Alliance

by Timothy L. Cerepaka

  Below the young human female, her robot friend, and the young human male are some illegible words, although even if they were legible, I doubt I would be able to read them. Their shapes do not resemble the written form of any Delanian or Xeeonite language that the mobile Database has records on.

  This drawing only brings more questions to mind. Why does the Head apparently own this old drawing? Who does it depict? It certainly does not resemble the great art of the Delanian Masters, a group of painters known throughout the two worlds for their artistic mastery. Why then does she have it here, stuck in between two large books? And just who are these individuals depicted on it?

  I consider keeping the drawing, as the paper and ink used to make the drawing have their own unique properties that deserve further investigation, but then I realize that taking this drawing would be theft. Seeing as I am not a thief, I decide to replace the drawing where I found it, although before I do that I snap a picture of it to keep in my memory so I can examine it in more detail later, when I have time to do so.

  After making sure that the drawing is back where I found it, I resume walking around the perimeter of the room, my optics scanning the books as I do so. I still see no sign of any secret passages or doorways, but that does not mean there are not any there. It just means that I have to search harder.

  I walk past bookshelf after bookshelf, my optics scanning each book as I pass. Not individually, as I am walking too fast to do that, but in groups, which is much quicker.

  But after another minute or two of walking, I find myself back at the only door to this room, exactly where I started not long ago. I am now no closer to discovering a way out of here than I was before.

  I almost decide to give up and wait until someone—perhaps the Head, maybe another Foundation agent—comes up to check up on me. But then I notice the table that the Head and those other agents had been sitting around earlier and wonder if I might be able to find a secret passageway there.

  I walk up to the table and look down on it. A scan of the table tells me that it is made of Delanian elvish wood, which takes me aback slightly, because I was certain that my scan would tell me that this table is made of some kind of unidentifiable wood. Perhaps not everything about this Foundation is a secret or shrouded in mystery.

  The surface of the table is carved with images of creatures that resemble hawks and bulls, as I noticed earlier. Yet I notice significant differences from actual hawks and bulls, such as one carving, which features a hawk with burning feathers and wings, and a carving of a bull that appears to have swords for horns. I know of no creatures on Dela or Xeeo that resemble those, which makes me wonder if these are simply the products of an artist's imagination or if they are stylized carvings of real animals.

  In any case, it does not matter. What I need to do is search this table for any secret buttons or switches that might reveal a secret passageway to me. It is my last chance; if this table does not lead to any secret passages, then I will truly be stuck in this room until the Head or someone else returns.

  So, starting at the Head's silver chair, I carefully run my fingers along the underside of the table, using the sensors on my fingertips to feel for any bumps or other unusual protrusions that might indicate the presence of a button of some sort. The wood is smooth so far, but I keep feeling nonetheless.

  I make my way around the table slowly in order to avoid missing anything. At the same time, I keep my audio receptors open so I can hear anyone coming to get me on the other side of the door. My audio receptors, however, pick up nothing except the occasional rumbling in the floor, which is probably the result of the fighting against that army that the Head mentioned.

  Soon, I find myself back at the Head's silver chair again, having found no hidden buttons whatsoever. Removing my hands from under the table, I step back and look at my surroundings once more, although it is hard for me to resume my search for another possible way out when I have effectively exhausted all possible candidates.

  Maybe I really do have to wait here until someone comes for me. The more I stand here and think about it, the more likely that seems. How long I will have to wait, I do not know, as it depends entirely on how effective the Foundation agents are at fighting off that army.

  I lean against the Head's chair, not because I am tired, but because I have nothing better to do and I dislike simply standing in one place. Leaning on the chair will hopefully take off some of the pressure on my joints, although I doubt they need it, seeing as my joints are state-of-the-art and are in excellent condition at the moment.

  I consider perhaps taking down some of those books and reading them in order to pass the time when the sensors on my fingertips discover something. I look at the arm of the Head's chair, but it appears as smooth as ever to me, even though I am certain that my sensors picked up something unusual there.

  I run my fingertips along the chair's left arm and discover, much to my astonishment, a panel that can be pressed down. It is completely flat with the rest of the arm, making it invisible to the naked eye, but applying even the gentlest of pressure reveals its presence right away.

  Could this be the entrance to the secret passageway I have been looking for? Maybe. It is worth trying; at any rate, I doubt it will do anything terrible to me.

  So I press down on the panel, though gently in order to avoid breaking it.

  As soon as I push it down all the way, the chair moves backwards without warning. I step back, even though it does not appear hostile or dangerous, and watch as the chair slides backwards across the floor. Once it stops, I look at what it reveals.

  The removal of the chair reveals a square hole—same width as the chair's base—where the chair had been a moment before. This hole has a ladder leading down into the darkness. I switch to night vision to allow me to see down into the dark hole, but the hole is so deep that I cannot see its bottom even with my night vision active.

  I dislike going down into places that are too dark for me to see in even with my night vision; I have no choice, however, but to climb down this ladder and find out what is below. There may or may not be a dead end, but the only way I can find out for certain is by going down there myself.

  -

  As I suspected, the hole is quite deep. Even though I have been climbing down it for five minutes now, I still cannot see the bottom even when I look down. Furthermore, when I descended into the hole, the chair slid back into place above me. While it may be possible for me to open it again, there is a good possibility that it cannot be opened except from the outside, which means I must continue climbing down regardless of the danger that awaits.

  While I climb down, I still do not hear any sounds from the outside. I wonder how the battle against the invading army is going. Is the Foundation winning or is Reunification winning? What will happen if one of them defeats the other?

  I find that I do not particularly care. While Reunification has harmed me in worse ways than the Foundation, my trust for the Foundation is still quite limited. They have continually refused to tell me all of the facts; I do not even know why they are fighting Reunification or what they hope to achieve by doing so. It makes no sense to me to ally with them when they have not trusted me at all, as if I am a child that cannot be trusted. I'd rather take my chance with the Delanian public that thinks I am a murderer than stay with this Foundation that does not trust me in the least.

  Scanners indicate that the temperature is gradually lowering the further down I climb. There must not be any central heating down here, which supports my earlier belief that this place is supposed to be a secret. I make sure my own internal heating systems are keeping my body at a warm temperature, however, because I have no interest in freezing down here.

  After a couple of minutes of climbing, I finally see the bottom of the shaft, and in another minute, I rest my feet on the floor. It is made of old, cracked concrete, which surprises me because Delanians do not use concrete often in the construction of their buildings. Then again, the agents wh
o make up the Foundation hardly seem like typical Delanians to me.

  I turn around and see a long hallway stretching down quite a ways. A corner at the end of the hall turns out of my sight, but my sensors do not indicate any living creatures are down here. I appear to be completely alone in this shaft, but appearances can be deceiving, so I move forward cautiously, prepared to fight in case something tries to take me by surprise.

  This tunnel is quite plain, perhaps because it is only meant to be used as an emergency escape route. Still, Delanian architecture tends to place a heavy emphasis on symbols and carvings in their buildings, though again, the Foundation probably does not care about that sort of thing due to their mysterious nature.

  Although I walk cautiously, I also walk quickly, making my way to the end of the hall as quickly as possible. After all, my sensors already show me that I am alone down here, and with no idea about the progress of the battle above, I cannot waste time in escaping. Whether the Foundation wins or Reunification wins, I must escape and return to Xeeo, where I will be safe at last.

  When I turn the corner, I discover a closed metal door a few feet away from me. It is the only exit I can see, so I walk toward it without hesitation. Before opening the door, however, I scan it quickly. When the scan reveals nothing out of the ordinary about this door, I grab the handle and pull it open.

  As soon as I do, I am assaulted by a blast of cold wind and snow, which briefly obscures my optics before I wipe it off. I then stick my head outside to look at the environment I am about to walk into.

  It appears that I have emerged into the Winterlands, because I see snow everywhere, violently whirling about in the air and making it impossible to see anything except a wall of white. The sky is dark, partly thanks to the heavy cloud cover, but also due to the fact that the sun appears to be setting. My sensors indicate that the temperature is dropping even faster out here than it is inside, which makes me pull my head back in and close the door shut.

  This is not good. Walking out into this blizzard will freeze me in my tracks, because even my internal heating systems are not enough to combat -20 degree (and constantly lowering) temperatures, at least for very long. There is a high probability that I will end up freezing out there and being buried underneath tons of snow, perhaps forever, unless the Foundation wins this battle and rescues me.

  But what else am I supposed to do? I suppose I can wait in here until the storm dies down, but the mobile Database's files say that Winterlands blizzards can last for weeks at a time. I do not have weeks to wait around until this storm lasts; not even the battle between the Foundation and Reunification will last that long.

  Logically, I have only one choice, which is to take my chances with the blizzard outside and hope I can find a cave or some place else to wait out the storm. Then I can figure out where to go from there.

  So, preparing myself for the task ahead, I raise my internal body temperature up as high as I can without burning or melting my interior, and then grab the handle. I pull the door open and immediately dash outside into the blizzard.

  -

  Visibility is zero out here. As I run, my optics can see nothing except the white snow that is swirling in the air and falling like an avalanche. My audio receptors hear nothing except the howling of the wind, which makes it impossible to hear anything else that might be nearby.

  Not only that, but the snow is quite deep already. With every step I take, I sink up to my knees, which always requires a great effort from me to pull my legs out of. This slows my progress considerably more than I like, although I press forward nonetheless, occasionally using the jets in my feet to melt the snow. I try not to do that much in order to conserve my fuel.

  I almost consider flying through this mess, but then realize that flying through an unknown territory with zero visibility is an idiotic move. It is better to keep walking forward with both of my feet on the ground than it is to fly and possibly crash into a normally easily avoidable rock wall or mountain peak.

  As for my joints, sensors indicate that snow is starting to find its way into them. My internal heating system melts the snow, of course, but it is only a matter of time before I am frozen entirely and buried underneath the tons of snow pouring from the sky above. I must find shelter quickly.

  But I cannot spot any caves or anywhere else for me to wait out the storm. The snow in the air and the darkness of the area makes it practically impossible for me to see my hands in front of my face, much less anything else. Maybe it would have been better for me to wait back inside the base, but there is no way I can find my way back there in this weather. I must instead push forward and hope that I do not walk into something dangerous. Even my sensors are unable to show what is ahead of me, mostly because the howling wind and thick snow blocks it.

  And then, when I take another step forward, my foot does not find any ground and I fall forward over the edge of a cliff despite my best efforts to catch myself. As I fall head over heels, the snow swirls around me and my sensors are unable to tell the difference between up and down and which direction I am falling in.

  I do not scream, nor do I feel any fear; instead, I activate my rocket boosters in an effort to cushion my landing. I then shoot through the air and slam face-first into a solid rock wall that I cannot see in the snow.

  The impact of the blow makes me bounce off the wall, causing me to fall backwards through the air again. System scanners indicate my optics were slightly damaged in the collision with the wall, but I have no way to repair them. I instead activate my boosters again, deciding to focus on repairing my optics as soon as I leave these mountains.

  This time, I adjust the strength of the boosters so I do not go flying uncontrollably through the air again. I try to float in the air, try to lower myself to the ground as carefully as possible, but the air and the snowy conditions make this difficult. The wind is blowing at 35 miles per hour, while the poor visibility makes it impossible for me to tell with any accuracy how far I am above the ground.

  As a result, an unusually strong gust of wind knocks me over and I find myself falling again. This time, I have no time to activate my boosters again because I land hard on a thick pile of snow. The impact, while harsh, is not as bad as it would have been if I had not used my boosters to break my fall or if I had fallen on the earth.

  Even so, system warnings indicate that my left leg has been damaged by the fall. It is still operational and should continue to support my weight, but it would be smart for me to have a qualified J bot technician look it over and make any adjustments as necessary.

  But there are no qualified J bot technicians nearby, aside from Konoa, and he is nowhere near here. I will have to avoid putting too much stress on it until I can have a technician repair it.

  I rise to my feet and look around at the area I have fallen into. It appears I have fallen into some sort of canyon or gorge, albeit not a wide one, because the wind is not blowing fiercely down here and the snow is not blowing in my face. It is still extremely cold, but at least my visibility is no longer as poor as it once was.

  Above, I can see the snow swirling through the air and hear the howling winds. I can fly up there if I want, but I decide that it makes more sense to stay down here and wait out the storm rather than fly back up into that blizzard. While staying in one place might make it easier for the Foundation or Reunification to find me, I doubt any of them are planning on searching for me in this storm. Most likely, they will leave me alone for now, although I must still find shelter because even down here, the snow is terrible.

  That is when I spot a large cave mouth on the opposite side of the canyon. An overhanging rock above the cave mouth appears to keep out most of the snow, so I decide to make that place my temporary shelter until the storm passes.

  I make my way over to the cave without delay, as the snow down here is not nearly as deep as the snow above. Although it is slightly slippery, I manage to keep my balance and avoid falling over on my way over to the cave mouth.

 
Ducking to avoid scraping my head against the overhanging rock, I step into the cave. As soon as I do, the howling wind outside becomes muted, although the temperature drops even lower in here, most likely due to its small interior keeping the cold air in.

  Before I go in any deeper, I do a brief scan of the cave. While it appears uninhabited, I am not in any mood to stumble upon some dangerous animal in here that will attack me for invading its territory.

  Scan complete. Results: There are no living creatures in here at the moment, although there are the unidentifiable bones of some deceased creature—perhaps a dwarf, based on their thickness, although they are so old and incomplete that it is hard to tell—toward the back. The scan also reports dried blood stains on the ceiling and back walls, but again, I do not know what the blood may have belonged to because it is too old to determine its original species.

  But aside from the bones and the blood, this cave shows no signs of being the home of any sort of creature. Therefore, it is safe to use it as shelter until the blizzard passes.

  I walk to the back of the cave, as far from the howling wind and swirling snow outside as possible, and then turn and sit against the back wall. Energy levels are at sixty-nine percent at this point, which is a good energy level, although it is a reminder that I will need to return to Xeeo as soon as possible if I do not want to run out of power here in the middle of nowhere.

  Yet I cannot continue my journey with the snow whirling around outside. Instead, I decide to go into sleep mode in order to conserve energy. I doubt anything will assault me here, after all, seeing as nothing lives in this case. I can also set up my heating systems to keep operating while I rest so my joints do not freeze due to lack of movement as I rest.

  Still, I decide to set a definite time for me to wake up from sleep mode. Mobile Database records tell me that Winterlands blizzards can last up to three days, but sometimes can be as short as eight hours, so I decide to set my alarm for eight hours. If the blizzard is still raging even after that time, then I can simply go back to sleep.