The Colony Ship Eschaton: The entire ten book series, page 182
“This is not so bad, and I am not alone on this one,” Jamie said excitedly.
The team gripper-walked over to the Jellie ship and took up positions all around it.
“Ares, we are ready to eject the Jellie ship for disposal. Please unclamp its moorings,” Gonzales ordered.
“The alien ship is now detached. Use caution when moving it,” Ares said to all the team.
They worked well together getting the Jellie ship lifted and carried to the edge of the hanger. It felt like no weight at all, just a somewhat bulky mass with some inertia after they got it moving.
“We will now eject the Jellie ship. On my mark just shove it toward the outside. One, two, three, mark!” Gonzales counted down.
The team hurled the Jellie ship fairly consistently. One of the soldiers, number 7, slipped a bit and fell to his knee, but righted himself easily.
“Ares, the Jellie ship has been ejected. Detonation on your signal. We will watch for the fireworks,” Gonzales stated.
For the next five minutes they all looked out and watched as the Jellie ship floated away from the Eschaton. Its bluish-purple glow still radiating its odd spectrum of light.
“Detonation initiated,” Ares said.
There was a huge flash of light, but no sound as the explosives placed by the soldiers obliterated the Jellie ship. Long streamers of vaporizing and melting and disintegrating Jellie materials shot out in all directions. The trails began white and faded in color to yellows, blues, reds, and finally deep purple colors. The flash faded away as only tiny molecules were left.
“May that be the fate of every Jellie everywhere!” Gonzales said and turned away from the now empty space outside. “Now we load the shuttle with the FTL pods.”
Walking with the gripper boots they divided into group of three or four. Each group lifted the inflatable under the mound containing the FTL generator pod. The inflatable cushion kept the mixture formula against the Jellie material under-layer thus preventing it from attaching to anything. The space-suited teams loaded the mounds through the back doors of the shuttle and into its cargo compartment.
“Ares, we have loaded the last of the eight FTL mounds. They are secure. Please seal the cargo compartment and open the passenger door,” Gonzales requested.
“Affirmative. Please enter by the starboard passenger door,” Ares replied. The back doors of the shuttle shifted closed and sealed. The primary engines of the shuttles were on either side of the cargo doors. After the doors were sealed, the engine manifolds rotated into position.
The team gripper walked to the side of the shuttle and past its long swept back wings. The entry door slid open as they approached. There was only a slight step up into the shuttle since it was resting on its belly in the hanger bay.
The inside of the shuttle was arranged with a single wide center aisle, and five seats on each side of the aisle. There were forty rows reaching to the back of the shuttle. Display screen were located on the backs of every seat.
“We are all inside, Ares. Ready when you are,” Gonzales said as she was last to step into the shuttle.
“The shuttle will remain depressurized and without gravity manipulation for the entire installation flight. So please take a seat and strap yourself in,” Ares stated through their communication system. A display was at the front of the passenger area, but there was no image on the display.
“Ares?” Jamie asked. “Can you show us a schematic of where the pods will be installed?”
“Jamie,” Ares answered. “I will connect you to Copernicus who has coordinated the exact location for the pods. Do you wish this to be open to all the team, or on a private circuit to you alone?”
“I think whoever wants this information should get it,” Jamie replied.
“The schematics are available on the inside of your visors, or on any of the display screens in the shuttle,” Ares said. “Questions are welcome, and encouraged. Transferring to Copernicus.”
“The route we will follow for installation will begin with Habitat Two: Savannah. Edgar has extremely detailed figures on the location, so that will be our easiest installation. Please review the information on the displays while Ares takes the shuttle out of Hanger Bay 27.”
“Can we watch as we depart?” Michael asked.
“Certainly. A separate visualization from views inside and outside the hanger bay can be accessed on the interior of your visors, or on the displays,” Copernicus answered.
“Leaving hanger bay,” Ares announced.
The door sealed on the side of the shuttle and a tiny puff from the thrusters lifted it off the hanger deck. A compensating puff on the opposing side stopped the momentum so the graceful craft was suspended a few meters off the deck. Then the thrusters gently started its journey of egress through the hanger bay doors.
Jamie and Michael watched again as they departed the Eschaton, this time in the much larger shuttle. The soldiers did not comment or seem to move much at all, but just rested in place in their seats.
“Installation point for the exterior of Habitat Two: Savannah is shown on your displays. Ares says we shall be over that area in four minutes,” Copernicus related. “Estimated time for installation of the faster-than-light generator pod is sixteen minutes, but until this is done, that estimate is approximate.”
“Major Gonzales?” one of the soldiers asked.
“Just Gonzales, please,” She replied. “What is it Lawrence?”
“Sorry ma’am. It is an old habit. May I ask a question of Jamie or Michael?” Lawrence asked. He had a deep and husky voice, but otherwise nothing personal was observable as the suits all looked the same. His suit was number 9.
Before Gonzales could answer, Jamie replied, “Any of you can ask us whatever you want. We are working together and we will have some time between installations, so sure, ask anything.”
“Thanks, ma’am. My question is about The Voice. My understanding is that you and others on the Eschaton encountered that thing before. We got slaughtered and a lot of my friends died. How did you survive when my friends got snuffed?” Lawrence’s words carried some tones of contempt mixed in with genuine puzzlement.
“Honestly, I do not know. The Voice did kill some of my friends as well. I was nearly killed on several occasions. I am so sorry for the losses you suffered,” Jamie replied.
“So how do we know that was the only one?” Lawrence asked. There were murmurs from the other solders as well.
Michael answered this time, “We only ever encountered the one. But it is a mystery to me how that one got so messed up and evil in the first place.”
“It was just an artificial intelligence, right?” Lawrence asked. “But from what I know, AIs just do not do that stuff.”
“It was more than just an AI,” Jamie replied. “It had evolved beyond that and became what it was. I am not sure if it was the war, or the betrayals, or the ideas of Jaxson Rhono that twisted it into such a malevolent force.” Jamie was trying to remember which one of the soldiers was Lawrence, but she could not put a face to his words.
“So you are certain we will not encounter another one?” Lawrence inquired. His voice was less stressed. “If one can be here, what about a spawn or offspring?”
“Shall we ask Copernicus?” Jamie answered.
“No need ma’am, I was looking for your views, not conjectures from one of your AIs. You have given me your opinion. Thank you,” Lawrence seemed satisfied for now. But he had emphasized the word ‘your’ in a way that made Jamie wonder.
“We are now at the first installation site,” Ares announced. Cargo doors are open, passenger door is open. Tethers deployed.”
“Jamie, Michael, Coello, and I will install this first FTL generator pod. The rest of you watch closely on the displays so you do not repeat the mistakes we are about to make,” Gonzales laughed a bit. “Lawrence, you will stand guard at the door.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Lawrence replied. As he stood Jamie saw that he was a bit taller than Michael. She recalled one of the soldiers who was tall also had very light blonde hair cut extremely short. Lawrence took an energy weapon from a storage locker and stood by.
Gonzales reached into the storage locker and passed out tools that would be used in the installation of the FTL pod. “This will allow us to clean off the mixture formula from the under-layer. You are familiar with the vibration saws, well this is very similar. The fusion pack built into the spacesuit will power a vibration projector. It will project a stream of gas. That gas will scrub off the mixture formula.”
The all placed the vibration projectors into compartments on their suits.
“The tethers are long leads which keep us physically attached to the shuttle. We can still gripper walk over the shuttle’s hull to the cargo compartment. The maneuvering jets on the suits will be used when we install the pod. So everyone hook on,” Gonzales snapped a tether cord to her suit and stepped out of the door and onto the hull of the shuttle.
“Now that is weird,” Michael said. “There is no real upside down or right side up.”
“Down is always where your feet are gripping,” Gonzales quipped “But for this job, we will consider ‘up’ being away from the Eschaton’s hull, and ‘down’ being toward the Eschaton hull.”
Jamie was next out of the door, followed by Coello whose spacesuit had the number 5 on it, Michael came along last.
The black background was as dark as Michael remembered it, and the stars speckling it were just as amazing and inspiring. He had the urge to reach out and try to touch them, but knew they were light-years away. He glanced over and saw that in comparison to down, he was walking sideways. The gripper boots kept him there, but it was still somewhat disorienting. He watched as the tether followed along the sleek hull of the shuttle. The tether seemed to connect in some way to the hull, but also slid along the hull. ‘It must be like the gripper boots’ Michael thought to himself.
“We are making good progress,” Gonzales said as she shuffled along. “The cargo doors are open, and we can climb in and unload the first FTL generator pod. Just avoid the engine manifolds, as the gripper boots will not hold there.”
They made it to the end of the shuttle by traversing beneath the swept back wing. “It is bizarre to be walking sideways,” Michael finally said as he could not hold back his feelings. “I am a bit dizzy.”
“That is natural. You will adjust,” Gonzales stated.
“I once was on a ship that was in a wild spin after we were hit by a Jellie missile. That was a time to be dizzy,” Coello said. Jamie and Michael now knew that their companion was one of the male soldiers.
“Coello, Jamie here did a free spacewalk, in one of the hundred plus year old suits from this boat, and recovered that AI Roxanne, all while under enemy harassment,” Gonzales stated.
“Impressive. When I first was briefed on that, I thought you had just a computer glitch, but then when we lost our troops, I realized how serious that had been. Forgive me for dismissing your bravery,” Coello stated in all seriousness.
“Dismissing my bravery?” Jamie asked.
“Yes, ma’am, I put you down to the other soldiers, and I was wrong to do that,” Coello replied.
“I did not know you did anything,” Jamie was puzzled.
“I am sure you did not. Nonetheless, I was wrong,” Coello said.
“We are here. Just climb over the doorway and we will get that first pod,” Gonzales said as she climbed into the cargo compartment. She was now standing upright as compared to the shuttle and the Eschaton.
The others joined her. “This at least looks better,” Michael said as he adjusted his perceptions to the new orientation.
“Now for the tricky part. We have to take the faster-than-light generator pod out of the cargo area but there is not a way to tether it,” Gonzales instructed.
“Can we just call the FTL generator pods, the mounds? That way we can communicate faster,” Jamie suggested.
“Excellent idea, Jamie,” Coello said. “So you are smart and brave.”
“Good. So we need to move the mound away from the shuttle before we take off the inflatable cushion and clean off the bottom. The vibration projectors will easily wash away the mixture, but we must be careful not to let the pod down until it is right on target. We get only one shot at the attachment, for the Jellie under-layer will bite into the first thing it contacts after the mixture is removed, and that includes a spacesuit, or the shuttle. So we get this right the first time.”
“This is Edgar. Ares has allowed me to inform you that the target area is now illuminated and ready to receive the FTL generator pod.”
They looked down toward the Eschaton, and sure enough a circular area was brightly illuminated and the shuttle was just to the side of that location.
“Since we cannot directly tether the mound, we need to set up a path for it to follow. I am going to drop to the Eschaton and attach a tether line there. If we have four of those, we can direct the mound down between the lines, and clean it off, then set it in place,” Gonzales said and took another tether line in her hand.
“The maneuvering jets will allow us to fall to the Eschaton without any trouble. Watch me,” Gonzales said. She carefully removed both feet from the deck and floated upward a bit. Her suit was tethered, and she held the other tether in her hand. “Now just a tiny bit of jet to set me on the way.” A tiny burst was seen from her back. She descended slowing downward.
Upon reaching the hull of the Eschaton, she attached the tether in her hand to the hull of the Eschaton, right next to the highlighted target area. “See that! Pretty easy. Coello, you next.”
Coello followed the same pattern as did Gonzales and soon two guide tethers were in place on opposites sides of the target circle. Coello then jumped upward and that momentum carried him precisely back to the cargo doors of the shuttle. “Just watch your primary tether, it is easy,” he said as he rejoined Jamie and Michael.
“I am next,” Jamie said. She took the third guide tether in her hand and stepped out of the cargo area. Her descent the hull of the Eschaton was not as smooth as the others had been. She had given more boost from the jet, but she landed close to where the third tether needed to be located. She attached that and jumped back toward the shuttle. She had used a bit more force than needed, and had to catch herself as she swiftly approached the cargo doors.
“Not too bad, Jamie,” Coello said as he grabbed her arm to help steady her.
“Michael, you bring down the last tether, and then you and I will both go back to get the mound. Watch for the other lines, it is somewhat more complicated now,” Gonzales said.
Michael was a bit dizzy still, but stepped to the edge of the cargo compartment and then pulled both feet off and was free from gripper walking. A slight push from the jet controls and he was descending with the primary tether on his suit and the guide one in his hand. He landed exactly where he had hoped to land, his gripper boots securing his footing. He reached down and the last guide tether was in place. They now formed a square inside which the mound could be pushed down onto the Eschaton’s hull.
“So we have a guide system for delivering the mound. Now we go back, get it out, clean it off, and drop it into place,” Gonzales said.
Gonzales and Michael both jumped upward toward the open cargo doors. Gonzales landed right on the mark, but Michael’s aim was off. He overshot the cargo doors and floated past.
“Michael!” Jamie cried in alarm as she reached out trying to grab him as he went by.
“No need for concern,” Ares said. Retraction of Michael’s tether initiated. The tether retracted and that stopped Michael momentum. He was then reeled back to the shuttle. He grabbed the door and pulled himself into the cargo section. “I am monitoring all the activity. I am here to provide redundant safety systems,” Ares said.
“Thanks Ares!” Michael said as he settled himself back in place. “So now we move the mound?”
“Unless you need a rest?” Gonzales replied.
“No, I have missed jumps before and felt far worse than this,” Michael laughed recalling what other things had happened exploring the old ship.
The guide tethers came from positions around the cargo doors opening. The four people in spacesuits unlatched the first mound and gently floated it to the edge where they made sure it would fit inside the guides tethers.
“It could slip through, but this is the best we can do,” Gonzales said. “Now we begin to descend with the mound, and I will let you know when we need to stop to clean off its bottom.”
They each took positions near a guide tether, and then began the process of moving the mound downward toward the hull of the Eschaton. One hand held securely to the guide tether, the other hand holding the mound. They had moved about twenty meters when Gonzales called a halt.
“I am removing the inflatable cushion from the bottom. Restraining straps are now gone,” Gonzales said and then pinched off a release valve. There was a jet of air which came out of the cushion. “And off it goes!” The cushion deflated and propelled itself out between the guide tethers and away into space.
