Episode 55

Shiva, The Destroyer

“What does that indicate?” York asked.

“Perhaps nothing.” He hesitated. “Short of a sudden, violent explosion, the bridge personnel could certainly have reached it.”

“But there wasn't an explosion,” she said.

“No.” Hull gestured around him. “There is no damage at all.”

“Do you believe that the Rigel was in the Gelhart system when the emergency occurred, Captain?”

Hull worked his lips thoughtfully. “I haven't been able to understand why the Rigel was in this system at all, York. It was not on the path of their sweep through the subsector.”

“Could the emergency have occurred when the ship was in hypertransit? Is that possible?”

“It's unlikely,” Hull replied.

“Why is that?”

“It's too dangerous to come out of transit this deep within a solar system. That's why we spent so much time getting here.”

“Whoever made this 'accident' happen was not afraid to take risks.”

“There is that. What is the point of your question?”

“What are the chances that the attack—or if you insist, the accident—took place when the ship was in orbit here?”

“Good God!” Hull exclaimed.

York nodded. “They've got a navigator. Or, perhaps they kept the navigator alive long enough to get them here, then threw him out an airlock. They might not have dared hypertransit, but an in-system burn is safe enough.”

“Just be sure to cut the engines before you hit the planet,” Hull said, nodding.

The bridge was devoid of life. The great star window looked out over the golden hellscape of Bonoplane, which looked beautiful from orbit. The computers continued their mindless routines, blithely unaware of the changes that had taken place around them. York didn't know if she found the sight more depressing or amusing. Perhaps the Terrans had the cyborgs wrong. Perhaps what was evil about the marriage of Man and Machine was not the replacement of Man, but rather the corruption of Machine innocence.

Hull had gone directly to the officer of the deck's post and was rapidly scanning the ship's log. York waited patiently, wondering if her suspicions were correct.

Finally Hull looked up, his eyes vaguely puzzled. “There's no mention of any trouble,” he said.

“Were they in hypertime?”

“On the last entry, yes.”

“That tends to indicate that whatever happened, must have happened suddenly,” York observed.

“Very suddenly.” Hull's face was grim. “What's your read, Miss York?”

“I'm not at all certain,” she answered honestly, “but I think I may know. This crime is fairly stark in its broad details, Captain, but there are still little odds and ends that need to be sorted out. Fortunately, the tracks the guilty parties left are too big to be covered entirely.”

“I still don't know what you think.”

“I think Benbow is right. The ECS was poisoned. It's the only explanation. But at a bare minimum, to pull off what we're seeing here required a system-capable navigator, a skilled computer technician, and probably two or three to crack heads at the right time.”

“Well, whatever happened here won't go unpunished, Miss York. I can promise you that.”

“No, it won't go unpunished. For good or ill, few things do.” She glanced around the empty bridge. “Shall we unveil the pet?”

“Pet?”

“Shiva, the Destroyer,” she explained. “ The sunbuster. That's what we came for, isn't it?”

Hull nodded reluctantly, letting his gaze wander around the bridge. She recalled that it was exactly the sort of bridge on which he would never be permitted to hold command. She wondered if he was reflecting on the irony; whatever his failures as a naval officer might be, at least he had never lost a ship. Yet. Finally Hull reached out and pressed a button, then moved toward the spot located immediately behind the captain's chair where the floor was opening up to reveal a ladder.

York looked down into a black well, which suddenly flared into shape with an audible snap as Hull found the light. They looked at each other.

“After you,” she said. Hull nodded and descended slowly, waiting at the bottom until York reached him before switching on his suit's chestlight. Together they stood there, speechless, their eyes riveted on the great steel door which hung twisted and awry, half open to reveal a dark cylindrical compartment beyond. For a moment they stared silently at it. Someone had blown it open with explosive charges.

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