Day Nineteen ∞ Tuesday afternoon

DANNY WALKED BESIDE MICKMI with thoughts buzzing as they followed the two lab coats. He felt like his brain had been stretched several inches outside his head. Or was that his mind? Of all the new knowledge he'd been exposed to in the past couple of hours, he kept returning to what Mickmi had said about the silk threads.

He'd always known they were connected. We're soulmates. But he'd never imagined it boiled down to literal energy threads that physically connected them like a spider's web. —Or is that psychologically... or emotionally... mentally... or all four?

Mickmi squeezed his hand. —More than that.

—With our— What are Chakras again?

—Concentrated energy centers in our physical body. We each have seven main ones, from the base of our spine to the crown of our head. You can feel some of them with different emotions. Like when you feel butterflies... or dread in the pit of your stomach. Or love in your heart. She smiled. But you can also learn to harness them and—

Danny recognized the spacious hall they entered. Dr. Kruger led the way to the side occupied by a low wooden fence. Behind it, a blonde soldier sat looking at a screen, her hair tied up into a strict bun. Several metal cabinets and a bench with an express coffee-maker, several jugs, cups, and glasses lined up behind her. She had a commanding view of the whole room, including the opposite steel-plated wall where two solid men in military fatigues guarded an ordinary-looking door.

"We need to use the private shuttle to go to Command," Kruger said to the lady-soldier.

"Please sign the log. Doctor Bogdanov too." The blonde pushed a big book across the desk and added, "Sir, do you need an escort?" She glanced at Mickmi and Danny.

"Not at this time," Kruger replied.

The guards did not budge from their posts as they approached the metal door. Kruger pulled a plastic card from his pocket, inserted it into a slot next to the door and tapped on the keypad. The red light above the panel switched to green and the door hissed open.

"This way, please, Miss Wamba, Mister McGahn," he said.

This was the same short tunnel Danny had been brought through some seven hours ago. It ended at a wider one where several cart-like, roofless vehicles occupied a recess. They climbed into the nearest one, Kruger and Dr. Bogdanov at the front, and Mickmi and Danny behind them on a leatherette-covered bench. Kruger turned a key next to the steering wheel, but nothing seemed to happen until he stepped on a pedal. The vehicle's engine was soundless as they rolled forward into the evenly lit tunnel at what felt like a crawl. If they were going back to the same place Danny had been brought from, this ride would take a while.

"I've been thinking, Miss Wamba," Kruger said over his shoulder. "Are all the citizens of your world as evolved and well prepared as you are?"

Mickmi stared straight ahead for a while before responding, "What I shall tell you will not surprise you... I am sure you already suspect it."

Her hesitation made Danny glance at her. It seemed as if she was choosing her words.

"We had for many centuries been... modifying our genome, removing many genetic errors contained within the human genetic code. As I am sure you are aware, our genetic code was full of defects. Before the twenty-third century, Homo Sapiens Sapiens was the only animal on our planet plagued with such a huge amount of defects... After the twenty-third century, a consensus was reached to systematically cleanse our genome. Genetic engineering science was extremely advanced at the time."

As they digested that information, Danny pictured the photograph of her chromosomes squirming like worms on the back of a lab coat. But he wasn't sure of where to locate the genomes.

"That must have significantly increased the average life expectancy of your population, right?" Bogdanov commented.

"Over several generations, aye... Significantly."

"By how much?"

Mickmi met Danny's gaze, her brow slightly furrowed. "By some... two hundred years."

Two hundred? Did that mean she would live to be over two hundred years old? Danny wasn't sure how to feel about that.

"Fascinating," Kruger said. "So that would make your life expectancy upwards of three hundred years. Do you know what specific changes in the genome are responsible for this increase?"

"Aye. You are aware of cellular degeneration. The most important was a minor change to an enzyme. This allowed the telomeres protecting the protein ends of our genomes to double their reproductive limit of cells to over... 5000 times. So now we can, theoretically, live over twice as long as the previous average."

Kruger nodded several times in thought, then asked, "And are all your contemporaries as advanced as you, as you've displayed in the lab?"

She lowered her eyes, a faint color rising on her cheeks. "Not exactly. There was... a selection process. The genomes of those more evolved were collected... You see, ages ago, after our Earth suffered the Great Desolation, the Civilization Rebuilders agreed that maintaining division of the Land into nations was counterproductive. From thence, it took not long before we ended the old system of electing top leaders. It was considered inefficient and inadequate for our recovery needs. We needed exceptionally capable leaders. That is why it was decided to create leaders, not to leave it to random chance."

"Oh?"

"For many generations, the leaders of our world were not elected but grown, specially trained and prepared for their future roles. We instituted a centralized government system, with the best selected candidate at the top, and called her, or him, Queen or King. Unlike queens and kings of old, ours were selected based on competence, not blood lineage."

After a few moments of progressing along the tunnel in silence, Bogdanov turned sideways on his seat. "Tell me, Miroshka, how's that different from our old tradition of having kings? After all, they were supposed to be somehow superior to the plebeians."

"They were supposed to, but they were not. In primordial times, oftentimes the first queens and kings were elected from the best. But as time passed, most adopted the tradition of putting their firstborn on the throne, causing the succession to be based on birth. That is not a practical or reliable way to obtain a queen or king fit to lead.

"On our Earth, the selection process is conducted by a carefully selected team of scientists, each with an impeccable background—not only in their specialties but also by their social interactions. Only the highest moral and ethical standards qualify a person for that team, no matter how great their achievements in their respective scientific arena. That ensures the process for creating the best leaders remains uncorrupted over time.

"The process consists of several selection stages—starting with identifying embryos with genome promising a favorable chance of developing the qualities desired. That is easy because, after two millennia, the genome library contains records of our entire population, so they are able to identify the most promising from millions of possibilities."

"Wait," Kruger interjected, "you mean the child of any couple could potentially be selected to be the future leader of your planet?"

Mickmi nodded. "Exactly. Any, meeting the criterion. But not just from our planet, because our colonies also recognize this leadership. Now the next part of the selection process requires the children to be groomed for their future roles. They receive intensive training since their fourth year."

Kruger gaped over his shoulder.

"But-but that's too soon." Bogdanov shook his head. "A four-year-old can hardly speak complex sentences, let alone keep focused for very long."

She smiled, amused. "That may be the case here, in this time. Not in my world, in my time. My training started on my fourth year day—birth day—with the assignment to my own vessel. My caregiver and primary trainer since then was the intrinsic intelligence of my vessel."

Danny couldn't contain himself at that revelation. "You mean Deymos raised you? The one you arrived in?"

"Nay," she met his gaze, "it was a cruiser vessel—much larger. Deymos is a shuttle vessel, assigned to me for my final test... Doctor Kruger, Doctor Bogdanov, have either of you ever heard the term 'acceleration' in child development?"

Confused, both of them shook their heads.

"It refers to the fact that, in favorable societal conditions, children mature faster and faster with each successive generation. Not only that, they start speaking and walking at a younger age. In our case, this phenomenon was very noticeable after the first generation with purified DNA was born. And each successive generation was even more precocious than the—"

Kruger held up his hand, indicating a vehicle approaching from the other lane. Danny watched as it passed them but the occupant kept his gaze straight ahead. Eventually, Kruger spoke again.

"Tell me something, Miss Wamba. At what age do your infants usually start speaking?"

Mickmi smiled. "At the time I was born... the average baby started conversing in short sentences at around... seven months—that is nine months by your calendar."

Both men dropped their jaws, staring at her. Danny had to suppress a grin. He could tell Mickmi enjoyed shocking the lab coats speechless.

Kruger was the first to recover, taking a quick glance at the way ahead before looking at her again. "That's a joke, right? Children barely have a vocabulary of over fifty words at the age of two. They might be able to make simple two-word sentences. Surely it's not possible to take your evolution so far just by purifying your genome."

"You are absolutely correct. Other factors are involved, including the fact that Mothers are expert meditators. As soon as new parents decide to bring a child into the world, they receive training. The mothers learn the appropriate way to communicate telepathically with their child while it grows in the womb. They also expose them to music specially designed to stimulate neural growth.

"In my case... such contact was not allowed. Children selected for grooming as Candidates for leadership roles are conceived in-vitro and grown in incuchambers..."

"Some sort of incubator?" Bogdanov asked.

"Aye. This practice is geared to prevent Candidates from developing a susceptibility to mind manipulation. It... also prevents the creation of strong emotional attachments to their parents, thus avoiding the possible use of their parents against them. The Candidates should always act to preserve the wellbeing and safety of everybody, so their progenitors can not take precedence to that."

Unperturbed by the stunned silence, she continued, "No opportunity is wasted to minimize stress and promote development of the baby's mind from the early stages of gestation. That includes trauma-less delivery into water. They swim their way out of their Mothers."

It took a moment before Danny remembered to close his mouth. 

Bogdanov shook his head in awe. "Would you mind if – I ask a – sensitive question?"

"Not at all. Anything I can help with, I will."

"What's the attitude regarding abortion?"

"Abortion? It is extremely rare."

After a short silence, Bogdanov continued, "Is it because it's forbidden, or perhaps by some religious taboo?"

"Certainly not. It is just not necessary." Mickmi smiled broadly. "Why should we do that when women who are not ready for motherhood can mentally control whether to reject the sperms? When we can cure in vitro on the rare occasion any failure is detected during pregnancy? When gestation can be completed in incuchambers if there is a change of mind? In your present society, women have many reasons to interrupt an undesired pregnancy. We have nearly none of those reasons." Her smile vanished. "It is sad that you can not yet do so without... killing."

"Even if we could, there'd be too many aborted fetuses to save," Kruger interjected over his shoulder.

Danny swallowed. The topic was making disturbing inroads to his stomach.

"You mean, you don't ever get a case where a man forces himself on a woman?" Bogdanov's voice was tremulous. "And... rapes her?"

Mickmi's eyes didn't waver. "Only a very disturbed man can think of something like that. How would that man hide his perturbation in a society filled with telepaths and empaths?"

"How, indeed... Hans," Bogdanov shook his head again and turned to Kruger, "you must insist we get more time with Miss Wamba. There's so much to learn—we haven't even begun to scratch the surface. It's going to take months to get a full picture of her world... her society, history... science... technology... philosophy..."

"I've already started my report," Kruger said, "stressing that we need time to collect comprehensive data, learn from her, and foster a working relationship with her."

"Whoa, whoa, wait!" Danny blurted. "Months? She can help you with whatever you need but you've got to let us go back to our lives. You can't keep us here for months like prisoners. We're not criminals. We came here voluntarily."

Mickmi rested her right hand on top of his holding hers. "Daniel... It is okay."

"No, it's not!"

"I'm afraid it is not that simple, Mister McGahn," Kruger said. "You can return to your family in a few days—providing you agree to secrecy, of course. But Miss Wamba here is by all intents and purposes an alien and a detainee of the US government, and will be—"

"I am not leaving without her. Why can't you give her right to residency, let her live in peace, and have her on contract to come in periodically as a consultant or something? You must have the authority to do something like that."

They drove past an opening in the tunnel wall as the two men exchanged glances.

"Mister McGahn... I hear your concerns but I will not lie to you. We operate under very different—strict—parameters from what you're used to." Kruger steered the cart into an empty spot in the parking recess and turned to Danny. "However, right now, we'll have to end this discussion. Miss Wamba has a critical presentation to make, and we are here to support her."

Danny drew a deep breath to calm himself. You mean you're making sure she doesn't disappear from your reach. There was no way he'd trust these lab coats but at least they didn't seem to want Mickmi any harm. It was just as well. He was wary of anybody else in this God-forsaken place.

∞

"Mister McGahn," Dr. Bogdanov said, "please have a seat. There's no need to pace the floor while we wait. They'll be back with us shortly."

Danny halted at the end of the table and looked around the conference room that was almost identical to the one they'd been in earlier. They were taking too long, and he couldn't get what Dr. Kruger had said out of his mind. Would Mickmi ever be allowed to leave this facility?

—Mi?

Instead of replying, Mickmi entered the room wearing her leather-textured, pearl-white and metallic royal outfit again, with the sheer green shawl over her bare shoulders and the circlet on her forehead. She met his gaze as Dr. Kruger closed the door behind them.

"I was told they'll send somebody to let us know when the meeting starts," he said. "We can wait here and talk, if you don't mind."

Bogdanov jumped up to stand erect, bewildered. "Miroshka? You're a princess?"

"She's a queen," Danny said and walked with Mickmi to the side of the table facing the door.

"A-a queen? So young? I apologize, Miroshka, I don't mean to be disrespectful. I misunderstood... I didn't realize we're actually in the presence of royalty." Bogdanov waited until Mickmi was seated before he sat down again. "What is the correct protocolar form of addressing you? Is it Queen Wamba?"

"Queen Lepantra." Mickmi smiled serenely. "You may still call me Miss Wamba—or Miroshka—in private."

"That wouldn't be... quite appropriate, would it?" He exchanged glances with Kruger who half-shrugged with an amused look on his face.

"Didn't want to influence you for the experiments, Dima." Kruger took a seat opposite Mickmi.

"I am the same person."

"Indeed you are... Miroshka. No wonder you're so well ed— knowledgable." Bogdanov shook his head with a chuckle. "I'm sorry, this is so unexpected. Though pleasantly so."

Mickmi tilted her head. "No need to apologize. You have more questions."

"Yes, yes, I do. You've... somehow managed to travel to our world. But what are your people's view on... other civilizations in other stellar systems or even galaxies? Do they believe we're alone in the universe—or do they think there are others out there?"

"We know there are... different civilizations throughout this and other galaxies. Not all of them are what you would call human or human-like, though. Or even what you would call normal biological beings. But, Doctor Kruger, you are aware of this, are you not?"

After a moment's reflection, Kruger replied, "To be perfectly honest, I haven't had many chances to study non-terrestrial beings in person. And the information trickling to me is too scarce and incomplete. It's an unfortunate side effect of the classified nature of our work. You're not under such restrictions. Can you tell us more about what you do know?"

Mickmi hesitated, then appeared to reach a decision. "According to Einstein's Theory of Relativity, the Universe is not infinite. It is like a boundless sphere, but not infinite. So, if a civilization were to master Time and Space, theoretically it could expand all over the Universe, correct?"

"Well, yes," Bogdanov said. "But surely that's very unlikely, right? The distances involved would make that a very difficult enterprise, surely... It's hard to imagine..."

"You are correct. Even for us, over 4500 years ahead, it is hard to believe." She paused in thought before continuing, "Allow me to tell you a story... About ten, twelve billion years ago, some place in our Universe, a civilization appeared. It grew... very fast. It was the very first, which is why we call them 'The Firstborn' or 'The Great Ancients'.

"That civilization had no rivals, no enemies. So it developed and grew. Soon, their star system was too small for them. So, they expanded. First, they colonized neighboring star systems. Then, their galaxy.

"During millennia, their mastery of matter, space, and ultimately time, grew. They were wise, powerful, and masters of the Universe.

"But they grew weary. They felt alone. Since their mastery over biology and genetics was vast, they decided to create new civilizations, in the hope to alleviate their solitude. So they visited thousands of star systems they deemed favorable and seeded life in those places. They did that for thousands of years.

"At first, they watched carefully over their creations. They lovingly protected those ecosystems and civilizations. By the time the first civilizations started developing, The Firstborn empire comprised the whole Universe. There were no limits. They traveled from galaxy to galaxy in the blink of an eye. They could travel from one supercluster to another, billions of light-years away, in no time at all. They were also able to travel in time, having left a place, return at another time in an instant, even at an earlier date."

Time travel? Isn't that science fiction? Danny glanced at the two lab coats. They were just as engrossed by Mickmi's storytelling as he was.

"Some of those first civilizations reached a high level of development and started imitating their masters—their Creators. They also seeded new civilizations.

"This trend continued for many millennia. But The Firstborn visited less often. Sometimes centuries, even millennia passed, without any of them appearing. Until, finally, they were never seen again... They disappeared—vanished. Nobody knows where they went. Nobody seems to know where they are.

"Many believe they just... transcended our limited – material – space-time Universe and still exist as – vast – clusters – of information. Others believe they abandoned our Universe and are now exploring the brane of the Multiverse. And yet others think... they simply perished.

"This is something we heard from sentient beings, capable of traversing Parallel Dimensions at will. They occasionally visited our dimension to exchange information. They helped us, but only progressively. They were very careful not to interfere with our development. You should have something similar occurring here."

Mickmi looked around the table. Eventually, Bogdanov came to life.

"That's one of your legends, right?"

"A legend is based on history, however embellished—and historical records are based on actual events. Untruths are not part of our being, nor of our visitors'."

"So... what you're saying is that you believe it to be a true—"

Mickmi rose with her gaze on the door, and Danny jumped to his feet. As the two scientists rose, a soldier entered the conference room. After a brisk salute, he turned to Kruger.

"Sir, your presence is required by the general." Turning to Bogdanov, he added, "Are you Doctor Dimitri Bogdanov, Chief of the Astrophysics Department?"

Bogdanov nodded.

"Your presence is also requested, sir. And your two companions as well."

The soldier made a crisp turnabout and left. After a moment of silence, Kruger spoke.

"Well... I suppose this is the moment you're waiting for, Miss Wamba."

"Aye." Her eyes were bright. "It is vital I warn them of the danger threatening your planet."

Kruger led the way to an elevator which took them to a wide corridor on another level. Up ahead were two soldiers guarding a pair of doors. As they approached the entrance, Mickmi halted.

—Mi? Danny walked back to her. You okay?

"Is something the matter, Miss Wamba?" Kruger asked with a concerned frown.

Bogdanov came next to Danny and said with a quiet voice, "Miroshka, do let us know if you need anything."

Mickmi breathed deeply. "Thank you. I just need a moment to prepare myself."

He nodded and retreated. Danny stepped back to give her space too but she lifted her hand.

—Daniel... stay right there.

She gave Danny a quick smile, and he nodded as she closed her eyes. He thought she was going to meditate but instead, an odd shadow grew around her.

"What's this? Smoke?" Alarmed, he glanced around but found no source for what thickened to swirl and hover around her entire body, obscuring her. He couldn't smell anything either.

—Move not. Mickmi's hand reached out and grabbed Danny by the wrist, and the next moment the thick mist flowed toward him. This, Daniel, is the work of tiny machines that are always around me, protecting me, and working for me. I call them Nanites and they are... smart. They can do any thing I ask of them if I give them clear instructions. That is why I need to focus and form a clear picture in my mind.

—Can they read your mind, then?

—Nay, they read the electrical pulses in key areas of my brain. Or I can give them verbal instructions by thought. I shall explain better when we are alone. Now is not the time.

He clamped his mouth shut and held his breath, squinting as the strange shadow enveloped him from the neck down. His skin tingled and crawled for several seconds before the mist started dissipating.

The men gasped.

"How-how did you— Is that..." Kruger stuttered.

Danny stared at Mickmi. Her royal garb had transformed into elegant green silk from the neck down, hugging her waist and flowing into sections below, exposing velvet boots. Delicate webbing covered her shoulders, and the broad metallic collar protecting her neck was now studded with diamonds, with the green stone front-plate shining with her symbol, surrounded by blood-red rubies. Her circlet had grown extra branches on her forehead, capriciously curved, each tip ending with a precious gem. It extended down the sides of her head to adorn her ears with emeralds.

"Now I am ready to represent my lost People... as a Queen should." Her face was still and focused as she met Danny's gaze. "And so is the Queen's Shield."

Danny felt his neck and realized he wasn't wearing his shirt and T-shirt anymore. A wide collar stood upright almost to his ears. Looking down at himself, he found himself wearing a loose, steel-blue shirt in a style he'd never seen before. A faint whiff of a fresh scent filled his nostrils.

"Whoa..."

Dark blue buttons lined the front, each side embroidered with three rows of silver filigree. Below the shirt, his jeans had transformed into straight pants with matching threads on the side seams, tucked into his now black and knee-high hiking boots that had lost their lacing and stiffness.

Everything felt supple and smooth. Danny rolled his shoulders. He didn't feel tightness or discomfort anywhere. He lifted a querying brow at Mickmi, and she nodded once.

—I have also provided you with a temporary dotation of Medical Nanites... just in case.

"O-kay..." —Medical nanites? What is... Why? Is there a problem?

—Later. She held his gaze. "The material automatically adjusts ambient temperature to the most optimal range for you. You might call it... smart fabric."

Kruger's mouth was still working. "Is that... magic you're doing?"

"No," Bogdanov finally managed to say, shaking his head, "no, no... It can't be... She has a four-thousand-year advantage on us."

"Correct. As one of your authors once said... 'Any technology sufficiently advanced will appear to be magic'." Her voice was gentle. "This is technology—not magic." She looked around, erect and serene, then met Kruger's gaze. "Shall we proceed?"

— ∞ —

©2019 by kemorgan65

Quotation by Arthur C. Clarke: "Any technology sufficiently advanced will appear to be magic."/"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."