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Mother Confessor:

With a belly full and dissipating headache, I enter the recovery ward. I see her sitting up on the raised bed; her large rifle lay dismantled across her lap. A concentration in her eyes, as she cleans each part intently.

“I should like to make a request of you concerning an arrangement between myself, and the Ober-Commander, if I may”, I begin watching her practiced grease covered fingers work each part with a cloth.

“Da, and what do you require of me”, she asks not raising her gaze from her work.

“ I should like to be trained in your craft if that is not such a heavy inquiry”, I tell the recovering General. Letting her hands fall into her lap, she averts her gaze towards mine. A hint of a smile crosses her lips, as she peers into my eyes.

“Well as much as I would like to be of use in that regard, I am not up to the task. However, I will find another to stand in my stead until I am able to direct you personally. You will be starting off green, of course”, she says to me, “it will not be easy, nor lenient. You will be pushed hard, and have to become hard as well. Give up a few liberties for your service.”

P icking up a small note pad off the small table next to the bed, along with a pen. “I want you to take this to conscription, and they should be able to get the process going”, she continues as she writes on the pad, “In the mean time I will find a substitute to take my place. Once you are finished being enlisted, you will report directly back to me for your detail, understand?”

“Yes, ma’am”, I respond respectfully.

“Good. Now go and make me proud”, she exclaims, returning to her rifle.

Marckus:

Putting the final mental notes into my plans for the future, a softer knock upon my door startles me. A small amount of coffee dribbles down my chin, as I drain the cup.

“Who, is it”, I inquire setting the cup down, and donning my mask. The silence falls heavy a few moments before it is broken by a gentle voice.

“Sir, sorry to trouble you, but I have some interesting findings”, the voice relays back, “May I come in, it is about your odd pale friend from Ceres.”

Caught off guard by both the visitor and the subject. Crossing the room, I allow the young surgical tech inside my personal quarters. Nodding her thanks, her arms crossed over a pair of thick files. I watch her delicately make her way to the desk, and deposit them on the edge.

“What is the other file, it can surley not be about what your current point is”, I ask of the young female.

“No it is from the science officers in regards to those freezer cells you took off of Pluto. Very interesting what they found inside, but between them and myself the former is far more intriguing and a bit of a mystery. Your pale friend seems to be molecularly composed like nothing I have ever seen before”, she explains with concern in her eyes. Turning to the top folder and retrieving it from where it lay. I cradle it so as to explore the contents within. Scanning the test results with an air of confusion.

She continues, “I am sure by now you can conclude as we did that she is not the result of natural evolution. Some sort of bio-engineering unlike anything possible, at least as far as we know.”

Holding onto her words as I delve further into the odd beings results.

“The DNA structure is very baffling to say the least. A tetra-helix and proteins that have never been seen. Coupled with those of a carbon-based creature. What little we did conclude is that she is carbon and silicone based. Able to stave off many types of illness, even some of the deadlier strains. Based upon the battery of tests on the blood work alone. Nearly indestructible endoskeleton composed of a tightly woven network of carbon nano-tubes. There is some small trace that the carbon has been fused into a composite with cobalt, to elevate the tensile strength and reinforce the internal structure. Able to metabolize damn near any organic material without any delinquency”, she pauses for a moment, as I explore the material.

“As for internal organs, there appears to be no delineation outside of their material properties. Has two hearts, one on either side, housed in a thick layer of the carbon-cobalt composite. That was an interesting feature seeing how only a few known species that have been recorded have accessory organs to begin with. But the most fascinating and frightening find in all of this, the brain. It has been sectioned off in a neural network that is straight out of fiction. Defying all of our collective reasoning and logic. Imagine if you will sir, a quantum super computer. Then make it organic, and place it into a living host. She is able to learn things that take most months, even years to master in mere hours or days.” I look up at her in disbelief at this claim, though the evidence suggests the reality.

She locks here gaze with mine as she continues, “Despite the extremely off the charts intelligence, she has the mentality of a young adult. Curious of everything about her. Becoming aware of emotions, as indicated on the scan results. Makes one wonder when she first started to ‘feel’ the way most species do. It seems to be a very recent stage in her neural network, almost as if it had been locked away from her. Either that or something happened to trigger off the response. During a basic dermal examination, there were fluctuations in her responses as though she were testing us. At times being so sensitive that we could not so much as touch her. To being almost dulled out and oblivious to us entirely. The only option we can come up with for this has to be a link between her brain and skin. Almost as if a lobe was comprised completely for the purpose of manipulating the nerve endings in her. Moreover, her skin is peculiar as well. It had pores and a small amount of fine hairs, but that is not what stood out. It is like a living rubber or some other similar type of membrane. Still waiting for the scarring test to be fulfilled. There seems to be no real way to define her physical ability to slow the aging process, and there may never be a definite answer just a few outlandish theories.”

I rub my smooth head in deep thought, still keeping my attention on what she has to tell me. It is very interesting and disturbing all at once.

“She lacks reproductive organs, so we guessed that she simply has them solely for ridding of waste, and pleasure. Fairly odd, but it seems to make sense on some level. So to sum it up, whoever created her had knowledge of chemistry and bioengineering well beyond what has already been observed. We have estimated her age to be between five hundred, and a thousand years. Though she appears to be in post adolescents”, the young surgical tech concludes.

Turing around I place the file atop the other. How odd were the finding on the pale creature, and her deceptive appearance. Makes me wonder why she wants to be a soldier so badly. Not that I mind, just find it curious. Now to the latter piece of news.

“And what of the other file, my dear”, I probe the young female for the information.

“Well sir, it is not as intriguing as the former I am afraid. The analysis of the many specimens in the freezer cell determined that they are Terran and Grey gametes. After which comparing this bit with the inventory list you also provided, it looks like a preferential breeding program was in the works. It seems the Confederation was going to cross breed a hybrid army of their finest soldiers. As well as just genetically growing normal soldiers in a closed door way. Even the possibility of cloning as well. Highly unethical, in my respectful opinion.”

Therefore, my assumptions were somewhat correct, when it came down the Confederations use of labs on Pluto. Now nothing more than slag frozen in place, immortalized in a twisted mess.

“What is your name my dear”, I ask of the young Centurian female. Taking a long pause she blushes, knowing that I had no formal greeting with her.

“Dlynvacko” she says shyly batting her eyes, “ I am sorry about missing our appointment the other night. I was still wrapping my mind during my research. How is your healing going?”

“Just fine, you are invaluable with your skill set”, I compliment her.

She smiles with a sparkle in her eyes, “Why thank you sir, I should like to make up for our missed encounter later. That is if you are still entertaining the notion.”

I nod approvingly at her apology and re-proposal. I find her to be highly attractive, and have been thinking about getting to know the woman on a deeper level. At least this time I think I handled myself with a bit more confidence, despite our differences.

“Will two nights from now be alright”, she asks her face and cleavage darkening further.

“That would be delightful my dear. Though my request still stands”, I return in kind. She exits my quarters like a giddy schoolgirl. A bounce in her step.

Graxis:

Sending off both the scanned and decrypted copies of the statements to the Ober-Commanders private desk console. Heading back to my own quarters after sending the digital files. Still feeling like I was made of lead, I drag myself to my privacy. In my weary wanderings, an almost forgotten thought crossed my mind. Had the Major’s private console been cracked wide open? Rubbing my chin in thought of what was locked inside the encrypted files. A part of me felt intrusive of the dead officer. Yet there maybe some important information hidden in the device. Perhaps I shall be surprised either way.