Free Trader Complete Omnibus

by Craig Martelle

  “Micah and I have left instructions for Holly to control the new additions when they arrive. They will be responsible for finding a way to defeat the Overlords, reestablishing peace in the south. We don’t want them wandering very far. They won’t be allowed access to any weapons. We don’t want them to upset Brandt.”

  ‘Thank you for your consideration.’ Brandt bowed to the group.

  They were sitting on the dock at the lake. They were going to be inside the RV Traveler for ten or fifteen turns. There was no sense spending more time inside than they had to, despite Holly’s assurances that the ship’s size would fool them into thinking they were outside.

  Aadi, G-War, and Skirill remained skeptical. They would be until they were physically on the ship and saw for themselves.

  Holly also suggested, rather strongly, that all the companions needed to be ready in case of a Security Bot gone bad or if something of similar lethality was running rampant. Once Holly knew that the companions were going to the ship, he had armor made for each of them, even the Tortoid.

  Skirill’s wings had to remain unencumbered, but he could wear a coverlet protecting his vital organs. It shined like the glimmer from a mirror beast. Aadi had something similar draped over his shell. It made him look like one of the Server Bots. G-War had armor that looked similar to what the humans wore, including a power source. Of course he hated having anything on his body. Although enlightened, he was still a ‘cat.

  Braden and Micah wore the same thing, which looked like a stiff tunic and leggings. The powered armor absorbed energy directed at it, increasing the strength of its defensive shield.

  Braden and Micah kept their powered boots. Once the boots helped them defeat the Bat-Ravens, they wouldn’t wear anything else.

  Holly also gave them new bracelets which would grant them access through any door. Micah wore the bracelet of the President. This gave her unlimited access to all areas. Braden retained his position of Caretaker, which gave him access to most command and engineering spaces. He thought if he didn’t have access, he probably shouldn’t be there. The others received bracelets that would work, despite the fact that they were mutant creatures. The bracelets were designed to project a human signature. They were all given senior command ranks. Aadi’s bracelet was embedded in the harness over his armor while Skirill and G-War wore theirs like collars.

  G-War hated it. He said he thought he was being choked.

  “Can’t be helped, G. We don’t know what we’re going to find up there. We have to be ready for anything.” Braden pulled up his belt pouch to show the others he had numbweed, needle, and Old Tech sutures. The final thing the armory provided was backpacks filled with water and foods in fancy Old Tech wrappings.

  G-War walked stiffly when he had on all his gear. Skirill hopped, but said he couldn’t fly. Aadi floated along peacefully, completely unaffected.

  “You have to try and run, G. And you, Ess, give us an effort! Your gear weighs less than G-War and you were able to fly with him hanging on you.” Skirill hopped around and beat his wings, finally getting airborne. He slowly became comfortable. When he finally gave in to doing it, he was able to fly and maneuver as he needed to.

  Braden chased G-War around. He wanted him to run, climb, pounce, and do all the things he might need to do if they were forced to fight. Like Skirill, he was reluctant at first, but in the end accepted that it had to be. Braden and Micah also had to get used to their new armor.

  It took ten turns before they were ready to commit. If they weren’t outside running the obstacle course that was New Sanctuary, they were in the New Command Center getting drilled on the inner workings of the massive spaceship.

  Water, valves, air, systems, buttons, door markings. The technical details were endless. Braden and Micah downloaded maps of the ship into their neural implants, but they couldn’t fight with the window blocking their vision. They needed to memorize the most important details. If they had to rely on the implant, the delay could be deadly.

  The more they prepared themselves, the more they realized how unprepared they were.

  When the others left the New Command Center, Braden stayed behind to look at live pictures of the villages and towns of Vii. He stood close to the wall of screens. Holly joined him.

  “What do you think, Holly? Anything you see that says the war is going to spill over?” Braden didn’t know all of Holly’s capabilities. He didn’t know how he could accomplish what he did, so he simply asked. Either he knew or he didn’t.

  “I’m sorry, Braden. I don’t have any information besides what you’ve given me. The organized attack by the Amazon crocodiles and piranha represents an escalation. But for what’s next? I simply do not know. I can’t tell about the north, except there isn’t open warfare. That doesn’t mean there isn’t strife, but the wholesale destruction associated with combat between armies is lacking.

  “I have no information on the research facility at the bottom of the Western Ocean, either. The scientists from Cygnus VI should be able to help me refine my information collection protocols. I can only use what I’ve been programmed for, which is oriented toward detection and identification of technological approaches to war. The low tech methods are invisible to my current capabilities.” Holly stopped and waited for Braden. He had learned to do this because the human took time to internalize much of the information the hologram shared.

  “You called them piranha? That’s what we call the sharkfish?”

  “Yes.” Holly wondered if the human heard anything else.

  “We don’t know anything until the scientists can help us look at things differently. Got it. Thanks, Holly. Don’t be a stranger.” Braden pushed the button for the elevator and left the New Command Center.

  Holly stayed visible, watching as the human departed. With every interaction, his Artificial Intelligence program learned and grew. Once he ran Braden’s last statement through his algorithms, Holly could identify the most probable response. For now, he remained befuddled. Why would Holly be a stranger?

  10 – Transfer to the Traveler

  It was time. They crowded into a new room tucked into the manufacturing level. The companions were understandably anxious. The machinery and depth underground weighed heavily on them. Like Braden and Micah, they preferred the outdoors. They hoped Holly was correct, that spaces on the ship would be open and they’d feel free. Otherwise it was going to be a very long trip. G-War told Braden that he’d kill him in his sleep if he was trapped in a small space for more than a single turn.

  Micah told G-War that she wouldn’t allow death, so they settled on a simple maiming.

  Braden looked to Aadi and Skirill for support, but they avoided his gaze.

  “Fine.” He wanted everyone to relax. He’d seen pictures and even moving pictures of the ship. With basic maps in his head, he didn’t expect any surprises.

  They’d arrive in a small room at the aft end of the ship. The matter transfer system consumed great amounts of power, so it was best situated close to the engines. From there, they needed to travel to the bow, where they would change the orientation of the ship to align it for transfer to Cygnus VI. Once the survivors on Cygnus VI were safely aboard, they’d realign the ship for transfer to the New Command Center.

  The details of why were lost on Braden. Appear in the back of the ship. Go to the front. Move levers, mash buttons, turn wheels exactly as Holly told them. Go to the back, prepare a safe place for the people of Cygnus VI. Then back to the front to move the ship around some more, do as Holly commanded. Then one last trip to the back. For perspective, Holly said that it was more than a single turn’s walk one-way. They had to cover the distance four times.

  Through possibly hostile areas.

  Four times…

  They entered the circular room and the wall slid into place behind them. Braden helped Skirill off Aadi’s shell, then carefully put him in one of twelve reclining metal chairs. Aadi floated down until he stood on his chair. G-War jumped into another of th
e recliners and crouched on it. The two humans got into their chairs. The feet of the recliners pointed inward to the center of the circular room where a single cylinder stood from floor to ceiling.

  They stood in the room while Holly’s disembodied voice talked to them. “The panels will shimmer. Stay in your seats and do not move. Do not touch each other under any circumstances. Space between you is important as the device catalogues and deconstructs you. You will be reconstructed on the Traveler. For you, it will seem as if only a moment has passed, while the entire process will take one to two days. Relax. Close your eyes and breathe deeply.”

  The mirror-like panels on the wall shimmered, as a Mirror Beast might. Then a deep tone pressed in on them. The ‘cat struggled to remain still. ‘Relax, G. We’re here together. We’ll be there soon and then we can find the open air, maybe bag a rabbit together. Rabbit sounds good…’ Braden’s thoughts calmed them all as they thought of their next meal.

  11 – Controlled Chaos

  ‘…Rabbit.’ Braden opened his eyes. He had a massive headache. The room was the same but different. The ceiling colors had changed. The panels shimmered until they didn’t. “Holly?”

  Braden opened his neural implant. Holly appeared in the window. The transfer was complete.

  They were on the RV Traveler.

  They needed to exit this room. Next door, there may be people controlling computer systems and engineers keeping the engines running. A door up one level and to the right would put them in a corridor taking them to a rear core access door. From there, they’d cross a ten-kilometer long deck of the rear core, where there would be a pod system, a vehicle to take them to the forward core world access. Cross that and head upward into the central non-gravity area, and they’d find the Command Decks.

  Or so Holly assured them.

  “Is everyone okay? Micah?”

  She opened her eyes. They remained unfocused as if she had just woken from a long sleep. She flexed her fingers then hands and started stretching each of her muscles. “Yeah. I feel like Brandt ran me over, but besides that, feeling great.” She leaned over the side of her chair and heaved her breakfast onto the floor.

  Aadi remained motionless, unblinking. “Aadi?” Braden asked as he threw his feet from the chair to the floor. The room started to spin and he dutifully power-puked. Holly hadn’t suggested they’d be sick, otherwise they wouldn’t have eaten such a hearty breakfast.

  Skirill blinked rapidly and started to flex his wings. ‘I’m afraid there’s no room to fly yet. I shall continue to burden poor Master Aadi.’ The Hawkoid didn’t get sick as he flexed his muscles and was soon moving freely.

  Braden stood on shaky feet. He staggered to Aadi and held his head in both hands, looking closely at his eyes. A slow blink and a deliberate shake of his head. Braden rubbed the Tortoid’s neck. ‘Sorry. Fell asleep. What a strange sensation. I dreamed of cactus weevils and water.’ He floated upward and swam around the room without a problem.

  Braden shook his head and tapped Aadi’s shell. He looked around at the plain room. He couldn’t identify which panels would move to allow them to exit.

  “Holly, can you open the door for us?” Holly had given them a large device that he needed to directly access ship systems. He called it a broadband transceiver. The device needed to be close to the computer and then Holly could talk to it. Without it, he could only access the systems attached to the main communication infrastructure. With it on board, he could access anything.

  G-War jumped from his chair, hairs on end. Only the humans had gotten sick.

  ‘We were all sick, but we’re tougher than you humans, that’s all.’

  “We’re here ten heartbeats and you’re already an ass. Remember, we’re guests. Be kind.” Braden smiled at his friend. He was happy to see the ‘cat calmer than when they left.

  “Holly? We’re ready to go.”

  ‘Almost there,’ Holly sent to the window before Braden’s eye.

  “Holly says he almost has the door open. This is the only one we need him for. After this, our bracelets should give us access everywhere we need to go. Be ready.” Skirill hopped onto Aadi’s back and grasped the harness strap. Braden and Micah pulled their blasters, already dialed to the weakest setting.

  Three panels moved inward and slid along the wall.

  Darkness greeted them, darkness speckled with small colored lights. Again, Holly hadn’t suggested they’d operate in the darkness although one of many Old Tech toys in their backpacks would help. They slung their backpacks to the floor and started digging.

  ‘G? Aadi?’

  ‘It’s like the New Command Center. I see workstations and screens. No people. There’s vegetation in the back, looks like vines. The air is wet, like the rainforest,’ G-War told them after looking through the opening. Braden and Micah thought they were hot from the excitement of the transfer and not that the environment was warmer than normal. ‘I don’t see danger. Not right now.’

  The humans pulled out the portable lights from their backpacks and turned them on. It was odd that they didn’t flash, but that’s what Holly called them: flashlights. The beams penetrated the darkness. With a shrug, the humans walked into the next room, shining their lights left, right, up, down. An empty Command Center. Micah opened the window of her neural implant. ‘Are you seeing this, Holly?’

  ‘Yes. I am pleased with the functioning systems, but alarmed at the heat and humidity. These are not good for the systems. I will close the door to the matter transfer room. The instruments in that room are delicate. They must be protected if you are to return.’

  ‘Do you want your box in or out?’ Micah asked.

  ‘In is better. I’ll close the door. Don’t be alarmed,’ Holly responded.

  “Holly’s closing the door. He wants to keep the matter transfer chamber dry to make sure we can leave when we’re done.”

  The door silently slid shut, leaving the only light shining from the beams of their flashlights. Aadi and G-War moved wide to see anything to their sides while Braden and Micah moved forward, past the work stations. Metal equipment and large devices covered the wall to their front. To the left, their lights faded into the distance as the floor arced toward the ceiling. There was a great deal of space above them.

  “Elevator – there.” Braden pointed with the light beam. “Up one and then down the platform to the right.” He shined the beam along the walkway, but couldn’t see the door they needed to go through. It was disconcerting seeing the floor slope upwards. Holly explained that the shape was necessary so the ship could spin, giving the appearance of gravity. When they asked what that meant, Holly said without the spin, they would float through the air. They’d get a taste of that when they reached the forward Command Deck.

  Skirill launched himself from Aadi’s back and flew upward. Braden followed him with his light so the Hawkoid could see. He flew oddly, at an angle and sometimes sideways. He turned tightly and flew back, swooping past them. He made another tight turn, then climbed to the catwalk, as Holly called it, that they needed to take. He flew a hundred strides down and landed on the handrail. Braden and G-War waited while Aadi and Micah called the elevator and entered it.

  “One floor up please,” she said as Holly had told her.

  The doors closed and the elevator moved quickly upward. They floated off the floor as it slowed, landing when it stopped. The doors opened and they stepped onto the catwalk. Braden was far below with his light shining past Skirill. Micah waved her flashlight and then pointed it at Skirill. She headed toward the Hawkoid.

  Braden and G-War rode the elevator and stepped onto the walkway.

  Braden’s neural implant buzzed. Holly insisted that they not close the window while they were aboard the RV Traveler. He needed to stay in touch at all times. Braden thought Holly was more worried than he was.

  ‘What, Holly?’

  ‘Braden, thank you for answering.’ Was that sarcasm? ‘I suggest you go the other way and check on the vines growing
down the wall. There shouldn’t be any growth in here. You may need to burn that down to preserve the systems in this area. That may be the reason for the high humidity.’

  “Micah!” Braden shouted. She jumped and shushed him.

  “Holly wants us to look at the vines and maybe burn them out,” he said in a quieter voice. “We have to go back this way.” G-War turned, shaking his head, and padded in the new direction.

  Skirill flew past them, angling away from the vines, slowing and hovering with great wing beats. The other companions looked through his eyes at the vines. They looked like something straight out of the rainforest. The vines were heavy, with small leaves. Water ran downward, puddling on the floor before disappearing through a grating below. Braden leaned around the railing of the catwalk, hanging precariously over the edge. Even with Skirill’s help, he couldn’t see the base of the vines.

  He held his hands up in surrender, then Micah looked. The vines covered the catwalk like a waterfall. If they wanted to pass this way, they couldn’t, unless they went back to the main engineering space, down one level. She looked closely, focusing her light on a single thick vine and the small leaves on it. She reached up to touch it.

  ‘STOP!’ G-War shouted over their mindlink.

  She pulled back as the leaves whipped back and forth where her hand had been a moment before. She pulled her sword and held it close. The leaves whipped against it, ringing as metal struck metal.