Bitter Oath (New Atlantis)(3)

There had always been talk of a larger cousin of the Palouse earthworm that could regenerate vast tracts of arid land in a comparatively short time, but no one had ever seen one. They were thought to have become extinct before the arrival of the white man to North America. The natives found them addictively tasty, and even though indigenous tribes treated the land well, on the whole, sometimes their need for food, especially in droughts, became their prime imperative. In that way, they wiped out species that could not be replaced.

But this last piece of information was phenomenal. A white explorer, probably an early Naturalist, had made a drawing of these mythic creatures, and was reputed to have seen them with his own eyes. If Rene could find out where…

He stopped himself abruptly. What would it matter if he did find them? Unlike adult humans, they weren’t allowed to Retrieve flora and fauna from the past. The Confederacy had a policy of maintenance. Because of the damage done by introduced species in the past, and the complexity of ecosystems, it was believed it was better to follow a hands-off policy. This meant allowing the damaged ecosystems to recover as they would.

After all, there’d been five mass extinctions in the past. Theirs was only the most recent. And the ecosystems had always rebuilt themselves, hadn’t they? No one mentioned that it had taken thousands of years for that rebuilding to take place. Or that none of the mass extinctions in the past had occurred as quickly as this last one had. No one knew if the planet would ever heal itself again.

It was Rene’s opinion, as it was of many of the world’s remaining ecologists, that it was their job to rebuild the ecosystems destroyed, by strategic repopulation from the past. Why use time travel to keep the human race going, when it was responsible for most of the destruction caused to the planet, yet refuse to do anything to assist the planet, on which they relied for survival, to heal? It didn’t make sense, and it certainly wasn’t ethical.

It really didn’t matter to him personally anymore. Soon, he would be leaving the struggling, hypocritical human race behind for good. Part of him was glad death was approaching. It had been a long, long life, and a lonely one.

He’d made a point of keeping relationships superficial while in-situ, because death would take those he cared for too soon. And here… well, people kept others at an emotional distance, as a matter of course. And his long absences kept even the acquaintances he had here, at an even greater distance. For them, he was a constant in their lives – an old man, for the most part, buried in his studies. For him, they were strangers he caught up with every ninety years, like a sailor on shore leave.

He couldn’t remember the last time he’d had sex. In his first one hundred and seventy five years he expected. Before Jumping. Certainly not in-situ, or in the ten years each time he was back. His body, when he came home, was too old for such activities.

Thankfully, clones were undersexed. If not, his life would have been a living hell. As it was, he had been left free to focus all his attention where it was needed most – on his work.

Turning off the shower, he activated the drier, and enjoyed this next pleasure. Most of his lives had been in primitive cultures where such comforts were unheard of. He happily left creature comforts behind for his work. But he couldn’t deny the pleasure coming back to them gave him. His old body would at least be comfortable in his last years.



Summer 2330, New Atlantis GAIAN CONFEDERACY



Over the six weeks since his return, Rene had heard the gossip going around. Now the statement made by the Retrieval Committee was being flashed to all Tablets.



‘The successful integration of a Consciousness past its ninth life, and into a different clone, also brings into question many of our previously held beliefs about the nature of Consciousness, and the part Willpower plays in the process.

‘Where life is static. Where change is tightly controlled, the vitality of life is lost. It is our new hypothesis that a Consciousness loses its will to live when it has exhausted all potential for growth. We have limited that growth in New Atlantis, and thus aided in our own shortened lifespans.

‘It has therefore been decided that new methods of revitalizing our community need to be instigated. We are interested in Cara’s proposal (the Retrieval of children). It has been gathering a great deal of support amongst the rank and file. It would require a great deal of careful planning, but the possibilities are inspiring.’



New Atlantis was agog. Not only were the inhabitants finding out, for the first time, that they had always had a deadline on their lifespan, but they had now discovered that someone had not only broken their nine life limit, but had also defied the rule that no Consciousness could integrate with a cloned body not created from its own DNA.

Jac Ulster had changed their world. And Rene felt the first optimistic stirrings of hope in his long, pessimistic life. Not only did this offer him a chance at continued life, but Retrieving children from the past meant a form of rebirth.

If the Committee could be convinced that change was not only beneficial, but essential to the Confederacy, as the statement implied, then suddenly there was an opening for his plans. If he gathered the right support, enlisted people like Cara and Jac to his side, the possibilities truly were inspiring.

Of course, there was work to be done, and there was no telling whether Jac’s example was just the exception that proved the rule. He would wait before he took the risk. If they were wrong, then he would lose eight years of invaluable prep time.

There was time… and while he waited, and worked, he would research Ser Moolgaaff. The pronunciation would be wrong, as the Obejwe ear did not handle European sounds well. But he was sure he would be able to track down this mysterious white man, and then follow the source. If he had more than his nine lives, then he had all the time in the world to discover their Holy Grail, and bring it back to seed their future. All the time in the world…





Spring 2333, New Atlantis, GAIAN CONFEDERACY



Rene stood on the periphery of the crowd that had formed to support the women and children rescued from the 1942 Death Train. He felt his ancient heart warm at the sight, and tears welled in his half-blind eyes. This, more than any other change that had been wrought in the last three years, gave him hope.

Over to the side, still dressed in drab clothing of the 1940s, drenched to the skin from rain that had fallen somewhere else, somewhen else, stood the harbingers of change. They were three couples – all Bonded Mates – who had wrought this miracle. There was Jac and Cara, each catalysts in their own way. Then there was Faith, who had planned this current miracle. And Luke, her World War 2 Commando who had orchestrated the large scale Retrieval. Lastly, there was Julio and the unsuitable girl from 1968 called Jane, who had become the second person to integrate into a body that was not her own. She had proved that what Jac had done could be replicated.

Rene’s cloudy vision focused on Jane for a moment longer than on each of the others. She was so incredibly beautiful! Her bright, copper-coloured hair shone in the sunlight, even though it was damp and bedraggled after their recent mission.

An odd yearning inside him pulled him up fast. He envied Julio his mate.

Shocked at this random emotion, he considered it closely. When, in the last 773 years had he ever envied a man his woman? Even in his highly sexed Original, he’d never envied a man for such a reason. There had always been plenty of women to go around. His good looks and wildness had assured him of that.

So why now, after all these years? And why Jane?

Her beauty? There were hundreds of beautiful women in this world. And thousands more in the lives he had lived, in-situ. Beauty meant nothing.

Was it that sparkle in her eye that seemed to hint at a willingness to take on any challenge? Yes, that was partly right. But Cara also had that look, and he was not drawn as powerfully to her. Maybe he just liked redheads, he decided at length, when he could analyse his reaction no further.

Whatever the reason, it was an intriguing phenomenon, especially in this aged body. And it was worth following up. Not to muscle in on another’s territory, although that might be fun in a younger body, but just to get to know the girl.

Then images of his long succession of Midews popped into his mind.

Yes, that was it! Those strong, wise women he’d purposely groomed, lifetime after lifetime. They were the holders of the collective wisdom and Medicine of their people. And Jane was one of them – though she didn’t know it.

And she held answers for him, just as the Medicine Women of the past had held answers.

There was still time for more answers …





CHAPTER TWO





20 June 1810, London ENGLAND



Miss Livianna Mulgrave felt her chest expand with pride. All these eminent scholars were here to witness the first exhibition of her grandfather’s collection. Display cabinet after display cabinet in the new British Museum had been filled with his specimens and drawings. It had taken her years to collate the information and present it in this meaningful way.