Frontier Effects: Book 1

by Mars Dorian

  He checked on his two crew members who were bracing themselves for the difficult journey. Dr. Eriksun had attached an exosuit frame around her atmogear to help carry her science equipment. Bellrog was finishing setting up his APE which now appeared as a cybernetic mix between a panther and an elephant fitted with crates of cargo. Either way, the robot’s presence demanded respect.

  “Ready to go, Captain,” Dr. Eriksun said.

  The trio and the walker trespassed the thicket of the alien jungle for the second time. To be on the safe side, Tavio told Aidos to monitor their journey via orbital satellite surveillance to warn the crew of incoming surprises. If the life form was going to dispatch another vessel, he wanted to be informed in a timely manner.

  Everything worked out according to plan for the first time, yet something in Tavio’s instinct told him it wasn’t going to stay this way.

  28 //Texas, North American Commonwealth, Earth

  Although Quintan had only taught for four hours today, it felt like a week of torture. He swore, one more year at the center and he would discharge himself… with an ion pistol set to max. He couldn’t understand why the Alliance needed real teachers in physical form. With today’s advances in virtual intelligence, they could replace every teacher with digital entities who would have unlimited access to the databases. Or maybe the Alliance kept veterans busy so they wouldn’t hurt themselves. According to official statistics, suicide surged among war survivors.

  Quintan was marching through the hallway when a service member from the communications department crossed his sight. “Lieutenant Colonel Quintan Alterra?”

  The address confused Quintan since he hadn’t heard his rank pronounced in quite some time. “Yes?”

  “There is a high-priority call for you in the comm room. Please follow me.”

  High-priority? Quintan hadn’t received an urgent call in years. It sounded like trouble, but after weeks of mental exhaustion, he actually welcomed a change—even a negative one. He followed the female officer with burning curiosity.

  After a quick walk around the corner, Quintan arrived at the comm chamber that was reminiscent of a situation room for press meetings. Quintan remained the only person inside and wondered whether someone in the department had pulled an elaborate prank on him. It wouldn’t be a surprise—half of Quintan’s ‘peers’ disliked his brash style. His personality rubbed the civilian office staff the wrong way.

  The comms officer initiated the holographic transfer call and vanished from the room. Tavio couldn’t believe the shape materializing in front of his eyes. Brigadier General Del Rykan, a former fleet officer from the Colony War, appeared in her high resolution glory. “Lieutenant Colonel Alterra, it’s been a while,” the woman with the sharp haircut said. She looked stellar after her second regeneration. Emerald eyes, glistening skin, and a body fit enough to run a triple-marathon before breakfast, Rykan owned her prime.

  “Five years at least, ma’am,” Quintan said as he realized he was gaping at her. “Although it feels like a decade.”

  Rykan must have realized her impact on Quintan and quickly distracted him. “How’s your teaching going?”

  Quintan hesitated. Complaining about the educational service didn’t look good, but claiming he enjoyed his job would be the lie of the century, and he couldn’t even trick Rykan into believing it.

  “Speak freely. You’re not the person to mince words.”

  Well, she asked for it, Quintan thought.

  “I’m feeling a bit underused, ma’am. I believe I have so much more to give to the Alliance than sweating in overheated rooms and mumbling about forgotten war stories.”

  Quintan wondered if he went too far, but a quick glance at Rykan’s smile showed him she shared his sentiments. “Looks like destiny is finally on your side.”

  Quintan wondered about her cryptic statement, but his curiosity was piqued. Rykan continued. “We have received a first log report from your… brother.”

  She put emphasis on brother. One part of Quintan feared that something terrible had happened to Tavio, the other part was peeved about his brother being constantly mentioned. Still, he wanted to hear what she had to say.

  Rykan said, “The Moonshot crew has made first contact with the life form.”

  Quintan’s heart hammered, but he managed to hide his excitement and kept his voice cool. “And?”

  “The crew led by your brother had taken a shuttle toward the exoplanet’s surface and set up camp when an unknown vessel breached their security perimeter.”

  “Casualties?”

  “Not yet. But according to the readings of the ship’s layout, the sentient life form is likely to possess military arms. High-ranking members of the Fleet are worried about the alien’s possible access to weapons of mass destruction. They do know where we live now.”

  Quintan understood. The first time he heard about the mysterious signal, he expected a potential threat. Smart life inherently carried the seeds of destruction.

  Brigadier General Del Rykan smiled for the first time. “We’re setting up a stand-by fleet division at the Venus military station in case our worries turn out to be true. I will be leading this division as operational fleet officer.”

  Good for you, Quintan thought and wondered what his place was in the grander scheme. Rykan seemed to read his mind. “And I want you to be my second-in-command.”

  Quintan hesitated, which happened as often as super novas. A sudden rush of excitement flooded his body and rejuvenated his cells. Since he was too used to disappointment, he kept his emotions in check. “What’s the plan, ma’am?”

  The digital projection of Rykan pranced toward him. Her firm hand seemed to reach for his face but wrapped her arms around her crested uniform instead. “You’re going to meet me at the Venus space station where we prep the division. If we receive another critical message from the Moonshot and its crew, we will have to engage with military force before the life form reaches our sol system. Call it a preemptive strike.”

  Quintan couldn’t believe the turn of things. After days of pure happy-go lucky mumblings about the first contact, some folks at the Alliance actually woke up to reality.

  “What about the Martian department? I thought Chief Director Jackstadt wanted to avoid a military intervention at all costs.”

  Rykan’s voice sounded peppered with annoyance. “Let that be my worry.”

  Quintan couldn’t hide his smile. The rivalry in High Command still flourished like a cancer. Rykan had once admired old Jackstadt, but life did change people. And sometimes, students did outgrow their teachers. Rykan continued. “We have our fingers crossed for a peaceful interaction, but the security of the Alliance is far more important than scientific exploration. If the alien contact turns out to be hostile, we have the moral obligation to engage.”

  “When do you want me to depart, ma’am?”

  “I’ve sent out a request for your immediate release. You are being redrafted to active duty as we speak. Space Lift and Solar Express rides are booked.”

  Holier words had never been spoken. Quintan could barely hide his exhilaration.

  “You will receive encrypted updates about the Solar Express flight to Venus within the next few hours.”

  So it was happening, Quintan thought. A guardian angel had descended from the far away colony to free him from the misery of teaching. “Thank you for your trust, ma’am. It is an honor to serve you again.”

  “Thank me by being useful,” she said with a light-hearted tone. “Dismissed.”

  Quintan saluted the brigadier general and marched out of the comm room. He danced through the corridors and expressed a winning smile. Cadets from his class passed him but Quintan ignored them all. Only one student persisted enough to steal his attention. “Sir, I have a question about the combined arms assault in the escort simulation.”

  Quintan halted and peered at her name tag. Thank tech she wore ID; he couldn’t recall a single cadet. “Rerun the course material, trust your int
uition, and ask yourself the right questions. The answer will flare up like a tracer signal in the night.”

  “But…”

  He pointed toward her forehead. “Your brain is the largest area of unemployment in the commonwealth. Let it join the workforce again.”

  Quintan left his former cadet standing in the middle of the hallway and targeted the exit.

  School’s out forever.

  29//Exoplanet E405

  During the march, Tavio wished he had access to a land vehicle. The cover of the fungoid jungle grew thicker and thicker as if to stop the crew from advancing. He wasn’t the only one experiencing trouble—despite wearing an exosuit, the doctor groaned carrying her equipment. Tavio wanted to help her but Bellrog beat him to it. “Doc, one more klick of schlepping your equipment and you’re gonna wipe the ground with your face shield.”

  “I need my tools.”

  “What you need is a break.”

  He pointed at his APE’s rear while matching his speed. “I got a free spot waiting to be useful.”

  Her eyes seemed to object but her body knew better. After ten more steps of pondering, she stopped. “Fine.”

  Eriksun strapped off the massive gear pack and handed it over to the soldier. Bellrog used an anchor point of the APE and attached the doctor’s cargo with magnetic locks and graphene ropes. The heavy machine didn’t seem bothered by the excessive weight and stomped on like a tank on legs. Tavio wondered why he hadn’t ordered an APE for himself. The unit was a glorified cybernetic bodyguard and all-around carrier for any occasion. Tavio’s curiosity got the better of him. “Sarge, how are you connected to your APE?”

  “It’s linked to my frontal lope via a cybernetic membrane layer. We communicate through a dedicated innercom channel.”

  Dr. Eriksun seemed to find interest in the conversation. “It talks to you?”

  “Kinda. I exchange a simple set of commands, though I prefer key commands that are simpler and mostly error free.”

  Tavio wondered how much of Bellrog remained human. But since the captain counted as an advanced humanoid himself, maybe that question seemed moot. Organic humans rarely existed in the Solar Alliance anymore. The challenges of the 22nd century were simply too complex for natural borns to handle. Without implants and bio-engineered bodies, ordinary humans wouldn’t pass primary military school, at least not in the colonies. The captain hoped his crew’s cybernetic upgrades matched the alien’s. Tavio feared meeting an organism that outmatched him in mental and muscle power. He brushed the lingering worry aside and fought through the jungle. Once in a while, Tavio gazed up the orange sky of E405 and pinged Aidos for satellite updates. Despite the unusual metrics of the valley, the AI couldn’t find any craft or object. The mysterious life form had kept a low profile after the craft incident. Maybe it feared the humans. Unlikely, but a possibility. On this strange world, anything could happen.

  When Tavio reviewed the route on his HUD and realized they had many hours to go before they’d reach the valley, he doubled their speed. During the trip, the doctor recorded more footage and evaluated her current findings. “The forest’s bio-diversity is contrary to the rest of the planet’s biological given.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “Either the soil carries properties which the rest of the planet doesn’t offer, or…” She stopped in the middle of her thought. “Or it is artificial nature.”

  30

  “Artificial?”

  He wanted to follow up but heard a noise in the bushes. Bellrog noticed it too and readied his FAR7 flechette rifle.

  “Nothing,” he eventually said.

  Tavio almost couldn’t believe it. The trip through the alien jungle underwent without major opposition. Bellrog had spotted some four-legged creatures in the distance, but they stayed hidden in the coral-shaped backwoods. Sure, he noticed swarms of little creatures floating through the thicket, but none of them dared to attack the team. Either the bigger creatures were too afraid of Earth carbon-based bipeds treading through the jungle, or they didn’t exist in the first place. Tavio paid close attention to his interactive map in the upper-right corner of his HUD.

  “One and a half klicks more to go,” he told his team.

  Dr. Eriksun seemed thankful for the goal announcement, but Bellrog seemed as fit as during the beginning of the trip. Or maybe he excelled at hiding his exhaustion. Tavio looked around and noticed that the vegetation had changed—the former thicket of the jungle made way for a sparse ground with boulders and canyon-like vegetation. Fewer trees dominated the landscape. Tavio caught the doctor taking a break. “How’s it looking?”

  “I think I’m reaching the capacity of my server. I have recorded exabytes worth of information.”

  “Looks like you won’t get bored anytime soon.”

  “Only boring people get bored.”

  Tavio smiled. When not in her scientist mode, Eriksun expressed attitude served with a dash of rebellion. He wondered whether she had been a rebel-rouser during her younger years. The doctor’s earthy eyes held steady. It almost looked as if she enjoyed the tension growing. “Two credits for your thoughts,” she said.

  Tavio felt caught in the act. “You must have been a wild spirit when you were young.”

  “What’s up with the past tense?”

  Tavio’s faint smile turned into a wide grin. A comment was lingering on his tongue when Bellrog approached his right. “Don’t want to interrupt your tactical session, sir, but since we’re nearing the target zone, it might be smart to discuss our approach.”

  “You’re right.”

  Tavio used his binocular option of the helmet and zoomed into the landscape. The valley had fewer trees and consisted mainly of prairie shaken up by the occasional boulder formation. The crater-like landscape fed into an orange-colored mountain range which reminded Tavio of the Grand Canyons back on Earth. But no matter where he focused his zoom, the captain couldn’t find anything suspicious. And after a quick update from Aidos, high above the orbit, the confusion grew. “I don’t get it. They send a craft, blow it up, and then keep silent. What’s their strategy?”

  Bellrog breathed through his teeth. “Maybe they want to put us into a false sense of security then attack us when we least expect it.”

  “Doctor?”

  “I need more intel to make a guess, sir. I only received visual footage from a small craft which was likely built for aerial and not orbital flight, hence its aerodynamic features.”

  She seemed frustrated about her lack of knowledge. “Maybe they don’t know how to approach us?”

  Bellrog grunted. “Or maybe they wanted us to track down their drone so we’d step right into their trap.” He scanned the valley. “We’re basically out in the open here, which makes the area perfect for an aerial attack.”

  “How far can you remote control the APE?” Tavio said.

  “Thousands of klicks.”

  “Do you have optical sensors that allows the sharing of APE’s vision?”

  Bellrog smiled broadly as the captain’s idea dawned on him. “You want the APE to recon the valley while we stay in cover.”

  “Sounds like the most reasonable idea.”

  But not to everyone in the team.

  “Sir, do you think it’s smart to send a military robot into the territory?” Eriksun said. “The life form could consider it an act of aggression.”

  “Well, they did send a craft themselves and we didn’t shoot it down. Let’s hope they’re smart enough to realize it works both ways.”

  Talking time was over. Tavio decided to act. “Go ahead, Sergeant.”

  “My pleasure.”

  Bellrog set up his mobile remote control area and unstrapped the cargo from the APE, including the arms and Dr. Eriksun’s equipment. He commanded the machine to enter the vast valley and used the APE’s optical sensors to transfer the first person perspective to his display. Tavio couldn’t help but feel impressed. “You’re pretty good with that walker. Do most Martian s
oldiers learn mech piloting in basic?”

  “They don’t. But Fairstryke does things differently than other private militaries.” He paused. “Served us well in the war.”

  Tavio’s eyes squinted, but he kept the response to himself. The situation was too important to resort to Colony War rhetoric. He watched as the machine reached the crater. Ten stomps later, the APE disappeared.

  31

  Whoosh. Gone in a couple of seconds, as if fog ate up the cybernetic creature in one cloudy bite.

  Bellrog’s arm display still showed the recordings of the APE’s optical sensors. Tavio recognized a white, mechanical wall stretched across the crater canyon. Organic, dagger-shaped buildings protruded behind the barricades. Their surface shone in metal white and resembled vertically-parked spaceships with geometrical patterns weaving through the armor plates. The structure looked like a cybernetic cocoon.

  Tavio looked back at the valley and could see nothing but lush vegetation. Whatever the APE recorded didn’t show up in real life.

  He threw a confused glance at Dr. Eriksun. “It’s the same design from the drone.” Her voice rang with excitement. “We’ve finally found them.”

  Bellrog grunted. “Could be a virus. Some kind of holographic mirage that tricks APE’s optical sensors.”

  There was too much uncertainty; Tavio needed to see what was going on with his own eyes. He unholstered his ion pistol and ordered Bellrog to ready his flechette rifle. “Wait for my command.”

  “Always.”

  “I’m coming with you, Captain,” Eriksun said. “Someone has to make sure this situation doesn’t escalate.”