21st July
06:01 GMT
Larfleeze's.. cell, gives me a mild headache just being near it. A room designed to.. nearly completely blot out the orange light. It won't exactly tear a person's soul apart, but a person would find it increasingly difficult to want things for themselves. In a way it's the opposite of the conversion crystals which the Zamarons used in the comics. Those forcibly converted people to their way of thinking, we're going to cure ours of… Not our… The way of thinking our light encourages if they lose control.
I hope he's the last person I put in here.
I glance at the Light Fountain in my left hand.
I don't believe that he will be.
The cell itself is relatively pleasant. A matter transmuter for food and.. whatever other materials the housekeeping drones require. The drones themselves are created and dismantled by the same device. We don't
think that Larfleeze has any particular technical skills, but there's a risk that he might have picked them up from one of the people he assimilated. The walls, floor and furnishings are in various shades of blue. A sonic projection system is hidden behind the heavily reinforced walls and plays barely audible relaxing music. A Controller -one of the standard pattern Jevek-looking ones- is going to be here constantly to monitor Larfleeze.
I nod at… That Controller, as Hinon and I watch the trembling Larfleeze through one of the observation windows.
"Did you have trouble getting a volunteer?
"
"Not at all. Everyone wants to be my friend at the moment.
" She frowns.
"A refreshing change, actually.
"
"From being comatose?
"
That earns me a sidelong glance.
"After the Manhunter Rebellion, a number of my colleagues expressed a degree of scepticism about the whole concept of sharing glow-technology with other species. It wasn't a popular field of research.
" Her eyes drop to the controls in front of me.
"Do you intend to press that or are you going to watch him all day?
"
At the moment Larfleeze is still wearing the system I put on his head in the caves. He's still wearing his ring as well. Taking it off in advance was just too much of a risk. Once the.. 'blue cell' starts work the ring will rapidly be drained of power, and there's a small and very secure slot for a drone to drop it into once he's sufficiently out of it for that to be practical.
I press the button and the air in the cell shimmers. Larfleeze himself stills, not even twitching. I can't scan him and I can't see him on empathic vision any longer. I have to stare at his chest for several moments before I'm certain that he's still breathing.
"That should do it.
" Hinon steps back from the observation window and starts walking towards the exit.
"Do you want anything special done with his ring?
"
Larfleeze's eyes open for a moment. No orange sigil. Not even any pain. They're just blank. Lifeless. He's gazing out at the universe and he doesn't understand what it is or why it's there.
They close again and I turn away.
"Do
you?
"
"Oh, I'd just destroy it. I'm not completely without sentimentality-
" Her eyes drop to John's former ring. I wonder if she really still needs it?
"-but that one doesn't have any
good associations.
"
"No, I think we should keep it. It
was the first ever orange ring.
"
We pass out of the cell block and into the central shaft, then rise off the ground and head upwards towards the night sky.
"All yours, then.
" She takes a moment to glance over the construction crew still putting this place together. This will eventually serve as our version of the Science Cell block which the Guardians have on Oa. Need to plug the Light Fountain into the Central Power Battery housing first…
"I'll have it delivered to you when we finally get it off him.
"
"I was thinking.. more a museum or something. I don't want anyone forgetting that things like Larfleeze can happen to the rest of us as well.
"
"I thought you were leaving things like that up to this Clarissi candidate you still haven't told me the name of.
"
"Oh, sorry. Vril Dox. He's Coluan. Highly intelligent but with poor social skills. He and the other Controller-.
"
"Yes, the joke rather makes
itself, doesn't it?
"
We rise over the lip of the central shaft, getting a panoramic view of a formerly-pristine chunk of Maltusian wasteland. Now construction equipment and labourers are everywhere, the outlines of housing, training facilities and office buildings visible in several places. I can also see the dull glow as the Controllers working on the Central Power Battery housing make their last minute checks. Hinon smiles faintly at the sight before flying towards them, and I accelerate to catch up.
"Making sure the Corps is making itself useful will be his job. Making sure that its members stay sane will be mine.
"
"Mm.
" She frowns.
"Aren't the Coluan people being mind controlled by a group of artificial intelligences?
"
"Those were made by his father. The information I have suggests that he's in a
Dominator-run
prison, but I'll need to take some time to confirm that.
"
"Be careful if you go anywhere near Colu yourself. Losing you at this point would be awkward.
"
I nod.
"I'd certainly hate for my mind being torn apart by monstrous AIs to be awkward for you.
"
"Do you intend to make a habit of saying things like that? I can see it rapidly becoming tiresome.
"
"Of course. You used to be Guardians. I need to make certain that you're not reverting.
"
"H
m.
"
We fly in silence for a moment, now close enough to see the detail of the Central Power Battery housing. The
oval structure of it puts me in mind of a front-on view of a Portal turret. It's grey and inert at the moment, though that will change shortly. The upper part of the housing at the front is currently hinged up slightly to allow access to the internal systems into which I need to insert the Light Fountain.
"Speaking of the Guardians, I intend to stop off at Oa at some point. Zamaron as well.
"
"Aren't you
bold. We don't have the same recent… Recentish, history with the Zamarons as we do with the Guardians. It should simplify things for you.
" She stops dead, something occurring to her.
"If you see her, be sure to point out to
Nadia Safir that she was
completely wrong about the orange light necessarily excluding other colours, will you?
"
"I think that a demonstration would be more effective than a lecture.
"
"But far less satisfying. You've no
idea what that woman could be like.
" She turns to face me.
"Sufficiently un-Guardiany for you?
"
I fly on past her, heading for the opening on the casing. I
had thought that the full gathering might want to show up, but it turns out that Controllers aren't big on ceremony. Once Hinon has made her checks each of the Controllers will come here and bind themselves to it individually under her supervision. The whole structure is about fourteen metres tall and about three thick at the widest point. I raise the Light Fountain, placing a hand on each side of the main body. Then I drift forward, holding it out towards the opening in the structure. The interior space
looks plain, but from the parts of Hinon's description which I could follow it's a massively complicated partially extra-planar monitoring and projection system that they make look like a Lantern because that's what they used to do and there's no pressing reason to change it now. Bare, curved walls and a small plinth. I land, kneeling down to slot the Fountain in place.
Hm.
I rise off the ground and turn, flying out at speed. Hinon has come closer in order to supervise so I head her way.
"Link..
good.
"
As I reach her I turn, watching two of the other Controllers lower the front plate and make the unit whole.
"Bonding comp
lete.
" She raises her left hand,
ring glowing brilliantly.
"And… Activate.
"
The core of the Orange Central Power Battery flares with orange light, shining almost painfully for a moment. Then the orange colour begins seeping into the rest of the structure and the core begins to calm. The light… Puts me in mind of the front of the nacelles on the original Enterprise. Moving, almost burning, but stable.
As stable as orange gets.
"And… Success. We have a functioning Central Power Battery.
"
We watch it for a moment, then she turns her head to face me.
"Well? What are you waiting for? Go and get me my Clarissi.
"
