New Order
Chapter 2 Where do you keep your alien?
Jason slammed the boot of his toyata shut and returned to the shack. "Right you ready Nanya?"
He turned to the old man "We owe you everything. If it hadnt been for you we'd never have made it this far. Thanks." He warmly shook the old mans hand. The couple started the long drive north towards the isle of skye where they would board a submarine that would take them off world.
"I still have problem with not having my own body
"You'll get used to it this is my third. It really just becomes second nature."
They drove into the night and Nanya only once raised her concern about the voyage they were about to take before she fell into a deep sleep.
The submarine service was still the only black market means of travelling off world. It would collect you perform a disemboyment procedure and then exist earth via a deep underwater gateway which was undetectable by the Order and so effectivley anyone could travel without autorization. Ordinarly the New Odrer would only permit a one way trip. This service , which came at a price would means anyone could travel to and from the colonys without hindrance from the New Order.
"You travelling far madame? came a rather officious sounding voice from behind a sheep. "No what who said that."
"We would like to examine you travel documents if you please madame
"Here you go interrupted Jason who pushed his black markets travel permits into the translucent official that manned the invisible gate that led to the subterranian docking bay for the submarine.
"Thankyou. He scanned them in and promptly took a fag break
"Another two coming down for loading to gateway six
"Oh thats the Gamma quadrant no one hardly ever goes there muttered the thickset loader
"Ok thankyou. Make sure you have the right dosage this time we don't want a mishap and find them on the dark side of the moon like before
"Yes boss
Nanya shrunk back intot he car seat as they rolled down into the hidden port
"Don't worry darling they didnt mean it the drugs are New Order standard issue. You'll be fine."
The loader grabbed their belongings and placed them inside the luggage racks above the stasis tubes
Well we call it stasis - but is it really stasis. No not really. You get in the tubes after taking some rather powerful drugs you go to sleep and well you essentially spend most of the journey being turned into zero's and one's while your luggage is sent through the portal you arrive as a data stream to be uploaded to a new body on the other side. Nothing to worry about.
Nanya nudges a rather large red button on the top of her pod. Oh dear you don't want to press that darling not before weve properly got underway. It was the button that initiated the procedure. Nobody liked to use the word disconfiguration - it sounded to well you know final. However it was this button that would set the irrecovable process of disembodiments before entering the gateway.
The loader smiled - exposing his lack of front teeth. Nanya smiled back before reluctantly dropping into her pod. She held Jasons hand one last time before the pod was closed and the submarine began to make its descent.
"Don't worry sweetheart this time next week we will have a new life in new bodys. Ive done it many times. Its easy...take care....", were the last things he said before they both nodded off from the drugs.
"Two away captain.
"Very good entering the vortex in , he checked his wrist watch and you could see him counting the minutes "... two hours time." Interrupted the loader.
"Well done 2nd mate"
"Lay down the course Number 1"
The captain watched as the 1st mate adjusted the navigation instruments and aligned the ship with its new course towards the gateway. A jelly fish swam passed eying them through the transparent hull.
"Eye eye captain course laid
"Well I think its time for a brew
The captain headed back to the mess room which was just a plug in kettle at the aft of the vessel his hand gently stroked the two pods which contained their passengers whom even now where slowley being transferred into the ships data holder - a vast neural nework made from Gello.
The Captain grabbed the microphone that connected directly to the Gello stasis machine. "Welcome aboard our vessel the SS Lionard we will be making gateway in approximately 20 minutes in your time. Please take your time to familirise yourself with the data integrity and backup systems in case of a power failure thankyou for travelling with StarLink today. Our destination for you will be the Ariadne system in the Gamma quadrant. Please enjoy your journey."
There were no other passengers.
The captain then slurped heavily on his tea before disconnecting the microphone from the Gello interface.
The couple resummed their disembodiment procedure which for Jason was a mere routine. While for Nanya she was still biting her proverbial lip as her mind was slowley being downloaded into the machine. It felt like she was being poured into a luke warm cup of tea.
Somewhere else in the universe a New Order attack ship began its encirclement of some gateway ships thought to be concealing illigal migrants.
"Lower you sheilds please we are here to perform a scan of your cargos. Any unauthorized travel will be sanctioned and your vessel impounded"
The gateways all ejected their drugs and their captains all transmitted a credible story for why they had a cargo filled with illegals.
"All asylum cases sir - found them in a raft just outside the ring nebulae"
"Ok that seems credible"
The inspector disembarked after issuing them a statuatory fine. Just as he left two data streams suddenly appeared in the gateway accompanying what looked like a well padded suitcase.
"Incoming captain"
"They don't have bodys sir."
"Weve just ejected ours for the inpection. The New Order can't know we are having unauthorised offworld transits"
"Well what about this lot" The first mate pointed at their illegals.
"Ok grab two of them and put them in the embodiment machine they will just have to share.", orderd the captain.
"Tell them its either that or we give them to the Order"
"Right sir"
The first mate grabbed a couple and ordered them into the machines. "Its a share he bellowed before injeting them."
The couple mouthed something obsene in an alien tongue. Before going limp and being loaded into the pods.
"Data uploading ... please wait for upload to complete"
"Ahhh whats this ", Nanya was first to awake and looked down at her alien body.
"Is this routine she growled at Jason whose body was equally alien.
"They are supposed to be clones.
"Yeah human clones
"Whose the fuck are these...Ive got three arms here and a tail. And my teeth are like daggers.
"Its a share
"Oh great what does that mean
"Time share when we sleep they are awake and visa versa.
"Ok well I just wont sleep until we get our own.. just letting you know.
Jason shot her his sorry face, she recognised it even though he had three eyes now and florescent tubes coming out of his tube like face he smiled gingerly. His large black watery eyes were indearing and seemed to calm her down they reminded her of his smouldering goodlooks.
She felt like crying but her tear ducts were under her armpits. His alien bodys puppy dog gaze was not going to be enough remedy their situation
Somewhere on earth a teenager was riding though some woods outside Inverleary. His mountain bike was jumping down the trail ahead of the loch. He took a turn to fast and fell to the soft piney floor. As he got to his feet he made out a small shack half hidden behind the tree's.
He got a better view and watched as a man loaded two bodys into a pickup. "Cloners" he whispered to himself.
Illegal cloning was rife in the Scottish borders. Un authorised travel from all over the colonys needed clones. He was probably driving to a gateway.
James was a bit of a would be spy and carried a tracker on him. He creeped up and placed it on the pickup just as the old man reappeared.
"Here you go..its their location..their cloning...its obvious. Now can you release my brother"
The New Order looked the young lad up and down. "Ok and you say you saw this in the woods"
"Yep.Comon whats it worth. My brothers been offworld for nearly a year and you said if I found anything then..."
"Then what then I would bring him back.Its not that simple lad."
Jamie looked like he was going to cry.
"Look ok.I will see what I can do."
The kid brightned up.
"Ok now be on your way."
The man clutched the tracking device and quickly walked out of the New Order Information office.
"Listen this is the break weve been looking for. Its got to be them. Have a look at this location I want agents there. I think its a new lead in the case for the missing alien."
The leutenants face suddenly dropped.
"But sir the captain said to leave it alone. Its supersition. Heresay I mean the only people that know about it are the resistence."
"Its not with the resistence this is a third group I am sure of it"
"I will be lucky to get clearance for a drone"
"Ok send a drone"
"New Order has a spy inside the resistance and he states that they do not have the artifact."
"Its a myth in my opinion. But its your choice. I will authorise a drone"