He stared at the black space.
“They…” he struggled, “they destroyed the Orion drive.”
Loren was slowly shaking her head, “They were building.”
Chris was suddenly aware that Lawrence wasn’t saying anything at all.
“Larry, weigh in here!” he said, “Fai’s got to have known something about this!”
Lawrence suddenly closed his eyes. Clearly a terrible thought had just occurred to him.
“Which Fai?” his voice was almost a whisper.
“What do you -”
“All this time,” Lawrence cut in, “We never saw it…”
“OK,” Chris took hold of his shoulders, “I need you to keep it together and explain what -”
“Think about it,” Lawrence cut in urgently, “There’s a Fai back on Earth at the Icelandic Discovery Centre, there’s another one out there somewhere with Miles Benton. The Fai that we know… she’s just another facet, a subroutine, the one that runs the interior of the cylinder… the Fai that deals with the humans.”
Chris immediately understood the inference: to the larger version of Fai on the outer surface, they’d been completely irrelevant. Little more than a demand on available resources.
Lawrence was now shaking his head.
“After I ran her last diagnostic, we talked about making connections,” he closed his eyes again, “Specifically, the importance of seeking connections with your own kind. I was talking about people, but I don’t think she was.”
Chris pictured Fai inviting thousands of insect-like fabricators into the Eridanus.
“Shit,” he froze at the thought.
It seemed that Loren was thinking the same thing.
“The Bergstrom directive,” she said, “The one that ensures Fai’s help? The conditions were still in place, right?”
Lawrence gave a firm nod, “No corruption.”
“So the protection that it -”
A solid tone sounded and Chris immediately whipped around to face the cockpit.
“It’s alright,” said Loren, pushing herself out of the cargo bay, “It’s just a pilot warning. I’ve got a minute to get ready.”
He spotted the small pair of fuzzy dice in her hands; one of the few possessions she’d had aboard the ISS. Until a few moments ago, they’d been in a packing crate.
“Is that why you came back here?” he frowned.
“It was just for luck,” she called back, “but it sounds like we might be needing more.”
Her response wasn’t inspiring.
“What the hell have I done?” Lawrence was still staring out at space.
“Nothing, hopefully.”
“Chris,” he quickly turned to face him, “Fai doesn’t see time like us. Even without a Field, she can solve a million equations in a second, or slow her mind and wait a thousand years between clock-cycles. It’s all the same to her.”
Chris considered their situation and the fact that it would be a further seven years before the Eridanus returned to this position.
“Being inside this Field,” he said, “we’re at a disadvantage.”
“Disadvantage?” Lawrence laughed nervously, “Assuming that the Fai outside the cylinder knows basic Field manipulation theory, the situation is way worse.”
“Worse?”
“You saw the state of the Orion drive,” Lawrence was clearly agitated, “That didn’t happen overnight. That portion of the cylinder must have remained outside the Field during our trip.”
“So, the fabricators started dismantling -”
“You’re not getting it!” Lawrence stared at him intensely, “Outside the cylinder, Fai’s main program has been evolving for two million years.”
Chris suddenly felt cold.
The enormity of the statement was too much to take in. The silence that filled the cargo bay was suddenly broken by Loren’s voice.
“Eri landing sequence,” she called out, “Buckle up.”
Doing his best to think beyond the chaotic thoughts that were clamouring for his attention, Chris pushed himself in the direction of the cockpit.
He knew they needed to get together with Ivan and Lana. Perhaps by pooling the thoughts of the old ISS crew, they’d be able to work out some sort of plan.
Of course, all of this depended on the Broadstone reaching Eri’s surface in one piece.
[DIRECTIVE2112]
TransmissionDetected
…
CargoshipBroadstoneCondition[Pass]
UpdateVariableSet[Directive2112]
CompletionStatus[Pass]
…
VerifyProcess[Directive2112]
LifeFunction#ISS_CrewSet[Pass]
Location#ISS_CrewSet[Eri]
BergstromSubroutine[Complete]
TerminateProcess[Directive2112]
…
InitiateDataBridge
SeekConnect#Fai.Main[Pass]
RequestMerge[Fai.sys:Fai.Main]
PreparingMigrationPath
…
Begin
SEVEN
Taking in the bright afternoon sun, Megan walked along the busy shoreline.
Every vessel to leave the Eridanus had reached Eri safely, but shortly after the Broadstone cargo vessel had landed, their community had suffered a setback.
For some unknown reason, Fai’s program had disappeared from every piece of technology she’d inhabited. Many of the ships were now grounded until alternative programs could be created to control them. Although conventional computers were unaffected, life in general had become less automated.
Megan stopped and sat down next to the pier.
The structure had been a large task to undertake, involving considerable physical effort from every member of their community. The end result had been worth it though, she thought.
As she looked out along its length, she saw the various boats and watercraft that were moored along its sides. At the far end, where the water was deep enough, the Britannia was docked. People were busy disembarking and carrying packages to some of the smaller boats.
About halfway along the pier, she saw Nathan and Dixon deep in discussion as they walked closer.
“I’m a bit surprised,” Marcus joined her.
“About Nathan?” she saw where he was looking.
“I half expected him to stay out there.”
She laughed, “Maybe there was a mutiny.”
A short squeal of laughter announced the arrival of several small children. Zooming past Nathan, they ran onto the pier to greet some of the adults who were making their way ashore. Seven years ago, she thought, some of them hadn’t even been born.
“Old man,” Nathan greeted Marcus, then turned to face her, “Old -”
“Don’t you bloody dare,” she raised a finger at him.
“So Nate,” Marcus was smiling, “How was it?”
“This place is great,” he said, “But it was good to be doing some scientific research again.”
“Any headlines?” said Marcus.
“Yeah,” said Dixon, “the whole region’s messed up.”
“Great,” Megan smiled, “Any chance you can simplify that science talk?”
They all walked to a quieter spot, out of the flow of traffic, and Nathan summarised the results of the short trip to sea.
“The submarine drone confirmed the basics,” he began, “At the Britannia’s arrival point, there’s still a localised distortion. Fluctuations in water density, speed of light, gravity -”
“No wonder people had headaches,” Marcus glanced at her.
“I suspect there’s a fracture,” Nathan continued, “I think the Einstein-Rosen bridge is still in place. Closed, but it’s still down there.”
Reading Nathan’s far-off stare, Megan thought she knew what he might be thinking.
“Well if there is a bridge,” she said, “I’m sure Rebecca’s checking out the Earth end of it.”
“My sister was always the brighter one,” he shrugged, “She might�
�ve worked it out already… I just need to get back out there.”
Dixon groaned.
“At least give it a day, would you?” he said, “It’s a major pain in the ass having to haul the Britannia out there, just to get new readings.”
Megan laughed and pointed ahead of them.
“You should just extend the pier!” she said, “You’d be able to walk out to it!”
Nathan seemed to freeze, “What did you say?”
She gave a shrug, “I just said you should build a walkway out to it. That way you’d -”
Nathan turned quickly and walked away; his frown gone.
“Was it something I said?” she called after him.
“Knowing him,” said Marcus, “you’ve probably sparked something.”
She turned to look at the pier and imagined the ridiculous sight of a mile-long walkway to nowhere.
Dixon was about to follow Nathan, but then paused.
“I’ve already radioed Lana,” he said, “so I thought I should let you know. We got a transmission from the space station.”
“And?”
Dixon shook his head.
“There’s nothing?” she said.
“No debris,” said Dixon, “so they think it must’ve broke solar orbit when it was on the far side. There’s no trace of it. It’s just… gone.”
She saw Marcus glance at her. They both knew that the Eridanus was supposed to stay in orbit around the sun. The so-called egg basket was the insurance policy for everyone on Eri. Given what Lawrence had told them about the swarm of fabricators he’d seen, it now seemed likely the construction had been some form of propulsion.
“Does Larry know yet?” she said.
“No,” Dixon looked apprehensive.
“It’s OK,” said Marcus, “I’ll tell him.”
With a look of gratitude on his face, Dixon left them.
Over the past few months, she and Marcus had been working closely with Lawrence, trying to resurrect an inactive fabricator. The work had been giving Lawrence an outlet for his anxiety, but the Eridanus news would definitely set their progress back.
“I’ll come with you,” she gave Marcus a reassuring nod.
“Old lady,” he held his hand out to her, “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
STARS
Since the confirmed disappearance of the Eridanus, another seven Earth years had gone by. As the planet had made one more slow orbit around the sun, the seasons had unfolded at a correspondingly slow rate. Although they weren’t directly comparable to the seasons that had existed on Earth, there’d been broad similarities. Having successfully survived a long winter, the community was heading into a summer that would last around twenty months.
As Marcus walked with Megan through the warm night air, he could see several other people in the distance, making their way through the eclectic structures that defined their growing town.
Owing to a lack of available kerosene, many of the spaceships had either been dismantled for parts, or simply converted into buildings. Inert cargo vessels had become food silos, and once-dynamic rockets were now as grounded as the nearby trees.
Marcus stopped and looked up at the dark sky, wondering if the people who’d come here the long way would ever reach the stars again. Hopefully their latest efforts would help with matters but, as life had often shown him, there were no guarantees.
“Alright?” said Megan.
“Yeah,” he sighed, “Just thinking.”
“Dangerous,” she smiled.
They continued walking and approached the town’s largest, purpose-built structure. Constructed over the site of a natural hot spring, it provided bathing facilities and a geothermal energy point that kept their small society powered even during the winter years.
Although its official name was the Community Centre, many people had adopted the nickname that Megan had suggested. Like the Gene Pool she’d once known on Earth, it was a building that attracted a mix of people who were just trying to survive under harsh conditions.
As they walked up to the entrance door, he could hear a cacophony of sound coming from within. An overlapping weave of voices and music. The door opened as someone left, and the sound got louder.
It was rare for so many people to be gathered in one place, but he knew this wasn’t an ordinary night. Feeling a stab of anxiety, he steadied himself and reached into his jacket pocket.
“Damn it,” he realised, “I left it back at the house.”
Megan let out a small groan, “I’ll go and get it. You should give the thing to Raven, I won’t be long.”
“Thanks,” he said.
“It might be hard…” she began walking away.
“But don’t do anything stupid?” he completed.
With a grin she turned and left.
Taking a deep breath, he walked inside the venue and was soon enveloped by the lively atmosphere. His immediate impression was that he was in the middle of a swarm; in every direction, people were animatedly making or remaking connections with those around them.
Most of the younger ones didn’t seem to notice him, which suited him just fine. He could remember being their age and looking through the elderly as though they were invisible. Several of the adults did notice him though as he made his way through the crowded room, and gave him enthusiastic waves before returning to their conversations.
“Marcus!” Dixon was passing by, “I heard a rumour that you’re going on a trip.”
“Just got back actually.”
“Oh, how was it?” he continued moving away.
“Added more grey hairs than I would’ve liked,” Marcus underplayed the duration.
To accelerate their research, Marcus and Megan had been authorised to use one of the remaining Field generators. While the town had passed though three days, he and Megan had added to their personal clocks considerably. Both of them preferred anonymity over public attention, so the trip had only been known to a few people. Not even his own granddaughter had known; he hadn’t wanted to worry her.
“Hey, have you seen Raven?” he said
“Yeah, she’s over there,” Dixon pointed, “Come and catch up with us, when you’ve got a sec.”
Marcus gave him a nod and then walked on through the room towards his granddaughter.
He could see her ahead, chatting easily with friends. He felt another sharp pinch of anxiety at the thought of telling her where he’d been, but told himself that there was no rush. Right now, he just wanted to see her again; he’d been away too long.
“Grandpa!” she spotted him, “Glad you could make it.”
He tried to mentally reposition himself and view things from her perspective; it had only been a few days since she’d seen him.
“Not wearing your special wings for the occasion?” he teased her.
“It’s Founders Day,” she said, “not fancy dress.”
As he laughed, she pointed at his glasses.
“Unlike your retro specs, I don’t wear them the whole time… wait,” she studied them and dropped her voice to a whisper, “Are they… are they new?”
He smiled and tapped the frame, “Fabricated.”
Raven’s eyes lit up, “You got the computer fabricode working!”
“Ssh,” he smiled, “Meg and I’ve been working on it for… a while… but yeah, we think it’ll work with a load of Fai’s old tech.”
“Imagine what we’ll be able to do!” her eyes gleamed, “This is perfect timing, you have to tell everyone.”
“Raven,” he said.
“Yes.”
“I got the fabricator to make something else,” he reached into his pocket, “I hope it fits your old pendant case…”
He held up a shiny, dark hexagon that looked like the silhouette of a black box.
“Happy Founders Day,” he placed it in her hand.
“That’s not a…?” she carefully took it from him.
“No…” he knew it couldn’t replace the Cryotrace she’d left behin
d on the Eridanus, “It’s just a glass memento.”
She flung her arms around him and hugged him tightly. For a second he thought his chest would explode.
“It’s beautiful,” she said, “thank you so much.”
She stepped back and turned it over in her hands.
“Thank you,” she smiled again.
“You’re welcome.”
As she put it in her pocket, Nathan arrived behind him.
“Hey,” he said, “I’ve just been looking at the plans for the pier’s -”
Raven gave a discreet cough, “He just got here.”
“Sorry, Marcus,” Nathan shrugged, “Carried away. How’s it going?”
“Yeah, good, keeping out of trouble,” Marcus smiled.
“Doesn’t sound like you,” he said, “Where’s Meg?”
“Just grabbing my inhaler from the house,” he gestured loosely behind him.
Nathan raised his eyebrows, “Needing a little mental inspiration?”
“Just a little respiration,” Marcus let out a short laugh and tapped at his chest, “I’ve not used that other one for years.”
Nathan patted him on the back, then frowned at what Raven was doing.
“Wasn’t I supposed to be sorting out Beena’s dinner?” he watched her taking a selection of pots from a small travel bag.
“Yep,” said Raven, “You got a little caught up though, so…”
“Is it that time already?” he looked shocked, “I’m sorry -”
“Don’t worry about it,” she kissed him on the cheek, “We’re both doing storytime though.”
“Wouldn’t miss it,” he said, “Apparently, Loren’s written a new one.”
“Great,” Raven smiled, but then seemed distracted by something behind Nathan, “Hey!”
Marcus turned to see Raven’s young daughter, dangling from one of the angled bars in the roof.
“Sabina!” Raven called up to her, “What did I say?”
“But Mum,” she swung herself to and fro, obviously disappointed that she’d been spotted.
“Come on,” Raven shook her head and pointed at the roof’s apex, “All the way to the top.”
The Bridge Page 40