Earth,
Toronto, Ontario CANADA
The Omega Group Central Agency…
Patiently waiting on a bench, just outside of the complex, Amanda Berkins sat holding a clear tablet that projected a holographic screen, with images and text hovering over the display. She paused for a moment while taking in the information, and enjoyed the view from where she sat. The massive complex is a feat of engineering wonder and perfection. The various towers, domes and laboratories are surrounded with parks, lush greenery, and botanical wonders that seemed impossible. Nature here was given an upgrade of the ninth degree. The clean white and stainless-steel exteriors of the various structures complimented the overall aesthetic. Amanda took a deep inhale of the serenity, and felt at peace as she continued to view the scenery.
The Omega Group had achieved a lot in such a short amount of time. As the most advanced genetically engineered humans in the solar system, they had overshot their “normal human” original creators by leaps and bounds. They were vastly superior children with intellects that rivalled the artificial intelligence computers that aided in their work. Each generation born was bringing their knowledge to a new level, a child at the age of one already had a firm grasp of the basic principles of Quantium mechanics. The “Normal Humans” or just “Norms” as the Omega Group called the rest of humanity, weren’t comfortable with seeing such very young children discussing the theoretical science and mathematical problems.
Amanda, of Pakistani heritage, never felt akin to her culture at all. As did none of the young geniuses of the elitist group. They had no such hang ups about their own identities. Prejudice wasn’t a factor for any of them. But the outside world, that was another matter. It wasn’t so much about those outdated racial biases, it was now aimed directly at their young age, super-intellect and egotistical domineer. She still remembered the time she and another two year old Omega Group member walked together outside the facility, holding a pad just as she had now, discussing deep philosophical theories on what defines life in the universe.
The Norms gawked at them, snickered at the absurdity, and whispered amongst themselves about how abnormal it looked. That’s why the group prefers to remain inside the complex, as well as other facilities like it around the world, and across the solar system. The Norms just can’t accept who and what they are, but, they’re more than happy to share in the achievements. Even it’s produced by the super-advanced intellectual kids. That was the whole point to their creation in the first place.
The world was in turmoil from all the wars, environmental disasters, and the collapse of government and corporate stability. They were the answer, they were the only hope for Earth to survive, and with their help—it did. Amanda felt a sense of pride in that fact. That her kind, the Omega Group, were solely responsible for the creation of the ECU (Earth Core United). She snickered in the thought of that name, though. A mundane politician came up with that one. It lacked flair or even an ounce of creative thought. She would have preferred something else, but, the group allowed the foolish norms to name it. So, ECU it was to be.
“Are you still working on those calculations?”
The sound of a young boy’s voice stirred her from the trance she was in while viewing the complex. She glanced over and saw a fair-haired boy sit down next to her with a pleasant grin.
“Malcolm, hey… uh, yeah, I’m still doing some re-checks on the numbers.”
“You should be comparing it with the AI’s findings,” Malcolm gestured to her pad. “It would probably concur with whatever you’ve been checking over and over.”
She gave a coy look to the small child. By mundane’s standards, the boy to them would be no more than seven years old. A kid that should be playing with toys, running around on playgrounds, and still trying to learn in school But by the group’s standard, there was no age to restriction based on their growth, no need to play with toys that didn’t serve a purpose other than to expand one’s knowledge, and to become a fully functioning member of the intellect elite. Amanda shut off her pad and placed it on her lap.
“I’m sure it would.” She concurred. “But, I just want to make sure the device will work when and if we want it to, at the right time, of course.”
“It is a complex pattern.” The boy agreed. “But, the council feels it is worth the risk, nonetheless.”
“Are you speaking on their behalf?” Amanda passively glared at him.
“Not at all,” The boy grinned. “I’m merely trying to reassure you that all your worries are unfounded. The mission will be a success.”
Amanda twisted her lip for a second and fiddled with the end of her hair.
“Are you sure I should be the one to go on this mission?” She placed the pad off to the side of the bench and turned to face Malcolm completely. “I know I designed the engine for the project, and that the last one wasn’t completely functional…”
“We don’t know that for sure…” He said, holding his hand out to quell her fear. “Deep Explorer might have failed for other reasons, we’re in the process of studying the transmission now. But, rest-assure, your Quantum Magnetic Drive wasn’t the cause of that accident. The group has installed the next generation of it on Deep Contact right now.”
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Amanda stood up and paced around for a few minutes. Her thought process in full effect. Malcolm watched her with a curious eye, and seemed to remain patient until she was ready to speak again.
“I’m having doubts about… the other plan.” She stated, stopping in place and turning to him. “Are we sure we really want to do this? I mean, is this really the time to push this initiative.”
“Humanity had their chance, Amanda.” The boy coldly stated. “We’ve given so much and they’ve taken without so much as a thanks.”
“But, to do what we’re going to do…” She hesitated to say. “This could lead to another war.”
“If we do it right, perhaps not…” He said, folding his legs over and placing his hands on his knees. “That’s why we need you out there. Keep the mission and the objective of the group at the forefront of your thoughts. When everything goes the way it should, The Omega Group will become the singularity.”
Amanda nodded in understanding. Still, she looked concerned. She sat down again and took her tablet in hand.
“The numbers are looking good. The small device will work. I’m just not sure we can trust the source from which it came.”
“Well,” The boy sighed at her. “It’s the same source that gave us the equation for the QMD, which you managed to create successfully, so…” He gave coy shrug. “Why wouldn’t this work as well? This information advanced us to a point where we finally have some leverage over the Norms.”
“But, the source… from out there…” She casually waved to the sky.
“Oh, Amanda…” The boy sighed again. “Does it really matter in the long run?”
He stood up and held out hand. He motioned his head for her to join him for a walk. She nodded and did as he requested. She grabbed the tablet in hand and walked beside him. The two headed out of the park and into one of the white-concreted buildings with large glass windows. The doors parted instantly for them as they entered and the boy casually gestured about as he spoke.
“Look at what we’ve achieved, my dear. Our labs have cured many threading diseases, curbed the damage to the polluted environment, and found a solution to re-seed the atmosphere back to a more reasonable and livable level.”
Amanda rolled her eyes and gave a frustrated exhale. She was well aware of all the accomplishments. The younger geniuses always seemed to feel superior to those not of the same age group. She was considered middle aged and slower than the rest. The rest of humanity, those Norms, would argue otherwise about her. To them, she was younger, and just as arrogant as the rest. If only they were allowed inside these Omega Group campuses, they wouldn’t be able to handle hearing a two year old discussing the complexities of quantum mechanics and mathematical equations well beyond their own understanding.
“Yeah-yeah-yeah…” Amanda replied, dismissing his ramblings. “Look, I’m not debating the ethics of it, or the science behind it, I’m just stating my concern. We need more tests before trying it again. Deep Explorer shouldn’t have pushed the QMD to the maximum without running a few more simulations. The end result and controversy of its disappearance didn’t work in our favour.”
“Which is why we now have this added bonus.” The child stated back.
The inner sanctum of the building they were in was gorgeously designed. More gardens were interwoven in the ecstatic, and gave a much needed colourful pop to the interior. He stopped walking for a moment, and glanced over at the garden next to him. The unique, and very diverse, generically engineered flowers were a sight to behold. He took a slight inhale of their bounty and closed his eyes.
“The device will help stabilize the QMD, and bring us closer to our goal. Risk is part of discovery, my dear girl. We must push if we are to break those boundaries.”
Amanda stood beside him and waited for him to finish enjoying the flowers. The boy opened his eyes, and turned to her.
“The time of change is almost at hand.” He smirked. “If our new world order is to begin, then we must have the answers. Our destiny is in your hands, Amanda. The Omega Group is all that matters. Seek out Deep Explorer and bring us back what we need from it.”
Amanda glanced at him, the boy’s smirk was both dismissive of her fears, and yet, confident in her ability to do the job. She said nothing back, instead, she bowed slightly, acknowledging his words and continued to look out at the garden.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” The boy stated, looking at it again. “That’s what we will be, when we have all the answers, when we begin the next phase of our evolution.”
“Evolution...” Amanda grimaced. “Sometimes I think it can lead to complications, perhaps trading one disfunction for another unforeseen factor. There’s something to be said about going slow, taking time, and being just who you are.”
The boy remained poised in place, giving a slight tap to the back of his hand with the other gripped into it. He didn’t care for her comment, it was rather insulting to him. He dismissed her words and continued to look on to the plumage in front of him.
“Speaking of slowing down,” He stated coldly. “Don’t forget your objective during the mission. We need you to make the rendezvous mid-system, give the completed blueprints to our operative, and show him how the device works.”
Amanda fiddled with her shoulder length black hair, and thought for a moment before speaking.
“I told you, I’m still working out the calculations. It might not be done by then. I need to be sure it will be compatible with the QMD’s systems.”
Malcolm twisted his lip and glanced over at her.
“Then, as I said before, have the AI crunch the numbers as well, and stop trying to do it all by yourself.”
“As you wish, Malcolm.” She nodded, looking away from his stern gaze. “I’ll try to be more efficient.”
“We are perfection, my dear.” He said, turning about and walking away. “Perfection, nothing more, nothing less, the future belongs to us. Have a good trip, we’ll keep in touch.”
Amanda waited for him to leave, as he turned the corner, walking down the next corridor, and well out of sight, she gestured her middle finger in his direction.
“Touch this, you lil’ jerk. I don’t need an AI to go over my work. I know my math well enough.”
She quickly lowered her hand and glanced about. She wanted to be sure no one saw her defiance. Malcolm was a high ranking council member, but she never cared much for him personally. She found another spot to sit down, next to the opulent garden they were at, and placed the tablet down on it. She took out a small device from her pocket. It was a small silver disc-like object that had a flashing green LED light swirling in the centre. Amanda stroked it with her thumb gently and gave a slight snort.
“What will happen if I attach you to the QMD, my little friend? I hope it’s nothing disastrous. Just… perfection… like Malcolm said.”