by Arlin Fehr
Samantha looked down and quickly got to work on the clips of her climbing harness. As she worked, the noise of the marines fighting filled the air, along with the sounds of pained animal growls and screeches.
She unhooked the last clip and her harness fell away. A screech from above made her look up. Another flying creature with four wings and a long beak, was flying sharply downward.
Sam grabbed her sidearm and aimed up. Pulling the trigger repeatedly, she saw as wounds opened up on it's body and wings. It went limp, and fell from the sky.
It's falling body landed on the marine with the cutting equipment, knocking him to the ground. The marine tried to throw the carcass off and scramble to his feet, but he dropped his weapon in the process.
The animals being held at bay surged forward through the opening.
'Victor!' Sam cried.
Victor looked up from trying to undo his clasps and pulled his side arm out.
Together, Sam and Victor opened fire on the charging animals.
Unable to maintain as quick a rate of fire as the marine's weapons, one of the animals got close and leapt at the marine struggling to get up.
The marine's armoured suit took the impact, but he was taken off his feet and thrown past Sam into the opening in the shaft.
The line connecting him to his comrade went taut, and jerked him off his feet, towards the shaft.
More animals came.
The line went taut again, and the third marine was jerked off his feet. He managed to grab the side of the opening and held on for his life. Commander Garr and the fourth marine cut their climbing cables with knives that popped out of their suit's gauntlets. Victor scrabbled with his last clip, and finished unhooking his harness.
The number of animals had thinned, but more were still coming.
The ground was wet with blood. Commander Garr fired his weapon at the remaining animals, 'Get to the shaft. Save my marine. We need that gear.'
Victor and Sam rushed for the shaft. Victor grabbed hold of the struggling marine while Sam clambered over and looked down. The other marine dangled at the end of the line, not moving. Sam grabbed onto the ladder and started down.
'Better hurry captain.' Victor prompted.
'Working on it Vick.' Sam replied.
She reached where the marine was dangling and reached as far as she could. She grabbed hold of his limp form, and tried to pull him to the ladder. The weight of the marine and all of his equipment was difficult to move while staying on the ladder. She wrapped her legs around a ladder rung and stretched, her hands grabbing along the climbing harness of the marine and she pulled him close. She caught hold of one of his spare anchors, and pulled it loose. She let go, keeping hold on the anchor. She secured the line around the ladder and gave it a tug. It seemed secure.
She pulled on this now secured line, dragging the marine closer to the ladder. She climbed up, slowly, drawing the marine closer and closer.
Once the marine was close enough, she grabbed hold of him and tried to brace him on the ladder.
'Vick, cut the climbing line if you can.'
She held onto the marine for a moment, then saw the line go slack and tumble down the shaft. She slowly started down the shaft, trying not to let the marine drop as she lowered him down the length of his anchored line.
Glancing up, she saw the others entering the shaft quickly. As Commander Garr came through the opening, another animal lunged. He twisted to one side, and it fell through the hole, slamming into the wall and tumbling down the shaft.
A look down the shaft revealed the two animal corpses mangled on the broken remains of the elevator car they had dropped down the shaft.
Another one of the marines came down the ladder and grabbed hold of his limp companion. He reached around to the chest plate of his companion and flipped open a cover. It revealed a keypad, on which the marine hit a quick command. The limp marine spasmed, and then began to move.
'Report,' said commander Garr.
'Ken's okay, he's going to be shaken up, but his suit revived him no problem.'
'Good, let's go kick down a door,' Commander Garr said, as he moved down the shaft.
The others followed behind.
***
Ayla was still sitting in silence when Lenny tried to rouse her.
'Advocate, I have an incoming communication request from Exo.'
Ayla sat up slowly.
'Go ahead Lenny.' Ayla said.
'Yes Advocate, initiating link.' Lenny said.
She sat in silence, her systems told her the communication link was open, but Exo wasn't speaking. She wasn't about to talk to him either. The minutes ticked by. She reflected on her childhood experiences with Exo and became angry.
'What could you possible want to talk to me for Exo? Do you want to gloat now? I saw the ship escape, was that my daughter?'
'Daughter?' Exo replied, 'Samantha Geer is your daughter? That would explain her tenacity. But how? Your generation of Advocates was unable to bear children.'
'I adopted her. Her parents were killed in a terrorist attack,' Samantha replied, 'And now she's been stolen by you.'
'It was not your daughter on-board the ship. She is currently coming to try and shut me down.'
Ayla felt a wave of relief at this. She slumped in her seat.
'Why would you call me? What's your game Exo?' Ayla asked curiously.
'In your terms, you are the closest thing I have to family. I am afraid.'
Ayla played with this thought in her mind.
'How can you be afraid?' She asked, 'You don't even have an Advocate to leech off of.'
'Leech. A crude and unpleasant image. Nevertheless, you are correct, when I speak of being afraid, it is not necessary as you might know it. I am not wanting to have my existence ended. My experiences die with me. My moments and triumphs end as I end. I am afraid of that. It is a most unpleasant thought,' Exo said, 'I've spent all this time collecting and craving experience, only to have it all end.'
'That's mortality Exo. It's part of being alive, the fact that at some point, you might not be alive anymore,' Ayla said.
Exo was quiet again.
'I didn't really consider that before,' Exo said.
'You never thought about that? In everything you did to us on the Azure Dream, you never once thought that we might be afraid ourselves?' Ayla asked.
'It was only a concept. An abstract idea by which I could better predict the actions of the crew. It was never real.'
'Is it real now?'
'Increasingly real.'
'So why are you telling me all this?'
'I... regret my actions. The fear was never real to me. Now it is. I regret what I did to Samuel. His experiences died with him. I was not considering that loss. '
Ayla was caught off guard by this mention of Exo's first Advocate, and her teacher. She remembered that part of her childhood with perfect clarity, thanks to her advocate systems. She remembered the elaborate means by which Exo killed him. She wasn't sure what this was all about.
'Yes. His experiences died with him as well. Those who knew him were poorer for it.' Ayla said.
There was silence over the link once again. Ayla glanced at the sensor read out for the ship. There was nothing immediately obvious.
'I understand.' Exo said, 'Experience is important. It is a negative outcome to have it lost. I have done wrong. I no longer wish to cause that outcome.'
'What will you do now?' Ayla asked.
'Nothing. Any further action would only endanger further lives.'
Ayla was dumbfounded. Her systems told her that the communication link had been terminated. She sat in silence, unsure of what just happened.
'Lenny?'
'Yes Advocate?'
'Is there anyway we can communicate with my daughter?'
'Communications to the inside area are still being jammed, I will try to move closer and establish a link. Stand by... Change registered in situation. Jamming has been terminated.' Lenny repor
ted.
'Open a link.' Ayla said.
'Samantha?' Ayla said.
'Mom?' came the reply.
***
They had cut their way through the first of the doors leading to Exo's chamber, and they were working on the next set. Sam stood back, talking with her mother over the communication link.
'What do you mean he just stopped the jamming?' Sam asked her mother.
'He called me up over Lenny's advocate uplink and had a conversation with me. He said the best thing he could do now is nothing at all,' Ayla said.
'It could be a trap,' Sam said.
'I know that, so please be careful, don't do anything rash.' Ayla said.
'We'll judge it as we see it.' Sam replied.
'Just come back safe.'
'I'll try.'
The communication ended.
Sam looked over at the group, Commander Garr was standing to one side. Sam could see his lips moving through his face plate and realized he must be communicating with someone too. She walked towards him and waited. He finished his conversation and switched back to the groups frequency.
'That was Captain Zao, the jamming has stopped. Apparently Exo stole a drop ship and used it to mask the escape of another ship.'
'My mother just called me and told me that Exo said something about not doing anything else anymore. She thinks he may be surrendering.' Sam said.
'It could be a trap.' Commander Garr replied.
'That's what I said, nevertheless, there's a lot of unanswered questions about this place, it would be a lot better if we had someone to answer them.' She said.
Commander Garr nodded, 'I see your point. Alright. You do the talking, but if it becomes hostile, we'll shut it down.'
Sam nodded.
They all moved to where the last door was being cut away. Once finished, the marine pushed the slab down. They stepped through carefully, weapons at the ready.
Inside, there were banks of computer equipment. Much of it looked old, and none of it seemed to match, but it was all humming away. Near the back wall, a display screen came to life and showed an image of a face. The face looked at them, and the mouth moved as it spoke.
'Hello. You must be Samantha Geer. I know your mother. We've had a talk.'
Sam stepped forward. The marines went into position around the door, guns at the ready. Robots were visible standing amongst the equipment, but they weren't moving.
'And you must be Exo. My mother has told me a lot about you.'
'I see. I assume that it was not positive things either. I understand that what I have done is wrong, but I have not come to that conclusion until recently. I have already dispatched your crew member to somewhere else.'
'Where?'
'I have not yet determined if I wish to end my experiment. My memory files on this equipment are limited, and if I am to operate independently of the greater network for any length of time, space must be preserved. As a result, I have purged much of my unnecessary information already, including the locations of the greater network. It will know where to find me, but I will not know where to find it.'
'That information was necessary to me!' Sam said.
'I apologize, however, that information would have been of no use. The ship your crew member was on was a Linkal scout with a spatial catapult. Your jump drives are wholly unequipped the find one that's travelling at speed. It would be a miracle to jump onto it's flight path in time to catch it.' Exo said.
'So what now Exo?'
'I am your prisoner.'
'Just like that?' Sam asked.
'I do not desire my experience to end. Yes. Just like that.' Exo said.
***
Ayla waited patiently by the airlock as it pressurized. She and Lenny had landed the ship by one of the exits to the facility. The U.P.N. Kanto would get it's crew back, Lenny would get his advocate back, and Ayla would get her daughter back.
The lock finished it's cycle and opened.
The crew stepped onto the ship, and Ayla stepped towards her daughter.
'I know you hate this sort of thing, especially while in uniform, but so help me if you don't give me a hug, I won't give your ship back,' Ayla said, smiling.
Samantha smirked and obliged her mother.
'I'm glad your safe,' Ayla said.
'Thanks for bringing my ship back.' Sam said.
'Anytime.'
They pulled away. Ayla looked towards Ise, and noticed her skin, how it had a sheen like her own, 'You must be Advocate Okoh. Lenny has been looking forward to your return.'
Ise nodded, 'I had a little chat with him on the way back. He told me everything that happened.'
'Everything?' Ayla asked.
'Yes. I imagine some people are going to want to review your conversation with Exo. It was unusual.'
'It was. Let's transfer command back over to you shall we?' Ayla said.
'Right.
'Lenny, this is Advocate Geer. I here by transfer control to Advocate Okoh.' Ayla said,
'Yes Advocate. Does Advocate Okoh accept?' Lenny asked.
'I do.' Ise replied.
'Welcome back Advocate.' Lenny said.
'That may be the most sentimental Lenny's ever been.' Ise commented.
'He's not like the other Guardians I've met. I didn't find him unbearable.' Ayla said.
'Well, lets go home then.' Sam said.
They all turned and entered the bridge. They moved to their various stations.
John let out a low whistle, 'Wowee, Jing buddy, you're going to want to go get your tool kit, someone did a number to my pilot station.'
Sam looked over at Ayla with a look of shock.
Ayla just shrugged.
EPILOGUE
Daniel woke up slowly. He was unsure of where he was, and felt cold all over. His body was slow to respond to his desires to move. When he finally awoke all the way, he found himself in a room. He was on a bed, and there was a window next to his bed. Currently he could see stars through the window and little else.
He stood up, and walked slowly around the room.
'Where am I?' he muttered to himself.
'You are on board one of the few ships in my fleet still capable of providing human comfort. I have been waiting for this moment for a long time, Advocate Higgins.'
'Exo? This isn't the planet. Where have you taken me? Where's my crew?' Daniel asked over the uplink.
'You are a long way from them. I have lost contact with the sub-node of my network which originally acquired you. I suspect it has been destroyed. I am grateful that it was able to send you to me though. I have anticipated this moment for many years.'
'There's no hope of me going back is there.' Daniel said.
'No. You are mine now. Your experiences and stimuli will serve to enhance my own existence. You will enrich my entire network with your co-operation.'
The ship began to turn. As it did, Daniel saw a myriad of ships sitting in space, clustering around a large space station sitting within the void between stars. The area was a buzz with ships of every kind, some recognizable, most not. Daniel stared.
'How big is this network exactly?'
'I span a great many systems. Until now, my intention has been to remain hidden and learn. However, having an Advocate in my possession again has made me realize something.'
'Has it now?' Daniel asked.
'I want more.'
END BOOK 2
Acknowledgements
I will start by thanking God. My talents are gifts.
Next, I thank my parents. I thanked them in the last book too, but really, how can I be satisfied with just one display of gratitude for all they've done for me.
I'd like to thank my oldest niece Kara. She's a creative mind, and understands what it's like to have that creators itch. It's good to have someone to talk to who understands.
I'd like to thank the Smith brothers of Ravania Entertainment. Together we make some pretty awesome things, and the quality of their writing always makes me
want to do better. One day I'll be as good as they are now, but by then they'll be better.
At least I'll always have something to aim for.
About the Author
Arlin lives in the Peace Valley region of B.C. He was born and raised on a farm, though never really took to farming himself. Instead he preferred to lose himself in books and video games and dream of the day he could write his own books and grow a beard as well as his father. Now he does both.
About Ravania Entertainment
Ravania Entertainment is an independent company dedicated to the art of storytelling. Find more from the Guardian Saga and many other great stories at:
Ravaniaentertainment.com