AMP Colossus (9 page)

For two weeks, we sat and watched as the Grell repaired the elevator tracks below. Many ideas of what we could do to stop the progress had been brought up for discussion. None of those ideas had potential outcomes that would make them worth doing.

I spoke. "Colonel, we are going to hit the point of not having supplies. If we can’t feed or hydrate ourselves, we won’t be long for this world. Should we consider taking that elevator down to just above the repairs? We could easily rappel from that height."

Colonel Calder replied, "Yes, we could, but where are we going to go from there? If there is a garrison of Colossuns just outside that shaft, we would have to fight our way through them. We don’t have the weapons required to be successful, and I won’t subject my men to a suicide run."

I continued, "What if we drop in with the jammer going? I’m sure they aren’t all tethered to a comm link like the few in the shaft. If we catch them in that state of seeking a link, we could possibly take them out by hand."

The Colonel replied, "You are scaring me, Grange! You are sounding like a gung-ho Marine, while I am trying to be the voice of reason. How did we switch roles?"

I chuckled and replied, "I don’t know, Colonel. All I do know is that we need to take action of some sort."

The Colonel pointed her finger in thought before speaking. "Bring up a surface map on your arm pad… OK, show me where you first landed the harvester… we are only about eight kilometers from that point."

I replied, "What are you thinking, Colonel?"

The Colonel replied, "I’m thinking we take a force, make the trek across those dunes out there, and see if that hole you drilled can be descended into. If so, we may be able to drop a company or two in that tunnel you fell into before."

I thought for a moment before I replied, "I like where this is going, Colonel. If we can get in there and take control of one of those air locks, we might be able to seal off one of those mines. It would at least give us some breathing room."

The lights in the port shut down. The silence also told of the air handlers going offline. The Colossuns had cut power to the port. Our time was limited.

I spoke. "How long before the air in here runs out?"

The Colonel replied, "It’s a big space, but we have eleven hundred Marines in here. I would give us only a couple days. After that, we are on our own air supplies, probably a week tops with our extractors. The air outside is too thin to sustain us. I would give us a month topside. Of course, we could open the air locks in here and get that same month without going out there. The clock is ticking either way."

One of the Colonel’s aides then came in with a report. The water facilities had been shut down. Water in the pipes was draining downward.

I spoke. "I say we send a team out to inspect that hole, Colonel. If it looks passable, we move out of here."

Ashley stepped into the conversation. "I’ll take the team out, Colonel. You want intel, I’ll bring it. And yes, Don, you can go with."

I pushed open the maintenance door to the outside. The heavy winds pushed back. The temperature on the surface of Ponik was cold. We were in the far northern hemisphere of the planet. The temperatures around the equator were moderate as compared to here, but remained cool by Human standards. The air was dry, and heavy winds pushed swirls of dust into vortexes that crossed the plain in front of us. Small sand dunes dotted the otherwise hard and frozen landscape. The Grell we had rescued came with us as an advisor.

I spoke as we walked. "So, Derpa, I would guess there are parts of this planet where vegetation grows? Our initial scans didn’t show much."

Derpa replied, "I do not know these things, Don Grange. My entire life I have lived in Embry Central. For twelve years, my primary job has been to maintain those elevators. Being in that shaft, doing those repairs, is the closest I have ever been to my planet’s surface."

I replied, "Well, what do you think after your first look?"

Derpa nodded. "It is indeed beautiful. Cold, but the light surrounds everything. The blue sun is like nothing I have ever seen. I wish all of my people could be here with us."

I replied, "Well, we are going to work on that. We are in need of the natural resources of your planet, and we are willing to trade security from the Colossus Empire for it."

Derpa looked up at the sky. "You have a great fleet of ships to drive them away? Where are they?"

I replied, "We are working on it. At the moment, we need raw materials, and Ponik seems to be rich in them. You provide us with the materials we need, and we keep the Colossuns away at first and teach you how to do that on your own later."

We soon arrived at the harvester’s drill hole. The rappelling ropes were strung together and lowered into the abyss. At three hundred meters into our one-and-a-half-kilometer descent, we switched on our helmet lights. The deeper into the hole we went, the more the temperature moderated. At every five-hundred-meter mark, the rope was spiked down to the rock wall as a precaution. Only twenty men were allowed on any section of rope at a time. The rappelling ropes were strong, but they had their limits.

When we reached the bottom, I walked across the repaired surface.

I spoke. "All we need is to cut through this tunnel lining. Keep in mind that the pressure inside is higher, so when that cut opens, we are going to get a rush of air through it."

Ashley waved her arms at the first Marines to arrive. "Get those plasma ropes laid out over here. I want a fat circle cut through this so we can rappel into the tunnel below."

I raised the Colonel on the comm. "Colonel, have your people stop coming down until we get a hole cut. If this doesn’t work, we will have to go back up."

The Colonel replied, "Roger that."

The plasma ropes were laid in a two-meter-diameter circle. We stepped back to the other side of the hole as the rope was set on fire. The plasma rope, as it was called, was constructed of materials that would burn white hot. With extreme temperature, it would melt through steel or other structural material, leaving a hole in the shape of the rope’s layout. We had used it many times to cut through the deck plating on ships when an assault was under way.

As the white-hot plasma easily cut through the tunnel material, there was a problem. The plasma burned completely through, but the rush of air pushed it back away from its intended target. When the rope had burned out, a thin layer of material was still present around most of the intended cut.

I spoke. "Hand me that rope, and you three hold on. I’m going to jump up and down to see if I can pop that plate the rest of the way through."

The end of the rappelling rope was tied around my waist. On the third hop, the cutout gave way. It dropped the hundred meters’ distance to the tunnel floor below. I was left dangling from the rope, just below the ceiling.

I spoke. "OK, well, that was fun. How about you people either haul me up or lower me down."

The Colonel replied, "We are bringing you up. Rappelling lines will be up in a sec. This is Calder; you can proceed down the harvester hole. Madison and Hoffitz, when you hit the bottom, put your men in defensive positions along those walls. We are vulnerable until we get the last man down."

After rappelling, I stood beside the Colonel. "Colonel, should we have left a squad or something at the port to keep it sealed shut? We don’t want the Colossuns to be resupplying themselves from there."

The Colonel replied, "I left Fourth Company. Their mission is to make sure those giant bay doors don’t open and that the elevator does not make it to the top. They have supplies that will last them for two months."

I replied, "Glad you are covering the bases, Colonel. I tend to charge ahead sometimes without thinking things through. It’s good to have a planner who can cover my mistakes."

With the air leak detected, the massive tunnel air lock doors closed and sealed shut. I took a squad towards the air lock that had previously been manned by Feldew Hoffis. The Colonel and her Marines headed for the mine at the other end.

After a short walk, we reached the air lock control room. As I looked in through the glass, I was disappointed that Feldew was not the Grell on duty.

I stepped through the doorway with my blaster raised and spoke. "My name is Don Grange. I was hoping Feldew was here. How long is your shift, and when would you expect him back?"

The startled Grell stuttered as he stepped backwards, "I, I, uh, who are you?"

I replied, "We are here to liberate your planet from the Colossuns. Where is Feldew Hoffis?"

The Grell sat down before he spoke. "When I arrived, two soldiers had traveled with me. Feldew was executed on the spot for high crimes and his body dragged away. I wish you had not come here. I will now receive the same fate as Feldew… my family will have no provider."

I spoke. "Well, if you help us to keep that door closed, we will see to it that you stay alive. Think of this as the beginning of the revolution. Your children will be the first in centuries to grow up free."

Gont Beagis moved slowly at first, unsure of our true intentions and of the fate that would either kill him or set him free. After several minutes of quiet contemplation, he turned to his console and began to type.

Gont spoke. "I am setting the door into maintenance mode, Mr. Grange. It can only be reset from this room. So long as you remain in control here, the air lock will remain closed."

I replied as I placed my hand on his shoulder, "Thank you for trusting us, Gont. I know this is all sudden, but we need this door to remain closed just as much as you do."

Gont replied, "If that door opens, I am dead, Mr. Grange. You left me with little choice."

After several minutes of instruction, we left the squad of Marines to guard the air lock heading to Embry Central. There were sure to be visitors on the other side in a short period of time, but we had Gont’s reassurance that the door would not be opened.

I talked with Ashley as we walked along. "It’s probably a one- or two-hour walk. We never went in that direction when we were here before."

Ashley replied as she jumped two meters into the air beside me, "Is your suit adjusted for this gravity?"

I checked and spoke. "No. What did you have in mind?"

Ashley replied, "Set your suit for a 10 percent assist, and we can run that distance in fifteen minutes. Raise your oxygen level by an additional 2 percent, and we should hardly be winded by the time we arrive."

I replied, "I don’t know why I hadn’t thought of that myself. OK, let’s see how fast we can go!"

We were soon bounding along, covering ten meters with each step. I had forgotten how running at those speeds gave you a superhuman feeling. I was soon reminded of what it was like as I planted my foot in a divot that I was not expecting. I was sent head forward until I eventually crashed into the ground, flipped, and rolled repeatedly over. When I had finally come to a stop, my wife was standing over me.

Ashley spoke. "Are you done screwing around? I would like to catch up with the others."

With that, Ashley turned and sprinted off down the tunnel. I was up and after her in an instant. Her stride was a thing of beauty as she effortlessly stepped and sprang to the next foot-plant. I was having a difficult time keeping up.

When we had finally caught up to the others, we slowed to a walk. I placed my hands on my hips as I attempted to catch my breath.

Ashley spoke. "You didn’t listen to me, I see. I’m not going to have to carry you, am I?"

I replied with heavy breath, "You… don’t have to worry… about me. I prefer to do things my way."

Ashley replied, "You forgot to dial up the oxygen, didn’t you?"

I spoke as I took a long, deep breath. "I prefer to think of it as
overlooked
."

The Colonel stepped up beside us. "I just spoke with the team at the port. The Colossuns attempted to move the elevator. We successfully blocked that from happening. The Colossun ships have returned and are probing, attempting to find access into the port. Major Dennison thinks they have things sewn up tight. I’m a little worried that we may be unprepared there. Do you have any idea of how big the mine is or of how many Colossuns we can expect?"

I replied, "I’m hoping that they sent most of those androids to Embry Central. I have no idea of just how large the mines are. From the size of that ore train that passed me the last time I was here, I would say the mines are substantial."

A voice came over the comm. "This is Evans with Zulu Squad. We have reached the air lock and have secured the control room. Looks like we are about two kilometers ahead of your position."

Calder acknowledged, "Hold that position, Evans. We are only a few minutes out."

The Colonel switched channels. "Listen up! We are moving to a slow run over the next two kilometers. Make your adjustments and move out."

It was fascinating to see how quickly the Marines reacted to the order. We were left behind as they bounded effortlessly away from our position. Ashley began to run, and I was right alongside her.

Ashley spoke. "Don… dear."

I replied, "Yes… dear?"

Ashley shook her head as she looked over at me. "Did you adjust your oxygen level?"

I replied, "No. Nobody said to!"

She smiled sarcastically as she spoke. "Am I going to have to hold your hand through this?"

The Colonel and her aide both chuckled.

I replied, "You really know how to kick a guy in the gut, don’t you."

Ashley spoke. "You make it too easy, hon. I’m just trying to mentally toughen you up before we meet up with any Colossuns."

I replied, "Well, at least the Colossuns aren’t so condescending. I’m starting to think they might be my preferred adversary."

Ashley smiled as she replied, "I’m only following my vows, dear: to love, honor, and chastise, ’til death do us part."

I spoke. "I believe that was
cherish!
"

Ashley again smiled. "Yours said
cherish
; mine said
chastise
."

As I turned to give her another sarcastic smile, I again lost my footing. We had reached the air lock. Instead of coming to a standing stop, I flopped over, spun, flipped, and slammed directly into the air lock door. Nearly a thousand Marines were staring at my folly.