igh above the planet, the bounty hunters' interstellar capable spacecraft hovered in orbit, waiting for the next opportunity to beam down its occupants. The craft was a knock-off of a ship from a popular sci-fi show from the late 1900s to early 2000s on the bounty hunters' home world. The bridge section was situated in the middle of a saucer shaped object. The saucer section was attached to an elongated section with two tube shaped hyper speed warp drives, each protruding from opposite sides of the elongated base.Of course, the actual ship was a miniaturized version of the one found in the television programme. The real version was not much longer than a jet aircraft, and, in fact, often carried one underneath its belly. The last detachable aircraft had been destroyed in the battle at Pierce Village. The destruction of the planetary based craft had been a hard pill to swallow for the bounty hunters. However, their engineer was already at work designing plans for a new, and much improved, craft. Of course, this craft would also be based upon another ship from another television programme.
And therein lies the trouble with clones. Since they are not original themselves, they often lack the skills to invent things that haven't come before. In the early days, scientists made the mistake in believing that clones were fully capable human beings – that they were simply replications of the real thing in terms of basic functionality. What they failed to realize is that the clones were much more replicated than that. In a way, clones are like machines. Their very essence is based on the programming embedded within their DNA. This programming is heavily influenced by what the creature that is being cloned has experienced throughout its life, up until the point of cloning. Scientists made the mistake in believing that a clone would be getting a reboot of sorts, with only the physical characteristics being carried over. Even with a clone immediately grown to maturity and implanted with its parent's memories, the same mistake was made. The truth is, no clone operates as an original sentient being. Humans were not meant to be gods, therefore they lack the special power required to make an individual unique.
These particular clones – the bounty hunters – are the last of a line of clones produced from PM Investigations' former employer. In fact, the PM Investigators were fired from that job after it became obvious that cloning technology was fallible. It was decided by the planet's ruling council that all cloning facilities would be shut down, and the science of cloning be banned.
The last member of the bounty hunter team is not a clone per se, but instead a synthetic humanoid – usually referred to as an android. Androids are mere mimics of human beings and other living creatures. The problem is, clones ended up being practically the same thing. The only difference was that clones were actual flesh and bones, and androids were a combination of synthetic tissues and machinery. Androids also lack the emotional aspects of human beings – though the later models were produced with emotion simulation chips, but for all intents and purposes, the two artificial species were far too identical than originally intended. Seeing this, it angered the planetary council. Instead of continuing any humanoid replication, it decided that it would be best to have all but the least advanced AI technology destroyed. And thus, the one called Data Jim is one of the last of his kind. In fact, the whole crew is the last of their kind.
Their leader, known now as Bubba Fett, has been reflecting on his past much more often as of late. The events of the past few days were beginning to haunt him. They have begun to draw out the emotional responses that his own parent would have had drawn out. That is what it is to be a clone. Try as they might to act and think on their own, it always comes back to behaving like the one they are cloned from. It is in their essence.
Bubba Fett shifted in his captain's chair once more. He slammed his fist down upon the arm rest. He was pissed; pissed at their failures, but also at his employer.
“Sir, might I inquire into your frustration?” asked his second in command – the one now known as Mr. Spock.
“Not now, Spock! I'm too busy thinking.” Bubba Fett shot him an angry glare.
“Captain, might I suggest that your emotions are taking control of you? I do believe that some rest is in order.”
“Arg! How can you continue to put on that act?”
“Act, sir?”
“Yes…act! You aren't the Vulcan that you stole your name from!”
Mr. Spock stared back at his captain in horror. “First, Captain, it's half Vulcan…”
Bubba Fett whipped around in his chair. “I don't give a damn! You aren't him.”
Mr. Spock looked stunned. “I resent that, Captain.”
Bubba Fett put his hands to his face. “Damn it, you are as much a lunatic as your parent.”
“My parent was not a lunatic, sir.”
Bubba Fett shook his head. “Maybe not your television parent, but your real one…”
“This is fascinating behavior, Captain. Again, I would suggest some rest. It would appear that you are beginning to hallucinate.”
“Jesus Christ!” Bubba Fett buried his face in his hands again. It was useless to argue with one who was easily entranced into a zoned state. “Fine, Spock, you win.”
“What did I win, Captain?”
“Not a prize for being sane, that's for sure,” he muttered to himself.
“What was that, sir?”
“Nothing, Mr. Spock.” He turned his attention to his mechanical friend. “Data Jim, has there been any further word from our employer?”
“None, sir.”
“Do all of you have to always call me sir?”
Data Jim turned his head on an angle. “Not always, no, sir.”
Fett shook his head again. “Can it Data Jim.”
He rose from his seat and made his way to the living quarter's section in the anterior of the ship. He needed to lie down. In a matter of days, they had lost their planetary vehicle and their bounty. Just prior to that, they had had the PM Investigators and the country of Bowmania right where they wanted – on the verge of destruction. Now…now he didn't really care anymore. Trying to be evil was starting to take its toll – and for what? Revenge?
It is true that the cloned bounty hunters had been betrayed by their creators. It is true that they had been subjected to many visual stimuli that no living being should have to be subjected to. They had been experiments – they were being programmed to perform certain ways based on the information they had been fed. In short, they had been intended to be puppets for their masters. When the clones were deemed to be failures, they were to be destroyed. However, the clones had other plans.
Bubba Fett reached his private room, entered, and plopped himself on his bed. He reflected further upon those early days. In the beginning, he believed himself to be human. He lived those days as David Fountain – a man who thought he had willingly signed on to a breakthrough science project. That was where he met his future team – the cloned men now named after popular science fiction franchises.
Mr. Spock was cloned from Dr. Aaron Rutherford – a man who was widely respected as one of the greatest scientific minds in history. However, it came at a price. The man was also delusional. It would seem that all that intelligence was too much for his human brain. In many respects, Dr. Rutherford acted like a genius who had been infected by rabies. However, instead of leading to death, whatever the genius doctor had, it simply made him a very scary man to be around – a modern day Jeckyll and Hyde.
Scotty, the engineering officer, was cloned from a human being named Jeremy. Not much is known about Jeremy outside of the fact that he was a maintenance worker at the plant. He was dismissed shortly after the cloning took place. Bubba Fett was not sure on the details involving Jeremy's dismissal, but it would seem that Jeremy was not one to take orders well. From his understanding, this behavior had followed the lad from his childhood.
As for Fett himself, he was a failure from the start, though he did not come to know that truth for some time. Unlike the others, his genetic replication had gone awry. Instead of being born thin like his father, he had been born a fat man. He was still as athletic as his parent, but his weight was an issue. It made his intended bounty hunter suit an impossibility to wear. After being molded after a popular bounty hunter from a popular movie, the scientists in the lab were disappointed that their efforts had been a waste. The original suit was a perfect replication of the one found in the movie. With Fett's unexpected weight difference, they had to design a makeshift suit – the very suit that he wears today.
Bubba Fett rolled over on his mattress; he was growing tired. Not only was he tired from the day, he was growing tired of his life. He was beginning to think that this would be the last bounty job they would take on in the name of evil. Evil always brought far too many difficulties to make the job worthwhile. Just when he was on the verge of sleep, the alarms sounded.
The intercom above his bed sprang to life. “Sir, I suggest you get back to the bridge.”
“What is it, Mr. Spock?”
“Our employer has finally made contact.”
“I'll be there right away. Do not tell him anything until I arrive.”
It was about time. Fett had been waiting for an eternity for this call. He needed to find a way to convince his employer that going after PM Investigations was top priority. Eliminate them, and the invasion would be far simpler.
Rejuvenated once again, Fett leapt up from his bed and dashed towards the bridge. When he got there, he saw that Spock had been sniffing some glue.
“Spock! What the hell do you think you're doing?”
Spock turned to him, a dazed look in his eyes. “Sniffing some glue, sir. Why?”
Bubba Fett shook his head in disgust. “Why the hell would you be doing that right now?”
“I enjoy sniffing glue, sir. I find it quite fascinating.”
“Arg! You idiot. Did you at least have the common sense to put our employer on hold until I arrived?”
“Negative, sir. He's been on the view screen ever since I contacted you.”
Fett spun around on his feet. There, on their forward view screen, was the one who had employed their services. As usual, he was adorned by a cloak. Fett quickly took a knee.
“He he…please rise Mr. Fett.”
Bubba Fett slowly rose to his feet. “I apologize for my crew's behavior, your Highness.” He gave Mr. Spock a nasty glare.
“Think nothing of it,” his employer responded. “Do you think I was not aware of your gang's odd behaviors before I hired you? I was fully aware of what I was getting myself into.”
“I see…then may I get right to the point then?”
The cloaked man grinned. “I'd expect nothing less from the likes of you. Go ahead.”
“I think it is time that we put an end to PM Investigations. With them eliminated, Bowmania will be at your mercy.”
“Tsk, tsk, tsk, Mr. Fett. Patience. My plans are proceeding accordingly.”
Bubba Fett grew angry. “Did you know about the Johnstone Prince? Did you know what he was to become?”
The cloaked man smiled. “Of course I did. How do you think he got that way?”
Fett was pissed. He suddenly realized why they had been sent. “You used us as pawns!”
“Now, now, Mr. Fett, no need to get angry. With your talents, I knew you were in no real danger.”
“If that thing would have touched us…”
“But he didn't. You'd do best not to worry about would haves. I needed his powers to awaken. To do so, he had to be put through some suffering. Using his family was the perfect type of suffering, wouldn't you say?”
Fett nodded. “I admit, it did get the job done. Still, Data Jim is a valuable member of my team and he could have been lost to me. Thankfully, his hand was all that suffered.”
“I would say that the android would have been a small price to pay for the success of the mission.”
Fett glared at his employer. “Let me remind you: this is your mission. My only concerns are getting revenge on PM Investigations and getting paid. I would appreciate that we are not toyed with any longer.”
“Very well. Of course, if you don't think you can handle the job, I could always find someone else.”
“There is no one else as capable as us.”
“How modest of you.”
“It is the truth.”
The cloaked man laughed. “I'll be the judge of that.”
Anger flashed through Bubba Fett once more. “Can we skip past all of this and get back to business? What is it you would have us do next?”
“I need you to sit and wait for the time being. There are other plans that have just been set in motion, and they require some time to develop on their own. I can't risk you interfering with them.”
Fett shook his head in disgust. “Maybe if you weren't so secretive…”
His employer cut him off. “Trust me, Mr. Fett, you don't become a ruler by revealing your plans all at once. In time, you will come to realize what I have done.” The cloaked man laughed. “When I am Emperor, you will feel great pride in having helped play a part in it.”
In all honesty, Bubba Fett did not care what became of this man. However, he did not let that show. “I'm sure I will. Now, if that is all, I could use some rest.”
“Certainly…I will contact you when you are required.”
The screen went blank. Fatigue slowly crept back into Fett's body. Although he was angry, he needed rest more. In time, the bounty hunters would have their revenge. He couldn't wait to see the look in David Fountain's eyes when he was taking his life.