by Erica Rue
“You think I’m working against you?” Brian came back swinging. “I’m doing what you’re too afraid to do. To trust them. These two could have offered us so much more than a Flyer, but you refused to look beyond your plan. What if they could clean up the runoff from the mine or help us fix the broken Artifacts that we can’t? The only reason Dione hesitated to help us is because she knew what you planned to do. She knew you would use the Flyers to attack. Was she wrong?”
Victoria glared at him. “You have no idea what their Regnator Michael is capable of. If you did, you’d take that Flyer to the Aratian settlement yourself.”
Evy took a step closer. “What did the Regnator do?” Dione could see the girl blinking back tears. Somehow Evy was always observing, always listening.
“He’s a murderer.” Victoria wasn’t yelling, but her voice was low with controlled anger.
“That’s a lie!” Cora yelled.
“I don’t know what else to call starving children.”
“Stop it!” Cora said. “Evy, don’t listen to her. She’s a liar.”
“They’re starving?” Evy asked.
Lithia moved to intervene, but Dione held her back.
“Yes, the Aratians have refused to trade with us. Our fields are poisoned, and your people have more than enough,” Victoria said, looking straight at Evy. “So our children are starving alongside the adults.”
“But you won’t fix the plows anymore. And you won’t trade us parts and equipment that we need for our research. That’s what my father says,” Evy said.
“We don’t have the parts. We barely have enough equipment for ourselves. The supplies the Farmer left are almost gone, and we have to learn how to make do without them.” Victoria almost seemed to have a soft spot for Evy.
“But you kidnap our people,” Evy continued. “I know it. My friend’s sister was taken.”
“We don’t kidnap anyone. Some people come to us begging to leave. They want to be free. Many wish to avoid the Matching.”
Cora couldn’t contain it any longer. “That’s absurd. The Matching is an honor, but you don’t understand that. All you understand is your greed.”
Dione thought Victoria would be angry at that, but instead she looked deeply sad, more human than she had ever looked before.
Victoria’s voice was steady. “The Matching is barbaric. I wish I were lying, child, but I have the scars to prove it.”
Child? The word was jarring. Isn’t that what the Aratian man had called Lithia at the shuttle crash site? Had Victoria been an Aratian refugee herself? Brian did not look surprised.
“You were Aratian,” Dione said, completing her thoughts out loud.
“Yes, I was,” she replied.
“That’s impossible. My father would have told me,” Cora said.
Evy said nothing. She just stared at Victoria. Dione could see her thinking, probably trying to make sense of this new information.
Victoria frowned. “You look about sixteen. For some, the only way to learn a painful lesson is to survive it. We accept anyone who needs refuge from the Aratians and the Matching.” Cora seethed, her arms folded across her chest. Victoria looked at Evy and softened her tone. “There’s time yet for you.”
Dione could hardly believe that this side of Victoria existed. An hour ago she had pointed a gun at Dione’s head. She still wanted to use the shuttles to raid the Aratian settlement. Dione saw for the first time that above anything else, Victoria had a purpose which drove her every action, and she never doubted that purpose.
“She’s a liar. You work with the Farmer and the harbinger. Tell her,” Cora said.
Victoria raised an eyebrow, but said nothing.
“We need to go,” Dione said. She opened her own pack and dropped some food and a water bottle in front of Victoria. “That bottle removes contaminants from the water that you put in it, making it safe to drink. Even your river water. Just give it about a minute to work. This indicator on the side here will turn green when it’s safe.” Victoria glanced toward the ocean, and Dione answered her unspoken question. “Don’t use it on salt water. It doesn’t work very well.”
“And you expect me to believe you?” Victoria said.
“At this point, I don’t really care. I’m doing everything in my power to help you out. Use it or don’t, but try to stay alive. I don’t want them saying we kidnapped you and left you for dead.”
With that, they untied her and left for the Mountain Base.
Cora was frowning as the took off. “Why didn’t you tell her she was a liar? You work for the Farmer, and he taught us the Matching was necessary for the colony’s survival. The very fact that they’ve rejected Aratian ways endangers us all. Our strength is our diversity.”
Lithia opened her mouth to answer, but Dione cut her off. This question didn’t need to be answered with a lie. “Because sometimes people are too caught up in their own reality to hear the truth. You have to wait until they are ready to listen, or they won’t hear you.”
Cora thought about her answer, but she didn’t seem completely satisfied. She didn’t say anything else.
After that, the ride was uncomfortably quiet.
40. DIONE
Dione had to convince Brian to eat something, which was alarming, considering he was always hungry. The food seemed to help, though he still looked terrible.
“You look awful,” Lithia said.
“You really know how to make a guy feel special,” Brian said. He winked at Dione, and then winced.
Dione watched the exchange, but she didn’t feel jealous. Flirting was as natural as breathing to those two. Dione was so lost in her thoughts she almost missed the Mountain Base. Evy was the one who noticed.
“What’s that?” Evy said.
If it weren’t for the giant landing pad, Dione didn’t think they would have found it. It was nothing more than a door built into the mountain side. Lithia brought them down gently near the entrance.
Cora was fidgeting. “I can’t believe we’re here. No Aratian has been here since the Farmer left.”
“Do you ever call him grandpa? Or is he always the Farmer?” Lithia said.
“The Farmer. It’s a sign of respect.”
Dione hesitated in front of the door, so Lithia opened it and walked in.
The lights came on when they entered a small atrium. The place looked abandoned, but everything still looked functional. A layer of dust covered every surface. When they entered the main entrance hall, the room opened up with a higher ceiling than the hallways that branched away from this central area. There were a few desks, tables, and benches, and it reminded Dione a little bit of the Ficaran entrance hall where she’d eaten breakfast yesterday. The bases must have a common design, but that wasn’t surprising.
“It looks like home, but kind of wrong,” Evy said. She moved around to examine everything in sight, full of wonder. “Do you think the upper floors are the same, too? Like our bedrooms?”
Before anyone could stop her, Evy ran off, up the stairs. Cora followed after her. “Evy, wait!” she said.
“What the—” Lithia was looking at her manumed. “My manumed is connecting to something here. Weird.”
An emotionless female voice came out of nowhere. At least that’s what it seemed like until Dione noticed a small console on the wall.
“I am the Mountain Base Artificial Intelligence. Who are you? State your purpose for coming here.”
“What?” Lithia said.
“Are you pirates?”
“No,” Dione said.
“Why have you lowered the dampening field?”
“Our friend on the space station needed to be able to communicate with us. The dampening field prevented this.”
“It prevented many things, and without it, the Venatorians have found this place.”
She knew about the Vens! Clearly she didn’t know about the tracer that had been attached to their ship. No need to make her angrier, though.
“We know about t
he Vens, too,” Dione said. “We came here to help. We know about the weapon in this base, but it failed to destroy our shuttle and a Ven scout ship because…” This was awkward.
“Because the AI couldn’t cut it,” Lithia finished.
“And you think that AI was me?”
“Is there another AI?”
“Not anymore.” Her voice was chilling. She sounded so much more real than the simple AIs allowed back home. “That may have been why the Venatorian scout ship got through years ago, but the reason your unauthorized shuttle survived is a completely different matter.”
“Enlighten us,” Lithia said.
“Your shuttle survived because the weapon did not have enough power. Decades ago, a Venatorian scout ship came here, and the Icon failed to destroy it completely because of the AI. Two Venatorians survived the crash and set up a distress beacon. Jameson thought he destroyed it, but later, a backup signal began transmitting.”
“So you think the distress beacon alerted the Vens,” Dione said. Maybe it wasn’t the tracer after all. Having a backup signal definitely sounded like the Vens.
“Yes.”
“Jameson’s the Farmer, right?” Lithia asked.
“Yes, Jameson is the one who brought all these people here.” This was news to Dione. The Farmer, Jameson, left and came back with these people. Why?
“So you know how my people came to this planet?” Brian asked.
“Yes, but now is not the time. My primary objective is to protect the colonists and they are all in danger.”
“Zane, our friend on the station, was working on a plan to stop the Vens, but he’s not having much luck. We need to go up there and help him. We also have medicine for our other friend Bel, who’s very sick. We need you to let us go without shooting us down.”
“I cannot let you leave. There’s work to be done.”
“What? We’ll come back down, but Bel needs these meds or she’ll die.”
“Do you know why the Venatorian ship is currently stopped?” she asked.
“It’s making repairs,” Lithia said.
“It’s waiting for reinforcements. Once they arrive, they will lead a full assault on the colony.”
All of the hairs on Dione’s arms and neck stood on end. More Vens?
“Can one of us go?” Lithia asked. “That way you know we’ll come back.”
“No, but your friends can come down here. I will allow them to land. I think Zane, the one you say shut down my dampening field, can help me.”
“But he’s working on a plan up there,” Dione said. The AI didn’t need to know that things weren’t working out or that they planned to turn her off to work the Icon themselves.
“The Icon will work, and I can strike with much more precision than the previous AI.”
“Then why not destroy our ‘unauthorized’ shuttle?” Lithia said.
“Because my energy cells have been depleted and damaged. They need repair. I cannot let you leave until the threat has been neutralized. The Icon and dampening field must be restored.”
Lithia raised her voice. “I don’t think you understand. Our friend will die without these meds.”
“As I’ve said, you can bring her down here,” the AI said.
Dione thought about it a moment. Lithia did not.
“Zane can’t fly our ship, and I’m not leaving it up there on the station.”
“It’s not a long trip,” Dione said.
“Have you ever landed a ship like the Calypso in atmosphere? A shuttle is like a car. With a little thought, you can figure it out. That jump-capable ship is ten times more complicated.”
“But there’s an autopilot,” Dione said.
“Do you trust the autopilot to do all the work after that Ven attack? If something goes wrong, he’s screwed.”
“It’s the only option. Plus, the repairs should be complete by now. Get on your manumed. We’re calling Zane,” Dione said.
“But—”
“Compromise, Lithia. It’s the only option, and I’m not wasting anymore time arguing.”
Zane answered immediately. “Please tell me you’ve disabled the weapon,” he said.
“Not exactly. And just FYI, the AI can hear you. Think you can fly the Calypso down?” Dione said.
“Probably, but I thought it wasn’t safe. Especially if the weapon’s still functioning. Why can’t you come back up here?” Zane said.
“The AI you mentioned is here, listening, and won’t let us leave until we restore power to the weapon, the Icon. She knows about the Vens, and she thinks they’re waiting for backup.”
“That’s actually probably a good plan. I’m no closer to figuring out how to blow up the space station. Bel is going to be hard to move, though.”
“The AI here controls the weapon that hit us, but claims it was a different AI that failed to destroy a Ven scout ship that crashed here a while back and set up a distress signal. If we can fix the power issue, she’ll be able to destroy the Vens for us,” Dione said.
“Assuming we can trust her,” Lithia added.
“There doesn’t seem to be much of a choice. The scientist Samantha, the Architect, who stayed behind said she would try and fix the AI, so maybe it worked. I’m going to prep the ship. Bel doesn’t have much time left, and maybe I can help with whatever’s wrong with the weapon,” Zane said.
“Do you have any training flying the Calypso?” Lithia said.
“I spent a lot of time watching you fly, Lithia, and I’m a fast learner. You should realize that by now. I know Dione thinks I’m an idiot, but you know better.” The comment made Dione blush. She had been pretty unfair to him before they got into this mess. She would need to apologize later.
“Zane, I know I make flying that ship look like a breeze, but it’s incredibly difficult, especially in atmosphere,” Lithia said. “I’m going to walk you through it. Keep your channel open. I wish Oberon hadn’t banned the holo interfaces for our manumeds. It would be so much easier if I could show you.”
The AI rejoined the conversation. “He can come down safely, but you need to get started right away. My diagnostics show a problem with the energy cells. They’re in sub-basement three.”
Evy and Cora came back downstairs. Cora looked a little more relaxed than she had before, and possibly less annoyed. Maybe she was actually enjoying exploring this place with Evy.
“What’s happening?” Cora asked.
“We have to make some repairs. I’m headed to the basement. Zane will be coming.”
“Zane is coming here? The Farmer’s harbinger?” She sounded a little too excited. Evy, on the other hand, rolled her eyes and ran off down a corridor that lit up as it detected her motion.
“Evy, come back! You’ll get lost in this place,” Cora said. She looked to Lithia for something, sympathy maybe, but Lithia just smiled. Cora ran after Evy.
Dione headed to the lift, but Lithia wasn’t following.
“I can’t lose signal. I need to be here to answer any of Zane’s questions. Plus, Evy will eventually come back.”
“I’ll help,” Brian said, moving to stand next to Dione.
“You sure you’re up to it?” Dione asked. His bruises looked painful.
“Yeah, it looks worse than it is.”
Dione and Brian headed down to the lower levels to better understand the energy problem. She was probably the worst one of the group to try to fix something like this. She understood biology far better than electronics, but there was no one else left to do it.
When they left the lift and went down the short hallway to the reactor room, she was expecting to see some large nuclear device that had been popular around the time this facility was built. After all, that sort of technology powered the space station. Or maybe solar energy, like she had seen at the Field Temple. What she found was completely unexpected. Before her stretched a row of microbial fuel cells. Not the small science fair projects, but the large industrial grade ones that had been developed to power entire towns
.
“Whoa,” Dione said. “Do you have these in your temple?”
“No,” Brian replied, “we have mostly solar cells.”
“I’m not surprised. These MFCs are extremely efficient and renewable, but they require a certain amount of maintenance. Maybe they were experimenting with them? I can’t believe they’re still functioning after all this time.”
“It sounds like they’re broken, though,” Brian said.
“Without regular maintenance, they can be a bit temperamental. Especially these older models. But a lot of them are still working.”
“They look newer than the rest of the equipment.”
“Maybe the Farmer, or Jameson, I guess, brought them and installed them later.”
The AI spoke through the intercom by the door, making Dione jump.
“At first, I had enough power for the weapon and the dampening field, but as power cells failed over time, I had to make choices.”
Actually, your algorithms dictated your course of action based on available data, Dione thought, but she wasn’t going to say it.
“The power going to the weapon was greatly reduced, making it ineffective.”
“It didn’t seem so ineffective to me.”
“The size and defensive capability of a small transport shuttle should have made it an easy target to destroy. At full power, the weapon can destroy entire mid-tier ships.”
Dione felt goose bumps run up her arms. That kind of fire power would have pulverized their shuttle, and not many colonies had them. No wonder the old AI had trouble controlling it. The research done here must have been well-funded to afford something that could take out mid-tier ships. Or the Farmer had deep pockets before his arrival.
“How many cells do you need to power the weapon?”
“Sixty percent would power the weapon and the other basic functions of this station. The reason it’s so high is because I’ll need to fire in swift succession. There will not be time to recharge once the Venatorians start their descent.”
“Did Zane really blow this many power cells?”
“No, but his actions disrupted the dampening field, and there was not enough remaining power to reinitialize the field. My attempts to stop him only made things worse. The power cells were not designed with a dampening field in mind.”
