by Isaac Hooke
The door spiraled shut. Rade switched to the point of view of one of the HS3s, and waited for TJ to achieve control of the inner hatch. Finally, it too opened.
The HS3s entered the cylindrical connecting passageway beyond. Overhead HLED lights illuminated relatively nondescript metal bulkheads.
“Damn it’s cramped in there,” Bender said. “Tight as a snail’s pussy.”
“Not like your ass after Manic’s done with it, huh?” Fret said.
“More like the other way around,” Bender said.
“Wait a second, how would you know how tight a snail’s pussy is?” Manic said.
“Why don’t you bend over and I’ll show you,” Bender told him.
“You’re the one named Bender...” Manic said.
“That’s right,” Bender said. “Because I make bitches like you bend over.”
Up ahead, the corridor opened into another dome. It was a hydroponics compartment, judging from the profusion of greenery. The HS3s moved between the troughs of fern-like flowering plants that lined the deck.
“Well, at least they’re self-sustaining,” Lui said.
“Send out a LIDAR burst,” Rade said.
That burst would dispatch laser light throughout the compartment. Billions of photons would scatter across the chamber; some would invariably bounce behind the foliage and troughs, providing a map of everything, including those areas currently occluded from the view of the HS3s.
Rade overlaid the white wireframe generated by that LIDAR burst onto his vision, but saw no obvious human shapes lurking behind any of the foliage. He spotted three more exits to the compartment, however.
“Fret, have you heard anything from the scientists yet?” Rade asked.
“Negative,” Fret said. “Even the station’s AI seems to be offline. Everything is run by non-sentient automated systems.”
“Let me know if you get an answer,” Rade said. “TJ, have the HS3s spread out. Map the station.”
four
Rade waited patiently as the HS3s separated and proceeded to explore the different domes and the passageways connecting them. The scouts employed LIDAR bursts liberally, and soon they had mapped out the entire base, from the personnel quarters, to the galley, to the various research labs that seemed to deal with soil and mineral analysis.
“So it’s deserted...” Rade said.
“It would appear that way, yes,” TJ said.
“Even though we were just in contact with their representative an hour ago,” Rade said.
“Could be our Phant was in contact with us,” Surus said. “And the representative we spoke to was its host.”
“It evacuated after giving us the clearance to land?” Rade asked.
“It would seem that way,” Surus said.
“Tell me about this evidence you obtained,” Rade told Corunna, “regarding the existence of the Phant in this system?”
Corunna turned her mirrored faceplate toward Rade. “One of my eyes and ears working in Russian customs detected the Phant when it crossed the Gate into this system.”
“So you’ve equipped humans with Phant detectors, then, it sounds like,” Rade said. “Surus, how come you haven’t shared that technology with us?”
“I didn’t think it was wise to share it with you,” Surus said. “If such tech gets out, it could be used to hunt us Greens.”
“So I take it you disapprove of what Corunna has done,” Lui said.
“Yes,” Surus said. “But it did succeed in detecting this Phant.”
“Or so we think,” Tahoe said. “Could be that her Russian agents are playing with her.”
“All right, here’s what we’re going to do,” Rade said. “TJ, I want you to reboot the AI if you can. And if you can’t, at the very least I want you to check the station logs. Let’s see if we can piece together what happened here.”
The team proceeded inside the base and made its way to the control center that contained the AI core. This was located inside what was essentially a closet set into the far wall of one of the soil analysis labs.
“It’s a model 82A,” TJ said, standing before the core. “I’m going to have to remove it before I can initiate the reboot. It’s password protected, but I think I can override that.”
TJ removed the long tube that contained the station AI’s computational essence. It was the size of an adult human arm. He opened up a panel in his wrist assembly, and connected a male wire into a female port on the top of the tube. Bender was scowling at him, probably pissed because he wanted to be the one doing the hacking.
As Rade watched, a series of circular lights activated, revolving around the circular rim of the tube.
“Got it,” TJ said. “I’m replacing the core.”
TJ slid the tube back into the open panel of the closet.
Rade received a connection request immediately.
“Bender, accept this connection, make sure it’s free of malicious data,” Rade said.
Bender nodded eagerly. A moment later: “Bitch is clean.”
Rade accepted the connection.
“Privet,” the station’s AI said via his Implant. “Ya Mosksva.”
“Command language, English,” Rade stated.
“Greetings, I am Moskva,” the station’s AI sent. “AI of the research station Leningrad. Please state name and set new password.”
“Rade Galaal, beta gamma five two five,” Rade said.
“Thank you, Mr. Galaal,” Moskva said. “How can I be of service to you?”
“Tell us what happened here,” Rade said.
“The inquiry is lacking,” Moskva said. “Your question is missing adequate temporal references. Please rephrase.”
“Deal with it.” Rade waved at TJ sharply. He didn’t have the patience to speak “AI” that morning.
In a few moments TJ reported in: “Looks like the memory core has been wiped. Personnel logs, camera feed data, crew manifest... all gone. As far as the AI is concerned, it’s been activated today for the first time.”
“Why am I not surprised?” Rade said. “I don’t suppose any of its data is recoverable?”
“Negative,” TJ said. “The raw bits were completely overwritten with random data.”
“How long would that take, given the size of the holographic memory core?” Rade said.
“Not long,” TJ said. “Considering the speed of modern holographic drives, about fifteen minutes.”
Rade turned toward his Argonauts. “Theories?”
“The Phant obviously incinerated all the human personnel and then wiped the AI,” Tahoe said.
“But what about any robots or Artificials?” Lui said. “Where did they go? And don’t try to tell me there were no Artificial researchers. Or any servant robots.”
“At a station like this, you’d at least expect a robot chef,” Manic agreed.
“The Phant wouldn’t have been able to incinerate the robots of course,” Surus said. “But there would be nothing to stop our prey from possessing each robot in turn, and perhaps relocating them.”
“Relocating them?” Rade said. “To where? Outside? If the robots went out without protection, they would have melted in what, an hour?”
“Systems failures would have occurred in under an hour, yes,” Harlequin said. “But perhaps that was the Phant’s plan? To eliminate every form of life on this base, whether human or AI?”
“Why bother to destroy everyone? “ Tahoe said. “Why wouldn’t the Phant simply leave the base?”
“Maybe the human personnel pissed it off,” Lui said.
“That’s possible,” Fret said. “So it killed them all, and then fled the base to hide on the surface somewhere out in the temperate zone, just beyond Surus’ detection range. And it’s waiting for us to leave?”
“Interesting theory,” Rade said. “But what’s to stop us from sabotaging the shuttles, stranding it on this world?”
“The Russians would send an investigative team to the planet eventually...” Shaw said from orbit.
“Maybe it intends to hitch a ride on one of our own shuttles,” Manic said.
Rade glanced at Surus. “You’d detect the Phant if that happened, correct?”
Surus nodded behind her faceplate. “It would be relatively easy to determine if the Phant was hitching a ride, because I’d sense its presence all the way into orbit.”
“What about the missing exploratory vehicle?” TJ said. “Robots or human personnel could have used it to flee the station when the Phant attacked. Or our prey may have fled in it himself, after killing everyone. He could have stowed any robot remains inside.”
“The missing vehicle certainly allows for a bunch of different scenarios,” Rade said. “Though they all distill down into one probable outcome: we find the vehicle, mostly likely we find our Phant.”
“I can agree with that,” Surus said.
“With the AI back online, do we have full control of the station?” Rade asked TJ. “Specifically, the hangar bay doors?”
“We do,” TJ said. “We can open and close them at will.”
“Good,” Rade said. “Algorithm and Brat: I want you to return to Shuttle A and launch. Do a low-level sweep of the area, all spectrum channels. Find me that missing exploratory vehicle.”
When the robots departed, Rade ordered the Argonauts to assume a defensive stance, protecting all entrances into the soil analysis lab. Meanwhile, he had the research station’s AI give him access to the external cameras, and he cycled through the different feeds, searching for any signs of life out there.
About ten minutes after the launch of Shuttle A, Algorithm reported in. “We’re getting a signal ping. Located about half a klick to the northwest. I believe it’s the exploratory vehicle.”
“Proceed toward the ping,” Rade instructed. He switched to the external camera of the Dragonfly, and watched the shuttle fly low across the surface. Its headlights illuminated the dark rock below. The solidified lava field was broken into rocky terraces and crags, with basalt occasionally protruding in columnar structures.
The Dragonfly came to a halt before a dark gash hewn into the rocky surface.
“The pussy slit of doom,” Bender commented.
“Kind of like your sister’s?” Manic said.
“Shut it!” Bender said.
The shuttle edged forward, illuminating the start of a downward sloping cave system.
“It appears the signal is coming from inside,” Algorithm said. “The shuttle can’t proceed any further, as the cave is too narrow.”
“What’s the temperature like out there?” Rade asked.
“Steady at one hundred and seventy one degrees Celsius,” the robot replied.
Rade glanced at Lui. “How long can the HS3s last in that temperature?”
“Same as our jumpsuits,” Lui replied. “About ten minutes. But if the cave system continues to trend downward, the temperature will potentially drop rapidly, extending that lifespan.”
“All right,” Rade said. “Algorithm, deploy one of the HS3s. And then find a clear spot to land nearby.”
“You got it, boss,” Algorithm replied.
The shuttle ramp must have opened, because a moment later Rade saw the metal blur of an HS3 pass in front of the camera. He switched to its point of view.
The HS3 headed into the tunnel. The temperature was shown in the upper right of the display. One hundred and seventy degrees. The digits flashed red, indicating that the heat was critical.
Rade concentrated on the main video feed. The headlamps illuminated walls formed of black, glassy rock, covered in several tiny steplike depressions. Likely a form of obsidian. The cave was wide enough to fit at least two Hoplites abreast, and definitely could fit an exploratory vehicle. Though it was a little too small to fit a Dragonfly.
The HS3 continued its advance into the tunnel, whose features otherwise remained unchanged. Rade couldn’t tell by sight if the cave sloped downward, but according to the altimeter the height continued to decrease. The temperature dropped as well, another sign of the descent: one sixty five. One sixty. One fifty.
At one twenty, the temperature indicator stopped flashing, meaning the HS3 was no longer in danger of thermal failure.
The temperature dropped rapidly in the next few moments, going from the boiling point of water to freezing in a matter of seconds, and then heading down into the negative double digits over the next minute.
“Will the HS3 hold up to the rapid temperature change?” Rade asked.
“It should,” Algorithm answered. “I could slow the advance if you want, but I don’t think it will make a difference.”
“Keep going, then,” Rade said.
He noticed patches of white and gray occasionally appearing on the tunnel floor.
“What are those white patches?” Rade said.
It was Lui who answered: “Sulfur dioxide frost.”
At that point, the signal began to freeze and pixelate intermittently.
“The HS3 is reaching the upper limit of its signal range,” Algorithm reported.
“Send in the remaining HS3,” Rade ordered. “Use it as a repeater to extend the range.”
On the overhead map, Rade watched another blue dot emerge from the shuttle and enter the tunnel.
The video feed solidified a moment later, and the lead HS3 continued its descent.
Here, different sections branched off, but Rade had the scout stick to the main tunnel.
In a few moments, the HS3 arrived at what appeared to be the exploratory vehicle. It was a long, segmented craft with articulated steel bands covering the wheels, forming treads.
“Take the HS3 closer to the vehicle,” Rade ordered.
“Should we attempt a hail on all channels?” Lui asked. “Maybe we’ll be in range of someone who can answer?”
“At this point, no,” Rade said. “If our prey is in there, we’ll only be warning him.”
The HS3 flew close to the segmented vehicle. In the front was a wide windshield—the cockpit appeared empty inside. Behind it was an entry hatch, currently closed.
“As far as I can tell, it’s abandoned,” Algorithm said.
“What was that?” Tahoe said.
“What?” Rade asked.
“Algorithm, back up the HS3 a bit,” Tahoe said.
The HS3 retreated.
“There,” Tahoe said. “Stop! You see those footsteps?”
Gray soot of some kind had settled on the cave floor near the vehicle’s entry hatch, and it showed footsteps heading away into one of the nearby side tunnels. The passage was too small for the exploratory vehicle, but still big enough to fit a Hoplite.
“Is that snow on the ground?” Fret said.
“The consistency is more like soot,” Lui said. “Solidified sulfur dioxide.”
“We’re going to lose communication with that HS3 unless we two Centurions go inside to act as repeaters,” Algorithm said. “Either that, or you must send the second shuttle, and load it up with some of the HS3s you’ve kept behind at the research station.”
“I think at this point we’ll want to personally join you,” Rade said. “Surus, we need you in there to get a bead on whether or not our prey is waiting within.”
Surus fingered the stun rifle she carried. “I’m ready.”
“So what’s the plan?” Manic said. “We take the remaining shuttle there and then we hurry inside? If the HS3s could survive the heat until reaching the cooler inner cave system, we can, too.”
“Chi ha capo di cera non vada al sole,” TJ said. “He who hath a head of wax must not walk in the sun.”
“The Italian Rapscallion strikes again!” Bender said.
“Harlequin, what do you think?” Rade said. “How long can our jumpsuits last in that heat?”
“As Lui mentioned: ten minutes, maximum, if we’re lucky,” Harlequin answered. “We’d have to quickly make our way to the layers of cooler air inside the cave. Also, keep in mind that with each minute of exposu
re, the chances of total life support failure steadily increase... the moment we emerge from the shielded shuttle, the risk of failure starts at ten percent, steadily increasing to one hundred percent by ten minutes.”
“So you’re saying as soon as we emerge, there’s a chance our suits could fail?” Fret said.
“That’s correct,” Harlequin replied.
“I’m not sure I like the sound of that,” Fret said.
“Suck it up, skinny little bitch,” Bender said.
“I say we deploy the Hoplites,” Tahoe interjected. “The thermal armor of the mechs can handle the heat of the temperate zone no problem.”
“The tunnels we’ve seen so far certainly look wide enough to contain Hoplites,” Lui agreed. “We could land them near this research station, and load into the cockpits within seconds after opening the dome. Plus, we have no idea what to expect deeper in that cave. If the Phant has a trap in store for us, we definitely want the mechs, I’d say.”
“Though you’re assuming the tunnels will remain big enough to fit the Hoplites,” Lui said. “We’ve brought mechs into tunnels before, and were forced to abandon them when the passageways tightened. Plus, that exploratory vehicle could be a red herring, placed there to divert us from the Phant’s real location.”
“The only thing we have to watch for is the shuttles,” Tahoe said.
“What do you mean?” Manic said. “Surus has added shielding to the AI cores of the Dragonflies. We won’t have to worry about losing them to the Phant while we’re exploring the cave.”
“I know that,” Tahoe said. “I’m talking about the Russian shuttles here at this base. They’re not shielded. While we’re gone, the Phant might return and reactivate one of them, taking it to our ship.”
“Oh yeah....” Manic said.
“Doofus!” Bender said.
“Like you thought of that,” Manic said.
“I did, bitch-tits man,” Bender told him.
“I don’t have bitch tits!” Manic exclaimed.
“You do,” Bender said. “Don’t know how to use your juice properly.”
“Shaw won’t let any of the Russian shuttles leave the base,” Rade said quickly, forestalling any further bickering between the two.
“I’ll reduce any unauthorized Skeeter launches to debris,” Shaw confirmed.