Dreaming of Atmosphere

by Jim C. Wilson

  I climbed through and continued on my way. I made the next ring, charlie, with no encounters, but bravo was being barricaded near the hatch T-junction. I tossed another grenade while they set up, and in the chaos I translated passed it and kept running. The A9 ring had several unarmed crewmen scrambling for cover, and I fired into the deck head to motivate them further. Showering sparks and debris came down around them, and they keep away. When I got to the elevator, I could see a command post was being set up. There was another squad of security, plus a large Frikk and a pair of assault synthetics waiting for me.

  I thought fast, tossing my final grenade into the mix and firing a barrage at the Frikk. He dived into a mobile cover barricade and the grenade blast didn't get him. The security guards were blasted backwards, and a few survivors began to scramble to cover. The assault synthetics simply advanced into the fire, buying the living precious seconds to organise a counter assault. I ionised the front one and then translated past them behind their own barricades. The Frikk turned in surprise and tried to bring his weapon around but I unleashed a full auto blast into his chest where he lay. Three security guards managed to get to their feet and return fire. A couple of shots that hit me square in the chest pushed me back and I hit the bulkhead behind me. I fired wildly at them, forcing their heads down and I used the suppression to find cover of my own.

  As I hastened to pull myself out of line of sight, a motion above me caused me to look up in time to see a synthetic reaching over the barricade and grabbing me. It yanked me up and shot me in the belly with its hand-mounted gun. The vest took most of the energy of the shot, but it still winded me somewhat. I kicked with both my feet into the robot's check and I tore free of its grasp. I slid backwards on my butt, and as I did, I opened up on the synthetic. In moments, its shield flared out and I hammered the remainder of my shots into its armour. It went down in a hail of gunfire.

  I was hurting. My carbine was flashing a deep red, so I popped the battery and put another in. The remaining security guards used the distraction to flank me, and I barely managed to get back into cover before I was shot at. My arm burned in pain, as I knew one round got through my ablative coat. I could still feel my fingers so I knew it wasn't serious. I sent nanites flooding through my blood as I activated my Repair paradigm, and the flood of adrenaline and endorphins, along with enriched blood, allowed me to catch a second wind. I sprang to my feet and leapt clear over the barricade I was pinned behind. As I flew, I let loose with a trio of shots that caught one guard in the chin. I saw his helmet come flying off amidst a cloud of red mist. I landed heavily and I kept firing from the prone position catching another in the chest. The last ducked down behind his own cover and I got to my feet. I side stepped, still firing relentlessly at his position, causing him to keep his head down. Before I got around to his flank I saw his arms go up in the air with his carbine in them.

  "Don't shoot! Don't shoot!" he called, desperately.

  "Get up! Toss the carbine! And the side arm!" I commanded. He did so, and I saw he was a young man, terrified for his life. "Elevator, now!"

  I led him to the lift and we got in, I ordered him to key in Deck 8. It buzzed and flashed red.

  "Use your security pass. Unlock it!" I ordered. He complied, and the elevator doors shut. We started to move upwards. The elevator came out into the open corridor, and I saw there were dozens of drones starting to head in our direction. I was glad we were only going two decks, I didn't want to ride this thing with those drones taking pot shots at me. The elevator reached Deck 8 and the doors slid open. Luckily, there were no security teams here yet. I ordered my prisoner to lead the way and told him to hurry.

  "B8:022, on the double. You slow down and I kill you where you stand. Get moving!"

  He led me down the passageway, passing a few crew on the way. They pulled back when they saw me, and the guard had to peace of mind to warn the crew away as he saw them. We were soon at B8:022.

  "Open it!" He swiped his card, but nothing happened. He swiped again with no effect.

  "They've locked me out!" he cried, "It's not my fault!"

  "Where are the Eclipse Fighters stored?"

  "What?"

  "The fighters! Where?"

  "Deck 24."

  "Where?"

  "The whole deck is a hangar."

  "Thanks." I hit him in the head with my carbine. He went down, but he was still conscious. I hit him again and he was out cold. I swiped my override device at the access panel and got Tac to start on the door.

  "Options?" I asked.

  I estimate that enemy patrols will reach this location before I can override the controls.

  "Should I risk teleporting to the other side?"

  That would be highly dangerous. A last resort, surely.

  "How long would my Dissolve paradigm take to eat through this hatch?"

  Significantly longer than my hacking would take.

  "One of my charges? Would that take out the hatch?"

  Probably. Will only one charge be enough to destroy the brain?

  "I'll have to risk it. No point saving a bomb if we're going to die before getting the chance to use it." I set the charge against the hatch, right where the locking mechanism would be. The charges were shaped to send most of their force towards whatever they were fixed to, so I knew it would be a focused blast. I linked to the bomb and then pulled back into cover behind a bulkhead strut. The bomb detonated at my command, and I was glad to see the hatch was trashed. I yanked it free of the combing and climbed through the hatchway.

  The compartment was instantly different from the rest of the passageways and compartments I'd seen so far. The deck and the bulkheads were a strange pink meaty substance, and a dark purple liquid was leaking from a ragged tear where the hatch blast had reached. There was a pungent odour, like yeast or fermented malt. A pale, pinkish like emanated from further in the compartment. I stepped in, careful not to step in the purple fluid.

  I followed the passage down a short bend and the compartment opened up into a spherical chamber about thirty metres across. In the centre, resting amidst a mass of thick, cord-like veins was a large mucus encrusted lump of flesh. The veins ran from the brain thing to the outer walls, and I could see a steady stream of purple fluid flowing in their centres. A single man tended to the brain, clothed in a plastic jumpsuit. He knelt by the thing and was finishing an injection into one of the veins. He looked up with a puzzled expression.

  "You should not be in here." He stated, simply.

  "No shit, arsehole. Now step aside or I kill you too."

  He smiled at me, a kind of predatory grin. I was instantly wary. Anyone who smiled at someone who just threatened to kill you was either insane, stupid or very dangerous. Most were a mix of all three.

  "Let's put aside these crude weapons and speak like civilised men." As he spoke, he pointed at my carbine. Suddenly, I noticed that the weapon was crumbling in my grasp! The weapon simply fell into ruin, its components falling through the brittle, powdery remains of its body. "There, isn't that better?"

  "What the fuck?"

  "Now, why don't you take a seat, and wait for the nice young men coming to take you away?" As he spoke I became drowsy, I stumbled slightly and reached for my head, trying to shake the feeling loose.

  He is using nano-proliferation on you, Seth. Counter his effect with Repair!

  I sent my nanites flooding through my system, and I began to clear my head. A strange look came over his face, what could only be described as glee.

  "Ah! A G-Type! How wonderful! Allow me to take those pretty little things from you…" he reached out with his hands, and I suddenly felt the most horrid sensation. It felt like sand was being pulled through my body, grinding my molecules. I tried to hit the man with an Ionise blast, but I couldn't control my nanites. "That's right…these belong to me now. Don't fight. It will be over soon. I'll have all your miraculous little helpers and they'll tear you apart, molecule by molecule."

  I was suddenly ver
y afraid. This man had an exceptional grasp of nano-proliferation; he was literally controlling my own implant. I was helpless to stop him! I yelled in pain, as my own nanites started to tear me apart. I started to cough and splutter, and I could taste blood in my mouth. My eyes started to mist over with a red tinge, and I began to spasm and shake.

  Somehow, through my agony, I recalled something that Fel'negr had told me, during my early training with NP. If you come to rely on them, your other skills will degrade, and then when you most need them they'll be gone.

  I'd certainly not relied upon them exclusively. I drew my sidearm and shot the man in the chest. The pain stopped instantly. I slumped to the soft ground, as the man collapsed, a look of surprise on his face. I got up and walked over to him, spitting blood from my mouth as I did. He was barely conscious and looked up at me with a look that implied he couldn't believe this had happened. Then the look turned to utter hatred. He tried to speak, but all that came out was a wracking cough filled with blood. He spat blood on my boots as I watched him. Then I put two rounds into his head.

  I turned to face the meaty organ in the centre. I didn't have much time. I pulled out my last charge and shoved it into the mass of organs and meat. As I left the chamber, I activated the bomb, and it flew apart in an explosion of meat and gore. Dark purple fluid spewed out of the severed veins, pumping the warm liquid everywhere. It began to pool in the central depression.

  A great weight lifted from my shoulders as if I could suddenly breathe again. My mission was successful. The Dreaming would be safe. That was all that mattered. My own survival was secondary, merely a bonus objective at this point.

  "Deck 24."

  Hurry, security teams will be catching up with you shortly.

  "Right. The elevator will be swarming by now. Any other routes?"

  Calculating. Follow the indicator on your overlay.

  A faint yellow line appeared on my overlay, augmenting my vision. I followed the trail and ran as fast as I could. I checked the time. By now, the other charges would be going off as well. I saw a few more crew on the way; they either turned and ran or cowered in terror. I realised then that I was coated in the purple liquid and blood. I was a fearsome sight, indeed. I used it to my advantage, pulling the lurzak free with one hand and wielding the PX-2 in the other. Anyone I saw I shot at, either their feet or the deck head. I yelled and waved the blade menacingly at them. I seemed ridiculous, but most sane people would run from such a sight.

  Soon the yellow trail led to a vent grating. I pulled it free of the bulkhead and crawled in.

  "Where are you taking me?"

  The main access corridor.

  "Through this vent?"

  Correct.

  After about a hundred metres, the vent ended in another grate. I looked through it and gasped. Tac wasn't kidding around. Sure enough, the main access corridor was on the other side of the vent.

  "Tac, how am I supposed to climb down there?"

  Your mag boots should provide ample footing.

  "Oh, yeah. Still, I'm kind of exposed out there."

  It was the best I could come up with, given the available data.

  "No, it's all right. It will have to do. Can you see the hangar entrance from up here?"

  Not yet, Seth. You will need to get closer.

  I sighed and pushed the vent grating out. It fell with a clatter, sliding down before bouncing off an outcropping and tumbling into the corridor proper. I lost sight of it as it fell the remaining kilometre or so to the end of the shaft. A wave of vertigo hit me as my mind tried to grasp the sheer scale of the drop before me. I tried to swallow, my mouth suddenly very dry.

  "Oh, boy."

  Should I find another route?

  "Nope. I got this. I think."

  I started to climb out, gingerly lowering myself over the lip and into the giant shaft. It was very gusty in there, and I was having second thoughts. I sucked it up and put my feet against the inner hull, activating my magnetic clamps on my boots. I carefully put my weight on them, and they held. I wished then that I'd brought my space suit gloves with me, as they also had magnetic pads on the palms. I climbed down fully, looking about for something else to grip and found that the hull plates had decent gaps between them that I could slip my fingers in. I climbed sideways until I found a vertical groove, and then used it to shimmy down. The wind kept fluttering my coat, and I chided myself for not doing up the buttons on the front. A few minutes into it, and my arm was throbbing where I'd been hit. My chest was also giving me grief. I once again flooded my blood with nanites and relished the instant improvement this power gave me.

  "How far down?"

  You still have 953 metres to go before you are aligned with Deck 24.

  "Nine hundred and fifty-three metres?"

  I climbed down; straining my muscles with each metre I went. I paused to catch my breath after about ten minutes and had to give myself another jolt with Repair. This was hard work, and I was far from the galaxy's most skilled climber.

  Might I suggest picking up the pace, Seth?

  "You can suggest it, but I probably won't do it."

  The longer you take getting back to the Dreaming, the further it will be from us.

  "You know, it suddenly occurs to me that I could do with dropping a few kilograms of equipment. Like your satchel."

  I sense that you are becoming anxious. Should I make an attempt at humour like Zoe suggests?

  "Um…no. I'll definitely drop you then."

  The climb took me nearly three hours. By the end, I'd used a dozen Repair paradigms and still I was exhausted when I finally reached another vent access to climb into. I rested on my belly for a time, catching my breath and just resting. I was almost out of charge, and I couldn't risk blacking out by using any more nanites. From here on out, it was just my tools and me.

  The vent lead a few dozen metres before depositing me in a large hangar that encircled the central shaft. There were about a dozen people about, all in various states of chaos and disarray. Apparently, the ship's crew had realised what had happened and there was a kind of rushed panic to get the propulsion fixed. I realised then that the ship was shaking every now and then, with slight heaving vibrations. Oops, my bad.

  I was hiding behind a group of crates and surveyed the area. I saw four of the Eclipse Fighters and a medium sized shuttle. It looked like a military assault transport, the kind ground pounders rode into planetary assaults. There was also a pair of civilian style shuttles, used to ferry passengers between ships and stations. They were also capable of atmospheric landing. There were varying degrees of cover, getting to one of the ships was going to be risky. What I needed was a distraction. I sat down and pulled out the plasma cutter. I lit it up and set it to burn next to the crates. I then moved away, putting distance between myself and the other crates. Eventually, the cutter would ignite the crates, and hopefully that would distract the hangar occupants enough for me to make a break for it.

  Sure enough, after a few minutes, someone noticed the cloud of smoke beginning to rise out of the crates and they sounded the alarm. Several crewmembers ran for firefighting equipment. I made my dash, heading for the nearest fighter and sliding underneath the carriage.

  "Tac, can you hack one of these open?"

  The override device should allow me to unlock the vehicle. Just get me access to the control panel.

  "Right."

  I climbed out of my hiding spot and clambered up onto a ladder that lead to the ship's cockpit. I found a small control panel near the canopy release and swiped the override over it.

  Interfacing. Standby.

  "Do I have to stay up here, I'm kind of exposed."

  I need to remain within 1.72 metres of the panel.

  "So yes, then. Great." I hunkered down as best I could, trying to keep a low profile. My only advantage was the hangar was poorly lit, but soon the crate fire I'd started was out and the crew started to return to their previous activities. A couple were walking in this di
rection, and I was beginning to get worried.

  "Tac, how long until you're done?"

  I estimate I will need 2 to 3.4 minutes to defeat this lock.

  "Shit. Trouble."

  I am working as fast as I am able.

  "Yeah okay, I wasn't complaining."

  I pulled my PX-2 out and tried to hug the fighter's fuselage as best I could. The two crewmen were in conversation, so I hoped they wouldn't notice me. They started to get real close, and I was sure I was going to get spotted, but they walked right on by. I breathed a sigh of relief.

  The canopy control is unlocked.

  "Good work. Let's get off this ship."

  I concur.

  I popped the canopy open, and no sooner had I done this than the hangar started to flash red lights and an alert sounded.

  "All hands! Unauthorised access to hangar vehicles detected!" The throaty voice croaked, louder than ever.

  "Shit, Tac! Thought you could open this without being detected?"

  My intrusion was not detected. I believe there were sensors placed on the canopy itself. My act of unlocking did not trip the alarm, but opening the canopy physically did.

  "We weren't going to hang around anyway."

  I jumped into the seat and checked around for the controls. They were standard, as far as spacecraft goes. Control yoke, a pair of displays, weapons controls, thrusters, canopy controls. I hit the control to close the lid and it sealed shut with a hissing sound. I turned on the console and waited for it to light up. I could see people starting to run towards the fighter, as they worked out which one I was in. I looked around while the system booted up. Where were the hangar doors? After a few moments, I located a large double door near the outer hull. That had to be it. Suddenly, several bright flashes of small arms fire hit the canopy and ricocheted away startling me.