Recombinant Bridgehead

Discipline

Inside Maxwell's field cabin, two contrasting styles battled for dominance. The unoffensive straight lines of futuristic architecture were interrupted by the holographic displays of historical art. Try as they might to coexist, the golden works of Klimt, with their beauty dampened by a blueish display, felt incongruent with the scientist's habitat, but at the same time, it was an appropriate reflection.

Norman reclined on a chair with his legs stretched out as Max leaned against a shelf, drinking black tea.

"Why is it only when I'm around do they have a lovers tiff?"

Max shrugged. "That's why I never married."

"So what do you think of all this?"

"Think about what? That Quaritch is back? Or that Spider might be his son?"

"Both."

"Honestly, I don't know. The fact that the RDA were able to preserve minds is boggling."

"The fact that Quaritch had one to preserve at all is more boggling."

"Norm, did he hurt you?"

"Grace is not around to dish out the insults, so I have to do it for her."

"Her legacy carries on." Max admired with a tea sip. "I can't fathom how they pulled it off. When we deported the RDA—"

"Flies were buzzing around his damn corpse."

Max withdrew in thought, letting his eyes draw up to the ceiling. As he slowly turned the cup in his hands, a theory was burgeoning in his analytical mind.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

"I was just thinking. Avatars are possessable by a human consciousness without requiring a permanent brain transfer."

"The psionic link," Norman concurred. "What are you getting at?" The brows arched, and Norman caught on. "Wait, you think—?"

"Norm, how else could they do it?"

He was shocked by the sheer simplicity of it. "Of course! The moment he died, the mind would travel right back to the point of origin. That could have been anywhere within Hell's Gate."

"But to where?" Max wondered. "Where did his mind go?" He paused to let his friend take the stage, but Norm didn't bother.

"Too easy, Max."

"Oh." The technician took another sip. "I never thought about using the psionic link to possess a human body, but theoretically, it is doable if the body, like an avatar, was brain-dead."

"So, therefore, Quaritch qualifies."

"Hey, there we go."

Norman was unabashed in his self-satisfaction.

"Well, this has been a productive tea break—a good theory to start from. Just not sure how it benefits us."

"What about Spider?"

Max exhaled. "It bothers me that we never found anything on his history. Miles Socorro wasn't even registered on the Hell's Gate's roster. It's like his name was purposely erased."

"To conceal a mistake?" Norm apathetically splayed his fingers.

"We did find him hidden away... But Jake has a point, Norman. Quaritch didn't have relations. I was there longer than either of you, and I never heard about him having a fling with anyone."

"No surprise there. Who would put up with him?"

"There was... Well, it was just a rumour."

"What rumour?