by Murison, J W
‘So why is everything shimmering?’
‘It’s reducing the height of the consoles. Its mother race was much taller than us.’
‘How’s it doing it?’
‘It’s all Nano technology, tiny robots that you can’t see with the naked eye. The ships full of them. That’s why there's no dust and no corpses. Everything we use will be absorbed into the ship and reused.’ Steven held up the fork in his hand as an example, ‘she made this from the tins Buzz put in that thing over there.’
Howe shook his head in wonder, ‘where did all these people come from.’
‘They’re scientists from all over the globe. Specialist in their chosen fields, the ships choosing its own personnel for the most part. We’ve got about twenty so far, six in here the rest scattered throughout the ship.’
‘You mean you have no say in who comes or stays?’
‘Of course I do, but I don’t really know exactly what she needs. So in the end she tells me who she wants and I say yea or nae.’
‘Let me guess, your finding them on the net.’
‘It was easier than I thought. A number of websites sprung up after the ships appearance, and many scientists registered their interest in working with the ships.’
Howe nodded his understanding, ‘so where’s my station?’
Steven shrugged, ‘don’t know.’
It was the ship that answered him, ‘you may address me Colonel Howe.’
Howe grunted in surprise, it was the first time he had heard the ship talk, ‘uh, sorry.’
‘I am the ship, as I am being called at the moment amongst other things.’
Howe smiled, ‘I’m sorry, I never realised.’
‘What is to be your official designation?’
‘Security officer, I suppose. Do you have any weapons?’
‘I have many different type of weapons, Colonel although apart from their official testing none have ever been used.’
He frowned, ‘why not?’
‘The builders are a gently race Colonel, crime and violence unknown. Each ship is a family ship. They live almost exclusively in space now, although they always return to the home planet to retire.’
‘They never fight?’
‘I won’t say never Colonel, there are reports of incidents where the builders took offensive action, but these are rare. You see our technology is far in advance of most of the aggressive species, so we can almost always out run them.’
‘Yet here you are, your crew were all killed or died.’
‘Yes it was most regrettable, and if my heart had decided to fight, they would most certainly all still be alive, but it was just not their way.’
‘There is something admirable in that, eh … ship, but it is not the Human way.’
‘We understood that before we made ourselves know to your people. You are primitive but you do have values that border on those of my builders.’
‘That makes us more acceptable?’
‘You must understand Colonel, I may be a machine but I am self-aware and have a conscience of my own. If I had been capable of firing my own weapons, and saving my crew I would have done. That they gave their lives before taking the lives of another’s; even though they were of another race; it is admirable but a terrible waste and loss, foolhardy even.’
The Colonel nodded solemnly, he was a man who had taken life many times in his carrier. ‘I will make sure that never happens again. Neither will I allow anyone under my command or on board this ship to kill indiscriminately.’
‘Thank you Colonel, now what would you like to see first; the hand weapons we have on board are totally unsuitable for human use but you could help me redesign them if you wish.’
‘I would love to.’
‘If you look to one of the walls and follow the lights I will guide you to what you would call the armoury.’
Beaver shouted at his retreating back, ‘where you off to Boss?’
‘I'm going to the armoury to help the ship design some new weapons.’
Beavers jaw dropped, ‘ah stuff this, I want in. Where’s that hole?’
Laughing Howe guided him over to the hole in the wall and shoved Beavers hand inside. He never seemed to notice the pain but Howe had to hold him up a little as his vision began to blur.
After a few minutes orientation Beaver happily followed his friend to another part of the ship. The young soldier seemed to tire of the scenery and turned to Stevie, ‘do you have any space suits on board, can I go out there?’
Steven shrugged, ‘I have no idea, but I would presume so.’ He paused for a second then nodded. ‘Yes there is son, but they won’t fit us. The ship will design and build some for us later, but it’s really busy just now redesigning the whole ship.’
The young man looked a little disappointed, ‘yes sir of course I’m sorry.’
Steven grinned, ‘don’t be sorry, it wasn’t like the thought hadn’t crossed my mind.’
Buzz grunted, ‘if you’re bored you can help me.’
The shutters came down behind his eyes, ‘who are you?’
Steven interrupted, ‘he’s my second in command.’
The soldier seemed a little startled, ‘oh, sorry I didn’t realise.’
Steven could see there was going to be some conflicts between these battle hardened professionals and the rest of the crew. He was going to have to instil some form of command protocols, maybe even introduce a uniform code.
‘That’s because no one told you. There's no need for you to help out as you haven’t decided what you’re doing yet, but I would rather you were doing something to help while you are here.’
The younger man nodded, ‘yeah I’ll help.’ He turned to Buzz, ‘what do you want done?’
‘Follow me.’
They left Steven alone. He took a moment to reflect on what had happened so far. As the ship learned from its access to the Internet, the process of reformation became quicker. The scientists designated to the bridge either went about their allotted tasks or stood together talking while the ship redesigned their workstations.
He realised very quickly he would have problems with the scientists too. Almost every one of them had heard of him when he was younger, but that was twenty years ago. It wasn’t that he had any catching up to do. On the contrary, even at the age of fifteen he was years ahead of where they were now.
The trouble was, much of his work had been discounted or his theories proved wrong. He knew they weren’t wrong and since coming on board he’d had some time to discuss them with the ship and had begun to realise how right he was. The real trouble was even he had only touched the threshold of the mathematics of the universe. He had a lot to learn and realised it would be hard. However, if he had an uphill battle it was going to be harder for the rest of them. He was going to have to change a whole belief system.
Then of course there was the natural resentment he was already beginning to feel. Funnily enough he didn’t feel it from Howe or the soldiers he had brought with him, but Buzz had told of the strange attachment they had forged with his parents, maybe there was a link.
How was he going to forge all these people together into a single crew? Everyone seemed to have their own itinerary, and he had no doubt their own governments would soon add weight to the problem. Then of course there was the other ship.
Most of the scientists hadn’t grasped the fact that the ships had a will of their own. They still believed they were working with some form of super computer. Steven didn’t, he could sense the presence of the ship in the same way he could sense another human being. That was another thing that he was going to have to get across to them, he was also beginning to feel a bit crowded.
He got up and went to a corner, knowing that everyone on the bridge was intensely aware of his presence.
‘Down.’ The simple command was all it took for him to disappear out of sight. He smiled at what was now his private quarters. ‘Screen on.’
The breathtaking vista appeared on the bul
khead in front of him and his smile broadened farther. The ship had been busy. There was now a large bed against one wall. A workstation, an alien version of a three piece suite and coffee table that took command of the view in front of him.
He sank into what looked like a leather chair and sighed.
‘Are you all right my heart? I sense you are becoming very tense.’
‘I’m fine, although I’m just beginning to realise the enormity of the undertaking I’ve taken on.’
‘Do you have any suggestions?’
‘Yes I do but you’re very busy just now and it will have to wait.’
‘With my engines off line I can divert a lot more power to other systems, please state your request.’
‘We need something to begin to bind us together, like a uniform.’
‘I understand. A simple idea but necessary I think. What do you have in mind?’
Steven shrugged, ‘I don’t know, it’s not exactly my area of expertise. Something plain though, simple and not too flash.’
Part of the screen went blank then pictures of uniforms began to appear. They must have gone through a hundred or so before she began to appreciate the tastes of the man. They very quickly made a decision on a basic uniform.
‘I can have it ready for you in a few minutes. What kind of material do you want used?’
‘Can you produce something close to earth cotton?’
It took her a few seconds to search for the relevant information. ‘Yes I can do that. Now what about some form of insignia?’
Chapter 23
When he re-emerged from his quarters, he felt good. A hush fell on the bridge at his appearance. He ignored it and went looking for Buzz.
He was with some of Howe’s men and had just finished stacking the supplies they had sneaked on board. As they watched, the boxes began to disintegrate.
‘Is that right?’ asked one of the soldiers.
‘Yeah, don’t worry about it. Any food supplies are brought in here. The ship breaks it up and stores it. When you’re hungry it will reform it for you and deliver it to whatever dispenser you’re at.’
‘Neat.’
‘Yeah, any leftovers you put back in the dispenser.’ He turned at Stevie’s arrival, his eyebrows flew up, ‘hey you’re looking cool, where’s mine?’
Steven grinned, ‘in your quarters. I want to see how everyone’s getting on, you coming?’
‘Let me get changed first.’
‘Let’s go.’
They went quickly to Buzz’s quarters and he put the new uniform on. Steven studied his friend for a second. It was a two-piece suit but almost looked like a one piece. The dark blue was almost black. The collar was very small, but large enough to take a badge of rank. They had settled on small stars. Steven bore four while Buzz had three.
‘What does this make me?’ he asked pointing to his collar.
‘Commander.’
‘Cool.’
Steven grinned; his friend looked really smart. They weren’t skin tight but they accentuated their natural lines. Buzz had kept himself in trim over the years and it showed. He gave a little twirl, ‘how do I look?’
Steven nodded in satisfaction, ‘you look good dude.’
Buzz tried to study the patches on his left breast and shoulder, ‘these are smart what do they mean?’
‘It’s a star map of our constellation with our sun in the centre.’
‘What's this, EISA?’
‘Earth International Space Agency.’
He screwed up his face a little, ‘nah, not sure I like that.’
Steven shrugged, ‘we can always throw it open to the kids of the planet later in the day, let them make something up if you want?’
Buzz paused for a seconds reflection, nodding, ‘yeah the kids of the planet. We have to think like that now, don’t we? This whole space thing changes everything.’
Steven agreed, ‘it does, yeah. We are no longer alone. And we know there are hostile forces out there. Earth’s really going to have to get its shit together and fast.’
‘What if all the Earth’s Governments get together and start telling us to do things we don’t want too?’
Steven shrugged, ‘then we piss off and do our own thing. It’s not like they can catch us is it?’
‘We have to land sometime Stevie.’
He sighed, ‘I know Buzz. I only hope we can prove our worth by then or that they come up with something sensible. It’s not like we can just retire. These things we have on our wrist work off some kind of power generated by the ship. The longer we’re here the more dependant we will be on them for our well being. After six months or so the nano bots run out of juice and begin floating round our bodies, more a hindrance than a help.’
‘Yeah maybe one day we’ll find a way round that. Either that or we start taking our families along with us for company.’
‘Kinda beginning to make sense now, ain’t it?’
‘The ships being family ships yeah, so where do you want to start this inspection?’
Stevie shook himself off, ‘let’s start with the engine room.’
They raised eyebrows as they entered the engine room. Mark McGuire was a fellow Scot stolen from the labs at NASA. He was a hands on engineer and the best in the world at his job. He was standing with his jaw hanging loose, attempting to make sense of a diagram.
Steven felt loath to disturb him, ‘how’s it going Mark?’
His head swung towards them but it took a moment or two for his eyes to swing into focus, ‘uh!’
‘How’s it going?’
‘Oh right, aye, no, it isn’t. I canna make neither head nor tail of any of this.’
Steven felt disappointment begin to slide, ‘nothing at all?’
‘Well apart from the fact that there's more than one kind of drive. Three to be precise, there's an anti-gravity drive, interplanetary and interstellar, self explanatory right?’
Both men nodded.
‘Good, but how they even begin to work is beyond my understanding. There's no retros or anything like that. Manoeuvring is done automatically by the ship itself. All we have to do is tell it where to go, so in that sense it’s easy enough, but understanding even the basic principles of how it works is so far beyond me, I don’t really know where to start.’
‘Let's start with can you fix the other ship?’
He nodded, ‘that should be easy enough. It’s a simple case of removing the damaged part or replacing it. The ships shown me how, with your permission I’d like to try it here first.’
‘I don’t have a problem with that, do you ship?’
‘Because of my rapid expansion, I really need more basic materials.’
‘That could be a problem ship, we don’t have any money to buy anything with.’
‘There is no need to return to Earth I have located all I need in what you call the asteroid belt.’
‘How long will it take you to gather what you need?’
‘A few hours at most.’
‘Can it wait until after we have rescued the other ship?’
‘I really need those materials now.’
‘Ok ship if needs must, well go there first, but give me another twenty minutes to finish what I’m doing I would like to be on the bridge for this.’
‘Of course my heart.’
Buzz smirked and Steven nudged him with his elbow, but McGuire wasn’t quite finished with him, ‘look at this will you.’ He punched up a screen, ‘I’ve had her comparing our periodic tables with her own database. So far I’ve found twenty new elements, ten of which she assures me doesn't exist on Earth.’
Steven’s eyes gleamed, ‘now we’re really beginning to get somewhere. That’s great news Matt, how are you going to handle it?’
Matt looked shocked, ‘me! You want me to write a paper on it?’
‘You found it didn’t you?’
‘I suppose so. That means I can name them as well.’
‘Aren’t they already named?’
Steven laughed, ‘well I’m not. Could you have a preliminary paper done within the next twenty-four hours?’
‘Probably could if we had any paper. Everything’s computerised, including notebooks. No discs, nothing.’
‘We have a laptop reconfigured on the bridge. Tell me when you’re ready and I’ll have everything saved onto disc for you. It might be an idea to try and get one or two of those unknown elements to go with it. We’ll see what she can come up with in the asteroid belt.’
‘That would be great, thanks.’
They left McGuire and followed her directions to the armoury. They found Howe and Beaver cooing over what looked like something out of the Aliens flick.
‘How are you getting on Colonel?’
They looked a little startled and guilty, ‘fine, fine,’
Howe reassured.
‘What have you got there?’
Beaver interrupted with a grin, ‘a real alien ass kicker.’
‘Is it one of theirs?’
Howe shook his head, ‘no we designed it, but the ship incorporated the workings of one of theirs into it.’
‘Why did you have to redesign the whole thing?’
‘Haven’t you seen one of their weapons yet?’
Steven shrugged, ‘never had the time.’
Howe slid back a panel to reveal what were obviously weapons, knowing you were in an armoury of course, and took out a long thin weapon that reached his chin and the top of Steven head resting on its butt on the floor.
Steven nodded in understanding, ‘a little unwieldy.’
Howe grinned at the understatement, ‘ever so slightly, and no trigger that we could recognise either. So we came up with this. The ship then took the workings of one of their weapons and fitted it inside.’
‘So this is a working model?’
Howe shrugged, ‘we won’t really know until we give it a try.’
‘May I?’
‘Knock yourself out, you’re the Captain.’
Steven picked it up, ‘not as heavy as it looks. Why is this end of the sight flared like this?’