"I do too," Ron exclaimed.
"Oh, I promise that I won't open anything until you are there. I'll just get everything unlocked," Tik protested.
"Something just occurred to me. Did you ever find anything that gives a clue about what happened to the Alcantarans? Does Auntie have anything in her computers telling what happened to the crew?" Ron asked thoughtfully.
"I didn't find anything in the Bug's records. I think the part of the memory that tells about what happened on this ship is either damaged or locked in another part of the computer that's only accessible in the computer room. We'll have to get into the locked area to get more answers," Tik responded.
"Do you think they could have caught some kind of virus like the one that attacked the Bugs?" Gus asked. "Would any of the viruses still be alive in those locked areas?"
Ron and Tik looked at one another. No one had thought of that possibility. Ron said, "When we open those areas, we need to be in space suits and we need to seal off as much of this area as possible."
Gus grinned slightly as he said, "I think a couple of the Bug's portable shield generators found their way on board. Maybe we could set up something like we did in the hangar."
"I wonder how those things happened to find their way here. That sounds almost as bad as someone sending a robot with the radioactive fuel canister to the computer room on the mother ship," Tik said light-heartedly.
Gus looked at Ron and asked, "Who sent a robot to the computer room? That won't put Kota in danger will it?"
"Well, I must admit I might know something about that. The computer will still work for everyday things. It will just take awhile for the Bugs to get the mother ship turned around and get back here to search for us," Ron said sheepishly.
The trio laughed together and then pitched into their morning meal. As soon as they had finished and cleaned up, Ron and Gus went to inventory and Tik headed down to the cargo deck to start trying to unlock doors. Ron and Gus finished first with everything except the Alcantaran relics they had captured from the storeroom. They grabbed the portable shield generators and carried them up to the cargo bay deck. They kept sending thoughts asking Tik how she was doing until she laid down the law. She wanted no more interruptions. She would let them know when she had something to report.
Ron and Gus decided to get the Alcantaran relics to see if Auntie's computer or the database from the mother ship computer could identify any of them. Just before they left yesterday, Tik had copied a lot of the mother ship database. They now had a list of planets the Bugs had visited or traded with and what they used for trade. If there were any notes about the planet and inhabitants it was in the database. There was some information about the Alcantarans and their relics but some of it was pretty sketchy. They were making a little progress when they received an excited call from Tik. She had found the key to unlock everything. She was ready to start opening doors.
Ron and Gus rushed to the cargo bay and up to Tik. She was waiting impatiently in front of one of the doors. Everyone was excited about opening the door. Gus moved a shield generator and programmed it to form a ball around that door. The three of them then went to the rack and donned their space suits. They were thinking about opening the other doors without any protection. Maybe there wasn't any virus. They came back to the door and Gus stepped up to it and swung it open. Ron used his healer unit and checked for anything dangerous. After several minutes the unit gave an all clear.
"Well, do we examine the things in this room or do we proceed to the rest of them?" Ron asked.
"I'm in favor of opening the rest of the doors. It's a pain in the butt to take these suits off and then have to put them back on. Besides we need to get the rest of the ship below opened up," Gus replied.
Tik said, "I agree. We can look this stuff over once we have everything open and get out of these suits. Big Boy, what if we found some more jewelry? I couldn't try any of it on with this suit."
"Open it is then. Tik lead the way. Let's hurry up and get everything open so we can check for viruses or other problems," Ron said.
Gus moved the shield generator and they quickly opened the other five doors in the cargo bay that they hadn't opened before. Everything checked out clean so they moved to the freight elevator in the rear of the space ship. Gus pushed the shield generator into the elevator and set the other one over the entrance to the elevator. They didn't want anything from below to contaminate the rooms they were in. Ron and Tik followed Gus into the elevator and they went down one level and stopped
They were in another cargo bay standing on an upper catwalk. The room was about 40 feet high and stretched for 300 feet toward the nose of the ship and about 125 feet to the opposite wall. They could see a wall that looked like there were four levels. There were stairs and catwalks along each level. Sitting on the deck close to the wall were stacks of something that had been netted down to keep them from moving. Along both sides of the ship were more of the storage doors.
They checked the first side and crossed to the other side. All of the rooms checked out clean and they tried not to spend too long in any one room. Some were empty and others had items that they were going to have to check out on Auntie's computer to find a clue for what their purpose was. They worked up to the wall where they entered the passageway. There seemed to be a row of rooms that sat back to back down the center of the ship. On the other side of the passageway there was another row of rooms. All of these rooms appeared to be very large, luxurious living quarters. There was one cross passage in the middle of the row and another at the nose of the ship. They took the nose passageway to the other side of the ship and then went back toward the rear of the ship looking in all of the rooms. In one room, they found something that Ron thought looked like some kind of exercise equipment. They finished looking at that level and dropped down to the next level.
The passageway on this level was next to the outer skin of the space ship. When they stepped in, they saw a long passageway with some doors leading into the middle. Tik tried the first door they came to and stepped in. She stopped in her tracks as she looked around. They were on a cat walk that didn't look like it was in the best of shape. The metal was badly corroded and some sections had actually fallen. They were looking at a desolate scene in the big room. The room ran about 250 feet toward the nose, was two levels high and the width of the ship except for the two passageways on the outside. The interior was covered with dead plants of all sizes and shapes and it even looked like there might be some small skeletons lying on the floor. The floor was dirt and running down the middle was a small stream that had a very small trickle of water in it. The stream meandered across the floor in a series of loops and right now it looked like it was pretty muddy. There appeared to be a stone path following the stream and there were two small bridges over the stream. In some places, there were long boxes hanging off the catwalk. Ron walked over to one and saw there was dirt in it. There was some kind of tube running from box to box and suddenly Ron thought of a greenhouse. On the floor below, they could see more boxes but these looked different. There wasn't any dirt in them so they assumed they were for hydroponics. They figured out this must have been some kind of conservatory where the Alcantarans raised fresh fruits and vegetables. It could have been a solarium but Ron couldn't see any way that they could pipe sunlight in. He looked at the ceiling and thought he could see lights that might be a type of UV lights.
"Hey, if this is what I think it is, it will fix problems for the two of you. I think there might be UV lights in here and I know there is dirt. I'll bet at one time this place was beautiful. I wonder if those skeletons were some type of bird or flying creature," Ron proclaimed excitedly. "I'll bet they had all kinds of fruit trees and vegetables in here, as well as flowers. These beings spent a lot of time in space and things like this and the luxurious living quarters made up for that. I'll bet somewhere they even moved the ship's air through here to help clean out the carbon dioxide."
Gus remarked, "Well, it looks a lit
tle spooky right now but I'll still come here to get my dose of sand and dirt."
Tik wrinkled her nose as she expressed her distaste, "I'll come here if I have to but I would sure like to have some of that stuff growing first."
Ron stated, "We need to preserve some of those skeletons and the plant residue. That might give scientists a clue about the Alcantarans. Some of those rooms in the lower cargo bay looked like they could be sealed to an airtight configuration. Maybe we could move some of this stuff in there. If you're working to clear this stuff out, it won't be so spooky."
They backed out into the passageway and made their way around the center room. They noticed cables and pipes entering but didn't see anything in the passageways that was of immediate interest. They checked the rooms along both sides of the cargo bay on that level. It was much like the level above. Ron's healer unit gave this level a clean bill of health.
They went to the floor of the cargo bay and started checking the rooms there. In one room, they found a machine shop with all sorts of machinery to maintain the space ship. If a person knew how to run the machinery, Tik guessed that they could make about all the parts needed to repair Auntie. The next room had all sorts of steel, aluminum, pipes and other raw material to make repairs. When they reached the back of the ship, they looked closely at it. Ron and Tik decided that this wall would drop and make a ramp just like the one on the level above. You could drive equipment right in to load or unload cargo or materials. It would make for a quick turn-around time if you were trading. They looked closely at the floor and decided it would slide toward the nose to provide a taller cargo space if you needed it. They finished inspecting the doors on the other side of the cargo bay from where they had entered. They walked around the conservatory on this level and it was the same as the level above. They stepped inside and saw that their guess had been right about the boxes next to the wall being hydroponics. There was a small trickle of water running down the boxes now. By the time they were through with this level, they decided it was too late to start on the next level. So far everything checked out fine and they could breathe the air with no problem. Tik suspected it would smell pretty stale because there hadn't been any circulation for so long. Ron wondered where they would find the unit that cleaned and refreshed the air. Their air above on the flight deck seemed to be all right but they needed it to run through a purifier to keep it that way.
They made their way to the upper cargo bay and took off their space suits. Gus turned the shield generator off to conserve fuel. They went to the galley and fixed something to eat. As they ate, they excitedly discussed all that they had found so far. Ron figured the skeletons and plant specimens would be worth a lot of money to the right place. Anyone wanting to know about the Alcantarans would be very interested in these things. The weapons were another matter too. He didn't have enough information about them, but surely there were collectors who specialized in Alcantaran relics. If these weapons worked, they would be worth more than gold.
On the mother ship their only thought had been to get off of it and head back home. Another idea was starting to develop. All this talk of what everything was worth and who would want it stirred a sensation that none of the group had felt before.
After they had finished eating and cleaned up, Ron voiced the idea, "Why do we care what the skeletons, the weapons or any of the other things are worth? If we just want to get back to our home planets, all we have to do is fly Auntie into some advanced civilization and sell her. We could get enough money to set us all up for the rest of our lives back on our home planets. Is that what we really want?"
Gus spoke first in a thoughtful voice, "I really don't want to go back and live on my home planet. I do want to see my mate and to make sure my family is taken care of. I want to make sure the Bugs never come back and kidnap any more of my people. But…I like meeting different creatures such as yourselves and Kota. All I've ever known is the sand of my own planet and I would like to see some of the others, especially your home planets. The way you have described them makes them seem so wonderful."
Tik responded, "I agree with Gus. I have to get back to my home planet to check on my family and to pass the word about the Bugs. Our government will ban them and won't let them land when they find out what they're up to. I've worked on the space ships that have come into our space port but I've never been off the planet. Now that I'm off, I'd like to see your home planets and maybe even a few more. When I downloaded the Bugs trading database, I saw a couple of galaxies that were mind-boggling. I'd like to see them in person if it's possible. How in the world would we be able to do something like that? Do you have something in mind?"
"I agree with both of you. I want to see my wife and family and to make sure they are safe. My planet isn't as far advanced as the Bugs; but with some of the technology from this ship, we would soon hold our own against them. To answer your last question, I really don't have anything in mind. I just know I'm a small businessman on my home planet and when you start talking about what something is worth, my ears pick up. I like the challenge of buying something and then being able to turn around later and sell it for a profit; and like you, I like meeting the different creatures. We three have proven we can overcome a lot of challenges. Would we be up to the challenge of becoming Traders? Could we run this ship and learn the ins and outs of trading between planets? Would you be interested in forming a partnership in that sort of venture?"
The other two sat in stunned silence for a moment while Ron's words sunk in. Tik was twisting her head from side to side as she thought and Gus suddenly developed a far-away look in his eyes.
Tik blurted out, "I'd be up for trying. We still have the immediate problem of getting away from the Bugs. We still need water, air and fuel. The ice here may solve the air and water problem but that leaves fuel. If we don't get that, then this conversation won't matter."
"The fuel isn't the problem you think it is either. I haven't had a chance to really explain but that's why we are headed for that blue giant. When Wurden had me work on the Alcantaran rockets that first day, I found out what the rockets are for. They have their own shield and are actually a giant scoop. They will dive in close to the surface of the star and scoop up fuel. This type of start is supposed to be one of the better ones for quality of fuel…."Ron started.
Gus interrupted, "The Bugs thought they had the rockets figured out too but they lost some of them when they tried. We don't have any rockets to spare on losses."
"I know, but that first day I saw their problem. There is a valve in there that they had set backwards. I don't know if their translators weren't 100% accurate or not. I suspect that's the case, because we unlocked doors that they hadn't been able to open with years of trying. The Bug that had my translator probably stole it from a storeroom and wasn't high enough in the hierarchy to let it be known that he could understand what the Alcantarans had written. When you set the valve to the proper position, the shield absorbs any energy that strikes it. A small increase in current makes a huge increase in shield strength. If it's set the other way, the shield never develops any strength. You could take a hammer and a steel rod and drive it right through the rocket. I think the rockets are programmed to fly close to the star and then open the shield for just a few microseconds to scoop up the fusionable material. The heat is so intense next to the star that anything more would melt everything. The more the star beats down on the rocket's shield, the stronger it gets. The shield also acts as a container for the fusionable material. I don't know for sure yet but I think there are receptacles on the outside of Auntie that hold the rockets and take the fuel directly into her fuel tanks. I suspect there is a place in the lower area that allows you to refuel all of the equipment and robots. It will probably even refuel my translator and healer," Ron declared enthusiastically.
Tik announced, "Well, I'd better find out where this rock is taking us. There should be enough data to predict some kind of trajectory. Also, I'd like to send a burst message for Kota. He already
programmed it into the computer. It will be so brief that it will be almost impossible to trace."
Ron and Gus followed her into the cockpit to watch. Tik sent the message first and then worked on her computer for a bit. She took readings from Auntie's gauges and instruments. After a few minutes, she had a trajectory.
"It looks like this rock is in an elliptical orbit around that blue super-giant. It's narrower at one end and we're on the big end right now…."
"When you say elliptical, do you mean egg-shaped?" Gus interrupted.
"Yes, and we're at the bottom of the egg. The top of the egg is closer to the star than the bottom. The asteroid will be about 930 million miles from the star at the top. We'll be at the top of the elliptical in about 10 days. This asteroid is actually traveling at a pretty good clip. How long does it take those rockets to fill up and then dump the fuel in Auntie? How much fuel will each rocket hold?" Tik answered Gus and then asked Ron.
"It'll take about two days at that distance, if we can rob enough fuel from the robots and the fliter. We need to get the rocket to about 60% of the speed of light. Since we'll be shooting the rocket directly at the star, the star's gravity will help us some. I don't know how much fuel each rocket scoops up. I'm still not sure how to translate that measurement to something I know. I'm not sure how much Auntie will take to fill her up either. I thought that once the first rocket has a load of fuel, we could put half of it in Auntie and load another rocket or two depending on how much fuel they will scoop. Then we could have three rockets going. That would make things go a lot faster. At the top of the elliptical, we should be on the opposite side of the star from where we left the mother ship. Hopefully, that will help hide us and the rockets' signatures should be pretty small. If it's against that star, that will help hide it also. Tik, why don't you plot where we would need to get off the asteroid to stay behind the star? Once we have a load of fuel, we can decide where to go from there. We're going to have to watch pretty carefully, because that could be about the time the Bugs could be back looking for us," Ron answered.
Alcantaran 1: Alien Abduction Page 15