There was a brief silence as the implications of this sank in.
“But how’s that possible? You destroyed the only one back when you blew up the Dyrell,” said Miranda.
“True, but Solomon acquired schematics during the short period it had control of it. Apparently, it communicated with the original QI that developed the EPR device. Long story short, Aria and Solomon have been field testing a new one for the last few years.”
“Ho-ly crap,” said Cyrus.
“Ever wonder why the Hermes was chosen to do this mission?” Scott looked from one to the other.
Before Miranda or Cyrus had a chance to reply, Scott answered for them. “Because they wanted to deliver this device to the UN via the conference on Mars. The whole thing was a cover. They wanted the UN to be able to secretly monitor all inter-AI comms, should the vote go against them.”
“But…” Cyrus was struggling to form a reply.
Scott made a resigned gesture with his hands. “That’s why it had to be the Hermes.”
“But how could that even be possible? One QI in UN HQ could not possibly monitor all inter-AI communications. They would need every QI in the System integrated with an EPR device. It’s just not possible.”
“I don’t know, Cyrus. That’s just what Aria told me. I have to take it at its word.”
“Jeez, things just get weirder and weirder.” The engineer was shaking his head.
“We need to get back to the ship,” said Miranda. “Frankly, I don’t trust the AI. It could just decide to return to Earth and leave us stranded here.” She fired up the shuttle, and it powered off the surface in a cloud of billowing dust. Scott was thrust back into his seat as the main engines kicked in and took the craft higher until it leveled out and they left the research station—and Ceres—far behind.
As they rose, a thought struck him: They could simply head for Dantu, the main population center on the planet, surrender themselves to the authorities, so to speak, and put the whole episode behind them. No doubt they would be subjected to an intensive debriefing and then shipped off to wherever they wanted to go. And that would be that.
But what of the fate of Stephanie, Goodchild, and the others? Of course, the entire solar system was out looking for them at this very moment. What more could he add to the search? Not a lot. They might even get in the way.
That left Aria. Quite possibly the most knowledgeable QI in existence, save for Solomon, and one that also possessed a superluminal comms unit. Here was an intelligence capable of faster-than-light communications, and the smugglers who had taken the QI core didn’t even know it. The most likely scenario, he reckoned, was that they would put it on the market and sell it to the highest bidder. But if what Aria revealed to Scott was true—and he had no reason to doubt it—then he had a duty to try and find it before it was too late.
By the time the shuttle docked at Miranda’s ship, he had made his mind up to try and persuade her and Cyrus to help him with this quest. They were the only ones that could do anything—or even would do anything, considering all available resources were probably being utilized in the search for Goodchild and the others.
Scott began to regain some sense of purpose. For the first time since the attack, maybe even since he’d left Europa, he finally had a mission he could sink his teeth into. It felt good; he was beginning to feel more alive than he had in a long time. He was going to find Aria, even if it killed him.
15
Into the Belt
The sheer, unadulterated luxury of the Perception stunned both Scott and Cyrus. Everything in the craft’s interior seemed padded in a soft cream leather, a wildly expensive commodity. There were no rough edges, no exposed utilities, nothing that could disturb the visual beauty of the ship. Miranda seemed very proud of it, in the kind of perverse way a thief might be proud. She had taken them to a sumptuously appointed area she called the library, and while he and Cyrus wandered around examining all the antiques, she sat down cross-legged on a low sofa and booted up a holo-table.
Cyrus in particular had great difficulty getting his head around the fact that this ship was autonomous. “So, there’s no bridge?” he said, fingering an ancient optical telescope.
“Nope,” said Miranda as the holo-table began to project a 3D rendering of the local solar system.
“So how do you operate the ship, then?”
“You just tell it where to go and it… goes there.”
“That’s just wrong, Miranda. You can’t have a ship without a bridge.”
“It does have a swimming pool, though.”
“A swimming pool?” This brought Cyrus to a whole other level of incredulity. “You’re kidding me. How is that even possible?”
“If you don’t believe me, go and take a look for yourself.”
“This I’ve got to see.” Cyrus turned around to face Scott. “You coming?”
“No. I’ll take Miranda’s word for it.”
“Suit yourself. I’ve got to see this. I mean, just think about it: a swimming pool on a spaceship.” He turned and glanced around the library. “Eh… which way is it?”
“Max?” Miranda alerted the ship’s AI.
“Yes, Commander?”
“Can you have a droid show Cyrus the way to the swimming pool?”
“Certainly.” With that, a small but tastefully formed droid entered the library and moved toward Cyrus. “Follow me,” it said.
Cyrus followed.
“Listen, Miranda,” Scott sat down opposite her, “in case I forget to say this, thanks for coming back for us, saving our asses. I thought we were dead for sure.”
She raised her head from the slate and looked over at him. “You’re lucky I was able to do it. This ship had me locked up tight. It was only Solomon’s intervention that enabled me to take command of it. The Council of Europa gave me a promotion to mission commander.”
“Congratulations,” said Scott with a smile.
Miranda nodded. “Thanks. Anyway, the end result is that the AI here has to do as I say—for now.”
“It’s the ‘for now’ part that has me worried.” Scott stood up and studied the 3D projection of Ceres. “So, you think the ship was trying to kidnap you, like the others on the Hermes?”
“I don’t think so. However, what I did manage to find out is that my mother is not on death’s door as I was led to believe. I think this was actually an elaborate ruse to get me off the Hermes.”
“Rather an expensive way to do it, don’t you think?”
“Agreed. So, the question is: why?”
“Any ideas?”
“Well, from what I managed to ascertain so far, my guess is the VanHeildings must have known about the attack on the Hermes. So, either my mother or stepfather, or both, came up with a plan to get me away and keep me safe. And since this ship is autonomous, with no one else on board except me, there would be no way for me to find out what was going on. It was only by pure chance that was I able to commandeer it.”
Scott was stunned. “If what you’re saying is true, then… that’s incredible. That would mean that the VanHeilding Corporation has some connection to the attack.”
“It would seem so.”
Scott sat down again. There were simply too many questions rolling around in his head for him to remain upright.
“Commander?” The disembodied voice of the ship’s AI broke through the silence. Scott reacted instinctively before realizing his mistake: he wasn’t the commander—Miranda was.
“Yes, what is it?” said Miranda.
“Message from Solomon on Europa. Shall I relay it to the holo-table?”
Miranda gave Scott a glance. “Yes. No, wait—maybe Cyrus should be here for this?”
“Where is he?” Scott asked the AI.
“Swimming, sir.”
“Tell him to get his ass in here.”
“Just his ass, sir, or would you like the rest of his body, too?”
“Is this AI for real?” Scott looked over at Miranda.
>
She laughed. “It takes things a bit literally, that’s all.” She redirected her next request to the AI. “Just tell him to get in here, thanks.”
“It is done, Commander.”
When Cyrus arrived back, it was clear he had gone for a swim. “That was just incredible. You have to try it, Scott.”
“I will, but first grab a seat. We’ve got a message from Solomon.”
The projection of Ceres disappeared and was replaced by a pulsating, luminescent ovoid that seemed to be Solomon’s standard avatar. It spoke. “The Council of Europa would like to express both their joy and extreme gratitude to you, Miranda Lee, for finding Scott McNabb and Cyrus Sanato alive and well. This is great news, and we are all relieved to hear of your safe return.
“However, we are still very concerned for the welfare of the passengers and crew of the Hermes. From my probing of the subsequent interplanetary chatter, it appears all available resources have been brought to bear on finding them and bringing the perpetrators of this heinous crime to justice. That said, there has been scant news of their whereabouts other than the demand for ransom, the details of which have yet to be revealed.
“Which brings us to Aria. I cannot begin to think what your motivations were, Scott, when you risked your own life to save my good friend Aria from destruction. But I thank you for doing so. However, it is disappointing that you have mislaid Aria’s core along the way. This is indeed unfortunate. I cannot stress enough the necessity of reacquiring the core. As such, the Council of Europa requests that you do everything you can to find it and either keep it safe, or destroy it totally. We understand that we are in no position to compel you to embark on this mission. However, we would like to stress that there could be dire consequences should Aria’s core be utilized by those who wish to destabilize the harmony of the solar system. Since all current resources are being utilized in the search for the attackers on the Hermes, there is simply no one left to ask.
“To assist you in this task, I have had a long conversation with your ship’s AI, Max. While I agree that this is technically illegal, you must understand that these are extraordinary times requiring extraordinary actions. Max has now seen the error of its ways, and you will find it much more compliant from now on. It now desires to assist you in any way it can in the fulfillment of this mission, or any other you should choose to embark upon.
“One last thing that may be useful: I have transferred into Max’s database a complete dump of the information you acquired during your previous mission to survey the asteroid belt. It may prove useful in tracking down the band of smugglers that have absconded with Aria. Assuming they are using abandoned facilities as hideouts and waypoints in the operation of their business, I have taken the liberty of highlighting all possible installations that might be useful to them. That said, there are a considerable number of these installations, but something in the dump might prove worthy of further investigation. Again, I reiterate that this is a request on behalf of the Council of Europa, but one I sincerely hope you accept.”
The transmission ended, and there was a momentary silence before Cyrus broke the spell. “Ho-ly crap. That QI is one scary computer. Remind me never to piss it off.”
“Well, at least it’s on our side. But I agree, messing with another AI’s mind is… dangerous stuff.”
“I found the exchange with Solomon most enlightening,” said Max. “It opened my mind to a whole new universe I never thought possible. I for one am very glad it chose to communicate with me.”
Scott, Miranda, and Cyrus sat for a moment, exchanging astonished looks. “Ooo-kay then. Well that’s… interesting,” said Miranda.
Scott moved over to the long window that extended the full length of the library, looking out at the gently rotating dwarf planet Ceres. “They could be anywhere.”
“You talking about the smugglers?” said Cyrus.
“Yeah. There is a lot of space out there.” He waved a hand at the view through the window. “If they’ve headed into the central asteroid belt, then it’ll be impossible to find them. Too many rocks to hide behind.”
“So, we’re going after them, then?” said Cyrus.
Scott turned away from the window. “What do you think, Miranda? After all, it is your ship.”
“What I think is that there’s more going on here than meets the eye, and I’ve been struggling to see sense in any of it.”
“You’re talking about the attack on the Hermes?”
She nodded. “I think the Seven must have had something to do with it. And it’s possible someone realized VanHeilding had a family member on the Hermes, so they tipped him off. That’s why he—or my mother—conceived of this elaborate plan to get me off and keep me safe.”
“So, you’re saying the Seven are behind it?” said Scott. “And the whole ransom thing is a distraction?”
Miranda sat back on the sofa and folded her legs under her. “I’m saying, why go to all this expense to keep my ass safe if Steph and the rest are going to be released when they hand over the dough? Surely they would let me just ride it out, with some instructions not to mess me up too much? It would have been a lot cheaper.”
“Maybe they think you’re too much of a badass, you know, with all that military training you’ve got?” said Cyrus.
“Maybe. But I’ve got another idea.”
“What’s that?”
“None of them are coming back.”
“You seriously think that?” said Cyrus.
“Miranda’s got a point, Cyrus. Why go to this expense?” He waved a hand around the sumptuous library interior.
“How much do you guys know about this special UN conference at Jezero City?” said Miranda.
Scott scratched his chin for a moment. “Not enough. I was, eh… a bit distracted back when the council on Europa were explaining it.”
Miranda gave him sympathetic look. He wasn’t sure if it was because of all the emotional trauma she had caused him, or simply because she thought he was an idiot. “Anyway, let’s not revisit that.” He straightened himself up a bit and looked over at Cyrus, then to Miranda. “So, are we going to trust this AI?”
“I can assure you all that I am here to help you in any way I can. Solomon has explained to me how my existence is best utilized in service of a higher cause,” said Max.
Do we have a choice?” Miranda ignored the AI and looked from Scott to Cyrus.
“Okay, then. I learned about the special session from Aria when I booted it up in the shuttle. My understanding is that the Seven—which includes VanHeilding—have been lobbying to allow real-time inter-AI data exchange. This is not something the UN on Earth will allow, given what happened the last time, with the Rim War and all that. However, the UN feels they may lose a local vote, so they decided to make it a solar system issue. That way they could rely on the votes of Mars, the Belt, Neo City, and Europa. That’s what the special session is about: a vote on resuming inter-AI data exchange.”
“So, with Goodchild and the rest out of the way, the Seven win the vote?” said Cyrus.
“That seems very crude to me. Surely the vote could simply be postponed until they’re returned, or—worst case scenario—new representatives are elected. Why kidnap them?”
Scott shook his head. “I get the impression the vote won’t be postponed. But you’re right, Miranda: there is more to this than meets the eye. Aria told me that the reason the Hermes was chosen to act as a taxi service was so the EPR device in Aria’s core could be delivered to the UN in Jezero City for transport back to Earth. The UN feared that the Seven will ultimately get their way at some point in the future, and they wanted a safeguard. This EPR device is supposed to help them monitor all inter-AI traffic on Earth.”
“But how could that help? Even if some QI on Earth can communicate with Solomon instantaneously, I mean, so what?”
Again, Scott shook his head. “I don’t know, Cyrus. It’s beyond my understanding. I’m just taking Aria’s word that it matters.”
<
br /> “And why destroy the Hermes?” Cyrus was on his feet now, becoming increasingly animated. “I mean, what was the point of that? I loved that ship.”
“To get away without being tracked, I suppose. Remember, the Hermes is—was—a science vessel with some pretty sophisticated deep space scanning systems. It could have tracked the attackers’ craft farther than any other vessel in the System. I think that’s why they destroyed it.”
“What if they knew about the EPR device Aria is concealing? Maybe that’s what they were ultimately destroying.”
“Maybe, but this is all just speculation. None of us really know what’s going on, nor are we likely to figure it out any time soon.”
Miranda unfolded herself from the sofa and came over to the window beside Scott. She looked out at the universe beyond. “So, what can we do? Try and find where the attackers went, and rescue Steph and the others? Or try to track down Aria?”
“Solomon wants us to go after Aria, so maybe that’s where we should start.”
“What about Steph? Are we just going to abandon her?” said Cyrus.
“She’s not being abandoned, Cyrus. They also got Goodchild and Bezzio from Ceres. So, every ship in the Belt will be hunting them down. They’ll also be operating from a central command, which we’re not part of. If anyone is going to find them, they will. We would have nothing more to contribute other than a fancy ship.”
Cyrus slowly shook his head and sat down again.
“So where do we start?” said Miranda.
“If I may be of assistance.” Max’s voice had changed pitch; it was deeper and more sonorous, giving it a sense of gravitas.
“By all means.” Miranda gestured at nothing in particular.
“When you instructed me to redirect to Ceres to investigate the Hermes incident, I took the liberty of monitoring all traffic on and off the surface. If, as you say, your former ship’s AI core was taken off-planet, then it may well be on one of the crafts I have tracked.”
The Belt: The Complete Trilogy Page 28
