The Belt: The Complete Trilogy

by Gerald M. Kilby

  They discussed all the possible ways they could break out of the cell, yet there still remained the not inconsiderable problems of finding their gear, finding a way out of Shin-Au-Av, then finding a way to the Dyrell facility, and finally down to where Athena was entombed.

  There was also another major problem that no one, as yet, had mentioned. Even if they managed to get to Athena and connect the quantum device, would it work? As far as Scott understood it, the device should connect Athena to Aria on Mars, and by extension, Solomon on Europa. However, for them to take control of Earth-based AI, Athena needed to be reconnected to the grid, which was the Earth-based communications network. His head hurt just thinking about it all.

  They discussed their options for what seemed like hours, going around and around the same problems with no obvious solution that didn’t involve high-risk, direct action—like taking someone hostage and holding a gun to their head until their demands were met. But this was a non-runner; there had to be a better way. So, it almost came as a welcome relief when the door opened and Tugo entered along with two other guards.

  One guard took up a position at the door, facing out, checking up and down, while Tugo turned to them, put his fingers to his lips, and spoke very softly. “If you want out of here, then be as quiet as possible, and follow me.”

  Scott looked at Tugo, trying to decide what trick was being played. Were they being released, or was there some other plan going on that he couldn’t see yet? But Tugo did seem to be offering them a way out of the holding cell, so that was something, at least. Scott glanced at the others, then stood up and followed Tugo.

  They moved along a dim corridor in single file, Tugo taking the lead. It was nighttime in the citadel; the lights had darkened, and only faint sounds of dripping water could be heard over the low background hum of machines. After a few moments, they exited into the cavern. Here the background sounds became louder, interspersed with distant voices. Tugo turned back to them and silently signaled that they were heading up a set of narrow steps that would eventually take them to the upper levels of the terraces. As they climbed, the sounds of the cavern below grew more muffled and distant.

  Scott paused for a moment to cast a glance back down across the metropolis. It was pitch black, save for dim points of light that cascaded down from the terraces and stretched themselves out across the floor of the city. It had a shimmering, ethereal beauty, and in that moment, he could see why it was hard for some to contemplate leaving this place for the harsh, forbidding landscape of the outside world. Someone tugged at his sleeve; it was Cyrus, prompting him to keep moving.

  The stone stairway wound its way up through the contours of the terraces in a confusing zigzag pattern. It finally ended on a shallow balcony jutting out from the cave wall, high up on the edge of the stone face, into which was set a highly-engineered door—an airlock. It was very similar to the one they had come in through, but this was smaller. It was another entrance to the cavern, and presumably led back into the old mine shafts beyond. Another of Tugo’s people was waiting for them here. As soon as he saw them coming, he opened the door and signaled from them to hurry on.

  They had spoken little throughout the entire journey. But now that they were through the door and into the tunnel on the far side, Tugo and his people began to relax a little. He gestured to them. “This way. It’s not far.”

  The tunnel was flat and level, and a welcome relief from the steep climb up the steps and out of the cavern. They walked for around fifty meters before Tugo pointed to an open archway on the left-hand side of the tunnel. This opened into a low, wide room that had been hacked out of the rock. In the center, all their gear had been assembled: EVA suits, helmets, weapons, even the robotic mule, still carrying the quantum device. It must have taken a lot of effort to get it here, as it had deactivated itself once their suits had been powered down. It simply folded itself up, like any four-legged animal, and switched itself off. Tugo’s people had lifted it onto a wheeled cart and must have pushed and pulled it here, and judging by the tired looks on the two people guarding the stash, it had required a lot of effort.

  Tugo waved a hand around the pile. “All your gear should be here.”

  They moved in closer and began to pick through it. “So, you’re letting us go?” said Scott as he examined his EVA suit.

  “What I said at the council assembly was for the benefit of the crowd. There are some of us that understand what you are attempting to do, and we see it as an opportunity to escape this”—he looked around the cave—“subterranean existence. That, and the fact that the situation has changed. Things are escalating, and our continued existence is looking tenuous.”

  Scott gave him a look. “What’s changed?”

  “Come, I need to show you this.” Tugo placed an old and battered holo-tab on the ground and activated it. From its surface, a 3D video feed of the Wasteland blossomed out. It was obviously taken by a drone high up, or possibly a satellite. It showed several shuttles coming in to land on the dusty desert sands. Around them swarmed numerous security drones, similar to those that had attacked them at the mine entrance. The image was blurry, but there was no mistaking the insignia on the shuttles.

  “VanHeilding,” said Cyrus, pointing to one of the craft.

  One by one, the loading doors on the shuttles started opening, each disgorging a group of security personnel.

  “This was taken a little over two hours ago by a small drone we operate to monitor this area,” said Tugo. “We’ve never seen anything like this before. That quantum device you have—they obviously want it real bad.” He looked over at Scott. “So, you were right, Commander. They’re planning to leave no stone unturned until they find it, and there is no way that we can remain hidden. Our days are numbered, and we’re about to become extinct.”

  “What’s that?” Steph pointed to what looked like a dense flock of birds spiraling out from the belly of several larger drones.

  “It’s a micro-swarm—small scout drones that act as one. They’re small enough to penetrate deep into the cave system. And don’t let their small size fool you into thinking they’re easy pickings. They’re deadly, and once one finds you, you can expect a whole lot more to follow.”

  “Shit,” said Spinner.

  By now, Scott and the crew had reacquainted themselves with their respective EVA suits, checking resources, helmets, and comms, while all the time the holo-tab played out the advance of the drones and troops of the VanHeilding Corporation across the Wasteland.

  “So, have you thought about how we can get into the Dyrell facility?” Cyrus was checking out the quantum device still strapped to the robotic mule. “I thought you said we wouldn’t survive ten minutes outside the caves.”

  “You don’t have to go outside,” said Tugo. “Here, let me show you this.”

  Tugo changed the projection on the holo-tab. It now showed a detailed schematic of the cave system interior. “This is the best map we’ve got of the caves and passages in this area.” He pointed to a blank spot on the projection. “The Dyrell facility is over here somewhere, and we know that these two passages connect with it. Problem is, they’re blocked. No way through.”

  “Well, that’s not much help,” said Cyrus.

  “No, but we think there may be a way in along this route here.” He pointed to a long, square tunnel that took a right angle, straight up, only to stop in the middle of nothing.

  “That looks like it goes nowhere,” said Scott.

  “That’s just as far as it has been mapped by us, but it should continue on, and we think it leads to the reactor in the lower levels of the Dyrell facility, just below where the QI, Athena, should be. If you can get in there, then there may be a way up.”

  Scott leaned in to examine the map, as did the rest of the crew. “How do you know this leads to the facility?”

  “Look, I’ve lived here for years, and the tribe has explored a great deal of the cave system. A lot of it might not be on this map, but the facility is
there. I’m sure of it.” He pointed to the blank spot on the map again. “That whole area has high radiation levels, so we’ve avoided it. But you can tell by the shape of the tunnel system that it’s been cut out. It’s not natural, nor is it an old mine shaft.”

  Spinner leaned in and pointed to the long, perpendicular shaft. “My guess is that’s an elevator shaft. See how it’s narrower than the horizontal tunnel at the base? If there are high radiation levels, then it could be that they were storing spent fuel rods from the reactor core down here.”

  “How you figure that?” said Steph.

  “It’s what I do—it’s why I’m on this mission. There’s not a lot I don’t know about holes in the ground.”

  “That makes sense,” said Tugo. “It’s why we never explored it—too much radiation.” He pointed to an area running alongside the square tunnel. “If you continue on this way, there are several connecting shafts leading to areas that were blocked up deliberately, not by rockfall. It could be where they stored contaminated equipment or buried old fuel rods.”

  “We’re gonna need these suits—big time,” said Spinner. “I reckon I’ve got around two hours of air.”

  “What about the shaft, then? Any infrastructure still there? Anything to help us climb up?” said Cyrus.

  “A lot of mangled metal, that’s all. But I think there’s still some infrastructure, steel cables, that sort of thing. But I’ll be honest: they’re old and fragile, likely to collapse—dangerous.”

  The crew stood for a moment in silence, studying the 3D map, trying to glean any nugget of information from it that could help them. The all froze when they heard a distant boom.

  Steph turned to Tugo. “What was that?”

  Tugo had cocked his head, listening, his eyes wide. “That is the beginning of the end. The battle for Shin-Au-Av has begun. We need to get back.”

  “You’re not coming with us?” said Scott.

  “No, my duty lies elsewhere—in the defense of the citadel. All I can say is, I hope to hell you’re right about this QI, Athena. I’ve gone out on a limb here, and there’ll be hell to pay when I get back and they find out I let you go. So do not fail me. Our very survival depends on you now.”

  14

  Fissure

  They walked in silence for a while, trying to follow the map that Tugo had given them. It was limited in that it didn’t give them their own location on it, so they backtracked several times, trying to get themselves oriented. The passages they moved through became more dilapidated as they progressed. It was clear that very few of the tribe ever came through this area. The ever-rising radiation levels had a lot to do with that. But it was also treacherous; cracks and fissures had opened up in the tunnels, and several times they had to be careful of their step as they traversed some gaping hole in the earth.

  They all wore full EVA suits with visors closed to protect them from the background radiation. But Scott felt confined, almost claustrophobic. He couldn’t hear anything of the outside world save for the comms chatter of the crew. There was no way to hear if someone, or something, was sneaking up on them.

  After an hour or so of what seemed like aimless searching, they finally found a junction that they could identify on the 3D map. Cyrus had placed the holo-tablet on the ground, and they all gathered around as it projected the layout of the known area.

  “We’re here. I’m pretty sure of it.” Cyrus pointed to a junction on the map. “This spur should lead to the newer tunnel section where the service elevator shaft is.”

  Steph studied the spur on the map. “Looks very ragged.”

  “My guess is that’s a fissure that opened up relatively recently,” said Spinner. “You can tell by the contours that it probably extends for quite a distance. If I was a guessing man, I’d say this area was hit by an earthquake after they made that tunnel. Most likely caused by the several mega-tons of nuclear warheads that detonated all over the West Coast.”

  “So which way, then?” said Steph.

  Cyrus swung an arm out and pointed down the passageway. “Around a hundred meters that way.” He shut down the holo-tab and they continued on.

  When they finally came to the spur, it was as Spinner had described: a jagged crack had opened up and sliced through the earth. It was narrow but deep. Scott’s helmet light could not divine the bottom as he looked down into it. Fortunately, the nature of the split resulted in a thin ledge that rose at a steep upward angle, just enough to walk along, and probably the only reason that someone from the tribe had been able to explore this sector of the cave system.

  Scott studied the ledge. “The mule isn’t going to manage that. Looks like we’re carrying the gear from here.”

  They started unloading the robotic mule, distributing the smaller items that could fit into the pockets of their EVA suits amongst the four of them. But the two main items they needed were the quantum device and the satellite uplink that would be used to reconnect Athena to the Earth-based grid, both of which were cocooned in individual, rugged cases. Cyrus and Steph carried the uplink, leaving Scott and Spinner to carry the quantum device. The rest of the gear they abandoned, along with the mule.

  They set off up the steep, narrow incline of the fissure. Scott could hear Spinner in his comms, huffing and puffing as he navigated his way up behind him. They carried the device between them. Scott took the lead, Spinner behind.

  “Jeez, now I know why I don’t live on this planet anymore,” Spinner huffed. “Everything is just too goddamn heavy.”

  “We’re nearly at the top. Just don’t let this thing fall or it’s game over.”

  “Yeah, yeah, don’t worry. I just like complaining—it makes me feel better.”

  But it was Scott who lost his footing first. The side of the ledge gave way, and he almost went over. If not for Spinner reaching out with an arm to shove him back, he would have lost his balance.

  “Ah…like I said: gravity’s a bitch.” Spinner laughed.

  They made it up to the next level without any further drama, and one by one worked their way into this new tunnel. The fissure continued on up into the depths of the mountain above.

  Scott scanned his helmet light up and down the tunnel. It was very different from any of the others they had ventured through so far. This was new, built within the last hundred years. Its walls, floor, and ceiling were smooth, thick-cast concrete. Old rusted conduits ran along the ceiling, punctuated by strip-lights, some of which hung down, their fasteners having rusted long ago.

  “Which way, Cyrus?” Scott lowered the device to the ground so that Spinner could take a breather.

  But the engineer didn’t answer. Instead, he was staring back down the fissure they had just ascended.

  “What is it?”

  Cyrus shook his head. “I don’t know. A strange signal.” He looked up at Scott. “I think there’s something down there.”

  “Something?” Spinner shifted to look down.

  “Could be nothing.” Cyrus shrugged.

  Scott and Steph exchanged a glance. They had known Cyrus long enough that when the engineer said something was up, you’d better pay attention.

  “Come on,” said Scott. “Straight ahead, around one hundred and thirty meters. That should be the base of the elevator shaft.”

  A few moments later, they arrived at a mound of bent and crumpled metal at the base of the old service elevator. Scott carefully picked his way through and looked up the length of the vertical shaft, angling his helmet light to illuminate the dilapidated structure. Rusted cables and struts hung down at awkward angles. Around ten meters up, he could see the elevator cage had broken off from its mounts and was now wedged in the space at a precarious angle. Its door had long gone; he looked down at his feet to see that he was standing on it.

  Cyrus came up beside him. “What do you think?”

  “Well, getting up there isn’t going to be a walk in the park with a fine lady and a well-groomed poodle.” Scott angled his light at the rusted metal access ladd
er tucked into a recess that ran the length of the shaft. He pointed up. “That cage looks like it could collapse down at any time. We need to be really careful when we’re squeezing past it.”

  Cyrus looked up at the rusted cage for a moment. “That’s if we can get past it. That gap looks tight.”

  Scott cast another tentative glance back up the shaft. “Maybe one of us should check it out first, before we start to climb up with the additional weight of these units.”

  “I’ll go,” said Steph. “I’m the lightest, so if it collapses under my weight”—she turned to the others—“you can take it that it’s not going to support yours.”

  They took a few more minutes to organize themselves. It was agreed that Steph would climb up first, past the cage, and test the route. Assuming the rickety ladder held, then Scott would be next, dangling the quantum unit behind him from a strap on his EVA suit. Cyrus would be next, using the same method to carry the uplink, and finally Spinner would take up the rear.

  “This would be a lot easier if we didn’t need these EVA suits,” said Cyrus as he eyed the shaft.

  “Rads are very high here,” said Steph. “It wouldn’t do you any favors down the line.”

  Cyrus turned his head back to her. “You’re assuming there is a ‘down the line.’”

  Steph started up. She would go solo, and try to get past the broken elevator cage that had wedged itself in the shaft. Her first step on the ladder came with a sprinkling of falling dust and a noticeable flex in the metal. Her next steps were more tentative, but by the fourth step, the rung gave way and she almost lost her grip.

  “You okay?” said Scott into his helmet comm.

  He could hear Steph taking a deep breath. “I’m fine,” came the reply.

  She continued climbing up, and finally arrived at the cage without further incident, much to the relief of the others watching from below. “That last stretch looks pretty solid. I’m going to try to see what it’s like past this cage.”