Still Falling: Book 1: Solstice 31 Saga (38 page)

“Yes. More than anything,” Olias answered.

“Po is sleeping now. It's the best time. Don't wake her if you want to save Barcus.”

He opened the second box and looked at Po, fast asleep on the other side of the med bay.

***

Po awoke to the sound of murmuring voices.

On the other side of the bay, Ulric stood with a Plate in hand, pointing at displays on the med bay, talking quietly with Smith and Olias. The glass was not glass at all. It was, in fact, like a giant Plate. It was covered with images and words. A voice quietly spoke to her.

“How are you feeling?” Stu asked. His image was in the glass, as if he was standing behind her. She had a headache. It felt like a hangover. She was thirsty.

“How is he?” She ignored Stu's question.

“Most of his injuries are mending well. The soft tissues will be healed in a few days. The bones will take longer. His head injury is what concerns us most,” Stu replied kindly.

“Won't the Nanites heal it?” she asked.

“The Nanites can repair the simple soft tissue infrastructure like muscles, blood vessels, skin and even bone to some extent, but much slower. They prevent infection and other complications. Doing massive repairs to major organs is far more complex. The damage to his lung, spleen and brain has been contained but will take a while. A simple med bay can only do so much. He needs a real hospital. But we don’t have one, so for now, it is up to him.”

CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

Recouping

“Em stopped keeping logs after Olias injected the Deep Brain Implant Nanites into himself and Po. It was clear premeditation. All while Barcus lay unconscious.”

--Solstice 31 Incident Investigation Testimony Transcript: Emergency Module Digital Forensics Report. Independent Tech Analysis Team.

<<<>>>

“Is there anything to eat?”

Po woke from a dream. She thought she heard Barcus in the other room in the gatehouse. But she was still there next to him in the med bay.

“Is there?” Barcus whispered.

“What?” She sat up instantly.

“Is there anything to eat?” he whispered before his eyes closed again.

“Stu, are you seeing this? What is happening?” She was suddenly activating the medical screens like she was a modern doctor. Right away she could see that the Brain Activity Histogram (BAH) was alight with massive activity after fifteen days of minimal indications.

“He is dreaming, the dreams of normal sleep.” Stu actually sounded relieved.

“This chart says it's been going on for almost three hours. Why didn't you wake me?”

Stu answered in a calming voice that sounded like he was smiling as he said it, “For the same reason you won't wake Smith, Ulric or Olias now. It's the middle of the night.”

“He said he was hungry.” These words made her composure crack. She burst into tears, completely uncontrolled, sobbing. Her hands held her face as her forehead leaned against the panel.

She was like this when Smith rushed in and saw her. “What has happened?”

Po ran to Smith and threw herself into his arms. “He woke up!” she choked out. “He's hungry! He's going to be all right!” Her tears turned to laughter.

Smith held her. “And so are you.” He looked at her and took her face in his hands and kissed her forehead. “I'll go see who is in the kitchen.”

Po watched as the med bay began removing tubes and sensors. Less than ten minutes later, Lea was there with a large mug of chicken broth and a tunic.

***

“Barcus, you have to wake up now.” It was Em inside his HUD now. Drawing him back to the light. “You have slept long enough.”

“What happened?” Barcus said as his eyes fluttered open, even though the light was painful. He was asking Em, but Po answered.

“You fell off the roof, you bloody fool! It's taken Stu fifteen days to sew your cursed carcass back together. If you were not mostly dead already, you would have been when I was done with you!” Po scolded.

“Is Ansel okay?”

This completely took the wind out of her sails. She was choking back tears again.

“Yes. Thanks to you.” There was a long pause and the Zero G bay began to retract from around him until he found himself upright and then sitting up on the exam table.

Slowly, he dangled his feet over the side, and the table lowered until his feet were on the floor. He noticed Lea for the first time then. He also realized he was completely naked.

She was nonplussed as she handed him the tunic and tea. “I want you to sip some of this. No. I will hold the mug for you. Go slow.” He had a few sips.

He tried to put the tunic on himself but was not up to the task. Po helped him. After a few minutes, he tried to stand but could not.

“I want to sleep in my own bed,” Barcus said as they guided him back down onto the pallet. “We can arrange that if Stu agrees,” came her reply. Her hands flew across the controls and the Zero G gurney activated.

“Let's get you back to the gatehouse before it gets light.” The gurney drifted silently through The Abbey by the light of a single lamp. The gatehouse was clean, and fresh sheets were on the bed even though Po had not been in there over two weeks. Barcus actually stood to undress and turned to sit on the bed, out of breath.

She helped him drink a mug of water before lying down.

“You can have the side by the window,” Po said to him.

Po took the time to wash herself. She hadn’t left his side in two weeks. When Po climbed in, he was already asleep. She slid beneath the covers on the near side next to him. Po slept deeply for the first time in weeks.

***

“
Barcus, wake up. It is well past noon, and there is a lot to do today.”
Em was there, standing at the foot of the bed. She was smiling.

“Status?” Barcus said it before he was fully aware of his surroundings.

Both Po and Barcus were in the bed, both naked. He tried not to move. Po was completely tucked under his arm with her head on his chest, her leg over his body just below his navel. A sheet covered their collective lower halves.

“What?” Po said sleepily.

“
You spoke out loud, jug head.”
Em was laughing. “
Look. Here is your status
.” A window opened up that showed a BUG view outside the gatehouse. “
Smith has pulled up a chair and has been keeping people away with his glare. The only one not intimidated enough to leave was Ansel. Now get your lazy ass up and show your ugly face.”

He hugged Po a bit tighter, and her eyes opened. “Are you okay?” he asked.

“I'll be fine now. As long as you don't go roof climbing again,” Po answered.

“I need to get up.” He rolled toward her. “Help me.”

Po got out of bed and stepped into her dress where she had let it fall. One button and she was dressed, and Barcus was smiling. Her hair was loose and wild.

She slid his tunic over his head and onto his arms.

“Help me up. There is something I need to do,” he requested.

Leaning heavily on Po and various pieces of furniture, they made their way to the door. After taking a deep breath, he pulled open the door and leaned out enough to say. “Good morning, Smith. Can I have a word? Good morning, Ansel. Would you mind fetching a pitcher of fresh water for me?”

Barcus leaned back in heavily on Po as Ansel limped toward the kitchen. Smith entered and Po said, “Smith, a little help, please.” The two carried him to the nearest overstuffed chair. He sat with a gasp. Po was suddenly worried.

“What's wrong?”

“The pain meds are wearing off. That's all. Em is compiling a detailed medical report, don't worry.”

“Don't worry?!” Po was about to spin up again. He could see it.

“I'm sorry.” He interrupted her, catching her hand and pulling her into his lap.

She said nothing more as Smith and Barcus talked.

“Immediately after the accident, Ulric stepped up,” Smith said. “He actually claimed the role and title of the Keeper and told everyone to quit standing about groping, and get back to work. He said in clear terms that you were injured, but you would be fine. He wasn't paying them to stand about.”

“He came in every day to the med bay but never said anything. He kind of knew how the equipment worked,” Po added.

“Turns out he was right,” Smith finished. There was a soft knock at the door, and then Ansel came in. He set the pitcher on the table next to Barcus.

“Thirsty, my Lord?” Ansel caught his mistake, “I mean Barcus.”

“Yes, thanks. Are you all right, Ansel? I presume you made it off the roof a bit slower than I did.” Barcus could tell he was having a bit of trouble walking, as well as a little trouble with the high speech.

“I'm just fine, sir,” he replied, handing him a mug of water. Barcus realized just how thirsty he was as he drank most of the cup.

“Easy, son. Take it slow to start,” Smith said. Ansel refilled the mug, but Barcus left it on the table. Barcus noticed what he had called him instead of 'my Lord' and was pleased.

“Could you fetch Olias and Ulric for us, lad?” Smith asked him in common tongue, and he limped out. “The boy hurt his ankle badly in the accident. Getting it caught in the rafters is the only thing that saved him.”

Po sat up from where she was leaning on his shoulder.

“You need to eat,” she stated plainly, and she was up and moving. She found her boots and was finally “dressed proper” when she came out of the bedroom. Po went out, and Smith began to put a kettle on.

Barcus leaned his head back onto the soft chair as Smith continued.

“I can't say he stopped drinking altogether, but he kept everyone moving. He was really great when the Trackers came.”

“Trackers?”

“There were Trackers from the south here. They brought news and collected news.”

“News?”

“They brought news of destroyed villages they had seen. There were also refugees. Survivors that spoke of raiders and demons and even monsters. But no, no one said a thing about Ash or Par. I think their reluctance to discuss it cemented the stories.”

Just then, Ulric and Grady entered, followed by Olias.

Olias was beaming, saying nothing.

“Just when visitors start to show up, our gatesman decides he's a roofer. Did you have a nice vacation?” Ulric said.

“There will be lots of time for updates later,” Smith said, standing.

“I just wanted to thank you. All of you. And let you see with your own eyes that I’m up. On the mend,” Barcus said.

Ulric patted his shoulder. “Go easy, Barcus. No need to rush.” Po shooed them away, once she returned with a bowl of pumpkin spiced porridge and a glass of milk.

“You cannot let these men overtax you, Barcus,” Po said.

She made Barcus eat and then helped him back into bed.

Before he fell asleep, Em detailed his full medical report.

“You landed in the hard rubble. Both legs were badly damaged with bones broken and knees torn. There was extensive soft tissue damage. You broke your right hip, your right arm, six ribs, and three vertebrae in your neck. You also suffered head trauma with a fractured skull and concussion that resulted in a subdural hematoma. We needn’t go into all the details of the gashes and all the blood that made it so very exciting.

“I called Stu. It took him only three minutes to arrive. Smith was smart enough to not move you, and we had you in the med bay in no time.”

“Em says all your cranial implants were functioning normally. We don't know what that means. Ulric seemed to know,” Po said.

“What else has happened in The Abbey?” He was getting drowsy now.

“New people have arrived, and a few have even left. Some, I am glad, are gone. Hugh Oatcake is gone. I'm glad because you might have killed him yourself. You would never stand the way he treated the women. It was the day after Caris Hooper was found on the rocks in the quarry. Smith thinks Hugh might have killed him. In all, about a half-dozen men are gone. The ones that disagreed with your policies. I worry that they might say something.”

Barcus was already asleep. He would not find out until much later what really happened to those men.

CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE

We Have a Car

“The EM eliminated all other narrative surveillance data after this point. All 1600 BUGs plus Par and Ash data. Wide gaps remain. Only the single narrative was preserved.”

--Solstice 31 Incident Investigation Testimony Transcript: Emergency Module Digital Forensics Report. Independent Tech Analysis Team.

<<<>>>

As the spring progressed, Barcus spent his days taking slow walks in the sun. Sometimes Ansel would come with him and practice his high tongue. Some days, like today, he would walk alone.

Smith had set up two new benches just outside the southern gate, one to each side of the entrance. They were much more comfortable than the old bench. Today, he was sitting alone when Ansel arrived, bringing him a mug of tea.

“Is there anything else you need, Barcus?”

“Thank you, no, Ansel.” And with that, Ansel was off doing his part.

In the quiet of that spring morning, suddenly his HUD burst to life.

“Barcus, we have cracked the comms encryption. Data is flowing in now from the entire planet. All plates, SATs, ground stations and shuttle communications.”

Maps were being filled in with cities and towns. A new window, depicting the satellite arrays surrounding the planet opened, followed by weather data, satellite camera imagery including thermal, chemical and even ground penetrating radar in some areas.

“Only one of the satellites is completely off-line. Thirty-one of them are still active and fully functioning. Five have various small issues. Not bad given the lack of maintenance. I also see the ID Transponders for all the shuttles on this planet. Various makes and models. Only fifteen active shuttles remain. This may be an opportunity. We can track them all. But they cannot track us.”

“Stu, can you flesh out the map of this region for me, please? Are there any villages remaining above the gorge?”

It only took Stu a few moments to reply.

“This is very interesting, Barcus.” A window opened, showing a heavily forested area that included a single structure in the upper right corner.

“What am I looking at?” Barcus asked.

“This is the SAT view of The Abbey. The structure you see is the Lislehill Estate. Someone has very cleverly hidden The Abbey from the SATs.”

“Are you sure?”

“This is the overlay of our own aerial recon.” The Abbey and all the roads around it appeared in a ghostly transparent vision. The roads, quarry, farms, vineyards, and orchards were clearly seen, even though the forest came right up to the edge of The Abbey.

“I believe this is good news. The High Keeper will be unable to use his image analysts to discover where we are.”

“There are many villages still occupied above the gorge. But many have been destroyed and continue to be destroyed.” Stu zoomed into a village that was on fire at the moment.

“I need to know where those troops are right away. Par and Ash, get ready for a road trip.”

“Barcus, we may have overestimated these people.”

“How so?”

“Apathy. It's the only term I can use. They use the network for weather monitoring, light comms, and little else. They seem to have no control over the SAT systems or the automated defense missile systems. A quick inventory of the nodes showed minimal systems everywhere except this one location. The Citadel. A full data center exists there.”

“Em, can you use this network?”

“I could, but not without alerting them. We do not want to become an active node on this network. They can geo-locate with these protocols too easily, just as we are.”

A new SAT image window opened then. It was tagged “Foxden”.

“I now believe that I could park near Whitehall and remain concealed beneath The Abbey coverage. The bottom of the quarry would work well. Lots of room, and you would have to be right on the edge to see me.” Stu sounded excited. “I should be able to fly in quietly at night via Grav-foils and remain undetected.”

***

Par had Ash mounted up that night. They were moving at speed towards the nearest group of mercenaries. It would take over a week to get there over land. Now that the STU could fly them there and insert them, they would be there that night. Once they reached a populated area, they would have to move quietly at night.

After dropping off Em and Ash, Stu returned and took up station in the quarry. Em remained uncomfortable with both Par and Ash so far away, but Barcus had hunting to do.

His campaign would last for weeks.

Repairs continued inside The Abbey. Gardens and fields were planted, the orchards were groomed and the vineyards were pruned. The beehives received some necessary maintenance, and new hives were established. All kinds of livestock were brought in, and a dog kennel was even revived.

They finally had cats.

More refugees trickled in. Most were Trackers or farmers because they were the ones best prepared to survive an attack in the villages. These Trackers, in turn, organized themselves to collect more refugees and survivors. They would all arrive via the southern gate in small groups or individually, finding Barcus sitting on a bench in the sun. He would introduce himself to them one at a time. He'd have a good look at them.

The cloud of security BUGs that surrounded The Abbey ensured that the bench was never vacant when a visitor came near. Since there was never any passing traffic, the BUGs would be tracking them for more than an hour before they approached. A few times, Trackers would approach and hide in the forest to observe. Barcus would allow it. He would monitor them as he was being observed. Barcus would let them watch him read or seem to stare into space until their patience wore thin and they would approach.

Only once did a lone High Tracker approach The Abbey. It was obvious he was determined to murder. He carried a crossbow, a weapon denied to normal Trackers. A BUG confirmed his intent and took an image of his face.

Barcus placed his book down on the bench as if he would be right back. Two minutes later, he appeared on the wall with his rifle. The thermal scope made it impossible for the High Tracker to hide. Olias organized a party to collect and dispose of the body.

For five weeks, Barcus convalesced in the sun as the leaves became full with spring and fields were planted. Po would watch his face as he stared into the distance, hatred on his face, etched in his jaw.

He would wake each morning early and make tea as Po still slept. He would climb the spiral stairs and walk the wall as the sun rose. He would hear singing coming from the kitchen each morning, as he quietly discussed the campaign with Em and Stu. Barcus had killed over 1,600 mercenaries and eight more Keepers, collecting ten more Plates, all while sitting on his bench.

On this glorious morning, he paused and decided to add the tower to his exercise routine. He saw the sunrise in clear skies as he watched Ash chased a Keeper through a forest in heavy rain in a HUD window. A small shuttle had been sent to save the Keeper. Fifty personal bodyguards were already dead or dying. With the Keeper screaming into his Plate for the pilot to save him, the pilot made a fatal error. Instead of prepping the ship for immediate takeoff, he grabbed his weapon, exited the craft and left the cockpit open.

The pilot had a plasma rifle. He was powering it up and heading to intercept the running Keeper in hopes of killing the demon that was chasing him. The trap worked exactly as Barcus had hoped.

As the pilot was raising the plasma rifle, the .50 cal bullet entered his chest just below his right armpit. His heart exploded as the bullet passed through it and out of the left side of his ribcage. The overpressure of the impact to his brain killed him instantly. The head of the Keeper exploded with the next round. Ash collected his Plate and the pilot’s helmet, leaving the bodies where they were.

The Plate disappeared from the network as it was placed in Par's Faraday compartment. They would leave the helmet active for now.

The STU was dispatched to the site to collect the small shuttle. Ash and Par easily carried the small ship into the STU's cargo bay. It was called a “quad” - a four-seater. In less than five minutes, the STU was gone with his prize, with its Transponder removed but still transmitting where it was left.

Then Ash and Par waited, as Barcus watched...

As expected, by late afternoon another 30 mercenaries showed up to the spot where the helmet was resting unseen on a branch in a tree. The canopy above hid the fate that awaited this troop. Barcus watched the real-time imagery, just as he assumed the High Keeper was. Three more plasma rifles were collected in that effort. Ash had just retrieved the decoy helmet when Barcus issued an order.

“Get out of there! Maximum speed. Incoming!” Barcus called out.

Ash had just finished placing the helmet in Par's Faraday. They ran. There had been no need for Barcus to warn them. Em saw the shuttle coming and knew that it didn't contain troops.

The SAT image showed the largest cataloged shuttle veering off as a parachute opened just above the last known location of the helmet. In the time it took for the giant bomb to arrive and explode, Par and Ash got 1,000 meters away and were safely behind some rocky, tree-covered outcroppings.

The explosion left a crater 100 meters across, devoid of trees or life. The shock wave tore the leaves and some branches off the trees for another 300 meters in every direction.

Par and Ash waited for 24 hours for another team to arrive that they could ambush. But none came. Barcus had them on the move again the next day.

***

The STU brought the quad back to the quarry where Barcus could work on it. It was in pretty rough shape but easily serviceable. He was already making a fabrication list for Stu to print up. He'd start with the eighteen external body panels. The current ones were sheet metal that were dented and patched. The black fiber polymer panels in their place would act as armor on the little craft, making it more heat resistant and nearly frictionless in the atmosphere. It would also transform the craft visually, in case it was ever seen. Now it was black and sleek, as opposed to the older dented stainless look.

Over the next few days, Barcus, with the help of Olias and several others, rebuilt a large amount of the craft’s simple internal thrust systems. Its software was also reviewed and updated. The navigation and comm systems were enhanced and integrated with EmNet.

The manuals Em obtained also revealed the purpose of the stone obelisks in The Abbey. They were landing and maintenance pilings.

As soon as these initial upgrades were finished, Barcus landed the quad in the abbot’s garden on automatic. It worked perfectly.