Exodus - 3. Week One: May 27th, 2030

Log May 27th 2030, 0500 hours, Dr. Abigail Alan:

I cannot sleep; not after what happened yesterday. Greg crossed a line; I know he is not a doctor, but two billion lives is still a great number. I can never forgive mankind for killing all those innocent people and defenseless children. I can never forgive mankind for killing my little Brother. I know Ben took Jeff’s death much worse than me, but he has not grieved like I have. I fear that this revelation will open those old wounds in him. At this time, we need him as the leader, the visionary, and the man that saw a brighter future far away from home. I will check on him later in the day.

Susan and I will be helping “Billy”, the teenage “convie” saboteur, who catapulted us 60 years closer to our new home. We found his old DNA trace file from the Synod database that we were able to procure from our sources. He was institutionalized at age 8, when the genetic markers were discovered during the first purges. I cannot imagine the hell this kid went through for the last 8 years. I have worked with “convie” teenagers before, but the results have been mixed.

At times, we could not save them even after the surgeries and psychological therapies. Those times were some of the darkest and saddest doses of defeat that Susan or I have ever felt. The last time that we tried to do this on an 18 year old convie named Sean; it had pushed us beyond our limits of endurance. It took months to overcome his conditioning, but he still felt an aching pain inside of him. He remembered what he had done to a childhood friend named Cory; Convie teenagers were required to oversee conversion therapies on others as they matured. Sean told us that Cory fought each attempt to sway him and never took the Synod’s ideals of purity to heart. For those teens that resisted, it was a simple decision. On Cory’s 16th birthday, Sean personally executed him. Those memories haunted him and he eventually succumbed. Sean committed suicide at 19 years of age on March 1st 2030.

We cannot fail this time. If we were on earth; we could simply create a memory block with drugs and send him back to the Synod’s institutions. Yet, we are in space and there is no way to separate him from the group.

The day began early for Dr. Abigail. She was snuggled in bed with Susan in their tight embrace. Usually, she would make some advances on her partner and create some situation for a high level of sexual satisfaction. The events of yesterday troubled her far too much for any thought of intimacy at the moment. Her quarters were situated on the medical level of the command ship.

Out of all the vessels, the command ship serves as the primary hospital vessel for intensive care and emergency surgeries; the science vessel serving as a reserve medical facility along with another function as the key reproduction facility. All the other vessels had minimal diagnostic divisions and some medical staff. Originally, 30 vessels were to be constructed including a full medical ship that could act as a hospital. However, the Synod’s constant searches and newest offensives had demonstrated time was of the importance. The medical ship was scuttled and the command ship would serve the role after a two deck expansion for hospital facilities. There were new procedures established for seriously injured people. At 6 hour intervals, the fleet would reverse their magnetic fields; thus slowing their vessels to a stop. The short stop would last for 1 hour as supplies and crew could be rotated among the ships, including wounded.

Some may question the viability of a six hour rotation, but it serves the purposes of the fleet very well under the original scheduled plan. Seriously injured patients would be placed under zero-gravity conditions within one of the ships in order to slow down their medical problem and not stop the entire fleet. However, the 50 year timeframe has been shattered and protocol is being adjusted as necessary, so the commanders may ask for more lay over stops or extended stops.

Abigail Alan got her first patient, who was a young teenage page to the agricultural ship for a rotation, with a deep cut to his left pelvic region. Abigail could be surmise that the young page must have been playing with the others assigned in his shift on the artificial field and the disturbance yesterday caused a sharp object to pierce his upper leg. She programmed several tissue regenerating nanites and adjusted her radiation tool for faster cell regeneration. The combined effects of nanites and radiation allowed deep wounds to be healed in a matter of minutes and scars to completely disappear.

He happily thanked her and rushed back toward an accompanying teenage boy, who brought him into the medical facility. The boy was ecstatic to see his friend and from Abigail’s view, a potential boyfriend. The unsaid words of care and love were apparent on the brow of these young boys. The formerly “injured” boy slid his pants and undergarments down to show the accompanying boy Abigail’s flawless medical care. However, the accompanying boy stood sheepish at the sight of Abigail. She understood and spoke to him:

“Don’t worry kid, I have seen a lot more than what your boyfriend has between his legs,” Abigail laughed heartily.

The accompanying boy relaxed and found his voice at last, “He is such a dork, but that is why I love him.” On earth, if someone was to hear you say that about another person of the same gender; you would be immediately put through the torturous institutions of the Synod. What that boy expressed was something Abigail had not fully seen as of yet. The passengers and crew knew they were no longer bound by human tradition or human fear any longer. They had won their freedom from fear at last.

The boys walked out together, fully clothed, and fully healed, hand in hand.

Abigail knew the day had only begun, but the most arduous work was ahead of her. She called Susan, who had actually not awakened due to her lover’s interruption of their morning routine.

“Hey babe, it’s like 09:00, you got to work,” as sounds of rustling and dramatic cursing could be heard from over the line of communication.

Then, a sudden voice boomed, “I will be there, babe, in twenty minutes.”

Across the ships, there was a buzz of activity this morning. If you walk down a hallway, you would think that this was a summer camp. There were many children laughing for the first time in along time at their new found freedom. Teenagers with partners made their love known with visible kissing and affectionate touching, which did not impede their partners work. Teenagers without partners were like hunting wolves getting together, talking about recent events, and developing friendships. The adults looked in amazement as the youths roamed freely and happily; they wish to remember such carefree days, while darker memories of dead loved ones haunt them.

The fleet was comprised of 26 ships with different responsibilities. There was only one command ship that effectively was the logistical arm of the fleet providing a hub for command, planning, and medical attention with its facilities. The science vessel served as it’s name implies, scientific experimentation, deep space EM scanners for stellar cartography and navigational purposes, and a fertility facility, which allows partners to reproduce. The remaining 24 vessels are separated into four equal classes of 6 ships: Agricultural production for food with artificial fields and photonic lighting to simulate a sun, Civil manufacturing for recreational or private use products with nanite constructors, Industrial Manufacturing for the fleet and ship needs with highly sophisticated nanite constructors and larger holding bays for the production of smaller vessels or the compartments to hulls for new ships, and the Military presence for security with advanced plasma based weapons, anti-matter warheads, close range rail-guns, and fighter strike craft.

There is usually a rotation among the ships for personnel. The composition of the expedition was 35% children under the age of 13, 45% from 13-19 years of age, and 20% from 20 years of age and above. Since the majority of the population is children, the rotation of duties would serve a dual purpose for maintaining the fleet and teaching the kids lessons in different fields.

The composition was bitter reality of the purges that had occurred in the previous decade. The majority of the adult homosexual population had been eliminated. The younger generation had undergone traumatic and debilitating treatments or was simply murdered at age 16. Though, Gregory Faust had created the genetic inhibitor; there was very little time to mass produce the first batch. Ben, Brett, Abigail, Susan, John, Andy, and Greg himself was some of the lucky ones. It was Ben’s decision to give a greater proportion of this protection to the military and scientific homosexual population in order to create a stronger resistance movement in the future; he did not think the Synod had the resources or clout at the time to mount a strong first offensive as they did. The first purges were grander and better organized than anyone had ever thought possible. Within a matter of 6 months, 10 million adult and young homosexual human beings had either disappeared from existence or were undergoing the first experimental neural therapies under the Synod’s supervision. The public was told that these roundups were part of an effort to eliminate the dissenting elements or subversive individuals for the War against the Alliance. The experiments on the adults proved to be an utter failure, a testament to human will and determination by those first subjects. The Synod eliminated the resisters to treatment and refocused their efforts on the young people, who were more susceptible. A standard was set by the Synod and children were screened from youth and birth. As an old roman adage would ascribe, “In times of war the law falls silent”, the plight of one minor people was silenced as the victorious Synod accumulated power.

The guards had been dismissed early in the morning and William Edwards had been asleep for most of the early day. A teenage boy, carrying a tray of food was approaching William’s bed.

“I don’t want any of your faggot food, just kill me now!” screamed the awakened William Edwards or Billy the kid as the teenage male nurses have come to call him.

“Billy, you got to eat some lunch; you didn’t have dinner last night and that saline solution dripping into your veins can’t be that appetizing,” the soft voice of Bobby Alan, the 13 year old son of Abigail and Susan Alan. Bobby has a sweet disposition and a kind heart that will make him a fine doctor one day. He was very patient with Billy.

“If you think that you can use kindness to lull me into sex with you, then you got another thing coming, you stupid homo,” as Billy tried to lunge at Bobby, only to be stopped by a set of strong hands.

“Sorry Billy, but he is already spoken for, and you might not know it, but you are just as gay as any of us,” Isaac Alan spoke to a struggling Billy.

Isaac or Izzy as Bobby affectionately calls him was a convie as well. He was rescued from a facility at age 12 during the first rounds of hormonal therapy and brain therapy to basically eliminate his sex drive. After a few weeks of intense therapy and surgeries to repair the damage done to body and soul, he opened up. Bobby at the time was 10. Bobby was saved through a doctor friend of Abigail’s, who would smuggle infants from the hospital after the gene marker is detected. Abigail and Susan raised him in the underground safe houses that they administered with funds funneled from Ben. Izzy and Bobby were inseparable, so Abigail and Susan decided to adopt Izzy as well.

“I am nothing like you!” Billy screamed.

Bobby placed some restraints on Billy’s arms and legs to prevent him from injuring himself, but it would still allow him access to the sandwich before him and the cup of water. It was around time for Bobby and Izzy to have lunch, so they began heading out the door. They left the individual patient room and headed down the hallway toward the elevator unit. Bobby was saddened that he couldn’t help get through to Billy and Izzy could see the somber expression behind Bobby’s happy façade.

“Dude, he needs time and a lot more help than we can give him right now, don’t beat yourself over it,” Izzy drew closer with a kiss on his lover’s cheek for support.

“He’s right Bobby, if you want to be a doctor some day, you need to deal with difficult patients,” Abigail told her son.

Abigail and Susan had entered the hallway moments before, but they wanted to see what their sons would do. Susan chuckled at the scene of the surprised boys, “Now go on and grab yourself some grub.”

The two smiling teenagers ran passed for a much deserved lunch break.

“You think we should get some china made up for a wedding,” Susan jokingly questioned.

“They’re still pretty young,” Abigail smiled.

“Well, you should have thought about that before you unzipped my jeans back in freshman year,” Susan gingerly touched her partner’s shoulders.

“Hey, you seduced me. Don’t tell me a pair of tight jeans and a tank top were not a universal sign that I wanted some,” Abigail gently grabbed her partners hands and rubbed them in a clockwise motion.

“You weren’t in bed this morning, and you have been awfully quiet until you ask to meet me and we saw our sons walk by. What’s wrong love?” Susan had begun her own brand of interrogation.

Abigail knew she was caught in the psychological radar of her lover; there is no way she could talk her way out of her conundrum.

“I am worried about yesterday’s revelation; it really is not what Greg did that worried me, but the feeling that he did the right thing,” Abigail gave her most honest answer.

“You felt the same way, too,” Susan reacted in an uncharacteristic manner.

“Yeah, we have been in the trenches of this fight against the Synod for a decade. We have all seen how bloody and evil they were. Yet, they maintain their power, because the straight population doesn’t care enough to fight back. We had sympathizers and friends, but they were mostly caught and disappeared or tortured into revealing our secrets after the big purge a few months ago. We really don’t have any more friends among them. Yet, I am a doctor, how can I be callous with human lives like this? It’s stupid to have an inner moral debate about something that has already happened and over 51 light years away,” Abigail just gave Susan everything that she felt at that moment.

“It’s not stupid babe; it’s human. Even if they demonize us and turn our own against us, we are still human beings. They might have forgotten compassion and sympathy, but those emotions are critical to what defines us. I felt like Greg did the right thing, but I also feel sympathy for everyone he is going to kill with that virus. It is normal…” Susan said, but Abigail stopped her midway.

“If it is normal, then our species is pretty much shit. Do you think a heterosexual couple had this conversation? I can imagine it now, the wife would say “it is wrong” and the husband would say “it is necessary”, then they just stop and say “we can feel SYMPATHY for them”. Well, sympathy without true action in person or spirit is nothing. You can’t just feel for a group of people and do nothing, when they are being hunted into extinction. Are we any better than the Synod in our actions?” Abigail retorted angrily, not towards her lover, but the inhumanity that everyone exhibits.

“Love, we are no longer on earth; we are no longer among the general human population. We are alone in our own ways. If we want to change the pattern of humanity, then we must begin this process now. There is a teenage boy, who needs our help. Yes, we can hate ourselves for our shortcomings, but it takes a lot more to prove that you are willing to work towards overcoming them,” Susan fired.

They walked toward Billy’s room and found an empty bed with the restraints unfastened.

Abigail communicated to the general medical staff and Susan reached the console to get Brett and a security team for a search.

The training for this mission had paid off for William after he was alone; he used his area of reach to his advantage. First, he saw the restraints were hooked to the sides of the bed limiting his motion away, but he could still reach and extend his body, so he tested the supports for the restraints and found a slight weakness on the one holding his left leg. These restraints were not military or security types that had been used yesterday, but medical ones based on weaker design. Once, his left leg was freed, he used his newfound dexterity to unfasten the remaining restraints.

As he exited from his room, he spotted the two female doctors from yesterday. He knew that he could not take both down by himself unarmed, so he simply hid in one of the empty rooms until they entered his. As the door of his room was closed behind them, William looked for a weapon; he found none, since the medical facilities utilized laser incisions and nanite drones. The scalpels and tools of the doctors that he knew, were no where to be found. He improvised by making two short blade weapons after finding a pair of office scissors in the supply closet. He was used to this type of improvisation from his days in the institute, where the specialized training for him specifically required adaptive thinking and execution. He was taught by the harsh experience at a young age that either you were a true convert or deviant, who would be eliminated.

He knew the ship very well from his earlier attempt to sabotage the magnetic drives. Though the ships operations were mostly automated with nanites affecting repairs; there were still maintenance corridors within the ship superstructure for manual power distribution nodes and nanite staging points. William had used these sections to infiltrate the engineering section.

William knew that the important sections of the ship would no longer be accessible for sabotage, and he could not realistically escape the ship anymore. There was only one option left for him in order to fulfill his orders from his masters.

The routine rest stop period was underway as the ships began exchanging supplies and personnel through transports that docked in a pressurized area of each ship. Greg came aboard the command ship once more from his home on the science ship. He came a bit early than necessary for the usual late night command briefing, and he brought a small companion, who straddled far behind him gazing at the docking port. There was a general conference and opening ceremony for the fleet’s first day in deep space.

Originally, this ceremony would be an ice breaker and get everyone adjusted to the reality of such a long voyage. Now, it represents an inevitable victory with their new home only a few months away. The Captains and command crew from all the ships would be there to bear witness to the inauguration ceremony. There would be a transmitted video feed to all consoles for everyone to enjoy the commemoration of their journey. This idea was planned in advance before the voyage and everyone on board knew about it.

Greg felt a great sense of relief to release the information from yesterday, but he also feels a great fear. He was afraid to be alienated from everyone again for his actions. He had seen from Abigail’s expressions last night that he might have lost one close friend due to his actions, and it might become worse once the entire fleet knew. He felt saddened not by the actions that he had committed, but the perception that he was no longer wanted. He had longed been isolated; he grew up during the late 20th century, when homosexuals were still widely viewed negatively as either a psychological or physical disease. He could still remember the fear that he felt as a teenager withdrawing away from other boys for fear that they might discover his shameful secret. He remembered the day, when he actually “came out” as the old term was to his best friend at the time. His friend reacted with hidden disgust and partial apathy. Afterward, he was left alone and isolated by his friend, who simply moved on.

The fear that his actions and the truth of his behavior had once again caused him to be isolated made him anxious. Greg had finally found a home for himself, people that cared about him after his partner died, and a new life. Yet, he might have thrown it all away with one simple truth and action.

As he entered the large conference area, he was greeted by an unexpected person.

“Hey, Unkie Greg, wha yous been doin’,” exclaimed a very young boy; no older 7 or 8 years old.

“Jeffy, you look great, did your daddy bring you here?” Greg smiled at the child.

Jeffrey Alan-Cross Jr. is the biological son of Ben and his deceased partner Jeff Alan. He was born in 2022 a few months after Jeff was shipped off. Ben and Jeff had originally planned on trying this new approach at genetically fertilizing artificial eggs created based on one partners’ genetic make-up, which Dr. Gregory Faust had created. Jeff Jr. had been hidden soon after he was born from prying eyes and his father Ben was highly protective of him. It is no secret that Jeff Jr. is the only remaining part of Ben’s former partner.

“Unkie Greg, where’s Adam?” Jeff boisterously demanded for his playmate. Adam Faust-Clay was born in 2021; he was the first successful genetic offspring of a male homosexual couple. The two boys had played together and were best of friends if not soul mates for they were the first of a kind.

“I’m here Jeffy,” Adam came charging in at his best friend.

“Looks like our two most vocal members have joined the party, Jeff maybe you can show Adam, your room,” Ben spoke on approach. Jeff rushed passed his father giving him a brisk “see you dad” with his friend Adam in tow.

“Kids never change much. In a few years, he will be asking me to borrow the car and take Adam to the nearest teenage hotspot for some crazy night out,” Ben smirked.

“I don’t know, but I bet even money that Adam is the one that will be dragging them around to strange and exotic locales,” Greg could relax as he spoke those words.

“You seem in high spirits,” Abigail and Susan had entered the conference along with many other guests behind them.

“You know we should have built a bigger conference room or maybe a function room with an open bar,” Brett joked as he came in without an indication of the injuries that he received from yesterday.

“You’re one to talk; the last time we all went drinking, you were drunk as a skunk and half naked on the moon base,” Andy joined the inner circle with John on his side.

The formal command council had begun a round of innuendo and intriguing suppositions.

“You only thought I was hitting on you Ben, because I was trying to arrange a play date between Adam and Jeff,” Greg joked at his friend.

“Well, I didn’t know you were into science geeks, Ben” Andy made a playful pass, and then John made a mocking snare at his beloved.

“Uh-oh, trouble in paradise,” Abigail got a round of laughs from everyone, including those that listened in on their conversations.

“Maybe, we should get a little serious for a second, Brett has placed a small security team in the crowd just in case Billy tries anything,” Ben warned everyone.

“I heard he escaped from the hospital wing, today” John spoke plainly.

“Yes, he did break out due to a longer than expected absence between his caring nurses and his attending doctor,” Abigail remembered suddenly what caused them to take longer to get to Billy’s room. She took a noticed glance at Greg, who felt the knowledge that was transferred to everyone aware of his transgression. He was the reason that Abigail did not get to the room in time; most likely due to an argument about his actions.

Ben had anticipated something like this to occur, “I will talk about that during the ceremonial speech.”

The ceremony began as each captain of their respective vessels gave their words about this monumental day in history. Some talked about the failures that befell them on earth, some talked about the bright hopes for tomorrow, and some simply spoke what came simplest to their heart. All of them remembered the tragedies, their feelings of anger, and the insurmountable grief.

The final speech was to be given by Benjamin Cross himself as the leader of the scientific, military, and civilian groups. He sat at the forefront of the conference table between Brett and John. Ben had prepared a slightly pithy speech that would be used to reveal all the facts and ask the fleet’s population to forgive Greg for his actions before they left earth. He really did not like the content of the speech and felt he was missing something big in all of this.

Unbeknownst to him or any other members of the ceremony an uninvited yet not unexpected guest had already taken an opportunity.

As Ben began to clear his mind for the prepared speech that would reveal their distance from earth, the presence of a saboteur, and Greg’s action officially, he heard something that stopped him cold.

“I will kill the children of sin if you try anything you deviants,” screamed Billy from the entry way. The captains saw the sight of the two pre-pubescent boys being threatened by a teenager. Ben had known that Billy would come after him, but he did not think he would approach Jeff. Ben was truly frightened and fearful for his son. Greg grew cold at the realization that his action has come back to haunt him.

Ben and Greg approached the boys slowly and Billy focused his full attention on the approaching men. He prepared his other bladed weapon with his left hand; he wanted to throw it at Ben. The way that he saw it; without their leader, the fleet would not be able to keep themselves together for the next fifty years. They would divide and falter due to internal disagreements and a lack of an authority figure. He did not know that they were 51 light years from earth at this point and the crews knew that success was at hand.

“Only, Benjamin Cross may come any closer,” Billy demanded. Ben came closer one step at a time. Once he was within range; Billy gave a huge grin on his face and Ben reacted nearly instantly. Ben had always been three steps ahead of his opponents; he knew that there was another blade and estimated how far he would have to move to get within range and when. When Billy threw his scissor blade at Ben, Ben could avoid a fatal blow to his heart with a shift of the arm deflecting the weapon with his left forearm.

Seeing his initial failure, Billy grew angry and charged at Ben with his remaining weapon, forgetting about his hostages. His intent was simple “kill”. Before he could reach Ben, a security officer at the conference shot Billy in the arm and reacted quickly to subdue him.

Ben meanwhile pulled the scissor from his arm and went toward Billy with an angry intent in his eyes. He loved his son deeply, and he promised himself that no one would ever be allowed to harm him. Even in his anger, he could understand Billy’s predicament and the emotional trials that have driven him to do this. He knew that he must make a dramatic example and get people to understand what he finally realizes inside of him.

“I want you to feel what I feel Billy,” Ben coldly told the restrained teenage boy as he plunged the bloody blade he was holding into Billy’s arm, “I want you to understand pain and suffering that can be caused through hate, fear, and anger. All I have left of my partner is my son, and I am very angry with the stunt you pulled. Yet, I can understand now why the Synod did what they did and why we can’t follow the same old pattern repeatedly. They hated us out of fear against something unexpected. I could have simply cut your throat, Billy, and everything in my gut told me to do just that, but it was wrong. Our entire system for actions is wrong, human int. We react to fear, but we don’t interact to combat it. I want you to know what I felt as you threw that blade at me, so you can understand a bit of me, and I can understand a bit of you.”

“You bastard, you should just kill me right now or take me back to the Synod, so they can,” Billy cried as the pain from both his arms had overran his sense of discipline and his programming. Pain is an extreme form of deprogramming that has been discovered during the 20th century in the field of counter-intelligence through painful stimuli. Ben had basically made the first step to get Billy to express, who he was beneath the training and programming. He had also in one blow begun something greater than himself or the policies that he began. He has set a new course for his branch of humanity; no longer would their aim be to react to situations. Ben focused his mind and began a new impromptu speech instead of the one that he had prepared.

“We must begin our journey with facts that we are no longer on earth anymore, that we are in reality only 6 months away at our relative speed, 75% of the speed of light. We will reach our new home sooner than anyone had ever imagined, and we can build ourselves a new world free from the constraints and hatred that had been rooted in humanity. In the coming years, things will not always come easy; there will be hard times ahead of us and times when we may question ourselves and each other’s actions. I had to do just that with Dr. Faust only yesterday, when he revealed to me a secret that inspired fear, anger, and even gratitude from me, and I will assume from everyone, who shall hear it. Before we left earth’s orbit, Dr. Faust initiated the code sequences to release a deadly disease on earth targeting the heterosexual population. He had hoped to give our brother and sisters, who we had to leave on earth, a chance to fight back against our oppressors. Some of you sitting here and listening to this will think it is poetic justice that they get what they deserve. Others will feel sympathy for the billions that will eventually die from this disease. We must look beyond that and understand a greater truth from all this; Greg was not right or wrong in his actions, but the issue that we must question is “right and wrong” simply cannot apply without a reason. We got to understand and make our decision in a way that is not only right to ourselves, but it is right for those that we care about. Greg, I understand your reasoning, and I acknowledge those actions for the better or worse that it might bring. If the remainder of mankind shall take to the stars to hunt us, then we shall defend ourselves in kindness. Also, we will no longer follow the trend to turn victims into victimizers that mankind has outlined with their actions. We shall show mercy, whenever it is possible and create a greater peace.”

For the people in the fleet, it was no longer a matter of human principles or morality that guides us forward, but it was simply a matter of understanding and reason in order to look beyond good and evil. Greg had been relieved with his friend’s grand speech; it was still very pithy, but the idea was simple. There is no blame or hatred for his actions or the actions of Billy or the actions that Ben took, but there is a true understanding behind each link in the chain.

Billy will receive his first surgery tomorrow to repair the brain and hormonal damage done to him. The damage done to all the people had begun to heal.