by Jason Hutt
“This complex houses about two thousand?” Maria asked as they walked along at a fairly brisk pace.
“We’re actually closer to three thousand now with the latest budget increases,” Dorn responded.
“How much of that is civilian personnel?”
“About sixty percent.”
“We do a lot of research and development out here,” Arresh said, “Genetics testing, field medicine, weapons testing, advanced propulsion, you name it. This facility is one of the jewels in the Conglomerate’s crown.”
Maria nodded. She looked over at Hunter who had fallen slightly behind the pace. He was squinting and rubbing at his temples. Maria looked through a window that overlooked a bay of men and women in lab coats that seemed to be poking at silvery blobs on a variety of lab tables.
“They’re experimenting with nannite regimes. We manufacture nanomachines here that are used to assemble factories and other infrastructure at colonies across the Republic. With just a couple of gallons, you could setup a town square in a week.”
Maria nodded politely. She looked back for Hunter and saw him stopped five meters back, leaning against the wall.
“Are you okay?”
Hunter shook his head slightly. “If you don’t mind, I’m going to head back to my room for a bit. Lie down.”
The rest of the group came to a stop.
Hunter took a step and his knee buckled. Maria got a hand under his arm and he pulled hard on her lapel before he caught himself. Admiral Kersey rushed forward and grabbed his other arm.
“Sorry,” Hunter said, his face flush, “I don’t know what’s come over me.”
“Wait here a minute, I’ll get a cart,” Kersey said as he started punching some commands into his computer.
Hunter waved him off. “Please don’t. I’ll be all right. I’d just like to lie down a bit.”
“I can’t let you do that, Senator,” Kersey insisted, “I’ll ride back with you. Have one of the medic’s meet us at his room.”
“Yes, sir,” the ensign responded.
“Very well,” Hunter said.
“Should we put this off? Come back later?” Maria asked.
“No, you go on ahead. You can give me the rundown at dinner.”
An automated cart pulled up to the Senator and the Admiral. Moments later, they were on their way back down the corridor.
Maria, Admiral Dorn, Arresh, and the ensign continued down the corridor in relative silence. They arrived at a nondescript door that marked the end of the corridor. The dark-haired ensign stepped on a pair of painted footprints on the floor and waited for the door to beep. The ensign entered and the door quickly closed behind her.
Maria stepped onto the plate, her heart racing slightly. The scan seemed to take a few extra moments. When the door slid open for her, Maria burst through. She didn’t quite know what she had expected to see, but her shoulders sagged ever so slightly as she laid eyes on a relatively nondescript young woman, lying on an examination bed in the middle of a small, dimly lit room.
Maria walked slowly over to the bed and looked down on the young woman’s face. She felt the urge to grab the girl, shake her awake, and demand to know where Cabot was. This girl would know. Maria was certain of it. Instead, she gripped the bed’s cold, sterile railing, her knuckles whitening.
The top half of Eleanor Shaw’s head lay inside a spherical enclosure covered in indicator lights. Maria leaned in for a closer inspection of the setup, but the leads and indicator lights meant nothing to her.
“How far along are you?” Maria asked.
The lead technician looked up from his console. “We’ve copied 80% of her memories already. Of those, we’ve only catalogued a couple so far. We’ve still got a long way to go.”
“Do you have any processed for projection?”
“Just finished the first one,” the tech answered, “It’s without a doubt the strongest memory in her mind. It seems to get recalled frequently. Very strong markers on it. It’s still raw but want to take a look?”
Maria looked at the others – Dorn and Arresh looked at her to say it was her call – and then nodded. The technician made a slight gesture and the air around them became filled with light. Maria steeled herself as the projection appeared.
They were suddenly thrust into the middle of a crowded hallway. They were looking at the back of a bright red jacket. Eleanor was holding the hand of the woman in the red jacket as they wove through the crowded hallway. All of the other colors in the projection were muted, almost gray.
“How long ago was this?” Maria asked.
“Hard to say. We’ll be able to piece together a timeline when we can place this in context with her other memories. Initial estimates place this about ten years ago. It’s possible that it’s from the attack on Nexus.”
Suddenly, there was a scream and the throng of people momentarily stopped. Eleanor bumped into the back of the woman whose hand she was holding.
“Her mother?”
“Probably,” the tech said, “Records show her mother was killed in that attack.”
Eleanor briefly swung her head around and her gaze fixed on a young man in a bright yellow shirt. Maria blinked as the rapid head movement was somewhat nauseating.
The young man’s eyes briefly met Eleanor’s and he gave her a slight smile. She quickly looked away towards a sign on the wall advertising a free ice cream sundae with the purchase of a kid’s meal at a restaurant called Rudders.
“The details are strange,” Maria remarked. While certain things were crystal clear, the rest of their surroundings were filled with blurred, indecipherable lettering or misshapen blobs. Everyone around them seemed to be wearing the same style of jacket. Even the faces of most of the other people were indistinguishable.
“You’re used to seeing fully processed projections. This is pretty normal for this point in the process. Details fade in older memories. The brain filters out a lot of stuff, too. It processes so much data that it throws out things that are unremarkable. When we’re done, we’ll do color correction and object matching to fill in some details and make the projection more in the norms.”
There was another scream and the crowd started running in the other direction. Eleanor’s mom turned and looked at her daughter in panic. They were now being pushed along by a tide of people.
Then, there was another sound. Something not human.
“What was that?” Maria asked.
Arresh cracked a smile. “I know that sound.”
Eleanor and her mom were pushed to the side of the corridor and were stuck behind the bulkhead. Suddenly, a body slammed into the wall next to them with a sickening thud. Eleanor looked at the red smear that had been left on the gray wall. She looked at her mom who seemed stuck in place. The others around them became just a blur.
A large shadow cast over them and Eleanor’s mother flew backwards. Eleanor jumped as blood splattered across her. The little girl looked up and into the eyes of a monster.
“My God,” Maria said, “What the hell is that?”
“Pause the playback,” Arresh ordered.
Eleanor screamed and seemed to trip as she stepped backward. The vulture-headed creature fixed its gaze on the little girl. The image froze.
“Wow,” Arresh said, “This is outstanding. Have you seen these before, Senator?”
“I’ve seen pictures of the dead ones recovered from Nexus,” Maria said, “But never like this. Never in action.”
“They’re remarkable. Truly an incredible feat of bioengineering. We’ve been studying those samples for some time. Deconstructing how Doctor Sinclair modified their genetic code and how he integrated the neural control unit with their nervous system. He was an incredibly bright mind.”
“Who was responsible for the deaths of thousands of people,” Maria said.
“Yes,” Arresh said, “It’s a real shame we couldn’t get him to work for the good guys.”
Maria looked at the young man. He didn’t regard the
creature with anything that resembled contempt or fear. Instead, Arresh looked at it with almost child-like awe. He slowly paced around the projection studying the grotesque creature.
“I hope all you’re doing is deconstructing the recovered specimens,” Maria asked.
Arresh looked at her impassively. “I can’t comment on that, Senator.”
Maria scowled.
Dorn shuffled her feet slightly, looking somewhat uncomfortable.
“What exactly are you doing with these, Mr. Arresh?”
He hesitated.
“They’re trying to reconstruct the neural interface, seeing if they can alter it for other forms of genetically-enhanced creatures,” Dorn said.
“Jesus,” Maria said.
“Compared to this, Jesus was just an amateur. We’re trying like hell to recreate the original. We’re close. Once we’ve reverse engineered this unit, we’re going to try to adapt it to other species,” Arresh said.
Maria shook her head. “I suppose these would be a formidable weapon.”
“The military has been using a combination of human and robotic soldiers for centuries. This would introduce some new tactics and a level of psychological intimidation that would be unprecedented. Our goal isn’t to defeat the enemy; it’s to make them feel like there is no hope for them to win.”
Maria stared at Arresh. The young man had made his way toward the techs and their workstations, checking other frames of the memory. She looked back at the prone young woman from whose mind this memory had been pulled.
“You saw these things first hand, didn’t you, Admiral?”
“I did. I led the response,” Dorn admitted, “Though my observations were made safely on the other end of a video transmission.”
“And you’re comfortable with this?” Maria asked.
“The proposition has its merits, Senator, and its risks.”
“I can’t help but wonder who the enemy is that we’ll deploy these against,” Maria said while staring at Eleanor’s innocent face. “Someday, Admiral, I’d love to hear your story from that day. I’ve read your report, but I have to admit I’ve got a lot of questions.”
For a brief moment, Dorn let her guard slip and Maria thought she detected a hint of regret in the Admiral’s eyes.
“That conversation is probably best had over a cold drink.”
Maria smiled slightly. “Another time then,” She said. Then, she looked back at Eleanor’s sleeping face. “Why would she work with the man who brought these things to Nexus, the man who caused the death of her mother?”
Admiral Dorn stared straight ahead, her features now fully recomposed.
“Max Cabot delivered those creatures to the station,” Maria said, “He killed her mother and yet here she is, having been arrested for helping that man for the last ten years.”
“Traumatic experiences do strange things to people,” Dorn said, “You can never predict how someone will respond.”
“What a waste,” Maria said with a shake of her head.
They stood in silence for another moment.
“Madam Senator, I hate to cut this short, but I would like to update Commander Akimbe’s orders as soon as possible,” Admiral Dorn said.
Maria took another look at the snarling creature, its talons affixed to the end of its human-like arms, reaching toward the scared little girl. How she came out of this alive, Maria couldn’t guess.
***
Hannah’s nostrils flared as she breathed in deep and then slowly exhaled through slightly parted lips. She felt the thudding of her heart and took another deep calming breath. With closed eyes, she tried to focus on the oft repeated mantras of her instructor and current team leader, Doctor Leigh. She envisioned her mother, the person she had loved the most. The vision was supposed to release some kind of chemical in her brain to help keep her calm; instead, she had to fight back a wave of grief.
She slowly opened her eyes and faced Leigh’s concerned expression.
“Everybody ready for this?” Leigh asked, locking eyes with her.
The seven other men and women nodded their heads. Hannah looked around the group. All of them were roughly her age, all single, all without children. None of them had actual combat experience save for recent events. Leigh surely knew that, but he looked as cool and confident as he had in their training sessions out on the plateau. His jaw jutted out with confidence, with defiance. That steadied Hannah more than any vision of her mother.
“Weapons check,” Leigh ordered.
Hannah hefted her ancient disruptor, begrudgingly on loan from Max, and looked over the worn decaying white coating that often gave way to a brushed-silver finish. The weight of the weapon felt natural and the trigger and grip were comfortable. She checked the charge and the indicator was green, full capacity.
Leigh holstered his own antiquated laser pistol and looked at his computer.
“We’re reading nine ID chips – three individual signals, one group of six. Our orders are clear, do a sweep, check for threats, and report back. We do not engage unless we’re facing a direct threat. Are we clear?”
“Yes,” Hannah and a few of the others murmured. She glanced at a tall, balding young man who was sweating profusely. His fingers visibly shook as they hovered over the trigger of his plasma rifle. Hannah stared at the young man before he made eye contact with her and she furtively glanced away.
“With such a small group, it’s not likely to be pirates or other militants. Most likely just a couple of wayward families, squatters. Still, be on your guard,” Leigh ordered.
Hannah nodded. She started swaying back and forth, ready to get moving. She looked back at the passenger section of the ship, where a throng of tired, miserable people kept casting fretful glances in their direction. Her eyes swept across the dirty, dejected lot, at the scared little children and their equally scared parents, until she locked eyes with Max.
He stood at the cockpit threshold looking at her with obvious concern. She tore her gaze away and turned her attention back to Leigh. She could feel Max’s eyes boring into her from across the room. Thoughts of her mother flooded Hannah’s mind and she felt a tear welling up in the corner of her eye. She quickly wiped it away.
“Are you with me?” Leigh asked.
Hannah nodded.
“Here we go,” he said and the Guardian’s hatch slid open.
Hannah followed her long-time instructor into the musty, dark corridors of Evergreen Station. The normal overhead lighting was either broken or shutdown; only emergency lighting illuminated their path.
“Bowers, Au, you’re up,” Leigh ordered.
A young man and woman who Hannah only vaguely recognized split off and headed through the corridor on the right. One lone contact was just down that hall and to the left. Leigh, Hannah, and the others pressed ahead.
They ran at a crouch through the dim corridor. Every ten meters they passed another set of doors. The corridor was mostly clear, minus the occasional pile of trash. There were no other outward signs of anyone living on the station. At the next intersection, the entire group turned right. Ten meters later, they reached an emergency stairwell.
“Xi, Patel, you’re up,” Leigh ordered and the two young men darted down the stairs. Their footfalls echoed through the otherwise silent halls. Leigh grimaced.
“Doctor,” Bowers voice echoed through the ears of everyone’s earpiece.
“Report,” Leigh responded.
“Just an old man down here. Vagrant. No threat.”
“Copy,” Leigh said, “Meet us at the port entrance to the cafeteria.”
“On our way,” Bowers responded.
“Let’s go,” Leigh said.
The four that remained set off again, with Hannah following closely behind Leigh. She watched the counter on her computer slowly tick down from five hundred meters. She felt sweat trickling down the small of her back; her forearms started to burn from carrying her weapon at the ready.
Leigh knelt to the right of the c
afeteria door and checked his wrist computer. Hannah knelt on the opposite side of the door. Two others, Burns and Tince, pressed themselves up against each side of the corridor, leaving as thin a profile as possible.
Moments later, Bowers and Au caught up to them and took up position behind Burns and Tince. They nodded at Leigh who held up six fingers and then pointed at the door.
The old instructor activated the door control; the door slid up. He peaked his head out and then threw himself back as a ball of plasma flew through the opening.
“Don’t come in here!” Someone yelled. Female voice.
Leigh waved the team back.
“Calm down, ma’am,” Leigh said. Another plasma burst slammed into Leigh’s side of the entryway.
Hannah could smell the tang of ozone.
“You can’t take us!” The unseen woman yelled. “I won’t let you take them from me!”
“Please, ma’am,” Leigh called out, “We’re not here to hurt-”
Suddenly, the corridor lights blazed. Hannah tried to shield her eyes from their bright glare. With her eyes closed she heard the clink of something bouncing off the metal floor.
Someone yelled, “Grenade!”
Hannah dropped to her stomach and put her hands over her head. She heard a pop, then the crackling of electricity. Somebody screamed and the air was filled with the sweet stench of burning flesh. Hannah opened one eye and could see Au, the tall, skinny, blonde-haired young man who had been sweating a river just moments before, his charred body lying motionless on the floor.
Hannah got back up to a kneeling position, her face red with rage, and stuck the edge of her rifle inside the open door. She fired blind. Her fingers squeezed the trigger so hard it cut into the flesh of her index finger and a trickle of blood seeped into the palm of her hand. Waves of energy lashed out from the end of the weapon and Hannah blindly swept the barrel of the gun across the opening.
She heard a woman’s scream and then a thud. Hannah continued to fire.
A man yelled, “Carla!”
Suddenly there was more screaming, this time of children. They were screams of fear, not pain. Hannah stopped firing and realized she had been screaming herself.