Claws and Curls

Claws 44 - The Armoury

“What exactly do you expect me to be able to do?”

“Think, outside the square, inside the square, laterally, upside down, I don't care! I need insightful ideas and a steady stream of them to be tested and challenged. Our Seed AI program, as you are apparently reasonably aware of, according to your brother; is producing results that we don't understand or if we do we cant keep up with the rate of change of self improvement. We need to design what we are terming a nursery. Somewhere where an AI can come to awareness and function without getting injured by or injure the rest of the world!”

“... and you’ve tried everything?” “Sorry,” Harold shrugged, “no details until you sign a contract!” I turned wondering how this had turned into a job interview and looked at the towering cliffs. Apparently one of dad’s uncles used to come here fishing and helped build one the cliff side huts. Mad bastard apparently, restless and temperamental. Dad reckoned it was PTSD from the Indonesian war, whatever. I didn’t know him just heard lots of tales, though Mum did say a few time I was bit like him. Not sure I coped well with that.

“Ah here’s your brother, talk it over with him,” and he checked his watch. “I’ll see you shortly in the situation room!” Harold turned and went aft to a hatch at the base of the helideck hangar complex. Terry came and stood quietly beside me. “How’d you cope?” “Well I don’t think I scared him for life but just keep your eye on him for a couple of days.” Terry chuckled, “I did warn him that having the two of us in close proximity may produce a chain reaction. He said he’d look forward to it.”

“Do you know much about the Seed program really?” “Nah, Im here to get up to speed on it so you probably know more about it than I do!””It needs a good acronym,” I said nonchalantly, “something like Sentience Enhancement and Education Development!” “You’re weird!” “That’s what you keep telling me!” “So you’ll take the job?” “I wouldn’t be here otherwise, would I?” “Yeah I told Harry that and he said he liked our style.” “Ah well, if it helps prevent the end of the world as we know it ...” “Yeah there is that!” “Yep!”

Terry looked at his watch, “we’ve got a few minutes, I got something to show you,” and he turned and followed him across to the amidships stairwell. We dropped to the first deck and Terry turned and indicated forward up the corridor. “I’m the third cabin. The starboard fourth and port fifth are vacant so either could be yours if you can tolerate being close to me again.” “Yeah whatever, she’ll be right bro!” I said trying to memorise the layout of the Gaia.

We dropped to the next deck and turned aft to a hatchway labelled, Armoury - Authorised Access Only. Terry palmed the door and the security lock cycled and he pushed open the door. “Captain,” acknowledged the Chief Armourer from across the room. He walked across to us and handed me an eTab, “just sign here please Mac, Terry has given us your details already.” I saw that it was a - Permission to Store, and an Access To - form, as required for any legal storage of weapons by a third party.

“Thank you Chief,” Terry acknowledged and we passed through an open hatchway into the Armoury itself. Closest to the hatch were bar enclosed racks with standard issue semi automatic Jaeger Ops weapons; all with wooden stocks as was the Jaeger tradition. Greger Bullpup rifles in 8x52mm for general ops. Sauer 303 thumbhole in the 8.8x64mm special Jaeger marksman round; and a few of the new Walther 2020s also in 8.8. Their was a rack of Merkel SR1 5.6x45mm, with its completely smooth surfaces to prevent catching on anything during confined environments. Funny how you remember such details. Terry had often talked about what he was training with but I hadn’t realised I’d been listening. Obviously a bloke thing.

I felt myself shudder the way I always did when I saw so many weapons in one place. Dad had taught me to shoot at the age of ten and we had helped keep the ferals down on our bush block from then on. I’d kept going out with dad over the years whenever we could both get out there together. Since his death though I hadn’t touched any of our rifles. Terry had kept them all in his safe and maintained them. I’d kept my license out of respect for dad, but had never thought of going shooting again.

Of course, I could only be offered a job by Parrish, because I was a licensed hunter. Jaeger is german for hunter and all Jaeger personnel have to be licensed firearms owners with their own weapons. It was the tradition, and had been written into the constitution for the new organisation right from the beginnings of the senior Parrish, Hart and Berg days. I kind of knew what was coming next!

Terry led me to a gun safe toward the back of the armoury. A card had been slipped into a holder on its right side door like a gym locker with his name on it. He thumb printed the lock and there was an audible click. He swung back the double doors and there was his collection. On the right by themselves were two rifles. Wonder’s Blaser R8 Success and next to it my Merkel RX. Their spare barrels stood next to them in their special cases. My stomach churned and I was flooded with memories of times with dad and especially when he had given it to me. The bloody thing had been worth three or four thousand dollars back then. It had always been his policy to buy the best quality of whatever it was you wanted. That way it lasted and would always work as you intended. Damn he had been a fine man and I missed him.