Framandi Alliance- Galaxy Accretion Conflicts

by Rashid Ahmed

  Just then Jón’s thinking became clear. He felt like he was back to being himself.

  “I think Kei may have tried to access my brain’s processing capabilities as we ejected from the Síast,” Jón thought to his sister and to Áox.

  “How do you know?” Ásta asked.

  “My thinking has been sluggish. My reaction time was slow. So were my actions. The feeling just cleared up. I haven’t even got my situational awareness feed up yet,” Jón thought back.

  Now a part of the twins’ thought conversation, Áox suggested, “The only reason Kei would need that kind of processing, would be to overpower and subjugate a gigil’s mind. Perhaps more than one. Once the AI takes control of a few gigils, it’ll be able to use their brains, for all its bio processing needs. Kei may have an agenda we’re unaware of.”

  “So far though, its goals have matched ours. Perhaps its drive to achieve them supersedes our instructions or even cooperation,” Ásta suggested.

  “I’ve been hit by a heavy-particle beam,” Jón announced, sounding stressed. He flipped through various sensor interfaces on his mission pad and added, “A few CREG and shield panels, towards the rear left side of my capsule, have been damaged. The panels are not generating energy, but they’ll provide passive shielding.”

  “Hold tight,” Ásta thought back encouragingly. “We’re passing through an asteroid barrage that’s just swung around the planet we’re approaching.”

  Sliding sideways, tumbling over and abruptly changing direction, their navigation computers swung into action, sending their capsules into a frenzy of object avoidance manoeuvres. The capsules hadn’t yet linked into AI assistance from Átt. They were relying on conventional computing, but it was enough.

  “The drones have abandoned their chase. We’re about to enter the fifth planet’s atmosphere. Brace yourselves,” Áox let the twins know. “Also, track your approach angle. It should be at six point two degrees,” the framandi reminded.

  Jón eyed his capsule’s navigation interface. The three of them would enter the planet’s gravity-well from an unbound trajectory, at hypersonic speeds. Friction would tear at the capsules. Jón assured himself that their capsules had been put through extensive testing during development, including uncontrolled entries into Venus, so he should put worry aside. After all, he’d helped develop them. Damaged as his capsule was, it would make it to the surface intact. He checked in with Ásta and with Áox, to assure them as well.

  “I’m beginning to bounce about,” Ásta let them know. Her capsule was first to hit the atmosphere at approximately a hundred and forty kilometres above the surface.

  Jón was next, followed closely by Áox. Their capsules had classical sphere-cone shapes, which provided superior aerodynamic stability.

  The turbulence turned severe. Sensors indicated that the atmosphere was slightly thicker than Earth’s. Fifteen minutes later, the capsules deployed conventional-fuel breaking rockets, in preparation for landing. Áox had provided coordinates to their capsules’ navigation computers. The three came in over a lightly forested area into a rocky clearing.

  “Check your visual feeds,” Ásta thought to them. She added, “There’re some buildings and infrastructure towards north. The planet’s magnetic field is a little lopsided, but we should be able to use standard equipment to find our way about.”

  “I’m transmitting our location to the Átt,” Jón announced while adding mapping, atmospheric and gravitational sensor data to his gaupa transmission.

  They landed harder than expected. Capsule legs unfolded and took the brunt of the hard landing. The planet’s gravity was approximately thirty percent greater than Earth’s, uncomfortable for humans but not unsurmountable. The twins were genetically modified for strength. They were unencumbered.

  “My capsule has toppled over,” Áox let the twins know along with a trickle of mixed emotions, which registered as amusement and concern on their diadems. “One of my capsule’s legs has sunk into the surface,” the framandi reported.

  Ásta scrolled to the external camera feed on her pad and replied, “You’ve landed on something that looks like a termite’s nest.” Knowing the framandi would require additional information to go with her description, she pulled together mental imagery of whatever she could remember about termites and appended the information. Brief as the data was, Áox didn’t enquire further.

  Jón thought to his sister while keeping Áox in the conversation, “The capsule’s rolled over onto its hatch. Normally a toppled capsule would be able to right itself using its landing legs. With one leg completely embedded in the surface, we’ll need to do some digging, before we’re able to get Áox out.”

  “The capsules have nearly completed their cool-off and power-down processes. Give us a few minutes. We’ll get you out of there,” Ásta said to the framandi.

  Stepping out of the capsule, Jón took a quick look around. Without AI to run administrative tasks including surveillance, they’d have to be extra cautious. It was dusk at the location they’d landed at. Ásta and he had turned off their suit’s AI, following a procedure communicated to them by Áox. The framandi had received the instructions for the procedure from Max, soon after Kei took the Síast offline.

  Turning to Ásta, Jón spoke over their suit’s radios, “Place your shoulder against Áox’s capsule. I’ll slice off the trapped leg’s joints and connectors with my suit’s secondary laser.”

  Jón gripped the trapped leg with his left hand, drew out a set of lines for the laser to follow in his helmet’s display using a Lýsi developed eye-lock targeting system. The laser began cutting away at the leg’s joint and connectors. A few minutes later, the leg came free.

  “We’ve attracted attention,” Ásta thought to her brother and to Áox. “Looks like local wildlife,” she added.

  “That’s not the least of it. You’re joining the trapped leg in the termite mound,” Jón let his sister know. Ásta looked down and noticed the weight of the capsule was pushing her into the crumbling surface next to the capsule’s trapped leg. She held out her left arm to her brother and called out, “Pull!” Jón grabbed her arm, ensured his feet were on solid ground and heaved. The two of them scrambled away as the capsule slowly rolled over.

  “Your hatch is clear,” Jón thought to their framandi crewmate.

  Áox exited as light was fading. The glow from inside his capsule gave him a frighteningly eerie silhouette. Ásta thought to Jón, “If I’d seen this anywhere else, I’d have scared myself silly.”

  Áox was still part of their thought conversation. The framandi replied, “Your genetic makeup propels you to be alert to noticeable but irregular shapes. It’s a defense reaction. Similar programming is embedded into our genetic code as well.”

  “The Átt is on its way, but it’ll take a full day getting here,” Ásta let the two of them know. She had been keeping her eye on incoming transmissions and the vessel’s status had just been updated. “The capsules are drawing attention. I’m curious about the structures to the north. How about doing some exploring?” She added with excitement, “It’ll be just like wandering off while growing up, looking for Huldufólk amongst the rocks.” She was referring to Jón and her early years, when they’d head out on camping adventures far from their Icelandic home, looking for elves, or ‘hidden people’ as the local folk called them.

  Jón grinned. His sister could make light even in the most intense situations.

  Áox thought to them very seriously, “The only hidden people we’re going to find here, would be gigils.” Jón and Ásta burst out laughing.

  Ásta thought back, “Those would be the weirdest looking elves.” She passed on related mental imagery, so that Áox would be up to speed with her reference.

  The framandi thought happy emotions back to them and communicated, “We should take our gaupas along. I will assist you in attaching these to your suits. The gaupas will manage up to two simultaneous connections using a portion of your suit’s power. Besides, I wou
ld not like to leave our technology behind for any gigils to find.”

  Áox attached the gaupas to the twins’ left shoulders and rigged insulated high-power lines taken from spares in the capsules. The framandi then provided a small amount of exterior smart material, to ensure the power cables were adequately protected on their suits.

  “What about the gaupa from your capsule?” Jón asked.

  “I already have one forming a part of my suit. This information is already available to you,” Áox thought back, adding, “we’ll carry the one in my capsule for safekeeping.”

  The trio shut their capsules and engaged safety protocols against unauthorised access. As they set out north towards the structures Ásta had observed, they noticed the foliage around them move.

  Áox thought to them, “Local wildlife. Three different species. Bio readings do not indicate them to be hostile. I could be wrong. Besides, I do not believe they would be capable of harming us, as long as we remain in our suits.”

  Ásta began recording everything. She thought of Stefán now. He would have had a field day. As a biologist and their crew’s xenologist, he’d dreamed of setting foot on a planet harbouring life. She missed him. She scheduled a burst of recorded data to be sent to Stefán every five minutes. Ásta included a personal message telling him how she felt about him. Then she focussed on the task at hand, noticing she’d fallen behind her crewmates.

  It was dusk. The human HSEVA suit helmets, had night vision capabilities which had been developed for asteroid mining use. The suits also fed in sensor information, to create a superior augmented reality scene, which looked like a well-defined video game interface. Ásta noticed flora that looked like trees, but with thicker trunks than those on earth. The leaves were broad on all the plants. A breeze was picking up. She noticed long reed-like plants sway away in the distance.

  They made good time. The trio emerged from the forested area and took cover behind a group of tall shrubs, which looked like balls of wool.

  “You recollect the information on the gigil’s wormhole maintenance structures?” Áox asked the twins. Both confirmed they did. The framandi thought to them, “The structures ahead may be protected by similar systems. We need to reconnoitre the area and look for oblong antennas. They’re indicative of automated protection.” The framandi appended imagery so the twins could better understand what they were looking for.

  “Should we split up?” Jón asked.

  Áox replied, “We’re stronger together. Ideally an exploratory team should have five persons. That is how we do it.” Áox pulled up the visuals the capsules had captured, during their atmospheric entry. The framandi quickly located the structures close to their landing area and marked a path, encircling the gigil facility, ensuring adequate cover between themselves and the structures. Áox utilised their gaupas to sync navigation between their suits. The trio began their scouting mission, sprinting from cover to cover, stopping to surreptitiously observe. The site looked deserted through the thick, transparent and outward leaning perimeter wall.

  Several large structures, which looked like prefabricated barns, were visible in the compound. The doors on these were as tall as the structures themselves. Further in, a neat row of rectangular buildings filled their visors. The buildings were interconnected with numerous pipes and conduits running between them.

  A fifth of the way around the facility, Ásta called out, “Look at the building beside the factory-like structures on the right. It’s tall enough to have visual line of sight all over the facility, and there are others like it placed strategically to cover blind areas. I don’t notice any oblong antennas, but these look like defensive installations.”

  “We’ve already been detected,” Áox thought to them. The framandi pushed both hands into the woolly shrub they were hiding behind and pulled apart. An antenna was hidden within the shrub. “This is the first one so far. The gigil automation may already be alerted and initiating action. We should pull back,” Áox suggested.

  Jón replied, “I think otherwise. We may have been scanned and logged. But we’re new to the area. I’d seen a curious local species, attempting to enter the compound through the wall. For all intents, the gigil systems may have tagged us as a new species. If not, we’d have been toasted by now. I think we should continue reconnoitring.”

  Áox acknowledged. They continued circling the facility, noting the structures. By the time they returned to where they’d started from, Áox had found another five oblong antennas hidden in assorted foliage. During their quick hike around the compound, the three had attracted a few groups of local wildlife. Some of these groups had accompanied them while they hustled from cover to cover.

  Ásta commented, “I think, we may have been adopted as part of the herd.” She nodded towards the mixed species gathering of wildlife around them. Some of the individuals were close enough to cause her concern.

  Jón pointed out, “There’s the six limbed creature I’d noticed earlier. It’s trying to walk through the perimeter wall but keeps bumping into the barrier. Its front limbs have hands. It’s feeling along the wall. Not a very intelligent creature.”

  After observing the facility for a while Jón remarked, “Somehow, I’ve got the feeling the gigils have pulled out and the site is deserted. And I don’t think it’s because of us. None of my suit’s sensors are picking up any electromagnetic or other energy readings.”

  “I think we should breach the facility,” Ásta stated.

  Áox transmitted ‘concern’ emotions. The framandi thought to them, “The gigil have left all their technology intact, powered down and very likely unattended. This is concerning. And, they retreated in a hurry. They could have taken on our fleet of masked vessels for an extended period. We don’t know what’s on the other side of the wormhole they’re exiting through. We should follow and find out. Right now, we need to update everyone concerned about this location and our observations.”

  The trio moved back into the wooded area and up a small hillock to the west of the gigil facility. The local wildlife seemed to have lost interest in them for now. Halting midway up the mound, the three sheltered beside a cluster of large boulders.

  Having reported their location and findings to the Átt, they rested. Each took turns to keep lookout. The crew aboard Átt had taken on the task of coming up with a plan, to breach the facility, with Áox providing inputs on countering the gigil automated defences.

  Dawn was creeping over the horizon when Áox awoke the twins. They’d each had six hours of sleep. Awaking Ásta first, the framandi pointed straight up and conveyed, “Your vessel is entering geostationary orbit above us. They’ve located three other facilities like this one, at different locations on the planet.”

  Ásta began raising her right hand to rub her eyes, but realised she had her suit on. Looking over at Jón she selected his suit’s feed and checked on her brother’s bio sensors. His brain activity showed fatigue. She decided to let him sleep some more.

  From Átt, Stefán contacted her through her diadem, “I’ve been worrying about you. Are you all right?” It was very much like Stefán to jump into conversations or thought transfers, without any greeting or preamble.

  “I’ve been all-right,” Ásta replied. “We’re on an alien planet, so it’s been a little unnerving. But nothings gone dramatically wrong so far. Have you been through the videos I’ve sent you?” she asked.

  “We all have. Áom provided all the information they have about the planet, which isn’t much. The framandi have kept out of the lofi system so far, other than maintaining a few remote monitoring drones. We’re forming a joint information collection cell, which will be hosted by the framandi. Information collected about this planet, will be duplicated onto the data storage module provided by AL-I, which is currently on Sólríka space platform.”

  “Jæja! That’s fantastic!” Ásta exclaimed. She transmitted to Stefán, “We’re really upping our cooperation with the framandi. A joint exploration mission, alongside assistan
ce against gigil intrusion. This will be good for relationship building.”

  “That’s what Crystal said as well,” Stefán replied. “But the ongoing confrontation takes precedence, so we’ll grab you guys, run a quick survey and withdraw from the planet for now. Sven, Crystal, Isla, Áom and I are bringing two shuttles down to your location. We’re five minutes away from shuttle release. I’ll see you soon,” Stefán signed off.

  Ásta was elated now. She thought to Áox, “Some of the crew are bringing shuttles to the surface, to pick us up. We should explore the gigil facility before we leave.”

  Áox responded, “I have been in contact with Áom. An atmospheric entry vessel is detaching from one of our disguised carrier-ships. It is bringing us the equipment required to overcome the gigil defences and infiltrate the facility. Smart suit material, customized for the two of you and for Átt’s crew, is also being brought down.”