The Epherium Chronicles: Echoes (12 page)

The investigation wasn’t what was bothering her. She gazed at the box sitting to her right, containing her brother Kadin effects. Commander Sanchez had left them with her. She didn’t bother to see what was inside the box. She couldn’t. Even before Sanchez had shown up at her door, Maya had reviewed the casualty list. She’d skipped Kadin’s name twice on purpose, pretending it wasn’t there.

Since they’d been rescued from her father’s secret laboratory on Mars, her two brothers were the only two people she could count on. They were family, if not by blood, then by design.

Sanchez’s earlier words concerning the loss of her brother had been soothing, but they couldn’t fill the hole ripped open in her heart. She’d tried to put on her best face, just as she always did, but it couldn’t hold.

The sadness and welling tears in his eyes had broken the dam of emotion Maya had fought desperately to prop up. She’d thrown herself into his arms and cried. There wasn’t a time she could remember since the loss of her family that her feelings were this strong.

Before he left, he’d placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. “We’ll talk more later.” She wished he’d stayed.

Unable to even look at the box, she slid it to the side with her hand and gazed up at the picture on the shelf. Maya was in her dress uniform just out of graduation from the
EDF
Academy and surrounded by her two brothers. It was a good day. She reached up to take the picture when she noticed the sealed box seated beside it. The box Kadin had delivered to her from Jared when he’d arrived on the
Armstrong
.

She picked it up and set it on the desk. After sliding her finger over the scanner, Maya wasn’t sure why she decided to open it. Perhaps she could find a small fabric of happiness inside, or a single idea to give her purpose beyond her role on the
Armstrong
. The box unlocked with loud click, and she opened the lid.

Inside, she found three things. The first was a folded piece of paper. She removed it and laid it out flat on the desk. It was a drawing. She remembered it. A man stood in the center of thirty small children. Each of her brothers and sisters had drawn their own likenesses on the paper and signed their names. Maya found her own image, complete with her red hair tied in bows.

She moved the paper to her bed and pulled another item from the box. A simple red bag filled with jacks and a rubber ball. She had practiced for hours to master the game. Nobody could beat her at jacks, not even Kadin. The bag was the first gift she remembered receiving from her father.

The last item in the box was a data cartridge. Kadin had mentioned Jared had recovered old video footage from their former home. This had to be it. She plugged the cartridge into her terminal and accessed the files. Hundreds of small video files of their youth were listed. She opened one with her name on it. Her sixth birthday. Her anxious younger self stood beside her father with a smile revealing her two missing top front teeth. A yellow cake with chocolate frosting, sprinkles and glowing candles was in front of her. Euphoria rose inside her and she laughed. That was her favorite type of cake.

She closed the video and scrolled down the list. The last video was recent and marked with Jared’s name. She opened it. Sporting a light blue lab coat, Jared sat on the edge of a desk in his office. His blond hair was combed to perfection just as it always was and filled with enough gel to hold it place for days. He never changed.

Jared greeted her on the video and said he hoped she enjoyed her gift. He proceeded to lay out his plan to reengage their father’s research with a new source of donor funding. It was the same old Jared. Science was his passion, and he could explain it better than a college physics professor. She was about to fast-forward it to the end, where he’d truly get to the point, when she noticed the odd positions of his hands. During the video, Jared leaned against the desk with his left hand and gestured with his right. Jared was left-handed.

She zoomed in closer on his left hand. Every few seconds, his middle three fingers tapped in a sequence. He was communicating in a code—their code they’d created to speak to one another when they wanted none of the other children to hear. She backed up the video and watched it in its entirety. She wrote down everything, but the end result didn’t make sense. His message ended in a random group of letters and numbers. Was it a new cypher? No, it had to be simpler than that. The numbers were all single digits and the letters ranged from
A
to
F
. Jared’s final words formed a series of numbers in hexadecimal. She grouped them together in eight then sixteen. The numbers were an address, a memory location.

She opened a new terminal window and interfaced with the data cartridge port. A scrolling list of memory addresses appeared. She filtered the list to the exact location provided by her brother and accessed the data.

Her terminal recognized it as another video file. When she opened it, she saw her father writing a series of notes on a board in his office. The date code on the video was the day of the explosion. The feeling of loss of that day was almost too much. She reached to stop the video but paused. Two people were with him. Her oldest brother, Anthony, sat on an examination bed, while her sister, Ehlana, leaned against his desk, her arms crossed. She was often bored and whatever father was doing didn’t impress her.

Dr. Greywalker picked up a large instrument from a tray to his right and walked to Anthony’s side. It looked like an injector, but it was different. She tried to hear what he was saying; unfortunately the audio was poor. The two clear words she could make out were “final stages.”

Shadowed silhouettes moved in the hall outside. Her father stopped to look, and then it happened. A bright flash from the doorway soon became liquid flame that burned his clothes and flesh. It washed across the room, consuming her brother in its deadly embrace. The flames ignited the chemicals in the laboratory, and a corrosive pale green gas filled the air. It spread down the hall and into the ventilation system.

Horrified, Maya watched her father, still clinging to life, crawl across the floor toward Anthony. Her brother rolled in agony as his face and arms blackened and blistered. Dr. Greywalker held him in the curl of one arm until they both laid still.

Ehlana managed to leap onto a desk. Flames engulfed her pant legs. In a frenzied panic, she slapped at the flames with her palms, hoping to snuff them out. It didn’t matter. The gas filled her lungs. Gasps turned to choking, and she fell off the table and into the fire.

Maya pushed her chair away from the desk and ran across the room to the far wall. She remembered the gas. It had come for her down the hall, forcing her and her two brothers to seal themselves in an airtight compartment. Her breathing was labored now as she wrestled with the panic. It was so long ago, but it felt as real as it did that day.

Why had Jared sent me this?
She centered herself and gained control of her emotions. There had to be a reason. She walked back to the terminal and rewound the video before the fire. She stopped it just before the explosion. She could see the outlines of faces in the shadows of the hall and a hand tossing a small sphere into the office. The device caused the explosion.

She had it now. Jared had given her something of purpose after all, and determination surged through her. Everyone believed what happened had been an accident. It wasn’t. Whoever was in the hall had murdered her father and tried to wipe out her family. The video wasn’t just a record, it was evidence. Jared had given it to the one person he knew who could expose those involved. After studying the video segment one more time, she turned it off and stored the data cartridge in a secure cabinet. She didn’t need it anymore. She had her first clue.

Chapter Thirteen

High
Orbit
EDF
Armstrong
Tau Ceti 3
Friday, March 7
Earth Year 2155

Hood watched the morning rays of the Tau Ceti star bathe the area of the planet with its golden glow. The cloud cover on the planet surface had intensified since their arrival. It was almost as if the planet was reacting to their presence.

There was a weak groan behind him. He pivoted away from the viewport in one of the med bay observation rooms and walked toward the noise. Jillian Howard made the same sound again, stronger this time, and her eyes opened. Gone were the strange movements he’d witnessed before, and a frail but pleasant smile greeted him. “Hey,” she whispered.

“Hey.” Hood wanted to reach out and take hold of her hand, but he hesitated. Was she the same person or just a facade? Jillian’s wrists and ankles were still secured. Her vitals and brain activity had shown progressive improvement since the episode in his quarters. Out of caution, Dr. Patton had instructed him to keep distance between them. “How are you feeling?”

“Tired and a little groggy.” She tried to move her arms, but the restraints held them in place. “What did I do?”

Her confused facial expression tore at his heart. He could see deeper wrinkles in her forehead, and touches of gray formed in her hair. The sight made him straighten. She was aging, just like Grange and the others. “You had a little episode and you weren’t yourself.” He glanced up at Dr. Patton, who’d just appeared in the doorway. “The doctors are checking everything out. What do you remember?”

She shook her head. “Everything is so fuzzy. I was in my quarters trying to get a little rest. Kree had pretty much shut himself off again after the battle was over.” She studied her bed for a moment. “The next thing I knew, I woke up here.”

Dr. Patton waved to him. “Get some rest, Jillian. We’re going to get you out of here soon. I promise.”

Hood skirted the edge of her bed and met the doctor in the hall. “Any news?”

“I completed my workups and there’s not much to go on,” Patton explained. “Her brain activity was very similar to what we saw with Lieutenant Krieg after the attack on the Epherium office. It’s a hyper-accelerated dream state.” The Epherium office attack had occurred on board the
Armstrong
on the journey to Cygni. Four Epherium employees had been killed by a strange nightmare-inducing toxin. Krieg had been found alive at the scene and hadn’t received a lethal dose. “Unfortunately, I can’t find any trace of the toxin. Something else caused this.”

“When can she be released?”

“I have a few more things I want to explore, but I’m worried about reversion. Plus, I see you noticed her hair.”

Hood nodded.

“I compared samples of her tissues to those of her physical just before we left Cygni.” He pulled up the information on his data pad. “By my estimate, she’s aged over five years in just a few days.”

Concern for Jillian was already weighing him down and starting to impair his ability to run the ship. “Could it be part of the cellular degeneration from the Embrace unit?”

“No. I’ve used all the data provided from Epherium related to the Embrace, and it’s not that. The good news is that it hasn’t continued. I think whatever triggered it is related to her episode.”

Hood’s comm band buzzed. It was Sanchez. “This is Hood.”

“Captain, we received an updated status from McGregor. They’ve completed their sweeps and conducted a few interviews with the colonists. He believes it’s safe to have more personnel come down, but thinks a full medical team is needed to examine the colonists’ aging.”

Sanchez’s word sparked a lightbulb revelation. Grange had mentioned the aging of many of the colonists had occurred when they’d first arrived. The
Armstrong
had been in orbit for a few days, and now Jillian had similar symptoms. The planet was the key. “Commander, I need you to pull a team together to head to the surface. Get with McGregor. Find out how many additional Marines he needs to help with defenses, but add Lieutenant Greywalker. I want her to interview everyone, just like Cygni. We need to be certain the personality modifications are still in place.”

“Are you going, sir?” Sanchez questioned.

“No.” Hood knew Sanchez would challenge him on it, but he’d made that decision hours ago. “I’m needed here in case the Chi’tan make another appearance. You’ll be the
Armstrong’s
liaison and speak to Grange and the other colonists.”

“Understood. Who should go from the medical team?”

There was a gleam in Patton’s eyes. “I’ll leave that up to Dr. Patton, but I’m sure he’ll be accompanying you. Oh, add Mr. McCraken. He might be of assistance if the aging has anything to do with the Embrace units.”

“I’ll be sure to include him.” Sanchez chuckled. “The teams will be readied within the hour. Sanchez out.”

Hood peeked back into Jillian’s room. She’d fallen asleep. He envied her. He was sure he wasn’t going to get much in the next several hours. But if they could discover the cause on the planet, it would be worth it.

* * *

Secured in his environmental suit, Sanchez sat strapped into his seat aboard the lead shuttle headed down to the surface. The descent into the atmosphere hadn’t been easy. The shuttle rocked from another pocket of turbulence. He grasped the armrests in a white-knuckled grip. He looked over at the person beside him.

Maya Greywalker sat still with her legs braced against her seat and her hands in her lap. Her eyes met his, and the haunted look he found made him pause. Out of instinct, he reached over and took her hand. She squeezed it tight and offered a smile. She was holding up better than he expected, which gave him a small measure of relief.

Outside the shuttle, a powerful lightning strike struck the port-side wing. Alarms sounded in the cabin. He peered out the viewport, searching for damage. A long burn mark tracked along the wing, but the damage was superficial.

The shuttles increased their descent and soon broke through the thick cloud cover. In the distance, Sanchez could see the
Cabot
nestled among the trees. She looked just as majestic as the
Magellan
when he’d first seen her.

The pilots skirted the treetops and decelerated. Lighted beacons below formed a landing path toward the hangar on the far side of the colony ship, and the pilots set the shuttle down on the ground without incident. Behind him, Sanchez heard a loud exhale. He turned to see a pale-faced Henry McCraken still quaking in his suit.

“Sorry.” McCraken’s voice was shaky and nervous. “I’ve never liked rough flights. Not even back home.” He leaned closer to him. “There wouldn’t be a spare environment suit on board would there?”

Sanchez issued a soft laugh and pointed to the decontamination well in the back of the shuttle. All the shuttles had them and offered the ability to remove their suits, eat and perform any bodily functions without risk of exposure. He watched McCraken half waddle to the door then followed Maya to the shuttle’s exit ramp. At the base of the ramp, Major McGregor stood waiting for them. McGregor issued a firm salute, and Sanchez returned it. His hands felt like lead weights. “You weren’t kidding, Major, and I thought close survey flights around Jupiter could hit you hard.”

“Bah, you’ll get used to it, Commander.” McGregor snorted. “I’ll be glad when we get rid of these blasted environmental suits. I’m tired of tasting stale air.”

McGregor escorted them into the protected zone of the camp. When he walked into the gates, Sanchez studied the tall watchtowers above. Marines in armor were stationed there now, but he envisioned the colonists trying to defend this area. It had to have been hard.

He recognized Arthur Grange from the first communication with the colony. Grange was standing next to a large building with several power amplifiers inside. The colony leader noticed him and jogged over.

“Welcome, Commander Sanchez. I’m glad more of you made it down safely,” Grange said and offered his hand. “I was hoping to see Captain Hood in person, but Major McGregor told me you’d be coming in his place.”

Sanchez gave him a handshake. It felt a bit weird still in his suit. “Nice to meet you, Commander Grange. I must apologize for Captain Hood. There are problems in orbit that demand his attention. He hopes to make it down when they’re resolved.” He knew the answer was vague, but it was the best diplomatic one he could come up with. He gestured to Maya and Dr. Patton. “This is Lieutenant Maya Greywalker, our chief security officer, and Dr. Derik Patton, our chief medical officer. We’ve brought a full medical team to examine what’s happening down here. Where can they set up?”

Grange waved over a younger woman with long chestnut hair. Unlike Grange, she didn’t seem to be affected by the accelerated aging. “This is Dr. Emma Gracen. She’s our head biologist, but I’ve had to press her into medical duty. She can help your people get situated.”

“Nice to meet you, Dr. Gracen,” Patton introduced himself.

“Likewise, Doctor. Please follow me.”

While Patton and his team left with Dr. Gracen, Sanchez gave a subtle nod to Maya. She didn’t respond, but casually walked away. He was confident she could verify all the remaining colonists, but he knew she relied on her enhanced physical senses. Since she was still stuck in the environmental suit, he hoped it wouldn’t be a problem.

“Major McGregor mentioned you wanted to talk to all of us.”

“That’s correct. A lot has happened since you left, Commander. I need to catch you up.”

Grange produced an elated smile. “If your talk can catch me up on baseball, I’m all for it. I can’t wait to hear about my Boston Red Sox.”

Sanchez laughed. “I’m sure I can fit that in.”

He heard heavy footsteps behind him and turned to find McCraken trying to run toward him. The Epherium representative stopped and bent over, out of breath. He took a few moments then joined them.

“Henry McCraken. Nice to finally meet you, Commander Grange.”

“Nice to meet you as well,” Grange replied. “I imagine you want to review our protocols.”

“Yes, if you have time.”

“Certainly. I have everything ready for you inside the
Cabot.”

Sanchez let McCraken go with Grange. He wasn’t interested in Epherium’s protocols. He stepped inside the building with the power amplifiers. This was far more interesting. Large cables extended from the
Cabot,
feeding the thirty amplifiers set along the edges of the building. Each amplifier powered a separate grid of the fence. It was impressive, but the power usage was immense.
Is the planet’s animal life that dangerous?
He hoped Grange had better answers.

* * *

Later that evening, Sanchez did his best to present the information to the colonists about the Cilik’ti, the war and the current situation in orbit. During his presentation, he scanned the room, looking for reactions. Most of the colonists were concerned, but given their own situation, the impact was less than that of the Cygni colonists.

After he finished, Grange joined him and explained what had befallen the colony since their arrival. He described their first encounter with the family of large beasts McGregor’s team had driven off when they’d arrived. The colonists called them Hanno, after the Carthaginian navigator who’d discovered a species of large gorillas in Western Africa.

The Hanno were a close family group, and never violent unless threatened. The Alpha of the Hanno had warned them off twice before allowing the colonists close enough to study the others.

“Why the energy fence?” Sanchez asked.

“Not everything here is as safe as the Hanno,” Grange began. “Large insects and flying predators like the ones Major McGregor’s team witnessed before they landed are most aggressive. The huge winged creatures we’ve nicknamed Razorclaws, and it’s pretty accurate. We’ve seen them tear apart several smaller animals in the clearings nearby in a single pass. They return to gather the remains and carry them off toward the mountains to the north.” Grange stared at Sanchez. “We built the fence because we’re scared, Commander. We’ve lost people during the night times and we don’t travel deep into the woods anymore except in large groups. Not even to visit the graves.”

“Where did you bury the other colonists?”

“There’s a clearing inside the forest about a kilometer to the southeast. It’s where many of the rover team died. With our limited space near us, we wanted to keep it far enough away to reduce any spread of disease. It’s not far from the Hanno.”

“Thank you, Commander Grange. I hope to spend some time talking with you all about your experiences.” The meeting disbanded, and Sanchez found Maya in the back of the room, passive and observing. “Well, how did I do?”

“I believe it went well and it allowed me to finish my report.” Maya offered the seat next to her. Sanchez sat and leaned over to view her data pad. “I reviewed the files and compared them to all the active colonists. Everyone here fits their profile, but I’ve focused more on those who have shown advanced aging. If the Embrace effects have broken down, they’d be the most obvious.”

“I didn’t get a count on how many of them were affected.”

Maya opened her report file. “Less than ten percent of the remaining colonists show no signs of aging, but that’s my observation. Dr. Patton hasn’t concluded his examinations yet. He says he should have a definitive number in the morning.”

“Good. The faster we can get a resolution, the better.” He scanned the room, focusing in on several of the remaining colonists. “They’re scared, Maya. This whole place feels weird. I don’t blame them. Losing that many of your own has to take its toll.”

Maya nodded. “Understandable. However, I’m concerned about what he hasn’t told us.”

“What do you mean?”

“He’s clearly holding something back, and I noticed similar behavior in different interviews. They don’t seem to be deceiving, but there’s definitely a subject they’re avoiding.”

Maya’s assessment made him nervous. He didn’t like secrets.

Sanchez stood. “Alright, I’ll spend more time with Grange and see what I can shake free. Talk with Major McGregor. He’s been here the longest, and maybe his Marines have picked up on it.”