Winds of Vengeance (11 page)

I do have one lead. I believe that Achilles, at least, and possibly other Mules, have recently been visiting the underground tunnels of the First Imperium base. I have no particular reason to suspect there is meaning behind it, but I can’t think of any normal reason for them to be there.

I am going to investigate, and I will report to you as soon as I return. I ask that you not interfere or do anything that might draw attention to my efforts.

Abandoned First Imperium Base

Beneath Cutter Research Compound

Earth Two Date 11.08.30

H2 walked slowly down the corridor. It was empty, as it usually was. The tunnel was part of the old facility built by the last of the living beings of the First Imperium, part of their plan to pass their knowledge on to the races that followed them, the primitive beings they had nurtured and genetically engineered to bring about sentience. Humanity was only one of those species, but the Regent had found and destroyed the others long ago.

The tunnels had been beehives of activity when the fleet had first arrived. Practically every scientist on Earth Two had come to examine the ancient technology, to try to discover ways to adapt it, to learn to use the amazing devices the Ancients had left behind. But now the immense Cutter Research Compound sat on the surface above the underground complex, and the ancient hardware and data systems had long been moved to the new facilities. Most of the old surveillance systems had long ago ceased to function, and the rest of them had been shut down when the last of the artifacts was moved to the surface. The underground complex was empty, abandoned, an eerie relic of a long dead age.

So why have I seen Achilles down here three times in the last week?

He moved slowly, his eyes darting to the ceiling, looking for cameras or other surveillance devices. The compound above was wired throughout, every room, every corridor. The reasoning was sound. The work done there was sensitive, and sometimes dangerous. But it had always had a bit of a dystopian feel to H2. As the first of the Mules—or possibly a proto-Mule, as he had sometimes been called—his life had been public enough, and as he got older he found himself more and more disturbed by the constant sense of being watched.

He’d started coming down to the tunnels a couple years earlier, something he’d kept to himself, not even telling Hieronymus. He’d been driven there by the desire for real privacy, for a place he could walk, sit, think…without someone watching. He’d had no nefarious purposes, but nevertheless, he’d kept it a close secret. And then he saw Achilles.

He’d ducked behind a wall before the Mule saw him, and he was almost certain he’d kept his presence a secret. After that, he’d been more careful, keeping watch when he went to the tunnels. And he’d seen Achilles twice more. Something was going on, he was sure of it. But the complex was vast, and his refuge was only a tiny part of it.

He began exploring…and then he spotted it. A surveillance device. Not old First Imperium tech, but a new unit, recently installed. That had pushed him over the edge. There was something going on. And he had to tell Hieronymus. He’d almost gone to the scientist, told him what he knew. But then he realized he knew almost nothing, and he decided to come down one last time, to try to find a way around the camera. To discover what was going on.

He’d accessed the schematics of the facility, the map that had been painstakingly created in the two years after the fleet had arrived. He’d been in the tunnels for hours now. He hadn’t found a way in yet, but he’d discovered two more surveillance units…and after a quick look at the map he began to get an idea of the basic area the cameras were protecting. It was a spot at the very edge of the facility. There were just a few small rooms there, nothing of consequence. Yet clearly someone—and he could only suspect Achilles—was trying to hide something.

He peered around the corner. There it was, another device. They all protected approaches to a specific location, but the map showed that area was nothing but solid rock.

At least according to the map…

He reached into his pocket, took out a small device. The jammer would work, he was fairly sure of that. It would interfere with the camera and with any audio sensors. Whoever was watching would know something had interrupted the data flow. If he was lucky, they would assume it had been a technical glitch…the jammer was designed to appear as such.

He shook his head. Achilles would never make that assumption, he realized…none of the Mules would. H2 knew the jammer would alert whoever was responsible, that it would provoke some kind of response. But there was nothing else he could do. He
had
to know what was going on. All he could do was take a quick look…and then get out before anyone had the chance to react.

He held the device in his hands for another minute, taking a few deep breaths. He was edgy, his stomach tight. He’d been a researcher his entire life, not a spy. He didn’t know what he was about to start, but he had a good idea it would be important. And dangerous.

He flipped on the jammer. Then he filled his lungs with a last deep breath and walked around the corner. He moved quickly…he knew he didn’t have time to waste. And he still had no idea what he was looking for.

He could feel his heart pounding, the impulse to leave, to return to the surface. But he quieted the doubts and continued.

The corridor extended another ten meters, with nothing but two small rooms on either side. On the map, the hallway ended at the solid rock of Earth Two’s crust, the terminus of the underground facility. But H2 was staring at a door. One that most definitely was
not
on his map.

He stepped up to it, his gaze running up and down the portal. It was definitely new, not of First Imperium construction. And it was locked.

He reached out, running his finger over the panel. It was a sophisticated lock…but he was sure he could hack his way in. Given time. Time he wasn’t sure he had.

He knelt down, reaching behind him to the small sack hanging from his waist. He set it on the floor, pulling out a tiny device. It had a tiny probe on one end, and a small screen on top. He held it in front of the electronic lock, staring down at the screen, watching as numbers moved swiftly from top to bottom. He turned a small control on the side, calibrating the tool. He held it in place for another half minute…then he heard a loud click, and the door opened. He could hear noise now, loud, coming from inside. It sounded like machines, of many different types, like a mine or a factory.

He put the device back in the bag and leapt to his feet, pushing the door fully open as he did. He looked inside. There was a room in front of him. Not just a room, but a sprawling, massive chamber so large he could barely see the other side. And it was full of equipment.

He stepped in now, and the noise was even louder. He could see the production equipment…it
was
some kind of factory, a fully automated one. He was standing on a catwalk about three meters from the main floor. There were stairs on either side of him leading down.

He stared out, watching the machines working, producing something…though he couldn’t tell what. The units closest to him seemed to be manufacturing components. It looked like the final assembly section was deeper into the chamber.

“What the hell is this?” He spoke softly to himself, under his breath. But he got an answer.

“Security bots, H2. The newest design. Enough of them to secure the Research facility from any attack.”

H2 felt his stomach tighten. The voice was unmistakable. Achilles. He realized the Mule was standing behind him. He tensed up, geared himself up for a fight. He was at a disadvantage. The younger Mules were physically superior…stronger
and
faster than he was. But there was no choice. He had to get out of here and warn Hieronymus.

He turned quickly, preparing to spring forward. But he froze as his eyes settled on Achilles. The Mule stood in the doorway, staring at him. Peleus was right behind, and Achilles held something in his hand. H2 wasn’t sure exactly what it was, but he’d have bet it was a weapon of some kind.

“What are you doing, Achilles? What is all this?”

“It is impressive, is it not, H2? I must say, I’m rather proud of it myself. Especially since I was able to arrange it in total secrecy. At least until now.”

“Battle bots? Are you so ready to destroy the republic, to fight against your fellow humans?”

“This is not about conquest, H2, nor about harming the others. It is we who have been discriminated against for decades. We who have toiled for all that time unlocking the secrets of the Ancients…while being denied the basic right to propagate our kind. Is that right? That our one failing has been used against us, our inability to naturally reproduce?”

“Achilles, the place to address that is in the Assembly. Not with armed robot soldiers.”

“Have we not done that, my friend? How many times have we sought the repeal of the Prohibition? How many times have we been denied, told to wait? Wait for what? Until the people we have served get over their primitive fears of us? Or until we have deciphered the last of the ancient knowledge, and we serve no further purpose?”

H2 looked over Achilles’ shoulder, at the other Mule present. “Peleus, surely you are not part of this…you have always been a reasonable man.”

“We are not men, H2. Not even you. We are something else. And Achilles is right. The people who have denied us our rights for so long could easily decide we must be imprisoned. Or killed. Indeed, the Human Society already advocates our confinement. They call us abominations. Is it so extreme that we would seek to control our own destinies? These bots will be the means for us to protect ourselves, to throw off the shackles the Assembly has placed upon us. They will not be used against anyone who does not first attack us.”

H2 stared at Peleus for a moment. Then again at Achilles. He was agitated, committed to arguing his point. He knew the road the Mules had chosen could only lead to disaster…yet he understood. Despite his loyalty to Hieronymus, he felt the same anger, the same resentment as the others. But this was not the way. It couldn’t be.

“There has to be another way…perhaps if we speak to President Harmon. Despite his inaction in the past, I believe he is sympathetic to our…”

“President Harmon has called an election, H2…one he is unlikely to win. Do you think our timing arbitrary, that after so many years of patience, we have chosen to move now without careful consideration? Without external stimuli forcing our hand? President Harmon has allowed political expediency to rule his actions…yet I could believe he would eventually yield, that he would one day grant what we ask, what is only our basic right. He is a fair man, corrupted perhaps by the need to placate different factions, but at his heart someone we could work with.”

He stepped forward, his eyes locked on H2’s. “But who will replace him? The Society and their cleansing platform? The Earthers, who would devote all resources to a fruitless search for a route back to humanity’s home space? The Tanks? They face a lesser version of the persecution we do, but if they gain power without our help, could we expect them to aid us? Or would they simply fear us as the others do, and seek to keep the Prohibition in place?”

He turned and glanced back at Peleus before staring back at H2. “We have no power in the political process…our rivals have ensured that by so drastically limiting our numbers. They can ignore us, even as they seek to make deals with each other to secure power.” He paused. “Unless we take action, stand for ourselves. We must ensure that we are able to propagate, grow our numbers…for we are the future of mankind.”

H2 sighed. Part of him wanted to agree with Achilles, to join with him and the others. But he thought of Hieronymus…and Ana. Even Sophie Barcomme. They were all Pilgrims, naturally born, non-engineered humans. And they had not only beaten the First Imperium, they had created the Mules. “I understand your anger, Achilles, your drive to secure our future. Yet consider your words, the arrogance. The others fear us, yes…but are they wrong to do so? Have we done anything to assuage their concerns? You think of them as lesser beings…” He glanced back at Peleus. “All of you do.” A pause. “Even me, whom you also deem a lesser being…I feel it. It is hard not to feel this way when we are more capable, when they have depended so much on our research, work they could never have completed on their own…and returned so little in terms of gratitude or even concern for us. Yet in that realization, I can also see the cause of their fear, the forces behind their opinions about us. I do not condone it, but I understand it.”

“I understand it too.” Achilles’ voice was cold. “But understanding it does not excuse it. We are come to a hard choice. Humor the petty fears and jealousies of the humans…or stand for our own now, and secure our futures. If we do not act, we will die out. We don’t know how long our lifespans will be, but we are not immortal. Without the ability to create more of our kind, we will become extinct, be it in a hundred years…or five hundred.” He paused. “Assuming the humans don’t move against us at some point. For we will only become weaker as their populations grow.”

“Achilles, Peleus…don’t do this. Dr. Cutter will resist this. You know that. Are you prepared to kill him? The man who created us all.”

“Dr. Cutter will not be harmed. Nor will you…or Dr. Zhukov. But none of you will not be allowed to interfere. I am sorry, H2, but I must detain you, at least until this has played out.” He gestured with the gun in his hand.

“And if I refuse? You said you would not kill me.”

“And I won’t.” He glanced down at his hand. “This is a stun gun, one of my own design. I will use it on you if you force me to, but I’d rather not. I’m afraid it is very high-powered. Your constitution is likely strong enough to resist a standard stunner of human manufacture.”

H2 stood still for a few seconds. He knew he had almost no chance to escape. Peleus and Achilles were both stronger than he was…and there were two of them. And Achilles had the stun gun aimed and ready. He was exceedingly unlikely to miss. But any chance was worth taking. He had to stop this if he could.