by S. H. Jucha
Fortunately, the expanding energy waves were unable to appreciably damage the fleeing scout ship. In the SADEs’ favor, the battleships were forced to veer off from the massive destructive waves of hot gases and metal debris that were headed their way.
As soon as it was feasible, Killian reduced the engine output to 90 percent, turned the Vivian’s Mirror onto a course headed for the fleet’s star, and made a transit.
The moment the ship’s escape was assured, Trium’s trumpet blast intertwined with Bethley’s ancient calliope, as the two celebrated escaping what appeared to be certain death.
Bethley teased.
Killian sent.
The Vivian’s Mirror made several indiscriminate transits, checking its back trail, as the scout ships had agreed to do. It was known that the aliens of the federation were aware that their style of hull was associated with humankind’s worlds. And it was known where one fleet lay, but the aliens had been told by Alex that there were several fleets in federacy space. It was hoped by their maneuvers that the aliens would believe their ship was intending to rendezvous with another fleet.
Eventually, the Vivian’s Mirror transited outside the New Terra’s system, where the expedition fleet was stationed. Immediately, Killian pinged the other scout ships and was relieved to find they had returned safely.
-35-
Observations
The Vivian’s Mirror was turned over to Mickey, who examined the ship’s shell with Emile and Miriam. The scout ship was the largest vessel the fleet had that would fit inside a city-ship’s bay, but it was a tight squeeze.
“Well, at least we have an indication of how far you can degrade a shell and keep the ship sailing,” Mickey said, running his hand over the pitted surface.
“Can this be repaired by your present methods, Emile?” Miriam asked.
“I don’t know,” Emile replied. “What we did after the fight at the wall was repair dings, chips, and cracks, and occasionally we repaired holes. But, in this case, the entire surface has been worn thin.”
Emile examined the data Miriam collected on the shell. The shell was reduced by an average of more than 5 centimeters, and, in some places, the comet’s rock and ice had nearly penetrated the weakened hull.
“There is the option of not repairing this ship,” Emile said. But, when he observed the narrowed eyes sent his way by Mickey and Miriam, he added, “I suppose not, especially because its Killian’s ship.”
“No scout team acts more independently or collects more data than they do,” Mickey said. “It’s time to get inventive, Emile.” He smiled at the biochemist, slapped the heavy New Terran on the shoulder, and walked away.
Emile looked at Miriam with hopeful eyes, and she said, “Be at ease, Emile. I don’t intend to desert you.”
Mickey’s internal chronometer told him that if he didn’t hurry, he wouldn’t catch the start of Alex’s review of the data collected by the Vivian’s Mirror. He hurried, arriving as the last of the attendees, the expedition’s senior staff, filed into the auditorium.
“I’d like to begin this meeting by recognizing the contributions of some individuals who have rarely been seen by this company lately,” Alex said in his opening remarks. “Would the scout ship SADEs please stand?”
The twelve SADEs rose to the applause and whistles of humans and the celebratory sounds of SADEs.
When the noise died down, Alex said, “These individuals have done a wonderful job of helping to keep the expedition safe by patrolling our perimeters and seeking out our enemies far in advance of our ships. It has cost them dearly. The six SADEs of Deter and Verina’s ships are presumed lost. Every one of them has our sincere appreciation for their contributions.”
Alex’s salutation led to another round of cheering and applause. He let the SADEs enjoy their moment, and they sat, as it quieted.
Alex addressed the assembly, saying, “The data collected by the first three scout ships to return has been examined in detail.”
A huge holo-vid that an engineering team had installed, for the purpose of the meeting, sprang to life.
“What’s evident is the incredible number of warships that patrol the system’s fringe,” Alex said. “In most cases, these ships penetrate no farther inward than about the orbit of the eighth planet. That in itself is strange. Freighters come and go, visiting all manner of locations. However, we’ve identified the sixth planet outward as the hub of this system. Yet, it possesses only a single orbital platform.”
As Alex spoke, Julien controlled the imagery the holo-vid displayed. Quite evident was the lack of resolution of many of the items that Alex mentioned. The scout ships had remained too far out to record better detail. Alex’s initial disappointment with Linn’s summary was quickly dispelled when he reviewed their data. The system’s hyperactivity precluded the scout ships approaching the targets any closer.
“The initial reports conclude that the activity surrounding the sixth planet, which is supposedly the hub, is limited, indicating a technologically advanced civilization does not exist on the planet,” Alex continued. “In summary, the early information has created more questions than answers.”
Alex paused, and the audience waited for him to continue. “I’m as anxious as you to learn what data the intrepid crew of the Vivian’s Mirror has gathered that will answer our questions. Killian, Bethley, and Trium, if you please, step up here and lead the discussion.”
Comm and implant messages flew between humans and SADEs. Alex’s invitation was a heady example of his increasing inclusion of SADEs in the expedition’s matters.
The three SADEs rose and moved as one, in step, toward the front of the auditorium.
Bethley and Trium signaled Killian that he should begin the presentation, as they took positions on either side of their ship’s leader.
Killian began his remarks by saying, “We appreciate the opportunity to share what we’ve discovered. Thank you, Alex. All of us recognized the importance of the sixth planet, but we couldn’t account for its lack of ship activity. In addition, we’d seen the platforms that ringed the planet, and decided that they too, among other subjects, demanded further investigation. So, we proceeded inward.”
Bethley quickly inserted a comment. “It should be noted that we hid the approach of our ship in the tail of a comet, soon to pass near the orbit of the eighth planet. It was Killian’s plan, of course.”
Bethley’s comment produced a titter from the audience. Killian, who appeared embarrassed by the revelation, shrugged his shoulders and displayed a lopsided smile. It was a perfect imitation of Alex, and he received a round of laughter for his efforts.
“While an inventive plan,” Bethley added, “it nearly resulted in the destruction of our ship’s hull. I don’t recommend it as a hiding place.”
“I think Bethley overstates the dangerousness of our hiding place,” Trium announced, with a serious face. “I, for one, thought the twin missile barrages aimed our way and launched from battleships we
re a much more perilous factor.”
The audience was quiet, staring at the SADEs in disbelief and wondering if they were hearing fact or fiction.
“I concede that the ship-killer-sized missiles were a daunting part of the trip,” Killian said, holding his arms out in apology to the audience. “But, we survived and we returned. That should be given some credit.”
Alex and Julien were the first to laugh, which soon had others joining them. It dawned on the audience that the scout ship SADEs were intending to do more than make a simple presentation. Now that they had the opportunity to dominate the stage they’d chosen to entertain everyone.
Killian thought he might receive a hint from Alex on how to proceed, but nothing came his way. He shifted the datastream to the point of closest passage to the sixth planet. “Perhaps we should start at the most optimal resolution of our trip inward,” Killian said. “This is why we wanted a close pass of this unusual planet.”
The assembly leaned forward to regard the holo-vid, which displayed clear views of the planet. Some humans and all SADEs linked to the data source to study the imagery in more detail.
“Notice the lack of activity on the planet’s surface,” Killian continued. “And by that I mean the lack of biological sentients. We can see vehicles and bots of all sorts moving. We can see overhead trams, but only bots exit at the stations.”
“Did you witness any biologicals, at any time?” Reiko asked.
“At our distance, we observed only herds of animals,” Bethley replied. “We couldn’t detect the movement of sentients around any structures, not a single one.”
The audience ruminated on that odd piece of data, and Killian waited, for a moment, before continuing. “When observing from far outside the system, we had questions about the platforms that ringed the planet. It would seem odd, we thought, for the planet to have defensive platforms, knowing that modern naval warfare could quickly eliminate them. However, it didn’t seem probable that they would be comm platforms, either. The vast number of them would be excessive for communications.
Trium chose a clear, close-up view of one of the platforms. It was significant in size, probably containing a heavy power generator, and its projections were an unusual configuration.
“Luther?” Trium asked, inviting the SADE to comment.
Luther studied the image and said, “They’re definitely comm platforms. The single directional structure of each platform, which points inward, indicates a unique point of contact on the planet’s surface, and these antenna structures appear to be adjustable, allowing them to follow the planet’s rotation. Do you have telemetry of the planetary focus point?”
Bethley skipped to the relative part of the data. “It’s this area, at a polar region of the planet, Luther. It’s festooned with various transmitting towers.”
Luther was examining the imagery, when the display shifted. It returned to an image of the platform.
“What of the elements of the platforms that face outward, Luther?” Killian asked.
Luther examined the numerous projections, and said, “In contrast to the inward components, which target one location, the outward structures are meant to cover the broadest area of space.”
Killian thought about what Luther was proposing, and he shifted the display again.
“This is what we wished everyone to see,” Killian said. “These are the best images we have of the probes that ring the outer system. Admittedly they aren’t as sharp as we would like, but their outlines are telling.”
“They’re similar to the probes in our system,” Tatia said in surprise from her front-row seat.
“Yes, Admiral,” Killian agreed.
“We’ve concluded that this system is the heart of the federacy,” Trium announced. “We believe it’s the home world of the race that planted the probes in our systems.”
“Yes and no,” Julien said, which drew the audience’s attention to him. “Consider that the Nua’ll spoke of a master, a singular individual named Artifice. If Artifice inhabits this system, where are the individuals who serve it?”
“Would a digital entity need service from biological entities?” Linn asked.
“Not necessarily,” Bethley agreed. “Perhaps that’s why the activity we witnessed on the planet’s surface was entirely mechanical.”
“The comm platforms and probes make sense, if you consider that Artifice controls the operations of everything, including ships, via implanted code,” Luther postulated. “In that regard, wouldn’t an entity such as Artifice mistrust anything that it couldn’t control?”
“Excellent point,” Reiko said. “At some point in the history of this race, Artifice took over this world, the system, and the ships. The race that created it is no longer in control of their lives. Bots run the world. The systems are automated, and the shuttles from the planet to the singular orbital platform are on autopilot.”
“Does that mean that Artifice never leaves the castle for fear of exposure to those who want to kill it?” Renée asked. She had been reminded of an ancient vid. At the center of the plot was a man, a leader, who was called a shogun. The shogun suffered from a form of paranoia, which kept him prisoner in his own castle.
“Perhaps Artifice can’t leave the planet for another reason,” Alex said, which halted the discussions that had sprung up. “Bethley, display the planet’s polar region again, please.” When the images appeared, Alex asked, “What’s wrong with this vid?”
“Towers and transmitters,” Luther said immediately. “We see comm structures but no buildings, Dassata.”
“The only reason I can see to construct structures at a polar region would be to take advantage of the cold, but that doesn’t make any sense to me for communication equipment.” Mickey said, the engineer in him analyzing the anomalous placement.
“Cold,” Alex echoed, suddenly sitting upright. “Artifice doesn’t leave the planet because it can’t. The entity is buried under the polar cap to help it eliminate heat production. Those towers and transmitters are how Artifice communicates and controls the federation’s races.
“Bethley, show me views of the various warships orbiting the outer system,” Alex requested. He was examining the images of the multitude of ships that prowled the system’s outer limits, when the display suddenly shifted.
“I believe these are the ships you’re looking for, Dassata,” Killian said.
The audience stared at a squadron of ships. They possessed matte-black hulls, and their configurations echoed the designs of the probes in the outer belt and the sixth planet’s comm platforms.
“We believe these are the ships of the original race,” Bethley said into the utter quiet.
Comms and implants shared messages. Individuals had varied reactions to the discovery of the race that was at the heart of the misery inflicted on humankind’s worlds. Some focused their anger on the race, some saw its history as tragic, and some didn’t know what to think.
What was obvious to the entire audience and those individuals linked to them was that Artifice’s system was a fortress protected by enormous naval firepower and immensely dense comm networks. Having experienced the malevolent code assault of the Nua’ll, there was little doubt among the Omnians as to what Artifice was capable of broadcasting within its personal territory.
* * *
Two days after the meeting, in which the observations of Vivian’s Mirror were discussed, Renée, Pia, and some friends enjoyed one of the vids Renée had gleaned from Idona Station at Sol. When it ended, Renée sat alone in the suite. Her mind played over the subterfuge created by one group trying to gain access to the city of another.
Renée was quite aware that Alex would press forward with his plan to accept Artifice’s invitation. The images of the numerous fleets and comm platforms protecting the entity’s system scared her. They’d frightened many individuals, if her discussions with a few others were an accurate representation of the entire expedition.
One of the characteristics that Renée
loved about her partner was his great heart. It was Alex who saw through the actions of the dark travelers to imagine a race held captive within them. It was Alex who had befriended a SADE, when he’d never met one, and freed his kind. And it was Alex who brought peace to the sentient species of Celus-5.
There were other thoughts that occurred to Renée about her partner, but she returned to the idea that germinated in her mind. At the center of them was the realization that she didn’t trust the digital entities they were encountering — not Faustus, not the Nua’ll, and certainly not Artifice. This time Renée was intent on imparting a healthy sense of distrust into Alex’s decisions.
Renée signaled Alex. He was headed toward their suite, and Julien was with him. Perfect, she thought. At the cabin door, she heard Julien saying good night to Alex, and she signaled Julien to join them.
“Sit, please,” Renée requested of Alex and Julien, swinging an arm toward the couch, when they entered the salon. “I have a vid I want the two of you to watch and think about in regard to your intention to visit Artifice. The important part is at the end and involves a method used to deceive the enemy. The vid is called Troy.”
Having delivered her message, Renée exited the salon for the sleeping quarters, intending to turn in for the night.
“Shall we?” Alex offered, searching through Renée’s vid database for the title.
“I’ve just reviewed it. I find the idea intriguing,” Julien said, rising from the couch and making his way to the door.
“Cheater,” Alex called out.
“That’s a human trait,” Julien shot back, as he exited the suite.
Alex was tired, and he wanted to be snuggling with his partner. So, he decided to compromise. Locating the vid, he sent it to the wall monitor and limited the audio output to his implant. He watched sections of the vid, shooting forward to skip much of it, but understanding the nature of the plot. Near the end, Alex slowed to real time and watched the enemy retreat from the city walls to their ships.
