The Caverns of Mare Cetus (35 page)

   Trent abruptly stopped. He crouched and picked up something off the ground. It was tiny, orange, and rectangular in form. "Look at this."

   Renata immediately recognized what it was. "It's a T720 rangefinding component for the G40," she said, taking it from Trent. "Garrett was definitely here."

   "Why would he leave it?" asked Arielle.

   "Let's find out," said Trent.

   The group began anxiously hiking single file through the rapidly tightening passage. The passage twisted, first left, then right, then straightened for a distance. Finally it opened up into a large oval enclosure with passages leading out in several directions.

   "Look!" shouted Trent. He pointed to a wall near a passage that had a red stain on it resembling a handprint.

   "Is that blood?" asked Arielle. "That looks like blood."

   Renata and Trent approached the stain, Renata's stomach souring at the sight.

   Trent's Vimap held in front of him as he crouched by the wall, he quickly confirmed her worries. "It's blood all right. Garrett's."

   "Look! Here," said Arielle.

   Renata turned. Arielle was pointing down at something that was behind a massive limestone block. She and Trent hurried over to her. It was Garrett's G40. It was laying on the ground, bloodstains on its stock.

Chapter Nine

   Significant Events Related to Explora MC-100J & MC-101C Mission Members from the Severon Incident to the MC-101C Mission (Dates in Novian Decimal, i.e. 100.9 = 100 Novian Year, 9
^th
Month)

   96.4—Severon Mission Incident—Allamax Cave Complex (Orbea). | Richelle Ivers and Isis Sandalo participate in Tellurium Exploration mission to Tethimax Caverns on (Tethea). | Novian Government investigation of Severon Incident begins.

   96.5—Sid Banyon officially honored for his rescue of coworkers during a cave-in four months prior on (Lucina).

   96.7—Hunter Larson expedition to (Adriatica) discovers velandrite deposit. [Trent Logan, Arielle Talarian, Ramon Ramirez, Edison March, Jonathon Powell]. | Severon Incident report released.

   97.0—Tellurium Exploration announces minor velandrite find on (Tethea).

   97.2—Novian Govt. issues security reforms for Mare Cetus explorations due to Severon Incident.

   97.3—Banyon water sampling mission to Alinax Caverns on (Zelkova). Discovers titanium bearing kyllenite deposits [Jennifer Astoni, Aggie Livingston, Lee Ononi, Talarian, Powell, Danielle Ambrose]. | Explora Corp. issues revised security policies for Mare Cetus cavern explorations.

   97.4—Turquoise Ltd. claim-robotic slams into Novia's Class A space station orbiting Pulchra Novia. All occupants lost including the Governor of Novia. | Govt. investigation of Pulchra Novia Incident begins.

   97.5—Novian Govt. dedicates monument on (Zelkova) to Vasanta Vjas, marking the 70 anniversary of her birth. Talarian attends ceremonies. | Sandalo and Ivers quit Tellurium Exploration, hire on with Ceti Exploration.

   97.8—Garrett Jansen quits Tellurium Exploration, takes 2 stint as Security Chief at Exploration Corporation. | Larson mission to Glacimax Caverns on Frigia; discovers lapulite tin deposits [Ononi, March, Logan, Powell, Stone].

   98.0—Revised Mining and Reclamation Codes put into effect by the Novian Govt. due to the Pulchra Novia Incident.

   98.2—Banyon & Larson lead unsuccessful search of several caverns on (Adriatica) for velandrite. [Ononi, March, Logan, Astoni, Powell, Saroja Canonberry, Ramirez, Talarian].

   98.5—Sandalo saves coworkers in the Selinax (Zelkova). | Stone breaks fingers in accident while working on Novian moon, Uxor Novia.

   98.6—Novian Govt. announces investigation into suspected Tellurium Exploration violation of Novian Velandrite Exploration & Mining Codes (NVEMC).

   98.9—Ivers and Sandalo participate in Ceti mapping mission of several complexes on (Tethea, Orbea, and Scythia).

   99.1—Ceti Exploration announces velandrite discovery on (Tethea). | Banyon expedition to (Tethea); finds platinum in draje and lyretase mineral deposits [Powell, Astoni, Canonberry, Zeke Otoyak, Livingston, March, Ambrose].

   99.3—Ceti Exploration announces minor velandrite discovery on (Orbea).

   99.5—Larson expedition to (Orbea); finds tungsten in nianite deposits [Stone, Logan, Ambrose, Canonberry, Ononi, Powell].

   100.1—Banyon/Larson expedition to Sandy Plains Caverns on (Kallana) in preparation for Laramax mission. [Livingston, Ambrose, Canonberry, Astoni, Otoyak, Powell, Ononi].

   100.3—Tellurium Exploration found in violation of NVEMC. Company's exploration license rescinded for one year.

   100.4—Ceti Exploration announces minor velandrite find (Scythia). | Larson pulled from Laramax team.

   100.6—Explora Corp. Mission MC-100J Laramax Incident on (Kallana). | Investigation of the Laramax Incident begins.

   100.7—Ononi reassigned to Outer Planets Explorations Group.

   100.8—Livingston returns to Earth. | Explora announces Powell has died in medical-transport crash. | Explora announces findings of MC-100J Laramax Incident.

   100.9—Larson goes before Board. | Bedras, Inc., Santorini Geophysics, and GeoMagnetics report full-scale biological contamination incidents on (Orbea and Marranna). | Novian Govt. enacts quarantine of all non-governmental personnel in the Mare Cetan System. Full robotic cleanup of Mare biological contamination begins.

   101.0—Larson suspended for STEPS infractions from Sandy Plains Mission.

   101.1—Larson's suspension lifted. | Novian Govt. ends quarantine on Mare Cetus.

   101.4—Explora's MC-101C mission begins in the Laramax.

Team Members, but not inclusive of entire team, in brackets [Stone, Ambrose]. Continent names in parentheses (Tethea)

   Edison crouched and picked up the rifle. "Man, what's this doing here?"

   Arielle began calling to Garrett on her com as Richelle cautiously walked up to one of the passages that led out of the enclosure.

   Renata, noticing Richelle was limping conspicuously, pressed the status meter button on the rifle, and an oval code-filled display opened on the stock, a horizontal red light flashing at the top of the screen. "That's why. The lithium element core is fused."

   "Bet that isn't good." Edison held up the rifle, peering along its barrel. He simulated firing the weapon a couple times, then set it back down. "Looks like he cut himself pretty good, doesn't it?"

   Renata nodded, then looked around the enclosure, counting six passages leading out of it and noting the elliptical room was dotted with a number of small pools of water that had accumulated in the depressions of its uneven limestone floor. There were also a number of thin streams of water trickling down the enclosure walls, and in several spots there were slow drips coming from the ceiling, some of which were falling into the pools, causing plinking sounds as they landed. The room was about twenty meters long at its widest, about fifteen meters at its narrowest.

   As she studied the passages again, trying to find anything that might give them some idea as to Garrett's whereabouts, her eyes were drawn toward the limestone walls adjacent to two side-by-side passages. The walls were covered with crisscrossing fractures that had piles of limestone debris on the floor beneath them. The walls looked like rock formations she had seen on Mare that had been hit by meteorites. She stepped up to them and closely examined the highly-fractured grayish-black rocks, noticing much of the rock surface was covered with a thin bluish-white residue that looked like wet chalk. She touched a spot on the wall, the residue coming off on her fingers. Then she smelled her fingers. The residue smelled burnt—and metallic. She stepped back, then peered into the left passage, a wide, gently sloping, downward leading passage that had a floor dotted with small pools of water, much like that of the enclosure. As she took a couple steps into the passage, she immediately saw its walls were also highly fractured and coated with large irregular-shaped blotches of the bluish-white residue.

   "There doesn't seem to be anything else of Garrett's in here," said Trent, coming up behind her. He took off his hardhat and scratched his head as he continued to survey the enclosure.

   She stepped out of the passage and pointed at the fractured limestones. "These aren't natural."

   "Looks like Garrett fused the core right here," said Trent as he examined the fractures and residue. "These fractures are deep."

   Renata stepped back into the passage.

   "What would he have been firing at?" He peered inside the passage, then followed Renata.

   "Why—is the better question," said Renata as she stepped farther into the passage, noticing several locations where coarse limestone debris had accumulated next to the walls. "I'd bet there's eight to ten pulses right here alone." As she imagined Garrett pounding the walls with one powerful pulse after another from the G40, it gave her chills. "We need to check this passage out."

   "I would think if he was firing at the robotic in here, that would be the last place he'd go. Especially after he lost the G40. I know I wouldn't."

   "You're not Garrett. He would have had another weapon on him. I know he often carries the MAD6 Havoc pistol. It wouldn't surprise me if he had some concussion grenades as well."

   "The MAD-H?" quipped Trent. "You must be mad."

   She shot him a disdainful glare. "I don't find any humor in that at all."

   "Just trying to lighten the mood. Sorry. My God, though. If he had those kinds of weapons, what was he expecting? The MAD-H is a brutal anti-personnel weapon."

   "Someone that scared the crap out of him maybe, don't you think?"

   "Someone?"

   "Oh, I meant something. Someone would imply one of us, wouldn't it?"

   Renata noticed Trent seemed to be in thought. That was exactly the response she had expected—and wanted. "My instincts tell me to check this passage out. Let's get going."

   "Don't go in there," said Richelle, stepping up behind them, Edison and Arielle right behind her. "Edison. Stop them from going in there. Whatever k-k-killed Garrett is in there." She scurried behind Edison like a mouse, almost disappearing from view. "The hell if I'm going in there. It's in there."

   "Calm down, Richelle," said Trent.

   Renata stepped out of the passage. "Richelle. You look like you're in pain. Have you been taking any medication for your foot?"

   Richelle's head popped out from behind Edison. "No. Not for a while. I'm afraid if I t-t-take something, it's g-g-going to feed what's inside of me."

   Renata waved her hand to Trent. "She's all yours."

   "What's wrong with you two?" asked Richelle. "Can't you see? His blood is all over the wall. It ripped him apart and dragged his body down the passage. Did Renata t-t-tell you it impregnated me, and I need a hysterectomy—now!"

   Renata looked down while stifling a chuckle.

   Trent nodded. "I've been meaning to talk to you about that. I've integrated some functions of the contamination programs with the Mediprogs. Let me run a scan on you so we can see what the status of your contamination is."

   "No way," said Richelle. "That thing's contaminated too. You'll just c-c-cause it to grow. I n-n-need a hysterectomy—now!"

   This time Renata couldn't suppress her chuckle. Trent looked like he had no idea what to say to Richelle. "Look," said Renata, stepping toward Richelle. "We need to find out if Garrett's down this passage. We won't be long. When we come back, we'll deal with your hysterectomy issue. I'll give it to you myself if I have to, okay?"

   Richelle nodded. "You promise?"

   "Of course I promise," said Renata, smiling as visions of cutting Richelle open gave her a perverted sense of satisfaction. "Edison. Can you stay with her? Keep her calm? I don't want to separate again, but I'm not about to fight with her over taking her into this passage."

   "Give her a hysterectomy yourself?" whispered Trent. "Rene. What kind of psychology is that? When we get back, she's going to expect one. What are you going to do then?"

   "Did you come up with anything better?" snapped Renata. "And what's with the Rene stuff?"

   Trent didn't immediately respond. "What are you talking about?"

   "Nothing," she whispered. "Nothing. I'm just tired. Very tired. And I'm hungry. And I have a Devon-sized headache." She raised her voice. "Edison. Do you think you can handle her?"

   "If Arielle can, I certainly can." He gave her a thumbs-up sign and one of his infectious smiles.

   "Ari. Give Edison your Vimap." Renata turned to Trent. "Do we still have the emergency fiber optic capabilities on these things?"

   Trent nodded. "Yes. Good idea. We can string the FOC for about

1200 meters." He entered a command on his Vimap, and a silky-thin fiber optic line popped out of the back of the computer, a wafer-thin disk attached to its end. He pulled it out and attached the wafer to a port on the back of Edison's Vimap. "Some technologies just never go out of style, do they? I'll string this out as we go down the passage."

   "Like two tin cans," said Edison. He pulled on the line with his hands as if trying to snap it. "Tough stuff. Richelle. Find a dry spot and sit down. I'll make sure nothing happens to you." He pulled out his electra. "Ain't nothin' gonna get us with this baby in my hands. We'll count raindrops if we have to until they get back." He grabbed Richelle and pushed her to the floor. "Sit." He sat down beside her.

   Renata turned and entered the passage, which narrowed a short distance into it; Trent was right behind her.

   "What did you mean by your headache comment?" asked Trent.

   "Devon kept complaining about having headaches," she answered. "That's all."

"So…what do you know about Devon?"

"Not much. Why do you ask?"

   "Well, it's kind of strange, but after Isis got hurt, Garrett told me Devon was to blame."

   "Devon?" asked Renata in self-created surprise, realizing she was going on a fishing trip herself—matching the one she sensed Trent had just started. "Now why would he say that?"

   "There's more. He also said there was some tie-in between her and the crap that had been happening, like his inability to nail the Kalo. I told him I didn't see how we could blame Devon for our troubles, but he was adamant about it."

   "How could Devon cause our problems?"

   "He never told me. But I found out something I think is far more interesting and puzzling than his accusations against her. He told me he was assigned to this mission for only one reason. To protect Devon." Trent stuck a section of the fiber optic line to the cavern wall, about shoulder level.

   "That's weird. Protect her? From what?" Renata looked down. Her feet were sloshing through a few centimeters of water that now covered the passage floor. She looked around briefly, seeing several streams of water trailing down the passage walls, the water following the contours of the rocks like miniature curving rivers.

   Trent hooked another section of the fiber optic cable to the cavern wall. "He never said. But he implied it had been a mistake to bring her on this mission."

   "A mistake? Why?"

   Trent chuckled. "It's really kind of silly, but he actually told me he wondered who was going to protect him from Devon. I thought he was joking, to be honest."

   Renata continued to look down as she walked. The water was getting deeper. It was up to the tops of the toes of her boots now.