Chapter 3.6

I rejoined John in observing Sylvia. Our people were being forced downstairs, and we were helpless to stop it. We watched as they came were herded to the palace, and then the throne room. I gasped as the shimmering air coalesced into a man.

"Here they are, my Lord, " he told Amos, who was sitting, once again on his throne.

“Excellent, Freddie. You may leave now,” the self-proclaimed monarch told him. He turned to us. “Well, now. You may as well remove your invisibility things. I know that you are here. Also, I will want to inspect them.”

“No!" John said quickly. "Don't remove them."

"Oh, come now," Amos said after a moment. "There is no fooling me. I know that you are there. There is no reason to try to hide from me."

I had an idea. "As slowly and quietly as you can, move to either side of the door."

"Do I need to bring Freddie back to show me where you are?"

"Perfect. As soon as Freddie comes in, move out the door, then split up. See if you can find Amos' memory crystals."

We watched as the three moved away. Amos' eyes remained fixed where he thought they were. There was just enough time for them to reach the back of the hall before Amos called for Freddie. When the door opened, the three quietly slipped outside.

They moved away from the throne room quickly, and I verified that they were going in different directions. We watched Sylvia ascended some stairs, and crept slowly down a passageway. There was no one around, and she carefully opened doors and looked into the rooms as she advanced.

In one of the doors, she saw what looked like a harem, and someone stood up and turned to look at the door. "What is going on?" she said, in what was obviously my voice. I gasped as the woman got closer to the door, and moved out of the shadows. She looked exactly like me! Amos had transformed one of the women – no! Probably a man, into a copy of me, except, knowing Amos, the girl probably had extra bits downstairs.

“That bastard is going to die,” John muttered.

Sylvia backed away from the door, and the girl shut it. I shuddered, knowing that the person had been one of our men.

Sylvia kept moving and didn't run into anyone else, although a couple of people passed her in the hall. Finally, after many pauses, she descended a staircase at the other end of the corridor.

When she reached the bottom, she started to turn right, but then heard voices to her left. One was Amos, While the other sounded like Bob! She quickly turned and headed toward the sound.

I relayed what she was doing out loud.

“No, Sylvia!” It was Paula. Although she couldn’t hear her directly, she heard her through our link. “Stay away. The buckle is where I hid it in a closet under the stairs. Hurry, they’re trying to get the information out of me!”

I heard Paula gasp as Bob was hit, over and over. I felt Sylvia react to the sound as well, but she hurried to a door she had seen when she turned. She opened it and slipped inside, but couldn't see the thing until she closed the door and saw a red glow on an upper shelf.

She grabbed it with her hand still gloved, then found a flap over a pocket. She carefully pulled the Velcro™ apart and slipped the buckle into the pocket. After she had smoothed the flap down and made sure nothing underneath it was showing, she slipped out of the closet again, soundlessly shutting the door. She started down when she heard someone moving down the hall in front of her. They turned the corner, and she saw that it was Bob, Amos, and Freddie.

Bob looked terrible, and she relayed that to us. I told her, “Paula says the signal is getting weaker and weaker. Bob was injected with something by Amos as soon as Freddie caught him. We’re not sure why, but Freddie can’t change into… whatever it is for another couple of hours.”

“She wants to know what to do about Bob?”

“Leave me. Let me allow you to get out,” Paula relayed.

“I don’t see it, Bob,” Amos growled.

“I swear, that’s where I put it!”

“Freddie, teach him some manners for a guest.”

Freddie pulled his fist back and hit Bob in the face, saying, “Never steal from your host!” I could hear the sound of Bob’s nose and cheek breaking from the blow.

“That’s rule number one,” Amos announced solemnly.

“Never lie to your host!” Freddie announced as he landed a blow in Bob’s gut.

The door to the outside opened at that moment, and Sylvia was able to slip outside before she heard more.

She hated to continue to sneak around. She wanted to break into a run, but she feared that she would be treated much worse than Bob if she were caught with the buckle in her pocket. She continued by stealth, toward the U ramps, and relative safety.

It took her close to three hours to get the short distance to the U ramp. On the downside, there was no wall up, or a door to block entrance to the walkway. She observed many people near the edge of the ring, where a marketplace was set up. They didn’t seem to notice the opening behind them, although it was large enough to drive several trucks through at once. One man walked soundly into the wall, and then turned, not even seeming to notice it.

Thinking about it, she doubted the people even realized that they were on a spaceship. The buildings, like all of them, were in the bays, which seemed to be wide open. I hated to say it, but someone had an interesting idea. The walls of each bay showed what was going on in the next one. When I had been a ‘pony,’ I had not thought of it, but I never saw any walls. The inside could be made to appear to be whatever we wanted, and it was almost indistinguishable from the real thing. I dearly wished that Winston or Carter had thought of it.

Sylvia carefully maneuvered around the sales booths and up to the ramp. She hoped that there would be no sudden perception of it when she started to make her way up. She took one more look around and then started moving up.

There were no incidents this time, and she arrived at the open door, silhouetting a grinning Jack.

It was the next day that everyone gathered in Daddy's and Mom's laboratory. Once again, Daddy assumed the role of a teacher. "This is fascinating. I've discovered some of the mechanics of Amos' tricks. Some of them, but certainly not all."

"Have you figured out how he can possess someone the way he does?" Jack wondered.

"I've found some things that suggest how it's done."

I was inquisitive. In retrospect, I saw that Amos had not let me understand the way this was done.

"There is a fluid on the outside of these crystals. It doesn't evaporate as long as it remains there. Don't ask, because I have no idea how that's managed. When it touches the skin, however, it disappears quickly. This leaves bots that we're suspended in the fluid to make their way in through the skin."

"But how can they take over that persons bots?" I asked.

"They use the same basic function as a bonding does. Amos' bots program those of another person to respond to his frequency."

"And his is given precedence?"

"Exactly, Rosie."

I sat down on one of his benches. "So what can we do? It sounds like he should be able to take over anyone. Possess them, anyway."

"Well, that's where things get interesting," Mom took up the teaching. "When we monitored those going below," as she said this, she got pale, "we could connect because of the physical connection to their memory crystals. Since he doesn't have the radio to use, he would need the physical connection to be able to control. With his frequencies being tapped in, he can watch what the person sees. Even talk like we were able to, but he can't control. There is no way to reprogram all the bots to his control."

"Yes, there is, Bernie," Daddy argued.

"He hasn't set it up yet, and it would leave the person entirely out of his control while programming was done," Mom replied.

“But once the programming was done, it the person would be completely under his control,” I said.

“Without his control, would a person’s mind revert back to normal?” John asked.

“We would have to examine the mind of someone under his control,” Sylvia said.

“No, I don’t think so,” I wasn’t an expert, but I think they were missing something. “I still hate the thought of returning to my male self.”

“That's hardly conclusive, Rosie," Daddy laughed. "You never liked being male."

“It may not be conclusive for Rose, but it is for me,” Rachel said.

“And for me,” said my older sister. “I was never like Rose, but I can’t stomach the thought of being male. I haven’t been able to since I was changed in the situation room.”

“I was a man before, but I’m trans now. I had surgery, and I’m happy with myself,” Rachel told us.

“So some things remain. But most of those people down there have been changed so drastically. I don’t think anything of them remains.”

Rachel shook her head. “I don’t think you can change anything in their crystals. Once a memory matrix has been written, it’s there to stay.”

“How do you know?” I asked.

“I’ve studied the crystals extensively in my work, and I’ve regressed through my own. I can see the point where I enjoyed being a man, but it turns my stomach to even consider going back now. The point is, however, Those memories are not colored by what I am now.”

“So, in theory, we could bring a person back to who they were before?”

She nodded.

“Could you reconfigure their bodies back to themselves?” I asked my parents.

“In theory, certainly.”

“Now, we just need to figure out how this thing can benefit us," I sighed, looking down at the horrible crystals.

Paula placed a dozen guards at each of the connecting tunnels between the two halves of the ship. Many volunteers were stationed where they could see the outside of each bay from the outer ring.

Marc arranged for an alarm system triggered by some cameras. He stressed that the camera was no replacement for the human eye, and the volunteers remained in place along with the cameras, watching for an incursion from below.

Daddy grabbed Marc and enlisted his aid in some kind of system. I had no idea what it was and demanded to be brought into the loop. Daddy wouldn't budge.

Finally, he and Marc showed me a device that might help against a beast like Freddie. "It is a simple EM pulse generator," Marc explained. "It's limited to a minimal area, but we might lose a few lights and maybe hologram projectors, but hopefully we'll be able to break him apart if he makes an appearance."

“You’ll kill him,” I said quietly.

“I understand your reluctance, Rosie, but I’m afraid this is a case of better him than us.”

“He’s one of us, Daddy!”

“I know it, Sweetie, but right now, he’s trying to kill us.”

I thought about it and then came up with an idea. "I have an idea for you two to work on."

“What is it?” Marc asked.

I told them.

We entered my parent's bot lab a few days later. Mom was preparing to lecture on her project when we heard an alarm! Paula made a call, listened, then told us, "Come on!"

We ran into the town square and to the entrance to the connecting tunnel. I looked around, shocked. “Where are the guards?” I asked.

“We’re here,” someone said. I watched as several people pulled off invisibility hoods.

“Okay," I said, glaring at my sister. "Someone didn't feel It was necessary to tell me that you were invisible."

“Sorry, Ma’am,” the guard said. “I didn’t mean to shock you.”

“Don't worry, George. I was just surprised. Now, what happened?"

He led us down the ramp. The floor of the ramp seemed to be covered with grease. "Ivan noticed some kind of disturbance in the air, so he set off his EM pulse." Ivan stepped forward, and I noticed that I could see the outlines of his body, even though he was still wearing his suit from the neck down. It had the same greasy appearance as the floor.

“Are you telling me that this is the remains of Freddie?" I asked, sickened.

“Or someone like him,” Ivan told me.

I felt faint.

“John, can we get someone here to clean this up?” I asked.

“Wait!” Daddy said. “Let’s see if we can come up with a way to get this to my lab. I want to study it.”

We headed back, which was a relief to my stomach. I imagined I could smell rotting flesh in the tunnel, although I knew it was purely psychological. Getting out of the tunnel and breathing fresh air was bliss for me.

Entering Mom’s lab, I was interested to hear what she had to say. “I’ve come up with a way of infiltrating Amos’ crystals, hopefully without him knowing.

“You’ve what?!” Daddy was surprised. He had been working on his own project with Marc.

“You disagree, Dad?” Paula asked.

“No. If Bernie says it will work, I’m sure it will. I’d just like to look at her figures.”

“You look at her figure all the time, Dad,” Paula said, trying to wind him up.

“You're sure it will work, Mom?" I asked, trying to deflect the winding-up, once again.

“Well, no, but I think it will.”

“I’ll try it,” I said quickly.

“No!” cried my knight in shining armor. “You will not.”

“I’ve been there, John.”

“Yes. All the more reason to keep you out of there.”

“How are you doing it?” Daddy asked.

“It’s actually using a lot of what we discovered earlier. I’m ready to add Amos’ frequency to one of us’s bots.”

“Since you’re not sure, we could potentially be sacrificing someone on our side to Amos,” Jack said bluntly.

Mom turned to glare at Jack. "I know you weren't happy about Sylvia going down there, Jack, but everyone down there right now is sacrificed to Amos. We are trying to gain redemption for them. I don't know if this will work or not, but I'm willing to give it a try!"

With that, I watched in horror as Mom took a syringe and jammed it into her arm, and pressed the plunger.

Mom was lying down in the hospital. Daddy and Jack were discussing what she had done in the other room. They were looking over her notes on the bots she had injected into herself.

Paula was busy with Marc, Rashda, and John, preparing our charges to separate the two halves of the ship, if it became necessary. The problem is, what Mom had done, might make it essential.

I was not an electrician. I was not a doctor. At that point, I was a daughter furious with her mother.

“What the hell were you thinking, Mom?!”

“I...”

“Or should I rephrase that? Were you thinking?!”

“Rose...”

“It was a completely stupid thing to do! Are you trying to get yourself killed? Get us all killed?" I paused in my tirade. Mom just pushed the button, raising her bed up, so she was in a sitting position. I grabbed the control and shouted, "You're s'posed to rest!"

“Don’t touch that control. You may be the commander of this ship, and I respect your abilities there, but I’m still your mother. Do not take that tone with me, and don’t treat me like I’m stupid. I knew exactly what I was doing.”

I brought my head up quickly. I was somewhat surprised. She hadn't talked to me that way since I was a child. I dropped the bed control and almost fell into the chair behind me. I felt like I'd been slapped. She definitely hadn't lost her touch as a mother.

I sat there and worked to regain my composure. Finally, in a small voice, I asked, “What were you intending? Why did you do that?”

She smiled. “What question would you like me to answer first?”

“They’re the same thing, Mother,” I said sternly.

"No, dear. They're not exactly the same. What I intended was to make myself able to pick up the frequency that Amos crystals vibrate at. Why? Because I want this to end. He has killed my granddaughter, possibly my daughter, and my son-in-law. I want him dead."

"And are you picking up the frequencies, Mother?"

"Please, Rosie. I'm still your mom."

"Yes, Mom, you are. But I am furious with you right now!"

"Why?"

"I don't want to lose you! I lost Carla! I lost Ronda before I ever got to know her. Fred was a wonderful man, and we lost him. Belinda was a friend who, and I saw her as a horse, Mom! I know they're dead, but we don't know about Carla. I can't let go of her. If there's any chance, I can't let go! And I can't let you go! How could I?"

She reached out and pulled me down to her. I cuddled up to her like I hadn't since I was a small child. It felt good to be held by her in that way.

After a while, Daddy entered the room. I looked up at him and sat up. I started to get up, but he held out a hand. "It's okay, Baby. Stay there."

"Daddy, Paula is Baby. I'm Rosie."

"Not right now. You're our baby."

"Okay," I said, sniffling. I had always been secretly jealous of Paula for having that pet name anyway, so I enjoyed Daddy calling me that.

"Bernie, I've gone over your figures. I can't find a fault in them. I'm still furious at you."

"Like father, like daughter."

"I can imagine. This was reckless."

"We were going to argue about who dove into his memories until the cows came home. I simply solved that problem."

He shook his head. "You put yourself at risk, Bernice."

Mom's eyes may as well have shot Daddy with fire. "Vernon, I did what was right!"

"We don't know if you will be pulled in!"

"You know damned well that it is unlikely. Rosie was pulled in because she was touching the crystals. I won't be." Mom was getting angrier by the moment. I got up and secretly moved to the chair. Usually, I would have left the room, but I needed to hear what the risks were.

"Because I will be interfacing directly with the crystals, I will not be drawn in." I will not be utilizing Amos' buckle computer."

"What's the difference, Mom?"

"I don't think he'll notice me because I'm not sending anything to his crystals. My bots should be programmed to only receive from them."

I looked at Daddy for confirmation. "They should be," he said, "but we don't know for sure."

She sounded exasperated. "Now, Vernon, we don't know for sure, but you said you couldn't find any faults in my figures."

He pulled up a chair beside mine and sat down with a sigh. "No, Bernie, I can't. It looks like you're right. I sure hope you are."

"I do too, Vern. I really do."

Daddy turned to me. "Commander, I'd like your permission to do something."

"Do you really need my permission?"

"In this case, Baby, I do."

"What do you want to do?"

"I want to turn off the radio frequencies to Amos' crystals."

"If you do that..."

"He can't directly control people anymore."

I saw benefits, but I also saw detriments. "He might try to attack us faster."

"There is that."

"He also may try to set up his frequency controlling of people."

"I don't think that will work. Amos is brilliant, but he needs the computer to control them, and he won't have that."

I thought about it, trying to turn it this way and that in my mind. I knew my parents were just as brilliant as Amos but in different ways. I sighed. I didn't want to risk our people downstairs, but we needed his control lessened in any way.

"Okay, Daddy. You have my permission. But only after we are certain we can separate from downstairs. We won't risk our lives as well as those down there. I mean it."

"I agree, Rosie."

I guess I wasn't Baby anymore. Oh well.