Phasewave

by David Gill

  Vance scratched his head. 'This doesn't add up. If the crew aren't inside the base, where the hell are they?'

  'I don't know,' said Birne.

  'Are you're suggesting that four people left the protection of the base and went outside knowing that they were facing certain death?' said Brant. 'Why would anyone in their right minds do that?'

  'All I'm saying is that we've searched everywhere we would expect a crew to go for shelter and found no sign of them,' said Birne. 'I can only offer you the facts; you must draw your own conclusions.'

  'What about the skimmers?' asked Jenna? 'Were they all there?'

  'We found some skimmers,' said Ingo.

  'And there was a locker full of pressure suits,' added Birne. 'I don't know how many there should have been but it didn't look unusual. You guys know more about that kind of thing than me.'

  'It sounds like they're all accounted for,' said Vance. 'Shit, this is a real problem. We're going to have to contact the Company to see what they want us to do.'

  'We'll be halfway home before we're out of Phasewave shadow and able to talk to Vennica,' said Birne.

  'Hey, hang on, you can't just walk away from this,' said Brant. 'It's not our fault that the crew is missing, and you know as well as we do that we can't stay on Bouron until we find out what's happened to them.'

  'All I know is that I'm now running three days late, and I've got to take the Giran back to Spaceport as soon as possible,' replied Birne. 'I've a schedule to keep, and if we stay here any longer we're going to upset a lot of people further down the line.'

  'Obviously the crew wouldn't have abandoned the base without due cause,' said Brant, 'and now you're holding a gun to our heads to make us follow the same route.'

  'As I keep saying, I'm not asking you to do anything. I'll be more than happy to either leave you here or take you back to Shuttleport. It makes no difference to me. Why don't you talk it over amongst yourselves? I'll come back in an hour, that's all I can give you.'

  Brant watched the two men leave the room. 'Thanks for nothing,' he said. 'Those bastards know we can't make a decision without anything to go on. What do they expect us to do?'

  Vance slumped heavily into a chair. 'This is something we hadn't considered.'

  'So, all we've learnt so far is that there are four bodies somewhere on the planet,' said Brant.

  'Unless they were evacuated by another ship,' suggested Jenna.

  'That's the most logical explanation,' said Vance, 'but if that was the case they would have packed up and taken everything with them, left messages, shut down equipment, and who in their right minds would walk out on a bonus after completing their stint?'

  Jenna stared at the satellites below. She needed to think clearly about her next move, but how could she make a decision based on the few facts they had been given? She needed more time.

  Vance also looked down through the satellites at the planet surface, still faintly visible under the night shadow, and tried to make sense of Birne's news. The planet surface was an endless expanse of dust, and there was nowhere else the crew could have gone. He personally had no choice; there was no way he could return to Vennica without his year's pay, not if he wanted to stay alive. Brant and Jenna would almost certainly not want to go down without knowing what had happened to the old crew, but he could not risk staying there on his own. He needed someone with him in case he became ill; he had not come all that way to die in the back of nowhere. So in what way could one of the others be persuaded to stay with him? How dangerous was it down there? A cold prickle of sweat spread across his shoulders. He thought furiously. There was a way: if Jenna could be persuaded then Brant would almost certainly stay with her.

  'In one hour's time we will know no more than we do now,' said Jenna. 'We can't make a decision based on the little knowledge in our possession, so we have no choice but to return to Vennica.'

  'At first sight that might appear to be the case,' said Vance carefully, 'but it's not strictly true.'

  The others turned and looked at him.

  'We can't remain on the base until we discover the whereabouts of the crew,' said Brant. 'Their bodies could be anywhere.'

  'What exactly are you suggesting?' said Jenna. 'That we just go down there and pretend everything is normal?'

  'It's beginning to look that way,' said Vance.

  'Be serious,' said Brant. 'Four people are missing and you maintain that nothing has happened. What are you trying to say?'

  'I'm looking at things from the Company's point of view,' said Vance. 'At this moment in time there is no evidence to indicate that the crew has come to any harm. In fact all the reports we have suggest that they were engaged in normal activities until the moment of their disappearance.'

  'So everything's right until it becomes wrong?' said Jenna. 'That's an odd kind of logic.'

  'I'm only being objective,' said Vance. 'Right now all we can reach is a tentative conclusion based on a lack of evidence rather than on any facts which could indicate the whereabouts of the crew. If we do return, what are we going to say to the Company when we get back to Vennica? Are we really going to stand there and say that we refused to stay on Bouron because we didn't like what Birne had told us? Well, I've had personal experience of the way the Company deals with people who do things they don't like. Whatever we decide, we must be able to defend that decision.'

  'We'll have the union on our side,' said Brant.

  'And what are we going to tell the union?' asked Vance. 'Are we going to tell them that we abandoned a perfectly serviceable Phasewave base, the most important control centre in the whole network, without a shred of evidence to justify our actions? I don't think so. The union will need something solid to work on or they won't want to know, that's all I'm saying. We must work out exactly why we are making our decisions, because it will soon be too late to change our minds. Personally I don't think I have grounds for leaving the base unattended, but if you choose otherwise I'll respect that decision.'

  Brant turned to Jenna. 'What do you say?'

  'I think this whole thing stinks,' said Jenna. 'How could anyone expect us to enter an area where four people have disappeared without knowing what happened to them?'

  'The Company will probably disagree with you on that point,' said Vance. 'They are picking up our salaries and the cost of sending us out here to look after the base for a year, so when they discover that Bouron has been abandoned they are going to go to a lot of expense and trouble to get another crew out here as fast as possible. Meanwhile, if the Phasewaves start to malfunction the network could suffer a total shut-down. If it's gridlock we're talking about, that's serious stuff. The Company is locked into contracts with expensive penalty clauses, which is why I'm saying we have to understand exactly where we're going before anyone calls quit.'

  The setting sun etched a golden rim on the black planet edge, but the sight only filled Jenna with a cold emptiness. They could not seriously consider staying there after what Birne had found. But what exactly had he found? She had to concede that Vance had a point, a lot of difficult questions were going to be asked when they got back to Vennica and, in the meantime, if there was a malfunction on Bouron, all the blame was going to be directed at them. On the other hand, could she face working there for a year knowing that there were four bodies lying around waiting to be discovered?

  'This is bad,' said Brant. 'I don't like it.'

  'Nobody likes it,' said Vance, 'but right now it's not down to a question of liking it or not. Something out of the ordinary has happened and, because we're the ones on the spot, it's now our decision to stay or go. Jenna is right, no matter how long we stay in orbit we aren't going to learn any more about what's gone on down there.'

  'Count me out,' said Brant. 'This is one mess I don't want to get caught up in.'

  'That's entirely understandable,' said Vance. 'We've all got personal decisions to make; you must do whatever your conscience dictates.'

  'You sound as if you've already made
up your mind to stay,' said Jenna.

  'This kind of thing doesn't bother me,' said Vance. 'I've come across worse situations, and it'll look better if somebody stays behind to maintain a presence.'

  'Oh, come on. You're not doing this just for us,' said Brant. 'I can look after myself.'

  'I know you can, but if I have no objections to staying here and it's going to help everyone there's no harm done. You two go back to Vennica and I'll wait for the relief crew, it will only take a few months to get one out.'

  Jenna found Brant staring at her, as if he was trying to read her mind.

  She looked down at the floor and shook her head. 'This is crazy. We have to stick together. Vance can't do this by himself.'

  'Don't let anything I've said change your minds,' said Vance. 'This is important. We've each got to do what we think right. Forget the teamwork bit.'

  Jenna returned to the viewing screen and saw that the sun had dropped out of sight behind the dark mass that was Bouron. She tried to think clearly, but knew she could not leave Vance alone, not with the previous crew unaccounted for. She turned and looked at Brant. 'I think if Vance stays we ought to stay with him.'

  'What?' cried Brant. 'Are you mad? You've no idea what might happen to us if we go down there.'

  'We've come this far and I don't want to go back empty-handed,' said Jenna. 'I say we stick together, if one of us stays we all stay.'

  It was Brant's turn to pace the room. He finally stopped in front of Vance. 'I'm sorry, but I'm going back. That's all there is to it.'

  'Fine,' said Vance. 'I don't blame you one bit and I'm sure Jenna doesn't. Isn't that right Jenna?'

  'You go home Brant,' said Jenna. 'It sounds as if the base has been running itself for the last three months, so I doubt if we'll be faced with anything we won't be able to cope with.'

  Brant felt the tension twist his stomach into a knot. Jenna was not as tough as she was trying to make out. He saw the pain behind her eyes and knew that he could not leave her alone with Vance, not and be able to live with himself if she came to harm.

  'How about this for an idea?' said Vance. 'We all go down and inspect the base for ourselves and if there's anything we don't like, anything we consider dangerous, then we come straight back to the Giran and return to Vennica. That way no-one can say we didn't do our best for the Company.'

  'There isn't time,' said Brant, 'the Giran has to leave within the hour.'

  Vance grinned. 'Take no notice of Birne, all that stuff about making his schedule is hot air, and a few hours either way won't make any difference to his movements. Does my suggestion sound fair to everyone?'

  Jenna shrugged. 'It sounds fair enough to me. What about you, Brant?'

  'Only under one condition,' said Brant. 'After we've searched the base I say we take a vote, and if it's unanimous we stay, if not we leave.'

  'That won't work,' said Vance quickly. 'It has to go with the majority.'

  'We can't leave anyone alone down there,' said Jenna. 'If two of us vote to leave, the other has to come back with us, and if two vote to stay then the other can come back on their own.'

  'Okay,' said Vance, 'we all go down and if there's anything we don't like the look of we quit there and then. Nothing could be fairer.'

  Brant thought it over. 'I don't know.'

  'It's got to be the fairest solution,' said Vance, sensing victory. 'This way no individual can force the issue.'

  'Well, if you both think it's worth a try I guess it's all right by me,' Brant said uncertainly, 'but Birne isn't going to like the idea of visiting the base again.'

  'Birne's afraid of getting his hands dirty,' said Vance. 'So far as I'm concerned he can screw his stupid schedules. We'll politely ask him to take us down to inspect the base and if he refuses we can sit back and let him do all the explaining when we arrive at Vennica. Believe me, he won't go for that.'

  'We've nothing to lose,' said Jenna.

  Brant was still doubtful. 'Okay then, only while we're down there we'll go right through the base and make sure that nowhere has been overlooked. Who's going to break the news to Birne?'

  'Leave that pleasure to me,' said Vance. 'I'd hate to let anyone else spoil his day.'

  Jenna packed up her belongings and turned to leave the room, but before reaching the exit turned round on impulse and saw a look of triumph on Vance's face. Only after she reached her cabin did the thought occur to her that somehow she had been deftly manipulated, but quite how she was unable to determine.

  *******************************

  'Declan stood up and stretched his legs. 'Let's take a break.' He was tired and could no longer take in what Jenna was saying. Could anyone suffering from space sickness be as lucid as Jenna without revealing other signs of the affliction? It sounded like the start of a bizarre story, but it was too soon to reach any conclusions and he had to keep his options open. Then he remembered something that had been puzzling him. 'Why couldn't you use the Giran's Extranet to contact the Company?'

  'We were inside Phasewave shadow,' said Jenna. 'The Phasewaves on Bouron swamp all other types of transmissions, which is why the landing craft could not contact the Giran from the surface of Bouron and why the maintenance crew spend the whole year out there in isolation. The only external contact during that time is when the Amar, the supply ship, calls after six months.'

  'At what point in the journey did you lose radio contact with Vennica?'

  'You mean on the way out? It was probably just after halfway. Individual Phasewave bases have to be sited at least five hundred kilometres apart to avoid interference with each other, but Bouron is the central control station so, in addition to relaying the output from the other bases, it also produces the co-ordinating transmission, the Wave, which synchronises all units connected to the Intranet. Once you link the twelve Phasewave units on Bouron to generate the Wave their combined power output blocks other transmissions for millions of kilometres in all directions.'

  Declan was desperate to rest, but Jenna had only just come to life. 'I'm sorry, but I really need to get some sleep,' he said.

  'Of course,' said Jenna, 'but before you go would you like to hear what happened after we arrived on Bouron?'

  Declan hesitated. 'Are you sure you want to continue tonight?'

  'I don't sleep much nowadays,' Jenna said, and, without giving Declan chance to reply, recommenced the story of her arrival on Bouron.

  *******************************

  'You still have time to change your mind,' said Birne, 'we can continue the search in the morning.' He looked around the stark interior of the loading bay, as if expecting to find the solution to their problem revealed on its bare walls.

  'There's no point,' said Jenna. 'We've already seen everything we wanted to see, and I don't think we're going to find anything now. This place is uncanny - it looks as if the crew walked out yesterday.'

  'I wish you luck during your stay,' said Birne. 'Remember, the supply run isn't due for six months.'

  Jenna stared at the landing craft squatting outside on the ramp under the harsh glare of the base lights, waiting to take Birne back to the Giran, and fought against the almost overwhelming urge to walk away with him, to return to Vennica leaving Bouron and its dark secrets behind. Birne could tell from Jenna's drawn features that all he needed to do was take her hand and she would go with him, but knew that she was bottling something inside her, something she had to face by herself. Whatever Jenna's problem, it was doing her no good, and to spend a year on Bouron with two strangers was probably the worst cure he could think of. Just saying goodbye was not enough. Birne started to speak, but before he could do so a sound outside the base disturbed the silence. The noise grew louder. It was the angry voices of an approaching crowd.

  Jenna was startled. 'What's that?'

  'The Phasewaves are talking to each other,' said Birne. 'It's nothing to be concerned about.'

  'No, it's voices!' exclaimed Jenna. 'There are people outside! It's the missing crew!'
/>
  Birne shook his head. 'It's only the machines. They work best at full capacity so every now and then they transfer loads and it upsets the synchronization. That is the sound they make.' He raised his hand. 'Listen!'

  The distant voices slowly died away, leaving them in silence again.

  'Now they're back in synch,' said Birne. 'It doesn't happen often; you'll get used to it.'

  Jenna shivered and pulled her jacket around her. 'It's not what you expect to hear when you think you're on your own. I don't think I'll ever get used to that.'

  'You don't have to stay if you don't want to. It's not too late.'

  Jenna pulled back a wisp of hair from her eyes and gave him a nervous smile. 'Don't worry, I'll be okay. One last question before you leave - what are those lights?'

  Birne turned and followed Jenna's direction to where a line of muted, coloured lights flickered and glowed along a stretch of horizon. 'It's an approaching electrical storm. Until the size of the satellite belt was increased there was no electrical activity on Bouron, but now these storms are common. I think the Phasewave transmissions must have upset whatever goes for a climate in this place. The lights are the best thing around here and can be quite spectacular.'

  Jenna watched spikes of colour ripple into the sky, shattering the darkness.

  'I'd better be away before that lot reaches us,' said Birne. 'While I remember, I've downloaded a set of line-scans into your log. They cover most of this side of Bouron and the area around the base. I couldn't see anything on them, but they may come in useful if you decide you want to take a look around.'

  'Thanks,' said Jenna. 'We probably will once we're settled in.'

  There was a strained lull in the conversation, and then Birne reached out and gave Jenna a brief embrace before turning for the airlock. The landing craft's motors whined into life and the machine eventually moved away to be swallowed by the darkness outside. Jenna remained at the window and watched the departing craft's lights fade against the glare of the approaching storm, then walked back to her quarters feeling lonely and empty inside and reflected that so far her year in isolation had not got off to an auspicious start.