The turret’s raking the area with what looks like… well, it’s a Particle Projection Cannon. Grunts call it the Lightning Gun. Obviously.
The turret’s raking the area with what looks like… well, it’s a Particle Projection Cannon. Grunts call it the Lightning Gun. Obviously.
At this range, a PPC is almost ridiculously lethal. Likely installed just for intimidation, though that’s not much consolation NOW.
We should be dead by now. We aren’t. If I had to guess, I’d say it’s because the turret is jerking around like a spastic lemur.
“Not dead” doesn’t mean “out of harm’s way”. The PPC slags part of the wall and ceiling over our heads. Fat drops of molten metal rain down.
A voice shouts ‘ENOUGH’, blasting through comms loud enough to be heard over the cannon, which stops immediately. The turret looks ashamed.
In the silence, the new voice continues: “Captain Delain. Welcome. I received your message.” It did? Well, that’s conven– what message?
It intercepted the comms I sent Kaetlyn – thinks it was the intended recipient. It wants to know if I meant it as promise or threat.
I explain I meant it for my daughter, who is here. Somewhere. Voice tells me no DNA-descendants of mine are anywhere on its scanners.
I have no answer to that computerized denial except that it must be wrong. Kaetlyn’s ship is docked. with. the. station. She /must/ be here.
The first computerized voice – the ‘pie’ voice – says “Oh, she’s probably in a broken part of the –” Nothing. Silence. Hmm.
The silence continues. I ask what it meant by “the broken parts of the station.” The ‘authority’ voice is back, and denies anyone said that.
This is ridiculous. The other program was obviously talking before. Authority-Voice says there is only one Computerized Station System. Wha?
I point out that we’ve been communicating with three different entities. I get three replies; “SILENCE”, “Nonsense”, and “Only three?”
Did the station on which we’re standing, floating in jump-space, breaking every known physical law, just suffer a psychotic break? Oh goody.