"Why are you so confused?" an amused female voice suddenly asked, emanating from the exterior communication system of his ship. "The girl told you what happened..."
Leo jumped back, startled by the voice. He looked around wildly but quickly accepted that the little girl had been telling the truth. Someone had bypassed his security, entered his ship, and had now locked him out. Based on the tone of their voice, they found their actions very funny, though it was no laughing matter to him.
His voice was a low, angry growl when he replied. "You will regret this when I get my hands on you..."
A trilling laugh came from his ship, then a laughing reply. "You're not gonna get in unless I let you in. Plus, I just saw you be a big softy, so I suggest you think of a better method of persuasion besides fake threats, you giant ass."
Leo was silent for a moment as he reigned in his anger and thought of possible solutions to his problem. He could get a plasma drill and cut his way in, then force whoever had hacked his ship to reverse their work, but that didn't seem likely to succeed. It would take hours, and he didn't have hours. Plus, he would have to repair his ship once he did, and that would take even longer.
"C'mon!" the female voice laughingly implored. "Convince me to let you in."
Leo didn't like being on the wrong foot when it came to the dance of extortion. Usually, he was the one with the bargaining power, but at that moment, he was the one with everything to lose. The woman in his ship could only want one thing.
"How much?" Leo asked with resignation.
"Oh please, Leo!" the voice responded, now sounding very offended. "I have way more money than you or I could ever use. I have so much that it doesn't even make me happy anymore. It never really did, but now it doesn't even move the needle."
Leo brushed his hair back in frustration. "What the hell does that mean?"
The woman inside his ship sighed with disappointment. "I suggest you enroll in some adult reeducation. You need to brush up on your historical colloquialisms."
Her vocabulary had dumbfounded Leo. "Jesus Christ..."
She let out a hearty laugh, then replied. "There you go! Nice one!"
Leo was confused. Whoever was on his ship knew who he was. That bothered him almost as much as the fact that they were holding his ship for ransom. He wanted to know how they knew who he was, but he had to let it go. He needed to leave the station before the Origin Council could find him. He had no time for silly games.
Leo squared his shoulders and spoke confidently. "Tell me what you want. I'll give it to you. Then, you'll let me into my ship. Now!"
Whoever was inside was silent for ten seconds. Then, they uttered an incredibly simple demand.
"Dance."
It took Leo a moment to process the word. Dance? Why? What kind of a sociopathic moron was aboard his ship? She went through the trouble of breaking into his ship so that she could make him dance? Well, he wouldn't satisfy her ridiculous desires, he decided assuredly. He was no one's plaything.
"No!" Leo shouted as he turned and began to walk away.
He loved his ship, and he hated the fact that someone other than him had gained control over it, but he could hide and wait until she got bored and left on her own. Once she left, he would ambush her and force her to tell him exactly how to put things right.
There was still the issue of the Council, and the fact that they could find him, but he had been through that before. He knew how to handle that challenge.
Leo's plan had crudely formed within him in by the time he had taken two steps, but before he could take a third, he was tripped up by something. His upper body continued its forward motion, but his legs met something solid and he fell forward spectacularly.
He handled the unexpected obstacle by tucking his shoulder as he fell, then rolling into a somersault. He landed with his feet underneath him, just as he heard the familiar chunking grind of his ship's entry hatch opening.
Leo quickly stood, turned, and prepared for a confrontation, but his anger melted away when he saw a lithe, black-haired woman step out of the hatch.
It was Annabelle.
With a warm, humor-filled gaze, she looked him over, smiled at him, and laughed. "Ha! Hey, nice moves! How about we head next door and hit the dance floor? You can show me what other physical marvels you have in your impressive arsenal."
Leo was surprised and angry at the charade she had just put him through, but he was also happy to see her. He was glad to know that she hadn't gotten hurt during the altercation in the bar.
"Care to explain how and why you're here?" Leo asked with dry irritation, walking toward her as he spoke.
Annabelle nonchalantly flipped her hair with her pinky and crossed her arms. "We didn't get to finish our conversation."
Leo remembered his urgency. He would have been happy to get to know Annabelle a little better, but he needed to leave Osiris.
"I have to leave, Annabelle. What happened in the bar is going to draw attention. I can't afford to get drawn into some silly investigation."
"What happened in the bar..." Annabelle wistfully replied. "Yes, I'd like to know what happened in the bar too. It was pretty weird. Weirdest thing I've ever experienced, to be honest."
"Wait!" Leo demanded, "You were there? I couldn't see you anywhere."
"I was there, and no, you couldn't see me..." Annabelle cryptically replied.
Leo felt his impatience growing and quickly walked past Annabelle to the entry hatch of his ship. He intended to leave Annabelle there and never see her again. Well, maybe he would see her again, he hopefully corrected himself. Maybe things would die down, and he could return to Osiris someday.
Annabelle uncrossed her arms and swung them playfully as she giggled behind him. "You're not going anywhere. The station just went into stage-two lockdown. That Council ship that just flew over is the last ship they'll let in or out for a while."
Leo smashed his fist into the hull of his ship. "Damnit! They didn't make any announcement. Are you sure?"
Annabelle crossed her arms and replied, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "It's a stage-two lockdown, dummy. They don't announce those. Oh, I know! Why don't you try to leave and see what happens? That wouldn't draw attention to you. Great idea to try to leave just minutes after your little debacle in the bar. They definitely won't log the ships that try to leave and look for anything noteworthy..."
Leo's frustration grew. He could see her point. If there was a lockdown and he tried to leave, they would be all over him. After only a few seconds, he decided what to do.
First, he needed to know if she was telling the truth. So, he closed his eyes and mentally queried his hacking implant. It was an old implant, but he had used it thousands of times, and it worked better for him than the newer, more tightly regulated ones did.
With a flick of his mind, he quickly coded and broadcasted the signal of a small transport ship requesting departure permissions. The denial code he received milliseconds later revealed that Annabelle was indeed telling the truth.
"Shit," he grunted as he opened his eyes and realized his predicament. There was no way for him to leave. He would have to hide on Osiris and either wait out the lockdown or figure out some way around it.
Annabelle placed her hand on Leo's shoulder and looked him in the eyes. Leo looked carefully back into hers. He expected to see signs of deceit or malice, just as he had with most people during his long life. To his surprise, however, he saw only real concern within them.
"They're probably going to be searching the hangars soon," Annabelle whispered. "If they're interested in what happened at the bar enough to lock the station down, they'll be looking for people trying to leave."
Her eyes never left Leo's as she spoke, and he found himself unable to break the connection. There was something about her gaze that called to him. Was it innocence? Strength? Kindness? Whatever it was, her gaze struck a chord of trust within him.
"What do you think I should do, Annabelle?" Leo asked, surprised at
the vulnerability he heard in his voice.
Annabelle smiled coyly. "How about we hit the dance floor? A nightclub isn't a bad place to hide for a little while. I've hidden from my father in clubs plenty of times. This late at night, they get busy, and it's a good place to blend in. Maybe we can have a couple of drinks and figure out how to get you off this station?"
"I guess that makes sense, but... Why are you trying to help me, Annabelle?" Leo asked. He was bewildered at how the prior hour had played out.
Annabelle shrugged her shoulders. "Because I Like you, Leo. I don't know why, but I do. You've got a look in your eyes... Oh, hell, I don't know. Not many people would have done what you did at O'Hearn's. Not these days, when it seems like everyone is only out for themselves. You saved lives back there, and that means you deserve help too."
Leo thought the emphasis she placed on the word "help" had a tinge of sarcasm in it, but he also sensed that Annabelle had spoken honestly.
So, he decided he could trust her, at least slightly. Besides, he would probably already have gotten captured if she hadn't stopped him from leaving. She had earned a bit of his trust.
Leo reluctantly nodded.
"C'mon!" Annabelle ordered as she turned and lightly jogged away, nimbly jumping over the invisible tripwire.
After one last glance at his beloved Arcturus, Leo hopped over the tripwire and followed.
Chapter 6
Alice narrowed her eyes as she stared at the growing image of Osiris on her viewscreen.
"Can you pinpoint the location of the anomaly within Osiris?"
"The anomaly occurred in Quadrant 4, between decks 48 and 62," Idi replied.
Alice took a minute to think through her options. She needed to figure out exactly where the anomaly occurred, investigate the area, and use her findings to track the man she was looking for before he left the station.
As Alice formed her plan, her ship slid into a docking position next to Osiris. She would be able to dock once she received the proper permissions and was assigned a hangar.
"I'll have to search the area... It's going to take a while, and the target will probably try to leave the station soon," Alice reasoned. "The Council has been hunting this guy for a long time, and he's escaped every time. He'll be aware that we could have detected the anomaly he created. He'll know we're on his trail."
Idi was not without helpful suggestions. "I recommend you utilize your Origin Council credentials to order a stage-two lockdown of the station. Under such a lockdown, our target will be unable to leave the station by conventional means."
Excitement and gratitude grew within Alice. Idi was proving to be very helpful. "Okay, yes. That sounds good. Open communications with the station authorities."
"Opening communication with Director Sullivan, Head of Osiris Security," Idi replied. "Communications are now open."
A gruff and unhappy male voice sounded around Alice. "Director Sullivan here. Your communications codes indicate you are acting on behalf of the Council. Care to explain who you are and what you want?"
Alice tried to inject as much authority into her voice as possible. "It doesn't matter who I am, Director. I'm acting on behalf of the Council, as you well know. Initiate a stage-two lockdown of Osiris. Now!"
Sullivan's tone soured. "Lockdowns are very bad for business, miss. What is the reasoning behind this order, if I may ask?"
Alice carefully considered how to respond. She couldn't reveal too much to Sullivan, or she would risk compromising her mission. "We're here to investigate an anomaly that occurred on your station a short while ago... For scientific purposes... "
"An anomaly. For science, of course! It makes perfect sense to lock down the whole station so you can study an anomaly," Sullivan fumed. "You're gonna have to do better than that!"
Alice pulled quickly from the strands of her mind to create a good cover story for the lockdown.
"I need to interview and scan anyone who may have witnessed the anomaly, Director. If anyone who witnessed it is allowed to leave the station, we may miss a critical opportunity to understand a very hazardous phenomenon. Now, initiate the lockdown, Director, or I will immediately inform the Council of your disregard for their wishes!"
Sullivan fell quiet. He was undoubtedly thinking of what he had to lose if he got on the wrong side of the Council. After a brief, tense silence, he responded.
"Fine. You win. Initiating lockdown," Sullivan replied, his voice filled with bitterness. "I assume you'll want to dock here too, so I suggest you hurry the hell up before the lockdown closes. There's a private docking bay available in Hangar 111. I'm transmitting your docking permissions and coordinates. You have two minutes before the lockdown closes."
"Thank you, Director," Alice curtly replied. "Close communications."
Idi was on it. "Communications have been closed. We will arrive at Hangar 111 in twenty seconds. We have been assigned private docking bay three. Time to docking is one minute."
Alice breathed a sigh of relief. She was glad that her ship A.I was so advanced. Idi had a knack for knowing what her next orders would be before she even vocalized them. Her previous experiences with A.I. had been much less fluid and much less productive.
A smile crossed her lips as she remembered her time as a cadet at the Origin Academy on Mars. One of her assignments had been to captain an older, third-generation ship during a simulated mission. The A.I. on that ship had attempted to initiate launch without first firing the ship's gas propulsion system, all because Alice hadn't ordered it to. Her fellow cadets had razzed her about that mishap for weeks...
With a burst of irritation, Alice realized her mind was pointlessly wandering. She was spending far too much time in her memories and needed to focus on what was before her.
Alice's attention was drawn back to the moment when Idi provided an update on their docking. "We are entering Hangar 111. Frontal observation activated."
Alice watched the screen before her intently as they approached the flowing, liquid-like nano-barrier that allowed ships to pass from the space outside the station into the artificial atmosphere of the hangar.
Alice's skin crawled at the sight of the barrier. It looked suspiciously similar to the one she had encountered on the Ark.
Nevertheless, like sliding through a thin, organic membrane, the ship gracefully penetrated it and carried her inside.
"Activating gas propulsion system. Brace yourself," Idi warned.
The ship gave a gentle lurch as it moved from the vacuum of space into the artificial atmosphere inside the station. Alice nearly lost her balance as the floor rumbled beneath her feet, but she grabbed onto the command terminal to steady herself.
As she took in the sight of the hangar, she saw hundreds of different ships docked below. The walls were lined with the entrances to large, private docking bays, which were clearly numbered.
She watched the numbers to the private bays count down from 90 as they smoothly floated through the hangar. When they reached bay 3, the Epiphany slowed and turned in place, utilizing nano-tech powered gas jets to perform the movement smoothly and gracefully.
"Brace yourself for landing, Alice," Idi cautioned as the ship slid into bay 3.
Alice grasped the command terminal as the Epiphany gently descended. Then, with a light bump, the ship landed safely, and Alice released a deep sigh.
With urgency, Alice immediately turned and walked out of the control room, then continued down the Epiphany's central corridor. As she walked toward the exit chamber, she was consumed by thoughts of her mission, and the challenges she might face on Osiris.
What could have been the longest and most challenging part of her mission – finding her first target - had proven to be quick and easy. However, knowing her target was on Osiris was one thing, and finding him amongst the millions aboard the station would be an entirely different task.
She steeled herself and took a moment to appreciate the importance of her mission as she reached the Epiphany's entry chamber an
d ordered Idi to open the exit hatch. She didn't need to, however. Before she had even vocalized the command, the hatch was already smoothly and silently sliding open before her.
Before she could exit the ship, however, Idi suddenly interrupted her. "If I may interrupt, mission protocol dictates that I should travel with you to provide assistance with various tasks related to your mission. Once I am integrated, I will be able to interface with you directly and provide any information you may need. I will also be able to scan for signs of the anomaly more accurately."
Alice was taken aback. A.I. integration? It didn't sound like something she would be in favor of, however helpful it might be.
"How?" she cautiously inquired.
"An A.I. interface chip coded to pair with my program has been stored in compartment C. If you attach the device behind your left ear, I will be able to communicate with you and provide you information by interfacing directly with your operative implant. It is a non-invasive procedure, and is subject to strict, consent coded firewalls."
Alice had doubts about using such a device and was filled with trepidation at the thought of it. She didn't need any more voices in her head than the ones she already had.
However, she hadn't been involved in a real operation in eight years. She was rusty. She would need help on Osiris, and Idi would surely have much to offer.
"Okay." Alice sighed, begrudgingly accepting the necessity of Idi's help.
Then, she abruptly turned and walked across the entry chamber, further down the main corridor, and took a right turn into the storage bulkhead. The room was filled with large, white storage compartments.
Alice quickly located compartment C, which was already open, and retrieved the small, obsidian box within. She promptly opened the box and extracted a tiny white device. Then, she tossed the box to the floor, placed the implant behind her left ear. She felt an odd itching sensation as the implant quickly attached to her skin.
"Interface successful," Idi announced in Alice's mind.
It was easy to tell the difference between Idi's spoken words and mental communication. The mental dialogue was loud, and crystal clear, and seemed to come from within Alice's own mind. It had none of the directional sensitivity of real soundwaves.
The Ganymede Legacy Page 6