Giants Of Mars (3 page)

It sizzled to life when Jason fingered at the device, giving meaning to the darkened screen.

A rough looking man appeared, and Jason answered, “Good morning, Colonel.”

“Good morning, Jason. I hope I didn’t disturb.”

“Not at all, sir, we were just sitting here contemplating whether the eggs tasted better on Level 7 or on Level 5.” Jason jested with a smirk across his face, indicating the taste was less than desirable.

“I believe that’s one thing that the planners couldn’t differentiate either.” Aldiss Spline momentarily paused, and with a guttural cough, he cleared his throat before continuing. “I know you have a big day but I just wanted to check in with you one last time.”

“I appreciate the call, sir. I don’t see any complications with today’s launch; I feel everything’s a go.”

“Great! That’s really good to hear, Jason. Hey, I know we’ve been busy planning the mission. I never got around to asking you about things. How’s the new digs?”

“Digs?” Jason curiously asked.

“Oh yeah, the wife and I are studying twentieth century idioms and slangs together. She thinks it will bring us closer together. Anyhow, the digs I am referring to, are your new house and belongings.”

“Unbelievable, sir! The furnishings are most exquisite, and I do love the ancient suit of armor holding the broad sword, and all the medieval weaponry hanging on the walls. I do want to thank you again for everything.”

“I don’t know anyone who loves that time period more but I did remember how you ogled at the antiquities of the twentieth-century on Titan. So, I took the liberty of ordering as much furniture from that era as I could find in the catalogue.”

“They’re great reproductions, sir. I am absolutely mesmerized by the grandfather clock’s mechanical chimes,” Jason mouthed with sincere gratitude.

“Yes, they truly are fascinating but not exactly twentieth century. I do believe that type of clock was invented centuries early.”

“One question, Colonel, what’s the red table with numbered balls, and braided leather pouches at the corners?”

“It’s a billiard table. The wife and I saw one while vacationing on Level 6 last year at the Museum of Ancient History.”

“Do you know how to play?” Jason simply asked.

“You know, I can’t remember exactly how it works. However, I think it’s a game of chance; wages were won or lost based on the numbered balls sunk into a pocket by a Casino’s Dealer, using a cue.”

“Yes, I am somewhat familiar with ancient Casino history but what is a cue?” Jason inquisitively asked.

“Those sticks mounted on the wall next to the billiard table, those are cues.”

“Ah, that’s what they are, and here I thought they were some poorly made replicas of ancient weapons of war.”

“Jason, I have to run but if you have any last minute questions about the mission, please feel free to contact my office.”

“Will do, sir,” Jason replied.

“Semper Fi!” said Aldiss Spline.

“Semper Fidelis!” Jason echoed before the scroll pad’s screen went inactive.

“Jason.”

“Yes, Lexis?”

“I would like to return to the Chameleon now, so I can run a complete diagnostic of the ship’s systems in preparation for our journey.”

“All that was done by the mechanics at HOVERTECH, Lexis.”

“I wish to do a thorough run through of their recalibrations; better to find a problem now rather than later,” she replied.

“Good idea, Lexis. I’ll see you at the launch then.” Jason knew something was wrong by her melancholic tone but he did not want to pry open the new emotions she was dealing with. However, he felt letting her leave early was an expression or display of her new found independence.
“Boy, she’s as sensitive as ever. I hope her upgrades haven’t ruined her ability to co-pilot the Chameleon.”

The early morning winds subsided, allowing a foggy mist to roll out from the thick forest; subduing the bright green undergrowth surrounding the house. Tiny water droplets gathered and clung to the base of the exterior windows, the natural but man-made ecosystem replenished the well tended landscaping. Jason gazed out at the splendor of his new home’s setting in awe. Comparing it to the apartment he had abandoned, he thought,
“I’ll never get used to this lifestyle.”
In all the refined elegance of the home’s interior, and the tranquil scenery Level 7 offered, he felt a cord of awkwardness run through his body.

Jason muddled around the house nervously while his brain apprehensively raced, bordering on an ensuing madness. Traveling Off World had risks, and for him nothing came easy. Trouble somehow seemed to plague him when he deviated from his normal patterns. Learner’s betrayal had catapulted his life down an unseen path. Although, his track record always seemed to fall on the wrong side of the winner’s circle, he somehow ended up surviving, and overcoming unimaginable obstacles.

“Sir, I have placed the house in a passive mode but I will be actively tending to the grounds and home maintenance. Are there any specific instructions you have for me while you will be away?”

“Sam, I can’t think of anything regarding the home. However, if I ever hear you speak to Lexis in such a manner again I will deactivate you myself. Do I make myself clear?” Jason had partially overheard their conversation, and was furious about the maltreatment Lexis suffered.

“Sir, I am at your service.”

“I know you are but do you fucking understand that I’ll send you back to SYNTECH in a box of bits and pieces if you disobey my orders?” Jason’s neck veins popped from the aggressive adolescent hormonal surge flowing through his body. Sam’s advanced neural network easily picked up on this.

“I will not disobey your orders, Mister Borne.” Sam may not have been human, nonetheless nor was he stupid. It was not his fault how he acted. His programming caused him to think himself superior to all. Albeit he could easily calculate human tendencies and the probability of outcomes, he need not calculate the possibility of whether Jason’s words were merely an idle threat. Sam’s biorhythmic sensors gave him the true answer. Jason’s hormone signature burned a bright red, and he was a man coiled ready to spring.

Jason entered his black luxury car carrying only a small duffle full of miscellaneous personal items including some new, and some old photographs. He held on to one like it was gold, although he had made copies over the decades, he kept his dead wife and child a secret. Suppressing the memory was no easy task now, since Lexis had nearly become the living embodiment of said dead wife.

“Jason.” Lexis popped up on the car’s Skin.

“Hi, Lexis.”

“I just arrived at the base of the Polaris Off World Ring Transportation System…”

“That’s a lot to chew on, Lexis. Just refer to it as PORTS next time.” Jason had interrupted. Thinking in acronyms he would help teach her to become more human in the use of spoken language.

“Yes, Jason…can I continue?” irritably she asked.

“Please, go ahead, Lexis.”

“Scanning the Chameleon I discovered an anomaly in her dimensions. There is an additive structure that my sensors cannot penetrate. So I did a history inquiry on the new segmentation, and I found that memory had been swiped clean; nothing remains in the data storage base, regarding the anomaly.”

“What about the diagnostic run regarding the structure?” inquisitively he asked.

“I could only find the file name, HOVERTECH that I could not access. Subsequently I queried HOVERTECH and they referred to The Office of Polaris Security Services.”

“That must be part of the security improvement and upgrades. I don’t think there’s anything to worry about but I am going to give Spline’s Office a call.”

“OK, Jason, I will see you in a while,” Lexis replied before her image disappeared.

“Query, Aldiss Spline.” Jason spoke to the car’s communications system.

“Jason, what can I do for you? Is everything alright?” answered Spline.

“Sir, I have a question about the security upgrades to the Chameleon?”

“What’s the question?”

“I can’t access the files regarding the additive structure, and dimensional aspects regarding the ship’s new physical attributes. It’s like part of my ship is being cloaked.”

“Jason, I cannot go into full detail about the new systems upgrade, due to the security of the technology but trust me, you have the most advanced security system developed.”

“I was hoping to at least get more information regarding the new mechanical specs of the system.”

“Sorry about that, Jason. I wish I could help but I am even in the dark on this. Is there anything else?”

“No, sir.”

“Semper Fidelis!” Aldiss Spline concluded, and before Jason could reply
“Semper Fi”
in turn, his image disappeared from the Skin.

“That was a little weird,”
he thought regarding Aldiss Spline’s quick retreat from the conversation.

Peering out at the amazing landscape, the black luxurious electric powered car quietly hummed down the marvelously paved road. Ancient looking green ferns spread out between the massive deciduous redwood-forest trees. Natural moss covered large rock out-cropping that occasionally protruded from the undergrowth in a sculptural fashion.

              The car jutted around a huge tree next to a hidden driveway when his mind embraced the thought of not having to look at a sea of apartment tenements, public housing, or high-rises found on the descending levels.

After thirty-five minutes, Jason’s ride slowed to the elevator portal that would take him to the base of the Off World Transportation System.

Jason hadn’t even stepped one foot out of the car, and although he had only lived there for a short couple of weeks, he was already missing the life he had established.

However, walking up to the glass elevator, which would take him through the forest canopy and up to the balcony of Level 7’s portal, he knew he was about to embark on a dangerous journey of sorts that would pay for his expensive automobile, new house, DNA upgrade and all the other perks. He was all too well aware of the deal he made with the devil. Insidious as may be, he was willing to fulfill his part of the bargain, and nothing would stop him from accomplishing his goals.

Being part of something grisly was the nature of the beast, and if he wanted to keep his new possessions, he would to have to serve the devil himself.
“Too late to turn back now,”
he thought. And playing ball with the Office of Polaris Security Services was his only choice.

T
HE
R
ESURRECTION

“How long have I been out, Doc?” Learner Rotterdam groggily spoke after being pulled from the healing chamber.

“You’ve been in stasis for almost a week now. When your two friends brought you in here, you were near death. And if it were not for them keeping you alive, you would’ve never made it,” she coldly said before oddly walking out of the room.

“What’s her problem?” Learner irritably asked the technician who was fumbling with some diagnostic wires.

“You should see her when she’s in a bad mood.” The technician placed the untangled wires on receptor pads stuck to Learner’s skin.

“Where am I?”

“You are at a Devonian Health facility in the Verve Fault Zone.”

“How come I can’t remember anything?”

“I think it’s the cocktail of drugs used to treat your pain. You suffered a traumatic experience.”

“What was wrong with me?”

The technician mouthed plaintively, “Besides the internal bleeding and broken bones, your brain was shutting down from the swelling caused by blood pooling there.”

“Well, thank you for saving my life.” Learner closed his eyes, and not even thinking about the crucifixion, he fell into a deep slumber.

Mitchell Thacker was getting out of the Raven when he watched the rail guns train on him. The Verve Fault Zone Security was at an all time high; being a Devonian outpost, they knew their arcane connection with the Vril gave them good reason to be nervous. The Polaris Corporation knew about the secret Vril military build up at Chasm Fat Boy, deep within the Pacific Abysmal Plain.

Mitchell frantically walked through the draconian entrance’s hulking security doors. Heavily armed shock troopers, wearing Power Suits, lined the sparse ingress of the small underground city, which felt more like a military camp instead. To get his bearing, he looked out from the large balcony on to the concrete buildings that spread out for several miles. The artificial sky was not bright like those in Polari, and it created a never-ending, overcast, cloudy day, adding to an already gloomy existence for residents there. Albeit this was their reality, living on the deadly radioactive surface of Earth was the only alternative, which was not viable.

“Wake up, sir,” Mitchell Thacker urged.

“What…what’s happening?” Learner Rotterdam woke dazed and confused. And when Mitchell Thacker’s face came into his view, he said, “Mitchell, my dear friend.”

“I’m sorry to wake you but you have a Priority One message.”

“Did you bring the blue shield?”

Without saying anything, Mitchell handed Learner the anti-eavesdropping device and a scroll pad.

Learner spoke sincerely. “Thank you, Mitchell, just give me a few minutes alone. Would you guard the door so no one comes in, please?”

“Boy, he has never been this nice or even polite to me ever before,”
thought Mitchell while stepping out of his hospital room.

Learner placed the smooth oval electronic device next to his bed and clearly spoke. “Activate protocol, 21466.”

“IDENTIFY?” the device asked in a monotonous voice.

“Learner Rotterdam, Madnet 5150.”

“IDENTIFICATION ACCEPTED.”

The soft blue laser shot out from the device forming a spherical grid, encasing him in an electronic shield. The anti-eavesdropping device ensured his message would be completely oblivious to all.

Mitchell quickly peered into the room to see if Learner was finished watching the message on the pad. Learner was now standing naked next to the bed wildly pulling wires off his body. Several technicians pushed by Mitchell to get inside the room as loud blaring alarms sounded at the Nurses’ station.

“Sir, you can’t do that!” The head technician tried grabbing Learner. Although still groggy from the long duration in the healing chamber, the technician found out that the big man could move. Learner sidestepped, pushing him to the side with ease. He then looked at the others, and said, “Don’t even think about it.”

They all froze there when one of them bravely spoke. “Sir, you haven’t medical clearance to take those off.”

“Watch me, assholes!”

“There’s the Learner I know,”
Mitchell thought to himself.

Learner and Mitchell spoke after leaving the small hospital as they walked along the city’s overly crowded concrete fairway.

“I don’t understand Master Paladin’s conflicting orders, Mitchell. One minute he orders my execution and next he saves me.”

“He covertly saved you, sir. The official record was that you escaped on your own accord. I do believe even Master Paladin has someone to answer to.”

“I was warned before losing the nuclear enriched power rods that I would pay if the mission failed.”

“The Vril council wanted a sacrifice,” Mitchell added.

“Superstitious fuckers!” Learner angrily spoke while rubbing his sore palms.

Teeming with people, the Verve Fault Zone buzzed at a feverous pitch. Hastily, the two made their way through the crowds and nothing more was more pressing on Learner’s mind than the current mission. It was Master Paladin that had ordered his immediate reactivation.

“We’re to head for Chasm Fat Boy, Mitchell.”

“Why?”

“The QFG is operational and I’m to lead the first mission through the portal.”