The Ascendant Stars - Michael Cobley [87]
‘It is not a problem. Tygrans are used to achieving results under pressure.’
‘I’m relieved to hear it.’
Ash headed for the exit, which slid open, and he paused on the threshold. ‘Stay in your body armour and retain your sidearm. And you guards – bring Panabec out so everyone can keep an eye on him.’
The Sendrukan engineer was brought out and seated at a round table by the rear bulkhead. Satisfied, Ash nodded to Greg and left.
Greg went over and clambered into the big Sendrukan chair so that he could survey the situation as it unfolded on the semi-opaque holoscreens. There were fourteen crew members still aboard the Starfire, close to a full shuttleload, and a round trip there and back could take up to fifteen minutes. Timing was going to be tight.
Just over five minutes later, the screens and ceiling lights in engineering flickered off and on.
‘Silverlance,’ Greg said. ‘What just happened?’
‘Power … power … powerless,’ said the AI. ‘Autodiagnostic reports … no anomaly or interruptions. This is incorrect – am initiating subsystems scrutiny – hierarchic integrity is compromised – alert! Main hold access doors unlocked – Sendrukan prisoners escaping … ’
Suddenly fearful, Greg recalled how the Starfire was taken over and remotely controlled by the Tygran Marshal Becker.
‘What’s doing this?’ he said. ‘Is it coming from the carrier?’
‘No data objects of suitable complexity have been received – anomalous interference coming from within this ship – unauthorised course alteration! – Silverlance is now on heading B27-902.8 heading away from Darien … ’
We’re off course! he thought. We’ll never stop that carrier now.
Shouts made Greg look round to see the Sendrukan engineer Panabec walking unhurriedly across the floor. His guards, guns raised, were warily following until he stopped and turned to gaze at Greg. The listless bearing was gone and now the eyes flared with anger.
‘You are a disease,’ the Sendrukan said. ‘You will be purged.’
Then he stepped onto a floor tile, which swung down. Like a stone he fell straight through, gone from sight in a heartbeat. The guards dived forward but the tile had resealed and seemed as solid as the rest.
‘Where is he?’ Greg said. ‘Silverlance, where did Panabec go?’
‘Deck Three auxiliary disposal stall – subject Panabec has encountered escaped prisoners – entire group now numbers nine and are moving forward – nearest bank of evacuation pods is accessible from that area.’
‘Can you stop them? Seal off the hatches?’
‘Unable to comply – such security functions have been abrogated by another.’
Another what? he wondered while trying not to panic. ‘Open a channel to the Starfire – we need to notify Ash … ’
‘Unable to comply – access to external comms has been denied.’
He listened with mounting horror. ‘What’s doing this? I thought that the original ship AI had been wiped … is there any way to shut the prisoners out of the pods altogether?’
‘No. Emergency and maintenance systems are being progressively subverted. Countermanding agency may be viral with partial cognitive heuristics – may have been a hardwired retaliatory instrumentation … ’
‘Is it safe for us to remain aboard?’ he said. ‘Is it possible to isolate the subverting agency? Put up a firewall of some kind … ’
‘Safety uncertain – isolation impossible – forward port evac pods are launching – all Sendrukans have left this ship … ’
Greg stared up at the holoscreens. On two of them, blocks of Sendrukan text appeared one after another in pale blue lettering then slowly faded away. The third screen was a live feed from a hull sensor cam, showing four pods jetting away from the former Hegemony vessel.
‘Subversion encroaching on tertiary and secondary systems – integrity compromised – withdrawing to primary core – this cognitive unit is now under threat of sequestration – absent any external countervailing influence, self-erasure has been initiated.’
Suddenly, silence. Greg exchanged worried looks with Panabec’s former guards.
‘Any word from the Starfire