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