Waiting (9 page)

Loretti said,
'Oh, crap. You're going to come out with some conspiracy theory.
You are, aren't you.'

Gunther nodded.
'The biggest. Unbelievably bad timing with the Goliath on the last
lag of its journey so I couldn't do much about it. The essence of
it all was that something was discovered on the Spero itself.'

'Bullshit,'
said Loretti. 'It's just a partially frozen world. A snowball in
space.'

'Until a couple
of months ago, I thought that, too,' agreed Gunther. 'Until I found
the half deleted message. I dug a lot deeper, putting the clues
together. Even then I refused to believe it. I kept digging anyway
and finally I knew it was true. Life existed on Spero.'

'Microbes,'
said Staples. 'That's all that could possibly be there. Released by
the terraformers as they melted the icecaps.'

Willis said,
'Are you talking about intelligent life? Shit. I'm still wondering
if that exists here on Earth.'

'I try to keep
an open mind on that one,' said Gunther. 'But yes. At least some of
their radio signals were picked up when we were looking at Spero
awhile ago. I'm pretty certain microbes don't have radios.'

'How old were
the signals?' Staples wanted to know.

'Hard to say,'
said Gunther. 'I'm no expert, but radio waves behave differently in
space than here on Earth. Out in space radio waves can travel
better in the vacuum than in our atmosphere. They also shoot off in
all directions. They keep on going almost indefinitely until
they're impeded. The signals picked up started off outside of
Spero's atmosphere as it was at the time, so the signals kept on
going. Could be from hundreds or even thousands of years ago, or
just months ago.'

Gunther let his
words sink in when Loretti said, 'If the signals were out of
Spero's atmosphere, then that must mean...'

'Say it,' dared
Gunther.

'Oh, crap. They
had ships in space.'

'Bingo!'

Willis said,
'And we sent our ship and our people out there knowing this?'

'Like I said
before. The Goliath was coming to the end of its journey when the
signals were picked up and somebody tried to bury that knowledge.
Almost succeeded until I stumbled across it.'

'And you are
saying this is known at the top?' said Loretti.

Gunther nodded.
'Yes. And I know who one of the voices is on that partially deleted
message.'

'I think I know
where this is going,' said Loretti. 'It's why you sent for me,
isn't it?'

Gunther leaned
towards her, his elbows on his desk. 'Bridget. One of them was your
mother.'

Loretti was too
stunned to respond, but she could tell from her father's eyes he
spoke the truth.

'We need to
warn the Goliath,' said Willis.

Gunther got up
and raided his fridge for more beer for everyone. 'I thought of
that. But I'm convinced somebody on the Goliath already knows all
this.'

'Who?' asked
Staples.

Gunther
shrugged. 'I have no idea who, but gut instinct tells me at least
one person on that ship is in on the conspiracy with General
Loretti. Also, before most of my people were taken back to serve in
the war effort, I believe somebody in the Base was communicating
with their cohort on the ship. At least that communication had to
come from here because only our radio can get through to the radio
on the Goliath. Designed that way to prevent the East having access
to the Goliath during times of conflict. That is the specific
purpose of the unit.'

Willis said,
'Which is why you sabotaged that communication unit.'

'Guilty as
charged.'

Loretti said,
'You'll be guilty for sure if mother finds out.'

'I know. Look.
I can't do this alone. I hope to God I'm doing the right thing
putting my trust in you three. Forget I'm your father for one
minute, Bridget. You know how the war is going better than most.
Eventually we will all lose, right?'

'The way things
are going, we'll wipe ourselves out within six months.'

'Correct. If we
are to save mankind, we have to help those on the Goliath with the
mission. And to do that we need to find out what is really going
on.' Gunther spread his arms wide, appealing to the three of them.
'Either one of you can turn me in and it is all over,
or
we
work together and do all we can to keep the mission safe. I'm in
your hands now. What is it to be?'

Chapter 22

'Unless we are
hopelessly lost, we must be near,' said Jacobs, feeling even more
than his age. 'Sorry. Complaining again.'

'I forgive
you,' said Lee. 'The compass is a little erratic because of the
storms interference, but not enough to doubt it totally. It also
says we have covered thirty one miles so far, so we should almost
be on top of the terraformer.'

'Good. I'm sure
my one arm is longer than the other one after lugging this case for
hours. Are you ok?'

Lee said, 'I'm
fifteen years younger than you. I'm fine.'

'As I'd expect.
You are very fit and in excellent shape. Damn. Sorry. That made me
sound like an old pervert. What I meant was...'

Lee chuckled at
Jacobs' awkwardness. 'I got it. I think. Not much else to do on the
ship but eat healthy stuff and exercise.'

'True. I should
definitely do more of the latter. Anne. If you don't mind me saying
so, for an obviously attractive young woman, you don't seem to have
forged any relationships with anyone on the mission. Excuse me
while I kick myself. I really do sound like a perv now.'

'To me you
sound like a concerned captain keeping an eye on us all. And you
are right about me. A few of us are deliberately holding back from
emotional entanglements. That will all change once we settle here.
We'll finally be able to see a future and nature will kick in.'

Jacobs said,
'That makes sense. None of the young men take your fancy?'

'Ah, now I
never said that. What I want to know is when you are going to make
your move on Doctor Cormack.'

Jacobs stopped
in his tracks. 'Good heavens, Anne. Valerie?'

'Perfect for
you. A few years younger. Clever. Quite pretty.'

'Very.'

'See? I knew
you fancied her. You know she likes you, don't you? Even a man
can't be that clueless.'

They continued
walking as they talked, Lee checking the compass again.

'We do get on
ok.'

'You actually
are clueless. She has her sights on you.'

'Oh, come
now.'

Lee admitted,
'Some of us have a sweepstake going. I have you two getting it
together at ten to one. I should make a killing.'

'Ten to one?
Not particularly good odds on us getting together I'd have
thought.'

'Good odds for
me,' said Lee. 'I think the odds should be three to one. Especially
now I've given you the heads up. If you showed her some interest,
we could all do nicely out of it.'

'Like you said
before, let's make sure we actually have a future before we go
making plans.'

'If it helps, I
think I see a very good sign.'

Jacobs said,
'You do?'

'I sure do.
Over there. The terraformer.'

With a sigh of
relief Jacobs said, 'Thank goodness for that. I can hardly walk
another step.'

They went
another thirty yards through the fog and there it was; like some
prehistoric beast the terraformer lay dormant, waiting to be coaxed
back to life.

Chapter 23

'You want me to
go against my own mother?'

'You know her
well enough, Bridget, to understand if the situation was reversed
she wouldn't hesitate in working against you.'

Loretti
considered that point of view. 'Being a devious cow is one of her
strengths.'

'And doesn't
she use it well. Sorry. Uncalled for. But my concern isn't about
her, you or any of us here on Earth. First and foremost, I need you
to believe that.' Gunther pointed vaguely at the ceiling. 'Out
there in deep space is our last hope for our race. It would be so
easy to throw in the towel and except mankind's demise as
inevitable. You could go back to killing people and I...well. Who
cares. I'll tell the three of you this, though. I would die a lot
happier knowing I did my best for our kind. All I want to know is
do you all feel the same way.'

Staples said,
'Just a few hours ago, we killed off more of the enemy. I killed
two at close quarters. I got no satisfaction from doing so.'

'Same here,'
said Willis. 'Somebody high up calling them the enemy doesn't stop
them still being people. For once I'd like to help mankind instead
of playing my part in our destruction.'

Gunther smiled
faintly at those positive responses. 'Bridget. That's how we three
feel but it amounts to nothing if you refuse to help us.'

'If I said no
you could keep me prisoner here.'

'I've no
intention of doing that, whatever you decide. If you do say no, you
can walk out of the Base this minute and I'll bow to the
inevitable.'

Loretti looked
deeply into her father's eyes. 'You can't possibly mean that.'

'But I do. We
agree we are all as good as dead anyway. When we die becomes
academic. If you need time to think about it...'

Loretti looked
in turn at Willis, Staples then back to her father, each of them
waiting to hear what she would say next. 'No. I've enough blood on
my hands. And for what? It seems everything I've done until now has
become completely pointless.'

Gunther said,
'You are a great warrior. You did what you thought was right. Now
perhaps you see things differently. Bridget. Are you with us or
against us?'

Chapter 24

'This thing
hasn't moved for quite awhile,' said Lee. 'Good old marsillium
coating has protected it from the elements.'

'I'll give you
a hand replacing the power-pack. At the rear if I remember
correctly.'

'You should
know. You designed it.'

Jacobs said,
'Like everything else I was just part of a team. I'd only be able
to give you details on how half of it works. The other half I
wouldn't have clue.'

'You are far
too modest. But the power-pack does go at the back.'

They carried
the case to the rear of the huge machine and placed it on the thick
dust on the ground.

'We take this
cover off,' said Lee. 'There should be everything we need in the
case.'

Lee opened the
case and removed an odd shaped screwdriver, then she inserted it
into a slot in one corner of the panel. 'It has to be here
somewhere. Got it. Damn that's stuck.'

'let me try.'
Jacobs took the handle in both hands and tried to turn it. 'It's
very damn stuck. Pass me that small rock.'

Lee passed
Jacobs the rock and with the screwdriver in place, he tapped the
tip of the handle with the rock several times. 'An old trick my
father taught me when I was a lad. This sometimes works. There. Its
turning.'

It was the same
procedure for all twelve fasteners but eventually they were all out
and placed carefully in the case to save them being lost in the
thick grey dust. They lifted the cover off and disconnected the
spent power-pack then between them they lifted it free of its
housing. They placed it by the side of the case, lifted the
replacement power-pack and eased it home. Lee connected the
terminals and replaced the cover. They put the spent power-pack
into the case and secured the lid.

'Only one way
to test it,' said Lee.

The
terraformers were designed not only to transform the planet into a
habitable home for humans, they also doubled up as all-terrain
vehicles capable of transporting twenty people and ten tons of
cargo if required. They could also be sealed and pressurised to
provide a breathable environment for passengers regardless of the
outside conditions. There was a slight hiss as Lee opened the side
hatch.

'After you,
captain.'

'Ladies first,'
said Jacobs.

'You old
fashioned sweetie. Ok.' Lee climbed in and a sensor detected her
presence and lights came on. Jacobs passed her the case. Lee
carried it to the back of the cockpit and stashed it behind the
seat. 'That should do it.' She turned around fully expecting Jacobs
to be inside. 'Captain. We need to get going.' When he didn't
reply, she made her way back to the still open hatch and peered
outside. The fog seemed to be even thicker than before and she
couldn't see a thing, not even the ground. 'Captain. Are you
ok?'

A disturbing
feeling ran through her as he still didn't respond. A feeling that
inexplicably chilled her to the marrow of her bones. Lee climbed
through the hatch and down the steps to the ground. She could
barely see the massive vehicle next to her, let alone a man.
'Captain? Jay Jay. If this is you winding me up, job done. Now can
we please get the hell out of here?'

The light from
the chest area of her suit did little to dispel the gloom. Lee
stepped away from the vehicle, turned and could only see the
outline. Another two steps would lose it completely. If she
couldn't see the terraformer, what chance did she have with a
man?

'Captain? Talk
to me, damn it.'

Nothing. Lee
dared to take a few steps forwards, her feet catching an obstacle
which made her fall heavily to the ground. Feeling her way with her
hands, she found something. A man in a spacesuit.

'Captain?' said
Lee, shaking him. Jacobs didn't respond. 'Come on Jay Jay, damn
you.'

'Hey,' groaned
Jacobs.

'Jay Jay. Are
you ok?'

'I'm sure crap
felt better. Help me up.'

Lee took his
weight as he struggled to his feet. It took all her strength to
help him to the vehicle and it was a herculean effort to get him
inside.