Starship Alchemon

by Christopher Hinz

  He tabbed his mike. “What’s up?”

  “A new problem in the containment.”

  “We’re in the diner. Put it on monitor.”

  A wall screen blossomed to life. The image showed a tight view of the devastated containment lab, obviously originating from the link robot. The scene was constantly changing as the robot ambled around the perimeter, panning its camera eyes as if searching for something. Ericho gazed closely at the damaged walls and furnishings but nothing appeared out of the ordinary.

  He glanced at Rigel and June. They seemed equally puzzled.

  “Jonomy, what’s it looking for? What are we missing?”

  “It appears to be scanning its environment. But that is not the relevant issue. No one is controlling the link. It is operating by itself.”

  “Did you try regaining control?”

  “Direct programming commands are having no effect.”

  “Mechanical failure,” Rigel proposed. “It’s been in there for hours. The heat and radiation finally got to it.”

  “Unlikely,” Jonomy said. “Microseconds before the robot initiated this behavior, it severed the com linkages. That action was deliberate, not a mishap.”

  “Does EPS have an explanation?” Ericho asked.

  “It does not. The incident defies logical interpretation. Rigel’s suggestion of a mechanical failure offers the highest probability. But even that percentage is far too low to be given statistical relevance.”

  Onscreen, the robot stepped into the containment and approached Bouncy Blue. As they watched in silent fascination, the robot knelt in front of the organism and withdrew a pair of knives from its utility belt.

  With a blade in each hand, it began cutting a large hole in Bouncy Blue’s gelatinous outer skin, employing the rapid movements typical of mechanical beings. As it sliced deeper, it withdrew and haphazardly cast aside the gelatinous refuse. The floor was soon littered with blue chunks of carved membrane.

  “What the hell is it doing?” Rigel muttered.

  The robot sheathed the knives and plunged its hands deep into the ragged opening. When it withdrew, its arms cradled the fetal organism.

  “Like delivering an infant,” June whispered.

  “Captain, I am now registering strong vital signs through the robot’s sensors. The fetal creature is indeed alive.”

  They could see the evidence themselves. Baby Blue squirmed gently. A chill went through Ericho and he recalled Donner’s final words.

  The Quad awakens.

  He was certain that Baby Blue, and what Donner had referred to as the Quad, were one and the same.

  “Maybe the lieutenant wasn’t only trying to kill himself by destroying the containment,” Ericho proposed. “Maybe he was trying to destroy this thing before it could hatch.”

  “Or just the opposite,” June said. “Create the conditions enabling it to be born.”

  The creature was about a foot in length from the top of its elongated head to the tips of its triple-toed feet. Arms ended in six-fingered hands, the digits separated into three distinct pairs.

  “Triple sets of opposable digits,” June said. “From an evolutionary standpoint, that would suggest a high degree of dexterity.”

  “Dexterity my ass,” Rigel said. “What I want to know is how the hell it’s managing to breathe in there. The heat and radioactivity should kill practically any living thing.”

  “It doesn’t look like it’s having any problems,” Ericho said.

  Baby Blue’s skin was a deep blue, a shade darker than the membrane. Its eyes were closed. The presence of a mouth, nose and ears made the face appear vaguely human. But it was longer and narrower than a human countenance to make room for that additional sensory organ, a protruding silvery marble between its mouth and nose.

  Ericho recalled the skull-like image Donner had frequently doodled in the HOD. That obviously had been the lieutenant’s prescient representation.

  “Jonomy, you’d better notify Hardy and Faye.”

  “Already done, captain. They’re observing as well.”

  “It must be controlling the robot,” Rigel said. “Any ideas how that’s happening?”

  “Some sort of crossover between psionic superluminals and the electromagnetic spectrum?” June speculated.

  “Possibly,” Jonomy said.

  The robot stood. Holding Baby Blue in its arms, it walked out of the containment and back into the devastated lab. The creature writhed gently, in the manner of a newborn human infant.

  “Incredible,” June whispered.

  “Not so incredible,” Rigel pointed out. “Look where it’s headed.”

  The robot made its way to the airseal through which it had originally entered the lab. It stopped a pace from the door. Its gaze zeroed in on the control panel.

  “Looking for a way out,” Rigel said.

  “Captain, SEN has deduced that the robot intends to attempt an escape. It will stop that from happening.”

  “How?” June asked.

  “I’ve got a pretty good idea,” Rigel said. “Warrior pup.”

  Ericho grimaced. There were three of them aboard the Alchemon and as far as he was concerned, that was three too many. He’d never liked the idea of lethal robots in the bowels of starships, waiting to be activated by a Sentinel to destroy what Pannis publicly referred to as “malfunctioning entities.” Whether such entities were robotic or human made no difference.

  “The Sentinel has activated a warrior pup and dispatched it into airlock three,” Jonomy reported. “The pup will enter the containment airlock from outside the ship to deal with the problem.”

  Hardy’s angry voice erupted from the speakers.

  “Captain, you cannot allow this to happen. If that pup terminates the robot, it could inadvertently destroy the fledgling organism. We are looking at what clearly is one of the most unprecedented events in the history of extraterrestrial discovery. We must do everything possible to keep this creature alive. It is without doubt the product of a high intelligence.”

  “A dangerous high intelligence,” Rigel countered.

  “There is no evidence to support that supposition.”

  “Are you blind? Don’t you even know what’s been going on?”

  Ericho raised his hand, cutting Rigel off before the argument could escalate. “Hardy, even if I agree with you, your point is moot. Talking and arguing about this won’t make the slightest difference in terms of what’s about to happen. I can’t control the Sentinel any more than you can.”

  “You’re obligated to make the attempt.”

  “I’ve tried,” Jonomy said. “I’ve been in communication with SEN and have made it aware of your concerns. However, its priority is keeping the organism contained.”

  “Does SEN have any explanation for what’s happening here?” Ericho asked.

  “It does not. However, bear in mind that such analyses are not native to its function. It is guided by practicalities – in this case, safeguarding the ship. The cause of a problem is of less interest to it than finding a solution to the problem.”

  The science rep muttered something indistinguishable and exited the intercom.

  “The warrior pup is in transit,” Jonomy said.

  “Give us video.”

  A hull cam showed a sphere with a reflective surface exiting a midships airlock. The warrior pup was slightly larger than the regular pups. Dozens of microjets fired a sequence of short targeted bursts, enabling it to roll along the ship’s flank a few centimeters above the undulating hull. It was headed for the containment airlock at the stern.

  “Armed with HCs and mag projectiles,” Rigel said, admiration in his tone. “Plus, Halliburton defensive shielding and the nastiest attack guidance system ever designed. Wouldn’t want one of them pissed at me.”

  The warrior pup reached the containment lock, paused before the closed hatch.

  “Sentinel is opening the outer seal,” Jonomy reported. “SEN is clearing the way.”

 
“I just thought of something,” Rigel said. “Maybe the pup won’t bother entering the containment. Maybe it’ll just do what we were planning to do, blow the inner hatch and vacuum everything into the void.”

  “Unlikely. Sentinel responses tend to be very specific. I do not believe that dealing with the original contamination from the melt is within the scope of the Sentinel’s duty at this time. Besides that, there is still SEN’s historical aversion to purges. I believe the Sentinel will stick to its primary function, ensure that the robot does not exit into the corridor and spread further pollution.”

  The outer lock opened. As the warrior pup dropped into the containment chute, the screen split into two images. On the left was the camera view from the pup as it slithered down the shaft toward the damaged inner seal. The right image emanated from the malfunctioning robot, still poised before the containment lab door.

  The robot shifted Baby Blue to one arm and used its free hand to reach for the door’s manual opening mechanism. Ericho tensed as the robot withdrew the emergency hand crank from its cavity and began winding the handle.

  “Do not worry, captain,” Jonomy said. “The door cannot be opened by that method. The Sentinel is overriding the manual egress unit at the airseal.”

  Onscreen, the robot turned the handle three revolutions. Under normal circumstance, that should have opened the door. When the airseal failed to slide back, the robot jerked away. To Ericho, its action seemed oddly human, as if the robot was startled by the handle’s failure to adhere to its function and open the door.

  The warrior pup reached the inner hatch.

  “Outer hatch closed,” Jonomy said. “The airlock is repressurizing.”

  The pup extruded one of its Higgs cutters. The beam ignited, burned through the inner lock. In the lab, the robot’s ears must have picked up the hissing of incinerating metal. It whirled and zoomed in on the airseal.

  “It knows it’s screwed,” Rigel said gleefully.

  The pup extruded a pliers-like hand. Grasping the handle, it jerked sideways. The action wrenched open the hatch.

  The pup lunged into the containment and yanked the hatch shut behind it. Spotting the robot in the adjacent lab, it shot through the opening between the two areas and halted three paces away.

  The two machines seemed to stare at one another. Ericho was reminded of a twentieth-century video excerpt he’d seen as part of a museum display. A style of vintage movie – he believed they were called westerns – featuring two men in a face-off, ready to shoot one another with holstered projectile weapons.

  The containment scene boasted one big difference. The robot lacked true offensive capabilities, although it did have the utility knives and a low-powered Higgs cutter. But it was no match for the weaponry of the diminutive warrior pup.

  The robot gently laid Baby Blue on the floor and moved to the far corner, as if trying to get as far away as possible from the creature.

  Like a parent trying to spare its child from harm, Ericho thought, fascinated by the behavior.

  The robot’s shoulders appeared to slump, almost as if it knew its destruction was imminent. In a sudden blur of motion, the pup attacked, firing its Higgs cutters. Three shafts of intense light flashed between the machines. Puffs of gray smoke poured from a triplet of holes in the robot, two in its chest and one in the forehead. The initial volley had targeted control and stability systems.

  “Burn that sucker,” Rigel muttered, enjoying the lopsided battle.

  The robot staggered drunkenly out of the corner, flailing its arms. The pup fired again, this time using pencil-thin HC beams to chops off its arms. More flashes severed the robot’s legs above the knee joints.

  Its appendages amputated, the robot collapsed to the deck. It tottered for a few seconds on hinged kneecaps before falling forward. Its head slammed the floor and its camera eyes went dead.

  The split screen vanished. The only imagery now emanated from the victor.

  The pup hovered over the downed robot and shot a mag projectile into the top of its skull. The projectile exploded with a loud hiss, sending a shock wave of electromagnetic pulses into whatever remained of its control circuitry. The robot shuddered once and became still.

  “End of malfunction,” Rigel said.

  But there was no time to savor the pup’s victory. Jonomy’s voice rose in alarm.

  “Aberration signal, captain. It’s coming from the warrior pup.”

  The pup seemed to go crazy. Firing its thruster jets, it darted back and forth across the lab with dizzying speed, tumbling and rolling madly, yet somehow managing to avoid plowing into the walls. The jerky scene on the monitor reminded Ericho of a ride he’d once taken on a suborbital rollercoaster.

  “Stabilizer failure?” Rigel suggested, not sounding convinced.

  The pup froze in the midst of a violent gyration. Rotating slowly, its camera eye zoomed in on the lab’s airseal.

  It lunged at the door, multiple HCs firing in tandem. One beam pierced the lock mechanism, presumably disabling the sure-shutter. The other beams combined to burn a square opening in the center of the airseal, slightly larger than the pup’s diameter.

  The pup crashed into the square. The weakened slab tumbled out into the corridor.

  The pup lunged through the opening.

  The screen went dead.

  A radiation alarm chirped, indicating the airseal breach was allowing contaminated wastes to pour into the corridor. Ericho leaped up from the table and raced toward the exit with Rigel on his heels.

  “Sentinel overrides on all adjacent airseals,” Jonomy said. “Automatic pressure-differential systems activated to contain the radiation.”

  “This is crazy!” Rigel yelled as the two of them ran toward the bridge.

  “No argument.”

  “Captain, the malfunctioning pup has reached the next airseal. It is burning through that door as well.”

  “How do we stop it?” Ericho demanded. Pressure differentials or not, if the warrior pup penetrated too many airseals, the entire ship could be flooded with radiation.

  “The other two warrior pups have been Sentinel-activated. They’re heading for a position on the other side of that door, waiting for the errant pup to come through.”

  Ericho and Rigel reached the bridge. As Ericho assumed his command chair, the HOD came to life. Interlaced corridor cams provided a 3D view of the two newly awakened warrior pups floating near an airseal. A square section in the center of the airseal was being cut through from the other side.

  Ericho held his breath as the crazed pup smashed through the cutout section. But it wasn’t prepared to encounter two of its deadly shipmates.

  The waiting duo struck first, launching a volley of HCs and mag projectiles that caught the malfunctioning pup in a crossfire. The battle was over in seconds. The crazed pup fell to the deck, a smoldering mass. The victorious pups picked up their victim with pincer hands and dragged it through a small access opening in the ceiling.

  “Hauling its ass to pup heaven,” Rigel muttered.

  “Radiation contained to the affected corridors,” Jonomy said. “RAP is dispatching repair and radiation-scrubbing pups.”

  “This makes no sense,” Rigel said. “That warrior pup was under Sentinel control when it went crazy.”

  “Actually, it was not. At the moment the link robot was terminated, SEN fulfilled its duty. The Sentinel deactivated and its control link was broken. The warrior pup was momentarily acting on its own accord.”

  But not for long, Ericho thought. Something else had assumed control of the pup, the same unknown thing that minutes earlier had taken over the robot.

  He kept his attention on the HOD. In less than a minute, both sections of contaminated corridor were swarming with dozens of maintenance pups pouring from access shafts. Some were specialized rad scrubbers, unfolding particulate filtering nets. Others began welding plates over the damaged airseals.

  “EPS and EHO estimate fifty minutes for repairs,” Jonomy sa
id. “Only minor radiation leakage into the pup access shafts. They should be scrubbed clean within the hour.”

  Ericho leaned back in his chair with a deep sigh, wondering what bizarre craziness would come upon them next.

  CHAPTER 15

  LeaMarsa followed June into the subshaft branching off downdeck’s main corridor and up a curving ramp. She was no fan of nutriment baths but the crewdoc had insisted.

  “I hear the malfunctions are under control,” she blurted out, eager to concentrate on something else. “Faye told me everything’s been fine since the robot and warrior pup were destroyed.”

  June nodded. “I believe the worst of our troubles are behind us.”

  LeaMarsa read doubt in her voice. “Have they figured out what happened to the robots?”

  “Evidence suggests that Baby Blue can take command of electronic systems that venture too close.”

  The ramp ended in an airseal. June opened it and they entered a small circular chamber. The deck had a quartet of outlined circles.

  The crewdoc stripped to a bikini. Her dark flesh revealed the imperfections of her years, including stretch marks from having given birth. LeaMarsa had once heard June mention a desire to have more children. With pharmaceutically delayed menopause and stem cell enhancements, safe pregnancies were possible even in a woman’s ninth decade.

  “Clothes off,” June ordered.

  LeaMarsa reluctantly let her jumper fall to the floor. Bikini-clad, she stepped onto the outlined circle beside.

  “Ready?” the crewdoc asked.

  “Not really.”

  June swiveled her head to a wall sensor and spoke in a commanding tone.

  “Nodes one and two ready to drop.”

  NUB, the Level Six system that controlled what awaited them below, spoke in a lyrical female voice.

  “Drop authorized. Countdown commencing. Three… two… one.”

  The node beneath LeaMarsa dilated with such speed that the floor seemed to simply disappear. She plunged downward. Geonic counterforces broke the fall, suspending her in the freefall zone in the center of the bath.

  The warm and humid atmosphere was a spectral wonderland. Shafts of light from above and below illuminated the bath’s marble-sized nutriment globules, their colors ranging from aquamarines and violets to bold teals and fiery reds.