Page 76 of Godslayer
Which only marginally makes sense to me, and only because of the context of what I’m looking at. “Clones are…?”
“The women inside the pods. We don’t birth humans naturally here, like you’ve seen in your city. It’s too unpredictable. Genetics are messy things.”
I exhale loudly. Because I don’t have any idea what he’s talking about.
“I don’t care about the people, Finn. The women, the men. None of that matters. What matters is spark. Spark grows inside the bodies of females. So I make females. They don’t get families. There’s no education. They exist to make spark.”
“Which you take.”
“Which I take. Yes.”
“So how are you any better than that other god? Delta? How are you any different from him?”
“I’m not.”
I almost laugh. “So why should I help you? WhywouldI help you? When I could just take Jasina and get back on the train. Make our way back to Tau City and just…”
“Pretend none of this happened?”
“What’s wrong with that?”
“You wouldn’t be able to do it.”
“I think I would.”
He turns to look at me. “Your world is a lie, Mr. Scott. Everything you’ve been told is a lie. I’m not sure what you did to the Tau Factory when you left, but there was some kind of explosion. An explosion so powerful, it crossed the veil between worlds, affecting Tau City in the upper dimension. So whatever is left there—whatever it is you ran away from—it’s not the place you remember. Going home is… a sentiment. But I think you will find, if you ever do make it back, that’s all it is. A sentiment. You can’t go home. So what I’m offering you is a chance to start something brand new.”
“To fight for you?”
“That is but a small part of it. You see, an augment is undeniably the most versatile living being in existence. It is the pinnacle of the human species. If I were a biological entity, I would augment myself without hesitation. But…” He shrugs with his hands. “I am not. So I need proxies. I don’t make men here. If you were to peek into every one of these pods, you would not find a single male. They are useless to me.”
I practically snort. “Well, let’s just say I’m less than impressed with your opinion of men.”
“You are different. Very,verydifferent. Just as Jasina is remarkable in her ability to store spark inside her body and use it on command, however limited that may be, you are remarkable because of your fortitude. Your constitution.”
I yawn. “Still unimpressed.”
“I need you,” he says. Shrugging again. “The male genetics I do possess are very weak. I’ve tried to make men to augment, it doesn’t work. Not with the genetic stock I have. An augment needs a strong mind to wield the powers that augmentation bestows. You could do it.”
I sigh, turning away and walking over to the nearest line of pods on the ground floor. It’s a sleek, silver, streamlined container with a glass top. So I can see the woman inside.She’s about Jasina’s age and while she does resemble Clara—the blonde hair and shape of her face—it’s not Clara.
Just some woman. Some… clone, as he called it.
A project.
Something to make spark for her god.
I turn and look at Xi again. He’s waiting patiently about ten feet away. His hands casually clasped in front of his body. “Do you know where Clara is?”
He nods.
“Where?”
“The last ping I got, she was about a thousand miles west of here.”
“And she’s… with…him?”
“Tyse Saarinen. Delta’s augment. She is, that’s correct.”
