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i JOHN CARRICK “First, I'd like to know, do any of you have experience in the martial arts?" About half the hands went up. Ashley didn't raise her hand, despite two previous summers of similar courses; she did not count herself as experienced. "Now, how many of you have been hit, hard, in the face?" Sihing Shou asked. At first several hands went up, but some were timid, uncertain. "I mean really hit hard; bloody nose, fat lip, black eye. How many?" Only a few hands remained aloft. Shou pointed to one boy and asked, "Who hit you?" "My brother hits me all the time," he said, pointing at his brother, standing a few spaces away. Shou and several others laughed. Ashley noticed that the boy, however, was not laughing. She suspected he was very interested in how to put a stop his brother’s dominance. "And you?" Shou gestured to another boy. "My father," came the answer. Shou pointed again. "A kid in my class." "Has anyone here ever been hit while in the ring?" Shou asked. All the hands went down. "When you are in a fight, if you are ever in a fight, you must fight for your life. It will be at that moment when you are weak, tired, probably very hurt, that is when you must act to save your life. We will help you get to that place and teach you how to think while you're there." Instructor Shou walked along the front of the room. "Someone may come; an outlaw, the government, a king, they may take all of your possessions. They may steal your clothes, eat your food and burn down your house, but you can survive all of that. “You may have nothing, but you will never be defenseless. Knowledge is the greatest power and it is something no one can see. It cannot be stolen or broken. No one can take it from you. “When you leave here, you will be in possession of new knowledge. You will know things you did not know when you arrived. You will have earned it, paid for it in sweat and blood and it will be worth much more than money." ii LEGACY OF A MAD SCIENTIST iii JOHN CARRICK LEGACY OF A MAD SCIENTIST iv LEGACY OF A MAD SCIENTIST Copyright © 2011 John Carrick ISBN 978-0-9836916-2-4 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the author. Published in the United States by Alpha Channel Books, Valley Glen, California. The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author. Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper. Alpha Channel Books www.AlphaChannelBooks.com 2011 Trials of Ash Volume One Legacy of a Mad Scientist Cover Design by Rob Newman, Jayson Arcilla and Liezel Co Cover and Promotional Illustration by Jayson Arcilla Copy Editing by Rob Newman First Edition v JOHN CARRICK LEGACY OF A MAD SCIENTIST Trials of Ash Volume One John Carrick vi LEGACY OF A MAD SCIENTIST vii JOHN CARRICK Dedication This book is dedicated to you, the reader. I sincerely hope you enjoy The Legacy of a Mad Scientist. Please stay tuned to Alpha Channel Books for the next volume in the Trials of Ash. Best, JC viii LEGACY OF A MAD SCIENTIST ix JOHN CARRICK Acknowledgements and Special Thanks My family, my parents, Bill and Therese, my brothers and sisters, Sam, Bill, Megan, Therese, Tom, David, Patrick, Daniel, Edward, Brian, Elizabeth, Mary Kate and Bridget. Uncle Bob and Aunt Lucy, Uncle Dan and Aunt Paula, Aunt Mary Helen and Uncle Larry McCarthy, my cousins, Tim and David, Brandon, Matthew and Amber. Kathleen, Colleen and Brian, and my extended family across the country; I’ve learned so much from all of you. Sincere thanks to Denise Poirier; Ashley could not exist without your work with Peter and Mark. Thank you so much for your fearless portrayal of AF. I am also deeply indebted to the friends of a lifetime, Patrick, Chris, Frances, Elizabeth, Margaret, Maureen and Alison Tully, George-John, Oscar and Joan Pinz, Charlotte and Dale Finch and their family, Tim Hennip, David Webb, Dan and Dave Wilkinson, Rob McAndrews, Mike Ruemelin, Bob Julian, Jeremy Biggerstaff, Daniel and Michelle Sullivan, Mike and Lynn Stengal, Kim Comstock, Matt and Garth Clewis, Matt Budney, Alec O’Connor, Matt Foppe, Adam Lazaar, Wayne Steinmetz, Frank Mueller, Kathy Shleet, Michael Salgado, Steve Zagraphos, Shannon Coffee, Don Shivers, Patrick Graham, Michael Zager, Katherine Rippy, Max Wicks, Jennifer Golovin, Gary and LeAnn Fidorowitz, Scott, Al, Beau, Wally and the G&L Electric crew, the Westfall family, Angela Battistelli, Lisa Haley, Senator O’Brien, Sean Aldrin, Rinzi Ruiz, Jay Racelis, Jayson Arcilla, Tony Ross, Samantha Tyernik, Carmello Di Bella, The Sweedish Rockers; Daniel Olofsson, Johnan Elfving and Ulrick Zander, Krisakorn Tanitmet, Tim Rush, Ken Yankee, Jennifer Russakoff, Brandi Griffith, Meghan Scott, Julie Choi, Rob Hampton, Doyle Dean, Dan Didsbury, Deborah Schlaff, Paul and Alison Smith, Mikko Alanne, Karl Morgan, all the super cool cats at Fan Story, Zach Tyson, Mike Gallagher, Matt Taylor, Brian Dawson, Frank Glacey, Lee Levi, Eli Ramirez, Robert, Keri, Ronald MacGregor, Shirley Daniel, Nathon Plumlee, Barry Gast, Jeff Carrillo, Tony Diaz, Jason Robertson, Jim Borrelli, Professor and Doctor Carl Totton, Brett Rushworth, LB, Simon, Jonny, Gideon, Justin, Charlotte, Hashim, Rob Newman and Liezel Co. x LEGACY OF A MAD SCIENTIST xi JOHN CARRICK Prologue – Bleeding Metal February 23rd, 2293 ad. Dr. Fox set the black-metal device on the desk; he'd felt its need. The machine was hungry and would have to be fed. He looked around the facility and let the dull emptiness fill his ears. The bay was abandoned at this hour. Decoratively spare to the point of empty; clusters of terminals stood separated by sheets of particleboard. Couches leaned against cold metal walls. Fox knew getting caught with a second unauthorized invention would be his last mistake; nothing would save him from another charge of treason. He looked out the window, procrastinating. Even in this he was frustrated, seeing only his reflection staring back from outside the glass. The conference center hovered at ten thousand feet, over international waters, where certain legislative restrictions could not reasonably be enforced. Here, the right to privacy was sacred. After all, that was the whole point of a secret weapons conference, out in the middle of nowhere. Dr. Andrew Fox was tall and lean, his physique that of an obsessive scientist, who eats when he has to and rather resents the activity. The device was not as forgiving about its needs and flashed another reminder across his mind. He scanned the area, again listening intently, taking every precaution before so blatantly exposing himself. Thank god the facility was used for dubious projects. During the past week, Fox had searched, but not discovered any surveillance equipment. If there were no cameras, he was safe. Fox triggered the feed tray and watched it extend from the rectangle, its matte finish absorbing light. He opened the center drawer of his assigned desk and fished out some change and a letter opener. He set the coins and blunt knife next to the feed tray and closed his eyes. In his mind Fox called forth the utility menu. He could operate the device xii LEGACY OF A MAD SCIENTIST with his eyes open, but it was easier to focus on the visual cues without the added distraction of sight. He enabled the ingestion program and checked the thing's vitals. Everything looked normal; the cache was low, available reserves in the mid range. Fox opened his eyes. He knew the device could smell the metal and was aware that it was about to be fed. He picked up a couple of coins and set them on the center of the plate. It was best to let it start slow. A moment later they began to sink, as if the face of the plate had turned to gel. Fox closed his eyes and checked the activity display. The burn gauge spiked and other ingestion protocols buzzed with the activity of consumption as the coins were broken down and processed at the molecular level. He felt dirty, as if he were somehow intruding and turned the display off. He piled the remaining coins on the plate and set the letter opener across the top. The previous coins were still being metabolized, and it would take some time to consume them all. Despite the current illegality of his creation, Fox knew that eventually someone else would hit upon the idea of wireless forebrain data-transfer. The signal operated wirelessly, saturating an area and forming its messages directly in the visual cortex of the frontal lobes. Eventually, someone would develop a similar concept. They could go through all the proper channels; get the proper permits and bribe the proper committees. Then he could release his version, maybe a year or so later. He's be accused of copying, but that was better than treason. Then he'd be in the clear. The algorithm he'd used to write the code was similar to modern telecommunications; but Fox had created a six-sided switch structure supporting the human mind. The drive seemed to have limitless space. All of his research resided in the banks of the device. He generated and received correspondence over its frequencies.

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