Hidden Empire - Kevin J. Anderson [221]
Margaret hurried over to see what he had found. Her husband peered into the clean components of the alien device, studying how the connections engaged other subsystems. "Ah, I see how it fits together now! This...must be a power source, and it's been disengaged from the conduit here. Almost as if the system has been put in a standby mode." He ran his fingers along the metallic and polymer components, checking linkages, letting his intuition flow.
Inside the discarded casing Margaret spotted a detailed diagram drawn in Klikiss symbols, showing specific connections with the components of the alien device. To her pleased astonishment, the symbols matched the markings on individual tiles surrounding the trapezoidal stone window. Each one seemed to correspond to a set of coordinates targeted by the exotic Klikiss machinery. The linkages ran into the blank stone wall itself, weird organic circuitry lines laid down like insect pheromone trails and covered over with layers of rock.
"These are...locations, old man. It's a map, or maybe more like a catalog or a directory."
Her husband tore his attention away from studying the machinery. "Ah, like the pulsar coordinates in the Klikiss Torch plans."
Hearing their excited shouts, DD moved into the room and absorbed what had changed. "Those are marvelous conclusions, Margaret," the compy said. "You can use this as a basis for extrapolating other theories about the Klikiss."
"Absolutely, DD! We've got a handle on this now." Louis gave Margaret such a vigorous hug that he embarrassed her, even after so many years of marriage, although no one was there to see it. "This is the best discovery since the Klikiss cadaver."
"Maybe even better in the long run, old man," Margaret offered. "Remember that we found similar stone windows in every other Klikiss ruin we've studied, but many of them were damaged, especially on some of the coordinate tiles. Never have we come this close to understanding the system or the technology. I have faith that you can figure it all out, old man."
"Have you attempted to engage the power source, Louis?" DD asked.
With a scuffling noise, the black Klikiss robots entered the chamber, their optical sensors bright and curious. DD looked up and said brightly, "Sirix, Ilkot, Dekyk! You must see what Louis has found."
The trio of beetlelike machines scuttled forward to hover over the exposed machinery and scan the diagram and components. Margaret stared at the coordinate symbols imprinted in the machinery, noted identical hieroglyphics repeated on small tiles around the trapezoidal window...like selector buttons.
"Well, I think the power system is still intact." Louis squatted and tinkered with the machinery. "Should be able to fix this without too much trouble."
"Could this stone window be part of an alien transportation system, old man? Each tile seems to indicate a place—a destination, perhaps?"
Louis looked skeptically at his wife. "And colleagues say my ideas are strange. Do you think the Klikiss could walk through solid rock walls?"
Margaret turned to Sirix. "What do you think?"
"I can offer no input, Margaret Colicos."
Louis looked up with his crooked grin. "You three robots must be excited! Now we've finally got a very real possibility of learning what happened to your creator race and why all your memories were wiped so long ago."
"Don't overestimate what we've just found, old man," Margaret cautioned. "This isn't the equivalent of a Rosetta stone." But if it did offer the key to a Klikiss transportation system, perhaps it would provide all the information they needed.
Louis knelt on the hard stone floor again as he contemplated the maze of mechanical components before him. "Ah, I see what to do with this now, but the power source is corroded. I'll need to jump-start it using some of our own equipment back in camp." He looked up at Margaret. "Could take hours, dear."
DD interrupted. "In that case, might