by J. N. Chaney
“Yes, sir,” he answered. “Are you going to join the others?”
“Not just me,” I told him. “You’re coming along, too, same as last time.”
“It would be my pleasure, sir.”
“Of course, it is,” I remarked as I walked out of the cockpit and began making my way through the ship. “Let’s just hope those upgrades of yours actually help when we need them.”
“As do I,” said the A.I.
As soon as I entered the bay, I felt the ship begin to land. “I’m guessing we’re here,” called Abigail.
“You’d be right,” I answered, heading down the stairs.
Everyone had their environmental suits on and a weapon on their hip, including Dressler. She seemed the least enthusiastic about this mission, but that could have just been her face. She was never very enthusiastic about anything, now that I thought about it.
“How’s the atmosphere out there?” asked Freddie. “Should we be concerned about our seals breaking?”
“Looks like the air is breathable,” said Abigail, examining her pad.
“Even still, we should keep our suits on at all times,” said Dressler.
“He knows the drill,” I said, stepping up to the gate. I smacked the orange button on the side of the wall, activating the large, bulky door. A bright light cut through the crack, piercing the cargo bay and hitting me in the eye. My visor adjusted automatically, as did everyone else’s, and I was able to see a clear, blue sky with several dark clouds in the distance. “Siggy, how do the scans look inside the facility?”
“There are several levels to the complex, sir, although I am unable to determine the exact number.”
“They go that far down?” I asked.
“I detect over forty-seven, at least,” he told me.
I whistled. “That’s a lot of floors.”
“Not to worry, sir. You should be able to traverse them rather easily.” A map of the facility appeared on my visor, showing the first ten floors. It only took a moment to see what Siggy was talking about. There was a gaping hole directly in the middle of it, and it seemed to lead all the way to the bottom, or as far to the bottom as we could see. “It might be prudent to take the shuttle, actually.”
I whistled again. “Good idea.”
* * *
The shuttle passed through floor after floor as we descended far into the depths of Tyche. As we passed through the layers of stone and metal, I found myself mesmerized by the size of this ancient place, studying the map as it continued to reveal itself.
What reason could those drones have had to come here and blow this place wide open? And why at this particular time? Had we inadvertently prompted all of this—or was it planned far ahead of time, even before we stepped foot on Abaddon?
I let out a long and quiet breath. "Siggy, are you seeing an end to this yet?”
“I’m afraid not, sir.”
I leaned against the wall. “If this takes much longer, I’m taking a nap. The rest of you can get the job done.”
“We can’t do the mission without our captain,” said Abby, giving me a teasing smile.
“You’re capable enough, nun,” I told her, crossing my arms. “I’m sure you can handle it.”
“More capable than you, Renegade,” she countered, still smirking.
Dressler tilted her head, looking at both of us. “Is this how you two talk to each other?”
“It’s only because they care,” said Freddie.
I shot him a glaring look. “Keep talking that shit and I’ll shoot you in the leg down here and leave you for dead.”
“Don’t listen to him, Frederick,” said Abigail. “I’ll stop him before he shoots.”
Freddie swallowed. “Okay! I take it back, Captain.”
“Good man, Fred.”
Another set of floors popped up on my visor display as we continued our descent. This time, however, there seemed to be an end.
Everyone sat up, no doubt seeing the same thing I did. “Is that it?” asked Abigail.
“Looks like it,” I said, magnifying the image and looking for any other damage. “I don’t see any more holes.”
As if to answer me, the map magnified and revealed another section connected to the northern wall. “The damage continues for several hundred meters, directly ahead,” said Sigmond. “Unfortunately, the gap appears to be too small for the shuttle.”
“Too small?” asked Abby. “How did the drone fit?”
“According to Athena’s long-range scans, there were drones of varying sizes, some of which were smaller than this vessel.”
“Guess that means we’re walking,” I said, stepping over to the door.
Dressler sighed. “I was hoping to avoid that.”
“Oh, cheer up, Doc,” I said, unholstering my pistol. “What’s the worst that can happen?”
* * *
The path, if you could call it that, was riddled with debris. Scattered pieces of machinery, the wall, and gods-knew-what lay all across the floor, making it difficult to traverse.
“Are you certain this is a good idea?” asked the good doctor. She stepped over something resembling a computer console.
“What part of this makes you think I’d be certain of anything?” I asked.
“Don’t listen to him,” said Abigail. “He’s only teasing you.”
I looked at Abby. “Well, it doesn’t work if you tell her I’m doing it.”
She held her fingers up to her mouth, touching her visor. “Oops.”
I scoffed. “Next time we go on a job, you’re staying home.”
I kept stopping every ten meters or so, glancing around the area and searching for anything that might stand out with the light on my visor. Each time, I found nothing. Only piles of rubble that could have been anything. I began to wonder if we were wasting our time here. Whatever those drones had come for would likely be gone, and any evidence destroyed. Maybe we should’ve just followed them whenever they took off—gone after them to see what they were really up to.
As I took another step, I heard a loud clank from somewhere nearby. I turned around to see if one of the others had fallen or stumbled on a piece of debris, but they were only standing there, watching me. “Something wrong?” asked Karin.
I held up a hand to silence them, pausing to listen…
Tink.
There it was again. Abigail and Karin both looked at me immediately, clearly hearing the same sound. Abby opened her mouth, but I shook my head.
Tink.
Tink.
Kakink.
We all stiffened, and I turned back in the direction of the noise. “Siggy, scan. Now.”
“Detecting movement twenty meters ahead, sir. Please, use caut—”
An object burst out of a pile of metal, scattering dust into the air as it whirled directly at us.
I fired a shot off, missing as it buzzed our heads. “Open fire!” I barked.
Everyone turned around, going for their weapons. Abigail, Karin, and I shot a string of bullets toward the exit opening, hitting the upper wall, but finally nicking the drone.
It spun in the air, losing its balance as it slammed into a pile of stone, sputtering its engine as it attempted to move again.
It twitched, nearly getting off the floor, when I let off a final shot, ending it and splitting the little devil in half.
We stood there a moment, not knowing if there were any others hidden in the darkness ahead. When it seemed we were alone, I gave the order to relax.
Dressler put her gun away and approached the drone. She bent down, hovering over the machine—studying with her eyes, but not her hands.
“Got anything?” asked Abigail.
“You destroyed it,” Dressler responded, clearly talking to me.
“Think you can get anything out of it?” I asked.
“I’ll need Athena’s help to dissect it, but there might be something useful here, depending on how damaged the circuitry is.”
“Wrap it up and ta
ke it to go, then,” I told her.
She nodded, then scooped the drone up with the side of her satchel. “At the very least, we’ll have something to bring back.”
“Do we keep going?” asked Freddie.
“Why wouldn’t we?” I asked. “We didn’t come here for a baby drone. We need to find out what it was after.”
“Scans show no additional drone activity ahead, sir,” said Sigmond.
“Don’t let your guard down, folks,” I told the others. “Keep your weapons up and ready. That goes for you, too, Doc.”
“Fine,” said Dressler, reluctantly taking her pistol.
We pressed on, slowly making our way toward the back of the complex. It didn’t take us long, since the drones had stopped a short distance ahead of us. There were no more broken walls, no more piles of torn debris to sift through.
Instead, we found ourselves standing before a line of computer systems, the centerpiece of which stood as tall as the room itself. The design resembled Titan’s interior in almost every way, particularly the lower decks that had been designated entirely to handle the ship’s systems and power. Yet, it was so much bigger—so much more—standing fifty meters tall, like a mountainside disappearing into the darkness above us.
Whatever the drones had come here to find, I suspected it had come from here.
The computers blinked with an array of colorful lights, and I could hear a steady, low hum of power running through them. They were alive and well, despite their ancient age. Like Titan before them, they exhibited the staggering longevity of Earth’s mythical technology.
“What is this?” asked Abigail, standing before the computer like an insect. “What is something this big doing so far underground?”
Dressler took a few steps closer. “By the gods.”
I looked across the room at the machine. It took up every centimeter of the wall. “Is there an interface?” I asked.
“There!” snapped Freddie, pointing to the far end, near the corner of the room. “I think I see it!”
“You’re right,” said Karin. She shuffled to the console, reaching out with her hand to activate it. A holo display materialized in front of her, instantly. “I have it!”
I grinned. “Now, we’re talking.”
We gathered around while she continued, sorting through menus and trying to decipher the purpose of the system. As she did, Sigmond translated the language on my visor, allowing me to read along.
One word, in particular, stuck out to me when I spotted it. “Cognition Junction System?” I muttered, peering from behind Karin’s shoulder. “What’s that supposed to be?”
Karin was already three screens ahead by the time I finished the question. “Yes, I thought I’d seen this before.”
“Seen what before?” echoed Freddie.
Karin looked at him. “Like the captain said, it’s a Cognition Junction System.”
“You’re saying it like we know what that is,” said Abigail.
“Oh, I apologize,” she said. “This is the storage center for a Cognitive.”
We collectively paused.
“Did you just say there’s a Cognitive in there?” I asked, looking up at the towering machine.
She shook her head. “No, no, no. I said this is the storage center for one,” she explained. “There used to be a Cognitive here, but the data’s been cleaned out.” She paused. “Or, I think it has.”
“You think?” asked Dressler.
“I’m pretty certain,” said Karin. “I’ve browsed Janus’ system a handful of times, so I know what it looks like when there’s a Cognitive there, and right now there’s not.”
“Well, is there anything left?” I asked.
“Of course,” she said, turning back to the display. “The system itself is still intact, along with user I.D.’s and all associated—”
“Hold on,” said Dressler. “User I.D.’s? Can you see the last person to access the system?”
Karin nodded. “Here,” she said, after a quick moment. “It looks like a user named Heph01.”
“Two guesses who that is,” I said.
Dressler sat her satchel on the floor beside her and wedged her way between Freddie and Abigail, trying to get closer. “Karin, can you tell me one other thing? Is there a record of this system’s Cognitive? Some kind of name?”
Karin stared at the screen, using her mind to filter through the various folders of data logs, jumping from one to the next faster than I could manage to read. But as soon as it began, the screen suddenly stopped, and all that remained was the answer. “Here it is,” Karin finally said. “The Cognitive’s name is Aglaia.”
Sixteen
“Athena’s records show only a few references to the Cognitive Aglaia,” informed Sigmond.
“Hold on a second, Siggy,” I said, turning to Karin and Dressler. “You two got what you need yet?”
Dressler glared at me. “Even without the Cognitive, there’s still a lot of data on this system. We’ll need a few minutes.”
“Try to hurry it up,” I said, ignoring her tone. “Ain’t no telling how long this place will last. A swarm of ships did just blow a sizable hole straight through it.”
The doctor’s eyes widened before she quickly turned back to Karin. “How much longer?”
I ignored them and started walking away. “Okay, Siggy, let’s hear it.”
“Of course, sir,” continued the A.I. “The Cognitive Aglaia was tasked with overseeing the supply stations located throughout Earth’s territory, such as Tyche Resupply Station.”
“That’s it? What’s so special about this place?” I asked. “What was here, before those drones tore it to shreds?”
“The exact inventory is unknown, sir,” said Sigmond. “However, Athena’s logs indicate several of the facilities housed a wide range of resources, such as construction materials, terraforming materials, and fuel reserves.”
“So just supplies,” I muttered, disappointed.
“They are called supply stations, sir,” said Sigmond.
“Don’t get snippy,” I said. “Does your hand-me-down data say anything about what Hephaestus might be doing or why he’d need to kidnap this Algae Cognitive.”
“Aglaia, sir,” corrected Sigmond. “And I’m afraid not. Athena’s information is limited to everything that occurred before her departure from Earth, and there is nothing to indicate a need for Hephaestus to acquire Aglaia.”
I spotted Karin in the corner of my eye, walking toward me. “Captain, we’re ready,” she said, smiling. “The download went smoothly.”
Abigail and Freddie were waiting with their weapons drawn, near the back of the room. “Are we leaving?” asked Abigail.
“Seems that way,” I said. I motioned with my hand for Karin and Dressler to follow.
“I can’t say I’ll miss this place,” said Freddie.
“It’s only a matter of time before we end up in another dark cave,” I said. “Always remember that.”
Freddie frowned. “Just once, it would be nice to visit a beach somewhere. Maybe a meadow with a nice river.”
“Should’ve stayed a priest if you wanted the cushy life,” said Dressler.
* * *
We took our seats on the shuttle and primed the engines. Now that we had what we came for, we could return to Titan and hopefully gleam some real answers, not only about the missing Cognitive, but what exactly this Hephaestus entity planned to do with it.
As the ship ascended through the newly destroyed ruins, I noticed a new dot appear on the holo, indicating something nearby. It disappeared as quickly as it materialized, giving me pause. “Siggy, did you pick that up?” I asked, examining the radar again.
“Sensors indicated a moving body several floors above our position, but I am no longer detecting it.”
“That can’t be right,” I muttered. “Run a more thorough scan. Look for any micromovements. I want to know when something so much as moves a centimeter.”
“Yes, sir,” said Sig
mond.
“Do you really think there’s something up there?” asked Freddie.
“There’s nothing wrong with being prepared,” Karin reminded him.
The radar beeped, showing the same dot. It wasn’t moving much, only a little at a time, like it was drifting in the air—or hovering. Waiting.
I opened my mouth to comment on it when suddenly another fifteen dots appeared, all in rapid succession, next to the first.
The line of dots began to move toward the center of the facility, the place we were currently ascending. They passed over us, flying in a chaotic swarm, blocking us from reaching the upper section. I only had a few seconds to decide our next course of action—either stop and fight them inside this rotting corpse of a facility, which could collapse on us at any moment, or push our way through.
I chose the latter.
“Incoming!” I shouted, turning the shuttle so its nose aimed directly at the swarm.
More dots appeared on the holo as the mass of drones grew thicker with each passing moment.
I fired three quick blasts into the machines, exploding them into chunks of metal and vapor. I rammed the shuttle into them, breaking our way through the newly-created gap and continuing skyward. Multiple hand-sized drones littered the nose of our ship, dropping one-by-one as we neared the peak of the facility.
“Behind us!” yelled Abigail, pointing to the holo where the swarm had begun to reshape. The drones formed a clustered line, finally accelerating towards us.
“They’re too fast!” I snapped, noticing the diminishing gap between us and the swarm. “Siggy, use the—”
The shuttle let out a wide spread of flares, igniting a short second after deployment, instantly colliding with the oncoming drones. The inside of the facility lit up with an explosion so large I felt it in my seat.
I stared at the holo as the drones continued, despite the flares, having been only slightly deterred. “Shit! Siggy, get The Star in the air and cover us!”
“Already done, sir,” said Sigmond.
I opened my mouth in surprise but closed it. I wasn’t about to question the new and improved Sigmond right now. That would have to come later.
I shook it off and focused on the flight path, checking our flare inventory and anything else we could throw at those things. The shuttle didn’t carry much, but if we could survive long enough to reach The Star, then we’d stand a chance at making it.
