Stealing Light Part 34

Corso woke a few hours later to an urgent beeping sound. He'd curled up in the same acceleration couch Dakota had been confined in, watching as status alerts on her condition continued flickering on a screen.

His sleep, what little of it he was able to manage, had been sporadic, interrupted by nightmares due to what he'd learned from the derelict during that final frantic upload to the Piri Reis. Piri Reis.

He felt he could tell no one what he'd discovered, and he'd wiped the data from the Piri Reis's Piri Reis's stacks as soon as he'd absorbed its message in all its awful import. stacks as soon as he'd absorbed its message in all its awful import.

Despite all she'd been through, the damage to Dakota's body and brain appeared to be largely superficial. There was no sign of major cerebral tissue damage, either from her fight with Udo or from the Piri's attempts to destroy whatever had been hiding inside her skull.

'The Hyperion's Hyperion's systems are undergoing aggressive a.n.a.lysis by sources currently on its bridge,' systems are undergoing aggressive a.n.a.lysis by sources currently on its bridge,' Piri Piri informed him at one point. 'It appears to be an attempt to locate both yourself and Dakota.' informed him at one point. 'It appears to be an attempt to locate both yourself and Dakota.'

'How many are on board the Hyperion Hyperion now?' now?'

'Six, including David Gardner, Kieran Mansell and Senator Arbenz. The remaining three are not on record, but are armed and wearing combat-ready armour.'

'Those are probably security from the Agartha. Agartha. Have they gone anywhere near the cargo bay yet?' Have they gone anywhere near the cargo bay yet?'

'Apart from yourself and Miss Merrick, there has been no physical human presence in the cargo bay since our departure from Mesa Verde. However, aggressive security scans have probed the bay several times in the past few minutes.'

'But they can't detect the Piri, Piri, can they?' can they?'

'Visual and data feeds show only partly depleted ion cells placed in storage,' came the reply.

'And that'll hold up?'

'Only so long as the cargo bay is not physically entered for visual confirmation.'

'What happens if we take you outside the Hyperion Hyperion right now? What are our chances?' right now? What are our chances?'

'The prognosis is not good,' came the reply. 'I am equipped primarily for counter-surveillance. Regardless of this, the chances of being visually identified on exiting the Hyperion Hyperion are very high, in which case black-ops capabilities would be of negligible effect against the firepower of either the are very high, in which case black-ops capabilities would be of negligible effect against the firepower of either the Hyperion Hyperion or the or the Agartha. Agartha. My recommendation is we should remain hidden within the cargo bay as long as possible.' My recommendation is we should remain hidden within the cargo bay as long as possible.'

So either they stayed put until the others finally found their hiding place, or they could exit the Hyperion Hyperion and get blown out of existence. and get blown out of existence.

Corso yanked himself up out of his seat and returned to the medbox. Dakota's breathing looked deep and regular, as he gazed down at her through the transparent cover. The wounds and bruises she'd picked up looked like they were healing rapidly.

'Any more on Dakota's prognosis, Piri?' Piri?'

'She is recovering well, but it will be some hours before she is fully functional.'

'We don't have that much time. Can we wake her now?'

'That is not advisable.'

'I don't care if it's advisable. Can we wake her?'

A pause. 'Yes.'

'Then do it.'

'This is counter to safe practice of-'

'Piri, she gave me full privileges. Do it.' she gave me full privileges. Do it.'

Lights on the medbox changed from red to green. The tentacle-like sensors slowly unwound from around her still form. Her injuries weren't anywhere near as bad now as they would have been without the medbox's rapid-healing technology, but she still looked a long way from sparkling health.

Corso hated to wake her so soon, but he needed her help if they were going to get out of this.

'Do you have any idea exactly what that was in her Ghost implants?'

'That is difficult to ascertain,' the ship replied. 'I detected two conflicting processes. One appeared to share traits with the invasive routines found within the Hyperion's Hyperion's data stacks, whereas the second bore a closer relationship to data configurations originating from within the derelict.' data stacks, whereas the second bore a closer relationship to data configurations originating from within the derelict.'

'What, two two processes? Explain that.' processes? Explain that.'

'There were what appear, upon initial a.n.a.lysis, to be two invasive processes present within Dakota's ghost implants,' the ship replied with endless pedantry. 'These have been erased where possible, along with a variety of traps and memory blocks.'

Dakota's chest heaved suddenly, her back arching, her small apple-sized b.r.e.a.s.t.s pressing upwards. Corso was having a hard time pushing back memories that were still delightfully fresh; the opportunities for s.e.x back home on Redstone were limited, to say the least, given the Freehold's tight social constraints. It had felt at the time like Dakota was a.s.suaging some deep hunger that went beyond the expression of mere l.u.s.t, into a need whose origin he couldn't begin to guess.

Apart from that, it had been the greatest f.u.c.k of his life.

The lid hissed open. Corso remembered what the Piri Reis Piri Reis had just told him: had just told him: memory blocks. memory blocks. Dakota's eyelids fluttered and her eyes stared through him. After a moment she managed to focus on him at last. Dakota's eyelids fluttered and her eyes stared through him. After a moment she managed to focus on him at last.

'Corso . . .' She coughed and shook her head, and brought up a thin stream of liquid, retching as she cleared her lungs of the complex chemicals the medbox had used in the repair process. He reached down and helped as she struggled into a sitting position. Dakota leaned over the side of the medbox, choking and gasping the last of the medicinal liquid out of her system. Corso got his hands under her arms and helped her stand up slowly. She was shivering violently.

'How . . . how long's it been?' she managed to stammer, her breath still heaving. She was peering around the command module as if she'd never seen it before.

'Not that long. Couple of hours since I got you back from the bridge. But I don't know how long we've got before Arbenz and the rest track us down.'

's.h.i.t.'

He helped her over to an acceleration couch and she dragged herself on to it, wiping gunge from her face and hair.

'We need to get away,' she croaked.

Corso shook his head. 'Can't do. They'll shoot us out of orbit the moment we're seen outside the Hyperion. Hyperion. There's only so much subterfuge the There's only so much subterfuge the Piri Reis Piri Reis can manage.' He paused for a moment. 'That's why I brought you round early just now. I was hoping you might prove me wrong on that.' can manage.' He paused for a moment. 'That's why I brought you round early just now. I was hoping you might prove me wrong on that.'

She tried to focus more fully on him, and then started laughing weakly. 'Put me back. Put me back in the medbox and wake me up when the universe is over. Oh my G.o.d, we're f.u.c.ked. We're totally f.u.c.ked.'

'No, we're not, not, Dakota, and I need your help if we're going to get out of this. But I need to ask you some questions before we do anything else.' Dakota, and I need your help if we're going to get out of this. But I need to ask you some questions before we do anything else.'

'At least find me some clothes first.'

'Sure.'

Corso negotiated his way through to her sleeping quarters. A maelstrom of both clean and unwashed clothing still floated there, and began whirling around him as he disturbed the air with his pa.s.sage. He grabbed a pair of trousers and the cleanest t-shirt he could find, and propelled his way back through. Dakota was curled up into a ball on the couch, one arm looped securely through a piece of webbing. For a moment he thought she'd fallen asleep, but then she opened her eyes and stared at him.

'So did you bring me some clothes or are you just going to stand there staring at me like a pervert?'

'Sorry.' He handed them over.

She shook her head and forced a weak grin. 'I was only kidding. You said you had questions?'

'I want to talk about Josef Marados.'

Her expression stiffened immediately. 'What about him.'

'Someone tampered with the news feeds, while we were still in the Sol System. So the report of his death was deleted from the Hyperion's Hyperion's records.' records.'

She shot him an angry look. 'You know, you actually sound like you're accusing me of something.'

'Let's face it, you've been acting very strangely.'

She laughed, but the sound was harsh and edgy. 'This coming from a Freeholder?'

'Dakota, listen to me, I'm not accusing you of anything. I'm just trying to get to the bottom of things. Someone fixed the transceiver feed so certain specific items were flagged and deleted.'

Now Dakota looked bewildered and frightened. 'Well, if you must know, I picked up on that too. I thought there might be an intruder on board, because there were alterations to the stack records.'

'There wasn't any intruder,' Corso stated. 'Not anything physical at least. You made the alterations yourself.'

She shot him a glance full of anger and suspicion. 'Look,' she swallowed, 'I don't deny I might have made some changes to protect myself. But there were other changes that had nothing to do with me-the kind of stuff you probably couldn't pick up on unless you had a Ghost riding in your head.'

'So you'd say the Shoal AI was responsible.'

Dakota nodded.

Corso shook his head. 'That's part of it, but not all. Just before we got to Nova Arctis, I saw you walking away from the airlocks leading into the cargo bay. I went up to you, and you completely blanked me. It was like you didn't even know I was there. It was the same behaviour the time I found you on the bridge, looking at maps of the Magellans. Except you didn't seem to remember that.'

'Corso, this is ridiculous. I . . .'A brief look of uncertainty crossed her face, and she changed her tack. 'Look, I don't understand what you're getting at.'

'When I came across you that time by the external airlocks, it was less than an hour after Severn was murdered back in Ascension.'

'Oh, for G.o.d's sake, Lucas! The man led a dangerous life. This is ridiculous.'

'Dakota, do you remember at all what happened on the bridge just now?'

'Why?'

'Do you even remember killing Udo Mansell?'

'I . . .' That look of uncertainty flickered over her face again. 'Yes,' she said, a little more quietly. 'I did. I'd ... I don't know. I hadn't forgotten. I just . . . couldn't place the memory. Except. . .'

'Except what, Dakota? Except it didn't feel real, maybe? When I got there, you had this blank look on your face like you weren't really aware of what was going on around you. It was exactly the same look you had that time I found you running trajectories on the bridge, and that time by the airlocks. Like you weren't really quite seeing anything around you? You know, you almost managed to kill me me back there.' back there.'

Dakota shook her head vigorously. 'I don't remember anything like that. Besides, it was Udo attacked me. me. Then . . .' Then . . .'

Corso c.o.c.ked his head. 'What's the matter?'

'Nothing,' she replied, staring off into s.p.a.ce. 'I just can't. . .' She put one hand up to her head and dragged it through her hair, her fingers trembling.

'Can't remember?'

She flashed him a hostile glare. 'Lucas . . .'

'Are you still having trouble remembering? After you killed Udo, I had to actually knock you out before I could start dragging you all the way down here. I've seen some weird s.h.i.t in my life, but I've never seen anything quite like that. Not even back home.'

'I didn't kill Severn, I swear. I don't know what makes you think I even could. I... it was complicated. We were close, back in the old days. The same goes for Josef Marados.'

She sounded calmer now. 'There's no reason for me to kill either of them,' she stated more defiantly. 'But there was plenty of reason to kill Udo.'

Couldn't agree more, Corso reflected, but he didn't say a word about that. 'You Corso reflected, but he didn't say a word about that. 'You do do realize I just had your ship rip a s.h.i.tload of invasive routines out of your skull? Stuff that shouldn't have been in there at all.' realize I just had your ship rip a s.h.i.tload of invasive routines out of your skull? Stuff that shouldn't have been in there at all.'

Her head snapped back up. 'What?'

'I'm saying the Hyperion Hyperion isn't the only thing that was compromised. So were you-or your Ghost was, at any rate.' isn't the only thing that was compromised. So were you-or your Ghost was, at any rate.'

'But that's . . .'

He could see the realization dawning on her.

'There's no one else with the access privileges and the skill-including the support of your implants-to enable you to alter records and hide your movements the way you did with the Piri Reis. Piri Reis. But there's plenty of precedent for your conscious mind being taken over.' But there's plenty of precedent for your conscious mind being taken over.'

'I remembered everything that happened at Port Gabriel, Lucas. That was the worst thing about it. I remember exactly how good how good the Uchidans made me feel when they turned me into a murderer.' the Uchidans made me feel when they turned me into a murderer.'

'But it doesn't have to be just like that, does it? What about a fugue state where your conscious mind thinks it's doing one thing, while something altogether different is happening in reality?'

She twisted around and tried to strike him, but he antic.i.p.ated the blow, catching her fist in his own and pulling her towards him.

She gripped his shirt with her free hand and began to weep. He held her close for a while, feeling her shoulders heave.

'I'm sorry, Lucas. I had such bad dreams-I don't want them to be real.'

She slid out of her seat and he let her drift until she snagged a piece of trailing fur and pulled herself in close to one wall. He let her just float there for a minute, before he continued.

'What do do you remember?' you remember?'

'I thought I was imagining it. I had . . . nightmares, about Chris Severn and Josef. I saw it happening. I just pretended it wasn't real, because it couldn't couldn't be real.' She wept. be real.' She wept.

She stiffened again, then twisted around to face him. 'The figurine.'

Corso said nothing. She pulled herself slowly upright and stared through him as if he were not there. Her expression was sphinx-like now: calm, eerie, deadly. 'The figurine the alien gave me-Belle Trevois.'

'I know. I-'

'I remember now.' Her tone was soft and calm, but something in its tone unnerved him. 'I mean I'm starting to remember. Trader knew I was on Redstone during the ma.s.sacres; he was just playing a game with me. I knew the figure was of Trevois as soon as I opened the box, but then I touched it and ... I forgot.'

She focused fully on him now. 'That thing raped raped me, Lucas. I don't know how he knew I'd get here, but he had planned everything from Bourdain's Rock on at the very least.' me, Lucas. I don't know how he knew I'd get here, but he had planned everything from Bourdain's Rock on at the very least.'