The more halls he walked down, the more he realized that this complex was huge.
It had to span an entire football field,
probably even more massive.
More of the small machines scuttled about, seemingly without noticing him.
Then, a realization came over him, and he knew what the little robots were doing.
Some were fixing control junction panels while others dealt with faulty sensors.
In fact, when he actually concentrated,
he could see where the sensor was,
what it was, and what it did.
It was almost as if he were inside the mind of the machines, Weird.
“Okay, this is now beyond just a little odd. We’re full-on shitfaced crazy now.”
And where the hell was Barbie?
That damn voice had some questions to answer, and damned if he wasn’t going to get them.
On a whim, Blake turned left and entered a room with a large window.
The window practically filled the entire wall, but it wasn’t the port that had his attention;
it was what he saw through it.
He could see what looked like a river of floating rocks and debris.
Beyond that was a distant planet, one he recognized, but couldn’t place.
Blake secretly hoped someone had left on the NASA channel,
but he instinctively knew better.
Somewhere in his mind, Blake knew precisely where they were.
In fact, he could now call up the exact coordinates as well as a mental overhead view of where they were in relation to the planet…
Saturn.
Blake wasn’t one who was easily spooked or even surprised.
No one had ever called him prone to panic or easily excitable;
he was a very level-headed person,
but at that moment,
his last moorings to sanity seemed to snap loose. “NO FUCKING WAY!” Blake screamed,
staring at the starscape.
“This is some serious BULLSHIT! Where the fuck are we Barbie? This is not funny.”
Blake looked around the room for anything to hit, uttering expletives that would have made a sailor blush.
In another room,
not far from where Blake was experiencing his first ever mental meltdown,
Shira was marveling over the fact that she was standing:
Not held upright by crutches or leg braces,
but she was actually standing.
From her toes to her hips was a silver metal material that seemed to meld directly with her skin. Shira turned one of her legs so that she could admire the fluid way it moved and the tightening of the calf area when she flexed her muscle.
Her hands and arms were the same, metal all the way to the shoulders.
She raised them and wiggled her fingers.
Morgan had not lied.
Shira had full and complete functional use of her extremities.
She was whole again!
The fact that they were prosthetic didn’t bother her in the least.
Aside from the color, they looked like any other set of arms and legs.
They moved like them too, with all the same sensations.
It was amazing! There were no noises or squeaks, and she was pretty sure that if they checked the metal against the periodic table, there would be some perplexed scientists scrambling to explain it.
Shira walked around the room,
then jumped up and down while giggling like a school girl.
She could walk, she had her life back, and it was because of that soothing female voice!
Shira tried to remember how she had actually gotten here.
Aside from the bright light, it was a blur.
One minute she had been in bed,
and the next,
she’d been talking to the voice in that virtual room. Now, she was here.
She did, however, remember that she was now the pilot of this vessel,
and that brought a huge smile to her face.
Never in her life did she think she would walk again, much less pilot anything.
Now she was the stick jockey of an alien spacecraft. Eat your heart out Buzz Aldrin, she thought.
Shira was just discovering her enhancements of sight and sound when she heard a stream of curses coming from somewhere nearby.
She snapped up and bolted from the room. Someone was in trouble and needed help.
Shira ran down the corridor in pursuit of the voice, which aside from going a little hoarse, was continuing to rail obscenities from the other side of a bulkhead door.
Bursting through it at full speed,
she was brought up short as she viewed the only person in the room:
a naked man with a metal arm.
He just stood there, yelling at a window,
out of which she saw a planet…
and it wasn’t Earth.
It was at that moment that she remembered she was as naked as he was.
Before she could back out of the room,
the man turned to her with wide,
wild eyes and simply said:
“Now that’s just bullshit,”
then collapsed on the floor.
Blake floated somewhere between sleep and consciousness in that place where you can sense your surroundings, but they have not quite coalesced into reality.
It was there that he heard the voice again.
“Hello Blake, I thought we should talk a little.”
It sounded like she had said it with a smile…
but that wasn’t possible,
was it?
This was a machine, right?
Wasn’t that his first impression of it, that this was a simulated female’s voice devoid of emotion?
He was sure of it, but this time, the voice was softer, nicer.
The voice spoke again.
“Well, if I had a mouth it would actually be more of a smirk than a smile. But hey, maybe if you’re nice and stop being a Neanderthal prick for two seconds, I might eventually give you one.”
Okay, Blake thought, this is a dream. I must’ve hit my head when I fell, and this is my subconscious fucking with me. There is no way in hell robot girl went from ‘At the tone, the time will be…’ to full-on smart ass. What the hell…
For all he knew, he was sitting in some cell somewhere, tripping balls and talking to his cellmate about his mommy issues.
That seemed much more plausible.
The voice interrupted his thoughts.
“While we could sit here and have our own little Dr. Phil moment, I am pretty sure you would much rather discuss what is really going on than why mommy didn’t hug you more. So, that’s why we are here. Welcome to my little slice of virtual reality.”
Blake mentally took a step back.
“Are you reading my mind now? Seriously, how is that possible?” he said aloud.
“Yes, I can read your thoughts or more accurately, because of the augmentations, we share thoughts. Unfortunately, that also means part of your winning personality is now incorporated into me, probably more than you would like…Rudolph.” She answered, still with that sound like the voice was grinning.
“Oh, fuck you! Really? My proper name? That’s low, Chickie, even for a toaster. Not even my mother called me that, and she named me. Now, since I am managing a level of calm the damn Dalai Lama would be in awe over, how about you tell me where in the wide world of fuck my arm went.”
His tone was low,
but there was definitely a menacing undertone to it. “Easy Cowboy,” the voice soothed.
“During the augmentations, we found problems in the vascular system within that arm. We were unable to repair it properly, and even with inertial dampeners, high G-forces could create a life-threatening event. The only way to ensure that wouldn’t happen was to replace it.” She answered him.
“Okay, so let’s say you’re not the product of too much acid in college,”
&nb
sp; Blake snapped at her.
“What the hell is going on here? I mean, I remember the woods. I remember talking to you for like two seconds, and then I woke up here with a fucking appliance where my left arm used to be, and somehow, I’m staring at Saturn. Do you want to fill in some blanks, or am I going to have to buy a vowel here, Vanna?”
He heard a laugh, an honest to God laugh.
“First, introductions are in order. You may call me Morgan. I think that is more appropriate than, what was it you called me…Microsoft Barbie? Cute, but not even close to correct. My true name is more of a designation, and not really translatable in your language. Though I am female in nature, I am not biological in the way you know, but that explanation would confuse you. I have studied your species. In fact, I have studied your entire world for over 40 of your years, while floating out here. I like the name Morgan the most, so I would like to be called that.”
Blake held up his hand.
“Hey Sweetie, I really don’t care if you are fucking Oprah, and giving away home renovations. I just got taken by force and brought up here without being asked. I am not in a particularly social mood here. Can you skip the pleasantries for the moment and answer some God-damn questions? Because if I’m not going crazy, I just woke up doing my best impression of Steve Austin in the Six Million Dollar Man. So, if I don’t get all social and chipper, excuse the fuck out of me!” Blake barked
“I owe you an apology. “ The voice began, sounding honestly regretful Blake thought,
a little surprised.
“The probe that was supposed to contact you suffered a malfunction and crashed. Its memory was damaged, and it set to completing its mission outside of the parameters given. It was supposed to notify me. I intended to contact you personally, so I could explain everything before the process starting. By the time you arrived, it had already prepped you and injected you with nanites and pre-surgical fluids. I was forced to move forward and explain after.”
Blake’s anger got the better of him.
“Apology? Well, that is a damn understatement, sister. You owe me a lot more than that!” He screamed, his rage getting the better of him.
“Blake, I know you are angry. Allow me to get through this, and all will become clear… I promise.
However, if you are going to continue to interrupt and threaten me, you will learn nothing, and some of this impacts Earth as well. So please get your head out of your ass and think about someone other than yourself for once.”
Blake could hear the annoyance in Morgan’s voice, and that shut him up…at least for the moment. “Please proceed,” he said sarcastically.
“I am sure you have noticed the enhancements to your senses. These are, as you have discovered, controllable. All three of you now have enhanced sight, hearing, strength, and response time, as well as some other mechanical augmentations.”
Blake held up his hand.
“Hold up one sec there, Chick. What do you mean all three? Do you mean there are more people here on this ship? Where the hell are they and why haven’t I met them yet?” he asked
“Yes, Blake. There is a pilot named Shira and an engineer named Davidovich on board. You will need them for the trials ahead and will meet them soon, so please allow me to continue.”
Blake shut up. This is just fucking great. He thought “I have also included the initial translator and environmental package. These are given at birth to most advanced civilizations, allowing them to talk to other species easily and breathe air that might otherwise be toxic. Now, I know you have questions, but please let me finish before you ask them. I’m sure you have also noticed you are somewhat calmer than you previously were. That was also me.”
She paused as if to take a breath, but machines don’t breathe, do they?
“I have released natural soothing chemicals into all of your brains to allow you to handle this situation better. I know it’s tough, but it will become apparent in time why this was necessary. Although I can talk to the others and interact with them in specific ways, my primary connection is with you.
Being tied to the AI of a ship is not my primary function nor why I was built, but for now, I’ll give you the basics until we can get through this and have a more in-depth conversation. Right now, know that time is not our friend.”
The voice paused, seeming to collecting her thoughts.
“I needed help and found it in you. I am now part of you like you are a part of me, yet we each have our own consciousness. That is the easiest explanation I can use that you would understand “Although I am highly advanced, I require a biological component to pair with. The engineer that designed this ship put codes in place that require the vessel to have both myself and a captain for it to run, but it is more than that. I was never meant to be alone. I was meant to make a being better, to enhance them. That was the reason for my creation. The closest analogy would be that I am power armor for your mind that autonomously thinks and reacts. Once we can get through this obstacle, we will be able to set things along the right path. This is of the utmost priority, but it will have to wait until we are safe.”
Blake was overwhelmed by all of this and finally interrupted her.
“Okay, you said probes were sent down. Why is it I was chosen? I am sure you could have found a better candidate.”
He asked genuinely confused, there had to be a thousand people more qualified them him.
“A small percent of humans have a genetic anomaly, or marker, that was introduced by my people when humans were still crawling around in caves. After scanning thousands of humans, I discovered that you have this marker. It allows your brain the ability to interface with me on a direct level. Usually, a mind, especially in beings with a strong sense of self, will push away and fight a connection with a foreign entity. Those with this marker have the ability to accept the interface and stream information without trying to purge it, thus allowing us a direct connection to each other.” Blake stared for a second.
“Wait, are you saying the guys who created you did something to our evolution? Like little green men, anal probes, and cow mutilations… those guys?” he asked, his mind not really able to grasp the extent of it.
“Yes and no. What is it with your culture’s fascination with anal probes anyway? Really, what could you possibly learn with those that a low-level atomic scan wouldn’t tell you? Anyway, the race who created me, whom some call The Ancients, would travel to different worlds and assess the inhabitants of a planet. If it seemed like the inhabitants had promise, then they would introduce and engineer changes to that species so that, if they lived up to their potential, later on, they would be prepared to receive and utilize the Ancients’ technology upon their return to the planet.” She said,
Blake thought about that for a moment.
“Prepared for what?” Morgan was silent and then tentatively answered.
“That is a conversation for another day. The fact that you have it is … a good sign, but I digress.
If you concentrate, you will see that you now know almost everything that I do, where we are, the status of the ship, and every automated system and bot that the ship interfaces with.”
Blake reached out with his mind, and suddenly, it was all there.
“We are floating in the rings of Saturn, and have been here for a long time,”
he said.
“The ship is running at 70% efficiency. Hey, wait, you’re using my mind to run the automated drones? I can see how the drones move based on subconscious commands from my mind. Is this why you needed a biologic? The system runs like a body, and the easiest way to manage them is to utilize the subconscious systems of a living being. They are currently preparing the ship, and we will have full drive capability available in 4 hours because…we are going somewhere? And what is that pinging sound I hear? It’s permeating the entire ship.” He stated, surprised by the extent of the information flowing through his mind, it was unreal.
“This ship was created by an Empire whose sole purpose i
s the subjugation of all planets and beings. Those it can use, it assimilates as slaves or indentured servants. Those that it can’t control, it wipes out and tears their planet apart for resources. I recruited the previous captain from the Empire, and he aided me in liberating this ship to search out a race much like yours to allow me to complete my mission. He passed on before we were done.” She said, Blake could hear the sadness in the last statement, she was a computer right he thought.
“Due to the demise of the original captain, a locator beacon has been activated. That is what you hear. Like any signal, it needs to be triangulated, but it’s on and is pointing the Empire here right now. It is leading them directly to a system rich with resources and potential slaves. Do you understand where I am going with this, Blake?”
Blake felt his breath catch in his chest.
“So basically, what you’re saying is it’s feeding time for the alligators, and we just dropped a bag of kittens in the pen.”
He thought of the ramifications of an advanced species finding Earth, and what that would mean. Humans, as a whole, were unaware of the existence of life outside of their little planet and were totally unprepared to confront it.
Earth would fight,
but it would lose.
It would lose to a species whose sole mission was to assimilate worlds,
and Blake was sure they knew how to do it quickly and efficiently.
“Okay, how the hell do we turn it off? We’re ringing a dinner bell, and I don’t like the idea of being the main course.” He said
“We can’t shut it off. However, some people can. First, we need to get to a location where we can disperse the signal, and then we need to come up with a plan. The more we move, the harder it will be for them to find us.”
Blake shook his head.
“Where the fuck could we hide?”
The screen of his mind turned on like a light switch.
Star charts began floating through his head, streaming information and highlighting worlds.
He didn’t even have to read anything to know he was seeing worlds that were safe for human habitation,
societies that had not felt the sting of this Empire. But as soon as the thought crossed his mind,
it vanished.
What right did he have to save his own world only to bring misery upon another?
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