by SD Tanner
Running with her, she swiped her wrist across the scanner. When the door opened, they both ran inside. Turning to her left, she opened another door with concrete stairs leading below the building. Hesitating, he asked, “Where does this lead?”
“It’s an engineering test room…for drones and robots. The signals screw up the nav visors.”
Surprised by her answer, he had little choice other than to trust her. Half falling down the stairs, he ended up in a stairwell with another door. Pulling herself against the concrete wall, she shook her head. “I don’t have clearance to get in there.”
“So, now what?”
“We wait.”
“But won’t they look in here?”
“What were you arrested for?”
There wasn’t much point in lying, so he shrugged. “I’m a renegade.” Giving her a wry look, he added, “Bad blood, but my son is sick. I brought him to the city hoping to find a doctor and got caught.”
“Where’s your son now?”
“In the medical center. They took him in and gave him a temporary chip.”
The woman nodded. “They’ll fix him before they test him, so he’s got a little time.” Shaking her head, she raised her eyebrows cynically. “If he was an adult then they would do it the other way around.” Giving a slight shrug, she added, “But we all have a soft spot for the kids.”
“Why are you helping me?”
She snorted. “It’s not like you gave me much choice.” When he gave her a genuinely apologetic look, a smile softened her sharp features. “You don’t want to hurt me. You only want to escape so you can get your son back.”
Sounding surprised, he asked, “You get that?”
Snorting again, she shook her head. “No one in CaliTech is stupid, far from it. We understand what’s going on, but we don’t know how to fix it.”
Eyeing her curiously, he leaned against the wall. “I met a man called Tod. He told me there’s a resistance inside of the nav army. He claims they’re planning a coup against the Dunks. Is that true?”
She shook her head. “I can’t tell you anything and he shouldn’t have either. If you’re caught then you’ll talk whether you want to or not.”
“But there is a resistance?” Without answering him, she pulled a handheld unit from her pocket. While she quickly tapped the screen, he peered over her shoulder. “What are you doing?”
Continuing to type, she didn’t look up at him. Reading the screen, all he could see were a collection of random words. “What is that?”
“Code.”
“For what?”
Seeming satisfied, she put the hand held unit inside of her pocket. “We have to wait here for an hour then someone will pick you up.”
“To go where?”
“They’re bringing nav gear. You’ll be taken to the barracks and they’ll sort you out from there.”
His eyebrows shot up in surprise. “Just how widespread is this resistance?”
She gave him another small smile. “Times be a changing.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN:
Hooked Up
(Granger)
Just as she’d promised, he was now dressed in Navigator gear, walking along the road with barracks on both sides. The woman had said nothing more to him, only helping him into the gear once a Navigator had arrived. Beside him, trudging equally as steadily was the same Navigator. Fearing he might be caught and talk, no one would tell him anything, not that it mattered much. He was more worried about his son and Joan. She was still somewhere inside of the compound.
Nudging him to the left, the Navigator flicked his head to indicate he was to go inside of the barracks. Unlike a real Navigator, his visor was only a darkened plastic covering his eyes. His gear was real, but the hydraulics were muted, giving him only enough strength to walk. Once inside of the CaliTech compound few soldiers were armed, so he held nothing in his gloved hands. It wouldn’t have helped even if he were carrying a gun. He didn’t know how to use their computerized weapons. If he blended in, he might survive long enough to be guided out of the compound.
Inside of the barracks was a long corridor with floor to ceiling cubicles on each side. Each small room contained a bunk bed and a row of cupboards on the opposite wall. A wide door opened into the tiny footprint of each room. At the end of the corridor was an open area with generous sofas and a small kitchen. Navigators dressed only in sensor suits were lounging in chairs, their large boots strangely at odds with their lean bodies. A large screen built into the wall was playing the Navigator Network channel.
His guide had removed his helmet, showing he was an older man with a shaved head. One of the Navigators sprawled in a chair nodded at him. “How goes the war?”
“What war?”
His reply brought sniggers from the five other Navigators in the lounge. “Same old shit, huh?”
Pushing him through one of the wide doors into a small cubicle, a voice shouted from the lounge. “Who’s that?”
“Trainee.”
Before the door to their cubicle closed, the only reply he heard was a disgusted grunt. Standing inside of the room, the Navigator helped him remove his helmet. Able to see properly again, he looked around while trying to keep his anxiety in check. He was standing inside of a Navigator barracks, completely vulnerable to being caught and killed.
Seeing his concern, the Navigator grinned. “Don’t worry so much. It won’t help.”
Fearing they might be overheard, he whispered, “Won’t they hear us in here?”
“It’s soundproofed.”
“Not bugged?”
His question made the man laugh. “Not a chance. We can see signals, so they can’t do that.” Twisting his mouth into a cynical smirk, he added, “Otherwise they would. Assholes.”
Finally relaxing, he tried unclipping his jacket. Seeing him struggling to make sense of the many ties, the Navigator began fiddling with something under his chin. “Flippin’ awkward gear this.”
“Seems to work well enough.”
Helping to peel the heavy jacket down his spine, he grunted. “It’s the kinda design you get from engineers who don’t have to wear the damned thing.”
Under the gear, he wasn’t wearing a sensor suit, only his underwear. Opening a cupboard, the Navigator handed him a black tracksuit. “Put this on.”
Grateful that he wouldn’t be arrested in his underwear, he pulled on the suit. “Who are you?”
“Just a guy.” Removing his own jacket, he sat on the wide bed. “We don’t use names. It’s dangerous.”
Perching on the chair next to the bed, he asked, “Just how widespread is this revolution?”
“Nobody knows. That’s why it works. Even when anyone talks they’ve got nothing to tell.” Seeing his puzzled look, he added, “We work in small cells. We use the shared comms rooms on the grid, but we don’t know who we’re talking to.” He flicked his head at him. “Take just now for example. Someone requested a pick up and extract. I don’t know who asked for it. I don’t know who you are, only that you’ve been cleared for aid. If I’m caught then I’ve got nothing useful to tell.”
“How do you know I’m not a spy?”
The Navigator looked him up and down, pursing his lips. “You’re a bit underfed to be anything other than a renegade.”
“And you’re okay with that?”
“I don’t have an opinion about that. Renegades are an enemy of the state and so am I.” Giving him a wide grin, he reached his ungloved hand towards him. “That makes you my friend.”
Shaking the man’s hand, he grinned back. “Any enemy of my enemy is a friend of mine.”
“Exactly.”
“So, what’s the plan?”
“Weeeell, that depends on you.”
“How so?”
“You want an extract, right?”
“My son is in the medical center. He’s sick, but once he’s better I need to get him out.”
“That could take a while. I can only hide you in here unt
il someone assigns you to a squad outside the wire, but that’ll happen by tonight.”
“I can’t stay?”
“Nope, that’s too risky for everyone.”
He nodded. If he could get outside again then he could regroup and work out how to come back. At least his son was with doctors who would take care of him. Realizing he would be gone in a matter of hours, he gave the Navigator a worried look. “There was someone with me. A woman.”
“What’s her status?”
“She was arrested for…having a thing with someone senior.”
The Navigator nodded knowingly. “A Shaker.”
“Shaker?”
“Yeah, it’s the polite term for unofficially sanctioned prostitutes.”
“That’s a bit of an oxymoron.”
“Pretty, is she?”
“Yeah, but she’s not young.”
“Downfall of the profession. Is she rigged?”
“What do you mean?”
“Is she into drugs?”
“Not that I can tell. She’s been with me for over six months and we don’t have any drugs.”
“Good, then she’s clean. The rigged ones can be a bit unreliable…brain-wise.”
He shook his head. “Joan’s good. She takes care of my kids since my wife…was killed by one of you.”
Sighing tiredly, the man looked down at the floor. “We can be real assholes, but sometimes it’s just you or us and…” Sighing again, he left his next words unspoken.
A Navigator might have killed Vela, but others were saving him and his son. He couldn’t bring himself to hate them for what they were. Like everyone in life, some were good and others weren’t. “You didn’t kill her.”
“No, but I’m a fully paid up member of the system that did.”
“Is that why you’re doing this?”
The man gave him a puzzled look. “Doing what?”
“Helping me.”
“It doesn’t work like that. We’re not a grassroots group trying to undo what is. This secret network has been around for as long as navs and CaliTech have been.” When he gave the man a puzzled look, he leaned forward on the bed. “Look, for as long as there’s an establishment there’s always people who’ll undermine it. We’re not undoing the system, there’s a lot about it that works, but where it doesn’t it’s a mess.” Pointing at his chest, he added, “Look at you. You’re classified as a renegade so you get nothing. Your kid gets sick and there’s nowhere to go. That’s not right, is it?”
“But you don’t want to take down the Guild.”
The man shook his head. “The Guild is just a structure. There’s nothing wrong with it. It’s how it’s used that’s the problem. We can’t overthrow the Guild without wrecking the good things it does.” Shaking his head again, he added, “What we need are better leaders, not a new structure. CaliTech are good scientists, but that’s all they should be. There should be a separation between them and the Guild.”
“What about Ark Three?”
“What about him?”
“I was here when he rescued the aliens.”
“Yeah, well, he took off. Rumor has it there’s a Bom army on their way here.”
“How did he get an army?”
“I don’t know, but they don’t think the navs and Boms have been getting lost in space.”
“What’s he going to do?”
“Nobody knows, but whatever he tries won’t be easy. There’s a nav army waiting for him out there.”
“What if he succeeds?”
“Guess we get a new boss.”
Ever since he’d met Ark Three and Tank, he’d hoped something might change and then nothing seemed to. Life had gone on pretty much the same as before, making him believe they’d been lost or had abandoned Earth. Finding out they were on their way back filled him with more hope than it should have, but he couldn’t help himself.
Leaning towards the man, he said intently, “You should help him.”
“How?”
“Through your network. You need to rally people together. A call to arms…”
Pulling back from him, the man interrupted. “Against who? The Guild? CaliTech?”
He’d never thought about who his true enemy was. It wasn’t logical to blame a system, so it had to be the leadership. “No, against the Dunks.”
“There’s no point killing the Dunks. They can just clone some more.”
“That’s true, but they won’t if Ark Three takes command of the Guild and CaliTech.” When the man merely looked back at him, he pushed his case. “You should get onto your network. Tell them to disrupt Earth’s defenses so Ark and his army get through.”
“How do you know Ark Three will make a better leader than the current crop of jerks?”
“Because I’ve met him. He’s straight up.”
Raising his eyebrows, the man leaned back, studying him thoughtfully. “Yeah, he is that. I’ll put the word out and see what I get back.”
CHAPTER TWELVE:
Child’s Play
(Ark Three)
“Pull back!”
In response to his order, Cardiff, Lace, Samson and Mex began stepping backwards along the corridor. Another robot had appeared, firing at anything it could see. Once again, the silver walls were being scarred by plasma fire, leaving deep burn marks.
Tank was on the Bridge, commanding the fleet to drive towards the Navigator assault ships. It seemed Dunk Two had been busy while they’d been away. Ark Command was much further out in space than it ever had been, surrounded by a grid of Earth’s Battleships. The new ships were larger, giving them plenty of room for more assault ships. Although the big ships weren’t agile the assault ships were, and now they were faster and bristling with even more weapons.
The robots were clearly being used to attack them from within, but he and Tiana had come up with a plan. Trachans might not know much about biology, but when it came to robotics, they knew more than CaliTech. Tiana had worked with the Trachan engineers, modifying the nanobytes to act as an infection designed to destroy the robot from within. All they’d managed to retrieve from the carved up robot in space were pieces, so it remained to be seen whether their newly programmed nanobytes would work.
Taking aim with an adapted gun, he fired a bullet containing the nanobytes. Unlike a typical bullet, this one would only penetrate far enough to cut the little nanobytes loose inside of the robot. He trusted Tiana’s engineering skills, but they didn’t know how long it would be before the nanobytes took control.
Turning, he ran along the corridor, joining the Bombardiers as they pulled around the corner. Their uninvited and unwelcome guest was making its way along the corridor, stomping one flat foot after the other. Its hydraulics were whirring loudly with every step, meaning it couldn’t sneak up on anyone.
“Think it’ll work?” Cardiff asked.
“If it doesn’t then we’re a whole lotta screwed.”
Through his headset, Tiana said, “It is a problem of timing.”
If it didn’t work then they were all out of luck. Taking down the mechanical toy would mean shooting up their own ship, and by the end of that fight, they might not be battle worthy.
“Should we fire at it?”
“Just wait.”
They were lined up against the wall of the next corridor. Reflecting in the silver metal opposite them, the robot was plodding along. Without any targets, it had ceased fire, but it was only thirty feet from their position. If it rounded the corner then they would throw everything they had at it.
Each step was followed by a sharp squeaking noise as it levered its leg to take the next one. Creaking and slamming one foot after another, it was maintaining a steady gait. Clearly not agile, it was like being stalked by a tortoise. Aside from the Navigator gear, CaliTech seemed incapable of making anything sleek. Trachans had a knack for combining form with functionality, making Dunk’s latest invention look clunky.
“Come on,” Tiana muttered. She was watching the fight f
rom the Bridge, using the cameras in the corridor to track the robot’s movement. Clearly tense, she hissed impatiently, “Come on.”
His longest standing girlfriend, Crystal, had always been compliant. Mariana was gentle to the point of being docile. Neither characteristic could be said of Tiana. She was aggressive, wielding her intellect like a weapon. He had no doubt she was smarter than he was, making sparring with her fun. Despite knowing he might be in a fight for his life, he still grinned at her frustration.
The robot was nearing their position and he raised his gun, ready to blow holes in his own ship. He heard Tiana’s voice in his headset. “Go! It is not working.”
Still smiling to himself, he held his gun steady. “I’ve got more faith in you than that.”
“It is not about faith. It is about you not dying.”
“Didn’t know you cared.”
“Please…”
Expecting the robot to round the corner at any moment, he was surprised when it didn’t. It had come to a complete standstill. Edging forward again, he pushed the barrel of his gun around the corner waiting for it to be shot off. When nothing happened, he quickly peeked at the robot. Guns were mounted on each of its arms, raised as if ready to fire. Small lights were flashing across the black visor covering a head that was sunk deeply into its heavyset shoulders. If a robot could look confused then this one certainly did.
“What’s happening?”
“I do not know.”
“Have the nanobytes shut it down?”
“Shut up. I am trying to download a feed.”
Cardiff stabbed her gun into the middle of his back. “What do we do now?”
Without turning, he replied, “Well, we don’t use our guns to jab one another in the back.”
Sounding sheepish, she laughed. “Sorry about that.”
“I’d be even sorrier if you pulled the trigger. Didn’t you guys learn anything at the Academy?”
“That feels like it was a hundred years ago.”
He supposed that was part of the problem with his army. Their ages ranged anything from two hundred years to his own. Where he and his squad had been at the Academy only a few years earlier, others had been on their own for up to two centuries. It was the reason they were so undisciplined.