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Author: Thomas DePrima
Commander. We've encountered a problem not unlike the last time we requested assistance from Space Command."
"Another cloning lab?"
"We don't know. We've uncovered an impregnable facility similar to the other, but we've been unable to gain entry."
"Perhaps that's just as well. There's no telling what dangers might be inside. Would you show me the way to the new tunnel?"
"Of course. Follow me."
With Dr. Peterson in the lead, Christa and her entourage wound their way through a maze of small open pits. Most had at least one person at the bottom who was exercising great care while removing clumps of soil or painstakingly cleaning dirt from partially buried objects. Christa was glad to see that Dr. Peterson had finally made the transition to laser poles. The new poles, positioned along two axes of an area, continually drew and redrew a grid work of lines. When Christa had last been on the planet, Dr. Peterson had still been insisting on the ancient system of stakes and string to delineate the grid, and people frequently became fouled in the lines and tripped.
The surface entrance to the facility was identical to that of the cloning facility. All exterior surfaces of the two-meter-wide tunnel were faced with a highly polished, metamorphic rock such as marble that bore tendril-like streaks of white and gave the appearance of fractures in the lustrous black surface. As they descended into the tunnel, their nostrils were continuously assaulted by the pungent odors of damp soil and mold spores that lingered in the passageway. As with the other entrance, the downward ramp turned back on itself twice and widened to four meters as it leveled out. The entire way was brightly illuminated by Chembrite Light panels.
As the black wall and door came into view, Christa experienced a flashback to the first time Jenetta had seen the other wall and door. The door and tunnel area were still as pristine here as the other had originally been. Following the attack by Tsgardi mercenaries at the other location, the entry antechamber had evidenced the severe consequences of innumerous explosions from attempts to breach the facility's impregnable construction.
"Here it is, Commander. As you can see, our attempts at entry have been fruitless. We didn't resort to explosives. They certainly didn't help the Tsgardi gain entry at the other facility."
"Yes, brute force isn't an effective tool with Dakinium. And the use of power sufficient to break in might result in the entire facility being destroyed."
"Do you think you can open it?" Doctor Huften asked anxiously.
"I'll certainly do my best. But first I have to report in. My orders are to send a detailed message to my HQ as soon as I've sized up the situation."
"But you can't announce this," Peterson said. "We've kept it a closely guarded secret to ensure the Raiders don't learn of it."
"I'm not going to announce it, Doctor. I'm going to send an encrypted message to Admiral Carver to see how she wishes to proceed."
"Humph, I know what that means," Peterson said.
"Please enlighten me," Christa said.
"It means you're sending for reinforcements to bar us from getting inside."
"I expect Marine personnel will arrive to protect the facility once it's opened. And I can state with some certainty that you won't be among the first to enter the facility. We must ensure there's no danger to site personnel and that there will be no situations like the cloning accident at the other facility."
"Which means we won't have an opportunity to examine whatever it is you find inside."
"As I understand it, all artifacts from the other facility, with the exception of the cloning equipment, were eventually turned over to Expedition Headquarters."
"Yes, but not for many months."
"Even so, you did eventually get everything except the illegal equipment or access to certain confidential information that Space Command deemed should remain secret."
"And how do we know that?"
"It's the truth, Doctor. If you don't believe
"Another cloning lab?"
"We don't know. We've uncovered an impregnable facility similar to the other, but we've been unable to gain entry."
"Perhaps that's just as well. There's no telling what dangers might be inside. Would you show me the way to the new tunnel?"
"Of course. Follow me."
With Dr. Peterson in the lead, Christa and her entourage wound their way through a maze of small open pits. Most had at least one person at the bottom who was exercising great care while removing clumps of soil or painstakingly cleaning dirt from partially buried objects. Christa was glad to see that Dr. Peterson had finally made the transition to laser poles. The new poles, positioned along two axes of an area, continually drew and redrew a grid work of lines. When Christa had last been on the planet, Dr. Peterson had still been insisting on the ancient system of stakes and string to delineate the grid, and people frequently became fouled in the lines and tripped.
The surface entrance to the facility was identical to that of the cloning facility. All exterior surfaces of the two-meter-wide tunnel were faced with a highly polished, metamorphic rock such as marble that bore tendril-like streaks of white and gave the appearance of fractures in the lustrous black surface. As they descended into the tunnel, their nostrils were continuously assaulted by the pungent odors of damp soil and mold spores that lingered in the passageway. As with the other entrance, the downward ramp turned back on itself twice and widened to four meters as it leveled out. The entire way was brightly illuminated by Chembrite Light panels.
As the black wall and door came into view, Christa experienced a flashback to the first time Jenetta had seen the other wall and door. The door and tunnel area were still as pristine here as the other had originally been. Following the attack by Tsgardi mercenaries at the other location, the entry antechamber had evidenced the severe consequences of innumerous explosions from attempts to breach the facility's impregnable construction.
"Here it is, Commander. As you can see, our attempts at entry have been fruitless. We didn't resort to explosives. They certainly didn't help the Tsgardi gain entry at the other facility."
"Yes, brute force isn't an effective tool with Dakinium. And the use of power sufficient to break in might result in the entire facility being destroyed."
"Do you think you can open it?" Doctor Huften asked anxiously.
"I'll certainly do my best. But first I have to report in. My orders are to send a detailed message to my HQ as soon as I've sized up the situation."
"But you can't announce this," Peterson said. "We've kept it a closely guarded secret to ensure the Raiders don't learn of it."
"I'm not going to announce it, Doctor. I'm going to send an encrypted message to Admiral Carver to see how she wishes to proceed."
"Humph, I know what that means," Peterson said.
"Please enlighten me," Christa said.
"It means you're sending for reinforcements to bar us from getting inside."
"I expect Marine personnel will arrive to protect the facility once it's opened. And I can state with some certainty that you won't be among the first to enter the facility. We must ensure there's no danger to site personnel and that there will be no situations like the cloning accident at the other facility."
"Which means we won't have an opportunity to examine whatever it is you find inside."
"As I understand it, all artifacts from the other facility, with the exception of the cloning equipment, were eventually turned over to Expedition Headquarters."
"Yes, but not for many months."
"Even so, you did eventually get everything except the illegal equipment or access to certain confidential information that Space Command deemed should remain secret."
"And how do we know that?"
"It's the truth, Doctor. If you don't believe
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