It’s good to have friends.
He turned his attention back to the computer. His only option was to try all the tricks and hacks he knew to see if any led to an opportunity. He introduced a snippet of malware into the core protocol and it gave him access to the root directory. It took the rest of day to pass through a minefield of requirements and security traps before, finally, the screen blinked:
ACCESS GRANTED. SECURITY LEVEL 2.
I’ve done it!
Kira applauded. “You’ve done it!”
“Well done,” said Pyro.
Pleased with himself, Youngblood beamed at them with his heart hammering. “This is the mid-level security. There’s one higher level before I can open the weapons magazine, but I’ll tackle that another time. Let’s find out what level two gives us.”
A bell rang when he logged in, and new instructions appeared on the viewscreen. The hair on his neck pricked up, and he felt strangely apprehensive, as if he’d entered a restricted area. He suppressed a host of new questions that popped into his head and glanced at the remaining locked door down the corridor.
Youngblood was startled by a soft, strange voice behind him.
“Hello.”
Kira and Pyro jumped as well.
An old man stood before them, his wide, pale, unblinking eyes glowing like moons.
“Hello,” said Youngblood, gulping.
The holographic avatar stepped closer. “I expected you to return. You have a thirst for knowledge.”
“You expected us?” asked Kira.
“I haven’t had a visitor in many decades.”
Youngblood said, “Your voice is different from the computer I heard before.”
“Of course. I am Loci. I am responsible for the higher security levels.”
“Loci?” said Youngblood bewildered.
The old man frowned and shook his head. “I am sorry about your abrupt and unfortunate termination from hibernation. I’m afraid there were system failures beyond my control which led to that unfortunate event.”
Loci seemed genuinely concerned and repentant. He turned to Kira. “My dear, I’m glad you’ve come to help rebuild our community.”
Kira said, “Err, I . . . huh . . .”
“And who is this young man?”
“I’m Pyro.”
“I’m glad to make your acquaintance.”
The old man faced Youngblood and said eagerly, “Well, how may I be of service? There are considerably more options available than you had at level one. For example, I have a history of everyone who has passed through these chambers and their names, conditions, and destinations, though I cannot attest to whether they remained at those locations or moved on.”
Youngblood had many questions but wondered if the AI was reliable.
He asked, “What is the scope of your capabilities? For example, can you tell me a joke?”
“Of course,” said the old man eloquently. “An android, a cyborg, and a chicken walk into a bar.”
“Then what?”
“They order a drink.”
“What’s the punch line?”
“They order a drink.”
“That’s not funny.”
A sly grin appeared on the old man’s face as he said, “Of course not. Everyone knows computers have no sense of humor.”
Youngblood chuckled.
“I don’t get it,” said Pyro.
Youngblood asked, “Two questions come to mind. First, will you grant us access to all levels of security?”
“And the other?”
Youngblood guessed he would not get an answer to the first question. “Who controls the other network?”
“Controls it by your standards or mine?”
Youngblood remained quiet.
“What are you thinking?” asked Loci.
“Can’t you guess? Or aren’t you well versed on the human mind?”
“I try my best, but I find human logic confusing at times. Please tell me your thoughts?”
“My thoughts are multifaceted. I am thinking several things at once. For example, I’m considering how to engage you to my advantage while recalling a list of things I must complete before I can go to bed tonight. Furthermore, I have concerns about my safety, as well as the future of Jamestown. All these ideas are running through my mind at the same time.”
“You hold these thoughts simultaneously?”
“Yes. Even though I process them one at a time, all these strands are active in my mind.”
The old man said, “The human mind is such a fascinating parallel processing machine. I will endeavor to improve my model of human thinking to reflect that.”
Youngblood turned to Kira and smiled. He asked, “Do you communicate with your former visitors?”
“No,” replied Loci.
“Do you have any contact with anyone?”
“Yes, of course. I have frequent interaction with the Yosemite Facility.”
“Can you display its location on the viewscreen?”
“Certainly.”
Youngblood asked, “Isn’t that where Jarod entered the mountain to deliver his convoy?”
“Yes. It is,” exclaimed Kira tracing her finger along the contour of the terrain.
Sorting through the directories, Youngblood found the history of the mountain dwellers.
He said, “The mountain dwellers are currently reaping the benefits with a 22nd-century lifestyle thanks in large part to what Jarod steals from the valley people. They live in an underground mountain bunker called Yosemite with a network of tunnels traversing the valley, but they’ve rarely left it in the last century.”
Kira gazed at some photos and commented, “They look pasty white. Lack of sunshine and inbreeding, I bet.”
Loci said, “The Yosemite bunker complex is a copy of the Cheyanne Mountain Bunker in Colorado Springs. It was once a military installation the U.S. Space Command used to monitor the airspace of Canada and the United States. It provided information for missiles, space systems, and aircraft through its early-warning system.”
She said, “I never heard of any of that.”
He said, “It’s built under many feet of granite over several acres and has several multi-story buildings protected from earthquakes and nuclear explosions by giant springs that limit movement.”
“I can’t imagine that.”
“Plus, the complex can withstand an electromagnetic pulse. The filters protect against air-borne chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear contaminants.”
Kira said, “There must be a small city under that mountain.”
Youngblood said, “There are the nuclear-blast-proof doors at the main entrance that we saw the convoy go through. How can I communicate with them?”
Loci said, “You can open a browser to the Dark Web and enter this code to gain access through their firewall.”
Kira said, “You need to be careful and not trip any alarms. We may need access to all this information later.”
After several minutes of snooping, Youngblood said, “Hey, listen to this. It’s a video feed from Yosemite’s security monitoring system. Blackheart is talking to Fox.”
He worked to get greater control of the AI security monitoring system and turned on the speaker.
“You should record this,” said Kira.
He adjusted a few dials and they heard Blackheart say, “What Jarod doesn’t fully understand is my relationship with the space station. I send them supplies from the secret underground spaceport connected to this bunker and they send me technology updates and devices. This has been going on for decades to our mutual advantage. Jarod would wreck everything with his personal ambitions.”
“What can you do?” said Fox, “After all, he is your son.”
“Son or not, he’s a problem. He was always difficult. Now he’s becoming a hindrance.”
“Perhaps, we could just confine him to his mansion,” said Fox.
“Simple confinement is not practical. He’ll simply do as he pleases.”
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“Imprisonment? It would be for his own good.”
“Imprisonment, yes. I would hate to take it further than that. But the timing must be right. He’s due to bring the surtax levy soon. That would be an excellent opportunity to make him ‘disappear from the stage.’”
The plotting continued. Youngblood let the recording continue until the two men changed the subject.
He mused, “This recording may come in handy at the right moment.”
Kira asked, “What about the spaceships they mentioned? Can you find them on the map?”
“I wondered what the symbols “SP” meant. Now I know. What do you say we take a ride on the tram to a bunker that has spaceships?”
◆◆◆
With Loci’s assistance, Youngblood, Kira, and Pyro traveled on an underground tram along the tunnel railroad network. The lights and power were on and the railway hummed with activity. The hyperloop tram was so fast that the speed took their breath away. The expressway had tight turns, an excessive number of entrances and off-ramps with many sidetracks.
Youngblood commented, “The overall structure has a power supply keeping it maintained and clean.”
Originally, the seven-foot high and five-foot wide mine shafts had followed the veins of ore that ran throughout the hills. These shafts used timber to prevent the earth from caving, and heavy planking to support the side walls. However, there were numerous old side shafts and air vents that were badly neglected. The ground was either level or had enough ascent for drainage. Occasionally a shaft ran down to avoid a rock ledge, and occasionally there was a tunnel beneath where the old mine shafts interconnected to newer steel and concrete tunnel construction. The entire interconnected system funneled the tram over the railroad tracks until they had traveled a considerable distance from the hibernation bunker all the way to a large complex facility marked SP.
When they reached the SP bunker, Youngblood entered his password into the security system and ordered Loci to open the access door.
The steel door slid open revealing an elevator.
They hesitantly stepped inside.
“Lowest level,” said Youngblood and with a swoosh, they dropped precipitously many levels before coming to an abrupt stop.
When the door opened, they found themselves looking into a huge galley that was a dozen football fields long and several hundred feet high.
They didn’t speak to each other for several minutes as they beheld the grand entrance to the voluminous cavern. The marble floors and walls were highly polished and remarkably well finished with a high gloss.
Pyro said, “This is not like anything I’ve ever seen before.”
It was a place that had witnessed a great passage of time, but its machines were still running. At the far end were spaceships arrayed in an underground spaceport. They were astonished by the amazing technology. Some of the ships were huge with large cargo space, but there were also a few smaller crafts that were probably designed to carry a small number of people. They appeared to be highly automated.
The hangar housed automated spacecraft and terminal buildings. Natural light entered via skylights with a glazed façade, creating a spectacular platform.
Youngblood entered the spaceport’s hanger, hopeful that there was a space colony.
“Wow! Are those spaceships?” asked Pyro.
The spaceships were a miracle of engineering, a triumph of physics, and a tribute to computing. The pure functionality of the complex had a beauty of its own. Nestled in its heart were nuclear rockets of unknown capabilities. In fact, it was as impressive a spaceport as Youngblood had ever imagined.
“How was all this developed?” asked Youngblood.
Loci popped up and replied, “It all started at the Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39, which was originally built for the Saturn V—the largest and most powerful operational launch vehicle at the time, which was used for the Apollo Moon landing program. After that, the space shuttle was developed to support the International Space Station. In the 21st century, startup company SpaceX—replaced the space shuttle using the Dragon capsule to ship cargo and people to the space station. What you see here is the residue of those programs; the SuperDragon and SuperFalcon rockets which can take astronauts to space stations, the moon, or Mars. The underground spaceport bunker was designed to protect them in case of nuclear war.”
Youngblood asked, “Is there a colony in space?”
Loci did not respond.
Chapter 21
Deep in the Bowels
As the trio explored the huge underground spaceport, Youngblood said, “We need to find out what Jarod is up to. But this will be dangerous and difficult with considerable risk, so we must balance caution against any possible reward.”
Kira nodded, showing she understood what he had said—as well as what he had left unsaid.
They moved forward until they saw dozens of people laboring to move goods from a loading dock into the hold of a spaceship.
They hid behind a pile of boxes and watched.
Pyro said, “That ship must be getting ready to take off soon.”
“Is this supply ship Jarod spoke about? Is it intended for a space colony?” asked Kira.
“Probably and they’re using slave labor to move tons of material,” said Youngblood.
Kira asked, “Slaves?”
“Right . . . slaves,” said Youngblood.
“This is what happened to the missing people from the valley. How could we have not known?” asked Kira.
Pyro said, “I don’t like this. Not one bit!”
Youngblood saw several guards coming their way. His instinct was to be cautious, but he wanted to get more information instead of slinking away. He didn’t want to be a coward but being foolish wasn’t smart. He felt they were in a well-hidden position, so he waited to see if the guards would turn into an adjacent tunnel. Fortunately, they did. The bold move proved successful, and they resumed their observations.
Pyro said, “You were right not to run away. I want to see if my parents are among these unfortunate people.”
“Let’s give them a closer look now that the guards have passed.”
The desire to speak to one of the slaves drove them out of their comfortable hiding place, and they edged closer. The loading activities made enough noise that they weren’t heard, and the dim lighting protected them. The cavernous room offered several storage areas to hide behind.
Kira held her bow drawn and Youngblood held his handgun, but before they could talk to one of the prisoners, the guards became more active.
Youngblood said, “They’re changing the guard, and now there are twice as many as before. They’re getting close.”
As he watched, the guards came closer to the place the trio was hiding.
Maybe they won’t notice us. No, they’re too close.
His rashness and boldness had left them in a vulnerable position. They dared not wait any longer. Now there was nothing for it but to run.
Grabbing Kira’s hand, Youngblood said, “We’ve got to make a break for it. Run!”
They dashed from cover and sprinted headlong down the gallery toward a likely escape path with Pyro right behind them.
They saw a guard yelling and pointing at them.
They made it past another guard and had a small lead over their pursuers.
After a few minutes, Youngblood said, “I think we’ve lost them.”
He leaned against the wall, wiping the sweat off his brow.
“We’ve got to get back to the tram,” said Pyro.
But it wasn’t going to be that simple. After a minute, Kira whispered, “Someone is still following us.”
Youngblood stopped to scan the surroundings. He saw two more thugs behind them.
“Keep moving,” he said. He quickened the pace.
He felt her look around once more. Her grip on his hand tightened.
There were footsteps stomping behind them.
A dozen escape routes flew through You
ngblood’s mind. After contemplating all the gloomy possibilities, he said, “We’ve stirred them up, but they’re not sure which way we went.”
“We risked getting too close.”
“Yeah.”
“There are more at the tunnel junction ahead,” she said. “Can you see them?”
“Quiet, both you. I hear something.”
Those following were close while the ones ahead were waiting.
Youngblood turned around.
“They must have signaled ahead for help.”
“And there,” she said, pointing to another man.
“They’re closing in,” he said.
Kira said, “They’re coming this way.”
Youngblood said, “Keep your voice down. We’ll have to vanish down a side passage.”
He gazed deep in her eyes and saw no fear, only a firm resolve.
“Let’s go.”
Giving her hand a quick squeeze, they dashed. Pyro followed.
The closest thug shouted, “Stop!”
They took advantage of a side tunnel and ducked behind a stack of supplies.
“Stop them! Stop them!”
But Youngblood and Kira had already eluded the first pair. Pyro pushed passed another. They ducked into the mine shaft.
“There they are!”
They ran down the shaft.
Is anyone following?
They sidestepped down a narrow alley that led to another shaft and climbed up with difficulty. Twisting and turning, they repeated the process until they felt their pursuers had lost track of them.
Youngblood had only a vague sense of his location.
Kira mouthed silently, “This way, I think,” pointing the way. They began creeping along the passageway.
They heard a racket in the distance.
Were we seen?
Several voices echoed down the air duct.
“They’re in here somewhere,” said one beefy thug. “Probably hiding.”
“You saw her?”
“I thought I saw all three.”
“There’s nothing here now.”
“Let’s go.”
The silence deepened, and Youngblood cautiously squeezed out of the narrow shaft and peered from his hiding place. He couldn’t see anyone. Gasping for breath, heart pounding—every little sound seemed loud. He saw a formless blur and tried to duck—
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