by Ken Lozito
Gordon looked at Connor. “Can you agree to keep your weapons in their cases? Otherwise, I cannot allow them to remain on board.”
“Of course. That’s a fair request.”
Connor watched as Gordon looked at his wife, who gave a curt nod. The comlink closed, and Gordon turned back to Connor. “Welcome aboard.”
“I have to admit I didn’t expect anything like this. I didn’t know we had any research submarines at all. How long ago did you discover the site?”
“Our initial findings were just under two years ago. We were doing a survey to confirm whether any Vemus ships had crashed into the sea, and we found the outskirts of a NEIIS city. It quickly became evident that we needed more than a drone submersible to do a thorough investigation, so we built two Marlin-class research submarines and a Minnow-class observer. We keep them at a research platform about twenty kilometers from here, but they were built near the harbor.”
“When did you first discover the stasis pods?” Connor asked.
“We found a building that looks like it contains stasis pods, but we’ve been reluctant to touch their tech systems. That’s why we need your expertise,” Gordon said.
“Excuse me, Gordon,” Stephen Banks said from the helm station. “The other team has arrived on the Marlin Two. We’re ready to go.”
Gordon nodded and looked at Connor. “Even better, I’ll show you what we found.”
Connor and the others did their best just to stay out of the way on the small bridge. There was a main holoscreen at the front, along with the Helm workstation and a few others near them.
“Since this is such a significant find, why haven’t you told anybody?” Connor asked.
“Initially, we weren’t sure just how significant the find was. We didn’t finish building the Marlins until a few months ago, and in light of the events of several months ago, it seemed smarter to keep it to ourselves until we knew what we were dealing with. Instead, we concentrated on mapping the city, but then we noticed certain structures that hadn’t been found in any other NEIIS cities to date. This has been an ongoing effort, and while we’ve overcome some of the technical hurdles with our equipment, it turned out that we weren’t well enough equipped for actually dealing with the NEIIS interface,” Gordon said.
“Why haven’t you asked for help?” Connor asked and glanced at the camera feeds on the main holoscreen. As they left the surface, the murky waters became darker, and the Marlin’s exterior lights came on to illuminate the area around them.
“I had intended to contact Dr. Bishop, but that was around the time the ONI was established, and I didn’t relish the thought of somebody coming here to take over what we’ve been working on. I don’t care what jurisdiction they think they have. This is my project. Lenora would’ve understood that because Sanctuary was her project. Honestly, before you happened to show up at the mayor’s office, I’d intended to contact Dash DeWitt. Lenora had him listed as one of the primary contributors for NEIIS discoveries we’ve been keeping up with.”
Connor had no doubts that Dash could have helped with the NEIIS interface. “I guess I just got lucky then. How is it that you were brought into our meeting with the mayor?”
Gordon smiled and rested his knuckles on his sides. “I know people, and Larson can be reasonable.”
Connor suppressed a flash of irritation. His dealings with Larson had suggested otherwise, but he kept that to himself.
“This is why I don’t get involved in politics. I don’t envy your position. You’ve had a number of different roles in the colony—from hero to alarmist, and in some cases, a criminal. I just want you to know that I’m not here to judge you about the events that happened with the NEIIS bunker. I read the reports, and I understand what was in those reports, as well as the other things that might’ve been left out. In the end, I know you’re a good man. None of us would be here if it weren’t for you. Most colonists know this. If anything, you’ve probably been a little too honest with everyone,” Gordon said.
“I appreciate your honesty,” Connor said, and looked at the camera feeds again, but he couldn’t make out any details. “Wouldn’t a permanent underwater base make things easier to study such a significant find?”
“You’ve met with Larson. They’re more concerned about other things at this time. Maybe one day we could do something like that, but in the end, we’re just looking at an old city from a civilization we don’t really understand.”
As Connor nodded in reply, he thought he saw lights glowing dimly in the distance.
“As we get closer, the lighting we’ve deployed throughout the city will begin to activate. We have a good amount of it mapped out. Here, I’ll show you,” Gordon said.
The main holodisplay remained semitransparent so they could see the camera feeds, but there was also a map of the NEIIS city, highlighting some of the structures. The rounded architecture the NEIIS had used in their older cities appeared like stalwart figures emerging from the murky seabed. Connor saw that some of the buildings had toppled over.
“Banks,” Gordon said, “tell the Minnow observer to maintain a safe distance above.”
“Aye, sir,” Banks said.
Gordon looked at Connor. “There’s been some seismic activity, and we have sensors that will alert us, but you know… safety precautions.”
Connor noted that the other Marlin research submarine was less than eighty meters to the side of them.
“What else have you detected?” Connor asked.
“Sometimes the seismic sensors don’t alert us to some of the strong currents we’ve experienced.”
“What’s that?” Diaz asked, gesturing toward the main holoscreen.
A dark shape lumbered into view that appeared to be a giant arch stretching over a hundred meters across. Connor’s mouth hung open in astonishment. In all the other NEIIS cities they’d explored, they’d never seen anything like it. Some of the other sites contained stone megaliths but nothing like the arch they were heading toward. The fact that it existed, relatively intact, made this site unique among everything else they’d found.
“Do you know what it is?” Diaz asked again.
“We don’t know what its function is, but we do know it’s remarkably well preserved. We’ve detected a power source near the bases, and in fact, there are several areas around the city that have a power source. We believe they used geothermal taps like what was found in Sanctuary. My guess is that this area wasn’t always underwater,” Gordon said.
“Are you implying that this inland sea was created from a glacier?” Connor asked.
“There might have been a smaller body of water here. We’re still researching that, but the glacier theory does offer a lot of answers,” Gordon said.
Connor stepped away and walked closer to the main holoscreen. He peered at the buildings beyond the arch and enabled the tactical analysis protocols from his implants. They immediately started measuring the structures in his field of vision, and the analysis engine began to spit out preliminary findings.
“There seems to be a pattern among the discoloration on the buildings,” Lockwood said, “at least in this area. It looks like some of the buildings have been damaged but only to a certain height. How could there be so much water here if the initial glacier wasn’t this deep?”
“It was this deep. It’s just that the glacier wasn’t a huge block of solid ice that slammed itself against anything in its way,” Gordon said. “We asked several researchers to perform their own analysis of the surrounding area, and they believe there were soft layers of ice that swept through the area before it froze over. That prevented widespread destruction, and the rapid warming is another reason there are buildings intact. The chances of any of this occurring naturally are virtually nonexistent. But it’s all theory, and to be honest, we’re trying to fit the theory into what we can physically observe.”
Connor turned off his analysis engine. Lenora would’ve loved to have seen this. Given the opportunity, she might even have come
here despite being nine months pregnant.
For the next hour, Gordon gave them a tour of the NEIIS city. They made several passes. Near the outskirts was a chasm where a section of the city appeared to have fallen away. Gordon admitted that they hadn’t had time to investigate that area yet. The city resembled that of a ghost town, unwilling to give up its secrets in the murky underwater gloom.
“Exactly where did you encounter a NEIIS interface?” Connor asked.
“There’s a dome-shaped building near the arch. That’s where we think the stasis pods are. We think the dome is the reason that building’s still intact, despite being underwater,” Gordon replied.
“The NEIIS did use strong materials and definitely built things that lasted a long time. Do you want us to go there and take a look?”
Gordon nodded.
Lockwood came over to Connor.
“Sir, I don’t think I can do this. I’ve never been underwater. The testing we did with our MPSs were in fifteen feet of water. This is significantly more.”
“Don’t worry about it. You can stay on the bridge and advise us from here,” Connor said.
Lockwood nodded, looking relieved.
Connor turned his attention back to the arch, which they were steadily approaching. The silvery underside reflected the sub’s lights, which cast shadows amidst the sea plants that grew around it. Gordon guided them right through the base of the arch and leveled off their position just outside the dome-shaped building.
Gordon opened a comlink. “Marlin Two, we’re going to send a team in to look around.”
“Understood,” Isla replied. “Be careful. We’ll monitor from out here.”
Gordon closed the comlink and turned to Connor. “If you’ll follow me, we’ll get you suited up. Who else from your team is going?”
Connor glanced at Diaz, who gave him an affirmative nod. The same with Sims.
“I’ll stay behind with Lockwood,” Alder said.
“Three of us,” Connor confirmed.
Gordon led them to the lower deck where they had underwater exploration suits ready for them. They were similar to combat suits, so the training Connor and the others already had gave them a rudimentary understanding of what the suits could do.
“How’s the terrain outside?” Connor asked.
“Not that bad. We’ve been able to clear away a path along the existing roads the NEIIS built,” Gordon said as he stepped inside the exploration suit.
Like the Nexstar combat suits, these formed a protective shell around the wearer, negating the need for decompression. Three members of Gordon’s team joined them. They gathered together in the staging room and were sealed off from the rest of the sub. The staging room was on the lowest deck. Once it was sealed off, the room filled with water, and they were lowered to the sea floor. The area around them was well lit. It was clear that Gordon and his team had been there before.
Gordon led them out of the staging room. As they walked away, they were surrounded by remnants of NEIIS buildings. It was quiet since the rebreather didn’t release bubbles with any regularity. Gordon explained that once an hour they’d need to flush the tanks, but they could stay out there for over twenty-four hours if they needed to.
After they’d gone a short distance, Connor turned to look at the submarine’s dark hull, which lumbered behind them like a leviathan about to pounce. The thought made him smile, and he turned back around, continuing toward the dome-shaped building.
As they made their way, questions mounted in Connor’s mind. The NEIIS mostly used a mesh interface to access their systems, and that material would never survive on its own under the water. The only reason Connor hadn’t already questioned it was that he knew the NEIIS were capable of creating protective shells for their interfaces, but he wasn’t sure how well they would perform under extreme conditions.
They walked toward the entrance of their target building. Outside the entranceway was a standard colonial HAB attachment. Gordon told them it was sealed off so they could enter the NEIIS building without flooding it.
“Once we’re inside,” Gordon said, “I’ll take you to the main consoles we found.”
Connor was about to answer when they received a broadcast message from the other submarine.
“Away team, turn around and head back to the sub immediately,” Isla Summers said.
Connor glanced at Gordon questioningly.
“Say again? We’re about to head inside,” Gordon said.
“Seismic activity detected, and the underwater waves are on their way. Get back to your submarine, now!”
“Alright, we gotta cut this short. We’ll go back the same way we came in,” Gordon said.
A member of Gordon’s team each paired up with Connor, Diaz, and Sims just to make sure they stayed on the path. The group was quiet as they propelled themselves in controlled hops as fast as they could. Connor had no idea what would happen to them if they were caught when the strong currents came, but he knew how quickly things could change in an environment such as this, and he didn’t want to take the time to question it. He was the visitor here and was complying with the safety protocols of people who knew better than he did.
Sims stumbled next to him, and Connor moved to help him, but a member from Gordon’s team was already there.
“We have to keep going,” Gordon said, his voice sounding strained.
Despite going as fast as they could, if felt like they were moving at a snail’s pace, and Connor arrived at the conclusion that he preferred to be topside than operating underwater. In order to take his mind off of that, he wondered what had triggered the seismic activity. There certainly hadn’t been enough time for them to cause any of this.
The submarine was just ahead, and as Connor crossed the threshold into the staging room, he noticed there were several more anchor lines keeping it in place than there had been. When they were all through, Gordon sealed the doors, and they were lifted up into the sub. Connor saw the status lights flicker to green once the water finished flushing out.
Suddenly, Klaxon alarms blared and chaos broke loose.
20
“Colonel, all salvage teams within the vicinity of planet Sagan have checked in and are accounted for. The CDF survey team near the NEIIS site has reported renewed volcanic activity in the area,” Lieutenant Burrows said.
“How many salvage teams are there?” Sean asked.
“There are thirty-eight teams currently deployed, with six of those teams working from Sagan’s moons, Colonel.”
Major Brody glanced at him. “I didn’t know there would be so many.”
“Remnants of the Vemus Fleet from its engagement with Phoenix Station during the war left a substantial debris field that was drawn into Sagan’s orbit. The appeal of refined, high-grade materials is too much for us to pass up,” Sean replied.
He looked at the main holodisplay that showed the current status of the gravitational waves they’d detected, and he realized they were the only CDF ship in the vicinity that was capable of detecting those waves. The fact that the survey teams remained unaffected was a good sign but didn’t offer much in the way of an explanation.
“Dr. Evans, would you join me here?” Sean asked.
Oriana stepped away from the aux workstation and came over to him.
“What have you got?” Sean asked quietly.
“I think the waves are… It’s almost like the aftershocks of an earthquake. Think of a gravity wave as a ripple across spacetime, and we’re just seeing part of it. Traditionally, the causes of these waves are something massive, like a star or binary black hole system, none of which are in our vicinity. According to our records, the nearest black hole is over two thousand light-years away and is a single system,” Oriana said.
“That tells us what it’s not,” Major Brody remarked.
“There’s a theory that gravity has the potential for its effects to be observed across multiple layers of spacetime, but it’s a theory we’ve never proven, so there’s no ba
sis for its detection.”
Sean frowned in thought. “Are you saying these waves aren’t coming from our own universe?”
Oriana nodded. “Since there’s a lack of physical evidence that would readily explain what we’ve observed, I’m not sure what else it could be.”
“You can’t be serious,” Major Brody said and looked at Sean. “Colonel, there’s a simple explanation for this. We just need to find it.”
Sean looked at his XO. “Then keep looking for it. Meanwhile, give me a minute to confer with Dr. Evans, please.”
Major Brody left the Command Center and walked toward the tactical workstation.
Sean looked at Oriana. “How sure are you about this?”
“I can’t say it’s definitively that, but…”
“Alright,” Sean said softly. “Let’s say you’re right and whatever is causing this is from some other universe. Are we in danger? Could whatever is causing this have more of an effect in this universe?”
Oriana glanced away and crossed her arms in front of her chest. She shook her head. “I don’t know how to answer that.”
Sean stepped closer to her and spoke soothingly. “Calm down. I understand there’s no precedent for this. I’m just looking your instincts in this situation because right now, we’re blind to what this really means. Could be nothing, but if it’s not, we need to be ready.”
“Colonel, we’re on final approach to Sagan,” Lieutenant Burrows said.
“Understood, Lieutenant,” Sean said and looked back at Oriana.
“‘I don’t know’ is my answer. All the prevailing theories are that it takes massive amounts of energy to pierce the fabric of spacetime—energy beyond that of our main sequence star, to put it in layman’s terms. The evidence we currently have says we’re just seeing ripple effects, so we shouldn’t be in any danger.”
Sean smiled. “See, that wasn’t so hard.” Oriana started to reply, but Sean held up his hand. “I know you can’t be sure, but we can only make decisions based on the information available.”
Oriana returned to the aux workstation, and Sean turned his gaze toward the main holodisplay, looking at the status of the critical systems for the entire ship. Above the status report, taking up nearly forty percent of the view, was a high-res optical feed that showed Sagan’s crater-ridden surface. The planet’s mustard-colored surface was lighter in tone at the poles, where vast glaciers mixed with the rocky terrain. Sagan’s two small moons, Page and Halen, were orbiting away from view. At just under two thousand kilometers in diameter, Page orbited closer than Halen, which led astronomers to believe that Halen had been captured into Sagan’s orbit well after the star system was formed.
