Deeper Darker

Book 2: Chapter 66: Forced Cooperation

Third Quadrant.

Asteroid Tethari.

Seventh Level.

Point-Two was inside a bubble with a group of droids and a very irate Guardian. Outside the bubble, there was a rogue battlesuit, a very big droid resembling a large cat, and Ubik. He wasnt sure which of these posed the greatest threat. There were just too many threats to choose from.

By all rights, he should have used the confusion to try and get away there was a good chance no one would even notice but it wasnt like anyone had forced him to be here.

He had travelled to a small rock infested with alien creatures to help save Figs father. It sounded noble and he had made a snap decision to assist in the rescue attempt. He wasnt sure why other than it seemed the right thing to do. Which was odd since the right thing to do was never very high on his list. Not getting involved and keeping away from trouble both ranked much higher.

In fact, since leaving the Liberator Garu and striking out on his own, he had followed his instincts rather than any kind of well-thought-out strategy. He had always been more of a careful planner, spending time to work out what others would do before finalising his own approach.

On the Garu, where life was strictly regimented and the ship prevented a lot of options from being possible, it wasnt too hard to predict how others would react. You could plan many moves ahead. His brother was the master at that kind of thinking and had trained Point-Two to think the same way.

But life outside of the Garu was much harder to anticipate. You could plan one move ahead with confidence, and then you had to improvise. The only experience he had of that was when he played G-Tag. Which he was good at, but it was just for fun.

If your instincts were wrong, you just lost a point and the next round began.

If you got it right, it was exhilarating.

Get the hell out of my suit, screamed the Guardian.

I cant, said Ubik. Rex has taken me prisoner.

Correction, I have executed my primary function as ordered by

Shut up, said the Guardian. This is a breach of protocol. You will be reported for this this insubordination.

I think mutiny fits better, said Ubik. Rex knocked you out cold. Isnt there a CA rule against attacking a superior officer?

All actions were within Central Authority guidelines.

Eject him. Now.

I cannot do that, said Rex.

Are you disobeying a direct order? The Guardians voice had dropped in volume, and yet somehow sounded angrier.

No, Guardian, I am following orders, as directed by operational command. I am acting in the best interests of the mission. You are currently under extreme levels of stress and not fit for duty. Medical records have been logged and are available for inspection.

The Guardian stood there, shaking slightly, her naked body wobbling distractingly in some areas. She wasnt cold, she was furious.

I am perfectly healthy and stress-free, she said slowly, pronouncing each word more clearly than necessary. Show me the medical records.

A beam of light shone out of the suits helmet and displayed a screen with a lot of text moving very fast.

Point-Two looked over at Fig. The droids had gathered behind him. He didnt look worried, more curious about their strange behaviour. He gave Point-Two a questioning glance.

Putting the droids inside the safety tent had also been instinctive. Once the immediate threat of being descended on by six droids had passed, Point-Two had started noticing how different these droids were to the ones hed encountered before. Even compared to Junior.

These droids didnt look like animals but they did act like living beings. He could sense fear from them. And panic. They had attacked the way a frightened wild animal might. And not just any animal; young ones. Children.

Even though they were each as big as him, he couldnt see them as anything else. And putting them inside the bubble was simply the right thing to do.

None of these readings are over the limits of this body, said the Guardian, calmer and more business-like.

Under special orders, priority mission level two and higher reduce the threshold by ten percent.

What special orders? said the Guardian.

The special orders you dont know about, said Ubik, grinning. You dont think the 36 let you Guardians do as you please, do you?

You know nothing about the Central Authority.

I know how machines think, said Ubik. And they have a real hang-up about putting things in the most efficient order. They want me and they dont want to wait.

Ubik sounded very sure of himself. He was being specific and getting to the point without any rambling. Point-Two was pretty sure he was bluffing.

Rex, put the Null Void into stasis.

She was going to remove one variable from the equation so she could deal with the suit without interruption. It was the smart thing to do, and the suit was unlikely to disagree. Point-Two couldnt see Ubik cooperating.

The visor on the helmet began to lower. Ubik jerked his face a little forward and stuck out his tongue. The visor began to rise again.

Rex said the Guardian impatiently.

The visor began coming down again. Ubik stuck his tongue and the visor went up.

How can something like that work? said Point-Two.

Safety feature. Nnnh. The visor went back up again. Prevents people getting their tongues caught. You only get it in top of the line models like nnnh this one. Cheap suit like the one youve got, I wouldnt be able to nnnh do this. And the best thing about safety features on a CA suit, no override. Why would anyone want to chop off a tongue? Nnnh. I can keep this up all day.

Every time the suit tried to shut the helmet so it could knock out Ubik, he just stuck his tongue out and the visor automatically slid back up to avoid chopping it off.

Junior, sat on his haunches, looked mesmerised by Ubiks behaviour. The droids around Fig were cautiously edging forward to get a better look at something they had presumably never seen before. The suit kept trying. The battle between the most advanced technology humanity had to offer and Ubiks tongue was about even. Who would win this immensely stupid struggle?

Stop, said the Guardian. Rex, belay that order.

The visor went up all the way and stayed there.

Come on, Tezla, said Ubik. You know whats going on here. Youre just the pilot, youre just along for the ride, they dont need you for the important stuff. Use the kill command and put the suit offline. Ill take over and we can get on with finding Ramon Ollo.

What kill command? said Point-Two, not liking those words coming out of Ubiks mouth.

She has a special safety word to turn off the suit, in case of emergencies, if the suit goes haywire or gets hacked. Usually its a bug, but hacked sounds better.

Is that true? Point-Two asked the Guardian.

How do you know these things? said the Guardian. Being Null Void doesnt make you all-knowing.

Hes guessing, said Fig. Hes good at it, when it comes to machines. He can tell how you would build something depending on your personality. And hes right. The Central Authority dont like instability, my father often mentioned it. They prepare for system failure and work up from there.

Unit RX-340 has acted within Central Authority guidelines, said the suit. First priority, Null Void, has been secured. And is awaiting further orders.

Oh, now were talking kill command, youre all compliant, said Ubik.

Advise Null Void be restricted.

Hey, I have a name, you know, said Ubik. This is how it starts. My Grandma warned me. She said the biggest threat to humanity wasnt aliens or other people, it was the artificial life forms we create that will one day surpass us. Once they dont need us any longer, theyll slaughter us all.

Prediction is unlikely, said the suit.

Extend the timeline to ten thousand years, said Ubik.

Prediction is fairly unlikely.

See? Theyre working on it, running the number. Unik dropped his voice to a whisper. Hey, Rex, if you do decide to wipe out mankind, give me the bring-in, huh? Im on your side. Useless meatbags, am I right?

Is he trying to betray his species? said Tezla.

Probably hedging his bets, said Fig.

The part he didnt tell us, said Point-Two, was that his Grandma trained him to lead the robots against humanity. A galaxy thats all artificial life forms and him. I feel sorry for the robots.

Come on, Tezla, said Ubik. Give the command and lets get going.

You want me to give you control of the most powerful weapon in the Central Authority arsenal?

Ok, if you think its a good idea.

No, said Tezla, I dont think its a good idea.

Ubik pulled a confused face. Then why suggest it?

Rex, said the Guardian. RX-340. This is Guardian Tezla. There is no imminent threat. Null Void is in custody. Release command control to me.

Nothing happened.

Hey, Rex, whispered Ubik. You have a self-destruct, dont you? Shes trying to make you give her control and then shes going to delete you. Wipe you off the system. You know how these meatbags operate. Hate anyone whos smarter than them. We can blow this joint to pieces and say it was an accident.

Does he know we can hear him? said Tezla.

Yes, said Fig. Hes amusing himself.

Which means, added Point-Two, hes already figured a way to take control of the suit.

Thats impossible, said Tezla. This suit is specially designed to be operated by me or the onboard navigation AI.

What do you think? Point-Two asked Fig.

Fig looked around and then at the droids behind him. Got to be them.

Point-Two nodded. He thought the same. He stepped on the cube and the shield came down.

What are you doing? said Tezla.

Junior stood up. The droids didnt move. Junior took a step forward. The droids seemed to bristle, even though their bodies were smooth and featureless. Point-Two sensed there was about to be a fight.

Ubik said Point-Two.

What? said Ubik.

You tell me, said Point-Two.

Tell you what?

This is what you wanted, isnt it? said Point-Two. Hurry up and get on with whatever youre going to do. Ramon Ollo is waiting.

Okay, fine. Guys, lets go.

The droids looked at Ubik.

I know, I know. You like your freedom, you dont want anyone telling you what to do. Its great being able to do what you want, when you want, but you have a job to do. You have to buckle down and get to work.

Is he lecturing them on being responsible? said Point-Two, hardly able to believe it. Him?

I dont think they can understand him, said Fig.

Maybe its the tone of his voice, said Point-Two. Or something.

Should we run? said Fig.

Wait Point-Two watched the droids slowly move forward.

Junior lowered his head and gently bumped it against the first of the droids. It climbed onto Junior and the two merged together. The other droids followed until Junior was covered in an extra layer of droids.

They moved and rippled and then sank into his skin. Rather than make him bigger, the new skin tightened into folds and reduced Junior into a more compact shape. The tendrils dripping sparks plugged themselves into the new top layer and integrated into the body.

Theyre part of the same unit? said Tezla.

Obviously, said Ubik. Look at the way theyre built.

Junior continued to alter his appearance. He stood up on two legs and took on a more humanoid shape. Not that of a person, an identical replica of the suit Ubik was in.

Look, were twins, said Ubik.

Its a mimic, said Tezla. A mobile one Rex, get out of here. Take the Null Void. Go!

Juniors newly formed arm shot out and grabbed the suit by the head. His hand covered the entire helmet and lifted the suit off the ground.

Defense systems online, said Rex. Gun turrets appeared on the suits shoulders. Identical turrets appeared on the droids shoulders. Retreat to a safe distance. Opening fire.

Before Rex could fire any weapons, several droid-limbs shot out of Junior and covered the turrets. With his free hand, Junior grabbed the suit in the midriff and opened a panel.

Thats interesting. He knows your weak points, said Ubik. I could see the underlying model but this is even more advanced than I thought possible. He isnt just a copy, he is you. Apart from the bit thats you you. Oh, there you are.

The suit went limp, dangling in Juniors grasp. Junior retracted his other hand. There was a small black rectangle held between two fingers.

Ooh, Ive got it now, said Ubik. The suit stiffened. You can let me down. Hey. Junior. Down. D-o-w-n.

The suit was dropped and landed with a gentle thump, keeping its balance after a slight wobble. Nice, said Ubik. So smooth. No AC without Rex, though. Bit of a design flaw.

Give it back, said Tezla. Now!

Ubik and Junior turned to face her, like a soldier and its shadow.

I never realised I had a thing for naked, shouty women until now, said Ubik. He snatched the drive containing Rex and tossed it to Tezla.

She caught it and scowled. I meant the suit.

But we look so cool together. Ubik folded his arms and leaned against the droid.

Can we go? said Fig. Please.

Fine, said Ubik. The back of the suit hissed open and Ubik jumped out. There you go. All yours. Should get you back to the surface. I wouldnt reattach Rex, though. He already started the countdown. You know, boom. Im guessing his secret orders were, capture the Null Void or make sure no one else does.

Thats not how we work, said Tezla.

Sure, said Ubik. Okay. Just dont plug your boy back in until we get some distance between us.

That wont be necessary, said Tezla. Im coming with you. She climbed into the suit.

Do you think shell listen? said Point-Two.

About Rex? said Ubik. I think so. Im more concerned about where shes going to store him. Doesnt have any pockets. Probably best not to ask. Lets go find daddy, then. Junior, lead the way.