The Missions

by Donna McIntosh

  “He will; and you’ll obey him as you would me,”

  Yana said.

  “Very well.”

  Sean felt and heard nothing as the facility appeared to be slowly removing itself from their view. In moments the screen showed only darkness dotted with stars.

  “Are you all right?” Yana asked and reached over to clasp Sean’s arm.

  “I… uh… Jesus!” Sean sputtered.

  “I remember well my first intergalactic ride. It’s frightening.”

  “Perhaps a sedative?” Winston intoned.

  “No! I’m fine.” Sean shook his head a bit to settle his nerves. He couldn’t help the tremble.

  “You’ll be all right in a few minutes. Just try and concentrate on the inside of the vehicle. It will help with the vertigo,” Yana said.

  “I… I’ve never had vertigo before,” Sean apologized.

  “You’ve never been this high up before.”

  “Shall I prepare sleeping quarters for our guest?”

  Winston offered.

  “Winston, I would prefer silence from you until further notice,” Yana said.

  The voice remained silent.

  “What…who is…or was…Winston?” Sean gazed around him and the small compartment they were in. He remembered it as being large when they entered but now it seemed much smaller.

  “Winston was an artificial intelligence scientist from the Orion belt. He developed the prototype for this vehicle three hundred years ago,” Yana explained.

  “Three hundred years ago?” Sean asked in awe.

  “Yes. And there has been no need for any changes since that time.”

  “But… three hundred years… there must have been a need for updated instrumentation, technology?”

  “No. Winston updates himself constantly.”

  “What exactly does he do?” Sean asked.

  “Information about a particular mission is given to him and he carries his part out without any instruction needed.”

  “You mean he’s programmed to take us where we need to go?”

  “Oh, it’s much more than that, Sean. He has the ability to replicate anything that might be needed in order to carry out a mission. For instance, if we were going to a water world, he would have whatever underwater equipment necessary to achieve our task—from tools, to weapons, to clothing, to the proper medical equipment one might need for decompression, to any and all possibilities any particular world or situation might call for.”

  “We’re going to a water world?” Sean asked.

  “No. I just used that as an example. Winston has the capability to create any possible item that we might need; plus many more features too numerable to mention. The best of which is, he works on voice command and can hear a command from the ones he is programmed to serve from great distances.”

  “That all sounds great but what’s going to happen when these Omegans see us coming? Do they have the ability to stop us?”

  “They most certainly do—if they could see us.”

  “They can’t see us? Winston is invisible?”

  “Winston has an invisibility screen that we will be using when we get closer to the Omega system.”

  “Why not use it all the time?” Sean asked.

  “It takes up a great deal of power to generate and it is safer if other vehicles can see us. Some areas we will be traveling through are quite highly populated with lots of traffic. There is no need to risk a collision,” Yana explained.

  “Traffic… in outer space!” Sean shook his head.

  “Yes, there is that. Fortunately, that’s Winston’s problem and not ours. He will select a route that is the safest and most direct.”

  “So we have nothing to do but sit here and wait until we reach our destination?” Sean gazed out at the stars streaming by.

  “That’s about it—that and prepare ourselves for the ordeal.”

  “You think it’s going to be pretty difficult?” Sean asked; nervous now that they were actually on their way.

  “It’s going to be next to impossible. You may as well know, Sean, that we might not be able to achieve our goal. It’s not always possible.”

  “But we have to! All those people—all those worlds!” Sean was aghast at the thought that they might not be able to succeed on his first mission.

  “If it’s possible; we will do it,” Yana added. “If not, then the Elders will have to come up with another plan. I imagine they are working on a backup plan right now.”

  “They wouldn’t send you out on a mission they didn’t think you could accomplish; would they?” Sean focused his full attention back on Yana again.

  “Not purposely, no. But there are many variables here, Sean.”

  “By that, you mean the Krill? How long do you think it will take us to reach the Omega system?”

  “Four days and yes, I mean the Krill,” Yana answered. “We must get in and get the job done before they arrive. With them on the scene, it’s doubtful we can accomplish our goal.”

  “You have obviously dealt with the Krill before,”

  Sean commented noting Yana’s apprehension.

  “I have, Sean, and I’m one of the very few who have lived to tell about it. They are not in the habit of leaving witnesses behind.” Yana swallowed hard and went on. “In the meantime, let me show you around the ship so you can see how things operate.”

  “I thought I just asked Winston for whatever I need?” Sean asked with wonder.

  “You do, but let me show you what he’s actually capable of.” He stood up, Sean moving beside him.

  “Winston, a spring day in the park please.”

  A slight shimmer followed and they were standing on a sidewalk bordered with trees, filled with the soft green of new, budding leaves. A gentle breeze rustled in the air and a few birds skittered overhead.

  “Oh, my God! What happened?” Sean reached out a hand to steady himself.

  “Would you prefer snow?” Yana smiled. “Snow, Winston. A gentle one, like in a Thomas Kinkade painting.”

  Another shimmer and they were on a sidewalk covered with a gently falling snow. A Victorian house with all the gingerbread trim and a small stream passing nearby came into view.

  Sean caught a snowflake on his tongue and felt its coldness. “How is this possible?” he gasped.

  “Winston can generate any image that you can conjure up in your head or that he has stored in his data banks.”

  “It didn’t seem like an image at all; it seemed so real!”

  “That’s just it, Sean. It was real. You could have gone into that house or taken a dip in that stream.”

  “But that’s impossible! We’re on a ship—a ship out in space!”

  “Yes, we are; none-the-less, the images that Winston creates are real. Replicants, true enough, but real just the same. We could have him create a banquet hall filled with people dining and dancing or beautiful naked men and women to cater to your every pleasure.”

  “Ooohhhh.” Possibilities began to generate in Sean’s mind.

  “If you were wounded on a mission, or caught some disease, you could create a doctor to tend to you; even operate on you if necessary.”

  “So Winston has a lot more to do than just taxi us around?”

  “He does indeed. The moment we came on board and he was informed that you were part of this mission, we both became his responsibility. It is up to him to keep us safe, warn us of any danger, retrieve us should we become unconscious and secure our release should we become captive.”

  “He can do all those things?”

  “He can and more but he does have his limits.

  Otherwise he could just teleport the weapon to a neutral planet where it could be destroyed. Penetration of an alien shield is very difficult. Transporting a few humans is one thing, transporting a fully shielded weapon is entirely another.”

  The next four days were spent familiarizing Sean with Winston and studying maps of the Omega system and the home world of Omega as w
ell. They located the complex where the device was housed and began working out different plans of access; most of which Winston disapproved.

  The fourth morning they awoke in the small cabin in the woods Winston had created for them, a replica of Sean’s cabin out in the California woods. Sean prepared breakfast as Yana sat at the table and scanned the maps.

  “Maybe we should just use the access point that Winston suggested,” Sean said as he placed a large platter of bacon, eggs and toast in front of Yana and sat down with another plate for himself, and sipped his orange juice.

  “He has suggested three different possibilities— each with an equal percentage of possible success. I’m trying to decide which one to use or if I should find another one.” Yana sipped his coffee.

  “Invisibility shield will be raised in thirty minutes.”

  Winston’s voice intruded on their breakfast.

  “Eat up. Once the shield is up, this will all disappear.” Yana gestured around the small kitchen table and the crackling fireplace beside it.

  They finished their breakfast and Sean started to clear the table.

  “You don’t need to do that.” Yana smiled at him.

  “Winston?”

  The cabin disappeared and they were once again in the control room of the ship. The front view screen showed they were entering a system with several planets on their orbital paths directly in front of them.

  “We’re invisible now?” Sean asked nervously.

  “We are,” Yana said as they took their seats.

  “You have made a decision?”

  “Not yet. I will when the time comes. Each access point has its advantages and disadvantages. The path to the device is not an easy one. We’ll let Winston take us in as close as he can and then the rest of it will be up to us.”

  “Can’t he just… beam us down where we need to be?” Sean asked.

  “He could if we didn’t care about any residual traces of the beam being detected.”

  “Oh. I hadn’t thought of that,” Sean said.

  “He’ll get close enough to a secluded area where he can lower the ramp for us to exit. Even that will cause a blip in their sensors and cause suspicion. We will have to exit fast so he can move the ship to a secure location to avoid their sensor sweep.”

  When they were in close proximity to the home world, they donned uniforms of the Omegan Empire Royal Guard that Winston had prepared..Sean strapped a phaser weapon to his belts and covered his head with a black helmet, the top half of his face down to his nose, hidden from view once he secured the strap under the chin. Sean hoped they looked exactly like a thousand other members of the Royal Guard who were stationed at the facility.

  Sean shivered in anticipation as they waited by the doorway while Winston searched and found the perfect spot to set them down—a wooded area close to the complex Yana seemed perfectly calm. Sean fingered his weapon, grateful he’d had time to learn how to use it. He felt a little naked without his Glock. He wished he could carry both weapons but it was crucial that, if they were caught, there would be nothing to identify them with Earth.

  “Sean, you must promise to immediately follow any order I give you. I may not have time to explain everything, but I know what I’m doing,” Yana whispered as they walked across the plaza. “And take your hand off your weapon. You look like you’re ready for a fight. Do you see any of the other guards with their hands on their weapons?”

  “You got it,” Sean said and jerked his hand away as he glanced around the spaceport at the other guards standing around or passing through. Yana had it right.

  None of them had their hands on their weapons.

  Yana took out the small security card Winston had made for him and slid it into the slot in the doorway of the facility. The small light turned green and they proceeded through into a large room where several workers were sitting in front of screens, going about their business and paid the two of them no mind.

  “This way,” Yana said and Sean followed him silently.

  They passed through the room and out into another hallway lined with a series of doors, all closed and locked.

  They passed two guards heading in the opposite direction and all nodded but said nothing.

  “How much further?” Sean whispered.

  “Right at the next corridor and the elevator should be about halfway down the hallway.”

  Yana pressed the button and the doors opened. They stepped inside, removed their guard uniforms, stuffed them in the overhead hatchway, and straightened out the lab coats they had been wearing underneath. Name badges with photos of each dangled from their belts and Yana inserted the Top-Security card into the slot and punched the button marked LAB.

  They silently entered the room and none of the other workers paid them any attention. Yana spotted a clipboard lying nearby and picked it up. The two of them walked towards the large device in the center of the room that was surrounded by banks of computer stations.

  “This is it?” Sean whispered looking at the massive unit that filled most of the huge room up through the ceiling and down through the floor extending to other levels.

  “Yeah, looks like it. See if you can spot any slots where these chips might fit in.” They walked around the area and looked the device over.

  “Several possibilities,” Yana said as they came back together. “These larger access points could be for maintenance. It’s doubtful they’re used for information chips. We need to find a place the exact size.”

  “So how are we going to do this without being seen?” Sean asked; worried now that they were actually in front of the destructive machine and not sure what their next move should be.

  Before Yana could answer, a loud klaxon blared and every head came up from their work station. Red lights flashed and everyone got up and left the room. Yana and Sean followed the others out and stood in an alcove, waiting to see what set the alarm off.

  “You think we’ve been spotted?” Sean whispered.

  “Can’t tell. We’ll have to wait and see.”

  A voice came over the loud speaker and Yana cursed.

  “Do you know what they’re saying?” Sean whispered.

  “They’ve spotted a Krill ship. The place has been put on red alert.”

  “Shit!” Sean mumbled quietly and wiped the perspiration from his upper lip with the back of his hand.

  The group of lab workers all lined up and marched out with Yana and Sean following behind. Once in the outer area, they all scattered off in different directions.

  Sean and Yana were left to themselves.

  “What now?” Sean asked as they ducked into a small storage room.

  “We wait until everyone has cleared the corridor and then go back inside,” Yana said.

  “You think your pass card will work again?” Sean asked.

  “We better hope it does,” Yana said with dread. “I don’t want to be here when this place is swarming with Krill.”

  “Can they get in that easily?” Sean asked, catching the fear in Yana’s voice.

  “Nothing stops the Krill, Sean. Nothing!” Yana said and stuck his head out the door, peering into the hallway to find it empty. “Let’s go.”

  They scurried down the hall and Yana inserted his pass card into the slot. The light blinked red. He took the card out, flipped it over and inserted it again. This time the light flickered green and the door clicked open.

  They went straight to the device.

  “Keep looking for a slot the exact size as the discs.”

  Yana went from computer station to station and read what information he could find.

  “What do you think these are for?” Sean asked, lifting up a long handled tool of some kind that had a small gripper at the far end.

  “I have no idea,” Yana answered and continued reading while Sean wandered around studying the device.

  An explosion blasted from somewhere outside and the building shook. The loud-speakers blared something Sean couldn’t understand and he lo
oked to Yana.

  Yana glanced up from the computer bank. “The Krill. They’ll be inside shortly.” He gave a second look to the tool Sean held. “Let me see that a minute.”

  Sean handed it to him, rocked off balance by another explosion; this time closer.

  Yana gave him a level look. “Don’t worry. They won’t destroy this building. Not with the device still in it.”

  The thought gave Sean a little relief and he watched when Yana took one of the small chips out of the pouch and placed it in the gripper at the end of the pole.

  He lifted it to the device. “The openings must be at the top. That’s what this thing is for. Did you see any up that high?”

  Sean walked around until he spotted an opening.

  “Over here!”

  Yana joined him and Sean pointed to the small slot almost at ceiling level. Yana maneuvered the tool until he had it next to the opening and released the gripper and the chip dropped inside.

  “It worked!” Sean said.

  More and more explosions came through loudly above the blaring klaxon.

  “Yeah. See if there are any other places where these things might fit in. We’ve got nine more.” He lowered the tool and inserted another chip. “I want to make sure there isn’t another one.”

  Sean walked all the way around again and found no other openings that exact size and shape. “No, I think that’s it.”

  Yana inserted another one and then another. The next explosion made the overhead lights blink. One after another he inserted the chips as Sean paced the room waiting.

  “Last one!” Yana announced.

  The outer doors to the lab were being blasted away.

  Yana dropped the chip on the floor and grabbed for it frantically. A loud pounding started on the door outside the lab. Sean wished he could help, but he’d only be in the way.

  Yana did a quick assessment of their location. He needed to get Sean to safety.

  “The cabinet! Sean, get inside! Now!” He fumbled with the chip until he managed to get the last one inserted.

  Yana dashed across the room to the storage cabinets and shoved Sean inside one while he climbed into the one next to it. He barely got the door closed when the door to the lab burst open and the Krill swarmed in.