»If we’re really that deep under the ocean floor, how are we ever going to get out of here?« she said aloud.
»No idea, Maya,« Pi admitted. »I suspect the ZyClonians have a couple of jokers up their sleeves. They got us here from Triton, right? A little water should be no problem for the twins.«
»I’d have preferred if they’d transferred us to a pedestrian area in one of the upper cities,« Maya replied wryly. She moved to keep up the pace. Kuster~Laap and his company were advancing faster now.
»I don’t know …,« Pi murmured. »The people would’ve panicked, especially after all the alien encounters like the Stinger and all … I think, though, that the ZyClonians had no real choice in that matter. This was probably the only location they could use … how many tachyon portals d’you think there are on Earth?«
Maya frowned.
»Bad enough that one exists without our knowledge. The ZyClonians seem able to locate a portal and then activate it, right?« she asked.
»Seems logical. This was probably the only one available for the transfer,« Pi replied dryly.
They kept walking through the corridor, passing several barriers that cordoned off side corridors. Kuster~Laap’s photon sphere was not bright enough to shine into them. The entire scene was almost unreal … ghostly. Pi thought he recognized some familiar structures in the dark, pipelines, data-cable trays …
›Is this just a central service tunnel?‹ he wondered.
Suddenly, the group halted. Maya thought she heard a noise in front of them. She and Pi almost ran into Kuster~Laap’s back. The Prophet turned his head around and looked at them. He probably would have cursed and shaken his head if he were Human.
»The ZyClonians have detected an energy signature from the end of a connecting tunnel.«
Nood and Naad took positions before the Prophet, protecting him. Then they established a bluish, lens-like energy field that shimmered like a soap bubble.
»There’s activity down here?« Pi inquired nervously.
»The energy was detected a moment ago,« Kuster~Laap explained.
Maya Ivanova looked around worriedly.
›The ZyClonians are protecting us from the front of the tunnel, but what about the rear? Who’s watching our asses?‹ she wondered. ›Maybe it’s … some sort of a security scheme?‹
She listened again. The sound seemed stronger and closer!
A cloud of nanopods was released and flew into the darkness. Moments later they saw little flashes in the tunnel, then some sort of moaning and groaning from the ZyClonians. It was the first time that the pair had produced any emotional noises at all.
»That’s not good!« Pi decided, and pulled out his sidearm. Maya followed Pi’s example and shouted at the Prophet, »It looked like the nanopods were destroyed by an unknown force. Did you see that?«
The Prophet flattened his ears.
»Yes. The nanopods were destroyed, but the ZyClonians have the situation under control,« Kuster~Laap announced.
About 30 meters ahead an energy field flared up, illuminating a metallic object that filled the tunnel almost from floor to ceiling. The giant being stood on three legs with several knee joints, and pointed six thorn-like arms at the ZyClonians. Its torso was oval shaped and enveloped by its own energy field.
›What the fuck’s that?‹ Maya wondered.
Seconds later the robot reacted. One of its arms released a plasma burst that approached the group with unreal slowness and slammed into the ZyClonian defense shield, where it shattered with bright light emissions that made the energy shield oscillate.
»It looks like a guard – a combat robot!« Pi warned aloud.
»No shit!« Maya commented sarcastically. »He’s testing our defenses!«
Seconds later, the robot fired again – this time, two plasma charges!
NORAD?
»You cannot drive this … thing … into the village!« the young man insisted. »It’ll disturb the peace – the elders will order you chased out, and my brothers and sisters will obey them.«
Pat parked the car on the roadside, stepped out and walked toward the young Amish man.
»You must be Jakob. We talked on the holophone. I want to thank you for your friendly invitation and the opportunity to know your people better,« Pat began, shaking his hand warmly.
»Yes, I am Jakob. I came to meet you here to help you avoid your first mistake. Leave your car here,« Jakob advised.
Pat pondered for a moment and looked at her H12.
»Well … I’ll get my bag and secure the vehicle,« she suggested.
»Huh … you English …that’s not necessary. Nobody will steal your car!« Jacob replied mockingly.
Pat went back to the car and took out her bag. She activated the anti-theft circuits anyway. Somebody not belonging to Amish Paradise might be interested in her car. She approached the horse and petted its neck. The horse didn’t shy away, it just stood and let her stroke its neck and shoulder.
»Beautiful animal,« she remarked, impressed. »I can barely remember the last time I saw a horse, let alone touched one. I was really young!«
»Horses are useful animals,« Jakob acknowledged proudly. »If you came to look at horses as well as people, then you’re in the right place. Almost every family here owns some.«
»You don’t use any modern technology, such as combine harvesters – just horses for working your fields?« she asked.
»We don’t need vehicles or motorized plows. We find horses and oxen sufficient for tilling the land. It’s been a proven and cheap system for hundreds of years,« Jakob told her in a lecturing voice. »But you must know that. As a journalist you must have done your homework before you came here. Why do you really want to visit us?« he asked her directly, and pulled his hat lower over his forehead; the wind had picked up, flapping his hat’s rims. »Are we so strange that you need to write a column about us? There must me more than enough information out there among the English.«
»I’m a nosy journalist, it’s that simple,« Pat joked, but Jakob was unresponsive to her humor. »I’m interested in your philosophy of life. Nothing about it seems to fit into our modern way of life. I want to explore the differences, and understand them.«
»Our way of life is governed by our work and our faith. My grandfather and his father have told me that the English have never understood us. Nothing’s changed much over the last few hundred years. Tell me: Do you believe … I mean, do you believe in God?«
Pat was caught on the wrong foot with Jakob’s question. There were still mainstream religions and sects around today, but faiths and religions had lost their meaning as people had become more tolerant toward each other. Tensions between religious groups were a thing of the past.
Pat was a modern woman, had lived most of her life in a big city and was part of a technically oriented society. She had adopted an atheistic point of view, although her grandmother had gone to church every Sunday.
»To be honest with you, Jakob,« she tried to explain herself. »Sometimes I don’t know what to believe. I see things happen around me that seem totally unjust and even gruesome. I can’t believe there’s a God who would tolerate this.«
»One of God’s secrets is that Humans don’t understand his work – and maybe we’re not supposed to!« Jakob replied sternly. He made space for her on the sacks he was sitting on.
»This is my first ride on a horse-drawn wagon!« she admitted, changing the subject.
Jakob clicked with his tongue and turned the wagon around while Pat was looking wistfully back at her H12.
»You have to let go, if you want to understand us!« he remarked, following her glance.
»Would you leave your horse behind?« she countered, but Jakob just looked at her, not seeing the comparison.
They drove slowly down the road. Potholes were dampened by the spring-like shock absorbers, but Pat was still thrown about a couple of times, bumping into Jakob’s shoulder.
Pat wondered about something and decided to a
sk Jakob a question.
»So, with all our differences, why did you agree to let me visit your village? We’re such strangers – I wondered why you even continued the holo-phone conversation?«
»It was you who called us, remember?« Jacob replied and clicked his tongue to encourage the horse to run faster.
»Well, nobody forced you to continue. You could’ve hung up on me,« she continued. She felt the tension growing between them.
»You know that I possess the only holo-phone in the village and that we normally use it only in rare emergencies, to call a doctor or so …,« he tried to excuse himself. »Yes, yes … sometimes we need to contact the English!«
» … so there’s something important, some reason you wanted me to come here. Am I right?« Pat interrupted him.
»Well … yes … you know … I’m worried about my little sister. Lisa is 12 years old and I’ve been responsible for her since my mother died two years ago.«
»Is she ill? Do you need a doctor? They’re free for everyone, Jakob!« Pat replied, suddenly concerned.
»It’s not easy for me. Our faith is very strong, but I’m not sure if our village healer knows what he’s doing, yet Lisa is not ill enough to call an English doctor. She is relatively well. Maybe you can look at her, as a guest in my house.«
Pat was surprised that he trusted her more than an “English” doctor.
»I’ve had no medical training. I don’t know how I could help,« she admitted.
Pat understood his dilemma. It was clear that the village people didn’t want to consult an outside doctor. The village healer was probably against it. Jakob was worried! He must have hoped that by agreeing to the interview and inviting Pat into his house, he could bypass village traditions, or at least be able to bend the rules a little bit.
»Okay; I’m no doctor, but introduce me to your little sister anyway,« Pat suggested.
Jakob smiled and steered the wagon into the village. They passed a couple of Amish people who greeted Jakob with respect and friendly gestures, but eyed Pat suspiciously. Pat ignored their looks and greeted them amiably. She looked around. Most buildings inside the village were rough wood structures with heavy crossbeams.
»What is your trade, Jakob? Besides being the holo-phone operator?« she asked him.
»I’m a carpenter!« Jakob replied proudly. »I work with wood. If you need a barn, I’ll build you a good one, and I can make cribs and furniture … «
Pat laughed out loud and blinked her eyes.
»I’ll holo-phone you when I need a barn, alright? Might be a while, though.«
Jakob smiled at her little joke.
»Where do you get the trees from? Isn’t it prohibited to cut down trees?« she inquired.
»That’s true for you English, but we grow our own trees in the forest over there,« explained Jakob and pointed at a small woodland about 2 kilometers away. »We have a government permit to reforest and use the trees in this area. We even have our own water powered sawmill. That way we can continue to live by our rules and traditions. Do you see that?« he asked, pointing southwest to a big, snow-capped mountain.
»Yes, I saw it shortly after I left Denver,« Pat said. »What about it?«
»That’s Pikes Peak,« he explained. »It’s 4,300 meters high and one of the state’s main attractions. Further south is Cheyenne Mountain. In the 1960s the government hollowed out the mountain to supposedly make it able to withstand nuclear attack. They made it the headquarters of something called NORAD. Nobody knows what it is today.«
»I like big cities,« Pat replied. »Did you never think of moving to the city?«
»What can English cities offer me? When I look out of my bedroom window I can see their tall tower buildings reaching into the clouds. How many people live in a skyscraper?« he wanted to know.
»It depends. Usually between two or three thousand,« replied Pat.
»More people than we have in our village?« Jakob compared. »Do all those people know each other by their first names?«
»I don’t even know their family names,« Pat joked.
»See … that’s exactly what I would be missing!« replied Jakob. He winked at her.
Pat tried to remember what she had seen so far and took some notes. They stopped before a large house. Suddenly, the door opened and a blond girl with long braided hair came running toward them.
›That must be Lisa!‹ Pat thought.
The girl jumped up to Jakob and hugged him. Her hair was crowned with a small embroidered black cap, fastened with two strings under her chin. She had a ready smile and quickly waved at Patricia.
As Pat stepped down from the wagon, Lisa helped her, shook her hand and looked her straight in the eyes. Pat saw immediately why Jakob was so worried. She didn’t need to be a doctor to see that Lisa was seriously ill.
Barely escaped
The plasma charges exploded into the defense shield with loud bangs. The shield fluoresced to bright white. Pi was terrified and shot nervous glances around him. The massive combat robot stepped forward on its three legs and aimed again at the ZyClonians.
»Do something!« Pi yelled at Kuster~Laap. »Its plasma charges are getting stronger! It’ll find a weak spot in your defense shield any moment!«
Kuster~Laap seemed uncertain.
»The ZyClonians will protect me. They always have everything under control … they’ve never failed me.«
»I respect your trust in them, but look how powerful this robot is!« Maya warned. »It looks to me like it’s only holding back because it doesn’t want to destroy the installation. If we continue to resist the robot might change its mind and use stronger weapons!«
As if it had understood what Ivanova had said, the robot took another step forward.
Maya pulled Pi back.
»We need to retreat – now!« she told the Prophet again. »Return to Triton Base through the portal! We’re useless against such powerful guardians – sitting ducks with no cover. Can’t the ZyClonians defeat the robot with their nanopods?«
The robot fired again – four charges!
»They don’t want to use their nanopods,« Kuster~Laap replied calmly. »The nanopods would not obey a program that would destroy them. They cannot penetrate the robot’s defense shield.«
A noise in back of her made Maya turn quickly around. A second robot stumbled into the tunnel from a smaller side tunnel. After it had stabilized itself on its three legs, a defense shield like the first robot’s enveloped it. Seconds later its weapons were glowing in the dim light of the shield.
›Damnit, we’re cut off!‹ Ivanova thought angrily.
The ZyClonians immediately expanded their defense shield, surrounding the team, instants before the new robot began firing.
»We have to cut through the walls and get out of this mess … fast!« Pi shouted. »The ZyClonians’ shield isn’t holding!«
The overextended defense shield began to oscillate more strongly. Energies arced and made ugly cracking sounds.
Maya looked around while the second robot came closer. She pulled her laser weapon and aimed at the wall.
»Kuster~Laap … tell your ZyClonians to open a gap in the shield so I can shoot at the wall!« she yelled at the Prophet.
That proved unnecessary. The wall disintegrated before her eyes and opened a path into a dark room.
»The ZyClonians have opened up a way of getting out of here!« Pi yelled in surprise.
Not thinking twice, Pi pushed Maya through the opening and followed her. Kuster~Laap and his companions also moved quickly through the opening in the wall. When the artificial light source had drifted through the hole, it closed itself, separating the team from the combat robots.
»Damnit, that was close!« Ivanova breathed.
»That doesn’t mean we’re safe!« Pi warned. »If these robs have some sort of artificial intelligence, they’ll know how to get to us. Maybe they can disintegrate walls too!«
»You might be right, but something tells me that they won’
t enter this room …,« Maya responded.
»… how can you know that, Maya …?« Pi interrupted her, then gave a sudden start and held his breath.
The artificial light had become brighter, shining deep into the room, flooding it with light. He stared at what he saw before him. He’d never expected this.
Cancer
Pat exchanged quick glances with Jakob. The girl was wearing a simple, ankle length light blue dress with hooks. She wore a white apron with small front pockets, tied around her waist. Her exposed arms showed dark-red spots of different sizes.
Pat was not a medical doctor, but she immediately recognized what was wrong with Lisa. She had seen the symptoms before; they were typical of people who worked out in the sun and neglected UV protection.
›Lisa has skin cancer!‹ she thought in alarm, trying not to show her emotions and her pity. She didn’t fool Jakob, though; he saw the two small tears in the corners of Pat’s eyes.
»Let’s go inside and have lunch. Our healer will come in the afternoon and look at Lisa’s skin discolorations.«
Pat played along and nodded amiably.
»Sure, I’m certain your healer will be able to help her,« she replied in an almost croaking voice, and had to clear her throat.
Jakob nodded slightly and led her into the house.
Pat wanted to use this opportunity to research her article about the Amish. Now, not even in the village for ten minutes, she was confronted with a major problem. She cursed under her breath.
Jakob sent Lisa into the kitchen and said to Pat, »We don’t appreciate that sort of language in this house. Please, restrain yourself,« he scolded her.
Embarrassed, Pat swept her hand through her hair.
»I’m sorry, Jakob, it won’t happen again. I didn’t want to hurt your feelings … but your sister …«
»Let’s wait till we hear what our healer has to say,« Jakob suggested. »His opinion is important to me; he’s well known and respected in the village. He’s cured many serious illnesses in the past.«
›I doubt that he can help her in this case,‹ Pat pondered. ›She needs to see a specialist in a hospital, and it might be too late already. Well … it’s Jakob’s decision …‹
NEBULAR Collection 4 - Second Reserve: Episodes 17 - 21 Page 3