by Matt Verish
“It is,” said the sourceless voice from beyond. “A controlled shutdown, initiated by the Sentinel—possibly brought on by my meddling. As a result, we’re still at its mercy.”
“I doubt it has anything to do with you, and everything to do with Cain,” Cole explained as he gently pushed off the ceiling toward the cockpit. “He pissed off Nel.”
“Who?”
I’m not explaining myself again. “Cain commandeered one of the drones and is using it to take out the other three. Something about lessening the signal. He’s already taken out one, hence our predicament. It’s only a matter of time before he—”
BOOM!
The floor beneath Cole trembled, sending him adrift once more. Now what?
“Sounds like an anterior hit,” Rig said to Cole, grabbing his ankle. He yanked him back to the floor with a little too much gusto. “Better hope the hull ain’t punctured. Don’t wanna get sucked through a pinhole.”
Cole landed feet-first, cringing when his knee tensed. He peered down at the mechanic’s feet, intrigued how solid his footing was. “Magboots too, eh?”
“Damn right. I came prepared, unlike you people.”
“An amateur pirate I might be, but at least I’m not digging myself deeper into debt with my brother.” He patted Rig on his broad shoulder and smiled. Emmerich appeared behind the mechanic a second later, sans magboots.
“It seems the ship is holding together,” she said, not sounding confident. “Now if only there was something we could do, other than stand around in the dark.”
“She’ll hold,” Cole professed, unable to back his statement. “Cain’s on the case, and I’m sure he’s kickin’ some outdated AI ass.” He held out his arms. “This ship is state-of-the-art, the best SolEx has to offer. The Icarus, baby! Not even the sun could stop us.”
The crew’s world was turned upside down when a massive, unseen object collided hard with the ship. Cole and Emmerich were set adrift once more, their bodies launched toward the energy field. Rig lunged at them, but they were out of his reach. Cole thrashed his arm toward the former inspector and clutched at her jacket sleeve. He missed by inches, though she completed the circuit by clasping his hand. Her eyes opened wide when he used his limited leverage to swing her weightless body toward the ceiling where a low archway awaited her. He could only watch and hope that she would process the reason for his action. Much to his relief, her legs kicked out and pushed off the solid obstruction, sending them both to the ground before they could float through the energy field and discover just how powerful it was.
Cole shied away from the close proximity of the field, turned, and came face-to face with Emmerich. The relief on her face was a welcoming sight.
“That was some quick thinking,” she said, yanking her hand out of his grasp. “But next time, I throw you.”
Cole inspected his empty hand. “It’s a date, but you’ll have to run it by my favorite engineer.” He squinted at the energy field. Right, Doc?”
He received no reply.
“Doc?”
The lights flickered, power briefly flirting with the engines before the ship resumed its dark state. Rig came up behind Cole and laid a heavy hand on his shoulder, keeping him from drifting away.
“Huh,” the mechanic said, staring up at the ceiling. “What’s that all about?”
“Let’s hope that was a sign from Cain,” Cole said. He stood and backed away from the blinding energy field. He froze in fear that Lin had been inadvertently tossed into... He squinted in hopes of seeing any movement.
“You trying to go blind, Musgrave?”
“It would make my life a lot easier,” he said. “Then I wouldn’t have to stare at your mangled face anymore.”
“Mmhm. Just remember why I have this scar.”
“You have it ‘cuz you’re an idiot,” Rig said. “You should be dead after the stunt you pulled against that Forester prick. Dodging point-blank shots from an assassin?” He shook his head.
Emmerich sighed and faced the mechanic. “And I seem to recall your little stunt leaving you unconscious when you underestimated the very same person.”
Rig crossed his arms, returning her stare. “Still can’t believe that girly receptionist got the jump on me. I shoulda broken his neck.”
“You two still talking shit about Art?” Cole said. “Let it go. You know, like how I did?”
Both Emmerich and Rig grunted. He knew they disapproved of his decision to let the undercover Research assassin escape.
“He was just doing his job,” Cole continued, moving closer to the energy field. “If he’d initially wanted us dead, we would’ve been. I doubt we have to worry about him anymore. Right now, I’m a bit more concerned with this—”
Icarus illuminated in a blink, engines and computers returning to full strength. Artificial gravity stabilized, and everyone’s footing was once again secured. The change in lighting suddenly made it possible to see through the energy field, if ever so slightly. Cole jerked his head back when he realized he was nearly face-to-face with Lin on the other side. She seemed equally as surprised.
“Doc!” He exclaimed, louder than he’d wanted. His eyes fell to the object in her extended hand: a cube. Oh no... “Doc, you alright?”
She shook her head and presented the Rook, which no longer hovered of its own accord.
Her Rook must’ve made contact with the shield during the collision. Not good. “Are you hurt?”
Another shake of her head.
“Alright, sit tight,” he said, backing away. “We need to turn off this energy field.”
“Cain! Buddy! You back in the driver’s seat?”
“Hence the energy field,” Cole finished. “Alright, what’s the status of the drones?”
Cole met Emmerich’s hard gaze. “But that would mean you’ve sustained damage, right?”
“How bad is the damage?” he asked, knowing he would not like the answer.
So much for asking if he could take out the other drone. “What about the other one?”
“Wait... Are you telling me the Sentinel is aiming to take out one of its own?”
Something wasn’t adding up. “If you’re out of commission and no longer a threat, why would the Sentinel risk weakening the signal connected to the Icarus?”
“So? You’re just manipulating an android. Aren’t you?”
There’s never any good news. Cole hung his head. “Let me guess—you somehow managed to upload your AI essence into Nel?”
“The android,” Cole amended. “Your injected your robot spirit into her.”
“Is that even possible?”
“Okay, Jean-Luc. So what you’re telling me is that if you die aboard that drone—in Nel’s android body—even though your brain is on the Icarus—you’re finished?”
Cole threw up arms, flabbergasted. “Alright, then what are you going to do about your little predicament?�
��
Cole glimpsed Lin’s hazy silhouette behind the energy field, the ship’s flight controls within her reach. Might as well be a hundred light years away. “I’d help you out, buddy, but I’m currently unable to better my situation either.”
Silence, and then,
Oh no....
4
RECONNECTED
“Time for a crash-course in space flight, Doc.”
Though he couldn’t see Lin’s expression behind the obstructing energy field, he imagined those striking, intelligent green eyes of hers were now bulging. And what he was about to demand of her was more than a long-shot, but it was the only chance at saving CAIN.
“Musgrave. Are you insane?”
“Working on it, Chrys,” Cole said to Emmerich, though his attention was on Lin. “Doc. Don’t worry about needing to talk or even send messages through Ocunet. Just listen to my voice. I’ll talk you through this.”
“Talk her through what?” Emmerich demanded. “Even if manual controls are accessible, what do you expect her to do? Thread a needle while doing a barrel roll? She’s never piloted a vessel before.”
“Ignore her, Doc. You don’t need to do anything that drastic. The Icarus practically flies itself. Just sit down, and get comfortable.”
“Yes, take your time, Dartmouth,” Emmerich said, sarcasm dripping from her tongue.
“We can do this, Doc. I promise.” He watched Lin hesitate before slowly, shakily, turning and sitting in the flight chair. Cole smiled. Atta girl!
“Remember what I said about your recklessness being the end of us?” Emmerich’s question was more of a statement. “This falls directly into that category.”
“I’m not letting Cain die,” Cole said, his patience at its end.
Emmerich stepped closer to Cole anyway. “Taking out both drones and the AI will free us of the Sentinel’s grip. This ship will fly just fine without CAIN. That’s why we have you.”
Cole glared at her pointing index finger, eager to snap it off. Somewhere in the back of his frantic mind, he knew she was right. His glared softened.
“Cain! Talk to me.”
That’s all I needed to hear. He shrugged at Emmerich and turned his full attention toward the inaccessible cockpit. “Follow Cain’s lead. If anyone can do this, it’s you. Don’t try any fancy maneuvers, and screw finesse and style; they’re overrated anyway.”
“Oh,” Cole said, blinking. Ah, the joys of the synthetic gravity and an obstructed viewport screen. “Care to distribute that augmented reality view again, Cain? Preferably the good doctor’s? You know, so I don’t continue to look like a complete moron?”
“Too late, Nugget.”
Cole cast Rig a sidelong glance. “Do you do anything other than make cutting remarks?” The response went ignored as his entire world had become engulfed by virtual outer space. He sat down on the ground, unwilling to let his crew witness his vertigo. Only these images were very real.
The Icarus was working its way toward the two drones, though it was yet unclear which one was carrying CAIN. Cole would’ve enhanced his view to match Lin’s had it been possible. He would have to rely on the clues from the ship’s exterior cameras. It was better than staring helplessly at an energy field.
“You’re doing great, Doc. We’ll be close enough for a missile lock soon enough. Till then, keep on keepin’ on.”
“And hopefully not directly into a small moon,” Emmerich muttered.
Cole did not respond; Dr. Lin Dartmouth had risen to the occasion despite the pressure. The beautiful former SolEx engineer and daughter of the infamous Singularity was flying the Icarus. What were the limits to this brilliant mind?
“We’re almost there, Cain,” Cole said, though he could see that they were still slightly out of range. There was also another issue. “Which fighter are you? You’re going to need to provide Doc with target coordinates.” He waited for a response but received none. “Cain?”
His question was answered by two missiles. They tore from the drone through open space, racing for CAIN. He instinctually reached for controls that weren’t there—not that it would’ve mattered. There was a brief flash and explosion before the ship was swallowed whole by the vacuum. Scattered and scarred remnants marked, a sad and insignificant end for CAIN.
Cole’s jaw fell, all words and emotions unable to escape him. He watched the Icarus launch its own missile, which detonated upon impact with the final drone.
The energy shield in front of Cole dissipated, and his Ocunet link with the Icarus server was reestablished. He jumped to his feet and stared out the viewport screen as though the real-time feed he’d been receiving were inaccurate. Only darkness and debris greeted his vision. He glanced down at Lin still sitting in his flight chair. Her expression was unreadable.
“How’d you take out that drone?” he asked her, struggling to remain calm. He stepped forward and laid a hand on her trembling shoulder. “You should’ve lost all connection with Cain after he...” His brow tightened, and he fought back a bout of rage.
Lin clasped Cole’s hand, and he immediately calmed. Text from her appeared in his display. I never lost contact with CAIN.
It was only then Cole remembered that Lin’s Rook had been damaged. He saw it sitting in her lap, dark and unresponsive. “How’s that possible?”
“What the—Cain?” Cole threw his attention toward the viewport screen, studying the drifting rubble for a sign of the AI. “How...?”
Oh. I guess an android can survive in open space. But for how long? “Where are you, buddy? We’ll swing by and pick you up.”
True to the CAIN’s word, a simple flashing dot appeared with some coordinates. Cole almost sat on Lin’s lapin his eagerness; Lin was only too happy to oblige him the flight chair. Once he took his place, Emmerich plopped down in the co-pilot’s chair.
“You know, Chrys,” Cole said to her as he checked his instruments, “you can probably learn a thing or two from Doc about flying this bird.”
“And you can learn a great deal about responsibility from a decorated officer,” she returned.
“I’m sure I could, but I’m not the responsible type.” He finished entering the coordinates into the ship’s system and engaged the engines. He grinned. “Besides, you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. Why waste your time when I’m as good a captain as they come.”
Emmerich gave a disgusted groan. “Just fly the ship, Musgrave.”
“Way ahead of you.” He turned his head back slightly while keeping his eyes forward. “You ready to knock the rust off your hands and test you loading arm skills, Mr. Richter?”
The popping of Rig’s thick knuckles preceded his answer. “No rust here.”
“Is that a yes? We’ve got a man overboard, and we need to throw out a life preserver.”
Rig grunted. “I’ll try not to crush your cyborg girlfriend.”
“That’s the spirit! We wouldn’t want to turn ol’ Nel into a circuit board. How else am I going to gloat to Chrys about how right my decision was?”
“Your gums keep slappin’, but I ain’t listenin’,” Rig said,
his distant voice coming up from the stairwell.
“ ‘I don’t get no respect,’ ” Cole said, knowing his quote would be lost on his remaining audience. He squinted and enhanced his view when the Icarus was within 500 yards of intercepting CAIN. Something looked amiss.
“That grunt’s right, you realize,” Emmerich said, crossing her arms over her chest. “You talk enough for five people. All of them annoying.”
“What’s with you today?” Cole asked. “Why the sudden interest in molding me into a proper officer. Haven’t I already proven myself to this crew? We don’t need another one of you stomping around, scowling, and barking commands.”
“Musgrave, if there’s one thing I learned from your mother regarding earning respect, it’s that you gain it through proper example—more than fancy maneuvers and quick-thinking. You want this crews’ admiration, then present yourself as a leader. Not a blabbering, sarcastic twit with a flair for dramatics.”
“Hey, I can’t help my blabbering.”
“Did nothing you learned in Starforce academy stay with you? You ascended the ranks to executive officer faster than anyone in history, yet you act as though honor and order are passé. How does it make you feel to be considered a joke amongst your peers?”
“Impaled?”
“Excuse me?”
“What?” Cole snapped. “Sorry, Chrys, but I’m a little busy saving my friend. If you’d taken a second to stop spewing your code of ethics, you’d understand I was talking about Cain.” He pointed angrily at the viewport screen.
All eyes faced the giant display, where an image of the android had been enlarged. Just as Cole had indicated, CAIN’s borrowed body had sustained significant damage. Aside from the lengthy piece of twisted shrapnel that had skewered the AI’s lower torso, most of the body had been charred, with one of the arms completely burned away.
“It would appear CAIN ejected too late,” Emmerich noted.
