Lunar 3097

by Gary Timbrell

  4 was finishing up with 1 and disconnected him from the main frame when 5 returned to the tech lab.

  The security guards, still in their positions, suddenly started moving in perfect symmetry from encircling the first Lander and the tech lab to encircling the second Lander and the tech lab. The safety chain remained unbroken throughout the move.

  The captain was taking no chances, especially with 1. It had been on the surface for years, and it had killed one of its own kind.

  When the guards were in place, the AIs proceeded to the second Lander and secured themselves into the flight restraints, ready for the second trip to the Lunar surface. The guards now resumed their first position to allow for the doors to be opened. The red flashing light and the siren started up again, and after a few minutes, the landing bay doors started to open. The clamps holding the Lander released, and the craft slowly dropped out of the cruiser and started its descent to the Lunar surface.

  LUNAR 3097

  The light was limited due to the Lunar cycle, but 2 didn’t need light to locate what he was searching for. As he came into sight of the pile of AZURE that he and 1 had fought over, he stopped, dropped to his knees, and began digging.

  He stood up after a few minutes holding the laser gun 1 had built. He then headed to the Azure239. Upon reaching the pile, he stopped and stared at it for a few minutes, then set off toward a ridge, one of the tallest ridges on the moon. He crested the top of the ridge and looked down. There before him lay acres of AZURE239, the result of months of work by himself and 3.

  The area was smaller than the crater that they harvested them from, but it was still an impressive sight.

  Suddenly, green light streaked across the valley. It took only a touch from the laser, and the AZURE239 was instantly incinerated. 2 kept sweeping the weapon from side to side until there was nothing left but ashes. He surveyed the area closely, making sure he had missed nothing. Satisfied that it was all gone, he turned and made his way back to the Lander site, walking past the one ton pile, now the only AZURE239 known to exist.

  Lander

  “Lander Two, this is Trident, do you copy?”

  “Go ahead, Trident.”

  “We have just got a big hit on our scanners. There is a large heat signature about twenty miles to the LUNAR north. It has some readings similar to what we expect from the AZURE239, but it’s different in many ways. We’re going to send you coordinates. 5, we would like for you to investigate this area as soon as you land.”

  “Copy that, Trident.”

  ISA Headquarters

  Flight Control

  All communications were being monitored and relayed over the main speakers in flight control. Slowly, Abbey stood up.

  “2’s first mistake!” she shouted. “We got you, you son of a bitch; we got you!” She suddenly realized she was standing up at her station pumping her fist. She cast an eye around the room. Yep, everyone was looking at her. She slowly shrank into her chair and acted like nothing ever happened.

  Her wrist comm. beeped. Alex had sent a written message. “Now that was hilarious.”

  CHAPTER 32

  LUNAR 3097

  Lander Site

  The Lander floated in like a feather and settled on the surface, creating the usual cloud, but before the dust had settled, the door opened. A streak of blue and gold lines appeared and then disappeared just as quickly. 5 must have been at his top speed as he left the Lander, but it still wasn’t fast enough to get by 2 unnoticed.

  Just as he was about to chase after 5, 1 came down the ramp toward him. He tried to communicate via the neural comm. link. He then realized why they took 1 up to the ship. 2 took a second to reevaluate the situation he found himself in. He then turned, removed something from the derelict hull, and was gone in a flash.

  ISA Headquarters

  Flight Control

  “Wow, I knew there was something weird!” exclaimed Alex. He rose out of his seat and came over to Abbey’s station. “Can I show you something?” Although it was phrased in the form of a question, it must have been rhetorical because he never waited for an answer. “Look at these readings and tell me what you think,” he said as he typed on her keyboard.

  Abbey studied the screen. “They look like neural transmitter readings. Why are we looking at these?”

  “Because I just got those from the surface,” whispered Alex.

  Abbey turned with a bewildered look, then a look of realization hit her. “But we took the transmitter out of 1. Who could 2 be talking to?”

  “Maybe 2 was trying to talk to 1 and then realized that we removed the hardware so he couldn’t hear him.”

  “It’s a pity we can’t tell if this was just a one-way transmission from this data. We can’t, right?”

  “I don’t think so. I’ll check with the comm. techs and see if there’s a way to tell who, what, and how this data is being used.”

  Alex closed his eyes and pinched the top of his nose in deep thought. “Even the Trident is too far out to be able to pick up any real neural transmissions and be able to tell what they are saying.”

  “You’re probably right. It’s just 2 testing 1. Now, though, he knows he can’t trust 1 anymore.”

  “Yeah, but 1 still has the same 2054 chip, so we can’t trust him either,” replied Abbey.

  Taking back her keyboard and just as she flipped back to the live feeds from the AIs, the entire flight control room’s ambient lighting turned from the cool blue hue to a bright green color just for an instant.

  There was a buzz across the room; then Abbey noticed that 5’s feed had gone dark. She switched to the backup video link but still nothing. “Anybody getting video from 5?” she asked loudly. No response.

  “Comm., can you roll back the feed from 5 so we can see what happened?”

  There was a moment more of black screen; then the video feed spooled backward. It stopped with an image from 5 near a pyramid-shaped pile of oval-shaped objects. It was difficult to tell how large the pile was with nothing to reference it to, but it looked substantial. Suddenly, a green light flashed, and the link was severed. The feed went blank.

  Abbey’s face said it all. “What the hell happened to 5? Get me those geologists on the line. I want to know if there’s anything that could cause that reaction on that moon.”

  She turned to Alex. “I wonder if stacking the AZURE239 creates some energy that would produce a flash like that.”

  “Let’s hope not. We won’t be able to load it on the Lander, if that’s the case,” he replied.

  From the other side of the room came a voice saying, “The geologists are on their way up.”

  “Let’s go talk to them in the conference room,” Abbey said to Alex.

  They both walked out together. “Do you think we should let Stryker in on this?” asked Alex.

  “I think we better let everyone in on this. This could be a deal breaker.”

  Alex ran his hand through his hair and shook his head. “Here we go again.”

  LUNAR 3097

  AZURE239 Stockpile

  With 2 coming up from behind, 5 didn’t know what hit him. Not to mention the video feed was pointing away from 2, so there was no evidence of his actions.

  He pointed the weapon at 5’s midriff and sliced right through the waistline of 5’s frame. The top section fell forward and landed on the surface creating a small cloud of dust. The lower section eerily stayed erect, solid on its feet.

  2 walked up to it and pushed on the panel on the thigh, but nothing happened, so he grabbed the frame, laid it out on the surface, and ripped the panel off. He reached inside and removed a small black chip. He looked at it in his palm, then closed his hand crushing the 2054 chip into black powder and let it fall to the Lunar surface. There was no chance of 5 coming back from that.

  He then dragged both parts over to the ridge and threw them down into the shallow valley. Taking the weapon again, he fired at the frame until it was indistinguishable from the ashes of the AZURE239.


  Content with the results of his work, 2 turned and walked back the way he had come.

  4 and 1 came over a small ridge and could see 2 coming their way. They had the now-empty trams in tow. 5’s video feed had told them all they needed to know about the AZURE239 and its location. 2 stopped when he saw them and watched them walk by without saying a word. He then resumed his course at a slightly higher speed. He needed to be in the Lander before they returned.

  ISA Headquarters

  Conference Room

  “There is no possible scenario where the AZURE239 could be so volatile. That’s what makes it so manageable and safe,” said the geologist. “Without the other mineral and the water, it’s benign. You can stack it to the roof of the Lander and hit it with a hammer, and nothing will happen.”

  “Can you think of anything else on the moon that would cause a green flash like that?” Stryker asked.

  “Nothing. We have been there for years, and there has never been anything remotely like that happen. The moon’s inactive; it has almost zero atmosphere and no geothermal activity. There’s nothing to create that sort of energy.”

  “We need to find 5. Then we can assess what happened more accurately and go on from there,” said Abbey.

  “I think we need to get the AZURE239 and get the hell off that planet. I want 2 gone before they return with the mineral, and then 1 gone when they get back. Is that understood?” said Stryker, looking straight at Abbey. She waited for a verbal reply.

  Abbey stared at her and then lowered her eyes. “Yes, I understand.”

  “Good, the next time I hear anything about this mission, it needs to be ‘Mission complete!’ I don’t care how many of those robots you destroy as long as there’s at least one left to fly that Lander back to Earth.”

  Flight Control

  “This is Flight Control One to RAIDA6, do you copy?”

  “This is RAIDA6, I copy.”

  “RAIDA6, you are a go for Protocol 77658 ident 100.” Abbey tapped her wrist comm. “I can’t believe that after all of this, I’m the one that has given that command. The irony of this is almost laughable. All we have gone through in the last few months—for nothing.” She started to tear up, and there was a catch in her voice. She tried taking a deep breath, but that came with a shudder that Alex could hear over the wrist comm.

  “Don’t blame yourself. Remember that this will be an end to the entire mission, and 2 and 1 won’t be up there for all of eternity, fully aware. If they have something like our soul, they will be at peace.” Alex stopped for a minute.

  “That didn’t help, did it?”

  “No, but thanks for trying.” Abbey stood and made a beeline for the door leading to the restrooms. She needed to get control of her emotions and do her job.

  As she walked out of the room, 6 came over the speaker system. “RAIDA6, copy, Protocol 77658 ident 100 initiating now!”

  CHAPTER 33

  Abbey walked back into flight control. She had composed herself. She was met with a silence she had never experienced in the flight control room before. It was quieter than it gets at 2:00 a.m. with nobody on shift but the night crew.

  Then she realized why. The video feed from RAIDA6 had turned from black to a full view of the inside of the Lander. 6 looked down, a weapon in his hands, the side of which read in red letters, INACTIVE. Just as Abbey took her seat, 6 stepped out of the Lander and down the ramp to the Lunar surface. He was still looking down at the weapon as he walked from the Lander. The letters changed to green and said ARMED.

  The view then changed as 6 looked up and toward the horizon, scanning from right to left and back again, waiting for any sign of movement. You could have heard a pin drop in flight control.

  LUNAR 3097

  AZURE239 Stockpile

  The trams were loaded. The entire pile filled four of the five trams. 1 and 4 strapped themselves into the harnesses and started their journey back to the Lander site.

  2 could see the Lander site in the distance. It was glowing red in the radiance of the dwarf sun’s light. With the Lunar day at its height, the red hue was at its strongest, and the white of the Lander was very reflective. It almost looked like a bright red searchlight showing 2 the way home.

  He turned to survey the horizon behind him, looking for any sign of 1 and 4, but he saw no movement. He still quickened his pace for some reason, carrying the weapon 1 had built on his back, not visible to anyone approaching from the front.

  6 was standing between the new Lander and the hull of the first Lander destroyed by 1 during the battle with 2 and 3. He had his laser down by his side in one hand, waiting for 2 to appear. Having no idea when he would appear, he remained vigilant.

  ISA Headquarters

  Flight Control

  “I wonder what 2’s going to think when he sees 6 at the Lander,” whispered Alex. “He has no idea that 6 exists; he’s not expecting anyone to be there.” Alex had wheeled his chair over to Abbey’s station to watch the story unfold.

  Abbey never replied. She just sat with her hand over her mouth as if to stifle the scream that she thought might escape her lips when the shooting starts. She was still having difficulty coming to grips with being the instrument of 2’s destruction.

  “Where is 2?” asked Abbey.

  “When you were out, the video feed from 4 showed 2 about halfway between the Lander and the stockpile, just standing there as 1 and 4 walked by. We think 2 was coming back from the AZURE239 pile,” answered Alex.

  “So 2’s responsible for what happened to 5?” She turned to Alex. “That means 2 has a weapon.” She turned back to her station. “RAIDA6, this is Flight. Do you copy?”

  “This is RAIDA6, go ahead, Flight.”

  “We think 2 might be armed. Use caution when approaching him.”

  “Copy that, Flight.”

  “Is there a reason we all thought 2 wouldn’t use the weapon he told us 1 had made?” exclaimed Abbey. “Yet another oversight due to poor planning.”

  Just about then, the entire room started to murmur. People shuffled their seats about. Something was happening. Abbey looked up at the video feed from 6.

  In the distance, there was movement, very small at first, but then larger and larger.

  LUNAR 3097

  2 was now close enough to make out details at the Lander site. He stopped and watched as 6 walked around the area between the two Landers. He reached behind him and took out his weapon, checked it to make sure it was ready to fire, and then took off at an astounding speed toward the site.

  He arrived so fast that 6 only caught a very tiny glimpse of him entering the hull of the first Lander. He turned, and suddenly a green streak missed his head by inches. 6 dropped to the ground and returned fire with his laser emitting a red stream of bright light. 6’s first shot hit the hull and blew a large piece away. The gravity being low, the piece went farther than it would have on Earth. A second streak of green came from the hull again, narrowly missing 6. He returned fire and rolled until he was under the ramp to the Lander.

  He pulled the trigger again, but nothing happened. 6 looked down and saw the red letters LOCKED on the laser gun. He was too close to the Lander, and his weapon was rendered useless.

  Another green stream of plasma reached under the ramp and licked at 6’s feet. He pulled himself up into a kneeling position and waited for the next time 2 fired.

  This time, 2’s shot fell short. 6 bolted out from under the ramp and almost instantly, he was standing against the outside wall of the burnt-out hull. He waited for 2 to take another shot. Just then, the tip of 2’s weapon poked out of the side of the ship. Before he had a chance to fire, 6 turned and fired right through the hull at where he approximated 2 to be standing. There was a loud bang and then silence. 6 very slowly moved to the end of the wall section of the ship and peered around the corner. 2 lay face-down amongst the debris of the Lander. 6 bent down and removed the weapon from his hand.

  He waited for a minute, then put his foot under 2’s f
rame and turned him over. He just lay there motionless.

  2 was gone.

  6 accessed his comm. “RAIDA6 to Flight One, Protocol 77658 ident 100, part 1 complete.” There was a pause, and then a very subdued voice replied.

  “Flight One to RAIDA6, copy that.”

  ISA Headquarters

  Flight Control

  A loud roar went up in the room; then as if they could feel Abbey’s eyes burning into them, it died down quickly.

  “Please keep it professional in here. Do I need to remind you we are far from finished with this mission? Thank you,” announced Alex.

  The room fell silent once again. All eyes were glued to the video screen seeing what 6 saw. The other screen showed video from 4 which was very nondescript. The Lunar surface was so similar that it was difficult to tell where they were in relation to the Lander. It was, however, possible to tell where they were from the location device on 4, so the entire room was aware of the distance being about five miles to the Lander site.

  LUNAR 3097

  1 and 4 would get to the Lander in about one hour. Pulling the trams wasn’t hard, but they could tip over, so this governed the speed they could travel.

  6 entered the Lander and proceeded to the back, opened the panel, and stepped back into his hiding spot.

  1 and 4 finally arrived at the Lander and dropped the harnesses to the surface, then entered the Lander, expecting to find 2 sitting strapped in one of the flight restraint seats.

  “RAIDA1 to Flight Control, 2 is not in the Lander.”

  “We know, RAIDA1, please assist RAIDA4 with the fuel mixture process and fuel reservoir filling procedure,” replied Abbey, still not under control of her emotions. She clicked her wrist comm. to Alex. “I’m talking to 1 as if everything is OK. In a few hours, I have to order 6 to kill him. I don’t know if I can do this anymore.”

  “Take it one step at a time. You can do this; you’re stronger than you think,” encouraged Alex.

  1 and 4 exited the Lander and proceeded to remove the AZURE239 from the trams and stow it in the cargo bay. After two hours, they had it all stowed away except for the small amount they had in the lab.