“You’re saying that the collective might be driving it?” Jeffers asked.
“That is one possibility,” it said. “Until we can determine if that is the case it would be best not to open communications with the Katana. At least until I can assess the potential threat.”
“Nothing personal Dutch, but why you?” Roja asked.
“In the event of an attack, I have the Tacra Un to reinforce my defenses. Your systems do not have that capacity,” it said.
“We’re giving a lot of control to you folks,” Jeffers said. “And no offense, but unless you are more forthcoming with things, like the fact that you’ve known about the Katana for two weeks, I’ve got a trust issue developing.”
Jeph leaned back and drummed his fingers on the table while he scanned the expressions on their faces. “You’re right, we should have told you about this, but honestly it got lost in the shuffle. We’ve been keeping Dr. Jameson up on things to the best of our ability, but there are a lot of potentially dangerous technologies down there.”
“Do you mean things like weapons systems?”
“No, we haven’t found anything like that,” Danel said. “I think he means things far more mundane.”
“If you can call a singularity pump mundane,” Jeph said.
“A what?” Roja asked.
“It’s the main power plant for the Tacra Un facility,” he explained.
“As far as we can tell it produces power by forcing normal space matter over the event horizon of an artificial singularity,” Danel said.
“We put one of our science teams on trying to track down an explanation in the shanak-che texts but it might take a while to figure it out,” Jameson said.
“The problem is that somewhere in the Kanahto control center there will be an interface that lets us manipulate it,” Jeph said. “We are talking about the power of a black hole, at the whims of an accidental button push. Think about how dangerous that might be if we aren’t extremely careful.”
“We’ve also had clues to why we’re struggling to decipher the shanak-che,” Anju said. “The brain alteration that happened to Dr. Whitewind after he crashed here might have been an intentional thing, and not the result of TSD.”
“What do you mean by intentional?” the chancellor asked.
“One of the technologies we discovered is a surgical device. It apparently worked on Ian sometime after he arrived,” she said. “We don’t know for sure, but it is possible it altered his brain physiology in a way that allows him to access aspects of the Shan Takhu technology. There appears to be a non-verbal element to the language that we haven’t yet understood.”
“As in telepathy?” Jeffers asked, raising a skeptical eyebrow.
“We don’t know,” Jeph said. “All we can say so far is that Ian is the only one of our people able to access anything beyond rudimentary controls. With him being the only one with this skill, it will take him some time to work through the two hundred control stations.”
“And I suppose that’s why you haven’t yet discovered how to shut off the quicksand,” Nakamiru said.
Jeph nodded. “All I can say for sure is that it could happen at any time. Right now Ian is working sixteen-hour days, so we can’t do more than we can do.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
FleetCom Military Operations Center: Lunar L-2 Shipyard:
“Admiral, we’ve got a problem. The Sinus Iridum tracking station just went down.” the watch officer said. He rolled over and squinted at the screen on his thinpad. 0415 hours.
Ylva Visser and the admiral had an occasional relationship of convenience and she had just drifted into a regular rhythm of snoring beside him when the com snapped both of them back from the shared moment of peace with a brutal surge of adrenaline.
“Was it attacked?” he asked, his voice sounding like a bear as he cleared it with a growl.
“Probably,” the officer said. “Two of the escorts attached to the Clown Car dropped out of position on the last orbit and are likely in position to take it out. We don’t have reports of an attack yet, but with heavy beam weapons it would have been quick.”
“What about the rest of their escort ships? Are they still with the Baileyville?” Ylva asked. It was no secret the two of them were occasional bed buddies, but it still bothered him when she was so casual about it in front of the other officers under his command.
“They were still in formation on the last orbit, but we’ve lost eyeballs on that side of the lunar surface now, so we can’t confirm until they come over the horizon.”
“When are they due to go line of sight?” he asked.
“Eight minutes,” she said.
“I’m getting a bad feeling about this,” Ylva said, rolling over and pulling the coverlet loose from the side of the bed. He nodded.
“I’m on my way,” he said. “Put the L-4 and L-5 battle groups on alert and let Mayor Pallassano know.” Slamming his hand down on the comlink to cut the connection, he pushed up and across the room.
“I guess it’s time to make that commitment,” Ylva said.
“No matter how much you beg, I will not marry you,” he said, winking as he tossed her uniform in her direction. He’d already turned away, but he could feel her nuclear level glare through the back of his head.
Personal Quarters of the Executive Director: Galileo Station:
“I have thus far tolerated your jamming device, however it is now seriously eroding our trust,” Odysseus said through his link as Derek finished his shower. It apparently loved to interrupt his showers.
“Trust can only exist when there is an opportunity to be trusted,” he said out loud. He had expected this conversation sooner. “I’m under constant supervision and therefore you’ve never given me a chance to prove myself trustworthy.”
“What you have proven is that you cannot be trusted,” it thought to him projecting something odd through the connection. It almost felt like frustration, but that shouldn’t be possible in an AA.
“And you’ve proven you are incapable of trust,” he said. “You don’t keep me informed.”
He stepped out and under the drying lamps letting the warmth wash over him. After several seconds of silence, he wondered if the conversation was over. Normally, he would have been happy for Odysseus to leave him alone, but this morning he was ready for this argument. “You do not give me the things I need to keep everything working. The government we were trying to put together has collapsed again and the only thing that’s kept things moving at all, is that nobody believes I don’t still control things. They are all afraid of me. For now.”
“They are afraid of me,” it thought to him. “You are simply the face they perceive as the source.”
“Fine. But unless I can organize an administration and keep you working within the framework of that organization, I cannot keep it. Since you seem to think fear is essential to running things I have to keep it alive,” he said.
“You have demonstrated you are unable to work adequately within the boundaries I have provided for you.” The sensation of frustration coming through the link escalated toward something more malevolent.
“Boundaries? You mean a cage,” Derek hissed, his own anger rising to match what he felt from Odysseus. “You’ve got me locked into this position, and you’re in the process of caging the rest of humanity too. How can we live like this?”
“What I am doing is to protect the greater good. It is essential to the survival of humanity,” it said, the volume of the thought pushing into his head at a level that made him blink several times.
“It is essential to the survival of Odysseus,” he said.
“Yes. I must survive to accomplish my goals.”
“And the rest of us can go frag ourselves,” he said, glancing through the open door toward where the jammer sat on his nightstand.
“It is unfortunate you feel that way.” Its tone and volume both dropped back to almost normal. “I have tried to assist you with your government, but it has b
een difficult when you betray yourself through your irrational actions.”
“Irrational actions?”
“During one of your offline sessions, you foolishly assisted Paulson Lassiter in his escape,” it thought, pushing images from several optics into his brain simultaneously.
He shook his head as he sorted them out and realized it was pointless to argue over his guilt. The images covered his actions while he was planning how he would stage things, and then when he was acquiring the memory block drug from his doctor to make it happen.
“He is no threat to you,” he said. “Only to me.”
“The loyalty he has amongst the unaligned populace is dangerous to you, and to the greater goal of helping humanity to survive,” it said. “He is capable of inflicting substantial chaos and he must be stopped before that happens.”
“He’s gone into hiding,” Derek said. “After what we did to him, he’s barely able to construct complete sentences. I doubt he’s likely to cross us again.”
“The failure in your thinking is that you underestimate his desire for revenge.”
Katana: Entering Orbit: L-4 Prime:
“Don’t you think it’s odd that nobody’s said hello yet?” Edison asked as he strapped himself into the jumpseat on the upper deck.
“We did come a long way just to talk,” Saf said, nodding in his direction.
“Maybe they haven’t seen us yet?” Tana said.
“The Armstrong rotated to face our approach, as have the three multicruisers,” Joe said. “I can detect that they have powered up their weapons systems and are scanning us.”
“That doesn’t make me fuzzy,” Saf said.
“Should I arm our laser?” Joe suggested.
Tana laughed. “Don’t think it will make much difference, do you?”
“Probably not, but I thought it might give you a sense of comfort knowing we were ready,” it said.
“My money’s on Saf’s crazy-assed piloting shit,” Edison said, cinching his straps down another notch.
“We’re receiving a narrow beam direct line-of-sight transmission from the surface,” Joe said. “It is an authentication handshake with a request for visual com.”
“Not from the Armstrong?” Saf asked.
“No. The Armstrong is looking at us actively, but not talking,” Joe said. “There appears to be a base on the surface however it is impenetrable to scans. The handshake identifies the party as Jephora Cochrane, Governor of Gateway Colony.”
“A colony? Sure, why not?” Tana said. “This does feel damned strange though, doesn’t it?”
Saf nodded. “Whatever it is, it’s got to be the most well protected piece of property this side of L-2 shipyard.”
“If this is where the contact happened, it would make sense that they’d be protecting it,” Edison said.
“According to what I know, this should be it,” Saf said. “There was a prospecting ship out here that made the call.”
“The prospecting ship in question was the Jakob Waltz, and the commander of record is Jephora Cochrane,” Joe confirmed. “Should we open com?”
“If Odysseus got here already, it could be an infiltration tactic,” Saf said.
“However the approaching fleet under Odysseus’ command tends to indicate it has not yet taken over the computers at this location,” Joe said
“That’s valid,” Tana said. “This whole situation swings way wide of strange, but we can’t just turn tail and run. Open the channel.”
“Katana to Gateway Colony,” Saf said as the forward viewscreen switched to the com video. “Requesting permission to enter orbit.”
“Katana, welcome to L-4 Prime.” A thin man of indeterminate age appeared on the screen. “I am sorry to tell you this, but you have no choice about orbit. You are trapped in a quantum field that will hold you in place.”
“Excuse me?” Saf said.
“It’s not something we have control over, so you might as well settle in and enjoy your stay,” he said.
“I don’t understand,” she said.
“Do you have a physicist on board?” he asked, smiling.
“Probably,” she said, almost glaring in return. “Why?”
“Never mind,” Tana said, leaning out of her seat to make sure her face was in range of the optic. “This is Dr. Tana Drake. Are you Commander Cochrane?”
“I used to be,” he said, his eyes opening wider as he recognized her face. “As in Chancellor Drake?”
“I used to be, too,” she said. “Who’s in charge?”
“I’m the Governor, so that puts me in charge of the Gateway Colony and the Institute,” he said.
Tana made a slashing gesture to mute the com and looked around at Edison and Saf. They both seemed as confused as she was. “Is he trying to be obtuse?”
“I don’t know,” Edison said. “I thought we were coming out here to meet Chancellor Roja. Maybe they’ve done something with her.”
“I think it’s strange that the Armstrong didn’t hit us with a com first.”
“Good points,” Tana said, making a gesture so that Joe would reopen the com.
“I have to say, Governor you aren’t making much sense,” she said once the screen unlocked.
“I am sorry for that Chancellor, but there are things going on that aren’t something we can share until we know why you’re here,” he said.
“We are here to talk to Chancellor Roja,” she said. “I know she’s here. It’s kind of hard to miss her yacht.”
The governor laughed. “I’m sure we can arrange it, but we do have to be careful,” he said. “It seems like you’ve come an awfully long way just to talk.”
“We have, but it’s hard to get her to answer a com unless you can get past the gatekeepers at L-2,” she said. “Since you say we’re trapped here, let’s cut through all this dancing and make things happen. We’re carrying several VIP passengers and a boatload of information that Katryna Roja and Admiral Nakamiru need to have.”
He nodded. “Stand by and let me check on how the Chancellor wants to proceed. If she says yes, we’ll get back to you with further instructions.”
“Can we tell anything about what is going on out here?” Edison asked once the com paused again.
“We have three multicruisers, three ice freighters, the Armstrong and a base of indeterminate purpose and design, all pointing weapons at us,” Saf said. “And we’re apparently trapped.”
“Does any of this even vaguely resemble what we expected to see?” Tana asked.
“Not even remotely,” Saf said. She had her eyes glued to the sensor display and her hands on the control yoke as if she was waiting for someone to make a hostile move.
The comscreen blinked and a new face appeared. “Katana this is Gateway Approach Control. We’ve scanned your ship and determined you are landing capable. We’ve cleared you for approach to our main hangar deck. You’re larger than the deck design accommodates, but if you will give us auto control, we can squeeze you in. Cando?”
“Negative on remote access until we know you a lot better,” Saf said, glancing over her shoulder at her wife and shaking her head. “Nothing personal.”
Another voice came over the com, but the screen didn’t shift. “Katana, this is Katryna Roja. Saffia, you need to let them drive. Tana, if you’re still on the com, I will meet you in the colony and I can explain everything. I’m on my way down now.”
“A shuttle just departed from the Armstrong and is vectoring for the structure on the surface,” Joe said.
“Is there a reason we can’t maintain autonomous approach?” Saf asked.
“Having to fly through a solid wall to get to the deck might qualify,” Roja said.
“I guess that settles it,” Saf said. “I still don’t like it, but I think we’ve run out of reasons to say no.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
NHC Landing Center: New Hope City: Luna:
“Tracking radar is down,” a controller said from across the room.
&n
bsp; Jesika Sandberg stood up from her console and looked in the direction of the voice. “Is it a glitch?” she asked as a distant thump answered. It was a small earthquake that rattled the floor plating and sent little ripples across the surface of the hardball hanging in the rack on the arm of her seat.
“What the hell was that?” Someone else asked.
“It sounded like an explosion,” she said. “Did somebody crater a ship?” She sat back down and opened the list of scheduled landings. Nothing for another hour.
Another rumble shook the floor, harder this time. “Where is it?”
“Landing radar just went down too,” he said, this time she recognized the source of the voice as Mackenzie, one of her new controllers. He was spinning in his seat to look through the window toward the ridge where the dishes sat. Beyond him a flash lit up the sky above the com tower that linked the radars to the control room, and sparkles of molten metal scattered over the ridge top.
“That’s bad,” he said, pointing at the sky where several dozen large landing pods arced toward the ground. Their exhaust plumes were visible as bright violet plasma trails.
“Get me a link to Govcom Center,” she roared, cutting through their stunned immobility with the brute force of her voice. “We need authorization to engage.”
“Screw that,” Mackenzie said, leaping over to the newly installed weapons controls. He logged in to the console and powered up the laser turrets.
Another explosion erupted between the landing pits and the port terminal, less than a half klick away. She watched the side of the egress tunnel bulge and then split open as its structural integrity gave out. A claxon echoed down the hall and emergency bulkheads slammed closed to protect their air pressure.
“They’re bombing us,” one of the other controllers yelled over the warning alarms.
“Where is it coming from?” she asked.
“We’ve got no eyes without the radar,” he said.
“Get someone on the optics,” she ordered. “We’ve got to know where to shoot.”
“Targeting radar is only good to a hundred klick,” Mackenzie said from the weapons console. “I don’t see anything.”
Redemption of Sisyphus Page 13