Faulty Prophet

by Karl Beecher

  Falco nodded.

  "That's absurd," she said. "He's just some software geek. You expect us to believe some spotty programmer did this?"

  "Excuse me," replied Falco, "but Lowcuzt Null is not some ‘spotty programmer.' He is the creator of the most powerful software company in the Collective. You may level many criticisms at him, but mediocrity is not one of them."

  "Powerful or not, kidnapping is hardly in character for someone like that, right?"

  "I agree it seems unlikely," replied Falco. "But I know his people when I see them. You see, the people who took your friend were SAPs."

  "Saps?" repeated Tyresa. "I dunno, they looked pretty organised to me."

  "No, SAPs. Ess, ay, pees. Security and Protection officers. Lowcuzt Null's private little security force."

  "Oh yeah? Well, even if it's true, how would you know?"

  Falco switched off the epidermiser and set it on the floor beside his feet. "I used to work at Lowcuzt's company. I was his lead engineer. The SAPs are employed at his compound, several kilometres from here. They protect him, his personnel, his key projects."

  "Okay fine," said Tyresa. "But that doesn't explain why this Lowcuzt character would kidnap Colin. What's in it for him?"

  "Unfortunately, I can't help you with that. The Lowcuzt Null I knew might have been amoral, but he was no kidnapper."

  Robbi looked at Tyresa. "Then perhaps Lowcuzt Null is not, ultimately, behind all this," she suggested.

  Tyresa suddenly heard a familiar voice behind her.

  "Perhaps I might offer an explanation?"

  "Ade!"

  She dropped back to her knees. The android was still lying flat and still but seemed able to move his head. It was good to see life in his eyes once again.

  "Shit, you had me worried there, Ade. I'm glad to see they didn't smash you totally. What's your status?"

  "Thank you for your concern, ma'am," he replied, his voice a little scratchy and distorted. "Neural functions undamaged, although I appear to be immobile below the neck."

  Jonn looked up. "He was fortunate. Nothing critical was destroyed. Ambulatory systems are badly damaged though."

  "I am grateful to you, young Master Shuffla," said Ade.

  Tyresa looked over the android's insides, still scorched and partially spilled out onto the floor. "Will you be able to move again?"

  "If I may be so bold, ma'am, and suggest that we redirect our concern towards the well-being of Mister Douglass."

  Typical of that damned android. He was lying there paralysed, and his first thought was of the humans around him. To her own surprise, Tyresa had to fight back a tear.

  "All right, Ade," she mumbled.

  "I have no doubt Mister Shuffa's reasoning is sound," Ade explained. "However, he has neglected to convey an important detail of the attack."

  Tyresa eyed Falco. "Did he indeed?"

  "Quite innocently, I should hasten to add, because the detail would strike any reasonable bystander as so nonsensical as to be unworthy of relating. It concerns something that Mister Douglass said just moments before the attack. It appears that he again experienced another of his unusual trances."

  "He did? What happened this time?"

  "I believe I can replay his exact words, if you'll permit me."

  Ade paused a moment before resuming to speak. However, it wasn't the android's voice coming from his mouth, but Colin's. It was an audio recording, stored in Ade's memory and replayed for all to hear.

  "‘Bugger me!'" Unmistakeably Colin's voice.

  "‘Mister Douglass?'" That was Ade.

  "‘Ade, you won't believe what just happened. I spoke to him again…'"

  The rest of the conversation played out with Colin claiming he'd spoken again to this Predecessor called Klablath. Klablath had apparently warned him about another Predecessor called Crzethnuk. If the whole thing was to be believed, this Crzethnuk harboured some kind of evil intent and had possessed Lowcuzt Null. Eventually, the recording descended into chaotic sounds of shattering glass and shouting, at which point Ade ended it.

  The room went quiet.

  "Sounds like lunacy to me," said Lieutenant Zillog, breaking the silence.

  Tyresa wasn't so sure. Nobody else in the room had seen half of what Colin had done in his previous trances.

  "Maybe, but what if it's true?" she asked.

  Robbi squatted down beside her. She seemed at least willing to entertain the idea. "You believe there's truth to this?"

  Tyresa gathered her thoughts. "If this is real, if a Predecessor is really speaking through Colin and telling the truth, if this Klablath character and Creth…Cresh-noo…Criz…the other one…are enemies, then what? It's a lot of ifs, but it might explain why Lowcuzt Null—someone who's never met Colin and shouldn't give two shits about him—would suddenly take it upon himself to kidnap him."

  Robbi still looked sceptical, which was understandable. It was making a lot of outlandish assumptions to account for things, but then Tyresa had witnessed some pretty outlandish things in the last few days. All bets were off regarding what was possible now. Having an open mind and a rich imagination was a benefit, things which Tyresa had in spades compared to a Transhacker.

  Then something occurred to her, something Falco had said earlier. She pointed at him. "Wait a minute. You said Lowcuzt's company was based several kilometres from here, right?"

  "That's correct," said Falco. "Up near the coast."

  "I'll bet it's pretty much nine kilometres exactly." She handed Robbi's slate back to her. "Commander, please bring me up a map of the local area."

  Robbi took the slate, looking puzzled, but nonetheless did as she was asked. The yellowy-brown land and nearby ocean appeared on the little screen.

  "Mark our location on the map," said Tyresa.

  An X appeared at Falco's farm.

  "Now mark Lowcuzt's compound on the map."

  A second X appeared, this time at a cluster of buildings on a nearby peninsula. The two Xs were a shade over nine kilometres apart. Now for the final test.

  "Mark the coordinates that Colin gave us, except change the longitudinal minutes from seven to one."

  Robbi did so, and an X appeared slap bang in the middle of Lowcuzt's compound.

  Of all the stupid mistakes to make. Colin's brain had scrambled the message, given them the wrong coordinates and led them to dig in the wrong place. Some fucking prophet! If a god really were to speak through Colin, his followers would be obeying commandments like ‘thou shalt not squeal,' ‘have four other gods before me,' and ‘keep the cabbage day holy.'

  "That's it," Tyresa announced triumphantly. "I'll bet anything that a second artifact is there. And I'll bet whatever it is has infected Lowcuzt Null's mind just like Colin's has been."

  "Wait now," Robbi urged. "Let's proceed cautiously here. Analyse what you're saying carefully. A Predecessor artifact on the site of Lowcuzt Null's compound? Surely we would know about it. Surely people who work there would have knowledge of it."

  A look of realisation appeared on Robbi's face. She was obviously thinking the same as Tyresa, because both women slowly turned their heads in the same direction: Falco Shuffla.

  Shuffla shuffled. He looked uneasy, probably on account of the Collective law requiring all good citizens to report significant Predecessor finds to the authorities.

  Robbi and Tyresa sat themselves on boxes, one either side of him. He didn't need asking twice to begin talking. Actually, he didn't need asking once.

  "A-all right," he stammered. "Yes, there is…something in Lowcuzt's compound."

  "Continue," growled Robbi. "You know how we Transhumanists despise ambiguity."

  Falco drew a deep breath. "I was his lead engineer back when the company relocated to Alcentor. You must understand that the lead engineer becomes one of Lowcuzt's closest confidants. I was involved in all the important decisions. I practically designed the compound. One day, when work began on laying the foundations, we discovered an underground chamb
er. Inside it was the most pristine and complete artifact I've ever seen. It was made of some strange, unknown material. It just had to be Predecessor."

  "What did it look like?" asked Tyresa.

  "Stunning. It resembled an obelisk. About two metres tall. Jet black."

  Interesting. An exact description of the artifact from Solo IV.

  "But it didn't do anything," continued Falco. "We presumed it was some kind of useless sculpture."

  Robbi leaned in. "Where is the artifact now?"

  "I presume it's still there. Lowcuzt turned that area into a secret little vault for his collection of personal treasures."

  "And you never volunteered this info to the authorities?"

  "I told Lowcuzt he had to," he protested. "But he talked me out of it. I tried to resist, but he can be so persuasive when he wants to be. It's like he's got his own reality distortion field. He probably would have one if they weren't illegal. And anyway, if you hadn't been so secretive and had actually told me what you were looking for, I could have helped a lot sooner!"

  The man had a point.

  "Indeed," mumbled Robbi. "I suggest from this point on we pursue a policy of cooperation and full openness." She turned to the others in the room. "The imminent repair of the shuttle also means we must decide on our next move. I'll consult with the Captain."

  She stood and headed for the doorway. Tyresa followed her.

  "Our next move is obvious," she said once they were alone in the corridor. "Rescue Colin. Lowcuzt Null attacks us, so we should return the favour."

  "I agree with your goal," Robbi replied. "Your strategy for obtaining it, however, is questionable."

  "Oh, come on, what other choice is there?" Tyresa noticed Robbi look away, her eye twitching. She was probably hailing Cruiser_89 over that damned brain telephone of hers. "Fine, call the Captain, but get him to send reinforcements. We'll storm the Lowcuzt compound."

  A moment later, Robbi began conversing with Captain Kliez over her tekapt. Tyresa heard only her side of the conversation. Commander Leet informed the Captain of the situation and made her own suggestions—including a gentler version of Tyresa's idea—but Robbi's expression soon turned to disappointment.

  Finally, she closed the channel and turned to Tyresa. "The Captain has ruled out direct action."

  "What?" exclaimed Tyresa. "What about Colin?"

  "In Captain Kliez's opinion," replied Robbi, "Colin is not a mission priority. The potential discovery of Predecessor artifacts is."

  "Right," Tyresa persisted. "And Lowcuzt's compound is where you'll likely find them. That's reason enough to force our way in. You forced your way in here, didn't you?"

  "Swatting aside one isolated farmer is one thing. Kicking in the front door of one of the most powerful people in the Collective is quite another."

  "And in the meantime, we just leave Colin in the hands of this possessed madman?"

  "Consider it from the Captain's point of view. All we have are Falco Shuffla's suppositions and Colin Douglass's mystic pronouncements that Lowcuzt Null is possessed by an evil spirit. He can't authorise a military exercise against the most high-profile Transhumanist on the strength of that. The Stellar Forces would become the laughing stock of the Collective."

  "Unbelievable," hissed Tyresa. "First you force him here, and then you abandon him when…when he…"

  But she couldn't finish her sentence. It was pointless. The truth of the matter was too obvious, and it stuck in her throat. Ultimately, blame lay with one person.

  She slumped back against the wall.

  "No," she croaked. "That's not fair. I can't blame you. If I hadn't been so fucking greedy to begin with, none of this would have happened." She stamped her foot against the wall behind her. "I should have gone back to Saint Barflet's. It would have taken longer but… but instead, I got obsessed with that damned Predecessor message. And look what it got us. Colin kidnapped. I don't know where he is, or even if he's still alive. Ade's lying in pieces. It's all my fault…"

  Her voice trailed off and her head sunk.

  "Now just wait," said Robbi. She tentatively put her hands on Tyresa's arms. "We share in the blame as well. Me, the Captain, Admiral Woot. We had a hand in this too. This is not all your fault."

  Tyresa hadn't changed after all. Her time with Colin was supposed to have helped her to care more about people.

  "I'm just the same as I always was," she said, almost to herself. "I don't care a damn about people."

  "That's not true." Robbi lifted Tyresa's chin. "You have changed. I see it, and it's a change for the better."

  Tyresa looked into her eyes. It meant more to her that Robbi had said that than anyone else. A friend would have said that whether it was true or not, but Robbi had no need to blow smoke up her ass.

  "And," the Commander said softly. "I'm going to help you get your friend back."

  With those words, all the angst and the despair melted away.

  Tyresa and Robbi stared deeply into each other's eyes. The silence grew ripe.

  A familiar voice interrupted them. "Now are you going to copulate?"

  They turned. Jonn Shuffla leered impatiently at them from the doorway.

  "Will you get lost, you little perv?" Tyresa went to swing a hefty boot in his direction, persuading him to scuttle back into the room.

  The mood suitably ruined, she turned back to Robbi. This was no time for maudlin displays. There was a job to be done.

  "How are you going to help?" she asked.

  "The Captain told me that he can't authorise action against Lowcuzt without evidence implicating Lowcuzt in the kidnapping. However, he did allude to a course of action we could take. It would do no good to storm Lowcuzt's compound with guns. That would immediately alert everyone inside and pose a risk to Colin Douglass's life. However, if we could sneak someone into the compound and they could locate Colin, then we would have the necessary proof. That would allow the Captain to dispatch a security team to mount a rescue."

  That sounded good. Now came the question of details.

  "But how can we sneak anyone inside?" asked Tyresa. "Lowcuzt's building must be full of these SAP guards and high-tech security."

  "Perhaps Citizen Shuffla can help us. After all, he was Lowcuzt Null's lead engineer and helped to design the compound."

  Of course, Falco. From the way he'd just talked about his old boss, he'd hardly portrayed himself as the man's greatest fan.

  They returned to the storage room and put their plan to him. He agreed to help without hesitation.

  "That didn't take you long," remarked Tyresa. "I didn't know you disliked Lowcuzt so much."

  A melancholy smile appeared on the man's face. "There was a time when I would have agreed to help only on the condition that I got to hurt him. He used me like he uses everyone. So long as I was loyal to him, everything was good. And then, the moment I disagreed with him…" Falco lost himself in a moment's thought. "Anyway, I think I just realised I no longer seethe over him. The fire has gone out of my desire for revenge. I'll help you because it's the right thing to do."

  "Can you get someone inside?" asked Robbi.

  "I can get you past the outer walls, and I know how his security systems work once you're inside. Thousands of programmers work there, it will work best if you blend in and pretend to be one of them." He looked at Robbi's uniform. "You'll need suitable attire. Programmers have a rather particular dress sense. Wait here."

  Falco disappeared from the room for a moment and returned with some clothing.

  "From my engineering days," he said, holding up a pair of baggy canvas trousers and a black t-shirt. The t-shirt bore a slogan:

  BINARY IS AS EASY AS 01, 10, 11.

  Tyresa studied it with a raised eyebrow. "You're a weird bunch, you programmers. Okay, we're about the same height, Falco, they should fit me." She took the clothes.

  Robbi looked at her, taken aback. "What are you doing? I'll be the one to go."

  Tyresa shook her head. "No, I'll
go. Colin is my responsibility. And, ultimately, I'm the one who brought him to this end."

  "But it could be dangerous."

  "I'll be fine," Tyresa assured her. "At a time like this, your place is with your shipmates. Your job will be to get us out of there after I find Colin. Besides, these are men's clothes…" She poked a finger at Robbi's bosom. "…you'll never fit into them with tits like those."

  Before the Commander could complain any more, Falco interrupted. "Whoever goes, there remains a problem. If your friend is being held in Lowcuzt's private lab, which seems likely, you won't be able to get inside. It's the most secure area."

  "Any suggestions?" asked Tyresa.

  "Ye-e-es," replied Falco. He looked uneasy. "All the doors in the compound are secured automatically. They work by scanning the user's neural implant. If you have an authorised implant, the door opens for you. But only Lowcuzt, his assistant and his SAPs have authorisation to enter the private lab."

  "Do you have an implant that would work?"

  "No." Falco gulped and looked at the sheet in the corner of the room, the one covering the dead SAP. "But he does."

  Tyresa followed his gaze, feeling suddenly queasy. "You mean if I carried his neural implant in my pocket, I could wander the compound at will?"

  "Ye-e-es."

  "The neural implant that is currently…inside his head?"

  "Ye-e-es."

  "Which would need to be…removed?"

  "Ye-e-es."

  Glances were exchanged in the room. People looked uncomfortably at each other, waiting to see who would be the one to volunteer.

  Jonn Shuffla clambered to his feet. From his pocket, he produced a phaser-blade handle. With a jerk of his wrist, the blade shot out with a bsshhzzz, a six-inch, electric blue stick of raw energy that could cut through steel like butter.

  "Child's play," he muttered.

  As he purposefully bore down on the corpse, blade in his hand, a roomful of people simultaneously decided they had urgent business elsewhere.

  33

  If Lowcuzt were in control of his own body, he'd have been pacing the room and flapping his arms in panic by now. The list of serious crimes in which he was implicated was growing by the hour. In less than a day, he'd managed to tally up a record of murder, mental mutilation and, the latest, kidnapping.