Genomorph

Chapter 47

CHAPTER 47

“You look like hell Skipper, but you are still a lot prettier than you used to be.” Chief Wright said as the SH-60 Seahawk made its way towards the naval base in Coronado. The SEALs had hustled them into a van and cleared the area, taking them to a clearing where the chopper had been waiting.

“Well you haven’t exactly caught me at my best.” Brandi replied. “What the hell are you guys doing here?”

“We’ve been ghosting those assholes for weeks, waiting for them to make a move on you,” Branch answered.

“This is way outside the chain of command Matt.” Brandi said seriously. “You had to know that, even if the Admiral ordered .…”

“The Hammer didn’t order us Skipper, he asked us,” Matt said. “Every man on this bird owes you their life. There was no way we were gonna let them turn you into a lab rat.”

Brandi looked around at the faces of the SEALs and each one nodded silently in confirmation.

“We’ll deal with the repercussions later,” Matt continued. “There’s a jet waiting at Coronado. We’ll get you patched up and then it’ll take you somewhere secure.”

“You need to sleep, love,” Melissa said, pulling Brandi’s head onto her shoulder.

“I will when I know you’re safe,” Brandi said.

“She’s safe, skipper,” Chief Wright said. “You got my word on that.”

Brandi nodded and closed her eyes as Zen sleep took hold. Her armor disappeared, absorbing into her body. With the armor gone the numerous bullet wounds were plainly visible on her naked body, though they looked several days old now. One of the SEALs took a blanket and gently draped it over the two young women.

“Thank you,” Melissa said as she stroked Brandi’s hair. She could feel an irresistible urge to sleep herself.

“Thank you all so much,” she mumbled before drifting off.

*****

“This is absolutely incredible,” Kyle said as he gazed at the odd pendant. “The things we could do with this .…”

It had not been hard to figure out how the device worked; pressing a small button on the back caused it to emit a brilliant purple flash that somehow mesmerized anyone within about a thirty degree arc in front of it that was looking at it. Once the device had been used on the two agents they were quite willing to tell everything they knew.

“Except for the side effects,” Karen said.

After being mesmerized, the agents had explained that using the device too frequently on a person would result in loss of memory and an overall decrease in the function of the brain; neurons would fire more slowly and impair the person’s higher functions. Continued use after that could cause far greater damage.

“I shudder to think how they found out about them,” Kyle said.

Karen nodded in agreement. Unfortunately other than the information about the crystal, the two agents had provided little else. They were able to confirm what was already known; that there was an ongoing conspiracy to subvert the government using alien technology, but they had few details. They had simply been told to pick up Karen.

“We could still try .…”

“Absolutely not,” Kyle said. Karen had suggested they have the agents take her to their rendezvous but Kyle would not hear of it.

“We can’t control them unless we use the device again, and they wouldn’t exactly be of any use in a near stupor,” Kyle told her. The crystal made a person compliant and could be used to alter their memory of events, but it was not possible to reprogram them and the effect only lasted a short time. Once they had finished questioning the men they had released them, instructing them to report that they had lost Karen. They had kept the pendant; it was far too dangerous to leave in the enemy’s hands.

“You’re right,” Karen sighed. “I’m going to check and see what progress Mira and the Pit crew are making.”

“Good idea,” Kyle said. “The key to effective management is properly timed hovering.”

Karen smiled as she left Kyle’s office. She walked past the Pit and down a short hallway to the server room. She found Mira at one of the workstations, and the smile on her face told her she had good news.

“We’re in,” Mira said. “They’ve got some pretty nasty security protocols up, way better than anything at CIA or NSA even, but I got around them. I’d say they were far more concerned with intrusions from their peers than foreign agencies.”

“They would be,” Karen agreed. “What now?”

“I’m downloading their files to our system now,” Mira said. “If anyone on their system spots it they will see routine file transfers within their own servers.”

“How did you manage that?”

“Well I basically set up a server here that their system thinks is one of theirs,” Mira grinned. “It’s a clean server that has no files of ours on it and right now it’s totally isolated from our network. Once I have the files secured I’ll tie it in and we can go to work.”

“How long?”

“Give me two hours.”

Karen nodded and left the server room and walked back to the Pit. There was a lot to do to get ready for what would undoubtedly be a deluge of data.

~ At least I know Brandi and Melissa are safe, ~

Admiral Hammerstein had called earlier and told them that the girls had escaped the campus, and were on their way to a secure location. Karen had asked if she could get in touch with them, but the Admiral had said they were both asleep and it was impossible to awaken them.

Karen knew what that meant, at least for Brandi. She also knew about the Bonding process, and was concerned. Brandi had known very little about the process, but Karen knew she would have used it if Melissa had been badly hurt in the gun battle. She desperately wanted to talk to her friends, but knew for now the best thing she could do for them was what she had been doing, gathering information.

*****

Brandi and Melissa did not even stir as the SEALs carried them from the Seahawk helicopter to a waiting Boeing Business Jet. The SEALs looked about appreciatively as they boarded the converted 737 passenger jet. A door to the front of the cabin opened and the SEALs snapped to attention as Admiral Hammerstein stepped out of the private office.

“At ease men,” he said, looking at the sleeping forms of Brandi and Melissa. “There’s a bedroom aft.”

Seamen Talbot and Franklin nodded and moved towards the back of the aircraft with the two girls.

“Sir they haven’t moved a muscle since they passed out,” Branch told the Admiral.

“They’ll be fine Lieutenant,” the Admiral assured him.

The Admiral and the SEALs settle into seats for take off. Once the jet was airborne they unfastened their seatbelts and Petty Officer Greg Jennings, the platoon’s medic, went back to check on Brandi and Melissa. He returned a few minutes late and reported that they were both still sound asleep.

“I’m sure you have some questions,” Admiral Hammerstein said. “Feel free to ask them; I’m no expert but I’ll try to provide what answers I can.”

“I guess we’re all pretty amazed,” Branch said. “I just can’t believe that girl is Brandon.”

“Strictly speaking, she isn’t,” Hammerstein said. “She has all of Brandon’s memories, all his experience and knowledge, but Brandi is a completely different person. That’s something important to keep in mind. She won’t act or react the way you would expect Brandon to react.”

“I think we all saw that tonight,” Branch said. He quickly recounted what had happened as the SEALs prepared to take out the mercenaries advancing on the two girls.

“I know she was trying to provide a window for Melissa to escape, but she didn’t have to break cover,” Branch said. “She intentionally exposed herself to fire.”

Hammerstein nodded, “Brandon was a courageous man and Brandi is no less so, but she has an intensity that borders on recklessness. In part it’s no doubt because she knows that bullets are not a real threat to her, but I suspect there’s more to it. I believe she is trying to prove something to herself, even if she doesn’t realize it.”

“There’s no way to fix this, sir?” Chief Wright asked.

“None,” Hammerstein said. “The energy required to reverse the process would tear her apart. Even if it was possible, I suspect that she would not want to go back now.”

“Admiral what’s our next move?” Enrique Vasquez said. “These guys … they started a major firefight at UCLA. It’s all over the news and they’re spinning it as a terrorist attack but that won’t hold water long. They have to know that.”

“They are getting ready to make their play,” Hammerstein said. “Once they set their plan in motion, once their sleepers are activated, it won’t matter. They will control the government, the military and the media.”

“The problem is it won’t work, not like they think it will,” Branch said. “People aren’t stupid, and they can’t have gotten to every member of the military. In the end they’ll only succeed in tearing this country apart.”

“That’s why we’re going to stop them,” Hammerstein said. “You men need to get some rest. When we reach our destination you’ll have a lot of material to review. I want you to prepare assault plans based on that information.”

“When do you want to review the plans?” Branch asked.

“Not me,” Hammerstein said. “You’ll be taking your orders from your old CO again. This whole operation will hinge on Brandi.”

“Sir, after what you just said about her recklessness, is that wise?” Branch asked.

“I said she borders on recklessness, Lieutenant,” the Hammer said, his voice hard. “Make no mistake; Brandi is a hundred times the warrior Brandon was, and she has every bit of his commitment.

“Remember this well; our enemy has operated for decades and feared nothing. They have had free reign to do as they pleased. What happened at UCLA is proof of one thing; they are afraid now. They’re afraid of Brandi.”

*****

Susan slid a fresh stack of paper into the fax machine in the office as it continued to spit out printed sheets. It had been going for nearly thirty minutes now, and the stack of documents was getting quite large.

The data was coming from the Combined Threat Assessment Group and was startling. They had uncovered a pattern of appointments, promotions and reassignments within the government going back over twenty years. Tying everything together were memos and reports recommending the changes.

Karen Meadows had done a masterful job of tying everything together neatly, but she had cautioned that the information was not admissible as it was. They needed the original files and computers, all of which were in the impregnable lab in Nevada. It was buried a hundred feet beneath the desert and could survive any assault short of a direct hit with a nuclear weapon.

“The jet just touched down,” Amanda said as she entered the office. “They should be here in less than thirty minutes.”

Susan sighed with relief, “I wish this was all over, but it’s far from that isn’t it?”

“Karen is quite right, we have to have those original files,” Amanda said. “We aren’t trying to build a criminal case here per say; this case will never go to court. But that evidence will destroy the protection the organization has enjoyed for so long. Even more, we must prevent them from sending the signal that will activate the sleepers.”

Susan knew there was only one way they could do that. An all out assault on the lab would just cause them to lock it down and send the signal and all would be lost. The only way to stop them was from the inside and there was only one person who could possibly get into that lab.