by J. N. Chaney
“Just out of curiosity,” said Dressler, “how many of these stations are there?”
“What do you mean?” asked Freddie. “Isn’t this the only one?”
Athena flicked her wrist, causing the map to zoom back out. Several new dots appeared, blinking across the region. “The doctor is correct. There are dozens of these facilities around the defense grid. Destroying one will accomplish very little.”
“Oh,” said Freddie.
“There is another solution,” said Athena, answering my question before I could even ask it. “Hephaestus, like any other Cognitive, has a central storage unit.”
“You mean like the one we saw back on Tyche?” asked Abigail.
“Correct. It is largely identical and is subject to the same vulnerabilities.”
“Then all we have to do is destroy it,” said Karin.
“Not quite,” answered Athena. “Due to the importance of Hephaestus’ position, he likely has a secondary unit and can reconstitute himself should the primary facility be physically destroyed. We will need to manually interface with the system itself and delete him on both the primary and secondary units. It is the only way to ensure success.”
“Great, so let’s do that,” I said.
“There is but one problem,” said Athena.
“Of course,” said Dressler.
“You don’t know where it is, do you?” asked Abby.
Athena nodded. “Due to my position as Titan’s Cognitive, the Eternals foresaw the need to omit certain vulnerabilities to the defense network from my logs. They believed there was a chance of another Transient rebellion, which forced them into taking certain precautions to ensure their own security. As such, I am not aware of Hephaestus’ central data capsule, nor will I be able to discern it.”
“If that’s true, why’d you even bring it up?” I asked.
“As I said, because of the drone, we know that the manufacturing station is nearby. Due to its connection to the defense network, I believe it may hold the information we need to locate Hephaestus’ capsule.”
“Capsule?” I asked.
“A Cognitive’s storage device,” she explained.
“Sounds risky,” said Alphonse, his voice coming through the comm in my ear.
“I’ll say,” added Bolin.
Karin slouched. “It might be, but if this is the only solution we have, it doesn’t leave us with much of an option. We have to do it.”
“Is there no other way?” asked Abby.
Athena frowned. “I’m afraid not, Ms. Pryar. Now that Hephaestus has acquired Aglaia, he will continue to grow in strength. Should we allow him to do so, it will only be a matter of time before he attempts to destroy or impound Titan.”
“Impound?” asked Freddie.
“There is a chance he will simply disassemble Titan for its resources in order to build additional drones for himself.”
“So, not much better than the alternative,” said Freddie. “Ouch.”
Athena continued. “Our primary focus will be to interface with the network directly through the manufacturing station.”
“Does that mean we have to dock and board it?” asked Karin.
“It does,” confirmed the Cognitive. “However, I do not believe you will need to disembark. Sigmond should be capable of interfacing with the station’s network directly inside the docking platform.”
“How long would that take?” asked Abby.
“Minutes,” assured Athena.
Given how experimental Siggy’s upgrades had been, I wasn’t sure how I felt about using him for such a key role. We couldn’t afford to risk failure, but at the same time, we had to go with the best option available. “Are you positive he can actually do that?”
“I am,” she responded. “I can make the necessary adjustments immediately.”
I hesitated to answer, still uncertain, but finally relented. All of Athena’s meddling had proven successful so far. Why should I doubt her now? If she believed Siggy could pull this off, then I probably had nothing to worry about.
Athena’s eyes fell on me as she waited for my answer. “What would you have me do, Captain?”
The options were on the table, limited as they might be. “Take us to the factory,” I finally told her. “Give Siggy what he needs.” I looked up at the display, which showed the manufacturing station at a distance. “Alphonse. Octavia. I hope those pilots are ready to see some action, because they’ll be doing more than planting mines this time.”
Nineteen
We arrived out of slipspace right on time.
I was already onboard The Renegade Star, heading out of the landing bay, along with thirty strike ships.
“Would you like me to handle flight controls, sir?” asked Sigmond.
“Not yet,” I said. As much as I liked Siggy and appreciated his new abilities, this was my ship and I’d be the one taking the helm on this.
The holo showed the manufacturing station before us, which was actually separated into four different stations—a larger one, surrounded by three smaller satellites. Not quite what I expected, but that was fine.
The entire area bustled with activity, drones flying back and forth between the different stations. They seemed preoccupied, but I figured that wouldn’t last long, once they saw us.
The Star was already cloaked, with the strike ships and Titan prepared to distract the drones.
I brought us far ahead of the other ships, knowing the drones would pick up on their movements in a few short seconds.
I was right. Several stationary drones surrounding the factory turned toward my fleet, ready to fire. At the same time, nearly fifty assault drones came to a complete stop. “What are they doing?” Abigail asked. She was right beside me, as usual, manning the quad cannons.
“Let’s focus on the job,” I told her, targeting the main station’s docking bay. “I’m sure Athena knows what she’s doing.”
“Right,” said the nun. “What about Sigmond? Is he ready?”
“I am fully prepared to interface with the defense network, Ms. Pryar,” said Sigmond. “Thank you for asking.”
“He’d better not screw it up,” I said.
“I’m certain Sigmond can handle it,” said Abby.
“Thank you, Ms. Pryar,” said Sigmond.
She smiled. “You’re welcome.”
“Don’t encourage him,” I told her, then turned my attention back on the holo. The drones had begun to move, heading in our direction.
I brought the ship to a crawl, just before they reached us. The first drone passed by without hesitation, followed by the rest, each of them moving toward the fleet to our rear. Once they were all out of firing distance, I hit our thrusters and continued moving closer to the station.
In moments, the two forces engaged. Our ships were sitting inside Titan’s shield, protected, gradually coming out to fire and then retreat. I watched as multiple drones disappeared, one after the next, while our forces remained untouched. “Looks like they have it under control.”
“Captain,” said Freddie, his voice coming in on the comm. He was down in the cargo bay. “Are we almost there? I can’t see anything from down here.”
“We’re coming up on it now, Frederick,” answered Abigail.
We eased past the nearby sentry drones, which seemed more concerned with the battle happening across the system than with the station itself. We entered the docking bay with ease, coming to a stop at the nearest possible landing section.
We met Freddie in the cargo hold. He was already geared and ready to leave. “Think we’ll need our weapons this time?” he asked, glancing down at his rifle.
I looked over at Dressler. “What do you think, Doc?”
She already had a rifle in-hand, checking the magazine. “Considering what we found last time, I’d hate to go in unprepared.”
I snickered, thinking back to how reserved she’d been about weapons on the last mission, but said nothing. “You heard the woman, Fred.”
> We stopped onto the platform from the ship, and I brought up a readout of the station. The nearest terminal was supposed to be in this compartment, but I didn’t see anything along the walls.
“Siggy, I’m not seeing this thing,” I finally said.
“Allow me, sir,” said Sigmond.
The tint of yellow swept across my visor, dimming the rest of the landing bay. Several blue indicator lights lit up at once, showing the locations of several objects, including the nearest doors. A line of text appeared along the far end of the bay, indicating our goal.
“Here you are, sir,” said the A.I.
“Good job,” I said, walking towards it. “Everyone, on me.”
“I wonder if Hephaestus knows we’re in here,” said Dressler, after we’d only gone a few steps.
“Let’s hope not,” said Abigail.
The terminal was straight ahead, about ten meters. “Dressler, you got that thing Athena gave you?” I asked.
“The thumb drive?” she asked, reaching into her satchel. “Yes, here it is.”
“Go ahead and plug in,” I told her.
She hurried ahead of me, eager to get this whole thing in motion.
I held my weapon at the ready, along with Freddie and Abigail, while Dressler searched along the terminal wall for a place to insert the drive. If any drones found their way into this section of the station, we’d at least be ready.
“Captain, I’m not seeing a port on here,” said the doctor.
“What do you mean?” I asked, turning around to her. “Are you sure you’re looking for the right thing?”
“Found it!” she exclaimed, a little louder than I expected. “How interesting. The markings are different from Titan’s.”
“What’s that drive actually do?” asked Freddie.
Dressler kept her eyes on the terminal, bringing up a holo display and typing in a series of commands, but decided to answer anyway. “It allows Sigmond to interface with the network. He can’t do it from the ship, but he can travel from the ship to this drive, then enter the terminal.”
“Does that mean we have to keep that thing inserted until he’s done?” asked Freddie.
“Yes, precisely. Removing it would send his program back to the ship immediately.” She tapped the holo display a final time. “There we are. It looks like the program Athena provided was successful. Sigmond, proceed when ready.”
“Yes, Doctor,” said the A.I. “Entering now.”
“I’ll be monitoring his activity from here,” said Dressler, staring at the display.
Abby examined her wrist pad, which was still linked to The Star’s holo radar. She watched the fight between the drone fleet and our own. “Let’s just hope it doesn’t take too long.”
“Does it look bad?” asked Freddie.
“We’re winning, I think,” said the former nun.
“But who knows how long that can last,” I added.
Abby nodded. “Hephaestus has had time to use those access codes he stole from Tyche. There’s no telling how many drones he’s built since then. He might have an entire army out there.”
“And we’ve just alerted them,” I said.
“Right,” she said. “We can’t afford to linger.”
We waited there for what felt like too long, and for a moment I began to think Siggy might never deliver on the promise Athena had made. But then Dressler smirked, a look of satisfaction in her eyes, and I felt myself relax. “It looks like Sigmond has the data. He’s downloading it now.”
“Perfect,” I said, looking around the bay. “This place gives me the creeps.”
“Why’s that, Captain?” asked Freddie.
A loud whirring noise that pierced my ears and made Freddie jump rang throughout the station. “Alert! Alert! Alert!” an automated voice declared. “Alert!”
“Uh oh,” muttered Freddie.
“There’s your answer!” I yelled.
“Looks like a problem!” said Abigail.
At the top of the landing bay, something caught my eye. An object was hovering out of the upper wall. No, there was more than one. There were several.
A string of little drones came floating from a gaping hole, high above the floor. They were like flying rodents, small and maneuverable, which would make them hard to hit. They flew out from the opening like bats from a cave, staying far above us.
“Weapons up!” I barked, raising one pistol while I retrieved the second from its place on my hip.
Abigail and Freddie raised their rifles. “Wait until you have a clean shot!” she told him.
“Why aren’t they firing yet?” asked Freddie.
“Use your eyes,” said Abby, motioning with her rifle. “They’re too small for guns.”
Sure enough, one of the little machines extended a tentacle from its backside, the tip of which resembled a switchblade. Three other tentacles appeared from below, doing the same, and they moved around the drone in such a way that it became difficult to anticipate its actions.
I caught Dressler going for her own gun, which she’d set against the wall beside her. “Focus on the job, Doc!” I ordered. “We’ll handle the drones!”
She didn’t answer, but left the gun alone, focusing her attention back on the screen. That was good, because I was pretty sure these drones were only the first of many, and we’d run out of bullets before this station ran out of machines. Better she get the job done quickly so we could hightail it out of here.
“Here they come!” yelled Abigail.
I cocked both pistols. “Now!” I snapped, and pulled each of the triggers, firing at the lead drone.
Both bullets completely missed its body, while only hitting one of the tentacles. Its sides had miniaturized thrusters, allowing it to float, and those had been my target. I’d have to try again.
Right when I went to squeeze the trigger a second time, another bullet slammed into the drone’s side, destroying one of its thrusters. The machine spiraled out of control and fell into the open space beneath the landing bay, exiting the station.
Abby had done it, and now she was on the second one, eager for the kill.
Freddie fired alongside her, and I with them. Another drone fell, not far ahead of the last. In seconds, we’d taken four of them. The six behind them scattered, dividing into sets of two, coming at us from three directions. They moved like insects, quick and precisely. If it weren’t for the motion trackers in my visor, I would’ve been completely lost.
Two of them dove towards me, and I unloaded on them. I leapt forward as they neared. A tentacle dropped from one, nearly hitting my suit as it flew swiftly over me.
I rolled on my back, no time to get up, bending on my side as I aimed at moving targets.
I fired until my guns were empty. One of my shots actually managed to graze the first drone, causing it to stall and veer off its path. The second knocked into it from behind, creating its own tailspin. I used the extra few seconds to retrieve a single magazine, reload my primary pistol, and cock the hammer back.
As the first drone fell into the nearby wall, the second regained its composure, finally coming straight at me.
I was on my knees, ready to move. The drone extended its tentacles at me (all four of them), and I scurried to my feet in a desperate attempt to get away.
I fired, right when the drone slammed into my visor, sending me on my ass. I nearly dropped my gun as I fell, totally uncertain of whether I’d hit the damn thing or not.
A message appeared in the upper-righthand corner of my display, saying, Breach detected. Warning. Breach detected. Warning. Oxygen levels dropping. Warning.
I could feel the air growing thin inside my suit as I held myself up on my knees. The suit and helmet could only take so much abuse, and it wouldn’t last forever. Sturdy as these things were, the damage would quickly add up if I wasn’t careful.
I raised my eyes to see a pile of scrap metal sitting a few meters in front of me. Was that the same drone that had attacked me just now?
> I took a slow breath, the sound of oxygen leaking through my visor filling my ears. Godsdammit, I must be getting rusty, I thought, pushing myself to my feet.
Abigail and Freddie were still fighting when I looked. From what I could tell, only a few more drones remained. I was about to join them when I heard a voice on the comm, crackling and distorted, no doubt because of the damaged helmet. “I’ve got the data!” exclaimed Dressler. “Sigmond is clear!”
The good doctor picked up her own rifle and began firing as soon as the words left her lips, joining us in the fight. Her bullets joined ours as they collided with the machines.
Between the four of us, we brought the last one down in seconds. I could sense the relief among my crew as the little pile of scraps sparked and twitched on the ground.
“Great job, Doc,” I said, surprised by how difficult a handful of floating scrap metal could be. Considering how easily the one back on Tyche had gone down, I expected an easier time of these.
Before she could answer, another alarm sounded. I looked up to the openings in the wall to see another swarm of little drones emerge, identical to the last set.
I holstered my pistols, and without looking at the others, I shouted, “Get to the godsdamn ship! Now!”
* * *
We made it back inside the still-cloaked Renegade Star, confusing the drones as they flew above our hull, searching. Even if they could see us, I doubted their tentacled knives could’ve done much damage to us. Not anymore.
“If I ever see another knife-wielding flying metal octopus, it’ll be too soon,” I said, closing the cargo bay gate and running up the stairs.
We sped out of the station as quickly as our thrusters would allow, only slowing when I saw the stationary defense drones turning toward us. They must have received an alert from the station, because they were already facing the landing bay.
“Sensors detect internal damage to the station,” informed Sigmond.
“It also looks like some of the drones are on their way back,” said Abigail.
I clenched my teeth. “I guess that alarm did more than trigger the internal security system. Siggy, send whatever you found to Athena and have her open a tunnel. I want us out of here the second we’re back on Titan.”
