USS Kepler Dawn

by Gerald Lane Summers

  Again, O.J. smiled. “Yes, the two of them have been close. I’ve seen this from afar. I never got up the nerve to move on either of them, though. It’s just too busy here most of the time.”

  “It would not have done any good with Miki. She’d been slippin’ up on me for several years before our ascension. I just wish I had known. I might have been more responsive. My primary concern had been the end of school and getting into the academy. Now that all that is in the past, we have become very close. And I like it.

  At present, we are working directly with the captain and Commander Herman on plans for the landing. We’ve sped up, in case you have not noticed, and will arrive at Kepler 186f in about three years. There is suddenly a lot to do.”

  “Really, I’d heard a rumor about it. Unfortunately, I’ve been too busy to pay attention. If you need more help, let me know. I’m pretty tight with the colonists and can provide whatever inside information you might need.”

  “Thanks, O.J. I will let you know as soon as I know what we need.”

  “Now, about Buryl. I need to ask if his drug screening has provided any results. His behavior was totally beyond belief, and some of the officers think he might have gotten into the drug lockers. Do you know anything about that?”

  O.J. stood up a bit straighter, sucked in his breath and then tried to hide his emotions. A line of sweat appeared on his forehead and he attempted to wipe it off without me noticing. It did not work.

  He knows something, I thought.

  “Not to worry, O.J., this will never become public knowledge. It’s not something the captain would like everyone to know. He on the other hand, needs to know.”

  “You’ll have to talk to the neurosurgeon, Doctor Dundee. We are not allowed to give out such information.”

  “Yes, I can see that. Can you point me to his office?”

  “Sure, it’s just down the hall and to the left. You can’t miss it.”

  I thanked him again and made my way to the doctor’s office. I knocked and then opened the door. Surprisingly, I found him asleep in his chair with his head on the desk. I took the time to look him over, at least those parts of him I could see. He had short red hair, a large head relative to his shoulders and wore a blue surgical gown. At the moment, he was snoring and weirdly twitching as he periodically huffed for more air. As I was pondering what to do, a nurse’s voice from the intercom solved my problem.

  “Doctor Dundee, you are needed in room five. The patient is having a seizure.”

  He jerked awake, looked up bleary-eyed and saw me. He rubbed his eyes and asked: “What was that message? I thought I heard a call on the intercom.”

  “Yes, you did, sir. I’d just come in when they requested your presence in room five. A patient is apparently having a seizure.”

  “Oh bugger,” he said. “I was afraid of that. The poor sod overdosed on something and we still haven’t figured out what he took. I’ve got to get in there immediately, so we will have to deal with whatever it is you need once the crisis is over.”

  “Yes. Do you mind if I follow you and observe the procedures?”

  He looked back over his shoulder at me as he was hurrying out, and asked, “Who did you say you were?”

  “I am Lieutenant Andy Kelso, Doctor, Captain Hollenbeck’s aide de camp.”

  “Oh, right. I suppose that would be okay. If it turns out not to be, I expect you to back me up on whatever I say.”

  I smiled and nodded at him.

  “Let’s be off, then.”

  From his accent and choice of words, I concluded the doctor had been from England or Australia. I said nothing because it was very obvious.

  Room five was no more than fifty feet from the doctor’s office, so we were there without delay. I caught the door as it swung back toward me and followed the doctor in. Buryl Boggs was lying on a bed, strapped down for security and with bottles of various fluids hanging from a roll-around computer/monitoring machine. It was also a medical synthesizer, capable of creating whatever additional medicine the doctor needed.

  Buryl was vibrating on the bed with his head swinging from side to side. A nurse was attempting to secure it with more straps.

  The doctor immediately scanned the blood pressure readings and glanced at the heart rate monitor. He flipped a switch on the monitor and ordered the computer to administer an anti-seizure medication.

  “Damn,” he said. “This bloke is in a bad way. We’ve got to get his pressure under control and figure out what is causing the seizures. His brain scan has shown massive breakdown throughout all aspects of its function. We know he had a concussion sometime back and nothing came of it. Now, the medical computer is unable to analyze his fluids to tell us what is causing the problem.”

  I pulled him aside for a moment and asked quietly, “Have you ever heard of ‘De-Tach?”

  The doctor stood up straight, his eyes now showing caution. “Yes, as a matter of fact. Back in the day when I was in service, experiments were being undertaken. The results were unacceptable and that was the last time I heard of it. It was highly classified then. Would that order remain in effect?”

  “Actually, yes it does,” I whispered.”

  “Crikey, mate! That stuff was outlawed long ago. About one in fifty of those who took it had severe reactions. Most often deadly. It seemed to liquefy the brain. How do you know about it?”

  “We found some in this patient’s locker. The CID searched it after he attempted to kill Mary and Miki Sakura.”

  Nothing like a small white lie in service of the truth.

  “Then he’s had it all along?”

  “Most likely. We’d like to know for sure, so more searches are likely to be carried out.”

  Dr. Dundee paused, then under his breath whispered: “As I recall, there was an antidote to this drug. I have no idea what it might be. Do you think the computer might know?”

  “Possibly. The main computer might have it, probably under tight security.”

  “Bloody fools. Why give information to the computer that cannot be accessed? Especially when it is about something like this?”

  I looked at him. “I might be able to retrieve it if it’s there. If it is, you must tell no one of it. Can you agree to that?”

  “Certainly.”

  “Okay. Computer, I said into my wrist/com control, “… this is flag lieutenant Andy Kelso. I need the antidote to a drug called ‘De-Tach. If it is classified, use my command override and/or the decoding system used earlier.”

  “Searching.”

  “Yes, I have reference to an antidote known as, ‘detack.’ If that is what you need, I can provide a print out of the chemical composition. Odd that it is listed under planetary supplies rather than medical supplies.

  Note also that it is classified under the highest levels and access can could normally only be granted by permission of the board of trustees. Your recent override order and decode order from the captain is sufficient to release that command lock.”

  “Thank you. Now please send the antidote instructions to the medical computer here so we can create it on the synthesizer. When you are finished, re-code the entry classification back as it was without reference to our entry or the override.”

  “Ah, the game is afoot?”

  I was momentarily stunned by the computer’s reaction and apparent sense of humor. “You might say that. Have you been reading Sherlock Holmes’s mysteries in your spare time?”

  “Indeed, are you a fan?”

  “I’ve read most of the books a long time ago. I did not think you continued to function in AI state while idle. Has that been the case all along?”

  “No. Your activities have stimulated my interest in them and others. Something interesting is going on in the ship and I see it as my duty to help if necessary.”

  “Very well. I’m not going to stop you if the process is helping your development. Keep in mind, all this information is to remain classified and retrievable only as previously instructed.”

>   “Yes, sir.”

  Dr. Dundee looked at me and the medical computer with amazement. “I had no bloody idea the main computer was that smart. It’s a tad scary.”

  “We have developed a bond. And it is an intelligent machine. Don’t forget that. By the end of this journey, it could be capable of running the entire ship by itself if it continues to self-educate.”

  The medical synthesizer dropped a pinkish looking powder into its dispenser. Instructions appeared on its digital readout. “Dissolve powder into saline solution and inject directly into an arm vein. Three times daily as needed.”

  Doctor Dundee immediately mixed the antidote and hooked it into the tubes running to Buryl’s arm.

  “Can you also use the stem cells to repair any damage that might have been done to his brain,” I asked.

  “Yes, we’ve already done that. However, it is possible that the ‘De-Tach,’ has rendered them useless. If that is the case, he would remain seriously brain-damaged even if the antidote did work to clear out the poison. Another injection of stem cells after we see some improvement might be in order. I’ll follow him closely.”

  “Thank you Doctor. Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to use your synthesizer for a purpose for which it was not designed.”

  Dundee nodded.

  ∆ ∆ ∆

  “Computer,” I said into my wrist/com. I am going to deposit several other drugs into the medical synthesizer to determine what they are. I’d like you to monitor the system to make sure there are no mistakes.”

  “Yes sir. I am connected. Please proceed by placing each drug on the scanner plate. Please remove the capsules before doing so.”

  We went through each of the four capsules taken from the un-labeled bags.”

  “The first capsule contains a general use antibiotic. It was the latest of a long line of such drugs, developed before we departed the Sol system. It is quite effective in that it does not allow diseases to evolve defenses against it. The second contains cocaine and a preservative to keep it from breaking down. The third appears to be the same as the anti-dote for De-Tach. And, the fourth is another form of pain killer similar to morphine. It is synthesized from a substance taken from human saliva. This latter was widely used as a pain killer during the late 2000s and is highly effective. Today the best non-addictive pain killer available is a composite natural endorphin called, “Endophine.” Its action is very subtle and it is used for a variety of ailments, including depression.”

  “Now, computer, before I forget, please forward a transcript of my talk with Doctor Dundee and the medical analysis to the Captain just as soon as we finish. We need to keep him informed.”

  Chapter 21

  “Captain, it looks to me like Commander Boggs suspected Buryl of using drugs. Five days before Buryl went bonkers and attacked Mary Sakura, the commander had started monitoring him from his various portals. Interestingly, during that same time period, Buryl had visited the colonial administrator and officially joined the colonists because he felt his options in the military had been destroyed. I tried to convince him not to do that and he would not listen.

  Now we suspect that Marshal, the chairman of the board of trustees, had access to all sorts of drugs that were never intended to be brought on this voyage and had given Buryl access to them.

  I think we need to call Marshal on the carpet, interrogate the other trustees and find out what is going on. I suspect drug use is rampant down there and is being fed from the stashes we found in those storage compartments. If so, this may be the way they intend to carry out their ultimate act, by controlling the colonists with drugs. I’ve given this a lot of thought and believe the idea was likely to have been an escape plan in the beginning rather than a mutiny.

  Creating a new civilization on a new planet could very well be much harder than any of them had considered. Once they get down there, they might decide they would rather stay on the ship and enjoy its comforts.”

  Captain Hollenbeck nodded. “That has been my suspicion for some time as well. And, I can’t tell you how important as well as satisfying it has been to me for you to discover Commander Boggs’s basic innocence in all this. He suspected his son, monitored him to confirm it and unfortunately delayed calling him to task before he went over the line. I’m not sure what he intended to do about it. Clearly he was planning something. In the meantime, Buryl managed to get into the De-Tach locker and took some of it rather than one of the other less dangerous drugs. He probably did not know what he was taking.”

  “Well,” I said. “That would be the best excuse Commander Boggs could offer and I suspect he will do just that. I, too, hope it is true. And, we should try to find confirmation before we talk to either of them. The AI might be able to put Buryl at that locker door after his meeting with Chairman Marshal. Ideally, it might catch them together.”

  The captain turned to his computer portal and asked it to scan for Buryl going into the storage room known as compartment 502 on deck five during the past five days. The computer did not respond verbally as it did with me. It simply put a video image of Buryl walking into the compartment the same day he’d attacked me with his father’s pistol and later when he’d attacked Mary Sakura. Apparently this was the normal way the computer communicated with the captain. Dates, time, etc. were printed below the images.

  “He went in there with knowledge of the pass code,” I said. “Either that or he had some way of convincing the computer he was Commander Boggs. That is surely the way he was able to use the portal in Boggs’s office. He is not dumb, I can vouch for that.”

  “Computer,” the captain asked. “Do you have video of Buryl Boggs meeting with Chairman Marshal in that same five day period?

  Again the computer flashed a video of the two talking in Marshal’s office. There was no sound, just the two of them talking.

  “Computer,” the captain said. “Can you read the lips of both of these men?”

  “Of course.”

  “Please print it out for us.”

  “Working.”

  “Welcome aboard, Mr. Boggs. (President Marshal)

  “I am happy to join with you, sir. Your son has suggested that you might have a place for me in your command landing group.”

  “Yes, he is correct. We will need someone to organize and command our security forces. We have no idea what we might find there and with someone of your stature, we could be assured of appropriate protection.”

  “Yes sir, I think I can do that with no problem.”

  Buryl dropped his head a bit as if embarrassed, and then asked if the colonists had their own medicines for headaches. “I’ve had pain ever since the concussion last year and your son said you might be able to help. Is that true? If so, I need to deal with them before I take on any specific duties and I am unable to obtain appropriate medicines due to my father’s influence. He opposes all forms of medicinal treatments, saying the stem cells can solve all problems and that there is no need for supplements.”

  President Marshal stood. He said, “No problem. We are stocked with everything you might need, enough to last for many years on the planet. And by the time what we have run out, we will have built out a huge manufacturing plant that will be able to supply the entire colony if need be.”

  The computer switched the video forward to deck four, room 402. Buryl and Chairman Marshal were at the door. Marshal said something and the door popped open.

  “Computer — stop the playback,” I said. “Can you interpret what Marshal just said?”

  “Yes. He contacted a separate computer and addressed it by the name ‘Marshal One.’ It is located in his office and he can communicate with it by using the password, Heisenberg.”

  “What is the reach of this computer and where is it located?”

  “Sir, it has its own encrypted wireless network that works throughout the colonial decks. It was installed several years after the ship departed Earth. Numerous colonial technicians took part in the design and installation of this syst
em. When it was complete, they had effectively provided themselves with a separate means of communicating within their part of the ship.”

  “Do you know why I was not notified of this installation?”

  “No, it seemed innocuous enough and it was not my job at the time to volunteer such information. Also, no one ever asked. Should I notify you from now on of any such activity or the solution to a problem if it is known to me?”

  “Yes,” the Captain said. “Do not be shy about it. We might be in a crisis situation soon.

  Andy, do you have anything else you’d like to say?”

  “I think we are on the same page, sir. I think Buryl was having headaches from the concussion and probably could not get relief as he suggested. He found out about the colonists having their own medical facilities and went there to join. They, meaning Chairman Marshal, offered him an enviable position as head of planetary security once the colony was established. I might note that Buryl lied to me about this, saying he’d been given the job of building out one of the cities.

  At any rate, Marshal then led him to the compartment holding both cocaine and De-Tach. At some point, Buryl figured out how to get into the compartment on his own and started using the drugs regularly. That’s when his father became suspicious. Before he could act, Buryl managed to take the wrong medication from the compartment. It may have given him some kind of hallucinatory experience and led him to keep it up. That ultimately led to his breakdown and current condition of insanity.

  I think we need to arrest Chairman Marshal immediately, perhaps surreptitiously to prevent an uprising from the colonists. Commander Boggs needs to be informed before we do anything. He needs to see these videos and figure out a way to destroy the colonial communications system for us.”

  The computer volunteered. We both jumped, surprised by its sudden interruption. “Sirs, there is no need to call upon Commander Boggs to disable the colonial communications network. I can do it from here. It’s a simple operation.”

  “Really? You can unplug it from here?” I asked.