Return to Bermudas Index
by wordboy
“As if one can kill time without harming eternity.”
Henry David Thoreau
Antandra lost her footing as the deck heaved again. “What the…”
“Rhianda must have woken up and realized her pilot is dead.” Aeryn grabbed the bars and pulled herself to her feet. To Antandra, she explained, “Leviathans don’t react well to losing their pilots. Moya became…difficult the few times Pilot was separated from her.”
Antandra dragged herself to her feet and caught Jool as she slid toward her. “Are Leviathans really that intelligent?”
“Kinda hard to believe, isn’t it? It’s easy to misjudge them without a pilot to speak for them.” John watched two PK guards run past the cell door. “Hey! What’s going on?”
The first guard stopped and looked back at them. “Rhianda’s waking up and she is not happy.”
The deck heaved again. This time, their equipment slid off of the table. As it hit the deck, Antandra’s pistol slipped from its holster. The guard looked over the equipment, let out a long-suffering sigh and bent to pick up the weapon.
As he reached for her pistol, Antandra said, “No, don’t touch it.”
The guard ignored her and picked up the pistol.
“Security circuit engaged,” the pistol said.
The guard stared at it, then gasped. His muscles locked as the pistol’s security system proceeded to electrocute him.
“Why don’t they ever listen to me,” Antandra said quietly.
“Well, that’ll keep your weapon from falling into the wrong hands.” Aeryn reached through the cell bars and tried to reach the door control. As she pressed herself against the bars, trying to extend her reach, Aeryn heard dull cracking. Stepping back, she saw a small fracture in the bars.
Frowning, Aeryn pressed her hands against the bars and pushed. After a microt, the bar broke off in her hands.
John considered the broken bar. “Don’t know your own strength, Aeryn.”
Jool took the bar from Aeryn. She tapped her fingertips against it then brushed the broken end. The metal flaked away like dust. “Now that’s not right.”
“This alloy should be able to hold up against pulse blasts. It certainly shouldn’t have broken that easily.”
Antandra glanced at the dead guard, then checked the corridor. “May I respectfully suggest we table this discussion for a more opportune time? I think our main goal right now should be getting the hell out of here before whatever’s happening to Rhianda begins to affect us.”
They broke through the rest of the bars with ease. As they retrieved their equipment, Aeryn said, “We should do something about this project of theirs, before its affects spread farther.”
Antandra checked her pistol then her sword. “How are you, Parsifal?”
“I am undamaged, Archangel. And I have some good news: I’ve re-established contact with Angelina.”
“Excellent! What’s her status?”
“According it the Arch’s sensor system, there is extreme interference preventing Angelina from establishing an entry point. Presumably, it is the Peacekeeper’s project that is causing the interference.”
“That’s it, then.” Aeryn checked her pulse pistol and set a determined look on her face. “Back to the lab.”
As they started jogging down the shaking corridor, Antandra noticed the look of panic on Jool’s face. A microt later, she made her decision.
“I have a better idea,” she said. “You three go back to the transport pod and get ready to launch. Once I disable the generator, I’ll join you.”
“I’ll go with you,” John said.
“No, John!”
“Antandra, you’ll never make it through that mob by yourself. Aeryn, don’t wait too long. If it starts getting bad, get out of here.”
Aeryn started to protest but stopped. She looked grim as she said, “Don’t do anything too stupid.”
“You know me.”
“That’s why I said it.”
John glanced at Jool and started down the corridor. He heard a voice say, “Safety off, light stun” right before his body went numb and he collapsed.
Antandra glanced down at him. “It’s only a light stun effect. It’ll wear off quickly.”
“So, taking on tasks that any sane person would avoid is a common human trait,” Jool asked.
“I have no desire to die fifty-eight hundred cycles before I was born.” Antandra unclipped a small device from her belt. “That’s Parsifal’s portable mainframe. He’s linked to me, so he’ll be able to lead me back to the transport pod. But if things start to get too rough…”
“We’ll still be there waiting for you.” Antandra started to protest but stopped. She simply nodded, turned and ran down the corridor.
Aeryn watched her then glanced at the small unit she held. “Tell me this is the right thing to do, Parsifal.”
“Archangel Pandora would not have tolerated further discussion, Officer Sun. However, in my time with the Archangel, I have seen her survive situations that would have killed most other people. If there’s a way to survive, she’ll find it.”
“I hope you’re right.” Aeryn clipped Parsifal to her belt and reached for John. “Grab an arm! Hurry!”
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By the time they reached the hanger, John had shaken off the effects of the stun blast.
He wasn’t happy.
“Damn it, Aeryn, why did you let her go?”
Aeryn pushed John up the transport pod’s ramp behind Jool. “Because I wasn’t able to stop her. You were unconscious, after all.”
“You know as well as I do that there’s no way she’ll be able to get to the lab, disable the generator, then fight her way back through that mob.”
“I know. That’s why I’m going to go after her.”
John stared. “No, Aeryn. If anyone’s going to go back for her, it should be me.” He started down the ramp, but lost his footing as his knees gave out. “Okay, maybe I haven’t gotten over that stun shot yet.”
“And you want to go after Antandra? You can barely stand.”
“She’s the only other human out here. I can’t abandon her.”
Aeryn stared at John, wondering if she would be able to get in a panthak jab. No, that wouldn’t do, she thought. Jool can’t prep the pod. “John, you’re not abandoning her. You’re holding our exit point. Parsifal will be able to guide me to her, so I should get there quickly.”
John took a deep breath, and Aeryn could see the muscles along his jaw flex in irritation. He was about to continue protesting, but didn’t. He looked past Aeryn, his eyes going wide. “Aeryn, weren’t there skeletons all over the place?”
Aeryn turned. The skeletons they had found when they first arrived were gone. She looked grim and started out of the hanger. “Get the pod ready for launch, John. I won’t be long. You know where Antandra is, Parsifal?”
“Of course, Officer Sun.”
“Then let’s get going.” Aeryn started out of the maintenance bay, but stopped and looked back at John. There was a moment that time seemed to stop, and all they could see was each other. Then the moment past, and Aeryn nodded. She spun and ran out of the bay.
John continued to watch the empty door, then muttered something that sounded vaguely obscene to Jool. She then followed him into the pod.
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Antandra slid to a stop as two Peacekeeper guards appeared before her. She began to raise her pistol, but stopped. Both men remained unmoving, as if they were living statues.
Parsifal’s voice whispered in the back of her mind. “The two of them appear to be frozen in time, Archangel. I would suggest you keep moving before it begins to affect you, as well.”
Antandra stared at the frozen men a microt longer, then continued running.
“I should tell you that Officer Sun and I are on our way to assist you. Turn left here.”
Antandra looked around, then followed Parsifal’s direction. “What? I told her I’d make it back to them after I took care of the generator.”
“It has been my observation that Officer Sun is a very strong willed, capable warrior. Reminds me of someone I know, actually.”
Despite herself, Antandra laughed. “Whoever said sarcasm in an AI was a good thing? Tell Aeryn to turn back. No sense in endangering both of us.”
Parsifal was silent for a moment. “I have conveyed your message to Officer Sun. Her response is: Frell no.”
“I see.” Antandra growled in frustration and tried to run faster.
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There was chaos in the lab when Antandra arrived.
Biranda was standing in front of the generator, screaming in anger and frustration. On one side of the chamber, Nikas and two other techs were moving so slowly that their movement could barely be seen. On the opposite side, a guard and another tech were nothing more than blurs.
Antandra stepped up next to Biranda. “Now are you going to admit something went wrong, Lieutenant?”
When Biranda turned to her, Antandra saw madness in his eyes. “I don’t know what you’re talking about! There’s nothing wrong!”
“I would hazard to guess he’s lost his mind, Archangel,” Parsifal whispered in her mind.
“Thank you, Parsifal. That much wasn’t painfully obvious.” Antandra drew her sword and stepped closer to the generator. “I can’t go home while this generator is still functioning. And really want to see my husband again.” She raised the sword over her head.
Biranda’s eyes took on an even wilder aspect. “What are you doing?” He rushed her, knocking her to the deck. Antandra’s head struck the deck, and she lost her grip on the sword. Biranda kicked it away and drew his pulse pistol.
“Who are you?”
Antandra shook her head and turned a defiant look at the lieutenant. “I am Antandra Pandora. I am an Archangel. I am the surrogate daughter of Athena Curtis, the wife of Mathias Crowe, and the spiritual descendant of Caralynn Adrasteia. I have fought against evil in all its forms. I am also a long way from where I belong, and I want to go home.”
“Then go. Who’s stopping you?”
“That’s stopping me! As long as it’s functioning, I’m trapped here.”
Biranda looked almost pleased. “You’re trapped here? Good. Then we can die together!”
Antandra swallowed. Was there a Plan B, she wondered.
