Exiled to the Stars

by Zellmann, William

  Two full days passed before the bowl-shaped end of the car fell with a loud Thud into the tube tunnel. The Explorers cheered enthusiastically, barely giving Jorge time to clear the car before swarming in.

  Three of the Explorers worked their way precariously across the round-bottomed bowl that was the end of the car, and while others raised the end nearest the car, they turned the bowl and slowly eased it into the car, guiding it over the saddles toward the 'back' end. Jorge would cut it in half so the pieces could pass through the car's door.

  With the way cleared, Ron walked Jazzy into the tunnel. The robot's tracks made moving from the tunnel into the car and the car into the tunnel no problem. The machine's advanced artificial intelligence detected the low light level, and lit its powerful floodlight. Ron sighed with relief when he saw that the AI was adjusting its beam, lighting their path for at least 100 meters ahead.

  Ron had half expected guide rails at the bottom of the tunnel, but there were none. He was relieved. The smooth, flattened bottom of the tube tunnel made movement easy. Armed with shoulder lasers, the six Explorers, and Kerry, of course, started down the tunnel at a slow walk, led by Jazzy. Ron estimated they had gone less than a klick when they lost communication with the colony.

  Whoever or whatever had built the tube tunnel had built well. The bottom of the tunnel was covered in dust, but there was no sign of leakage, no debris, no water standing at the bottom, and most important of all, no life forms larger than a small insect. Still, the thick coating of dust gave Ron a feeling of great age. This tunnel had been here, undisturbed, for a long time.

  Finally, Ron called a halt. The tunnel was unchanging, and showed no signs of ending any time soon. They had discussed the possibility that it might run for hundreds of klicks, but now he was faced with the actual possibility. Still…

  "Vito, take young Ras, here and head back. Get us some extra ration packs, and tell the Administrator that nothing's been down this tunnel in a long time. I think we've covered about eight klicks. Tell him we'll continue for two more days, and then start back, unless we find something."

  Vito nodded in the dimness behind the robot. "Well, try not to find any natives before we get back. C'mon, kid." The two started back toward the car at a much faster pace than they had used coming out.

  Vito and Ras caught up about noon the next day. "The administrator said to tell you he's sent the big airship with the metals detecting machine along a line heading the other direction. He's hoping it'll show which way the tunnels run. He also said he's told the old man to leave enough of the car to block the other end until you get back."

  Ron cursed silently. Of course the tunnel would continue past the car, unless it was a dead end. Tracing tunnels could turn into a lifetime career, unless they finally met the builders.

  They were preparing to spend their second night in the tunnel when Jazzy reported, "Obstruction detected. Approximate distance, 200 meters."

  Ron jumped. For the most part, the robot had been silent during their trip. He frowned. "Obstruction? What kind of obstruction?"

  "Radar sensors detect a large mass, apparently consisting of earth and stone, at a range of 200 meters. Further detail unavailable."

  "Hold up, guys," Ron called. "Don't lay out your sleeping bags, yet. We may have something to look at."

  "Finally!" a voice rang out. Kerry, of course. They formed up again, and resumed their slow advance.

  It was a cave-in, and it completely blocked the tunnel. Ron started to send a runner back to report and request instructions, but then decided they should all go. All of them were heartily sick of the unchanging white tunnel. Besides, it would take a runner a couple of days, and the rest of the team would just be sitting there waiting.

  They set up 'camp' for the night at the cave-in. Before turning in, Ron examined the blockage. From the dust on the rocks, the settling of the loose earth, and the lack of disturbance of the dust on the floor of the tunnel, he decided this cave-in had occurred a long time ago.

  If so, why hadn't the mysterious builders repaired it? Maybe this had just been a minor spur route, abandoned when the cave-in isolated it. Perhaps it led only to a location that had become obsolete and abandoned. But if they'd abandoned it, why would they leave a car behind? He shrugged. Maybe the car had been cut off by the cave-in, and the builders didn't consider it worth the effort to salvage. Maybe. Perhaps. He grimaced. And maybe they'd had reasons incomprehensible to the human mind. He had no reason to believe that the creatures thought like humans.

  On second thought, he decided, they may not be that much different. They'd come up with a tube transport system, so similar to the one humans had devised that Vlad could recognize it almost immediately. The system powering it might be totally unfamiliar, though, he argued.

  Back in his teens, when he'd hung out with the 'Believers', what aliens might be like was a frequent topic of conversation. All fantasy and conjecture, of course, but the Believers discussed it as seriously as if it were real. And now, maybe it was!

  Well, life on Crashlanding was carbon-based, and reasonably close chemically to Earth life. Close enough that nearly a third of the colonists had survived the plague. Close enough that there was a plague that could affect humans.

  Come to think of it, a few years ago, Michiko Montoya announced her theory that the symbiont was artificial, that it had been developed in a laboratory. It was too perfect, and performed its function too well, to be a natural creature, she claimed. She theorized that it might be a weapon of sorts, designed as a sort of trap for conquerors, to modify them until, in time, they would become no longer alien conquerors, but part of the planet's ecology.

  It caused quite a stir in the colony for a short time, until Susan Renko publicly dismissed it as 'unlikely' and 'lacking in solid evidence'. There was a rumor, of course, that Susan had made her pronouncement to defuse a panic, and that she secretly thought Michiko might be right. It was interesting that Michiko still worked with Susan…

  At any rate, it was obvious that intelligent creatures had evolved on Crashlanding, or perhaps come here from elsewhere. But where were they? What were they like? He drifted off to sleep with visions of intelligent wolf lizards, and giant plains rats with a hive mind.

  Jorge was glad to see him return. He'd been waiting for two days for Ron to authorize him to cut up the final part of the tube car, the 'back' end. For the moment, it served as a wall, separating the humans from whatever awaited them on its other side. Nearly all the rest of the car had already been carried out, in pieces, and was ready to be carried back to the colony.

  "All right, Messer Fuentes," he said. "You can go ahead." He detailed two Explorers to stand guard, and he and the rest began discussing plans for fortifying the tunnel entrance once the car was removed.

  Tran snorted. "Fortify? Why? Just plant charges all around the tunnel entrance. If anything chases you back down, just set off the charges and bury the whole place."

  Ron frowned. "You have a point. Don't fortify it, mine it. With arrangements that let us detonate it from, say the cave mouth, or even farther. If we're retreating, we can let our people get into the tunnel, and then collapse it behind them."

  And that was what they did. When Jorge finished cutting up the tube car, Ron had him use the laser to cut niches into the sides and top of the tunnel, and place mining charges into them. "They use standard det signals," he told Ron. "You can't set them off with a tablet or anything, that's a safety precaution. But I've mounted the transmitter on the bluff face just outside the tunnel. We can also put transmitters in the helis, if you want."

  Ron called Ken to report. "Messer Fuentes is loaded on the airship and ready to head back," he said, "and Kerry has decided to go back with him. We're ready to check the other tunnel, er, the other direction. Er…"

  Ken smiled. "I understand. Let's call it the 'other tunnel'. Take some extra supplies and charges for your weapons. The R65C is reporting a large anomaly about 40 klicks from your location. Frank says it'
s much stronger than the tunnel's signal And other sensors are recording a faint energy source. This may be it!"

  Ron whistled softly. "I'm glad I posted sentries at the entrance to that tunnel. We'll start in the morning. I want the team to get a good night's sleep and a hot meal. Forty klicks is about three days' travel, but I won't want to push my people, since we don't know what we'll be facing when we get there. Say four days, to be safe."

  Ken nodded. "Don't rush. Whatever it is has been there at least forty years. I suspect it'll still be there when you get there. Take no unnecessary chances."

  Ron grinned. "No problem, sire. Elaine and I have already agreed to live long enough to become a problem to our grandchildren. Or great-grandchildren."

  Ken smiled. "Good. I know no communication will be possible, but try to keep me posted as often as you can. Kerry's reports and your interview with her have caused a lot of excitement down here. Most of the Earthborns want to 'fort up' in the Castle, and build the Militia into a military. The Believers want to pursue immediate first contact with the 'natives', despite the fact that we can't seem to find any natives. Most people are nervous, but more cautious than the Believers. They want to know why the natives haven't found us? How could an advanced civilization not see a 500-meter starship crash on their planet? Even if they live underground, the seismic effect must have been detectable planet-wide. Why did the initial planetary survey from orbit not detect such an obviously advanced civilization? Why didn't they ever repair the cave-in? Mysteries make people nervous. I can keep a lid on it as long as I can have developments to report once in a while."

  Ron shrugged, a doubtful look on his face. "I'm not sure how that will be possible, sire, but I'll try."

  The tunnel was just as dusty in this direction as the other, and showed no more signs of disturbance. With Jazzy leading, they set off. Ron set a faster pace this time; he was convinced the tunnel would be as empty as the other had been, at least this close to the human tunnel. He hoped to cover extra ground early in the trip, so that the last few klicks could be little more than a creep. This was the first time they'd detected an energy source. Energy sources indicated activity, and probably, defenses.

  He was glad Elaine was along this time, but he was worried, too. If anything happened, it would happen to both of them. And then what would happen to the kids? Oh, sure, Vlad and Susan would take care of them, but it wouldn't be the same. Kids needed parents!

  At about 20 klicks, they discovered another tunnel intersecting the tube, similar to the one through which they'd entered. This one, though, wasn't just a cave. It had an odd, seemingly airtight hatch covering its outer end, with a complicated-looking latching mechanism. They figured it out in a few moments. Still, it took all their combined effort to swing it open on protesting hinges. They learned they had also been pushing a sizable pile of earth.

  They found themselves at the head of a long, gentle ramp containing several switchbacks, leading into a small rift valley similar to the one they'd entered from. At least he was able to report. "It looks like our tunnel, sire, but it has a hatch over the end. I assume that rockslide took out the one on our tunnel. If we had some people dig around that slide, I'd bet they'll find it."

  Ken nodded. "You're probably right. I'll call Angel and see if he needs some more metal samples. He might also want to look at the one you've found. I've got your coordinates, so we could send someone in one of the helis.

  "It'll be easy to spot, sire. There's a very obvious ramp running up to the tunnel. Angel might also be interested in the substance making up the ramp. I don't recognize it. I'm sending our vid footage, so you can update the colony."

  Ron wasn't the only one making calls. "Hi, Mom," Elaine said. "How are the kids?"

  Susan sniffed. "Spoiled, as usual. Your father is feeding them sweets again. I swear, if they get stomach aches, I'm going to make him treat them this time!" But her eyes were appraising as she looked at her daughter. "Are you all right?"

  Elaine rolled her eyes. "Oh, mom, of course I am. I haven't been doing anything for two days except walk. It's not going to get exciting for another couple of days."

  "Hmph," Susan replied. "You mean 'dangerous', not 'exciting'. I can't believe Ron would let you go into such a dangerous situation. I thought he loved you."

  "He does, mom," Elaine replied in a patient tone. "He loves me enough to want me with him, and to know that he'd have been in big trouble if he'd tried to leave me at home."

  "Are you harassing poor Elaine again?" came Vlad's voice in the background. "the woman's on an important mission, has the good grace to call you, and you're still fussing at her? I'll take it!" Her father's brown face appeared on her screen. "Hi, Varmint. Are you keeping Ron out of trouble?"

  Elaine grinned. Her father was incorrigible. "I hear you're spoiling my kids again," she said.

  "Spoiling them? Me?" He asked with theatrical drama. "A totally unsubstantiated rumor. No substance to it at all. You know me. Nose to the grindstone! Homework before homework! Right kids?" A high-pitched chorus of affirmation arose. "Here," Vlad continued, "I'll put them on. They'll tell you what a slave driving monster their grandfather is!"

  Elaine spent a happy five minutes talking with the twins. Her eyes were wet when she disconnected.

  It was still a bit early, but they decided to set up camp outside, away from the oppressive sameness of the white tube.

  They found that the ramp was made of some rocklike substance, but one that had been shaped. Denis Chu was the one who came up with the idea of cleaning off one of the flat switchbacks, and camping on its solid surface. They swept it clean, sprayed it, and set alarms around it, and they had a campsite safe from burrowing threats. Ron built a campfire, and the ten Explorers spent a very enjoyable evening under the stars.

  The next morning, they regretfully reentered the tunnel, closing the hatch behind them, and resumed their trek. The unrelenting sameness of the tunnel was oppressive, as was the overwhelming silence. Talk became chatter, an increasingly meaningless effort to fill the depressing silence.

  On the afternoon of the third day, Jazzy reported detection of faint light ahead. Instantly, the Explorers were alert. Lasers were clutched tightly, and their progress slowed. They donned night vision glasses, and Jazzy switched her beam to infrared. When she reported the light was red, Ron had her shut off the light entirely. "If they use that end of the spectrum, they may also see infrared," he explained to the others. They crept forward. With the help of the night-vision glasses, they began to see the dim red light themselves.

  With dramatic suddenness, the tube tunnel opened into a huge cavern. The Explorers gasped, and flattened on the bottom of the tunnel.

  "No life signs detected within twenty meters," Jazzy reported, her normal voice resonating in the tunnel. "Jazzy, lower your voice," Ron whispered frantically. "Yes, sire," she responded in a softer tone. "No movement detected within twenty meters. Unfamiliar energy source detected. Estimated range, 100 meters. Recommend mission proceed."

  "Send her out there," Raj Darpee suggested.

  Ron shook his head. "No. She's too obviously a machine. A human has to go along. Hey!" he added in a forced cheerful tone, "we came up here to look around!"

  "Yar," said Denis, "But I didn't expect a blasted city!"

  Elaine shook her head. "Doesn't matter," she said. "This is why we get the big credits. Besides, this place looks great. I want to look around!" Nodding to Ron she rose, and he joined her. Shamed, the others slowly rose, and the party once again moved forward, slowly. Very, very slowly.

  The cavern was filled with low, octagonally-shaped buildings. Only one seemed more than four stories high. As they got closer, Ron realized that the appearance was deceiving. The buildings were much lower than they looked; each story was only about two meters high. Evidently the natives were shorter than humans. Windows, what few there were, were small, blank, dark, and apparently lacked glass. Ron thought they looked more like vents than windows.

  Ro
n suddenly realized that the floor was covered with a thick carpet of dust. Undisturbed dust. He sighed with relief, and straightened. "Keep your eyes on the floor," he advised the others. "The dust is deep and undisturbed. Nobody's been here in years. I'd say that in any place the dust is like this, we can move about freely. The place looks abandoned."

  "Maybe," Tran said wryly, "but somebody's left the lights on."

  Ron nodded. "Yar. We've got light and an energy signature. We're gonna go check on it."

  "Oh, goody," Tran replied.

  "Shut up, Tran," Ron said. "If anyone starts seeing tracks in the dust off to the side or something, or anything moves in one of the buildings, sing out. Life signs, Jazzy?"

  "No life signs detected within twenty meters, and no movement detected within twenty meters. However, detection is impaired due to artificial constructions."

  Ron chuckled. "Right. 'Artificial constructions'. Everybody watch those artificial constructions." He glanced at Ras. The youngest Explorer's knuckles were white where they clutched his laser, and barely-controlled panic filled his eyes.

  "Relax, kid," he murmured. "There's nothing here but empty buildings."

  The wild eyes turned to him. "How do you know? How can you know that?"

  Ron gestured at the floor. "Do you know how long it takes to build up that much dust? And if someone still lived here, that dust would be full of footprints. Or paw prints. Or tentacle prints. Or slime trails. Nobody's been here for a long time."

  Some of the panic left the young man's eyes. "Then why are we creeping around like this?"

  Ron smiled. "Three reasons. First, as Tran said, somebody left the lights on. Second, we're detecting an energy source. And third, we're following procedure, and watching out for boojums. "