ESCAPE FROM MARS

by G. T. Appleton

  Boony shook her head. “Oh my God. Unbelievable.”

  Jonas’ jaw tightened. He turned and headed for the door. “Where’s he at? I’m busting his ass right now.”

  “Wait,” Boony said.

  “Why? What he’s doing is immoral.”

  On the screen Jessica stood completely nude before Cain. She danced, swaying back and forth like a stripper. The things Cain was saying caused Boony to mute his mike. The prisoner kept dancing, oblivious of him or what she was doing. Cain fumbled with the zipper on his suit with one hand since his other arm was still in a sling.

  Disgusted, Jonas said, “This isn’t right.”

  “I know,” Boony said. “Quick question though.”

  “What?”

  “Is there a way to override his CAM-L? Is that even possible?”

  “Yes. Of course. Why?”

  Boony smiled. “I have a better way to punish him before you arrest him.”

  Jonas took his master CAM-L from his jacket pocket. He typed in Cain’s information and badge number. On his screen, he tapped the “override” button.

  “It’s all in your control,” he said, handing the CAM-L to her.

  “Watch the screen.”

  Jessica swayed her nude body closer to Cain. Her transfixed eyes stared into nothingness. She held her hands over her head and pivoted her hips back and forth. Boony unmuted his mike.

  “Oh, yeah, baby,” Cain mumbled. “That’s what I like to see. Come closer, baby. I have something special for you. Like the other night . . . you know how to make a man feel real good.”

  Cain leaned toward her. He stretched his good arm toward her, his hand rubbed her thigh, and he reached around to cup her ass.

  “Now,” Boony said. “Let’s see how much you like this.”

  A second later, Jessica backhanded Cain hard. The loud fleshy thwack made Boony and Jonas cringe.

  “What the fuck!” Cain shouted, rising to his feet. He grabbed his CAM-L off the table and tapped a few buttons. But Jessica spun around and kicked him in the stomach. The CAM-L dropped to the floor. He groaned, desperately reaching for the control device. “Damn thing . . . isn’t working.”

  Boony tried to suppress a grin as she typed more commands into Jonas’ device, and Jessica kicked Cain’s CAM-L across the floor.

  Cain rose, trying to find his composure, partially stunned by what was happening. Jessica’s eyes remained distant, her mind still totally controlled by the chip. She continued to sway in her seductive dance that Cain had programmed for her.

  “Calm . . . down,” he said, in a more hopeful tone. He eased closer to her. “Relax, baby. Everything’s going to be okay.”

  Under Boony’s control, Jessica balled up the woman’s right hand into a tight fist and swung. The sound of cracking bone echoed. Cain grabbed his nose and seconds later, he held out his blood-covered hand.

  “You little bitch!”

  “Don’t let him hurt her,” Jonas said.

  “I won’t.”

  “I’m sending guards to her room now.” Jonas tapped his transmitter.

  Cain positioned himself lower, like he was going to rush Jessica and pile drive her onto the bed. Before he moved, Boony made Jessica perform a harsh kick to his groin. He gasped with a high-pitched whine. The painful cry that left his mouth caused Jonas to wince and shake his head.

  “Damn, Boony,” he said.

  She shrugged. “Part of that one was for his remark to me at the doctor’s office.”

  Cain collapsed to the floor. He fell on top of the camera and the screen went dark.

  “Guards should be there any second,” Jonas said. “So do you think Matt’s a part of this?”

  “I believe so. It’s how he tried to keep Cain from making any outbursts toward me. We could wait to see if he comes to Jessica’s room before we arrest him.”

  Jonas nodded. “We could, but I don’t want to chance giving him any such opportunity. I’d like to know exactly how long they’ve been doing this. It really wasn’t something I ever expected anyone to do, but I suppose it shouldn’t really surprise me. I will demand better background checks in the future. We don’t need perverts having this kind of control over helpless people.”

  “I agree. But you know, eventually someone was going to take advantage of doing something like this. There are some sick people out there.”

  “I know.”

  “And we really don’t know what these prisoners are capable of, either,” she replied.

  “That’s why I’m glad we have the CAM-Ls.”

  “At the rate the chips are malfunctioning, I am becoming more concerned.”

  Jonas sat down beside Boony’s desk. “I am as well.”

  “I expressed this to Dr. Lee, too.”

  “And what was his reaction?”

  “After I explained the violent nature of our prisoners and what they’d do if these chips failed to control them, he became quite nervous.”

  “He should be nervous. We all should be.”

  “Jonas?” a voice said over his transmitter. “This is Bert.”

  Jonas tapped it. “Yes?”

  “We have Cain in custody. Where do you want us to take him?”

  “Is he conscious?” Jonas asked.

  “Barely.”

  “Bring him to my security office.”

  “Yes, sir. On our way.”

  “Bert? How is Jessica?”

  Silence.

  “Bert?”

  “Well, sir, she seems to be doing some kind of odd dance in the nude. She not responding to Cain’s CAM-L, either.”

  “That’s because I’ve allowed Boony to override Cain’s control,” Jonas said. “We’ll take care of her. Bring Cain to me.”

  “Copy that.”

  Jonas glanced toward Boony. “Perhaps you can get her to stop dancing and into bed to sleep?”

  “On it.”

  “Thanks.”

  26

  Three days earlier, Bradbury had taken Derek as far back into the tunnel as he could. Where the tunnel ended, a small hole to the side was large enough for Derek to crawl through, but his robots did not possess the agility to effectively perform the same movements to follow. He hoped the same was true with the Chinese robots.

  Three days had been a long time to stay hidden. The only rations he had were those from the emergency pack he had taken out of Bradbury’s back storage compartment. The pack contained a half dozen high protein bars, a gallon of water, extra oxygen tanks, and strong pain medicine to use only if severely injured. The food and water was enough for two days, three if he restricted himself. But due to the medicine, Derek had slept most of the time.

  He was never one who favored using any pain relievers at all. The blisters where the laser had struck his shoulder ached from the slightest movement. Normally he was too restless to sleep for long periods of time, but this medicine rendered him unconscious. When he opened his eyes, he tapped the side of his visor to bring up the time. Stunned, he had slept another twelve hours.

  Derek’s mouth was pasty. His head felt heavy. He tried to stand and quickly sat down. In the disorienting darkness, everything spun. His stomach sickened. He patted around the floor until he found the half frozen water. He uncapped it and took a couple of sips through the straw device on his helmet. The cold water made his stomach feel worse, but he forced himself to hold it down. He feared he was becoming dehydrated.

  The inside of the tiny crevice was chilly, but nowhere nearly as cold as the harsh area outside the Phobos ruins. The dark cramped space made him fear he’d develop claustrophobia if he stayed hidden inside much longer.

  With the pain meds wearing off, he was reminded about his blistered shoulder. The laser had melted away part of the sleeve into his flesh. It was tender and raw to the touch, but at least the pain had lessened.

  Hunger pangs gnawed his stomach. He was down to his last protein bar. More emergency provisions were probably stored behind the seats in the cabs of the flatbed tru
cks, in case of mechanical failure or for the long haul back to Olympus Mons. But for Derek that meant leaving the safety of his hideaway and exposing himself to the climate and possibly making him an open target for the Chinese robots. He didn’t have any choice though. He needed to get out of the Phobos ruins and find a way to get back to Olympus Mons. Three days was longer than he had planned to spend hiding and recuperating.

  Since his suit was missing material, his injury was exposed. By being inside small rock room, he was protected from the elements somewhat. His arm was slightly chilled, numbing the pain a little, but he needed to get to the infirmary and have a doctor examine his injury before any infection set in. He pushed a button on his belt, which signaled his smart suit to repair the damaged area around his shoulder. Inside the suit, close to where the material was damaged, the polymers released chemicals that formed thick foam over his exposed skin. The foam gelled together with the surrounding materials and healed the tear.

  Besides fearing an encounter with the enemy robots, he worried about the harsh winds and the gritty sand. Should another sandstorm strike, he hoped the repaired section of the suit was strong enough to hold. At least his injury was covered for now.

  Derek shivered and then he thought about Grayson’s plans to construct steel mills inside Olympus Mons. By having forges to melt the ores the heat inside the dead volcano would increase. The benefit of elevating the temperature enabled staff and guards with an added luxury of not having to wear their suits everywhere, even when they were off duty. The lack of comfortable clothing was one of the chief complaints amongst his colleagues. He agreed. He couldn’t remember the last time he had worn a T-shirt without a spacesuit over it.

  A sharp beeping sound echoed inside of his helmet and caught his attention.

  “Dammit,” he whispered, reading the gauge on his visor.

  His oxygen levels were nearly depleted. Not only did he need to hunt for food provisions inside the truck cabs, he needed a new oxygen tank. He wasn’t certain that extra tanks were stored in the trucks, but in case of emergencies, he figured at least a few should be. If nothing else, he might be able to connect to a larger oxygen tank to recharge the one inside his suit.

  Derek crawled through the small crevice, careful not to place any pressure on his injured shoulder or accidentally bump the rocky wall. Even though the repaired material covered his injury, any bump could rupture the blisters. Although that would be painful, it also opened the injury to bacteria, which might cause an infection. After he crawled past his two robots that stood guarding the entrance of his small hiding place, he stood. His robots didn’t move.

  Bradbury and Isaac had turned off their verbal communications to prevent attracting the heat-seeking robots to their location. Since his robots didn’t emit the same heat frequencies as humans, the Chinese robots had not located and obliterated Derek’s prized nonhuman companions. But since he needed their assistance to get back to the base, he had to reactivate their communication signals and voices. Doing so might attract the attention of the enemy robots, but Derek could never make it back to Olympus Mons without them.

  After three days of radio silence, Jonas was certain to be frantic or fuming with anger. He tended to get angry quicker than ever showing worry, even if it was about Derek’s safety. Jonas had probably attempted to make contact time after time without any success. His stress levels weren’t something that Derek had wished to increase. He loved his grandfather and regretted any moment of anguish he might have caused Jonas.

  Derek hoped Jonas had sent out a search party, even though it had been against Derek’s direct wishes when he had last spoken with his grandfather. Now, he was hoping Jonas had defied the request like he always had in the past. Derek wondered if his heated rant at Jonas had gone too far this time? Had he said the words that might have soured his grandfather to let Derek learn from his mistakes, regardless of the cost? Without the radio towers working, he had no way to know. He didn’t even have a way for him to apologize, and he really wished that he could. It was a waiting game, and the Chinese robots held the upper hand.

  Without any means to communicate with Olympus Mons, Derek realized the potential danger that any search and rescue team might face. Rescuers sent to find Derek didn’t have any knowledge about these heat-seekers. Essentially, the rescuers could blindly enter the area around the Phobos Crash Site. They could quite possibly be killed before Derek even had a clue that they were anywhere nearby or close to finding him.

  Bradbury exited the small cave-like tunnel, followed by Isaac.

  “Derek, why have you left the safety of hiding?” Bradbury asked.

  Derek held his tender shoulder. “My supplies are almost depleted, and I’m nearly out of oxygen.”

  His body was definitely much weaker, but he wondered if anything else might be contributing to his weakness other than lack of food and water. Could spending several days inside the Phobos Crash Site also be a factor? Radiation? Getting water and food might not be the complete remedy he needed if he had been exposed to radiation.

  “Bradbury,” Derek said.

  “Yes, Derek?”

  “Detect radiation levels.”

  “Processing,” Bradbury replied. He extended his arm. A side compartment opened on his forearm and a Geiger counter probe emerged. “All radiation is within safe limits.”

  “That’s good.”

  Isaac said, “Our enemies are nearby.”

  Derek wondered why the Chinese robots had not simply continued marching across the Martian terrain. They must still be hunting for him, but why? Were they programmed destroyers sent to Mars to kill Grayson’s men? Did Grayson even know these machines were here?

  Doubtful, he reasoned. And even more reason that he needed to get back to Olympus Mons to alert his grandfather. At least Jonas could send Grayson a message and let him know about the Chinese invasion on Mars.

  Derek dared a glance over the truck’s flatbed to see what the heat-seekers were doing. He located them readily. The sun reflected off their metal armor, which definitely meant they were robots and not cyborgs. He lowered himself to prevent drawing attention to himself, but he kept his gaze on his newfound enemies.

  The robots shimmered for several seconds and slowly faded from sight. Vanished. They had returned to stealth mode.

  “Shit,” he whispered.

  Derek was more doomed than he had thought and uncertain of what survival tactics to use.

  27

  Olympus Mons: Mine Shaft Fifteen

  Clark Middons brushed his long brown hair away from his face and pulled it back into a ponytail. His scraggly beard helped keep his face warm while he worked inside the corridors of the mineshafts. If he had his way, he’d still be out in the western United States studying the geothermal energy sources in Yellowstone National Park where he could wear shorts and flip-flops. But the money Grayson had offered for a geophysicist with his experience was far too great for him to ignore. He figured his three-year contract on Mars would earn him enough money to buy a new Jeep and start his own white water rafting business—‘where every day was a vacation and not a chore.’

  Clark squinted as he hammered the metal temperature spike into the volcano wall. A few seconds passed before the gauge provided him with the temperature reading.

  “Damn,” he said, shaking his head.

  “What is it?” Shad Templeton asked, walking toward Clark. Shad was eight inches shorter than Clark, and probably the shortest man residing on Mars. He glanced up at Clark.

  Clark tapped the temperature reading device with index finger. “I think this gauge is stuck. This can’t possibly be right. The temperature is getting warmer.”

  “So? We’re getting deeper into the old volcano, and much farther from the permafrost.”

  “I know that,” Clark said. “But the core temperature reading inside Olympus Mons has been a steady thirty-six degrees, and that’s hot for Mars. Except for the landing bay where it’s always colder. Twenty-six degrees ther
e.”

  “That’s because the landing bay gates never stay shut long enough for the temperature to rise. The thermal ventilation system has increased the overall temperature of Olympus Mons.”

  “Yes,” Clark said, frustrated. “That’s in the tunnels. This reading is from the core rock. It contradicts every former prediction about a cold Martian core. And if it’s getting warmer the deeper we go, who’s to say that we might actually hit a lava pocket or cause an eruption.”

  Shad laughed and his eyes resembled blue ice. His nose scrunched, too, which made him look mousy. “Lava? This volcano has been dormant for millions of years.”

  “As far as we know,” Clark said.

  “You really think such a possibility exists?”

  “It’s not impossible.”

  “So it’s a myth?” Shad asked, placing his hand against the rough volcanic wall.

  “I wouldn’t necessarily classify it as a myth. But, think about it. Every report we have had about Mars shows that the atmosphere was oxygen poor, which it was, but the oxygen levels inside Olympus Mons are much higher than any scientist on Earth would have ever assumed.”

  Shad shrugged. “I wouldn’t get all bent out of shape over it.”

  “It should be worrisome.”

  “Why? Who knows what other secrets we’ll uncover the deeper into the volcano we go.”

  “I know. That’s why we should be more cautious.”

  Shad laughed. “No life forms have been found. Hell, no fossils have even been found.”

  “Yet,” Clark said. “That’s what we’re looking for.”

  “I hope we do unearth some fossils. Wait, no . . . this is Mars, so there isn’t any earth. Right? Do we unMars fossils?” He brushed reddish soil off his boots. “Got a question for you, Mr. Geologist.”

  “What’s that?” Clark asked.

  “If we call dirt on Earth, earth, what the hell do we call dirt on Mars? Oops, I got some mars on me. How do you get ground-in mars off your clothing? You have a technical answer for that one?”