"Navigation. This is sort of the helm or control room, particularly when traveling inside a solar system."
****
Outside in the hall, Hugh reached into his pack and came up with a strange metal device. It was a rod about twenty centimeters long with a small sphere on one end, and a handle at the other. The sphere had what appeared to be three limp tentacles dangling from it. "The rest of the day," Hugh said, "we'll spend learning about some new tools. Tomorrow, we begin work."
Over the next several days, work on Zellat 43 proceeded. Still, there was no information about Bob and no additional contact with Stanley.
Larry and Balaji spent a day installing a cylinder deep in the bowels of the bottom of the craft. They meticulously placed the cylinder horizontally into a cradle-like device, and then restored a latticework of fiber optic-like threads. Once completed, the threads began to glow with a pale blue light. The cylinder lifted off its cradle and floated up about seven centimeters to a point in the center of the latticework. Then, a beam of red light came from each end of the cylinder, projecting out left and right into lenses on the sides of devices that connected to a conduit in the floor. At this point, Hugh, who had been relaying instructions, told them to move quickly back to the exit. He emphasized that they were not to look back. The three began a crouched walk back along a narrow catwalk, dodging machines and conduits. Thirty centimeters below them and to their right two meters was a row of hundreds of glass spheres that, no doubt circled the bottom of the entire ship. Each sphere was about the size of a basketball. They were clear, but contained an odd filament. A hair-thin shaft supported, at the center of each sphere, what looked like a point-cut diamond, each appeared to have been at least sixty karats, if indeed they were diamonds.
When the group was half-way back toward the exit, the entire area began to vibrate. There came a deep, humming sound and a brilliant blue light arced through the area. Then, the diamonds in the spheres began to glow, increasing in luminosity every second.
"Hurry, get out!" Hugh bellowed. They could not run in the small space, but moved as quickly as they could, crouched over as they were. Balaji was the first to reach the short ladder that led up to the ship's outer corridor. He pulled hard and bounded through the hatch, Larry was right behind him, followed quickly by Hugh, who immediately pressed a panel on the wall that closed the hatch. It was just two centimeters from closing, when from inside the room below came a light so intense that, for a moment, Balaji and Larry thought they'd been blinded. As Larry and Balaji stood rubbing their eyes, a feeling like the sudden loss of equilibrium came over them. Hugh's eyes popped open and he shouted, "Buoyancy!"
Hugh's E-COM cracked to life with Mary's voice. "Hey, what have you guys done in there?"
Hugh replied, "We just installed what I was told was the last piece to the engine."
"You'd better come out here and see this."
After exchanging glances, the three made for the ramp. At its base, Mary stood looking up at them.
"What is the matter?" Balaji asked as they joined her on the ground.
"Just look." She nodded toward the ship. The landing gear was gone. The craft simply floated above the floor. Hugh looked at everyone and smiled. He extended his hand and each shook it. When Hugh stuck his hand toward Mary she ignored it and instead leapt into his arms and kissed him.
Larry looked at Balaji. "Looks like those two have buried the hatchet."
Balaji could only smile.
"Well," Hugh said, "there it is, proof that we have hope."
****
The four took their meals inside their little secured section of the base in what was once a meeting room or perhaps a dining area for the aliens. Its tables and seats somewhat resembled the cafeteria back on JILL. Obviously, though, the aliens' appreciation for aesthetics differed greatly from their own.
They sat at one of the low tables, Hugh facing the door with his weapon lying on the table near his right hand.
"What's next?" Larry asked.
"Next," Hugh said, "we must make several trips out into the facility to retrieve parts with which we will repair the life support system and navigation system."
"What's wrong with navigation? It looked pretty good to me," Larry said.
"What we saw was not navigation, just a simulation. I'm told we will be diverting the data stream from the chair to the navigation computer. And the nav computer's interface will have to be reconfigured in order to accommodate The Nine."
Mary chimed in with the topic that was burning in her mind since the distress call. "What about Bob?"
"I wish I had better news for you, but so far, nothing," Hugh said. "Additionally, nowhere that Pixie has looked shows any sign of human habitation."
"Hugh, if we divide up the base and all searched, we could cover more area faster," Balaji suggested.
"Out of the question. If we separate, Dr. Whitmore will just start picking us off one at a time. We must stay together. I will not argue this point. Most likely, Stan-lee has a hiding place where he can observe our comings and goings. By this time, he is undoubtedly aware that I am armed with a rifle. This knowledge is what has kept him away so far."
"I just wish there were something we could do," Mary lamented.
"We're doing all we can, Hon-nee."
"Honey, we are not doing anything to help Bob," Mary rebutted.
Hugh paused, and then nodded. "You're right. We are not, but Pixie is still looking.
"For now, we need to turn our attention to repairing the spacecraft. We cannot take a chance on separating."
"I agree," Larry stated. "With only one rifle, we're safer if we stay together."
Chapter 28
They all retired to their rooms for a period of rest. Hugh glanced out his window at Zellat 43, and then contacted The Nine. He asked that the spacecraft's door be closed every evening in order to prevent unwanted visitors. The Nine assured Hugh that no unauthorized personnel could enter the craft or even approach it without being seen. Hugh recalled that the larger ball in the ceiling was not just illuminating the cavern, but providing The Nine a panoramic view. Nevertheless, to appease Hugh, they closed the door to Zellat 43.
Hugh went to the monitor and touched Mary's picture.
"Hello, Hugh."
"I just wanted to say goodnight. See your face again before you went to sleep."
"Wait a minute," she said, and logged off. A moment later, she was at his door.
"Come in, Mary. We could have talked on the monitor."
"Too impersonal. Call up a sofa, I want to talk."
They sat down, and Mary took Hugh's hand. "You called me honey for the second time tonight."
"I'm sorry, did that upset you? I'll not do it—"
"No, no Hugh, that's not it."
"What?"
"Say it for me. Call me honey."
"What?"
"Please, Hugh."
"Hon-nee," he pronounced it fast.
"Call me darling."
"What's this about?"
"Darling," she insisted.
"Okay, okay—Darl-ing ... Dar-ling. There. Dar-ling."
"Hugh, why are you having so much trouble? You struggle with everyone's name unless you address them in the formal."
"Mary, I—no trouble with your name, I hope you noticed."
"As I recall, you worked on pronouncing my name for several days."
"Mary, I told you it was more complicated than you think. I fear if you knew the truth you'd run from me."
She paused a moment, looking deep into his eyes. She lifted his hand and placed it over her heart. "Then don't tell me," she said. "Whatever your big secret is, keep it. Nothing should ever be that complicated between us."
"One day you'll have to know, and—"
"Okay, fine. But today is not that day. Neither is tomorrow. We are alive right now Hugh, and I want to be alive, I want to be alive with you." She leaned into him and kissed him. They entwined into each other's arms. They were two smol
dering embers that fused together in a flash of heat and erupted into flame. A flame that became a wildfire, raging uncontrolled, until their fuel was consumed and they burned themselves out.
****
For three consecutive days, Hugh led his friends on repeated trips into the alien facility. Each time they returned with various parts and components of all sizes. Some were packaged and ready to be carried off while others required them to dismantle mechanisms and control panels to reach the parts they required.
By virtue of his ability to communicate with The Nine, Hugh supervised the work, and he also did all the heavy lifting. Within a week, life support was operational and nearly complete. Already, the air smelled much sweeter inside Zellat 43.
Larry was working in the spacecraft with Mary a couple of days later, calibrating a sonic wave inducer, when Hugh called them all together in a room within Zellat 43 they called 'the theater'. It was a larger room with twenty-four chairs arranged stadium style. Each chair was of course made to conform to the alien's physiology. Each resembled a dentist's chair, and were permanent fixtures, not the type that could be morphed into something else. The chairs faced the arched wall of the room that followed the shape of the ship’s hull. On this wall was a much larger version of the monitors in their rooms.
As they entered, Hugh stood near the monitor, looking intently at his E-COM. He glanced up and said, "Everybody sit down."
"What's the matter, Hugh?" Balaji asked.
"Look." He punched a few buttons on his E-COM and its screen appeared on the monitor many times larger. Hugh had received a text: "So it works—Dr. Whitmore"
They all sat staring at the monitor in silence. Then Larry asked, "Have you responded yet?"
"No."
"What have we to say to a murderer?" Balaji asked.
"Just ask him to give up," Mary suggested.
"Okay." Hugh shrugged and started to text, "Dr. W. Stop this. Come in and let's all go home."
The response was almost immediate.
"LOL. NO."
"Y?"
"U KNOW HOW TO KILL MY BUGS. U MUST DIE."
"What's he talking about?" Larry asked.
Hugh looked up. "He means the nanobots!"
"Dr. Whitmore is a Sword and Stars terrorist?" Mary's hushed question was indicative of her shock.
"The Servants of the Serpent," Hugh said.
"Ask him where Bob is," Balaji suggested. "Demand he let him go."
"Bal-ah-gee, we don't have a bargaining chip here, the man wants us all dead. We're dealing with a full-fledged fanatic."
"Why is he keeping Bob alive?" Larry asked.
"Bait," Hugh said. "No doubt he facilitated Bob making that call. It was proof of life. He wants us to know Bob is alive."
"Why contact us now?"
"We haven't reacted as he planned. He thought we'd go searching all over the facility looking for Bob as you suggested, Bal-ah-gee. We didn't, so he's trying to motivate us. I suspect his plan was to lie in wait and ambush us. He figured we'd divide in half. He knows that Mary and I would be one team and you two would be the other, and you guys are unarmed, so he determined killing you would be easy.
"Instead of wandering aimlessly around, we go out to specific locations and return as a single large group, led by me with this weapon. This has caused him to alter his plan, and he doesn't like feeling he is being out-smarted, particularly by me. He's no doubt studied our movements and noticed that our route varies every time. There is one common denominator, however. We always depart from, and return to, the Hotel Insularum from the same door. If he wishes to ambush us, he'll have to do it in proximity to our living quarters. Either as we return or as we depart."
"We're supposed to leave today to gather parts for the life support system," Larry observed.
Hugh took a moment, and then looked up at them. "And we will retrieve those parts. We have no choice. I don't think we have to worry much this trip. He'll wait to see if his messages worked, to see if we do divide and go scouring the place looking for Bob."
"It'll be the next trip out we have to worry, is that it?" Larry asked.
"That's the way I see it, but don't think that means we have a pass this trip. We must remain alert." Hugh paused, then added, "Anyone who wants to stay here is welcome to do so."
"You'll have to tie me up to make me to stay here," Mary said, looking hard at Hugh.
"Okay, no sense waiting. Retrieve your empty backpacks and let's go."
****
They all stood waiting for The Nine to open the door into the greater part of the facility. Hugh's weapon was at the ready. "Everyone stay about two meters apart. Don't bunch up, but don't wander off, either. If we should come under fire, you must move out of the kill zone. In all probability the attack will come from in front of us, so run to the rear, back from where we came. Keep running, and don't stop until you're back here." He looked at each of them, lastly at Mary. "Let's go."
The door opened and they cautiously entered the much wider corridor beyond. Their progress was slow, as silent as possible, and they were all hyper-alert. Not two meters beyond the door, the main passage was adjoined by the smaller one which intersected from the right. They had noted this corridor when they first explored the facility. This was the dark corridor that descended twice, then continued to the east, entering into the stone wall behind the facility. "Hugh, darling," Mary said, "We've never taken that passage."
"I guess there's nothing down there we need," Hugh responded.
One by one, they arrived at the designated locations. At each, it was necessary to open, remove, or disassemble things to retrieve the parts they needed. Hugh relayed instructions and stood guard.
Twelve hours later, they had completed their tasks and were back at the Hotel Insularum. As the door closed behind them, they all let out a collective sigh of relief.
"That was the worst trip yet," Mary stated.
"I can at last breathe again," Balaji said.
"I thought that one would never end." Larry sat down hard and rubbed his face.
Hugh looked at them all for a bit, and then said, "You know, nothing is different from the last time we went out—except those text messages. Now you're all nervous as cats. I wonder if Dr. Whitmore knows anything about psychological warfare."
"What do you mean?" Balaji asked.
"He has successfully terrorized us from wherever it is he's hiding. He took no risk at all, but you are all nervous wrecks. A little fear is a good thing. Too much, though, and you can overcompensate. I tell you what. It's been a long hard day. Let's clean up, have some food, then sleep. We'll start on the ship later."
"A marvelous idea," Larry agreed, and headed for his room, as did the others. But Hugh went to the front door. It opened about twenty centimeters, and he stood there with his weapon, looking out.
****
A short five hours later Hugh called a gathering in the dining room for breakfast where he explained that he'd received detailed instructions from The Nine regarding the work to be performed on the navigation system and the alterations to the nav computer. The work would be delicate and he wanted everyone to watch a simulation prepared for them by The Nine.
"Hugh," Larry asked, "did you sleep at all last night?"
"Lar-ee, I am fully rested, same as you. Let's all go to my room and look at the simulation."
As Hugh and Balaji left the dining area, Larry quickly took Mary aside. "Do you know if he slept last night?"
Feigning shock Mary said, "Now, how would I know that?"
"I am sorry to be indelicate Mary, but I don't think he's resting. He endangers not only himself, but all of us. Please keep an eye on him for us, will you?"
"Okay."
"And Mary, if you have any influence at all—"
"Okay, Larry. I'll make him sleep." She smiled and walked away.
****
The simulation was more than informative. It imprinted itself into their minds. Balaji found he could recall it in full or i
n part at any time.
Balaji helped carry some of the parts to the ship, and for the first time noted his bad back, that had hurt him for years, never bothered him even once. They began work immediately.
Much of what was done was extremely detailed. Great precision was required. Larry's expertise was invaluable despite the fact that what he was working with was not what he called electronics. He found himself working with clear tubes filled with gels and liquids, motherboards looking as if they had been randomly crisscrossed with gold and silver spider webs. These systems could not have been more alien to him. He connected an orb to a body of filaments and it began to throb like a heart.
Larry had commented to Hugh, "You don't need an electrician, you need a surgeon!"
Balaji marveled at the advanced tools. There was a wand that emitted a green light when held in proximity to certain components. A tool that resembled an adjustable spanner that, when activated, produced a red laser between its jaws. An oval device, that, when worn atop the hand, turned the tips of the thumb and all the fingers blue. When a component needed adjustment or calibration, all that was required was to touch the item. There was another tool that looked very much like a stethoscope but could detect, isolate, and identify anomalies in complete systems. And there were many more odd implements that the group just seemed to know how, when, and where to use.
Work continued for sixteen hours at a fevered pace; they stopped only to eat.
At last, Hugh announced they had finished with the navigation system. Next, they would cannibalize parts from within the ship in order to construct a cradle for The Nine to be strapped into for the ride to their home planet.
Before starting the new project Hugh glanced around at the faces of the group, and decided they needed some sleep before continuing their work; each returned to their own quarters in the Hotel Insularum.
Hugh received a call from Mary, as he was preparing for his shower, removing his shirt. "Hello, dar-ling."
"Umm, I've forgotten why I called," she said, with a mischievous smile upon her lips and a glimmer in her eye. "Can I come over?"
"Let me shower, will ya?" he responded, laughing and headed toward the shower. Hugh completed his shower and upon returning to the living area discovered, standing in his room, the two-armed device topped with conical arrays that The Nine caused to morph up out of the floor. Without hesitation, Hugh stepped into it, adjusted the two cones at the top toward his temples, and stood very still.
Dark Moon Rising Page 21
