To Return Home

Thanks to Malady for his help editing and for ideas.

Cover image from Unsplash

Chapter 3.6

We weren’t quite certain what the effect of Marc being present would have, so both he and Paula were asked to remain out of sight.

We started our trip down the wall of the pit. On our way down, my husband, ever the engineer, examined the walls. “These were molten once. It's like they were super-heated, then cooled into an alloy.”

“Do you think Kari did it?” Daddy asked.

To Return Home

Thanks to Malady for his help editing and for ideas.

Cover image from Unsplash

3.4

We worked. That is, Rachel and I worked our butts off, and slowly, we started to make headway. The men were probably the easiest. Over time, we were able to bring most of them back to themselves. There were a few who didn’t want to change from their new selves, but even the ones who wanted to return to their old appearance wanted to hold off until the women had been returned.

To Return Home

Thanks to Malady for his help editing and for ideas.

Cover image from Unsplash

3.2

Daddy enlisted Jack and Sylvia to help him work on a way to repair the people’s bodies.

They found that the heinously fast changes that Amos favored, required a commensurate amount of bots inside a person. Structure changes to the skull as well as any in the brain, weren’t made with the health of the victim in mind. As the brain held the person, the repair project started with that. But, due to starting without the person’s original genes, they planned to work back from what they did have, reversing all of Amos’s changes.

To Return Home

Thanks to Malady for his help editing and for ideas.

Cover image from Unsplash

2.6

As it’s been a little while since I last posted any of this story, I’m going to give a “When we last saw our protagonist…”

From Chapter 2.5

“You’re not acting predictably,” Paula told me.

“I just lost my husband,” I exploded. “Would you care to explain what is predictable about that?”

She sat down, and her demeanor softened. “My bots aren’t able to predict how you’re going to react to things right now.”

Paula turned her attention from me to Carla. “Are you saying you can communicate directly to your bots?”

I was shocked as well. “How can you do that?” I asked. “I asked mine a question a couple of days ago, but I could only talk to them in a dream.”

Carla appeared uncomfortable. “I suppose it’s something that I learned while Amos was in control.”

I shrank away in fear. “Don’t touch me!” I screamed, terrified. “Get away from me!”

“What’s going on!?” Carla was very confused now.

“He’s still here! He killed John, and he’s still in you!” I tried to back away having no control over my actions.

Paula grabbed me as I flailed my arms at my little sister. “Perhaps you should leave and let her calm down,” I heard her say.

I was crying uncontrollably now, the pain of the last few days taking over.

And now on to 2.6...

Thanks to Malady for his help editing and for ideas.

I’d also like to apologize in advance for the bending of physical laws in the following chapter. I am aware of MOND, for those of you who are as well, but I suppose I don't like the theory, so I decided to ignore it in this book. Author’s prerogative, I guess. In my defense, I’ve been watching some lectures from the Royal Institute lately, and maybe it’s gotten me thinking a bit more – sideways?

I have been enjoying some documentaries on gravity also. They were heavy.

To Return Home

2.4

John and Marc got busy maneuvering the ship to a position where we were in line to reconnect with the command center and downstairs section. I wasn't sure I liked the idea, but it seemed to be the only choice, under the circumstances.

Mama was monitoring Amos’ memories while our ship accelerated slightly and drew alongside. At the same time, Daddy was monitoring her very closely, and I think he was ready to pull the plug if anything should go awry. So was I.

“What's happening, Bernie?” Daddy asked.

“Nothing, Vern. All I see happening is a celebration. Some type of praise for the ‘Emperor.’”

Thanks to Malady for his help editing and for ideas.

To Return Home 2.2

"I don't give a damn who it is, Bernie! I don't want you linking with anyone down there again!"

I stopped on my parent's porch. I had been reaching out to open the door, but now, hearing Daddy yelling, I wasn't sure I wanted to walk in on them. All three of us girls had a standing invitation to simply walk in, as did all of them, including Mama and Daddy, at our homes.

I had a particular reason to not want to walk in on this particular squabble. Mama was doing a favor for me. Apparently Amos was able to connect to others again. It frightened all of us. What was to stop him from trying to control us? I was very much afraid. Controlling me was something he might want to do to get to John.

Thanks to Malady for his help editing and for ideas.

To Return Home 2.1

Daddy pitched the idea of the five-person leadership to the others as if the idea was his own. I didn’t think for a moment, however, that the others believed it, but at least they were gracious enough to pretend they did.

I had suggested that I be responsible for preserving our culture, but now I found that, somehow, the medical aspect of our culture came under my purview as well. I guess it had to do with the need for good health for morale, or morale for good health: one or the other.

Thanks to Malady for his help editing and for ideas.

The three of us decided it was time to exit the connection with Carla and speak to Daddy and the rest of the command staff. We tried to release our grip on the necklace in real life, but we couldn’t.

Danger! I wasn’t sure where the voice came from, but it sounded in my head as if someone was standing right beside me. I looked at Mama and Rachel. They had clearly heard it too.

Thanks to Malady for his help in editing this!

I woke up sometime later. I was in my bed, and Mama was sitting in a chair beside me, keeping watch.

“How long have I been out, Mama?”

“A couple of hours, Rosie.”

To Return Home

Chapter 1.1

I dove into the water, alongside my sister, Paula. Neither of us wore any of the diving equipment of old, except for a pair of goggles each. I hated trying to see underwater without them. Many people didn’t worry about them either, but I had hated blurry vision since I was a kid. Before I was injected with nanobots, I was myopic, but the bots had cured me of that problem almost immediately. My vision had been perfect ever since then. To dive into the water and not be able to see was too nerve-wracking. Perhaps since it took me back to the time before I was female? I wasn’t sure, but nevertheless — I wasn’t willing to do it.

Chapter 3.8

John and I had a fantastic night. I got up in the morning and sat down at my piano. I hadn’t played in some time, and just let my fingers go, regarding all the feelings I had been experiencing with this crazy situation we found ourselves in.

I felt terrified for my husband. Amos had already killed one half brother. What was to stop him from destroying the other?

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.

To Not Let Go

Chapter 3.4

I looked at my arms and legs. “Did Amos put something in me that stops the bots from continuing?”

“Your parents are on the way. They know more about bots than anyone,” Jack told me.

To Not Let Go

Chapter 3.2

As we approached the door to the downstairs, we began to hear what sounded like excited shouting. It was like people were watching a sport of some kind. We arrived behind a line of men cheering and stomping their feet. They were dressed in what looked like simple white togas like I had seen in pictures of Ancient Rome.

We stood there for a moment, then one of the men turned a bit and caught sight of us. “My friends!” he exclaimed, almost musically. “You appear to be new here!” He spoke animatedly until he caught sight of me. "Child! What are you doing dressed so shamefully?"

Chapter 2.2

Kari walked toward Marc, but he backed away. "So you think I'm Amos?"

Chapter 2.1

I had only been back to my position for a day when we found Carla in our observation room. I wasn't sure how she got there, but I was assuming that in the memories with Amos, he was able to tap into my knowledge of the ship. It seemed like a reasonable solution to that question.

Chapter 1.3

I opened my eyes and looked around. Carla was not in sight.

I contacted John, and when he came in, I told him what had happened.

"Let me get this straight, Rose. You voluntarily scanned the memories of Amos Goodwin? What is wrong with you?"

Chapter 2

Amos glared at me. He tried to retake control of the situation, but I was very determined. Carla was helping as well, and between us, we were able to keep control.

"If you feel the way about me that you claim, why don't you look at my memories?"

He stared at me for a moment. "Do they have Carlson in them?" He asked.

"Of course," I answered.

"Then I'm not interested," He told me.

This wasn’t actually the first time nanites had been a terrorist threat - some Islam terrorist group had been trying to release a variation of GDD.
All it did was convert people into corpses. By eating their brains. Nanozombies. Urgh…

They wiped out the threat with massive a massive EMP - electro-magnetic pulse. Huge success. Nanobots all wiped out. No deaths. Pretty much a first for the US. *giggle*

After GDD, they tried the EMP solution.

It… didn’t work.

It was then, with bits of miscellaneous orange gunk dripping out of my mouth, that I realised how much my mind had changed. I’d SEEN broken bones before, and not felt like this. I’d actually seen a suicide jump, and while emotionally scarring, I didn’t feel nauseous, even seeing the pile of crumpled gore on the ground. But now? Even THINKING of that set me off again, but I had nothing left to throw up, so I was just retching. And I’d tried to help Leeroy. That is enough to creep me out.