Progenitor Read online

  “No, and I doubt we’ll get that information from anybody else. Very few funeral homes have the equipment for autopsy scans in place now, so they usually send the bodies to the county. If a cremation order is signed and the death is natural, they usually don’t do an autopsy unless the family requests it.”

  Annaliese tapped her finger on the table. “If the decomposition process is the opposite of the composition process, then can we assume that the energy RNA was introduced in a single amino acid of transfer RNA, and spread through the body by transmitting through the messenger RNA in the body?”

  “It’s a fair assumption. Another assumption is that the miracle cures and healings were the delivery mechanism,” Dr. Patel said. “We have no proof of it, but the decomposition gives us an idea of how it transmits. It’s amazing that it can still work in a dead body, and didn’t die with it.”

  “It’s something else,” Annaliese said, “but what?”

  “This may help,” Mandy said. She swiped aside Carson Kerner’s RNA screen and brought up another scan. “This is a neurological scan from Dale Zeigler. His wife consented to release these to us for the study.” She zoomed in, showing a strand of RNA with a wave of energy weaving in and out of it. “The energy RNA, as we call it, isn’t fully bound with Mr. Zeigler’s amino acids. It couldn’t make a full connection with the transfer RNA, so it couldn’t be transmitted to other cells through the messenger RNA. We aren’t sure if it’s because of his mental illness, or because of the medication he had in his system at the time he went into the coma.”

  “We speculate it was due to his condition, since he never regained consciousness,” Dr. Patel said. “Obviously, he wasn’t medicated for his schizophrenia while he was unconscious, and yet the energy was still attempting to bind with his amino acids, albeit unsuccessfully.”

  Mandy brought back the screen of Mr. Kerner that she swept away and put it next to Dale’s, zooming both out. “One thing these have in common is that the biological and energy binding wasn’t complete.” She pointed out a few spots. “Here you see a cluster where it took. It tried to spread through the messenger RNA, but then you see a cluster where the binding was unsuccessful and it stopped replicating to adjacent cells. Nearby is a cluster of random energy. We think this energy wasn’t able to fully bond with the amino acids because of their illnesses.” She tapped the bottom bar and brought up another window. “This is graphic of one of our live candidates.” She tapped the screen to run the video, which showed the biological RNA. “I time lapsed it for scans that had been run on this patient since last August. I’ll speed it up.” The energy bound with the amino acids effortlessly, winding around the biological RNA until it was completely intertwined.

  Every jaw in the room dropped. Mandy smiled, zooming out to show every cell in the brain completely entwined with the human RNA, creating a double helix of mixed human and energy DNA. “Our live patients are fully integrated with the energy pattern.”

  “What is it?” Dr. Patel asked.

  Galen tapped his computer, projecting a scan on the wall above the RNA scans. “I got this from Avery. Our satellites triangulated those signals.” He enlarged the window, following the line from Earth, through the Jovan system, and out of the solar system. He continued to scroll until he came to a binary system with a small third star a short distance away from the other two stars, where the signal stopped on a point in orbit. “It’s coming from Alpha Centauri.”

  Dr. Patel’s eyes widened. “This is living energy, with a point of origin nearly five light years away. It’s here, in our heads, right now.”

  Annaliese paled as she stared at the graphics. “Heaven help us,” she said, as she read the name on the living human subject in small print on the bottom left corner of the brain scan.

  Kalea Kerner.

  Then everybody will be arguing over why we didn’t keep our eyes on the skies.

  Kalea said that. Right after her father recovered. Right after her foot healed. Right before he relapsed.

  It was over before they realized it started.

  “Annaliese, what is it?” Mandy asked.

  Annaliese swallowed past the lump in her throat. “It’s not a war weapon from the East. It’s aliens.”

  Chapter 38

  “I thought you just needed to look at my brain,” Kalea said as she lay on the table next to the scanning machine in a thin hospital gown.

  Annaliese stared at her cousin. Kalea was the most cold natured person she knew. She would wear long sleeves in the office on a summer day because the air conditioning made her cold. The fact that Kalea wasn’t objecting to being in a thin gown, in mid-January while it was snowing outside, was a sign that something wasn’t right with her cousin. Annaliese cleared her throat. “That was for the first round. Now we want full body scans. Everybody in the study has to do it.”

  “Do they have to come to Corbin Washington Memorial to do it?” Kalea asked.

  Annaliese forced a smile. “No, I made you come up here because you didn’t come for Christmas.”

  Kalea laughed. “I think Aunt Tabitha would have thrown me off the airplane if I came with her. She’s still mad at me.”

  “You two aren’t speaking?”

  Kalea shook her head.

  “You don’t seem bothered by it.”

  “If she decides to stay mad at me, then she’s going to have to get mad at the rest of the world.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  Kalea tilted her head, studying Annaliese. “It means I refused to testify in the complaint against Ross Gilbane because she’s going to lose. The Board isn’t going to do anything.” She sat on the table. “That’s what the investigator told me, anyway.”

  “So you did talk to him?” Annaliese asked. “Mom said you didn’t.”

  “He came by my office the week after Thanksgiving. The Board office is in the same office park as my office, so he decided to come by instead of calling. He said he didn’t believe much could be done in a civil court, because Uncle Carson never put his wishes for a burial in writing. His lawyer wouldn’t allow him to make a change to his life documents due to his declining mental condition.” Kalea shrugged. “Aunt Tabitha decided not to push it, because she thought telling the funeral director would be enough. So there’s no case.”

  “That’s what he said to me too,” Annaliese shook her head. “It is what it is. When is the case going before the Board?”

  “I don’t know. I haven’t talked to the investigator again.” Kalea’s face scrunched. “Did he show you the pictures Mr. Gilbane took?”

  “No,” Annaliese stuck scanning nodules on various places around Kalea’s body. “Just the scans.”

  “Be glad. They were disturbing.” Kalea paused. “Uncle Carson didn’t look bad, but it was weird to see him like that.”

  “I’ll take your word for it.”

  Kalea gave Annaliese that unnerving stare again. “Is something wrong?”

  “No,” Annaliese stammered, sticking a point to each ankle. “There’s a lot going on with this study. The satellites going live two weeks early was a mixed blessing. We have a better idea of what we’re working with, but it forced us to accelerate our research timetable.”

  “I know what that’s like.”

  Annaliese scrunched her face. “How?”

  “Engineers get change orders on plans we thought we were finished with all the time.” Kalea sighed. “It’s probably different in scientific work, but I know what it’s like to think you’re at one place in your work, and then you find out you’re in another place. It’s frustrating.”

  “Yes, it is,” Annaliese said. “Are you ready?”

  “Yes,” Kalea said. “Let’s see what’s in there.”

  “Yes,” Annaliese mimicked softly, as she pressed the button to ease Kalea in the scanning machine. “Let’s see what’s in there.”

  Chapter 39

  “Kalea?”

  Kalea looked up from the table at the restaurant at t
he tall gentleman with dark hair, instantly recognizing him as the man that put the data on her computer at the airport in Charlotte a few months ago. She stood, shaking his hand firmly. “You must be Bruce. It’s a pleasure to see you again.” She smiled as they both sat. “Or rather, it’s a pleasure to formally meet you.”

  “Likewise,” he returned the smile. “I know it’s a risk for us to be seen together for too long, so I’ll get right to the point. I just finished my scan with Annaliese, and I gave her the autopsy information on Peter.”

  “Good,” Kalea took a deep drink of her water. “Do you get thirsty easier? I’ve been drinking more water since this started last summer.”

  He nodded. “I eat more too, but I don’t gain weight.”

  “Our metabolism is higher. Maybe that’s a good thing.”

  “Maybe,” he said, looking around.

  “Relax,” Kalea said. “Nobody knows us up here, and even if they see us, then they won’t.”

  “How’s that?” Bruce asked.

  She nodded to the mousy brunette sitting at the table next to them. The brunette nodded, boring into them with striking blue eyes and turning her attention to the people walking in the front door. “She’ll see to it.”

  Bruce shook his head, looking around. “What was I saying?”

  Kalea laughed. “My point exactly. You were afraid of being seen. That dark-haired lady at the next table is one of us. She’s a neurologist. Her energy can manipulate peoples’ minds. She can help them see what she wants them to see – or not see things, depending on her intent.”

  “We’ve gained amazing abilities,” Bruce said. “It’s hard to keep them hidden, especially when they could be helpful.”

  “We had to get them under control. We were on the verge of revealing ourselves too soon. Thankfully, it won’t be necessary to hide for much longer,” Kalea said. Her face grew serious as she stared at Bruce, her eyes glinting. “Annaliese knows. The rest of the committee is skeptical, but the evidence is pointing to the truth, and they’re starting to believe it. Once they figure it out, they’ll want us to answer for it. I’m prepared to do that.”

  “Are you sure?” Bruce nodded toward the next table. “Maybe somebody like her would be better to deal with the humans.”

  Kalea smiled. “I’m the first and I’m the leader. They’ll call on me. Don’t worry. I’m ready.”

  “How much longer do we have?” Bruce asked.

  Kalea took another drink of her water. “These scans are all they need. Once they compile the results, it will happen.”

  “Annaliese has a meeting with the oversight committee on her schedule in two weeks. Do you think it will happen then?”

  “It’s going to take time to analyze the results, but they have thousands of staffers on this. Yes, I think it will be then. Maybe sooner. Are we assembled?”

  “Eighty percent of us are gathered between North Carolina and Pennsylvania. Given their abilities, we can gather in the Metro D.C. area with two to three hours notice.”

  Kalea thought. “We won’t need that long. Get in the system and tell them to gather for the oversight meeting in two weeks. That will be the time to reveal ourselves, if something doesn’t happen to force us to move sooner.”

  “What if something goes wrong?” Bruce asked. “What if their analysis is delayed? We risk early exposure if we misjudge the timing.”

  “Did you get access to the storage for the research?”

  “I did,” Bruce said.

  “Watch their progress and keep me informed. If anything happens that could upset the current timetable, let me know.” Kalea paused again, looking around. “What about the others? Has there been any movement from Alpha Centauri?”

  Bruce shook his head. “They definitely have the old probe, but I haven’t detected anything in the satellite systems to indicate that they’ve done anything with it.”

  “Good. Keep me posted. If you find anything looks like them, notify me immediately. Day or night, it doesn’t matter.” Kalea sighed. “We may have to act sooner if they get operational again.”

  “I doubt that will happen, but I’ll keep an eye on the satellite grids as well as earthside,” Bruce’s watch buzzed. He glanced at it and stood. “I better go. I have a meeting with one of the managers at our main headquarters in Virginia in an hour and a half. Public transportation is slow, so I better get moving.”

  “Very good. Keep an eye on those files. If they need anything and you have it, give it to them.”

  Bruce raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure?”

  Kalea stared at the cloudy winter day outside the window behind him. “Yes, I’m sure. The time for subterfuge is ending. It’s time we let them discover us.”

  He nodded. “I’m sure that will be quite a discovery for them.”

  Kalea’s face rose in a wicked smile. “It’s going to be a discovery for us all.”

  Chapter 40

  “They want what?” Annaliese asked incredulously, trying to keep her voice down so she wouldn’t wake Kalea in the guest room down the hall.

  “They want a full hearing on the study findings in place of the next oversight committee meeting,” Kieran said. “It’s already been moved to the Capitol for seven o’clock, so they could get news media for prime time coverage.”

  “We’ve only been working on this for three months, and the satellite equipment just went functional two weeks ago,” Annaliese seethed, “and that was early, because it wasn’t scheduled for completion until this week. There’s no way we can have fully calculated findings ready for them by the next report. Do you have any idea how much data we’re working with?”

  Kieran stared at Annaliese sympathetically as he took off his tie. “I tried to explain that to them, but President Hastings wants to announce his intentions to declare war on the Communists and Middle Eastern Sectors in his State of the Union Address.”

  “Is that why he postponed it for three weeks? There’s a war bill going through?”

  “I’m afraid so. We’ve had numerous threats on attacks against the United States, some of them in major cities right here on the continent. Major attacks by Communist and Middle Eastern Sector factions have been diffused in San Francisco and Chicago, and bomb materials were seized at Miami International, Corbin Bush Intercontinental, and Bangor International.”

  Annaliese clenched her jaw. “I must have been really out of it, because I wasn’t aware of any of this.”

  Kieran sat next to Annaliese on the bed, rubbing her shoulders. “You’ve been consumed with your work.”

  “How long has this been going on?”

  “Since mid-November,” he said. “Not all of the terrorist threats made the news. The airport ones did. I think they kept the San Francisco threat quiet, but rumors are starting to spread, and the conspiracy theory nuts are poking around.”

  “Is Congress threatening to take our funding if we don’t punch them in the gut with something amazing in two weeks?”

  Kieran stopped rubbing her shoulders. “It’s possible that they might reduce it unless you can give them a reason not to.”

  “I have plenty of reasons. The problem is getting those idiots to realize the significance of what we’ve discovered.” Annaliese sighed and stood, pacing the large bedroom. “Politicians really don’t understand science, do they? We have teams working around the clock on this, and it’s still not enough. How am I supposed to give Congress conclusive findings with what little we have?”

  “They don’t want conclusive findings,” Kieran said, “they want something that gives them a reason to allow it to continue.” Kieran paused. “If you have something to suggest that it’s originating from the Communists or the Middle East, then that would be all they need to leave things as they are.”

  “For the time being, until they find another fight to take our money away.”

  Kieran stared at Annaliese seriously. “It’s not like that, and you know it.”

  Annaliese stopped pacing and ran her hands
through her hair. “The truth is that we have a tremendous amount of data and a working theory that they probably won’t believe.”

  Kieran smiled at her. “Which is?”

  She smiled back. “You know I can’t tell you that until the committee agrees on it, and they don’t.”

  “Can you tell me if there’s any chance it’s tied to the Communist or Middle Eastern Sectors?”

  “None. This is originating from outer space. That much we can agree on.”

  “Crap,” Kieran blew out a long breath. “Short of proving its aliens, I don’t know if that’s going to justify your current funding. You know the attitude President Hastings has toward interstellar research.”

  “I know,” Annaliese said softly. She turned the chair to her vanity toward Kieran and sat. “It has in interstellar origin. Does that count for anything?”

  “It should, but I can’t say for certain. We’re on the brink of war, and I’m caught in the middle of it.” Kieran ran his hand through his hair, leaving it standing up and messy. “Most of the people that got the project and funding approved are on this war effort now. I have to keep pushing it, or you stand no chance of keeping what you have.”

  “It sounds like I might not,” Annaliese brushed her dark curls. “I didn’t know this project was contingent on producing results within ninety days of our commission.”

  “I didn’t either, but things have changed. Maybe it was doomed from the start. Maybe they were humoring me all along so I’d cooperate with them now, knowing they’d need my support for the war. There’s no telling what their motives were.”

  Annaliese smiled weakly. “Typical Washington politics?”

  Kieran nodded. “They cooperate only when you’re useful to their causes.”

  “Then I guess we better make this research good for something,”Annaliese put down her brush. “The final scans were completed today, so the data from our nationwide sources should start coming in soon. We’ll see what they find. Who knows? We may turn up little green men knocking on our door.”