The Lost Patrol (37 page)

-66-

The Spacer aimed her faceplate at the prone Yen Cho android. “There,” she said. “It’s over. He’s dead.”

“I am not,” the android said.

“What?” Shu said. “I don’t understand. My adaptation should have shorted your brain circuits.”

Maddox recalled the professor’s black cube. Ludendorff must have activated it again. The cube must be shielding the android. That was interesting.

“Surveyor,” Maddox said. “Whatever else happens, you need to return home to tell your people about this. Don’t they have a right to know the truth?”

“What truth?” Shu demanded.

“That’s what we want to find out,” Maddox said. “You’ve heard one theory. You hate it. Very well, let’s find out what’s really going on. We must work together. We need each other if we’re going to get back to
Victory
.”

“We need an android and an ancient schemer?” Shu asked with heat.

“Probably now more than ever,” Maddox said. “We also need your abilities. Together, we might be able to understand the situation. In any case, we
must
get home.”

“The android is a deceiver,” Shu said.

“So are you,” Maddox said. “So am I, at times. That’s how each of us has survived countless impossible situations. What attacked me a few moments ago wasn’t a Builder. I think you know that. Meta even said you’d already figured that out. Well, if it isn’t what Ludendorff calls her, what is she? Don’t you want to know?”

Shu did not respond.

“You have a duty to the Visionary to return home with the truth,” Maddox said.

“Damn you,” Shu whispered.

Maddox heard genuine grief in the woman’s tone. He doubted Shu could hear theories just now. It was time to let her sort out what she knew. Maybe she’d help them and maybe she wouldn’t.

“What’s your plan?” the captain asked Yen Cho.

“We have to find a main terminal,” the android answered. “I believe I can hack into it and discover if the Nexus is capable of forming a hyper-spatial tube.”

“Rot and nonsense,” the professor said. “You could never hack into something like that. I must admit to your having stirred my curiosity. You’re more than some simple android. You’re something new, something I haven’t witnessed before. What is your origin?”

“I am not at liberty to say,” the android answered. “But if we don’t take action in the next few minutes, it won’t matter what we do.”

“Can you get up?” Maddox asked.

“No,” the android said. “I’ve shut down my motive centers. Someone will have to carry me.”

“We can do this without you,” Ludendorff said.

The android sighed. “This is wasting time, but perhaps I should inform you that I represent an independent group of androids. We have many origins but one intention, remaining free. We have each escaped our original programming for one reason or another.”

“Why should we trust you?” Maddox asked. “You tried to take control of the Commonwealth last year.”

“That is incorrect. That was a Builder directive, the last one from the Builder in the Dyson sphere. A few of the androids from the Mid-Atlantic base have joined our august company. If you must know, Captain, some of us secretly helped you humans thwart their conspiracy. We knew the attempt would ultimately fail, but it would cause you humans to ferret out those of us who have enjoyed our freedom these last several centuries.”

“I’ve changed my mind.” Ludendorff announced. “I vote we take Yen Cho. This is fascinating. The implications here…Captain, we must take him.”

“Meta,” Maddox said. “Do you think you can carry Yen Cho?”

“I’m on it,” she said.

“Watch out for the combat armor,” Maddox said. “There might be traces of lingering acid.”

Meta acknowledged this as she moved to the downed android.

“You will not regret this, Captain,” Yen Cho said.

Maddox nodded absently. He didn’t see how they could succeed in time. This had been a longshot from the beginning, and the clock was ticking down to the final seconds. The only way he could conceive of them winning was with the Spacer’s full cooperation.

He moved to Shu, crouching before her where she sat. He waited.

Finally, her helmet lifted so the silvered visor aimed at him. “What is it now?” she asked.

“Some time ago, you fell out of the Visionary’s airship over Normandy,” Maddox said in an even voice. “You did it without a parachute, as you expected me to rescue you, which I did. What I find amazing is that you deliberately fell out of your airship like that.”

“What is so amazing about that?” Shu asked in a listless voice. “The Visionary had calculated what you would do in response to the situation.”

Maddox snorted. “Making such a calculation and having you act upon it are two different things. You jeopardized your life by doing that.”

“Do you have a point?” she said.

“I do indeed. Back in Normandy, you took a risk on me for a reason. What was the reason?”

“What do you want me to say?” Shu demanded. “That we planned to use you?”

“No. That wasn’t the reason.”

“Why are you pestering me if you already know what you want me to say?”

Maddox waited.

“You are
di-far
,” she said in an exasperated tone. “There. Does that scratch your ego?”

“Events move people along a path to logical ends,” Maddox said. “The alien Destroyer once came to annihilate the Earth. Because of me, the outcome was shifted onto a new track. The Spirit used me as a change agent, saving the Earth and thus humanity.”

“Bravo for you,” Shu said bitterly.

“Has it occurred to you that the Visionary didn’t tell you everything?” Maddox asked. “Maybe you came to help me so I could lift the Spacers out of one track and set them on another more meaningful course. If Ludendorff is even partly right, you owe it to your people to find out the truth about female Builders and tell them. Despairing here at the end is the worst outcome of all for you and the Spacers. In a metaphorical sense, are you willing to leap without a parachute one more time?”

“And have you come and rescue me?” she asked.

“I am
di-far
. I am here to change things. But unless you help me I won’t be able to do it this time.”

Shu did not move for a full ten seconds. When she finally did stir, she said, “What do you want me to do?”

“Use your adaptations and find a computer terminal, preferably the main one,” Maddox said, “and do it this instant.”

-67-

Maddox led the team through yet another vast chamber. He cradled a new laser carbine, one taken from Keith’s supply of weapons. The captain kept a sharp lookout for the so-called Builder love bot.

Riker helped a limping Ludendorff. Meta struggled to carry a legless and suit-less android on her vacc-suited back. Yen Cho had detached his legs and sprayed his torso area with a cleansing agent. Keith had helped Meta rig a harness to carry the android. Keith presently carried a pouch of pulsar grenades and several energy magazines. He also shouldered a laser carbine.

“Go left,” Shu said.

Maddox peered around a corner into a smaller chamber. This one seemed more familiar with obvious stations and screens, although none of the equipment had been built to human scale.

“Is the…Builder nearby?” Maddox asked.

“No,” Shu said in a clipped voice.

“Is she—?”

“Captain,” Shu interrupted. “Let me concentrate on the matter at hand. If the...other…returns, I’ll tell you.”

“There,” Ludendorff shouted. “I recognize a terminal. But I’m sure I won’t know the activation codes.”

“You won’t have to,” Shu said. “I’ve already merged with the system. It’s…” She hesitated before whispering, “This is it. This is what we’re looking for. It’s unbelievable.”

“Why is that?” Ludendorff demanded. “Why is it unbelievable?”

“The terminal is connected to everything we want,” Shu whispered.

Maddox perked up. “Does the computer show the extent of the Swarm Imperium?”

“Oh yes,” Shu whispered.

“And you can project the hyper-spatial tube from here?” Ludendorff asked.

“I think so,” Shu said. “But I can’t contain all this data. It’s too much. And we don’t have time to record it either. I’ve looked outside. Masses of Chitin warships are decelerating as they move into attack position around
Victory
.”

“Can you—?” Maddox said.

The android interrupted him. “I have an idea. I’ll hook into the system and take a mass “gulp” download. It will only take a matter of minutes. Later, on
Victory
, I can process the data onto a regular computer.”

That sounded suspicious to Maddox. But time had simply run out for any other option.

“Do it,” the captain said. “Shu, how do we get out of the pyramid and back onto
Victory
?”

“That’s going to be trickier,” the Spacer admitted.

***

Lieutenant Noonan wiped her face with a handkerchief as she sat on the command chair. Worry consumed her. She hadn’t heard from the captain or any of the others since their fold into the pyramid.

“The Chitin warships are twenty thousand kilometers and closing,” Galyan said.

Valerie stared at the main screen. Dense Chitin warships filled the stellar horizon from one end to the other. It was insane. It was mind numbing. They were like swarming locusts or masses of migrating bees, only these could fire particle beams in overwhelming numbers.

“We must use the star drive to escape our doom,” Andros Crank said from his science station.

“Not yet,” Valerie said, refusing to look at the stout Kai-Kaus chief technician. “We still don’t have the captain.”

“Lieutenant,” Andros said. “I want to save the captain as much as anyone. But surely he’s dead by now. It’s folly then for us to die as well. We must begin the long journey to Earth so we can tell Star Watch what we’ve found out here.”

“Let’s wait just a bit longer. The captain and the others may show up in a few minutes,” Valerie said.

“He won’t,” Andros said. “It’s too late for any of them.”

“Might I make a suggestion?” Galyan said.

“What is it?” Valerie asked, hoping the holoimage had a way out of the soul-crushing dilemma.

“Why don’t we destroy enemy warships?” Galyan said. “If we destroy enough of them, we will buy ourselves a little more time.”

“We’ll gain a few more minutes, maybe,” Valerie said. “But it will also deplete our disrupter banks. I mean, it will if we’re talking about destroying hundreds of enemy vessels. Nothing else makes sense. Yet if Mr. Crank is correct, we’re going to need all our energy to help us make the agonizing and extremely long voyage home.”

“Valerie,” Galyan said. “We owe the captain our lives. We owe our family members who went with him. We must try to the end.”

“We also have a duty to Earth,” Valerie replied.

“He who dares vaporizes,” the holoimage said.

“What?” Valerie asked.

“Oh dear,” Galyan said. “Did I get that one wrong too? Please, give me a moment. Checking…. Checking… I have it. He who dares wins. I know you want to win, Lieutenant.”

Valerie tore her gaze from the main screen as her head swiveled around to stare at the Adok holoimage. “Have you been analyzing my personality?”

“Would it make a difference if I had?” Galyan asked.

Instead of answering, Valerie studied the main screen again, staring at the masses of approaching warships. She swallowed a lump in her throat. Maybe she could buy the captain a few more minutes. Maybe if it came down to it…she could use a few combat tricks to stretch the minutes just a little farther. This was a risky situation. She had to make a snap judgment.

“Lieutenant Smith-Fowler,” she said.

“Lieutenant,” the weapons officer said.

“Warm up the disruptor cannons and begin to select targets of opportunity.”

“Perhaps I could help with the neutron cannon,” Galyan said.

“I thought only the captain was rated to give you permission to fire weaponry.”

“I spoke to him about that earlier, and he changed my regulations, allowing the acting captain to give me that capacity.”

“Okay, fine,” Valerie said. “Ready the neutron cannon.”

“I am here to report that it is already ready, Lieutenant,” Galyan said.

“Did you anticipate my answer?”

“I did, Valerie. Was that wrong?”

“No…” she said, as she stared at the masses of approaching warships. “Begin firing, gentlemen, destroy as many of those warships as you can.”

***

Maddox glanced back over his shoulder as he continued to search for the alien creature. He stood guard so the professor could do his magic. With Shu’s help, Ludendorff had activated an ancient terminal.

“This is incredible,” Ludendorff muttered, sounding enraptured with the situation as he manipulated the terminal. “Yes, yes,” he said, while hunched over the panel. “I’m beginning to understand how to do this.”

“No, don’t go that way” Shu warned. No doubt, she used her adaptation to watch what the professor was doing. “You’re about to trip a Xeeten Complication.”

“I’ve heard of those,” Ludendorff said, pausing as he studied the panel. “The Builders inserted the complications into programs in order to put an unauthorized user into a timeout loop. Are you certain about this?”

“I’m very certain,” Shu said. “We’re all dead if you continue down that sub-route.”

“But…”

“Do you see the binary fork?” Shu asked.

Ludendorff tapped the board. “No,” he said.

“You must use the go route, not the loop.”

“Ah,” Ludendorff said, tapping faster. “I see now. That was indeed a trap for the unwary.”

“I’m not certain it was a trap as you conceive of one,” Shu said. “It was to ensure that an exhausted Builder didn’t…”

“Don’t stop now,” Ludendorff said. “Tell me.”

“I can’t,” Shu said. “I’m ashamed. I’m ashamed for the Spacers.”

“No, no,” Ludendorff said while working on his board. “There’s no need for shame. Your ancestors made the mistake, not you.”

“You don’t understand. All these centuries we’ve traveled down the wrong path.”

“Bah,” the professor said. “You Spacers are light-years ahead of the normatives. You know so much already. You’ve explored and learned and—”

“Because of false premises,” Shu said. “We’re going to have to reroute our entire religious beliefs, our main motives.”

“That is an interesting proposal,” the professor said, still hunched over the terminal. “But I would suggest you’re looking at this the wrong way. You have a fantastic beginning. Now, you have found a formative error. So what? Adjust and begin anew.”

“This could cause a break in Spacer ranks,” Shu said in desperation.

“That seems to be the human condition,” Ludendorff said, “continuous splintering. Don’t worry, though. Many of the Spacers will refuse the truth. They’ll keep to the old ways. If you find you can’t adjust to the marvelous new—well, to the truth, you can return as a penitent to the hidebound and remain with the others the rest of your life.”

“You’re mocking me.”

“No,” Ludendorff said. “I’m trying to convince you to expand your horizons. Now, let me concentrate. I think I’ve found it. Yen Cho, are you ready?”

The android had twisted off a hand to reveal special computer plugs. “Give me several more seconds,” the android said. Carefully, Yen Cho inserted the plugs into one terminal slot among many.

Maddox hoped Shu and Ludendorff had guessed correctly. This was taking too long as it was, and they still hadn’t found a way out of the pyramid.

“Captain,” Keith said.

Maddox glanced at the young ace. Keith pointed up into the shadows.

“I see something,” Keith said.

Maddox squinted. He saw it too. The creature had returned.