Box

by Richard J Lowe

  ‘Right,’ said Simone.

  Connie ran her fingers along the border where grey became the white of the rest of the wall. ‘It’s so smooth. I can’t feel a join.’

  ‘Just like the box. Except when I touched the Box, a door opened.’

  Connie kicked the wall. The thump of her boot impacting the featureless surface was loud in the still air.

  ‘I hate to say this, but we need some help,’ said Simone.

  ‘You mean Webb? Are you sure?’ asked Kevin.

  ‘Is this Webb that much of an arsehole?’ asked Connie.

  Simone sighed, ‘Yes. But he’s good at what he does.’

  ‘He didn’t get into the Box,’ Kevin reminded her.

  Simone smiled. ‘We did take it before he’d had much of a chance.’

  ‘It sounds like you’ve decided then.’ Connie slapped Simone on the back. ‘Less standing about, more taking me to Mars and showing me the sights.’

  CHAPTER 22

  They spent a day thrashing out a plan. There were regular food deliveries from the agri-domes to the can and Dimitri had access to the agri-dome haulers. These were operated by AI and only called for a human operator’s assistance when something went wrong on their programmed routes. Lula would subtly alter the AI’s programming to expect extra passengers hidden among the cargo of vegetables so they could get a free ride to the can without being spotted by the AI running the facility. Once there, they would rely on Lula to get them to Jacob and back out again before the three of them made their escape on the hauler when it made the trip to the recycling plant with a return cargo of waste from the can.

  The first phase of the plan went flawlessly. Lula modified the AI and then the two men stowed away on a container that was loaded onto the hauler. The journey was noisy and uncomfortable but uneventful, and now the hauler was approaching the can.

  When the hauler rolled to a stop, Daniel heard the distinctive whine of an automated loader arm moving into position above the container. This was followed by a metallic bang as the lifting gear locked into place. Then they were lifted, the container swaying from side to side on its way upwards off the hauler.

  Dimitri nodded at him. ‘You ready, Danny?’

  ‘As I’ll ever be.’

  The container arrived at its destination, sliding into the receiving bay and locking into position. A few seconds later the door at the end was opened and a lifter-unit started to unload the cargo boxes.

  They waited until the lifter was carrying the first box away before they slipped out of the cargo container and into the back dock of the can.

  The service door that gave access to the maintenance crawlways was up a short ladder. Dimitri took the lead and presented his cuff to the door lock. A green LED switched on and the door unlocked with an audible click.

  ‘Thankyou Lula,’ whispered Daniel. The falsified identity programs she had loaded onto their cuffs appeared to be working. As far as the AI running the can was concerned, they were two maintenance technicians.

  The door admitted them to the crawlway which took them further into the habitat. Daniel looked at his cuff which was displaying a map of the crawlways that crisscrossed the interior of the can. A softly glowing blue dot showed where Jacob was. Lula had worked through the night accessing the AI to get access to the prisoner location routines. Displaying Jacob’s location was one thing, spoofing his location to the AI would be the real test of Lula’s efforts.

  After fifteen minutes of cramped negotiation of the crawlways Dimitri stopped and said, ‘Here.’

  An access hatch was set into the floor and Dimitri held his cuff next to the lock. Again, the indicator switched to green and the hatch unlocked. Dimitri opened it, swinging it down and out of the way. Below them Daniel could see a ladder leading down a wall into an empty corridor.

  Dimitri slid down the ladder, and Daniel followed, closing the hatch behind him.

  ‘Good. Now, he is in one of these cells,’ said Dimitri.

  Lining one side of the corridor were sealed doors, each fitted with a lock similar to that on the crawlway access hatch. At each end of the corridor were internal pressure doors. In a normal hab, these would be open unless there was a significant pressure drop in the habitat section. These, however, were closed and appeared to be locked.

  Dimitri consulted his cuff, then pointed down the corridor. ‘This way.’

  They had reached the pressure door and Dimitri was about to unlock it when the lock indicator on the pressure door in front of them switched on.

  Daniel looked at the glowing green light in panic. ‘Shit.’

  Dimitri put a hand on Daniel’s arm. ‘Don’t panic. We’re just two friendly fascist maintenance guys, remember?’

  ‘We don’t look like maintenance,’ said Daniel. And he was right. They looked like an agri-dome worker and a retired colonist.

  Dimitri lifted his arm and nodded at his cuff. ‘We do to the AI, which is all that matters.’

  The pressure door opened to reveal a startled looking man whose coverall sported a maintenance department patch.

  ‘Hello, fascist,’ said Dimitri cheerfully as he drove his fist into the other man’s face.

  The man staggered back, dropping his toolkit and lifting his hands to his injured nose.

  Dimitri stepped forward, grabbed him by the shoulder and rammed him into the wall. His head bounced off the wall with a sickening thump and he slid down onto the floor, out cold.

  ‘We have to hurry,’ said Dimitri.

  Daniel nodded wordlessly. He was in shock after witnessing the sudden burst of violence from his companion.

  Dimitri picked up the toolkit. ‘Come.’

  Daniel followed Dimitri down the corridor until they came to the door indicated on their cuff displays.

  ‘This is it. Watch my back.’ Dimitri lifted his cuff next to the doors operating panel.

  Daniel nervously looked up and down the corridor, all too aware of the unconscious maintenance worker around the corner. Fixed high up on the wall opposite the door was a camera. It made Daniel nervous to think of the can’s AI watching them through its unblinking lens.

  There was a clunk as the door lock opened. Dimitri pulled the door open, and the smell of sour sweat washed over them. Martian habs always carried a slight odour as water was rationed, but this was on another level entirely.

  ‘Christ,’ said Daniel. He covered his mouth and nose with his sleeve and followed Dimitri through the open door.

  Inside, the lighting was dim. Many lights in the habitat module were off. Daniel couldn’t tell if it was because they were broken or to save power. Debris littered the floor, and Daniel was dismayed to see so many discarded drink cartons and food containers. The colony could not afford to waste plastics like this.

  They had not gone far inside when, off to their right, what looked like a bundle of rags stood up revealing itself to be a man. He was wild-eyed and after looking them up and down for a split second pushed past Daniel and stumbled towards the open door. Daniel watched as a red light came on above the door.

  There was the crackle of a speaker coming to life and broadcasting the monotone voice of an AI. ‘The inmate will move no closer to the module egress.’

  The man ignored this instruction and continued to move slowly towards the bright lights of the corridor outside.

  ‘This is a final warning. Return to the module or pacification action will be taken.’

  ‘Shit.’ Dimitri hustled past Daniel and grabbed the would-be escapee by the shoulder and roughly pulled him backwards.

  The man lost his balance and flopped to the floor at Daniel’s feet. ‘Please.’ His voice was a rough croak.

  ‘Sorry, my friend. You have to stay here. Daniel, keep an eye on Houdini here.’

  ‘Ok,’ said Daniel. He positioned himself so he was standing between the exit and the poor unfortunate at his feet.

  Dimitri stepped back into the corridor and disappeared. He was soon back, and Daniel was surprised to s
ee him carrying the unconscious maintenance worker in a fireman's lift.

  ‘I am improving the plan,’ said Dimitri. He dumped the worker inside, then closed and locked the door.

  ‘Improving? How?’ asked Daniel.

  Dimitri removed the maintenance workers cuff. ‘All three of us will leave as maintenance workers.’

  There was some quiet mumbling from the prisoner at their feet.

  Daniel squatted down beside him. ‘What was that?’

  ‘Me? Take me,’ the man mumbled.

  ‘Sorry,’ said Daniel. ‘We’re here for someone else.’

  ‘Poor bastard.’ Dimitri put his hand on Daniel’s shoulder. ‘Come on. We need to find your boy, Jacob.’

  Daniel stood up, leaving the man whimpering at his feet.

  ‘This way.’ Dimitri picked his way through the rubbish, moving along the corridor and further into the hab module.

  Daniel followed, warily eyeing other bundles of rags that may or may not be inmates of the prison. They soon came to a large room with several closed doors lining the walls. This was designed to be the communal area of the module. In the centre was a large table, above which was a delivery chute. From the abundance of empty packaging littering the surface and floor, Daniel judged this to be where food and drink for the residents was delivered. A large brute of a man was hunched over the table shovelling what looked like mashed potato into his mouth with his fingers. He looked up, eyes glowering at them from under his black eyebrows.

  ‘Hi,’ said Dimitri.

  ‘Who the hell are you?’ The man stood up. He towered over both Dimitri and Daniel and clearly spent his time in the can working out.

  ‘We don’t want any trouble,’ said Daniel.

  ‘You have cuffs,’ said the man, taking a step towards them.

  Daniel involuntarily took a step back. ‘We’re just looking for a friend.’

  The man fixed Daniel with an icy stare. ‘You’ve found trouble.’ He deliberately pushed the sleeves of his orange prisoners coverall up, exposing two thick, muscled forearms.

  ‘Friend, there is no need for trouble,’ said Dimitri.

  The inmate shifted his attention to Dimitri, taking another step closer. ‘I’m no friend of yours.’

  Dimitri pulled a plastic bottle from his pocket. ‘I brought you a gift. So maybe we don’t have to be enemies?’

  ‘Gift?’

  Dimitri put the bottle on the edge of the centre table and backed away, joining Daniel closer to the open doorway.

  The man’s brow furrowed as he snatched the bottle from the table. Opening it, he sniffed suspiciously at the contents. Then his face lit up with a wide, gap-toothed smile before he took a deep swig from the bottle.

  He made a satisfied lip smacking noise and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. ‘Okay. We’re not enemies.’

  ‘Maybe you can help us out,’ said Dimitri.

  The man said nothing and took another, smaller, swig from the bottle.

  ‘We’re looking for a new prisoner,’ said Daniel.

  ‘The new guy?’

  Daniel held his hand out at shoulder height. ‘About so tall. Brown hair.’

  ‘What do you want with him?’

  Daniel exchanged a nervous glance with Dimitri.

  ‘That’s none of your business,’ said Dimitri.

  ‘Wrong. Anything that goes on here is my business.’

  Daniel was beginning to suspect that there was more to this man than muscle.

  ‘Where does that leave us?’ asked Daniel.

  ‘That leaves you telling me what you want with the new guy.’

  Daniel looked at his companion. ‘Dimitri?’

  ‘What the hell.’ Dimitri shrugged. ‘We’re busting him out.’

  The man put the bottle of booze in the pocket of his coveralls and looked at them both appraisingly. ‘You don’t look insane. Although, coming in here suggests you are.’

  ‘We’re not,’ said Daniel.

  ‘If you have a way of getting someone out, then you can take me.’

  ‘We have a way of getting someone out,’ said Dimitri.

  ‘Then we have a problem.’ The man pulled a piece of sharpened metal from his pocket. He held the shiv at his side, arms loose.

  ‘Wait a minute.’ Daniel raised his hands. ‘Maybe we can sort something out. We must be able to do something, right Dimitri?’

  Dimitri hesitated.

  ‘The cuff,’ said Daniel.

  Dimitri nodded. ‘Yes. Of course.’ He tossed the maintenance worker’s cuff onto the tabletop. ‘This should open the doors around here.’

  The man scooped the cuff off the table and examined it. ‘Nice. Doesn’t help me get out of the can though. I’m thinking you boys have transport. Maybe even help on the outside.’

  Dimitri nodded. ‘We can help you. But we’re not leaving without Jacob.’

  The man nodded. ‘If you can get me out of here, I’ll make sure you get what you want.’

  ‘Great,’ said Daniel.

  ‘Wait here.’

  ‘Uh, okay,’ said Daniel.

  The prisoner walked to one of the doors and palmed the panel. The door stuttered slightly before opening fully allowing him through.

  Daniel leaned in towards Dimitri and whispered, ‘You think we can trust him?’

  Dimitri rubbed his forehead. ‘I don’t know. But for the moment I guess we’ll go along with it.’

  CHAPTER 23

  ‘That’s it? We’re there?’ asked Connie.

  ‘Should be,’ said Simone. ‘Box, Show us the external view please.’

  The wall screen switched to a view of the inside of a rocky cave. Kevin recognised it as sector seven in the water mine where he had first discovered the Box. It looked different now; all the equipment and people were gone. He supposed once the Box had gone, there was no reason for them to stay.

  Kevin passed Connie a mask and tank-belt. ‘You’ll need these.’

  ‘Oh. Can you?’ Connie held the belt out.

  ‘Sure.’ Kevin took the belt and fitted it around her waist. He was intensely aware of Connie’s proximity and smell; a mixture of stale sweat and dust. He then explained the belt indicators as he helped her with the mask and adjusted the straps for a comfortable fit.

  ‘Thanks,’ said Connie. ‘Oh.’ She seemed surprised at the mask speaker transmitting her voice.

  ‘You get used to it,’ said Kevin. He handed her the therms that Simone had got the Box to make in Connie’s size.

  She pulled on the insulated clothing. ‘This is warm. Is it really that cold out there?’

  ‘The mine isn’t that bad, but you’ll need them when we get to the surface,’ said Kevin.

  ‘If you’re ready?’ asked Simone.

  Kevin and Connie both nodded.

  ‘Then let’s see if anyone’s missed us. Box, open the door.’

  The circular opening appeared in front of them and Kevin led them out and into the Martian water mine. ‘Home sweet home.’

  ‘Hey, my cuff’s reconnected,’ said Simone.

  Kevin checked his cuff. Sure enough the network icon was on; they were back online.

  ‘Look.’ Simone pointed. ‘There’s a camera.’

  ‘Our glorious return won’t stay a secret then,’ said Kevin.

  Connie was looking around the excavated chamber. ‘And you work here?’

  ‘It’s not so bad. I mostly just make sure the dig-units are running okay,’ said Kevin.

  ‘Come on. Let’s get out of here. If we’re going to talk to Webb, let’s get it over with.’ Simone hurried up the steps, her feet crunching on the dry rock dust.

  * * *

  Their arrival on Mars had not gone unnoticed.

  The program Lula had left running on the AV equipment at the dig site detected the sudden appearance of the Box, substituted a looped feed of an empty hole to the ColPol monitoring AI, and sent Lula’s laptop a notification.

  Two minutes and eleven seconds later, a Co
lPol search AI detected data-packets from two flagged cuffs and sent a high-priority alert to officers Reims and Conway. They were sitting at their desks in the ColPol building.

  ‘Hey Andy, guess who’s back,’ said Reims.

  ‘Mmmph?’ Andrew Conway mumbled around his mouthful of food, then swallowed. ‘Who?’

  ‘Maddock and Aarons.’

  ‘What? Didn’t Aarons just go to the can?’ asked Conway.

  ‘Not that one. His wife,’ said Reims.

  ‘Simone Aarons? Seriously?’

  ‘And Kevin Maddock. The colonies two most wanted. Come on, we’ve got to go.’ Reims stood up and started putting on her tank-belt.

  Conway put down his half-eaten sandwich. ‘Jesus. Where are they?’

  ‘Their cuffs are connected to the water mine network. If you’ll believe that.’

  ‘Returning to the scene of the crime.’ Conway checked the charge pack on his taser.

  ‘Pol-AI, log officers Reims and Conway en route to the water mine to apprehend Kevin Maddock and Simone Aarons.’

  The AI’s voice came from a speaker mounted on the ceiling – ‘Dispatch of officers Reims and Conway acknowledged and logged.’

  * * *

  The water extraction facility was filled with the noise of an extraction hopper being filled with chunks of rock.

  Kevin waited a few seconds for the sound of rock cascading over metal to die down, then called out to a familiar figure hunched over a control panel. ‘Bannon.’

  The surprise Bannon’s face was obvious when he turned around. ‘Maddock. Well, shit.’

  The surprise swiftly turned into a wide grin. ‘We weren’t expecting to see you again.’

  ‘You don’t get rid of me that easy,’ said Kevin.

  ‘Damn, man. Your faces are all over the news feeds. You two are top of the most wanted list.’

  That didn’t sound good. ‘We are?’

  ‘Yeah. They’re saying you stole that alien thing you found. I’m supposed to call them if I see you.’

  Kevin didn’t think Bannon would turn them in, but he wasn’t sure. ‘Will you?’

  ‘Nah, man. I don’t snitch on my friends,’ said Bannon.

  ‘Thanks, Bannon.’