»What do you mean?« van Velzen paused again to listen to her.
»Their senses don’t work like ours; they don’t have any schematics or plans of Uluru. Even if they found a control room, they wouldn’t know what to do. The same goes for energy accumulators. They wouldn’t know what it is, as we don’t know much about their technology.«
Lyla’s right! The very fact that Globuster technology is so superior to ours means they probably wouldn’t understand our technologies … she’s got a point!
»Tell me what you think,« Teun invited her to extrapolate.
»Somebody inside Uluru seems to be taking advantage of the situation to cause more damage. The Globusters are spreading horror and fear, but they must have helpers to do the real sabotage, and those have to be Humans!«
Teun swallowed hard.
»Who in the world would want chaos at Uluru Station?«
»Think about it,« she tried again. »We have the elite of terrestrial science here.«
Van Velzen laughed out loud.
»Huh … wait, wait, this is getting farther and farther out. You’re saying that the enemy woke up the Globs, turned them loose and used Human saboteurs to eliminate our top scientists to destroy Humanity?«
Lyla rolled her eyes, knowing he couldn’t see that in the dim light, but didn’t give up.
»What really worries me is what’s happening on the surface. Maybe there’s a full scale invasion going on, or the planet has been reduced to ashes, or some other catastrophe. We wouldn’t know it, because this stupid lock and seal procedure blocks communications!«
»That’s ridiculous! Oodergoo isn’t dumb enough to cut himself off from the outside world. I’ll bet he has his own comm-channels or some other kind of communication available,« he replied.
»Whatever …,« she just shrugged.
Teun had noticed a couple of red markers on the shaft wall and climbed down to inspect them.
»That’s it! We’re stuck! See those markers? They’re the end of this sector! Uluru is laid out with the sector with the highest security at the lowest level.«
»I know that … and? The shaft goes further than these markers. The lower we go, the further away we get from the Globs!«
Teun sighed.
»No! They’re warning markers! Below this line, there’re laser barriers in the walls, criss-crossing the shaft so even a rat can’t get through. If we go any lower without the access code, we’ll be fried!«
Lyla inspected the walls. She’d had an idea … and she found what she was looking for.
»Yes!« she shouted. »There’s a horizontal mechanical service tunnel behind the ventilation grid!«
She kicked out the grid and slipped into the darkened service tunnel.
»What are you waiting for, Teun?«
They will pay for it
Toiber Arkroid stood on the central plaza and tried to understand the scope of this new reality. People throughout the colony had succumbed to the disease and died. There were still bodies lying on the plaza where they had died, covered with plastic sheets. Law and order had collapsed into chaos. Angry, desperate colonists had stormed the ports and the atmospheric glider hangars in a senseless attempt to get off the planet. Hawk combat squadrons had sealed Mars off from the rest of the solar system and threatened to shoot down any ship that attempted to leave, without warning. All of Mars had been declared a quarantine zone.
I understand why quarantine was necessary, but where’s the help we need? Arkroid wondered. The medical support ships we’ve asked for?
Arkroid was deeply shaken, but at least the decon chips Scorge had provided were working. Vasina, Paafnas, Fosset and he showed no symptoms of the disease. Nobody knew how the disease was spread, but the team seemed immune.
Arkroid thought about his family on Earth, whom he hadn’t seen for far too long – especially his daughter. He caught himself imagining being back in his deep-sea abode where the disease couldn’t reach him. He fought to get a grip on himself; he couldn’t afford to get distracted from his mission now. Events on Mars and his responsibilities to the Solar Union weighed heavily on his shoulders.
»It’s getting worse!« he heard Fosset via the comm-set. »People in the Olympus Mons Hotel are dying too. Luckily it’s not tourist season, so there aren’t as many guests there, but the doctor who performed the autopsies on the two security guards has also died. The disease is reaching epidemic proportions!«
Arkroid agreed. Even the medical teams in their bio-suits had been affected.
»Be very careful, Fosset … and keep an eye on Paafnas! We can’t be sure Paaf is protected because of his extraterrestrial origin. Don’t lose the decon chips, whatever you do!«
»I won’t, Arkroid,« Fosset replied. »We’re still trying to help these people, even though it looks damn bleak at the moment.«
»Understood, Fosset!« Arkroid acknowledged and called the Techno-Ferry.
»Nautilus, can you help us? Analyze the virus, or whatever it is, and help us find a cure?«
»I have deployed a couple of probes and sent them to the affected areas. According to your observations, the virus – if it is a virus – is airborne. If your protected medical teams are being infected, then the virus can adapt quickly, develop its own defense systems and penetrate your defenses. This is definitely no ordinary virus.«
»I know! It’s not really a virus, and even the term disease is probably incorrect,« Arkroid remarked. »We’re dealing with a designer biological agent that just mimics a viral infection. It replicates like one. We’ve heard reports that even people in remote outlying suburbs are dying. The way living quarters and life-support systems are all interconnected makes it easy for the agent to spread. We can probably expect it to spread faster as time goes on. We need to understand what these people are dying from.«
»I’ll call you back as soon as I have more information, Toiber,« Nautilus acknowledged.
»Wait! One more thing,« Arkroid added,»transmit an open emergency call on all terrestrial frequencies and let them know what’s going on in the Mars colony. Verify that everybody gets the message. I don’t understand why Mars has only been placed under quarantine, but no aid, no medication or medical teams have been sent! That’s unacceptable, and heads will roll when I get back to Earth, but we need help now. Make sure that everybody in the solar system knows about the disaster on Mars. We’ll need people to pressure the authorities to help.«
»Understood. Transmitting message now,« Nautilus replied instantly.
Arkroid sighed. He couldn’t understand why the colony’s administrative system had collapsed so fast. Chaos was spreading like a wildfire!
»I’m sorry, Toiber, but my warnings regarding the agitator were apparently not taken seriously by your government. I should’ve been more firm!« Vasina approached and told him. »It’s always the same pattern. The agitator is preventing help from reaching us, effectively counteracting all our efforts.«
Arkroid faced Vasina, who was attending a colonist who had collapsed close by. Vasina shook her head to tell him that the man had died.
»We weren’t ready for genocide,« Arkroid hissed.
Vasina straightened and looked across the plaza.
»It’s so silent. The plaza is empty of living people. Where did they all go?«
Arkroid shrugged.
»What would you do? They probably went home, hiding. With no outside help, they’re trying to avoid the disease as much as possible by staying away from large crowds of people. Even the police and the local emergency teams were pulled back,« Arkroid told her bitterly.
Vasina placed her right hand on Arkroid’s shoulder in an uncharacteristic gesture of fellowship and sympathy.
»This power that destroyed my people is now turned against you,« she remarked.
Arkroid clenched his teeth.
»I don’t know who’s behind the Dark Brotherhood, or who pulls their strings, but I promise you, Vasina, they will pay for it – dearly!«
&nbs
p; Vasina stepped back, looking startled. She had never seen Arkroid so determined. His eyes glared at her with a stern and unwavering look.
Anything
The layout of the maintenance shafts and tunnels was a maze for anyone who didn’t work in them. Teun van Velzen and Lyla, without schematics, advanced slowly, not even certain where the tunnels led. The different tunnel diameters and configurations, some round, others rectangular, didn’t help. Some of the tunnels were walkable, while others could only be traversed by crawling through them. Their actual position inside the station was hard to determine, which made orientation complicated. After passing several tunnel junctions and changes of directions, they no longer had any idea where they were. It was even possible that they were going in circles without even realizing it. They passed some switching gear and comm-hubs, and van Velzen tried to memorize the descriptors and labels on the equipment. He didn’t understand their coding and had to admit he was stymied. The tunnel illumination was poor, which didn’t help at all. It seemed, however, that not all of the energy supply had broken down. Teun imagined there must be emergency generators deep within the station, serving a limited number of electrical circuits.
They had heard explosions at a distance and felt the floor grumbling and shaking.
Teun fretted that effects from a nearer explosion could reach them in the tunnels. What exactly had happened on the different levels, Teun was afraid to guess.
Suddenly, Teun was plagued by strong headaches again, and called for Lyla. She had been crawling in front of him, looking for escape hatches and the like. They had passed several tunnel branches, followed them, but found only dead ends.
Lyla crawled back to attend Teun and put the flat of her hand on his forehead.
»What’s wrong?« she asked, suddenly scared. »You’re burning up!«
Teun twisted under the pain, his muscles twitching.
»He … he’s … back!« Teun moaned. »The Globuster … must be very close …«
Lyla listened in her own head.
»I don’t feel anything. Are you sure?« she asked worried.
Van Velzen rolled his eyes and fell into spasms.
»He’s … he’s coming closer!« he moaned in pain. »I can feel him, zeroing in on me!«
That was enough for her and she grabbed Teun by the belt, trying to pull him behind her as she crawled forward into the tunnel.
»Help me! I can’t drag you all the way by myself through this tight tunnel. Use your legs!« she hissed, panic rising in her voice.
Teun was helpless. His legs and arms weren’t working.
»Go on! Get to safety – let me stay here!« he croaked.
Nervously, Lyla looked back and forth in the tunnel. She couldn’t see the end of it. This tunnel could go on for hundreds of meters. She didn’t know what rooms were on the other side of the tunnel walls. The Globuster might be just outside … waiting!
»I’m not leaving you behind, Teun van Velzen!« she responded angrily. »We need to be on the move. Why only you? Why can’t I feel the Globuster?«
Teun was breathing so hard he could barely articulate.
»… don’t … don’t know. Maybe … my bio-electric field … knows me … ‘s looking for me!«
Lyla paled.
»He’s hunting you?«
Teun could no longer speak. Even under the bad lighting, Lyla saw that his face had turned blue. As a medical aide, she recognized the symptoms and put all her might into dragging him deeper into the tunnel.
»Come! Come, you’re going to make it, Teun!« she told him firmly, and kept dragging him, tears in her eyes. After about 30 meters, Teun raised his right arm.
»… better … much better … the Globuster’s lost contact with me. He’s moving away!« Teun informed Lyla.
Lyla briefly closed her eyes. She had to take a rest. Pulling Teun through the tunnel had nearly exhausted her.
»Moving through the maintenance tunnels was not a good idea, Teun,« she remarked, breathing heavily. »We have to get out of here and get to one of the central elevators. If the beast wants you, we could be trapped in these tunnels. All it has to do is break through the wall further down the tunnel stretch and wait for us at a more convenient location.«
Teun staggered to his feet.
»You’re right, Lyla,« he admitted, still weak but managing to stay upright. »We have to risk it or the Globuster will find us at the end. I don’t know why he has such an affinity toward me.«
»It’s my fault,« she replied, suddenly understanding. »In your first encounter with the Glob, he already had you under his spell, then I came and pulled you out of the danger zone. Now he wants you back, like a wild animal that’s had its prey stolen.«
Teun shook his head.
»I don’t know, Lyla … but I do know that I won’t be able to survive any more of his attacks. It’s horrible!«
Lyla was still pulling him along toward steps that led into a wider tunnel.
»What do you know about the Globs? How can we defend ourselves? You’ve spent a long time with this beast. What can we do so that the Glob can’t find us?« she asked desperately.
Teun coughing hard, ignoring Lyla’s questions. He pulled her toward him and hugged her.
»You’ve saved my life again. How can I ever pay you back?« he huffed in her ear.
Lyla, smiled.
»By staying alive, you sweet bullheaded Dutchman!« she cried, running her hand through his sweaty hair. »I have plans for us … for the future, you know?«
Van Velzen pulled her tighter to his chest and kissed her softly on the lips. He would do anything for her … anything!
Adaptation and adjustment
Hassan Khalil struggled against the gel-like substance that held him suspended centimeters above the pilot’s space. It resisted every attempt to free himself, and he resigned himself to it after a couple of minutes. He felt like he was swimming in thick molasses. He tried to breathe, tried to remember how much oxygen was left in the tank. At best his spacesuit’s oxygen supply would only last a few hours. He had lost track of the time in his struggle with the gel.
»It is much easier for you not to fight it,« the analysis computer announced. »The system is still adapting to your metabolic parameters.«
Hassan huffed in response.
»What does that mean? That’s your dumbest statement so far!« he responded.
»There is too much stress in your voice. Calm down and relax,« the computer urged.
Hassan wracked his brain for a way out of this, but he was stymied. He tried a different approach.
»The Globuster ship has integrated you as a comm-interface, right?« he addressed the computer. »How was that even done? The technologies are totally incompatible. We would need years to even understand a simple interface.«
»You Humans would, Hassan,« the computer replied mockingly. »This ship was designed for quick and effective adaptations to serve its owners. When it reactivated and it found you in the pilot’s seat, it tried to adapt to serve you. When the neuronal interface failed in your case, the ship integrated me into its systems. This step was necessary because you’re very different from the former pilot.«
Hassan’s throat went dry.
»You’re talking about the lens ship like it was alive,« he replied.
»You’re defining life within the Human framework of knowledge, but your ignorance is understandable,« the computer answered arrogantly.
Hassan tried again to fight the gel, but ceased his struggle almost immediately. It would just use up more of his oxygen.
»You’re telling me that I’m the new pilot?« Hassan queried cautiously.
»Yes!«
»Then why doesn’t the ship listen to my commands?« he hissed into the helmet microphone.
»There you go again. Another Human misconception,« the computer replied, almost angrily. »You assume that the pilot commands the ship?«
Hassan gave up. He struggled and was able to slowly move his han
d toward his helmet visor to read the wrist instruments.
Four hours and twenty minutes until the oxygen is gone!
»Can you at least tell me what’s happening outside the ship? Are we still in the hangar or are we already in free space? I can’t even sense movements in this damned gel.«
»The gel-like substance is to protect you. You would not have survived the acceleration phase – Humans are not as sturdy as Globusters,« the computer explained. »The ship has already analyzed the advantages of your species over the Globusters, though.«
Hassan frowned.
»We’re flying? Where to?« he wanted to know.
»The ship is following its call! That’s all I know. We have left Earth’s orbit long ago and the ship will reach maximum speed in minutes. In the meantime, it will prepare interface chips for you.«
»What?« Hassan didn’t want to believe his ears. »What did you just say?«
»Wasn’t I clear? The ship will integrate you into its systems, like it has me. The Globusters go through the same processes of adaptation and adjustment.«
Hassan had difficulty controlling his rising panic.
»Adaptation and adjustment?« he asked, horrified.
»Of course. The ship will implant control chips in your body and grant you several new, useful and very powerful physical functions. The chips will allow you to integrate more effectively into the ship’s systems, enhancing its abilities. In time, you’ll appreciate communicating directly with the ship, serving as one unit, as I do.«
»I’d rather die! I’m not a machine that can be integrated into some system!« Hassan yelled.
»The fact is that Humans are merely functional units … biological units. Being based on carbon molecules doesn’t make any difference,« the computer stated calmly.
Hassan screamed at the top of his lungs, but no one could hear him – or help him.
Wait … I know you
Arkroid and Vasina followed the magnetic subway tracks to the colony’s main complex. The lines were no longer in service, with subway cars stopped inside the tunnels. Some of the cars had been vandalized, with torn seats, broken advertising panels and windows. Enraged colonists had taken out their helplessness and anger. Central control system for the subways had also been affected. On their way, Vasina and Arkroid came across more than a few dead bodies of colonists, taken by the disease and died where they stood.
NEBULAR Collection 3 - Morgotradon: Episodes 12 - 16 Page 26