The Awakening (The Hyperscape Project Book 1) (14 page)

“And now I
know,” he muttered as he settled into his bunk.  “Sort of.”

He laughed out
loud, just a short laugh. Discovering all these wonders for the first time
really sucked considering he’d been plopped down in the middle of a war zone.
He wished he had more time to learn the good things and less time spent trying
to save his carcass and everyone else in the known sector.

“Fate is a funny
thing,” he mused. He pulled out his lucky coin and rubbed it between his
fingers. “Which side will you fall on tomorrow?”

Nick fiddled
with his notebook. He wasn’t sure whether his daily entries would ever be of
any use, but he kept on writing them anyway. It seemed to ease his anxiety a
bit.

‘
Days have
passed with few signs of life. The Captain continues to push farther into
Demented Space. The new Arisian crewmember has gained strength but is
struggling to fit in. I’m sure it will take him some time to overcome what he’s
been through. At least the downtime has given Arya a chance to study the energy
device we retrieved from the planet. When she isn’t busy helping with the
module repairs.

It has been
difficult for me to overcome the technical challenges that face me here. The
electronics of this world are so different that I have to map out the
schematics of each individual integrated circuit chip from memory. Needless to
say, progress is slow.’

Nick finished
his entry and flipped his notebook closed. Things sure hadn’t been easy for him
since his arrival. Having to recreate the module’s circuits using alien
technology, and all from memory, was frustrating at best. It was time for a
break.

He set the
notebook down on the table, gulped down the last of his gorban juice, and
headed out to find Arya. A few minutes later he found her right where he
expected her to be: in the lab.

“Hey, Arya, how’s
it going with the crystal thing?” Nick asked as he entered the room.

Arya scrunched
her nose, lost in concentration. “Huh? Oh, it’s frustrating. My scans don’t
seem to penetrate it. The energy signature is unlike anything we have on
record. At times it almost reads like a life form, but then….” Arya sighed and
sat back in her chair. “I really don’t know any more about it than I did back
on the planet. I can’t even tell you what the freking thing does.”

“How ‘bout
taking a break?”

“Sure. I could
use one. I have to stop by the bridge to give the Captain an update, anyway.
Want to come along?” Arya turned off the scanner as she stood up and headed to
the door.

“Yeah, fine.
Argos wants a report on my progress with the module, so I might as well tag
along.” Nick hustled to catch up to Arya. She walked so darn fast. Sometimes it
made him feel like a child, always lagging behind her. “By the way, how’s the
new kid?”

Arya cocked her
head and shrugged her shoulders as she walked. “He’s okay I guess. Just been
through a lot. It will take him awhile, but I have a feeling he’ll fit in fine
with the Resistance. It’s been a home to many of us refugees. How about you?
How are you doing?” Arya glanced his way as they stepped into the lift tube.

“Me? Oh, I’m
thankful to be a part the Resistance. These monsters need to be stopped.” Nick
glazed over for a moment as he considered his role in the Resistance.

“But…you miss
your home.” Arya frowned. She recognized the homesick look in his eyes.

“Yeah, a bit.
It’s the little things. Like, I’d give anything for a soda right about now.”

“What’s a
so―”

The doors of the
transport tube opened onto the bridge, and they stepped out into a conversation
between the Captain and an unfamiliar figure on the vid-link. Nick rubbed his
closed eyes then opened them again to make sure he was seeing properly. 
Yep, the figure on the screen looked like…a…talking…toad.  “I’m not in
Kansas anymore,” he muttered under his breath.

“You may have a
problem, Captain,” the odd amphibian-like creature said.

“What kind of
problem?” Argos asked.

“I can’t tell
you over the link. I am en route to you now. I will tell you everything when I
get there. And Captain, I need you to have the
entire
crew meet me in
the hangar bay. It’s important for
everyone
to be there. I wouldn’t ask
if there were any other way.”

The Captain
paused as his brain processed the odd request. “Of course, Admiral Onaka. We’ll
be awaiting your arrival.”

“Good. Admiral
Onaka out.”

As the vid
screen went blank, Argos turned and noticed the two standing there.

“What was all
that about, Sir? The Admiral is coming here?” Arya inquired.

“Yes, you heard
him correctly. He’s headed here and he wants the entire crew present in the bay
when he arrives.”

“What’s so
important that he would risk coming here?” Arya persisted. “This is outside of
protocol.  Something must be really wrong.”

“I wish I knew,”
Argos answered. “Round up the crew, he’ll be here shortly.”

“Even Arnon,
Sir?”

“Yes. Everyone.”
Argos seemed tense and worried as he turned and walked through the door into
his ready room.

“Yes, Sir.”

Arya turned to
Nick as the door of the ready room slid closed.  “I guess we better get to
work.”

She walked over
to a console and made an announcement to the crew. “Attention all crewmembers,
you are ordered to assemble in Bay One in thirteen point six minutes.” She
repeated the message and then motioned for Nick to follow her to the transport
tube. 

Minutes later,
they stood among the chattering crew as they gathered in the bay. Everyone was
wondering why the entire crew had been ordered together. Nick overheard at
least a dozen different speculative scenarios as he stood next to Arya.

The cacophony
was suddenly interrupted by a voice ringing out a command.  “Captain on
deck!”

Everyone
immediately stopped talking and stood at attention.

Captain Argos
walked out in front of the group. “You have been gathered here at the request
of Admiral Onaka.”

Murmurs of
surprise rippled through the group. Argos paused to determine where the voices
had come from.

“You will keep
your comments to yourself. Is that understood?”

“Yes, Sir!”
erupted from the crowd.

The hangar door
slid open, revealing a sleek gunship en route to the bay. The crew nervously
awaited the Admiral’s arrival. Their apprehension had Nick on edge. Whatever
was going on, it had to be big. Bigger than anything he’d already been through.
And that scared the hell out of him.

Nick studied the
formidable gunship as it moved through the force field and settled down on the
floor of the hangar. The ship was downright amazing, a sight to behold, so
technologically advanced that it left a lump in Nick’s throat.  Back home,
people would crap if they saw something like that landing on earth.  A
hiss emanated from the ship, signaling that a seal had been opened. The crew
responded by standing even straighter. One minute later, Admiral Onaka emerged
from the ship and stepped down to the deck. Onaka was stout and had a slight
defect in his gait that suggested he’d been wounded in battle. His gaze was
stern, his demeanor serious, and his commanding presence raised the tension in
the room to an almost palpable level.

Argos
immediately saluted his superior, standing even more erect than usual.  He
waited for Onaka to respond to the salute before he relaxed his raised arm.
“Welcome aboard, Admiral.”

“Thank you,
Captain.” Onaka gave him a curt nod then turned his attention to the assembled
crew.  “You are all no doubt wondering why I am here, so without the usual
rhetoric, I will get right to the point.” He eyed the crew with severity. “We
have reason to believe that you have a spy on board,” the Admiral announced in
a deep, powerful voice. 

Following the
Admiral’s remark, whispers echoed through the bay. The crewmembers began to
glance around the room, studying one another in confusion. A few let out a low
laugh, mumbling that there were no spies on board
this
ship. With a hard
look from the Captain, the room fell silent again.

Admiral Onaka
stepped forward to address the crew. His round, short physique was plump and
every bit as frog-like as he’d appeared on screen. He faced the troops with his
hands clasped behind his back, total ease and confidence oozing from him. His
large amphibian eyes sized up the crew for a few moments before he began. He
seemed in no hurry to speak. He was obviously accustomed to being in front of a
crowd and giving orders. When he finally did speak, his words came slowly and
deliberately.  “We have recently learned of a new plot by the Dragorans to
plant a spy in the Resistance.” His deep voice boomed through the bay. “The
brilliance of their sinister plan is that the spy doesn’t even know they are a
spy. To accomplish this, the Dragorans capture a subject and replace their
normal nanites with specially developed ones. Then they wipe all memory of the
abduction from the victim and release them back to the location from which they
were captured. The subject wakes up unaware they were ever abducted. Usually
the Dragorans prey on the drunk or battle-injured, the weaker of us, to gain
their foothold. The victims are never aware they’ve been captured, and even if
they notice a lapse in time, they simply think they blacked out or dozed off
and are none the wiser. The spy nanites, as we call them, then sit in the
victim’s brain, listening and capturing information. Waiting. The compromised
person can go to sleep at night and wake up in the morning totally unaware
anything is wrong. Yet, while they sleep, their body is free to roam about
under the direction of the nanites in their brain, committing treason, sabotage,
even murder. These nanites are programmed for self preservation. If the host is
threatened, the nanites take control, cutting the host’s conscious brain off
from the body. The host is then trapped inside their own brain, unable to do
anything but watch as the artificial nanite intelligence takes over. Someone
compromised in this way is extremely dangerous. Remember, the person won’t even
know they have been compromised and therefore could be anyone.”

The crowd
glanced suspiciously at one another.

Ignoring the
nervous wave of tension that swept through the hangar bar, Onaka
continued.  “Luckily, we have devised a way to identify the altered
nanites and eradicate them from the host’s brain. We will require each of you
to be scanned.” The Admiral paused to lean toward Captain Argos, addressing him
discreetly. “We are uncertain as to how long they have employed this technique,
but it is likely the spy would be someone new to your crew. Perhaps a survivor
you picked up recently?”

“Well, there
have been two recent additions to the crew. The human and—”

“Sir!” Arya
interrupted. “Arnon…he’s gone. I saw him before the Admiral landed. He was
standing right there. But he’s gone now.”

The Admiral
looked at the Captain curiously. “Who is this Arnon?”

Argos looked
tense. “A new crewmember, Sir. And a recently rescued survivor!”

Admiral Onaka
confidently took control of the situation. “Captain, if he is a spy, we can’t
let him run loose. We have to find him, and quickly. Start searching
immediately.”

Argos looked at
Arya. “Form search parties. I want him found.”

She nodded,
saluted Admiral Onaka, and immediately turned away to begin organizing search
teams. 

Argos returned
his attention to the Admiral. “Sir, I’m sure it has been a long journey. You
may use my quarters while we search for the missing crewmember.”

“Very well,
Captain. But I won’t rest until you’ve found that man.”

“Understood,
Sir.” With his usual diplomacy, Argos gestured toward the exit of the hangar
bay and stood back in deference to allow the Admiral to precede him out of the
bay. 

Being one of the
first teams organized, Nick and Karg quickly headed to the aft section of the
ship. They had both agreed that the engine room was a good place to start their
search. Lots of good hiding places there.

“Do you really
think that kid could be a spy?” Nick asked, as he hurried down the corridor
behind Karg.

“I don’t know.
That stuff the Admiral said was pretty scary. I was even beginning to question
myself. I mean, I don’t remember how I got this scratch. I just woke up this
morning and there it was.” Karg gestured to a scratch on his top, left arm and
then gave Nick a look that expressed his deep concern. “I don’t want to be a
spy. I’ve worked too hard for the Resistance. Just the thought of being a spy
and not even knowing it gives me chills.”

“Karg, you’re
not a spy. That much I’m sure of.” Nick gave Karg a pat.  “Listen, buddy,
I know this stuff messes with your mind.  Hell, it’s messing with
mine.  But you gotta stay focused.  You’re not a spy. I’m not a spy.”

Karg frowned.

Nick fumbled for
something else to say.  Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea that he’d just
brought attention to the fact that he was a stranger among them, a survivor
they had picked up, exactly what Onaka had just warned them about. “Um, by the
way, did you notice the Admiral is a frog?”

“Yeah, he’s
Serkozi. They’re amphibians. Great jumpers, those Serkozi. Why do you ask? You
don’t have anything against amphibians, do you?”