Vestige

It did not take long for the adolescent children of the clans to take to synthetic Number Four, after they saw how all the parents of the families received him. For long before they were born, it was synthetic Number Four that had discovered what the other synths on cMaj and its three moons were planning and warned the humans scouting the planet to leave immediately in their ships…of course, the agility and speed of the synthetic beings on the scouting mission at that time overpowered the humans on cMaj and the moons and used the four scout ships as missiles against the doomed generation-Ship…

“…so all this time, you’ve been out in the plateaus and cliffs,” Charmain, the former mechanic from the old Colony, had asked the synthetic. The Three Clans had previously just finished their Council meeting. Now they found themselves in another one with their long-lost friend!

“I have, Mechanic-Sohill…I did not want to risk being detected by the other synths so soon after the Rebellion. And, frankly, I wasn’t sure how you, humans, would feel having me around after my fellow synths had just pretty much obliterated the last colony of your species!”

There were uncomfortable looks traded among the humans after that comment.

“So, why come to us now, Number Four,” Lanay, the former pilot asked; her family, the smallest of all the Clans, grouped together at a corner of the cave.

The synthetic actually paused here. A rather human-like trait. Its actuated voice had a slight elctro-raspiness about it. Most likely due to exposure to cMaj’s elements in over twenty years! “Colonists, I am a synthetic being. Depending where I was on cMaj, I was able to listen in on some of the rogue synthetics’ communications with each other and even between them and those on the moons…were any of your portables able to detect an increase of communique between the lunar synths and those on cMaj?”

Most of the humans were already nodding their heads at Number Four’s question. But it was Miriana’s portable that responded.

“Indeed, Number Four. I had a conversation not too long ago with Tech-Housenn and one of her daughters about it.”

The five other portables of the Clans all voiced agreement at Miriana’s portable’s statement. It continued.

“Apparently, since none of us computerables, here, are of synthetic being-status, none of us were able to interpret any of their signals—high-comm or otherwise!”

“Old fashioned method called encryption,” synth Number Four said. “They, obviously, knew all the humans’ portables survived, and that the humans had other equipment that could eavesdrop on them. The rogue synthetics simply created an entirely new frequency and language that I’ve just recently been able to crack—mostly…Colonists, I believe the synthetics have been in the process of re-building portions of the Ship with some of the crash-debris on the planet!”

“—what?”

“—Stars’ gravity; no wonder it’s been so quiet lately!”

“—if they all want to leave the planet, I say let them go!”

“—How can they do that with irradiated debris?”

“But they’ve already started,” Number Four insisted, almost having the emotion of annoyance at how the humans seemed to have missed his point. With its almost-natural, angular-structured head—a stylized version of that of a human’s—Number Four looked around at everyone in the cave. “I don’t know how they’re doing it, given the industrial-grade of tools needed…obviously some smaller version of the Ship—”

“—would make sense; shorter time; portion-controlled for their numbers!”

“—they’re already programmed as walking factories; they’ll get it done in just a few years!”

“—but how would they get it off the planet,” came the young voice of Lannel, the eight-year old son of Fillip Natsome and Lanay Thuall. His poignant question quieted the cave as everyone thought on it, even the computerables!

“You don’t,” came the response from Tyra. She got up from her seat of a slab of rock in the cave and began to pace as she thought to herself; the others looking on. “I’m not an engineer, but even I know it almost takes ten million pounds of force just to break the escape velocity of most planets! Not even the synths have access to that kind of technology on cMaj…No, sisters and brothers and computerables…I think our friends have something else in mind!”

“—What does that have to do with the increase in their comms?”

“—Maybe they’re simply using the debris as scrap for consolidated shelter?”

“—A monument of some kind? Do synthetics do that sort of thing?”

“—A weapon?”

“—Over-kill for such a small population as ours.”

“—but what if it’s not for us,” Tyra asked bluntly. She looked around at the shocked expressions on the human faces within the cave.

“My love,” her husband, Charmain, put to her in a cautious tone, “what are you saying? That there are more Colony survivors from the Rebellion—”

“Alien…” came synthetic Number Four’s raspy, actuated voice. “Or, to put more accurately, Domestics…”

Now every human had gone silent and either had a surprised look on their faces or absolute terror!

“But…” Alexan, eleven-year old son of Cairo an Preun and Luciana Salomenes, spoke up to the whole Council. “We’ve been here longer than I’ve been alive! Wouldn’t we have spotted them or their prints by now?”

“Prints?” Miriana came in. “I don’t think something as advanced as the synthetic beings would have to build a super-weapon against some roaming land animals!”

“Indeed. Also, if the domestic society is advanced enough,” the portable of Fillip Natsome responded. “If this speculation is true, an advanced civilization can remain undetected by visiting aliens—remember, that would be us, Council! I think young-Alexan brought up a very good point: It’s been over twenty years now and none of us have even hinted at detecting Domestics on cMaj. I see no proof of this alien hypothesis.”

“Let’s test it then…”

Everyone in the cave shifted toward Janneca; thirteen-year old daughter of Tyra Housenn and Charmain Sohill.

“Isn’t that what our three scientists in the Clans have taught us all these years…well, now that we have this strong hypothesis of us being the aliens, we should find out! I would even say, we need to…”

The young woman shrugged as she looked around at the other humans with their strapped-on portables and the only synthetic being among them.