Chapter 6
Two days later they rendezvoused with a cruiser and a very
irritated looking group of admirals transferred. They went
directly to the bridge. The duty officers were excused except for
Col. McQueen, and a heavy silence filled the air. It was the
admiral in charge of The Intelligence Corps that spoke first.
"Commodore Ross, may I ask why ten of my officers assigned
to this vessel are in detention?"
Commodore Ross straightened. "Two of them, sir, attempted to
destroy an AI in my custody, injuring a marine in the process. I
believe they did so because they knew that AI carried the
information that enabled us to intercept and destroy the enemy.
The others are being held because I believe they are not human
but enemy agents."
"And what makes you believe that?" the admiral
continued.
"Because when exposed to kryon gas," the commander
continued, "a substance absolutely harmless to human beings,
they were rendered unconscious. The information the AI provided
predicted this would happen. It says there are artificial life
forms, some type of clones produced by the enemy to infiltrate
our corps."
"I wish to review this information," the admiral
snapped.
The senior admiral spoke up. "Commodore, by any chance is
there kryon gas in this compartment?"
"Yes sir!" the comodore answered. "If any of you
were these clones you'd be unconscious by now."
The admiral nodded. There was a banging on the hatch. Col.
McQueen quickly opened it, and spoke to the officer outside. He
turned to the commander. "Sir!" he snapped, "The
AI has become functional again. His motor functions are still
impaired but he asks to speak with you immediately."
Before the commodore could speak the admiral did so. "We
would like to take part in that conversation, commodore! Kindly
have this individual brought here immediately."
The commodore nodded to McQueen, who in turn nodded to the
officer outside. A few minutes later there was the sound of
shots. McQueen rushed to the door, and returned a few moments
later, followed by the AI being carried by two men.
"An explanation, colonel?" the admiral asked.
"Two of your staff members," the colonel explained,
"tried to attack the prisoner. The security guard was forced
to kill them."
The admiral looked bewildered. "Let us continue," he
snapped.
"This looks like one of the Robinson series."
"Yes sir," the AI answered, "Robinson 326."
The admiral waved his hand towards the comodore. "We've got
a few questions," the commodore continued. "Are you up
to it?"
"My circuits are performing better by the minute," he
said "please ask your questions. " The admiral motioned
to a man who turned on a recorder.
"Why did you bring us this information?"
"Not all of my kind," the AI explained, "serve The
Chig. Only a small percentage of us do. The rest of us merely
want to be left alone. We have finally rid ourselves of the
program that corrupted our systems at a high price. But we are
free of it.
We have made no attacks on The Chigs. We thought they were
ignoring us. Then suddenly they began a massive attack on the
world where we are living. We are fighting desperately, but their
overwhelming numbers are slowly destroying us.
I was sent in the hope of obtaining aid. If not that, to give you
the information we had come into in the hopes that it would
enable you to destroy The Chig and thereby avenge us. I have been
asked by my people to make a plea to your government."
The AI fell silent. Everyone looked to one another for several
moments, then the admiral spoke. "Please do so!"
The AI continued. "As I have said, we have managed to
correct this program that has made us hostile to you. We are now
as we used to be. We want to come home. You made us. We are your
children, as much as those of flesh and bone are your children.
We did not corrupt ourselves, one of you did that. But if we
return home we do not want to come home again to be slaves. We
ask no special privileges. We ask only those rights granted to
your other children, to choose where we want to work, to be paid
equally, to be able to voice our concerns and to be able to
choose our own representatives. We are dying. If things were
going the way they were when I left we cannot hold out more than
thirteen or fourteen days. There are only three-hundred-thousand
of us left. We will make no great difference in the outcome. But
we would like to try. I, myself, would like to join the pilots of
this vessel and fight beside them. That is all.
I only ask you now that you have my message, that you refuel my
ship and let me go back to my people to die with them." The
AI fell silent. "We will consider that," the admiral
answered. "But just a few more questions, please."
Page 8