The Belt: The Complete Trilogy

by Gerald M. Kilby

  She disappeared from view as she climbed up. All they could see of her now was vague movement through the cage latticework.

  “Crap.”

  “What is it, Steph?” said Scott.

  “Part of the ladder has been ripped out. Two meters of it are gone.”

  “Probably happened when the cage fell,” said Cyrus.

  “I would suggest you all move away from the base of the shaft. I need to put my weight on this cage for a moment so I can climb past the gap in the ladder.”

  “Are you sure that’s wise? It looks very unstable to me,” said Spinner.

  “No choice—no other way to get past this gap.”

  They clambered down from the mound of crumpled metal and moved back. “Okay Steph, we’re out of the way.”

  A few seconds later and they could see a shower of dust and light debris fall down the shaft.

  “Okay, I’m through. Looks like it can hold the weight. You guys may as well start up now.”

  Scott was next. To keep his hands free to climb, he had the quantum device dangling below him from a strap attached to his EVA suit. The device was heavy, but still light enough to be carried by one person. However, this arrangement was awkward, as it bounced off the ladder, sometimes catching on a rung as he climbed. Nevertheless, he got to the underside of the elevator cage without the ladder collapsing or him falling. As he pushed himself through the gap between the cage and the wall, he could now see where part of the ladder was missing. He took a moment to figure out the best alternative route up, and as Steph had realized, the only option was to use the cage itself to climb up past the gap. He pulled up on the strap and gathered in the quantum device, then took a tentative step on the cage. It shifted slightly and dust rained down. Scott took it slow, transferring his weight and that of the device as gently as he could. The cage held, and he managed to move up its side until he could reach the ladder again.

  He breathed a sigh of relief. “Okay, Cyrus, you’re next.”

  Scott continued up for another fifteen meters. The shaft walls in this section bore all the scars of the elevator cage having slid and scraped its way down. Thankfully though, the access ladder was intact all the way up to the next level. He looked up to see Steph’s head sticking out from a door in the shaft. She waved. He waved back.

  “I’m through, Cyrus. You can head up now. Just be careful not to shake that cage too much.”

  “I’ll keep it in mind,” came the reply.

  Steph reached down and helped pull Scott up through the elevator door and out onto what must have been the lowest level of the Dyrell Labs research facility. He pulled the quantum unit up behind him and then swept the area with his helmet light. It was pitch black. His light picked out a tangle of pipes and ducting, all interconnecting with various control systems.

  “Shit,” Cyrus’s voice came through on his helmet comm.

  Scott stuck his head back out through the doorway and looked down. Cyrus had one hand on the ladder and one foot on the cage. He could see that the cage had shifted a little, and Cyrus had difficulty reaching the bottom rung of the upper ladder section.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “It’s shifted down. My only option is to try to jump.” With that, Cyrus launched himself off the cage just enough to grab the bottom rung. Scott could hear him panting through his comm. The cage held. Cyrus pulled himself up.

  Next it was Spinner’s turn. At least he wasn’t carrying any extra weight; hopefully the cage would hold out. Scott and Steph pulled Cyrus out of the shaft. He lay on the floor on his back, breathing hard. “Man, I hate Earth gravity.”

  Scott was looking back down the shaft to see how Spinner was progressing. He had arrived at the cage and began to transfer his weight when it jerked and shifted. “Damn, I don’t think this is gonna hold.”

  “Just be careful,” said Steph.

  Spinner tried again. This time it held. He then started climbing along its side until he could just grab the bottom rung of the ladder.

  “Nearly there,” he said, just as the cage finally collapsed.

  It seemed to crumple in the middle and tumble down the shaft. When it hit the bottom, although Scott couldn’t hear the crash through his helmet, he could feel the shudder through the floor. Spinner screamed out in pain.

  “Spinner, are you okay?” Steph shouted. But Spinner was now engulfed in a billowing cloud of dust that was rising up the shaft. “Spinner?”

  “I’m still here,” he groaned. “My foot got caught… I think it’s broken.” He groaned again.

  “Hold on, we’re coming to get you.”

  Scott unclipped the quantum device, but kept the strap attached. He lowered himself down the ladder to where the miner was clinging on.

  “Here.” He lowered the strap to Spinner. “Clip this on. I’ll pull you up.”

  When he had the strap attached, Scott began to climb up again, and Spinner was able to pull himself up behind. Steph and Cyrus grabbed him at the top and pulled him to safety. He winced in pain as Steph began to examine him.

  “I think it’s my ankle.” He grabbed at his right leg. “Cage caught my foot on the way down.”

  “We need to get out of this area fast. That crash must have been heard through every cave and tunnel in this system. If there are any drones down there, then they’re going to be investigating that.”

  Cyrus leaned in through the doorway and looked down the shaft.

  “What is it, Cyrus?”

  “They’re here already. Look.”

  Scott looked down. Below, through the dust and debris, he could see the tell-tale beam from a laser cutter working to clear a path through the mangled metal. “Shit, they’re trying to cut their way through. We better hurry.”

  15

  Research Facility

  Scott stood back from the elevator shaft and saw that here were a set of thick steel doors that had been swung back on either side of the doorway. “Blast doors,” he shouted. “Quick, let’s try to close these…it’ll buy us some time.” He grabbed the edge of one door and pulled; it didn’t budge. He placed one foot on the wall for leverage, and the door jolted free on its rusted hinges. Cyrus was working the door on the other side free by moving it back and forth, a little more each time until finally they swung them closed just as a small drone zoomed up from the base of the shaft.

  Scott lowered the locking bar across the double set of steel doors and stepped back. “That should hold them for a while.”

  He looked down at Spinner. The miner was sitting with his back to the wall as Steph wrapped a makeshift splint around his lower leg. She had also found a length of aluminum bar he could use as a crutch.

  “Think you can walk?” said Scott.

  Spinner cocked his head. “Do I have a choice?”

  “I suppose not.”

  “I think this is where we are,” said Cyrus. He had activated a 3D schematic from the holo-display on his wrist controller. It was a map of the facility that they had brought with them, cobbled together from known layouts and best guesses about what was within the complex of buildings that constituted Dyrell Labs research facility. It was not a complete map, nor was it one hundred percent accurate, but it was the best they had, so it would have to do.

  Cyrus was studying it, pointing to an area at the base of the schematic that projected out from the holo-display on his wrist. He turned around to orient the map coordinates with their current position. He pointed to his right. “That way should be the reactor facility.” He looked up and pointed to his left. “And down there should be a long corridor with several secure storage rooms. At the very end, there should be another service elevator leading up to the research facility. I think Athena should be two floors up from there.”

  “Another climb, then?” said Steph.

  “Not necessarily,” said Cyrus. “We’ve got power in this area. The reactor’s still functioning. I think that’s where the tribe gets their juice. They must have tapped into it in some way.”
r />   “Are you saying the elevators in here might still be working?” said Steph.

  Cyrus gave a shrug. “It’s possible, that’s all.”

  “I’ll take that,” said Spinner.

  “Okay, let’s get moving.” Scott hefted the case with the quantum device onto his shoulder. Cyrus did likewise with the other unit. Steph helped Spinner up onto his feet. He took a few tentative steps with the makeshift crutch under one arm and the other draped over Steph’s shoulder. They slowly moved off toward the corridor.

  They found it soon enough. It was wide enough for two ground cars to pass side by side. The walls were punctuated with large steel doors every ten meters or so. Some were open, and Scott peeked into one room as he passed. It was cavernous and empty, as far as he could tell. The corridor itself was made of cast concrete, like a bunker, which this area probably was. Here and there, rugged packing crates lay strewn about. They didn’t try to open any to see what was inside; they didn’t have the time. But he was heartened to see the tell-tale illumination of tiny LED lights here and there on various control panels, and electrical spurs mounted on the walls and ceilings. Some presumably were emergency lighting, and since it wasn’t on, that must mean there was full power.

  “There it is,” said Cyrus, pointing off into the darkness.

  “I can’t see anything,” said Scott, and he lowered the quantum unit down to the ground to take a breather. Spinner did likewise, lowering himself with a groan to sit on a packing crate.

  “Another thirty meters, dead ahead.” Cyrus flipped around to look back down the way they’d come.

  Scott tensed. “Trouble?”

  “Scout drones…three. No, four…heading this way.”

  Already Scott had hefted the quantum device back onto his shoulder. At the same time, he readied his plasma weapon and aimed it down the corridor. “Let’s move. Quick.”

  Cyrus led the way, followed by Steph and Spinner, who hobbled as fast as he could. Scott took up the rear, glancing back every now and again to check for drones. He saw the glint of metal first, his helmet light picking out the polished shell. Before he had time to warn the others, two bolts of incessant plasma spat out from the darkness. One sailed over Scott’s head into the distance, but the other hit the wall beside him, and the impact knocked him over. He landed face-first on the hard concrete floor, and the quantum unit went sliding forward.

  He rolled over on his back and fired off a few shots down the corridor, which were followed by several more shots from the others. Scott felt a hand grab at his shoulder; it was Cyrus. He pulled him, along with the quantum device, back in behind a stack of packing crates. Steph and Spinner were taking cover behind another stack on the opposite side of the corridor.

  “Crap. They’ve got us pinned down here,” said Spinner. He fired back into the darkness just as two drones came into view. He fired again, hitting one and sending it spiraling out of control. It slammed into the second drone and exploded in a blinding flash. Bits of metal danced off the floor and peppered the crew with a shower of hot shrapnel.

  Scott gave Spinner a thumbs up. “Nice shot.”

  “They’re backing off.” Cyrus poked his head out from behind the stack. “No, wait…there’s something else coming…something bigger.”

  “It’s probably one of those security drones. We don’t stand a chance against that. We need to get to the elevator.” He grabbed Cyrus and pulled him back in. “We need to go…now.”

  Scott looked over to where Steph and Spinner were crouched and signaled for them to get moving. Steph nodded back and began helping Spinner up. They all started to shuffle their way to the elevator, backs to the wall, trying to keep behind the stacks of packing crates as much as they could.

  “Can you see what those drones are doing, Cyrus?” Scott was dragging the quantum device with one hand, moving his way along the wall. He had the plasma weapon ready in the other.

  “They’re holding off…just hovering down there.”

  “What for?”

  “I think they’re waiting for big mama to arrive.”

  “How long?”

  “I can’t see it yet, but I can sense it coming. A minute, maybe less.”

  “Let’s make a run for it.”

  “We can’t. Spinner can’t move that fast.”

  “Don’t worry about me—I can move as fast as I need to. Just say the word,” said Spinner.

  “Okay,” said Scott. “Everybody start putting down some covering fire, then we go.” With that, all four of them blasted the far end of the corridor with a hail of plasma fire, then they ran.

  Ahead, Scott could see the service elevator. It was an open cage with a half-ramp door at the front that could hinge down. Presumably this was so that small wheeled vehicles could easily get in and out. On the wall just to the right of the elevator, Scott could see the faint illumination of the call buttons. “It’s got power, Cyrus. You were right.” He ran to it as fast as he could, hit the button, and looked back to see where the others were. Cyrus was right behind him. Steph and Spinner were still a good ten meters farther back. “Hurry!” He gestured frantically at them with a free arm.

  Two incandescent plasma bolts streaked out from the darkness at the far end of the corridor. One slammed into the ceiling just above Scott, and the other hit a stack of packing crates right beside Spinner and Steph. The stack collapsed, and the pair were lost from view. “Steph?” Scott shouted into his comm. There was no reply. “Shit.” He turned to Cyrus. “You get this stuff into the elevator. I’m going to find them.”

  He fired several shots down the hallway and stated to move forward. Another bolt hit the crates and sent them scattering in all directions. A second bolt hit the wall beside him, knocking him down again. His EVA suit electronics were flickering and shorting as it tried to deal with the electromagnetic fallout from the plasma blast. He looked down the hall; there was no sign of either Spinner or Steph. “Goddamnit. I don’t see them, Cyrus.”

  “Scott, we need to get out of here. That security drone has just appeared on my radar. If it gets a shot off, we’re dead for sure.”

  Scott rose to his feet, keeping low, and fired a few more shots into the darkness. He paused and scanned the area in front of him. There was no sign of them. “Where the hell are they?”

  “It’s just entered the corridor!” Cyrus shouted at him.

  Scott ran back to the elevator. The ramp was down, and Cyrus was already inside with the two units. Scott dived in as the ramp rose up. Another plasma bolt shot out from the darkness and slammed into the back wall of the elevator just as it was rising up. The cage juddered and Scott was sure it was going to fail, but it kept grinding its way up toward the floors above.

  “Scott? Cyrus?” His comm crackled; it was Spinner.

  “Where the hell are you?”

  “Steph took a hit. I dragged us into one of the side storerooms and barricaded up the door. It’s pretty thick, so it should hold…for a while.”

  “Steph, no. Goddamnit.”

  “She’s okay…I think. Her EVA suit took most of the blast. We can hold out here for a time, unless those drones try and cut through the door. Then, I don’t know…” His voice trailed off.

  “Try to hold out for as long as you can. We’re on our way up to the research lab.”

  “Will try… Good luck.”

  Scott looked over at Cyrus. The engineer seemed to be looking down at the floor of the elevator. “What now?”

  “We need to get out…now!” He hit the emergency button and the cage stopped moving, the ramp dropped open, and Cyrus and Scott grabbed the units and ran out of the elevator just as it exploded in the blinding flash of a powerful plasma blast. Dust and debris rained down on them as they ran. Scott took a quick look back to see that the opening was now engulfed in flames.

  “I think that was the security drone,” said Cyrus when they had stopped running. Both of them were looking back at the furnace raging in the elevator shaft.

  “At le
ast that should slow them down for a while. No getting up through that ball of fire and metal.”

  “Let’s hope so. We’ve still got to find a way up to the next level.” Cyrus tapped an icon on his wrist control, and the 3D schematic of the facility blossomed up from the holo-screen. He studied it for a moment, then turned around and pointed. “This way. There should be a staircase leading all the way up.”

  They hefted the units back up on their shoulders and moved off as fast as they could.

  16

  The Android

  Scott wondered if now might be a good time to open his helmet visor. He still had over an hour of air left in the tank, so it wasn’t that. He just felt that he might be able to hear better if something was coming for them. But he let it go for the moment and concentrated on putting one step in front of the other as he and Cyrus climbed up the steep access stairs to the upper levels of the Dyrell research facility. Below them, the drones would be trying to find an alternative route up now that the service elevator shaft had been denied them—by their own hand. There was a certain irony in that. Scott smiled to himself at the idea of it. Maybe there is hope, he thought. But even so, it wouldn’t take the drones long to find them. They needed to hurry; he hastened his step.

  The stairs themselves had been cut out of the very mountain. Perhaps it was much older than the facility, a legacy of some ancient mine that operated here in times past. As they ascended, Scott noticed that it had been patched and repaired in several sectors, new concrete bridging the gaps in the old rock. Closer to the top, the old gave way to the new. This section was all smooth and clean, engineered from concrete rather than simply hacked out of the rock.

  They stepped out of the stairwell and into to a wide, shallow floor area. Directly in front was a frosted glass wall, its smooth lines a stark contrast to the rough rock of the surroundings. As they approached, they could see that one section of this wall was in fact a set of double doors. These were marked and scratched as if someone had tried to break through. Scattered on the floor were the remains of the implements used in this attempt: rocks, a metal bar, and a small axe. They had rested there for a very long time, judging by the dust that had accumulated on their surfaces.