Target 10 S3.5 Do What's Needed
His mad dash had lasted three minutes and forty-two seconds
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RJ huffed as he placed the three pieces from the fabricator on the desk. His mad dash had lasted three minutes and forty-two seconds according to Aida, and there'd been no change in Reby's condition.
Still, he went to look at her, just to be sure. Her face flushed with the heat of a fever, which looked like an improvement over the ghastly grey tone she'd had when they'd found her. She definitely looks better, even if Aida says she's the same.
He sat down at the desk, his mouth dry and his breathing still fast. Picking up the square base, he turned it around, examining all sides. Five centimeters tall and about twice that on each side, it was a mottled grey color typical of the materials used in the fabricator for electrical housing. Along two of the sides were the slots for the other pieces. The slot surfaces gleamed with particulated gold embedded into them. Interesting. Usually, connections were made with solid gold.
He flipped it to see the inside and found it shimmered like the slots with more particulated gold. The hole didn't go all the way through, though, coming to a point at the bottom. The sides were cut and angled as if to fit a specific shape. It nagged at him. It was so familiar, but he couldn't remember what it reminded him of.
Putting the base down, he slid one of the smaller pieces into a slot along the outside. It clicked into place. I should've picked up a power pack. Glancing at the door, then at Reby, he opted to rummage through Jemy's lab rather than run back to engineering.
Most of the storage containers lining the walls of the lab were empty thanks to putting their funds towards other things. Jemy's always complaining about that. So where would he put them?
Unlike Reby, Jemy didn't lock or protect his account or his assets on the ship. He'd explained once that there wasn't any point when both his shipmates could easily get past the protections. RJ was thankful for that since it saved him time accessing the inventory of the lab.
Shaking his head, he made for a container on his left. Jemy had put the power packs under the category 'Tool Accessories.' RJ kept them under the category of 'Power.' Jemy's logic isn't always logical. Pulling open the drawer, he found ten power packs recessed in holding-foam and arranged in order of size. But he certainly is organized in his own way. He snagged two of the mini-power packs and went back to the desk.
He snapped the power onto the thin rectangular power adaptors. What does it really do? The internal structure of the base was so complicated, overly complicated, for a communication interface. "Aida, have you analyzed the function of these pieces Obi wanted?"
"To some extent, yes. There's a portion I find difficult to assess, but I can confirm that there is a transmitter that will interface with the Demption's communication system."
"Yeah, I see that. I'm just wondering what all this stuff in the middle is about."
"Obi described it as a step-down transformer."
"Step-down?" He picked up the base piece. "What sort of power is he using?" He asked, more to himself than Aida.
"He didn't provide any information on the vessel."
"Hmm. I'm still trying to figure out how people his size would fit into a vessel small enough to fit on this. And how whatever it is would have so much energy it would need a transformer to interface with our comm systems." As he said the words, he realized how dumb he sounded. Aliens! Who knows what the hell they use for energy. He'd found no power sources in the weeks they'd been exploring the star. It just seemed to emanate from everywhere.
Undeterred, he studied the schematics again to convince himself it was safe to hook up the power. The patterns made no sense, so he started dissecting a section at a time from the 3-D blown out version of the plans.
A beep-beep from the autodoc made him rush over.
"She's waking up, RJ. But she still has a high fever. The med system is recommending a sedative to keep her still until it subsides."
Through the dome, he saw her eyes open. They were unfocused. She squeezed them shut, then opened again, this time coming to rest on him. A hint of a smile crossed her lips, and a tear dripped down the side of her face.
"Open it."
"RJ, the—"
"I don't care. Open it."
The dome slid aside, and he reached in and pulled her into a hug. Her arms wrapped around him, too weak to hold tight. He squeezed her as she rested her head on his shoulder. She trembled and her face burned on his neck. Still so hot. He pulled away until he could see her face. "It's ok. You're safe now."
"I, I don't feel..." Reby's voice shook and faded.
"Shh." He caressed her cheek. "Don't talk yet. You're running a high fever. The autodoc needs to cool you. I'm sure it won't be long. Everything's going to be ok."
She stared at him, her eyes welling up. "It hurts."
He helped her lie back down. "Rest, let the autodoc work and you'll be fine. Soon." Standing straight, he swallowed hard. "Take care of her, Aida."
The autodoc closed and Reby's eyes fluttered before she fell asleep again.
"Does she really need to be drugged to help the fever?"
"That's what the medical systems recommend to keep her stable and it will help with whatever pain she is experiencing. I can attempt to explain the biological processes involved if you wish," Aida offered.
"No," he said, still watching her sleep. "If it's going to help her, that's all that matters. She'll probably kill me later for it, though." His eyes watered and he tore himself away. Back to those schematics.
***
The wind stopped.
Jemy tore his gaze from the base of the disc. He didn't feel like he was moving now that the air was still, but his senses weren't convinced. To his left, the line of light on the wall remained steady, no longer a blur from the motion.
"Are you feeling all right?" Obi asked.
He blinked. "I think so. That was quite a ride." Darkness still surrounded him, though the light of the disc reflected off the wall to his left.
"You appeared not to enjoy it. I assure you the next part does not involve the disc, though you will need to use it to return to the teleporter."
"I probably would have loved it under different circumstances." He stood, doing his best to look ready for whatever he had to do next. "Where am I going? All I see is a wall."
A rectangle, half as tall as he was and just barely wider than his shoulders, slid aside. Whatever the black wall was made of continued inside. He bent down for a better view. At the base of the opening, four lines of dashed blue lights stretched inwards along either side of the shaft. "That's pretty small."
"My vessel is located in the central shaft of the star. You're on the edge of that now. It's only accessible by maintenance drones under normal circumstances. So I am afraid you'll have to squeeze through some tight spaces."
"Got it." He took a step towards the opening, then stopped. His senses told him the disc would tilt as he stepped across and dump him into the abyss below him.
"Is there a problem?"
"Just trying to convince myself this is safe to walk across."
"Of course it's safe."
"I know that intellectually. I think the lack of light is messing with my already overloaded senses."
Obi didn't reply as he shuffled across until he reached the opening and crawled in. He could stand, hunched over with knees bent. "Now what?"
"The blue lights create a direct path to my vessel."
"Got it." He followed the lights into the tunnel, pressing his hands against the sides as he went. The surface was smooth and slightly warm. Transitioning from a black open void into a black confined space was oddly comforting. Not unlike some of my digs, except for the alien voice in my head. A spark of excitement and curiosity pushed him on.
The lighted path turned left not too far in. His thoughts about where he was, what he might find when he reached the vessel, were pushed aside when an image of Reby flashed in his mind.
He stopped.
"Is Reby alright?"
"There's been no change in her condition according to your medical systems."
He frowned. "I guess that's better than getting worse." Beginning his trek again, he asked, "What about those details? The ones you said you'd tell me."
"Would you prefer to hear more about Clay or the nanite infection?"
"Let's start with the nanite infection." The tunnel turned again.
"I mentioned I believe them to be an early precursor to your immunity boosters. There isn't enough information to determine exactly when they were made, but it is likely to be thousands of years into your history, given their state of evolution."
He paused, resting back on his heels. "Wait. Evolved? Nanites don't evolve. They're built for a single purpose."
"My people have been studying lifeforms, their environments and their evolution for longer than your species has existed. I assure you my deduction is correct. The nanites are alive in the same sense as you, though they operate at a different level of consciousness."
"Are you saying they're sentient?"
"They are self-aware, yes. Living in symbiosis with their host."
He dropped back onto his butt and rubbed his temples. "This is so much worse. What are they doing to Reby? What do they want?" His gut twisted. His decision to come to the star, and stay there, adding a burning that traveled up into his chest.
"I realize this information is shocking to you, but I can assure you that if Reby survives, the nanites will not cause her harm. They will, however, try to keep her in close proximity to the others. We need to return to the ship before Clay frees himself."
"Right." He maneuvered himself upright and followed the blue lights as fast as he could.
***
When Obi said Jemy would have to squeeze through some parts, he hadn't been joking. Though the tunnel mostly maintained a consistent width, he had come across a few parts where bits of the wall jutted out like thick rectangular branches. The current obstacle forced him to slide on his belly to get through. RJ would never have fit.
"What else do we need to know about nanosyms?" he asked as he pulled himself through. The idea the creatures responsible for the infection were sentient still hadn't settled in. He couldn't imagine anything worse.
"They are highly adaptable and determined, doing everything necessary to keep their host alive and to propagate to one other host."
"'Everything necessary' sounds a little too vague for my comfort." He pulled himself back up into a hunched standing position after making it through a tight spot.
"I've observed Clay and the nanosyms for five hundred thirteen years. The list of what has happened in that time is extensive. I can summarize by saying that no matter what injury he sustained, the nanosyms healed him. They rebuilt him in some cases, as his attempts at suicide became more extreme. Once Marisil was created, however, his behavior stabilized."
He shuffled along a straight section, not allowing himself to stop to process Obi's information. The hair on his neck prickled. The sense that something bad was about to happen pressed like a weight on his chest. Even more, the anger that Reby had been hurt at all rushed to the surface. "You knew Clay was unstable, and you didn't try to warn us or stop us?"
"He had been stable for over three hundred years. Once you agreed to help him leave I had no reason to interfere."
"What about when he sent Marisil to kill RJ and I? Was there reason then?" He tried to stand and banged his head.
"I assumed you would all leave together for the plateau. Reby's determination to understand how the systems function was unexpected."
"You clearly weren't paying attention. That's the whole reason we're here!"
"We studied humans as a species prior to your ascension to space travel. It is more difficult to predict the behavior of one member, or a small group, of a species when they are not aware of their shared consciousness. However, all of your behavior prior to that point had been rational and predictable. Her decision to stay behind was not."
"You clearly do not understand humans. At all." Jemy emerged into a round room. He stood on a floor glowing with intense blue light. The chamber was snug, wide enough for him to stand comfortably between the outer wall and a central column. The walls were the same black, but tiny lights dotted them in no conceivable pattern. Most were white, though a few were red, purple, yellow, or green.
The column stretched up into another blue ring high above him and seemed slightly grey more than black. The side facing him was smooth and curved to match the outer wall. To either side of him, it extended out at a sharp angle, coming to a flat end.
"Now what?"
A click and a whirring sound came from the other side of the column. He sidled around the edge of the room, his back pressing up against the wall where the column extended out. Once past it, it looked like the other side, except for a round hole that glowed with a pale blue light had opened. The source of the light was an icosahedron, smaller than his hand, resting inside at the center of the column. He recognized the shape as one of the perfect geometric forms that obeyed the golden ratio. Just like Havenstar. At the center of each facet was a glowing blue symbol. Each was different, and more detailed, than any he'd seen elsewhere.
"This is my vessel. Don't take it yet. Once you do, Havenstar will go into an accelerated destruction sequence. We will have a limited amount of time, and there are things you need to know before we begin."
Jemy remained transfixed on the vessel. His heart raced, in part from what Obi had told him, part because the vessel was just the sort of thing he'd been searching for. Something about it was clearly not of human origin, though he couldn't pinpoint what made him so sure—and he would have, even if he didn't already know. The shape was familiar, and common in human societies. He'd need to study it more and narrow down the non-human qualities before presenting it to the Academy. But those thoughts crumbled and sank into the abyss created by recent events. "This is all sounding a lot more involved and much more dangerous than simply retrieving your vessel so you can come with us. Just tell me everything now. Please."
"All our facilities have a standard shutdown procedure for when the custodian leaves. One aspect of that is to make sure that there is nothing left behind that will endanger the life or environment we've been studying. Clay's existence is a significant threat to all life on this planet. I can't leave until he is eliminated. The destruction of Havenstar is the surest way to ensure the nanosyms are no longer a threat."
"Wait. You said the weapon would kill him."
"No. I said you needed the tool in order to kill him. It is designed to encase him in a glue-like material that will hold long enough for the disintegration of Havenstar to complete. It's the only way to be sure."
Jemy shifted back and forth. He'd thought he understood. Now it seemed Obi was shifting his plans. Again. "I think you're still not telling me the whole story. Now I'm not killing Clay with this weapon but gluing him to the floor or something, then flying away? With you in my pocket? Then Havenstar will self-destruct and we'll go along our merry way?"
"Essentially, yes. I'm trying to provide you with information as you need it, and not overwhelm you with potentially distracting details. Once we are secure on your vessel and Havenstar is destroyed, then I will answer all your questions until you are bored with the details. I can even provide you with coordinates where you can find proof of non-human construction within human controlled space. Once we are safely away."
His head snapped up. He took a deep breath in. "That feels close to bribery."
"An added incentive to our existing agreement. The alternative is you leave my vessel here and I continue on until Havenstar's systems fail of their own accord. When that happens, there will be no one left to ensure the nanosyms don't infect the life on this planet as Clay, or his symbiots, will create more of themselves."
Jemy ran that possibility through his mind. Would it be so bad? The answer came before he could object. Of course it would. Humanity would eventually make it out to Havenstar. It was more suitable to human life than some of the existing worlds in the CR. But all of that was moot. "You wouldn't let us leave without you, right? So none of that matters. Let's just get on with it."
"The destruction sequence will start close to the core, where Clay was trapped."
"At the core?"
"Yes, though you are levels above where he is—"
"I don't care where he is. You just told me I'm standing at the center of destruction!" He realized his breathing was fast and shallow. Calm. Stay calm.
"If you return immediately to the Demption after removing my vessel, there will be sufficient time before the sequence begins. However, Clay has escaped the room and is on his way to the docking bay. I've temporarily prevented him from using the teleporter, so it will take him time to get there. Again, there should be sufficient time for you to get there first and wait for him."
"What? Why can't we just take off and let him die when Havenstar blows up?"
"I'm sorry, Jemy. A full explanation will take too long. Just know that once my vessel is removed, the destruction sequence starts and the automatic protocols will activate. Teleporters will be fully operational, and all docking bay doors will open. I placed your ship at the dock closest to the core. Please wait until Clay arrives, secure him with the tool, then leave."
"What about Reby?"
"She is sedated and secured in your medical facility."
He stiffened. "What happened?"
"She woke, still suffering from a high temperature. The medical systems determined sedation was necessary. And RJ is a vigilant guard."
Somewhere inside of Jemy, a switch flicked. He went into 'always run' mode, just like whenever scavies had attacked their excavations. Do what I have to do and get the hell out. "Anything else?"
"No. Please take my vessel and return to the Demption."
He reached into the opening. As his fingers wrapped around the vessel, the light went out. It was cold to the touch. He slipped it into a pocket in his jacket that sealed shut.
Then he slid, scrambled and crawled as fast as he could.