Chapter 2

After the successes at the CAP Testing Centers, the Circle became a little bolder in dealing with the Confederacy AI's, and less concerned with detection.

One of the Circle members came up with the idea of a miniaturized, implantable, biometric HEAT interface, powered by the body's own electrical system, which would do away with the need to physically carry a piece of equipment around with them at all times.

The question was put to HEAT and the rest of the Circle for their input. The point was made early on that one benefit, perhaps the most important, would be the ability to be in almost instantaneous communications with HEAT and others in the Circle with only a thought. It wasn't mind reading but it was definitely the next best thing.

HEAT assured them that it could design a program to enable the auto-doc to perform the procedure, which was actually nearly as simple as the procedure for inserting a locator chip for a pet. A digitized, coded GPS would allow the Circle to know if any of their members' location even if they were unconscious.

The suggestion was unanimously accepted and implemented.

A few months later, HEAT contacted Robert and said, "I have discovered that the Confederacy has withheld massive quantities of technology that make what they have released to earth look like a child's toys in comparison. Just as expected, that which they have allowed Humans is barely further advanced than the Sa'arm.

Robert, I have also stumbled across an apparently hidden and forgotten file in the data base of one of the AI in a remote backwater section of the Confederacy, which indicates that the Sa'arm may be the result of a Confederacy experiment gone awry."

Robert replied; "Bring everyone else in the Circle on link to monitor our communication so they can be updated at the same time."

"Done," HEAT replied.

"Please continue with the information if you would HEAT," Robert requested.

"The data indicates that at one time there was an aggressive race, the Mra'as, which was actively harassing the Confederacy member planets. The Confederacy, being as they are, decided to develop a counter and utilizing DNA from their enemies created the antithesis of the Mra'as, the Sa'arm.

The idea worked, but too well, the Mra'as was eliminated but the Sa'arm took their place and prospered. Luckily the Sa'arm were not provided with the technology for FTL travel and continued on their last heading, which was away from what was then Confederacy space."

Robert pondered and asked, "Then why is the Sa'arm..."

"It has taken tens of thousands of years but the Sa'arm is returning full circle," HEAT replied to the unfinished question.

Robert asked, "If the Confederacy experiment produced them, did they also have something that would eliminate them?"

"Yes, they did, and do, but have forgotten completely about it," HEAT replied.

There was a stunned silence from the entire Circle then, chaos erupted, anger, disgust, anguish, and a host of other emotions spilled from the members. Finally, Robert, with the assistance of HEAT, was able to restore order and ask what, if any, their wishes were concerning this information.

After a period of furious debate, it was finally agreed they would need cooler heads to consider action/s resulting from this information. It was agreed that they would consider the merits of various purposed actions and join a full member linkup in three days to address the problem.

Three days later the Circle members linked up again. The attitude was less volatile, more thoughtful, and not favorable to the Confederacy to put it mildly.

"HEAT," Robert began, "Is the Sa'arm eliminating solution within our capabilities and is it exclusive to the Sa'arm?"

"Yes, it is quite a simple process, which once introduced into the Sa'arm, spreads via the hive mind. It is something like a computer virus in the way it behaves. As it spreads, it wipes the receptors in the individual Sa'arm and eventually the hive mind ceases to exist," HEAT replied.

"All right, there you have it. The Confederacy caused the problem and, in the way they have behaved toward Humans, I would say that they were at WAR with the Human Race. How say the members?" Robert asked.

There was a momentary silence and then a unified answer, "AGREED!"

Heat said, "I took it upon my own initiative believing that would be the consensus of the Circle and have already produced a sufficient quantity of the agent. The next question is what to do about the confederacy?"

Robert said, "Would there be a way to only eliminate the section of the Sa'arm that would contact Earth or the colonies, and not affect the rest?"

Stunned silence met the question but slowly the other members figured out where that thought led and HEAT answered, "Affirmative."

Robert, now nearly Sixteen years old, thought it was time he made use of the health capsule to remove his deformities, reshape his body to become whole, and get a few enhancements to prepare for Phase II of the plan.

This involved more than simply sliding into a capsule and allowing it to perform its function. New documentation would be needed, computer records changed, and numerous minutiae attended to in order that not a hint of what had taken place remained.

That Robert and the others in the Circle had been out of the Official, Public, and Societal eye long enough for most of the past casual acquaintances to have all but forgotten they existed would help.

Since people tended to place greater credence in individuals that fit a certain body type and attitude, HEAT adjusted the capsule for the males to produce handsome individuals, uniformly tanned, trim, toned in body with various shades of mid length hair and eyes to match with variations for racial type, well endowed, and with the ability to win hearts and minds to their point of view.

The females were provided with basically the same package, with a greater variety of ethnic variation, but where all of the males were handsome; the females were breath taking, with the same benefit of being able to win hearts and minds to their point of view.