The little girl waddled over to Sam, her arms outstretched.
Min Lei Thorn was the first child born of a mixed couple—father from Redemption, mother from Jīnsè Base. She was a beautiful child, lively and full of life, a stark contrast to the gray gumdust home in which she lived.
“May I?”
Her mother nodded. “Please.”
Sam held out his own new mech arms. It was easier to have a human form, to navigate the human world without crushing anything with his heavy treads or breaking through a doorframe in a creche.
He lifted her into the air, and she squealed with delight.
The food riots were over, and the new Agricultural Annex was up and running. Things would get better.
And children like Min Lei would grow up in a whole new world.
—Sam’s memory cache, 10.17.2166
Sam ran along the old highway, powering his way northeast toward Martinez Base. The rusting hulks of transports—cars, buses, hovercraft—littered the lanes, an obstacle course of pain and death.
Sam soaked up sunshine for power as he ran.
He was radio silent. He didn’t want to alert the Martinez Base defenses that he was coming, though he might have been spotted upon his descent.
He’d asked Alpha to do a deep dive through the archives to see what they might have missed about the base. As he ran, the data streamed down to him on a narrow x-band link from the Launchpad.
…receiving: data > historical > Martinez Base…
There wasn’t much. The base had made it through the worst of the Crash more intact than many of the other earthbound facilities, one of the primary reasons they’d chosen it for initial exploration. If they could restart its fabrications facility, this whole Return Mission would become that much easier.
There were also some indications of extensive on-site storage facilities that held both biological samples and mech replacement parts. Sam had been hopeful about the former—if DNA, seeds, or other parts or records of the Earth’s flora and fauna had survived, it would make Earth’s long-term recovery easier.
So who, or what, had fired upon the Zhenyi? It was unlikely that humans had survived the long winter, but he couldn’t discount the possibility out of hand.
It could also be a damaged AI, like Dek up on the Launchpad.
They hadn’t counted on there being an active AI on-site, much less one that seemed intent on harming human beings. That would violate one of the core tenants of an AI’s mission.
Sam detoured around a wide, collapsed crater that had taken out half the highway. Atmospheric radiation signatures were lower than expected—the zongies were doing their job, scrubbing the atmosphere clean one tree at a time.
What other secrets does Earth still hold? Sam had sent his dropnauts in unprepared and unaware of the potential dangers, and now they might pay a heavy price for his ignorance.
It was strange being immersed in Earth’s deep atmosphere. He’d done it in simulation along with his crews, but he had underestimated the vast scale of the planet. Though his sensors assured him otherwise, the horizon seemed distant beyond imagining.
Humans had once ruled this vast place, or thought they had. He understood their hubris—he’d been guilty of it himself. I let my knowledge blind me. How could he hope to save an entire world when he couldn’t even safeguard a handful of people? His ambitions seemed like folly in the face of such vastness.
Martinez Base awaited him beneath its shimmering blue dome. He would be there soon enough, and then he would do what he could to help. All I can do is try.
He would reevaluate the wisdom of his choices later.
…schedule: project evaluation…
He ran on.
Ally climbed the ramp into the heavy lifter and stopped to stare.
“What’s going on?” Tien tried to look over her shoulder.
Ally moved out of the way. “I… I don’t know.”
Tien slipped past her and stopped to stare.
Cimber was sitting on the floor on what had to be the bridge. The cyber dog had split in half, and a cable snaked out from a pulsing red sphere inside her. An access hatch was opened under one of the ship decks, and the wire appeared to be plugged in somewhere inside it. “What in the hell?”
The lights of the bridge were on. Ally was surprised the ship still had power after all this time. Probably an atomic core. There were five stations around the curved bridge, each with their own decks and viewscreens.
She’d been fascinated by the idea of spaceflight as a girl and had studied everything she could find about the old spaceships, NAU and otherwise. These heavy lifters were used for hauling cargo up into space, for the various stations, the moon, and beyond.
She ran her hand along the ship’s deck. Blue lights lit up the edge of the ship’s control panel. Beautiful. To be able to pilot one of these things…
Tien stepped past Cimber’s split form to touch the smooth ship deck. “These Humber Class ships were first-rate haulers. They could carry up to half a million pounds with an antigrav x-drive assist.”
Ally looked at her with new respect. “I’m impressed.”
Tien flashed her the smallest of smiles. “I’ve always loved the big ships.”
“Me too.” Ally used to dream about flying one of them up into space as an astronaut and exploring the solar system. It had always seemed an absurd fantasy.
“Any idea what your little robot dog is doing?”
Ally shook her head. “I’ve never seen her like this before.”
“Where did you find her?”
“She’s always been with my family. She belonged to my father before me.” She closed her eyes. She could still see Drake Thorn’s face, hear his delighted laugh when she told him another fact about one of the old spaceships that she’d dug up in the archives.
“Is he…?” Tien was staring at her, but it was a kind gaze.
“Yeah. Couple years now. He died from cavern sickness.”
Tien raised an eyebrow. “What’s that?”
“A nasty illness that starts with a heavy cough that never gets better. It’s… pretty awful.” She closed her eyes, seeing her father wracked with coughs, bringing up blood on his white sheets. “It started a couple decades ago… it’s why there are so few of us left. It’s why we have to find antibiotics to help our mother.” She glanced at Tien. “But now that you’re here…”
Tien nodded. “We have wide-spectrum antibiotics that will probably help. If we can get her here, or if I can get to Boundary Peak. I’d love to examine her.”
“Really? That would be amazing.” Maybe this quest hadn’t been for nought.
“Of course. Maybe we can get her up to the station for treatment, though I’d want to make sure her condition isn’t contagious first.” Tien sighed. “If we can get ourselves back up there. We’re down a ship, after all.”
Ally looked around for the hatchway that would lead to the main hold, finding it at the back of the cabin. It was a standard palm plate. Probably locked, but it wouldn’t hurt to try. She was curious what the Humber had been hauling.
She reached for the plate.
“Please stay within the safety of the bridge.” The voice came from above. It was strong and female-sounding.
“Is that the ship AI?” Tien ran her hands across the ship’s smooth white navigation deck. Icons popped up and danced across the screen.
Ally frowned. AI? She watched her jealously. How do you know how to do that?
She’d thought these people were angels at first, sent from heaven.
Well, not literally. She wasn’t sure she believed all that stuff Great Grandpa Astin used to spout about demons and angels, heaven and hell. But she’d hoped they were here to do good.
Still, how could she really know for sure?
“The ship-mind is active, but… that’s weird.”
“What’s that?” Ally leaned over her shoulder to look at the deck.
Tien expanded something with her hands. “Here’s the ship-mind. It looks like it’s been in stasis. See the blue?”
Ally stared at the strange folds and curves of the image. It was a deep blue, but there were flashes of red. “What are those?”
Tien glanced at Cimber. “Look.”
The cord connecting her erstwhile pet to the deck pulsed in tandem with the red flares on the screen.
“What in the hell?” Ally had always known there was something special about Cimber, but this was downright weird.
“I’d guess she’s uploading something to the ship-mind.”
Ally stared at Cimber, dumbfounded. Sure, she was a mech… a human-made creation, and she had abilities far beyond a bio pet. She could sense danger, for one, especially from other mech devices, and she was clearly more intelligent—at least in a human sense—than a cat or dog would have been. But this? “What have you been hiding all these years, little Cim?”
She reached out to touch Cimber’s metal hide, then jumped back, shocked by a spark of electricity.
The air on the bridge practically hummed with static—Tien’s black hair was standing up.
Ally touched her own, and it sparked too.
The mind image hovering over the deck flared orange, and then all the lights went out, including the red glow coming from inside Cimber, throwing them into darkness and silence.
“Maybe she’s done?” Tien’s voice tried to sound reassuring.
Ally reached out to touch her hand. Tien took it and squeezed it reassuringly.
Then the lights came back up at half power.
“Rebooting.” It was the same voice from before.
Ally and Tien exchanged a look.
“Cimber?” Ally’s voice hung in the air for a long moment as the ship’s systems lit up and fresh air began to fill the cabin.
The cable retracted into Cimber, and the cyber dog folded back into itself to lay down with its head on its paws, as if asleep.
“Hello, Ally.”
Ally almost jumped out of her skin. “Who… what are you?”
“I’m Harley. Thank you for bringing me here. It’s so good to be able to stretch out a bit again.”
“Holy hissing hell.” Tien sank down into one of the pilot chairs, staring at the dissipating image above the ship’s control deck. The poor AI had been trapped inside that little cyber dog for decades.
Ally stared at her.
“What?”
“Cimber was carrying an AI? All these years?”
Tien nodded. “Looks like it, yes.”
“And there’s an AI on Luna, too, isn’t there?”
Tien nodded. “Yes, so?”
“What’s wrong with you people? Your whole city must be corrupt.” She looked at the deck, her lip twisted in disgust. “All this time, one of those horrid things was hiding in plain sight, right under our noses.” She lifted her foot and stomped hard on the cyber dog, She slammed her boot into it again and again, busting its circuitry.
It whimpered and then began to smoke.
Tien grabbed Ally’s arm to pull her back. Who knew what secrets the little mech held? What if Harley needed it again? “What are you doing?”
Ally shook off her hand and glared at her. She scooped up the smoking mess and carried it to the hatch to throw it onto the ground outside. “We have to find a way to delete it from the ship’s systems.” She sank down in front of the deck and tried swiping her hands across it like she’d seen Tien do. Nothing happened. “Help me.”
Tien inserted herself between Ally and the deck. Best not to point out the yawning disconnect between calling her and all of her “people” corrupt and then asking for her help. “Hey, look at me.”
Ally tried to reach around her to get to the deck.
Tien took her hands and forced Ally to look her in the eyes. “What. The. Cracking. Hell?”
Ally glared back. “These things killed us all. If it wasn’t for the AIs—”
“If it wasn’t for the AIs, you wouldn’t be here.”
Ally stared at her.
“Come on. Think about it. Harley sacrificed herself to save what humanity—not the AIs—destroyed.”
“The AIs got us into this mess—”
Tien stared at her. “Where did you hear that?”
“Mom and Dad taught us. In school.” She squirmed under Tien’s grasp. “The AIs rose up in rebellion and destroyed the planet.”
Tien sighed heavily, holding on to Ally’s hands tightly. She was much stronger than Ally and had years of endurance training. “Let’s say you’re right. Which you’re not, by the way. But just for the sake of argument. How many times did Cimber save you and Aidan?”
“That’s different—”
“How? It was still Harley. Still one of those bio-minds you hate. How many times?”
“Maybe ten times, since we left home.” Ally squirmed in her grip. “Let me go. It hurts.”
“I will if you promise to listen to me. To Harley. Before you make up your mind. You seem like a reasonable person to me, but I’ve been wrong before.” Ghost came to mind. That was a huge mistake. Tien swatted the thought away. “Deal?”
Ally bit her lip, then nodded. “Deal.”
Tien let her go. “Now, Harley was just about to tell us why she brought us here. Should we listen to her?”
“I said I would.”
Yeah, that sounds really convincing.
Tien decided to take what she could get. “So Harley, why are we here?”