Battleground Mars (28 page)

“I don’t know.” She hit a series of switches, with no effect. She hit them again.

“It should work, it really should.”

She was close to panic, a young woman on her first Mars mission, flung into a responsibility that was far beyond her skills and experience. Except that she was the only one.

He kept his voice calm and soothing. Panic would not help her.

“Think. Could Dan have rigged it the wrong way around?”

She shrugged. “I don’t see how. This stuff is all pretty standard.”

He heard the rising despair in her voice.

“But it isn’t standard, is it? This equipment was the older stuff that was going back to Earth for overhaul.”

It was as if he’d switched on a light. She smiled at him. “Rahm, you’re a genius. Of course, this older stuff is wired the reverse way to the newer equipment. They brought in some weird new health and safety law. If Dan didn’t know that, he would have got the wiring all in reverse.” Her face clouded. “But it’ll take hours to check it all through and work it out.”

“Gabi, do it. Don’t check anything, don’t work anything out, there isn’t time.”

She still looked uncertain. He glared at her.

“Gabi, they’re dying. Fucking do it!” he roared at the top of his voice.

“Oh, right!” she leapt at the violence in his voice. “I don’t need to disconnect, I can reverse the setting from the panel.”

She keyed frantically until the panel lights changed from lines of clear green to lines of threatening red.”

“Is that it? It doesn’t look right.”

“No, it’s the reverse of Dan’s settings, but that’s how it’s done. Shall I try it?”

He was careful to keep any irony or exasperation out of his voice. “Yes.”

The machinery clanked into life, and she turned to him with amazement on her face. “We did it, Rahm. It’s working.”

He gave her a gentle hug through their pressure suits. “There was no ‘we’ about it. You deserve a medal for all the work you’ve done to get this working. Let’s head back and see if there’s still time to turn things around at Mars Base.”

“Yes, we need to be quick.”

He was alerted by a strange sound in her voice. What is it, Gabi?”

“I’m nearly out of air, Rahm. I’ve only got a few minutes, no more.”

He almost threw her onto the buggy and raced back to Mars Base. Both inner and outer airlock doors were open, he drove through, but there was no power to close them behind him. Drillers were lying around the floor, gasping out their last as their sets slowly ceased to supply the life-giving air. Saul appeared in front of him.

“Saul, the scrubbers are working, get Kacy to divert some of the supplementary power we used in there to power up these doors, we need to seal the base.”

“I’m on it,” he shouted as he dashed away.

Rahm picked up Gabi and dashed through to the crew locker he used. He wrenched open the lid and rummaged underneath the tools and equipment. He came out with something that in this place of death was worth more than its weight in gold. He unsnapped Gabi’s supply and snapped on the replacement. He switched it on and was rewarded with the sound of her sucking in air. Her eyes had been closed, they opened now.

“Is it working yet, have we got air?”

“Not quite, this is the last of the portable scrubbers, I kept it.”

“Why?”

“For you, Gabi. I’m not going to let you go, not this time.”

She shook her head, but said nothing. Then a wonderful thing happened. Kacy had tapped into the supply from the cave, the emergency lights started to come on, then some of the main lights. Saul found the door switches and closed the airlock. Kacy came in, smiling.

“That was good work at the cave. If you hadn’t done what you did, there’d be no power and no air. As things are, we should be re-pressurized within two hours. The patch they put on seems to be holding.”

“So what do we do next?” Gabi asked.

Ryles entered the garage from a side door. He was clutching a heavy bag.

“That was good work everyone. We should be able to get things back to normal before long. Provided the Taurons don’t attack again.”

“They’re all dead, Tobin.”

He looked at Saul with a stupid expression. “Dead, what do you mean?”

“Dead as in we killed them all. I guess it was while you were praying.”

“So I guess my prayers were answered,” he smiled weakly. “I’ll make sure to mention the help you’ve given me in my report.”

They were all surprised that it was Kacy who lost it. She stormed up to him and delivered a beautiful punch that connected with and audible ‘crack’ to his jaw. He was flung to the floor like a sack of potatoes.

“I’ll have you sacked for that, you can’t do that to me,” he shouted. He got up, still raving. “I’ll sue you for every penny you’ve got, so you just wait until we get back to Earth. I’ll…”

“What’s in the bag, Tobin?” Rahm asked quietly.

“The bag? Oh, yeah, some of my personal equipment, it’s private.”

Rahm snatched it off him and checked inside. There were two portable scrubbers.

“No, Rahm, I can explain, honestly, look…”

This time Rahm hit him. Hard. His nose burst, sending blood trickling down inside his helmet, underneath his mouthpiece.”

“Save it, Ryles. You’re fired.”

“You can’t fire me.”

“I just did. We need a man to run this place, not a whore’s errand boy like you.”

They left him babbling on the floor while they did a round of the base to check the integrity. To their surprise, the damage inflicted by the Taurons had been repaired with patches that promised to hold. At least, long enough for the relief ship to arrive. There were nine more bodies, and all of them had succumbed to lack of air. Four were in the sick bay. Rahm had brought the two portable scrubbers, but it was too late. He gave them to Doc Price.

“Damn, these could have saved two of those lives. Who had them, Ryles?”

Rahm nodded.

“I’ll make sure he goes to prison for this when we get back. It’s as good as murder. I assume we have a chance of getting back?”

“A good one, Doc. Look after your patients. They’ll be able to breathe better soon.”

It took less than two hours to pressurize the dome with breathable air. After an hour and a half Kacy was able to take the readings that indicated they could remove their suits and masks.

“I think we’re over the worst, we have enough life support to survive until the relief ship turns up. I think we’re going to live. It could have been a lot…”

She’d turned around and seen that she was talking to herself. Gabi and Rahm had disappeared. She understood. They’d spent so long staring at the many different, cruel faces of death. When the danger receded, basic human instinct was, well, basic. She felt lonely. If only she had someone here inside Mars Base that she could call a friend. More than a friend, she wanted a date. A partner, a squeeze, it all added up to the same.

“Kacy?”

She turned to speak to Saul. “Yes?”

“I’ve got a bottle in my cabin, do you fancy…”

She hugged him to her. “Whatever the question is, the answer is yes.”

“Anything?”

“Anything.”

They lay in Rahm’s bunk, watching the dark surface of Mars. The sky was brightly lit with stars, more than they’d ever seen in their lives.

“I never thought we’d get there,” Gabi said.

“Even with your ideas about the air scrubbers?”

“It was more of a guess than anything. It could have gone either way.”

Well, it didn’t.”

They lay there in the post-coital silence that is enjoyed by all lovers.

“Rahm?”

“What?”

“Those stars, one of them is moving.”

He jerked upright. A ship was descending from orbit, as they watched it reached a point about a mile above the surface and hovered there. Watching. Listening.

“Taurons?”

“I reckon,” he replied. “Damn, I thought we’d done enough for this trip.”

The ship hovered for five more minutes. They were long minutes, enough for them to conjure up fantasies of legions of aliens landing and storming Mars Base to wreak revenge.

“Should we alert the others?” she asked tremulously.

“What for? Let them relax. We can’t deal with a ship like that. It’s leagues ahead of our technology. If they land several hundred monsters and piles of military equipment, we’re done for. We may as well go up to them and say, ‘take me to your leader.’

“Or eat a laser pistol.”

“Yeah, that would do it.”

Then the ship accelerated away, within seconds it had disappeared into outer space.

“What are they up to?” Gabi mused. “It’s not like those creatures to turn around and go home. They’re tough, always spoiling for a fight.”

“Standing orders.”

She looked at Rahm. “What the hell’s that supposed to mean?”

“A while back I was looking at the ship’s instructions for the first mining colony on Mars. The investment in the vessel and the equipment was astronomical. They always worried that someone could have got their first, that Mars could have been occupied by a force that was militarily superior to our own. Orders were to evacuate rather than slug it out and lose everything. I guess the Taurons looked at it the same way. When their scanners failed to pick up any signs of their people, they pulled out.”

“That’s crazy,” she exclaimed. “It doesn’t make any sense. Let’s face it, we were lucky, they’re way ahead of us in every way.”

“That’s true,” Rahm grinned. “But do they know that?”

She nodded thoughtfully. “I guess it’s possible. Let’s just hope they don’t change their minds and come back.”

“If they do, we’ll beat them again. And anyone else that comes after them.”

“You’re very confident. You think you’re that tough?”

“No, absolutely not. I agree. It was touch and go this time. But it’s the whole of the human race I put my faith in. Just being physically strong isn’t the whole answer. History is littered with battles when understrength, poorly equipped armies defeated enemies many times their size.”

“Like David and Goliath?” She was smiling broadly.

“Yeah, that story was in my mind. You know what I thought about the original fight, the one in the old bible?”

She shook her head. “Is this some kind of deep philosophy thing?”

“Quite the opposite. It just occurred to me that Goliath was one dumb sonofabitch not to have learned to use a slingshot when he was a kid.”

“What should that giant Tauron have learned, what did he miss?”

“That’s easy. To stay out of my face.”

They reached for each other, in a celebration of the life that had returned to Mars Base. And to them.

“It’s a good offer, Rahm. A further two year contract at fifty percent more than you earned last time.”

They were in spacious, modern company headquarters. Like much of Houston, Texas, the building high enough to almost touch the clouds. Outside, it was all dark, smoked glass and sculptured granite. Inside, there was a soaring atrium with a bank of elevators. They’d been ushered to the one on the far left, marked ‘Private’. The elevator almost broke the sound barrier as it rocketed up to the forty-eighth floor. The executive floor, with carpet thick enough to lose a small dog in its pile. Everywhere was dark oak, polished brass and original artworks on the walls.

He shook his head. “I’m sorry; I thought I made it clear. I’ve already bought a place and I’m well on the way to starting my own operation.”

The general manager shook his head. “I’m real sorry to hear that. We could use you up there, both of you. Ma’am, couldn’t you persuade him?” He thought for a moment. “I could make that a straight hundred percent more than last time.”

She smiled. “I’m sorry, but I know his mind is made up. I’m not in a hurry to go back either, we’re going to make a go of things on Earth.”

“If your mind is made up, there’s nothing I can do. Call me if you ever change your mind.”

The interview was over, they stood and shook hands. They reached the elevator, when the door opened a familiar figure stepped out.

“Hey, you two, are you here for a new contract?”

Rahm shook his head. “No, we’ve decided against going back to Mars. How about you, what are you up to?”

He was a small man, and most people would describe him as weedy. “Haven’t you heard? They’ve given me the contract to manage the next Mars Base relief. I’m due to fly out in just over a week.”

“Did you ask them to try and recruit me and Gabi?”

He grinned. “Yeah, of course I was behind that. I told them how helpful you’d been when I had to take over after Jacques died and they agreed that we should try and get you on board.”

Rahm stared at Tobin Ryles. Some people could fall into a barrel of pig shit and come out smelling of Chanel Number Five. He was one of them. They wished each other luck and pressed the button to take them back down. A limo took them out to the airport where they boarded the company jet for the journey back to New York. They had another surprise waiting for them when they landed at JFK. Saul Packer was waiting for them, together with Kacy Lakkin. After the hugs, kisses, and greetings, they took a taxi into the city and found a restaurant. They finished a fine meal, carefully avoiding any talk of the bad times on Mars, and remembering the good times. There were few good times.