by TS Paul
“Hey! Can we get some help here?” Tina’s voice called out over the radios.
Ron and Tina had rolled some large rocks in front of the doors, but the doors were still trying to close automatically.
Helping Maxim to stand, the others ran over and entered the small room that was lit with a white light.
“Are you sure we should go in here?” Ron stood outside, looking in.
“Come on Ron, it’s our only chance to get out of here.” Tina reached out and grabbed his arm and yanked him in.
The doors, crushing the rocks blocking the exit, closed behind them.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“You realize there could be more of those robots or killer aliens when this thing stops, right?” Ron nervously looked around at his friends.
“We can take em.” Nestor still brandished the metal bar he picked up.
“Did anyone but me notice this elevator is going down and not up?” Yana, her hands moving over the walls, looked for a control panel.
Maxim kicked the door. “This must be some sort of base. It can’t be Kurtherians then, they don’t build bases.” He looked over, “Do they, Tina?”
“What am I, the alien expert? I told you, I’ve heard TOM like once when I was with Marcus and he wasn’t talking to me at the time. From what mom told me about the group in China they didn’t build a base. They just let the human slaves do it for them.”
Without warning, the elevator stopped, and the doors reopened.
Maxim stepped out first. The landing room was dark until his foot touched the floor. Lights came up revealing a rounded hallway leading off in two directions. Small lights sparkled here and there along the walls. “Come on, I think it’s safe.”
The other four members of the team joined Maxim as the doors to the elevator closed. There was a small blinking light on the wall next to where the door should be. Nestor poked at the light with his finger, and the door reopened.
“Hey, at least we can get back in the elevator!”
“Yeah, but we can’t make it go up. We should keep searching.” Maxim gave his cousin a nudge. “Good work finding the controls, though.”
Ron fingered the textured walls and stared at the way it was constructed. “Why does this look like one of the tubes on Star Journey? Have you ever seen that show?”
“No TV in Russia, remember? What is this Star Journey?” Nestor stepped over next to him.
“It was about… It’s hard to explain without showing you. We should go to one of the conventions sometime. You would make a good Chekov.”
Nestor gave Ron a funny look. “This show is about playwrights? Why? I thought you said it was in space?”
“No, no not the playwright. This guy flew the ship and talked about wessels all the time.”
“What is a wessel? It sounds like some sort of food. What were we talking about?’
Ron laughed. “I’m not sure anymore. Why do you think these are round?” He pointed at the tunnels.
“It could be the construction technique. I suppose we could ask that over there.” Nestor pointed to a robot that exited a door on the right and was gliding toward them at a fast pace.
“Maxim! Robot!”
Maxim froze for just a moment when he saw the robot gliding his way. He felt a hand on his arm and almost yanked it away until he realized it was Tina.
“Yana says we should hide. Let’s find an open door.” She dragged him over to the wall, and they started touching lights.
—
“Ugh! Where are we?” Bobcat opened his eyes with a loud groan.
“Hi, sleepyhead. Nice of you to join us.” William held out his hand.
“What happened? Did we find the kids?” Bobcat started to look around.
“We were grabbed by some sort of tractor beam or field, at least according to brainiac over there.” William pointed to Marcus standing in front of a lander.
“The kids were here at some point, but are gone now. Where here is… is the question of the hour. Look up.” William pointed with a raised thumb.
Seeing the glowing green light above them, Bobcat looked toward Marcus and saw all the scrap around them. “What…”
William shook his head. “No idea. Marcus didn’t say. Let me show you something.”
The LRV known as Rota-Ree sat amidst the wreckage around them. At first glance, it looked beat up but the same. “Under here.” William bent down to peer under it.
“They have wired in more LRV batteries along with some I don’t recognize. They are even charging in this light. If it could get topside, this thing might make it back to base.”
“So the kids are here then, somewhere… What is all this junk?” Bobcat stared at the lander in front of them.
“That is an LK Soviet Lunar lander.” Marcus finally said.
“I thought the Soviets never made it to the moon?” Bobcat asked.
“They didn’t. Or at least we at NASA never found proof they did. Some of this other stuff is probes and drones. That is Luna 15. It should be here. The rest?” Marcus shook his head.
“Can we use any of it to get out?”
“Possibly. The children got out somehow. There are drag marks over there as well as a robot of some sort. The damage looks fresh.” Marcus walked over to the large, black, mechanical being. He looked over the device and attempted to pry open an access plate.
“Marcus watch out! That thing just moved!” William dropped the probe he was holding and charged over to his friend.
Marcus turned toward William, “What did you say?” He stumbled back falling as the robot suddenly came to life. It began crawling toward the central column’s wall.
William helped Marcus stand up and pulled out his ever-present machete.
Marcus grabbed his arm. “Don’t. It might lead us to the children.”
All three of them watched as the big black robot slowly dragged itself toward the column that dominated the center of the deep crater. The thing must have sent a signal because there was a flash of light and a set of doors opened in the smooth rock wall.
“Do you think that is where the kids went?” Bobcat asked Marcus. All he could think about was John Grimes beating the living crap out of him if he didn’t find them.
“It looks like a good place to continue looking.” He stepped over the robot entering the small room.
“What about that?” Bobcat pointed at the robot.
William slammed a very large rock onto its head crushing it. “What about it?”
“Why? It may have led us to the children.” Marcus glared at William.
“Or it could have signaled other robots to attack us. It’s better off dead.” William stepped into the white room just as the doors closed behind him.
—
A door opened, and all five of the students ran inside heedless of what might be there.
“Did it see us?” Tina whispered to Ron.
“I don’t think so. I have no idea…” His last words slowly trickled from his mouth as he took in the room.
The lights in the room came on as they entered revealing a freak show of robots and technology. Robotic eyes looked out at them from all over the room. A faint buzzing sound permeated the room suddenly.
Maxim and Nestor squinted as the ultrasonic sound created a sharp pain in their heads. Their enhanced hearing was a liability here.
“Maxim! What’s wrong?” Maxim closed his eyes and grabbed the outside of his helmet.
Tina grabbed his arm and pulled him down to her level. “Does your head hurt? Is it the sound?” He nodded his head.
“The helmets only enhance your hearing. Shut them down, and it should block out the sound.” She pointed to the controls on her own helmet.
Maxim gave a nod and stuck his tongue out at her, triggering the volume controls. As the sound faded, he opened his eyes and sighed in relief. “What was that?”
“What? Did you say something?” Tina shook her head at him and motioned.
Ron stepped in front of his friend and
motioned to him. They touched helmets, and Ron could make himself heard. “There is a speaker mode on the helmets. The toggle for it is in the direction of your left ear. It won’t help your ears, but we will be able to hear you.”
Both boys looked funny while they tried to turn on the speakers but were finally able to be heard. “Can you hear us now?” Everyone signaled that they could hear them.
“Ron, can you figure out what is making the noise?” Yana pointed at the dozens of robot heads that were now watching them.
“This tech is beyond me. It would take someone like Marcus to figure it out, but I can try.” He approached the work table and began to examine one of the heads.
“Tina, get the boys to help you block the door we came in.” Yana pointed to another entrance. “I think we can use that to get out.”
The door in question was surrounded by robot bodies and other parts. Not as strong as the Weres, Yana dragged and pushed to move the large items. Across the room, Maxim and Nestor piled machinery and strange looking furniture in front of the door.
“Where do you need me Yana?” Tina started helping Yana move things.
“Can you help Ron? I’m praying the sound bothering the boys isn’t a cry for help from these things.”
“Sure. Yana don’t hurt yourself with this. Maxim will be done in a moment.” Tina ran to help Ron.
The controls for the door weren’t the same as those outside. These seemed like an older design. There were four buttons in a circle, surrounded by lights at each position. Assuming that universally up was up, she pressed the button.
A loud noise sounded, and the door opened. Yana carefully looked through the door. There wasn’t a floor! She whirled to tell her friends and came face-to-face with Maxim.
“Can we get out that way?” Maxim boomed with his speaker.
Yana held up her hands in a stop motion. She then pointed at the floor waving them in a ‘no-go’ signaling motion.
“No floor?” At her nod, he stepped forward and carefully looked up, then down.
“A disposal chute maybe? There might be a way onto other floors.” Gripping the side of the door he leaned out again looking for an interior door control or something.
“We’re going to need a long rope or cable.”
“Did you find something?” She grabbed his arm and placed her helmet next to his and repeated the question.
“Sort of. There are places on the wall to put feet or hands, but they are short.” Maxim held out his hands in a half foot distance.
“I think we can climb down, but we need to secure to something in case we fall. Not sure how to operate the doors from the inside. Maybe Ron knows how we can find a rope.”
“Maxim! I need you!” Nestor’s voice boomed out of his speaker as the outer door slid open revealing dozens of large black robots!
Maxim jerked his head up and ran for the door. He grabbed a loose Robot arm from a stack of them as he went past.
“They come!” Nestor shouted and pointed at the now open door.
“Ron, have you found out how to stop the hum?” Yana approached the main entrance with the intent of providing back-up to the others. She now had a robot arm in each hand.
“Neither of us can find anything. It’s coming from the heads as far as we can tell.” He looked at Tina, and she could only shake her head.
“Then destroy them! We need Maxim and Nestor at their best. Look for rope or wire, something to provide support. We may have to climb out of here.” Swinging one of the arms as a club she began pounding on any set of eyes she could find.
Maxim felt the buzzing in his head lessen. He paused from the battle line and carefully turned the volume up on his helmet again.
“…Yana there are only a couple left. Why did you need rope? All this place has is robot parts!”
Maxim smiled, he could hear again! His voice broke through the mesh of other voices, and he took control once more. “Ron. There is a ladder in the disposal tube. It goes down. We need a way to traverse the tube without dying. The steps are very narrow.”
He picked up the now heavily damaged arm and returned to bashing the robots trying to get in. The numbers outside were increasing.
Ron replied, “Maxim, we can use the magnets in our boots to hold onto the wall. I’m going to try it now with Yana holding on to me.”
Maxim swung at one of the undamaged robots and almost took its head off with a loud clang! “Be careful tovarich, you are too good a friend to lose. Just be very careful Ron, and listen to Yana.”
Moving around to Nestor’s side, Maxim tapped his cousin on the arm and almost lost his own head. Nestor’s club came around in a robot-smashing-swing that would have killed someone with lesser reflexes. Maxim ducked and held up his hands.
“Sorry. I thought you were one of them!” He turned and bashed another robot.
Maxim tapped him again, this time tapping his helmet. Quickly touching helmets, he filled his cousin in on what had happened. Nestor dropped out to fix his communications while Maxim took his place.
“Can you hear me now?” Nestor looked back at his cousin.
“Yes, Nestor I can hear you. Come, let us teach these robots not to mess with the Etheric Academy’s Alpha Team!” The two resumed their own private war against the machines.
—
“Yana, if you and Tina can hold me I’ll try grabbing on with my boots. If the tube isn’t magnetic, I might fall so hold me tight.” Ron stepped out into the tube onto the very narrow ledge. Yana grasped his arm and shoulder while Tina held onto Yana. Both had engaged their boots and were anchored to the floor.
Using his left hand, he gripped the wall and put a foot into the small ladder hole. His boots gripped the wall just like the floor. Success! “It worked. I’m going to go down and see if I can get in using the door controls. You can let go of me now.”
Ron carefully worked his way down a level to the next door. The outside lock was similar to the one on the above door. He began to try different combinations of lights and directions to ‘pick’ the lock.
—
“Maxim, we are losing the door!” Nestor said in a strained voice. More and more robots were flooding in. The robots in the rear were pushing harder and harder in the doorway. The two could hardly keep up under the weight of the onslaught.
“Yana! We are losing! Is there a way out or do we fight to the death here?” He gave another mighty swing and crushed a head.
“Ron, we have to go. Have you gotten it yet?” Tina peered over the edge. She could see Ron hanging onto a similar ledge trying to get in.
“I’ve almost got it. There!” The door opened an inch and froze. “Dang it! Give me a minute. I can do this.” Ron called back.
Tina looked behind her before looking back at Ron, “We don’t have a minute. Come on Ron, I know you can do it.”
Buoyed by the fact his friends trusted him, he quickly reentered the light code and the door opened. “Woohoo! I got it. Tell everyone to come down.”
