PART 3

"Click."
   A dark brown feminine hand pressed a button marked "V-R" on a remote control device.
   The owner of the hand, a striking, middle-aged Hindustani woman in a white lab coat sat behind a simulated wood desk in a sparsely furnished office. Her austere expression was emphasized by her stern bun of thick black hair.
   She swallowed a little and then began to speak, her attention focused at a small pinhole of light set above a frozen image of herself on the video screen below.
   "Hello. My name is Indrani Genhija, Medical Officer of the ISV Columbus. Today's date, by our ship's clock, is 24 July, 2026, 9 years into our 16 year journey. However, due to our method of travel, which is hyperdimensionally, over 10,000 years have elapsed back on our homeworld, Earth."
   Indrani's face began to show some stress as she continued, "We were forced to leave Earth because of an affliction we had inadvertently brought upon ourselves."
   Her voice began to get shaky. She began to dig her nails into her folded hands.
   "We call this affliction the Syndrome. The Syndrome is a genetic mutation which turns people into mindless killers.
   "It was identified in 2009 by a team of researchers, of which I was one."
   Indrani felt the razor-sharp cold steel cutting through her well-planned stoic veneer. A hot, sticky, unbearable sensation started to come out from somewhere deep inside of her. It entered her stomach, then moved quickly up her throat. The words began to strangle her.
   "The discovery itself was not without complications, which...which..."
   She began to sob inconsolably. She thought the pain would never end...

"Stop."
   Indrani stared at the frozen image of herself with a little disgust. 'How professional doctor. Are you sure you don't want a little valium to go with that self-pity?'
   "Erase after the phrase, 'of which I was one.'" she commanded.
   Indrani looked down at the thin computer screen on her desk, then took a deep breath with her eyes closed. When she opened them, it seemed as if all emotion had drained out of those deep, dark orbs.
   "Begin recording."
   But before she could resume her solemn task, the intercom hummed.
   "Stop. Recording mode deactivated."
   She pressed the ComMod button.
   "Yes?" she coolly inquired.
   "It's me, Danny. Do you have a few minutes?"
   Indrani breathed a sigh of relief. "Certainly. Please come in."
   A tall, thin, youthful, Australian Aborigine entered the room. Indrani stood up to greet him.
   "I hope I'm not interrupting anything." Danny sensed Indrani's distress.
   "No. Not really." Indrani returned to her chair, while Danny sat down in front of her.
   "Actually, I was just about to take another stab at the recording." she confided. Danny was one of the few people she had opened up to, finding his sweet disposition and wide generous smile (getting under her skin), despite her patented self-control. Another close friend, Vadin Madari, (had gotten to her in a similar way).
   "Irena said that I should keep trying. She thinks catharsis is the only way I can really work this out."
   "Yeah. I know what you mean. That's why I started the painting. I don't know what we'd do without her. Or you for that matter."
   Indrani smiled a little, amused by Danny's sincere flattery.
   Danny, who was a more than a little aware of Indrani's private self, decided to make his visit short.
   "Well, I've got to get back to our quarters -- Belinda's trying out a new curry recipe. I'll drop some by for you if it's any good."
   "That sounds good."
   "By the way, if you're free later on tonight, perhaps you'd like to sit in on one of Dmitri's meetings. They're usually pretty interesting -- mostly tea and fellowship and the like."
   "Don't tell me you've been indoctrinated into that cult." she said without forethought.
   Danny immediately became defensive. "The 'Kosmos Doctrine' is a way for us to carry on together spiritually, not the religious cult you make it out to be."
   'Oh yes. That's right. It isn't as though the lot of you didn't force him into becoming your spiritual leader. Not at all.' thought Indrani. But instead of voicing her thoughts, she politely apologized, not wanting to alienate one of her few close friends. "I am sorry."
   "Apology accepted. Maybe see you later?"
   "Perhaps."

After leaving Indrani's office, Danny walked down the stark white corridor feeling a bit disheartened.
   'Sometimes I wonder why I even try...'
   His thoughts were interrupted by his lady-love, Belinda.
   "Danny?" she said tentatively, recognizing that slightly distant look on his face.
   "Hi darling." Danny's mood changed quickly at the sight of her -- she had a way of bringing him out of his darkest moments with her elvish smile.
   "So, how'd it go with Indrani."
   "She's doing better. But she still doesn't think much of the group."
   Danny noticed a dark cloud behind her cheery façade, and knew something was up.
   "But why such a big rush to see me? I haven't been gone more than a half-hour."
   As Belinda filled him in, Danny began to feel the walls closing in around him, the sharp fingers of an age-old superstition clawing away at his rational mind. He felt the sudden urge to run very far away, but considering where they were, that was quite impossible.

GO TO PART 4

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