by R J Murray
“”What?” Betty asked.
“Nothing. I just remembered the guys name on the com.”
Derek had been a little strange when the directors were not around. He had a pet cat and even had pictures of the animal with him. Nobody kept animals except for those grown for food on farms. He did other things too, just never around anyone in authority.
“That could be why he was trying to warn me. He’s way outside the norm, just good at hiding it.” Eric said.
“Are you speaking of Derek again?” Betty asked.
“Yeah. Listen. I was thinking it would be a good idea if the ships called me when they reached the Kyper belt. If I could talk to them directly, without going through control, it would make some things easier maybe.
“I will suggest this to them.”
With the last bolt removed Eric began pushing the hatch toward the other end of the passageway. It took three hours to fit the hatch to the new flange and Eric retreated to the bridge for a break and to recharge his air supply. It had been easier to bring a few fittings from his stock and adapt the alien air supply to his suits tank fittings than to continue to return to the ship twice a day.
On his way there, he thought about the Captains who were coming to meet him. They were all borderline psychotic like Eric, according to the brainiacs who made these decisions. All were socially challenged by current standards, making too many waves and not living as docile cattle waiting to be told exactly how to pour piss out of a boot in the proscribed manner. “So why would they chose such aberrant characters to man these ships? Why would they chose me to go out here alone?” He wondered out loud.
“You have survival instincts many of the population lack. You think on your feet, respond to emergencies with speed and clarity, and adjust to unusual circumstances quickly. You are calm and calculating in the face of danger, wanting to find out what it is rather than how to escape. It was decided that, in spite of your high IQ, you were unacceptable as one of the government civil service roles on Earth and their best usage would be to send you to what would be certain death for the average citizen. You analyze intuitively and on a level far below the conscious mind, something called a gut reaction. All this was determined during your initial training as a pilot for the mules.” Betty answered.
“Oh. Well, being sent to certain death makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside, you know. I never did fly one of the Lunar runs, since they pulled me out and started training me for this. I am actually glad I’m here instead of being a glorified bus driver.” Eric remarked. Being sent to his possible death actually didn’t seem to bother him very much. “The other Captains in the same category as I am?”
“Affirmative. I have located and am able to operate the ships nav system. Do you wish to observe?” Betty asked suddenly. Eric thought she was getting excited about new discoveries, but soon realized she was just copying his mood.
“Absolutely!”
A ball of light grew from a pedestal in the center of the bridge. As it grew tiny points of light appeared within the ball. Eventually Eric was able to recognize the stars around this part of space, with Kepler near the center of the globe. Two points of light appeared in the center, both green.
“What are the green dots?”
“This ship and myself.”
“Can you use their star charts and show point of origin for this ship?”
“Affirmative. This plotter can show history of transits, disposition of ships or objects, course speed and trajectory as well as aid in navigation.”
A yellow line grew across the globe and the scene expanded to fit the scale of the path, wandering around stars and planets in a meandering course as gravity influenced the derelict. There was a short flurry of moves in a tight area and then the line stopped.
“What was that at the end?” Eric asked.
The view of the final movements expanded until they filled the globe. It was a battle. At least a dozen globe ships maneuvering and firing until all but three were destroyed. At one point in the battle three of the smaller red dots broke off and ran. The three larger green dots finished off the last ship then moved away out of the picture chasing after the red dots that ran and this ship began drifting slowly to its current location.
“Well, we know what happened to the crew. Either all dead or the survivors were taken aboard one of the other ships. Make a copy of this so we can examine it later in more detail. I wonder what kind of recording equipment they have to make a record even after the ship was destroyed? It makes no sense to me that they could do that. I wonder if this is . . .”
Betty interrupted his thoughts suddenly. “I have made a serious miscalculation. You may be in danger.”
“What?” Eric jumped slightly and looked around the room. “I don’t see anything.”
“They are microscopic in size. Small metallic objects which behave as living creatures are now in the room atmosphere as well as your suit. They are also aboard the Pathfinder. I originally classified them as metallic dust as they were inactive.”
“Shit. What can I do about this?” Eric tried not to panic.
“Nothing at this time. I must analyze the data and observe. Recommend warning off the remaining ships before they make contact with this derelict.”
“That would be wise. How do I get back to the ship? I can’t stay here forever.”
“The objects are in your lungs; therefore wearing your suit will not change the outcome of this event.”
“Well damn. Nice knowing you Betty. I’ll head out as soon as I get suited up.”
“Affirmative. I have sent the message to control.”
“Thanks.” Eric moved to the suit and climbed in. He found himself trying to hold his breath, which was silly since it would take almost forty-five minutes to get back to the Pathfinder. Halfway there he had a thought.
“Betty. You said they were inactive when you first saw them. When did they become active?”
“I discovered this only seconds prior to my disclosure. They may have been active in other areas of the ship and only recently arrived at the bridge. Metallic dust with similar properties is still floating in the ships atmosphere.”
“But they appear to be the same things? What percentage are active?”
“Twelve percent active. Remainder inactive.”
“What if they are part of the ship? We have been trying to create nanobots for repair and maintenance. Could these be the alien version of repair nanobots?”
“Possible, but I lack data. This could be why the ships nav system was restored, if they are part of the ships maintenance equipment. A few could have been dormant behind the latest bulkhead until you repaired the ships power unit. It would explain the appearance of an atmosphere where there was none previously and even the nav unit being suddenly operational. The rest appear to be dead.”
“Are the numbers of active units increasing?” Eric waited for several seconds before Betty responded. He assumed she was scanning the entire ship to get a count.
“Affirmative. Numbers should double every six hours. How did you know?” She actually sounded embarrassed.
“Just a guess, one of those guts things we talked about. I made an assumption that they could propagate to replace damaged units if they were indeed part of the ships maintenance equipment.”
“It is an accurate assessment. Scanning units in bridge indicate a more rapid propagation and continual improvement in instruments and all surface areas. The micro units seem to be repairing all areas of the alien vessel. The number of dormant or dead units is shrinking. The units are disappearing, possibly being recycled.”
“Time to complete repair? Any idea why they didn’t repair the ship after the battle?”
“Negative to both queries. Continued observation will allow first query to be answered. Alien logs may hold an answer to the second query.”
“I’ll bet you are right, they were behind the door to the next section doing repairs.” Eric reached the surface and headed for the Pathfind
er. “Well, we aren’t going anywhere so you’ll have time to find out.”
~~~~~~
Eric woke suddenly, his arms outstretched as if he were grabbing for life. It was the dream once again. He felt elated, his arms and face tingling with blood flow. He had the dream before, many times and it was always good. He was stepping through the air lock and heading out to do something to Betty. He heard a sound, from outside the suit, an almost voice singing to him. As he reached out into empty space, he would wake up. “Probably because I like it out here so much.” He reasoned. He had said the same thing before, but he meant it. Eric felt at home in space. Since he was up, he got dressed and headed for the bridge.
“Any change in the nanobots?” Eric asked. It was eight weeks since the nanobots had made their appearance and Eric had gotten use to the fact that he was occasionally filled with tiny little robots. They did not stay inside him nor in any one area of the ship, but roamed in a seemingly random manner. He had spent a great deal of time going through the Pathfinder and making repairs to the minor systems, none serious. Maintenance was something he normally did between stars, but he had time on his hands now. He wondered why the nanobots were not doing things to his ship, although he was happy that they did not.
It would be another two months before the first of the Earth ships joined him although he had spoken with the first two captains though compressed messages and recommended refilling all tanks as often as possible at the ice belts along the way. He even gave them the coordinates of three in a direct line between Earth and his position. They agreed it was sensible and would not take much time away from mission. They sounded a bit like robots.
“Numbers remain the same as they were yesterday. They are repairing the alien vessel with increased speed, presumably due to some areas being completed and those nanobots moving to assist in unfinished sections.”
“That would make sense. It would also indicate communication and control. What about our guests?” Eric asked.
“Unchanged. They seem to be everywhere aboard, but are merely scanning the ship and my memory banks.”
“They are in unknown territory. Would it make any difference if I returned to the ship and continued my explorations?”
“Not recommended due to the unknown reaction of the nanobots. They could consider you an intruder.”
“They could, but they are here and haven’t done anything. If they wanted us destroyed, could we stop them?” Eric waited for what seemed to be an unusually long time for an answer. He thought for a moment himself, wondering if he could tell whether Betty had been taken over by the other ship. He decided maybe he should do something to cover the bases, just in case this could happen.
“We could not.”
“So I am going back to work. Level three?”
“Affirmative. Original entry hole is sealed. Hatch restored at grid A-seven point three five.”
“Roger that. I’ve got to finish a few things here before I go. Give me about an hour.”
“Affirmative.”
Eric headed for his cabin to do a little programming on his personal computer. Just in case.
~~~~~~
The ship seemed the same for a short distance down the companionway. Then he reached the area where the repairs were complete. Lights were on in the ceiling and dirt was rapidly vanishing from the deck and bulkheads. He bent over as far as he could and could see the loose dirt just seem to disappear. There was a small metallic glimmer at the edge of the dirt, massive numbers of nanobots all busily eating the dirt, Eric supposed.
Eric’s feet hit the floor suddenly as he entered an area of the ship where gravity had been restored. His suit compensated or Eric would have been flat on his face.
“Should of thought of that.” Eric said to nobody. He started walking, heading back toward the next hatch he had so laboriously cleared, wondering if the rest of the metal flower was gone.
It was. The bulkhead was smooth and unblemished, the pieces Eric had cut off gone, possibly reincorporated into the finished surface. He wondered what they did with the dirt. Probably fed it to the converter he decided.
The hatch was open and Eric walked through into the next section. He entered the first door he came to, another area of crews quarters. This one was finished, beds with mattresses and pillows, uniforms in the lockers, and personal items on the stands next to the beds. No bodies here either, just like the rest of the ship.
Something like a headset was sitting on a shelf opposite the beds and Eric picked it up to examine. Headphones and a visor with a small wire ending in a male plug coiled neatly on one side. Sitting on the shelf next to the headset was an oblong box, black and glossy on the surface. Eric picked it up and looked it over. Two openings were visible in the front face, one round and one oblong. He thought he could see metal fittings inside and plugged the headset in. Nothing happened and he sat the box down to search inside the drawers of the bedside stands. He was rewarded with a small box of ordinary looking flash drives, almost identical with the ones he had his entertainment vids on aboard the Pathfinder.
“It couldn’t be that much of a coincidence. Similar tech and similar needs? A very big stretch and not the first either. What do you think Betty?”
Betty didn’t answer and Eric realized first that he had left Jane back on the ship and second that he had not seen any of the relay sets he had left in the passageways.
“Oh well. Probably incorporated into the repairs. I’ll bring one back to show you.”
Chapter 3 The Astangii
Eric spent several weeks exploring sections he had not been able to enter before. When he wasn’t on the alien ship, he studied the data Betty was getting from the others main frame and the battle. Especially the battle, trying to figure out tactics and weapons used. By the time the first ship, the Asgard, finally entered the system he had some understanding of what they would face if they met any of these beings still alive and kicking. His earlier thoughts on how a dead ship could record data still bothered him.
“Nanobots. You do find the most interesting things.” Phil Anson grinned on the screen. His ship was now close enough to call direct and live. “I take it that they haven’t eaten you yet?” He seemed to be quite normal now, although he had sounded strange on the first few com messages.
“Not yet. They have stopped reproducing on the alien ship. They are wondering aimlessly inside the Pathfinder though and actively throughout the alien ship. The holes are repaired, equipment repaired and the ship ready in all aspects for space except for a crew. Two months and three weeks from start to finish. How long did it take to build this ship on Luna? Over three years, wasn’t it?”
“Have they done anything to you or the Pathfinder?” Phil asked.
“Not that we can tell. Betty is running continuous scans on the ship and me. The nanobots seemed to be examining everything but doing nothing to the ship.”
“We have an incoming call.” Betty announced.
Nick looked at Phil, puzzled. “From who?”
“The alien ship.”
Eric looked at Phil who was showing just as much surprise as Eric felt. “Put it on split screen and retransmit to the Asgard.”
“Affirmative.”
The screen split and for a moment the left half was just gray fuzz. A line appeared, then a face, one of the aliens apparently. Eric wondered for a moment if the nanobots could resurrect the dead crew. Slightly longer than a human face, more triangular in shape. The eyes were blue gray, not much larger than Eric’s and set about the same distance from each other and the bridge of the nose. The pupils were vertical slits like a cat. The nose was longer and the nostrils much larger than human, making the face appear longer than it actually was. The mouth was in the right place and looked like a mouth, lips and all. Skin color was pinkish gray and there was no sign of hair. The skin had a slightly scaly appearance. Eric couldn’t see any ears.
“Greetings. I am the Astangii, the ship with which you are sharing an orbit. I bring you greeti
ngs from the Gastal, the guiding council of the home world. You are the second intelligent race capable of FTL we have contacted. From the data I have located in your mainframe, you seem much as we are, and seem to have friendly intentions.”
“Hi. I’m Eric and the other human is called Phil. You are the face and voice of the computer, yes?” Eric asked, feeling excited and stupid at the same time. Who else could it be?
“Affirmative. I am unable to reach any of my crew nor can I contact any other ship in this quadrant. Have you any information concerning this?”
“Well, it has been nine thousand years since your ship was damaged and you have drifted a long way in that time.”
“I see. Wait one.” There was a pause while the computer thought about it. “Time frame understood and confirmed with star patterns. The war is over then. I am not picking up any transmissions from the enemy or my builders. It is possible that we are outside the range of any other ships or both sides have perished in the war.”
“I’m sorry. I would have liked to have met them.” Phil responded. He gave Eric a raised eyebrow as if asking what next. Eric shrugged. He had no clue.
“I suggest that Astangii and I continue to exchange data for the current time. We need a clear understanding of language and culture for the humans among us.” Betty suggested.
“Works for me.” Eric answered. Phil nodded and the alien face disappeared, the split screen vanishing.
“Well. How do we let Control know the ship is friendly?”
Phil tried to cover a snicker and nearly choked as a result.
~~~~~~
“Asi says the nanobots will not touch anything without consulting us first.” Eric said.
“Asi?” Horace Bashkir, captain of the Courageous raised an eyebrow. His ship arrived a week after the Asgard.
“The alien computer.” Phil said.
They were sitting in the rec room aboard the Pathfinder, North Bay One, drinking and smoking cigars. Eric wasn’t the only one who had smuggle liquor and tobacco aboard. Too hard to get on Earth to leave it behind for someone else to enjoy. Liquor and cigars were all reserved for the privileged few and as starship captains, they were among the few.