by Ernest Filak
© Copyright by Ernest Filak
Cover design by Damian Popiół www.popeq.pl
ISBN 978-83-934499-8-9
All rights reserved. Distribution or copying of all or part of the publication is prohibited without the author’s written permission.
HADES. DIASPORA
Ernest Filak
Translated by Karolina Kwasik
Hades. Diaspora is the third part of the Hadesian cycle. The book is a space opera that tells the story of Pavel Tsenre, a high school graduate who gets sent to the planet of Hades as part of his school training program.
The strongest player in the system is the Uroboros concern, which eliminates its competition by not necessarily honest means, announces separation and aims to establish its own separate Kingdom. At the same time the unions, using the concern’s ongoing preparations as a cover, amass their own forces. A revolution breaks out. Part of the Fleet remains faithful to Earth. To make matters worse, during the fratricidal fighting, the system is visited by Aliens….
Prologue
Freighter HHMS The Pride of Heldor
Hans Hansen, the former representative of the Lehman Foundation now in charge of one of the departments of Uroboros Industrial, was observing the nervous, almost panicky behavior of the people manning the freighter’s bridge.
“Connor!” the captain shouted at the pilot, “Get us out of here!”
“I’m already doing a hundred and ten percent!” the voice of the ship’s mechanic sounded through the intercom.
“Give me more!” the man in charge of the freighter raised his hoarse voice half a tone higher.
“I can do five percent more at the most! We’ll need a serious overhaul later,” the mechanic said.
“I don’t care about an overhaul. Give me as much as you can,” the captain severed the connection.
Hansen had known the crew for a long time. He had worked with them many times before, also in his previous company. He knew he was dealing with tough people who wouldn’t hesitate to take part in shady and not fully legal businesses for an extra profit. But the excess of what had been going on recently took its toll even on them. Hansen was privy to the separatist plans of Uroboros. He was looking forward to high profits and his career advancing quickly. In the Lehman Foundation it was going nowhere. He expected trouble, protests, even a general strike of all the workers. He knew the secret reports of Uroboros that revealed the fact they were investing large sums in arms, and since he had had the doubtful pleasure of meeting the people responsible for law and order, he believed all the resistance would be nipped in the bud. The outbreak of the revolution and the scale of the forces involved deprived him of his sense of security.
The three-person skeletal crew of the bridge couldn’t take their eyes off the screens showing what was happening to the stern of the freighter. The image was a bit blurred and didn’t include the precious details. It was distorted by the streams of energy fired from the nozzles of engines going full thrust. The filters which reduced the glare of the solar band didn’t make the situation any better.
Despite them, the silhouette of a unit unknown to man quickly approaching on a crash course could be seen on the misty blue disc of the sun. The brownish-green shape was growing alarmingly fast on the screens.
“A sharp turn to starboard!” The pilot followed the captain’s orders immediately.
The freighter, given that it was a slow unit equipped with used up engines, changed it course quite efficiently. In the vicinity other units were going through similar maneuvers. The alien ship stormed among them like a hawk into a flock of pheasants. Although it should probably be said that it burst through, knocking against HHMS Tune on its way.
The unfortunate vessel broke in half, sending into space the instantly-freezing air and the pre-treated ore it had been carrying in its cargo section.
The captain swore badly. Hans Hansen wasn’t at all surprised. The man in charge of HHMS Tune was a notorious gambler indebted to almost every captain from here to Trident, which was the main base of the Earth fleet. In front of their eyes the chances of ever getting their money back were falling down to zero. Then the rest of the solid fuel exploded, bringing an end to the godforsaken unit.
“Attention!” the navigator screamed out loud, “Something large is disconnecting from the body of the alien. I still can’t believe the weight readings – who the hell is capable of building something that enormous?”
“I don’t care which ass this thing flew out of,” the captain growled. “I want to leave this sector as soon as possible and find myself in the quiet zone.”
The crew were supposed to say something casual, but the words froze on their lips as the hull of The Pride of Heldor started vibrating and the administrative panel blinking with lights announcing numerous breakdowns.
“Sector C10 dehermetized,” the emotionless voice of the central computer reported.
“Cut it off,” the captain issued an order and turned to Hansen. “This is the sector right above the infirmary.”
Hans didn’t wait for any further explanations. He unfastened his seatbelt and dashed through the corridors, which were all flashing with emergency lights. He knew the way like the back of his hand and he could make it blindfolded. He didn’t worry about what caused the damage to the ship. The only image in his head was that of his beloved daughter, who was now lying in a pharmacological coma in autodoc. He had to make sure there was no direct threat to her life.
All his life choices so far were aimed at one thing: to get his daughter out of a serious disease, even though the best specialists didn’t leave much hope. That’s why he accepted the offer he got from Uroboros and agreed to work for them. His love for his only child eased his guilty conscience. The company had brought a young woman whose genotype matched Hansen’s daughter’s as closely as possible into the Hadesian System. The woman had had tests done which proved she was a possible donor. And she was used as such. He didn’t like thinking about it. Being a top manager, he often had to make decisions connected with or leading to human tragedy. If he were to worry about each single case, he would soon end up locked in a mental asylum. After all, he took out life insurance for her family that guaranteed standard medical care. He even found jobs for her two brothers. He felt this way he paid off his debt. Fatal accidents happened every day and nobody ever got a credit because of that. Yes, manager Hans Hansen believed that he didn’t owe anybody anything. Only sometimes, when he was feeling very low, he avoided looking in the mirror. But only sometimes.
He stormed into the white medical sector. He ran along the wide corridor and turned into the first room to the right. The automatic door slid open at his touch and a cloud of antiseptic fell on him from above, creating an anti-infection curtain. He walked through it and froze instantly.
In the ceiling there was an irregular gaping hole. Something had pierced though from the upper deck and this something was now floating between him and his child. He reached out to his pocket to get a gun but didn’t manage to take it out. He felt pain and landed on the medical cart nearby. Hansen slid to the floor. To his amazement, he saw blood on his hand. He wanted to get up but he didn’t have the strength. He looked all over himself. Below his breastbone he saw a pool of blood spreading over his sweatshirt. His own blood!
He didn’t feel the pain. He didn’t feel anything. The oblique shape was coming closer. Its cold metallic touch started exploring his unprotected body, first the hands, then the face. Something opened his lips and slid inside his nose. He didn’t protest, knowing death was coming to get him. Everything around him started spinning and blurring in a palette of crazy colors.
His last conscious thought was a happy one. His life dream was coming true: to die before his
child. He repeatedly said that parents should never bury their children. This was all wrong and against the natural order of things. He died in tune with his beliefs.
His only daughter died ten minutes later.
Chapter I
The Second Planet Of The Hadesian System
The rescue shuttle shook as we were going down into the lower strata of the atmosphere of the planet. It turned out that the nitrox liquid in which we were immersed carried sound quite well. Too well for my liking. The construction team working alongside the creator of the Pauli system didn’t foresee it being exposed to heavy gunfire. The capsules were designed to save human life and transport it outside the danger zone as quickly as possible. Speed was their strong point, not maneuverability, a fact which was obviously used by the crazy artillerymen to their advantage.
Even more so considering that both fighting sides lacked any more interesting targets. Both revolutionary and Uroboros forces were shooting very well, just like at a shooting range. The shuttles were being destroyed one by one, like cockroaches under the feet of two lunatic giants. Only a few managed to escape.
It was an excellent idea to set our course to the other planet of the system. Ingrid really deserved a huge kiss for coming up with that.
“I’ll remind you all about it,” I heard her say inside my head.
“We have to land first,” I said.
One more attentive observer noticed our maneuver. Another series of explosions was quickly fired at us escapees. Before we got outside the enemy range their battery almost hit their target.
“Come on, in the center of the explosion the temperature…”
“That’s it,” I stopped her, “I’m not into smart ass chicks.”
It worked. She went quiet. I knew she probably took offence. She didn’t like it when I didn’t have enough time for her, and she believed many of my reflections stupid. So what was I on about? Ah, right. So we were sent a goodbye kick by the artillerymen. They didn’t really hit us, but it was close enough for the diffusing energy to give the shuttle a sharp jolt. The g-force alarm on the console started bleeping. Even though the nitrox liquid had absorbing properties, the extra pressure really shook the bejesus out of us all. I looked behind.
Sunshine was watching over Theodore all the time. She showed me an OK with her hand but the fear and anxiety never left her face. I sent her a comforting smile.
I don’t know if it did any good. She stroked Theodore tenderly on his cheek. His eyes were glassy. I only hoped he hadn’t suffered too much internal damage.
We were outcasts, whatever remained of the slave squadron of Uroboros. We had taken an active part in the fighting on the side of the revolutionary forces. The fact that we hadn’t really been given much choice didn’t change much. Those few who didn’t want to join the rebels were killed on the spot. We were treated like fresh artillery meat and had been sent to attack the flag vessel of the fleet. During the fighting inside the ship, some fanatics launched a nuclear bomb. We managed to escape.
“The shuttle has lost air-tightness and we’re losing the liquid,” my girlfriend reported.
“Am I your girlfriend?”
“Do you always have to eavesdrop?”
“You’re thinking too loud.”
“Is there enough of it for a safe landing?” I changed the topic.
I watched as she was checking something on the control panel with my very own hand. I didn’t protest, as our life depended on it. On the other hand, she’d take better care of the electronics than my zipper.
She was an artificial intelligence created primarily as a sex doll. Then the revolutionaries, breaking all the existing treaties, expanded her capabilities. She retained her primary instincts though, and they came to the surface a bit too often for my liking.
“Too often?” she snorted. “You’re more of a pervert than me.”
I didn’t believe it proper to continue the discussion on this particular subject.
During a moment of passion – “an opportunity we are given much too rarely,” she hastened to add – an unusual phenomenon which later proved to have very serious consequences took place. All computer systems broke down and all the more advanced programs perished. Phase piles, which powered the ships of the fleet, switched off automatically. And Ingrid, with whom I was just having an erotic unison, was transported into my brain, becoming an annoying presence and an oversexed lodger.
“We’re running low on liquid,” she said, adding in a sweet voice, “which would be typical, of course.”
“What about the reserve tank?”
“It disconnected. Never made it through the turbulence.”
The situation was dramatic. I felt a cold chill running down my spine. It was cold! Before I said anything she was already putting the right sequence into action. She understood me instantly.
Rescue capsules are equipped with a hibernating system. Sometimes the survivors have to wait a long time before any help comes. It would obviously be totally wasteful to keep them active all the time and maintain stable temperature. The cost of power would be enormous. Instead, the survivors are hibernated, and the rescue shuttle keeps sending a radio signal. It is enough if the frozen liquid they’re submerged in is well oxygenated. The low cost of such a solution was actually a condition thanks to which rescue shuttles were approved for large scale use. It was more cost-effective to retrieve the survivors than train new staff.
“Don’t turn on full hibernation. It’s enough if ice appears only at the surface.”
“I know, Pawel.”
The monochromatic glass of the portholes turned gray. We were going through the atmosphere. The shapes of the walls were getting more and more blurred. The liquid crystallized and it got much colder. I tried to nestle deep into the upholstery of my chair.
My hands stopped working the keyboard.
“We lost part of the rudder. I chose wetlands quite near human settlements as our landing place.”
All we could do now was wait and hope for a bit of luck. The shaking increased. We must have suffered more damage than I thought. Our primitive computer was doing everything in its power to save its valuable content. Part of the ceiling ice started melting and cracking. Bubbles of gases appeared. It got even colder. All lights went out. The friction heated up the outside shell. Isolation plates must have fallen off earlier. It didn’t look good at all.
Imprisoned inside the icy egg, we heard a high-pitched sound. Wheeze!
We banged the ground with a loud crash.
“Pawel, get up!”
I was a bit befuddled and needed a few seconds to come round and get my bearings.
“Get up. Quick, there’s no time,” my AI urged me.
Still hazy, I unclasped my safety belts. Sunshine couldn’t manage with hers. I helped her out and together we unfastened Theodore. At the rear end of the cracked shell of the capsule I could see daylight through all the ice.
“You have to break through.”
I obediently threw myself at the wall with my shoulder, but to no effect.
“In a few minutes you’ll all suffocate. The oxygenation doesn’t work.” I decided to push harder. I looked around, but there was nothing we could use to hack our way through the ice shell. Our guns were all frozen in their holders. All we had left was donkey stubbornness.
Finally, we saw a small crack on the surface of the ice, after which we were spit out of the capsule in one shot. We struggled in the pink-brownish mud like fish thrown onto dry land.
The shuttle had ploughed a long trough in the ground that was now quickly filling with dirty water and sludge. What remained of the vehicle looked like a crumpled flower. Long cracks ran along its whole body and smoke oozed out of them. The remains of the rudder lay torn off and were slowly sinking. We were surrounded by sparse, low lying greenery. The area was wet with lots of little ponds of water. Against the setting sun I could see a line of densely growing tall trees.
Sunshine was throwing up, trying to discard al
l the liquid that had been filling her lungs. She waved at me as if she was trying to tell me something. I crawled up to her on all fours.
“Help him,” she wheezed, pointing to her partner.
I refused vigorously. A few meters away a small tree grew with a bunch of tall grass around it. I mimed to her that we had to carry Theodore there. The area around us was too treacherous and the shuttle was already drowning in the marsh. The gurgling sounds of escaping air could be heard from under the heavy machine, which was sinking deeper and deeper into the sludge. Spitting all over myself with the pink fluid I ripped off my vest, which was an unnecessary load. I grabbed my buddy under his arms and dragged him towards the lone tree. Sunshine trudged along.
I reached the little island totally worn out. I was glad to see Theodore’s body get rid of the fluid from the lungs on its own. It was enough to turn him to the side and bend his head to the back a little. I felt sunrays pleasantly heat up my body. I lay on my back and enjoyed the blue color of the sky. I couldn’t remember the last time I saw it with my own eyes. It seemed like it had been in a totally different life.
“Somebody is coming,” I heard Ingrid’s warning.
I lifted my head. Every move hurt.
“Where?” I asked moving only my lips.
So far I had managed to keep the existence of the AI in my head in secret. My friends knew about her when she lived on the hard drive. I never told anyone about her transferring into me.
“Look towards the forest.”
Above the tree line three red arrows soared. The one in the middle was closest to us. The other ones were around fifty yards to the left and right. There wasn’t much time left for preparations. I ripped the red band of the revolutionary forces off my arm.
“Take off the equipment,” I hissed to Sunshine. “Somebody’s coming.”
She reacted quickly. We took her and Theodore’s vests together with the bands and pushed them hard into the marsh. I pressed them with my leg as deeply as I could.
