by Isaac Hooke
When the lot of them had finished gearing up, Rade said: “Let’s go meet our arresting party.”
He led the way to the airlock.
“Zahir, open the inner hatch,” Rade sent.
It opened. Rade gazed at the outer door. Beyond the portal, he saw only the steel of the Chungshan’s external hatch, which capped the entry tube.
“Send in the HS3,” Rade said.
The scout proceeded forward; Rade had Zahir shut the inner hatch, then open the outer.
“The atmosphere is remaining constant,” Lui said. “The seal is good.”
“TJ, access the station’s external hatch via the remote interface and open it,” Rade instructed his man.
A moment later the hatch to the entry tube opened.
“Atmospheric pressure hasn’t changed,” Lui said.
Rade nodded. “That’s good, I think.”
“No arresting party...” Manic said.
Rade switched to the point of view of the HS3. The long, tunnel-like passageway beyond indeed proved empty. Emergency lights in the overhead provided dim illumination.
“Seal the hatches,” Rade said. “And send the HS3 forward.”
twenty-eight
The HS3 neared the end of the entry tube, where a sealed door blocked any further progress.
“TJ, open the station’s inner hatch,” Rade commanded.
The door seal swiveled aside.
“The pressure is still stable,” Lui said. “We’re good.”
The HS3 entered. Several moments passed. The inner corridor didn’t look much different from the first passageway, other than for the fact it was wider. It had steel bulkheads, a steel deck and overhead, with emergency lights above providing a dim glow.
Rade watched the overhead map fill out as the HS3 explored the fog of war of the station interior. Closed hatches on the right indicated the passageways to the external entry tubes, as well as a few lifepods. Those on the left allowed access deeper into the station.
“Well this is nice,” Manic said. “Not having to worry about interference for once.”
Rade nodded absently.
After several minutes, the HS3 had mapped out a donut-shaped area around the central hub, having looped back to the initial airlock.
“All right, first order of business, we secure the Argonaut,” Rade said. “You and you, into the airlock. Bender, send two more HS3s.”
The designated combat robots and HS3s entered. Once more Rade had the Tiger’s AI go through the process of opening and closing the airlocks, and in moments the two Centurions were in the central hub. They dashed to the hatch that led to the Argonaut, and Rade had TJ open it.
The robots deployed inside, as did the HS3s. One of the HS3s remained behind at the entrance, while the remaining joined the robots and dispersed throughout the Marauder class ship. Rade saw evidence of forced entry throughout the ship, with hatches and seals broken down by laser cutters. Several disabled robots were piled in the cargo hold. The sickbay showed signs that someone had been held prisoner, strapped to a bed. DNA samples confirmed that that person had been Shaw.
After a complete search of the ship turned up no one, Rade ordered the robots to proceed to Engineering. There, the Centurions were able to successfully boot the Argonaut’s AI. TJ had given a special security chip to one of the robots beforehand, and it placed that chip into the AI core before the boot. Notably, the existing chip that TJ kept hidden under the panel was missing.
Rade tapped directly into the appropriate Centurion’s external speaker system for the next part.
“Greetings, Captain,” the Argonaut’s AI said. “I am Cunt Hair, AI of the Marauder class vessel Argonaut. Please state name and set new password.”
“Rade Galaal, tango beta five niner,” Rade said via the Centurion’s speakers.
“Thank you, Captain Galaal,” the AI said. “How can I be of service to you?”
“First of all, update your database to call me boss,” Rade said. “Not captain. Second of all, change your name to Bax.” It wasn’t a good sign that the AI had reverted to the name it had used when Rade first acquired the vessel.
“Done on both accounts, boss,” Bax replied.
“Do you have any records of what transpired since coming to Lang?” Rade asked.
“I’m sorry, all records have been wiped since acquisition,” Bax replied.
Rade had expected as much. “Bax, use your internal sensors and tell me who is aboard. Include any robots or Artificials, but omit offline robots.”
“I am detecting an HS3 model A92 beside airlock 3A,” the Argonaut’s AI replied. “And two more HS3 A92s in Engineering, as well as two Centurion model B3A units in the same area.”
“No one else is hiding aboard?” Rade pressed. “Say in a ventilation duct?”
“Negative,” Bax replied.
Rade nodded. “All right. We’ve got our ship back, people.” Though I really was hoping to get Shaw back.
Rade instructed the two Centurions to guard the entrance airlock aboard the Argonaut, then he recalled the HS3s.
“TJ, can you access any of the inner doors inside the main hub that lead deeper into the station?” Rade asked.
“No,” TJ answered. “The doors aren’t set to open on command like the airlocks. We’re going to have to use the cutters.”
“All right,” Rade said. “Let’s get inside. Zahir, open the inner and outer hatches, and close them again at the first sign of decompression. That goes for you as well, Bax.” Rade glanced at two of the combat robots. “You two, stay here. Everyone else, headlamps on infrared, and advance.”
“Remember,” Ms. Bounty said. “We have to capture Zoltan completely intact. If you disable or destroy him, he will switch to another robot or Artificial.”
“I wished you’d tell us how that works, exactly,” Manic said.
“If it happens, you will know,” Ms. Bounty said.
“Maybe we should leave all our robots behind?” Fret said.
“It won’t matter,” Ms. Bounty replied. “Zoltan can reach any of the robots, regardless of whether they are aboard the station, or inside the ship.”
“I’m not sure I like the sound of that,” Tahoe said.
“You shouldn’t,” Ms. Bounty agreed. “But know that the process isn’t instantaneous. The farther the destination robot is, the longer it will take Zoltan to transfer.”
“Something to keep in mind,” Rade said.
The group traveled the long entrance tube to the main hub. Once there, Rade sent two robots forward to cut through one of the doors that led deeper into the structure. He had everyone else assume defensive positions, their weapons aimed at the hatch.
Ms. Bounty stayed behind in the passageway that led to the Tiger; two robots remained with her, holding the glass container that she intended to capture Zoltan with.
The Centurions cut through and the door collapsed. They set their weapons back to “fire” mode and entered. One went high. The other low.
“Contact!” A Centurion shouted.
There was a blur of motion beyond the opening. Two red dots had appeared on the overhead display. Meanwhile both blue dots indicating the advancing robots had winked out.
Rade aimed his scope inside, and the weapon light illuminated a long, centipede like form within.
“Unleash grenades!” Rade said.
Several grenades were tossed inside. “Fire in the hole!” someone said.
The explosions came. Like Lui said, the frags weren’t powerful enough to cause a hull breach. They did send up smoke and vibrate the hull quite well, however.
“Bender, I want an HS3 inside!” Rade said.
An HS3 moved forward. Rade switched to its viewpoint: within the external compartment, the mutilated bodies of two giant centipedes lay curled on the deck. Their heads had large pincers, which explained why the robots were each cut in half.
“Bugs,” Bender said.
“Lui, get me an analysis on these creatures.
” Rade rotated the swivel camera of the HS3 to examine the compartment. It seemed to be some sort of hydroponics chamber, with tomatoes growing from pots suspended from the overhead, and troughs of fern-like flowering plants lining the deck. The explosions had caused fragmentation damage to some of the closer troughs.
“These things seem partially engineered from Earth stock,” Lui said. “Their DNA is eighty percent human. But there are other nucleics here that don’t match anything from Earth.”
“What, like alien DNA?” Fret said.
“No,” Lui said. “I’m not sure that would even be technically possible. Blending alien DNA with human, I mean, and expecting to get something capable of cellular division. I just mean, there’s a lot of custom stuff in here. Whoever made these sure had a hell of a lot of time on his hands. I’m not sure what traits half of these genomes are supposed to trigger.”
Rade returned his attention to the creatures. “Could they have once been human?”
Lui hesitated. “You mean transformed by a retrovirus?”
“Yes. You did say their DNA was eighty percent human.”
“It’s certainly possible,” Lui said. “But I can’t say for certain one way or another.”
What if one of these was Shaw? And we just killed her?
“Send in more HS3s,” Rade said. “Clear the compartment.”
In a few minutes the HS3s had completely mapped out the large hydroponics chamber. Rade had one of the HS3s stay behind at the opening to guard their back, then he had two robots cut open the next door.
On the other side, no tangos awaited. Instead there was a small cylindrical room with an elevator at the middle. Along the circular bulkhead were three other doors, each situated at a different point of the compass, ostensibly leading to other chambers like the one the party had just departed. It was the station’s inner hub.
“The elevator seems to be inactive,” TJ said. “I can’t access it.”
“All right, let’s open these other doors,” Rade said. “And clear the compartments.”
The robots opened the doors and the party cleared the hydroponic bays beyond in turn. They encountered three more of the giant centipedes in one of the other compartments, but the remaining two proved clean. The ex-MOTHs made short work of the creatures with their grenades. The doors on the far sides of each compartment led back to the hallway of the main hub that circled the station: they had cleared the first level.
The group returned to the elevator.
“Open it up,” Rade ordered two robots.
The robots spread the doors apart, revealing an empty shaft inside. A carbon fiber cable stretched up and down into the darkness.
“Climb to the next floor,” Rade instructed.
The robots leaped onto the carbon fiber cable and clambered out of view.
In moments they had the door to the next level open. Rade switched to their perspective, and saw that they resided in another circular inner hub with four hatches placed at the different points of the compass.
“All right, let’s get up there,” Rade said. The members of the boarding party climbed one by one. Ms. Bounty and the two robots porting the glass container came last. The latter two ended up using their jetpacks to bring the heavy cargo to the next level.
“Let’s open this door,” Rade said, picking one of the four hatches at random.
He stepped back, assuming a defensive position while the cutters moved in.
When the door fell in, he ordered an HS3 inside. Within, corn grew in troughs beneath sprinkler systems. The HS3 flew between the rows, mapping out the compartment. No tangos awaited.
The team deployed inside and the robots cut through the outer hatch. It led to a curved hallway that seemed to follow the external hull of the station, much like the main hub of the floor just below. A pair of lifepod hatches were embedded in the bulkhead directly across from the opening.
Bender once more flew an HS3 inside to explore.
“Boss, better look at this,” Bender said a moment later.
“What is it?” Rade switched to the viewpoint of the HS3.
“We’ve found Shaw,” Bender said.
twenty-nine
Rade saw her halfway down the corridor, flexicuffed to the railing. She was dressed in the same fatigues she usually wore on duty, except the cloth was ripped in places. Shaw’s face was dirty; her lips were chapped and bleeding in places. She had a black eye on the right side of her face, and a fresh cut above the left. Despite all of that, she looked defiant.
Beside her stood a man who could only be Zoltan. He wore a clean, flowing purple robe, the shawl raised to cover his head. He had a thick black beard with eyebrows to match. His eyes burned with an intensity that Rade had never seen in an Artificial. His right hand was extended out to the side, and held a small cylindrical device: his thumb pressed down on the tip. A green light flashed on the bottom portion of the device.
“Everyone, stay inside! He’s got a dead man’s switch of some kind!” Rade switched to his own point of view and hurried toward the passageway.
“What are you going to do?” Ms. Bounty said urgently. “I need him intact!”
“I’m going to negotiate for Shaw’s life,” Rade said.
“Wait, Rade!” Tahoe said. “Let one of us do it instead.”
“She’s my girl,” Rade said. “It has to be me.”
As he neared the passage, he let his rifle hang from his shoulder strap and preemptively raised his hands. Then he took a deep breath and stepped through to stand underneath the HS3.
Shaw smiled, despite the obvious pain she was in. Her eyes glistened, and she blinked rapidly several times.
“What do you want?” Rade said gruffly, using the external speakers of his jumpsuit. He felt like throwing all of his grenades at the Artificial, and unleashing his rifle into the brain case. But he could do none of that, not until he knew what kind of detonator Zoltan held.
“Are you there, my ancient enemy?” Zoltan said.
“I am present,” Ms. Bounty said from the side compartment behind Rade, also using her external speakers. She had ramped the volume way up.
Zoltan nodded, smiling, then focused on Rade. “You know what this is?” Zoltan nodded toward his trigger arm.
“A dead man’s trigger,” Rade said.
“Very good,” Zoltan replied. “I’ve placed explosives all along the rim of the central hub of the station. When I release my thumb, half the station will break away, along with a bioweapon I’ve hidden in one of the compartments; together, they will plunge toward the colony. I’ve also placed charges on the corvette you just docked: I had robots waiting on the hull of the station, and when you arrived, I deployed them. The explosion will disable the ship.
“I have not, however, attached charges to your precious Argonaut: it will survive the detonation intact. You can use it to destroy the bioweapon before it impacts the surface. You will find Hellfires in the cargo bay of the Argonaut, taken from the defense platform shuttle that docked here two days ago. I’ve modified these Hellfires to work with the launch tubes of the ship. You will have to carry the missiles to the necessary compartment, of course, and manually load them. Observe station cameras 2A, B and C, and Argonaut cams 3A and 5A, to confirm what I say is true. I have granted you the necessary privileges to view the former cameras, and you should already have access to the latter by now.”
Rade muted his external speakers. “Tahoe, check it.”
A moment later Tahoe replied: “Everything he says is true.”
“What about the modified Hellfires?” Rade said.
“I checked with Bax,” Tahoe replied. “The AI is convinced they’ll fit the launch tubes.”
Rade reactivated his external speakers to address Zoltan. “The colony’s surface-to-space defenses will eliminate the danger. Or the defense platforms will.”
“Actually they won’t bother,” Zoltan said. “The impact will be far from the inhabitable zone. They will believe they are safe. When
the broken station hits, the infection will disperse across the moon in hours. Good bye Guangdong IV.”
“Why didn’t you load the missiles into the Argonaut’s launch tubes yourself and fire at us?” Rade pressed. “Why let us approach?”
“I didn’t have time,” Zoltan said. “And the truth of the matter is, I never planned to deploy my bioweapon in this way, but your woman pissed me off. ‘When Rade gets here, he’s going to kick your ass. When Rade comes, he’s going to smear your insides across the bulkheads.’ Rade Rade Rade. This is my revenge on you both. Hunter, and hunted.”
Zoltan swung the arm that held the dead man’s switch toward Rade. “When I release this trigger you will have two options. The first is to race back to the Argonaut, manually transfer the missiles from the cargo bay to the launch tubes, and then destroy the severed station segment that is hurtling toward the moon, sparing the citizens. It will require all your men. The second is to save Shaw. Again, doing so will require all your men. You cannot do both. It will be interesting to see what you pick.” Zoltan’s thumb seemed to twitch on the trigger, and he cocked his head. “Better hang onto something.”
“Wait!” Rade said.
“What?” Zoltan asked.
“Take me in her place.”
Zoltan smiled widely. “It doesn’t work that way.” He lifted his thumb.
Flashes appeared in the passageway beyond Shaw; Rade heard an explosion and then the corridor behind her was gone entirely. In its place resided the stars of deep space.
The explosive decompression sucked Zoltan out. The flexicuffs slid backward as Shaw too was pulled toward the void, but the cuffs mercifully caught on the bend in the railing that was created when the bulkhead severed.
Rade was already hurtling toward her, thanks to the decompression.
He activated his jetpack to slow his approach and wrapped his arms around her. He held the surgical laser in the tip of his index finger to the cuffs and shot through them.
Shaw broke free, and for a moment they were both drawn toward the void by the decompression. She had shut her eyes and mouth. If he let her fall into the void, without a pressure suit the saliva in her mouth would boil away, along with any perspiration on her body. Though that would be the least of her problems.
