Six

10 - Falling Into Place

"Muscle memory? Purpose? You're losing me," Gray told him, waving a hand for him to slow down.

"I'm getting to that." Six took a deep breath. He didn't look too pleased about whatever he was about to reveal. "Why make a clone to begin with? Why name them so blatantly after numbers? Why hide the truth of their existence for so long?"

Gray pinched her brows together. "Four and Six ... okay, so there were clones before both of you. And he didn't want you to know you were a clone. But I'm still a bit lost on why he made you to begin with. No offense."

"None taken."

At this, Ava stepped forward into the semi-circle from her spot of observation behind everyone. "If I may, I have a suggestion that may satisfy all criteria."

Vogel waved her forward. "Please."

"I believe what Six is suggesting is that each clone was created for one purpose and one purpose only. To continue a lineage." She turned to Husher. "We all agree that the Advocate first became prominently known centuries ago. As to how he could have survived so long beyond the normal limits of a human lifespan ... the answer is staring us all in the face."

Slowly, everyone turned to look at Six. His eyes were cast downward, but he could sense their gaze on him and he nodded. "It's the only thing that makes sense."

"Holy shit." Danvers held both hands up to the sides of his head. "Holy shit. Is that—is something like that even possible?"

"As the Advocate is still properly alive and well, we can only assume the answer is yes," Ava pointed out.

"That's ... abhorrent," Gray murmured, her voice full of shock and disgust. "It's barbaric. He's ... he's creating clones of himself and harvesting them?"

"I think what is likelier is a two-step process," the Ancillary cut in again. "There have been an even number of clones. And purely harvesting a clone for parts would only prolong a body so long. But as we know of ways to transfer a consciousness entirely, assuming you could utilize them—"

"Then you could live forever," Husher finished. "Like a Simulacrum."

"But born again in flesh instead of metal."

The semi-circle became quiet as everyone let the weight of the horrible truth they'd uncovered settle in around them. Only Ellie made a sound, her metal head twisting to look at Six and see how he was holding up.

"So the Advocate makes clones in batches of two," Gray continued, trying not to let their momentum fade. "One and two, three and four." She looked across from her. "Five and six."

"One to eventually transfer his consciousness into," Six said with a nod. "Hence the need for them to be fit, a skilled fighter, to have a warrior's muscle memory."

"And one for spare parts," Ellie muttered. "In case he ever got sick or fell ill. If he needed a new liver, heart, whatever, it was right there for him to take. Sick bastard."

"And since I've never met another brother of mine," Six said, swallowing hard, "I think we can assume which one Five was."

"This is a lot to take in, but it still doesn't explain why you were raiding FDN vessels," Husher said, turning his optics towards Six.

"I was never raiding them for cargo," Six admitted. "I was after their NAV data."

That caught Gray's attention. "Their NAV data?"

He nodded. "The targets were always selected for me ahead of time. Didn't ask why, knew I wouldn't get an answer. But I was only ever supposed to take navigational charts, where the ships had gone to and come from, that sort of thing."