Smoke rose over the line of trees casting an orange pallor across the evening sky. Carrion birds circled above the village fearful of the fire and the current occupants. In the center of the small village, two men move about shifting and bodies, laying them out in perfect rows with only walking room between them. Two other beings stand at the outskirts of the town center where numerous other beings bring bodies from the outlying forest bad to the village. Soon even those beings stop moving to stand near the two waiting on the men moving within the village. Together, the men place another body down to complete the row then proceed over toward the two beings and other bodies gathered in piles near the edge of town.
The older of the two, a wrinkled weathered man with long frizzled grey hair and a beard to match stared upon the small of the two beings, the one who seemed to be in charge. “They will find you. They will find out what you have done and they will destroy you.”
Pale green eyes looked out from a soft brow of what appeared to be green grass that grew in waves from the top of its head, down the sides, and across its back. Overall, its appearance is that of a human with the exception of the pale green skin color, the eyes, and the filaments that appear to be grass growing from its body in various places. Its skin moved and flowed as if it was human skin covering muscles and bones. An amused smile formed on its deep green lips as it listened to the man’s threat.
“Really now?” It replied with a distinctly intelligent sarcastic tone. “And just who might ‘they’ be?”
“The Government.” The elder retorted.
“Oh, yes, that inept bunch of old men who have managed to delude you humans into thinking that they are there for your good and not for the petty things they covet so much.” It sneered. “Let me tell you a little secret… we want them to come.”
The younger of the two paused, looking up at the creature with eyes full of fright, stammering, “Y… y… you want th… th…them to come?!”
“But of course,” replied the larger of the two creatures as it smiled happily and showing a mouth full of razor sharp teeth that shone like polished steel. “Much easier to kill your prey if they come to you rather than having to hunt them down.”
“I see.” The old man responded. “So that’s the game.”
“Glad to see that you have an ounce of brains in that old body. It will make for excellent starting material.” The smaller said. “Now get moving, these bodies aren’t going to line themselves up on their own.”
“No.” Said the old man.
“Excuse me?” replied the larger being.
The old man simply sat down in the middle of the road, crossed his arms, and stared at them. Behind the two beings, the smaller creatures had all returned from the forest and now stood around watching the scene before them. The expression on the larger creature was one of surprise but quickly changed to rage while the other being simply stared at the old man somewhat amused at the human’s behavior. With a soft chuckle, he placed a hand on his companions shoulder and stepped forward into the square.
“You sure are a stubborn one. Fair enough, we’ll have the Qilon finish the job while we have a little talk.” He said with a reassuring tone as he patted his companion’s shoulder.
“Very well, Velix.” The larger one responded then turned away heading toward the smaller creatures that accompanied them.
“Don’t worry Brond, I’ll save the old guy for you and just demonstrate on the younger one.” Velix chided.
Brond stopped mid-step and cast a knowing glance Velix’ way, “That’s only because you like young boys. You know, if you’re not careful the Qilon will start to talk.”
“I just love it when you use that twentieth century wit.” Velix laughed as he watched Brond walk back toward the Qilon. The humans could not see the thin trails of nanobots that streamed from Brond towards the Qilon. Communications was precise, quick, and effective this way as the nanobots within their bodies were almost the same as the ones that resided in the Qilon. The main difference between them and the Qilon was the level of intelligence and self-awareness that remained after the conversion. That and the fact that most of the Qilon were over one hundred years old and any actual original biological matter had since rotted away due to the very nature of the Qilon.
Brond and he were part of a new generation of Qilon referred to as the Qalon because of the vast changes in the nanobot programming and bioorganic interfacing which gave them greater powers of control, self-awareness, access to the hive mind, stronger bodies, and much longer life. In his mind, the greatest thing about being part of this generation was that with the exception of fire, extreme electrical charge, or complete submersion in water there was very little that could do any form of lasting damage to them. Any memory they had before their conversion was either gone or so deeply suppressed that they were not aware of their existence. This suited Velix just fine as he found that he got a strange sense of satisfaction from destroying human outposts killing or converting the populace, which was an oddity amongst the Qalon since most did not exhibit any emotions. Velix and Brond were partners because they both exhibited the same odd emotional behavior, that and it was easier to monitor the two together than as separate commanders.
Velix chuckled to himself as he thought about the last village they had raided where they had spent days turning the villagers into mulch for the hive mind rather than convert any of them. This suited the hive mind and the council, however, the methods they used to kill and dismember the villagers had raised questions as to the stability of their minds. The question was such a concern that it was raised to the hive mind who assured all that they were one hundred percent functional and performing their duties as expected by the hive mind. At that point, all questions about them stopped however, the council and hive mind assigned a Qelon watcher to them and even now waited outside the village watching them with a direct link to the hive mind. Let them watch. He knew what the hive mind expected of him and Brond, what their role was to be, and why they did have the emotions. The hive mind knew all and controlled all without question so any concern the others had was really misplaced trust and in Velix’ mind, them questioning the hive mind and the plan, something he did not do. Looking up, the smile of his thoughts still on his face, he approached the two men in the village center.
“Now then… where were we?” Velix smiled at them in such a manner that the younger of them lost control of his bladder. “See? Was that so hard? That’s how you show proper fear and respect.”
“Creature, I don’t care what you do, I will not cower before you like some beaten dog.” The elder replied.
“Creature?” Velix mocked, “I am no creature. I am Qalon. If anything, you are the creature here. I possess robotic, planet, and animal material making me the truest form of life there is while you possess only animal. So that must make you an animal and as such we should treat you like one.”
“Say what you will, I know the truth. You are nothing more than an Infected who can speak.”
“Ah, but that is where you are wrong old man…” Velix moved closer to the younger man, watching the elder the entire way. “We are much more than just talking ‘Infected’ as you call us. We are the future, of this world and many more to come. And what you might not realize is that we are above the Qilon, or ‘Infected’ as you call them, as we are above you. Allow me to demonstrate.”
With that statement, Velix stopped beside the younger man who stood before him smelling of urine, snot and tears streaked his face as he trembled uncontrollably. Velix paused for a moment looking at the young man, a strange sensation passed briefly through him barely noticeable. With his left hand, he reached out and placed it gently on the man’s shoulder. Almost immediately, the man’s state changed from fear to ease, his eyes looking up at Velix with a vague hint of hope and thanks as if Velix had given him a gift. In truth, Velix knew that this was just the start of a process that he was working to perfect, one that would enable him to create a Qilonite any time he wanted.
Smiling,he lifted his hand from the man’s shoulder and stepped back a few paces to stand near the old man. “Now, watch and learn.”
Immediately, the younger man’s expression of hope flew away to be replaced again by fear as he realized that he could not move. The euphoric sensation from before quickly reseeded as the nanobots stopped stimulating that portion of his brain and instead began to spread out through his body moving to each extremity. The man’s eyes, still under his control filled with fear, which quickly changed to pain. His mouth flew open; an inhuman scream ripped from his mouth sounding as if the man was being turned inside out yet there was no visible sign of injury. At this point, Velix stepped up to the man and with a couple of passes of his hands, the man’s clothes fell away revealing the tiny wounds appearing on his body. Bloodless holes in the skin appeared in seeming random fashion over his entire body. The man’s scream continued unabated as the holes continued to appear.
“What are you doing to him?!” The old man exclaimed clearly shaken by what was happening.
“Oh, this? This is just the beginning.” Velix smiled at the old man cruelly. “You think us all the same but I assure you that we are very different. You call us all ‘Infected’ when you really do not even know that there are several different types of my kind just as there are several different types of humans. In a way, I’m almost offended that your kind does not know more about us considering how you try to wipe us out.”
“I am sorry. I had no idea. Please, just stop this.” The old man pleaded.
“Stop it? Oh, I’m afraid that is quite impossible at this point. You see, besides the skin being removed from his body, quite a few other changes are taking place right now. At this point, my nanobots are making his bones stronger and actually denser and they are enhancing the muscles of his entire body tenfold. The materials that make up the layers of skin are converted to the new material necessary to make these changes. Nothing is wasted. Moreover, once the outer layer of skin is consumed, they will actually draw from the earth any needed material to complete the job. Oh, you’ll want to pay attention to this next phase, I think it’s a rather fantastic bit of work on my part.” Velix narrated as he walked around the younger man eyeing the work.
The old man watched in horror as the young man’s hair disappeared from his face and scalp. Then the skin began to disappear on his face, including his eyelids, his lips, and his nose. It was as if he was back in school looking at one of the human biology books where the layers of the body were exposed by turning the pages. The younger man’s screams continued pausing only briefly when a loud crack sounded from his back. His lidless eyes screamed the pain and agony he felt along with the fear of what was to come. The elder’s fists clenched in anger as he watched the horror continue.
“Now,” Velix continued, “the nanobots will begin to reconfigure his physical stature, changing his limbs to be more animal like while modifying the body to match. From what I have been able to determine this is quite painful for the recipient such that some of them had produced natural pain killers or even managed to mentally block the pain. So as a result I made sure that my nanobots block any pain killers and keep the pain receptors messages flowing through the entire nervous system.”
At this point, Brond stepped up beside the old man looking on the screaming young man as his body cracked and contoured from his nature bipedal state to that of a four legged animal. The old man, startled by his silent approach stepped back a bit from Brond, his eyes looking at Brond warily expecting him to touch him and infect him as Velix did the other man. Brond noticed the man’s actions and his expression but simply continued to watch the transformation with a small smile on his face.
“Oh, you really should pay attention here.” Velix said excitedly. “Look at his eyes. See the change occurring? The pain continues, but the fear begins to fade and in its place comes madness. It took several hundred tries to get this part of the process correct. Not many of us Qalon can do this with such perfection as to guarantee the outcome. But I can. I found the secret. I’m sure the others would like to know but I’ve been able to keep the secret for now. Even Brond has trouble with this part. Maybe I’ll have to tell him the secret so that he can help me.”
The young man’s body no longer resembles a human but rather a skinless gorilla, his arms longer and thicker than before with his legs shorter. Massive plates of muscle cover his chest, arms, back, and legs. He appears to be skinless but in fact, a thin layer of transparent skin covers the body keeping everything in place. His screams have begun to change now mixed with bouts of insane laughter and maniacal babbling. The old man looks into the younger man’s eyes looking for the man that once there only to see that any sign of intelligence has faded into the chaotic madness brought about by the pain. Still unable to move the man’s body begins to shake and quiver as more changes take place. As they occur, the earth around his hands and feet shifts and disappears slowly.
“Ah, the final phase. I do hope he survives this because he will definitely be one of my better works. Exquisite to be exact.” Velix commented as he moved around the young man, coming to a stop beside the old man. “Much better working material that I had originally hoped. This final phase though is a killer and normally would be the point where he could get lucky and die, but I am trying something new today. Something I think will ensure his success and if it works, he will be the first of his kind and yet so different from the others like him. Now watch as the plant comes into play here.”
With that comment, the old man watched in horror and amazement as the young man’s skin changes from transparent to a soft green then to a deep green similar to the foliage around the village. From his back, large sharp spines grow out, each glistening with milky white substance. His face begins to extend cracking and adjusting as the man’s face changes from human to more of a monkey or baboon complete with razor sharp teeth similar to that of an alligator of the southern swamps still without lips. Additionally, the nails on his hands and feet change and curl into long claws. Bony protrusions appear on his knuckles, elbows, knees, and ankles all appearing very sharp and dripping more of the milky substance like the spines on his back. His eyes, still without lids change from the human ones that once looked upon the old man with recognition to those of a cat. The screams once human have become that of a beast, one that the old man wished he could block. Then with a final scream, the young man’s transformation is complete and he/it collapses to the ground with a shudder.
The old man looks down on the beast that was once his aide and sees no sign of the man that was there but instead stares into the feline eyes of a beast that seems to have been brought from the depths of hell itself. Its body, now about six feet long is covered with a pebbly like skin of deep green much like a lizard but more like a plant in texture. Long claws protrude from its hands and feet both of which appear to be capable of being used just like a monkey’s. Its mouth extends out a few inches from the head and its lipless expanse shows hundreds of razor sharp teeth. From between the open mouth, he can see a forked tongue and what appear to be fangs behind the front teeth. The feline eyes stare off into oblivion with no sign of life. Bony stubs now cover other parts of the body besides the knuckles, elbows, knees, and ankles and all of them glisten with a milky white substance. A long thick tail stretches out behind the beast, ending in a sharp barbed point. With a shudder, he looks at the beast and can only pray that it died during the last phase.
“I know what you are thinking.” Velix said with a wicked smile. “You’re hoping its dead, but I can assure you that it’s not. Nope, your friend is the newest of his kind, the first of many. A perfect killing machine designed from the best of machine, animals, and plants. I have thought of everything, including healing. Right now its body is creating a large store of energy, repairing the neuropath ways, removing pain receptors, and finishing up the change by producing its poison.”
“Healing? No pain receptors?” The old man choked.
“Nice touch Velix.” Brond commented.
“Thank you Brond.” Velix replied. “I thought you would appreciate it.”
“Next question.” Brond asked. “Can you control it?”
“Well, we’ll find out in a minute and we better hope I can because otherwise, we’re all dead.” Velix responded.
Brond raised an eyebrow and looked at Velix. “And you thought this was a good idea to try now?”
Velix laughed. “Yeah, guess now that you mention it, more controlled circumstances would be better.”
Shaking his head, Brond turned and walked towards the edge of town.
“Where you going?” Velix asked as he watched him walk away. “You’re not going to stick around for the show?”
“Oh, I’ll be here for the show. I’m just going to do it with my guns in hand, ready and loaded.” Brond answered.
“Good idea. Be a pal and bring mine back with you. I’ll try to keep it down for a bit longer.”
“You’re insane!” The old man yelled.
“Excuse me?” Velix asked perplexed by the outburst.
“You created a creature that you are not even sure you can control?! For what reason?! To prove a point?! If it is as powerful as you say, you could be condemning the entire region to death!” Exclaimed the old man.
“Your point?” Velix replied with a sarcastic smile. “You’re dead anyway, what do you care?”
“I care because its madness to create something uncontrollable and let it loose on the world!” The old man yelled. “Hasn’t the world suffered enough these last few hundred years?!”
“No.”
“What?” the old man stopped surprised by Velix’ comment.
“I said no.” Velix looked at the old man, all humor, and sarcasm gone from his expression. “This world has been prosecuting my brethren for over one hundred years. We are part machine. We have the memory of all that has past. Man has not suffered nearly enough in my eyes.”
“Man created your kind.” The old man retorted.
“Yes, that he did.” Velix commented, “But he could not control what he created and it got away from him. Now it is what I am. And now, I return the favor on him.”
“You are insane.” The elder stated coldly.
“Maybe. Maybe not.” Velix shrugged, “Either way, you won’t be alive to find out. And if you are alive, it will probably be as your friend, a Qilonite in service of a Qalon.”
“I’ll die before I become one of those things.” The old man threatened.
“Maybe. If you’re lucky.” Velix smile returned as Brond approached with their weapons. “We’ll just have to wait and see won’t we.”
“Not if I can help it.” Said the old man as he dove on to the spine of the creature piercing his hand on the spine feeling the liquid enter his body.
“Now why did you have to go and do that?” Velix asked, mildly annoyed. “That substance you see there is not poison but a nanobot soup designed to turn you into one of these creatures. The problem is that I haven’t perfected the control on it so once you turn, we have to put you down. This is why I also left out the healing factor in the solution. So now, you will turn into one of these things and then you will die. And here I had high hopes that you would be Brond’s Qilonite. Oh well, guess we’ll just have to find another.”
Velix reached down, pulled the man from the spine of the creature, and stood him up several feet away from them. He then walked back to Brond’s side and began watching the old man. The old man could feel the mixture coursing through him as the calm effect sets in and then disappears. The pain begins slowly but quickly reaches a point where his mouth bursts open in a gut retching scream. Beside Velix, the beast slowly stands up, its eyes filled with malevolent hatred of all around it. Through his tears, the man can see the thing that was once his friend appears at first to rebel against Velix but then sits down next to him warily compliant. Barely conscious because of the pain, the old man can only wish for his friends release in his mind as his mouth fills the village with screams as his skin slowly disappears.
Outside the village, the Qelon silently watches the entire incident, sending all of the information it has gathered back to the hive mind directly. In anticipation, he ready’s his weapon prepared to storm in and destroy the beast. Surprisingly the hive mind does not send the order to destroy but instead commands him to watch and observe the second transformation and to get samples of the tissue once the creature is down. His reaction is such that the hive mind instantly sends a disciplinary attack quelling the outrage and confusion felt by the Qelon. For whatever reason, the two were doing something that the hive mind wanted to have continued regardless of the danger to the hive. Putting his weapons away, the Qelon continued to watch and wait trusting in the hive mind to know what was best for the hive.
Three night black nine series copters sped north along the mid-America coast just above the tree line causing waves to ripple across the surface parallel to the surf. Within each craft, twelve men moved about readying themselves as best they could. Fear was evident in all of their eyes, as their destination grew closer. All of them volunteers and not one expecting to return home this night, they bore the semblance of dead in the way they painted the camouflage in the form of death masks.
Commander Eric Frost knew a bit more about the mission than his men, but not much more. They were going into a village that until two days ago was a fully populated town along the mid-America coastline. The reports indicated that with the exception of one strange corpse the entire town was empty. Over three hundred people had vanished without a trace. In his experience, villages do not disappear without help from an outside source especially when there are no bodies and nothing taken from the village.