A Twist of Destiny Bk. 02

I looked at the general carefully for a silent moment. "By that, sir, I assume you mean that we should barter for our services, if they ask. What exactly should I be aiming for, sir? Weapons? Technology? Protection from other species? Sir... I'm afraid that I don't know enough of the full history we've had with these people to negotiate with them. While I'm not above working a deal out with them, my biggest concern would be leaving Earth without at least one of us here to keep working."

"We managed to limp along without you for a few centuries, David. Earth will be all right. As for bartering... Ideally, we'd ask for technology," the general said without hesitation.

I shook my head at that. "I would advise against it, sir."

General Hannis scowled at me. "I hope you have a good reason, Shayles. Your government would take a very dim view of dictating their will."

"I understand that, sir," I said unflinchingly, "but the fact is that we, as a species, are immature. Oh, sure, there's a handful of enlightened souls on the planet, but nowhere near enough to shape our future responsibly."

"Are you calling your nation's leaders idiots, Shayles?" the general asked darkly.

"Not at all, sir," I said quickly. "Men don't come into power by being idiots, as a general rule. Some might rise to power through luck or force, but few will do so through stupidity- at least, none that last long enough to do any good."

"Then I think you'd better explain yourself."

"Sir, Humanity is young. We, as a species, are little more than adolescents and a hard, cold look at our behavior in the last century proves it, if one is willing to be honest with one's self. Putting advanced alien technology in the hands of Mankind would have disastrous effects, like putting a gun in the hands of a child. Technology that we didn't develop on our own amounts to the development of bigger, better, strong weapons with which more people can be killed."

"Good thing we're a military unit," Leviathan said wryly. "We wouldn't want anyone to get the wrong idea about us, would we?"

I ignored the comment and continued. "Sir, we are on the cusp of joining a large interstellar community. If we went for the quick and easy request of looking for ways to dominate through force, other species would look at us with either disdain or view us as a challenge- no other view would be possible. We'd invite ourselves to attack and a possible war that we aren't prepared to fight. We ought to look for ways to make ourselves better and nobler, ways to give us a fighting chance at survival rather than suicide."

"And what do you suggest as an alternative?" General Hannis asked. "I remind you, David, that you are talking to a military leader, not some bleeding-heart politician."

"We should ask for the eradication of disease, sir. Plague, cancer, tuberculosis, AIDS, the Ebola virus- diseases and viruses that have taken more human lives than all of our wars put together. That is forward-thinking, sir. Looking for ways to gain strength through force will only make us look like warmongers and fools."

"Why not ask for better ways to defend ourselves from another aggressive species? A planetary defense system or something like that?" he asked. His focus, as I expected, was still trained on military applications and fighting. Inwardly I sighed in exasperation but didn't show it.

"Again, such a planetary defense system could be used for global intimidation. It would have to be in the control of a single, unified government and we can't even get the U.N. to agree on who is and who isn't sympathetic to terrorists. And, not to put too fine a point in it, sir, but a defensive grid may not be enough to keep aggressive aliens at bay. If my suspicions are correct and we're about to be asked to defend the Kholain from an aggressive species, it stands to reason that anything they give us still won't be adequate enough to defend us."

"You don't know what the Kholain will ask of you, if anything," Doctor Lamb suggested. "They might just want to study you, for all you know."

"I'm absolutely certain that they will want to study us, Doctor, but I still think there's more to their presence here- and their request to see The Guardians- than simple scientific interest."

"Well we will know for certain, one way or the other, soon enough," Doctor Lamb interjected. She glanced at her watch. "It is almost time."

----------------------------------------

We'd been given a specific set of coordinates to wait for transport to the ship: a large field of grass out in the middle of Belgium where no one and nothing could observe us. Belgium, you might be surprised to know, is mostly farmland and undeveloped. There are cities and villages, to be certain, but the countryside of that nation is unspoiled by urban sprawl, kept pristine so that its European charm would never disappear. I often wondered if this was intentional or if it was simple due to a lack of interest in urbanization but never got around to asking. Having interacted only sparingly with some of the locals, my instincts told me that it was a mix of both. Belgians, while fairly polite, are also stubbornly proud of their beautiful countryside and seem reluctant to let it change anytime this century.

I teleported the four of us to that field and we waited quietly for... well... we didn't know what, exactly, would happen once we arrived. Would a ship arrive? Would we get more instructions? We had no idea.

"Well," Leviathan said after a few minutes of nothing, "this is exciting."

"Relax," I said. "We're still a few minutes early."

"Back to being the leader already, huh?" Leviathan replied coldly. "That didn't take long."

I rolled my eyes at the younger man. "I'm not trying to lead anybody," I told him. "All I'm saying is that there's no need to hurry things."

"Still, you made it sound like an order," Tank cut in. "You're not the team leader anymore."

"Tank," Aventine said with a warning tone to her voice.

Tank, however, cut her off. "No, Aventine. We need to talk about this now. David, you've been doing your own thing for awhile now. You're your own agent, which is fine, but you're not part of the team. That's over."

"You don't mean that, Tank," Aventine said quickly. "You're just-"

"Don't speak for me, Marie!" Tank growled. "You, of all people, shouldn't be defending this asshole!"

She sighed and threw her hands up in resignation. "Fine, Damien! Go ahead and give him a piece of your mind. When the Kholain show up, I'll just let them know we're having a family squabble. I'm sure they won't mind!"

"We ain't family!" Tank bellowed.

"Tank," I said calmly and approached him with wide-spread arms to show that I wasn't in the mood to fight, "I'm not trying to lead the team or fit back in. I was simply asked to be here, so I'm here. And I'm not doing it for myself. I'm here for Humanity."

"Oh, how very noble of you!" Tank replied. "I'm sure your family is very proud of you."

That brought me up short. I blinked at him in confusion. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, I know how much you family means to you, with your love of incest and all-"

I didn't let him finish the sentence and punched him square in the jaw. I didn't hit him with all of my strength, but it was definitely enough for him to feel it in a bad way. He hit the ground like a sack of potatoes and looked up at me thoughtfully. While rubbing his jaw and leaning up on an elbow, he smirked. "What's the matter, David? Did I hit a little too close to home for you?"

I stood at his feet and glowered at him. "Damien, you had better tread very lightly. The next two words that come out of your mouth may or may not get you hospitalized."

Tank started to open his mouth, but Aventine stopped him from saying exactly what we all suspected he was about to say. "Damien, you stepped over the line. As your commanding officer, I order you to apologize. Right now. If not for your personal integrity, then at least for your safety."

He glanced up at her and then at me. For a few long seconds he said nothing as he thought about his options. Finally, though, he seemed to relax. "Sorry." I reached out to help him up and, for a brief second, he seemed like he was going to refuse it, but he ultimately accepted my outstretched hand. When he was on his feet he squared his shoulders and looked me in the eye. "You really pissed me off, you know that?"

"Vegas?" I asked. He nodded once and held my gaze. "Look, I'm sorry if I hurt you- any of you. I might've gotten a little carried away. Maybe more than a little. But I got the feeling that you guys weren't exactly holding back, either. And I think that little jab you just took at me about the stories I used to write might have had something to do with it. You were treating me like I was a criminal and, at that point, it stopped being a show."

"It would be a lie to say that we don't suspect something, David. Where there's smoke there's fire."

And there it was. General Hannis knew about it and now my own team suspected. I held my breath, counted to ten and let it out. "Fine. Okay. Yes. I have sex with my daughter. Lots of it. And my wife not only condones it, she participates in it. Satisfied?"

"Whoa," Leviathan breathed out. "I didn't fuckin' think you'd come right out and say it, dude!"

"You're fucking sick," Tank added.

I looked at Aventine, searching her features, and found a blank face. I'd never intruded upon my teammate's feelings or thoughts and I wasn't about to then, but I was sorely tempted. After a pause, she finally frowned and looked at the ground. "It's hard to throw stones when you live in a glass house," she said quietly.

All of us could have been knocked over with a feather when she said that. We all three gaped at her open-mouthed in stunned silence.

She looked at us, one after another, and then simply said, "It happens far more than any of you might imagine. For me, it was my older brother. Lasted a few years until I fell in love and got married, but it happened. And you know what? I don't regret it. Yes, society and the law has rules against it, but sometimes things... just happen. Maybe society felt it was wrong, but my brother and I sure as hell didn't. So, say or think whatever you like, guys, but don't expect me to join in on bashing NightShade for his choices. At the end of the day, he does his job and doesn't complain about it. And he doesn't go around advocating it, either- or have neither of you noticed that? He doesn't defend himself or put up any stupid excuses, but he's not throwing it in anyone's faces, either."

Tank and Leviathan were thoughtfully silent as they took that in. I broke the silence. "Guys? I don't expect you to approve of it. I'm not looking for anyone's approval. What I and my family do is, truly, our business. We're not hurting anyone, we're not flaunting it and, in my family, all of the cards are out on the table."

"Dude," Leviathan said, "you have a teenage son!"

I shook my head. "He's not involved. We won't let him until he comes of age. Lord knows he's in a hurry to, but we won't allow him to do anything of the sort until he's a legal adult and fully capable of making his own decisions. There is a vast world of difference between incest and... pedophilia. I'd just as soon kill a pedophile than look at one, regardless of gender."

"Small comfort, that," Tank muttered. "I can't say that I agree with your choices. I don't. But I've never known you to lie about anything, so if you say that no one's being hurt, I'll take you at your word."

"That's all I can expect and hope for, I guess," I said with a slow nod. "Thank you."

"Nothin' to thank me-"

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Contact

Next thing we knew we were standing on the deck of a ship, far away from the grass and scenery of the Belgian countryside, and looking at a trio of Kholain.

"-for," Tank finished.

You may hear us. A voice said in my mind. A glance at my other three companions told me that they, too, heard the voice in their heads. The voice was female and free of accent, but spoke in English.

One of the Kholain stepped forward and nodded its head. I am V'Kesh, commander of this vessel. Welcome, Guardians of Earth.

"I was told that your means of communication would be less... direct," I replied vocally. "What changed?"

You share our Life Map, V'Kesh answered.

"What the hell is a Life Map?" Leviathan asked no one in particular.

"Genetic code," I said readily. "At least, that's what makes sense to me. When you look at a strand of DNA, from one perspective it can be viewed as a sort of map. Certain zones indicate certain traits, just like certain points on a map indicate specific landmarks." I looked at V'Kesh. "Am I right?"

She gave a subtle nod of confirmation. We need your help, as you have reasoned. The blending of your Life Map with ours has made the four of you unique in this galaxy. We cannot reproduce the same results that your Doctor Lamb created. Your uniqueness is critical to us.

"Very well," Aventine said, now that she'd had a moment to collect her wits. "What, exactly, do you need from us?"

We need you to fight for us. We are being destroyed. Our homeworld is occupied by a terrible menace that we cannot resist. We are a peaceful people and lack the ability to defend ourselves against them, though we have tried.

"Score one for NightShade," Tank muttered quietly. "Looks like you were right."

"If we help you to repel this... menace," Aventine began, "what can we expect in return? After all, if we leave then our homeworld is left defenseless, too. That is a high risk to take, don't you think?"

We know your mind on this matter, V'Kesh said drily. You would follow the orders of an unenlightened leader even though you disagree with him?

Aventine glanced at me with a helpless look on her face and looked back at the Kholain leader. "Part of my training and discipline dictates that I carry out the orders of my superiors, even if I don't agree with them," she answered.

But no one on your planet is superior to you anymore. We have watched all of you very closely and we know what you have seen and witnessed. We know your views on such matters. We know that you abhor the illness of greed and unnecessary violence that plagues your planet. NightShade was correct when he said that to ask for our technology or weapons would be foolish and that you truly don't want to do that. Rather than put you in a position where you must ignore the orders you have been given, we will make things simpler for you. The only thing we offer in return for your assistance is the eradication of dangerous Life Mapping in all its forms from your planet. That should suffice.

I tried not to look smug, but inwardly I was laughing my ass off. I wasn't happy to be right so much as I was overjoyed that, for once, the hubris of Mankind would be stonewalled from the onset rather than at a time when it was too late.

"Take the deal, Marie," I told her quietly. "If that's all they'll offer, then it's better than nothing and we all know it."

NightShade is, again, correct, V'Kesh told us. He has been correct more than he has been incorrect.

"If that's not a ringing endorsement, I don't know what is," joked Leviathan. "Next thing you know, they'll be telling us that incest isn't wrong, too." I glared at him but said nothing.

It is not wrong, V'Kesh said plainly, which caused Leviathan and Tank to drop their mouths open in astonishment. Sharing love is a universal gift, most especially between one's family, the individuals you love first and most. It is not wrong nor, as you humans call it, 'sinful.' Your people's ridiculous concerns about incest are tinged with fear, greed, doubt, anger and resentment. You would do well to forget about such concerns. Your Life Map is complex but it is not unmanageable. With time your people will learn how to avoid cull-worthy offspring. With the introduction of our Life Map into yours, however, there is no concern. All of NightShade's children are pure, as will Aventine's be.

We all looked at Aventine with keen interest, which made her blush slightly. "What? I'm married. I have as much right as anyone, don't I? And what's this about David's children? I thought your kids were your step-children."

Now it was my turn to look somewhat embarrassed. I glanced at V'Kesh reproachfully. "I'm guessing that keeping secrets is unfamiliar territory to you."

Secrets are as useful, or as useless, as lies.

"A bland statement like that, taken at face value, can sometimes pack one hell of a punch. It wasn't your privilege to share that information with them. It was mine," I said quietly.

If you are to work together to save our people then you must know each other completely. There can be no room for animosity or resentment. We witnessed the conversation you had below, before we brought you here. It is best to dispense with all secrets and lies now.

Suddenly we knew everything about each other. Our past experiences, our lies, our secrets, our hopes, our dreams... the four of us knew each other as intimately as though we'd lived each others' lives from the first wail in the delivery room up until that very moment. The new information that filled our heads didn't hurt, didn't shock us or cause confusion. It was just suddenly there, as though it had been the whole time. The others looked at me with wonder and surprise.

"Jesus, David, I am... we are so sorry!" Tank said quietly. "We... didn't know."

I looked down at my feet, filled with the knowledge of my teammates' lives, and nodded soberly. I could recall the deaths of their parents, friends, fellow soldiers... their pains and failures... it was amazing how similar and yet distinctly different one person's life can be from another's. "There's a lot that none of us knew," I said respectfully. "I knew that your parents had died, Tank, but I didn't really know it until just now. Tommy, I can tell you honestly that what happened with that kid when you were in high school was not your fault. Aventine, I think it's wonderful that you're pregnant- and your husband has every right to be proud of you. Look, guys, none of us are saints but none of us are devils, either. We're human. Knowing each of you the way I do now, though..."

I turned, looked at V'Kesh and literally bowed. "Thank you for showing us to each other. We needed that clarity. On the other hand, however, what you did was... a violation of our privacy. Humans hold their most intimate experiences and events very sacred because they mean something important to those who experience it, much in the same way we feel about religious miracles. It worked for the best this time, but I would advise you not to do that with any other humans unless specifically asked to."

We do not understand entirely but the feeling behind your words tells us much. I sense the warning of danger in your thoughts and concerns for our safety. We did not intend to offend or upset you.

"You didn't, really. I love my family and am extremely proud of them, despite the mores of my society. I am not ashamed to share my secrets with the people I trust, but my species is so young that it is difficult for us to know who we can trust. Fortunately, I trust these three people with my life. Trusting them with my secrets is much easier."