The Independent Worlds (The Sixteen Galaxies Book 2) by William Drayman Page B

deep breath before he continued. “The Starchild project was my personal masterpiece, Kestil. It was to be the next generation of citizens for the Ten Galaxies, as it was then. I wanted to present it as a finished product, you see. It was to be my gift to civilization; my legacy to all future generations, as it were. So, while I worked on the rebirth project, I kept the Starchild a secret.”
    “I see,” Kestil said. “And when they rejected the rebirth project, you kept the Starchild to yourself?”
    “Precisely,” Prestern replied. “It was thousands of cycles from any kind of completion. But, it would seem the Entity creature has finished my work for me…” Prestern seemed calmer, but Kestil was still filled with concern. He had never seen his friend so frightened. Suddenly, Prestern snapped his fingers, and his countenance transformed. “Yes, yes, YES! Oh, but this could be wonderful, Kestil, simply wonderful!”
    “Prestern, maybe you should just calm down a bit,” Kestil replied, “take some time to-”
    Prestern cut him off with an upraised hand. “No, no, I’m fine, my boy, just fine. Don’t you see? They have finished my work for me!”
    Kestil shook his head. “No, I don’t see, I’m afraid. All I see is my one true friend acting irrationally; going from downright terrified to jubilant in the space of a heartbeat. What exactly is going on here, Prestern?”
    Prestern laughed. “I’m sorry, my friend. The Starchild is the key to victory against the Sixteen Galaxies. It is a combination of advanced and enhanced genetics that make it incredibly powerful. The sentient brain has an immense capacity; many orders of magnitude more than even we currently use.”
    Kestil nodded. “Yes, I’m sure every sentient in the universe is well aware of that.”
    “I designed the Starchild with the potential to take full advantage of the brain’s huge capacity, along with muscular and motor function enhancements to match its staggering intellect.” Prestern fell silent. He stood there lost in thought for a few minutes, and Kestil let him think. He had learned long ago never to interfere with Prestern’s musings.
    Prestern finally spoke. “What genetic material did they use to make the Starchild? Blank biomass?”
    “No,” Kestil replied. “Truly assisted a human couple to birth a child. When she did so, she made it with the Starchild DNA somehow inserted but inert.”
    Prestern looked shocked. “A human?! They put underlayment code into a human?! ”
    “I’m afraid I don’t know what underlayment code is. But, yes, they used a human.”
    Prestern shook his head in wonder. “The Starchild DNA combined with human ingenuity; the thing will be unstoppable.” He pondered a moment, before asking; “This Starchild, is it connected to the Entity in any way?”
    Kestil nodded. “That was another piece of bad news, I’m afraid. The Starchild has a special point connection to the Entity; it is ultra-high-speed, and it appears to be unbreakable.”
    Prestern smiled. “Oh yes, indeed. A connection between two such beings would be both unbreakable and impregnable, I have no doubt.” He held up a finger, which Kestil saw did not tremble at all, now. “I would also bet it is a link neither end could shut off. FTL travel would sever it, but only temporarily. Do you see where I’m going?”
    Now it was Kestil’s turn to smile. “I certainly do, my friend. The Starchild is not just their greatest achievement, it is also their biggest weakness. If we were to get hold of that creature, The Sixteen Galaxies would be ours.”
    Prestern shook his head. “No, no. You forget my project, which is still in progress here. If we can get the Starchild here , and combine it with my latest creation, The Sixteen Galaxies is just a waypoint. With human ingenuity, Starchild capabilities, connection to the Entity, and the power of my project here, there is no limit to what we could achieve.”
    Kestil nodded. “We must