Chapter 24
Standing next to Tow, Jackie watched him work from the opposing bulkhead on the damaged emersion-drive. Using brute force, Cuddy jammed the end of the crowbar into a small gap on the last, melted-together, metal component. He put his full strength behind prying it off. It was steamy hot in the small compartment and Cuddy had removed his shirt an hour before. His back muscles were tense beneath his wide shoulders, his abdomen flat. He had the muscular build of an athlete, which surprised her since, before that day, Jackie had never witnessed him do any form of exercise.
Over the preceding hours, Cuddy had asked a never-ending sequence of questions—mostly directed toward the AI orb. Seeming to have an insatiable hunger for information, he needed to understand not only the whats and hows of everything, but also the whys. Questions like, why did the designers of the ship’s propulsion system decide to install an emersion-drive system instead of some kind of anti-matter drive? It appeared that he was asking questions even Tow could not answer.
While Cuddy and the hovering orb conversed, Jackie asked, “So, what’s going to happen… next?”
Tow said, “Soon, the AI orb will attempt to initialize the drive. After that, the two drives need to be balanced… synchronized—”
“No, I mean with Cuddy. Will you be taking him away from us? Into space?”
Tow, watching Cuddy and the orb, said, “I no longer make those decisions, Jackie. Even if I could, I wouldn’t. My time here is almost at an end.” As if on cue, Tow began to cough into his open palm. Jackie waited silently for the deep hacking to let up. He then continued, “The question you need to consider asking is this: What will you do… go with him or stay here?”
“I don’t know. He hasn’t asked me to go with him.”
“And he probably won’t,” Tow said. “Unfairly, he has taken on this burden by himself. No one should have such an enormous weight placed upon them… such as his now.”
“You mean returning the heritage pod to Primara?” Jackie asked.
Tow looked surprised.
“He told me about it. But I’m not surprised that Cuddy would want to help. I’ve never known a more decent person,” she added.
Cuddy gestured toward the emersion drive, with its myriad of newly mounted replacement parts. “Almost done.” Then, pointing to the contraption Jackie had held in her hands for the last twenty minutes, he said, “I’ll take that.”
She handed the strange device across to him. “Here you go.”
“Thanks.” Cuddy held it up before the hovering orb, and gestured with his chin towards the side of the big drive unit. “How will this be oriented onto the suspension-regulator?”
Tow, his voice now barely above a whisper, told Jackie, “Cuddy’s intelligence has continued to grow exponentially. Yet emotionally, he is still immature. I am sure you too have noticed as much. Those two aspects will continue to be at odds for him. For how long, I do not know. He will need help… to cope and understand.”
“I have my own life to lead. Obligations… my father’s recuperation… school…”
Tow nodded appreciatively. Then he and Jackie looked toward Cuddy, who was addressing them.
“Sorry, Cuddy, what did you say?” Jackie asked.
“Weapons.”
Confused, Tow shook his head.
“Time is a crucial factor. Best if we do things in parallel. The orb here tells me the initializing and synchronizing of the repaired drive will take over an hour. Eventually, we’re going to need sufficient weaponry on board this ship to even the odds with the Howsh.”
Tow said, “Why would the Evermore have any weapons available? Pashier are pacifists.”
“Look… you’re going to have to get over that, Tow. I’m sorry, but there’s no other option, now that humans are in the mix. And remember, you made that choice.”
Impressed, Jackie watched Cuddy patiently hold strong—not backing down.
“Well, there are no weapons on board, although the vessel does have powerful energy shields.”
“Obviously not powerful enough, since your thirteen other armada ships were all destroyed. That should be proof enough.” Cuddy turned to the AI orb. “And are you a pacifist too?”
“I am programmed to be, that is correct.”
Cuddy looked back to Tow. “I’m sorry… the orb needs to—”
Tow interjected with a raised hand: “AI orb, from this point on you will take directions from Cuddy Perkins. I am transferring my executive command status to him. Update your database to coincide with my orders.”
“Database updated,” the AI orb said.
Jackie was well aware something huge had just transpired, as Cuddy and Tow continued staring at one another.
“Cuddy Perkins, a Howsh vessel is quickly approaching from the north. The course vector is perfectly aligned with our current position.”
“How much time—”
“None,” the AI orb replied. “It is nearly upon us.”
Tow, Cuddy, and Jackie, along with the hovering AI orb, hurried forward. Standing within the small bridge compartment, Tow showed Cuddy the symbolic representation of the landed Howsh ship on the virtual viewscape display. It took Cuddy several moments to make heads or tails out of the surrounding landscape.
“That’s your ranch. Right there!” Jackie then said, “Don’t you see it?”
Cuddy did. It appeared the Howsh spaceship had landed close to the house. His mind raced. Had the Howsh now taken Momma—in addition to Kyle? Or had they killed her? Killed them both? He looked at Jackie, his face registering indecision.
Jackie in turn looked first at the AI, then at Tow. “Is that orb thing capable of… doing more than hovering around? Can it fight?”
Tow said, “The AI orb can speak for itself, Jackie, and will do what is asked of it.”
“Both my articulating arms are equipped with integrated plasma implements. Utilized mostly for close-range welding and cutting,” the AI orb said.
“And they can be reconfigured?” Cuddy asked.
“Affirmative.”
“As weapons?” Jackie asked.
“Affirmative.”
“Then do it…” Cuddy ordered.
Jackie leaned in toward the viewscape display and made a face. “Shit, that looks like…”
“Police cruisers,” Cuddy said, raising the crowbar grasped still in his right fist. “We need to get over there, Tow. I know that violence is not your thing, so maybe you could get started initializing the drives?’
“Yes… I will do that.”
Cuddy and Jackie ran full out, skirting in-and-out between trees, as the hovering AI orb kept pace alongside them. Never before in his life had Cuddy been this scared. His newly intelligent, informed mind was useless dealing with the mental bombardment—the all-too-real possible scenarios of what might be going on now at the ranch.
He followed behind Jackie as she leapt over the brook, and they heard the crack crack crack of gunfire, coming from up ahead. Jackie quickly glanced back over her shoulder then slowed so he could catch up with her.
Cuddy shouldn’t have been surprised. It was only a matter of time before the Howsh found the Evermore. But only one Howsh ship had appeared on the display. Where were the others? Would they too be landing soon? Would the U.S. military start bombarding this area? Maybe with nuclear weapons?