“Why do you think Lynda isn’t real?”
Singh saw the Hermes bridge in ruins. Electrical arcs surging from the consoles. Lynda lying broken on the floor. “I saw her body.”
“She was dead?”
“Yes.”
“And you blame Captain Pike for her death?”
“He abandoned her. He left her to die. Everyone did. They all saved themselves instead.”
“They couldn’t save her. She died in the crash, before the ship was abandoned.”
Singh didn’t answer. He wanted to believe her. Wanted to free himself of the anger that gripped him, and gnawed at his insides like a cancer.
“You have to let her go,” said Ellerbeck.
“I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because without her I am alone.”
Lynda stood in front of Singh, arms folded in front of her chest, with the expression on her face that always set him off. It was an expression of disappointment. One that said he hadn’t tried hard enough. She had always used it when they were having problems with their relationship, and it infuriated him. That look was a finger pointed squarely at him. This is all your fault, it said. You caused this to happen. In the past, that look made him storm out of the room. Now, he didn’t think he could bear to live without it.
“I can treat you,” said Ellerbeck. “I can make the hallucinations go away. But you need to accept Commander Wolfe’s death. You need to grieve. You need to move on.”
“I don’t know how.”
“Nobody does. And sometimes, when we lose someone we love, we can harm ourselves. This stems from the type of relationship we had with the person we lost. There may be regrets, or something else that causes us to feel like we have to punish ourselves. Am I correct in thinking you are feeling some of that?”
“I pushed her away. I tried to end our relationship.” Singh looked up at the hallucination of Lynda standing before him. Why did he ever want to end things? Why had he been so stupid? “She was stronger than me. She didn’t let me. I should have treated her better. Now she’s gone and I can’t fix it.”
Lynda’s expression softened into one of concern. Her hand caressed his cheek, and she bent down and kissed his forehead. He felt the warmth of her touch, the softness of her lips.
“Part of her will always be with you,” said Ellerbeck. “In your heart. In your memories. It is hard at first, but it will get easier as time passes.”
Singh knew it wasn’t as simple as that, but if the hallucinations went away, perhaps he could focus on work. That would help. The Captain said he needed him. If he could just go back to working on engines again, maybe he could stop thinking about her. “Let’s just get this over with.”
“No,” said Lynda. “Please don’t do this.”
“I’m sorry, Lynda,” he said, soaking in every beautiful inch of her. “I have to.”
Doctor Ellerbeck nodded and produced a syringe. “I’m going to inject a round of anti-psychotic neurobots directly into your bloodstream. They will produce the fastest results.”
“Understood,” said Singh, keeping his eyes fixed on Lynda. “Go ahead.”
He felt a slight pinch as the syringe pierced his skin. Lynda’s eyes were welling up with tears. He thought back to the last time he saw her cry. He had told her he wanted to end their relationship. He said they were too different. That things would never work out. When in reality he had been afraid.
He knew the neurobots had reached his brain when her image started to blur and become translucent.
“Goodbye, Lynda,” he said.
She continued to fade, until she was gone.
Chapter 17
“I don’t feel anything,” said Bast, as he interfaced with the ship’s systems, allowing AI to gain access to his brain chip.
“You won’t feel anything, Colonel,” said AI, from Jon’s comm. “If you did, I would perform a self-diagnostic to ensure I was functioning properly.”
“You are attempting to access my brain implant. Shouldn’t I feel something?”
“If my actions were noticeable, I wouldn’t be very good at my job, would I? I have already gained access to your brain chip.”
“You have?”
Yes, Colonel, said AI from inside Bast’s mind.
That didn’t take long, thought Bast.
I am still working through your chip’s security levels. Your brain chip is quite sophisticated, said AI.
I’m surprised you are finding it difficult, said Bast.
I didn’t say it was difficult, Colonel. It merely takes a little more time. Gaining access to your chip is easy, compared to what I would normally be tasked with. Your brain chip already trusts the ship’s systems. Accessing your chip that way made things much less complicated. But getting in was only the first step. I still need to modify the existing security features and replace them with my own.
The voice in his head would have probably made most people jump out of their chairs, but Bast was used to voices in his head. He had spent a lifetime communicating telepathically through his brain chip with the Chaanisar. Voices constantly filled his mind. Now he had a female voice to add to the mix. He hadn’t paid much attention to that fact before. The Chaanisar were always male. Having the AI’s female voice in his head was different.
But that certainly wasn’t the only difference. Bast felt her presence inside his mind now. Felt the power of her intelligence, at once probing his mind in all directions. Hundreds, no thousands of tendrils exploring every corner of his mind. She rifled through his memories, unlocked his secrets, poured over the history of his life at blazing speed. His service with the Juttari. His childhood before that. And he watched it all unfold, an observer to his own existence. He saw what AI saw. Memories long forgotten, or buried, were unearthed and splayed out before her vast, inquisitive mind. But she didn’t just watch. She experienced the events. Relived them. The happiness of his childhood, the comfort of his mother’s touch, the brutality of his augmentation, the horror of Juttari atrocities.
The experience would have been frightening. A violation. Yet, strangely, it calmed him. He felt a union with her. A oneness. That alone said more than any words could express. He knew she would not enslave him, like the Juttari had. She enhanced him. Turned him into something more. Something all his implants combined could never achieve. She was more than just a computer, or an artificial intelligence. She lived.
I am not alive, Colonel, said AI.
I disagree. You are self-aware. You’ve grown beyond your initial programming, and you continue to grow. You may not be an organic life form, but from what I see, and feel, you are just as alive as anyone else I know.
That is an interesting viewpoint, Colonel.
“Your eye’s twitching,” said Jon. “Are you talking to AI?”
“Yes Captain,” said Bast. “More than just talking. It is hard to explain. She is everywhere.”
“I am picking up elevated neural activity. How do you feel?” said Doctor Ellerbeck, monitoring his vital signs, along with an array of other biological information. When Ellerbeck suggested she be present during the procedure, Bast had said it wasn’t necessary. But when she insisted, he had no choice. He refused to stay in sick bay after the chip was reinserted, he couldn’t refuse now as well.
“I feel fine, Doctor,” said Bast. I feel exhilarated, he thought.
I am pleased that the experience is agreeable, Colonel, said AI.
How is this happening?
Your brain chip is an access point into your brain. The Juttari procedure was crude. They were only interested in control. Slavery. That can easily be accomplished. But in doing so they disregarded the greater potential.
I don’t understand.
The human brain is actually a very sophisticated biological computer. By not seeking to merely control you, I am able to join with you. We experience each other, and improve each other.
How can I improve you?
You make me stronger. Yo
ur memories add to my knowledge. But there’s more to it. Your brain possesses a plenitude of unused computing power. While you cannot access that power, I can. Doing so makes me stronger.
So in joining with the other Chaanisar, you will become more powerful.
Yes, Colonel. That is correct.
Bast knew that some would find the thought offensive. Most humans would run away screaming from such a scenario. But it didn’t bother him. Since childhood he relied on the technology implanted inside him. He now understood that he hadn’t been human for a very long time. Had he not spent most of his life in a hive? Since the age of five, he had only known the hive. But that hive had been forced upon him, built on a foundation of coercion. This one would be built on choice.
He wanted to remove his brain chip because he wanted to be human again. He now realized that his humanity had been damaged beyond repair. Removing the chip had only revealed how broken his human side truly was. He saw that now. He could never go back. Not to Earth. Not to his childhood home. Not to his humanity. He could only move forward, and that meant the hive. Did the hive now include the AI?
“AI,” said Jon. “Please give me an update on your progress.”
“Yes, Captain,” said AI through Jon’s comm. “I have identified the port the brain chip listens on and have successfully modified the authentication protocols. I have also identified a number of back doors inside the chip.”
“Back doors?” said Bast.
“Yes. They provide alternate access to your brain chip in the event that the transmission controlling you failed. I am surprised the Juttari on your ship did not utilize them when you rebelled.”
“They didn’t know about the failure until it was too late. They only discovered the problem as we killed them.”
“You were fortunate, Colonel. I have disabled the back doors, and will do the same for the other brain chips. I also recommend that I am allowed to search the ship’s systems, as there will likely be multiple back doors and trojans installed.”
“Permission granted,” said Bast. “You are authorized to search every inch of the ship’s systems for vulnerabilities.”
“Thank you, Colonel. I will ensure that the ship is suitably hardened against electronic attack.”
You are still human, Colonel, AI said inside Bast’s mind.
No, I have been altered too much. The Juttari destroyed my humanity.
Neanderthals and homo sapiens were different, but both were human. You are merely a different type of human. A post-human.
My body is riddled with alien technology, and my brain connects to a hive. What is human about that?
You have evolved through augmentation. Evolution can take millions of years. Your evolution has been accelerated.
No matter what you call it, I cannot return to what I was before the Juttari took me. That dream is finished.
Perhaps a new dream now begins?
Perhaps. Are you done altering my brain chip?
I have finished modifying the security features and have disabled any back doors. Your brain chip is now secure.
Thank you, AI. Is there anything else I need to be made aware of?
No, Colonel.
Is my brain chip functioning properly?
Yes, Colonel. I have not noticed any errors or malfunctions.
Bast looked up at Jon who watched him with his usual intensity. “I think we’re done.”
“AI,” said Jon. “Have you finished integrating with Colonel Bast’s brain chip?”
“Yes, Captain,” said AI. “The Colonel’s brain chip has been secured.”
“Doctor, how does everything look on your end?” said Jon.
“I am not seeing any problems, Sir. Colonel Bast’s brain is functioning normally.”
“Thank you,” said Jon. “Colonel, how long do you want to wait before we insert AI into the rest of the brain chips?”
“Let’s give it a couple of days and see if there are any complications,” said Bast.
“Understood. Let me know when you think it is safe to proceed.”
“I will, Captain.” Bast rose from the hospital bed and got to his feet. “May I leave, Doctor?”
“Yes, Colonel. I’m all done.”
Bast nodded, straightened his uniform, and walked toward the door. When the door slid open, the memory of a little boy running away flashed in his mind. The boy turned a corner and was gone. This time Bast knew he would not be coming back.
Chapter 18
“Report,” said Captain Pierce, after jumping into a binary star system. With repairs on the Vanguard complete, they resumed their search for the Hermes, landing two hundred and fifty light years from Earth.
“No sign of the Juttari, or the Hermes, Sir,” said Ensign Paul Michael, the Vanguard’s tactical officer. “Although I am picking up a large debris field. It looks like starship wreckage.”
“Someone fought a battle here,” said Commander Hurley, a permanent scowl fixed on his face.
“On viewscreen,” ordered Pierce. Large fragments of a ship’s hull filled the display. Pierce leaned in, trying to get a sense of what had been destroyed. “Is it the Hermes?”
“No, Sir. This is not a Space Force design,” said Michael.
“The Juttari?”
“Negative, Sir. This wreckage does not correspond with any known ship design in our database.”
Who are you? thought Pierce.
“An unknown race,” said Commander Hurley, as if in answer to Pierce’s unspoken question. “She looks like she was a damn big ship.”
“Agreed,” said Pierce. “Whoever destroyed her must have had a lot of firepower.”
“Captain,” said the sensor operator. “I am picking up a transmission. It looks like some sort of probe.”
“Location?”
“Just behind the fourth planet’s moon, Sir.”
“Bring that probe aboard. Full alien biohazard protocols, until we learn more about this new race.”
“Yes, Sir. Initiating retrieval operations.”
From under its belly the Vanguard spit out a cluster of small vessels equipped with powerful engines and mechanical arms. The drones were designed to chase down a target, seize it, and drag it back to the Vanguard with or without its cooperation. The probe made no attempt to escape. It continued to float quietly in orbit around the planet’s moon, as if resigned to its fate. The retrieval drones surrounded the alien craft, using their arms to secure, and coerce it out of orbit, before returning to the Vanguard, with the alien probe in tow.
Pierce checked readiness reports from throughout the ship again. This was the fourth time he looked at them, but he needed to make sure they were ready in case the Juttari showed up. After their initial encounter, the Vanguard required extensive repairs, taking far too long to complete. The lack of personnel exacerbated their problems. Somewhere out there were four Juttari warships hunting the Vanguard. If they were to have any hope of survival, every inch of the ship needed to be ready.
He checked again on the status of the ship’s coil guns. Inactive during the initial battle, they would’ve empowered the Vanguard with a powerful punch. They could’ve destroyed at least one of the Juttari warships. Pierce knew that the Juttari cruisers, in particular, wouldn’t be able to withstand more than a few direct hits from the weapon. The giant guns could fire massive projectiles at terrifying velocity. There simply was no defense against the weapon, short of getting out of its way. He felt better knowing that the weapons were now running at peak performance. They weren’t battle tested yet, but he knew it was only a matter of time.
“She’s in fighting shape,” said Hurley, who watched the Captain from his station.
“I’m sure she is, Commander,” said Pierce. He understood his XO’s feelings. Hurley had personally supervised the repairs, and hadn’t been happy about the delays. Pierce knew Hurley felt responsible for the time it took, even though there was nothing he could do about the lack of manpower. There simply weren’t enough hands to
complete the repairs on time. Pierce was sure that his obsessive checking of the weapon systems didn’t help matters. But, Hurley was right. The Vanguard was fit and ready for a fight.
He switched screens, pulling up the progress of the drones, to find they had almost made it back to the Vanguard. He hoped the alien probe had answers that could shed light on what happened here, and if it related to the Hermes. He switched to the wreckage and early analysis of the debris field. Scorch marks consistent with energy weapon fire had been identified on the hull fragments. A battle had definitely taken place here.
“Probe is aboard,” said Hurley. “A team is suited up and ready to go to work.”
“Good,” said Pierce, pulling up a feed from the hangar bay. The drone had been secured and placed within a bio-containment field. A team of engineers in biohazard suits stepped up to the tiny alien craft and went to work. They performed scans first, to analyze, and identify its makeup. Then they took the small device apart.
In short order, they recovered the device’s main computer core. Its alien design took the engineers some time to analyze, but with the help of the ship’s systems they deciphered the alien language, and figured out the necessary commands to operate it.
Pierce continued rummaging through the ship reports. He had a fine crew. They were doing the work of a crew twice the size, and succeeding. How long can they keep up that pace? They’re going to burn out eventually. I can’t let that happen. I’ve got to stay on top of things.
He continued studying the reports, but his mind drifted back to the battle. With the Juttari jump ships hunting him, he knew leaving Sol was the best course of action, otherwise those ships might be bombing Earth at this very moment.
What about the Juttari force attacking through the jump gate? Is Space Force holding the line? Or did the Juttari break through? Shit. Focus, goddamn it. There’s nothing you can do for her now.
A communication request pulled Pierce out of his thoughts. It was one of the engineers. Finally, an update.
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