Fallen Empire: A Military Science Fiction Epic Adventure (Born of Ash Book 1)

by Marc Alan Edelheit

“Captain,” Lee called, “you might want to stand back. I’m bringing the mules down off the roof. They are not the smartest of machines. In fact, they are quite dumb. I wouldn’t want you to get trampled.”

  The captain, who had been speaking with his sergeant, backed off several steps, his eyes going to the roof of the APC. Both mules were kept in sealed storage pods; they’d named one Artemis and the other Mars. Keira read the surprise in Pikreet’s eyes. She heard the shells of the pods overhead opening, the servos whining with effort.

  “Didn’t know there were any functioning mechs left,” Pikreet said. “I can’t recall the last time I saw one. Before the Fall, at least—I thought nothing of them … now … they are miracles of engineering.”

  “Powering up the mules,” Lee said, ignoring the comment. They tended to get that a lot when they went out on jobs. “All systems are nominal, batteries are charged and reading as full. Bringing them down.”

  “Guess what?” Sandy sounded almost breathless in her ear. “Another ship just transited through the jump gate. Can you believe that?”

  “Another ship?” Keira asked. “From the Protectorate?”

  “No one knows,” Sandy said and lowered her voice to a whisper. “They’re not answering hails and not transmitting any recognition codes. What’s more interesting is the destroyer from the Protectorate has battle damage, and it’s recent. I heard my boss talking about it. He thinks both ships may have been fighting and the second one is pursuing the first. Only, the Protectorate’s claiming they don’t know who the other ship belongs to. Some are saying they’re pirates.”

  “Pirates?” Keira felt a stab of concern.

  The feet of both mules clunked heavily on the roof overhead as they worked their way first across the back of the roof and then down the side of the Beast. Each mech had magnetic clamps on their feet and could travel just as fast vertically as they could horizontally. That was, provided there was a material to which they could magnetically bond.

  Chris was looking out the back of the APC at the militia, studying them. She needed to tell him what she’d just learned. She bit her lip as she considered how to tell him without alerting the people monitoring them. It might affect his exit strategy, though she could not really see how. Then again, if Sandy was telling her this, those listening would know that she knew. For a moment, she felt stupid. It was no longer a secret. She would wait until there was a quiet moment when she could pass it on.

  “Is Command still allowing the destroyer to dock?” Keira asked.

  “Yeah,” Sandy said. “They arrive in six hours. Exciting, isn’t it?”

  “I guess,” Keira said, though she did not think it was anywhere close to exciting. It was more troubling than anything else. Was that why the UPG had locked up all the transport? She did not know. Were they expecting some type of fight? For the first time in a long while, Keira was thankful she was dirtside.

  “Gotta run,” Sandy said, lowering her voice even more. “My boss is back from lunch and if he catches me gossiping again, I’ll be in for it. I’ll call you later.”

  “See ya,” Keira said as the line beeped.

  Keira watched as Lee maneuvered the mules from the roof down to the bay’s floor and then to the edge of the ramp. The mules were long, utilitarian machines. Each had six legs and a flat body that was almost cylindrical. Rings, clamps, nooks for specially designed crates, and hooks ran along their broad backs.

  Neither machine had what could be described as a head. They were ugly and had an alien, machine appearance to them. Keira had always thought the mules could have been better designed, with an eye toward aesthetic appearance. Instead, they almost looked menacing. But they were only simple beasts of burden, with no semblance of internal intelligence.

  Chris moved down the ramp, with his M23 in one hand and a bag in the other. He paused at the bottom, and then nodded to Keira and Lee. He set his bag down and slung his rifle over his left shoulder. It magnetically locked into place with a solid-sounding click.

  “It’s clear,” he said, almost unnecessarily.

  Keira had expected nothing less, especially after he had slung his rifle. Opening storage lockers, Lee began pulling out more of the stowed bags and equipment. He unzipped one and looked inside.

  “Let’s not forget the printer this time, eh,” Keira said to him, more as a jest than anything else.

  “You won’t ever let me forget that one,” Lee said, looking up, “will you?”

  “Nope, not a chance,” Keira said as she pulled out the collapsible storage and transport crates from a compartment. The crates were designed specifically for the mules. Keira straightened and made a show of looking at the militia. “You know, since we’re taking both mules anyway, I think we should bring as much as we can. Let’s not leave anything of real value behind if we can help it.” She gestured toward the militia. “It will take us longer to load everything, but I don’t trust them and I do not like Pikreet. There’s just something about him that rubs me wrong …”

  “I know what you mean,” Lee said. “I don’t like how he looked at you.”

  “Chris,” Keira called. “We’re fully loading up the mules and taking everything we can with us.”

  “That’s a great idea,” Chris said, from the bottom of the ramp. “Leave nothing to temptation. I like your thinking.”

  “All right,” Lee said. “Let’s get cracking then.”

  They worked quickly, efficiently. Despite the fans circulating air inside her suit, Keira found herself beginning to perspire as she dragged bags out and packed them into the transit crates. Much of their equipment was heavy and required effort to move.

  While they worked, Chris joined the captain and his sergeant and began chatting them up. Keira knew his routine only too well. Though it seemed like an innocuous, almost lighthearted conversation, Chris was subtly pumping both men for additional information, learning as much as he could about the area and the people that called Hakagi home.

  The information Command provided in their security briefs always tended to be limited. More often than not, especially of late, it was downright inaccurate. That, she supposed, was a sign that Command was out of touch with the reality on the ground.

  Keira would have loved to pull Chris aside to tell him about the second ship, only there was nothing they could actually do about it, so she saw no need to rush. She wondered again on how it might complicate the situation. Would the UPG recall all crews to the FOBs? Would they lock things down even further? She just did not know how they would respond. This was uncharted territory. She put the worry from her mind and turned her attention to the task at hand. If a recall did come, the sooner they were on their way the more difficult it would be for Command to call them back.

  “It’s like we’re stripping the APC bare,” Lee said a few minutes later as they pulled out the last of the bags and packed them into the crates for the mules.

  “That’s exactly what we’re doing,” Keira said. “I’d hate to return and find the APC stripped by others.”

  “That wouldn’t be good,” Lee said. “The captain, I think, would have some explaining to do.”

  Once each crate was packed and locked securely, Keira and Lee began carrying them to the mules. She stepped down the ramp and into the bay, then came to an abrupt stop. All thoughts of the second ship vanished from her mind.

  The bay was cavernous, impossibly huge, but now that she was outside the APC, it seemed even more so. It was the largest service bay she’d ever seen. A ramp to their left led to the surface. The main doors to the outside world had long since stopped functioning and stood partially open. The opening was just wide enough to admit the trucks and the Beast. Dim light filtered through the doors. Ash from above had found its way down into the garage, coating the ground under her feet.

  Sand blew in gusts through the open doors, which told her the next storm had arrived. There was at least an centimeter of the stuff already underfoot. It had likely been accumulating for years. No one
had bothered to remove it, as the air down in the bay was just too foul to send work crews down. And besides, there was simply no point. The service bay was rarely used these days. The machinery and the equipment, with the exception of some of the overhead lighting, was nonfunctional.

  Keira looked around, staring in amazement at the sheer size of the space. The bay had originally been used by service mechs and robots to deliver supplies, equipment, and whatever else was needed by the people who lived in the massive apartment block over their heads. It had also served as a warehouse and distribution center, where arriving supplies were sorted, stored, and then moved on.

  This block, she suspected, had also had a large recycling center. Most of the arcologies and blocks had them. That too, like everything else, would be nonfunctional. She wondered where it was. Under their feet? Several floors up? There was just no telling. She found it all exciting and felt an urge to explore, only there wasn’t time.

  The main portion of the bay was more than a kilometer wide, from one side to the other, and hundreds of meters high. There were multiple levels and platforms along the walls. What their purpose had originally been, Keira had no idea.

  Off to her left, several magnetic train tracks emerged from a series of large tubes set in the walls. These had been for the AI-operated train and tram system that used to run under the surface of the planet. A quarter of a kilometer away were the train stations and platforms for unloading. These stood abandoned, forgotten relics of the past.

  Like much of everything else, the trains no longer ran. With the cracking of the planet, many of the tubes of the network had collapsed. To make matters worse, the AIs who had controlled them had died around the same time. No one really knew what had happened to them. One moment they had been functioning normally, and the next, they were gone, vanished, as if someone had thrown a switch and turned them off.

  These days, the bay was now nothing more than a convenient back door for those who needed it and had the proper life support to survive the toxic mix in the air. The thought made her sad. Humanity had risen to magnificent heights, to the heavens it seemed, only to stumble and fall.

  Most of the overhead lighting elements had long since failed or been scavenged for parts. What little light there was gave the bay a gloomy, almost forlorn look. Many of the panels along the walls had been removed to access equipment that could be stripped, repurposed, or stolen. Machinery and parts lay discarded everywhere you looked. Whatever could not be used or moved had been left.

  There was a thriving black market on Asherho. Li Sung and his family were evidence of that. An entire industry had grown up around salvaging the bones of a ruined world.

  Lee had parked the Beast next to the two militia trucks. A few yards away stood a reinforced door that led to a service corridor. It was undoubtedly the one they would use to work their way to the systems control center.

  Having gotten over her astonishment, Keira activated the floodlights mounted on her helmet so that she could see better. They provided plenty of light. She had a job to do and continued to one of the mules, placing the crate she was carrying upon its back in an open slot. The mule, using its clamps, automatically locked the crate into place.

  Lee emerged from the APC, came down, and set a crate by her feet.

  “Amazing,” Keira said, taking a moment to glance around again. She still felt breathless at what she was taking in. “Isn’t it?”

  “Yeah, it’s hard to believe machines made all this,” Lee said, excitement that matched her own filling his tone. “I’d loved to have seen them at work. Can you imagine what that was like?”

  “How about just talking to an AI or a construct?” Keira said. She’d long fantasized about doing such a thing. “I think that would be cool too.”

  “That would be good,” Lee said. “I think I’d enjoy matching wits with a machine.”

  “It’s really a shame no one’s been able to get any of the construction mechs, let alone the service types, functioning. Their AIs are just dead, and without them, they’re useless junk. Think of all the good that could be done. We’d be able to build proper shelters for everyone in no time, not to mention farms. With enough farms and habs, there would be no more suffering and plenty of food.”

  “If they were working,” Lee said as he turned back for the APC, clearly on the way to retrieve more crates, “we’d be out of a job. That’s for sure.”

  Keira did not fully agree with that. Even at the empire’s height, there had still been a need for engineers and human thinking. It was why her father had trained as one. Machines and artificial intelligences could only do so much. Humans had been needed to do the rest. At least, that’s what she’d been told.

  Keira turned back to the mule and picked up the crate Lee had brought. She set it into one of the free slots. The mule’s clamps automatically secured it in place. Working quickly, between the two of them, they carried the remaining crates to the mules and got them loaded. When they were done, Keira wondered how the mules would be able to move with such a load, but she knew they would. Each machine was incredibly powerful.

  Keira checked it all over to make sure everything was properly secured and the clamps firmly in place. She did not want to lose anything, as very few things were being manufactured these days. If they were going to Seri, they were taking it all with them and that was that. She was sure they would need it again in the future.

  Chris broke off his chat with Pikreet and clunked his way up the ramp. With an ease born of his powered armor, he carried his “surprise” to one of the mules. Keira and Lee had left a space for it on Artemis. They both knew it would be going with them. There had been no question about that.

  Within moments, he had it loaded and magnetically locked in place. Chris went back up the ramp. He returned with two R35 bolt rifles and a large box of ammunition, which he secured magnetically on the same mule. Keira had no doubt who the rifles were for.

  “Are we ready to lock up?” Chris asked. Pikreet had once again moved off and was speaking with his sergeant.

  “We are,” Keira said, then moved over to Chris. “Do you know about the second ship?” She spoke in a low tone so that only the two of them could hear.

  Chris looked at her sharply. That was enough to tell her he had not known.

  “I just heard a few minutes ago,” she said. “Apparently the Protectorate destroyer and the newcomer might have had a battle.”

  “So that’s why they’re putting into the station,” Chris said. “They need help repairing their battle damage. The planetary defense network gives them cover too. It makes sense now.”

  “Sandy thought the second ship might be pirates,” Keira said.

  “That’s possible,” Chris said, “but unlikely. A destroyer is a big ship and it’s part of the Protectorate’s navy. A pirate would look for easier prey. No, this is something else.” Chris’s gaze went to Lee, who was in the back of the APC, shutting the power down. He turned back to her. “Thanks for telling me. I will check in with Command as soon as we’re moving and see if I can learn more.”

  “Good. Did you get a better map out of him than what Command provided?” Keira asked and nodded toward the captain.

  “Yes,” Chris said. “The good captain showed me an old copy of the schematics of the tower, at least the lower six service levels where we will be working. He seemed eager to share it. Unfortunately, he does not have much more than that, as he’s not usually stationed here, and the local militia commander was unwilling to provide more. Pikreet’s unit is assigned to Sung Tower, a few kilometers away. Another militia unit has the honor of being assigned to Hakagi, and they’re busy at the moment with the civil disturbance topside. According to him—surprise, surprise—what Command provided us wasn’t even half accurate. I took a picture of his map and sent it to both of your tablets.”

  “What about my baby?” Lee asked, as he came down the ramp. “Is anyone going to watch it while we’re gone?”

  “He’s going to leave
half his company here to guard the APC. Even though he saw you two unload everything, I told him the Beast’s rigged with a charge. Should an unauthorized person attempt to gain entry, it goes boom.” Chris chuckled darkly. “He wasn’t pleased to learn that. I said it loud enough that some of his people heard too. I don’t think anyone’s going to get too close to the Beast, even if ordered to.”

  “Is it?” Lee asked, looking back at the APC with an alarmed expression. “Is there a charge in there?”

  Chris did not reply and instead glanced around the bay. The militia had spread out about them. There was a casualness or perhaps it was just a laziness to them that rubbed her wrong. They did not seem too serious about their job.

  She sucked in a breath as her gaze swung around the dismal-looking, yet incredible bay. The unease returned … this time with a vengeance. So too did the oppressive feeling.

  “I don’t like it here,” Keira said after a moment.

  “Neither do I, butterfly,” Chris said. “Now, let’s get moving. The sooner we get started, the sooner we’ll get there.”

  Chapter Eleven

  The steps of the stairwell seemed endless, disappearing upward into the foggy haze and the encroaching darkness. Portable lamps and lights from the suits provided the only real useable light, and as a result, the stairwell was a cascade of ever-shifting shadows, swirling fog, and lights.

  Even with the floods of her suit engaged, the thick blanket of toxic fog made it difficult to see more than two meters ahead. There was an ominous air to it all and Keira felt as if she were climbing to her doom, one plodding step at a time.

  The lights only magnified the foggy effect and made it worse, and at times more difficult to see. Very few of the overhead lights worked, and those that did were incredibly dim or flickered, giving the stairwell an otherworldly feel as she climbed.

  Keira had never seen such a high concentration of toxicity in the air and knew it was a result of the pollutants that had found their way underground and the lack of atmospheric flow. With the cyclers and filtration systems having been shut down, the toxic mix had only grown denser and more deadly over the long years.