The Cassini Code

by Dom Testa

  “Hey, Roc,” she said. “When Roy was programming you, did he ever tell you much about his past?”

  The computer didn’t hesitate to respond. “Are you bored?”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “You never start conversations with me that way,” Roc said. “What happened to, ‘Roc, what’s the status on the Kuiper Belt?’ or ‘Roc, are the tests finished on those Balsom clips on Level Six?’ or ‘Roc, how does it feel to be the ultimate supreme being in the universe?’ You must be bored. Which seems a little odd with everything going on at the present time.”

  “I’m not bored. I’m…” Triana paused. “I’m trying to decide if I want to meditate for awhile and collect my thoughts, or distract myself from those thoughts.”

  “I’m feeling used again,” the computer said.

  “Quit being a baby,” Triana said. “So, did Roy ever tell you that, when he was young, he wanted to be a comedian?”

  “He wisely kept that information from me. But I’m not surprised.”

  Triana slid out of her chair and sat on the floor, propped up against the edge of her bed. She crossed her legs beneath her and pulled her long hair behind her ears. “Would you like to hear one of his jokes?”

  “I’m getting worried about you,” Roc said. “You? You want to tell me a joke? Are you feeling okay?”

  “Just humor me, okay?” she said. “A duck walks into a store. He…um, wait a minute.”

  “Hilarious.”

  “Just wait a minute,” Triana said. “I don’t want to mess it up.” She murmured under her breath for a moment, reciting the joke to herself. “Okay, a duck walks into a store. He—”

  “‘And put it on my bill,’” Roc said. “That joke?”

  Triana crossed her arms and frowned. “Thanks a lot. You couldn’t just humor me for a moment?”

  “Sorry. But I know now why Roy was a computer programmer. Good thing you practiced on me and not in front of a packed Dining Hall or something.”

  “I said it was Roy’s joke, not mine.”

  “Don’t be angry, Tree. Friends don’t let friends humiliate themselves with unfunny jokes. Next time, try this one: A guy walks into a store with a duck on his head. Wait, did Roy tell you this one?”

  Triana continued to sulk. “No.”

  “A guy walks into a store with a duck on his head. The guy behind the counter looks up and says, ‘What’s that all about?’ And the duck says, ‘I don’t know, I woke up this morning and he was down there.’”

  “And you think that one was funnier than mine?”

  “Not necessarily,” Roc said, “but you seem to like duck humor, and that’s one of the best.”

  “I’m sorry I even brought it all up,” Triana said.

  “Would you rather talk about the Balsom clips?”

  After a moment of silence, Triana smiled, and then found herself chuckling. “Well,” she said, “I guess I got the distraction I was looking for.”

  “What about the one where the duck goes bowling on crutches?”

  “No thanks,” Triana said. “I’m off the duck jokes for awhile.”

  “Okay, then I really will talk to you about the Balsom clips.”

  “Are you still trying to be funny?”

  “Nope,” the computer said. “It’s actually good news, too. The problem with the heating on Level Six can indeed be traced to the Balsom clips.”

  Triana sat stunned for a moment. “Wait. You said you had done a complete check—”

  “Yes, I did do a complete check,” the computer said. “I did a complete check of the clips on Level Six. They’re fine.”

  “You’ve lost me.”

  “I’m only telling you this,” Roc said, “so you can help me find a way to spin it so that Gap doesn’t pull an ‘I told you so’ and hold it against me.”

  Triana had to laugh. “This is classic. You’re telling me that Gap had it right all along with those silly clips?”

  “No. Well, yes. But not the way he thought.”

  “If Gap had it right, and you told him he was crazy, I most certainly will not help you spin it just so you can save face.”

  “What if I laughed at your duck joke?”

  “No,” Triana said. “I might enjoy this moment as much as Gap. Okay, so explain your Balsom clip solution. And tell me quickly. We might get pulverized by a Kuiper object any moment, and I have to hear this before the end.”

  “Never mind,” Roc said. “I’ll wait until the next Council meeting. Maybe Channy or Lita will be supportive. Besides…” The computer paused, almost as if contemplating the next thought. “It doesn’t make sense. Where the problem originated, I mean. I need time to figure it all out.”

  The soft chime of the door sounded, and Triana, suppressing a laugh, called out, “Come in.” She looked over at Roc’s glowing sensor. “This might be the greatest moment of our entire journey.”

  “Let’s not overreact,” Roc said as the door opened and Hannah stepped cautiously inside. She looked at Triana, sitting cross-legged on the floor, and stopped in mid-stride.

  “Is…this a bad time?” she said.

  Triana was still grinning. “On the contrary, it’s a terrific time. Legendary, you might say.”

  “Pay no attention to her, Hannah,” Roc said. “She’s gone space-crazy.”

  Hannah’s smile seemed uncomfortable and confused. Triana pointed to the chair across from her desk. “Have a seat, Hannah. Roc and I were just discussing how important it is for people to admit their mistakes. Apparently only people.”

  “Um…okay,” Hannah said. She sat down and looked around. “I like your room. And I love that sound of the ocean.”

  “Yeah, Lita turned me on to that.”

  At the mention of Lita’s name, Hannah grew serious. “How’s Alexa?”

  “Not so good. She didn’t wake up from the surgery, and now she’s in a coma. I’ll be talking about it with the crew in a couple of days. We hope she’ll be awake by then.”

  Hannah looked stunned by the news. “Well, I wanted to talk with you now, before you have that meeting. I suppose it could wait…”

  Triana could read the mannerisms of the brilliant girl from Alaska, and knew that this was obviously important. “No, that’s okay. What’s up?”

  “It’s a little bit complicated, so you’ll have to bear with me. And I don’t even know anything for sure. It’s just an educated guess.”

  “Hannah,” Triana said. “You have a pretty good track record with your ‘educated guesses.’ If you think it’s important, I’m interested.”

  With a sigh, Hannah leaned forward, her elbows on her knees. “I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about the Kuiper Belt, and the way it’s distributed.”

  “You mean the thick patches and the empty stretches?” Hannah nodded. “It doesn’t add up. It should be much more uniform than it is. The fact that it’s so heavily populated in some areas was really bothering me. Given billions of years, it shouldn’t be so…clumpy.”

  She looked down at the carpeted floor. “Then I had a funny thought. If it’s not supposed to be this way, then why would it be this way? What would be the purpose?”

  “The purpose?” Triana said.

  “Yeah. Gravity shouldn’t have made it this way. So what else would be responsible?”

  Triana stared at her. “And what did you come up with?” Hannah looked back at the Council Leader. “The Cassini.” There was a long moment of silence. Finally, Triana leaned forward and clasped her arms around her legs. “I think the Council needs to hear this. Right now.”

  22

  “Why do you want to be cranky?”

  Gap was leaning against the curved wall of the corridor outside the Conference Room. He glanced down at Channy, who had asked the question, and who was in the middle of one of her stretching routines. They were the first two to arrive for the emergency Council meeting.

  “Am I cranky?” he said.

  “No, but you will be,” Chan
ny said, her face hidden as she touched her nose to her right knee.

  “Okay, this is leading somewhere, so I’ll play along. Why am I going to be cranky?”

  “Because you haven’t been to the gym in four days.”

  “Three,” he said.

  “Nope, it’s four,” Channy said, adjusting her torso backwards so that she now lay flat against the floor with one leg stretched out and the other tucked at an impossible angle.

  “You forget who you’re talking with. Four.”

  Gap rolled his eyes. “I’ve been a little busy, if you hadn’t noticed. Oh, wait, you must have noticed, since you were able to report a snowman up here on Level Six. That was you, right?”

  A smirk played across Channy’s face. “Would I say something like that? Besides, that’s not the point. You should be able to find forty minutes out of your day to keep your body from turning to mush. And once it does turn to mush, you’ll become cranky and irritable. So, get your tush down to the gym and spare all of us from a crabby Engineer.”

  Gap performed an exaggerated salute. “Aye aye, Cap’n.” Channy rolled onto her stomach and shifted into a yoga stance called the Cobra. “See, I’m able to find a few minutes to stretch even when I’m waiting around.”

  “Yes, you’re certainly amazing.”

  “Just like I thought, you’re already getting cranky.” She pushed up into a different position, then, with a final stretch, jumped to her feet. “So, what do you think this meeting is all about?”

  Gap shrugged. “I don’t know, but Triana added a little P.S. to my email that said Roc owes me. Whatever that means.”

  “I’m just happy that she’s going to fight back against this Merit Simms nonsense,” Channy said.

  They looked up as Triana rounded a turn and walked up to the Conference Room door. She said a quick hello, then added, “Seen Bon or Lita yet?”

  “Lita called to say that she might not be able to make it,” Channy said. “She’s still a little overwhelmed in Sick House. I don’t know about Bon.”

  “I do,” Gap said. “He grumbled something about ‘too many meetings,’ then said he’d be here. Just had to make sure first that we all knew he was put out by the whole thing. Now we know.”

  “Okay, well, Hannah will be here in a minute, too.”

  “Hannah?” Gap said. “We must have some big news.”

  Triana nodded. “I wouldn’t have called the meeting otherwise. C’mon, let’s wait inside.”

  They had barely taken their seats inside the Conference Room when the door opened and Hannah and Bon walked in together. Although he told himself that the timing was likely a coincidence, Gap couldn’t help but bristle. The memory of Bon and Triana embracing flashed through his mind. A moment later he relaxed as Hannah made her way around the table to give him a quick peck on the cheek and took the seat beside him. He shot a quick glance at Bon, who seemed completely uninterested as he filled a cup at the water dispenser.

  “We’ll get started and catch Lita up later,” Triana said. “First, just a quick reminder about the full crew meeting. I haven’t heard a peep from Merit since I sent out the email, but I want everyone on the Council to be prepared for any ugly incidents that might occur.”

  “What do you think might happen?” Channy said.

  “Probably nothing. I’m guessing that Merit will use the meeting to take notes on our position, and then go off to work up his response in some sort of dramatic speech. But you never know. He might use the meeting as a platform to recruit more followers.”

  “Or his cheerleaders might try to disrupt things,” Gap suggested.

  “Maybe,” Triana said. “I don’t want us to get worked up over this. Let’s treat it like a normal crew meeting, but just keep your eyes open. Remember, we don’t want to do anything to fan the flames, right?”

  There were nods from around the table, with the exception of Bon, who looked bored.

  Triana waited a moment before moving on to the next order of business. “I know that it gets your attention when Hannah shows up at a Council meeting. She started to share some thoughts with me regarding the Kuiper Belt, but I thought it would make more sense for all of us to hear it together.”

  Aware that all eyes had fallen upon her, Hannah shifted in her seat and kept her eyes on her workpad. When she spoke, her voice was soft.

  “As you probably have figured out by now,” she began, “I’m someone who really likes order in the universe.” There were polite chuckles around the table. “That’s why the Kuiper Belt has been so frustrating for me. I’m especially bothered by some sections being as dense as they are, while others are much emptier. Contrary to what we thought, there are no completely empty stretches; there are bits of rock and debris throughout the whole ring. It’s just wildly heavier in some spots. I…I couldn’t accept that.”

  She finally found the courage to look up and make eye contact around the table. “I started wondering what that was all about. Then it struck me that it’s quite a coincidence that we’re hitting one of those rough spots on our way out of the solar system and on to Eos. But…is it really a coincidence?”

  The room was heavy with silence. Punching a few instructions into the keyboard before her, Hannah turned on the room’s multiple vidscreens. Then she said, “I plugged in a few figures, and was…well, I was a little stunned to see things fall into place.”

  “Like what?” Triana said.

  “Like the fact that any trip out of the system toward Eos would always mean having to go through a ‘hot’ stretch of the Kuiper Belt.”

  “What?” Gap said. “That can’t be right. The Kuiper Belt orbits the sun, just like the planets. There are bound to be times when a thin stretch pops up.”

  “That’s what I thought,” Hannah said. “But in order for us to make the leap to Eos, it requires that we utilize a slingshot maneuver around one of the gas giants. We happened to use Saturn, remember?”

  There were nods around the table. Even Bon seemed to be intently listening to the explanation. Saturn had indeed provided the boost that Galahad needed to dramatically increase its speed.

  “So, when you plug in the numbers—and there are a lot of them—any route from Earth that uses a gravity boost from Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, or Neptune, and leads to a rendezvous with Eos, would end up going through a dangerous portion of the Kuiper Belt.”

  When this was greeted with more silence, Hannah continued. “You’re probably thinking this is too strange to be true. But I’ve run the figures so many times that I’m sure there’s no mistake. Um…and it gets even more bizarre.”

  Gap snorted. “How could it be any more bizarre than that?”

  “Well,” Hannah said, “I decided to check on a few other things. For one thing, the debris in the Kuiper Belt orbits at different velocities. Some clumps are moving much faster than others. Some are barely poking along. This, by the way, contributes to the violent impacts that we’ve been seeing.

  “Next, I took the list we have of known Earth-type planets that are circling stars like our sun, all within a nearby radius of our solar system. When you plug in a route to any of them, using a slingshot boost around the gas giants, you’ll wind up having to play dodge ball in the heaviest parts of the Kuiper Belt.”

  Triana scanned the vidscreen before her. Hannah plugged in courses for Galahad using different destinations, sometimes using Jupiter, sometimes Saturn, for a gravity boost. Each time the red line of their route crossed through a dense portion of the ring.

  “Do you know what this means?” Triana said quietly. Hannah nodded. “I know what I think it means. The Kuiper Belt is not some random collection of space junk.” She paused before adding, “It’s a giant fence around the solar system. And it’s supposed to keep us inside.”

  Galahad’s Council sat still, absorbing the gravity of the statement. They had come to expect the unexpected, and had been shaken by the discovery of a super-intelligent force on Saturn’s moon, Titan. With so many wonders, both beaut
iful and dangerous, all within the confines of their own cosmic neighborhood, what astonishing discoveries could they expect during the remainder of their journey?

  Not to mention what might await them at Eos.

  It was Channy who asked the most logical question. “Who built the fence?”

  There were glances around the table. Triana said, “Should we naturally assume that the Cassini are behind it?”

  “Actually,” Hannah said, casting a fleeting look in the direction of Bon, “that’s correct.”

  Triana saw the look and turned to the Swede. “Bon, do you have something that you can add to this?”

  He took a slow drink from his cup of water before answering. “Hannah came to see me about this earlier. I am still in some loose form of contact with the Cassini. I…I can’t say anything for sure, but I sense that the Kuiper Belt is their creation, yes.”

  Gap shook his head in awe. “This is unbelievable.”

  Triana leaned forward. “You say it’s just a feeling that you have. Would it be possible…” Her voice trailed off at the same moment she and Bon made eye contact. He answered as if reading her thoughts.

  “No,” he said. “I won’t do that.”

  Another deep silence enveloped the room. Channy looked from Triana to Bon and back again. “Uh, what are we talking about?” she said.

  Gap tapped his fingers on the table and answered, his voice low. “I think we’re talking about the translator.”

  At the mention of the word, Bon stood up and walked over to the water dispenser, his back to the group. Everyone around the table immediately pictured the small, metal device that Bon had used to communicate with the Cassini during the crisis near Saturn. It had turned up among the items recovered from SAT33, the doomed space station orbiting Saturn’s moon, Titan.

  They called it the translator for lack of a better word, but it worked as a sort of mental connector between Bon and the web-like force that occupied the orange moon. A junction box, it allowed Bon to convey specific messages to the Cassini; without it, they probed his mind at will, picking and choosing the information they wanted.