The Colony Ship Vanguard: The entire eight book series in one bundle

by John Thornton

  “Mind your own kittens!” The Roe screamed again, but did not let go of Paul’s arm.

  Paul spun over and kicked at the Roe, trying to get his arm free. He was tossed down again.

  In the fleeting views he got, Paul could tell the Roe had once been male, and had matted and thick wavy, yellow hair, nearly waist-length. The body was angular with a medium build. Its skin was pale, but laced by scars. The Roe’s low forehead and bushy eyebrows overlooked the blazing large orange eyes. Those eyes projected hatred.

  “Mind your own kittens!”

  The Roe slammed Paul’s arm down hard again. He was expecting it to grab him with both hands, but it did not. Its one-handed grip was very tight and his arm hurt. He pulled away, and punched at the arm holding him. His punch missed as the Roe shook him again.

  The Roe yanked him with its hold on his arm and tried to pull him toward it. Its jaws were biting and snapping. Spittle flew everywhere.

  Paul kicked again, and landed a blow on the abdomen of the Roe, but it still held onto him with one hand. Paul pulled away hard, and then reversed direction and shouldered into the Roe. It was off balance, and the grip relaxed just a bit. Paul grabbed the Roe’s hand which was squeezing his arm. He managed to get his own hand around the Roe’s thumb and he used all his strength to rip it backward as hard as he could. Paul shouldered into the Roe again, twisted and then pulled back. A snapping sound came from the thumb, as the grip and bones were broken. Paul quickly leaped away from the Roe.

  “What?” Paul asked out loud. For the first time in the fight he saw clearly what was before him.

  “Mind your own kittens!” The Roe lunged at Paul but it stopped its forward motion with a jerk.

  The Roe had been chained around its left arm where there was a welded manacle on that wrist. A large and heavy chain connected that manacle to the wall. The Roe’s right arm was the one which had grabbed Paul and which now had a dislocated and fractured thumb. The Roe leaped again, but was stopped by the length of the chain. It strained against the chain but could not reach Paul, its intended victim.

  Around the area were scattered bones and trash of all sorts. The length of chain allowed the Roe to reach the door, but hindered its movement further than that.

  “Mind your own kittens!” The Roe screamed and again lurched toward Paul but was stopped by the chain.

  A cutting flame appeared coming out of the steel door near its hinges. Gretchen was cutting her way through the door.

  Paul took out his pistol and aimed it at the Roe.

  “Someone put you there,” Paul muttered. He fired the pistol.

  Piff. Piff.

  The Roe staggered into the wall as only one of the high speed projectiles tore through its body. It slumped down to the deck, mumbling its chant. Its left arm still connected by the chain to the wall. The body twitched a few times.

  The steel door fell in with a resounding clatter, the edges of the hinges still glowing from being cut apart. Gretchen leaped through with her own pistol ready.

  “The Roe is dead,” Paul said and gestured to the twitching body.

  “Just the one in here?” Gretchen scanned around the area.

  “I think so,” Paul replied.

  Gretchen shut down the torch which was in one hand, and holstered the pistol which had been in her other hand.

  They were in a corridor which was in dismal disarray. Water was seeping down the wall where the Roe was chained, and running out through some floor drains. The lighting came from occasional small tubs holding lights which were sitting along the floor. A bulkhead door was on the opposite end from where the steel door was located.

  “Paul, that thing was restrained here. The Roe was chained up. Almost like it was planned. We have never seen that before. Someone did that.”

  “You thought that too?” Paul asked. “I thought I was the only paranoid pessimist. We have seen Roe trapped in rooms, or in sections of this ship, but we have not seen one chained to the wall. Especially right where we would have to walk.”

  “A trap?” Gretchen asked. “A deliberate trap?”

  “That is what it looks like to me. Tiffany, was this a trap for us?”

  The orange automacube pushed the remains of the steel door out of the way and rolled into the corridor.

  “That is a fair conjecture, however a non infected captive could have been here and then acquired the infection. Both conjectures are possible. The full effects of the Roe syndrome are unknown to me, but from what I have gathered, they have physical needs for sustenance. They do appear to have recuperative powers which exceed normal human levels, but have significantly lower intellectual functioning. Therefore, I conjecture that this Roe was not here as a coincidence. It has a water supply, and from the skeletal remains, it has been feeding on humans. Those likely had come through the steel door. I also detect no evidence of any of the infected animals which are called tagalongs. This gives greater weight to the conjecture that this was indeed a trap.”

  “So who knew we were coming this way? Who would set a trap like that? Are we being tracked again? Where are we anyway?” Paul asked in rapid fire words.

  “Tiffany, what is happening?” Gretchen asked.

  “The details of our location are uncertain to me. I was told our destination would be near the needle ship which has the astronomical equipment to take readings. Our destination for this phase is the Astrogation Laboratory.”

  “Tiffany, you were told that? By whom?” Gretchen asked.

  “When I interfaced with the nonphysicality I located the information,” Tiffany replied.

  “You said you were told. That implies you spoke to someone else, or something else. So how did you locate that information?” Gretchen pressed.

  “You encountered that Phoenix thing! That is it! That rampant old AI knew we were coming here,” Paul said.

  “Yes, I interacted with Phoenix Dominie to acquire the information you needed,” Tiffany replied.

  “So you let that thing lead us to this trap?” Paul was astounded.

  “I do not think the two events are definitely related to each other,” Tiffany answered. “Although, it is certainly a possibility.”

  “Why? Why would you talk to that Phoenix thing? That thing is our enemy! It has tried to kill us.” Paul walked away in disgust shaking his head from side to side.

  “In the nonphysicality I was attempting to…” Tiffany started to say but was interrupted.

  “You should have told us. From now on, you will inform us of anytime you interact with any AI on the Vanguard,” Gretchen commanded. “Is that understood?”

  “Yes, Gretchen. I was attempting to locate the information that Paul had insisted…”

  “No exceptions!” Gretchen stated firmly. “No exceptions at all. From now on you will inform us of every encounter you have with any sentient entity, biological, or otherwise. No withholding of information any longer.”

  “Gretchen, we are in a trap!” Paul said. “Who knows where we are? That transport vehicle could have taken us anywhere on the Vanguard. Anywhere! Can we even trust Tiffany?”

  “Paul and Gretchen, I am your advocate and associate in this mission. I will not betray you. I have your best interests and the success of the mission as my goals.”

  “Then you should have told us from how you got the information before we left,” Gretchen fumed. “Lying by omission is still lying.”

  “I apologize. I was wrong,” Tiffany replied. “I have mixed convictions about how to assist you in this endeavor. As I have said, the potential for success in this quest is low. However, both of you have unrealistic desires for attempting this mission. I would prefer to assist you in making a secure place on the Vanguard, but Paul especially demands this mission be attempted. Therefore I made a poor decision in not telling you about my interactions with Phoenix Dominie. It will not happen again. Please forgive me.”

  “Can we really trust you?” Gretchen wondered aloud.

  “How do we even know that i
s the real Tiffany?” Paul stated. “That Phoenix thing could have taken over the operations of that automacube, and be pretending to be Tiffany. How do we know it is not an imposter? It led us right to this trap, and did not warn us about it.”

  “Paul, Gretchen, ask me anything and I will answer,” Tiffany replied.

  “If it took over Tiffany, it would already know all that Tiffany knew, so questions are useless. Gretchen we are really in trouble now.” Paul bit his knuckle as he worried about what was happening.

  “Paul, would a Vanguard artificial intelligence be able to recreate Doctor Chambers?” Gretchen asked. “Have we seen any of the Vanguard’s systems be that sophisticated?”

  “We have seen way too many weird things for me to be sure of anything right now. I just want to escape this ship and go somewhere safe!”

  “Paul, I understand your concern. Again I am sorry for my actions, but I will still assist you on this endeavor. You asked where we are, I will see if I can find more details,” Tiffany said. The automacube then rolled up to the bulkhead door, and jacked a cable into the access port near the door.

  “I am encountering no other entities in this section of the nonphysicality. There are traces of AI activity, but it dates to fifteen years, three months ago, and lasted for seventeen days. Otherwise there has been no AI activity in this sector since then. I am looking for deck or floor plans or some kind of diagram.”

  “How do we trust anything that Tiffany says now?” Paul interjected.

  “The transport vehicle did deliver us to the edge of the needle ship via a constituent joint to a transportation hub labeled as G-9087. On the other side of this bulkhead door is where the needle ship begins on the official deck plans I have accessed from the transport hub, and from an elevator located nearby whose log was recoverable. The chamber behind this bulkhead door is labeled as ‘Hydroponics and Geoponics Ag-2’ which is octagonal shaped and 8093.7 square meters in area. I am not able to access any video or audio sources to check the area, but I can tell you the air is within acceptable ranges, and the temperature is 35 degrees.”

  “So at least it is fairly hot inside,” Gretchen said. “No chance of freezing at 35 degrees.”

  “Unless Tiffany is lying again,” Paul said.

  “Paul I am not lying, but I understand your hesitance to believe me. I have reported all that I am capable of uncovering from this location. Phoenix Dominie did not contact me this time in the nonphysicality, nor did any other sentient entity of any kind. Our goal of finding astronomy equipment will require us to pass through this bulkhead doorway to look for other access ports. From those I hope to find more of our route to the Astrogation Laboratory.”

  “Gretchen, I am not sure, after having that Roe pull me through that last doorway. I say we let this Tiffany and the automacube open the bulkhead door. We will wait back by the steel door. If it is safe when the bulkhead door is opened, then we will proceed. Can we do that?”

  “I would be pleased to do that,” Tiffany responded. “You are being prudent and rational in making that request. If you wish, you could actually get beyond the steel door and await my call on the communication link.”

  “No. I want to keep you in sight at all times. No closed doors between us again. When we get to that steel door, then you can open the bulkhead door, not before. Leave it open so I can see if your report is correct,” Paul commanded.

  Gretchen and Paul walked back to the closed steel door and the dead Roe which was chained to the wall. Paul drew out his pistol.

  “Gretchen, if that is not Tiffany, shoot the automacube.” Paul was aiming, but knew his marksmanship was poor.

  “Paul, I think it is Tiffany. We can never escape here if we have lost Tiffany.”

  “We will never survive if some enemy is in our midst, pretending to be Tiffany.” Paul carefully aimed his pistol at the automacube. He doubted he could hit it from that range, but if he was betrayed he would at least try.

  Gretchen was uncertain, but she too drew her pistol and took aim at the automacube. She knew right where the Atomic Level Processor, the physical basis of Tiffany’s existence, was located. She was confident she had the skill to destroy it on her first shot. She was not sure what would actually convince her to shoot.

  “Open it up!” Paul yelled.

  “Yes, Paul,” Tiffany replied. The manipulation arm on the automacube punched in a sequence of colors to the nine section color pad. The bulkhead door zipped open with a smooth and easy motion. Beyond was a brown and tan area, well lit, but with nothing much else showing. The automacube rolled into the doorway. “The area is without immediate threat. The door is secure, and the readings have been confirmed.”

  Paul and Gretchen cautiously walked up the corridor and stopped at the doorway. There was a sign on a post with an arrow, ‘Exit to Transport Terminal’ on it, but the white letters were faded, and some were worn off almost completely. Paul looked closely for threats as he peered into the chamber.

  The area was lit by light that reminded them both of the sky tube in the habitats. The light was bright and warm. It was not coming from a long tube far up on the ceiling, like in the habitats, but emanated from a glowing ball which hung over the area. The ceiling was hard to see behind the glowing ball, but rose from the sides of the chamber to meet in the center above where that ball was suspended.

  “This looks as dried out and dead as Earth,” Paul commented. “Those dirt piles are just dusty tan like outside Dome 17.”

  “Tiffany, there is no radiation here is there?” Gretchen asked.

  “There are just the normal levels we have encountered on the Vanguard, nothing harmful or excessive,” Tiffany replied. “I would have warned you if there was.”

  “The air is so dry here, and that light is where the heat is coming from,” Paul said. He held up his hand and could feel the waves of heat from the ball overhead. “All this place needs now is some wind to throw the dust all around and coat down and obscure everything. It would then look just like a view from Dome 17.”

  “This place is so dried up, and dust already is covering much of what was in here,” Gretchen kicked the loose dust and soil. “I thought it was called hydroponics, and that has to do with water. There is no water I can see in here.”

  “Back in the corridor, there was water running down that wall where the Roe was chained up. So a Roe is getting water, and this place, what should be a farm is dried out? Something is really messed up here,” Paul stated.

  “So what happened?” Gretchen asked.

  “I am unable to give a reliable conjecture, since I lack adequate scanning abilities for the gathering of enough information. The exit is on the far side of the area,” Tiffany said and proceeded to roll out onto the rough and dried out crust of soil. “It is in alignment with this door.”

  There were the remains of some kind of path that stretched straight across the large area. It was coated in dust, but was flat and regular as compared to the rubble on either side of it.

  To their right the room sloped down by about two meters, and the ground, or deck, or floor, was divided into a vast number of empty boxes, each about a meter on a side, open side up. The patchwork stretched all the way to the far wall. Upon closer look, Gretchen saw that the boxes were just the top sections, and underneath the space was open down to the deck below about two meters down. Between the boxes, running horizontally, there were pipes, tubes, and channels, all filled with dust. Some of the pipe-work was broken open, but no water was seen. The mechanisms and boxes were made from various materials, copper, permalloy, steel, and some kinds of polymers and even some antique era plastics. Some boxes still had a fine mesh over the top, but most of the boxes were missing that element. There were a few larger pipes which jutted up from the flooring. Occasional walkways, some caved in to the area below, stretched out as well, but they too were tan and dusty. Dust had coated everything, and the whole place had a tan, dry, and dead look which was disconcerting.

  “That section of th
is place could, at one time, have been ponds, tubs, or pools of water,” Gretchen observed. “If that was the case, they could have done hydroponics here, but that was long ago.” She used her hand to shield her eyes from the glare of the glowing ball as they walked under it.

  They passed a small hut which was crumbled down one side. There was a sign in front of it, ‘Emergency Eye Wash’ but those letters were also peeling and faded. A sign which had fallen over read, ‘Cleansing and Rising.’ There were no liquids anywhere in sight.

  “In a way, some strange way, this reminds me of where Brenda and those bizarre children were,” Paul said. “I mean, that place was lush, growing, alive, working and nice, here the place is dead, dry and depressing.”

  Gretchen responded. “It does seem to be roughly the same size, maybe. It is hard to tell. That place was called Terragora Investigation and Evolution. The light there was not as intense as this is.”