Myst and Ink, Book 1

by HD Smith

  It was incredible the amount of data it showed. I had options for turning on Susan9’s heartbeat and pulse. There were also options for fine-tuning her appearance, and controls for how fast to allow changes. Most of these seemed geared toward keeping her condition secret. There was even a fake chip that returned the data of your choosing.

  I turned on the more human-like features to prevent discovery. I could see where the spell had been cast. It was waiting for the correct input. I saw a tab marked Archive Maintenance. I opened it up and immediately found the problem.

  Several of the archives were attempting to take control of the construct. To prevent them from controlling her body, Susan9 had shut down the motor functions.

  On what appeared to be an internal chat session, the constructs were arguing with Susan9. The conversation was happening so fast, I couldn’t read it. I mentally tried to get their attention, but nothing worked. The MHC wasn’t meant for multiple archives, which made sense—it might also explain why an MHC hadn’t been used to get the data off Aratus.

  I searched my data core to find a solution. Susan9 needed to be the one in control. The MHC belonged to her. I’d worry about offloading the other archives into their own scholar habitats later. Maybe they’d prefer to relocate to Hera. I’d ask Liam to check into that.

  For now I wanted to shut them down. Using a standard command prompt, I activated the shutdown command Liam had tricked me into casting on the construct for each of the six extra archives. I felt a pulse leave my fingers as each one stopped chatting on the internal chat. Once I was finished, I could sense Susan9 regaining control. I exited the app and opened my eyes.

  A pulse of energy emitted from Susan9 as she rebooted her systems.

  “What the hell was that?” Liam asked.

  “The archives were trying to take over. I called the shutdown command on them to give Susan9 back control. That flash was her rebooting. Why? What happened?”

  “You lit the ship up with your blue lightening, which scared the crap out of me.”

  “When?”

  “Before Susan9’s pulse.”

  I remembered feeling the pulse at my fingertips. I hadn’t realized that activating a spell like that via the command prompt to Susan9’s interface would do that.

  “Sorry. I guess that’s what happens when I activate spells via the construct interface. Is everything still working?” I asked, as the most amazing image came into view on the main panel. “Wow.”

  The giant blue planet that was the Old Earth, its moon, its sun, and a floating apparatus that I assumed was the space station were all right there in front of me.

  The space station was nothing like the giant behemoths that orbited above Lux and Hera. This structure looked as though Liam’s spaceship might not fit in the docking bay. A relic of a different age.

  “The ship’s fine,” Liam said, “just please don’t do that again.”

  “It’s beautiful,” I said, ignoring his chastisement. I was sure he didn’t really want me letting Susan9 run wild.

  “Just wait until you get to the surface. It’s like nothing you’ve seen before. All the cities are so different. They have these things called seasons, where climate and weather patterns change based on the time of year.”

  “There’s no weather service to control those things?”

  “No, it just happens naturally. Last year I was on planet when a huge storm hit what was once a place called Florida. It’s now hundreds of miles of snake-infested swampland, but the old archived photos show miles of sunny beaches.”

  “Do storms happen often?” I asked.

  “In some areas, but not where we’re going.”

  “Do you think we’ll run into any renegades?” I asked.

  “I doubt it. Right now, the games are raging in OE Singapore. It usually takes them sixteen to eighteen months to use up an area before they declare a winner and move on to a new location. I did spot a small band in Hong Kong the last time I was there, but I suspect they were hired by a tourist broker. We’ll scan the area before we touch down in China, but the Zar compound is in a remote part of the country, so I think we’ll be safe.”

  I hoped he was right.

  A sound came from behind me. Susan9, or what I hoped was Susan9, was starting to wake up.

  “Susan9, is that you?” I asked.

  “Yes,” she said. “Thank you for your assistance.”

  “Are the archives going to be a problem?” Liam asked.

  “Genevieve has shut them down. For now they are quiet,” Susan9 said.

  “Tell us if they reactivate. Okay?” I said.

  “I will,” Susan9 said. Her voice was drained, but it appeared her energy level was returning.

  “Why the hell does she have a heart beat?” Liam asked.

  “Apparently that’s a setting. I turned it on so she’d appear more real,” I said.

  “Is that a good plan?” Liam asked.

  “The alternative,” Susan9 said, “is for them to figure out I am not human.”

  “And no one wants that,” I said.

  21

  Sun Blossom Tower, OE, Wednesday, 16:30 LTZ

  Liam

  I cloaked the ship on reentry into the atmosphere, as I didn’t want to be spotted by any renegades that might still be near my home base. I quietly landed on the Sun Blossom building, with all sensors indicating that the area was clear of human life.

  “This is your building?” Gen asked.

  “I don’t own it, if that’s what you’re asking, but I’ve used it as a home base for a couple of years now. Dexter figured out how to crack the building security. Since then it has been a treasure trove of helpful data and a great place to store my OE tech.”

  “Will Dexter be joining us this mission?”

  “Yes. As soon as we have the OE comms hooked up, he can link in via the ship’s long-range sensors.” I looked back at Susan9, who was still recovering from her forced shutdown and archive lockout. “Susan9, you’ll be able to link in as well.”

  “Thank you for the confidence, Liam,” Susan9 said.

  I decided it was better to let Susan9 whose heartbeat was a Lucy-damn setting believe I had confidence. Telling her my fears that she might lose control of her archives and endanger the mission or our lives was pointless.

  Gen’s brows were furrowed. “Is everything okay, Susan9?”

  “Yes,” Susan9 said. “My configuration is settling in to the shutdown of the other archives. Apparently they were taking over systems before I noticed. Those systems are now coming back online in my control.”

  “You’ll tell us if that changes, right?” Gen asked again.

  “I would recommend we purge the archives as soon as possible,” Susan9 said. “For now they appear to be suppressed, but several are quite resourceful.”

  I quietly changed Susan9’s access to the ship to level 2. She would be able to start the ship and initiate autopilot to my or Gen’s location and fly us off world if everyone in the party was onboard, but she would not be able to take the ship off world alone. Then I messaged Dexter so he wouldn’t return her permissions without a damn good reason.

  I readied the ship for us to disembark.

  “Gen, you may experience a slight shortness of breath at first and a tickle in your throat. The air has zero myst, which could be uncomfortable for you at first. Also, expect your glamour to fade.”

  “Will yours fade too?” Gen asked.

  “Yes.”

  “I thought you’d done something more permanent.”

  “I’ve had implants added to throw off scanners and facial recognition software, but the overall visual is mostly spells.”

  “Okay,” Gen said. “Can I do anything to ease the discomfort and adjust to the air more quickly?”

  “Just take slow, steady breaths and cough if you need to. It should pass once you acclimate to the sensation.”

  She nodded.

  “Susan9, as we discussed, you’ll remain with the ship,” I sa
id. “You’ll be connected once we’ve activated the OE comms.”

  “I understand. Our mission to secure Genevieve’s lineage is too important to risk my construct having a bad reaction to the OE atmosphere. I will wait here.”

  I unlocked the hatch and exited the ship. Gen followed. I coughed to clear my throat, then tried to take my own advice of slow, steady breaths. Gen’s cough was more pronounced, but that didn’t surprise me. I remembered when I’d first landed on Old Earth. I hadn’t been prepared, and thought I was going to die. But Old Earth still had everything humans needed to survive, and the air was breathable—it just wasn’t as comforting as myst-infused air.

  I activated the on-deck cloaking for my ship and headed for the building. Gen’s coughing had slowed, but I could tell by her expression the experience wasn’t one she’d like to repeat often. I knew exactly how she felt.

  We entered the building and made our way down to the penthouse. Everything we needed for our expedition was there, which meant we should be in and out with our provisions quickly.

  Gen was scanning the room, getting her first real glimpse of Old Earth design and architecture.

  “This place doesn’t look like I thought it would,” Gen said.

  “You expected pre-ancient ruins, didn’t you?” I smiled.

  “Yeah, something like that. I definitely didn’t expect electric lights and security systems. This is like the apartment in the old Mason Murdoch PI stories. Something you’ve probably never heard of.”

  I laughed. “I was actually raised on bad 22nd century television shows. I’m a hardcore Murdoch fan.”

  “Oh-my-Lucy, so Susan9 looks like Eleanor Delicious to you too, right?” Gen asked.

  “Yes! I noticed it right away,” I chuckled.

  “I’ve never met anyone else who even knew what I meant, much less watched it. It was one of the only shows in the vid library at the orphanage, but most of the kids didn’t like it.”

  “Too old school for them,” I guessed.

  “Yes,” she laughed. “They thought a world with no magic was impossible. I thought it looked safe.”

  I drew my eyebrows together. “Safe?”

  “I was allergic to silver and higher-level tats could kill me, so a world without those dangers, a world where I could be or do anything, seemed like paradise.”

  “I can understand how that would be an issue.”

  “Oh-my-Lucy,” Gen said, jumping up and down and clapping several times. “I remember now.”

  “Remember what?”

  “I saw an article a few months ago about Tor-Vargas. It was announcing that he’d found new 22nd Century shows, and there was speculation that more Mason Murdoch episodes existed? Please say it’s true.”

  I pressed my lips together and winced. I didn’t want to disappoint her, but had there been more Mason Murdoch vids, I would have released them for free on the stream months ago.

  “Unfortunately, no. I haven’t had a chance to remaster everything yet, but I searched specifically for that show and didn’t find anything.”

  Her shoulders slumped. “It was a long shot, right?”

  “Of course, if you like audio books, there may be six previously unknown titles available shortly.”

  Her mouth dropped open. “I love audiobooks.”

  I smiled. “As soon as they’re ready, they’re yours.”

  “How did you find so many? What’s your secret?”

  I held up my hands and motioned to the building around me. “Once we cracked the code on the tech and figured out how everything worked, we discovered this building housed the equivalent of an ancient OE stream. It was called the Internet, and this was one of its major data centers.”

  “Wow, that seems so crazy.”

  “After we unlocked the data, we figured out how to crack the tech. That’s how we have comms and drones while we’re here.”

  I tossed Gen a small box. She opened it and held up one of the ear pieces. I opened my own case and showed her how to insert the device.

  “This is so wild,” she said. “I can’t believe I’m an OE explorer looking for my lost heritage, using ancient tech, and flying around in spaceships.”

  “All part of the Last Princess of Zar adventure package,” I joked.

  She smiled, then grimaced trying to put in the tech. Her hair and eyes had already started fading back to their natural color before we left Tau. Her natural pink color was already back.

  “The OE ear-clip takes some time to get used to. There are more advanced models that are smaller, but we’ve never been able to get them to work.”

  “Your glamour is almost gone. Mine too,” she said, picking up a hank of her own hair. “I like the darker hair on you. It looks good.”

  I shrugged. The change was simple; the embedded jammers were what kept me safe. My Liam Anderson persona with navy hair and beige skin with pink undertones wasn’t all that different from Cassius’s dark hair and yellow undertones. The automated security systems and Peacekeepers designed to facial rec everyone they scanned were the dangers. Cassius, the old me, had been somewhat sheltered, and other than his school days, where glamours weren’t allowed, he often went out in public with a different face. Even my official portrait was heavily edited, so that no one knew my real identity.

  I activated the dedicated panel on the wall, which allowed me to control the various zones within the building. I activated my Link and remote-connected my ship with the OE tech, which included two handy if tech-deprived smartphones, watches, the ear clips Gen already had, and my drones.

  I handed Gen a smartphone and watch.

  “I get a full set of my own ancient tech?” she asked.

  “Yeah, you get to be your own Mason Murdoch on this trip.”

  Gen held up the watch. “How does this work?”

  I helped her put it on her wrist. “It connects to the smartphone and will help Dexter keep track of us.”

  She turned the smartphone over in her hand, looking at every part of it.

  “It’s smaller than I expected,” she said.

  “It’s also very limited. It will let us communicate to Dexter and Susan9 through our uplink to the ship. We can also use these for talking.”

  I pointed to the OE ear-clips in our ears.

  “This really is the Mason Murdoch show. It’s just like we were in a live episode. I can’t believe it.”

  I clicked a few buttons on the interface and synced the Mason Murdoch show intro song to her smartphone and then called her from my device so the song would play. When it made noise, her eyes went wide, but she didn’t know what to do.

  “Swipe the answer button,” I said, pointing to the one on her screen.

  She used an exaggerated motion to swipe the digital button.

  “Can you hear me?” I said, and her eyes lit up.

  “I can,” she said a little loudly, pointing to her ears.

  I patted the air in a downward motion and said, “Keep your voice normal, or whisper even. I’ll be able to hear you. These ear-clips are very sensitive.”

  I ended the call.

  “Okay, what’s next?” she said.

  “Let’s find your size so we can get suited up.”

  It took about half an hour to find a set of commando gear that fit Gen, which she put on over her dragon scale suit. The ancient military-style fatigues looked good on her.

  “Okay,” I said, handing her one of my go-bags next. “This pack has flashlights, food, and water. Since you’re a fan of 22nd century vids, you’ll probably recognize most of the survival gear. It includes a fire pack, which hopefully we won’t need. There’s also a flare, a knife with a holster you can attach to your leg, and three sonic grenades. I hope we don’t need any of this, but I downloaded a manual onto your smartphone just in case. Most of these things are self-explanatory, but I’d still recommend you review the manual.”

  I had other go-packs to bring with us as well, but this was Gen’s personal pack that she would keep with he
r at all times.

  We loaded everything into the ship, including my drones, which I planned to use to scout the area and inside the Zar compound, and several stealth military-grade miniature rotorcraft that could fire small missiles up to three hundred yards.

  I texted Dexter and told him to connect to the OE tech. A minute later, both our phones rang. Gen looked surprised.

  “It says Dexter is calling,” she said.

  “I know. So answer it,” I said.

  She smiled and swiped the phone to activate the call.

  “Can you hear me?” I asked.

  Gen and Dexter both answered yes.

  “Dexter, let’s switch to shipboard comms, so Susan9 can join in,” I said.

  “Okay,” Dexter said. “I’ve activated the comms.” Dexter’s voice switched to the bridge surround sound. “Can everyone hear me?”

  “I can,” Susan9 said.

  “Okay, it’s one big party,” I said. “Dexter, send Susan9 the specs on the tech we’re using and give her access to the geographic app on the devices. Susan9, you’ll take the data you found already and pinpoint our exact route to the Zar compound in China. Dexter, any update from Tau?”

  I started the launch sequence as Dexter filled us in.

  “Wyatt’s body hasn’t been found. He wasn’t listed on any official lease filed with the housing board, so if we still had a building, we would evict his ass. Anyway, no remains have been found in the rubble, but an anonymous tip was called into the WLA office in Center City and accused you of insurance fraud. So now they suspect Liam Anderson of blowing up his own building for money.”

  I laughed. “That’s ridiculous. Who sent the anonymous tip?”

  “According to the Dark Stream, it was Blythe Donovan sending you a message,” Dexter said. “The investigators are still pushing the electrical explosion/accident angle, but WLA detectives are now interested in the case and starting to throw their weight around to get control.”

  “Did anyone die?” Gen asked.

  “Six people so far,” Dexter said, “but most of those are being tagged as opportunistic. Two drug dealers were shot a block from your building, and four Houseless street shamans were electrocuted by drones when they tried to scavenge in the debris. Surveillance footage from a few of the buildings nearby have made it onto the stream, but the police are trying to get it all pulled before someone analyzes the explosion and calls it a military exercise gone wrong. Oh, wait, too late—that’s now trending on Twote. I’ve made copies of anything I can find; not that it will tell us much.”