The Io Encounter: Hard Science Fiction (Ice Moon Book 3)

by Brandon Q Morris

  He is afraid of losing his humanity, Francesca thought. What a horrible idea, but in a strange way it gives me hope for him.

  “Do not be afraid,” she said. “Human beings are so different from each other. Take a look at Martin. If you ask me, he is autistic in some aspects, but he still gets along. He would not be so down right now if he didn’t love Jiaying, poor guy. It doesn’t have to be bad to deduce emotions through thoughts instead of feeling them tingle on your skin. It is different, but not wrong. The foundation of it all is important, being interested in the other person’s perspective. Who knows what will happen two years from now? Maybe by then I would have been tired of your body and we would have split up. Perhaps I won’t be able to stand your strange thoughts two years from now, but until then...”

  Francesca was convinced by her own words, though she left out an aspect: physicality. Not just sex, even though it was important, but also the feeling of closeness, the hugs, the hand-holding, the kisses. How long would she be able to do without them?

  “Thanks for your kind words,” Marchenko said. “While you are asleep, I will think about them with 27.5 percent of my capacity—just kidding.”

  Francesca lay down on her side again. Marchenko was with her. He was not only inside the spaceship, but also inside her head. Maybe this way he would be able to feel what vanilla smells and tastes like.

  The next morning he was back.

  “There is some exciting news,” he said after she opened her eyes.

  “Yes?”

  “We received a message from Enceladus and decrypted it, at least approximately.”

  “And you just now tell me?”

  “Sorry. You had just fallen asleep when it arrived and I did not want to wake you again.”

  “Next time, you come and get me, okay?”

  “I promise. Do you want a summary, or should I play back the entire recording?”

  “It’s enough to give me the most important points.”

  Marchenko managed to summarize the discussion in such a way she felt she had been there.

  “And what is next?” she asked.

  “In a few hours we should get an answer from Mission Control.”

  Francesca was just starting her shift in the garden when Amy spoke over the loudspeaker.

  “Earth has approved the mission to Io. Let’s meet at 1800 hours to discuss details. Use your areas of specialization to think about about how we can do this with the least amount of risk. Normal shift rotation has been canceled. Amy, out.”

  February 22, 2047, Fort Meade

  Major Shixin Tang felt like a marathon runner being shadowed. Don’t the Russians have an expression about carrying a bear on your back? Or does that mean something else? He glanced over his shoulder and saw his shadow, Lining Li. She rarely said anything, but she was always there, as he had traveled from China to the East Coast of the U.S., then to Cuba and back again to the East Coast. In the last four days he had probably covered more ground walking around airports than he had in his office building at home during the past weeks.

  The door opened and they both entered the room where, a little more than a week ago, they had met Mike Butterfield, the general, and the female NSA analyst. The room looked the same, but this time they had been led on a different path through the labyrinth to get there. Was it intentional? The analyst, whom Shixin now recalled had been addressed as Alice by Butterfield later in their first meeting, sat on the conference table with her legs crossed. She once again wore a business suit, even though it was certain she belonged to the NSA, which was subordinate to the military. Why wasn’t she wearing a uniform like his own colleague did? These Americans do not stand behind their actions, he thought. Maybe they are even ashamed to fulfill such an honorable task.

  “Hi, Alice,” he said, greeting the analyst.

  “Hi, Shixin,” she replied. “Mike should be here soon.” As if on cue, Mike Butterfield entered the room through a door in the opposite wall.

  “I am glad you were able to come.” He shook hands with both Chinese. “We have to talk about Project AntiHydra. Are our two guests in Guantanamo doing well?”

  Shixin nodded.

  “That is great. I assume nothing has changed on your side.” Mike gave them a questioning look. “Otherwise, I would have to shoot you on the spot, you know.”

  The American laughed, but Shixin was not sure it was meant as a joke. He did not join in the laughter.

  “Excuse my direct attitude. I know I should adjust to your habits, since you are our guests, after all. But we have little time to waste, and in the end, we are all on the same team.”

  “Yes, just continue,” Shixin said. “This is not the first time I have worked with foreign services.”

  “By now, you’ve probably analyzed the transmission that ILSE received. We do not assume this would change any of the goals of our action. Do you agree?”

  “Yes, my superiors have confirmed this.”

  “Good. Actually, this makes our procedure even easier. Our plan is as strong as its weakest link. We don’t have our own man on board, but something like one and a half allies. You provide the half assistant—if I may call her that—since she is not doing it completely voluntarily. Your taikonaut will have to do most of the manual work, though.”

  “Yes, she will. I do not consider this a problem. What about the other ally? No one has mentioned it before. I demand to be told at once.” Shixin spoke softly, but very clearly.

  “Sure. Just a moment. The original plan called for Li Jiaying to eliminate her fellow astronauts.”

  “She knows it, and she has agreed, if in turn her parents are released.”

  “Thanks to the new mission to Io, her task will become easier. We always prefer this, when a human factor is involved. At any rate, she is supposed to be in a relationship with the German guy on board.”

  “Taikonaut Li would still have fulfilled her task heroically.”

  “I don’t doubt it, but the risk of the attempt failing due to someone resisting makes it best to choose a less stressful solution. We will suggest a mission plan with three crewmembers landing on the moon. They would be out of the way then. This wouldn’t sound suspicious, since they did the same thing on Titan. That only leaves the commander. That would be your taikonaut’s task.”

  “Amy Michaels, an American. I assume we will be given free rein?”

  Mike Butterfield nodded. “You will get this in writing, of course, for your superiors. We don’t want any diplomatic tensions between our countries.”

  “Fine. And what about the other ally?”

  “Alice can tell you about it, so she wouldn’t have come to this meeting for nothing.”

  Sure, you probably invited the woman so she could protect you if we decided to liquidate you, Shixin thought. On the outside, he smiled at Alice.

  “If you will excuse me—I have a lot on my schedule, you understand.” Butterfield left the room through a door which up to now had been invisible.

  “And what can you tell us?” asked Shixin, turning his attention to the remaining American.

  The analyst joked, “Well, darling, now we are finally alone.” She jumped from the table with amazing ease. I am sure she used to be a professional athlete, Shixin thought.

  A diagram of the international spaceship appeared on the large wall monitor.

  “ILSE, as you may know, is controlled by an AI named Watson. The programming of the AI makes protecting the lives of all crew members the highest priority. This goal cannot be overridden.”

  “Sure, otherwise the AI would violate the Limitation Treaty of 2025,” Shixin said. About twenty years ago, the UN had agreed to impose limitations on advanced artificial intelligences. This prohibited them from turning against their creators.

  “Unfortunately, some employee of the software company built in a backdoor program,” the analyst continued. “You won’t believe me, but I can assure you this was not done at our command.”

  Shixin laughed out loud a
nd the woman smiled. If you only knew, he thought, what American companies agree to in order to do business with the biggest economic power on Earth.

  “The result was positive. When the time comes, we can give the orders to the Watson AI. It is not easy, as the signal takes so long to get there, so we have to plan everything well. And it can only become noticeable once it is too late, because a hard reboot of the computer systems would delete our changes.”

  “Could you give me a few examples of what Watson can do?”

  “How about discharging all the air from the spaceship? Or steering ILSE directly into Jupiter? Or something less conspicuous, like simulating an accident? For the rest of the world, the spaceship would simply vanish. There would be no witnesses, only a few investigations afterward. The astronauts would become posthumous heroes.”

  “A living hero would be more useful to the People’s Republic, but sometimes compromises are necessary.”

  “To us, the option of having ILSE return to Earth seems no longer realistic under any circumstances.”

  “We came to a similar conclusion. Too bad, but sometimes sacrifices are unavoidable. We cannot risk the inevitable destabilization of the current economic system. Imagine one of the world powers receiving technology from Hydra that would give it a decisive advantage! Do you have any other information? I would like to explain to our taikonaut during the next few days what exactly she will have to do. Her parents will certainly help me with this. According to our information, she has a very close relationship with her parents. And she does not need to know the full repercussions of her actions.”

  “Thanks, Major Tang. Our Joint Staff is currently working on the exact procedures. You will receive your instructions in time.”

  The bottom line—she has to be arrogant to give me a slap in the face like this, Shixin thought. Alice must think she is above me. She probably has no idea I am the head of the staff coordinating this action. But it is better if the Americans do not know everything.

  He nodded to say goodbye to her. Then he left the room through a door that opened automatically. Lining followed behind.

  February 22, 2047, ILSE

  Francesca was the first to reach the command module. She absolutely did not want to miss anything. Well, she thought, I am probably not the first one, since I am sure a part of Marchenko is always here. But he had not contacted her yet. It was a strange feeling—he might be in the same room without her noticing. She would have to talk to him about it. If she already felt like this, what would the others think? Or was she too sensitive? Marchenko could signal his main presence somehow, like the red dot on a camera that indicated it was recording.

  Looking bleary-eyed, Amy entered the module. Francesca had decided to offer her and Hayato regular babysitting sessions. The two of them were an important part of the team and needed their sleep. Maybe such a task would also be good for Jiaying, who now climbed into the command module from below, a frown on her face. Hayato followed shortly afterward. It was apparent he was also very tired. Francesca yawned from just looking at the Japanese astronaut.

  Martin came last. Since their dramatic journey through the Enceladus Ocean, Francesca thought highly of him. He might be quiet most of the time, but he was reliable, and in difficult situations he developed amazing ideas. She would have liked for him to be happy with Jiaying, but unfortunately it was all over between them. The Chinese woman had always been somewhat puzzling to her. Maybe the cultural differences were too great.

  “Great to see you all here. We haven’t been together like this in quite a while,” Amy said as she greeted the crew. The commander seemed disappointed, and Francesca believed she knew the reason why. Directly after the end of the Enceladus mission they had developed a sense of togetherness, a wonderful feeling. Francesca had almost felt like being at home—as part of a family—at that special time. This feeling had disappeared much too fast, and no one could tell her the reason. She decided to talk about it.

  “I have a little request, before we talk about the big issues. May I, Amy?”

  The commander nodded.

  “When we left Enceladus a few weeks ago I felt like I was among good friends, almost like in a family. You were there for me, comforted me, and I am very grateful for it. Even when we left Titan it was that way. Since then, things have changed, and I don’t know why. If you tell me it’s quite normal once the hormonal euphoria one feels after being saved at the last moment disappears, then I’ll shut up. But perhaps there is another reason. Now would be a good opportunity to mention it. If there is a problem, we can find a solution… together.” Francesca looked around the group. All of them were gazing at the table, each avoiding looking at the others, as if they were musing.

  “I… we… have been so busy with Dmitri Sol lately. Maybe I neglected you as a group because of it,” Amy said, with a guilty look as usual.

  “It’s obvious you have to take care of your son,” Francesca said. “But you are welcome to bring him over to my cabin one night of the week. I can manage, and then you could get a good night’s sleep.”

  Amy nodded. “We’ll gladly take you up on your offer.”

  “Are you alluding to me, Francesca?” Martin put both his hands on the table and was drumming with his index fingers to a rhythm only he could hear.

  “I am not alluding to anyone. I am just mentioning the feeling of having lost something. Perhaps we can find it again, if we all try.”

  “Nicely phrased. But yes, I do understand what you mean,” Martin said. “I am sorry I cannot be there for you at the moment. I can barely get along with myself. I would actually prefer to spend day and night alone in my cabin.”

  Francesca wondered what she should answer, but Amy beat her to it.

  “Martin, you’ve got to know that we need you. Otherwise you are free to do what you want. We do not have to have breakfast together. Take as much freedom as you need. I understand you’re not doing very well. I would be glad if you could consider us a kind of resource. If you’d like to talk to someone, we are always ready. But you don’t have to prove anything. You are a valuable member of the crew, no matter whether you spend the evening playing bridge with us or prefer sitting alone in your cabin.”

  She phrased it well, Francesca thought. Maybe it will help us move forward a bit. Francesca hoped Jiaying would say something now. She deliberately did not look at the Chinese astronaut to try to avoid making her feel that this was expected. Damn it. We do expect it. Why are we playing hide and seek? “Jiaying, could you maybe comment on what I felt?” Francesca always fared well with addressing things directly, as diplomacy had never been her strong point.

  Jiaying flinched when her name was mentioned and stared at each of them wide-eyed. What the hell is wrong with her? Francesca wondered.

  “You don’t have to say anything if you don’t want to,” Amy reassured her. “We are just concerned about you. Is it something related to your health? Anything you tell us will stay here, and Earth does not have to find out.”

  “I...”

  There is something in her trying to get out, but she won’t let it, Francesca thought. One could tell Jiaying was trying hard. She was struggling with her words, fighting.

  “It...”

  “I am...”

  “Oh, well...”

  “I... I am fine.”

  And she gave up the fight. “I sometimes have tension headaches that affect my mood, and I don’t want to bother anyone. It has nothing to do with you.”

  Jiaying cast a shy glance in Martin’s direction. “Could we focus on our work now? We are here for a very different reason, correct?”

  Francesca was disappointed. She crumpled the handkerchief that had somehow ended up between her fingers. Whose might it be? No, they would not get an answer out of Jiaying. For some reason the Chinese woman wanted to solve all of this herself, whatever the problem was. Should she ask Marchenko to keep a discreet watch on Jiaying, for her own protection? Francesca shook her head. No, she couldn’t have
a member of their crew spied on. If it ever came out, the breach of trust could not be undone.

  “Jiaying is right,” Amy said. “Let’s move on. We are actually here to talk about our detour to Io. We need to get some information, since this moon was never part of our official mission training.”

  “We don’t just need information, we also have to discuss it, because the whole thing won’t be easy,” Martin said.

  “Yes, all in good time. Marchenko, could you please summarize the most important details?”

  The fog display now showed Jupiter. ILSE would cross its orbit in a few weeks.

  Then the perspective shifted to one of its moons.

  “We are approaching Io,” Marchenko’s voice explained. “It is a bit more distant from its planet than Enceladus, but not as far from Jupiter as Titan is from Saturn.”

  “Jupiter must look huge in its sky,” Martin remarked.

  “We are going to see it when we get there,” Francesca said.

  The commander jumped in. “No matter. The closeness, the slightly elliptical orbit, and the fact of Jupiter being much heavier than Saturn causes the moon to be strongly kneaded by the planet’s gravitational force, more than 6,000 times as much as our moon is affected by Earth. If you strongly knead a piece of putty, it gets warm on the inside. That is exactly what happens to Io. The heat moves outward and is the reason for strong volcanic activity on Io. There are craters measuring hundreds of kilometers, and lakes of liquid lava. When a volcano erupts, it can eject material up to a height of 300 kilometers.”

  “That means we have to be very careful during landing.”

  “Yes, Hayato, both during approach and at the landing site. We should definitely avoid lava lakes.”