Editing Eternity (Warhammer High) (section)

=== An Ethical Dilemma ===


Eternity.  It was a bloody long time.

Jake leaned back against the black leather of his chair.  The ice in his cup creaked as it melted into his drink.  He set it down on the table beside him, slowly rubbing his moist fingers together.  He wondered.  Would he still feel the cold?

Venus sat across from him.  The interlocked gold and silver rings on her finger bespoke the three years they had been married.  The tiny trail of Nocturnean diamonds around the single blood-red ruby on the silver ring chased the blank gold in a beautiful contrast.

Jake and his wife were a visual contrast as well.  His pale, almost ill-looking skin and curly light brown hair were as different as could be from her coal-black skin and long hair, and glowing, uniform red eyes.  To the wrong viewer, she looked daemonic, terrifying.  To her friends and family, she was an easily likeable young woman.

Jake, however, had other things on his mind.  His wife and her appearance were among them, certainly, and so was he.  But the main thought in his head was eternity.  Life everlasting, youth unending, healthiness forever.  It was his, if he wanted it.

Did he want it?

He had no idea.

His wife’s eyes were dimmed and narrow.  For once, the lack of a glow in her eyes was borne of something other than contentment or exhaustion.  She was angry, she was apprehensive, she was frustrated, and she was confused.  For her, Jake’s choice was an obvious one.  However, she was a bright girl, and knew that his perspective was radically different from hers.  Normally, Venus had the patience she had been gifted by her father.  Today, that patience was drawing thin.

Jake’s jaw tightened as trains of thought chased themselves through his head.  His choice should have been so simple.  Life with the woman he loved, and the chance to start a family with her…or ignominious death, in the knowledge that he had broken her heart.

His stomach roiled.  He grimaced and ran his hand over it.  Venus’ eyes dimmed a bit more.

“Why is it a difficult choice?” she quietly asked.

“Because…because, baby, I’ll give up the body I was born to.  My appearance, part of my identity.”  He met his wife’s eyes, flinching away from the light from them as he did.  “My mother gave me these eyes.  My father gave me this hair, my skin, my voice.  I might lose them.”

She stayed quiet.  He leaned forward, pleading.  “Never think that I DON’T want to spend forever with you,” he said.  His voice was a rasp.  “If ‘Til Death Do Us Part didn’t have to come to pass…I’d be on it like a shot.  But it’s not a guarantee,” he said.

“The odds of failure are tiny, but grow bigger the longer we wait,” Venus said.  She sighed as his jaw tightened again.  “Sorry.  I just don’t understand why this is hard for you.  Michael and Nathaniel accepted in an instant.”

“I’m not Michael, and I’m not Nathaniel,” Jake said coldly.  “I’m not willing to abandon my body without thinking all of the act’s implications through to their end.”

“They were?”

“Michael was.  Nathaniel…he was smarter, but he still did it.”  Jake sat back, tired and angry.  “Venus.  Please…just…let me think.”

She stared at him, her eyes flaring a bit.  Slowly, she rose from her seat.  “I don’t understand…but I can respect that you need time.  The Emperor doesn’t want an answer right away.”

“Thanks, Venus.”  Jake sipped from his drink, feeling the frigid alcohol slide down his throat.  “I love you.”

“I know you do, Jacob, and I love you too,” Venus said.  Now, she sounded just confused instead of angry.  It wasn’t an improvement.

She walked out of the living room into the hall, closing the door behind her.  Her hand lingered on the knob for a moment, before tightening in frustration.

The vox rang.  She snatched it up from its cradle by the door, answering it before the first ring had ended.  “Hello?”

“Hello, Venus,” Angela’s voice answered.

Venus walked briskly down the hallway towards the entry.  “Hey.  What’s up?”

“I wanted to know if you and Remilia were back in town.  That confirms that,” her cousin drily observed.

“You couldn’t tell?” Venus asked.

“Yes, the emotional groundswell from Jake is pretty much blotting out that whole area.  What’s got him so scared?” Angela asked.

Venus sighed.  “The Emperor made him the offer.”

“Oh.”  Angela went quiet.  “I hope he accepts,” she finally said.

“Me too.”  Venus sank into a chair in the open kitchen.  “Did you say scared?”

“Yes.  You can’t tell?  He’s terrified.  It feels like when Morticia was hurt.  His soul is screaming in fear,” Angela said gravely.

Angela was many things.  Prone to hyperbole?  Not amongst them.

Venus swallowed a thread of guilt.  “I don’t understand why he’s having a hard time.  It’s everything we’ve ever wanted.”

“Interesting choice of words,” Angela observed.  “Is it everything he’s always wanted, for himself?”

Venus sighed.  “I don’t know.  I thought so.”

Angela nodded.  “May I come over?”

“Angela…”

“I want to help.  Do you want me to help?  I think a quick trip through his fears will expedite this.”

“Angela, you’re a sweetheart, but I can’t decide that for him,” Venus said.  Her stomach tightened.  “I’ll ask.”

“Please do.”  Angela muted the vox and looked down the road from her home to Venus’ (relatively) modest manor.  “Quickly,” she added under her breath.

Jake listened to Venus approach and closed his eyes.  He wondered which of her cousins wanted to weigh in now.

“May I come in?” Venus asked from behind the door.

“Of course,” Jake said.  She walked in, gesturing with the vox.

“Angela wants to come over.  Is that okay?” she asked.

Jake smiled inwardly.  He had hoped one of the psykers would call.  “Sure.”

Venus lifted the vox.  “Come on over,” she said.

Angela breathed a sigh of relief.  She unmuted the vox.  “Great.  I’ll be right there.”

She and her husband Michael were only a minute away.  Their regal cousin and brother-in-law arrived and made themselves at home in the living room as Jake explained his conundrum.

Michael, who had undergone the surgery himself years before, listened intently to his friend’s tale.  “Well…I suppose, really, you’re to be congratulated.  It’s a rare offer,” he said.  The surgery certainly hadn’t had any negative impacts on him, Jake noted.  The tall, handsome nobleman had accepted his grandfather’s offer in under an hour, and the procedure had gone flawlessly.  He had always been easy on the eyes, but now he projected a totally confident air that had lined the pages of many tabloids aimed at hormonal girls.  His eyes were a brilliant, piercing blue, now.  They had been green before.

“It is.  I have to know, Mike…just how bad does it hurt?”

“It’s horrific.  But…only for a day or two.  After that, it feels amazing.”  He held his bare arm out to his old friend.  “Jake, the sensations are better, I’m stronger…I swear I’m smarter.  There’s not a single drawback to a successful operation.”

“Not unless a changed appearance is a drawback,” Jake noted.  “Man, you always looked like Sanguinius.  I don’t look a THING like Vulkan, and he’ll be the donor.  My hair, my eyes, my skin, my voice…they’ll all probably change.”

“Well…that’s fair.  But if it’s the pain you’re worried about, don’t.  I actually feel better now.”  He leaned forward with an easy grin on his lips.  “Jake, my friend, it’s something to look forward to.”

Jake nodded.  “I see.”

Angela slowly inclined her head to him.  “If you’d like, Jake…I can help a bit.”  Her implication was clear.

“I’d like that, I think,” Jake said.  Michael nodded and rose, trusting his wife to her word.  Venus lingered in her seat.

“What do you want to do?” she asked.

“I want to help Jake see what it looks like,” Angela said.  She turned her smile to her cousin.  “I promise I won’t raid his memory, or anything personal.  I just want to impart a bit of understanding.  I swear it.”

Venus nodded.  “All right…Jake?”

Jake had already made up his mind.  “Do it,” he said.  He paused to squeeze Venus’ hand as she rose from her seat.  “I’ll be here, don’t worry,” he said.

“I know.”  She pulled her hand loose.  “I’ll be in the family room if you want to find me,” she said.

The door closed behind her as she and Michael walked down the hall.  Jake looked back to his sister-in-law, his heart picking up.  She rose and crossed the room, sitting down next to him.  Her wings fluttered a bit as she made herself comfortable next to him.  “Jake…I promise, I won’t give you a reason not to trust me,” she said.  Her voice was quiet, respectful.  She understood that he was asking her to invade his privacy.

“You’re like a sister to me, Angela,” Jake replied.  “I trust you.  What do I do?”

“Thanks.”  She grabbed a pillow from the end of the couch and slid it behind his head.  “Here, just relax.  You might actually fall asleep.”

“Okay…” Jake lay down a bit, staring up at his deific guest.  “What now?”

“Now you hush up and relax,” she said warmly.  She rose and knelt at his side next to the couch, looking down at him.  “Let me know, and I’ll stop.”

“I will,” Jake said.  Her eyes flared bright, unnatural blue as she slid her mental projection across his mind, easing herself in.  He gasped through his teeth.  “I’ll never get used to that,” he whispered.

Angela let her own eyes slide shut.  The roiling, twisting ball of fear at the center of his mind was glowing like a raging fire.  She could have found it if she were unconscious.  She slid her hands together over her belt buckle and relaxed, trying to find a way into his memories.

“All right…that doesn’t hurt,” Jake reported.

“Good, it’s supposed to be relaxing,” she said.  He cracked one of his own eyes open.  She was sitting still, her eyes glowing purple through the lids.  “There…I’ve found it.  Does that feel bad?”

“No…” Jake felt sudden knowledge flow into him, like a breath of hot air.  Her own understanding of the process the Emperor could bestow, and the ways her life had changed since Michael had undertaken it, blossomed in his mind.  More than that, he felt the emotional mess in his head fade a bit.

She opened her eyes and stood.  “And done.  Not so bad, was it?” she asked.

“Didn’t feel a thing after the first few seconds,” Jake said, sitting up as well.  He reviewed the burst of knowledge with a nod.  She had imparted her sense of relief at Michael’s own apotheosis, and the sense of certainty she felt when they thought of the future together.  “So you think it’s a no-brainer, huh.”

“I think it’s something you should have talked about before,” Angela gently chided.

“Probably.”  Jake sighed.  He patted the seat next to him.  As she sat, he looked at her sidelong.  “Angela…I think, to an extent, it’s the implications of success that get to me.  My parents think it’s an abomination.  My cousins think it’s the coolest thing ever.  My wife thinks I’m an idiot if I refuse, and my mother-in-law thinks I should say no and move on with my life.”

“Misja, George, and Sandra aren’t here,” Angela noted.  “And I didn’t hear Vulkan on that list.”

“He thinks it’s a grand idea.  But…he can think in the long term.”  Jake ran a hand through his hair.  “You know…that’s another thing.”  He looked over at Angela again.  “You and the other Progenitors can think in terms of eternity.  You’re mentally capable of it.  When I sit down and think about…I mean, THINK about it…it scares me.”

“I could see that.”  She grabbed his hand and held it between her own, trying to still his fear.  “Jake…all psykers have to think about eternity.  Whether they’re immortal or not.  It drives some crazy.  Others, like me…it’s a mystery to solve.  Lord Regent Malcador, before he died, he said that it was something he liked to think about.  He was a bit weird, sure, but he always liked puzzles.  You and Michael…you only have trouble comprehending it because your minds and bodies didn’t evolve for it.  Maybe I can’t show you the limited understanding of eternity I have…but I bet if you ask Michael, he can tell you what he thought.”

Jake nodded.  He felt the vaguest feeling of placation at the edge of his mind.  “I understand.  Is that you?” he asked.

“Oh, sorry, force of habit.”  The thought disappeared.  “Look…I’ll get Michael.  He’ll be better at this than me, I think.”

Jake stood.  “All right.”  As Angela rose, he gingerly caught her in a hug below the wings.  “Thanks.”

“No problem, Jake,” she said.  She returned it quickly, and parted with a beatific grin.  “Any time you need me.”

Michael downed a shot of bourbon as Jake tried to explain what Angela had given him.  “Well…I can tell you now that our circumstances are a bit different,” he started.  “Jake, Angela and I have been sharing minds since we were fourteen.  We had literally no reason not to do it.  It sounds like you might.”

“Really, dude?”  Jake looked pained.  “Man, I can’t even THINK about living forever!  How did you do it?”

“I can do it now,” Michael pointed out.  “One of the things the Emperor changed was my ability to comprehend my own lifespan.  How do you think men like Lord Luther or Lord Phaeron can handle being four thousand years old without getting made into Astartes?”

“Why didn’t Malcador do it?” Jake shot back.

“Never asked.”  Michael set his glass down.  “Believe me when I say, Jake, that it’s only scary beforehand.  I’m looking forward to it now.”

Jake grimaced.  “Well…that helps.  It does.”  He looked back up at his friend.  “What else changes?”

“Well, my senses are sharper, like I said.  I feel like it takes me less time to solve problems, too.  And…well.”  He coughed into his hand.  “I understand that it makes me genetically compatible with Angela.  We’re in no hurry to test that.”

“Wait, really?” Jake asked.  “I knew it would make me compatible with Venus, but I thought Angela was close enough to baseline…”

“She’s just out of range.”  Michael shook his head.  “Not important.”

“What about your personality?” Jake asked.  “Did that change?  Or your memories?”

“My memory’s actually much better now.  As for my personality…” Michael hesitated.  “I don’t know.  I asked Angela to mention any changes, and she hasn’t, so I assume all’s well.”

“So…as far as you know, in your case at least…no drawbacks,” Jake said, just to be sure.

Michael nodded.  “No drawbacks.  Everything feels fine.  Better, even.”  He paused.  “If you want another perspective…I suggest you speak to Nathaniel.”

Jake huffed.  “That’s part of why I’m nervous.”

“Magnus’ donation went…oddly.  Nate didn’t, you know, mutate, or anything…no extra eye,” Michael joked.  “But he has a lot of trouble sleeping now.  I think that’s worth it.  And you wouldn’t have that problem anyway,” he added.

“Yeah.”  Jake thought back to what the Emperor had told him.  “Still…what odds did he quote for you?”

“The Emperor?  Ninety seven,” Michael said.

Jake shot upright.  “What?  He told me I had an eighty five percent chance of success!” Jake said, astonished.

“Different DNA, different donor, different age…that stuff matters,” Michael awkwardly said.  “If it makes you feel better, Nate had a seventy nine percent chance and it went pretty well.”

Jake stared at his friend, before sinking back into his chair, grinding his hands into his eyes.  “Ugh…”

“Man, I’ve said my piece.”  Michael stood.  “I think you need to talk to Nate.”

“No, the one I need to talk to is my father,” Jake groused.  “He thinks it’s a crime.”

“Whoa.  Why?”

“He’s a baseliner.  Always was.”  Jake thought back to when his father explained why he had chosen to raise his family in the hives instead of Mars.  “He refused to enter the Mechanicum seminary, even though he had a guaranteed seat, because he hates augmetics.”

“Oh.”  Michael thought that over.  “I think…huh.  I think I’m beginning to sense the root of your problem, here,” he weakly joked.

Jake managed a snort.  “Maybe a little.  Angela knows, too.  She’d probably say I should go talk to Dad.”

“Wise words.”

Jake grabbed his friend’s hand and levered up out of the seat.  He paused as he did; glancing uncomfortably into the eyes Michael hadn’t had a month before.  Michael grinned wistfully, instantly realizing what Jake was doing.  Jake searched his face for a moment in silence, before nodding.

“All right.  Thanks, Mike.”

“My pleasure, Jake.”


George Seager opened the door of his new apartment and breathed the filtered air.  The ambient noises of the hive were so much fainter here.  He had an actual, dedicated landing pad for his aircar.  Sandra could walk to her job; it was so close to the apartment.

It was Jake’s gift.  After the wedding ceremony, Vulkan’s family had given Venus a generous dowry of sorts, to make a home on Terra.  Choosing to build in the new surface city of Cordoma, six hundred miles from Startseite, she had selected to construct a relatively small summer home, to complement her permanent home on Nocturne.  She and several of her cousins had chosen to do that to retain some connection with their homeworlds and Terra, where most of their families lived.  Jake had obtained Venus’ permission to send some of that money to his parents, both in payment for his years of residence there, and because he felt guilty about living like a king – or Prince, specifically – while his parents stayed in the hive.

George and Sandra had chosen to buy a much nicer apartment, five cubes up from where they had lived before, and used the money to buy it in full.  The rest of the Seager family was just a few button presses on the autopilot away, after all.  Now they had a separate kitchen and sitting room, bedrooms larger than prison cells.  It felt like opulence.

“Hey, Uncle George!” an eager young voice piped up.  George looked down and beamed at his niece, Mizuki.  Her mother Alice was Sandra’s younger sister.  Alice and her husband, along with Sandra’s youngest sibling (of two), Walter, who was really only a few years older than Jake, had come over for a housewarming.

“Hey, Zuki, great to see you!” he said, scooping the bubbly toddler into his arms.  “How’s life treatin’ ya?”

“Good!  I start first grade in two weeks!” Mizuki proudly declared.

“Well, that’s exciting!” George said.  He smiled over her head as Hajime, Alice’s husband, emerged from the parking area down the street.  “Is your Mom around?”

“She’s in the car,” Mizuki said, pointing back to the lot.  Alice and Walter were emerging too, and so was-

George tightened his grip on his niece, quite unconsciously.  Jake was with them, and Venus was also.  He looked down at the little girl and tried to keep smiling.  “Hey, when did your cousin Jake get here?” he asked.

“He got here when we did!” Mizuki eagerly said.  “And Venus too!”

“Good,” George said, letting Mizuki down.  She scampered over to her father and walked behind him to the apartment.

Hajime smiled at his brother-in-law, shaking his hand.  “Hello, George.”

“Hi, Hajime, glad you could make it,” George said.

Hajime glanced over his shoulder to where Venus was porting a bag of something up from the cars.  “Princess Venus is here…I’ll never get used to thinking of her as family.”

“It takes a while,” George said.  He managed to keep all the bitterness out of his voice.

Sandra welcomed her family in unreservedly, even Jake and Venus.  When Jake paused to shake his father’s hand, he caught the flash of suppressed anger in his father’s eyes, but chose to ignore it.  Venus dismissed her guard detail, and they vanished into the crowds of people outside the apartment like ghosts.

While Walter and Jake chatted about the end of the summer and Walter’s new job, Sandra and Venus unpacked the food Venus had brought.  “Hope you don’t mind, but I felt like bringing something,” Venus said, pulling a bag of homemade rolls out of the larger canvas sack.

“Of course not, honey, it’ll get eaten,” Sandra pointed out.  “How was your trip?”

“Awesome.  You should SEE the things we have under construction in the Expansion Zone,” Venus said.  “The new colony habs are amazing.  Makes me wonder if the older colonies will demand them from the Mechanicum.”

“Probably.”  Sandra watched as Venus’ red gaze darted away from where George and Hajime were standing.  “Something wrong, Venus?”

“I’m sensing some hostility from George, and I don’t think I need to guess why,” Venus confessed.

Sandra tutted.  “Don’t talk about it.  If George wants to be truculent in the apartment you paid for, let him.  He can talk about it like an adult.”

“Sandra, Jake paid for your apartment.  It was his money to do with as he saw fit.”  Venus nodded as she unpacked some more food.  “All I did was give it to him.  And even then, it was a present from Dad.”

“Well, thank Vulkan for us, then, because it’s much better than our old place.”  Sandra’s head turned as the front door opened.  “Grandpa!  Come on in!”

Venus tilted her head up.  Sandra’s recently widowed father, a long-since-retired Crusade veteran from the Imperial Fists Army Group, was walking in.  He started to salute by habit as he saw his Royal granddaughter, but Jake’s abrupt bear hug and Mizuki’s joyful squeeze of the leg interrupted him.

“Hey, kiddo!  What are your parents putting in the soylens they feed you?  You’re as tall as I am!” he said, ruffling his granddaughter’s straight black hair.

“No, Grandpa Eric, I’m not yet!” she pouted.

“Well, you will be soon,” he promised.

With the family assembled, they sat around the new table in the middle of the greatroom.  Mizuki scrambled into Venus’ lap as she did, as Venus discreetly slid a few napkins under her to block the heat.  Eric smiled indulgently at his granddaughter.  “Mizuki, you must be ready to start elementary school by now.”

“Two weeks!” Mizuki announced.

“Well, that should be fun.”  He glanced up at Jake.  “How about you, Jacob?  How was your trip?”

“Surprisingly productive.”  Jake leaned back in his chair and smiled as his mother passed him a roll.  “The work they’re doing with the new construction teams in the Expansion Zone is breathtaking.  So much new design.  It’s pretty encouraging.”

“I always thought that’s what you would wind up doing,” Walter said.  “You loved that stuff.”

“I still do.  The new setup we have on Nocturne has a nice design suite.  You are all invited, by the by,” Jake said, sweeping his hands over the room’s occupants.

Mizuki’s eyes bugged.  “REALLY?!”

Jake shrugged.  “If your parents are okay with you traveling through the Warp, sure.”

“Bah, I’ve been through the Warp more often than you have, Jacob, it’s a walk in the rec zone,” Eric said dismissively.

“That’s Hajime and Alice’s call,” Venus said firmly.

After dinner, Mizuki curled up on the couch with Sandra as George showed the others around the new apartment.  Jake sank down next to his little cousin and grinned.  “Hey, Mizuki, how was your summer?”

“It was okay, I guess,” she said sleepily.  “I met a few new neighbors.”

“Yeah?  Any your age?”

“No, they’re all little kids,” the six-year-old grumped.

“For now,” Jake counseled.  “But you can be like a big sister to them in a few years.”

“I don’t wanna be a big sister,” Mizuki complained.

Jake nodded, offering up a knowing grin.  “Not yet.  You will.”

“If you say so,” the little girl said.  Jake smiled fondly.

“She’s growing up quick,” he said as Mizuki wandered off to the bathroom.

“It’s uncanny,” his mother said.  She looked over at Jake as the tour group returned.  “How about you, Jake?  Do you have any plans?”

“Yeah, when do I get to be a great grandfather?” Eric quipped.

“Hmm.”  Jake looked up at Venus, as if in contemplative appraisal.  Discs of red light arced across the ceiling as Venus rolled her eyes.  “Might be worth a try.  Of course…there’s that other issue,” he said.

“So…the Emperor really did make an offer?” Sandra asked, a tone of awe creeping into her voice.

Venus nodded.  “Yes.  He offered Jake the same thing he offered Nathaniel and Michael.”

Silence met her proclamation.  “So…you gonna do it?” Walter hesitantly asked.

“Not sure,” Jake admitted.  “I want your opinions.”

“The hell for?” Hajime asked.  “It’s your decision.”

“Of course it is, but you guys will always be my family.”  Jake’s voice hardened.  “And if I do this, I may watch all of you die.  So I want to know.  What do you think I should do?”

“Go for it,” Walter opined.  “How often do you get an offer like that?”

Sandra shook her head.  “Not very…”

George shook his head.  “You know my opinion,” he said coldly.

“I don’t understand it, though, not really, Dad,” Jake said. “What about it makes you so angry?  You barely looked me in the eye when I walked in.”

George did now.  “It makes me angry because there’s nothing wrong with the body you’ve got!  You’re in perfect health.  Yes, you’ll die someday…but so does nearly every other person in the universe!  It’s natural!”

“And I’m not?” Venus ground out.

George flinched.  “Sorry, Venus, I didn’t mean it like that.”

“Maybe not consciously, but it’s an easy conclusion to reach.  I don’t remember you complaining about my biology when we met, though, or for the next eight years.  Yet, now that Jake has a chance to live life eternal, suddenly it’s an issue,” Venus pressed.  Her eyes flashed red.  “Care to share, George?”

“Venus.”  Jake’s quiet word was a request.  She was instantly silent, but seething.  “Dad.  I want to live my life with Venus…and if that means extending it, I can live with it.  No pun intended.  And it will mean we can have a family.  Doesn’t that mean anything to you?”

“It means more to me than I’ve probably implied,” George admitted.  “But I made a conscious choice not to twist myself with augmetics when I left the Mechanicum.  I was practically thrown out of the seminary for that.  And Dad…Carmine never fully forgave me for it.”

“Do you really want to end things between us on the same note?” Jake asked softly.  George glared at him, but didn’t say anything.

“I was ready to commit to a relationship I knew I would outlive,” Venus said.  “The Emperor thinks it shouldn’t end like that.”

“As well he should!” Eric suddenly said.  Every eye turned to him.  “Damn it, George…when Christine died, I thought I was going to…” Eric’s eyes were watering.  His voice caught.  “I thought I would go mad.  I was married to her for fifty one years.  When I was off on tour, she was always there for me.  She never lost her faith, her trust…we built a family together.  And when she died of some…some stupid virus…”  He paused to wipe his handkerchief across his face.  Alice and Sandra were both tearing up themselves.  Walter’s eyes were screwed shut.  “I lost half my life when I lost her.  Don’t you even THINK of trying to make Venus go through that too,” he said.  Venus looked away.

“Eric…”  George tried to snap something back, but couldn’t do it.  “It’s not like Christine ever got the chance Jake has.”

“What difference does that make?” Jake asked.

“Jacob, I can’t change your mind.  If you want to do this, then do it.  But you wanted my opinion.  You have it,” George said.  He didn’t cross his arms, but he did look like he was sulking.

Jake shut his eyes, trying to reconcile the patient, ferociously clever father he loved with the bitter old man in front of him.  He couldn’t.  “What do I not know, Dad?  Please tell me,” Jake said.  “Why did you decide not to get augmetics?”

George sighed.  “They’re unnecessary,” he said tightly.  “More than that, they’re dangerous.  And even if bio-modding isn’t the same, it’s still turning something that works into something that works differently.  Besides, it’s unfair.  Someone with augmetics or gene-mods can out-compete someone without them.  And the MANIA the Mechanicum and…” he trailed off as he tried to choke out the word.  “And even the Astartes have for them; it’s repulsive.  It smells like religion.”

“With whom, precisely, is Jake going to be competing?” Venus asked coldly.  “No, really, I’d like to know.”

“Fine, he won’t be.”  George huffed.

“Aunt Alice, you’ve been quiet.  What do you think?” Jake asked.

“Me?  I think you should do it.”  Alice said.  “What are the side effects?”

“Well…no way to know until you try, but my brother-in-law, Mike, he has it.  He had no negative side effects at all.  His eyes changed color a bit, but other than that…he says he feels like a new man,” Jake said.

“Then why would you have no way to know until you try?” Hajime asked.

Jake shrugged.  “No two people have identical DNA.  Well, Alpharia and Omegan, maybe,” he joked.  “But I’d be getting my upgrade, basically, from a donor, and he has very different DNA.  It might change mine a bit.”

“How much is a bit?” Sandra asked.

“What are you guys talking about?” Mizuki asked from the hallway.

Everyone looked over.  “We’re just wondering if Jake and I should have a kid, and how it could change things,” Venus said.

Mizuki sank back onto the couch.  “Would it change stuff that matters?” she asked reasonably.

“Maybe a lot,” Jake said.

Mizuki shrugged.  “Like what?”

Alice squeezed her daughter’s hand.  “Mizuki, come on, that’s private,” she shushed.

“How much is a bit?” Sandra pressed.  Clearly, she wanted to keep talking in front of her niece.

“Potentially, my hair, voice, face, eyes, and skin will all change a little.  Darken, deepen,” Jake said.

George shook his head.  “You won’t even be the same person anymore!”

“Will I still be your son?” Jake demanded point blank.  George glared at him, leaning forward to deliver a hot retort.  “Careful, Dad.  I may spend the rest of time with your answer,” Jake cautioned.

George froze, his teeth clamped together.  Eric stared at his grandson, white as a sheet.  “Jake…how could you even ask that?” Eric managed.

“You…Jacob, you will always be my son.  But I may not know you any more,” George finally said.

“According to Mike and Nate, the surgery has no impact on personality.  None.  Even psychics can’t tell the difference; believe me, I’ve asked.”  Jake leaned back.  “All right.  Hajime?”

“I think you deserve it, Jake.”  His uncle met his eyes.  “I think…if anyone deserved to enjoy that life, it’s you.”

“Mom?” Jake asked.

Sandra shook her head.  “I think…Jake, I think Dad is right.  My Dad.  I think you should take the chance.”

“All genemodding has a chance of failure,” Walter pointed out.  “What are your odds?”

Jake sighed.  “Eighty five percent chance of perfect success.  Two percent chance of partial success; that is, I live forever, but don’t stop aging.  Three percent chance that I die on the table.  Ten percent chance of perfect success, but physical changes occur.”

His mother paled.  “Five percent chance of a fate worse than dying normally,” Sandra said.

“I came here because I genuinely wanted to know what you all thought,” Jake asked.  “I guess now I know.”

“Are you leaving?” Mizuki asked.

Jake smiled down at her.  “Nope.  I wouldn’t miss a housewarming party…that I paid for,” he continued so quietly only Venus could hear it.  She sniggered.

“Can we go outside?” Mizuki asked.

“Have you been to this cube before?” Jake asked.

“No, I mean to the surface,” Mizuki pressed.

Jake paused.  “…I think that would have to happen some other time,” he said.

“Yeah, honey, let’s go later,” Hajime said.

The little girl yawned.  “What’s it like?”

“Bright,” Jake said.  “Very bright.  I had to wear dark glasses the whole time, first few years I was up there.  You get used to it, though.”

“How come you went to school up there?” she asked.

Jake grinned.  “I won an award at middle school and got to go to any place I wanted for high school.”

“I hope I can go to school on the surface,” Mizuki tiredly said.

The conversation was turning to something that was actually more uncomfortable than surgery.  Jake grimaced at the irony.  Alice noticed.  “Honey, are you tired?  Do you want to go home?”

“I’m all right,” she said, stifling another yawn.  “Can we stay a little longer?”

“Of course, Zuki,” Sandra soothed, shooting her son and husband a glance.  “You can stay as late as you want.”

A few hours later, Mizuki was out cold, the food was all eaten, Sandra’s siblings were gone, and Eric, Jake, Venus, Sandra, and George were the only ones left.  Jake and George were in the kitchen, having decided that their conversation had upset the others quite enough.

“Dad, let me make something clear: do not disrespect Venus’ origins like that again,” Jake quietly said.

“I didn’t mean to offend her before, no,” George said.  “But I meant what I said about you getting this surgery.  You won’t thank yourself.”

“How else can I not break her heart, Dad?  How else can I get her pregnant?  For that matter, how else can I fulfill my new responsibilities?” Jake asked.  “I’m a Prince now.  The Nocturneans have lived under immortals for over thirty six centuries.”

“Fine, I can’t speak to that,” George said.  “But you know my opinion, and I’m sticking to it.”  He stared at his taller son.  “Jake, why do you even want to know what I think?  You’re a grown man now.”

“I will ALWAYS care about your opinion, Dad, don’t think I won’t.  I just wish it made more sense sometimes.”  Jake ran his hand back through his hair.  His fathers’, he noted, had a streak of grey in it.  “Look…Venus and I have asked family that had the procedure, and aside from one guy who had mild insomnia, they all report that it went well.  I’ll still be Jake.  I’ll just last a bit longer.  If I go through with it.  I want Vulkan and the Emperor’s personal opinions.”

“And what will they say?”

“They both think it will be a good idea.  I want to know why,” Jake said.

Back in the living room, Eric was asking Venus a few questions about the process.  “Venus, do you know what this actually involves?  The procedure?”

“It’s a bog-standard genemodding, really, they just use a Primarch’s DNA as a base instead of a blood relative,” Venus said.  “The reason it’s so rare is that if you’re not a member of the Royal family, or absurdly well-connected to the Astartes legion, it’s technically illegal.”

“Why?  Do they just not want a bunch of random strangers living forever?” Sandra asked.

“Well, that may be a part of it, but I suspect that it’s just a precaution.  They don’t want to have the DNA of Royal Family members floating around in public,” Venus replied with a shrug.  “Also, it’s not the safest possible source of genemods.  There’s also some psychoconditioning and a few small cybernetic implantations, just to ensure the body doesn’t reject the modified genes.”

Sandra shifted uncomfortably.  The idea of her son becoming someone else was obviously disconcerting.  For once, Venus didn’t have a placatory remark to make.  “Sandra, I’m not going to say this is safe.  It’s…it’s no more dangerous than Warp travel, certainly, but it’s not safe.  But I want this, for his sake and for mine.  And frankly, the Emperor wouldn’t have offered if he didn’t think Jake should take it.  The fact that he sees it as something to look forward to should say a lot.”

Sandra nodded, her stomach tightening.  “Well…he’d know, I suppose.  Do you know what Vulkan thinks about this?”

Venus managed a smile.  “Dad thinks it’s a brilliant idea, and he’s already offered to help.”

“Has Lady Misja received this treatment, do you know?” Sandra asked.

Venus’ smile froze.  “No.  It’s…it only works on men.  Mom’s mortal, still.”

“Oh.”  Sandra looked away.  “I’m sorry.”

“Mom and I have talked about it.  We’ve talked about it many times.”  Venus sighed.  “I’ve come to terms with it, and I think she has too.  But I don’t have Dad’s resilience, really.  I couldn’t lose Mom and Jake.”

Jake and George returned to the room and sat back down as Venus finished her statement.  “Well…even if it didn’t extent my life, it would still be the only way to have a biological family,” Jake said gravely.  “That lends it weight, too.”

“Jake, it sounds like your mind’s made up,” Eric noted.

“No, Grandpa, it isn’t.  Not this fast.”  Jake leaned back in his chair, clearly drained.  Sandra and George both noted their son’s new appearance.  He had gotten much stronger since he had left Earth.  The tight cords of muscle in his arms and upper back bespoke Nocturne’s gravity.

“Look…thanks, all of you, for your opinions.”  He offered up a weak grin.  “I think we’ve all had enough.  What else should we talk about?”

As the night wore on, the group slowly broke up, and Jake and Venus departed for their own home.  As Jake sat, silent and stern behind the controls, Venus looked over at him.  “Did that help?” she asked.

“Yes.  I think so.”  Jake sighed.  “I’m sorry Dad called you unnatural.”

“Yeah, that stung.”  Venus slowly shook her head.  “Where did it even come from?  I’ve never seen George act that way before.”

Jake thought back to the conversation.  “I think he feels that the sort of genetic alchemy the Emperor uses is more danger than benefit.”

“Well, he’s wrong.  We won the Crusade with it, I was made from it, and Grandpa’s offering it to you to make your life better.”  Venus’ fraying patience was evident in her blunt statement.

Jake looked over at her, pained.  “Venus…it’s the fact that it might not work that gets to me.”

“True.”  Venus felt the conversation about to loop back to old ground, and decided to cut it off preemptively.  “Listen.  Go talk to Dad again.  He needs to weigh in on this.”

Jake nodded.  “Yeah.  Yeah, you’re right.”  He let out a tense breath.  “You know, Angela put a little knowledge in here.”  He tapped his head.  “She thinks it’s the best thing that’s happened to Mike since they got married.  That means a lot.”

“Well, it means a lot to her that Michael and she can spend their lives together,” Venus said, maybe a bit shortly.  The fact that her psychic cousin had had apparently no difficulty in convincing Michael of the procedure’s benefits was distantly annoying.  Venus wondered if perhaps she just hadn’t hit upon the right argument.

“For what it’s worth, I think you’re right.”  Jake looked back out the window at the taillights of the Treasury car ahead of them.  “I’m going to talk to Vulkan tomorrow.”

The pseudoweather outside was growing cooler as summer ended.  The rooftop patio of Vulkan’s manor was still covered in the carefully-tended flowers that Misja planted, in pots and ceramic urns here and there, and the wrought-iron railing (which Vulkan had made with his bare hands, as Jake had learned) was overgrown with creeping, flowering vines.

Jake breathed in the familiar smell with a grin.  “Smells like an arboretum here.”

“It does,” his father-in-law said.  Vulkan reclined against the entry to the open patio, hands folded over his waist.  “We didn’t have these back home.”

“Still don’t, sadly, last I checked.”  Jake smiled.  “The new house on Nocturne is absolutely magnificent.  The design work we did…it’s beautiful.”

“I’m glad to hear it,” Vulkan said with a distinct note of pride.  The two men had co-designed the structure, at Jake’s suggestion.  The manor was situated on one of the massive rooftops of Themis Castle, cunningly built to look like nothing more than another addition to the ever-expanding citadel.  It was more than half again the size of the house Vulkan and Misja shared on Terra, and five times the size of the house Venus had bought for them on Terra, after the wedding.

“I suppose you know why I’m here,” Jake said, cutting to the point.

“You want my advice,” Vulkan said.

“I do.”  Jake sighed, burying his simmering tensions.  He looked up at Vulkan and tried to meet his eyes.  “Vulkan, I’m scared.  I shouldn’t be…and if I was one of your Astartes, you’d tan my hide for it,” he said.

Vulkan snorted.  It was true.

“But I am.  And…I want to know what you think.”

The obsidian warrior clasped his hands on his son-in-law’s shoulders, mindful of his temperature.  “Jake, I think it would be the wisest decision you could make to get the procedure.  More than eternal life, it’s a chance to start a dynasty.”  He stepped back and spoke earnestly, eyes raised to the sky.  “I fought for my father’s empire for three thousand six hundred years.  I built bases, power plants, schools, shipyards.  I burned churches and temples, I crossed oceans of stars, I built a Legion of a half a million men from ten thousand over-eager Terrans…and I have never been happier than I am watching Venus grow into a Crown Princess.”  He looked down at Jake and smiled.  “I want to see her stay happy, confident, and deeply in love, Jake.  You can do that for her.”

Jake was silent, surprised and moved by the unexpected depth of Vulkan’s plea.  “I…understand.  My own father said it was an abomination, not in those words, you understand, but he did.  He thinks I shouldn’t throw away a body that works the way nature built it to.”

Vulkan nodded.  “My own father, N’bel, was surprised and unnerved by my appearance when I was growing up.  He thought it unnatural, deviant.  It was a sign of his character that he overcame it, and treated me like an honored son even when he learned my true heritage.”  He sat down in a metal chair by the door and thought back.  “When the Emperor came to Nocturne to take me away…I spoke to N’bel.  I told him who I was.  Who I was born to be.  What I was to become.  He was sad…confused.  But he was also proud.  And when I offered him the same thing the Emperor has offered you…he refused, because he wanted to go to the mountain one day.  I respected his choice.”

Vulkan looked back up at Jake, his eyes narrowed.  “I still do.  I know that it was the way of his people, my people, to respect death, even if they also held some fear of it because of the depredations of the Dark Eldar.  Nocturne was death itself, to them, a birthplace and a grave.  So please, Jake, understand, that when I say I want you to live, and give my daughter the children she so desperately wants to have, it means more than just the words themselves can convey.”

Jake felt his eyes water a bit at the pain and weariness behind Vulkan’s voice.  He suspected that he and Misja had had some tense discussions of late.  “I see.”  Jake sat too, running his hands over his narrow beard.  “Well…that’s pretty convincing.”  He slowly looked to Vulkan, resolve crystalizing in his heart.  “Then there’s really only one person left to ask, isn’t there?”

Misja pressed the envelope on her daughter, frowning.  “I mean it, Venus.  This was part of the deal.”

“I suppose it was,” Venus said.  She hesitantly took the envelope and pocketed it.  “Thanks, Mom.”

A hesitant knock on the door drew their attention.  Jake was standing at the door to the little library on the third floor, eyes wide.  “Should I come back later?” he asked.

“Please, Jake,” Misja said.

“Sorry.”  He stepped back and retreated into an adjacent study to wait.

Misja looked back to her daughter.  “Baby, you and Jake both want to keep working, which is great, but Nocturnean nobility generally make politicking their full-time job.  You’ll need money.”

“But…I mean, math isn’t exactly my strong suit, but isn’t this above critical mass, so to speak?” Venus said.

“Well above.  Don’t worry about it,” her mother counseled.  She leaned over and hugged her daughter.  “Believe me, the last thing I would want to have happen to you two is money problems, and goodness knows we’re never going to run out.”

Venus closed her eyes and sighed, accepting her mother’s wisdom.  “This is a huge deal, Mom.  Thanks.”

“Don’t worry about it, Venus,” Misja said.  She leaned back and smiled.  “So…I asked Jake to wait because I want to ask you first.  What’s his decision?”

“He’s waffling,” Venus groused.  “Eternity scares him.”

“It scares me,” Misja admitted.  “But…well, we’ve talked it over, before.  I’m at peace with my choice.  And I think Jake could be, too.  But I know you want him to take the plunge.”

“If it had been viable for you, Mom, would you have done it?” Venus asked.

“Maybe.  I don’t know.  I don’t think it matters.”  Misja fidgeted, crossing her arms.  “Listen, I know you think it’s what Jake should want…but it might not be what he does.  Please, don’t resent him if he decides to live with the lifespan his parents gave him.”

“I wouldn’t,” Venus said.

Misja cocked an eyebrow.  “Really?”

Venus glared at her.  “I wouldn’t!”

Her mother was obviously not convinced.  Expedience won out over persistence, however, and she let the matter drop.  She rose and beckoned Jake in from the other room.  He walked in and sat next to his wife, squeezing her hand with a smile as he sat.  “Hey.  Sorry if I intruded before, I apologize.”
Misja smiled.  “Not a problem, Jake.  I was just giving Venus the account details for her gift.”

“Yes…such generosity.  It makes my head spin,” Jake admitted.  “You can take the hiver out of the hive, as they say.”

“Well, you only get half,” Misja joked.

Venus rolled her eyes.  “Mom, we merged accounts years ago.”

“Oh, did you?  I didn’t know.”  The former Administratum worker turned her own eyes to Jake.  “May I ask what you’ve decided?”

“I want to hear your piece first,” Jake said.

Misja nodded.  “Well, I think it’s ultimately your call, but I want you to give it fair pause.”

“I have, trust me,” Jake said.  “I sat in the chair in the greatroom for nine hours yesterday, starting at about four in the morning, thinking until my eyes were tearing.”

Misja smiled in sympathy.  “It happened to me, too.  To all of us.  Some of the Royal Mothers turned to experimental surgeries, juvenat treatments…even psychic therapies.  Me…I might use juvenats myself, if it comes to that.  But I’ve come to live with my lifespan, Jake.  I will love Vulkan and you and Venus as long as I can, then I’ll die.  I can still be happy with the time I have.”

Jake grimaced in discomfort.  “But…that’s the problem.  You’ll live on in Venus, of course…but if I don’t do this, we can never have children.”

“Can’t you?  Venus wasn’t born from my womb, but she’s still my daughter.  You could adopt,” Misja pointed out.

“That’s fair,” Jake allowed.

Misja tilted her head.  “But you don’t want to.”

“I don’t know.  I haven’t considered it.”  Jake leaned forward.  “Look…I haven’t made up my mind, because I honestly don’t know if I’ve learned everything I need to.  We’re talking about a literal change in the physical and mental structure of my brain, here.  The introduction of new conceptual capabilities.  Michael, Angela’s husband, swears he’s smarter.  He can comprehend more topics.  That scares me a bit.”

“What do you want me to tell you, Jake?  I can’t experience that.”  Misja smiled faintly.  “I have an immortal husband too, you know.  Have you asked him what he thinks?”

“Naturally.  He basically said he was looking forward to me going through with it so Venus could start popping out kids,” Jake said drily.

“Oh, really?  Really, Dad?  For fucks’ sake,” Venus groaned.

“Well he coached it in a story about his father, N’bel, but yes.”  Jake smiled.  “He was very convincing, though.  I admit I had never thought of it as matter of spiritual preference.”

Misja nodded.  “Nocturneans think of the Circle of Fire, the cycle of birth, accomplishment, death, and returning to the soil.  You’re not Nocturnean, really, I know, but I think you see the point.  And if you go through with this, become more than human, you’ll have the chance to escape it.  I think if you were a lesser man, Jake, Vulkan would have opposed this even if he still offered his genome to make it possible.  It’s a sign of his respect for you that he actually wants you to survive outside of the spiritual creed by which he’s lived for all these years.”

She leaned forward, transfixing him with her piercing brown eyes.  “There is no shame in death on Nocturne.  Everyone dies there, sometimes without warning.  The Astartes that are the pinnacle of the Nocturnean way of life live forever, like you could, until they come to an abrupt end in war, and then they have a chance to return to the flames of Deathfire where they belong.  They reconcile the fact that, on the surface, they don’t seem to be a part of the Circle of Fire by rationalizing their purpose: they are soldiers, and soldiers can die.  If the worst should happen, you wouldn’t really be escaping your spiritual burden, you’d just be accepting it long after you would have otherwise.”

Venus glanced sideways at Jake, and noted the distant look in his eyes.  “I see.”

“By the same token, there’s nothing wrong with accepting the life that you have and living it to the fullest, making yourself and other happy.  That’s what the whole universe does, save the Eldar.  And you can’t be held to a fault for it, even if it means that you can’t start a family from your own loins,” Misja continued.  “Meeting Vulkan and starting a family with him is a blessing to me, even if I know I’ll leave him some day.  Can you say the same for meeting Venus?”

“Unconditionally,” Jake affirmed.

“Then make the choice that satisfies your own conscience and desire, Jake, not the one that your parents want, or I want.  Or even what Venus wants,” she added.

Jake sighed.  “Except that I know that I can’t make everyone happy with this, and making my family and friends happy with my actions is…maybe more important to me than it should be,” he said.  “Sorry, that was a dumb thing to say.  Let me start over.  I don’t want my relationship with you or my father to worsen if I go ahead with this, any more than I want to make Venus live alone, or disappoint the Emperor.”

“Well, Jake, it sounds like you HAVE made up your mind, you just aren’t sure how to handle the consequences,” Misja said.

Jake went silent.  His hands gripped the armrests of his chair.  “Is that it?” he finally asked.

“You know my opinion.  You know the opinions of everyone who has a place sharing them.”  Misja stood.  “So if you can’t please everyone, no matter how much you want to…what will you do?” she asked.  Her voice was firm, even harsh.

Jake slowly stood too.  He looked down at Venus, then up at her mother, eyes weary, but determined.  “Thanks, Misja.”  He wrapped his arms around her shoulders.  “I needed a kick in the ass.”

“So many people do, and I can only provide them one at a time,” Misja sighed.

He snorted.  “Gee, what a martyr.”  He stood back and smiled at her.  “So…if I do go ahead with this, you won’t think less of me?”

“It’s not what I would do if I were you, Jake, but if you can give yourself, my daughter, and the Salamanders a dynasty…I could only be even prouder of you,” Misja admitted with a smile.

Jake let out a breath.  “Then my mind’s made up.”  He took Venus’ hand and gently lifted it.  She stood to look up into his eyes, and she dared to hope.

“I’ll accept the Emperor’s offer.”


Jake knelt before the Emperor’s desk, hands on his knee.  “My Liege.”  The radiant light from hidden fixtures on the walls bathed the white marble flooring in a suffuse glow.  The Emperor’s own light added to the effect.

The Emperor bade him stand.  “Rise, my grandson.  You have reached a conclusion regarding my offer?”

“I have, my Liege,” Jake said.  He stood, quelling his nerves.  “My testament is written…Vulkan has provided his blood sample.  I am as ready as I can be.  All relevant parties have weighed in, and I am prepared,” he intoned.

The Master of Mankind rose from his chair, hands planted on the surface of his desk.  “Jacob.  Your name is a significant one, even if you didn’t know it.  Do you know your name’s roots?”

“If I recall, it means something like ‘A man who wrestles,’” Jake replied, somewhat confused.

“Close.”  The Emperor slowly walked around the table, eyeing his grandson.  “In the mythology of Ancient Earth, back when people took religion as a way of illuminating themselves instead of blinding others, your namesake was a man of great and storied conflict.  He was a patriarch, so the books said, a leader who founded great families, overcame great hardships, and eventually gave his name, or a version of it, to a nation which lasted for thousands of years.”  The Emperor chose to conceal that fact that it remained a warzone for nearly its entire history.  “The name itself means both ‘A Wrestler of Angels’ and ‘A Prince of Harsh God.’”

The Emperor paused at the edge of the table.  “You will never be a Space Marine, Jacob, nor should you be.  You will overcome great struggles in your life, be sure of it, though not all of them will involve fighting.  Precious few, I imagine.  But your second name seems fitting.  Nocturne is a harsh, terrible place, where the most violent of cataclysms are used to set calendars and watches, and horrible beasts devour people alive…but within you will lie the same flame that lights Vulkan’s heart and scours weakness from his people.”

The Emperor stood before his grandson and stared into his dark green eyes.  “Tell me, Jacob.  Would you take his fire into yourself?  Become more than human…even if it means you will not be your old self anymore?”

“To what extent would my mind change, my Liege?” Jake asked.

“Your memories will remain.  So too your outlook on things, and your views and politics.  You will think faster.  Your reflexes will improve.  Strength, stamina, mental perception.  They will all become more than they are.”  The Emperor tilted his head back, looking down at the slightly shorter man.  “You will be able to comprehend numbers and ideas that humans can not.”

“But my personality will be the same?  Really, that’s my only reason for pause at this point, my Liege,” Jake asked.

“Unchanged.  I would not offer it if it made you someone other than the man whom my granddaughter loves,” the Emperor said.

Jake bowed low.  “Then I accept your offer, my Liege, and the responsibility it confers.”

“Good.”  The Emperor clasped Jake’s hand as the shorter man rose.  “Eternity is not something to fear, Jacob.  It is a wonderful thing, should one find a passion.  For some, it is war, others art, others foretelling.  I have a love of artifice and invention.  Your father-in-law loves honest, hard work, and leadership.  Your uncle Roboute enjoys the intrigue and trickery of interstellar economics.”  He smiled faintly.  “I suspect you will find Nocturne and Terra alike are places of great wonder, once you have infinite time to explore them.”

“I sincerely hope so, Sire,” Jake said.  He returned the handshake.  “Then…what do I do?”

“First, I wish for you to go to those who disagreed with your decision and speak to them frankly.  Tell them what you can.  And give me Vulkan’s blood sample,” the Emperor said.

“No need, Sire, Vulkan said he would send it over by secure courier,” Jake said.  He grimaced.  “And there’s only one man who objected in more than passing vehemence.”

“May I assume it is your father?” the Emperor asked.  Jake nodded.  “I see.”  The Emperor quirked a grin.  “I’d ask that he come and speak to me in person, but I’d rather not drown out his own opinion.”

Jake ruefully shook his head.  “Yes, Sire, I suspect he’d think I was trying to bully him into submission by intimidating him.  Remember how he nearly locked up at the wedding reception?”

“I do, and I find that sort of behavior distantly tiring,” the Emperor said.  He held his hand over to the door.  “Please.  Do what you would to alleviate the concerns of those who would fear for the outcome of the process.  The nearest time my chirurgeon can perform the operation is twelve hours out, the actual procedure is quite fast.”

“I shall, my Liege,” Jake said, stilling another bout of nerves.  “Venus herself would want to be present, I imagine.”

“She should not be, if you wish to retain some privacy.  The operation is fast, but invasive.  I would recommend she wait in the Guest Wing,” the Emperor said.

“I’ll let her know,” Jake promised.  “She and my parents, and Miranda and Nathaniel, are waiting outside.”

“I know.  I’m glad Nathaniel found his own procedure successful,” the Emperor said, walking his grandson to the door.  “Do greet them for me, would you, Jacob?”

Jake bowed again.  “I will.  Thank you, your Majesty.”

Venus quickly stood as she saw Jake returning from the Emperor’s personal offices.  “Hey!  How did it go?” she asked.

“Well.  They’ll be ready to go in twelve hours.  The Emperor’s personal chirurgeon is going to perform it,” Jake said as he walked up.

Miranda smiled serenely from her seat.  “I think you’ll be fine, Jake.  I’m not sensing any sudden upwells of mourning in your future,” she said.

“Good to know.  Now, just to be sure,” he said, turning to Nate.

Nate chuckled, his blue eyes flaring briefly as he checked his wife’s work.  “Nope, you’re good as far as I know.  Then again, I couldn’t levitate a pencil a foot off the ground.”  He stood up and grinned at his friend and brother-in-law.  “Believe me, you’ll pull through if any of us do.”

Sandra clutched her hands together, staring at the carpet.  Beyond discomfort at the sight of such psychic abilities being used, she wasn’t comfortable with the idea of her son going into surgery.  George sighed.  “Jake…are you sure you want to do this?”

“As sure as I can be, Dad,” Jake said.  “The Emperor said to say Hi to all of you, by the way,” he added.  “Busy guy, you know.”

“Subtle,” George muttered.

Miranda rose from her own seat.  “And how are you feeling, Jake?” she asked.  She could tell, of course, but she knew it would make him feel better to verbalize it.

“A little nervous, but who wouldn’t be?” Jake asked rhetorically.  “Really, though, I just want it to be over.”

Nate nodded in sympathy.  “Here,” he said, running his hand over his lower neck, just above his trapezius.  “There’s a full suite of biomonitors in there now.  Feel them?” he asked.  Jake blinked, running his own finger over the spot.

“Uh, no.”

“Exactly.  The cybernetics are completely non-invasive.  Would you have even known where to look?” Nate asked.

“No.”  Jake pulled his hand back, wondering how to ask his question.  “Man, I appreciate your trying to make me less nervous, but I think I just want to go get some rest for now.  Maybe grab a bite to eat.”

“Nope.  No food before surgery,” Sandra pointed out.

“Damn.  I forgot.”  Jake shrugged.  “Oh well.  You guys want to tour the Palace a bit?  The Emperor offered to set you all up in the Guest Wing while we’re waiting.”

“That’s very kind of him, but I think I should be going,” Miranda said.  “We’ll be back,” she added.  “Don’t worry about it, Jake.  I have trust in my grandfather’s medical experts.”

Jake offered her a quick hug.  “Thanks, Miranda.”  He turned to her husband.  “Nate, man, good to see you.  If I pull through this, we still on for poker on Saturday?”

“Count on it.”  Nate rolled his eyes with a smirk.  “You’re the only man I know who can beat a mind-reader at cards.”

“It’s gotta be the shoes,” Jake finished their joke.  “See you around, my friend.”

“Bye.”  The two psychics walked down the hall to the tramway that would take them to the parking lots.

George slowly rose to his feet, his face pinched.  Sandra and Venus started off to the trams as well, as Venus gave directions to the VIP suite.  George caught Jake’s hand as he passed.  “Jake.”

His son paused, raising his eyebrow.  “Look…I’m sorry.  I don’t want you to think that I don’t care what you and Venus want.”

Jake nodded, relieved.  “Thanks, Dad.”  He smiled faintly.  “Look at it this way.  If this works, the Seagers will be half the bloodline of the Nocturnean Royal Family.  Your grandkids could be warrior-kings.”

George snorted.  “Well, that’s something.”  He looked pained for a moment.  “Jake, you know you’ll be my son forever, right?”

“Yeah, I do, Dad,” Jake said.  He squeezed his father’s shoulder.  “Now…go get Mom and settle in in the Guest Wing.  I need to go do one last errand.”

“What do you have left to do?” George asked as the two men walked down the hall.

“I want to ask someone a quick question, and I have to find her first,” Jake answered.  “It’s very difficult.”


Alpharia set her vox down, looking up at her unexpected guest.  “Jake!  Hi, how are you?” she asked, standing up from her luxurious desk.

“I’m fine, thanks,” Jake said, shaking her hand.  “How’s the business?”

“Quiet.  Very much so.  The problems that were cropping up in Croft have subsided by a lot, which might be good or bad,” the White Queen of Espionage replied.  “You understand.”

“Sometimes, but that’s why they keep a smart thing like you running the show, so you can grasp it when we mere mortals can’t,” Jake said.  He smiled nervously.  “Not that I’ll be mortal much longer.”

“Oh, you’re taking the plunge, are you?” Alpharia asked.  She smiled coyly.  “Can’t say I’m surprised.”

“That’s true most times, I’d wager.  But yeah.  Tonight.”  Jake sighed, his nerves returning.  “Actually, that’s why I’m here.”

“Oh?”  Alpharia sat back down.  “What’s the issue?”

“Well…to be honest, it scares the shit out of me.  Now that I’m committed, it’s not so bad, really, but I still want to know.  What’s your opinion on the process?”

Alpharia thought carefully.  She and Jake had been pretty frosty to each other when they had gone off to Kouthry, but five years together had thawed them out, and now she was one of the few Royal daughters that Jake thought he could rely on to act as a confidant.  “Well, I’d say it’s in your best interest.  What could I tell you that the Emperor couldn’t?”

“I want to know its success rate.  I don’t think I’d get a straight answer out of His Majesty,” Jake admitted.  “I asked him back when he first proposed it and he quoted a different answer than the ones that Nate and Mike got.”

“Oh, really?  Hmm.”  Alpharia considered the question.  “If I recall, it’s about eighty nine percent.”

Jake nodded.  “Okay…that’s higher than what he gave me.  So…is he just hedging his bets?”

“Dunno.”  The gray-eyed, white-haired young woman looked at him contemplatively, rubbing her chin in thought.  “I think he just has more experience with its procedure than I do.  Honestly, I bet you’ll be fine.”

“All right.”  Jake stood back up.  “Thanks, Alpharia.  We still on for poker on Saturday?”

“You bet.”  She stood back up and offered him a quick hug.  “You’ll be fine, Jake.  Trust my grandfather.  He wants you and Venus to be happy.”

“I know he does.”  He smiled at the shorter woman.  “Thanks a lot.  I’ll see you after it’s all done.

The Emperor’s private chirurgeon, a stocky little man with the look of a sanctionite about him, eased Jake down on the table in the operating room, several hours later.  “All right, Prince Seager, any questions before we get started?” the man asked.

“Well, the usual.  The time it takes, side effects, et cetera,” Jake said nervously, staring at the variety of dark fluids in their glass ampoules on the side table with trepidation.

“Oh, we’ll be done in three hours,” the doctor soothed.  “As for side effects…depends on the donor.  Your skin, hair, eyes might darken a bit since your donor is from Nocturne, but you won’t grow extra eyes or anything.  Certainly, you’ll become a bit physically stronger.  As for the actual surgery, you won’t notice the effects for several days.  They’ll come gradually.  Within a month, we’ll know how well it worked, and your apotheosis will conclude.”

“Have you had it done on yourself?” Jake asked.

“Oh goodness no, I have a horrible fear of needles,” the doctor said.  Jake stared at him.  “What?  I can use them on other people, just not myself.”

Jake let out a breath.  “Okay…well, tell me you’re ready to start.”

“Sure thing, your Highness,” the doctor said distantly, sorting through a small pile of metallic beads and selecting the one he wanted to use.  The tiny cybernetic devices controlled the donor geneseed, to prevent the recipient’s system from being overwhelmed.  “In fact…we’re ready to begin,” he said.

“All right,” Jake said, trying to suppress his shakes.  “All right.  Then…let’s not waste time.”

“Time, sir?  Time isn’t an issue for you anymore,” the doctor noted, gently tapping an IV into Jake’s arm.  “Now.  Relax and start counting.”


Venus wrung her hands in the waiting room.  Her eyes were dimmed, and if anyone had tried to touch her, her skin would have felt as cool as a human’s.  Miranda was half-asleep in a chair in the corner.  Nate had his arm around her shoulders, asleep himself in the love seat.  The Seagers were sitting across from each other, both pretending to read magazines.

“Venus,” Miranda whispered from her seat.  Venus started and looked over to her cousin as her hair whipped around her like a black rope.  “He’s just fine.  Fast asleep and doing great,” Miranda said.  Her eyes flared a bit, lighting her peaceful smile.  “Trust me.  No problems at all.”

Her black-skinned cousin nodded.  “Right.  Right.”  She gave a tight, uncomfortable sigh.  “Did I push this on him?”

“Yes,” Miranda said.  Venus winced.  “That said, I would have if you didn’t.  Vulkan would have if you didn’t.  The Emperor would have if you didn’t, and he wouldn’t have asked Nate and Mike if he didn’t want to be well-informed,” Miranda continued.  She gingerly disengaged herself from her husband and walked over to Venus’ seat on the couch.  “Please stop, okay?” she quietly asked.

Venus’ pained gaze lit Miranda’s Scholastica Psykana robe of office, turning the rich purple fabric a deep red.  “I’m just worried.”

“You’re right to be worried.  It’s dangerous.  But I have an insight you don’t, and I’m telling you to relax.”  Miranda smiled again, invisibly opening her third eye and allowing the faintest hint of blue light to leak through the bandana on her forehead.  “Jake wants this to work, very much.  So did Vulkan.  Trust me.”

Finally, the Salamander Lady Primarch managed to relax, letting her cousin’s words register.  “Yeah.  All right.”  She weakly smiled at Miranda.  “Thanks.”

Miranda slid her arm around Venus’ shoulders for a reassuring hug.  “He’s just fine.  Not even dreaming.”

“Don’t tell him you peeked into his mind while he was out cold, though, okay?” Venus asked.

Miranda drew her fingers across her lips in the classic zipping motion.  Venus laughed under her breath.  “You know he went to Alpharia to ask her opinion too?”

“I did.  She told him something that took a load off his mind, whatever it was.  I won’t ask.”  Miranda straightened up.  “Oh…good.  The implants are finished.  Just the injection, then he’s all done.”

George looked up from his magazine.  “How does he look?”

“At the moment, undignified, but completely fine.  He’s under anesthesia,” Miranda informed him.

“Actually, Miranda, can we skip the details?” Sandra asked.  “It’s intensely creepy, and he asked us not to watch in person from the gantry.  This feels like we’re doing that.”

Miranda shrugged, casting her red braids over her luxurious robe.  “As you wish.”


After the last few hours passed, the doctor emerged from the operating suite and stood expectantly in the waiting room.  “Ladies and gentlemen, he’ll be just fine,” he assured the waiting family.  “The operation went perfectly.  He’ll be up and around by next week with no problems,” he said.

George sighed, a feeling of relief mingling with the last of his lingering resentment.  “And did it take?” he asked.

“We have no way of knowing,” the doctor hedged.  “Give it a week.  And I’m warning you now, Princess, he’s going to be weak as a baby for a day or two.  Water only, no food, no sex, no exercise, no direct sunlight, no loud noises, no chemical exposure.  I’ve essentially reset his cardiovascular system to default.  No Warp travel, no trips to Nocturne for a bit.”  He delivered the warning in the stern voice of a career doctor.

Venus nodded.  “We’ll be careful.”

Sandra spoke up.  “When can we see him?”

“Well, that depends on how much he needs to rest, but I’d say sometime in the morning two days from now,” the doctor said.  “Within a week, he’ll be feeling his old self, more or less.”

“Good.”  Sandra sighed.  “Then…I think we should go.”

“Sandra, you’re welcome to stay in the Guest Wing for as long as you like,” Venus pointed out.

“But you’re taking him home, right?  So I think we’ll just head out,” Sandra said.

Venus rose and hugged her, muffling a sigh.  “He’ll be okay, Sandra, I promise.”

“I think he will,” Sandra said.  A tear gathered in her eye as she moved back.  “You take care of him now, all right?”

“Bet on it,” Venus said.

“Jake’s gonna be so disappointed,” Nate said sadly.  [[Image:Nathaniel.jpg|thumb|Miranda's husband, Nathaniel]]

Venus looked over at him.  “Why?”

“You heard what the doctor said.  No chemical exposure?  He loves that,” Nate sighed.

Venus erupted in giggles as Sandra clamped her hand over her lips.  “Nate, shut up,” Venus managed.

“Just making it easier,” Nate said cheerfully.  “I had the same speech, after all.  Or so Miranda tells me.  I was out like a broken bulb for two days straight.”