Eric Olafson, First Journeys 06



Chapter 6: Boiling Dust

The scarred woman that came up the stairs with the disfigured face looked horrible, only a few strains of her coppery hair had remained. She was accompanied by two men. They all were armed. She sat down into one of the lounge chairs touching her burned face and then looked at me.”You didn’t expect to see me again, didn’t you, hero?”

I shrugged.” I did not expect to see you at our first meeting, so it’s not a big thing.”

“You are one arrogant citizen bastard. Before this is over you will plead on your knees for mercy.”

The governor hissed. “How did you escape?”

“Your jack-boots aren’t Union police and I had to be treated. Friends of mine crashed the clinic. They had to kill the medics and interrupted their work.”

Her companions tied the governor to his seat and took his PDD.

She kept pointing the gun at me.

“Let’s see if your people are more inclined to listen to our demands, now that we have the Governor as hostage.”

One of the men racked the barrel of his gun across the governors head.

Mr. Reynolds groaned and blood trickled on his white shirt.

“You idiots don’t get it do you? This is not Gore and even if you kill me and half the planets population, it is Twilight. We have no influence over Gore or any other planets government.”

“No you don’t get it Mister politician. If we kill enough of you, public awareness will rise and put pressure on the corporations thinking they own Gore. It is still in Union space and under Union law.”

“You said it, terrorist. This is still the Union, killing innocent people will have the opposite effect.”

I asked. “Can someone explain to me what the problem is with this Gore Planet?”

The woman gasped.”You really don’t know don’t you?”

“Either they did not cover it in Basic school or I was sick that day. I didn’t even know about Twilight until a few days ago.”

“Where are you from, hero boy?”

“Nilfeheim.”

She looked at her partners and said.”A Neo Viking, that explains a lot.”

She then turned her attention back to me.

“Gore is the most unusual planet in all the Galaxy. It has no equal because it is not a planet.

Gore is a being. A planet sized organism.

It lives and breathes and thinks. It is tortured by human maggots mining its flesh, draining its blood. It is the greatest crime committed by the Union.”

Reynolds snorted. “You are as wacko as they say you people are. It is not sentient. The Saresii and the Narth have confirmed that. It does not breath, what would it breath? Vacuum?”

One of the men whacked him again.

“Silence you are as guilty as anyone doing nothing.”

The woman raised her voice with a fanatical tone vibrating in every word.

“The Saresii are in of it of course. Paid off by the Corporations exploiting Gore. Gore is a god. It cannot be measured with or by any of our standards. And the Narth, don’t make me laugh. These clowns are like kids. They know nothing.”

I was pushed forward by the other man as he tied my hands to my back and took my PDD.

I looked at her. “I guess it is everyone’s own business what they consider a god, but would a god by definition not be able to defend or protect itself? Why does it need you? Has it talked to you?”

“Because Gore sleeps. One day Gore will wake and then it will tell us how to live and why we are here, but Gore is murdered by Corporations. They are hired by the Evil One to prevent Gore to wake up.

Gore is as old as the Universe and knows everything.

There are eleven more like Gore throughout the Universe and they together form the Spirit of Creation itself. Gore was sent to protect us from a Dark Spirit that is coming”

She raised her fist.”Yes Gore has spoken to me in many dreams. I have heard his cry for help and I will not rest until I am dead or Gore is free and so will all of us.”

“That’s some pretty detailed information you got there from Gore. Why are you the only ones hearing it?”

“Because the Servant has heard it and written it down and he opened our minds to Gore and his pain.”

“Well I am not one who puts down someones believes and their religion, but it sure sounds to me like every other religion with Darkness this and evil that and some guy proclaiming to be chosen and makes others follow him

I always wondered why Gods would need priests to talk to us, could they not do that themselves?

“Blasphemer. You must be chosen to hear Gore.”

I closed my eyes and acted as if I was listening to something and then said.”Uh, oh. Yes I can hear you Gore right now. Wow. Really?”

She stared at me with an open mouth.

I nodded “Yes Gore. I tell her. No problem. Talk to you soon.”

Then I opened my eyes...”You are so right, lady. Gore speaks. I could hear him just now and he wanted me to tell you that he doesn’t need your help, and you can all go home now. He also recommended that you quit this silly terror number and crime spree and instead use the money you spend on weapons to buy a GalNet Commercial. He says you reach much more folks that way. That’s how the Big Religions always do it.”

One of her companions hit me with his weapon. “Shut up.”

The woman interfered. “Stop that. He is mine alone. I also say there is some truth in what he says.”

She got up and asked me “Why are you not afraid? You look no older than maybe sixteen and yet you insult us, talk like there is nothing to fear. I will kill you, you know that right?”

“Lady you can’t claim higher moral ground in one sentence and then show with your actions that you are not better than any of us. I was raised with fear. You got nothing on my father, Lady and it won’t do me any good if I shiver in fear.”

She snipped her fingers.

“Well then I will give you a reason.”

Her companion handed her a white hood with red blood or paint splatter and another produced a little Hover Cam.

After she put on the hood, she spoke into the hover cam.

“We are the Gore Defenders and we have captured your Governor, his guest of honor and four crew members of this Dust Bouncer.

We demand the complete evacuation of Gore a. We further demand that Alex Enroe the 7th and Rex Schwartz are arrested on torture charges. Torturing a helpless sentient and unique being that is here to protect us all. If these demands are not met, we will kill the hostages.

Don’t bother searching for us. If we notice anyone coming within visual range of this Bouncer we will blow it up.”

She lowered her gun and killed the steward.

“This is to show you we are serious. Our own safety means nothing.

The little Hero is next. I expect your response within the hour.”

The governor staring at the dead man howled. “You will hang for this. I promise.”

She laughed. “We don’t expect them to fulfill our demands and they will try some Para military stunt to free you, but that doesn’t matter, this Bouncer is rigged to explode anyway. With you in it.”

Something rocked the Bouncer and she looked around.” Didn’t you kill the driver?”

One of her associates nodded.”Yes I did. It is one of us driving.”

The entire Bouncer slowly leaned forward.

“What the fuck is going on. Go check on him.”

The Governor said. “Your man driving the bouncer is obviously not a local. He drove straight into Lake Talcum.”

She got up pressed the gun against his temple. “Speak up. What are you talking about?”

“That we all are doomed now. Bomb or no bomb, We will sink to the bottom of Lake talcum. The reactor will over heat and we will all die either suffocating or melting.”

Her associate looked at his PDD.”Our flyer is not responding.”

“Go check on the flyer and stop the bomb. I keep an eye on these two.”

The bouncer bopped again this time in the rear.

I said to her.”I know something.”

She came over aimed the gun at me.”Speak up”.

Again the floor sacked away a few inches. She made a step to regain her balance. I had waited for that and I pushed myself up as fast as I could hitting her chin with my head.

I could hear a grinding crunch, my head hurt, but she was thrown back. I jumped up and I kicked her against the side of the head for good measure.

“I know you should always wear a hood. Your face is nothing to be bragging about.”

Then I rushed over to the Governor. “I got a knife in the back of my shirt. Can you reach it?”

“I will try.”

He managed and to cut my ties, not without slicing into my arm as well.

I was bleeding but I was free.

I cut him loose, grabbed the gun of the woman and said to him. Tie her up real good and then use her PDD to call for help.”

I put on her white sheet and the hood and said.”I take care of the others.”

Without waiting for a response I rushed down the stairs.

One of her associates came running.”As soon as they landed, the flier sank. The flier is almost completely gone. We can’ t reach it.”

“Teaches you idiots to land on the dust.” I fired.

I had a hard time keeping my lunch down as I dragged the now headless torso with a still smoking neck into one of the little cabins...

Inside was a man tied up,.He appeared to be the cook. He starred at me in sheer horror.

“No worries he won’t bite anymore. I be right back”

I headed forward to the Drivers compartment and found the driver dead on the floor in the open door and one of the Gore Defenders behind the controls. He turned and whined.

“Whatever I do we keep sinking deeper.”

I pressed the still hot muzzle against his head.”Then do nothing. How many of you are there? I ask will ask only once then I start roasting body parts.”

‘You aren’t Helen.”

“Wrong answer. One more chance.”

“Five we are five.”

“Get up.”

He did and I shoved him out in the narrow corridor. While doing that, my eyes fell on a Tool box and while I kept him checked I opened it and silently thanked the mechanic who stocked it.

There was a can of Stick-n-Fix.

I swore to myself that I would from now, I would carry a can with me at all times.

Just as I did with the off world assassin, I encountered on the Poseidon, I glued his hands to the steel frame of the door and put a generous helping of the goop over his mouth.” This stuff is the greatest, don’t you think?”

His response was sentence consisting of “m’s” but I was sure he meant something much less flattering.

Two to go.

I systematically went from cabin to cabin and but found only one back in the Engine and reactor room.

One of the sheet wearing goons knelt by some kind of metal box, that I was certain was the bomb. He turned and said.”It’s off, but we are screwed, that moron drove us straight in a micro dust lake. Hey you are not Helen.”

I pointed the gun at him. “What gave me away?”

“Your chest is to flat.”

“I am working on that. Now where is your buddy?”

“He tried to reach the flyer before it sank. He is stuck out there.”

“Good for him. Now turn around and put your hands to the wall.”

After he to was securely attached to the wall with the last of the Stick-n-Fix. I

The Bouncer sacked forward in slow motion tilting the corridor.

I took off the sheet and the hood and went carefully back up.

Hoping the Governor had secured the woman. She was still where I had left her. Reynolds held the PDD and my knife and said. “Her PDD needs a Code. I can’t activate it.”

Looking out the panorama windows, the dust had already reached the upper deck. “How long do we have?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know for sure, but since they stopped trying to move we gained a little time. Maybe 30 minutes. The problem is the reactor. If it can’t exchange heat it will overheat and shut down. Without reactor we will run out of air.”

“Won’t they not search for us?”

“Once we are under the dust, it is virtually impossible to scan for us, the metal and the radiation will mask our location. We lost Dust Bouncers and equipment before and have found none.

“I will look for the other PDDs. They have mine and yours and the Bouncer is bound to have GalNet.”

“I tried the GalNet terminal already. It is dead.”

I checked on the lady. She was alive, then I double checked her bonds and tied the knots myself.” You need to learn to make better knots Mr. Reynolds.”

He laughed nervous.”I will do that and you need to walk very careful. Any vibration will send us down faster.”

I moved as carefully as I could and checked on the Defenders but could not find a working PDD. I sprayed some release over the glued mouth of the one in the engine compartment.”Where are our PDDs?”

“We threw every working PDD and the on board module over board.”

“That was a brand new Pro Dat, with my Credit chip inside.”

I padded him down. “Where is yours?”

“I don’t have one.”

“How did you plan to get over to the flyer?”

“The same way we came. With protective suits. We are all going to die aren’t we?”

“It’s a bit late to think about that. Mr. Gore Defender, but your future isn’t very promising in any scenario.”

The entrance hatch was underneath the dust already and even with the Protective suits we would sink. This wasn’t water and was fairly certain I couldn’t breathe boiling radiated dust.

I put one of the suits on anyway and took one to the Governor.

“Say aren’t you a VIP person with body guards and all that?”

“We never needed that on Twilight. Despite how it looks, Mr. Olafson, our planet is usually very quiet and such events are very rare.

I am sorry that I convinced you to take part. I am so sorry.”

“We are not dead yet and they did transmit that demand video. They are bound to search for us.”

He smiled.”You seem to have an unquenchable optimism. You don’t give up. You are indeed a hero.”

“Nubhir Poop. I am no hero. I just hate unfair situations and this one sure counts as one.”

The dust had reached the view ports and I looked at him “ Didn’t you say those balloon tires are meant to float on this stuff?”

“The Bouncer is designed to drive across the waste deep sand and dust but it is too heavy to drive over these micro dust lakes. Experienced drivers can see them and avoid them of course. The tires alone would of course float on it.”

“Well then that is what we are going to do. I can see a spare tire mounted on the back. We blast it loose, then we sit on it and row the thing to shore. It’s big enough for all of us.”

“No use. The entrance is already below the dust.”

“Oh shut up with that pessimistic we can’t do attitude, Sir.”

I freed the cook and told him to go up and put on a protective suit.

The bouncer so it turned out had enough even for the remaining terrorists.

I had them put on the suits and used a roll of sealing tape to tie their hands to their backs.

I told the woman who seemed still unconscious. “You can either put on a suit, Helen or go down with the Bouncer. Your breath is way to irregular for someone pretending to be unconscious.”

The bouncer sacked forward again lifting its back further up while the front windows of the panorama lounge were now completely under that brown stuff.

She moved. “I am going to kill you. You bastard.”

“We don’t have much time, Lady and I am sure as hell not waiting on you. So suit up or stay.”

She did and I tied her up again.

“Close your helmets.” I said and fired the blaster against the rear view port.

The material was tough and it took the charge of one blaster to make a big enough hole for us to climb through.

There was a simple lever mechanism to release the huge tire and I herded everyone on it.

The almost water like dust was already to my hips. The suits as I found out had radio links as I heard the ladies voice.

“You are a fool Hero. You should have killed me when you had a chance. Do you think I let them get me alive again? The bomb is connected to an implant in my head.”

She couldn’t say another word.

I had pressed the trigger and turned her head to ashes. She was talking way too much.

I climbed onto the tire with the help of the cook pulling me up.

The Bouncer slipped completely under the dust and seconds later the powdery surface had settled as smooth as before and there was no trace that something had happened here.

The big tire floated on the stuff just like a boat. Then a huge tremor rippled through the sand, and a fast moving wave pushed the tire forward in a wild ride.

“I guess she managed to activate the bomb after all.”

The governor shook his head laughing.” I will make it a point and visit Nilfeheim. You saved all our lives again.”

“Well I don’t mind doing that, Sir, but I am taking the next bus out of here.”

Even with the limited range of the Helmet radios, he was able to contact a dust miner camp and moments later a small fleet of flyers appeared.

We were flown back to Dusk and after we had been checked out by medics.

I was invited to a reception at the Governor’s penthouse on top of a tall sky scraper. Not that I had much of a choice to decline.

They had dropped me of at the Super Lux hotel and in its priciest suite.

There I was actually glad to take a bath in cold water.

Not that I really touched the dust, but seeing it for that long made me long for a long soaking in cold water.

The Auto dresser was like the one at the Crystal Palace of the latest kind and was able to fix my hair with molecular extensions as it used to be. I wondered if the dresser had any female selections and I resisted the urge to indulge myself as I found out it had a very extensive one.

The suite came with a real Butler, that was a fancy name for a man servant and he organized a new PDD for me. A courier of the local branch of the Union Bank delivered a new Credit Strip.

My Chain sword I had left behind for the tour was brought to me as well.

Out of a whim and a promise to myself I ordered a can of Stick-n-Fix and put it in my shirt pocket. Hoping I would not need it of course.

At Mr. Reynolds greeted me at the reception and introduced me to a host of people I immediately forgot after they had shaken my hand. “Sir, I really would like to go back to be a face among many, take the next space bus and be out of here.”

“Well I can’t blame you. Mr. Olafson but I assure you Twilight is not like this usually. The Day and Night wars are over for a long time and since both towns are connected now with Mag Tubes they have put their differences aside, except for the local Vaccu Ball matches of course. I wish I could show you some more of our world.”

A man with a white hat, and white suit came over. “Mr. Olafson, I am Alex Enroe the seventh of Enroe Industries. Your fast action has saved us much headaches and I would love to invite you to see Gore II. It is a very unusual place and a big tourist attraction. I can personally guarantee there won’t be any more terror activities. That group was small and thanks to the intelligence we gathered, the Union Police and the PSI Corps are here to roll up that little problem.”

“It wasn’t so little to me, Sir. They stuck guns in my face, twice and that was only the tip of the iceberg.”

He frowned. “I am sorry, Sir. I chosen the wrong words. What I meant to say is how grateful I am for what you did.”

“Is it really a living planet?”

“Yes it was in a sense. It is a space born life form of approximately the size of Earth. It has a crystalline, silicone like surface and is in permanent orbit around the sun Gore. No one knows its origin or how it developed. Underneath that crust it has a thick layer of what we call Gore Tissue. It is a flesh like substance and it does have other similar tissue layers of different consistency all the way to the core, where something akin to a heart can be found. The heart has stopped beating or pumping a very long time ago. The creature or the planet is technically no longer alive, but since it is so big it takes a while to die completely, so some of the outer tissue regions are still active or alive if you will. It has very unique range of small life forms of both plant and animal origin, but nothing that could remotely be called sentient. Space born organisms are very rare but not unheard off. I assure you the Saresii and the Narth confirmed that Gore is not sentient or has even the weakest brain or neurological function in any way shape or form.”

Alex Enroe offered me to sit with him and then said. “Big Corporations are often painted as the bully and the evil incarnate, but I assure you if the Narth confirm the life form is neither sentient nor alive anymore you can take that to the Union Bank. No amount of money, not even my famous rival Mr. Schwartz could make the Narth do anything they don’t want or make them say something that is not so.”

It did sound interesting. “So what are you doing there? I mean as a corporation?”

“First and foremost we do research.

The leading Xeno Biological institutes have branches on and inside Gore. Then we harvest small amounts of a special biological liquid that has a host of pharmaceutical uses. Mind you that there is more of that stuff than water in the oceans of Nilfeheim and we harvest about 300 to 400 liters a year. Schwartz does about the equal amount.”

“Well I guess I would not mind seeing it. It sounds like an interesting place and unless that Helen woman is right there aren’t any others like it.”

He shrugged.”The Gore Defenders and the Church of Gore claim that there are 11 others like it. In other galaxies of course and without any definite locations, but then the whole mythology of the Gore Planet was dreamed up by an unsuccessful play write named Steven Dunham. He served his twenty two month citizen service as a helper with the science corps on Gore II. He claimed the planet had spoken to him.

He wrote a book and decided to found a religion. I think he thought it would be more profitable than writing plays no one wanted to see.

That wacko adheres to the Gal Drift society and gets his followers from that same society.

Union Police found his notes and PDD during his first arrest and he admitted to have invented it all, to gain fame.”

I nodded. “That Helen woman sure swallowed it hook, line and sinker. I guess it is just an outlet for them to blame someone else for their problems.”

“Exactly, Mr. Olafson. Now if you like we can actually leave in an hour or so. My private Yacht is standing by and I have a feeling you are not the big reception kind of guy.”

“No I am not.”

“Splendid. I shake a few more hands and then we are ready to go.”

My PDD buzzed and I saw the Olafson Wolf Logo on the preview screen. So separated myself a little and activated the full field screen.

It was Elena who called. She waved and smiled, then the visual sensor pulled back and I saw she was at Uncle Hogun’s Inn with little Exa and she in turn was standing close to Aunt Freydis and my big Uncle.

Her sad expression was gone; she beamed with a broad smile on her small face.

“Eric, everything is wonderful here. There is lots of snow and it is cold but I had a snow ball fight with other kids today and it was great fun.”

She swallowed and inhaled and went right on. “Do you know what is best? My biggest dream came true. I am going to be adopted. Really. I am going to be an orphan no more, can you believe that?”

Uncle Hogun’s usually so stern face looked at her with the greatest affection.

“Eric you have made us the biggest gift you could possibly have made. We love that little whirlwind.”

Aunt Freydis also smiled warmly. “We got a child of our own now. Little Exa, and she is hardly stealing anything. She is really good.”

I finally managed to say something.”I am glad it worked out, for all of you.”

Elena said. “We miss you all. Even Father misses you but of course he doesn’t say it right out but they delivered the new boats today and he named them Eric and Elena. Right now he is over at the Exchange Cafe bragging with his new boats and telling everyone that his son paid for them just like that.

I miss you Eric.”

“I miss you too, Elena.”

The Old Keeper came into the view field and to my surprise he wore Olafson Red.

“Don’t look at me like that. I think I look good in red. I am officially the Eldest now. I was beating your grumpy friend by a few thousand years anyhow.

Egill is of course our representative now and he was introduced to the Assembly officially only five days ago.”

He then touched the red cloak. “You know I had no clan association of my own and therefore could not be an Elder.”

He looked over to my sister and I could see the old man’s affection for her.”It actually was Elena’s idea. She is a smart girl, you know. She suggested it and your father made me an Olafson and now I am an Elder ... well the new Eldest that is, if that makes sense. I wasn’t associated with anything new the last few millennia.”

I had listened to his report and smiled “I was just surprised to see you in Red, sure suits you well, and makes that shaggy beard look whiter.”

He brushed his beard. “I think I could trim it a bit”

Then he changed the subject. “What is this all about? You being the Hero of Twilight? Aren’t you supposed to be halfway to Arsenal by now? You’re basically still in the neighborhood.”

“Well it sort of happened.”

“Yes we saw the news. Sort of happened. Things like this seem always just sort of happen to you. So where are you now?”

“I am on my way to Gore II. I was invited to check it out. I still have lots of time to make it to Arsenal”

“Oh yes, Gore. I have been there. Amazing place in a disgusting, exciting sort of way. If you there send me a Poster and a T Shirt. I forgot to pick one up and I like to have a souvenir.”

“Sure will.”

“Take care, young Eric.”

They all waved and Elena blew me a kiss. “Next time you call, call from an Avatar enabled GalNet terminal. I want to hug you.”

I promised and terminated the call.

The Governor insisted on handing me a medal and said. “From what I understand you are going to apply at the Academy. So I thought a medal might be a good idea. It’s the Key to Twilight.”

I thanked him and said my farewells, and then I left with Alex Enroe to the Space Port. We rode in an Enroe Excelsior flier of the newest kind and I padded the seats. “I got to admit these are the most comfortable seats I had ever used.”

He grinned broadly. “I am glad you approve of them. Not everything good is made by Schwartz Industries, you know.”

“I am sure that is the case. I bought an Enroe Industrial Recycler and it did everything it promised it would.”

“It is good to hear that.”

“So you are the big boss of Enroe?”

“Yes that’s me. Enroe Industries, second only to SII.”

“I guess there is some rivalry between you and them?”

“Of course there is. There are thousands of Mega Corporations but only twenty that are called Ultra Corporations.

We, I mean Enroe are number two, and I hate to admit that, but we and all the others combined would still be a distant second to SII.”

“What makes them so much more successful?”

“Main factor of their success is Rex Schwartz, their CEO and President, he owns most of the stock of his corporation and he is an immortal. You know belonging to that mysterious original group of about two hundred humans selected by someone or something called the Guardian of Earth. SII and Enroe started out on Terra, even before the Ascent. Then of course the technical monopolies Schwartz Industries controls. You know perhaps that GalNet and that marvelous secret of instant communication is owned by Schwartz. SII licensed this technology to the fleet. SII has all patents on Space Train technology, Owns two of the biggest Space Bus companies and is the sole operator of the new Trans Matter tunnels, another technical monopoly.

Schwartz Industries is the Queen approved and Nest appointed supplier of Nutri-Syrup to the Klack. You cannot even begin to imagine how much Sugar vitamin syrup he delivers to the Klack daily. SII had major trade and commerce with the Attikan Commonwealth for over 500 years, long before they became members. Can you guess who does 90 percent of all business there?”

I nodded. “Perhaps not in quantities but even I know, the Klack are a counted by the Trillions.”

He sighed.”Almost eighty percent of all ships and over seventy-five percent of every supply item delivered to the Union fleet is made by SII.”

He actually started to sound a little defeated. “So it is hard to really compete against that. Not to mention the whole ‘Good and Evil company business’. Something that should be forgotten after all this time.”

“I heard people call SII, the Good Company before. But I don’t really know why.”

“It’s a long story that happened before there was a Union. I tell it to you over a dinner or so.”

“I never really thought about all that. I didn’t have much off world contact to anything when I grew up, but my planet almost became victim to a Mega Corp so I am not exactly a great fan, but my Grandfather was a business-man and left me some money. I am pretty sure it is not a Mega Corporation.”

“What’s the name of his Company? Maybe I heard of it.”

“It is called Silver Falcon Enterprises.”

“You mean Mr. Ragnarsson was your grandfather?”

“You knew him?”

“Your Grandfather was a legend, Eric. Chairman of the Trade and Finance Committee at Pluribus and he started that company of his with very limited resources. It was us who purchased most of that corporation after your grandfather died. Silver Falcon Enterprise wasn’t a mega corporation, but it certainly isn’t small. It is an independent subsidiary and operates several mines and of course the Silver Hawk Emporium. New stores open daily. Yes I knew your grandfather, everyone respected him a great deal. Are you not interested in business?”

“No, Grandfather had it sold for that reason, so I would not be burdened with it. I want to join the fleet and become a star ship captain.”

“Now that is a worthy goal, indeed. Can you tell me about that corporation that endangered your planet?”

I told him the story and he listened without interrupting.

“Yes I am afraid that can happen.

The smaller ones really fight tooth and nails for every percentage of profit and not always care about the laws. “He held up his hands. “Now I am not claiming we are angels either, but Enroe had a terrible track record in the distant past and I do everything to keep us on the right side of the law. Enroe Industries has at least under my watch not committed murder, hired assassins or used black mail. We don’t have a Black Ops department like that aforementioned other company.

Now I am not above to knock a few heads of rival corporations now and then. I doubt even my rival would go that far to be honest.”

He then pointed out the window. “That’s the Spirit of America, my yacht.”

What he pointed at, was a beautiful disc shaped ship, gleaming in a deep cobalt blue and I was certain at least a 500 meter hull.

“Wow that’s one big ship to call a yacht.”

“She’ll get us to Gore in no time.”

Interlude 6 : Circuit

GalNet Entry: Ex-One-Oh-One

>>> Among the more unusual civilizations in the known universe are without question the X101s.The only known civilization based on machines so far discovered. The X101s occupy the only planet around the sun Magnitude. The planet is called Factory and it is inhospitable to most life forms with temperatures dropping to -minus 120 degrees Celsius and never exceeding -80 degrees. It has a weak atmosphere and no liquid water. Yet the planet is home to a thriving civilization of highly advanced humanoid shaped robots.

The X101 reject the term robot or android and prefer the term Sentient Machines or Sentmac. The recorded history of the X101s begins with the series 101 explorer. The first mobile sentient machine machines previous lacked true sentience. While organic sentient beings develop over millennia of evolution usually out of a dominant life form, machines need a maker, someone who made the first machine. The X101 are no exception and before they became self-aware and self replicating, someone had to make the first step by building that first robot factory. The Sentmac became self aware long after what they call the Original Creators have vanished. These mysterious makers had left a fully automatic factory behind and gave it one command: Build and improve robots. While the Sentmac have no defined religion, the makers are kin to gods in the eyes of the Sentmac. About 200,000 years ago the X101 E series came of the assembly line. It was the first mobile and self aware robotic human shaped machines in the X101s history. Mothermachine remembers the series specifications and one of the core specifications were that these first sentient machines were made in the image of the Creators. The X101 now sentient made conscious decisions as what they wanted to improve in subsequent series. The first thing they did was to improve the factory itself and give it a conscious positronic brain. The factory was now called Mothermachine. Her huge stationary brain developed a very distinct personality and became the defining and ruling element of this unique machine society. But even with very advanced recycling and the extensive use and constant development of Nanite technology, a raw material shortage was unavoidable. The X101 stagnated. About two thousand standard years ago, when the shortage of rare Earths and other essential raw materials was near depleted the Kermac made first contact and offered space faring technology and access to all the raw materials. In return the Kermac wanted the X101 to serve them. Mothermachine was convinced they were the returning makers as they were of biological origin and had humanoid features. The Kermac were welcomed by the X101s. The Kermac could not control the X101 with psionic means and installed an anti-matter bomb right at the brain housing of Mothermachine. Threatening to detonate it, if the X101 would not accept the Kermac as they unquestioned masters and execute every order given. Mothermachine came to the conclusion that the Kermac were not the Makers. The Makers would never need such hostile means to control the X101. Mothermachine complied with their commands mostly because the Kermac gave Mothermachine and the Sentmacs a new purpose and something to do. The X101s became the most feared and efficient thrall species of the Kermac during the Big Intergalactic war. Near the end of that war a daring commando mission, a team of Recon marines ( the Steel Gauntlet) dropped on Factory, planet and managed to deactivate the Antimatter bomb and kill the Kermac guards. One of the marines was a Homo Stellaris and upon seeing him, Mothermachine was convinced she met a maker, especially so since he came to her rescue and to free the X101’s. Shortly thereafter the Sentmac joined the Union.<<<

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Cirruit was a typical X 794 series. Exactly 200 centimeters tall, weighting 299.65 kilograms.

His human shaped body was covered with a thin layer of memory flex chrome steel, smooth as water and shiny.

Underneath that skin a skeleton of Nano tube cobalt steel and syntho muscles.

A highly advanced pressure sensitive sensor network in his fingertips allowed him to perform the most delicate tasks.

He could see in all light conditions and process the entire electromagnetic spectrum with his artificial senses.

Cirruit was a healthy Sentmac and could lift or press weights exceeding 1000 kilos easily. Cirruit did not need air or food as his zero point energy power storage would last exactly 1,752,000 hours or two hundred standard Union years under normal conditions.

After the energy was depleted he would cease to function and die.

Mothermachine prohibited the re-energizing of any Sentmac, so X101s would have something like a natural life cycle and make room for a new series.

He had a somewhat human face, but it was without hair or pores or wrinkles.

Cirrcuit did not have eyelids or any real body orifices other than his mouth, but that was not a real orifice as he had no throat. connecting his mouth with the rest of his body. He planned to get himself a ‘Simu Eat Upgrade’ as soon as he was off planet. His voice was generated by a electromagnetic speaker in the back of his mouth.

Union Robotic Companies offered a wide range of Upgrades, add-ons and custom modifications, most of them were of course not approved by Mothermachine, some of them were however not strictly prohibited.

Behind the skull plate was his positronic brain with his very own distinctive synaptic pathways making him a true individual.

Even though he came of the same assembly line as 40 million other 794 models of his generation, there was not a single 794 that conceived the environment like him, felt or thought like him. He was a male model. Sentmacs had no sex drive or gender differentiation, and of course no functional sex organs (there were certain mostly illegal upgrades available though.)

Gender appearance was considered an improvement since the 712 series, which came first of the line right after the X101s became Union members.

Mothermachine decided that true perfection of individualism lay in imperfection and in her opinion having a gender was the biggest illogical biological mystery and thus an imperfection in her opinion imperfection.

Her own self image was gender less at first, but the human translation of her self designation had a very distinct female meaning, and she gradually begun to identify herself as a she.

Union robots were as advanced and in the case of the latest SII Battle and Expert robots far more advanced than X101s in terms of technical features, but Mothermachine did not want mere factory cookie cutter robots but a real race that was equal to the organic ones and that meant imperfections. A randomization program she developed introduced a wide range of imperfections.

Cirruit for example, despite his positronic brain wasn’t a genius when it came to math, or remembering things, he could not tell time without looking at a PDD.

His left arm was 0.7 cm shorter than his right. He and all of his kind had to learn in schools. Mothermachine insisted every X101 going to Union School.

They came of the line with only rudimentary programming to walk, use the body and secondary system maintenance.

Since the 719 series something akin to sleep was introduced.

All Sentmacs since then could no longer function around the clock and would feel tired and fatigued, only a power down phase restored peak levels.

He was especially proud of the fact that the 794 series were the first model able to dream. A program would use random images and sounds from daily memory imprints and reassemble them into vivid dreams. The more intense an event was the more of it would end up in a dream.

During a class excursion to a Union battle ship factory, Cirrcuit dreamt about becoming an engineer and he especially studied Nanite technology and became quite an expert already.

Like all X101s he was ashamed of the time they had been forced to fight for the Kermac.

Even though the Terrans denied being the Makers, Mothermachine with access to GalNet researched the matter in great detail and believed that it was the Celtest. This ancient, advanced civilization had vanished about a million years ago ... In this context and the legends of a war that destroyed the Celtest, she was convinced the Makers did not abandon the X101, but had perished.

Many rumors existed that the Terrans were a forgotten Celtest colony. It was one of the explanations of the so called Human Mystery. As there were several humanoid and biological species dominant in the Upward sector of the M-0 Galaxy. Only a common ancestry could logically explain this.

To this came the fact that the Terrans created the Homo Stellaris, the closest possible mixture between man and machine.

This was a key factor in her believes that the Earthers were the direct link to the Makers and thus the true owners and masters of the Sentmac.

Unlike the Kermac however, Terrans rejected ownership and welcomed the Sentmacs as independent species.

Because of this, X101 were fiercely loyal to the Union, but especially to the Terrans and many X101s served in one of the branches of the armed forces of the Union and always sided with the Terrans in any matter. Cirruit however had no interest in becoming a soldier or a fleet officer.

Even among his kind, he was known to be one of the most gifted Nanite Technicians.

While there were some space faring cultures of tech-level six or higher using some form of Nanite technology, no one was as good and as advanced as the X101s.

He had a lucrative offer from ‘Schwartz Nano Tech Development’ in his pocket and today he would board a space bus to fly to Omni planet, the most secretive corporate owned planet in the known galaxy.

Rumors among his friends had it, that Schwartz Industries worked on technology considered tech level nine

The new Trans Matter Tunnel technology for example, it was generally believed that not even the Celtest had developed anything similar. Instantaneous communication, avatar technology, space trains traveling in so called Schwarzlicht tunnels, zero point energy cannons and many cutting edge technology no other civilization could duplicate, were some of the technological wonders exclusive to SII.

Employed by SII he was allowed to work there, among and side by side the brightest and best engineers and scientists in the Universe.

The labs and development shops so he was told by the Schwartz Recruiter had no equal and the most expensive equipment was available to everyone working there.

No budget or material limits.

He only needed to fly to Corri-Door via space bus. Once there a corporate luxury ship was to take him to Omni.

He already seen his new home in a holo presentation, a two level apartment with Super Lux accommodations in a Stratosphere tower complete with an incredible view over Omni City and the Oceans beyond.

Cirruit has always been addicted to shopping and his salary would allow him to shop to his heart’s content.

Factory, planet once under Kermac control and it’s star Magnitude had been deep in Galactic Council space. After the end of the last Big War and during the armistice conference, Mothermachine demanded direct access to Union space.

A special region of space was designated by treaty as a corridor of Union space connecting the Magnitude star system with consecutive Union space.

This corridor was only twenty light years long and has a diameter of one light year. A cosmic cul de sac, defined by treaties and buoys in the featureless endless night of intergalactic space.

Neither the Kermac nor any of the Galactic Council thrall species dared to jepoardize the fragile armistice that ended the hot phase of the last big war. Knowing full well, that Mothermachine could churn out millions of armed Sentmacs in battle robot configuration. In addition to that very serious threat to the Galactic Council, there were several deep space forts within this region of space. At one end was Magnitude and at the other end in was a star system called Corri-Door, a system within consecutive Union space.

From there you could travel to all points in Union space or access another similar connection arrangement secured and defined by treaty; the 83 light years long tunnel to Arsenal.

Several hours ago Cirruit had said good bye to his friends and then boarded the space bus to Corri-Door.

Magnitude had only one planet but being the home world of a Union species it had a busy Class A space port in orbit around the sun about one orbit away from Factory.

There was one more solar system within the Magnitude connection. An old red sun called Outpost with a bunch of relative worthless rock planets of great age, but it was the site of the a huge Union construction project.

Wurgus Sun engineers worked on that red star to coax it back to new live as a G III yellow sun. For this, a seemingly ending stream of Tiny Tim freighters in tanker configuration ferried billions of tons of Hydrogen through the Corridor, making it a very busy traffic connection. This many trillion credit project was funded directly by the Assembly.

Having a forward post so deep in enemy territory could not be wasted. Everyone knew the Armistice could be broken at any time and the Union would have to go to war against the Kermac and the Galactic Council.

With the right equipment, namely huge extreme long range scanner installations it was considered possible to monitor, enemy space ship traffic all the way to Kermac Prime. That the planets around the old red star were developed into the most powerful long range spy sensor outposts of the Union, there was no doubt. Despite the high classification of the actual project. That the Kermac weren’t happy about this was certainly an understatement.

Cirrcuit hated the Kermac. Like every X101 did. Not every Sentmac was the perfect Union citizen, but lying to Mothermachine and planting a bomb in her mind center. Forcing her to accept their will was unforgiveable. No X101 would ever forget or forgive and not even their Union allies knew about the Revenge device hidden beneath the tallest mountains of Factory.

If war was ever to break out again between Union and the Kermac, the X101 had means do their part to guarantee victory and repay the Kermac for their reign of terror.

Like every Sentmac he had visited the Monument of Freedom in the center of Mothermachine - City. The 1000 meter tall obelisk made of Platinum engraved the images and names of the marines and inside the 63 bodies of the Kermac guards encased in transparent Duranium along with a replica of the bomb. Like every X101 his positronic mind had burned deep pathways of hate towards the Kermac.

The space bus was filled to the last seat with construction workers, engineers and shop keepers coming from Outpost to take their vacation or extended R&R in Union main space. Factory always welcomed tourists but still had little in terms of real recreation facilities.

Cirruit found his reserved seat next to a human female. She smiled at him and took her bag of his seat. “Sorry.”

“Oh no problem, I am just glad I did not actually smash it, sitting down.”

“You have a very nice voice, for a machine.” She said then put her hand on her mouth. “Sorry again. This came out wrong.”

Cirruit sat down. “I am not offended. I am a machine and you saying I have a nice voice makes me very proud.”

“I am Seilagh Renwick heading back to Ormond Planet.” She held out her hand.

He took it and said. “Cirruit Sevenninefour, and yes it supposed to mean circuit but I got that name from my first grade teacher since I couldn’t pronounce Circuit.”

“You get your names form your teachers?”

“Yes, as we don’t have parents or families in the biological traditional sense. So our first grade teachers give us individual first names.”

She kept holding his hand. “Amazing your hand is not cold as I expected. I am keep insulting you am I? But you are the first X101 I actually meet. Despite coming this way now twice.”

“We keep our outer skin level at exactly 33 degrees Celsius. It makes interaction such as hand shaking with humans more agreeable, besides I don’t like touching cold things either, and everything is cold outside on Factory. You are the first human I meet. My Union Teacher was a Garbini.” He shook his head. “And you are really not offending me at all. I am quite aware that I am a machine and I know many of the X101 jokes. Terrans tell and most of them are quite funny.”

“I don’t know any X101 jokes but they have plenty of Irish Jokes where I am from.”

“How many X101s does it take to change a light bulb?”

“I don’t know. What is a light bulb?”

“It takes only one one but seven hundred years till Mothermachine designed the right one for the job.”

Then he shrugged in a very human gesture. “I have no idea what a light bulb is and I checked GalNet.”

A terrifying centipede like creature across the Isle clacked with his mandibles and said. “Sorry I overheard your conversation. A light bulb is a very ancient Pre-Astro Terran device to make light. It is part of a lamp.”

“Wow. You should put that on GalNet How did you know that?”

“I am sure it is on GalNet. There are plenty of collector sites. I collect Pre Astro Terran antiques, mostly replicas though as the real stuff is so expensive.

That’s where I am going. Pre Astro Collector Convention on Ulta, after bolting and bonding space fort frames for twelve month I needed a break.”

“I can imagine.” Cirruit responded. “I need to buy me a light bulb replica, do you think they are very expensive?”

The engineer checked his PDD. “TerraArtifacts Inc. offers a genuine 40 watt glass bulb with multi color function and hundred year energy spot for 259 credits, complete with certificate and a collectors card made of real paper.”

“Mothermachine. That sounds awesome, I will order one as soon as I am at my new address.” Then he changed the subject. “They are working on that system ever since I was assembled 16 years ago. Aren’t they done soon?”

Seilagh shook her head. “My dad is an engineer there, he says, they won’t be done for another 200 years.

The Sun will be back to G III type in about 200 years if I understood the Wurgus correctly. There are at least eighteen more space stations planned as far as I know.”

Before anyone else could say something, the attendant robot came floating by, a rotating red light flashed on its head. It announced with a loud voice.

“All passengers are asked to return to their seats and put on safety restraints. Please keep all limbs and body parts inside the yellow line around your seats.”

The engines of the space bus audibly hummed much higher, it was now flying at maximum speed.

The young woman next to him had turned on her GalNet set and a news announcer with a serious face behind a desk said. “This is just in: A massive space battle is fought at this very moment at the Prometheus Five Sun Nebula expanse between Union forces, a very large Dai Than fleet and Nogoll Forces.

All Union space is on highest War alert. Intergalactic war might be imminent.”

The girl looked frightened. We are in the middle of the that cursed corridor. I bet they increased speed because we are pursuit by Kermac.”

The Centipede raised four of his leg and arm pairs. “No worries young lady. Factory is well defended and there are three space forts in the corridor”

A strong tremor shook the Space bus and the lights went out.”