feeling the sweat on his back as his tension built. The tube suit he wore was easy to wear but it didn’t keep him from sweating. He slowed as they came to the last pressure wall. The hatchway was open. Beyond it lay the curved hallway leading to the entrance to the Command Bridge. He stopped running, then walked slowly forward, staying to the right of the hatchway rim, and out of sight of anything beyond. Jane copied his movement while covering his back. He leaned left and looked past the hatchway rim into the hallway.
Nothing. No robot. No giant cockroach. He stepped over the hatchway sill and then moved right to hug the inside wall.
“Stay with me against this inside wall. It will reduce our exposure to any weapons fire from the robots.”
Jane moved up behind him. He felt a touch on his backpack. “The last robot did not fire on us.”
“Maybe because I killed that tube before it could fire.”
“Maybe,” she said calmly. “Or that tube could have been its vidcam eye.” Jane pulled on his pack to signal a stop. He stopped. “Star Traveler, are the two mobile robots ahead of us identical to the one that tried to block our access to the Transport Chamber?”
“They are,” the AI said quickly.
“What is the function of the black tube on top of each robot?” she said over the suit comlink.
A short hum sounded. “It is a high power laser intended for cutting and welding metal,” the AI said. “The two robots are normally used for ship repairs. They respond to verbal and electronic commands from the Crèche Master or from a crewmember. The first robot’s firing on your violated Protocol Seven. ”
Jane took a deep breath. “Can you stop those other robots from firing their lasers at us?”
“I cannot. They are controlled by Crèche Master Diligent Taskmaster.”
“Thank you for the information,” Jane said calmly. She pushed on his pack. “We will be cautious in our approach to the Bridge entry.”
Bill moved forward at a fast walk, counting his paces. In his mind he built an image of a curving hallway that ran for at least a hundred feet. At one end sat two pincer and laser-armed robots. At the opposite end were him and Jane. He eyed the curve of the hallway before him. A thirty degree curve. Modest. But it matched the curve angle of the transport ship’s bulbous nose. And also the curve angle of the starship nose in the ship holo. Which left him to calculate the number of paces before he and Jane would come into a line of sight view of the guardian robots. Forty-three feet, or paces, would bring them into the view of the robots. Or so he thought.
Twenty feet passed. The hallway stayed empty.
Thirty feet. He leaned forward and then outward to his left. Nothing to be seen.
At forty feet he stopped, gestured back to Jane to stop, then he unslung the empty canteen from his neck. Leaning forward, he tossed it ahead and down the hallway. It hit the floor and rolled.
“Zirzap!”
A green laser beam hit the canteen just when it reached a distance of five feet ahead of him. Most of it vaporized in a flare of yellow flame and plasma gas. But the green streak left an impression of its incoming angle on his eyes. Mentally he calculated backward.
“Damn!” Jane said harshly.
Bill kept silent even as he realized a ceiling spyeye vidcam was conveying his every move to a watching Diligent. He moved his right boot ahead a foot, laid his back against the inside wall of the hallway, and slid forward.
Nothing changed in his view of the curving hallway.
He repeated his forward slide three times. Until he reached what he thought was forty-four feet since they’d entered the hallway. Shifting his white taser tube to his right arm, he reached back with his left hand.
“Your canteen!”
The sound of water splashing echoed in the hallway. Then his fingers felt the woven fabric of the canteen strap. “Here,” Jane whispered.
He grinned at how they whispered. They could have yelled and it would have
Nothing. No robot. No giant cockroach. He stepped over the hatchway sill and then moved right to hug the inside wall.
“Stay with me against this inside wall. It will reduce our exposure to any weapons fire from the robots.”
Jane moved up behind him. He felt a touch on his backpack. “The last robot did not fire on us.”
“Maybe because I killed that tube before it could fire.”
“Maybe,” she said calmly. “Or that tube could have been its vidcam eye.” Jane pulled on his pack to signal a stop. He stopped. “Star Traveler, are the two mobile robots ahead of us identical to the one that tried to block our access to the Transport Chamber?”
“They are,” the AI said quickly.
“What is the function of the black tube on top of each robot?” she said over the suit comlink.
A short hum sounded. “It is a high power laser intended for cutting and welding metal,” the AI said. “The two robots are normally used for ship repairs. They respond to verbal and electronic commands from the Crèche Master or from a crewmember. The first robot’s firing on your violated Protocol Seven. ”
Jane took a deep breath. “Can you stop those other robots from firing their lasers at us?”
“I cannot. They are controlled by Crèche Master Diligent Taskmaster.”
“Thank you for the information,” Jane said calmly. She pushed on his pack. “We will be cautious in our approach to the Bridge entry.”
Bill moved forward at a fast walk, counting his paces. In his mind he built an image of a curving hallway that ran for at least a hundred feet. At one end sat two pincer and laser-armed robots. At the opposite end were him and Jane. He eyed the curve of the hallway before him. A thirty degree curve. Modest. But it matched the curve angle of the transport ship’s bulbous nose. And also the curve angle of the starship nose in the ship holo. Which left him to calculate the number of paces before he and Jane would come into a line of sight view of the guardian robots. Forty-three feet, or paces, would bring them into the view of the robots. Or so he thought.
Twenty feet passed. The hallway stayed empty.
Thirty feet. He leaned forward and then outward to his left. Nothing to be seen.
At forty feet he stopped, gestured back to Jane to stop, then he unslung the empty canteen from his neck. Leaning forward, he tossed it ahead and down the hallway. It hit the floor and rolled.
“Zirzap!”
A green laser beam hit the canteen just when it reached a distance of five feet ahead of him. Most of it vaporized in a flare of yellow flame and plasma gas. But the green streak left an impression of its incoming angle on his eyes. Mentally he calculated backward.
“Damn!” Jane said harshly.
Bill kept silent even as he realized a ceiling spyeye vidcam was conveying his every move to a watching Diligent. He moved his right boot ahead a foot, laid his back against the inside wall of the hallway, and slid forward.
Nothing changed in his view of the curving hallway.
He repeated his forward slide three times. Until he reached what he thought was forty-four feet since they’d entered the hallway. Shifting his white taser tube to his right arm, he reached back with his left hand.
“Your canteen!”
The sound of water splashing echoed in the hallway. Then his fingers felt the woven fabric of the canteen strap. “Here,” Jane whispered.
He grinned at how they whispered. They could have yelled and it would have
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