Settling Darkness by Paul Heingarten

Author:Paul Heingarten [Heingarten, Paul]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Decatur Media
Published: 2018-09-13T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 10 (Nelson)

“N

elson, while we still have time, there’s one more thing I need to show you.” Kado ushered me over to his terminal and pulled up the MODOSNet screen. He studied me with the sincere gaze of a therapist. “First, tell me again what Baudricort told you about Ana.”

I thought back to those last moments with him on the floor in his busted out quarters. The smoke that wafted around from the blast itched my nose and the ringing in my ears from being so close to the explosion made it tough to make anything out. He was a mixture of emotions: fear of dying without knowing if what he had done made any difference. He was all worry and uncertainty. But I leaned in close enough for his last few words about Ana. “He just said to watch out for her.”

Kado eyed me, expressionless. “Ana’s a mystery to a lot of people. I know Treg trained her. But her skill, her strength, that’s ingrained in Warrior Products from birth, and before. That’s the whole idea of the Product system: traits survive, even if free choice doesn’t. Me, I never bought she was a Worker Product. She was too strong. It takes more than training to get as capable as she is.”

I nodded. “Treg once told me she took on a Radomet by herself.”

“That’s what I mean. Once the Action started, Baudricort corrupted records to keep as many people safe so they never knew the system had been compromised for people like Ana.”

He then went back to his terminal. “I’m not sure why this was hidden, but our friend Ana’s got a lot more going on than any of us could’ve guessed.”

“What do you mean?”

“Baudricort never said anything to me about what I’m about to show you.”

He leaned back from the screen, and I had a look. There was the MODOSNet file on Ana on the screen. Her parent entries were blank. “This happened for a lot of the Action members; Baudricort saw to it when he was wreaking havoc in the system during Exodus.”

“So what, Kado? I don’t understand; she’s got these skills, but is she really any different from the rest who escaped? Baudricort just gave her a head start, like the others.”

“Ahh, maybe. And sure, that’s a safe guess. See, Lebabolis would do whatever they could to hunt down people, even if it meant tracking down their parents. But I didn’t show you this so you could see what was removed.” He tapped a few more controls. “I want you to see what was never in that record.”

With that, he activated a video, and I found myself staring once again into the eyes of Baudricort.

“Ana, my daughter. I’m a coward. I held things from you. I thought I was protecting you, but I was really protecting myself. But now, I want to be clear. If what I think has happened, you need to be ready because you’ve got work to do.

“I wish I had time to tell you everything you’ve wanted to know about your life and where you came from.

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