The Belt: The Complete Trilogy Page 6

  "You think HQ would buy that?" said Cyrus.

  "I don't see why not? The worst-case scenario is they reckon we're just stopping off to let our hair down after three years in the wilderness. Hardly a crime."

  "Let's do it." Miranda stood with her hands on her hips.

  Scott raised a hand. "Back up a step, Miranda. Firstly, we all have to agree to it. Secondly, we go there just to take a look, nothing more."

  "I'm in," said Cyrus.

  Scott turned to Rick, who nodded back. "Okay with me."

  "Steph?"

  She hesitated for a beat. "We just go to have a look around, that's all."

  "That's all, and maybe grab a beer. I hear they have some good watering holes there," said Scott.

  "That's settled, then," said Miranda.

  "Not quite," said Scott. "Aria, what do you think?"

  "Since my primary purpose is to ensure the welfare of the crew, I think that a period of rest and recuperation would be of enormous benefit to all."

  "What about the Hermes developing a fictitious technical problem?"

  "We don't have to invent something—there's plenty wrong with this ship already."

  Scott turned back to the crew. "All right, then. Looks like we're going to Neo City."

  9

  Neo City Asteroid

  Neo was one of those rocks that didn't follow the rules. Some time back in its ancient history, it was ejected from the central asteroid belt and adopted a bizarre elliptical orbit that bisected the solar system. It was classed as a near-earth object (NEO), from which it got its current name. Every so often in its orbit, it would also come close to Mars and, at its furthest point, near Ceres. So, over its four-year orbital period, Neo came within spitting distance of the primary population centers in the solar system. Only the moons of Jupiter were beyond its reach.

  It was a small, potato-shaped rock, only three kilometers in diameter at its narrowest and not quite five kilometers long. But it just happened to be a Type-C, meaning it was blessed with an abundance of useful resources such as water ice, which could be filtered and purified for drinking and horticulture, as well as converted into oxygen for life support and hydrogen for propellant. It also contained copious metals for construction and a plethora of carbon compounds for the manufacture of a vast range of materials, from plastics to methane. This cornucopia of resources, coupled with its periodic proximity to Earth, made it one of the first asteroids to be mined, well over a century ago.

  But a lot had changed since then. The Xiang Zu Corporation, who effectively owned it, embarked on an audacious engineering project to transform it from a barren, lifeless rock into a thriving hub of civilization. They did it by excavating a giant hole centered on its longest axis, half a kilometer wide and one-and-a-half deep. Then they built a massive airlock at one end, filled the cavern with an atmosphere, and finally, after strapping an enormous bracelet of engines to the outside, spun it up to provide a one-gee environment along the inner surface of its core.

  Over the intervening decades, the space inside had grown to more than twice the original. It was now at least a kilometer in diameter, and three deep, with a populace of over twenty-five thousand. It was now part asteroid, part city, and part spacecraft. Also, over this time, it slowly trimmed its orbit to maximize its transit times with the other major centers of human activity in the system. And like the ancient caravans that traded between societies all along the Silk Road in centuries past, Neo plied a new road, one that took it around the solar system every four years.

  This eccentricity of orbit allowed Neo City, as it became known, a considerable level of autonomy. It was beholden to no one but itself. It remained stubbornly independent from the main system power blocks of Earth, Mars, the Belt, and the academic institutions of Europa. It did not involve itself in politics; it took no sides and shunned all entreaties to engage in interplanetary dialog. This gave it the aura of a rogue state. Many deemed it a lawless, hedonistic bastion of radicals, misfits, pirates, criminals, dubious corporations, and a lot of dirty money. It was said that anything you wanted you could get in Neo City—for a price. They only had one law: everything is negotiable.

  So, it came as no great surprise to Scott that this would be the ideal place to off-load some exotic tech that you had just stolen from a bunch of losers on the far side of the Belt. But he really wondered if it would still be there by the time they got to the asteroid city—if it was ever there to begin with.

  They were days behind the attackers' craft. By the time the crew of the Hermes got to Neo, the device might have been bought and sold six times and by now be halfway across the solar system. Scott didn't hold out much hope of finding it. Nevertheless, he kept his feelings to himself, mainly because, for the first time in the entire three years this crew had been together, they had started to feel like a team—actually, more than that: they felt to Scott like family, and he liked that feeling. Sharing his opinions would just erode the hope that they all felt. Hope was what kept them going, now that the mission was effectively over. But deep down, he knew they knew that, too. So, for the last ten days, as they hurtled through space toward Neo City, no one was going to be the first to break the spell.

  Ceres HQ, as assumed, had ordered the mission over and requested them to return. Aria subsequently informed HQ of a series of technical issues that had developed during the return trip, and that they were concerned these glitches might be indicative of a more serious problem. So, they were planning to stop off at the asteroid city, to enable a thorough assessment of the structural integrity of the ship before venturing on to Ceres. This request was met with surprisingly little resistance or enquiry. As Scott had guessed, it might be HQ's way of allowing them all to let their hair down after three years in isolation. This was another thing that worried Scott: his social skills weren't exactly sparkling before he left on this mission. By now, they must be nonexistent. But, in a way, that was the great thing about Neo City: no one gave a crap.

  Scott looked up at the primary monitor in operations. From edge to edge, it was filled with the blackness of space sprinkled with a light dusting of stars. Dominating the center of this celestial tableau was a dark gray blob, its features indistinct and blurry at this distance out. Nonetheless, they could just make out the gigantic spaceship dock on the ass end of Neo City. Another day and they would be there. Scott glanced over at his chief engineer. "Anything?"

  Cyrus had been virtually glued to the comms console for the last few hours. He had been listening intently to an earpiece pressed hard against his head. So much so that Scott wondered if it would penetrate the chief engineer's cranial cavity and become part of his biology. He wore a look of intense concentration, glanced back at Scott, and shook his head. "If it's inside that rock, then we need to be very close to get a signal."

  Scott shrugged and looked back at the fuzzy image of the asteroid on screen. "Aria, can you display the latest hyperspectral scan?"

  "Certainly, Commander."

  A confusion of colors now bloomed across the screen. Scott tapped a few icons on his console and adjusted the spectral map to make it easier for the human visual processing center in the brain to make sense of what it was seeing.

  The Hermes, being a survey vessel, was equipped with some very specialized scanners used to probe bodies deep within the Belt. It told them more about the asteroid city of Neo than they probably knew themselves. But Scott was not interested in the geophysical makeup of the body. What he was using it for was to find out what ships were there, and he could do this based on the metallic signatures acquired by the scanner.

  So far, Aria was able to identify thirty-seven different craft, either docked to the asteroid or parked around it. Of these, five were of similar size, shape, and metallic content to the pirate craft that had attacked them and taken the quantum device. None was a perfect match—although that didn't mean it wasn't there. It might be docked behind some other craft and, therefore, obscured from their scanners. The only way to know
for sure was to rendezvous and take a closer look.

  They would park the Hermes in a stationary orbit close to the asteroid and then take one of their two small transports over to Neo City. The only problem was that the transport only took four, so someone was going to be disappointed. Scott wasn't quite sure how he was going to square that circle, since after three years out at the edge of the Belt, everyone was gagging for some shore leave. The solution to this minor problem presented itself as the Hermes maneuvered in close to the asteroid. Cyrus and Miranda were in the hangar prepping the transport while the rest of them were on the bridge, overseeing the positioning of the Hermes at the coordinates that flight control on Neo City had given them. Aria was doing most of the heavy lifting; it was a delicate operation best suited to the QI.

  In the middle of all this, Rick announced to Scott that he would stay behind. "Someone's gotta stay here, buddy."

  "You sure?"

  "Yeah. Too much temptation on that rock. I would just head for the nearest bar and wouldn't leave till I either passed out, or I died," said the old miner.

  Scott laughed.

  "It's best I wait till we get to Ceres. At least there I can get better medical support."

  "Okay," said Scott as he rose from his seat and signaled to Steph. "Come on, time to go."

  They left the old miner to keep an eye on the ship as they made their way down one of the four central spokes of the torus to the hangar at the bow of the spaceship. As they progressed, the artificial gravity created by the centripetal force lessened until they became weightless. They wasted no time getting suited up and climbing into the small lander parked inside the hangar.

  As usual, Miranda was sitting in the pilot's seat, running through pre-flight checks. "Okay, everyone ready?" She really didn't need to ask; a chorus of "ready" echoed around the cockpit. With that, the hangar bay doors opened and the landing platform began to extend outward, bringing the craft with it. Once clear of the hangar, Miranda took it slow, rising the craft gently from its platform, then arcing it away from the Hermes toward Neo City.

  On the cockpit monitor, Scott saw the huge rotating asteroid city come into view and grow in size as they approached, its gnarled rocky surface dotted with carbuncles of technology: antennae, engines, navigation systems, even the odd plasma cannon. It was like some great technological disease had afflicted the asteroid and was now bursting out from inside.

  Scott was mesmerized by the slow, graceful spin of Neo City. It had a strange, hypnotic beauty to it. But then again, maybe it was just the three years in isolation that made it so alluring. It was the first oasis of civilization that they had seen in all that time. No one spoke, all lost in the same trance that Scott was now feeling so intensely.

  The flight path they were on took them along the topside of the asteroid to the dock that trailed out from the stern. This was where visiting ships could find a safe harbor without having to negotiate the difficult maneuver of matching its spin. It was by far the most visually impressive aspect of the entire structure.

  A two-hundred-meter-wide circular bearing had been engineered into the stern of the asteroid, and from its face, a long, flat steel dock extended out almost half a kilometer. It made the asteroid look like a giant popsicle spinning through space. Long gantries spread out from either side of this dock. These were for the bigger transport ships where umbilicals would directly connect to the ship's airlock. This allowed people and goods to be transported in and out of Neo City in a full one atmosphere. Every available space seemed to be packed with ships of all shapes and sizes, some commercial transports, some corporate vehicles, and quite a few luxury craft.

  All these vessels moored along the gantries were ships that were built in space, for space. They could not land on a planet or enter a gravity well of any kind, unlike the little lander that Miranda piloted, which was now heading for the upper deck of the long dock. This section was an enormous flat surface designed to accommodate such landers. They could see at least a couple dozen already anchored along its length. These were mostly shuttles from the ships, like the Hermes, that were too big to dock and so had to take up a stationary position further out from the asteroid.

  "Wow," said Steph, "it's seriously busy. Never seen so many craft packed together in one place."

  "Yeah, Neo City is close to the Belt at this point in its orbit, so there are a huge number of ships venturing out here for business and... whatever else goes on in a place like this," said Cyrus.

  The cockpit monitor started to flash alerts as flight control on Neo City contacted their lander and sent directives on where to go.

  "Over there." Miranda pointed out an area on the platform where lights strobed outward in concentric circles. "That's us. That's our spot." She banked the craft gently to position it over the center of the flashing beacon.

  Scott looked over at Cyrus. "You pick up anything yet?"

  The chief engineer seemed to be fiddling with something on the side of his visor. He pursed his lips and shook his head. "Nada, not a damn thing."

  "I've spotted at least three ships that look very like the one that attacked us," said Steph.

  "It's a standard Excelsior class transport ship. There are probably hundreds of them in the system. They all look the same. I should know—I worked on them for years," said Cyrus.

  By now, Miranda had taken them directly over the landing spot and, on the monitor, they could see the concentric flashing lights growing larger and larger as she brought them down. Powerful electromagnets on the pad switched on to grab the landing gear, attaching it firmly so that it would not bounce off in zero-gee. Mechanical clamps then extended from the platform to lock the lander in place. More alerts flashed up to inform them that they had been securely attached.

  "Welcome to Neo City," a disembodied voice echoed around the cockpit, startling the crew. "Your craft is now secure. Please wait until umbilical is attached and integrity confirmed before attempting to disembark."

  Outside on the landing pad, a hatch silently opened and a gantry rose up from within. Already, the central system on Neo City had identified the type of craft and had configured the most appropriate apparatus to connect with the little lander and effect an airtight seal around its hatch. Inside, Scott felt a low vibration permeate the craft as motors and gears worked to attach the umbilical. There was a thump, and the craft rocked a little.

  "Umbilical connected. A one atmosphere environment has been attained with your vessel. Please ensure that you understand the Neo City bylaws before disembarkation. Be aware that failure to abide by these laws may result in substantial fines or impounding of your vessel or both. More serious offenses will result in incarceration for a period commensurate with the crime. Please enjoy your visit."

  "They don't mess around, do they?" said Steph.

  "It's all bullshit. I've been here before, and believe me: they turn a blind eye to pretty much everything bar physical violence, and even that would need to be extreme before they would give it any attention," said Miranda.

  Cyrus raised a hand. "Quiet!" His other hand fiddled with his visor. He was listening to something. Cyrus slowly turned his head around to face the crew and a smile cracked across his lips. "I found it."

  "Shit, really?" said Miranda.

  Questions started flying back at the engineer. Everyone was getting excited, talking in whispers.

  "Are you sure? Where is it?" said Scott.

  Cyrus extended an arm and moved slowly around, all the time focusing on something only he could see and hear. "There. It's in that direction, pretty close, perhaps a hundred meters or so."

  "Miranda, can you pan the exterior camera around the dock?" said Scott.

  She quickly tapped a few icons on her console. The monitor flickered and a view over the dock started to materialize. She panned it to where Cyrus was vaguely pointing. Their location on the upper platform of the landing dock only afforded them a partial view of the big ships moored below. It also didn't help that other landers park
ed around them obscured a good deal of the vista.

  "There, that's it. That's an Excelsior class transport." Miranda zoomed in on the section of a ship that was visible to them. A ripple of excitement tinged with fear reverberated through Scott's body. He sensed the same reaction in the rest of the crew as they all gathered around the monitor, staring in silence at this temptation. Things could start to get tricky from here on in. The desire to try to regain possession of the quantum device would now start to tug at them, luring them with its promise of a new life, pushing them to make choices that could entangle them all in a high-stakes game of chance.

  "Okay, let's not get too excited," he said finally. "Let's just keep it cool, maybe do a bit of snooping if we get the opportunity. Nobody go and do anything stupid, okay?"

  To Scott's surprise they all nodded in agreement. It was rare that he ever got that much consensus from the crew so quickly. But this was a delicate situation. Their hunch might have been right: they had found the quantum device. But they were still a very, very long way from getting it back.

  They all jumped as the comms burst out with another automated message from flight control. "Awaiting disembarkation. Please confirm that you are departing your craft imminently."

  Cyrus shook his head. "Jeez, that scared the crap out of me."

  "Okay, I say we all go find a nice bar where we can have a few cold beers and collect our thoughts. Agreed?" said Scott.

  They all nodded again. This was the second time in as many minutes that Scott had consensus. He could get to like this.

  "We'd better leave the EVA suits here. Not going to need them now." Miranda started extracting herself from the bulky suit. The others followed her lead.

  However, Scott was uncomfortable with this. "That reduces our options. It means we can't EVA."