The Awakening (The Hyperscape Project Book 1) (10 page)

Hovering above
the center of the table was a perfect three dimensional holographic model of
Nick’s hyperspace module. Below the model were several schematics of the
circuitry found within the module. Nick recognized the schematics. He had
almost singlehandedly designed those circuits himself. As he watched, the skin
of the model floated away revealing the internal structure of the craft. It was
an almost complete blueprint of Nick’s module.

“Your ship is
very primitive. It’s amazing you survived your journey.” Argos peered at Nick
with a suspicious squint. “How is it that a race as primitive as yours has
technology that’s beyond the grasp of even the Mok’tu? The power of this weapon
is almost incomprehensible.”

Nick spoke up.
“It’s not a weapon…Sir. It’s only an experiment in high speed communication and
space travel.”

Argos raised his
voice. “You can dran well bet the Dragorans and the Mok’tu think otherwise! You
ripped their biggest ships apart like telura paper. I’d like to know
exactly
how you did that. Unfortunately, now our enemies know you’re on this ship, and
that puts this vessel in serious danger. They want this technology, and they
want it badly. The power to alter the fabric of space itself would make them
practically invincible. The Tac squad that attacked us was only interested in
one thing. This module. Arya was right. This technology in the hands of the
Mok’tu would seal the fate of the entire galaxy.”

Captain Argos
stood up and paced in front of the window of his ready-room. Outside, a dark
and barren planet loomed, framed in a picturesque backdrop of a
brightly-colored nebula. Argos paused to look out of the window a moment, but
he didn’t seem to notice the impressive view. His mind was clearly focused on
the matter at hand. He took a deep breath and continued. “I am faced with a
very difficult decision. Try to use this tech to our advantage and risk that it
may fall into enemy hands. Or destroy any signs of the technology and risk
losing everything.” Argos turned and fixed Nick with a hard gaze.

The lump in
Nick’s throat returned with a vengeance. The Captain clearly referred to Nick
when he said ‘
destroy any signs of the technology
.’ Sweat rolled off
Nick’s forehead as he waited for the Captain’s next words. Argos didn’t seem
interested in letting him off the hook easily. Instead, the Captain just stood
there, silently staring out of the window, his hands clasped behind his back.
He was an intimidating figure, strong, confident and in control. And he knew
it.  Nick was at a serious disadvantage.  He had no say in the matter
whatsoever, and that knowledge hung like an anvil around his neck.

“Or a
guillotine,” he muttered under his breath.

By the
corresponding twitch of Argos’ pivoting ears, Nick assumed the alien’s hearing
was keener than a human’s.

Nick wasn’t
stupid. The knowledge in his brain would be as dangerous as the module in the
hands of those Mok’tu monsters. He knew it, and so did the Captain. As long as
Nick was alive there would always be a chance the Mok’tu would extract the
information from him. Especially given their level of technology. That made him
a huge liability. And being a liability made Nick very uneasy.

Nick waited for
what seemed like an eternity in the excruciating silence. The tension filling
the room was nearly more than he could take. His fate hung by a thread. And
that thread could very well snap with the Captain’s next word.

Argos turned
back to Nick. “Fortunately for you, I believe the Mok’tu were able to get a
fairly detailed scan of your ship. That’s why the last member of the Tac Squad
bolted out of here so fast. Your module’s technology was their mission
objective, not capturing this ship. That means I need you and your knowledge to
even the balance.”

The blood
throbbing in his ears was all Nick could hear by the time Argos had finished
speaking. His heart was pounding like he’d just run a Moon Dome marathon race.
This damn place was going to give him a heart attack yet. Nick slid down in the
chair as the tension in his muscles relaxed a little. At least they still
needed him. For the time being.
Breathe, Nick. Breathe.

Argos jabbed a
strong finger in the air and highlighted a few areas of the holographic model.
“We have analyzed the design of your craft, but there are several key systems
that are damaged beyond recognition. We have been unable to decipher their
construction or function. There is no way we can replicate those missing
pieces. But I have no doubt the Mok’tu are making the study of your ship their
highest priority. If they’re able to reconstruct this technology first, no
planet will be safe. We need to beat them to it. Will you help us?”

Nick pondered
the repercussions of his next words. He had already been questioning the
decisions that had led him to his current predicament. This may be the biggest
decision of his life, with consequences well beyond what any man should ever
have to consider. It was his fault this technology was thrust upon these
people, and he had no misconceptions about what the Mok’tu would do with it.
The Captain was right. No planet would be safe, not even Earth. It was looking
like Nick had little choice.

“Yes. I will
help you, Captain.”

Captain Argos
released a noticeable sigh of relief. “Thank you.”

“On one
condition,” Nick added.  “When this is over, you help me find my way
home.”

It was the first
time Nick saw Argos smile.

“Agreed. Welcome
aboard the Ashok.” Captain Argos stretched out his hand.

Nick stood and
reached out to shake the Captain’s hand, but the Captain grabbed Nick’s forearm
in an Arisian gesture of friendship instead. Realizing his ignorance of their
ways, Nick awkwardly reciprocated by clasping Argos’ forearm.

Captain Argos
gave one quick shake, squeezing Nick’s arm slightly, then let go with a nod of
his head. The Captain’s grasp was as formidable as his persona.

Nick’s head was
pounding from the anxiety and elevated blood pressure of having his ass
momentarily on the chopping block, but it seemed he would live to fight another
day.

Argos tugged his
uniform straight and rounded the table to sit down again. His demeanor shifted
from hard-nosed Captain to one of an old friend. “I’ll have the crew set up a
work area for you in the hangar immediately. We’ll try to obtain whatever
supplies you require. But first, tell me more about this experiment of yours. I
have already seen its potential as a weapon. Tell me how it can be used in
space travel and communications.”

Over the next
hour, Nick proceeded to explain how the hyperspace generator worked and the
accident that had landed him in their territory.  When he was finished, Argos
sat quietly. Nick recognized the look on his face. It was the same look his
father would get when he had a lot on his mind. Argos must have had a whole
universe on his.

Argos nodded
almost to himself and looked at Nick with a blank stare. “Thank you. You should
get some rest. We have a lot of work to do.”

Argos stood,
making it clear he needed some time to process what Nick had told him.

“Yes, Sir.” Nick
abruptly stood and walked to the transport tube. As the doors closed, he
watched the Captain gaze from his window into the vastness of space. It was
doubtful Argos was admiring the spectacular view. Nick could only guess the
depth of conversation going on inside his mind.

“This is the
Captain. In order to acquire the supplies we need, I am forced to move us away
from this sector and the Mok’tu’s advancing troops. I am therefore taking us
into
Demented Space
.”

Arya looked at
Karg. She was clearly uneasy. “He’s not serious, is he?”

Karg didn’t say
a word. He just stared back at Arya with a peculiar look on his face.

“
Demented
Space?” Nick asked, watching the two’s uncomfortable stare. “What’s Demented
Space?”

Arya turned
toward Nick, answering reluctantly. “It’s an area of space that everyone
avoids. Things don’t quite work right there. Spatial distortions cause
navigation to be treacherous, and only those who are running from something
venture there. Pirates, outlaws, and the like. It’s a very dangerous place.
There’s really not a lot of reliable information about that region of space. Of
all those that have gone there, few have returned, and their stories
are…bizarre.”

“Like Queens,”
Nick remarked.

Arya scrunched
her nose and shook her head slightly. “What the frek is Queens?”

“Sorry. Inside
joke.”

Arya looked at
Nick for a long moment, her green, cat-like eyes expressing her inner thoughts,
which clearly said that she wasn’t so sure about this silly creature called
Nick.  After only a brief pause, she went back to her conversation with
Karg.

“At least the
Mok’tu or Dragorans aren’t likely to be there. It’s not strategically important
enough for them to bother with,” Karg said.

“I agree. I
haven’t heard of either race having any interest in that part of space. It’s
too…demented. The old star charts I’ve seen often depict Demented Space as a blacked-out
area filled with the monsters of legend that are said to live there. It was
said the monsters could swallow ships whole. Unfortunately, even today we don’t
have any reliable charts of that area. It’s still a big unknown.”

By the tone of
Arya’s voice, Nick could tell she didn’t take the monster stories seriously.
“Monsters or not, I’m getting a bad feeling about this,” Nick replied.

On the Bridge,
Sirok meticulously scanned the nearby star system. He watched his holo-display
closely as the details of the scan came in. One gas giant and two smaller rocky
planets, one of which had a breathable atmosphere. It was the first system
capable of sustaining life that they had encountered since entering Demented
Space. Sirok’s console beeped while a red circle flashed on the screen in front
of him. Finally, something interesting. “There’s an energy reading coming from
the second planet, Sir.”

“Move us in
closer. Carefully. Run a full scan when in range,” Argos commanded.

“Bringing us in
closer, Sir.”

The ship plunged
deeper into the solar system, eventually settling into a synchronous orbit over
the second planet.

“Sir, the energy
reading is coming from a group of structures on the surface.”

“Life signs?”

“No life signs
detected, Sir. But readings are extremely limited, due to magnetic and
atmospheric distortion.”

“See if you can
cut through some of the distortions and get me more detail on what’s down
there. I don’t want to send a team down blind.”

Sirok turned
back to his screen and punched numerous buttons on his console. “Yes, Sir. I’m
working on it.”

Down in the mess
hall, Karg took the last delicious bite of his meal and belched in
appreciation. “Dran, that was good. Too bad that was the last karesh we had
left.”

Nick stared at
the remnants of food on Karg’s chin. “By the looks of it, I’d say you were
stocking up until the next time, Car. How many plates did you have?”

“Six, if you
don’t count desert.”

Arya swallowed a
large bite of roll. “What did you just call him? Kar?”

“Yeah, you know,
a….” Nick paused and grinned. Talk about weird. It was the first time he’d ever
needed to explain a car. “On my planet we have these vehicles with four
wheels.... Well most of them have four wheels. Anyway, we call them cars.
That’s what he reminds me of,” Nick replied, nodding toward Karg.

Arya followed
Nick’s gaze back to Karg. “Karg reminds you of a four wheeled vehicle?”

“No, he’s as big
as one, and his name…is kind of like car. So I just call him Car.”

“Is your entire
species this strange?” Arya quipped.

“Yes.” Nick
squinted and then shook his head. “No. I mean….” He paused with his mouth open
as he thought. “Never mind,” he sighed.

The Captain’s
voice broke the conversation. “Arya, I need you to put together a landing
party. We’re getting some energy readings from the surface of the planet we’re
orbiting. Maybe there’s a settlement down there where we can pick up some
supplies. Bring Bannon with you in case there’s something down there he can use
as well.”

“Yes, Captain.
We’ll be ready in twelve chronits.”

The transport
pitched violently as the team pushed through the planet’s dense atmosphere.
Electrical discharges fanned out in all directions, creating a spectacular
lightning show in front of them. As they broke through the cloud layer, the
dark, foggy surface of the planet came into view. A gloomy place if there ever
was one. Nick fully expected to see Frankenstein’s castle looming out of the
fog as they approached.

“There’s
definitely an energy source ahead. It’s different than anything I have ever
seen before,” Arya noted as she studied the cockpit display.

Karg stared at
the monitor in front of him. “I still don’t see any life signs.”

As they neared
the power source, Arya set the transport down just outside of what appeared to
be a small town.

“Captain…do you
read?” Arya turned to Karg. “Just as I thought, the atmosphere is blocking
communications.”

Karg stood up
and opened the weapons locker door on the back wall of the cockpit, exposing
half a dozen plasma rifles. He grabbed two rifles and tossed them to Nick and
Arya while loading one for himself.

Watching Karg
was weird. Nick still couldn’t get over Karg’s four arms working in unison. It
was so alien, so…well, cool. Talk about efficient. Nick grinned at the thought
of Karg playing football or basketball. He would definitely be a first round
draft pick, that’s for sure.

“We don’t know
what we’re dealing with out there, so be careful.” Arya arched an eyebrow at
Nick. “Especially you.”

Nick scrunched
his brow. “What do you mean,
especially me?”
he said as he followed her
to the door controls. She acted as though she didn’t hear him, but Nick knew
her sensitive ears never missed a thing.

Arya reached up
and pressed the release button. A slight hiss escaped from the door as the
small difference in air pressure equalized. The ramp swung down, sending puffs
of fog rolling away as it came to rest on the ground. The team moved out
slowly. Arya held up her scanner and pointed to the hazy outline of two
buildings ahead. “This way.” She led the team cautiously through the misty,
tree lined path with Karg bringing up the rear.

Arya panned the
area with her scanner. “I’m not getting any life signs at all. No people, not
even an animal. I’m starting to get a bad feeling about this, guys.” She headed
to the doorway of a nearby building and swung the heavy wooden door open.
Switching on her rifle-mounted tactical light, she swept the room as she
entered. As she disappeared into the dark doorway, she let out a blood-curdling
scream.

Nick’s stomach
lurched up into his throat as he scrambled to get to Arya. He quickly entered
the doorway and stopped abruptly, almost ramming into Arya as she backed out of
the room.

Also reacting to
Arya’s scream, Karg ran to investigate. He bolted into the darkened doorway and
slammed straight into the back of Nick. The massive force of Karg’s momentum
sent Nick and Arya crashing face-first onto the floor.

Nick grunted as
he hit the ground hard. Worried about the dangers lurking in the nearby
darkness, he quickly opened his eyes again, automatically preparing for a
fight. Only inches away, a ghostly figure stared back at him through the fog,
glimmering ominously in the beam of Arya’s rifle light. His eyes strained to
focus on the image so close to his nose. Who or what was on the floor next to
him? As he pulled his head back, he could finally make out the fuzzy image.
Startled, he clawed his way backward in fright.

Lying there,
glowing eerily in the thick fog, was a corpse. The body almost appeared to move
as the misty fog surrounding it danced through the light. The jaw of the corpse
hung open in a terrible, silent scream―now forever frozen on its gruesome
face. The alien’s stiff hands were reaching out into the inky blackness of the
room as if it had been begging for its life in its final moments. From the look
on its face, it had experienced a horribly painful death.

Arya stood up
and checked her gun while the males surveyed the corpse. Karg circled the body,
as if studying it from another angle would help explain why it was there.

“Why does he
have that look on his face?” Nick asked, wincing at the sight. “I just can’t
stand to look at him anymore. It gives me the creeps.” He grabbed a nearby
cloth and threw it over the body. Despite his attempts to squelch it, a shiver
raced along his spine and the hair on the back of his neck stood straight up.
He hadn’t felt that since the night he’d hung out in the graveyard with his
buddies. How old was he at the time? Fourteen, maybe? This had that same feel.
Creepy.

Arya studied her
scanner. The readings seemed to puzzle her. “This makes no sense.  He’s
only been dead a day, but I can’t figure out what killed him. There’s no
injuries or signs of disease. It’s as if the cells of his body just stopped.”

“Could it be
some kind of pathogen? A virus or something?” Nick  postulated.

“No. I have
checked for any sign of viral damage or poison. So far, nothing. There doesn’t
seem to be any type of contagion. That’s one good sign. At least we appear to
be safe here. For the moment.”