by Don Viecelli
They arrived at the spot for pickup and Captain Tills stopped the land rover. They waited for Di to arrive in his spacecraft. Chuck Williams voiced concern about the android. “Do you think this android can really help us, Doug?”
“He’s the only one who can get us on the starship. He gave me this solution to prevent the nanomachines from infecting us.” Doug held up the seven remaining injectors. “I already took this shot. Now it’s your turn. This will prevent you from becoming infected on the starship.”
Doug passed the injectors to everyone in the land rover. He pointed to his neck. “Place the injector on your neck and press the button. It’s a high velocity spray that will penetrate your skin without any pain. You might get a low grade fever later, but it won’t be much.”
“What’s in the shot, Director?” Gwen asked looking at the green solution.
“It’s Qumru nano-agents that will prevent the Yoyka nanomachines from multiplying inside our bodies and infiltrating our brains to take control. You must take this before you become infected or it won’t work.”
“So if we come into contact with any infected persons, we will not become contagious?”
“That’s right, Corporal Dimitar. We will be protected.”
“How come we don’t have more of this stuff?” Lieutenant Juan Sanchez asked as he injected the solution into his neck.
Doug explained the problem as best as he could. Then he said, “Vice Leader Di says there is equipment on the starship that can produce more, but we need to wake up some of the passenger minds to make it.”
“How are we going to do that? They don’t even have bodies,” Lieutenant Juan Sanchez responded curtly.
“From what Di told me, the Qumru can regenerate their bodies using their genome pattern data stored with their minds. It’s a technology called Onutu. Remember, the Qumru and the Yoyka are hundreds of years ahead of us in scientific achievements. What the Qumru can teach us may well save our race if we help save them. It’s worth the attempt.” Doug settled back into his seat to wait for Di.
It didn’t take long before the spacecraft arrived. No one saw or heard it land a short distance away from the land rover. Doug received a text message on his comtablet that simply said, “I am here.”
“Di has arrived, folks. Time to leave the rover,” Doug said.
“I don’t see anything on my radar screen,” Tills said. “He’s invisible!”
“Good thing, because we may have to be invisible to get back on the starship.” Doug left his seat and put on his helmet and gloves to walk outside.
“Bring everything you can carry and follow me.” Doug had the spacecraft location on his wristcom and would follow the coordinates.
The Marines shouldered their weapons and picked up their duffle bags. Gwen and Chuck had weapons and communication gear to carry. Doug picked up two bags filled with supplies and everyone left the land rover.
Doug used a short tether line for everyone to clip onto so no one would get lost in the dust storm as they followed Doug to the waiting spacecraft. Visibility was limited to five feet now. In a way, Doug was thankful for the storm for it made it nearly impossible for anyone to find them.
They reached the spacecraft in a few minutes. It became visible when they passed through some sort of energy field. They could see a doorway hatch with a ramp leading up to the opening. Doug led the way into the hatch and the last person closed the door. They waited for a green light and then the door to the inside of the spacecraft opened.
Vice Leader Di was standing in the aisle waiting for Doug and his team to arrive. This was the first time the others had a chance to meet the android. Di was still in his armored suit and he looked imposing. He stood almost seven feet tall with broad shoulders and thick arms and legs. He was not wearing a helmet. His face was similar looking to the Qumru, but his features were not as pleasant looking. As androids, their synthetic bodies were far more durable, flexible and stronger than ordinary people. They were built for military and space exploration purposes.
Di did not smile when he spoke, “Welcome aboard my spaceship. Please, take off your helmets. You can breathe normally here.” Of course, Di did not need an atmosphere to breathe anything.
“Hello, Vice Leader Di.” Doug introduced his team. No one shook hands. Di just bowed his head slightly after all were introduced.
“We must leave and return to the cave,” Di said bluntly. He turned and moved to the front of the spacecraft.
Everyone found a place to sit and stowed their gear. Doug sat down next to Captain Tills. “What do you think Colonel Jackson will do?”
“He will send a team to try and locate us. He’ll eventually find the rover.”
Doug thought for a moment before speaking to the whole team. “We know how the Yoyka communicate with the nanomachines and control them. We have to assume, the colonel will try to track us down eventually. Maybe even try to kill us. They are the enemy now. Whatever you do, don’t trust anyone who is infected. They may know what they are doing, but they won’t be able to control themselves.”
“What about those who are infected? Can we save them?” Corporal Alexa Dimitar asked the one question no one knew the answer to.
“I don’t know, Corporal. The Qumru were not able to save their own infected people, just their consciousness. Maybe there’s a way, but I don’t know what it is yet. We’ll know more once we get on that starship.”
Doug sat back in his seat while the spacecraft lifted off to return to its hiding place. Whatever happens, Doug thought, he would not stop fighting this Yoyka threat. Mars may be lost, but Earth and the rest of the human race still had a fighting chance as long as they were alive.
Chapter 32
President Learns Truth
President Mary Woodley Anderson was standing behind her desk in the Oval Office in the West Wing looking out over the South Lawn Rose Garden. It was a calm, beautiful spring day, but the mood in the White House was anything but peaceful.
Chief of Staff Allison Conley walked into the room from the secretary’s office. “It’s time, Madam President.” She waited patiently for President Anderson to turn around.
There were lines of worry around the President’s eyes. It was evident the last few days had become a heavy burden that this President must bear. Mary straightened her posture and faced Allison. “Are they all here?” She was referring to the Cabinet Members waiting for her in the Cabinet Room next door.
“Yes, Madam President; everyone except the Secretary of Labor who is out of town. The UN Secretary-General, our UN Ambassador and the NASA Administrator are here as requested. We are ready for you to convene the meeting.”
President Anderson walked with Allison through the side door, which led to the Cabinet Room. Everyone stood up and welcomed the President as she took her chair in the middle of the conference room table with her back to the Rose Garden. Allison sat behind the President against the window. “Please take a seat. We have a lot to cover today.
“As most of you know, we lost communication with Mars two days ago. This morning the UN finally got through to a person who claims to be the UN Security Director named Douglas Martin. I’ll let the Secretary-General fill you in.” Mary turned to Aleksy Gomulka who remained seated and began speaking.
“Thank you Madam President. The person who contacted us early this morning used one of the ground transmitters we reserve for backup communications in case the satellite systems fail. It appears something terrible has happened to our people on Mars. They have become infected with some sort of alien nanomachines specifically targeted to control their minds. The aliens who infected our people are on the starship still orbiting Mars.”
Carlo Russo, Secretary of Defense, interrupted Aleksy. “Are we certain this is not a hoax?”
“We cannot prove this is not a hoax yet, Mister Secretary, but we do have some evidence to the contrary. Director Martin sent us the molecular structure of the nanomachines that are infecting our people. These nanomachines a
re nothing we could have created on Earth with our technology. In addition, Director Martin sent us a possible preventative solution he says we need to try and duplicate using our experimental quantum computers. It is one thing we can do to prepare for the possibility these nanomachines may reach Earth and infect us.”
“Why are the aliens doing this?” Susan Liang, Secretary of State couldn’t believe what was happening.
“The transmission from Director Martin did not go into a lot of detail,” Aleksy said. “He says the Qumru crewmembers on the starship have also been infected and are following commands from the Yoyka.” Aleksy briefly described the differences between the two races and what occurred on Qum before the starship appeared over Mars. “All of this information was sent by Haruto Nakamura before he went silent two days ago. Director Martin says the UN office building and its people have become infected. The MCDC has lost control of the situation. Many people fled the cities and are hiding in caves and other places trying to avoid the infection. The situation on Mars has become critical to their survival. I am not sure what can be done to change the outcome.” Aleksy slumped in his chair.
President Anderson tried to calm the fears increasing around the table. “I know the situation is deteriorating on Mars. The critical question is what can we do about it? I need suggestions.” She looked around the table at the Cabinet Members waiting for some response.
Vice President Allen Denton who had been quiet until now spoke up. “We need to send people to Mars to verify what is happening, Madam President.”
“We were preparing to send a high level UN Delegation to meet with the aliens on the starship, Madam President, but now I think we must try and negotiate peace with the aliens,” Aleksy suggested.
“They are not peaceful aliens, Madam President. I think we need to send an armed space transport shuttle with nuclear weapons to blow that starship out of existence!” Carlo Russo declared loudly.
President Anderson remained quiet while others expressed their opinions about what to do; then she made her decision. “I appreciate all your suggestions and I have made up my mind. We will send a UN Delegation as Secretary-General Aleksy has suggested, but also include a military force with nuclear missiles on board. We will try to negotiate with these aliens, but we cannot allow any of the alien nanomachines to reach Earth. Even if that means we must destroy the starship. Furthermore, we must not permit any colonists on Mars to bring the infection to Earth. We must quarantine the whole planet until further notice.
“I will instruct our Armed Forces to prepare for military action. Our country, the whole world, will prepare for war if necessary. Mister Secretary-General, I request you send us all the information you have on the nanomachines and the possible preventative solution so our scientists can begin working on it.
“Everything we talked about in this room is to remain confidential. No word of this alien nanomachine infection must get out to the media or the whole world will go into a panic. For now, maybe the lack of communication with Mars is a good thing. It will allow us time to prepare the public for the shock of what we must eventually tell them.
“Mister Russo, set up a National Security Conference meeting for later in the day. You will need to advise the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and others to attend.
“That is all for now. Thank you for attending. The next Cabinet Meeting will be in one week unless we need to meet again earlier.”
President Anderson ended the meeting and left the room with Allison following behind her back to the Oval Office. The weight of the world was on the President’s shoulders, but she did not show it as all good leaders try to do.
Chapter 33
Martian Cave
Doug Martin and his team felt cooped up on Vice Leader Di’s small spacecraft still hiding in the Martian cave. A full week had passed since Mars first became infected with the Yoyka nanomachines. The contagion spread to every city and mass panic had set in. Doug estimated at least two-thirds of the population on Mars has already become infected. The rest of the population was trying to hide or put up resistance. They were no match for Colonel Jackson’s Marines who found them and forced them to make contact with other infected persons. The contagion spread easily.
“We have to do something Di. We can’t remain hiding in this cave forever!” Doug pleaded to Di in the pilot seat. It was time for action, thought Doug. They had waited long enough.
“I agree, Director. It is time. I have been monitoring the communications between the Spaceport and the starship. It appears the next load of repair materials will be ready to transport to the starship in the morning.”
Doug knew what that meant. They had been discussing plans to regain control of the starship for days. The best approach was to find a way to get on board without being discovered. Di’s spacecraft had a cloaking device, but that did not mean they could fly the spacecraft and land inside the starship without being detected. They had to get people on board first.
Doug stood up next to Vice Leader Di and said to the team, “There’s a new supply shipment going to the starship tomorrow morning. We need to be on that transport ship tonight!”
“How are we going to accomplish that?” Captain Tills knew the mission was going to be dangerous.
Di said, “I will fly to the Spaceport tonight and drop you off. You will replace the flight crew and fly the transport ship yourselves.”
It was a bold plan and the risk was high, but Doug knew they had to get back on board the starship soon or all would certainly be lost on Mars. He looked everyone in the eyes.
“I know it’s a big risk, but we have discussed this a hundred times. If we can capture the transport ship, then we can get inside the starship without detection. Once we are inside the hangar, we open the doors and let Di fly his spacecraft inside too. We have weapons and we know how to use them. We just have to take out Utor’s crew. I don’t see a better way; do any of you?”
The whole team was standing now. No one spoke. They just looked at each other with eyes full of determination. They all knew what was at stake and they were all willing to risk their lives in the attempt to fight back. Really, there was no other choice.
“Fine, we’re all in agreement then. We go tonight!” Doug smiled thinly. He was ready and now they all were too.
*****
Doctor Janice Martin and Doctor Chang-Woo Mun were still in Mars City near Olympus Mons. The MCDC building was small compared to the building in Haffen City, but it was well protected from the chaos occurring outside in the city. Several more people had joined them in recent days. Doctor James Colbert and others from the MCDC center in Haffen City were invited inside as well as Chuck Williams’ wife and two kids and other families of the doctors and friends who were able to get inside before becoming infected. In total, there were now twenty-one people living inside the MCDC building, all terrified at what was happening outside their building.
Doctor Mun approached Janice with a concerned look on his face. “Have you heard from Doug today?”
“Yes, Doctor Mun. He called a few minutes ago. He’s fine, but he says he has to do something tonight that might be dangerous. He wouldn’t tell me what he’s planning to do. I’m worried, Doctor.” Janice looked tired. She had been working almost nonstop during the past week trying to figure out how to stop the nanomachines from infecting people, but all the compounds she had tested had failed so far. She was convinced there had to be something that would interfere with the Yoyka nanomachines command instructions, but nothing she tried could stop the nanomachines from multiplying or taking control of the neurons in the brain. Neurons are the nerve cells that control the nervous system and thought process. The nanomachines seemed to be able to pass new information through the neurons to the brain telling the mind what to do. The only way to stop it so far was to put the mind to sleep or give it an electrical shock, which would temporarily knock the person out. So far, Janice had found no way to remove the nanomachines once they were embedded inside the brain w
ithout killing the host.
“I’m sure he will be fine, Janice. We’re all doing everything we can. You need to get more rest, Doctor,” Chang-Woo suggested politely.
Janice looked up from what she was doing. “You’re right, Doctor Mun. I need to get more sleep. Have you been able to get through to anyone?”
“No, the communication systems are still down. I think the aliens are preventing all communications with Earth from getting through. We can barely communicate with anyone on Mars now. Only our private links to the other MCDC offices work.”
“How many offices are still okay?”
“Only North and South Polar Cities, besides us, are still under our control. Our office in Haffen City is lost. I’m not sure how long we can remain here in Mars City.” Mun looked discouraged.
Janice tried to reassure him. “It’s strange, Doctor. The people who are infected are just ignoring us for now. They seem to be in a daze. They continue to work and live ordinary lives, but they show no emotions, like they are just drones doing whatever they are told to do.”
“I know, Janice. It worries me greatly. They are passive for now. But what happens when they figure out we are still not infected? We have to be careful and make sure no one contacts people outside and tell them we are here.”
Janice did not reply. She just nodded her head in agreement. She was thinking about Doug and wondering what he was going to do. She had a good idea, but it only made her worry for his safety even more.
Chapter 34
Boarding the Starship
The Martian dust storm had not let up at all for almost two weeks. If fact, it was intensifying. It was probably the primary reason why there were still pockets of people on Mars still not infected by the fast spreading Yoyka nanomachines. People were staying indoors while the storm gathered strength. Doug had not seen such a large dust storm like this for over two Martian years. With the threat of contagion hanging in the air along with the blowing sand, people were beginning to call this storm the “Red Death” afraid the dust particles could infect them. The storm could linger for weeks or even months, but it could no longer prevent what Doug and his team had to do. They had to find a way to leave the planet and get back on board that starship.