To The Stars (The Harry Irons Trilogy)

by Thomas Stone

  It opened slowly at first. When there was just a crack, Harry peeped through to the opposite side, but there wasn't much to see, just another dimly-lit tunnel. When there was enough room, Harry crawled through.

  The tunnel was no more than three feet high. The walls, floor and ceiling had a fine dust covering as if cleaning the area had been a neglected duty for a long time. The seam closed behind him and he found himself with a choice of two directions. One seemed as good as the other, so Harry mentally tossed a coin and took the left-handed path.

  The tunnel ended at another seam. Harry paused. He knew how to get through but he had absolutely no idea of what lay on the other side. Rather than continue forward, he turned around and worked his way to the opposite end of the tunnel where he found another seam. Again, he had a choice of directions without an inkling of what lay beyond.

  He ran a hand along the seam and, before his eyes, it began to widen. Harry braced himself. The seam stretched into a wide line that parted from the center. Light from the outside broke over Harry. For a moment, he could see nothing, then as his eyes adjusted, he saw he had chosen correctly: he'd found the exit.

  The alien shuttlecraft sat in the hanger bay of the alien ship. None of the aliens were present. Harry gripped the edges of the newly formed portal and jumped onto the invisible surface of the force field.

  Stars shined beneath his feet. Miaplacidus was out of sight but a portion of the hanger bay caught its light and afforded Harry a good look around.

  He stepped to the airlock controls trying not to close his eyes as he walked over the invisible floor. All his instincts screamed for him to find a handhold, anything that would prevent him from falling through to the emptiness outside.

  Taking a deep breath, he selected the hatch control for the airlock. It opened with a sucking sound and Harry stepped inside. The airlock was unoccupied and when the outer door slid shut he pressed the control for the inner door. The hatch slid open. Still no sign of the aliens.

  As Harry stepped into the corridor, the lighting grew brighter as if the ship sensed his presence. He re-traced the path he and Doris had taken and soon faced the hatch to the control room.

  Harry wasn't sure what he would find on the other side. An encounter with hostile aliens seemed most likely. For a moment, Harry wondered if any of his team would survive the mission. Perhaps he had only moments to live himself. He rested a moment longer and reluctantly admitted that he'd run out of ideas. Stuck on the alien ship, eventually he would be discovered.

  He reached for the hatch control and pressed the release button. The hole appeared and grew in size until it was large enough for him to pass through. Harry stepped into the control room.

  A voice floated to him from one of the chairs set before the curving console. "Hello, Harry. Nice to see you."

  Harry's jaw dropped. For the next few seconds, he was speechless. Sitting before the alien instrument console, with wires running from the console to his head, was Dr. Barthelme Blane, the wirehead.

  Chapter 36

  "What are you doing here?" Harry asked Blane.

  "I could ask you the same thing."

  "Where are the aliens?"

  "It's a long story."

  "Do I have time to listen to it?"

  Blane smiled. "Yes, I suppose you do. First, tell me how you got here."

  As Harry related the details of his ordeal on the planet surface, he couldn't help but notice how Blane seemed to have changed, not physically, but emotionally. Harry had never seen the man so relaxed, even happy.

  Blane listened carefully. Occasionally, he was distracted by communications with the ship's computers. When Harry finished telling Blane about his experiences, he asked about the aliens. Where were they? Was he in danger?

  "Danger?" Blane said. "Oh yes, I don't want to downplay that." He passed a hand over a light panel and a hidden drawer slid out of the bulkhead. In the drawer sat the severed head of Doris Leonelda Ilyich. Wires and fluid-carrying tubes ran out of her skull and into the wall. Harry gasped and took a step backward.

  Bart glanced at the young linguist and, seeing his reaction, quickly said, "Sorry, I should have warned you."

  "What have they done to her? Is she alive?"

  "No, she's not alive, but they are using her brain. Incredible technology." Blane passed his hand over the panel again and the drawer slid silently back into place.

  Harry looked about the alien bridge. "Where are they?"

  "In cells," the wirehead replied, "in stasis. The ship takes care of everything, so much in fact, that they practically ignore any kind of threat. They rely on the ship to take care of them. At least while they're in space. It's a wonderful ship, Harry. The computer, if you want to call it that, is self-aware. It's alive, Harry, and it contains so much knowledge that even I have a difficult time keeping up with it."

  "What are they doing here?"

  "I'd rather let Fagen tell you."

  "Fagen? How would he know?"

  "He's been here before, Harry."

  "How could that be? He's..." Harry stopped in mid-sentence. He remembered the problem with navigations when the Magellan first entered the wormhole and all the other hints. It made sense. With Blane's help, Fagen had manipulated the destination and broken Corporation rules by changing the mission destination. Of course, it was simple.

  "But why?"

  "I'd rather let Fagen tell you. It's still his show."

  "So he knows you're here?"

  Blane grinned. "Well, he does now."

  "How can I get out of here?"

  "Well, we need to be careful about that. I have succeeded in establishing a relationship with the computer but the aliens don't trust me. They've known about you since you climbed out of the shuttle. The only reason you're still alive is that I was able to override the computer's territorial imperatives. Let me amend that, because that's not exactly the right wording; I was able to convince it that you were something I could deal with."

  "Why does it listen to you?"

  "Ah, that. It's because it recognizes me as a cybernetic personality. It's the machine in me it trusts. The biological part is of some interest, but primarily it understands me as it would another computer."

  'This is incredible," said Harry. "But what about the aliens? Their culture? Don't their machines do whatever they're ordered to do?"

  "Sort of. But they don't interact in the same way as we do with our computers. You must understand, Harry, their species and their culture are advanced and very old. When I refer to the alien computer, you automatically assume I'm talking about a machine. Perhaps, at one time, it was, but not anymore, at least not by human standards. The computer that runs this ship has awareness of itself. It considers itself a separate entity. As far as I can gather, the aliens began developing these 'machines' thousands of years ago. They take care of the alien race and have done a good job for a long, long time. As a result, the alien culture has become increasingly decadent. All their needs are fulfilled. Everything they do is for their own amusement. As individuals, they're egotistical little bastards, that's for sure, but they trust their machine intelligences explicitly."

  "What are they doing here?"

  "They own the property."

  "The property? You mean the planet?"

  "Precisely. They've been coming here on and off for over a thousand years. After the last flare-up from Gamma-2, they made the planet habitable again by terraforming the entire coastal area we've been exploring. Afterwards they transplanted species of plants and animals from the multitude of worlds they'd discovered in their own travels through space. They use Mia Culpa as a sort of game preserve. They visit for various reasons: to study the life forms, to enjoy the outdoors, to hunt..."

  "What do they want with us?"

  Blane looked surprised. "Why, nothing. When we arrived, we were merely something else to look at."

  "But we come from an advanced species, we have the ability to travel through space."

  "We hav
e the ability to send a craft into a wormhole, Harry. That's a big difference from what their ships can do. This craft creates its own field, in effect creating its own wormhole. These things have traveled from one end of the galaxy to the other. Their technological history reaches ten times longer than ours. They've been around a long time, a lot longer than Homo Sapiens. By a long shot. They see us as just another life form. We can't expect much more than that from them.

  Harry shook his head. "I can't believe it. You mean they're not even interested in communicating with us?"

  Blane laughed. "Harry, it would be like our efforts at communicating with primates. Oh, they have the means, they've done it with plenty of other species, but not for a long time. They believe there's nothing to be learned from us. So why bother?"

  "This is so hard to believe."

  "It's simply a matter of perspective, Harry."

  "Why haven't they killed you?"

  "I am useful to them. Besides," Blane smiled, "the computer likes me. She helped talk them into letting me hook up."

  "That's fantastic."

  "No, I think it was my personality."

  "Whatever. How can I get back to the Magellan?"

  "We need to be careful. As I said, if they suspect we're up to something, they won't hesitate to kill us both." Blane looked Harry up and down. "You could probably squeeze into my EVA suit."

  "Then what would you use?"

  "I'll just have to figure out something else."

  "Like what?"

  "Don't worry about it. Fagen will work it out. Just listen for a minute. Go back the way you came. Just before the airlock, there's a seam. Rub a hand over it and it'll open up..." Harry nodded knowingly.

  "...inside you'll find the EVA suit. From there, go out the way you came in. When you get back to the Magellan, tell Fagen to wait for a message burst."

  "You're sure this is how you want to do this?"

  "Don't worry, Fagen will work it out."

  "How much does Fagen know?"

  "He knows a lot, Harry, but he's the one who should tell you, not me."

  "I'm getting a little tired of not knowing what's going on."

  Blane shrugged. "There's one other thing..."

  "What's that?"

  "It's Kathleen. She's still alive."

  "Where?"

  "You're not going to like to hear this, but I suspect she was on the shuttle with you, maybe in the same storage compartment."

  Harry stared unbelievingly at the smaller man. It could be true and Harry knew it. There were several cocoons large enough to hold the woman. Silently, Harry chastised himself for not looking around while he had the chance.

  "I'll go back and get her out."

  "No," Blane said, "you'll only succeed in getting the both of you killed. I'll do what I can here. You need to get back to the Magellan and tell Fagen what I said."

  Harry hesitated and shook his head. "I can't leave now, knowing that she's here."

  Blane sighed. "I shouldn't have told you."

  "I'm glad you did."

  "Look Harry, if we're to have any chance, you've got to go..." He stopped in mid-sentence, closed his eyes and shifted his head. "Ah, Harry, you need to leave now!"

  "Why, what's happening?"

  "There's some movement among the aliens. They're becoming increasingly alarmed by your presence. Please, Harry, leave now while I stall them. I'll do my best to take care of Kathleen until you return, but please, you must leave now!"

  Reluctantly, Harry shifted his feet. Blane was right. Harry needed to go for help. If Fagen already had some kind of plan, Harry might foul things up if he acted on his own.

  "All right," he said, "I'll go. But mark my words, Blane, I will be back."

  "I believe you, Harry. Now please go while you still have the chance."

  Harry nodded and left the alien bridge. He found the EVA suit exactly where Blane said it would be and wriggled into it in record time.

  As he exited the airlock into the hanger bay, he briefly thought about going back into the shuttle and looking for Kathleen. The thought vanished when the airlock opened again and a suited alien stepped out.

  It saw him immediately. Harry stood on the invisible floor of the hanger bay, fighting his vertigo. Heart beating wildly, he looked for escape, or cover. There was neither.

  The stars winked below Harry's feet. He tried to move behind the shuttle for protection, but the alien, in its own armored EVA suit, moved more quickly and stood between the man and the alien vehicle.

  Harry looked right and left but there was nothing but empty space. There was no place to hide and Harry had no weapons.

  Chapter 37

  Harry was backed into the proverbial corner. He stood on the transparent floor of the shuttle bay and watched the alien advance. It could have picked him off with any of its weapons, but it saw he had nowhere to run and so it took its time. Harry was alone, helpless, and at the mercy of the creature.

  It took a step forward and Harry took a corresponding step backward. Desperately, he glanced around, looking for a way out. Below his feet, the stars shined against their velvet backdrop.

  The alien toyed with him. Harry took a step to the side and the creature cut him off. It could have rushed forward at any time and taken him, but it didn't. Instead, it followed him around the shuttle bay, gradually drawing closer all the while. Harry tried to work his way behind the shuttle, but the alien cut him off and backed him up.

  It feinted at him and Harry reacted immediately, but stumbled in the process and fell backward. In the blink of an eye, the alien towered over him, straddling him with its spindly legs. It stretched its mechanical arms wide as it prepared to embrace him. Harry shut his eyes and braced himself. But in the next instant, he dropped through the bottom of the hanger bay.

  He opened his eyes and saw he'd somehow managed to fall free. He fell backwards, out of the hanger bay, away from the suited alien. It remained in the shuttle bay and watched as Harry floated away. Somehow, the force field had turned off and released him with not a moment to spare.

  Twisting about, he caught sight of the Magellan and punched his jet controls. The momentary exhaust pushed him in the proper direction and he picked up speed. He gave a last look at the alien ship as he floated toward safety. The alien turned away and re-entered the airlock.

  Harry shuddered inside the ill-fitting EVA suit. He'd dodged another bullet. In less than ten minutes he traversed the space between the two ships and entered the shelter of the Magellan's airlock. Once inside, he collapsed on the interior bench as the air recycled. When the inner door opened, Fagen and Bonner were waiting.

  "How're you feeling, Harry?"

  His mouth was dry and his head pounded, but he was alive. "Fine, I guess."

  Fagen handed him a pouch of water and Harry took a long drink.

  "We thought we'd lost you," said Bonner.

  "You stowed away on the alien shuttle, right?" asked Fagen.

  Harry nodded. "Yeah," then remembering, he added, "and Blane's on the alien ship."

  "Did he say anything? Is he all right?"

  "It was very strange. He was plugged into their computer and yes, we talked for two minutes. He told me where the EVA suit was stored." Harry looked at Fagen. "They've got Kathleen too."

  Bonner shook his head. "I need to get back to the bridge. I'm glad you're okay, partner." The engineer patted Harry on the shoulder and left.

  Fagen leaned forward. "Okay, Harry. Tell me what it was like. Did you see Blane?"

  "Yes, I saw Blane. He's why I'm here." Harry related his story to Fagen. When he was done, Fagen turned away.

  "Where're you going?" asked Harry.

  "To the bridge. I think you could use some rest. We've also got a new situation. Seems like one of the neighboring stars is due to go nova."

  "This just gets better all the time."

  "Yes, well I don't want to burn up any more than anybody else. There're still some loose ends. We've got two crew members
stranded on the alien ship..."

  Harry interrupted him, "I need to know something, Edward."

  "What's that?"

  "Tell me what’s really happening here."

  "What?"

  "I know you've been here before, on an earlier mission. Somehow, you prevented the company from finding out. You brought us here, didn't you? You've had your own agenda the whole time and none of us knew anything about it, except Blane, maybe Kathleen. Isn't that right?"

  Fagen looked at his younger crew member for a moment before commenting. "What did Blane tell you?"

  "Enough. Not everything, but enough. You knew the aliens would be here. I'm guessing about that, but I know it's true. You knew about the planet, the natives, everything, but somehow you managed to keep it from the Corporation. You managed to change the velocity parameters. The Corporation doesn't know where we are, isn't that right?"

  "No, they don't, Harry."

  "Why?"

  Harry watched Fagen carefully. The man obviously struggled with the answers. "Well," he said finally, "the Corporation is not the benevolent entity people think it is. The prime motive behind space exploration is to make money. Everything else takes a back seat. Remember the conservation movement on Earth? Remember how it failed? Remember how symbolic gestures by the world government coalition appeased the public while we continued to poison the planet?"

  "Yes, but what does that have to do with anything?"

  "It was all manipulated by the Braithwaite Foundation and a handful of other corporate conglomerates. What we do as survey explorers is to find other worlds to exploit and colonize. We are agents of our culture with imperatives issued by the Braithwaite Foundation. If those imperatives are knowingly circumvented, then the Corporation has deemed that those actions amount to felonious deeds and should be punished accordingly. All the while, anything we find out here is declared to be property of the Corporation. It's corporate imperialism, plain and simple. The Corporation always has the last word."