Mutationem

by Phoenix Jericho

  “I suggest we seal off this area with a bigger blast tunnel in case the first fails. It would make it like an emergency hull,” said Connie.

  “That seems like overkill,” said Sophi.

  “I agree with Connie. Better safe than sorry,” said Merc.

  In silence they welded another section around the first. They were just about done when the com hissed to life with the captain’s voice.

  “You ladies about done? In twenty minutes our elliptical orbit has us flying the closest we will be.”

  “I hear you, Captain. It’s a green light to go,” said Connie. “I’m on my way to Command. I want to make sure we launch the probe at just the right trajectory or it will burn up.”

  “Well, get your ass up here now,” snapped Kriss.

  “Merc, when I give the signal, fire the blast plate. Do it exactly when I tell you, okay?”

  “Yes, sir!”

  Connie reached Command out of breath and immediately adjusted the ship’s angle to launch the probe. If the angle was too shallow, the planet’s atmosphere would cause the probe to rebound like a rock skipping on a lake. But, if it was too steep, the probe might hit too fast and either burn up from the temperatures generated by friction with the atmosphere or violently collide with the substratosphere.

  “Prepare to launch the probe in thirty seconds,” said Connie over the com.

  “I read you loud and clear. T minus thirty,” responded Merc.

  “Twenty seconds,” said Connie.

  “Roger that. T minus twenty.”

  “On my mark! Five, four, three, two, one, launch!” said Connie.

  A muffled boom could be heard as Merc detonated the blast plate.

  “I’ve got visual! Drone has separated from ship. I repeat, separation successful. The spring actuator has successfully launched the vehicle,” said Connie. “Estimated time for drone to hit atmosphere is 4.16 minutes. Firing drone’s thrusters in sixty seconds. Drone following plotted trajectory as simulated in navigation computers. Firing thrusters now. Drone is oriented correctly. Heat shield towards planet, outer atmosphere contact in one minute.”

  Even the chief science officer sounded tense. All eyes on board watched the computer-simulated path alongside the one superimposed over it of the drone’s path.

  “We will be losing contact with the drone any second now,” said Connie. “We are now in the blackout period. The next nine minutes and forty-five seconds will tell if our drone survives reentry.”

  It seemed like an eternity. Every person watched the changing LED numbers and tried to control their breathing. The fate of the crew was with the drone. The real fear was that its heat shield wouldn’t withstand the planet’s atmosphere—that the drone would burn up, and with it, the crew’s dreams.

  Ten minutes came and went. Eleven minutes went by. Connie was about to speak when the drone’s image popped back up on the monitors. Everyone screamed in unison.

  “All systems are responding normally! Engaging sequence to open pod.”

  But no one heard Connie’s voice over the yelling and screaming.

  “Activating pod separation explosion now!” said Connie. “Drone detachment complete. Activating rotors. All motors started, powering up normally. Beginning quarter reverse thrust now. Drone stable, velocity decreasing, drone is subsonic. Congratulations, everyone, we now have eyes on the planet. Sophi, it’s all you now, baby.”

  Sophi was sitting beside Connie in Command. She put on the telecom helmet, which had been altered to control the drone. “Roger that, Commander. My controls, now.”

  “Your controls,” repeated Connie.

  “Activating drone’s video live feed,” said Sophi.

  Instantly, a sharp image of Alpha-64 flashed across the ship’s monitors. Its image took everyone’s breath away.

  Pressing the com button, Kriss imitated a raspy sea captain’s voice.

  “By God, I see land.”

  Chapter Sixty-Nine

  The hanging figure pointed her toes, releasing the magnetic bond between the gravity slippers and the metal ceiling in Med Bay. Spinning around, Brooke pushed off from the ceiling and reattached herself to the floor. Fascinated by what she had just witnessed, she searched for the mechanism that opened the secret compartment in the fume hood. Brooke wasn’t sure exactly what to look for, but she knew it was on the back panel. Running her fingertips over the surface revealed nothing. There were no raised buttons, no depressions, and no sliding panels; instead, it was perfectly smooth.

  In exasperation, Brooke punched the back of the fume hood. This sudden pressure caused the hidden magnets to depress in their mounting springs, allowing the panel to swing open.

  Shelves of sealed glass pots contained cured green buds. Taking one especially potent-looking jar, Brooke rearranged the shelf to make it look like nothing had been removed. Putting the jar under her arm, she closed the secret panel. She knew exactly who would want to see her prize.

  Inside, her heart was racing. It was all she could do not to break out with a grin. Stealing Connie’s pot was the most exciting thing she had done since leaving Earth. Well, almost. Making love to Leea was first.

  She had slipped into Engineering unobserved and was stealthily making her way to the Hole when she heard a noise. Stopping abruptly, she crouched down and blended into the shadows. Someone was coming.

  Whoever it was sounded out of breath. Without any further warning, the approaching figure came into view and, before Brooke could move, walked right into her.

  “You just stepped on my hand!” Brooke blurted out.

  With a frightened shriek, the shadowy figure yelled back. “Who is there?”

  Brooke stood up.

  “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t see you,” said Jade. “I was just bringing lunch for the prisoner.”

  “I figured everyone was watching the launch of the drone,” said Brooke. “But it appears at least two people weren’t watching. You’re the girl who stood up for Leea at the trial.”

  “That was me,” the woman said defensively.

  “Well, just so there is no confusion, she’s mine,” said Brooke with a glint in her eye.

  Jade didn’t reply at first. “I just came to bring her some lunch.”

  The woman started to walk away. Undeterred, Brooke followed. They both soon arrived at the Hole, and were greeted by a light snoring noise.

  “Wakey, wakey, sleeping beauty,” said Brooke.

  Leea turned her head to the sound and opened her eyes. Seeing both women standing together made Leea smile. Stretching, she yawned loudly and crawled over.

  “Hello, girls. What a pleasant surprise. I didn’t expect my favorite women to visit me today. And together! That’s even more of a surprise.”

  “I brought your lunch,” Jade said quietly.

  “And I brought you something medicinal,” said Brooke.

  “And what would that be?” asked Leea.

  “It’s a surprise,” said Brooke. “Eat first and then I’ll show you.”

  While Leea was eating, Brooke scoured through Merc’s workbenches, looking for the items she needed. Picking up a small bernzomatic torch, she tore a long strip of paper out of a notebook wedged in a bookshelf. Carefully, she opened the jar and placed some pot into the paper, creasing it to form a V-shape. She rolled the paper up and twisted both ends tightly.

  Returning to the Hole, she asked, “Are you ready for dessert?”

  “Yes, I want my surprise,” responded Leea.

  The blue flame hissed to life as Brooke snapped the spring-loaded striker. Holding the joint in her mouth, she brought the flame up and lit the joint. Inhaling deeply, the tip glowed a bright red. As she passed the joint through the bars, Brooke exhaled the warm vapor. Its blue color hung heavy in the air, and Jade couldn’t help but inhale it as well.

  Withi
n a few minutes, all three women felt the relaxing effects. It wasn’t long until they began to chatter and laugh like young schoolgirls.

  One thing led to the next, and before long, Brooke and Jade were kissing, with encouragement from Leea. Even though the iron bars of the Hole kept her from physically touching the women, she could still watch, and watching was the second-best thing. Like the director of a naughty film, Leea set the scene and watched her creation unfold. The participants were so easily led that the outcome was never in question.

  Soon both women were naked, covered in sweat, and relaxing in the post-coital climax of spent ecstasy. Like a den mother, Leea watched over her girls protectively as they lie entwined, their hands reaching between the bars to hold hers. They were on the verge of slipping off to sleep when the silence was pierced by an awful alarm.

  “It’s the smoke detector! Quick, get dressed and run!” yelled Leea.

  Soundlessly, Brooke and Jade pulled their clothing on and ran towards the entrance. Passing a workbench, Brooke saw a plugged-in soldering gun. Above the gun was the shelf that had contained the notebook. Acting on impulse, she pulled the notebook out and placed it over the gun, then chased after Jade.

  The guards posted at Engineering, alerted by the alarm, came running into the room, unaware of the two shadowed silhouettes that crept past. The book had caught on fire, and yellow flames were turning the white pages into sheets of carbonated, fragile ash. Instinctively, one of the guards beat on it with her open hand, but the book was engulfed like a campfire log in hot coals. The other guard pulled the soldering gun out of the electrical socket and grabbed a fire extinguisher, spraying the book and counter. In a matter of seconds, the fire was out.

  Just then, Merc burst in. “What the hell is going on?”

  “We don’t know, sir. All we know is that a fire alarm went off from a smoke detector located in the ventilation system. Hearing the alarm, we ran in here and found this book on fire,” said the guard. “We had just put it out as you got here.”

  “Good work,” murmured Merc as she looked everything over. Why was the soldering gun plugged in and turned on, and what was the chance that an open book would have fallen on it in space?

  “Did you see anyone when you came in?”

  “No, sir,” said both guards in unison.

  “You are both dismissed. Go back to your post,” said Merc. “I’ll handle it from here.”

  Merc couldn’t come up with any logical scenarios that explained the fire. Walking over to the Hole, she directed her attention to the supine form of Leea.

  “You didn’t see or hear anything unusual, did you?”

  “No,” replied Leea. “I was trying to sleep when that damn alarm went off. Maybe it was a ghost.”

  “Yes, the captain will like that response,” replied the commander. Walking back to the counter, Merc wiped off the foam-covered remains of the book as the com crackled to life.

  “Stat report in Engineering,” said Kriss.

  “It was a small fire, sir, but it caused minimal damage and is out now,” replied Merc.

  “What started it?”

  “A hot soldering gun ignited a book that had been placed over it,” Merc responded. “I think it was sabotage, sir.”

  “Sabotage? On my ship? Get your ass up here and review the video feed. I want that SOB thrown in the Hole now!”

  Chapter Seventy

  The drone was operating flawlessly, reacting to all mental directions sent to it via the telecom helmet worn by Sophi. She had been briefed by both Connie and the captain, and her orders were clear: to map and scan the whole planet. It was an overwhelming task, and even with the aid of the orbiting ship acting as a GPS satellite, time-consuming. The orbit of the ship had to keep being altered, as well, because unlike the luxury of Earth having multiple GPS satellites, the drone only had one. They had to keep pace with each other so as not to lose contact, given the curvature of the planet.

  The ship was orbiting at 20,000 mph and was 250 nautical miles above A-64’s surface. The drone was only about ten miles from the surface, but it had to keep up and stay in the same radius as the ship. The drone was flying at supersonic speeds, and thanks to its incredible cameras and sensors, the ship’s computers were building a 3-D image of the exoplanet in Command to replace the hologram. Connie was monitoring the process and giving Sophi verbal commands. This went on hour after hour until fatigue set in.

  “Connie, can you program the drone to follow the ship’s orbit and keep both vehicles in alignment? I don’t know how much more of this I can take,” said Sophi. “I know this has to go nonstop, but this is a big planet and I can’t do it alone.”

  “You keep flying the drone, and I’ll see if I can write a program to run the drone through the ship’s main computer,” replied Connie.

  Kriss overheard the conversation. “Smitty, get Spuds on the com and have her deliver some strong black coffee on the bridge.”

  Just then, Merc walked into Command. “Captain, I’m here as requested.”

  “Not now, Merc. That matter can wait. I’ve got bigger fish to fry,” said Kriss, looking up at the growing image of A-64.

  Merc glanced up and was awestruck by the floating image. It was huge, and so green.

  “So far we haven’t found any water, which puzzles me,” said Connie. “The planet has some source, obviously; without it, there would be no dense vegetation or clouds, and Alpha-64 has both.”

  She sighed. “The drone’s radar shows there is some topography, but nothing like Earth’s. So far, the lowest valley is a thousand meters below the highest peak, which makes our new home pretty flat. The drone indicates the planet’s temperature is a stable seventy-two degrees. Both suns are perfectly aligned with the planet. I had suspected there might be more overlap, with their orbits resulting in hotter areas, but so far it appears I was wrong.”

  Connie was in another dimension, the audible voice of the drone. Sophi controlled the flight of the drone, but Connie monitored its feedback, which flashed into her artificial eye monitor. The images were flashing so rapidly that a normal human being would have soon become mentally exhausted. But the chief science officer wasn’t normal; her mental capacity was awe-inspiring. The only sign that she was engaged in an incredible mental feat was that she was sweating. Connie looked like an endurance athlete in July, her face an oily, humid mess.

  “The drone is sensing that the soil is rocky and has a complex makeup of minerals and organic compounds,” said Connie. “All important building blocks of life, but where is the water?”

  An audible beep sounded in Sophi’s telecom helmet. “I’ve got movement! I repeat, I’ve got movement!” she yelled.

  “Throttle down the drone and descend its elevation to four miles,” ordered Connie.

  “Yes, sir,” replied Sophi.

  Everyone watched the monitor, anticipating the first sighting of what alien life might lurk below. The drone descended to a lower elevation, and its cameras scanned the area intently. No movement could be detected.

  The tension was incredible; no one knew what might appear. It was like starting out all over again, with everything they had learned on Earth about plants and animals thrown out the window. On Earth, the dominant species was mankind, but no one knew if they would be that lucky again. On this planet, humans might be the prey.

  The drone made several passes over the area where the movement had been detected, but nothing new was observed on the monitor, and the bio scanner indicated no above-normal heat signatures indicating life.

  “Unless the movement was caused by a cold-blooded organism or an insect-type creature, the drone indicates nothing,” said Connie.

  Her voice broke the silent trance on the bridge, and the room filled with nervous voices asking questions.

  “I’m sorry, ladies. No UFO today,” said Connie. “The planet is covered with a de
nse forested canopy. It’s basically flat and rolling with slight elevations and valleys, and it seems plants cover everything. Even if there is a life-form down there, it will be hard to observe until there are boots on the ground. I’m now going to drop some small seismic charges and see if we can determine what is below the surface.”

  Connie caught Sophi’s eye. “Drop charge number one on my mark.”

  Nodding in response, Sophi said, “Ready when you are, sir.”

  “Maybe those charges will flush out something to look at,” grunted Kriss.

  “Dropping sequence begins now,” said Connie.

  “Roger that. Bombs away!” cried Sophi.

  Everyone watched the monitor. The drone’s aft camera was focused on the area where the charge had been dropped, but it was so dense, and the charge so small, that there was not a visible explosion. Disappointment was evident on all the crew’s faces but Connie’s. She made a gleeful noise when a seismic wave of activity was detected, and started to map the subterrestrial landscape of the planet.

  “Okay, drop charge number two!”

  “Roger that. Bomb two is away,” said Sophi.

  They kept this up for one complete revolution of the planet. It was impossible to map every square inch of Alpha-64, but this initial journey gave the chief science officer a good idea of what was beneath the surface.

  “It appears our new home has several fault lines below its surface. This indicates that just like Earth, this planet has some form of plate tectonics, and that large parts of the surface are shifting or have shifted at one time,” said Connie. “The drone doesn’t sense any geothermal areas or volcanic activity, so logically I can’t determine what has caused these fault lines. I’m not sure if it was a subsurface cause or something like a giant meteorite. If it was a meteorite, then the resulting basin has grown in.

  “Wow,” continued Connie, “the thermo scanners sense a large mass at the planet’s core, and this area is frozen. In fact, it is -104 degrees Fahrenheit. My god! I have found the source of water! The center of Alpha-64 is a giant frozen lake!”