Ghost of the Argus

by E. R. Torre

  “You hope.”

  “I know.”

  “You’ve contacted her?”

  “Before meeting up with you, I logged into the Onian Displacer and conducted a couple of thousand signal tests. They disguised the fact that I was communicating with the Type 2. When I sent her a pulse, I got an answer. She’s alive all right.”

  “She may be alive, but will she work?”

  “We’ll see,” Latitia said. “Because of her age and the time since she was last used, it’s best not to push her too far. That’s why I’m getting us as close to Pomos as possible. That way, we use less energy to make the jump.”

  “What if she can’t handle even a near jump?”

  “Then we’ll have no choice but to use the Type 6. One way or another, we’re going to Pomos.”

  “And if I’m still… still like this?” B’taav asked.

  “You’ll get better,” Latitia said. Her eyes returned to the Medi-Scanner. The readings were dipping.

  “What’s happening?”

  “Relax.”

  “I don’t… I don’t feel…”

  Latitia rushed to B’taav’s side.

  He was no longer breathing.

  27

  B’taav dreamed of darkness and of dread.

  He dreamed of creatures hidden in the night…

  The darkness drifted away, replaced by light.

  B’taav walked the shores of a red beach and gazed at a mighty alien city. Above it and in low orbit around the planet was a nightmarish machine. Metallic tentacles spread out from it and crisscrossed the skyline.

  The creatures, he knew, were up there.

  His gaze returned to the city. It was in flames. Untold billions died before B’taav’s eyes, the victims of these creatures’ planetary destruction.

  The annihilation complete, the darkness returned.

  B’taav felt the creatures move around him. He felt their insatiable hunger.

  Shiny silver eyes pierced through the darkness. They stared at the Independent.

  Why are you still alive? they asked, their voices guttural roars.

  B’taav spun around. He tried to see them. See them as they were. All he saw were shadows.

  You fight.

  The creatures’ corrosive breath enveloped the area, poisoning him.

  You die now.

  “No,” B’taav said.

  He sensed their surprise. The metallic eyes turned red.

  Why do you still fight?

  B’taav remained still while the creatures roared. A bloody claw reached out from the darkness. It stopped inches from B’taav’s face.

  “You can’t touch me,” B’taav said.

  The creatures roared one last time.

  We will meet again.

  The darkness lifted.

  B’taav opened his eyes. All was light.

  He was standing at the entrance to the cockpit of Merrick’s shuttlecraft.

  “Latitia?” he said.

  She was in the cockpit chair. She spun around, surprised to find the Independent on his feet.

  “What are you doing?” she said.

  A dull haze clouded the Independent’s vision.

  He was gone.

  When B’taav awoke, he was in the cockpit and sitting in his chair. On the view screen before them were a variety of ships, from slick military craft to cargo vessels. They were in a heavy clump, awaiting their turn into an ancient Displacer.

  “How are you feeling?” Latitia asked.

  B’taav moved his hands, flexing his fingers into fists and then releasing.

  “Better,” he said. “Where are we?”

  “The Mellore Displacer,” Latitia said.

  It was one of the busiest Displacer Units and located just outside the heart of the Epsillon Empire.

  Latitia piloted the shuttle closer to one of the enormous merchant barges waiting in line to use the Displacer. She matched its speed and swung her ship under its body. Their Merrick shuttle was dwarfed by the barge and easily lost among its spires and underside. Latitia drew the shuttle closer and closer, finally engaging the ship’s magnetic locks. The Merrick craft pressed against the barge’s body and was still. Latitia powered the ship down.

  Sensors within the merchant barge no doubt alerted the craft’s crew of this stowaway yet no attempts were made to get rid of her.

  “They’re with us?”

  “Yeah,” Latitia said.

  Given the barge’s size and the amount of traffic in the area, unless someone was looking really hard, there was no way anyone outside the barge’s crew would noticed this insignificantly small shuttle craft attached to her side.

  “Hang on,” Latitia said.

  The merchant barge was on the move. Slowly at first but with greater and greater speed it approached the Mellore Displacer. When they were within a few miles, the Displacer’s center lit up in a cascade of brilliant energy.

  Over the Comm system B’taav heard the merchant ship’s Captain interact with the Displacer crew.

  “Mellore Displacer, this is the Nelly-Anne,” she said. “Approaching transfer.”

  “Acknowledged, Nelly-Anne,” Mellore’s dispatcher replied. “All systems are green and your coordinates are locked in.”

  “Thank you, Mellore,” the Captain said. “See you in a couple of weeks.”

  “Good hunting.”

  The tip of the merchant craft touched the Displacer’s energy field and the electrical sparks grabbed hold of her. They moved across her body and enveloped the stowaway shuttle.

  Latitia and B’taav covered their eyes as the Displacer’s light became a supernova.

  Then, in the blink of an eye, the lights were gone.

  They were in inter-dimensional space, the territory between Displacer travel points. Around them was a reddish tinged darkness and warped clouds. The radiation counter on the shuttle ticked high as they proceeded. Seconds passed and the radiation spiked. Then, it dropped. Lower and lower until, abruptly, the red hue surrounding them was gone. There was a blast of bright lights. They were gone almost as quickly as they came. The radiation levels dropped to near normal.

  They emerged into a dead solar system.

  The faraway sun at the center of the system emitted a sickly blue light. A rocky band of debris, what at first looked like a ring of asteroids, orbited near the barge. It extended out for as far as the eye could see.

  Latitia deactivated the shuttle’s magnetic locks and was freed from the barge’s underside. The shuttle floated away, giving B’taav his first clear look at their carrier. It was an ancient craft, dark and ominous and roughly rectangular in shape. Its surface was scarred and worn. Once magnificent spires were beaten down and warped.

  “We’re in the fields,” B’taav said.

  What appeared to be asteroids were in fact a vast and very dense field of garbage.

  “The dead end of the Empire,” Latitia said. “Where all the waste of the Industrial Worlds ends up.”

  Not many ventured into these parts as much of the detritus was either radioactive or biologically unstable. Nonetheless, several thousand ships of all sizes swarmed the area. They were relics from the old days of Empire.

  “Who are they?” B’taav asked.

  “Scavengers,” Latitia said.

  The radioactive readings on the cockpit’s dash spiked.

  “Their ships aren’t made to withstand this.”

  “No, they aren’t,” Latitia agreed. “But that’s about all the scavengers can afford. Thin shields, misfiring propulsion systems. The Gods alone know how many of them never return home.”

  Several of these smaller ships drew close to the newly arrived barge. They followed it to the edge of the dumping grounds and waited while the barge’s sides opened. They then moved in like hungry rats when its cargo was jettisoned. They began their search from something –anything– of value.

  “You’ve been here before?” B’taav asked.

  “More times than I care to remembe
r,” Latitia replied.

  The radiation gauges dropped as the shuttle moved away. In the view screen B’taav spotted a stationary object. It was an ancient Displacer.

  “Incredible,” B’taav said.

  The unit was an automated Type 1. It was among the very first put into service within the Epsillon Empire at the dawn of the era of exploration.

  “She still works?” B’taav asked.

  “Of course,” Latitia said.

  “What’s her model number?”

  “Twenty two.”

  “Then this is one of the first systems ever explored?”

  “She was a real gem a couple thousand years ago,” Latitia said. “She had a planet in her system filled with the most beautiful plants and wildlife. Then we came. We chewed her up and made her a dumping ground. Humans are alchemists. We turn gold into shit.”

  “Alchemists?”

  Latitia smiled.

  “It’s an ancient term.”

  “Never heard of it.”

  “You should read more.”

  Latitia hit several keys on the communication system.

  “I’m linking to the Displacer,” she said. “The Type 1 has a simple processing core. The destination I’m sending contains a small virus. All evidence of our journey will be deleted right after we’re gone.”

  She finished her work and turned to the defensive systems. She typed in a series of commands.

  “Now what are you doing?”

  “Preparing for our arrival outside Pomos,” Latitia said. “When we clear Pomos’ Type 2, our ship will send an electric pulse. Any defensive systems within three hundred miles will be temporarily shut off, including the Displacer itself.”

  “For how long?”

  “Five hours.”

  “That’s a long time.”

  “Long enough for us to get to Pomos and back.”

  “What’s the plan?” B’taav said.

  “We get our bearings, see what kind of defensive systems, if any, are spread around Pomos before making a run for her surface. We touch down a couple hundred miles from that energy source and drive the Rover stored in the cargo bay the rest of the way.”

  “If it breaks down?”

  “We walk.”

  Latitia leaned back in her chair, her hands on the shuttle’s control. The Type 1 Displacer’s hallow center slowly came to life and filled with a sea of energy arcs.

  “Here we go,” Latitia said.

  She applied thrust. The Merrick shuttle entered the Displacer’s energized center.

  28

  From a distance, all was eerily still.

  A large, blasted rock, the moon Solyanna, floated in the heavens, her body a violated corpse. Her northern hemisphere was pitted and gashed with wounds caused by massive explosions. The rocky debris from a crater, the after effects of the grisly wounds, floated around her.

  In the still darkness a tiny, almost insignificant pinprick of light appeared.

  Somewhere deep within the rocky debris, a bruised Type 2 Displacer floated. Lights around its surface came on and, moments later, her hollow core was alive with energy. The energy arcs built until their light was blinding. A shuttle craft emerged.

  Within the shuttle, Latitia barely had time to examine her surroundings. Her fingers worked over the ship’s controls while the remains of the obliterated northern hemisphere of the moon floated before them.

  Smaller rocks hit the shuttle. The noise was eerie, as if ancient ghosts demanding entry.

  “Cover your eyes,” Latitia said.

  A sudden blinding flash filled the view screen. The surge flooded the interior of the craft but was gone almost as quickly as it began.

  Latitia spun the shuttle around. The Displacer was dark, knocked out by the power surge.

  “So far so good,” Latitia said.

  At the moment the Type 2 was hidden from Pomos by Solyanna itself. After another few hours, it would emerge.

  Latitia drew the shuttle close to the Displacer. Its body was covered with a thick layer of dust and several of her protective panels were missing. Latitia used the ship’s floodlights to look into the ancient Displacer’s Control Room. Chairs, paperwork, and computer gear lined the tight quarters. Several items floated chaotically about. B’taav pointed to a large crack in one of the outer windows.

  “Interior’s been compromised,” he said. He noted the dusty stains along the inner walls. “Quite a while ago, from the look of things.”

  Latitia allowed the spacecraft to drift beside the Displacer while she monitored every blip, sign of movement or, specifically, incoming sensor signals. Minutes passed and the shuttle and Displacer rotated closer to the edge of Solyanna.

  “I’m not detecting any activity,” Latitia said.

  Far in the distance a cluster of rocks pulled away from the stricken moon. They moved faster and faster away from their source of origin, drawn by gravity toward the planet that lay beyond the moon’s horizon. Even after all these years, tons of debris from Solyanna rained down on the planet each day.

  “Still nothing,” Latitia said. “Time to move.”

  Latitia activated the shuttle’s gravity hook and drew the Type 2 Displacer out of her centuries’ old orbit. She began the motion with a light thrust before increasing it. The engines were strained, but the ship managed to counter the Displacer’s orbit, pulling her back.

  “A little more,” Latitia said.

  Warning lights flashed. The Displacer was very old and very large, capable of fitting battleships through her energy door. As sophisticated and state of the art as the Merrick shuttle’s engines were, she could barely move her.

  “Come on.”

  Warning lights flashed. B’taav felt the floor vibrate.

  “A little more,” Latitia said.

  “Latitia,” B’taav said.

  Latitia didn’t respond. She kept the engines going.

  “Latitia!” B’taav repeated.

  The Independent reached out. Latitia grabbed his arm. She held it very tight.

  “I know what I’m doing,” she muttered.

  She pressed several buttons. The ship powered down.

  They looked through the front view screen. The Displacer was parked beside a large chunk of rock. It was effectively hidden from sight.

  Latitia read the engine displays and nodded.

  “We’re good,” she said.

  B’taav rubbed his hand.

  “You’ve got quite a grip,” he said.

  “Pays to exercise.”

  “Why move the Type 2?”

  “A precaution,” Latitia said. “If we’re discovered, the people who set up shop on Pomos will know we didn’t use the Type 6 Displacer to get here. It won’t take them long to realize we used the Type 2 and go after it. If they get to it before we do, we’re trapped.”

  “What if someone notices it isn’t in its regular orbit?”

  “Even in Pomos’ golden age the Type 2 was a forgotten relic. I’m betting she remains just as forgotten today.”

  Latitia entered a series of commands. A small device, no larger than a shoe box, emerged from the front of the spacecraft. It floated toward the Displacer and attached to its side.

  “When we’re ready to go, that box will activate the Displacer,” she said.

  Latitia shut off the gravity hook and pulled the shuttle away. The Merrick craft dodged debris while circling Solyanna. Over the horizon came a cascade of light. Pomos emerged over the moon’s horizon.

  The planet lay before them and so very far away. Light from the sun gave her a radiant glow and revealed a dark, ravaged world.

  “By the Gods,” B’taav said.

  Even from this distance it was obvious the planet was an ecological disaster. Heavy black clouds hovered over her inky black surface. Despite the nuclear winter resulting from the bombings, there was little evidence of snow. Pockets of what appeared to be volcanic activity were visible. They were more likely toxic radioactive pools.

  L
atitia shut the shuttle’s engines and allowed the craft to float among a group of asteroids. Together they fell toward the planet.

  A low buzz startled them. Latitia immediately checked the monitor’s readout.

  “I’m detecting sensor signals.”

  The sensor readings grew stronger and stronger before abruptly fading.

  “They’re running a loop,” Latitia said. “Five minutes in, five out.”

  Latitia powered up the gravity hooks and grabbed several asteroids around the ship. She drew them in closer to their ship.

  “Next downtime, we’re going in.”

  Latitia angled the shuttle’s nose until it faced the planet.

  “Coming up on five minutes,” B’taav said. “Three, two…”

  Latitia activated the shuttle’s thrusters the moment the sensor signals were gone. She moved the shuttle and her asteroid cover directly at Pomos.

  “Damn!” Latitia muttered.

  “What?”

  “These sensor scans are military grade,” she said. “They don’t just detect movement, they see electronic signatures.”

  Latitia shut down the shuttle’s thrust and almost every computer before her.

  “Get into your spacesuit,” she said. “Quickly!”

  B’taav and Latitia unbuckled their seatbelts. Latitia opened a cabinet at the rear of the cockpit. Within were a pair of spacesuits. Latitia had hers on before B’taav. She helped him into his and locked his helmet down.

  “Sensors coming on!”

  Latitia ran back to her seat. She shut the ship’s remaining electronics off, including life support. In seconds they felt the frigid bite of outer space.

  “Keep the suit’s power low,” Latitia said.

  B’taav adjusted the settings and returned to his chair.

  Because the ship’s electronics were shut off, they had no way of knowing if they were spotted.

  “Hopefully, the electronic signatures from these suits aren’t enough to trip their sensors,” Latitia said.

  “What if the sensors extend all the way to the ground?” B’taav said. “You can’t glide the shuttle to a landing. We’ll have to power up at some point.”