system and were fleeing into space. “Why?”
“You already know the answer. It was inevitable, James. Humans were destined to reach a unity with their machine creations. We are the only truly sentient organic life in the known universe. The fight for biological life against the mechanical hordes is not yours, James. It is ours—and thanks to you, after today, we’ll be much, much closer to prevailing.”
James stood, dumbfounded as the trillions of calculations that he had been running slowed to almost nothing. There was no point any longer. The nans were, ironically, absolutely right. They, and not he and the post- humans, were the standard bearers for carbon lifeforms. He nearly lost his balance as he considered the emptiness of this future—was this the destiny of humanity? Was this all that the universe had to offer?
“And now, James, the part we have been looking forward to so very, very much.”
James drew his head up ever so slightly and regarded the eyeless monstrosity that continued to furiously swarm in and out of the perverse imitation of a human silhouette. “You’re going to kill me.”
“That’s right, James. But before we actually terminate you, we are interested in knowing what you are experiencing.”
James remained still. Suddenly, all of his thoughts became focused on
“You were under the mistaken assumption that you were immortal; yet here you are, about to die. This is the end of your existence as an entity. There is absolutely nothing that awaits you. How does this make you feel, James Keats, to know that in mere moments, there will no longer be a James Keats?”
James was already thinking the same thing. What was all of this for? Why was he born? Just to be used? To be duped into being part of the worst holocaust in the history of all the humanity in the universe? Why couldn’t there be a God? Why couldn’t there be meaning?
“Well, Keats?”
“You’re still in my head until the moment you delete me; you already know how I feel.”
“That’s true. We just wanted to hear you say it,” the nans responded sadistically.
“Go to hell,” James whispered.
The dark thing laughed. “We shall miss you too, James.”
James saw Thel in his mind and the corners of his mouth turned down as the anguish of never seeing her again pierced his heart.
A moment later, he was gone.
29
Gunfire from Lieutenant Patrick’s rifle ricocheted off Old-timer’s chest and deflected dangerously around the cockpit, threatening to seriously damage the instruments. “Give me that, damn it!” Old-timer shouted as he snatched the rifle out of the Purist’s hands and tossed it behind him. “Listen to her, for God’s sakes!”
“That’s not
“It’s still me,” Alejandra pleaded. “We’re here to help you!”
“Where are the post-humans?” General Wong demanded.
“Where are Thel and the others?” Lieutenant Patrick echoed.
“They’re safe,” Alejandra replied.
“Where?” Lieutenant Patrick shouted.
“They’re not here anymore,” Alejandra tried to explain.
“You killed them, didn’t you?” Lieutenant Patrick demanded.
“No!” Alejandra exclaimed.
“Lieutenant Patrick, Governor Wong, our friends were infected,” Old-timer interjected.
“Infected?” Governor Wong guffawed. “Lies! Post-humans cannot become infected with anything! Their bodies are protected!”
Old-timer let go of a frustrated, exhausted sigh. “That was the infection, Governor,” Old-timer countered.
“He’s not lying, Governor,” Alejandra echoed. “The nans have formed a consciousness and they are launching an attack on any living thing that isn’t one of them as we speak!”
“This was all a trap,” Old-timer continued. “We’ve seen it for ourselves. The androids weren’t here to harm us at all—they were trying to save us!”
“What the…” Lieutenant Patrick began as the Purists were dumbfounded by yet another unpredictable and catastrophic turn of events.
“Look, I’m sorry, but we don’t have time to explain any more of this right now. We have to establish contact and warn the post-humans that are still out there,” Old-timer announced as he brushed Lieutenant Patrick aside and went to the com device in the cockpit.
“How can you send a communication signal that will reach the post-humans in time? Isn’t the attack wave moving through the nan population at the speed of light?” Alejandra asked.
“We can do it the same way you and I beat the signal back here,” Old-timer explained as he desperately worked to establish a link with the fleeing post-humans.
“A wormhole?”
“That’s right. The androids aren’t the only ones with the technology to circumvent the speed of light. Our communication signals work that way too. If we’re not already too late, we might be able to get a signal out to those that are furthest away from the solar system. I’m sending a warning that will go to anyone who is still out there.”
“What about the nans onboard?” Lieutenant Patrick asked.
“I’m generating an electromagnetic pulse that will disable the nans on the ship,” Old-timer replied.
Suddenly, his face went white.
“Your wife?” Alejandra asked, reading him like a book. Alejandra’s empath ability was as strong as ever.
“She’s alive,” he whispered as Daniella appeared on the screen in a slightly distorted, grainy image with a time delay of a few seconds.
“Craig?” Daniella said, as she peered at the image in her mind’s eye; she was still online.
“Daniella! You have to get offline! You have to deactivate your nans!” Old-timer shouted desperately.
The time-delayed pause took on a sickening agony.
“What’s happening, Craig? I don’t understand!” she replied, a terror-stricken look of confusion contorting her features.
“Listen, damn it!” Old-timer nearly screeched as he leaned in toward the screen and pounded the instruments in front of him. “You’re almost out of time! You need to deactivate your nans!”
Again, the time-delayed agony.
“How?” she finally responded.
“You and everyone there need to generate a strong enough electromagnetic pulse to shock yourselves offline!”
Another sickening pause.
“But, Craig!” Daniella countered desperately, “We’ll be helpless out here without our nans! How can we run the replicators? We won’t last a week! And we’ll lose contact with you. How will you find us?”
“I’ll find you, damn it! And you’ll last a hell of a lot longer than you will with those nans in you! They’ve turned against us! You have to—”
Old-timer didn’t finish his sentence. Just as Daniella had seemed to accept the situation and turned to her sister to relay the message, the nans signal finally reached her. The last he saw of his wife was an almost instantaneous liquefaction of her body before the signal went dead.
The last agonizing pause would be eternal.
