The Sixth Extinction

by Bob Blink

  They drove silently as they passed the Cloning Clinic, and then continued to the southern end of the caverns, following the road as it curved through ninety degrees to head west. Two miles further on, they came to the tunnel where they had brought Raobot the night they had taken him. Ray stopped the car.

  "Are you certain you can get this stuff the rest of the way alone?" Ray asked.

  "I pulled it through far worse conditions through the mountains," Raobot replied. "This should be easy. You had best hurry. You can't know when they will start looking for this car."

  Raobot watched as the vehicle drove away. Ray was taking the western route around the ring, staying well away from the Clinic and Security buildings they had passed a bit earlier. The distance was about the same, and any activity could be expected to be less. The Cyborg scanned his internal status, and noted that his power reserves were getting very low. He would have to point out his status to Sam as soon as he arrived, or his system would shut down. That would be effective death for him, even though the body could be reused. It would have made no sense to inform Ray. He would have felt obligated to stay and help, which would have been a wasted effort and might put his friend Cindy at risk.

  Taking hold of the sled harness, he gave a strong pull and started down the path that would take him to the bunker area. He hoped the sled would retain its lift capability until he arrived. He did not know how long it would run on a normal charge, and even if he had, there was no way of telling how the long years had affected it.

  "It's Raobot!" Jessica said excitedly, shouting back toward the others, when he signaled his presence and she checked carefully to see who it was. "Where's Ray?"

  The Cyborg explained briefly what had happened as the others showed up to greet him.

  "So they know about Ray?" Greg asked.

  "Maybe not yet, but soon enough. They will also know that someone went through the airlocks. The Controller spotted the alarm, so they will check the logs and realize that someone was out for more than a day. It will be simple enough to verify the special suits were not used, so they will know it was me. They won't know where I went, however."

  "Can they follow your tracks?" Greg asked concerned.

  "It would take weeks of scouting," Raobot reassured them. "They are not equipped for such an effort. The ice is frozen and leaves little sign in most places. I would not be concerned about that, but they will wonder what could have been the reason for going out there."

  "Let us help you unload," Jessica said, looking at the surprising array of items Raobot had brought.

  "Sam, I need your help," the Cyborg said. "My energy reserves are rapidly depleting. I believe the effort and the adverse cold drew more than anticipated. Can you set up a charge station for me?"

  "What is the current level?" Sam asked.

  Raobot told him.

  "Crap!" Sam said, and immediately turned away and hurried back into the electronics area to find what he needed.

  "Perhaps you should wait until you have been recharged," Jessica warned.

  "I am thinking that is a good idea," Raobot agreed. "It may be the energy cells in these bodies have not survived the long years as well as anticipated. The capacity seems also to be very non-linear. I sense the indicated drop being greater as the energy level reaches depletion. The gear will wait. Some is heavy, and the large unit is fragile so be careful. I think Sam will be very interested in it."

  Raobot followed the others inside to where Sam was hurriedly setting up his makeshift charge unit.

  "Here," he said. "Sit here and let me plug this in."

  Once the Cyborg was in place he slid open the monitor panel, and plugged the connect in.

  "Five percent!" Sam said worriedly. "That is cutting it a bit fine."

  "I was getting worried," Raobot admitted.

  "How long will it take to get him back to normal?" Jessica asked.

  Sam shrugged. "We don't have a lot of information on these units. Let's give it an hour and see where the charge level has gone. Maybe we can extrapolate from there."

  "What did you find out there?" Jessica asked. "You're the only person who has been outside in hundreds of years."

  "Very depressing sight," Raobot admitted. He described what he had seen as he walked through the remains of the once great forest. "Nothing lives. No plants, no animals. The snow buries the highest trees in some places, although it is hard packed ice now, not snow. White is the dominant color, other than the sky. Whatever is poisoning the atmosphere has given it brilliant colors up high. And, of course, it is cold."

  "What about the storage area?" Greg asked. "Did you find what we hoped for?"

  Raobot nodded. "They left much for the rebuilding." He described the vast storehouse, and how they had identified experts in certain fields who could be extracted from the Sim to help with the equipment. He also explained his theory about the Cyborgs and the Memory Mappers.

  "So you think the Mappers can make a kernel from one of the Cyborgs to be placed in a cloned body once it is available?" Sam asked.

  "It would be an expedient way to get the initial work done under adverse conditions, and retain the knowledge and experience of those who spent the first months on the surface," Raobot mused. "You can check my theory. I brought one of the Mappers back with me. That's the large crate that Jessica pointed to earlier. It has a complete operator's manual with it."

  Sam's eyes lit up.

  "We have one of the units? We don't need one of Walker's to be able to map ourselves and get reinstalled in the Sim?"

  "I am hoping that is the case," Raobot agreed. "I was thinking that might be possible when I chose to carry one back here."

  "Walker still controls the cloning gear," Greg reminded them.

  "One step at a time," Jessica countered.

  They hadn't realized how much time had passed, so they were surprised when Ray and Cindy made their appearance. Jessica ran and embraced Cindy, while the others questioned Ray.

  "I don't think Walker knows yet," Ray explained. "There was no trouble, and the car will be found in the industrial area when they go looking."

  "How did it get there?" Greg asked.

  "Ed," Ray explained. "He lives only a couple of blocks from Cindy. I thought it prudent to alert him to the change in status. He offered to take the car and dump it there, while Cindy and I hoofed it back here. Walker has no reason to be looking for Ed, and he says he'll pass the word among our limited supporters."

  Spotting Raobot wired to the charger, he inquired about the situation.

  "Why didn't you warn me?" he asked.

  "There was nothing to be done at that point," Raobot pointed out. "We couldn't have gotten here any faster than we did. It has all worked out, although you and the others might see to unloading while I continue recharging. From the initial hour and a half, I believe I have five more hours to go."

  Ray nodded.

  "I just wish there was some way to know what Walker has learned, and how he will pursue the search now that he knows I was deceiving him. That might cause him to rethink where we might be hiding. I wish we had another location set up."

  "There are others," Raobot said, "but getting everything relocated would pose a problem. Tomorrow we might want to consider one of the alternate locations, accepting that if we are forced to move there, we would lose the ability to link into the Simulation."

  While Raobot charged, the others unloaded the sled, which Greg had shutdown to conserve its energy reserve. With all of the gear in the common area, they were sorting through what the Cyborg had brought.

  "Communicators?" Jessica asked.

  "The documentation says these are different than the standard units, and have secure communications on a different frequency. They allow for calling a specific user or a general group. Any user can also set it so all communications on a given channel are received. I am hoping they will allow us to stay in contact, undetected by Walker's people. They use the same power module as our standard units."

&nb
sp; "I'll look at them," Cindy said. "I can have a friend check and see if using them sets off any alarms back at Facilities."

  Ray and Greg were digging through the weapons, while Sam was having a close look at the Memory Mapper Unit.

  "We'll have a surprise for Walker's men if they discover us," Ray said with satisfaction as he shoved home a loaded magazine in one of the military rifles. "They won't be expecting anything like these. But why the explosives? What did you have in mind for those?"

  "I am thinking if this place is discovered we might wish to destroy everything that might alert Walker to what we have been doing. We don't want to point him toward our friends in the Sim. We have seen what he would do if he knew about them."

  Ray nodded. He had set out a variety of weapons, and pointed to what he had chosen.

  "Greg and I will have these combat rifles," he explained. "I think for the rest of you, the shotguns are a better choice. They are simpler to use, and require less precision. Greg and I have handguns, but for the rest of you they would be a poor choice. Maybe later."

  "I am not knowing anything about guns," Rao said emphatically." Raobot was shaking his mechanical head in a matching gesture.

  "Time for everyone to have a rapid introductory course," Ray said. "Walker is going to be even more determined to find and eliminate us. We need to be prepared to deal with him should that happen. That means, first item of action, is weapons familiarity."

  For the next hour, Greg and Ray showed everyone how to use the shotguns. Each person was required to demonstrate the ability to load and unload the weapon, work the pump action smoothly and effectively, and demonstrate the proper means of holding and aiming the weapon.

  "Live fire time," Ray said when he was satisfied with their proficiency. "You don't want to be shocked at the noise and recoil at a critical time. That could slow you down just enough to be fatal."

  They carried their weapons and a box of ammunition each back into the depths of the bunker. On the lowest level, on the far side of the structure was a large, empty storage area. The sound of the shots would be contained here in the underground chamber. Making everyone stuff their ears with small bits of cloth, Ray demonstrated the actual firing of the shotgun. Then, one by one he and Greg had each of the others load and fire several rounds under their watchful eyes. It was immediately apparent that the blast and recoil came as a surprise to all of the novices. It was especially odd to see the huge Raobot and his uncomfortable and awkward control of the weapon.

  "Okay," Ray said. "Everyone has seen how it is done. Now I want each of you to fire the rest of your box of ammunition. It's a shame to use up such a valuable resource, but better to do so than not be able to hit your target when it counts. Think about what you are doing, and try to make the loading and shooting become instinctual."

  By the time they were done, Ray was satisfied that they wouldn't shoot themselves, and had a chance at holding Walker's men at bay. Raobot, with his greater strength, seemed to have the fastest learning curve, while his weaker self Rao, seemed most uncomfortable, complaining this wasn't something he wished to learn. He and Greg each fired a half magazine through the assault rifles just to be certain they were functioning properly, and the sights were reasonably close to target.

  By then it was well past midnight, and they retired to bed, leaving one person on watch just in case something developed. Sam wanted to read the Mapper manual, so he took the first watch.

  Chapter 44

  Sequoia Facility

  They were up early. Nerves were part of the reason. Not knowing what the current situation might be, another. Previously, they knew that Ray was privy to Walker's planning. Even though contact with him had been limited, everyone counted on Ray being able to alert them to any significant danger or shift in the Director's approach. Suddenly they had lost that insight, and as a group felt blind.

  "I wish we knew what Walker is doing this morning," Jessica said as she fixed breakfast.

  Several of them had gathered in the common area. Sam, who had stayed up on watch, was still sleeping. Rao had said something about alerting Los Angeles to the current changes, and Raobot, now fully recharged was experimenting with the shotgun. Unlike his flesh and blood counterpart who found the noise and recoil of the weapon distasteful, Raobot had found something of interest in the device. He appeared quite comfortable with the weapon, working the action and taking a bead on imaginary targets, and simulating loading additional rounds into the port on the bottom. He discovered he could magnetically attach the weapon to the back of his frame by controlling the power to a magnetized plate.

  "It's too risky to go out there just now," Ray replied. "Tony has certainly been discovered, by the shift change if not before, which means they are now aware someone was operating the airlocks, and that I was helping them. I'm betting a lot of their focus for the moment is on what we might have been doing."

  "I hope they can't figure out where Raobot went," Greg said. "We don't need them getting any more capable."

  "He seemed pretty certain that following his route wasn't something easily done," Ray replied. "I talked more with him about that last night while he was charging. Another reason we were fortunate that he didn't drive one of the heavier vehicles back with the load of stuff he acquired. That might have left tracks that could be followed. Besides, for a human to wander around out there requires a special suit and a portable air supply. Carrying sufficient air for an extended search would prove a problem. They might try to figure out where he went, but Raobot says the ice was such that it left few tracks. He said on his return he had to pay attention because there was nothing of his trip out to guide him."

  "I'm more worried that Walker now knows about you and Cindy," Jessica said looking at him.

  "We're in no more danger than the rest of you," Ray replied.

  "Walker might go after you inside the Sim," Greg pointed out. "He had our counterparts killed."

  Ray winced. "There's nothing we can do about that," he said. "We've seen that residents of the Sim can be too easily found, especially those of us that have well established records because we are Facility residents."

  "At least Sam is convinced the Mapper that Raobot brought back can copy our minds so we can be reinserted, hopefully where Walker can't find us," Jessica added. "He says the unit is far more straight-forward than the normal equipment he uses. Someone put special thought into making the unit simple to use. He was hoping to give it a try later today."

  The conversation was interrupted by the arrival of Cindy carrying one of the new Communicators.

  "Listen to this," she directed, without responding to their greetings. She set the unit on the table and turned up the volume.

  "That's Walker," Ray said after a moment.

  Cindy nodded.

  "They already have this kind of equipment. I'm betting they have been using it for some time to coordinate their actions without anyone being able to overhear. We've never picked up on this kind of link at the Facilities, which I believe answers the question whether they are secure."

  "Seems moot now," Greg pointed out. "If Walker and his men are using them, they'd overhear us if we communicate over them."

  "Perhaps," Cindy agreed, "but I've been checking. Maybe it isn't always the case, but they seem to stay on the one channel. There are ten, so while risky, we might be able to use one of the ones they don't appear interested in. I suspect they believe they have this system for their exclusive use. In any event, they can't tell where we are, even if they learn we know about the network."

  "It might be more useful to monitor them and not risk their learning we can overhear them," Ray suggested, but he was distracted as he tried to hear what Walker was saying.

  "Walker is heading up the effort at Security," he said after a moment. "He has Security looking for me, but at least at the moment they are focusing to the north where Ed left the car. He's also got a team preparing to go through the airlocks hoping to figure out what we were doing. But something else is
going on that I don't understand. He's got Zack on the line, and getting a report from the Resort. It sounds almost like they are doing something in the Sim. We need to have Rao take a look."

  He was about to call over Raobot when a worried looking Rao hurried their way.

  "We are having a problem," he said hurriedly. "I was speaking with my counterpart in Los Angeles. He and the other members of the team there are gathering at the police department. Sgt. Lee from Washington called them a couple of hours ago hoping LA-Rao could contact us."

  "What is happening?" Ray asked.

  Raobot had joined the conversation, apparently noting the concern on his flesh and blood counterpart's face.

  "Sgt. Lee reports that his partner, Sgt. Aaron Smith, has disappeared. He was supposed to be in early for an important court appearance, and no one can find him. They have checked his home, called him repeatedly on his communicator without success. It is apparently very unlike Smitty, as Sgt. Lee calls him, and given some of the recent events, Lee is concerned that his absence is not a coincidence, but is the result of some action specifically directed against Smitty."

  "Walker's got his men doing something at the Resort," Ray reported. "I'd be willing to bet that Lee is right, and Walker is behind the disappearance."

  "How would Walker even know about him?" Greg asked.

  "Sgt. Lee and his partner were the lead team that responded to and later investigated the attack on Senator Burkland, the first of Walker's actions in the Sim that we know about. It could be that Walker had Zack track those involved to see how they would deal with the attack."

  "And he's guessing that if we have contacts inside the Sim, those are two of the likely candidates. He took Smitty hoping to find out what he knows, and who else he can lead them to," Ray guessed.

  "That is what Sgt. Lee has apparently suggested," Rao agreed.

  "How can we help?" Jessica asked. "We can't find Walker's men in the Sim, can we?"