by Jason Kent
The automaton worked with feverish determination. The metal bug clamped onto the card reader with four legs while it used the other four to tap madly at the keys. A small cover flipped open on its carapace. Red filament numbers displayed the code sequences as they were entered. The numbers changed so fast the tiny numerals blurred together. After thirty seconds, the ticking of the insect's feet on the keys abruptly stopped and the light on the panel flashed from red to green.
"Now that's what I'm talking about!" Georges whooped as the lock clicked open. He pushed the door open before they could latch again. "Grab our friend! I have the feeling we'll be needing him again!"
Tivon snatched the clockwork code-breaker from the wall and hurried out onto the bridge after Georges.
The bridge linked the tower where their elevator had gotten jammed to Tower One, the location of the the EMTEC executive offices. The bridge's tubular structure swayed and bucked from the explosions detonating at ground level far below. Georges and Tivon staggered as they moved in long, loping strides towards the far set of doors. They made it halfway across before they caught sight of the black ship flying through the air. It banked around another EMTC tower and streaked straight at them.
"Tral!" Georges cursed as the alien fighter fired at the bridge. He grabbed Tivon's hand and pulled her along behind him as fast as they could move. Behind them, glass panes disintegrated and more damaged panes were torn free by the force of the pressurized air rushing out. Through the roar of escaping atmosphere, Georges shouted, "I hope our friend works fast!"
Tivon simply nodded. She was laboring to get a lungful of the thinning air. As they ran, she tapped the activation code into the beetle's carapace. When she reached the door at the far side of the bridge, Tivon skidded to a halt and slammed the clockwork device against the keypad. The beetle clicked into action in a repeat performance. It tapped at the keys furiously with its mechanical legs.
Behind them, the air continued to rush out of the broken sections of the bridge tube. Georges scanned the orange sky for the fighter. He feared it would circle around in an attempt to finish them off. He saw a few aircraft streaking through the sky, but he identified them as Stellar Union fighters. Georges figured they were finally responding to the attack on the EMTEC complex. He muttered, "Better late than never."
Georges turned his attention back to the beetle. He was getting light-headed and having a hard time breathing as the air pressure got lower, trying to equalizing with the Martian atmosphere outside.
"Come on!" Tivon gasped, urging the gleaming beetle still clicking away at its task.
Georges pulled out his handgun and shouted, "Stand back!" He didn't want to break down the door and depressurize the tower they were so desperate to get into, but right now it seemed like their only choice. He aimed at the lock and started to pull the trigger.
"Green light!" Tivon wheezed and snatched the clockwork beetle off the wall. "Open it!"
Georges let off the trigger and yanked the door open. He held on to the handle as the blast of air from within Tower One threatened to throw him back along the bridge. Tivon grabbed onto Georges arm as she lost her footing and was nearly sent tumbling toward the venting breeches. Georges yelled, "IN!"
Tivon did not argue. She ducked under Georges arm and dove sideways to wedge a wall between her and the violent winds rushing out the door. Georges followed by pulling himself through the door. He hit the button to seal the door on the inside wall. Motors whirred and strained to close the door. The locks finally clicked and the rush of escaping atmosphere was abruptly cut off.
Georges dropped to his hands and knees, the dangerously thin amount of air finally taking its toll on his lungs. He looked up as fans up in the Tower's ventilation system kicked in and began to fill the room with fresh air. Georges took a deep breath. "Thank goodness for smart environmental systems."
"Yeah," Tivon agreed, inhaling deeply. "We'll have to give this little guy a medal." She held up the gleaming beetle. Its legs twitched, looking for something to grasp.
Georges nodded and got to his feet. "You can pass my thanks onto the tinkerers in the Archives when we get back." He started toward massive double doors made to look as if they were carved from expensive hardwood. "Let's deliver our message and find our ride home."
Alarms began to blare and warning lights started pulsing as Kate reached the big doors at the back of the engine room lab.
"Are those because of us?" Kate asked. She looked back at Ross and Merrick. The two marines each held a handle on either side of the ACU. They staggered as the room shook and bits of the ceiling rained down on them. Kate was holding onto Sparrow. She tightened her grip on her friend.
"More than likely, it's for them," Ross replied with a grunt. He nodded in the direction of the most recent explosion. "I would guess the local rent-a-cops have more to worry about than a mere break-in."
Kate's hands were shaking as she pulled out the identity card and swiped it over the access panel beside the doors. The indicator light blinked red. Kate tried the card again, only to have the same result. "Red light again!" She looked at Sparrow. "Can't you...you know..." Kate waved her arms at the door and access panel. Her eyes met Sparrow's exhausted gaze. "Never mind." She looked over her shoulder at Ross. "We need some help here!"
"Got just the thing," Ross said. He and Merrick set the orb down. Ross extracted a cylinder with a handle affixed to one side from his pack. He fiddled with the control settings and nozzle as he stepped up to the door. Ross held the tip of the pistol-sized contraption up to the center of the door and pressed the trigger. The cylinder left a line of bluish-gray putty on the door seam. Ross had to reach above his head to apply the explosive to the highest of the three locks securing the door. He quickly ran the bead all the way from the top lock to the floor. When the marine was done, he pressed a button on the side of the cylinder and extracted a tiny chip from a slot at the base of the handgrip. He carefully pressed the chip into the explosive then examined his work. Satisfied, Ross turned to the others and announced, "That ought to do it!"
Knowing Ross, Kate figured she and Sparrow needed to be as far from the door as possible when the big marine activated the explosive. She hustled Sparrow over to a bank of Tallinn generators along the wall and crouched behind the nearest one. She figured the heavy steel case should offer plenty of protection. Merrick and Ross joined them a moment later with the ACU.
After the pair of Marines set down the orb, Merrick rushed to the far side of the door to a set of yellow lockers. He yanked open the locker doors and pulled out an armload of emergency breathing kits. On his way back, he tossed one to Ross.
Behind their cover once more, Merrick handed kits to Sparrow and Kate.
"We can't be sure if the attack has compromised the atmosphere in the rest of the facility," Merrick said by way of explanation and put on his mask.
Kate nodded, helped Sparrow put on a mask, and then adjusted hers. She slung both sets of air tanks over her shoulders. "Ready!" Her voice was muffled by the mask.
Ross looked over at Merrick.
"Cover your ears!" Merrick called. He nodded to Ross. Ross pressed down on the remote and cringed.
There was a flash of light up and down the door followed by a deafening crack. Debris and smoke rolled over their hiding spot. When Kate sensed the worst was over, she peaked over the idle generator to survey the damage.
"You were right," Kate noted. She waved the dust away from her face and coughed, "That did it." The blast had cut clean through the locks and most of the thick steel as well. Kate took hold of Sparrow and followed Ross and Merrick out through the shattered doors.
"Which way?" Ross said, his eyes roving over the crates and equipment stacked along the walls of the loading dock. There were multiple tunnels leading in different directions. Each was big enough for a large truck to drive through.
"Whichever one goes up!" Kate said. "Sparrow?"
Sparrow closed her eyes and a strained look crossed her face. Fina
lly, she pointed at a tunnel to the right. "That one will dump us near the main entrance."
"Right it is then," Kate said. She started moving toward the tunnel Sparrow chose.
"Ladies," Merrick said, "I suggest we catch a ride." Kate turned to find Merrick and Ross setting the ACU down in the bed of a motorized cart. Merrick met her eyes and raised his eyebrows at Kate. "Unless you prefer to walk?"
"Not today," Kate said. She helped Sparrow over to the cab and settled her in the passenger seat. Ross got behind the wheel while Merrick and Kate found space in the back. The tires squealed as they shot away from the loading dock and up the tunnel.
Kate held on tightly to both the low railing around the cargo bed and Merrick to keep from being flung out of the cart as Ross rounded each corner. The tunnel cut back on itself as it led upwards. Each sharp turn offered access to another underground level of the sprawling EMTEC complex. Ross ignored these and continued toward the surface.
They came out of the tunnel and entered a massive storage area filled with row after row of tall shelves. Automated cargo lifters trundled up and down the dim aisles, indifferent to the rumbling coming from the on-going fight outside.
"There," Merrick said, pointing at a line of oversized pressure locks. Ross responded by tromping on the accelerator. He had to swerve several times to avoid hitting a cargo hauler going about its job.
"Please reduce your speed! Please reduce your..." the haulers beeped and played automated warnings at them as they hurtled past.
"Sorry!" Kate called.
"You do not have to apologize to the robots," Sparrow said. "Trust me, they do not care!"
Ross slammed on the brakes and the cart skidded to a halt at a pressure lock. He leapt from the driver's seat and rushed to look out of a tiny window.
"We're at the promenade!" Ross announced. "Looks like maybe one level down from EMTEC's main entrance!"
"Good call on the directions," Kate told Sparrow.
"I'm just glad the boys found us a ride," Sparrow replied. She flexed her fingers and got out of her seat without any assistance.
"Feeling better?" Kate had her hand out, ready to grab her friend in case she started to fall.
"Much," Sparrow said. She stepped to the back of the cart and laid hands on the ACU's lid. Her mechanical eyes whirred and became unfocused. "The orb is unharmed."
"Good, then let's find the others!" Ross said. He dropped into the driver's seat again. "It's a good thing we've got masks, the pressure out there is dropping!"
"Must have breached the glass ceiling," Kate added as she jumped back into the bed while Ross edged the cart into an airlock.
Merrick hit the cycle controls and dashed into the lock after the cart as the inner doors began to close. He pulled his rifle off his back and sat with his legs hanging over the side of the cart. This allowed him to cradle his rifle in his arms and take aim at any targets which might present themselves when they exited the storage bay. Ross pulled out one of his guns and aimed it forward around the windshield.
"Hang on!" Ross shouted and began to move before the outer door was fully open. The cart shot out onto the lower promenade.
Kate heard the buzz of Ater guns even before she spotted the aliens on the upper level. Thankfully, their aim was off due to the angle they were firing from and Ross' speed. The cart thumped onto a ramp spiraling up to the main promenade.
"Shouldn't we avoid the Ater?!" Kate shouted.
"Nah!" Ross called back through his mask. "They won't expect a frontal assault!"
The CEO of EMTEC was not in his office suite when Georges and Tivon entered. Wary of what they might find, the Colonel pulled out his handgun and headed deeper into the room. Georges stepped up to the huge desk dominating the spacious office. He spotted a door partially concealed to look like a blank wall. Georges strode over and pressed against the door's seam, just visible thanks to the orange light streaming in through the floor-to-ceiling windows. The door clicked then swung open to reveal a large bathroom decorated in red tiles made from Martian rock and murals showing early spacecraft exploring both the surface of the red planet and one of its dark moons.
Todd Kurst, CEO of the largest corporation in human history spun around and threatened Georges with a plunger.
"Are you with them?" Kurst asked, his eyes flittering between the gun and Georges face.
"Not likely," Georges said and made a show of holstering his weapon.
"Prove it."
"If I was, you'd already be dead."
Kurst lowered the plunger and set it on the floor. He took a moment to compose himself then pushed past Georges back out into his office and to the wet bar. The CEO poured himself a healthy amount of amber liquor and downed it with one gulp. Kurst sucked in air between his teeth and shook his head.
"Are you okay, sir?" Georges asked. He eyed Tivon. Maybe this wasn't the man they were looking for. After all, this was someone they were hoping might help save the human race. The building shook and Kurst looked as if he were about to make a run back for the relative security of the executive toilet.
"I'm...fine," Kurst said, finally collecting himself. "But, perhaps it'd be best if we headed for the lower levels..." He eyed the tall windows as if they might blow out into the thin Martian atmosphere at any moment.
"Not a good idea, sir," Georges said. "Not with the Ater swarming through your lobby."
Kurst eyed Georges with narrowed eyes. "The Ater?"
"A race of aliens from beyond our galaxy," Tivon explained. "They're here to reclaim something they believe belongs to them."
"The sphere, right?" Kurst speculated. He shook his head. "Christ, I knew that thing was trouble when the Fleet guys brought it to us."
"It is called the Aether Source," Tivon explained. "It is...unique."
"I'll say," Kurst said and poured himself another drink. Georges stepped in front of the CEO and took the bottle from his hands. Kurst eyed the bottle as he spoke. "The other power cores were just that, fuel for the Tallinn ironclads. We've had plenty of those things brought in for us to study. But this last one, it was different. Where did you say it came from?"
"Not important," Georges interjected. "What is important is we possess the technical specifications for you to create a power source equivalent to seventy-five of the power cores the Tallinn's use." He held up a data stick. Back at the Archives, they had discussed giving EMTEC or the SUMC the entire tablet and dismissed the idea just as quickly. Giving the Stellar Union access to all of the information available seemed akin to giving a child a fully charged blaster. Instead, Tivon and Tarun had teased enough data from the tablet and key to allow them to put together a blueprint for a brand new power source more powerful than anything the Fleet had currently available.
Kurst eyed the data stick. Georges could tell his business instincts were kicking into overdrive. He'd forgotten about trying to hide from the rampaging Ater and was clearly considering the impact of the gift being offered to him. Finally, Kurst said, "What's your angle?"
"No angle," Georges said. "Our only stipulation is that you tell the SU you developed this after studying the orbs in your possession." He waggled the data stick for emphasis. "You can never reveal how you came by the data."
"So, you're just going to give me something worth billions of credits and what? Walk away?"
"That's exactly what we're going to do," Georges said and smiled. "But, there's a catch." His smile dropped away.
"There always is," Kurst said with a grim laugh. "You want paid after all!"
"There's a fleet of ten thousand Ater warships heading straight for us," George said. "You need to get this technology operational as soon as possible."
Kurst opened his mouth then shut it. "You're serious? How can you know that?"
"Let's just say we do," Tivon said. She swiped at her eyes and the contact lenses concealing her glowing violet eyes popped out.
Kurst's eyes widened. "You can talk to that tree!"
"I could commune with Kn
owl," Tivon admitted. "At one time at least." They had also decided it was best to not reveal the existence of Nemus.
"But it was destroyed!"
"I see you've been briefed," Georges noted.
"EMTEC regularly receives intelligence briefings from the highest levels of Fleet," Kurst said, drawing himself up a bit. "We need to know what's going on out there so we can build better weapons."
"That's exactly what I'm asking you to do," Georges said. He laid the data stick on the corner of the huge desk.
"I don't pay for the ships," Kurst said. "EMTEC just fills orders from the SU!"
"Let me worry about that," Georges said. He tapped the table next to the data stick. "You worry about making sure this works. When the Ater arrive, the SU is going to need a Fleet capable of repelling them."
"Why not just take this to your friends in the SUMC?" Kurst asked. "You're Stellar Union Marine Corps, right? I can tell. No one else carries themselves like that."
"Of course," Georges said. "It's my job to keep the Earth and everyone else safe. As for the data, let's just say I'd rather have plausible deniability as to where it came from."
Kurst picked up the stick. "I guess that's where EMTEC comes in."
"Yes, sir."
"I do have to ask, where did this come from?" Kurst asked.
"Let's just say we stumbled onto something on Ardennes," Tivon volunteered. She reached into her satchel and pulled out the key, wrapped in a thick cloth. She peeled back the cloth so Kurst could see the intricate designs shimmering on the alien device.
"My people thought there was something missing," Kurst whispered. He reached out to touch the key.
"I wouldn't do that," Tivon warned.
"Why not just give me the artifact?" Kurst wondered. "With the sphere...ah, Aether Source, we could probably figure everything out ourselves."