Chapter 2
Cheryl fell into her bunk with an exhaustion she hadn't felt since the academy. She had gotten the science team aboard, but they wanted immediate access to everything. She had to get them access to the lab facilities and help them get their materials aboard that they would need for their work. They wanted sensor buoys deployed and use of the ship's scanning and communications equipment. And everything had been expedited due to the plague outbreak and the captain's orders to hastily leave orbit.
She quickly found out that the science team lacked the kind of cohesion one found in the military discipline aboard a starship. Although Maxim van Helm oversaw the project, it seemed that the other members of the team all had their own ideas about which direction the project should go. Tyrell was the most outspoken and was constantly having heated discussions with van Helm. Cheryl was glad when they finally were given enough access that she could turn in for the night.
The first thing the captain had asked for was a demonstration of their technology to date. From what Cheryl could gather, Tyrell's specialized nanorobots were programmed to be injected into the host subject where they would attach themselves to the host's cerebrum. Only Maxim and Tyrell seemed to understand exactly how. But that ended the physical connection. Somehow Candice had developed the psychic linkage allowing the host to pass their thoughts to the little devices. From there, they supposedly transmitted these thoughts (in some kind of coherent manner) to a transmission system developed by Sandy. That part still confused Cheryl but had something to do with quantum entanglement. She needed to find out more before the demonstration, but her body simply could not move any longer without sleep.
* * *
Maxim van Helm found Tyrell Sanders in the computer processing lab, hunched over a console, and engrossed in writing more lines of code for the nanite instruction scenarios. The room was packed with computer terminals of various sizes and purposes, all time-slaved to the master ship's computer. Tyrell had complained about the lack of computational power the science team had access to, but a few clever subroutines should siphon off even more from the ship's systems that were dormant much of the time. Maxim watched him work for a moment, his gaze critical, before he finally broke the silence.
"Mr. Sanders," he said, his voice echoing in the quiet lab.
Tyrell looked up, his expression neutral. "Dr. van Helm," he greeted, his tone respectful but guarded.
Maxim crossed his arms over his chest, his gaze never leaving Tyrell. "I've been thinking about our disagreement concerning the use of man versus machine for this project."
Tyrell's eyebrows shot up in surprise, but he quickly schooled his features into a mask of indifference. "Oh really?"
"Yes," Maxim said, his tone condescending. "I've been thinking about your adaptation to use nanotechnology to speed up the process of creating our connection to the host mind."
Tyrell straightened up. "And?"
"And I still think you're wrong, but not for the reasons you think," Maxim said bluntly. He hitched a hip onto the table opposite Tyrell Sanders and leaned in, ready to continue the argument over ground they had covered many times. "Tyrell, think about the untapped power of the human brain. We've only begun to understand its mysteries. If we could unlock the ability to think in other dimensions, and access that cross-dimensional data using Sandy's algebraic topology models, we could—"
Tyrell's expression hardened. "We've been over this, Dr. van Helm," Tyrell interrupted. "Nanotechnology will significantly speed up the process. It's efficient, it's reliable, and it's the future."
Maxim snorted. "The future? Is that what you call it? I call it a shortcut. A cheap, uncreative shortcut that will be washed away with the next iteration of your little fancy machines. And at what risk?"
Tyrell bristled at the insult. "It's not a shortcut, it's an innovation. It's progress."
Maxim shook his head, his expression one of disappointment. "Progress? No, Sanders, progress is using the organic human mind to create something truly remarkable while allowing us to fully retain our humanity. Once you intrude into the space of the mind with your, your soulless machines, I fear we can never return. If we cross the Rubicon, we are lost, don't you see?"
Tyrell scoffed. "You're just afraid of change, Dr. van Helm. Afraid of being replaced by something better. We can advance man's thinking light-years ahead of where we are now using simple connection protocols to powerful computer banks. We can expand the very mind of man, here, now."
Maxim's gaze hardened. "I'm not afraid of change, Sanders. I'm afraid of losing what makes us human."
Tyrell's eyes held a glint that Maxim couldn't quite decipher. It was a look that sent a chill down his spine.
"Maybe it's time for a change, Dr. van Helm," Tyrell said, his voice low and dangerous. "Maybe it's time for the old ways to make way for the new."
Maxim swallowed, suddenly feeling very vulnerable. "Is that a threat, Sanders? Remember, it was the Imperial intelligence network that gave me control of the project. And they are not an organization to be trifled with."
Tyrell just smiled, a cold, calculating smile. "No, Dr. van Helm, and neither am I, be assured of that."
With that, Tyrell turned back to his work, leaving Maxim standing there, a sense of dread settling in Maxim's stomach as he considered just how little he knew of Tyrell and any ambition he might harbor against the success of the project. And the older man feared that this was a conversation that would cast a long shadow over the events to come.
* * *
Cheryl snapped her eyes open at 0500 hours to the annoying sound of some randomly chosen spritely music blaring from her headboard. Waking on time was usually something she had trained herself to do, but not when running on fumes, so she decided an alarm was the safest bet. With her head pounding from lack of sleep, she was questioning her decision to join the Navy. She pulled herself together, dressed, and went immediately to the lab.
The microbiology lab was a large set of bays with sterile white walls and excellent lighting. There were computer terminals just about everywhere, and certain sections were separated by force fields or, in some cases, thick atmospheric containment doors. White steel tables were positioned at various parts of the spacious laboratory, but at the moment, there were boxes and crates littered everywhere, giving her the impression of a child's messy room. That would be the first thing to get cleaned up, Cheryl thought.
"Good morning, ma'am," Ensign Willow Kearney said cheerily. Her dark skin and bright eyes were always a pleasant sight, even if it was this early in the morning.
"How are our guests?" Cheryl asked as she noticed two of the scientists busily tearing open another crate of gear.
Willow wrinkled her nose and frowned. "These two have been here all night unpacking and fiddling with their toys," she said. "And they have been very particular about everything."
"Typical science types," Cheryl said as she poured herself coffee from the wall dispenser. The ship's coffee wasn't as great as what the captain had access to, but it was passable once you got used to it. Then again, Cheryl assumed sulfuric acid was too if you built up enough immunity to it.
"Take that one for example," Willow said, pointing at Tyrell. "He wants to have access to more powerful computing resources so he can play with his little micro robots, or whatever they are. I informed him that he has been given Level II access to our central computer core, but he wants even more. For a smart person, he doesn't seem to understand that we must have some compute power to run the ship."
Cheryl stared at Tyrell and wondered what it was about him that seemed so odd. Just looking at his musculature and skin tone, he was clearly not from the core Terran worlds.
"And the other one just wants to argue with everyone. Every time I assign her space to put her science project together, she moves it and then claims someone else did it. Seriously, I think I may lose my mind."
Cheryl smiled at that. "We only have them for a few days and then they are Sector Command's problem. For now, let's just make the best of it."
"Whatever you say, Lieutenant," Willow said.
"Oh, and thank you for your help with the snow maker," Cheryl said.
Now it was Willow's turn to chuckle. "I understand you got in a lot of trouble for what you did to Hanson's engineering deck."
"Yeah," Cheryl said with a dreamy look. "But it was worth it! You should have seen the shock on their faces. By the time I got there, they had about 6 centimeters of accumulation."
Both women giggled briefly as Tyrell walked out of the lab.
"Are you in charge here?" he asked testily.
"I am Lieutenant Kinson. What do you need?"
"What do I need? What do I need?!" he asked, starting to get worked up. "For starters, I need some decent computing hardware. I was told our project had the highest Imperial priority and now we discover that we've been given this toy ship for transport. The computers on this vessel are antiquated in the most glorious sense, and I'm still waiting for access to the primary compute core."
Cheryl's smile faded to a thin line and her neck began to heat. "Well, for starters, the primary core is off-limits to civilian personnel, regardless of their priority. Otherwise, the ship would just sit here while our orbit decayed."
She stepped forward and pinned the taller man with her iron stare, infused with a serious lack of sleep that even the ship's brew was unable to fully rout.
"Second, I'm sure we can scrounge up a few more workstations that you can tie in for a little more boost, starting with the one in your cabin."
"What? You want to take my personal computing hardware and tie it into that?" he gawked at the terminal in the computronics bay.
"I am given to understand that you are a personage of some significant intellect. I'm sure you can work within the environment that we have provided you on this ship, as my tectronics officer assures me that you have been testing all of our firewalls, Mr. Sanders."
"This is intolerable," he huffed, throwing his hands in the air in a mock tantrum. "I demand to speak to your commanding officer and have additional equipment shuttled aboard."
"That will not be possible."
"Why not?" he demanded.
"Well, primarily because the ship has already left orbit."
With that, Tyrell balled up his fists and marched back into the lab, tossing various invectives about that began to tinge the paint on the walls. Cheryl watched him for a few minutes more and winked at Willow as the technician moved back to her own station. Cheryl turned to leave but jumped as she found Candice standing beside her. She hadn't heard the other woman approach.
"He's not that bad, really," Candice whispered, her arms folded. "He just gets worked up over the importance of the project and the timeline we've been given."
"Yes, I understand. I'm Lieutenant Kinson," Cheryl said.
"Candice Picoult, parapsychology."
"Is there anything we can provide for you that we have available aboard the ship?"
"No," Candice sighed. "But I wouldn't get too close to this project if I were you. Someone is likely to get ... hurt."
* * *
Candice turned and wandered back into the lab leaving Cheryl wondering if she was completely sane. She had heard that precogs were often quite unstable.
She turned to see Conner walking into the science compartment with a frown.
"Everything shipshape in here, Lieutenant?" he asked. He glanced inside the biolab module where Tyrel was still swearing as he worked at a computer terminal.
"Of course, sir," Cheryl said.
The commander looked about at the scattered crates and dangling cables.
Conner looked at Cheryl and lowered his voice. "Lieutenant, I don't need to remind you of the importance the emperor places on the success of their research."
Cheryl stood a little straighter, and Conner saw a spark of defiance in her eyes. "Commander, I know exactly how important this is, but these are civilians, and an eccentric batch at that. I'm not sure they would be satisfied if we gave them control of half the ship."
Conner thought about that. He had to maintain his authority as XO, but he also needed to ensure that his science officer was successful. She had already done penance for the engineering prank; it was time to offer her some slack.
"Understood, Lieutenant," Conner said. "Look, I know I've been rather hard on you—"
"Yes, sir, I know. The... engineering stunt wasn't such a great idea," Cheryl began, looking down at the deck.
"Actually, it was brilliant," Conner said, allowing himself a slight grin. "In fact, that is exactly the kind of ingenuity I expect from you, especially now that I know you have it in you. Just keep the brilliance to official tasks from now on, understood?"
He saw Cheryl's neck flush and knew he had made his point. He leaned his head to one side and raised his eyebrows. "So now, Lieutenant, is there anything you need?"
"Not at the moment, sir. I'll see to it that they're ready for the technology demonstration tomorrow morning."
"Good. If you find later that there is something I can help with, be sure to let me or Lt. Hanson know," Conner said, turning to leave.