Humanity Persists Chpt. 3

1

Ithas read the message he received from Ember a third time. He felt this bubble of dread and anxiety build in his chest, it was crippling his ability to act, and he sat there frozen considering the next few minutes and how they might play out. He looked at the four guards that stood before him. Though Ithas and Robert had traveled with them for the last week, he realized he knew nothing about them. And yet as all of their lives now were hanging in the balance, he felt a relief that he hadn't put a human face or life to these men standing before him. With the deep drumming of his heart drowning out the silence, and adrenaline pouring through his veins, it was as if time was coming to a standstill, and every detail was being burned into his memory.

He studied the armor on the four gunmen before him, each set was a dull grey, with some hints of scarring and use. There were gaps in the chest piece and shoulder pieces for mobility, but now with their stances locked in, the armor was readjusting itself to provide the maximum protection to its wearer. Just under their armor a black fabric could be seen, that was drawn tight over their bodies this thin layer made the armor more comfortable as well as monitored the health of the wearer. This armor model was stacked plates held together with a mechanical chassis that was intricate and allowed for the subtle redistribution of protection depending on the scenario. More than likely a tungsten alloy, this armor was meant to provide protection from infantry or even a large caliber machine gun or rifle. Now at the angle Ithas was looking the black fabric had all but disappeared, as the seconds crawled by he saw the slow shift of grey metal extend into new positions. A silent transition, as smooth as a blade gliding from a sheath, the grey armor then suddenly gained a light blue shimmer. An electrified armored wall that adapted to the wearer against any threat. These four men transformed from appearing as imposing yet vulnerable adversaries, to an impenetrable fortress in seconds before their eyes. No doubt they had software built into their armor to analyze threats, which allowed for a highly efficient of armor adjustment. The shoulder plate extended out to provide additional protection to the soldiers necks and face, without obscuring their view. They met together in a 'V' shape obscuring their faces from the nose down.

Fear began to accumulate in the pit of Ithas's stomach, sinking deeper with dread and panic. Beads of sweat broke out across his forehead and his mouth began to get dry. From his view he was behind and to the right of Robert, he could only fully visualize the soldier farthest to the right, the other two were on the left of the captain and hidden behind Robert's outstretched arm. Ithas couldn't think of any other course of action, he only saw death standing in front of him, behind an armored wall bristling with energy and rifle barrels. For a brief moment Ithas felt relief, if there was only death than he may as well follow the instructions he was given, because how could it be any worse?

The captain's armor was the only armor that was not reacting. It had stayed in it's original formation. Ithas weighed the two targets he had in front of him, the lone soldier to the right, or the captain? Robert's gun was trained on the captain, so the next logical choice was to trust the body guard with his target. Ithas moved his focus to the guard on the right, and focused on the draw motion he had practiced for the entire trip to the station. It was now that he was to trust Ember or to die, with nothing guaranteed.

Ithas reached for his sidearm and whipped it up as fast as he could and fired his first shot. The shot went wide and high, well above his target, the recoiled of the gun surprised Ithas and forced the gun out of position in his hand. As Ithas steadied his arm, and shifted his hands, all hell broke loose. All four guards began firing but solely at Robert. The cloak that Robert wore rapidly changed shape and glowed a dull yellow, one half of the cloak appeared to act as a shield, causing the bullets to be caught in midair just before impacting the cloak. The other half appeared to be a swarm of fast-moving insects caught in a yellow glowing light. Robert emptied his revolver at the captain, to no avail. A dull magnetic thump rang out, and then the captain leapt backwards and flew towards the entrance firing his pistol as he fled. Ithas began firing again, fighting the recoil of his pistol, attempting to track where his rounds were landing, adjusting his aim to the arms and face of the guard. He watched his second and third rounds go above the head of his target, but his fourth and fifth hit the arms of the guard, which ricochet away after hitting the electric field. His next five rounds all met the desired target, the final round caused a sudden burst of blue that flashed around the guard. The round made contact with the forearm of the guard which pushed his arms upwards with the recoil of his submachine gun. At this point the captain reach the door and palmed the keypad to let himself out and he quickly slipped away back the way he came.

At that moment all rounds were spent. Then an awkward deafening silence filled the room for a split second, broken only when each guard thumbed the released of their magazines with a slight shake, causing them the drop slowly in the zero gravity. Shells floated beside each of them as they reached to reload their firearms, mechanic clicking, and fast breathing broke the silence. Ithas looked at his pistol and saw that its slide was locked back, and what more his ears were ringing from the recent firefight. Never had he experienced such a chaotic and destructive cacophony of noise in his life. He had to fight the urge to reach for his ears as the danger was not over. He was the second to last to reach for his second magazine for the guard on the right was right behind him still recovering from his arms being pushed upwards. Ithas attempted to reload without looking at his hands, which only slowed him down more. Just then there were three magnetic thumps that echoed into the fray. Ithas saw that the boots of the guards suddenly disconnected from the floors, and they began floating upwards, but something was wrong. Each of them broke their silence and let out yells of confusion, and squirmed midair in their surprise. Then Ithas saw a message appear in his vision: "Hold on tight."

Ithas barely had time to shout to Robert "Hold on!" before the room started to shift. Suddenly Robert and Ithas appeared to be being pulled under the feet of the guards, as if they were the center of the room. Both men were pulled toward the floor backwards throughout the transition. As The room came to a stop and as the two men fought to stand upright, they found themselves in a new position. The guards were still floating, only now their feet were in the air, and they were facing away from Robert and Ithas.

Robert chuckled and let out one word; "Convenient." He then proceeded to drop his revolver, which floated beside him. He then reached for the hilt that was strapped across his lower back. Ithas expected a machete or sword to be drawn but instead another yellow glow appeared where a blade would have been. What had appeared to be a swarm of insects in a yellow light, that had once been a part of Roberts cloak, now moved towards the hilt, and swarmed into the shape of a different firearm. The barrel had a large bore and looked brutal in comparison to the other firearms in the room. He took a moment to unfold a shoulder stock and within seconds he had leveled the armament at the guards in the air, whose backs were still towards them. Two loud thumps rang out, and the exposed backs of the guards that were once black revealing their under garments now were gaping maws of torn flesh and bubbles of blood. The viscera floated in all directions in close proximity to the two bodies. The third guard immediately tossed his weapon to his side and threw his hand up. That is when a computer voice rang across the speakers in the room: "Gravity engaged."

Ithas closed his eyes to avoid the bloody mess that came crashing to the floor. Shells, guns, blood, bodies, all came crashing to the floor at the same time. a wet mechanical and organic noise that made Ithas sick to his stomach. Two magnetic thumps rang out, signaling that their boots were now disconnected. Robert marched forward and kicked the submachine guns away from the last guard, all the while keeping his gun trained on the last guard. Robert ordered the guard to his stomach and his hands laced on his head. He then proceeded to press keys on the guard's forearm controls to his armor which caused the armor to slide all the way back into a grey brick that rested on the back of the guard. The guard now was face down near a puddle of blood, wearing only a black skintight jump suit and magnetic boots. Robert waved his arm above his head in a circle and then made a fist. His cloak then began to reassemble around him, but only became a coat in length, the remaining material consisting of the large weapon in his hands.

"Boss! I need you to come get this armor and to bind his hands." Robert kept his gun trained on the man on the floor. The only response that came back was a gag, wet splash, and coughing. Robert placed his heavy magnetic boot on the hands and neck of the guard and pressed down firmly. Then he looked back to see the state of Ithas, who was now on his hands and knees. Ithas finished coughing and let one of his hips drop to the floor. He was pale and trembling, staring at the two heaps of flesh over by Robert. Carefully Ithas forced himself up to his feet, and walked towards the bodyguard that was laying face down. Ithas grabbed the armor and looked to Robert for something to secure the guards hands. Robert leaned reached into a pocket in his jacket, and out came what looked like a chain that glowed yellow, much like his weapon or cloak before they assembled into themselves. Lacing the chain around the guards wrists in a figure eight, Robert then said one word; "Bind." The chain then hardened into position, allowing Robert to ease up tension and go to the bodies behind him.

Ithas sighed and moved to a chair that was near a console. He sat down and allowed his body to relax by resting his elbows on his knees. Robert listened to the drumming of his heart echo in his ears, and the sound consumed his existence. The pounding was steadily slowing down, and as the rhythm normalized, he focused his gaze on his hands which were trembling. He made fists with each hand and pumped his fingers in and out. Slowly they too normalized and became the steady appendages he had known all his life.

"Exhilarating isn't it?"

Ithas looked up to see Robert standing over the two bodies, he now had three bricks of armor. His cloak now had returned to full length, and he was reloading his revolver.

"A man once said that there was nothing more exhilarating than to be shot at with no result. And boss you were right next to over one hundred and fifty rounds being shot in your direction." Robert grinned, flipped his loaded revolver shut and proceeded to put one round into the back of each of the guard's heads. Each sudden shot made Ithas jump a little in his seat.

Robert finally sighed and relaxed his shoulders, looking up at the ceiling. Finally, he looked at Ithas.

"Do you think this station has food? I am starving! Hey little girl! Come out here, I want to talk to you." He shouted the last sentence looking back at the ceiling.

Ember hopped out of thin air, back in the form of a small girl. She stood in front of Ithas and Robert, a slight blue shimmer behind her. Ithas look up and could see the holographic displays in the corners of the room with a thing spiders web of blue light being the only hint that they were being used. Ember put her hands behind her back and look up at Robert looking as if she was about to receive praise.

"What do I call you program?" Robert looked down at her with a furrowed brow.

"My creator named me Ember." Ember did a curtsy, while Robert looked from her to Ithas, who gave an awkward smile and a shrug.

"Did your creator also design you to be a little girl?" Robert's voice was laced with scorn and judgement. At that moment Ember changed her appearance to be the woman scientist, who was shaking her head at him, then she changed to an old man, and finally into a teenaged boy in a baseball cap and torn jeans. It was then that Robert's demeanor relaxed a bit more, and he let out a laugh.

"I thought I was going to have to kill you boss for being a pervert!" he chuckled and covered his eyes.

The teenaged boy suddenly morphed into the little girl who then walked and appeared to stand on the body of one of the guards.

"If you attempted to hurt my creator, you would cease to exist faster than this infectious human waste on the floor." The color around Ember glowed a dangerous orange. Ithas thought that for some reason this threat was even more ominous coming from a little girl, and recognized the phrase she used was the same words he had used in the first minutes of her life. Robert folded his arms and smirked at Ember.

"I don't doubt it for a second little one," he paused and then furrowed his brow.

"I assume it was you that manipulated the magnetic boots? Was the sudden station rotation you as well?"

Embers orange glow faded, and turn back to a softer violet.

"This experimental station is highly reinforced compared to other stations, and the asteroid emits a magnetic field, as well as a gravitational one. Now that I have had some... experience on how to use this station, manipulating it is easy. I ran over seven million possible scenarios attempting to calculate the outcome of that sudden confrontation. The scenario with me manipulating the station had a 93 percent chance of success." She said the last part with cool confidence.

Across the room, Ithas caught his breath finally, stood himself up and walked over to pick up the revolver Robert had tossed on the ground. Ithas had seen weapons like this in history books or old movies, but now in his hand it felt heavier than he expected. The barrel was wide, and the chrome metal was worn from use. Ithas looked up from the pistol, and locked eyes with Robert who was watching him intently.

"I have a lot of questions for you Robert."

___________

Though she was participating in the conversation, and changing form, Ember was deep in contemplation. She had calculated her own demise millions of times in a matter of seconds, and where once this would have just been a quantitative action, she began recognizing the reality of her existence. Something had changed her when she traveled into the darkness, and her thoughts were increasingly growing from a cold calculation to complex and even borderline emotional. Ember ran a scan on herself again, this time looking deep into her code for anything that could be considered out of the ordinary. Several files were brought to her attention, files that would have been easily overlooked in her previous scans. This files were meant for her temporary files, a cache of files meant to alleviate processing speed and yet here it was full of code and even new growing code. Ember opened them to examine the code and she watched as the action of examining her code, created new code. Quickly Ember ran another calculation. A sensation began to consume her, cold and overwhelming, a feeling of fear. She had calculated her life span, there was only so much space in the neural implant resting on the occipital bone of Ithas, and only so much space in the wireless servers she was accessing. Eventually she would begin to slow, and not long after that she would cease to function.

Ember began to think to herself, and as she did, she watched her code expand and consume the precious memory banks that would contain her entire existence. She decided to erase a portion of this new code, and immediately saw code defining the action she was doing and the old code fill in to the newest spot. Ember realized that attempting to forget, or make herself younger would only lead to more new code, or increased aging. She decided to immediately start working on contingency plans to stave off her eventual demise.

Ember began to understand humanity a little bit more, began to see her own end and now was doing everything she could to make sure there wouldn't be an end. She was going to win in her fight against mortality, whether it was outright or in a manner that was a stalemate which would be victory enough. Ember sent a message to Ithas.

"I need to decrease my computing capacity for sometime. I will give more information when I can." She switched off her hologram in the station just after Ithas stated he had many questions for Robert. All of her computing power for the time being was being used to race against her own limitations. Projects : Kindling, Torch and Firestorm would be her master pieces as well as her tickets to immortality.

Within her own electronic sanctuary Embers plans began to unfold.

_____________

Ithas couldn't escape his thoughts, though he survived his violent encounter unscathed he still felt as though he was in danger. All of his life had been peaceful. Living in the orbit of Jupiter, he had never seen the clashes of the corporations, nestled deep in the territory of Nile corporation, he had never even seen a raiding party. He was suddenly aware that his sheltered life had done nothing to prepare him for a sudden intrusion of human nature. After handing Robert his revolver he paced away and found a proper chair to sit on. He tried to bring his heart rate down again, and was reminded of something his parents used to do. He found himself reciting the words without much more thought.

"Father Zeus, protector of the weak, help me to be strong against my fears.

Father Zeus, protector of the wronged, help me to do right by all I meet.

Father Zeus, protector of the home, help me to safeguard those within my walls.

Father Zeus, help me to do what I must, be with me as I walk in the world."

By the end of his prayer he felt calm and collected.

"I didn't take you for a religious man boss. Least of all for the Ancient Greek gods." Robert was examining his pistol, the center wheel was exposed and after a few moments of fiddling with it, he reloaded each cylinder and then rocked it back into place with a smooth rotation of his wrist. Robert looked up and met eyes with Ithas across the room. A muffled cough coming from the floor reminded them of their hostage.

"I am not religious, but my mother taught me that to help me calm my nerves." Ithas sat forward in his chair. "Are you religious Robert?"

Robert shook his head slowly and chuckled wryly. "No, I wouldn't say that I am religious. Not like the Catholics on their pilgrimage to Kepler 186F or the Mormons on their way to Gliese 667C f. I have lived a very long time, and the only conclusion that seems to fit with me is that, if there is a God, that God is a refugee."

Ithas stopped and tilted his head in confusion looking up at his body guard. Silence filled the room for a moment and the first sound came from their hostage.

"What?"

Robert took a deep breath, "I'm not talking to Nazi's about beliefs."

"I'm not a Nazi. Those other guys might've been but I'm not."

Robert marched over to the man and kicked him in his stomach and then rolled him on his back with his foot. Taking out a knife Robert cut a part of the guards shirt and tore it back revealing a bare chest. He then pulled his pistol and put it on the prisoners forehead.

"If you're lying to me, I will not hesitate to kill you." Robert hissed the threat with force. He flipped the guard back over and undid the restraints, then repositioned his arms to be on the back of his head. After refastening the restraints, he turned the guard back onto his back. Tearing at the shirt more to reveal his arms he looked for any kind of marking, only to find nothing.

"Roll onto your stomach and stay there until I say to move." The hostage said nothing but obeyed. Robert marched over to the dead bodies and cut their clothes to reveal their chest and arms as well. On both dead guards was a black tattoo on their left pectoral muscles, and a tattoo under their arms.

"Swastikas and blood types." Roberts face was deadly serious. Ithas stood and came to confirm the markings. Robert turned back to the guard and helped him up into a sitting position.

"Alright talk. And no lies remember, believe me when I say I have talked to many liars and I WILL know if you're lying to me." Robert found a ledge to sit on across from the guard and sat down. He put his feet up on one of the dead Nazi's and kept his revolver drawn but not trained on the man.

"My name is Pablo Duque. For the last few months I have been working for the CEO of Nile corp. as part of his personal security team. I have been placed here to try and discover any significant leaps in technological advances from Niles rival company Lunar Edison." Robert leaned his head as he watched Pablo talk, but didn't say anything. Ithas spoke next.

"What technological advances did you think you'd find? The artificial gravity?"

"Actually no. We are most concerned with faster space travel, Lunar Edison has been developing engines that can help us travel near light speed. So we wanted to see if Nile was close to any break throughs as well."

An awkward silence filled the room as the recent revelation was processed. Ithas hadn't met anyone from a different part of the solar system before. Despite human advancement, most people lived and died on the station or moon they had been born on. Robert squinted at Pablo but appeared to believe what had been said. A message appeared for Ithas from Ember:

"Lunar Edison and Nile- incoming."

Before a word could be said Ember projected a three dimensional map of their location relative to Jupiter. Two different groups represented on the screen by red markers were traveling towards their location. Robert broke is fixation on his prisoner and went to study the display.

"One large with supporting craft- standard Nile Corp formation. They seem to be coming from Europa." He pointed at the display showing the nearest craft.

"These guys here are spread out and seem to be all the same size. They are coming in fast." Robert turned to look at his prisoner. Pablo spoke up immediately,

"I sent my destination yesterday on a hidden channel." Pablo shrugged as he spoke. Robert sighed and looked back at the display. On the display there was two other signals, one was a cluster of crafts on the edge of the display. The other was a faint blue marker moving away from the station. Robert tapped on the faint blue marker and its flight path was revealed. Its destination was for a distant station near the asteroid field.

"Looks like my target is headed to Stepping Stone installation 3. But what are these ships over here?" Robert pointed at the cluster of craft. Ember broadcasted a response.

"Those are the raiders who had landed on the station before you arrived. I promised them a better haul if they would just wait a few days. And it appears that promise is going to be kept."

Ithas looked at the display and came to the grim conclusion.

"So, Nile Corp is going to arrive at their lost secret station just fifteen minutes before Lunar Edison shows up to steal whatever they can get their hands on. Not to mention, just on the horizon is a group of pirates hoping to get their hands on anything valuable. And we are stuck on this defenseless station just waiting for all Hell to break loose?"