Legacy of the Centaur (RFVIII), Chapter 9

Spoiler alert: This is the beginning of the 8th book in the Reckless Faith series. You may read the prologue here: https://devonai.wordpress.com/2023/10/31/reckless-faith-viii-prologue/

Malthus wasn’t surprised to see a squad of Alnairian marines striding down Inferno’s main concourse, headed toward the laundry room. What did surprise him was that they were heavily armed and armored, seeming more as if they stood ready to take on a superior force of Rakhar soldiers than a few errant prisoners. Based on his conversation with Lieutenant Ferrer, some kind of incursion into the depths of Inferno was expected, but these guys were ready to go to war.

In one brief but impulsive moment, overcome with concern for his friend Chason, he blurted something out.

“I know the layout of the old facility.”

The man at the front of the group held up his fist, and all nine men turned to face him. The man at the center took a step toward Malthus.

“I’m Master Sergeant Scrivener,” he said. “And you are?”

“Malthus Brewer.”

“Where did you get that information?”

“I’ve got a photographic memory. A diagram of what lies beneath was once found, but hidden away by its discoverer. He allowed me to look at it; I only needed a few seconds to memorize it.”

“Why should we trust anything you give us?”

“Because I’ve only a few years left on my sentence, and any cooperation on my part could result in time removed. Leading us to our deaths is the last thing I want.”

Scrivener reached into one of his many pockets, and removed a notepad and a pen. “Sketch out what you know, and be quick about it. If your layout matches what we encounter, I’ll tell Commander Hadar about your contribution.”

“It would be a lot easier if you just took me with you.”

“Nice try, inmate. We’ll have enough to worry about without making sure you don’t escape.”

“As with those that have gone before me, escape is not the goal, only a chance for self-determination. For those without hope, it’s compelling, but I’m not without hope. I gain nothing by running from you.”

“And you think we can take you with us without permission from Warden Cooper?”

“I know it.”

Scrivener motioned for him to take the notepad. “Here.”

“I already told you, I’m not going to…”

“Just fucking take it.”

Confused, Malthus accepted the implements. “Okay.”

“Flip to the previous page.”

Doing so, six sets of terrestrial eight-digit grid coordinates were revealed. “Which planet is this?”

“It doesn’t matter. Give me the pad.”

He did so. “I take it you want me to read all those numbers back to you.”

“Yup.”

“Sure!”

Malthus recited the numbers back, as easily as if he still had the pad in front of him. Scrivener raised an eyebrow.

“Impressive,” said the sergeant. “There’s one more thing before we agree to take you with us, Mister Brewer. You’re friends with Kheiron, right?”

“I see you’ve done your research. We’re cellmates, nothing more. If you’re asking me if he trusts me, then I suppose he does so as much as anyone else in here. I’ve been nothing but fair to him.”

Scrivener nodded. “Then you’re welcome to join us. Just keep in mind: we don’t have an environmental suit for you, and the first sign of trouble, and any one of us won’t hesitate to perforate your skull.”

Malthus gestured toward the laundry room. “Lead the way, sergeant.”

Baker and Farmer were guarding the door. Scrivener spoke with them briefly, then Baker led the group inside. They passed by all the equipment, reaching a steel door with a padlock. Baker unlocked it, and one of the marines opened it, revealing total darkness beyond. A cold breeze wafted by their ankles. Scrivener turned to Malthus.

“You stay right behind me at all times, at the center of the squad,” he said. “Got it?”

“Okay.”

“You’re sure you want to do this?” Baker asked him.

“Eh. What else do I have to do?”

The group proceeded, and Baker closed the door behind them. It slammed, and a foreboding echo cascaded down the corridor.

“What’s up first?” asked Scrivener.

“This area should contain access to and equipment for the ventilation system. I doubt we’ll find anything else of interest. We should look for the main stairwell; it should be about three hundred meters straight ahead.”

A bright light shot out from the gloom, and struck the point man dead in the chest. He, and the two men on his flank, returned fire in an instant. The noise was unbearable, and Malthus clapped his hands over his ears. The shell casings from their rifles bounced off the walls and clattered to the floor.

“Report!” bellowed Scrivener.

“We downed an aerial sentry,” replied the man on the left. “Corporal Hunter was hit with a laser weapon. He’s uninjured, and there’s superficial damage to his front plate.”

“Everyone take a knee, and stay alert. Private Archer, scan for transmissions. Hunter, get a photo of that thing.”

Hunter advanced under cover from his team. The man directly in front of him pulled out a PDA, and poked at its screen for a minute or two. Scrivener turned to Malthus.

“I know what you’re going to say,” began Malthus. “The prison didn’t put sentries down here.”

“How do you know for sure?”

“Because if they did, you can bet that prisoners like me would have to maintain them. I had no idea such a thing even existed here.”

Archer spoke. “Top, the only frequencies on the air are those from Inferno, and our own.”

“They might be fully automated, then,” replied Scrivener. “Hunter?”

“The drone here is a match for a Bellator Systems Mark Six, last manufactured twenty-five years ago.”

“That’s an Alnairian company,” said Malthus.

“I know that,” snapped Scrivener. “Listen up, marines. We’re going to secure this level, but we’re not going any further until I’ve had a chance to up-channel a sitrep.”

“Left you out of the loop, huh?”

“I wouldn’t be so snarky if I were you, inmate. You’re just as committed as the rest of us.”

Hunter had advanced just beyond the wreckage of the drone, which put him at an intersection of hallways.

“Sergeant Scrivener,” he said. “There’s another downed sentry around the corner here, along with fresh tracks and some 10×24 casings.”

“Shit. Then we’re not alone.”

__________

On Sub-Level 3, Chason and his new friends had finished exploring the level above, encountering nothing else other than a ransacked storage room. They had just entered a control room, marked on the map by an acronym or abbreviation whose meaning was untranslatable without further context. Immediately, however, they could see large windows at the far side of the room that looked out to a huge, cylindrical corridor, lined with power conduits of various sizes. The grimy consoles, cabinet-style servers, and a few lights on the walls were receiving power, but none of the computer displays were switched on. Barely audible in the background was a low hum.

In one corner, next to a utility closet, a makeshift bed had been set up, along with a small table, on which sat an electric lantern and a grimy mug. Judging by the condition of these things, they hadn’t been used in a long time. Christie walked up to the windows, marveling at the space beyond.

“Assuming this area is an ellipse or a circle,” she began, “it would be at least ten kilometers in diameter.”

“It could be a particle collider,” said Ray.

“I was thinking the same thing. I’ll see if I can get one of these computers working.”

Eva looked at Chason. “Anyone ever mention a facility like this to you?”

He shook his head. “No. I’m just as surprised as the rest of you.”

The display in front of Christie lit up, and she smiled. “Eva, Richter, come take a look.”

The two requested androids joined her by the console. Christie began to navigate through the interface. Ray and Mike joined them, but being unable to read Alnairian, all they could see was gibberish. Still, some things were universal in appearance.

“This looks like a command line program, like DOS,” said Mike.

“It is,” replied Christie. “It’s going to take me some time to figure out how to run a program.”

“A contraption this complex couldn’t possibly rely on such a simple OS,” said Ray.

“I can’t imagine it would. This is probably just the shell of the system. As I said, I’ll need some time.”

Richter said, “I may be able to read this language, but I won’t be of any help here. I’ll leave you and Adeler to figure it out. In the meantime, there’s a lot more to this level to explore.”

“Don’t wander too far,” said Eva.

“Chason,” began Christie, “do you know your way around a Phalanx?”

“You mean your machine gun?” he asked. “No. I’ve barely got any experience with a pistol. In fact, if you’re proposing the rest of us go out there alone, I’d rather stay here.”

“You can’t fault the kid for wanting to stay here,” said Richter.

“Kid?! How old do you think I am? Anyway, I’m not a seasoned… whatever my brother was, or you lot claim to be.”

“Nobody’s pressuring you to do anything,” said Eva.

“It’s fine,” said Ray. “Richter, Mungavin, and I will go. Chason, watch their backs, in case they get too absorbed by their work.”

Chason nodded. “That I can do.”

The three men returned to the central corridor, and the door slid shut behind them. The control room had been the first choice for them after descending from the level above, but several other paths were also available. Ray and Mike looked at their PDAs, once again trying to compare Chason’s diagram with what they could actually see before them.

“If this map is right,” said Ray, “there should be two long rooms running parallel to this corridor, with three entrances each.”

“Where are you seeing that?” asked Mike. “The map is only a cross-section.”

“I’m sorry. Christie translated this part here for me. It says ‘capacitor rooms, north and south.’ See the triple boxes? I’d guess the center box is the corridor, with the two overlaid slightly above and below as the parallel rooms.”

“Gotcha. This is like trying to navigate across the United States with a novelty coloring map from Dairy Queen.”

Richter chuckled. “Yeah, kinda.”

The group entered the next door on the left. A long, dark room was beyond. With no interior lighting, Ray and Mike lowered their visors and activated the IR overlay feature. Richter simply pulled out a flashlight with an IR mode. Before them, lined up against the far wall, were a dozen steel cylindrical devices, two meters tall, and open in the center like a spool. Each one also had a rounded archway over it, painted black. The devices at the center of the spools were rectangular boxes of thick, dark gray metal. A metal grate in the floor covered a conduit that ran parallel to the cylinders.

“Those look like cyclotrons,” began Mike. “They look almost exactly like the cyclotrons at the Lawrence facility in Berkeley.”

“Isn’t a cyclotron also a kind of particle accelerator?” asked Ray.

“Yes. They’re used for isolating radionuclides, either for research or medical purposes.”

Richter said, “So if Tolliver is right about the other thing, this facility must’ve been used for researching subatomic particles.”

Ray nodded. “Seems that way. But there’s a lot more to this place below. Come on, let’s sweep the area and check the room across the hall.”

All of them pulled out their PDAs, and spread out. It didn’t take very long before Richter’s attention was drawn toward one of the cylinders, particularly, a small object attached to the side.

“Hey guys, check this out,” he said. “I’m reading a nitrous hydrocarbon compound on this device that is very similar in composition to plastic explosives. There’s also what looks like a remote detonator attached to it.”

Mike replied from the next cylinder over. “There’s one here, too.”

Soon, the team discovered that all twelve cylinders had the same device attached to their sides with fabric adhesive tape. None of the objects were emitting any kind of signal or power signature. Richter scrutinized one of them with his flashlight.

“I’ve got crystalline residue on this one, and the duct tape is crumbling. It looks like these things have been here for a long time.”

“Can they be rendered safe?” asked Ray.

“I have no idea. Better to just leave them alone for now.”

Finding nothing else, the trio crossed the hallway into the other room. It was the same size and orientation as the last one, but where the suspected cyclotrons used to be, there were several large heaps of metallic junk. As they investigated further, it became obvious that the equipment in the room had been a mirror of the last one, but everything had been intentionally destroyed. Scorch marks marred the wall and ceiling.

“Somebody wanted all this shit gone,” said Richter. “I guess the explosives in the other room failed for some reason.”

“Why bother?” asked Mike. “They could’ve just collapsed or filled in the stairways and elevators if they really didn’t want anyone to access them.”

“It is curious,” said Ray. “Maybe they wanted to be absolutely certain no-one could steal the technology here.”

Moving on, the team reached the end of the main corridor. There, they discovered a locked door with writing and symbols on it. The symbols were a humanoid skull and a lightning bolt. Richter translated the writing.

“This room contains, or did contain, a high-voltage three-phase transformer.”

Ray said, “This lock is the same type we encountered before. We’ll have to blow it if we want to get in there.”

“I don’t think we need to worry about that right now. Let’s report back to the others.”

They returned to the control room. Christie and Eva were absolutely enthralled by whatever was on the console, and barely acknowledged their presence. Chason greeted them enthusiastically. In the curved corridor beyond the windows, a long row of LEDs had been illuminated. Pulling herself away from the computer, Eva turned around. Ray gave her an update on what they had found. She smiled, nodded, and gestured toward the windows.

“You were right,” she began. “This is a giant particle collider. It seems this entire level was dedicated to the study of quarks. Christie and I have managed to power up the main array enough to send a test signal around the loop.”

“Is any of this dangerous, or have applications for weapons?” asked Ray. “Somebody wanted all of this destroyed.”

“Knowledge is power,” said Christie, her eyes fixed on the monitor. “As much fun as I’m having with this thing, I’ve already found that any files related to its discoveries have been purged and overwritten. If the Alnairians learned anything here, that data is somewhere else now.”

Richter said, “Then unless you’re planning on becoming a permanent resident, there’s no point in dicking around with it. I appreciate your curiosity, but I think it’s time to move on. Answers may lie further down.”

Christie pressed a few keys, and the LEDs in the raceway switched off. “You’re right, of course.”

“We’ll have a quick break, water up, and snacks for those who need them.”

No one objected, so everyone grabbed a chair. Chason looked with envy at the food items that Ray and Mike removed from their pockets.

“I don’t suppose…” Chason mumbled.

Ray passed of a packet of crackers to him. “What were you planning on eating down here, anyway?”

“I brought some supplies. As I mentioned, rumors are that it’s survivable down here long-term, though I’m beginning to suspect that was all bullshit. Before you showed up, that was a chance I was willing to take.”

When the flesh-and-blood humanoids were done eating and drinking, they policed up their trash and got ready to move. Everyone returned to the central corridor, went to the stairwell, and descended to Sub-Level 4. Christie peered at her PDA.

“We’ve got laboratories down the hall that way, and a large chamber labeled ‘pool’ in the other direction.”

“I don’t suppose there’s a five-star spa down here,” said Mike.

“Let’s check that out first,” said Ray.

The team turned right, and entered an enormous rough-hewn oval cavern. True to the description, the bottom half was filled with murky water. A railed platform had been constructed near the door, and there was a single computer console. Other than that, there was nowhere else to go. Mounted on the ceiling, ringing the entire pool, were two dozen devices that resembled satellite dishes, each pointed toward the center of the cavern.

“What in the world?” murmured Chason.

Christie approached the console, and powered it on. “Let’s see what we can find out.”

Eva held out her PDA. “This is not a natural formation. If you look closely, you can see excavation patterns.”

“One would think there’d be stalagmites if it were a natural cavern,” said Ray. “Or stalactites. Whichever one is the one that points down, I mean.”

“It reminds me of something. It’s on the tip of my brain.”

“I’m in,” began Christie. “This chamber is meant to register solar neutrinos passing through the planet. When active, that pool contained deuterium, pumped in from purifiers elsewhere on this level.”

“Damn it, that’s what I was thinking.”

“What use would such a facility serve?” asked Richter.

“It would be essential toward the eventual creation of a quantum-entangled neutrino device,” replied Christie. “My guess is that this facility either predates the introduction of Alnair into the galactic community, or they tried to develop their own technology rather than just purchase it from another species.”

“Or they wanted a proprietary model,” added Eva. “Perhaps they had a theoretical design that would be more efficient than anything already available.”

“That may be. But together with what we found above, it all seems to point to a time when Alnair was an emerging civilization, desperate for technologies to bolster their defenses. I hope we find out why they abandoned this place, and tried to destroy it.”

“The most obvious answer is that they were also working on something clandestine and dangerous,” said Richter. “If our own government is any model, such secrets are guarded with jealousy.”

“Or they uncovered something below to be feared,” said Chason.

“Here be dragons,” said Mike.

“Something like that.”

Continue reading: https://devonai.wordpress.com/2024/01/24/the-wolf-and-the-centaur-rfviii-chapter-10/