up. Be ready to lift the moment we get there.

The speeder was a modified Zarin dual-engine sprinter. The modified part came from the third gravity generator placed atop the fuselage between the other two gens. It had no sleeping quarters, no galley and no head. It was merely a two-seat rocket, faster than anything in the area—hopefully. At the moment, it was their only way off the planet.

The canopy was open, and the two commandos met at the craft simultaneously. Each used their enhanced Human strength to jump the remaining twenty feet before slamming against the now blistering hot metal hull, heated by the relentless Gracilian sun.

“Ah, damn, this is hot!” Riyad bitched as he grasped hold of anything he could to keep from slipping off the starship.

“No, shit!” Adam cried out. “And you’re in my way—move!”

Riyad tumbled headfirst into the cockpit; Adam was a breath behind him. Riyad’s legs stuck out from where the pilot should be sitting, and it took him an awkward moment to reorient himself. Adam had already strapped into the back seat, and the canopy closing by the time Riyad positioned himself at the flight controls. He didn’t bother fastening his seatbelt before gunning the chemical engines. That was a mistake.

The acceleration was so intense that Riyad was thrown back out of the seat, landing in Adam’s lap and leaving no one at the controls. Arms and legs flailed as Adam pressed against Riyad, fighting the g-forces to get Riyad back in the front seat.

The ship launched at a slight lift-off angle, which was adequate for the flat desert topography—to a point. The Zarin bounced off the top of a small dune, upsetting Riyad again and plopping him back into Adam’s lap.

The flight path of the starship was upset, enough that it soon contacted the ground and skidded along the hardpack, the scrapping sound inside the vessel like that of a wood-chipper on steroids.

With their speed stabilized, Riyad no longer had to fight against the acceleration. He hooked first one leg, then the other, over the back of the pilot seat and lifted with his body scrunched up against the canopy. He barely fit. A moment later, he dropped down into the pilot seat.

Having learned his lesson, Riyad grasped at the waist and shoulder harnesses and fastened them, while the ship bounced along the desert floor.

“Look out!” Adam yelled from the backseat.

Riyad pulled his attention from the belt buckle to the forward viewport. Another hill—no, a rock outcropping—was dead ahead.

Riyad groped for the control stick, missing it the first time when the ship bounced again. He caught it the second time and violently yanked back on the lever.

The ship missed the jagged volcanic rock by inches, and now angled for space at a steep eighty-degree rate of climb.

“Some air pressure might be nice,” Adam said from behind Riyad.

They were already passing a hundred thousand feet, and Riyad had failed to pressurize the cockpit. A second later, things were copacetic, with the black of space directly ahead of them.

“Engaging the gravity drive,” Riyad breathed with relief. “Flight time to Navarus, sixteen hours. The inflight movie will be Die Hard, the original. Yippee-ki-yay, mother—”

“We get the idea, Riyad. Let’s at least keep this rated PG.”

Riyad snorted and flashed his trademark white smile at the stars beyond the window. “Why start now?”

Chapter 2

Adam entered the mutant’s lab on Camp Forrester to find it crowded with dignitaries. Foremost among them was the Union Ambassador Jeanne Euker. She was surrounded by an assortment of military and political figures, including both Lion/El, the president of Navarus, along with his deputy, Sherri Valentine. They gathered around a monitor displaying a link with a narrator wearing Hazmat gear and flanked by several other officials similarly dressed. They were walking through a village of stick-built structures as an assortment of domesticated alien animals feasted on piles of brown and red slime that soaked into discarded clothing, including primitive sandals. The mounds were the remains of once-living beings, now reduced to gelatinous ooze.

Few in the room noticed Adam’s arrival, and those who did gave him clouded expressions of concern. Something awful was happening, with Adam walking in on the initial disclosure.

He moved in closer to hear the narrator.

“We estimate the contagion struck about five hundred individuals,” he reported. “This didn’t happen spontaneously; there’s evidence it could have taken up to three or four hours before full breakdown occurred.”

“Where is this?” Adam whispered to Sherri.

“Someplace in the outer Kidis,” she answered. “I forget the name, but the race is called the Riaols.”

“Never heard of them. What happened?”

“That’s what we’re trying to figure out, but from what the ambassador says, this isn’t the first outbreak. And the others were different. Still a lot of deaths, but not like this.”

“They look like they melted.”

Sherri nodded. “That’s the consensus. The others showed signs of DNA degradation—they’re calling it. That’s where the DNA in the body stops functioning, and all at once. If cells can’t divide and transmit information, the entire system falls apart. When that happens, this is the result.”

“It’s Kanan, isn’t it?”

“Nothing official yet, but Panur seems to think so.”

Adam turned his attention back to the screen. The narrator was addressing the camera.

“We haven’t detected any transfer of the effects beyond this area, so the life of the contagion is limited. Once these people died, there were no carriers left to transmit the disease.”

“Or this disease—as you call it—was targeted to this specific group of individuals,” Panur offered.

Adam looked at the tall, handsome figure. He knew he was Panur, the mutant, but the body was that of the former Gradis Cartel capo TeraDon Fief. Panur acquired the body during the Kracion affair. He’d had been occupying it for the past couple of weeks, rather than the near-featureless grey form with which the mutant was most associated. The TeraDon persona was to be the new public image of Panur, but when he showed up a year ago, he came in the more familiar form of the four-and-a-half foot tall, bland-looking grey alien. At the time, Panur explained that the masters—as he called them—were more durable and better able to withstand energy intake as the result of flash weapons. When he came to Adam’s aide against Kanan, Panur anticipated pitched battles with the ancient Aris service module. He was right. But with Kanan off the radar for over a year, Panur felt it safe to inhabit the TeraDon body again. For her part, Lila was delighted with the transition. TeraDon was a gorgeous alien, tall, chisel-jawed and perfectly proportioned. Adam was jealous of the alien—always had been—even before his body was taken over by the mutant.

“What do you mean targeted?” asked Brigadier General Todd Oaks, commander of Camp Forrester. “You think this is another test?”

“That would be my guess,” Panur continued. “Kanan built the Formation as best he could, and now he’s testing the results, learning how to use it.”

Most of the people in the room only had a passing knowledge of the Formation, including Adam. He knew the Formation was constructed of disks, such as the one he now had in his pocket. But as to what it did, he was still in the dark. All he knew was that it was dangerous and that Kanan was obsessed with it. He would wait until the room cleared before giving the disk to the mutants. It would cause too much of a stir otherwise.

“Does he plan to release some deadly toxin into the galaxy?” Euker asked rhetorically. “Why would he do that?”

“I doubt that’s his end goal,” Panur said. “I never got the impression he wants to destroy life. He just wants to rule it, as have so many before him.”

Euker turned to the Human on the screen. “Doctor Jenkins, do you see this as a continuing threat on the planet or an isolated event?”

Jenkins shrugged. “There’s a much larger native population in the area. If this was a true contagion, there should still be evidence of it in the peripheral population. We haven’t seen any. A pathogen was introduced to this group of individuals, and this group only. Now it’s gone.”

“And you’re sure of the cause of death?”

The doctor laughed. “No doubt about that. It’s not hard to see. DNA is part of every cell. There’s none present in any of the … the remains we’ve checked. Nothing does that, no virus or bacteria we know of. All we have is an unknown contaminant that attacked the existing DNA and destroyed it. This was intentionally manufactured and deliberately introduced. It was planned.”

Euker sighed deeply. “Okay, thank you for the update, Doctor Jenkins. I’m sure you have a lot of work to do. I will let you go.”

The doctor nodded as the link was broken.

Euker’s eyes scanned the faces in the room. She paused when she saw Adam. She knew he’d been away on a mission, and now she grimaced upon seeing him.

“So, no luck,” she said soberly. She already knew the mission failed to recover the Dark Matter Collectors. She wasn’t aware of his secondary purpose—to recover the stolen Formation disk. Panur would reveal that information to her once he had more to tell.

Adam shook his head. “He’s keeping the lock from the key, hiding them somewhere else, possibly off-planet.”

“While holding all of us hostage.”

Adam nodded. He knew there was more truth to the statement. In reality, both sides were holding the other hostage. Dark matter bombs had been placed in strategic locations by both Stimmel and the allies, set to go off should anyone begin a war. It was a version of MAD—Mutually Assured Destruction—on a galactic scale. Adam didn’t approve of the strategy. The bombs were to activate automatically, ensuring a counterstrike even if the main base or planet was destroyed. That left the possibility of a mistake triggering the response. It was too great of a risk when the activation of one weapon could create a ripple effect of catastrophic proportions. His primary mission was to recover the DMCs from Stimmel, thereby negating much of the threat. On that, he failed miserably. The Director was too smart to put all his eggs in one basket and risk losing his most-effective deterrent. Adam and the allies needed better intelligence before they tried that again.

After a few more moments of shared depression, Euker and her entourage left the laboratory, leaving Adam alone with Sherri, Panur and Lila.

“You have it?” Panur asked anxiously.

Adam hesitated slightly before handing the case to the mutant; his new TeraDon form took getting used to, that this was indeed Panur. Once he had the disk, Panur took it to one of the exam rooms in the back of the building and away from the main workroom where any casual visitor could see what he was doing.

Adam frowned at the skeletal device he saw sitting on a table and encased in a glass container. It was simple enough to figure out what it was.

It was a holder for the Formation disks, with one already in place. The one in the holder was the disk Adam had kept from the mutants for a year before finally revealing its existence. Now that he had recovered the other disk from Stimmel, Panur would have two to play with.

The metal frame for the holder was about eighteen inches high and supported by metal rods running horizontally. Four needle-like pins held the disk in its grasp, positioned slightly inside the wafer’s outer ring before clamping it into place. Four inches below this array was another holder, minus the disk. A series of lights, scanners and other sensing equipment was below this, aimed at a fine mesh netting about eight inches in diameter. Tubing ran to the glass case, telling Adam that a vacuum could be created within the container.

Panur opened the case holding the second disk and grasped it with a pair of forceps. It made Adam nervous each time the mutants took such care handling the objects. He’d played with both of them at one time or another, flipping them like silver dollars and without using precautions. He’d rubbed his fingers across the surfaces and even held them close to his face as he’d examined them under bright light and magnifying glass. If they weren’t dangerous to the touch, then why did the mutants treat them as if they were? He’d asked about this before and never got a straight answer. All they would say is they weren’t taking chances. Chances against what?

“Have you figured out what they do?” Sherri asked as she moved to the table and examined the glass box. This was the first time she’d seen it.

“Yes, we have, to a degree,” Lila answered. She opened the box and then stood back as Panur placed the second disk in the holder below the first. She then closed the case and activated the vacuum pump.

“Well, are you going to tell us what they are or not?” Sherri asked out of frustration.

“Oh, yes. The disks are filters,” Lila said.

Chapter 3

“Filters?” Sherri gasped. “All of this because of a bunch of filters. What do they filter?”

“Organic material,” Lila answered.

Panur went to a cabinet and opened a long drawer. He carefully removed a set of yellowing pages and set them on the table next to the apparatus.

“Let me explain,” he began. “Within the Gracilian vault, we found broken remnants of documents detailing the Formation and its purpose—”

“Wait a minute!” Adam interrupted, leaning in closer to examine the pages. Most were taped together, forming a ragged jigsaw puzzle of sorts, although with several prominent pieces missing. “Paper? You’re telling me that the million-year-old-civilization of the Aris used paper.”

“This is much more than paper, I assure you. But in a basic sense, you are correct. They relied on written words set down on sheets of synthetic material to detail what the Formation is and from where it came. If you think about it, it makes sense.”

“Then perhaps you can enlighten me because I’m not seeing it.”

Panur sighed impatiently. “If I must. At the time of the documents’ creation, the Aris faced an indeterminate period in hibernation as their Grand Experiment proceeded. Because of this, they needed a form of data transfer and preservation that could withstand the rigors of time and technology. Electronic files can be lost or corrupted, and even methods of recording and playback could change dramatically. Even if the files survived, they might not be able to be read. But a paper document could be read by anyone with knowledge of the Aris language. In addition, the texts could be read by candlelight in a cave or the laboratory of the two most intelligent beings in the galaxy.” Panur/TeraDon grinned.

“You’re saying this document survived three billion years?” Sherri asked. “I find that hard to believe.”

“It is not true paper, but even then, time did turn the pages brittle, and during the recovery process, they broke apart. Most we’ve reassembled, and for the pieces we didn’t have, we inferred. The reading device you got from Stimmel was the key to deciphering the text. There are multiple layers of data embedded in the material. It’s quite fascinating and advanced. As I said, it is much more than paper. But without the reader, we would have learned only a fraction of what we know now. At the time of Kracion’s attack, the Gracilians were also trying to restore the documents. Whether they knew of the reading device at the time is not known.”

Adam leaned down to examine the pages closer, unable to read a single character or word. He couldn’t read ancient Aris, but apparently, Panur and Lila could.

“So, what does it say?”

“From what we deciphered,” Panur began, “it is a history of the Formation, a summary of who built it and its purpose—”

In the past, Adam had suffered through too many of Panur’s lectures, so he knew what was coming. The genius preferred the slow reveal, working up to the climax. Adam was too impatient for that.

“Just cut to the chase, will you?”

Panur frowned. “Patience, Adam. The story I’m about to relate is quite fascinating. You might learn something.” The mutant regathered his thoughts and began again. “The Formation was built by a race referred to as the Pri, a bastardization of the translated word Previous, at the end of the First Epoch. Even the Aris weren’t sure what they were called in real life. Through the documents, we learned that life in the galaxy goes through cycles of approximately five billion years each. Life develops, matures and then dies off at the end of each Epoch. The Pri were the most-advanced and longest living of the species from the First Epoch. They understood the evolutionary process, and just as the Aris would do billions of years later, they attempted to modify it, to control it. They built the Formation to accomplish just that. And when it came time for the Aris to perform modification experiments on primal DNA in their quest for the Apex Being, they used the Formation to make those modifications.”

“So, that’s how they did it, with this thing?” Adam asked.

Panur smiled. “Not this particular thing, but a completed Formation.”

Adam glared at the mutant. Somehow, his snide remarks were more grating when delivered by the handsome face. “Okay, smartass, but how does it work?”

Adam studied the innocent-looking glass box. It was a foot wide by three feet high, and hardly the device one would expect to seed life throughout the galaxy.

Panur continued. “Within each of the eight boxes containing the disks was a hidden and secure compartment holding something called an activation disk. The Gracilians surely knew of this, even if you didn’t at the time you stole the other disks. These eight master disks serve as power sources for the Formation. Between them go the filters, the thinner disks we have here. Within a filter stack, there can be as few as zero disks between masters, or up to nine. The height and configuration of the filters determine what comes out the other end. In a way, the process is similar to what the creature Te’moc does within his body. He distills living matter into a form for transfer into another. As you know, that was how I was created, and since I carry Te’moc’s essence within me, that is how I can transfer my essence between the master body and that of TeraDon. However, there is a big difference between what Te’moc does and the Formation.”

“Like what?” Sherri asked.

“Where Te’moc needs a fully-formed living being for distillation, the Formation can take the most basic organic material and convert it into any other complex organic form. Because of its ability to essentially create life from simple amino acids, the Formation played a vital role in the plans of the Aris, to the point of making their Grand Experiment possible. They used it first to seed the galaxy with the necessary ingredients for advanced life, eventually leading to the Apex Being, their true immortal creation. Later, they intended to use it to convert Lila into a form that could infuse the surviving Aris with the immortality they so desperately desired. As you see, the Formation was essential to both the beginning and the end of the Aris’ Grand Experiment.”

Adam looked at his daughter, Lila. She was the Apex Being, the culmination of the Aris’ three-billion-year-long experiment, the only natural-born immortal. She smiled demurely.

“It can do all that?” Adam asked.

“Yes. As the base organic stock moves through the stack, it becomes filtered, modified and refined. And consider this.” Panur pointed to the bottom disk in the two-disk stack. “The variations in the filtering process are, for all practical purposes, infinite.”

“How is that possible?” Adam asked. “How many combinations can there be? Eight master disks, with up to nine of the filter disks in a row. It’s a big number, but certainly not infinity.”

“But it is when you consider that each disk can be rotated a degree at a time, and when you do, that forms a new path for the material to travel. Not only that, but the disks can also be offset by up to two-thirds of their diameter, creating a whole new set of permutations. Imagine looking through a kaleidoscope and making only a slight twist of the ring. The pattern changes. Even the slightest movement alters everything. Trust me, the number is mind-boggling, even for Lila and me. That’s why we are anxious to study even the most rudimentary filtering effect of two disks. We have run material through the single filter we had, with little reward.” Panur scowled at Adam. “We would be light-years ahead in our research if you’d given us both of the disks you’d taken in the first place.”

Adam swallowed hard. “But Kanan said he needed all the disks to make it work. I didn’t think he could do anything with me having a couple of them.”

“That is what you get for thinking. The all disks claim was a misnomer. What Kanan needed were all eight activation disks, not the filters. He now has the masters, and he’s experimenting with the Formation, searching for the right combination.”

“Combination to what?” Sherri asked.

“It is not so much a what as a why. He’s attempting to discover the logic of the sequencing. It cannot be random; there are too many possibilities for that. There has to be a progression for him to follow.”

“That could take thousands of years to try enough combinations, along with a boatload of dead aliens,” Sherri said. “What do you think he’s trying to create with the Formation?”

“Truthfully, it would take millions of years to test all the combinations,” Panur corrected. “And we can only speculate what he intends to do with the knowledge.”

“That’s obvious,” Adam announced, thinking back to the melted blobs of once-living beings he saw earlier. “He’s trying to make a virus to wipe out anyone who won’t bow down to him.”

Panur shook his head. “That’s possible, but it’s not consistent with what we know of the service module.”

“And what do we know about the insane Aris service module?” Adam asked sarcastically.

“We know he’s not stable, and that he considers himself to be the last Aris, even though he’s a machine. That shows the depth of his insanity. Lila and I have debated this question and have an idea. We feel he’s trying to recreate the Aris race, to seed the species on a thousand worlds—”

“Can he do that?” Sherri asked. “And even if he could, wouldn’t that take billions of years for the race to develop?”

“Unfortunately, no. When the Aris created the raw material that would lead to Prime life, they had very little to work with, only primal ooze in most cases. Not only that, but they needed multiple species evolving along similar lines in order to create the immortal being they sought. For their experiment to succeed, they needed the time.”

“I’ve always wondered why that was necessary, having interspecies mating?” Adam asked. It was his pairing with the Formilian Arieel Bol that created Lila.

“That is because they needed evolution to work its magic. Consider this: Even though the galaxy is seemingly rich in Prime life, its creation is a rare occurrence. By all rights, there should be millions of planets supporting Primes, but in reality, there are only around ten thousand. Why? That’s because of the myriad dangers lurking within the galaxy. Stars explode, planets collide, orbits change and natural disasters occur. It is the lucky few who make it through this shooting-gallery to form a stable platform for Prime life to develop. Be assured, the Aris seeded far more worlds with the elements of life than we see today. And because of this, they needed to play the odds that at some point species would develop which would carry the seeds of immortality. And it had to be a combination of races, a hybrid.”

“Why’s that?” Adam asked.

“Because if a species develops a primitive form of immortality along the way, it will cease to evolve. Jellyfish of your native Earth are good examples of this. They are essentially immortal, able to revert to a more primitive form of itself when threatened, before beginning the growth process again. This is a form of immortality, but not what the Aris had in mind. All living organisms must evolve to survive, to reproduce. Immortality is anathema to this process. One would not want to continue to evolve once reaching immortality and risk the chance of evolving back into a mortal status. Once an immortal being is created, that is the end of the line for evolution of the species. The race will remain as it is forever. The Aris were not seeking a primitive jellyfish-type organism in which to attain immortality. They needed a Prime, and that’s why a merging of races was needed. Both would bring something to the table with neither having reached the point of stagnation somewhere in their distant past.”

“And the Aris were going to use the Formation to distill Lila?” Sherri reiterated. Then her eyes grew wide. “They must have known the right combination of disks to use,” she stammered. “And the other species they created. Did they each require a unique combination?”

Panur nodded. “They did. Every world they seeded had a unique base of primal material to work from.”

“That would mean they used thousands of combinations … how did they know which ones?”

“Because they had the Code.”

“The code?” Adam asked. “What code?”

* * *

“There is a code device,” Panur said. “We’re not sure what specific form it takes, but it’s referenced in the documents. Supposedly, it contains the proper disk combinations and configurations for the Formation. The device was contained in the same vessel in which the Aris placed the Formation at the time they initiated their Grand Experiment. They knew their world would soon be destroyed, with its fragments cast into space. The Formation and the Code had to be protected against the ravages of time. So, they built a special vessel described as having sensors and a propulsion system to keep it from harm, a spaceship of some kind. Eventually, the vessel was discovered, as evidenced by the existence of the Formation in our time.” He indicated the parchment on the table. “At the time, the instruction documents were in such poor condition—and written in a language no one could understand—that the early miners didn’t know what they had. They thought it was just another cache of ancient Aris artifacts, which, as you know, are in high demand across the galaxy, sought by both governments and private parties alike. The items were sold, including the Code device. Over time, the Gracilians came to acquire the Formation disks and much of the ancient text. The Code device was not among the inventory of the Gracilian vault. We must assume it is in the hands of a collector who has no idea what it is.”

“And this Code device—as you call it—is the key to making the Formation work?” Sherri confirmed.

Panur shrugged. “It can still perform, but on a completely haphazard basis. Organic material can be fed in one end, and something different comes out the other. But with the astronomical number of possible combinations, it would be pure luck to create something worthwhile.”

“Do you think Kanan knows about the Code?” Adam asked.

“Undoubtedly. Kanan was the service module for a Privileged Aris at the time of the Grand Experiment. Before the Formation, the Aris already had an immortality project, yet one designed around artificial bodies as containers for their minds. That was when they discovered the Formation and the Code. They had remained hidden for billions of years, and when the Aris deciphered the ancient text, it changed the thinking of the Aris. They now envisioned a scenario where they could retain their physical bodies while still attaining immortality. The Formation could do that, although it would take billions of years for their experiment to come to fruition. As we know, there was much debate on the proper course of action. But with advancements in hibernation technology, a majority of the Aris saw the long-term project as their best option. The time required became a non-issue. They could simply fall asleep and wake up a moment later with the Experiment completed.”

“And the Formation made that possible,” Adam said with reverence, looking at the mutant’s crude version of the Formation. “So, that’s how they did it.”

“Isn’t discovery cool?” Panur said, a giddiness in his voice. “For billions of years, the vast majority of advanced life in the galaxy has been a part of the Aris Grand Experiment, and even to this day, we are still learning of its origins. I once assumed the project came about from the incredible knowledge the Aris possessed at the time. Now, we learn they relied on the genius of an even more ancient race—the Pri. Imagine what they must have been like in their prime.”

“But if Kanan knows about the Code device, why isn’t he looking for it?” Sherri asked. “Instead, he’s experimenting with various filter combinations.”

“His strategy will undoubtedly change,” Panur said. “He knew the Gracilians had the Formation in their vault and sought it out once he had the key. He would also know that the Code exists, having been discovered in the original containment vessel, although possibly lost forever somewhere out in the galaxy. At this point, he has no choice but to discover the logic of the combinations on his own. But upon meeting with failure, his next step will be to secure the Code, no matter how long that takes. Need I say it?” Panur asked. “We cannot let Kanan find the Code—not before we do.”

“We?” Sherri gasped.

“Yes, we.”

“How are we supposed to find a single lost Aris artifact floating around somewhere in the galaxy?”

“Simple. We follow the trail of ownership to find where it is today,” Panur replied with a grin.

“How do we trace the trail of ownership?” Sherri wasn’t buying it. “Where would we even begin?”

“He’s playing with you, Sherri,” Adam said. “He already has this figured out.”

Sherri glared at the now-handsome mutant.

At Panur’s prompting, Lila activated a datapad on the table.

“In their vault, the Gracilians kept a detailed log of their Aris acquisitions,” she began. “According to the records, they obtained the Formation disks nine standard years ago, along with the text fragments. Although they were attempting to decipher the documents at the time of Kracion’s attack, it does not appear they made much progress. They did not know the significance of the disks nor the importance of the missing piece from the collection. They have noted in their files as to the location of the transaction and from whom it was acquired. That would be a good place to start.”

“Sounds simple enough,” Adam said.

“A word of caution,” Lila said. “Kanan must not learn of our activities. If he does, he will know the Code is accessible and focus his efforts. At this time, he does not have access to the Gracilian logs, so he has no starting point. If he did, it would be a race to acquisition.”

Adam looked at Sherri. “Are you up for this?”

“Of course, you idiot!” she exclaimed. “If we don’t keep this Code thingy out of Kanan’s mechanical hands, we could all turn into Aris.” She looked at Lila. “And from what I understand, they were all male, weren’t they?”

“Yes, the surviving Aris were male. It is one of the reasons they so desperately sought a means to extend their lives. Otherwise, the race was doomed to extinction.”

Sherri looked at Adam and smirked. “See, we certainly can’t leave the galaxy exclusively in the hands of men. It’s already pretty screwed up as it is.”

Chapter 4

The small group of friends sat at a table placed on the sand behind Capt. Cain’s Bar & Grill, hunched over datapads and feasting on bar-b-que dinosaur ribs.

Riyad looked at the bright screen of a datapad while sucking his fingers one at a time to clean off the sauce. “I’ve never heard of the place. Werznor. Where is that?”

“It’s out along the Kidis-Union border, pretty far out near the edge of the galaxy,” Sherri said. “I looked it up. Not much there except a bunch of thieves, scoundrels and pirates. You’ll fit right in.”

Riyad bounced his bushy black eyebrows. “And I know how much you like the bad boys.”

“Give it a rest, stud. That was before I grew a brain.”

Riyad laughed before looking again at the datapad. “So, it’s a good old fashion treasure hunt. But one that can save the galaxy. When do we leave?”

“Not so fast, buddy,” Adam said. “All of us can’t go rushing off. Someone might notice. Sherri’s the vice-president of the Zone, and the two of us head up the Enforcer Corps. Kanan could have service modules watching us right now.”

“That can’t happen, can it?” Sherri asked, looking at the handsome figure of the new-Panur seated across the table. “We can detect dark matter with our ATDs. We’d know if any were around.”

“The amount used in these new modules is so small it would be hard to detect unless they were within the room,” Panur answered. “But Adam’s right. We cannot draw attention to our activities.”

“That means I should stay on Navarus,” Lila said to everyone’s surprise.

“No, you can’t do that,” Sherri gasped. “We need … your abilities.”

“I am well-known throughout the galaxy, having ruled it once. Not only that, but my Formilian pheromones draw undue attention during any physical encounters with other species. My movements will surely be noticed. I would jeopardize the operation if I went along.”

“Panur is pretty well-known, too,” Sherri countered. Adam could tell she didn’t want to be the only woman on the mission, not again.

“He is not known in his current form.”

Panur/TeraDon shrugged. “You are correct, my dear; however, this form does limit my abilities. I cannot shapeshift, and the body is fragile. It cannot self-heal as quickly or efficiently as the grey master. And if struck with flash bolts, it will burn.”

“It’s your mind we need,” Adam said, “not your brawn.” He smiled. “That’s what me and Riyad are for.”

Sherri elbowed him in the ribs—hard. “And me, too, dickhead!”

Adam frowned and rubbed his side. She had a point.

“Okay then, it’s settled,” Panur said. “It will be me, Sherri, Adam and Riyad. Lila will remain here and serve as our coordinator. We should also take a conventional starship rather than the few dark matter ships available. With the moratorium on the use of dark matter, our movements will surely be noted, if for no other reason than fear of a potential DM event.”

Adam looked around at his team and grinned, a familiar excitement building within him.

“Then get some rest tonight, my friends. Tomorrow we gear up and head out for this place called … what was it?” he asked Sherri.

“Werznor.”

“Okay, for Werznor. Who the hell comes up with these alien names anyway? Some are really stupid.”

He took a deep sigh and stared out at the dark sky above the black ocean. He’d only been back a day, and already he was heading out again. But this time, it was a simple job of tracking down a missing Aris artifact. He snorted.

How difficult can that be?

* * *

The figure lay prone on the warm sand about a hundred meters south of the tavern, hidden in the deep shadows of night. He had a sophisticated listening device pointed at the distant gathering, focused on the conversation taking place at a particular table. Reception was spotty, having to compete with the lapping of the small waves, as well as the other chattering patrons seated at tables at the rear of Cain’s. But he dared not get any closer, not with the mutant Lila Bol among them. However, the last question by Adam Cain clarified an earlier garbled word. That was enough. He had a location and a timetable. Once off the beach and back at his ship, he would transmit the recording. Tomorrow he would begin his journey to the outer reaches of the galaxy and a place called Werznor.

Chapter 5

It took an excruciatingly long three weeks to reach Werznor, and by then, none of the team were talking to each other. The ship they were in was a small freighter that could barely travel more than two hundred light-years a day. It had been years since Adam had been in something this slow. That probably added to his angst, which caused him—and the others—to grate on each other’s nerves. He liked his friends, having spent decades with them, and they were more family than anything else. That was also part of the problem. There was nothing new for them to talk about.

So, it was with infinite relief that they made landfall on Werznor. Normally, a simple planetfall would not have been cause for celebration. But in this case, it was a Fourth of July and Christmas rolled into one.

“We should split up,” Riyad said as he shielded his face from the blowing wind and icy rain.

They had just left their ship and were now standing in ankle-deep mud and a torrential downpour. Either they’d arrived in the middle of a storm, or Werznor was one of the ugliest places they’d ever been. The landscape—what they could see of it—was shrouded in perpetual overcast, a steady rain, and puddles of slush were everywhere. They landed at the main spaceport for the city where they hoped to find the seller of the Formation, a creature called Kalicar. All they had from the Gracilian logs was a name, a city, a planet and a date, along with a description of the item(s) bought. It wasn’t much to go on, and the records were nine years old. As Adam looked around at the disgusting squalor, he imagined nine years was a lifetime in a place like this. They’d be lucky to find where the alien was buried, let alone find him still alive and plying his craft.

Sherri’s blonde hair was already a stringy mess, even with the wide-brimmed green cap she wore. The wind swirled around them, carrying the rain into places it had no right to be.

“I don’t know about splitting up,” she said soberly. “As much as I’m hating all of you at the moment, I still prefer to get out of this place in one piece, and there’s strength in numbers.”

“Let’s stick together, initially,” Adam said. Even with Panur on the team, he was still the default leader. It was always like that, and he accepted the responsibility without question. Besides, there was no way he would take orders from any of them.

“My readings are all over the place,” said Riyad.

Adam knew what he meant. His ATD—even the Cadillac version he carried—was a mass of readings. Everyone here had a weapon. But not only that, but the energy signatures were fluctuating wildly. “What’s going on?”

“Unfortunately, I do not have an interface device to know what you’re experiencing,” said Panur in his TeraDon body. He pulled out a datapad and began punching keys. “Werznor has an unusually strong magnetic field, even though the gravity is only half Juirean standard. It’s small, but must be made of mainly iron. The core must be two-thirds of its diameter, still molten and circulating. This could be what’s interfering with your readings.”

Sherri, can you hear me? Adam asked through his ATD.

“I can,” she answered aloud. “But you are standing right next to me.”

Adam nodded. “Let’s get on with this. The sooner we find this Kalicar guy, the sooner we can get off this rock. Everyone, remember where we parked. Let’s go.”

* * *

Blindingly bright neon lights lit the way, marquees from the myriad business that surrounded the spaceport. There were no paved roads, just elevated sidewalks that were slick from the rain and themselves covered in mud. The inhabitants wore special-soled shoes to keep from slipping and sliding, something none of Adam’s team had with them. And the extremely light gravity didn’t help, either, making the Humans lighter than normal and unable to gain firm footing after each step. The going was slow and awkward. Panur’s sure-footedness led the way, the tall, square-jawed alien ignoring the cold and rain as only an immortal mutant could.

There were no natives on Werznor, just one massive settlement of immigrants that had grown from a pirate hideout twenty years before to become the largest center for the specialized buying and selling of just about anything one was willing to buy or sell. Adam had been on a dozen worlds like this before, although Werznor would have to rank among the top five for filth and depravity. The team instinctively ducked as a series of flash bolts lit the gloom, before two long-limbed, green aliens splayed out on the mud in the middle of the street. Their killers never appeared, just a horde of young urchins who stripped the bodies clean in a matter of seconds. Adam raised an eyebrow. It was impressive how efficient they were.

“We are heading for a place called the Consortium,” Panur yelled back through the din of the crowded city. “It’s a large open-air marketplace for any assortment of contraband. It should be just ahead.”

The town was a horrific mess close to the spaceport, but the farther they got from the landing field, the more packed and squalid it became. That was unusual. Most depravities were outside the gates of a spaceport. Not on Werznor.

The entrance to the Consortium was more of a boundary than an actual place. The streets widened and became lined with awning-protected kiosks and booths manned by every imaginable species of alien in the galaxy. Although not merchants themselves, Adam did spot a few Gracilians meandering through the crowd, water glistening off their smooth black skin as they scoured the stations for minor treasures. They were the galaxy’s premier collectors of Aris artifacts, so they had a constant presence on Werznor. But the really good stuff wasn’t to be found out here in the open. That was reserved for private showings behind closed doors and protected by vicious guards.

The planet Werznor was nine light-years from where Adam knew the ancient Aris homeworld had once been. It was also the first settlement outside the infamous Zaniff Asteroid Field, where most of the Aris artifacts originated. In the distant past, a large chunk of the shattered homeworld drifted into the Cadonic star system and then broke apart, forming the field. It was rich in finds, and everyone knew it.

At first, the treasure trove was a closely held secret among the Cadonic and the Incus, as they collected and studied the artifacts. Then the Gracilians became involved and started buying up everything they could get their hands on. A gold rush soon erupted in the area, and roughnecks of all kinds flocked to the Field. The Cadonic tried to control the activity, and they did an admirable job until Kracion showed up and started irradiating the Dead Worlds. Although this part of the galaxy wasn’t affected, it still caused ripple effects in the region. Most planet-wide governments stopped policing surrounding star systems and concentrated on only their own, preparing for the inevitable. Either that or they attempted to keep desperate refugees from overrunning their systems.

The Zaniff Field was left unguarded, and even at the height of Kracion’s reign of terror, scavengers raked the area for treasures, using Werznor as their primary marketplace. The population of the planet was transient and uncouth, meaning civilization never came to the world. Instead, everything was temporary and fleeting, even life. Adam thought it would be a miracle if they could find an alien who worked on the planet nine years before. Most of the buildings and kiosks he passed weren’t even here a year ago, that much he was sure.

But he had to try.

He stopped at a kiosk and slipped in under the canopy to get out of the rain. A scrawny, four-eyed alien about four feet high watched him with curiosity. At least Adam thought he did. All four eyes were shifting radically in every direction, making looking at the thing nauseating.

“You seek artifacts?” the thing prattled. “Best selection, best prices.”

Adam moved in closer to the booth as Sherri stepped next to him. Riyad and Panur remained outside in the rain.

“A gift, perhaps?” the alien asked, noting the mating pair standing before him. “Aris jewelry, very rare.” He removed a tray of green stones, most attached to silver chains, or joined together in bracelets. Adam knew they were fake. The Aris were not into jewelry, at least they hadn’t been for at least a hundred thousand years before they disappeared.

“Very interesting,” Adam said as he leaned over to take a closer look. Sherri tugged on his arm.

“Let’s go. It is Kalicar we seek,” she said with a pout. “Pay the being for a trinket and then ask about Kalicar.”

Adam passed a green Juirean credit chip to the merchant. “Do you know Kalicar? I understand he has some of the rarest artifacts. I will pay much more for information as to his location.”

The alien took the chip.

“I know not of Kalicar,” he said. “But if you come to the back, I will show you my rare stock. I do not keep it on display.”

Adam instinctively shook his head. He had no idea what the gesture meant to the alien, but by now, he didn’t care. He thanked the four-eyed creature for his time and stepped back into the rain. The alien did not offer an exchange for the JC, not even a piece of fake Aris jewelry.

* * *

The team proceeded along the pathways of the Consortium, occasionally stopping to ask about Kalicar. Either he was no longer here, or no one was willing to talk.

“Follow me,” Panur announced suddenly.

Not questioning the instincts of the mutant, Adam and the others followed like obedient children. Along the way, Panur ducked into a tent whose fabric had once been white canvas. It was now a dull grey.

“This is some kind of restaurant,” Sherri reported.

“Yes, and I’m hungry,” Panur answered as he moved up to a counter with displays of mostly still-bloody meat in trays and under glass.

“I thought you only ate pure energy,” Riyad said.

“I used to—still do. But this body craves organic energy, as well. It is a rare and delightful experience for me. Allow me this pleasure.”

Sherri looked at the offerings. “I don’t think you’re going to get much pleasure out of this stuff. Only a severe case of indigestion or worse. Alien diarrhea, now that’s gotta suck.” She scanned the room for blood samplers. She didn’t see any. “Besides, how would you even know what’s safe to eat?”

“They have test strips,” Panur said, pointing to a dispenser on the counter. “Swipe the food and then the inside of your mouth. It will tell you if it’s safe.”

“I think I’ll pass.”

“Have it your way. I’m going to feed. Relax, all of you. At least it’s dry in here.”

He had a point, and soon, Adam, Riyad and Sherri sat on one side of a rickety table while Panur wolfed down a variety of alien meats, stew and beverages on the other. The Humans had a fully-stocked galley back at their ship. They would wait until they got back to eat.

A restaurant worker approached the table. He was a tall, thick-shouldered being with a thin but constant coat of black hair covering his exposed areas, including his face.

“Is there anything else you would like?” he asked politely.

“No, thank you,” Panur said, his mouth dripping with blood from the still-warm carcass on which he was munching. He’d been given no utensils, so his fingers were also covered in the red stain.

“Perhaps … information then,” the alien said cryptically. Panur didn’t stop eating, but he did lock his eyes on the tall creature.

The mutant swallowed hard, downing his latest bite. “Yes, information would be helpful … and richly rewarded. What information do you have?”

“You seek Kalicar. I can direct you.”

The Humans hung on every word but let Panur do the talking.

“How much for this information?”

“A thousand. He has heard you are asking about him. He also seeks an audience, especially with TeraDon of the Gradis.”

A sour look clouded Panur’s face. He wanted to keep a low profile during the mission; he never imagined TeraDon Fief would be known this far outside the normal range of the Gradis Cartel. But this was a criminal world. Of course, the Cartel would be active here.

“Very well; pay him, servant,” Panur said to Adam.

The Human pursed his lips at the mutant, but then pulled out two yellow chips and passed them to the waiter.

“The end of this pathway, turn left. At the end, a building with a red circle outside. He is there, waiting for you.”

The alien slinked away.

Panur grinned, his lips stained red, his teeth covered in blood and sinew. “Progress!”

Adam nearly puked.

Chapter 6

The walk to the meeting place was uneventful, except for being wet, sloppy and longer than expected. The location was just outside the boundary of the Consortium, in one of the first semi-permanent structures along the road. The symbol on the wall was a red circle with a starburst in the center. It appeared to be a logo of some kind. No printing accompanied the icon.

Panur led the way; Adam let him. An immortal mutant genius was a good shield against anything bad that might be waiting for them inside.

The interior was dark, as was everything on Werznor, and the room smelled of curry. Adam didn’t like curry. They were in a room lined with crushed and stained sofa pads shoved up against the walls, with three aliens of different species splayed out on them, their assorted of yellow and blue eyes glassed over as if in a trance. A thin haze drifted in the air, the source of the smell. It was an intoxicant of some kind, and Adam hoped they wouldn’t have to stay in here for long. As a general rule, alien drugs had much the same effect on Humans as they did on everyone else.

Another alien emerged from behind a curtain of thin, decorated cloth and motioned for them to follow. None of the creatures on the pads gave any indication they even knew they were there.

After a short walk down an impossibly narrow hallway, the team was directed into a large office where a pencil-thin alien with brilliant red skin sat behind a table. Two other aliens of a hardier breed stood stoically along the wall cradling Xan-fi rifles in their thick arms.

The red-skinned alien peered at the team with unblinking silver eyes. The contrast was incredible, making the orbs glow with a fiery intensity.

“You seek an audience with me, TeraDon Fief.” The voice was deeper than Adam expected and with a slight vibrato. “Why is the Gradis so interested?”

“I come not representing the Gradis, but on a more personal mission.”

Rather than setting the alien’s mind at ease, the statement made him tense.

“I seek not to offend the Cartel. Is this visit sanctioned, or are you running an independent operation of which your superiors may not approve?”

“This has nothing to do with the Cartel,” Panur said impatiently. “I’m only looking for information.”

“What information?”

“About where you acquired a supply of Aris artifacts which you eventually sold to the Gracilians.”

Kalicar leaned back in his chair and stretched out a thin grin. “You are looking for my supplier, wondering how it is that I can acquire such rare and expensive items. You should know I will not tell you. The secret is how I maintain my inventory.”

“We’re not looking to go into business against you,” Panur said. “We’re simply tracking what became of another item from the original find. This has nothing to do with competition.”

Kalicar eyed the three Humans standing behind Panur. He nodded imperceptibly, and the guards aimed their weapons at Adam and the others.

“Your partners are Humans,” Kalicar announced. “Three of them. That is a formidable entourage when seeking merely information.” He then narrowed his silver eyes at Adam. “And although I admit to very infrequent contact with Humans to the point where they all look alike to me, this one does seem to look familiar. Who is he?”

“He is of no importance,” Panur stated firmly. “I seek information, and I am willing to pay for it, many times over its market value.”

Kalicar returned his attention to Panur, his interest piqued by the mention of credits.

“How much are you willing to pay?”

“That would depend on the value.”

Kalicar nodded again. “Very well, what is this information you seek?”

“Nine standard years ago, you—”

“Nine years!” Kalicar interrupted. “You seek information about a transaction I did nine years ago?” He laughed and looked at his guards. “I can barely remember what I sold nine days ago, let alone nine years in the past.”

“You don’t have records?”

“Yes, I have records, in a manner.” He motioned at the room. “But they are in various locations. Even this building was not here nine years ago. I have had many head stations. You seek the impossible; however, I will still exact a fee from you simply for taking my time.”

“It was a cache of nine brown boxes and a supply of deteriorated text parchment, nothing like a service module or living utensil.”

Kalicar frowned, his forehead creating stark white lines in the red skin.

“You remember the transaction,” Panur said, reading the alien’s body language.

“I may.”

“Why? What was unusual about this transaction?”

“Five thousand credits before I say more.”

Panur was taken aback by the demand. He glared at the black marketeer before speaking over his shoulder to Adam. “Give it to him.”

Adam glanced at the guards. He’d already disarmed the firing circuits in the weapons with his ATD, so he had no fear of them. He was wondering why Panur didn’t just grab the uppity alien by the neck and pulled him across the table. But then Adam obliged, pulling the credits from a satchel and stepping around Panur to lay them on the table. Again, Kalicar’s hypnotic eyes remained glued on Adam.

The alien took the chips and placed them in a box on the tabletop.

“Yes, I remember the transaction. It was one of the highest amounts paid for such small items.”

“We know who you sold them to,” Panur began. “What we need to know is whether or not there were other items you sold from the Lot and who you got them from.”

“I will say there were no other items sold. That was all included in this particular shipment. But I will not tell you where I got them.”

“I told you we’re not looking to compete by stealing your supplier. We just need to know what became of the other items in the Lot.”

“Other items? How would you know there were other items?”

“We know how many units should have been in the Lot. We are looking for one in particular.”

“Which one?”

Now it was Panur’s turn to grin, keeping the bulk of his teeth covered else Kalicar see the expression as a death challenge.

“That I will not tell you. I’m content to know that you did not sell it. All I want to learn is who bought this missing item. And for that, I need to ask your supplier. Nothing else.”

Kalicar’s head bobbed side to side. “I still cannot tell you, except to say it was not from a common source. For another ten thousand, I would consider telling you, although I cannot guarantee I will.”

“This is stupid,” Sherri suddenly blurted. “We’re not going to give you ten thousand credits without knowing if you’ll tell us or not. Let’s stop screwing around. He knows. Just get it out of him.”

The guards lifted their weapons higher and took a step closer, the barrels of the Xan-fis now aimed more at Sherri than the others.

“So, they are more than just guards,” Kalicar said through an amused grin. “And now I begin to recall. Your associates, TeraDon Fief, are famous Humans. I cannot recall how I know them, just that I do, particularly that one.” He pointed a boney finger at Adam. “Now, I believe our business is concluded. You will not provide additional funds, and I will not provide additional information. Even though you say you are not on Cartel business, I still do not want to suffer the potential wrath of the Gradis by letting the situation escalate further. Leave, TeraDon Fief. Leave now.”

Panur shrugged and let out a deep sigh.

“Unfortunately, that will not happen. We tried to be diplomatic, but that did not work. Now, I must insist you tell us where you got the Aris artifacts. And I insist you tell us now.”

Adam and Riyad stepped closer to the guards, almost to the point where the rifle barrels pressed against their chests. The steely eyes of the sentries met those of the Humans.

Kalicar bobbed his head again. “So, it must be. Guards, dispose of this nuisance.

Adam enjoyed that priceless moment of discovery when aliens realized they were in some deep shit. This time was no different. Even though they knew they would be showered in alien blood at this distance, the guards still pulled their triggers. When nothing happened, they pulled again, and again, before reality struck. Reality came in the form of two right crosses to the thin alien cheekbones. One was dead before he hit the floor, the other soon to join him with a shattered skull and broken neck.

Panur reached across the desk and grabbed Kalicar by the neck. Using his mutant strength, now manifested in the body of TeraDon Fief, Panur effortlessly lifted the alien from his chair and pulled him across the tabletop before forcing him to his knees in front of the mutant.

“We tried nicely,” Panur said with a lilt in his voice. “Now, it won’t be so nice.”

“I cannot tell you!” Kalicar yelled.

“Why not? It’s just a supplier of Aris remains. What’s so secret about that? There are thousands of scavengers and miners doing the same thing.”

“This is different.”

Adam stepped up beside Panur. “Different enough to die for?”

Groveling before Panur, the alien looked again at Adam, this time his expression displaying shock.

“I know now. You are Adam Cain! I recognize you from the broadcasts. I thought you were a myth.”

“Not hardly,” Adam said. “Now, tell us. Where did you get the items that you sold to the Gracilians?”

“Vo’lash Brill. I got them from Vo’lash Brill.”

“Who is he?” Panur asked.

“He … he is a Cadonic official, one of those who oversee the Zaniff Field and the Cardonic collection of artifacts.”

“I didn’t know the Cadonic had a collection,” Adam said.

The Cadonic star system was the location of the Zaniff Asteroid Field, the site of the richest Aris find in history. At first, the natives kept the artifacts to themselves, selling off a few items to the Incus for study. But when news got out about the Aris and who they were, the system was overrun by treasure hunters. Eventually, they conceded and instituted a system of licensing and recordation of the finds. These days, they served more as a clearinghouse for the recovered artifacts rather than a police force. But because of this, they seldom retained any of artifacts for themselves.

“Explain,” Sherri demanded.

Kalicar nodded. “Occasionally, odd finds come through that defy classification. When they do, the Cadonic record the items before bringing in experts to determine which category to assign the salvage fee. Vo’lash has been isolating rare finds for me for a long time, and for a handsome profit. But what he is doing is illegal on Cadon. That is the reason I did not tell you. It was not because I did not want to. It was to protect Vo’lash.”

“I’m sure it was,” Riyad said from the doorway where he stood guard. “You’re such a compassionate being. I can see that in you.”

Kalicar firmed his jaw. “He provides me with the inventory I need to survive. He is my primary source. That is why I do not grovel with the others in the Consortium. My products are of the rarest quality.”

“Where does Vo’lash work?” Panur asked.

“At the Recovery Center in Hi-dor, on Cadon. He is a First Level Inspector.”

“Anything else you want to tell us?”

“No, except that I will say nothing of this visit. Vo’lash need not—”

Panur reached down, and with a lightning-quick snap of his fingers, crushed the neck of the alien.

Adam was shocked at the suddenness of the assassination. He was about to say something but then changed his mind. Kalicar had to die. They couldn’t take the chance of his linking with Vo’lash.

“We can go now,” Panur announced nonchalantly as he spun on his heel and headed for the door,

Sherri raced forward and removed the credits they’d paid Kalicar from the box on his table, along with a sizable additional stack.

“A little profit never hurt anyone,” she grinned at Adam.

Chapter 7

The cold, icy rain hit them like a sobering slap to the face. The team had a long, soggy walk ahead of them, and it seemed darker outside than before. The star of Werznor may be setting, but Adam couldn’t tell through the thick, grey overcast.

Adam was blinded suddenly by a brilliant flash from across the street; several other bolts followed the first. Every member of the team was hit, including Panur. Adam saw the raw burn on the mutant’s arm and the pure anger on his face. Even though the flesh of the TeraDon body was scorched, most of the energy was absorbed by Panur’s inner system. His eyes were a brighter blue than before.

Everyone dove unceremoniously into the muddy muck of the street seeking cover. Adam scanned the area with his ATD, searching for the source of the ambush. It was hard to tell. Between the intermittence signal caused by the planet’s core and the plethora of additional weapons in the area, it was hard to tell which were shooting. Then he checked the battery readings. Most carried full charges, but some didn’t, the ones that had just fired. He set out disarming those.

Riyad and Sherri had their MKs out, returning fire in the general direction of the attack. They drained their first battery packs and slipped in more. Their basic ATD’s could detect energy signals, but they couldn’t disarm the weapons. Adam’s was the only ATD that could do that. Even so, Riyad and Sherri knew who was firing, and they made the most of their shots.

“See, Panur!” Riyad yelled. “This is why we need full ATDs!”

Enemy fire was down significantly, which was both good and bad. Dozens of energy sources were moving, but now the bad guys merged with the rest of the population and disappeared.

Panur grabbed Sherri and Riyad by their clothing and pulled them out of the muck. Adam was on his feet a moment later. They ran back into the Consortium, knowing that was the only way to the spaceport. They were the only ones running, which meant everyone else was in their way. Kiosks exploded as bodies were thrown into the displays. Three stampeding Humans could do a lot of damage on their own. But add in an immortal mutant trapped inside the body of a six-and-a-half-foot-tall alien, and it became exponentially worse.

Even so, it took thirty minutes of all-out sprinting for the team to make it back to the ship. Although they’d run through a torrential downpour, each of them was still covered in mud when they arrived. Riyad was at the controls a moment after entering and firing up the gravity generators while charging the chem engines for liftoff. It was a five-minute warm-up procedure, which during that time Adam and Sherri stood guard near the airlock with two of the BAR super-rifles they’d brought from Navarus. The craft wasn’t a warship, so it’s exterior plating was vulnerable should a concerted assault be launched. A strategic hit to a critical component and they would be stranded on Werznor.

“Was that Kalicar’s people shooting at us?” Sherri asked anyone within earshot.

“They didn’t have time to organize,” Adam answered. “I disabled twelve weapons. That’s a pretty big force.”

“They were there to stop us from learning the secret of the artifact’s origins,” Panur said. “This indicates we are on the right trail.”

“And they were living beings and not service modules,” Adam said. “That tells me Kanan doesn’t know what we’re doing.”

“That is not necessarily true,” Panur corrected. “Who would want to stop us from acquiring the Code if not Kanan? Whoever has it cannot possibly know what it is, not without a translation of the corrupted documents. And only Lila and I know the full extent of their meaning.”

“Unless the Gracilians do, too.”

“They do not have the originals. Even with copies, they could not read the underlying layers. They would have only a portion of the puzzle.”

“Yeah, that’s all well and good,” Sherri said. “Someone is still trying to kill us.” As evidence, she showed the perfectly round burned-out section of her shirt. “This hurts like a bitch. It’s been a while since I’ve hit with a Level-2 bolt.”

“And look at me!” Panur said proudly. He’d taken a hit directly to the chest. Even though the raw, red skin was already healing, he still reveled in the idea that he’d been shot. In all the time Adam had known him, he couldn’t remember a time when Panur took a bolt and felt it. All the other times he’d been shot, it was more like a sexual experience as he absorbed the energy into his body, soaking it in and glowing white-hot. Adam had no doubt his current injury didn’t hurt, not a bit. But it was the idea that his body was damaged that was such a thrill for the mutant.

“I’m glad you’re enjoying your wound, Panur,” Adam said sarcastically. “And unlike you, ours hurt like hell. Here’s another ruined shirt.” He’d been a hit in the shoulder. Level-2 shots weren’t fatal to a Human, but a little bit higher and to the right, he would have taken a bolt to the face. That would surely leave a scar.

“Not only that,” Sherri snapped, “but I thought this was supposed to be an easy mission, no need for violence.”

Adam shrugged. “Then you haven’t been paying attention,” Adam said. “None of our missions are easy and without violence.”

“No shit!”

The ship suddenly shot into the air without clearance from the control building. Exhaust flames fried several of the aliens on the ground, while Riyad dodged several ships in the skies above Werznor as he blazed through an escape vector. The rest of the team joined him on the bridge.

“Course plotted and locked in for Cadon,” he announced. “It’s fairly close, so the flight time is only fourteen hours, even in this rust bucket.”

“Cadon will be different,” Adam stated as he looked around at his pitiful excuse for a team, muddy, bloody and soaking wet. “It’s an A-Prime world, so let’s try our best not to kill someone.”

Riyad smiled his trademarked brilliant white smile, made even brighter by the layer of dark mud on his face. “No promises, my friend. If they try to kill us first, all bets are off. Besides, I find the civilized places to be the most fun to fuck up.”

* * *

Wolfgang Stimmel took over a former residential apartment tower in the middle of Lanix, and not far from the government building where the Gracilian Aris vault now sat empty. His main operation was underground in the desert, not far from the city. That was where he stationed most of his troops.

With both the Expansion and Union respecting the mutual deterrent of his hidden dark matter bombs, Stimmel felt confident there would be no attack against him. The recent operation by Adam Cain and Riyad Tarazi was an attempt to steal back the dark matter collectors, and not against him personally. Their mission was doomed from the outset. The units were safe, and nowhere near Gracilia, although he did retain several of the DM cubes as insurance.

For the moment, he felt secure, basking in the lavish appointments of the penthouse suite, twenty-nine Gracilian stories above the ground, and with a spectacular view of the mountains to the west. He brought in decorators to refurbish the suite to his exacting standards; after all, he’d only recently stepped down from his position as a high-ranking official of the largest corporation in the galaxy. He was fabulously wealthy and used to the finer things in life. He had to admit, but he preferred the verdant panorama of Gracilia to the depressing view he had on Woken, that of the squalor that was the city of Essen. For the nine years he served in the position of Regional Director, he seldom ventured from the MK complex, and only then to go to the spaceport for flights off the planet.

But Gracilia was different. There were very few people on the planet, except for his security personnel and the native Gracilians he allowed to resettle. The Gracilians were the only exception to his rule of no natives on the worlds he owned. He did this for a couple of reasons, both pragmatic.

First, he needed the Gracilians’ expertise with all things Aris. They were his new allies in the fight against the rest of the galaxy, a fight that was sure to escalate. He needed their knowledge of dark matter, of the service modules, and now of the mysterious thing called the Formation. And second, by allowing the Gracilians back to their homeworld, when no others could, the natives felt special, privileged. It made them even more loyal to him than they already were.

He’d even made a Gracilian his valued second-in-command. His name was Primor Jenkic, and he earned the position not only because of the politics of the appointment but because he was also a brilliant scientist—as were most Gracilians.

Primor was in the suite with Stimmel, holding a datapad and about to give a report. From the clouded black eyes and pursed lips, Stimmel could tell Primor was nervous giving the report, not sure how he would react. That was another thing the Director liked about the Gracilians. He could read them like a book.

“Adam Cain and others left Navarus twenty-one days ago and made landfall on the planet Werznor.”

Primor transferred the image on his pad to a holographic field on the wall opposite the suite’s enormous plate-glass window. It was a video of a firefight taking place on a crowded and filthy street. All four members of Cain’s team were hit, including a tall, good-looking alien of unknown race.

“Who is shooting at them?” Stimmel asked.

“Unknown.”

The image froze on the tall alien and then zoomed in.

“Who is he?”

“Facial recognition has identified him as TeraDon Fief, a high-ranking official in the Gradis Cartel.”

“The Cartel! Why is Cain working with the Cartel?”

“It is only a guess, but the planet they are on is a localized center for crime and contraband. Perhaps he is an advisor brought in to assist.”

“Assist with what? What are they doing there?”

Primor referenced the pad again. A graphic of the planet appeared on the screen, with a written summary of its vitals. The language was Earth German.

Primor continued with his verbal report.

“Werznor is one of the prime locations for the buying and selling of Aris artifacts. For the underground market, it is the largest.”

“They must be looking to buy something,” Stimmel posited.

“They met with a local vendor name Kalicar Qasnanic. He was found dead in his office shortly after Cain’s visit, along with two of his guards. The Humans—and Fief—have since left the planet, remaining only three standard hours. I would assume they either found what they were looking for or know now where to find it.”

“Logical, as always, Primor. Where are they going?”

“The tracker is following them. They are in an old freighter; they are easy to follow.”

“That tells us something, too,” Stimmel said. “They are using a nondescript starship; they don’t want to attract attention. Whatever they’re looking for, they don’t want anyone else to know they’re looking for it.”

“It must have something to do with dark matter, perhaps another collector,” Primor ventured.

“Possibly, but DMCs are well-known, and the discovery of another one would be impossible to hide. I think this is something else.”

And that something else, Stimmel mused, has to do with the Formation.

“Primor,” Stimmel said aloud, “ready my DM ship. I have somewhere I need to be.”

Chapter 8

The trip to Cadon was so short that Adam and his two Human friends barely had time to clean up, tend to their wounds and get a little rest before they were entering the system. Panur’s inaugural bolt wound was already healed by then, sped up by the mutant’s enhanced healing capacity. He expressed disappointment when the last traces of redness faded away, wishing it would have at least left a scar so he could show Lila.

A little research through the Galactic Library told them enough about Cadon to pinpoint the city of Hi-Dor and the government Recovery Center, where Aris artifacts were cataloged. Hopefully, the official Vo’lash wouldn’t give them any trouble. Adam was pretty confident he wouldn’t, not with them knowing how he’d been selling rare Aris contraband under the table for years. And being a government bureaucrat, Adam was sure he would have better records than Kalicar. The old freighter’s landing jets should still be warm by the time they had the information they needed and were back in space. If there was an interested second party searching for the Code, he didn’t want to give them time to pick up the team’s scent on Cadon.

* * *

Although Cadon was a civilized and sophisticated planet, it was still alien. The natives were dirt dwellers, so their city expanded underground, rather than along the surface. Therefore, the capital city of Hi-Dor was not much more than a vast array of metal canopies protecting the entrances to the labyrinth from the elements. To Adam, it reminded him of Castor, a planet in the Fringe. But the inhabitants of Castor lived underground because the air was too thin and toxic on the surface for them to survive. On Cadon, the natives lived underground because they wanted to.

Cadon was part of the Incus Federation, a loose affiliation of planets near the outer edge of the galaxy yet still technically in the Kidis Frontier. The Federation never fully considered themselves part of the Kidis, preferring their own small association to that of the larger entity. At one time, the region was considered backward and primitive. But then the Incus—a race of worm-like creatures—began manufacturing some of the best-quality weapons in the galaxy. Credits flowed into the area, and prosperity soon followed.

And then came the discovery of the Aris artifacts, which brought instant fame and fortune to Cadon. Not only that, but the Federation began an all-out propaganda campaign designed to enhance its image. They were now within the Aris Sphere, the birthplace of all Prime life in the galaxy. After Kracion’s demise, enterprising entrepreneurs even began hosting tours of the area once thought to hold the Aris homeworld. Although the name of the planet was a mystery, enterprising beings soon coined the name Ari as the home of the Aris. The tours were popular for a while until word got out that all they did was take high-paying customers out to a rocky region of space and make wild claims without evidence that this was the Aris system. Once word got out that this was mostly a scam, the tours dried up.

But the artifacts found within the Zaniff Asteroid Field were real. And it was no wonder that the Cadonic first discovered them. After all, they liked to dig.

* * *

Finding the entrance to the misnamed Recovery Center Building wasn’t hard; it was more of a hole in the ground than a building. The facility was on every map and navigation system since this was where miners and scavengers were supposed to bring their finds for official sanction. Adam estimated this accounted for about thirty percent of all the artifacts discovered. The majority simply disappeared in the cargo holds of ships destined for ports across the galaxy. Collectors paid extravagant sums for anything with an Aris label. Even three-billion-year-old rocks, claiming to be part of Ari, were sold off. That scam didn’t last long. The Aris homeworld was destroyed three billion years ago; the rocks of Ari would be much older. But that didn’t stop slick operators from making a few credits while they could.

Adam and his team were dressed in their best Sunday outfits, befitting their cover as assessors for the Human Orion-Cygnus Union. With their assets, it wasn’t hard for them to come up with the proper credentials. But as impressive as they were, they carried little weight on Cadon. The independent nature of the Federation made them resist any overt pressure from outside empires. Even so, it was enough to get them in the door and escorted to the office of Vo’lash Brill, First Level Inspector. They needed information about the validity of an artifact that was recently acquired by the Union. The inquiry was simply a formality, nothing serious.

It was easy for Adam to see why the Cadonic were such prolific underground dwellers. In their distant past, they used their two-inch long claws to dig burrows for their pods. Although well past the need for personal digging, they retained the evil-looking spikes on their hands. They also had enormous eyes, which Adam reasoned would allow them to see in the dim recesses of their burrows. That also explained the low lighting in the office.

Other than the claws and the obscenely large eyes, the Cadonic were all Prime; two legs, two arms and looking Humanoid, at least from Adam’s perspective. Vo’lash greeted the team members politely, not suspecting anything untoward was coming. He operated a strange-looking keyboard, customized to Cadonic hands with deep recesses to accommodate the claws with the keys inside.

“So, please tell me, what is this artifact you wish to verify? If it came through the system, I would have a record of it.”

Sherri was taking the lead this time. The Cadonic were a dual-gender society with females serving roles in all aspects of life and government. The leader of the planet was female, as was seventy-percent of her ruling advisors.

“The transaction took place nine standard years ago. Do your records go back that far?”

Vo’lash grinned. He had a charming, unassuming presence. Adam hoped it would remain that way once the true purpose of their visit comes out.

“Of course,” the native answered. Then he shrugged. “Although I am sure you are aware, not all transactions pass through the Authority. We are endeavoring to remedy that, but to date, no real progress has been made. Also, you do know you could have requested this data electronically. It would have saved you the journey.”

“We are on a multi-layered mission; this is just one of our stops.”

“Very well. Now, please give me more details. Do you know who recorded the find?”

“That we do not know. We were hoping you could give us that information.”

Vo’lash frowned. “It will be difficult unless I had a description of the item or items. Without a name, the search could be quite difficult.”

Sherri nodded. “I understand. This is what we know. It was a Lot of at least three items. One was a series of nine containers. The other consisted of ancient parchment—paper—with unknown writing on it. And then there was a third item. We’re not sure what it looked like.”

“And you say this Lot was discovered nine years ago?” Vo’lash began typing. That was a hectic time, after the discovery of the Aris and before Kracion.”

Sherri leaned in a little closer to the bureaucrat. “We do know who you sold the items to, at least some of them.”

Vo’lash shook his head. “That cannot be correct. The Cadonic do not sell…”

He stopped typing as the color on his already pale skin turned a shade whiter. “I am sorry, but without more information, I cannot help you.” He leaned back in his chair and stood up.

“Pardon me, Vo’lash Brill,” Sherri said through a thin grin. “But I do have the name of the buyer. Please run it through your system.”

The native slowly retook his seat. “And what is this name?” he asked, his nervousness evident in the timbre of his voice.

“Kalicar Qasnanic,” Sherri announced. “I believe you know him.”

The veneer of confidence vanished from the alien. “I, I do not know the name. Why should I? He is a criminal, a black marketeer.”

“I thought you didn’t know the name?”

“Of course, I know the name. I meant to say I do not know him personally.”

Sherri grimaced while cocking her head. “Then he must have dealt through an intermediary when he bought the items from you.” She twisted in her chair to look at Adam and the others. “Is that legal on Cadon, to use an intermediary rather than a direct sale? I don’t see how that would make a difference.” She looked back at Vo’lash. “Perhaps it does. Does it, Vo’lash Brill?”

“That was a long time ago,” the native blathered. “I no longer engage in such activities.”

Sherri frowned. “That’s funny. That’s not what Kalicar said only yesterday when we spoke with him on Werznor.”

Vo’lash looked around the room nervously. He knew three of his four visitors were Human. That was bad enough. But the other alien was even taller and more physically fit.

“Yes, yes, I work with Kalicar, but only for items that defy classification or were here before the restrictions were instituted.”

“Is that what happened in this case,” Sherri asked. “Were the artifacts here from when the Cadonic were doing most of the salvaging?”

“I cannot remember. I have done many transactions with Kalicar. You ask me to remember something from long ago.”

“Vo’lash, we are not here to report you. That is not our purpose. All we want to know is what happened to the contents of this Lot. We know Kalicar got two of the items. We need to know if he got all three initially, or is a third item still in inventory. Or did you sell it to someone else? Check your records. See if anything triggers your memory.”

The alien inserted his claws once again into the keyboard and began pressing. He was frightened and frustrated, making countless mistakes as he typed. Eventually, his face lit up.

“Yes, I remember now. It was indeed an older find, and quite particular. It was a sphere, badly broken, but made of a material we determined was Aris metal. At the time, it was one of the largest sections of such metal we’d found. It was placed in storage and left there for several years.” He scanned the screen before shaking his head. “All items have cleared inventory.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means they are no longer here, either lost … or stolen. At the time, theft of the older artifacts was quite common. Before, they had been curiosities. Then they became valuable as more learned of the Aris. Much of the inventory was lost.”

Adam’s heart dropped. Perhaps Vo’lash had not sold all the items. Maybe another enterprising Cadonic did it.

“But I now remember the transaction,” he said, buoying Adam’s hopes. “A broker approached me about the containment vessel, offering an enormous amount of credits. I sold it to him, along with several miscellaneous items that were inside. By then, the boxes and parchment had been separated. I sold those to Kalicar.”

“And the other items?” Sherri asked anxiously. “Who did you sell those to?”

Vo’lash leaned back in his chair, his large eyes staring at the ceiling. “It was so long ago; however, on rare occasions, I have additional encounters with the Broker. Let me remember the name. He is often evasive as to his identity.”

The way Vo’lash spoke the word made Adam capitalize Broker in his mind. Even so, it was a good bet the native never recorded the name. That would have been evidence that could be used against him.

“Aboran, something like that. Yes, Aboran Forr. That is the name of the Broker!”

Sherri let out a deep sigh. “Great, Vo’lash. Do you know how we can find him?”

The large black eyes of the native blinked several times. “I do not. He is not the kind you contact. He contacts you.”

“Shit!” Sherri breathed out.

“Pardon me?” Vo’lash said, having heard the transaction through his bug. It came out literally as shit.

“Never mind,” Sherri said. She placed her elbows on the desk, her forehead furrowed, deep in thought.

“How was the transfer accomplished?” Panur asked. “Was it in person, or did it require delivery?”

Vo’lash turned his startled attention to the tall alien.

“The transactions are handled remotely; I have to arrange for delivery.” He leaned forward and began searching his computer. “Delivery is under the guise of normal merchant transactions for non-Aris items.” He stopped and smirked. “I do not have delivery personnel of my own. I hide the shipments within legal cargo.”

A moment later, he had more information.

“It went to the planet Oberqwin and the commercial spaceport at the Sovenyen. The shipment was picked up by the Fosee Group. They are a manufacturing concern.”

“Where is Oberqwin?” Sherri asked.

“It is seventeen-and-a-half light-years from here,” Panur answered for the native. Adam shrugged. At one time, Panur memorized nearly all the Prime planets in the galaxy. He must have had an hour to kill, Adam thought sardonically.

Adam lifted out of his chair and turned toward the door. He stopped when Panur placed his fists on the desk, supporting his V-shaped upper body as he leaned in toward Vo’lash.

“You will not mention this to anyone, nor will you link with Oberqwin. If we learn you have, then we will come back here and rip your body to shreds before feasting on your bloody remains. My friends are Human; you know that is what they do to their enemies.”

“I do?” Vo’lash asked, the incongruity of the statement temporarily overcoming his fear. “That is not what I have heard.”

“Well, you have now,” Panur said awkwardly. “File the knowledge away and do as I say.”

“I will. I have much to lose by speaking.”

“Including your life.”

“I thought that was what I said?”

Chapter 9

“Do you notice that?” Sherri asked as the team stepped out of Vo’lash’s office.

“What?” Riyad asked.

“I don’t know. I was scanning for energy signals and noticed something odd.”

Adam and Riyad accessed their ATDs and did a scan of their own. The interface devices didn’t do it on their own; they had to be guided by the host.

It was there, a signal unlike those coming from weapons packs, electronic controllers and the like. Could it be?

“Dark matter?” Adam asked. He didn’t have much experience with its tell-tale signs. Sure, the supply used in dark-energy starships was evident, but this one was more subtle, but also slightly out of phase with the other signals.

“Panur, you said the signals from Gracilian-built service modules would be so weak they would have to be in the room with us to notice,” Adam said to the mutant.

“That’s right. The newer models carry only a fraction of the material than does a true Aris module.”

“Any idea of the range, because we’re definitely picking up something?”

“Fifty feet, maybe a little more, depending on the obstructions.”

“Then we have a module, and it’s really close.”

“Follow it!” Panur ordered. “It’s here for one reason only, to find the Code.”

The three Humans turned immediately to the right, heading farther along the corridor and away from the exit. If their conversation with Vo’lash was monitored, then they needed to find the service module before it could send a message to Kanan.

Adam activated the Lerpiniere field the mutants had installed in his ATD. Depending on the intensity he created, the sphere of influence could be eight feet in diameter or out to about a hundred. He compromised and gave it half power. The field was effective against the teleportation of the service modules.

The team burst into the room next to Vo’lash’s, surprising the single alien inside. The reaction from the creature was spontaneous, but his expression was blank. It was a slender being about six feet tall and with yellow-tinged skin. The eyes were a brighter yellow, and they twitched with a steady vibration. A second after the team entered the room, the alien tumbled to the floor and then slid across the surface by some ghostly mechanism that defied logic. Then it crashed headlong into the wall, spraying the drywall in blood and electric sparks. It was an android, controlled by the Gracilian service module. And then the most incredible thing happened. The now limp robot slid up the wall, before moving along the ceiling with the body dangling below.

“The module can’t teleport! It’s trapped inside the skull!” Adam yelled.

Realizing that it was not only trapped in the room, but also in the robotic body, the module fell to the floor, taking the android with it. The unit could still maneuver, and it used this feature to bash the head against the hard surface. More of the frame shattered. Another strong hit and the module broke free, bursting out of the fractured skull.

The Humans had their MK’s out, but with the speed of the orb and its haphazard zipping around the room, it was too dangerous to fire. Just then, a long, irregularly-shaped bolt of lightning flared out from the metal ball. It struck first Adam, and then Sherri, before moving along and contacting Panur. The two Humans were on the floor, writhing in pain from the intense electric shock. This was different from a plasma bolt, which caused most of its damage from the heat. This was simply a paralyzing dose of electricity. The effects were intense but temporary.

Panur, on the other hand, lived on pure energy. In most cases, the lightning would be welcome. But he was now encased in a living body not built for such intake of electricity. His internal systems absorbed the energy—as designed to do—and his temperature began to rise. As Adam recovered and picked himself up off the floor, he heard a strange sizzling sound along with a putrid smell. The TeraDon body was being fried from the inside out.

Adam leveled his MK at the service module and fired. It was a direct hit, which broke the flow of electricity into Panur’s body. The orb wasn’t fatally damaged since it could absorb a limited amount of external energy; however, the internal capacitors could overload. The force of the bolt drove the unit away, but it recovered quickly and refocused its attention on the immediate threat, that being Adam Cain.

Fortunately, Riyad let loose with a bolt of his own, sending the hovering orb slamming against another wall.

“Do something!” Sherri yelled from the floor to no one in particular. She was just recovering from her shock.

Adam considered their options, which weren’t many. It would take a lot of concentrated bolt-fire to overload the capacitors in the service module. In the meantime, if Panur pressed the fight, he could burn up the TeraDon body, and without a spare to replace it. Another option: Adam could use his ATD to create a wall of air to protect them, but that didn’t work well within an enclosed space. He would suck out all the air from the room and still not have enough to make a barrier more than one inch across.

Or he could use the static electricity to capture the orb.

He concentrated, drawing in as much of the negative ions in the air as he could to create a cloud of sparkling static electricity. He moved it to the hovering service module, encasing the globe in the flashing blue and yellow light. The orb reacted and tried to move, but Adam firmed his concentration, preventing the unit from slipping away. The lightning bolts stopped. This was working.

The anger took over. Adam began to compress the electric cloud, doing much the same as he did when creating one of his magic carpets of air. The force needed to compress enough air so that he could stand on it was incredible. He was about to see if it was incredible enough to crush a Gracilian service module.

Deformations began to form on the surface of the orb. It vibrated with increasing intensity as a loud hum filled the room. Adam steeled his resolve even more, stepping in closer, an insane look on his face as he visualized the orb buckling under his unrelenting force. The spherical shape crumbled, becoming more ragged. The hum grew louder until suddenly it stopped. The sudden silence was like a hole within the room. Adam felt the module lose power, no longer hovering but held in the air by Adam’s electric straitjacket. He continued to squeeze, wanting to compress the object down to—

“Stop!” Panur yelled.

“Why?” Adam questioned, his eyes still locked on the orb.

“The dark matter inside, if you compress it enough, the particles could come in contact, creating a fusion event.”

Adam blinked. The fusing of dark matter particles is what caused dark matter events. They were similar to black holes—like a reverse explosion—a giant vacuum on a galactic scale.

He broke his concentration, dissolving the static electricity ball instantly. The orb fell to the floor with a clang.

“Holy shit,” Sherri said. “That was close. Thanks, Panur.”

“You’re thanking Panur?” Adam said, turning to her. “I’m the one who killed the damn thing.”

“But was Panur who kept you from killing all of us.”

Adam shrugged.

“There must be other orbs,” Panur said. “Kanan would not have sent just one. And not all need be in robotic form. He knows.”

“About the Code?” Riyad asked.

“He’s always known about the Code,” Panur pointed out. “So, either he’s reasoned the Cadonic would know where it is, or he has been tracking our progress. I can virtually guarantee he knows we’re here. And it would be safe to assume he knows what Vo’lash told us. The orbs have wormhole-communications capabilities.”

“Then he knows about the Broker.”

“Let’s go,” the mutant ordered. “The race is on.”

“What about the service module?” Sherri asked.

“Bring it; I wish to dissect it on our way to Oberqwin, to learn more of their weaknesses. Now, hurry. We can’t let any more of these ancillary battles distract us from our ultimate goal.”

Adam snorted. “Tell that to the people—and things—trying to kill us. It’s not our fault.”

Chapter 10

“That’s Oberqwin?” Adam asked as he watched the globe grow in the forward viewport of the old freighter. “It’s beautiful.”

“Looks a lot like Earth,” Riyad said from the pilot seat.

He was right. The planet could be a twin sister of their homeworld, with vast blue oceans, green and brown-tinged landmasses and a generous serving of brilliant white clouds. Although most Prime worlds were similar, this one was different. It was almost too perfect.

“Why haven’t we heard of this place before?” Sherri asked as she stepped next to Adam.

“It’s location is off the traditional trade routes, at the far end of the Kidis,” Panur offered from behind them.

The mutant had been off slightly during the three-day journey to the planet, not being as cocky as usual. Adam attributed the change to what happened with the service module on Cadon. For the moment, Adam hadn’t built up the courage yet to ask the mutant for specifics, but it was apparent he wasn’t happy being dependent on the physical form of TeraDon. It was more susceptible to outside influences, and even those coming from within. Panur often reveled in the absorption of energy, growing stronger and glowing white-hot as more was fed into him. But what would happen if he burned off his outer shell? What would be left? Adam shuddered at the thought. It could be something truly hideous, a formless blob of immortal material. At that point, Panur could undoubtedly shapeshift into something functional, but certainly nothing Adam and the others would recognize. The mutant needed his grey master body. It was designed to carry the essence of his being, freeing Panur to be himself.

At the moment, the mutant was feeling frustration, even an ounce fear. Not fear for himself, but the team. They were in the middle of a critical mission, and Panur wasn’t performing at his best. Adam could see the TeraDon body being retired upon their return, at least for most applications. Lila would insist they keep it around for special occasions.

They were vectoring on the city of Sovenyen in the southern hemisphere. This was where Vo’lash sent his shipments to the Broker, Aboran Forr. There was tension within the team, knowing that Kanan was on the trail of the Code. He or his minions could be on Oberqwin already. If not, he wouldn’t be far behind. Kanan would move heaven and earth to get the Code. He would come with all his service modules, along with any remaining DE ships that survived from his fleet. He needed the Code, and he couldn’t risk Adam’s team destroying it.

Adam and Sherri grabbed hold of the bulkhead to keep from falling as the freighter entered the atmosphere. Riyad mirrored Adam’s concern. He was so anxious to reach the surface that he came in a little hot, pushing the structural integrity of the vessel to its limits. He was a skilled enough pilot to pull it off, and seven minutes later, they sat in a cloud of excessive landing exhaust in the spaceport for Sovenyen.

Armed with datapads and MK-47s, the team was out of the airlock even before the cloud dissipated. They didn’t have time to linger, but as soon as they stepped out from the exhaust smoke, they stopped in their tracks.

“Earth-gravity,” Sherri said.

“And smell the air,” Adam added.

“We need to keep this place in mind after all this is over,” Riyad said. “What a great place to vacation.”

“Vacation, hell,” Sherri said. “Move to. And I like that it’s away from all the crap taking place in the rest of the galaxy.”

Adam laughed. “Yeah, all except for the crap we’d bring with us.”

They rushed to catch up with Panur. He, more than most, appeared to be in a hurry. Adam worried it was from the mutant’s fear of what would happen if Kanan showed up. In the past, he beat the service module by absorbing the energy the orb could deliver and then sending it right back at him. He couldn’t do that now, and not keep TeraDon’s body from turning to ash. Adam felt sorry for him. After five thousand years of being the baddest, most-powerful creature around, he was feeling vulnerable. Not that he could die, just that he may not be as much help as he was used to being. Adam hoped it wouldn’t come down to that. The team needed the immortal mutant genius more than ever. Because of that, Adam sensed a savage determination in Panur—in all of them. There was no time to play Mr. Nice Guy.

They would start with the Fosee Group. It was to the company that the Vo’lash shipments were delivered. They may be innocent of any collusion in the Code affair, knowing nothing of the Broker, Aboran Forr. Or not. Adam hoped not. He was anxious to squeeze information out of an alien, any alien.

The city of Sovenyen was smaller than Adam would have imagined, with a population of only twenty thousand, according to the Library. That was another plus in the planet’s column. He wondered if they needed a new sheriff in town?

The team secured an oversized transport to take them to the Fosee facility. The company manufactured a variety of essential items for the community, including small power units, food processors and composite building materials, but not enough for export. They were strictly a local company, and their modest headquarters reflected such.

Panur led the way through the double-door entrance of the standard-looking box-like building. From what they’d seen of the natives, they were squat creatures seldom over five feet tall. That was standard on many Earth-gravity worlds. It turned out that Humans were the exception rather than the rule. They were taller, stronger and better adapted to the gravity than most others. It was an oddity that made Humans special, even among what should be compatible races.

They were greeted by an accommodating male clerk, one of many sitting at desks in the main lobby. There didn’t appear to be a reception counter. They must not get many visitors, at least those not already familiar with the company.

“Service, please?” said the round-faced native pleasantly.

“We’re here to see Aboran Forr,” said Panur a little too forcefully.

The native was slightly taken aback by the intensity of the question.

“I regret that I know of no employee by that name.” He looked to a side desk and a female worker who also heard the statement. She shook her head, indicating she also didn’t know the name.

“Then I must speak with the main manager for the facility,” Panur demanded. Aboran may not be known to the underlings, but he was probably paying the management to cover up the illegal shipments from Vo’lash.

“I regret that is not possible without prior approval.”

“Is the manager on-site?”

“He is, but that is not the issue. Appointments must be made.”

“Where’s his office?” Panur’s voice grew louder with each question. By now, those in the room had stopped working and were staring at the tall alien with the belligerent attitude.

“Your tone is unnecessary,” said the nervous employee at the desk. “I can request an audience if you tell me what the subject of the meeting would be?”

Although the native was short, he was also thickly built, requiring the muscle mass to move within the planet’s gravity. It didn’t matter, not to Panur. With his extreme reach, he took the terrified male by the shirt and pulled him across the desk, much as he’d done with Kalicar only a few days ago. This was a side of Panur Adam had not seen. He liked it.

Panur lifted the alien with one arm until their faces were only inches apart. “Where is he?”

A trembling arm indicated a hallway to the right. Just then, a pair of uniformed native security personnel entered the room from behind the bank of desks. They were unarmed.

“Deal with them,” Panur said to the Humans as he dropped the alien and set off down the corridor.

The native security officers ran forward after Panur. Adam stepped in front of one of them, blocking his way, while Sherri and Riyad jostled to see who would face off against the other. Sherri won out.

Adam placed a palm on the chest of the first guard.

“Don’t. We’re not looking for trouble, just infor—”

The native took hold of Adam’s wrist and twisted, throwing the Human off balance. A split second later, Adam was on his knees with the guard straddling him and reaching a thick hand around from behind to clamp incredibly strong fingers on his throat. Adam didn’t see what happened to Sherri, only that she ended up prone on the floor with an alien knee pressed against her neck.

There was more commotion, and a moment later, Riyad joined Adam and Sherri on the floor as additional guards entered the room to assist. Their weapons were removed.

Adam’s shocked gaze met that of Sherri’s. What the hell just happened? he asked through his ATD.

We just got our asses kicked, that’s what. This must be a planet of Bruce Lees. Small, but powerful little bastards.

We don’t have time for this, Adam thought.

They won’t be able to do this with Panur, Riyad said, joining the conference-thought.

Hands pulled them into sitting positions, while other natives brought up metal restraints to secure the prisoners. Adam was ready for this. He resisted, as did the others. What followed next was another demonstration of how to use an opponent’s weight to your advantage. The three Humans ended up back on the floor, on their bellies, and with their arms locked in restraints behind their backs. And this was just a security team for a mid-sized local manufacturer. What were the real combat troops like?

From where he lay, Adam could see down the corridor where Panur had gone. Half a dozen guards followed, only to have four of them come sliding back toward him on the floor. Only one was in any condition to stagger to his feet. The other two guards … who knew? Riyad was right. Panur wasn’t as much of a pushover as were the Humans. Adam never thought he’d live long enough to use the word pushover to describe his race. There was a first time for everything.

A few minutes, later Panur returned down the hallway. The horde of unarmed guards cleared the way for him, having learned of his abilities. He stopped and hovered over the prisoners. Another native followed behind Panur, his face bloodied and his shirt torn.

“Release them!” the native ordered. “And return their weapons.”

The guards didn’t hesitate. A moment later, Adam and the others were on their feet, free of the shackles yet thoroughly embarrassed by the relative ease at which they were taken down.

Riyad stepped up to one of the guards.

“It’s just because we weren’t ready, that’s all. If we’d known you wanted to fight, it would have been different.”

Panur took Riyad by the arm and pulled him away.

“Let’s go. I know where to find the Broker.”

* * *

When they stepped outside, a dozen employees were milling around, alerted to the disturbance inside the administration building. The team’s transport was missing, the driver having left when all hell broke loose inside.

Panur turned back toward the entrance and the bloody executive standing in the doorway, watching them.

“We need a transport,” he called out to the native.

“Of course, of course.” The manager waved to others in the crowd, and a few seconds later, a compact car was brought up.

Panur’s tall figure could barely fit into the driver’s compartment in the front, while Adam, Sherri and Riyad crammed themselves into the back. Adam looked around at the other vehicles on the grounds. Most were like this one, small to accommodate the natives. The cab from the spaceport was an exception. They settled for what they had, and a moment later, Panur steered out of the parking lot and onto the main road.

“Where are we going?” Sherri asked as she shifted her elbows out of the men’s ribs. If Adam weren’t already intimate with her anatomy, he would be by the end of the trip.

“It’s an estate about fourteen miles from here. I have an address; I memorized the location maps earlier. I know the way.”

“Fourteen miles … like this?” she asked, shifting her body again.

“You’re just going to have to sit in one of our laps,” Riyad said, flashing his trademark white smile at his ex-wife.

She snorted and then shifted over onto Riyad’s lap, her head pressed against the car overhead. He draped his arms around her, with his hands landing on areas off-limits to him for several years.

“Sorry,” he said. “No place else to put them.”

“Find a place, or all you’ll have left are bloody stumps.”

Riyad scooted his hands down to her waist.

“What was all that about?” Adam asked. “Who are these guys? That was embarrassing.”

“Just be glad this is an Earth-like world,” Riyad said. “It just reaffirms how badass we are.”

“You mean people from Earth-like worlds?” Sherri added.

“The manager,” Adam began, addressing Panur, “he knew Aboran and where to find him. What else did he say about him?”

“They have an agreement; the manager gets a fee for looking the other way when shipments come in from Cadon, and Aboran gets his merchandise,” Panur answered from the front seat. “The Broker receives items from Vo’lash every few months.”

“What does he do with them? Who does he sell them to?”

“The manager didn’t know for sure, just rumors about a major collector of Aris artifacts.”

“On the planet?”

“That he also didn’t know. I asked. But he does know Aboran is here. He saw him yesterday.”

“Don’t you think he’s going to warn him?”

“That, I doubt. I made it very clear what would happen to him if he did.”

The rest of the trip was made in silence, except for an occasional groan or swear word as those in the backseat jockeyed for position. When they arrived at the destination, Adam, Sherri and Riyad literally spilled out the back and onto the paved driveway of the estate.

And an estate it was. It was a majestic mansion on the shores of a gorgeous alpine lake, bordered by jagged mountain peaks capped with snow. The scene reminded Adam of Switzerland or Austria, something off of a screensaver. The air was cool and crisp, placing the season in this part of Oberqwin as late Spring, judging by the amount of snow remaining on the mountains.

Once again, Adam was struck by the uncanny similarity to Earth. It wasn’t just the landscape, but also the architecture of the mansion. It was made of dark stacked stone with an arched entry resting atop a ten-step stairway. The front doors were tall and made of carved native wood. The building was three stories high with conventional windows set at intervals along the front façade and with a set of dormer windows placed within a steeply sloped roof made of aged tile. The Humans stood in awe of the structure.

Panur wasn’t so impressed. He quickly climbed the stairs to the landing and the front doors. He didn’t bother to knock, and when he found the doors locked, he simply placed a shoulder against the panels and pushed. Wood splintered, and the double doors flew open to the inside.

Adam was a step behind Panur, scrambling with the others to catch up to the mutant. He didn’t want to risk having to face a set of native security personnel without Panur around.

Entering the mansion was like stepping back in time, and a very familiar time. The polished marble floors, double circular stairway and enormous painted vases to each side of the grand foyer were breathtaking. This was more than a coincidence. This home was designed to mimic a European manor, down to the smallest detail.

The team stood gawking at the surroundings, even Panur, but not for the same reasons. He was waiting for someone to appear, someone he could interrogate. They didn’t have to wait long.

Two native males appeared together, each looked concerned and questioning who had forced their way into the home.

“You cannot be here,” one of the aliens said, stopping a respectable distance from the tallest of the invaders, Panur.

“We’re here to see Aboran Forr.”

“Do you have prearranged business with him?”

“No, just get him,” Panur demanded.

“That will not be—”

“I am Aboran Forr,” said a voice from along the catwalk at the top of the stairway. “What is your business with me?”

Adam looked up to see a plump, tallish alien with grey skin staring down at them from the railing. He wasn’t a native Oberqwin, and by the way he gingerly moved down the stairs, Adam could tell he wasn’t used to the gravity. Panur met him at the last step.

“You are the one known as the Broker?”

Aboran looked past Panur to Adam and his people.

“You are Humans,” he stated calmly. “And you have broken the door. Was that necessary? Why are you here? Surely you could have used standard channels.”

“Standard channels?” Adam shook his head. “We’re here about an item you bought from Vo’lash Brill.”

It was clear Aboran preferred to talk to the Humans rather than the other alien of indeterminant origin, which was in itself odd. No one preferred to talk to Humans, not even other Humans.

The alien frowned. “I believe I do not know that name.” His tone wasn’t convincing.

“Give it up, Aboran,” Adam said. “We know you deal with him often and run everything through the Fosee Group.”

“Are you law officials of some kind? What I transact with the Cadonic is only illegal on Cadon, as well as certain parts of the Expansion and the Union. Oberqwin is part of neither. We are a member of the Incus Federation. You have no authority here.”

Adam drew his MK-47 and held it up for Aboran to see. “This gives us all the authority I need.”

“You threaten me?” The alien didn’t appear frightened.

“That’s right unless you tell us what we want to know.”

“You have not said what you want to know.”

“It’s about an item you bought from Vo’lash nine years ago—”

“Nine years! You cannot be serious. I have done thousands of transactions with Vo’lash throughout the years. How can I remember one from that long ago?”

“Then tell us who your clients are. One of them will remember.”

“I will not reveal that. It is the reason he employs a broker—”

“He … meaning one client.”

Aboran’s mouth fell open. “No … that is not what I meant,” he stammered. “I have many clients.”

Panur stepped up in front of the broker. “I don’t believe you do. I believe you have but one, and it is he who owns this estate.”

“Ridiculous! This is my home.”

“Then your clients pay you very well. But I see by the way you walk, that you are not used to the gravity of Oberqwin. Why build a home on a planet whose gravity you cannot tolerate?

“I tolerate it well enough.”

Panur attempted to wrap his fingers around the alien’s fat neck but couldn’t quite close the grip. Instead, he shoved him against the nearest wall where he could use leverage on Aboran. The two servants ran to his aid but were stopped by Riyad and Sherri and their MKs. They weren’t anxious to tangle with the natives on a physical level, not again. The flash weapons did the trick.

“I will ask only one time, and then I will crush your skull,” Panur growled. “Who is your client, and where can we find him?”

“Release him!” a voice echoed off the marble floor and stone walls of the estate. “He doesn’t know what you’re looking for.”

Again, all eyes shifted to the top of the stairway. The three Humans gasped at what they saw.

Chapter 11

Wolfgang Stimmel, the former MK regional director, stood at the railing, looking down on the team. In a rush, things began to make sense to Adam. An Earth-like world, a palatial European manor, and a fabulously wealthy benefactor and collector of rare Aris artifacts. Adam kicked himself for not seeing it earlier.

Without fear, Stimmel moved down the stairs.

“I said release him, TeraDon Fief of the Gradis Cartel. Yes, I know who you are. I have been watching all of you during your current mission, curious as to what you’re looking for. It wasn’t until my Gracilian partners told me about the Code did I understand the urgency.”

“You know about the Code?” Sherri asked, stunned.

Panur kept the Broker pinned against the wall, content not to reveal his true identity to the Director.

“I didn’t, at first. I barely knew about the Formation. But since my move to Gracilia, I have learned much. As you have surmised, this is my home, one of several I have in the galaxy, but by far my favorite. This is where I keep most of my Aris collection, which I have to say is the most extensive in the galaxy. He moved in front of Adam. “How about a truce while we discuss our options.”

“Options?” Adam asked. “What options? You stole dark matter collectors, you almost killed us on Woken, and you cut the ATD out of my body. Why should I give you two seconds before putting a Level-1 bolt between your eyes, let alone a truce?”

“Because you want the Code. I can give it to you.”

“Do you have it?” Riyad barked. He’d almost died on Woken, as well, so he was in no mood for niceties.

“I do. I’ve had it for a long time. Of course, I didn’t know what it was until just recently.”

“Where is it?” Panur asked, releasing the Broker and letting him slump to the floor, rubbing his neck and coughing.

“I have it here.”

Stimmel saw the fire in Adam’s eyes.

“Relax, Mr. Cain. I will give it to you, no strings attached. After learning what it is, I almost destroyed it myself. But I couldn’t do it. It is an instrument of such incredible age and sophistication.”

“Don’t worry. We won’t have any such problems.”

Panur stepped up to Stimmel. “Just get it and give it to me. I will take care of the device.”

Stimmel frowned, looking at Adam and then the tall alien. He seemed confused as to who was in charge.

“If that’s okay with you?” he asked Adam.

Adam smirked. “Yeah, just do it.”

“I must warn you though; there is no time to waste. Once I learned what it was and how important it was to Kanan, I set probes along the outer Kidis looking for the signature of dark-energy starships. Since not too many of them exist, I figured if I detected any, they would belong to Kanan.”

“Did you?” Sherri asked.

“Yes, several days ago. Factoring in the speed and distance, Kanan could be arriving at any time.”

“Then you’re right,” Adam said. “We have no time to waste.”

Stimmel had just turned to walk away when an incredible rumble reverberated through the estate. Plaster fell from the walls and ceiling, raining down on everyone. Several brilliant flashes of light streaked in from outside through the open front doors.

“Adam!” Panur yelled. “Your L-Field!”

Adam was a split second ahead of him, activating the Lerpiniere field through his ATD. He set the range out to maximum, which he had no idea how far that was. Kanan was here, and he had to keep as many of the service orbs from teleporting as possible. Even still, three appeared in the middle of the lobby amidst the crowd before he could activate the field.

It took only a moment for the orbs to realize they couldn’t teleport, but that was enough time for Panur to grab one of the modules out of the air and crush it in his bare hands. The other two zipped away, climbing out of reach before stopping to fire their lightning bolts at the living beings below. They initially aimed at those closest to the hallways leading from the foyer. They were the two native servants and the Broker, Aboran Forr. They couldn’t withstand the intense electrical shock and each fell to the floor, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.

Panur picked up one of the ceramic vases lining the room and heaved it at the orbs. One was hit as the other moved out of the way. The one hit by the vase fell with the debris to the floor, where Sherri and Riyad took aim with their MKs, both at Level-1. It was enough to destroy the unit.

Stimmel had a weapon of his own, something Adam didn’t recognize. It was small with an enclosed handle grip and a pair of rods looking more like cathodes than barrels. He aimed it at the other orb. It stopped firing the lightning and hovered in place until Stimmel moved his weapon and brought the module to the ground.

He looked at Adam and smiled. “A gift from the Gracilians. They built the modules, so they designed a weapon that would be effective against them.”

“Do you have more of them?”

Stimmel nodded. “A few, but not here.”

“Look out!” Sherri yelled. “There are more coming!”

All eyes turned to the entrance. Three inert robot bodies flew through the opening, dangling in mid-air as their hovering control modules soared through the air. This was a more effective way of moving after discovering they couldn’t teleport out of the bodies.

Stimmel swept his weapon across a wide arc encompassing the three service modules. Each shuddered and fell to the floor.

“They’re only temporarily stunned, their bodies shielding them against the overload pulse,” he yelled. “Take them out with your MKs.”

The three other Humans obliged.

“There are more coming,” Adam announced. He could detect the faint signals of the dark matter particles in the Gracilian-designed units. “And so is Kanan.” His signature was different, stronger. He was a much more advanced model requiring more dark matter.

“Follow me!” Stimmel yelled. “We have to get to the vault where I keep my artifacts.”

“Is that where you have the Code device?” Panur asked.

Stimmel was already rushing away down the hallway on the right. “Sich beeilen!” he called back to the team in his native German. Adam was surprised when his translator bug converted the words to English: “Hurry up!”

They followed him down a long corridor. He opened a set of ornate doors, revealing a huge library containing thousands of bound books lining shelves and climbing the full three stories of the residence. Adam only had a moment to admire the wood-paneled room before Stimmel ran up to a code box and pressed a sequence of keys. A panel in the wall slid away. They followed the Director inside, where he stopped and entered another code sequence on a matching panel on the wall. The door slid shut a moment later with a resounding thud. Adam felt the air pressure change as lights snapped on.

“You have a means of stopping them from teleporting?” Stimmel asked Adam.

“I do. Unless they can blast open the door, we should be safe in here.”

“The door should hold, although it was designed more as a way to hide my collection rather than keep it secure.”

The Director led the team down a long stairway and to a much larger room in the sub-basement. Adam stopped for a moment and gazed at the incredible collection of Aris artifacts lining shelves and placed in lighted display boxes on pedestals. Stimmel noticed his expression.

“I’ve been collecting for a long time, almost from when the Aris kidnapped your daughter, Lila. That was big news and alerted me to the existence of the Aris. I tracked them to the outer Kidis, where I began searching for any trace of their lost civilization. I admit, I sponsored some of the first non-Cadonic expeditions to the Zaniff Asteroid Field.”

“This is all interesting,” Sherri said. “But what do we do about Kanan and his army of service modules outside? He’s not going to pack up and leave now that we’re down here.”

“We need to destroy the Code,” Riyad said. “Get rid of his reason for being here. So, where is it?”

“You will not destroy the Code,” Panur said with authority.

“Why the hell not?” Riyad snapped back.

“As the Director said, it is a valuable artifact. It must be studied, its secrets learned.”

It was Adam’s turn to protest. “You never said anything about that. If it comes down to either destroying the Code or letting Kanan have it, we’re going to destroy it.”

“That would be the last resort.”

“Excuse me,” Stimmel said. “But that’s a decision for later.”

“He’s right,” Sherri said. “So, where is it?” She looked around the room, not having a clue what the Code would look like.

“That is a new wrinkle,” Stimmel grimaced.

Adam snapped his head around to the Director. “What the hell does that mean, wrinkle?”

“It means that the Code is not here … here.”

Panur leaned over the shorter Human. “Explain yourself. Where is it?”

“It’s on the premises, but not in the vault.”

“It’s out in the open where Kanan can find it?” Riyad yelled.

“Not exactly. I have a workshop down by the lake where I study my finds. I enjoy working with a view—”

“It’s there?” all three of the Humans asked in unison.

“It is. Once I learned what it was, I took the unit to the workshop to figure out how it works. That’s where is it now.”

The low-pitched rumble of bombs going off throughout the building rattled the vault as Kanan and his service modules blasted Stimmel’s home apart. They were also outside the vault, saturating the metal security door with high-intensity electric bolts. Even if they couldn’t get through the door, they were determined to crush the building to dust and gain access that way.

Adam looked at Panur. “Do you think Kanan can detect the unit?”

He shook his head. “I have no idea.” He turned to Stimmel. “Does the Code send out any electronic signals?”

“Not that I detected. But honestly, I only began working on it yesterday, when I arrived back on Oberqwin.”

“Kanan will concentrate his efforts getting in here,” Panur said. “It’s the most logical location for the Code.”

“There is a way out of here,” Stimmel offered to everyone’s surprise.

“Out of here?” Sherri asked. “You mean out of the vault or away from the estate?”

“The vault,” Stimmel clarified. “As I said, this is more of a hiding place for my treasures than a fortified bunker. Eventually, Kanan will be able to break through. But there’s another exit at the far end of this room.”

“Where does it lead?”

“To the garden at the back of the building. From there, it’s still five hundred meters to the workshop. But most of the way is shielded by the forest, all except the first hundred meters, which is open ground. My workshop can’t be seen from the main building.”

“That’s only a temporary fix,” Panur said. “Once Kanan gains entry to the vault and finds the Code isn’t here, he’ll expand his search. I will go out and make it to the workshop.”

“You can’t do that,” Adam said.

Panur stared at him. He had already calculated the odds of success and all the possible outcomes. His body was susceptible to energy bolts. Not only that, but it was a given that Adam’s Lerpiniere field didn’t extend five hundred meters. Panur would be exposed and vulnerable to teleporting service modules, including Kanan.

“I have to go, and you know it,” Adam stated. “I can go under the protection of the L-Field.”

“What about the rest of us?” Riyad asked.

Adam grimaced. “You’re right, at some point the vault will become unprotected and the modules will be able to teleport inside.” He turned to Stimmel. “You said you have more of your cathode weapons. Where?”

“There are three more in the vault,” Stimmel announced. “That will help.”

Adam nodded then turned his attention back to Panur. “I have to tell you if I make it to the workshop before Kanan does, I’m going to destroy the damn Code. I don’t care how important or rare it is.” His gaze locked on the mutant.

Panur nodded.

“I concur. It is not what I would prefer, but our options are limited.”

Adam turned to a confused Wolfgang Stimmel. Once again, he didn’t understand the dynamic between the famous Adam Cain and the insignificant capo for the Gradis Cartel.

“Where’s this other way out?”

“Are you sure this is the right thing to do?” the Director asked, his voice trembling. “I’m not sure how many of the modules my weapons can hold off.”

“You won’t be uncovered all the time, not until I get far enough away.”

“And if you don’t get spotted and killed along the way,” Sherri stated.

“I need to go with you,” Riyad said. “As your wingman.”

Adam shook his head. “No, stay here. When the fighting starts, they’ll need your gun hand. Besides, the fewer people sprinting across the grass, the better chance of not being spotted. I’ll be fine. Think of the big picture.”

Sherri wrapped Adam in a quick, yet passionate hug. She knew there was a chance Adam could succeed in destroying the Code. But after that, there would be nothing stopping a vengeful Kanan from killing them all. In fact, that was the likely outcome no matter what they did. Even if the service module got the Code, he might still decide to slaughter them all.

Sherri released him, and Adam ran off with Stimmel deeper into the recesses of his vault.

The vault was much larger than the one on Gracilia, and better organized. Adam would have loved to live long enough to study the artifacts at a more leisurely pace, as he was sure so would Panur and Lila. Unfortunately, he couldn’t see any outcome where that would be possible. He was going out to destroy the Code, not escape with it. In fact, escape wasn’t part of the equation. How could it be? This was a one-way trip, not only for him but for everyone else—except for the damn immortal mutant. As always, he would live through everything.

Stimmel came to a door with another of the ubiquitous control panels. He quickly plugged in the code, and this time, a conventional door cracked open.

“Follow this tunnel for about twenty meters before you come to a set of stairs. The exit is disguised as a tool shed in my garden. Directly away from the house and toward the lake, you’ll see a grove of native pines. The workshop is through the forest and directly on the lake. You can’t miss it. But first, you have to cover about a hundred meters of open ground. There are a few hills, but nowhere you can hide. Once in the forest, you should be safe. In the workshop, look for a metal box about eight inches long by three inches thick. It’s not large for a device with such devastating consequences. Viel Gluck.”

Adam grabbed the Director’s collar and pulled him close. “Listen, Stimmel, this doesn’t make us buddies, not even for the few moments we have left to live. I just want to make that clear.”

“Ich verstehe. But contrary to popular belief, I don’t want to destroy the galaxy with my dark matter bombs or any of the other things I have at my disposal. By helping you destroy the Code, I may actually be saving it. That is all I want.”

Adam snarled at the Director, then turned abruptly and ran down the dimly lit hallway.

Chapter 12

Adam carefully opened the door to the shed and looked out through the crack. What he saw was frightening.

The sky was filled with black smoke, cast out from the various fires engulfing the estate. The shed sat about forty feet from the structure, in the middle of a large garden of flowers and hedges. So far, it had been spared, but that wouldn’t last. Kanan’s service modules, even as they attempted to gain entry into the vault, were ravaging the building, in the process of razing it. Eventually, a stray spark would land on the shed, and it, too, would go up.

The good news was the black smoke was hanging low in the cold, high altitude air. Wisps of it drifted down to ground level across the open field, with a picturesque stand of tall pines on the other side. The spacing of the trees and the geometric contours of how they fit together made Adam think the forest was as much a garden as the hedgerows and flower trays surrounding the shed. The lingering smoke would help.

He stepped outside of the shed, pressing his back against the side, glancing around at the remains of the estate. A tall outer shell still survived, which was the reason he couldn’t see any service modules flitting about. They were mostly inside, ripping down the structure using their robot bodies, looking to gain access to the vault by burrowing through floors and walls to reach the concrete block frame of the buried chamber.

Adam didn’t hesitate. He took a deep breath and then shot out from behind the shed, running as fast as he could in the Earth-normal gravity. It seemed strange. It had been so long since he didn’t possess unnatural swiftness when he ran, reveling in the speed and fluidity of his movements. Although he was still in excellent shape, it was as if he were moving in slow motion. Even so, sprinting across a hundred meters of open grass should only take fifteen seconds or so, a lot less during his prime. But fifteen seconds seemed like an eternity, and although the service orbs couldn’t teleport, they could move damn fast in hover mode.

He thought about using a cloud of condensed air to ride upon, but that would have taken even longer to conjure up, and the sparkling static electricity would have been like a beacon. Adam held his breath for the last few seconds of the run, expecting at any moment to get an electric blast to his back.

It didn’t happen. He entered the cover of the forest and didn’t pause. Instead, he dodged around trunks and under branches, steering slightly to the right, closer to the lake. The workshop was on the water. By hugging the shore, he would find it.

* * *

Stimmel passed the three other cathode weapons to the team, having just enough to arm them and himself. It happened none too soon. After only the briefest explanation as to how they worked, Gracilian service modules began to materialize in the room as Adam and his Lerpiniere field moved out of range. Lightning bolts filled the air, seeking out the hiding places of the occupants. They huddled behind the display podiums, soon to be showered in shape glass as the containers shattered.

But then they were on the offensive, sweeping the seemingly magic wands around the room. The weapons did not affect the Humans or mutant, only the service modules. Panur was exceedingly quick, able to target and dispatch orbs with blazing efficiency.

Sherri was doing her part, as well, albeit at about tenth the speed. One of her hands held the orb weapon, the other her MK. Not surprisingly, the former MK regional director had an ungodly amount of conventional flash weapons in the vault, along with enough battery packs to supply a small army. As soon as they knocked the orbs out of the air, the team was able to pour prodigious amounts of energy into the units, overloading their circuits and causing them to explode.

Sherri didn’t bother to count the number of service modules they destroyed, but it had to be three dozen or more. Most of the orbs arrived at the estate encased in their robot bodies. Once the field was gone, they were able to teleport out. Sherri still couldn’t help but wonder how many damn modules Kanan brought with him. And speaking of Kanan, where was he? They knew he was on site, but so far, no one had seen him. She tried to access her ATD to search for his signal, but was too preoccupied to concentrate fully. She let the thought go and returned to picking Gracilian service modules out of the air.

* * *

The workshop was a small, single-story log cabin with a full deck extending a few feet above the tranquil shore of the alpine lake. The air was still, and the water a perfect mirror for the ridge of mountain peaks on the other side. Adam was surprised he noticed. He had other things on his mind.

He crashed through the door and began scanning the interior for anything that resembled the object Stimmel had described. The room was basic, with a long and wide table set against a wall below a picture window that ran the length of the room facing the lake. A single chair was at the table. Various pieces of equipment at atop the table, along with a variety of artifacts, some shiny and new, others covered in ancient patina and even crusted rock. Adam was expecting to spot the Code device immediately. It wasn’t that easy.

Then he saw it, or what he assumed was the device. A cloth partially covered it, but the shiny metal box caught the light coming in from the open door. He pulled his MK; the level setting was already at one, the most intense. He wasn’t about to waste a moment. Blast the damn thing until it was a burned-out shell of melted circuits.

Adam pulled the trigger

The flash bolt was brilliant, more brilliant than it should have been, and for a moment, Adam was blinded. The Code device was only six feet away, so the blast and the strike happened simultaneously. But when his vision cleared, Adam staggered back before triggering the weapon again and again.

A four-and-a-half-inch-in-diameter metal ball hovered between the barrel of his weapon and the Code device, taking bolt after bolt and drawing in the energy. Unlike the Gracilian orbs, this one was tinged green, its surface appearing much older than the others. And it was older, something like three billion years older.

And Kanan wasn’t alone. More orbs streaked into the building, some blasting through the half-log walls like armor-piercing rounds, leaving splintered holes. A second later, Adam was surrounded, with the service module known as Kanan hovering only three feet away.

Adam’s MK was drained after five quick shots at Level-1. He had nothing left to send against the module. He let the weapon drop to the wooden floor with a dull thud. Any moment now, and it would all be over…

Adam Cain, a valiant effort, Kanan said through Adam’s ATD. But not as close as you assume. I arrived here one-point-three seconds before you fired, after pinpointing the center of the Lerpiniere field as it moved. It was not hard to find you or deduce why you were moving. You are not the type to desert your fellow biologics without cause.

“You have the Code device,” Adam said aloud. “There’s no reason for you to kill the others—if they’re not dead already. Just take the damn device and go.”

I will take the device, and your companions shall live, but not because I choose to let them. They have a weapon I was not aware of, and I am losing too many of my modules. I came with only a finite number. But the death of your friends is not a priority. Acquiring the device is. I will take it and leave.

A movement at the cabin’s door caught Adam’s attention. A tall, very Human-like robot padded in, its movements stiff and mechanical. It stopped a few feet from Kanan. Adam laughed when the skull separated along a centerline, revealing a tight spherical compartment, ideally suited for an Aris service module.

I learned from previous encounters, to never again get locked within a carrier.

The orb moved through the air and entered the skull. A moment later it closed. The demeanor of the automaton changed, the eyes blinking and the skin of the face cringing and flexing as Kanan took over. The robot then smiled.

“Is this better?” Kanan said aloud. He turned and took the Code device in his hands, spending no time to gawk at the significance of what he held.

“Okay, get it over with,” Adam demanded, taking a step forward. The android stood his ground.

“You mean kill you?” the robot said with even a more amused look on his face. “I am not going to kill you. Not yet. I require a biologic, many in fact. But for now, you will be my first prime test subject. With the Code device, I will be able to find what I seek. And when I do, I will test it on you. Be honored, Adam Cain. If all goes well, you will soon become an Aris, a living, breathing Aris. That is something even I could never achieve.”

Adam’s eyes expanded with anger. He could force the module’s hand by attacking. End it now and never allow himself to be—

* * *

The electric discharge was strong enough to send the Human to the floor, quivering with frenetic energy.

Kanan leaned over and scanned the vitals of the biologic. He was alive, just unconscious. The Lerpiniere field the Human’s brain interface device was creating vanished, allowing Kanan’s remaining modules to teleport back into their robot bodies. His carrier was the only one that had direct access.

He would have the robots move the Human’s body to the dark-energy ship. The mechanical emotions Kanan was feeling at the moment were real—to him. He savored the moment, thinking about how soon he would observe the transition of one biologic entity into another. But that other that would be only the first of trillions. Kanan was about to single-handedly resurrect an extinct species, and not on a single world, but thousands.

Chapter 13

The service modules disappeared from the vault. When they did, Sherri knew what was happening. Moments before, Adam contacted her through his ATD, but only so she could listen in on his thoughts … and those of Kanan. She sprinted up the stairs to the vault’s door.

“Get this damn thing open!” she yelled back at Stimmel. Riyad and Panur were a step behind.

The Director moved to the control pad and punched in the code. The door began to slide open but stopped halfway, either blocked by debris or from circuits not operating properly. Not much of the infrastructure of the estate was left, including electronics.

Panur stepped forward and placed his body into the narrow opening before shoving with all his might. The door begrudgingly gave way.

Heat, smoke and burning ash greeted the team as they entered what had once been a magnificent library lined with real books. Flames were everywhere. The stone walls still stood in stark relief, although most of the roof was gone.

“Was this necessary?” Stimmel cried out. “Why did he have to destroy my home?”

The question was rhetorical. Kanan did it because he could.

“What happened to Adam?” Panur asked. He may be an immortal mutant genius, but he wasn’t able to communicate telepathically. Lila could do that, not him.

“Kanan has taken him,” Sherri cried out as they made their way out of the building as fast as they could. There was a constant shower of falling debris from the upper floors making it dangerous to remain inside the burned-out shell. “He’s going to use him in his experiments.”

“Where are they going?” Riyad asked.

They burst into the late afternoon sunlight, which was obscured by a massive black cloud over the estate. The smell was sickening, not like that of a campfire, but like a galaxy whose wondrous variety of life was about to turn to ash.

“I don’t know,” Sherri cried. She looked around the grounds, lost and confused, not knowing what to do next.

“We must go after him,” Panur said. “We’ll get back to the ship and attempt to pick up his dark-energy trail.”

“You can do that?”

“I can try if we don’t linger too long.”

“I can track him,” Stimmel said from behind the team. He was looking back at his ruined estate, his shoulders slumped.

“What do you mean?” Riyad demanded. “How?”

The Director turned to address the others. “You have to remember; the Gracilians are my new allies. They know more about dark energy than anyone else in the galaxy.” Sherri and Riyad looked at Panur, still hidden within the façade of TeraDon Fief. “I have detection equipment aboard my ship that can track him, so long as he doesn’t get more than ten light-years ahead of us. I also have a DE ship that can keep pace with his.”

“You want to help?” Sherri asked, incredulously. “Why?”

“Is it not my life that is at risk as well? And look what the bastard did to my house. This estate has been my sanctuary for years. I made it as close to Earth as possible.” Stimmel narrowed his bright blue eyes at Sherri. “We have the Gracilian weapons; we can defeat Kanan’s service modules.”

“Will they affect him, Kanan himself?” she asked.

Stimmel shook his head. “I don’t know. The Gracilians didn’t build him. But no matter what we do, we could use help. Can you call your mutant friends, Lila, and the tiny grey creature, Panur? They have beaten Kanan before.”

Riyad frowned and stepped forward. “You do know that if we defeat Kanan and recover the Code and the Formation, it won’t be good for you. Panur and Lila will make you pay for what you’ve done. The dark matter collectors will be recovered, and the planets you supposedly own in the Dead Zone returned to the natives. You’re okay with all that?”

“Of course not,” the Director answered honestly. “But what choice do I have? If Kanan is allowed to seed thousands of worlds in the galaxy with Aris DNA, it’s just a matter of time before the Human race—hell, all races—are extinct. Whatever I have today will be gone tomorrow.”

Riyad looked at Panur. “I don’t trust him, but we need him.”

“Agreed,” Panur said.

By now, Stimmel had accepted the authority of the tall alien, even though he didn’t understand it.

Panur turned to Stimmel. “Get us back to our ship so we can pick up supplies, and I can make a link. I will have Lila—and Panur—meet us along the way. But first, we need a course to follow, along with the Gracilian weapons you gave us in the vault. Are there more, and what power source do they use?”

“I have more aboard my ship, along with ample power packs. Remember, I used to work for the largest weapons manufacturer in the galaxy. We will not be lacking for firepower.”

“It must be the right firepower when going up against Kanan. Now, we must hurry. You say your tracking system is good only out to ten light-years; Kanan will be at the limit very soon.”

“Agreed,” Stimmel said. “I have other vehicles on the property. We can be at the spaceport in thirty minutes and in space five minutes after you make your call. Let’s get the hell out of here. I can’t stand to see my home like this, but I will have the image vivid in my mind when we crush that little metal ball into a pancake. Schnell!”

Chapter 14

Adam awoke to a big surprise.

He was in a stateroom with the hum of gravity generators reverberating through the hull, undoubtedly aboard Kanan’s ship, heading for his secret base. But that wasn’t the surprise. It was the fact that he was unshackled and the door to the room unlocked.

He stepped out into the spine corridor and headed toward the bow. An expressionless robot, constructed to resemble a basic Prime male, passed him without reacting. Adam sensed he still had his ATD—along with its Lerpiniere field capability. It was a small victory, but what good would it do? He was aboard a vessel full of service modules. He could keep them from teleporting if he wanted. And then what?

He came to the unused galley and stopped at a processor station to order up a cup of alien coffee. It was the one thing he knew how to extract from any station. He took the steaming cup of salvation and continued to the bridge.

The tall android body Kanan was using was there, sitting in a chair at the nav station. It wasn’t moving; Adam figured the Aris service module was performing an electronic operation of some kind that didn’t require mechanical manipulation of keys or other controls. The android noticed when he entered.

“You are recovered!” Kanan said with a lilt in his voice. “And comfortable with your surroundings, I see.” He nodded at the cup of coffee in Adam’s hand.

“Just trying to remove the cobwebs.”

Adam looked around the bridge. Two of the shiny new orbs rested on control consoles, but other than he and Kanan, there was no other activity. Everything was on autopilot.

“You are wondering why you are free to roam the ship?” Kanan stated. “It is because you are no risk. Even with your interface device, there is nothing you can do. If you attempt to disrupt the flight, any of my modules can simply evacuate the atmosphere. We do not need it—you do. A quite effective deterrent.”

Adam took a sip of his coffee. “So, where are we going?”

“Is that important?”

“I suppose not. You mentioned you’re going to use me as a guinea pig, to test Formation combinations to create a new Aris race.”

“I did not speak in such explicit terms, but that is exactly correct. Your presence is not essential; any biologic would do. I have experimented with many. However, I find irony in the fact that it will be you who I try first with the proper combination as determined by the Code device. It is only fitting.”

“Has this been your plan all along, to find the Formation and create a new Aris race?”

“Of course not. I worked with the Gracilians for many years before I learned of the existence of the Formation. Before that, I assumed it was destroyed long ago, along with the rest of the Aris civilization. I sought out the key to the vault only to test the validity of the rumors. You were there when I found they were true. After I recovered the final container of disks, I returned to the vault and searched for the Code device. It wasn’t there. That was frustrating, and there was a good chance the device had not survived. Therefore, I dedicated an appropriate period to study the interactions of various combinations to see if I could detect a pattern. I could not. It was fortuitous that at about the same time I conceded defeat, you began the search for a long-lost Aris artifact. I received periodic updates as to your progress. The timing would be important. If you found the Code before I, you would surely destroy it.” The robot smiled. “As it turned out, it was close.”

“Glad I could keep it interesting.”

“The interesting part is still to come.”

* * *

The only crew aboard Stimmel’s DE ship was him and the remainder of Adam’s team. That made Riyad more comfortable, knowing that a group of the Director’s henchmen wasn’t lurking around. He didn’t trust the German, suspicious of his sudden conversion from enemy to ally. Maniacs like him didn’t accept their vulnerability as quickly as had Stimmel. They always saw themselves as being above the fray.

Riyad was at the controls; his default assignment everywhere he went these days. That was fine with him. He enjoyed being the driver instead of the passenger. It gave him a better sense of control, even if the ship was now on autopilot, following the faint and distinct signal from Kanan’s vessel far ahead of them.

Stimmel had a very sophisticated dark-energy detection system aboard the ship, something that even impressed Panur. About the best the mutants had come up with was a passive system used to monitor approaches to star systems, guarding for any vessel that might be carrying dark-matter bombs. But Stimmel’s detector was vastly more sensitive and with greater range. Riyad could envision an array of buoys that could track nearly all dark-energy movement in the galaxy. He’d run into a lot of nasty stuff throughout the years, but dark matter and dark energy were some of the scariest. It was hard for him to fathom that a couple of suitcases full of the stuff could destroy an entire galaxy. Such were the mysteries—and terrors—that inhabited the universe.

Panur was at the nav station, plotting their course and making projections. Sherri and Stimmel were aft in the cargo hold, inventorying the munitions.

“I believe I know where he’s going,” the mutant announced without joy. Riyad had noticed a marked change in the demeanor of the mutant during the mission. He wasn’t the same cocky Panur of old. It was as if he was assuming not only the form but also the vulnerabilities of TeraDon Fief. Riyad didn’t like it. He needed Panur at the top of his game if they expected to defeat the service module.

Even with all his concerns, Riyad did perk up at the news. A journey without a destination was boring and took much longer. At least it seemed to.

“Where’s he going?”

“If he does not deviate from his present course, Kanan is headed for the AD-14c star system, home to the old Aris Technician base out near the edge of the galaxy.”

Although he’d never been there, Riyad had heard of the place.

Aris society was made up of two classes, the Privileged and the Technicians. There may have been more, but Riyad never heard of any others. The Privileged were the intellectuals of the race, the ones who initially designed the experiment. The Technician class was the maintenance crew who monitored the experiment throughout the eons.

Because of the incredibly long time frame involved, the Privileged built an artificial world to house their hibernation pods, one that was self-sustaining and able to move through space to avoid the dangers that would undoubtedly arise over the billions of years of the experiment. The Technicians, on the other hand, did not have a world of their own. Instead, they moved from location to location as the need arose, made possible by their more frequent awakenings and technical abilities.

The last base for the Techs was within the general region of the extinct Aris home star system, on a desolate grey world with barely an atmosphere. The facility was underground and hosted the hundreds of hibernation pods occupied by the Technicians. At one time, it had been the home of Kracion, the renegade Technician who attempted to speed up the Grand Experiment by feeding technology and innovation to the ancient Klin, which initiated the first great expansion of civilization in the galaxy. For the Grand Experiment to succeed, a fruitful interaction between species was necessary, and that would only come about through affiliations encompassing hundreds—and then thousands—of worlds.

Kracion’s efforts paid off. The Apex Being was created, and for his efforts, Kracion should have been honored by the Aris. Instead, his insanity took over. Rather than share the Privileged desire for an eternity of study and peaceful contemplation, Kracion sought to rule the galaxy as its immortal god. He nearly succeeded, and many of the recent problems facing the galaxy were a direct result of what Kracion did during his brief reign of terror.

A few years back, Adam, Summer Rains and the mutants fought Kracion in this last semi-permanent base for the Aris Techs. Riyad wasn’t there, but he’d heard so many stories of the encounter that he felt as if he had. And because of this understanding, he saw where it made sense that Kanan would choose the station for his new base-of-operations. He checked the nav grid. The planet was eight hundred light-years away, a journey of six days in the DE starship. Riyad frowned and leaned back in his seat. What they would do when they got there was anyone’s guess.

Panur was on a link immediately after making the announcement, contacting Lila. She would come alone in a DE ship of her own, vectoring to intercept Stimmel’s vessel. A quick calculation on Riyad’s part showed that it would be better for her to meet them at the base rather than in space. The line was more direct. Once Panur was off the link, the mutant turned to Riyad.

“Do not let Stimmel know we’re aware of Kanan’s destination.”

“So, you don’t trust him either?”

“It is not a matter of trust. It is informational leverage. By now, Stimmel must know we could simply commandeer his ship and take his weapons. We have no need for him. Yet realizing this, he continues. He must have another plan, one that will elevate his importance to the mission and guarantee his survival. Therefore, I’m curious as to his plan. We may need what he has yet to reveal.”

“Since you put it that way…” Riyad said. “He’s not stupid. And I’m not buying the idea that he didn’t know what the Code was until recently. And that bullshit about not wanting to destroy such an important artifact; that doesn’t make sense, either. If he feared so much for his life in the wake of Kanan’s efforts to create a new Aris race, he would have smashed the thing to bits long before we got there. He doesn’t strike me as the magnanimous type, putting more value on a piece of ancient metal than on himself. Nothing is more important to Wolfgang Stimmel than Wolfgang Stimmel.”

“I agree,” Panur said. “And be careful with your ATD transmissions with Sherri. Stimmel has Adam’s prior device within him. As he learns to use it better, he may be able to intercept your thoughts.”

“I hadn’t thought of that.”

“Good. Keep it that way.”

Chapter 15

“Do you think he sees us?” Sherri asked.

Stimmel’s DE ship was approaching the grey world of the Aris Tech base. The dark energy engine was idle and they were coasting in on what was very close to dark status, using only the reaction jets to make their passage a matter of hours rather than days.

Stimmel shook his head. “This ship is the only one I know of that has the Gracilian DE detection system. Besides that, I don’t see why Kanan would have been concerned about detecting dark energy before this. He’s the one who had the advanced starships, not the allies. I believe we’re safe.”

“Safe,” Riyad snorted, “and about to invade a base full of service modules with the ability to teleport.” He looked at Panur. “That’s right, isn’t it? Adam was the only one with the ability to stop the globes from teleporting. You don’t happen to have a pocket Lerpiniere field on you?”

“That I do not.”

Stimmel watched the conversation between Riyad and TeraDon Fief, his forehead deeply furrowed. But still, he didn’t ask the question: Why was the handsome alien so important to the mission, important enough for Sherri and Riyad to defer to him on dozens of occasions.

Sherri watched the German, knowing that when Lila hooked up with them an hour from then, the truth would come out. She was surprised he hadn’t figured it out by now. He was supposed to be smart.

“Lila’s sending a ping-notice,” Riyad announced. “She’s close. I’m going to stop us here. Better to have one ship vector in rather than have two of them doing some elaborate dance in dark status.”

* * *

Lila’s ship was identical to Stimmel’s, both having been built by the Gracilians. Lila’s was a remnant of the defeated enemy fleet at Navarus, while Stimmel’s appeared to be inventory found somewhere on Gracilia after his recent move to the planet. There may be several more that the Gracilians were keeping under wraps. With their so-called leader, Stimmel, now working with the allies, things were bound to change in the dynamic within the Dead Zone. The status quo would not be maintained after this, no matter the outcome of the attack on the Aris base.

Sherri mentally shrugged. She sincerely hoped their presence at the base wouldn’t turn into an attack. Instead, she hoped for a more subtle operation. But now that Lila was here, Sherri was feeling more confident. She couldn’t count on Panur as she could in the past. He was different, and she didn’t like it.

A short, pressurized umbilical tube snaked between the two vessels, and a moment later, Lila appeared at the airlock, now under the internal gravity influence of Stimmel’s ship. She had a large sack with her, which she effortlessly carried aboard.

“Where is Panur?” Stimmel asked. “I thought he was coming, too.”

Lila stared at him with unblinking dark eyes. The Director had ordered the invasion of the mutant’s laboratory and stolen not only three dark matter collectors, but also what they thought at the time was their only example of a Formation disk. Stimmel collapsed under her intense scrutiny and backed away. Sherri smiled. Stimmel was face-to-face with the most powerful being in the galaxy. If she wished to tell him about Panur, she would. Otherwise, back away, Stimmel, Sherri thought. You’re about half a second from experiencing the full wrath and fury of the lovely Lila Bol.

Stimmel’s face went ashen, and he did back away, retreating to a far corner of the common room, leaving the greetings for Lila’s real friends.

Sherri and Riyad rushed to the beautiful, young mutant and hugged her. The passion was from more than just missing her. Mission prospects had just jumped several magnitudes with her appearance. Then Lila moved to Panur. Sherri watched the interaction between her and the figure of TeraDon—as did Stimmel. The pair embraced, but not with undue affection.

“You brought it,” Panur said cryptically to Lila.

She handed the sack to Panur. He turned abruptly and headed aft to one of the staterooms. Sherri saw Stimmel’s eyes follow the mutant with rapt attention. Sherri smirked. The big reveal was about to happen. She had a pretty good idea as to what was in the sack.

A moment later, the grey form of Panur moved up the corridor. Stimmel’s mouth fell open, while Sherri and Riyad laughed out loud. Sherri couldn’t believe the German hadn’t realized the truth long before this. It was satisfying to know he hadn’t.

“I, I don’t understand,” the Director stammered.

Panur was animated, his near-featureless face exhibiting all the emotion of which it was capable. “I feel so much better. Please, my friends, don’t ever let me do that again.”

“And TeraDon?” Lila asked.

“He is intact.” Panur smiled. “Worry not, my love; you will still have your plaything. I just will not be going on any future missions encased in that ridiculous straitjacket.”

Panur looked at Stimmel. The Director recoiled. “And now for you. You have pretended to help us to this point. I want to know why. There is no reason for you to be here. You could have given us the spaceship with the tracking system and remained on Oberqwin. But you insisted on coming, on putting yourself in harm’s way. Why?”

“The weapons … the tracking—”

“We can handle ourselves. You are not known as a fighter. So, why come along to a fight?”

“I don’t know what you’re asking. I came along because I want to help defeat Kanan. Isn’t that enough? We’re all going to die if he’s not stopped.”

“You don’t know that; none of us do. Kanan’s manipulation of existing DNA may take several years, even generations. Your immediate life was not in danger, not after Kanan left Oberqwin.”

“I resent the fact that you’re putting me through this inquisition. I tried to give you the Code device before Kanan got it. I provided the weapons that allowed us to survive in the vault. I think I’ve proven myself in combat and intent. If you don’t want my help, then leave me aboard the ship when you go to the base. Lock me in a stateroom.”

“We will not do that,” Panur stated with finality. “If you wish to assist in combat, then you will be right there with us. I’m not about to leave you aboard the ship. I fear you would have a way of abandoning us. You are going to the surface with us.” The mutant stepped closer to the Director. “And need I remind you that we—Lila and me—are immortal. There is nothing you can do to harm us. I allow you to come along because I’m curious as to what your endgame is. What do you hope to achieve by helping us?”

“I don’t want to harm you, you stupid—” Stimmel cut himself off. He swallowed hard before continuing. “Maybe I just want redemption for what I’ve done to you.”

Panur grinned. “That I very much doubt.”

Chapter 16

Kanan landed his DE starship on a dust-covered metal elevator pad that would move the vessel inside the complex. It was on a ledge on the side of a low-lying, yet jagged mountain range on the desolate planet. Everything outside was a uniform grey with occasional dust-devils stirred up by the thin, lifeless air. To the right of the pad was a long concrete landing that led to an airlock capable of transitioning dozens of troops at a time into the interior. Unfortunately for Adam, no hostage rescue team was coming. He was on his own, and against a machine that had survived over three billion years, including the violent destruction of its homeworld. Gracilian scientists once told him Kanan could be killed, but only by opening up his shell and destroying the electrical components within. That would prove to be near impossible without the opportunity, equipment and know-how, all of which Adam was lacking.

Once the ship was within the ancient Aris base, Kanan’s android exited the vessel and began the long stroll into the interior carrying a silver case, and with Adam trailing behind. It wasn’t prudent to resist. It would also be to no avail. The handful of service modules he had aboard the ship teleported away, leaving just him and the robot walking in silence.

Adam had been to the base before, at the time Summer Rains ingested the essence of J’nae, and when Panur and Lila captured Kracion for the first time. It was a strange homecoming. The complex was huge, but Adam felt he had a pretty good sense of where he was. Kanan was headed for a voluminous, dome-ceiled cavern.

Adam could tell the air inside the facility was new and fresh, having been added to the complex recently since Kanan and his modules didn’t require any. He had to snicker. Keep the Human alive long enough to kill him. That made sense.

When they entered the cavern, memories flooded into Adam’s consciousness. This was the chamber with the hibernation pods for the Aris Technicians. At one time, over a thousand Techs called this home, locked away in their beds, and tasked with maintaining the Grand Experiment for as long as it took. Periodically, a few would awake and set out into the galaxy to check on the progress. After a few years, they would return to their pods for another extended sleep period while others took their place. Adam never knew if the Aris realized at the beginning how long their experiment would take, and over the eons, pods failed, accidents happened, while some of the Aris deserted, choosing to live out their remaining years breathing real air and under the light of distant suns. The Technician class was never part of the Privileged search for immortality. As Kracion once explained, if there were any surplus essence after the Privileged became immortal, it would be doled out to the Techs. But there were no guarantees, never had been. Over time, many of the Techs lost their minds, Kracion foremost among them.

At the time Adam was here last, there were only a little over a hundred of the Techs left, asleep in their pods. That was until Kracion introduced a poison into their units, killing them all.

It also was within this room that Adam fought Kracion in a final, losing battle. If it hadn’t been for Lila and Panur arriving in the nick of time, this cavern would have been the site of his death. Now, the vast central area was filled with equipment of all kinds, showing no rhyme or reason for where things were placed.

He spotted a collection of the silver Gracilian service modules resting obediently on a nearby counter. There were only nine of them. Adam hadn’t seen any others flitting about. Was this all Kanan had left? That was possible. The Gracilians only made as many as they needed to pilot their DE warships, and Adam saw no evidence that Kanan was making more. Most of the units had been destroyed at the battle for Navarus, with more still at Stimmel’s estate. Possibilities began to fill Adam’s mind.

And then off to the left, in the dim recesses of the chamber about forty feet away, Adam noticed a row of cages placed against the rough stone wall. There were creatures in some of them, but most were empty.

The prisoners were Primes, although Adam recognized none of the species. Most were emaciated and filthy, living in excrement. Some were dead, while the others stared at him with vacant eyes. Adam amended his earlier belief that the base had air just for him. It was to keep Kanan’s other test subjects alive.

“Be assured, Adam Cain,” said Kanan’s robot voice from across the room. “You will not share the same fate as the others. I have a particular purpose for you, one for which the others were ill-suited to fulfill.”

And then Adam noticed it, after which nothing else mattered.

He moved around a bank of equipment to get a better look.

It was the completed Formation, looking infinitely more impressive than the tiny module Panur had in his workshop. It stood about twelve feet high and consisted of a spiraling column made up of exquisite metal holders for dozens of disks. Most were offset and wound around a central pole forming layers, separated by four inches or more between wafers. Each filter was connected to the one above and below by dozens of thin filaments that were aglow with an inner light, looking to be fiberoptic. Adam could make out the darker and thicker master disks—eight of them—that was the crux of the stack, with the thinner, white wafers between them. Most of the intervals between the masters had the maximum nine filter disks, yet, as Panur explained, the combinations were infinite, made so by the slight offset of the filters or a turn of their orientation.

The stack was enclosed in a vacuum chamber and lit by a variety of colored spotlights that focused on different parts of the Formation. Knowing Kanan, the lights weren’t there for aesthetics but served a purpose in the function of the device. It was beautiful, more a work of art than a machine designed to create and manipulate life. The array rested on a broad base with even more tubes, filters and flasks underneath to catch the finished product in a sterile environment. Atop the structure was a mechanical delivery system for moving material from floor level to the top of the stack where the distillation process would begin.

“Since the system is gravity-driven, the run time is much slower here than on my homeworld,” Kanan said from his seat. “A complete transition takes about fifteen standard minutes for base materials, and up to two hours for a more complex sample. Stack orientation and height is controlled by computer. With the Code device, I will be able to make adjustments in a fraction of the time and with guaranteed results.”

Adam walked back to the robot. He was sitting at a desk, with the silver case open and the Code device on the table.

“How does it work?” Adam asked.

“That I do not know,” said Kanan to Adam’s surprise.

“You don’t know? How can that be?”

“My master and I were not involved in its original operation. That was left to others. You must realize, for the Aris, everything changed when the Formation was discovered. Before then, it was decided that the Aris would use artificial means to achieve a form of immortality. The idea of using mechanical bodies was something of which I was quite familiar. I supported the plan fully, and by converting Aris minds to mechanical consciousness, I would be better suited to assimilate with my makers. Then the discovery occurred, and everything changed. It was not even on Alinsma that it was discovered. It was—”

“Alinsma? What’s that?” Adam asked.

“Of course, you would not know. The ancestral name of my homeworld is Alinsma. After a time, the Aris stopped referring to it by name, preferring the emotions the thought provoked within their minds to that of the spoken word. The name was all but forgotten. But continuing: The Formation was found on a derelict vessel drifting in space near our home system. There were documents aboard that told what it was and what it had done.”

“Create life in the galaxy,” Adam said reverently.

The robot laughed. “That is only partially true. Life in the First Epoch had developed over time and in a haphazard manner, which was anathema to how the Pri thought. As time passed, the Pri sought a more organized and purposeful seeding for the coming Epoch. According to the histories found in the vessel, they selected several master worlds that would develop first and lead the galaxy in further colonizations. The Aris were the last of these races to be created, but it was obvious we were not to be the last.”

“What do you mean? What happened?”

“That is unknown. The records end in mid-stream. Something happened to the Pri and they never completed their First Seeding, as it was called. As you can imagine, the news that the Aris had been manufactured had a major impact on the race. But it did reveal the possibilities. The documents mentioned long-term manipulation, interbreeding, and even the word immortality. Nunki and his cabal latched onto that reference and persuaded the others that creating a natural immortal was possible—even probable—with the proper seeding. And beyond that, the records detailed the distillation process of various organic essences into forms that could be assimilated by others. You know the rest of the story.”

“And you don’t. Like how to use the Code device.”

“I will figure it out. The one thing I do know is that it does not hold a master list of all the possible combinations, as one would assume. It is more of a deciphering device, providing guidance for the desired outcome. I knew this before, and that is why I first attempted to find the key myself. By trying various combinations of filters, I studied the logic of the outcomes. If A + B creates C, then what would A + C create, and so forth. It is quite feasible that I would have eventually discovered the key. But when I learned the Code was still in existence, I chose the simpler path. With this device, I will be able to extrapolate the outcomes in a fraction of the time. There should also be categories within the programming that will hasten my activities even more.”

Kanan looked around at the large cavern. “And that is why I am here, at the ancient Technician base. Within the database of this facility, I learned the combination required to convert a living being into a useable form for assimilation; how to create the necessary essence, as you call it. The Technicians knew the combination, although they did not have the Formation. Before initiating the Experiment, teams were sent to thousands of worlds to collect samples of primitive life. Afterward, formulations were developed for each planet. More teams were sent out, supervised by the Privileged, who then introduced the modified material back into the environment. The Privileged kept the formulations to themselves before placing the critical components of the Formation into a secure vessel designed to survive the ages. It was that vessel the Cadonic discovered in the Zaniff Asteroid Field. But they had no concept of what they found, and eventually sold off the pieces.” Kanan placed a robotic hand on the silver box. “With this, all the pieces are back together. Including the most important ingredient I need for my purposes.”

“And what’s that?”

“Aris DNA.”

Adam looked off into the darkened tunnels leading away from the central area of the cavern, and the rows of hiberpods where the dead Aris Technicians lay in state, and undoubtedly perfectly preserved by the sterile chambers.

“You need Aris DNA?”

“Technically, I do not. But I do not have billions of years to grow another Aris race from primal elements. Using the most advanced DNA available, I can create the Aris essence instantly, once I have the formula from the Code device that will stimulate regrowth. What will follow is a seeding of the galaxy to begin the process of converting all advanced life into Aris. And you, Adam Cain, will be the first.”

Adam was afraid he was going to say that.

“You must understand that the Human race is unique in the galaxy. Your species is what Nunki and his Privileged call a catalyst race, who’s contribution to the galactic gene pool is necessary to create the next stages in evolution. The Formilians are another such race, and so it was no surprise that the pairing of a Human with a Formilian produced the Apex Being. That was how the Grand Experiment was designed.” The android smiled. “You did not think your special attributes came purely from chance and evolution, did you?” He shook his head. “Humans were engineered, following a strategy the Pri devised billions of years ago to create master classes of races. The Aris followed that plan, as well. And here we are. What I have planned for your body is to see if I can create not only a living Aris but a greater Aris, a super Aris. If I am successful, then Earth—followed by Formil—will be the first worlds I infect with the Aris virus.”

“You do realize that no matter what you do, you will never become a living Aris yourself. You will always be just a machine, a servant to biologics, as you call us.”

“I know you are trying to provoke me, but it will not work. For it is you who are mistaken. I have a consciousness—albeit electronic. But I have a way of infusing my electronic consciousness with the living mind of a biologic. Technically, I will be a hybrid and one of a kind. But I will survive within a living body, experiencing all that entails.”

“Why the hell would you want to do that? It’s no fun being alive.”

“I seek the sensations of living.” The robot stretched out a wide grin. “And if I discover that you are correct—and that living is not fun, as you call it—I will simply revert to a mechanical body. To me, that is my natural state of being.”

Kanan turned back to the desk and the Code device. “Now, leave me alone as I begin the process. If you behave, I will not place you in one of the cages. That would be such demeaning treatment for the person who will become the first of the next generation of Aris, or super-Aris.”

Chapter 17

The DE ship carrying the assault team landed beyond the ledge leading into the Aris base. Panur and Lila watched the meters for any indication of active monitoring on the surface that would reveal their landing. At one time, there were several such detectors. Now, there were none. None they could detect.

They went in assuming they’d been spotted, wearing environmental suits and carrying a variety of weapons, including a combination of both the Gracilian’s cathode devices, conventional flash weapons and even ballistics in the form of a shotgun for Riyad and a .45-caliber semi-automatic for Sherri. They also wore improvised diffusion vests that would protect them against some of the intense electrical shock of the orb’s weapons. The vests were untested, but having been built by the mutants, they would work, guaranteed.

The mutants came with their immortality—as well as a couple of the cathode weapons.

During a prior visit to the facility, Lila manipulated the keypad for the main airlock to gain entry. She remembered the process, and a few minutes later, the team stood in the long and cold concrete-lined corridor leading into the base. Lila and Panur took the lead, with Stimmel behind them and Riyad and Sherri covering their six. They were on the lookout for Gracilian service modules that could pop in at any second and zap them with energy bolts.

“We detect no evidence of Lerpiniere fields,” Lila announced. “The modules will be active, so be careful. Should any appear, seek shelter behind either Panur or me.”

The tunnel was long and bare, with only an occasional side corridor or room cut into the surrounding rock.

Where are we going? Riyad asked through his ATD, conferencing in both Sherri and Lila. Lila didn’t have an ATD, but still, she heard him. Unlike Panur, she was a natural telepath.

We anticipate Kanan will have the Formation in a large work area. Although we only have limited knowledge of the complex, there is a logical location to begin. That is where we are heading.

Riyad cut the connection while shrugging. That didn’t tell me shit, he thought, hopefully to himself.

* * *

And that’s when they noticed the first service module. It appeared along their path, but it didn’t fire its weapon. Instead, it popped in and then out in only a fraction of a second. It was enough for the mutants to notice.

“Kanan knows we are here,” Lila announced. Adam, can you hear me?

I hear you, was the immediate reply. Kanan only has nine of the modules left. We’re in the hibernation room.

We are headed there. Are you secure?

I am for now. He has the completed Formation and the Code.

We will be there in another ten minutes unless we run into resistance from the modules—

Kanan’s on the move. He just locked me in a cage. He knows you’re here. Watch out. He can open and close the head of the robot he’s in. Even if I engage an L-field, he can get free. He also has a module outside the cage with instructions to zap me if I activate a field.

Do not bother; we will deal with the modules should they become an issue.

Thanks for coming.

You are my father. How could I not?

* * *

Four of the service modules appeared simultaneously, two in front and two in back. They activated their energy weapons immediately upon materializing, striking Riyad and Sherri and the two mutants. The diffusion shields worked, keeping Sherri and Riyad conscious. Only Stimmel came out of this first attack unscathed.

Riyad and Sherri crouched down, taking aim with their cathode weapons at the orbs, managing to catch one in the influence before the other vanished. The mutants had the Gracilian weapons as well, and along with their quicker reactions, managed to knock the two that attacked them out of the air. They rushed forward and crushed the globes in fists of enhanced strength. Sherri and Riyad managed to burn out the unit they’d knocked down with a series of intense flash bolts.

“There were only nine of the service modules remaining,” Lila announced. “Now, there are six. Kanan is in a robotic carrier, but may not remain there. Beware of his bolts; they are much stronger.”

“We have to get to cover!’ Stimmel yelled. He was down on one knee sweeping his cathode weapon in a full circle around him.

A moment later, four more modules appeared, this time in the middle of the team. Bolts flashed, and the orbs disappeared.

This time Stimmel took a hit. He was swearing in German while patting away the burning embers from where the bolts hit. Lila and Panur also took hits during this second attack. Although their clothing was burnt, they suffered no ill effects. Instead, they appeared to perk up, buoyed by the intake of pure energy. However, if they took in too much, they would begin to glow white-hot, making it impossible for the three Humans to be near them.

“Quickly!” Lila yelled as she set off down the corridor. “Create a moving target. Cover behind. That is where they should appear next.”

Riyad took the advice to heart, sprinting as best he could with his body twisted around with the cathode device pointing behind him. Although the weapon produced no visible trail of either energy or light, he tried keeping the trigger depressed to see if the field would be constant. His experiment bore fruit a moment later when a pair of modules popped into existence behind him and Sherri.

The orbs dropped to the floor before they could fire their weapons. Sherri and Riyad slid to stops on the smooth floor, aiming flash weapons at the now inert globes. Level-1 flash bolts lit up the corridor until their battery packs drained. Stimmel pushed his way between the pair and continued firing with his MK until both the orbs were smoking and sparking husks.

Now only four of the pesky service modules remained.

Lila and Panur were aware of what was happening behind them and used the same continuous field maneuver to fill the hallway in front of them. Two more orbs appeared and fell, just as had the others. The mutant ran past them, leaving their final fate to the three Humans.

Now there were two.

The entrance to the hibernation chamber had a doorway, but it was open. Panur took a bolt to his back as the mutants entered. He ignored the hit. The Humans in the chamber a moment later and took care of the orb.

That left only one … plus Kanan.

“He’s behind the equipment stack!” Adam yelled from off to their left.

A powerful bolt shot out from an unseen source, striking Panur in his right arm. This was a much more powerful bolt, and what clothing still dangled from his torso fell away, revealing a bright, pulsating body. Sherri could feel the heat from where she stood twenty feet away. Lila was next to the mutant, and her right sleeve caught on fire. She ignored it, letting it burn.

“Kanan, we have played this game before,” Panur said. “You know you can’t win.”

Panur looked at Adam’s cage. The remaining Gracilian service orb hovered outside, keeping watch as it had been ordered to do. The mutant pointed the cathode weapon at the module; a moment later, it plunked to the stone floor.

“Please engage an L-field, Adam. Let’s make sure our friend Kanan can’t beam himself out of here.”

* * *

Adam didn’t wait to be told. The moment the orb hit the floor, the cavern became bathed in the invisible influence of a Lerpiniere field. Kanan could still hover, but he couldn’t teleport.

“It is over, Kanan,” Panur said as his glowing body moved to the stack of electronic equipment.

“Destroy the Formation!” Adam yelled from his cage.

It was hard to see through the glow of the mutant’s face, but Adam thought he saw him smile.

“Unfortunately, my friend, I cannot oblige. The Formation is too important of a research tool to destroy. However, be assured, it will be safe, in the care of Lila and me.”

“Just like the dark matter collectors?” Sherri yelled from behind the glowing mutant.

“That was different. We will disassemble the Formation and keep others from knowing how to build it.”

Sherri looked at Lila. Most of her blouse was burned away, but she wasn’t nearly as hot as Panur, at least not heat-wise. “Are you okay with this? Let me put a flash bolt into the thing, destroy as many of the disks as I can. Then no one will be able to build it again.”

“Please do not do that, Sherri,” Lila pleaded. “I agree with Panur; the Formation is much too important to be destroyed. All it needs to be is in the right hands.”

“Well, screw that,” Riyad said emphatically. He took a step toward the tower and lifted his MK-47.

From inside his cage, Adam felt as if an elephant just stepped on his chest. Was this what it felt like to have a heart attack? He leaned back, but he didn’t fall. Instead, he began to drift upward into the air until his head met the top of the cage.

Through eyes of shock, Adam looked out on the circular-shaped central area of the cavern and watched as the rest of his team suffered the same effects. This wasn’t something happening to just him, but everyone, including the mutants. They lifted into the air, their feet dangling, limbs locked in position. Riyad’s arm was frozen in place, yet still aiming the MK toward the Formation. A single bolt flared out of the barrel, but at his current elevation and angle, the bolt flew high by a couple of feet, missing the structure. Riyad was able to let out an anguished yell.

This wasn’t the first time Adam had seen the effect. Years ago, Kracion was lifted off his body in a similar fashion only moments before he strangled Adam to death. Later, the mutants explained what had happened.

Adam raked his memory. What did they call it, a quantum something-or-another? It was another form of suspension field, one that created molecules within the body that were connected to another universe through microscopic quantum tunnels, appearing and disappearing at random, but each covering a specific area in this universe. The effect was to hold in place whatever the molecules were interacting with, be it living or inanimate. Now it was coming back to him. The effect was also called a quantum anchor. Feeling its effects personally for the first time, Adam could see how the name fit.

But the worst thing about quantum anchors was they also affected immortal mutants. The team—all of them—now hovered in the air eight feet off the stone floor, unable to move or resist. The fields were individualized and affected everyone.

Including Kanan!

Adam gasped at the realization. The android carrying the Aris service module was also held tight by the beam, while Adam’s L-field kept the orb from teleporting out of the robot’s head. Even if the field wasn’t active, there was a good chance the beam was locked on the head of the robot, keeping Kanan from moving.

But something wasn’t right; nothing made sense. Not until Adam noticed that the only person still standing on the floor of the cavern was Wolfgang Stimmel.

Chapter 18

“What have you done, Stimmel?” Adam yelled from his cage.

The Director strolled over to him.

“You’re a smart guy; I’m sure you can figure it out,” he said, grinning.

A movement at the entrance to the cavern pulled Adam’s angry glare from the German. Nine Gracilians entered the room, five armed with Xan-fis, the others carrying small work cases.

“Good, now we can start the party,” Stimmel said as he stepped away to greet the newcomers. The aliens eyed the five people floating in the air with a mixture of fascination and awe, especially the two mutants. They spread out and covered the room with their weapons. “Open the cage and remove Cain. I want him to be a first-hand witness of what is to come. But first things first.”

Two of the Gracilians approached his cage, one with a hand-held laser torch and the other with a small control pad. The lock was cut off the door, then the alien with the controller stepped back and began working keys. The force holding Adam began to move, taking him with it. He slipped out of the cage but remained in the air before moving smoothly across the room closer to Lila. He could see she was held in an even tighter grip by the beam, with only her eyes and mouth able to move. Adam could move his head, feet and hands, but not much more.

Another Gracilian with a control pad moved the Kanan android closer to the worktable. More of them moved in with cutting tools and quickly sliced open the head. Once the interior was exposed, they stepped back while one of them maneuvered the ancient Aris service module out of his holder and to the table. From a tool case, a Gracilian removed a small metal frame with adjustable sides. The Kanan was placed in the holder.

Two Gracilian technicians wasted no time going to work on the module. Kanan put up no resistance as the scientists probed along his outer shell with specialized tools. A panel was removed, not more than half an inch square.

“Let me do the honors,” Stimmel said, stepping up to the table. An alien handed him a small rod with wires attached to a unit inside the tool case. Stimmel bent over and peered inside the dark opening. Then he took the probe and inserted it inside the ancient Aris service module. Light pulses escaped through the small opening. It only took a few seconds.

Stimmel straightened up and handed the probe back to the Gracilian.

“It is done,” the German announced with bravado as he turned to address his rapt audience, all hovering now in a semi-circle behind the workstation. “Our Kanan problem is over. The internal circuits of the unit are fused. For all intents and purposes, the module is dead. You can thank me later.”

Adam knew there was more to the story.

“I take it this is just the beginning of the show.”

“Correct you are, Herr Cain.

Stimmel’s intense blue eyes were alight with pleasure. He took a slow stroll along the length of the table, looking into the faces of each of the spectators.

“I wish to thank each of you for playing your part in this recent opera. I admit, some of it was planned, while other parts were improvised. Allow me to explain.

“I have known of the Formation longer than most of you realize, but it was only recently that my understanding came into focus. As an aficionado of all things Aris, I knew part of their history and had heard rumors of the secret method with which they carried out their Grand Experiment. I began searching for the clues to this mystery years ago, but only after my move to Gracilia did the blanks begin to be filled in.

“Kanan’s fixation on the Formation was what attracted my attention.” Stimmel put a hand on the shoulder of a Gracilian standing next to him. “As it turns out, my new Gracilian allies had more information about the Aris than even I realized. The contents of their precious vault were cataloged and recorded, but only after their return to the planet were they able to access this data. They had the ancient texts and had even managed to probe the layers of the parchment. But unlike our mutant friends, they were slower in deciphering the language, However, when they did, the truth about the Formation—and the Code device—became known. Imagine my surprise when I realized what I had in my collection, and had for nine years. The problem: I did not have the Formation.”

“What would you do with the Formation even if you had it?” Adam asked.

Stimmel walked over to Adam and looked up. “Do not get ahead of yourself, my friend. I’m getting to that.”

“We’re not friends.”

“Yes, you made that quite clear to me back on Oberqwin. But now, back to my story. I have been one step ahead of you since the beginning of your mission to find the Code. I knew your search for the device would eventually lead to me, so I used the opportunity to flush out Kanan. I had my people attack you on Werznor—with orders not to kill—as a way to spur the investigation. It would start you on the journey to me. I then allowed news of your venture to be broadcast through dark measures, hoping Kanan would hear of them. I placed detectors along the outer Kidis, searching for the tell-tale signs of dark matter engines, and when Kanan left his hideout to come after you—us—I was able to track those signals back to this base. I then sent in my Gracilian friends to survey the facility and learn its secrets. My troops came equipped with the cathode weapons—as you call them—in case Kanan left any service modules to guard the base. He didn’t. I was keeping track. He didn’t have many left, and I knew with him going up against Panur again, he would be sure to bring all he could. It was during this survey that the quantum anchor fields were discovered. I remained in touch with my team here through secret communication equipment aboard my ship. The comm system is the best money can buy, as is everything I have or use.”

Stimmel walked over to Panur. “Yes, I knew it was you almost from the beginning. My spies on Navarus reported seeing Lila at Camp Forrester, but not you. And then the interaction between you and Adam was another clue. Our friend doesn’t like to be bossed around by anyone—anyone but you. But your actions in my vault was the true tell.”

Stimmel turned away and walked back to the worktable. He ran a hand over the smooth surface of the Code device, petting it.

“And all for this, the final key to the puzzle that is the Formation.”

He pulled his MK-47, placed the barrel against the metal, and pulled the trigger.

The intense plasma energy filled the box, penetrating the interior and frying the components inside. There were tiny vent slots in the side, and now smoke wafted out.

“What have you done, Stimmel?” Adam cried out. “Without the Code, the Formation is useless. You’ve gone through a lot of trouble to get the Code and the Formation into one place. Why did you destroy the Code now?”

“He destroyed it,” Panur began, “because that is not the Code device.”

Stimmel laughed.

“That is correct, my mutant friend. Did you see through the ruse, or was it a spontaneous conclusion?”

“A little of both.”

A Gracilian opened another case and withdrew an identical unit. He handed it to Stimmel.

“Yes, this is the real Code device. I used the decoy to draw out Kanan. From the distant past, he knew what the Code device looked like, so I built a duplicate. He was only minutes away from learning it was a fake.”

Adam grunted. “Okay, so you pulled a fast one on Kanan—on all of us. Again, I ask, what are you going to do with the Formation? You’re not planning on starting a new race, are you, billions of little Wolfgangs all marching in lockstep across the galaxy?”

Stimmel laughed. “That is very funny; the image is amusing. Let me explain more.”

Chapter 19

Stimmel leaned against the table, again surveying the faces of his captive audience. “Do you realize what it's like to be a regional director for Maris-Kliss? I’m sure you don’t. I will explain. Although there are thirty-five-hundred of us, the next level in the company is the Assembly, with only three hundred individuals. Next up is the Counsel with forty-eight people, then the Circle with ten followed by the General Director. It may seem that a regional director is far down the ladder, but that is not the case. MK is a galaxy-wide business, the largest. Comparatively, I am wealthier than any Human alive, and as such, I have the money to buy all the worlds in the Dead Zone if I wish, and many more. But because of the vast size of the organization, no one knows this.”

He walked over to Adam. “You think I’m buying up worlds and acquiring dark matter so I can one day rule the galaxy.” He paused, nodded and pursed his lips. “In one way, that’s correct. But it is not my desire to conquer worlds. Rather, I believe in the corporate structure as the most efficient means of owning and controlling. I believe in a system of mutual benefit, not subjugation. I do aspire to have a galaxy-wide affiliation of worlds, but not by coercion. I am starting in the Dead Zone, using my worlds to set an example of my vision. I will eventually own all the worlds. After that, other planets will seek membership in my organization.”

“Then, why all the threats? Why steal the DMCs?” Adam asked.

“You see them as threats; I see them as self-defense as I establish my base. There are forces in the galaxy who will attempt to keep me from setting this example. Once they realize what I’m doing—and how I offer a better way—they will feel threatened as their power slowly slips away. And that is a key word in my plan, Adam Cain, slowly. As you can tell, a plan such as this must evolve. It cannot be rushed. I do not want to wage galaxy-wide war to speed up the process; that would defeat the purpose. I do not want to force my vision upon anyone.”

“All that sounds good, but what does the Formation have to do with anything? Is it another form of deterrent, like the dark matter collectors?”

“No.” Stimmel grinned sheepishly. “I have acquired the Formation for a more selfish, personal need.”

“It is about me.” Lila stated, her clear voice echoing off the stone walls of the cavern.

“What do you mean, you?” Sherri asked as she hovered beside the mutant.

“He wishes to distill my essence so he can become immortal.”

“Bullshit,” Riyad said. “Not him, too? That would be crazy.”

“I’m afraid she’s correct,” Stimmel confirmed. “But do not think me crazy. My plan is rooted in logic, not insanity. All intelligent creatures seek some form of immortality, be it belief in an afterlife or other manifestations. I’m no different. However, in this day and age, we know immortality is possible, and not a fantasy. I have before me two examples of that. We are also standing in a facility built by a race of beings who engineered immortality. So, my goal is not only attainable but easily within my grasp.”

Stimmel stepped up to Lila, his eyes full of concern. “I am not crazy. I am but a mortal man who is at the cusp of initiating a great societal experiment in the galaxy. I believe in it so strongly that I would be a fool not to want to see it to fruition. I am fifty-four years old. My vision will only barely get underway before I grow too old and weary to appreciate it. And throughout history, most systems have failed because those who came afterward did not have the vision of the original creator. I want to provide that continuity, to help guide the vision, not for personal gain, but for the good of the galaxy. I have enough wealth; that is not why I’m doing this.”

“No, it’s the power you want, dickhead,” Sherri said. “It’s always about the power.”

“Have you not heard a word I said? It is not about power. It’s about providing a better way.”

“Or so you say. If you can get the system started, then let it grow naturally. If you’re right about it being better, then it will survive. That’s how things evolve naturally. Survival of the fittest, and all that.”

“I could do that. But is it wrong to want to witness that evolution? The Aris wanted it. So do I.” He looked over at Lila. “The Aris spent three billion years creating you. Fortunately for me, you are still here. The formula for your distillation is in the Code device. My scientists have already deciphered the equations. In a few moments, I will enter the code, and the Formation will align itself. This is a great moment, Lila Bol. The moment when you fulfill your destiny as the giver of immortality.”

“How do you expect to do this, Stimmel?” Adam asked. “She’s immortal herself. Do you just drop her in the top, and the Formation does the rest?” Although Adam was trying to draw him out and extend the conversation, he also really wanted to know. It was one of those great mysteries of the universe that had always bugged him. How did the Aris plan on converting Lila into something they could use?

“Ah, good question. It has to do with the Lerpiniere effect. The field creates a microscopic link between universes. I simply use two of them in tandem to reduce Lila into useable slices. I know it sounds cruel, but I assure you, she will feel nothing. By placing the field within her body, I can place one part of her in one universe and the other part in another. And by using the quantum anchor effect, her body will not have a chance to regenerate before she is fed into the Formation. Do not ask me how this works; that is not my area of expertise. But the genetic material must be fed into that small opening at the top of the device. For that to happen, she must be reduced to manageable units.”

Stimmel looked at Panur. He still glowed but wasn’t nearly as hot as before. “And because I cannot leave you intact and free to seek revenge—even against a fellow immortal—I will separate your parts as well. But I will leave them in various universes. You may still have a consciousness—I don’t know for sure. But you will have difficulty regenerating. At least that is the plan.”

He stepped up to the main computer terminal for the Formation. A Gracilian technician was seated at the controls while two more faced the team with controllers for the anchor fields.

“It is time, Lila Bol. Please understand that I have regret for what I must do. You are a magnificent creature, the pinnacle of evolution in the galaxy. You are perfect, and that is why you are immortal. But it will be through your sacrifice that others will live forever. Well, maybe not others, but I will. Auf wiedersehen, meine liebe.”

The Gracilians maneuvered Lila lower to the floor and closer to the delivery carousel for the Formation. The other tech worked the computer, undoubtedly preparing to initiate an L-field that will begin the process of slicing Lila into thin wafers. Adam couldn’t believe what he was seeing. He had no doubt that what Stimmel said was possible. At one time, the Aris had the process planned out. Lila wasn’t created to survive, but to become part of a cycle that would lead to the immortality of their race. Fortunately, Panur’s J’nae creation served that purpose, sparing Adam’s daughter. But now things had come around full circle. The concept of distilling a living being down to its essence was beyond science fiction. But he’d seen it done before, and multiple times. He knew it was reality. And the desire for immortality had been pursued by everyone from ancient geniuses to insane mass murderers. Now Wolfgang Stimmel was trying to convince himself that what he was about to do was logical, compassionate … and sane. Perhaps it was, but not at the expense of Adam’s daughter.

He had one chance to stop this, and one chance only. And he had no idea how to make it happen.

* * *

Adam could sense the ATD in Stimmel’s side. Although the Director had learned more about how to use the device, it still wasn’t his to control. The Formilians tuned it to Adam’s brainwaves, and although the Gracilians made an amateurish attempt to tune it to Stimmel’s, they had only scratched the surface. At this range, Adam had complete control of the unit. His current ATD—the one built by the mutants—was under the control of the quantum anchor, shifting in and out of this universe along with the rest of his body. But Stimmel’s ATD was unaffected by the anchor. How Adam could use that fact to his advantage was the question screaming in his mind. There had to be something he could do. And he only had seconds to come up with an answer.

The MKs!

Although Adam’s ATD was inoperative, he could use Stimmel’s to access the battery packs in the weapons. He did a quick probe of the devices. The pistols were unaltered, using standard Formilian control circuits. He had a way to set the pistols to explode, but he didn’t want to harm the team. He had to free his friends from their quantum anchors—and not kill them in the process.

He had to knock out the controllers.

Fortunately, each of the Gracilians wore MK-17s. Adam identified the Gracilian controlling Lila. Although there were five people held by the anchors, only two of the aliens had control units. This meant the units could be switched to individual beams. If he took out those two, it could free them all. And once free, Panur and Lila would do the rest.

The Gracilian controlling Lila wasn’t a problem. His weapon could explode and and not hurt the mutant. The other controller was on the other side of Stimmel and fairly close to Riyad and Sherri. Although the explosion would be confined, they would still feel the effects. Adam had to take the chance.

He located the battery circuits and then triggered the firing controls. The power from the battery flowed outward but was then routed back in. The charge began to build up.

“What is that sound?” Stimmel asked, suddenly alert.

A slight hum was rising in the room. Stimmel was between both the affected weapons, so he heard it in stereo. His eyes grew wide, and a moment later, he dove under the table just as the MK-17s exploded simultaneously.

Amid the heat and flame of the detonations, Adam dropped to the floor, landing on his stomach and bouncing his forehead off the hard stone floor. He was dazed, and it took him a moment to clear his head before he could look around.

Although smoke obscured his vision, what he saw was a shattered array of equipment, intermixed with a fair amount of blood. Some of the blood was his. His nose was bleeding, as was an ear. Strong hands took hold of him and lifted him from the floor. It was Lila.

As seemed commonplace for the mutant, most of her clothing was gone, blown away in the explosion. Adam now gazed embarrassingly at the exquisite form of his naked daughter. “Are you okay,” he asked, averting his eyes.

“You know I am. How are you?”

“Fine, what about Sherri and Riyad?”

Lila didn’t answer. Instead, she led him through the haze to where Panur was helping his two friends to stand. Sherri was clutching her right arm, grimacing in pain. Riyad wobbled on rubber legs, his nose and mouth bleeding prodigiously.

“It’s broken,” Sherri moaned.

“I’m sorry,” Adam said.

Sherri focused her bloodshot eyes on him, her mouth agape. “Sorry? You just saved all our lives. Where is Stimmel?”

“He ducked for cover at the last moment,” Panur said. “The MK executive must have recognized the sound of an overloading weapon. He ran toward the hibernation units. Let’s go get him.”

“Go without me,” Riyad moaned. “I trust you don’t need my help.”

“Nor mine,” Sherri said.

“I will stay with them and administer first aid,” Lila said. “I will let the boys have their fun.”

Adam returned her grin.

Adam still had his MK-47, and now that he was free of the quantum anchor, he had it out and ready for action. “Leave Stimmel for me,” he said to Panur.

“Why would I do that?”

“Because I asked. He was about to slice and dice my daughter. You owe me that much.”

Panur blew out a breath. “You sure know how to ruin the mood. Fine. He’s yours. I will run interference for you.”

Mutant and Human ran off down one of the long side tunnels that housed the hibernation units for the Aris Technicians. It was darker down here, so Adam stayed close to Panur, who suffered no loss of vision or other senses.

“Is there another way out of here?” Adam asked.

“I don’t know. I never saw a schematic for the facility. I would assume there would have to be.”

“We can’t let the bastard get away and back to his ship. He has the DMCs. He can still cause a lot of trouble.”

“If he is in the complex, we will—”

Panur suddenly shot into the air, while Adam found himself pressed against the cold stone floor on his belly, his arms extended out in front of him. Adam knew instantly what was happening. More quantum anchors.

A dark figure emerged from the shadows. Wolfgang Stimmel stepped into the dim light.

“Sorry, Herr Cain, but I, too, have a control unit,” he said with a grin. “But how could you know that?”

From where he lay, Adam could still move his hand. He lined the MK up on Stimmel and pulled the trigger. The bolt lit up the chamber, hitting Stimmel in the chest. The force threw him back, but he didn’t go down. Instead, he grimaced with pain but shrugged it off. He still held the anchor control in his hand.

“I have to admit; there is pain,” the Director said. “But I’m grateful for your ATD. Remember, I’ve been tracking you for a long time. I know what happened on Lindahl. You took twenty bolts and didn’t die.”

It wasn’t anywhere near that many. But he didn’t tell Stimmel that.

“A remarkable device,” Stimmel continued. “I don’t know how it does it, but being immune to flash bolts is a handy feature to have. And now I have it, too.”

Adam fired again.

“Be careful,” Panur warned from where he hovered.

“Yes, Adam, be careful. You are under my control. I could lift you to the top of this cavern and then drop you to the floor. I don’t believe ATDs protect against things like that.” He stopped and shook his head. “You have really screwed up my plans. I hope the explosions didn’t damage the Formation. That would be a pity. But now, I must look for alternatives. My vision is intact; I just need to find another way to make it happen. Perhaps a dark-matter war is what’s required now that my peaceful path has been disrupted. You, Adam Cain, will be responsible for what happens next.”

The Director pulled a small thumb drive from his pocket. “This contains the code for Lila’s distillation. I don’t need the Code device anymore. And seeing that the mutants insist on saving the Formation, there may come a time when I can reactivate my plan. We’ll see. But I must say, I’m disappointed. I had such high hopes of becoming immortal today.”

Adam fired again. And again.

Each shot drove Stimmel a few steps away.

“Stop it, dammit!” Stimmel screamed. “That hurts, and it’s not making any difference. You know I can—”

The Director stopped speaking, looking down at his right side.

“As you were saying?” Adam asked.

Stimmel grasped his side and then looked at Adam with panicked eyes. “What’s happening? Why is it burning so much?”

“Didn’t you wonder where all that energy goes? It doesn’t just vanish.”

“What are you talking about? It burns!”

“That’s the ATD working overtime, trying to vent the energy.”

Stimmel dropped to his knees, the control unit for the quantum anchors falling from his hand. The Director was in too much pain to respond.

“I’ll tell you where the energy goes, Herr Stimmel. It goes into the tiny blackhole that’s forming inside your body, the blackhole that’s about to suck you into it.”

Adam fired again.

He had no idea how far out the event horizon for the quantum blackhole would reach. It didn’t matter. All he knew was that Stimmel would be gone. If that meant Adam and Panur went with him, so be it.

The end came in a blinding flash that quickly faded into the blackest black Adam had ever seen. The image was gone a second later, leaving a residual green glow and a perfectly smooth concave scoop in the granite floor where Wolfgang Stimmel once stood.

Adam wiggled the fingers of his outstretched hand. The edge of the scoop was six inches away.

Something hard, hot and heavy fell on Adam’s back, knocking the breath from his lungs.

“Thanks for breaking my fall, my friend,” Panur said as he rolled off Adam’s coughing body and climbed to his feet. With the controller off in nowhereland, the quantum anchors were freed. Panur stepped up to the edge of the perfectly smooth-sided pit. “That was close. I told you to be careful.”

“I think you cracked a rib,” Adam said as he gingerly stood up.

“You’ll live,” Panur said. “And thanks to you, we will all live another day.”

Adam looked down into the pit. “Well, not all of us.”

Epilogue

“The dark matter collectors are still out there,” Adam said. He was with the team in the mutant’s laboratory at Camp Forrester, conducting an after-mission brief. A lot of changes had taken place over the past couple of weeks, changes that needed perspective.

“That is correct,” Panur said. He was still in his grey mutant body, although the gorgeous TeraDon Fief was safely stashed away with Lila somewhere. She wasn’t about to let that body go to waste. “Some of the Gracilians have to know where Stimmel hid them. I’m not too worried if they have them; the Gracilians had several of the DMCs for years, and no accidents occurred. But if they’re in the hands of others, then we could have a problem.”

“I’ll get my Enforcers out looking for them,” Adam said. “And now that Stimmel’s worlds are being returned to the original natives, we should have access to them like we haven’t had in a while.”

“And hopefully, the Zone will settle down now that Stimmel and MK are no longer making waves,” said Riyad.

Adam grinned. “Yeah, we’ll see. But I’m not holding my breath. It just means the door is wide open for other nasties to come rushing in. A hero’s work is never done.”

“You’re right, my friend,” Riyad said. “My work never is.”

Sherri snorted and changed the subject before the BS got too deep.

“Any damage to the Formation?” Sherri asked the mutants as she absently rubbed the cast covering her broken right arm. She sat in a chair in the central exam table. She had come out of their adventure at the Aris Tech base the worst of them all. Although at the time she thanked Adam for causing the fall that broke her arm, all she did now was blame him for it. He knew it was all in good-hearted jest … or was it? With Sherri Valentine, it was hard to tell.

“The Formation is intact,” Lila reported. “As is the Code device.”

“That’s … fortunate,” Adam said sarcastically.

After defeating both Stimmel and Kanan, the team was hustled away from the Aris facility while the mutants set to work dismantling the Formation, along with anything else they found worthy in the complex. Adam figured that included quantum anchor technology. Panur and Lila tried to explain to him more about how it worked, but like most things involving the mutants, it went over his head. But at the moment, be was more concerned about the Formation. “You really intend to keep that thing around? You know what it can do.”

Lila smiled. “Yes, we do, and that is why it must be preserved. The Formation is a wondrous device, capable of phenomenal achievements,” she began. “It not only creates and manipulates life, but it can manufacture any biological material required, be it cures to diseases or regenerative cells and organs. Through it, life in the galaxy can become stronger, hardier and healthier. And those are just some of the possibilities.”

“But that is not what we will use it for,” Panur said. “It is but one unit, and the time required to create a galaxy worth of compounds extends into the millions of years. As a result, we cannot let the galaxy know that such a device exists, otherwise there would be countless pleas for its use. Some would receive its benefits, while others wouldn’t, and that would cause conflict. It’s better to keep its existence and function a secret, and safely stored away … until time to seed the galaxy with life once again.”

“And I suppose the two of you expect to be around to supervise the seeding?” Riyad said, flashing his trademark white smile at the pair.

Panur frowned. Adam thought the expression was strange.

“Unfortunately, that may not happen.”

“What do you mean?” Adam asked. When Panur was worried, it was time for everyone else to panic.

“There’s a new mystery brewing in the galaxy, one that Lila and I are anxious to investigate. It may be a result of the Lerpiniere effect or something else entirely. But it definitely deserves our scrutiny.”

“What is it?”

Panur shook his head. “At the moment, it’s just a concept, but it could grow into something quite … interesting, if not extremely dangerous. We shall see. We call it The Quantum Enigma.”

The End

The Quantum Enigma

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Novels by T.R. Harris

The Adam Cain Saga

The Dead Worlds

Empires

Battle Plan

Galactic Vortex

Dark Energy

Universal Law

The Formation Code

The Quantum Enigma

Children of the Arts

The Human Chronicles

The Fringe Worlds

Alien Assassin

The War of Pawns

The Tactics of Revenge

The Legend of Earth

Cain’s Crusaders

The Apex Predator

A Galaxy to Conquer

The Masters of War

Prelude to War

The Unreachable Stars

When Earth Reigned Supreme

A Clash of Aliens

Battlelines

The Copernicus Deception

Scorched Earth

Alien Games

The Cain Legacy

The Andromeda Mission

Last Species Standing

Invasion Force

Force of Gravity

Mission Critical

The Lost Universe

The Immortal War

Destroyer of Worlds

Phantoms

Terminus Rising

The Last Aris

The Human Chronicles Box Set Series

Box Set #1 – Books 1-5 in the series

Box Set #2 – Books 6-10 in the series

Box Set #3 – Books 11-15 in the series

Box Set #4 – Books 16-20 in the series

Box Set #5—Books 21-25 in the series

REV Warriors Series

Rev

REV: Renegades

REV: Rebirth

REV: Revolution

REV: Retribution (coming July 2020)

REV: Revelations (coming soon)

REV Warriors Box Set #1 – Books 1-3 in the series

Jason King – Agent to the Stars Series

The Enclaves of Sylox

Treasure of the Galactic Lights

The Drone Wars Series

Day of the Drone

In collaboration with Co-Author George Wier…

The Liberation Series

Captains Malicious

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