“Why do we have to cut everything so close?” Noble asked.
“I’m sorry, sir,” Irene began to say. “But it’s—”
“I was kidding, Irene. Nice work.”
“Thank you, Captain.”
He took a deep breath and then pulled his sleeve across his damp forehead. He’d been so focused on the mission he hadn’t even realized he was sweating.
“Irene, let me know when you find the source of the signal,” he said. “I’m heading over to Navigation.”
Athena greeted the captain with a nod.
“How are we holding up?” Noble asked.
“The currents are unpredictable, but I think we’ll be okay.”
“I trust you,” Noble said. He pivoted to the AI console. “How we doing, Irene?”
“Coming up on coordinates now. Take a look,” she replied. Athena’s monitors flickered and an image of a hangar came on the display.
“If there are survivors, they’re inside there,” he said, squinting.
“You really think some others made it?” Athena asked without taking her eyes off her monitors.
“I really, really hope so,” he replied.
“How are we going to communicate with them if they did?”
“If there are survivors, I’m going to fly the Sea Serpent there myself, pick them up, and fly them back first class.”
A nervous chuckle escaped Athena’s lips.
Noble’s expression quickly hardened. “Find a way inside, Irene.”
“Done,” she replied. “Looks like someone left the back door open.”
“What? Where?” He shifted away from the nav station and stepped onto the ramp that led to the lower levels of the CIC. The main screen revealed the double doors to the hangar were cracked open.
“Shit . . .” Noble muttered. “Could be a trap.”
“Orders, sir,” Irene said.
He paused to think. Either way, he had to know. They hadn’t come this far to give up now. He wasn’t risking flesh and blood; he was risking a machine. A very important machine . . .
“Proceed with caution,” he finally replied.
The robot zipped through the gap and entered the dark hangar. He imagined a crew of battle-hardened marines waiting, their muzzles pointing down at the bot as they prepared to blast it into pieces. Even that would have been cause for hope. But the green shapes from the night vision feed revealed no signs of life.
“Sir, we’re right on top of the UTM coordinates,” Irene said.
“So where’s the distress signal coming from?” Noble replied.
The bot’s cameras tilted to a forty-five-degree angle.
“There,” Athena blurted from her station.
“My God,” the captain replied. “Is that what I think it is, Irene? Zoom in on that image.”
He watched the green outlines blur and then solidify to form the most beautiful thing he’d seen in a long time.
“That’s the NTC Sunspot. One of only three prototypes capable of interstellar space travel,” Irene replied.
The find was extraordinary, but at the same time Noble was disappointed. He knew what it meant. There were no survivors. No humans, at least. The ship’s AI had likely activated the beacon after the crew had been killed.
“Damn,” he muttered. He hadn’t wanted to admit it before, but he’d allowed himself to hope.
“Sir,” Athena said with urgency.
“What?” he snapped.
Another voice rang out behind him. “Captain! We have a problem.”
Noble spun. Richards was standing at his station, his eyes wild with fear.
“The collection ships, sir. They’ve changed course,” he said, glancing down at his monitor as if to double-check his observation. His eyes shot up and locked with Noble’s.
“Sir,” Richards said in a low, shaky voice, “the Organics are headed right for us.”
Noble cursed under his breath and rushed to his captain’s chair, spinning it around and jumping into it. “Evasive maneuvers, now!” he yelled.
A deep jolt shook the GOA, sending several crew members crashing to the floor.
“All hands to battle stations,” Irene said. “This is not a drill.”
An emergency alarm shrieked through the cabin. The glow of the red lights pulsated through the command center.
The main display flared to life and Noble saw the swirling current in front of them. The vessel’s blue beams tore through the churning salt water.
He closed his eyes and cursed. Maybe they’d used up all their luck after all.
* * *
Emanuel cupped his head in his hands, pressing hard on his temples. How had he allowed Sophie to slide so far into darkness? He should have seen the warning signs: the exhaustion, the stress, and the depression. Sophie had faded right in front of him.
Now he was wondering exactly how unhinged she really was. Smith had confirmed that she saw Sophie in the ship, and that the ship was full of orbs. She’d even mentioned the shape-shifting aliens. There were only two explanations. One, Smith had overhead them talking about Sophie’s experience in the medical ward, or two . . .
Emanuel still couldn’t bring himself to believe that Sophie had really been inside that ship. He wanted to believe her, but there was no hard evidence, no test they could perform to see if it was all in her mind. The marines had seen her passed out on the ground during their last battle, not abducted. It was physically impossible.
Minutes ticked by as he waited for Holly in the CIC. He sat in silence, second-guessing everything that had happened and beating himself up for not trying harder to be there for Sophie. He only hoped now that their intervention wouldn’t come too late; that maybe, just maybe, they could pull her from the grasp of whatever demons possessed her.
She’d been through so much. The injury she’d sustained during the mission to White Sands, her experience on the black ship. And through it all, she had remained the fearless leader, putting everyone else first.
As much as it pained him to think it, he wasn’t sure if saving her was even possible.
He pushed the thought aside and looked at the clock. Holly was already fifteen minutes late.
“Alexia, can you track Holly down for me, please?”
“Yes, Doctor Rodriguez. Doctor Brown is currently in your quarters with Corporal Bouma and Doctor Winston.”
“Is Sophie sleeping?”
“Yes. She has been for several minutes.”
Good, Emanuel thought, Holly should be there shortly. In the meantime, he’d get back to work. It was the only way to settle his worried mind.
He spun his chair to face the row of monitors, typing in several commands. The wall came to life, the screens emitting a warm glow in the otherwise dimly lit room.
“What do you have for me today, Lolo?” he muttered to himself.
He glanced at the screen on the right, scooting his chair closer for a better look. Emanuel was working on focusing the grainy image when footsteps in the hallway distracted him.
“Sophie’s out like a light,” Holly said with a long sigh. “Chad’s watching her now. The kids are with Kiel. So we have a few minutes to talk about her treatment.”
Emanuel winced at the sound of the word. It made her seem like a mental patient, although he knew that wasn’t far from the truth.
He gestured to the chair across from him and crossed a leg. “Clearly she’s suffering from post-traumatic stress. On top of that, I think the NTC chip in her neck is causing more problems. I wish there was a way to remove it.” In the back of his mind he found himself wondering if there was something else wrong.
“Alexia said we can’t do that. At this point, the chip has been connected to her brain for so long we don’t know what will happen. What Sophie needs is a daily dose of therapy. Perhaps even mult
iple doses.”
“She’s beyond that, Holly. Don’t you see what’s happening to her?”
Holly looked unconvinced. “I don’t think she’s beyond therapy. And I really don’t think removing the implant is going to do much besides risk her health even more.”
Emanuel chewed the inside of his lip. He already knew he wasn’t going to get anywhere with Holly.
“Doctors, may I make a suggestion?” Alexia asked.
They both looked over at her console simultaneously. The AI’s face fizzled several times before coagulating into a complete hologram.
“Please, be my guest,” Emanuel said.
“We have yet to utilize NTC’s MindTec. Perhaps it could give us a better look into Sophie’s subconscious. If we know what she’s dealing with, then we could potentially find a way to help her.”
“What’s MindTec?” Emanuel replied. He looked over at Holly, who was already nodding in agreement.
“That’s a fantastic idea,” she said. “If we had one.”
“Um, what’s MindTec?” Emanuel entreated.
Holly waved her hands in an arch. “The device is essentially a miniature MRI that’s capable of looking into someone’s thoughts. Depending on how far back you are trying to look, the machine can achieve up to a ninety-five percent accurate reading. They are also used for therapy, but I’ve primarily read about them being used by the military. I wish we actually had one.”
“We do, Doctor,” Alexia replied.
An incredulous look broke across Holly’s face. “That’s news to me. What, do we have one lying around in storage?”
“Not inside the Biosphere,” Alexia answered. “But NTC does have one of the machines boxed up in the offices outside it. Remember the briefing room? There’s another room where NTC guards took their psych evals when they were building this place. NTC screened everyone working in this facility for the utmost discretion. They wanted to keep the Biosphere a secret.”
“What are we waiting for?” Holly asked.
“Hold on, let me think,” Emanuel said. “Now, if MindTec can really get us a snapshot into Sophie’s subconscious, that would be great. However, what if the problem isn’t with her brain?” He flinched at his own idea.
“There’s only one way to find out,” Holly said.
“Fine. Let’s go get Sophie some food, maybe some coffee, and explain Alexia’s idea.”
Holly shook her head once, her ponytail flapping from side to side. “She’ll never go for it.”
“She will if we make her think it’s her idea,” Emanuel said.
“And how do you expect to do that?”
“Easy,” Emanuel replied. “She’s been trying to convince us she was inside that ship, right?”
Holly nodded.
“Okay, so I’ll subtly find a way to mention the MindTec. Then you suggest using it on Smith to see if we can’t tap into her memories. We could discuss how important they are in learning more about the Organics, and surely Sophie will propose having the same thing done to her.”
“Or she’ll see right through you. She’ll think it’s a violation of her privacy.”
Before Emanuel could reply, Alexia cut in. “Doctors, may I make another suggestion?”
They both turned to look at the AI console, but Alexia had already transferred to the speakers.
“Why not sedate Doctor Winston? She’s already asleep. You could move her to the medical ward and hook her up to the MindTec without her even knowing.”
“No,” Holly quickly replied.
Emanuel agreed. “That would go beyond violating her privacy. I’m not doing it.”
“I should remind you that time is of the essence here,” Alexia replied. “Not just for Doctor Winston, but also for Lieutenant Smith.”
The wheels on Emanuel’s chair screeched as he dragged it across the room. He hadn’t forgotten about the marine, but his focus had shifted to Sophie now.
“Let’s stick to my original plan. I’ve known Sophie for a long time. I think this will work. She’ll go for it.” He spun to face Holly. “In the meantime, prepare the RVAMP. I want it amped and ready to go. I’ll perform the tests Sophie and I had discussed in regards to Smith shortly.”
Holly’s lips started moving, but her response ended up coming out as a sigh.
Emanuel looked at the monitors, scanning the wall of images that flickered by. “Alexia, please let me know when Sophie’s awake. I’m going to stop in the kitchen and then head to the medical ward in a few minutes.”
“Very well, Doctor Rodriguez,” she replied.
Holly didn’t immediately get up. She sat staring at her mud-caked boots. In a low voice she said, “What do you think we are going to see on the MindTec scan?”
Emanuel rubbed the back of his shoulder and shrugged. He’d used up all his brainpower for the day; his mind refused to cooperate until he put some warm food in his belly. “Let’s grab a bite to eat. We can talk more about it in the mess hall.”
Holly nodded and reached over to touch his hand. “She’s going to be okay, right?” The younger doctor’s eyes pleaded for some sort of guarantee.
He broke her gaze and pulled away. He wasn’t going to lie to her. He wasn’t sure Sophie would ever be the same. Then again, he wasn’t sure any of them would.
Behind him the images of a very different Earth flashed across the monitors. The planet, now desolate, was running out of time.
Emanuel sighed and began walking away when something caught his eye.
“What the hell is that?” he said looking over Holly’s shoulder. He crossed over to the display and pointed. “Alexia, freeze pane.”
The shot was taken at an odd angle. Emanuel tilted his head for a better look. At first glance he thought he was looking at a windowless skyscraper stretching unusually high into the sky. He had never seen a building quite so tall.
“Alexia, enhance image,” he said.
The blurred picture solidified, and he saw that the structure had been built into the side of a mountain. As he rotated the image with his fingers he knew right away it was not of human origin. It had to be Organic.
“Can you get me the UTM coordinates for this, Alexia?”
“One moment, Doctor.”
“What do you think that thing is?” Holly asked.
Emanuel shrugged. “Not sure. Alexia, do you have any ideas?”
“Scanning my database, Doctor.”
They waited a couple of minutes, much longer than normal, before the AI’s voice returned to the speakers.
“Doctors, take a look at this. I searched for similar images in Lolo’s database and this is what came back.”
The row of monitors flickered and seven identical images emerged. They were the same alien structures in different locations. Emanuel massaged his beard. What in the hell have we discovered now? he wondered.
“These are all shots we’ve received from Lolo in the past few days.” Alexia paused. “I’ll transfer their UTM coordinates to my console.”
Emanuel plopped into a chair and scooted it closer to the AI interface. A hologram shot out and solidified into an image of the globe. Alexia marked the locations of the alien poles with red dots. As the image rotated he saw they were all on mountain ranges. And not just any.
“Those are the seven highest summits on Earth,” he said.
“That’s correct,” Alexia replied.
The hologram continued to turn in front of them, the blue light washing over the floor. Emanuel suddenly remembered something Sophie had said about the surge. In order to find the wavelength of the pulse, one only needs to measure its energy. Sophie had done so, five years earlier during the solar storms of 2055. The memory gave him an idea.
“Alexia, can you detect a fluctuation in the pulse at any of these locations?”
“I could program
Lolo to measure the wavelength when she passes over each one. I will program the request right now.”
“Excellent,” Emanuel replied. He rubbed his hands together. It was too early to form a conclusion, but he had a hunch that the poles were connected, somehow, to the surge.
He scanned the images again, recalling something Sophie had mentioned. The Organics needed a way of sustaining the surge. Especially now that they knew it came in two-hour intervals.
In theory, only the side of the Earth facing Mars would be affected by the magnetic disturbance. Without a way to sustain the wave of energy, the Organics would have no way of powering their defenses on the other side of the planet. Unless they had a network of transmitters set up around the world.
Was he looking at them?
Goose bumps rose across Emanuel’s skin at the possibility. The implications were startling. If they could find a way to knock out the poles, then perhaps they would have a chance of stopping the Organics.
“Doctor Rodriguez,” Alexia said. “Lolo just passed over Mount Elbrus in Russia. I’m relaying the data to your monitor now.”
On the screen, a wave ebbed and flowed across a grid. The line started off steady and straight and then curved up into a near-vertical angle the moment it reached the coordinates 43º 21´ 18˝ N, 42º 26´ 21˝ E.
“I’ll be damned,” Emanuel said.
“What does this mean?” Holly asked.
“It means Lolo just handed us a way to defeat the Organics.” He bubbled with excitement, resisting the urge to grab Holly’s face and kiss her.
Holly grinned nervously and stared at the monitor.
“Alexia, encode this message and send it to the GOA immediately.”
“Yes, Doctor,” she replied.
Emanuel noticed a hint of warmth in her voice, something he’d never picked up on before.
ENTRY 4098
DESIGNEE – AI ALEXIA
Lolo’s discovery has improved data collection immensely. It’s also been a sobering reminder of how dire the situation outside the Biosphere has become.
This log has served a variety of functions. First and foremost, I’ve used it to document the collapse of humanity. I’ve also used it to record the events surrounding first contact. With every passing hour, my probability program tells me the most significant scientific event in history will likely have brought with it the end of the human species.
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