The scrapping stopped as the lift continued its slow climb through the conduit. It could travel a lot faster. The lever that she was using was intended for fine adjustments, not long distance travel, but Zep did not know this and she was not inclined to randomly push buttons to see what might happen. With all of their lights off again, Pok lay down, cold but comfortable in the net. The long cylinder with its shuttle tubes, supply lines and large pipes and cables disappeared into the distance. Far ahead, she could see more lights. She wondered if they would be entirely weightless by the time they got that far. As the lift moved closer to the lights, Pok could see that the cables and everything else came to an abrupt end. Something like a wall lay across the width of the conduit, but the barrier was actually another bulkhead. The door sprung aside as the truck lift went through and the vast expanse of the hub appeared before them.
Buth NuTet had not expected the Cathians to get out of the anti-mod. He did not know much about them, the new aliens, only that they were not well regarded. Now he had a decision to make. The truck lift was approaching the hub bulkhead. Should he open the door? He could leave the Cathians there, stuck in the dark cold conduit with its sparse oxygen and no food. Their air tanks, lights, and water would not last for long and the problem would be solved, except for some clean up.
He was being advised to do just that, but he decided otherwise. Locked out, frustrated and angry, the Cathians might take what vengeance they could. The fact that they could do considerable violence stayed the ObLaDas’ hand. The Cathians had only to nudge the massive beams and wall panels off the lift platform. They would glide slowly away in the slight gravity near the hub, but would begin to fall with increasing speed down through the long arm, crashing against the side as they went. They could possibly damage air, power, communication lines, or the shuttle tubes, finally bashing into, and perhaps through, the anti-mod bulkhead to do even more harm.
Buth was almost certain that the aliens would not know how to cut the suspension cables, which would be even worse. The thick strands ran through the conduit and held much of the weight of the anti-module as it rotated around the hub. If the cables were cut, the arm and anti-module would not hold together. Bolts would start popping and the anti-module would tear away and spin off into space. The out-of-balance Filim arm would twist and strain until it bent in half, its supporting lines would probably not break, but would hold the module as it smashed it way toward the hub or into the hull. Buth NuTet was almost certain that would not happen, but considering the consequences, he decided to fight it out on the flat, weightless floor of the transit hub.
Once the truck lift moved past the containment barrier, the curved conduit walls ended and they entered the vast expanse of the hub. This normally busy, well-lighted place had been cleared of activity. The lift cables, shuttle tubes, power lines, pipes and vents all continued into this wide complex space that was larger by far than any place the Cathians had even been. The Filim hub was the connecting point between the arms and the bridge, the axle about which the Filim and Farside vanes rotated. Transit corridors from the arms, the bridge, and the ship’s hull converged within the hub. It was the terminal for shuttle cars, truck lifts, supply lines and services, as well as being a huge material depot.
Far ahead the Cathians could see three large platforms that were connected to a cluttered floor, but it was disorienting. The Cathians had seen themselves traveling upwards from the deck of the anti-module, but now seemed to be descending, upside down and weightless, toward the hub floor. The shuttle tubes seemed to end at that floor, but the Cathians knew that they must pass through it and go on to the habit module.
Til thought that she could see some movement on the nearest platform, but she hoped not. At this distance she would see something move only if it was large, very large. As they came closer, it appeared as if the truck lift could pass through the platforms. Each one had an opening to exactly fit the lift’s shape. The series of flimsy looking shelves had been built to hold the massive but weightless materials that were scheduled for transport to and from the anti-module. Zep slowed the lift to a stop well below the first of these. There were three hulking megabots hanging on to that platform waiting for them.
Buth NuTet had rushed the megabots to the hub from the construction zone far up the hull. Megabots were built to grasp and maneuver massive beams and construction modules using powerful clamps on each forward arm. Their four maneuverable legs and massive feet gripped built-in hold-downs to anchor themselves in place as they moved about in weightless space. The megabots were not fast, but they were massive and strong. They were built like bulldozers and could do whatever they were told to do.
Zep slowly brought the lift toward the nearest platform. She decided to go through opening as fast as she might and keep going as far as she could. The nearest megabot hung from the storage platform. As the lift slowly approached, the big bot straightened and moved toward the ascending lift. Zep stopped out-of-reach. The Cathians could not fight the heavy megabots, but they did have one piece of equally heavy equipment. The big bot let go of the deck holds and clamped two legs onto a lift cable. It began to craw toward the corner of the truck platform. The bot got one clamp onto the edge and, as it began to let go of the cable one methodical one leg at a time, Zep activated the lift and drove as fast as it would go toward the opening. With a satisfying crunch, the lift stopped abruptly, wedged in place by the broken megabot.
Another heavy bot became active and moved toward the lift, which was now thoroughly stuck. Zep frantically jerked the control lever up and down to free the immobilized truck. If she could just get free and move the rest of the way through, they would get past and away. The megabot was massive strong, but moved ponderously, clamping one foot after another onto the thin beams and struts below the shelf as it lurched toward the lift. Pok could see a scarred, dark brown clamp slip through the narrow opening and over the edge of the platform. As the megabot attached its second arm, the lift shook and sprung away, leaving the smashed bot to drift away into the hub.
The clamps of the second bot held tight when the lift backed up the cables. The storage platform did not. The lift was as rugged as the megabots and the torque generated by its four traction motors tore the struts away from the storage platform. The bot’s clamp-like feet still held the worthless bits of metal as the lift carried it away. Zep reversed direction and headed back through the platform opening. The megabot released its hold, not wanting to repeat the mistake of its former kin, and it drifted off across the hub as if it were a large bit of fluff.
Zep stopped again. One more bots was waiting. Retreat back toward the anti-module was possible but pointless; they had not come so far to hide away or to be trapped. She watched as the remaining megabot disappeared through the cutout. It would be waiting for them on the other side. The lift was moved too slowly to get past it. Zep, frustrated and afraid, pushed some likely buttons on the control panel. The lift suddenly bolted through the opening. The dull green megabot could do no more than grab the net as the lift moved past and through the next opening. The bot attempted to pull the net away, but it caught on a corner of the platform, tightened suddenly, and pulled the bot along with it. Rapidly closing on the terminal floor, Zep could not stop the truck as it banged into an emergency barrier and crashed to a stop less than an arm’s length from the end of the cable. The pillars, planks, beams, panels, and Cathians now crashed into the thick metal floor and bounded away. Something smashed into the thin roof of the little cabin and crushed it to half its height. Pok was slammed into the crumpled metal, opening a cut on her side.
Zep reached out to help Pok get free. Til had tied herself and her cart to the platform. She was held fast and looked across the floor as the weightless construction materials broke free of the lift and continued to crash around. Slowly the debris settled as they became stuck in some corner or moved out into the void. Til kept hold of her cart and pushed clear of the wreckage. The floor was not as smooth as it looked from a distance
. It was lined with rails and studded with hold-downs of all sizes. She could move along quite well as her agile feet found plenty to gasp. The lift sat oddly upside down just above the floor, the megabot still tangled in the net. Zep climbed back into the crushed cabin, reversed the lift, and jumped away. It only went as far as the next cutout pinching the net and entrapped megabot against the edge of the platform. The bot struggled to rip free of the net, but could not get the leverage it needed. It finally shut itself down and waited to be cut loose.
Til held the cart with one hand and pulled it and herself along. She could handle it if she moved slowly. Two lights came loose and floated away, they were broken anyway. Pok and Zep struggled with the debris and their injuries. They needed to find some way to get through to the other side of the hub and the habitat module.
The terminal floor held a number of small buildings filled with tools, spare parts, and some spare equipment. Til was puzzled by the immense strength of the hub and the thick flanges that were attached to the supporting cables. It was as if they were made to hold the entire world, but why? For the moment they were clear of the megabots, although you could hear one climbing down through the platforms, but another problem was forming up near the bridge portal. A group of midsize spider bots, each larger and stronger than they had ever seen, was massing at the far end of the hub. They would be trapped where they were if they did not move quickly.
Til led the way toward the cables, there was an opening, but she did not have time to look through. Zep was hurting. Her leg pained her more than it should. She was becoming distracted. Til tied the cart to the wall to keep LaPan from floating away and helped Pok wedge a wall panel between two flat cars. It would provide some shelter if they needed it.
Trouble arrived from above or below. The Cathians were still disoriented as to which way was up in that rotating, weightless sphere. The first megabot, the dirty reddish brown one, had floated to the very top of the hub and, rather than begin the long slow climb back down, it launched itself in a slow glide toward the terminal floor. It landed near the resting rail cars, almost bounced away again, but caught a hold-down. It now stood between the Cathians and the shuttle tubes and seemed to be resetting itself.
A pack of spider bots started crossing the deck as a group. They were sturdy construction machines, not the flimsy things the Cathians had smashed up in the anti-module. The spider bots struggled to carry two large, awkward laser welders. These were not meant to be portable machines and had no convenient handles, but they were powerful devices that could cut through anything on the ship. The spider bots passed between the legs of the megabot and faced the aliens. Suddenly the spider bots froze in place, as only machines can do. A clicking sound grew louder and faster, becoming almost a buzz that seemed to move back and forth through the room.
The broken lift truck looked as if it had come alive. A brown mass covered its edge and began to flow off the downturned platform onto the floor. Dozens of Sticks, the whole tribe, had attached themselves to the bottom of the platform. They must have gone there while LePan was being captured. Now they were moving as a mass onto the hub floor, pressed close to one another, forming up in rows. A few ran around and gathered up bits of junk and broken tubing, whatever floated by, and distributed it among the ranks. The clicking buzz maintained constant communication between the Sticks as they moved quickly and easily across the weightless hub. Their tentacle-like fingers found good purchase on the floors and walls.
The Sticks split ranks in a well-coordinated maneuver that sent out a screen to hold off the spider bots and streams that headed toward and over the megabot. They appeared frail and helpless as they climbed onto the powerful machine and clustered around its joints and tubes. The big bot tried to knock them away, scratching and scraping with their jointed limbs. The Sticks tried to keep away from exposed areas as they wedged bits of metal into moving joints and hacked away at the soft tubes and connecting cables. Gradually, the tiny Sticks won out and the megabot slowed, one leg after another, immobilized, while its arms and massive clamps waved around helplessly. The deck was littered with broken Sticks.
The much smaller and lighter Sticks had found a way to overcome the megabot, but the spider bots and their laser tools proved to be too lethal. The spiders clustered around the lasers to focus their aim on the clicking Stick people. The lasers went on with a crack, shooting beams of white light across the hub. The intense beams wavered around until they found their target. The beams cut through the Sticks’ long thin legs at the instant of contact, snapping with a sickening pop. The wavering beams were too fast to avoid. The few remaining Sticks scattered. Individuals panicked, insecure when separated from the group. The surviving Sticks joined the Cathians in their makeshift shelter, as the spider bots marched past the crippled megabot as the big machines began scraping along with one leg and two arms. Slow, but fast enough.
The Cathians tried to beat off the spiders with their long poles, but it was hard for them to gain leverage in the weightless environment. Pok had some success, but she only succeeded in becoming a target as a laser stitched welts across her neck. The scrabbling megabot moved ever closer to the railcars. Worse, the green megabot was being cut loose from the netting by a swarm of spiders and would soon come rumbling across the deck.
The Cathians had to move quickly. Their meager shelter would not stand a moment once a megabot got there. They had no good options. Til pulled the cart to the edge of the wide opening that led into the habitat side of the hub. She shoved it through. Til, Pot, Zep, and the Sticks all followed. They were able to grab onto the service pipes and pull themselves toward the Filim arm bulkhead. For some reason the bulkhead door had been left open, the long conduit leading toward the habitat module offered an inviting escape, but Pok and Zep were hurt. Til held onto the bulkhead frame and was able to grab Zep before she went through the opening. All but two Sticks gathered there. Pok thought the shuttle tubes might have better air or at least be warmer than the conduit, but there was no visible way to get into them. They each took a fresh air tank from the cart.
The megabots did not bother to go after the aliens, but the spider bots climbed into the platform girders and maneuvered their lasers into place. The things cracked on and the ominous sound echoed across the hub. White beams raced across the bulkhead as the spiders sought to steady their aim. Two more Sticks were hit and pieces floated off. Pok was zapped again, this time the distance was too great. The burns were painful, not severe, but they were completely exposed on the bulkhead surface. There was no place to hide, no place but the open gap into the long conduit.
It was all too clear that their captive, LaPan, was no bargaining chip. Its fellow ObLaDas had no apparent interest in its fate. Til set about cutting LePan loose. She was of no value and deserved a chance to look out for herself. She was conscious now and seemed to know what was happening. The Sticks may have had some other ideas.
Working their way through the long conduit to the Filim module would be difficult for the Cathians, they were all injured, already tired, and it was doubtful that their air would last, but it was their only chance. Til hoped that the Sticks might be able to make it, as she pushed off the barrier into the long wide tube. All followed except LePan, but the Sticks did not intend to leave her alone and pulled her into the conduit where she drifted slowly along. The Filim arm was rotating at full speed and the forces of that motion would increase as the aliens went further through its length. For now, they were doing well. The cables and other pipes and wires gave them something to grab from time to time to adjust their fall, which always tended to bash them against the wall, but for now they were not falling too fast to worry about. They might make it if they could glide far enough.
It was cold. There was some light farther down the tube. In fact there was a ring of bright lights up ahead. It was a guide as they groped their way through the dark tube. Zep particularly thought it was a welcome sign. She was having problems with the pain from her wound and a burning sensation
on her feet. It was hard for her to focus. She wanted to be in a warm place and rest, and dreamt of being there. Pok was more alert even as she needed to struggle to move. Her cuts and burns hurt more than they ever had and her side had stiffened. She was not so sure about those lights and peered ahead as closely as she could.
The lights were being held by spider bots that ringed the conduit’s perimeter. Some held flybots. The flybots could not maneuver in the thin air and had trouble when weightless, so they were being carried, their darts ready and pointed into the chamber. Pok would have given the alarm, called out a warning, but to what purpose? Most of the aliens were floating through the open space in the conduit and could not stop themselves. Perhaps a few Sticks might catch something, but everyone else would move slowly through the ring of lights. It would not be long now; it was not far. Zep did not seem to be aware of what was about to happen, that was all right. Til saw them and looked at Pok, she shrugged. She knew what that meant. The darts hit her side, she did not know how many, enough. Suddenly numbed, it was a pleasant feeling. She relaxed; this was not so bad. She felt as though she could float through space forever.
Buth NuTet was terribly upset and most of the ObLaDas shared his rage. Not only had LePan LuKut been killed, but also two alien species had actually attacked the Outward Voyager. This was unprecedented and even more horrifying because it was unexpected. In the clutches of the hysteria that followed the conflict and LePan’s death, all the ObLaDas shared the outrage and the decisions that followed. They had followed a rational if cruel course, or so they thought at the time, but it did not have a rational outcome.
Outward Borne Page 9