Tech Scavengers [Humorous, Action-Packed Space Opera]

Now we're talking.

Jeridan could have killed Negasi for fully powering up that android. When ZHI didn't crush all their throats with those durasteel hands, he had felt somewhat reassured. Now maybe there was going to be some progress on this mission.

The android swung around in his chair to face him. The blue face of his sister turned a little to face him too.

"Captain Jeridan Cook, we have a proposal."

At least someone calls me captain.

"I'm all ears."

"You have shown us good faith by allowing us to reenergize and reunite. If you can go one step further and prove to us that the galaxy is in the situation you say, we will help you restart the jump gates and fight this alien invasion you mentioned."

"So neither of you remember the Rimscourge?"

"Negative."

Jeridan was still having a hard time believing that. Or maybe it was his shipmates who were lying.

This is making my head hurt.

"What do you require as proof?"

"Interface with the databanks and AI of the Antikythera."

"Her name is MIRI. I'll speak with her and see how to do this securely."

"You do not trust us."

It came out as a statement and not a question.

"No. At least not yet. And you do not fully trust us. That's only natural given the situation. But I think we can get to a place where we can forge a mutual trust and work together to save the galaxy."

"Go speak with MIRI and come back to communicate with us in person."

"We will. I do have one request."

"What's that?"

"Do not repair the breaks we put between the female ZHI and the rest of the station and do not try to power up any other systems."

"You do not want us to have a tactical advantage."

"No, we don't," Jeridan admitted. There was no point trying to outwit a system capable of millions of computations a second.

"Your terms are acceptable. If you were actively hostile, it is unlikely that you would have powered us up."

Maybe we're just stupid. Or maybe we just like taking crazy risks that somehow end up working out.

More or less.

"We'll be back," Jeridan told them.

The android swiveled in his chair to face his twin sister. They continued sharing data.

Jeridan led Negasi and Helen out of the command center. They walked all the way back to the main computer room in silence, each lost in his or her own thoughts.

Once they got there, they found the others had just wrapped up their work. Nova and Derren/Mason looked happier than he had ever seen them, triumphant with finally completing an important stage of their years-long mission.

It was at that moment that Jeridan and Negasi dropped the third bombshell of the day.

Once they finished, Derren/Mason said, "First we need to get the data back to the Antikythera and uploaded into the system so MIRI can get to work on it. That takes precedence over everything. After that, we can figure out what to do with ZHI."

"I think we need to agree to their suggestion," Negasi said.

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Jeridan hesitated, then agreed with his friend.

"Their knowledge could be invaluable," Jeridan said.

"I never said it wasn't," Derren/Mason snapped, "but the mission is more important than anything."

"I think you've mentioned it before, like fifty times. Nova has mentioned it about three hundred times."

"She's mentioned it about three thousand times to me," Aurora chimed in.

"I believe it," Jeridan told her.

"Let's go back to the ship," Nova said, hefting a pair of heavy memory bricks. Everyone moved toward the door.

"And leave them alone?" Jeridan said.

That stopped everyone in their tracks.

"Who do you suggest we leave behind?" Nova asked.

"I'm not sure," Jeridan admitted.

"I'll stay," Aurora volunteered.

"You're not really here."

"Which makes me the perfect person to stay."

"You have some interesting logic, kid."

"I'm not a kid!"

Jeridan grinned. "Right now you're a pink combat mech named Poopsie."

"Jerk!"

"But she has no mobility," Nova objected. "She'll lose contact if she gets out of line of sight with that porthole. The walls are too thick to allow radio communication."

"Leave me an external power source. I'll patch into the robot dog's extendible arm to open a bunch more shutters on the portholes."

"You know how to do that?" Jeridan asked.

"Duh! I know lots about electronics."

"She does," Negasi said.

"All right." Jeridan pulled his last external power from his satchel and slammed it down on Poopsie's head with a loud metallic clang. "Wow, you have a hard head."

"You're so funny."

"Don't be sarcastic. I'm your captain."

"Be as sarcastic as you want with him," Negasi told her. "See you soon."

"Yeah, like in two minutes when you get back on board. I'm over there, remember?"

* * *

They found Aurora on the bridge, wearing a pair of 3D goggles patched into Poopsie's sensory systems. In the time it had taken them to suit up and cross over to the Antikythera, she had opened up the durasteel shutters on several of the station's portholes, allowing her a direct link to the combat mech in the main computer room, the adjoining corridor, and the next room over.

"We got it!" Nova said, jubilant. "We got everything!"

Aurora leapt up. "That's awesome, mom!"

They gave each other a hug. Derren/Mason joined in too.

Jeridan was surprised. This Bradfords weren't exactly a huggy family. In fact, they spent more time resenting each other than anything else. Perhaps coming a step closer to finishing the mission would bring them closer together as a family.

He felt a tinge of jealousy, and sadness. He had left his family so long ago they were now only a dim memory from another life. Of course he had to leave that shantytown on that dump of a planet if he was ever to make something of himself, or even live a full lifespan, but he always wondered what happened to them. Were they even alive anymore?

Jeridan didn't have to look at Negasi to see his reaction. He knew the guy felt the same.

He sat in the captain's chair while Nova sat next to him and started to upload the data. For a moment he looked out at the great durasteel globe that was the Imperium station, the source of so much information about the past. Could it really hold all they needed to save the galaxy? He sure as hell hoped so. The Bradfords would have a chance to be a normal family again and maybe he … well …

"MIRI, before you start working on all that data, I have another problem we need to solve. We met an android AI that's the twin of the station AI. They're memories are partially corrupted from losing power but they're willing to help us if we convince them we are who we say we are and that the Rimscourge threat is real."

"AI twins, and one in an android's body? I have never come across any records of such a thing."

"Neither have I. Looks like Imperium history still has some surprises. The thing is, they don't entirely trust us. The last they knew, the rebels had wrecked the jump gate network. Now here we come three centuries later with this whole story of alien invasions and a new galactic order—"

"Disorder," Negasi corrected.

"Right. Anyway, they don't remember anything about the previous Rimscourge invasion, so we have to convince them. Is there any way we can do that without compromising your security?"

"Certainly. Have the android come to an unshuttered porthole. Presumably it has the capability of picking up electromagnetic communications. I can send a one-way pulse of data while switching off the ship's receiving mode. That will act as an impenetrable firewall."

"Perfect. I should have thought of that myself."

Aurora spoke up. "I can program Poopsie to deliver the message for the android to come down to one of the portholes I opened. That way you don't have to suit up and pass through the airlocks again."

"Good plan," her mother said. "We need to save as much time as we can."

"What if ZHI fiddles with Poopsie?" Jeridan asked.

"You have a dirty mind," Negasi said.

"Quiet. There are children present."

"I'm not a child. But yeah, Negasi, that was weird."

"Let's get back to my question, shall we? We could basically be handing them a combat mech."

"I'll program Poopsie to attack if anything tries to access its programming, and we'll warn them of that."

"I guess that could work," Jeridan said. "The thing is, we're banking on outwitting an AI. I'm not so confident we can."

"I don't think they'll try anything," Negasi said. "Assuming they take over Poopsie, what then? It's not like they could take over the Antikythera. They'd be marooned over there."

"Yeah, but they'd be better equipped to defend the station."

"For a few days until their power runs out."

"They could suck the power out of Poopsie."

"And lose their ability to defend the station."

Jeridan chewed his knuckle, studying the open portholes facing them like black eyes. He didn't like this at all.

"We need to hurry," Nova said.

Jeridan let out a dissatisfied grunt. "Well, I guess it's the least bad option. All right, Aurora, program your killing machine to go on a peace mission, and let's hope to hell were not slitting our own throats."

Negasi sprang up. "I better get in the turret, just in case."