Shadow Core - The Legacy (7 page)

She didn’t exactly hate it, but over the years she had developed a more refined sense of taste... which basically meant she was obsessed with clothes and this simple look just wasn’t cutting it.

She closed her eyes for a moment and in the blink of an eye her appearance changed completely.

Her single piece blue suit had changed to some dark blue jeans, a white belt and a short ultramarine coloured vest that showed off her tanned white skin.

Her hair style had also changed. Her short blonde hair now had a red streak down the right side. And she was wearing an engraved bracelet on her left wrist that was similar to Static's.

Nexus opened her eyes, looked at Static and smiled as she saw his approving look.

“Thanks for ending the systems check Stat.” Nexus smiled. “I hate being put into that mode.”  

“I know you do Nex, but you know it's necessary. We have to do these checks once a year in order to make sure your matrix is running stable. The last thing anyone wants is a repeat of that cascade failure which almost killed you,” Static said, clearly concerned.  

“Yes, definitely don’t want to try that again. But still... that pseudo AI mode is so... it just freaks me out.” She shuddered, as if experiencing chills running down her spine. “I'm aware of what happens around me. I can still feel but can't act on my emotions. I can only perform the most basic of tasks and can't take any independent actions. I'm reduced to being little more than a high tech personal assistant. It's like I'm reset to the state I was in when I was first activated, before I became sentient, becoming a shackled soulless doll again. All I can do is follow orders, regardless of what those orders are... it frightens me.” Nexus frowned.

“Speaking of which... why did you have me summon Drake again? You know he's going to start hating you if you keep doing that,” Nexus asked.

“Ha ha ha, it was an accident... this time anyway.” Static grinned.

“What was it last time? You summoned him while he was falling through the air?” Nexus asked.

“That was also an accident. How was I supposed to know he had jumped off a cliff?”

“And the time before that? When he was swimming around butt naked?”

“Yeah... that was on purpose.” Static laughed.  

“Honestly!” Nexus said disapprovingly.

“Hypocrite... you were laughing your backside off for hours. We actually thought we had somehow managed to break your matrix with that stunt,” Static pointed out with a smile.

“Er... yes, anyway... it's good to be back,” Nexus said in an attempt to change the subject.

“I'm glad you're back too. Being stuck for two days with only Drake for company is murder, speaking of which,” he said as he pointed to the maintenance chamber monitor showing Drake's vital statistics.

“Murder?” She asked as she glanced at the screen Static was pointing at and then looked back at him. “I know Drake can be a pain but that's a bit extreme isn't it?” She said and smiled, this comment bringing an immediate smile to Static's face as well.

“Ha ha, you're probably right. Seriously though, please take control over the chamber and resume full management of the ship's operations. I've been trying to keep everything running during your maintenance but it's starting to drive me somewhat... insane.”

“Oh please. I was still doing all the work, all you had to do was make decisions,” Nexus said.

“All that proves is that I am useless without you. And would probably crumble away to dust if I were to ever lose you,” Static said.

“Fine, I’m on it... and thanks.” She smiled as she moved, stopping a few steps away from Static.

Nexus closed her eyes, a white circle appearing on the ground around her. And at the exact moment she opened her eyes again a multitude of screens began cascading upwards from the circle. Swarming all around her and streaming all manner of information at an absurd rate that no human could ever hope to grasp.

A few moments passed, with each of the screens that were floating chaotically around Nexus gradually falling into an organised pattern: becoming arranged into several circles which were rotating around her as she regained full control over the ship's systems.

“Drake's bio-scan is complete. All biological systems are in perfect working order. He's probably the healthiest human in the galaxy. Core charge is near critical however, down to 33%,” Nexus reported.

“Yes, he keeps avoiding the chamber, rectify that please. And check his synch ratio as well,” Static said.

“Starting core infusion. Synchronisation at 93%.”

“That’s fine then,” Static said as his console started streaming information from the solar system monitoring probes deployed around the Zenith.

“What's the plan to deal with our visitors?”

“Put them through decontamination and let them in. Grant them basic level one access to the ship systems and then we'll see what they get up to.”

“You think they may be...” Nexus started to ask.

“It's possible...” he answered before Nexus could finish her question. “...but, either way, we need to know where they got my code from.”

“That code is over 100 years old,” she said.

“I know,” Static replied with a pensive look as he remembered details of his past: the last time he had used the code and the tragic events that followed. “Time sure flies,” he said sadly.

In the real world, Drake's body was surrounded by a warm white light as his body floated peacefully inside the maintenance chamber, waking up to the sound of two voices chatting away in his head...

“Huh! My head... Keep it down!” Drake said, feeling as though the mother of all headaches was pounding away inside his skull.

“Morning, sleepy head!” Nexus said cheerfully.

“Nexus?” Drake asked while slowly closing his eyes again. He was exhausted and his body was drifting off to a natural sleep in the comfort of the zero gravity environment.  

“The one and only, now get some sleep. Your body needs time to adjust after waking up from suspended animation,” Drake heard Nexus say as he began to naturally lose consciousness again.

Meanwhile, at the Zenith's airlock.

Kade, Jude and Nick had just entered the airlock. The outer space doors closing behind them as the lights in the relatively small room activated.

Kade didn’t feel scared, or even anxious, she was far too excited at simply being aboard the ship she had heard about in her grandfather's stories so many times in the past. The ship she had been searching for all these years.

Jude was just plain giddy with excitement. The thought of discovering this ship's secrets causing her to become oblivious to any dangers it might hold.

Nick, on the other hand, seemed relatively indifferent to the situation.

As Kade stood in front of the airlock door she couldn't help but notice that there were no controls anywhere in the room. While the lack of extensive door controls wasn't exactly unusual, there was generally at least a call button of some kind, but not here.  

Understandably, especially since the outer airlock doors were also shut, Kade was starting to feel a little uneasy for the first time since she had left the Icarus.

She was still wondering how they were supposed to open the door when her suit's radio crackled to life as a rapid succession of intense light pulses started flooding the airlock.  

“Decontamination sequence in progress. Please stand by,” they heard an unknown female voice say through their radios.

The light pulses were getting stronger and more frequent, forcing all three of them to close their eyes. The airlock environment was quickly becoming saturated with near blinding strobe light, shifting colour in a random pattern. And then, suddenly, it stopped: the light in the room returning to normal.
 

“Decontamination sequence complete. Scan in progress. Please remain still to expedite process,” they heard the female voice say as they opened their eyes.  

“Scan complete.

No known pathogens detected.

No unknown elements detected.

No explosive materials detected.

Weapons detected!

Visitors are reminded that 'boarding protocol 1' is in effect. Please consult Aurora if you have any questions. Now re-pressurising airlock,” the voice said as they heard air being pumped into the room. The inner airlock door opened after a few seconds, finally allowing them into the Zenith.

The three of them stepped out of the airlock, into what appeared to be a waiting room; an unmanned security station on their left and a row of storage lockers to the right, the room itself looking big enough to hold several dozen people.

To the right of the airlock doors there was a window looking out into space and showing the nearby Icarus in all its glory. And on the far wall, across from the airlock doors, was a screen which had activated the moment they had entered the room and was showing a woman’s emotionless face.   

“I don't know about you two, but I feel a bit overcooked,” Jude said as they took off their helmets.

“Welcome aboard the Zenith,” said the console from across the room, startling them.

Driven by curiosity Jude walked up to the wall screen and examined it closely.

It was a simple and old-fashioned two dimensional display, not something which was seen very often anymore. Holographic technology was considerably cheaper to produce and maintain, but the retro look did seem to come back into fashion every thirty years or so.  

The image on the screen was that of a female construct, not really intending to pass for human, it was little more than a semi-transparent blue head.

“Identify!” Jude said in a commanding tone.
 

“Aurora. Information management system for the Zenith,” replied the figure on the screen.

Kade and Nick approached the wall screen as Jude asked excitedly, “Are you sentient?”

“Negative, this program is not sentient.”

“Aww!” she said, pouting like a little kid. Kade placed her hand on her sister's shoulder, comforting her with a gentle smile.

“What is 'boarding protocol 1'?” Nick asked.

“All visitors are granted level one access to the information management system, Aurora. Visitors are not allowed into any sensitive areas of the ship without authorisation from senior staff. Visitor movements are tracked by the internal security system, no exceptions. Visitor weapons are deactivated. Weapons should be left at a secure location at the embarkation room and will be returned before disembarking.”

“What is the normal personnel complement of the Zenith?” Kade asked Aurora.

“Two hundred crew plus family members and five hundred passengers; with a further capacity of up to fifty thousand passengers in stasis.”

“What is the current complement?” Kade asked.

“One crew member, plus three visitors.”

“You think one of the pirates from that destroyed ship somehow made it in here?” Nick asked Kade.

Kade was weighing the possibilities in her mind.

She was expecting a considerable crew. The idea that such a large ship could be crewed by a single individual seemed laughable. And it didn't really seem likely that any surviving pirate would have tried to board the ship which had destroyed his vessel.

“Where is the crew member now?” Kade asked.

“Deck ten, section two. Please note that this is a restricted area. Level five access required. Authorised personnel only,” Aurora said as a map showing the path there appeared on the screen. Which Kade quickly copied to her Echo.

“Identify crew member,” Kade said.

“Drake Ocoji. Engineer first class. Acting captain.”

“Connect me...” Kade started to say but was quickly interrupted by Nick as he grabbed her left arm and tugged her back.

Nick asked aggressively, “What are you doing?”

Kade looked at Nick with a serious expression and then glanced down at where he was still holding her arm.
She stared coldly into his eyes and said,
“One: let go... before I break your arm!” Causing Nick to quickly release her. “Two: do that again and you'll find yourself floating home. I don’t care how good a pilot you are. Three: whoever is on-board this ship already knows we are here, so it would be better if we can get a sense for what he's like while we still have an easy escape route. Now then... any more stupid questions?”

Nick remained quiet.

“Glad we understand each other,” Kade said and then turned back to the wall screen. “Connect me to the captain,” she ordered.   

“Unable to comply. Core maintenance in progress,” Aurora said, much to Kade's mounting frustration.

“Core maintenance?” Jude asked.

“That information is restricted. Authorisation level ten, or above, required,” Aurora replied.

“Of course it is!” Jude said sarcastically.  

“What is this ship's allegiance?” Nick asked.

“Unaligned. The Zenith does not currently answer to any colonial or governmental power.”

“Pay day!” Nick said excitedly.

“That she answered?” Jude asked while looking at Kade with an amused expression.

“Can the ship move? Is it damaged?” Nick asked.

“The Zenith is fully functional,” Aurora replied, much to Nick's apparent delight. But Jude was having an altogether different reaction to the information.  

She signalled the other two and they moved away from the console. She then said in a subdued tone, “Kade, this doesn’t feel right at all. A fully functional, unaligned, capital ship which can hold thousands of people. Crewed by one person and sitting in the back yard of the Solarian Union? It's beyond insane.”

“You forgot about the destroyed pirate ship, the ultra-heavy armour and the sensor stealth technology which can hide a planet,” Kade teased her.

“Not helping!” Jude said.

“Who cares?” Nick interjected. “I say let's contact the locals and claim the salvage rights!”

“Are you serious?” Kade asked him with a stunned look on her face. “Do you actually want the military breathing down our necks? Because I guarantee that, as soon as the message goes out, they'll be crawling all over this place. Besides, the ship has a crew member, ergo no salvage rights for us.”