Viker understood his plan and raised his wrist-shield to cover him, advancing on the phalanx of enemies with Gabriel huddled behind. Gabriel wasn’t sure what effect the alien sword would have against energy shielding, but if the blade could cut clean through carbon nanotubing, it was worth a try.
Gabriel clicked the switch at the base of the sword’s handle, activating the energy field and causing the blade to shimmer ever so slightly. Cato and Bale provided covering fire as the two sides closed in on one another. Once they were close enough, Gabriel rolled forwards and swung his sword in a massive arc.
The xenotech blade scythed through the wrist-barriers as if they weren’t even there, creating a flash and a discordant whirring noise as it interacted violently with the shielding. The sword continued on through the bodies of all three shield wielders, cutting cleanly through their armour and flesh. As they crumpled to the ground, the squad of attackers behind them were quickly gunned down by Cato and Bale, eliminating the immediate threat.
Or so they thought.
Their motion trackers and other sensors became scrambled with junk data as something approached. At the other end of the corridor appeared a vaguely female figure clad in a black suit with a bulbous helmet and a featureless black visor who tossed an object their way. It bounced off the walls and rolled to halt on the floor in front of the squad; they dived into cover right before it detonated.
Bale and Cato managed to duck behind the corner and avoid getting hit, whilst Viker crouched down behind his wrist-barrier, the energy shield absorbing most of the force that came his way. But Gabriel was closest to the device when it detonated, and the shockwave sent him flying across the chamber like a ragdoll. He hit a robotic arm set up next to the central column, the impact of his body pushing the machine forward into the column.
The robotic arm was equipped with an electric arc projector, and when the projector’s prongs touched the column, close to a million volts were transferred to its surface. The column lit up like a carnival showpiece, illuminating an intricate pattern of circuitry that covered its surface and spreading across the ceiling, walls, and floor like a fast-moving rash all the way to chamber’s entrance.
The edges around the corridor entrance began to glow and a translucent wall appeared, sealing off the corridor from the chamber and trapping the black widow outside. It also meant that the squad was trapped inside the chamber. Gabriel picked himself up off the ground and looked up at the mysteriously reactivated column.
“About time for a deus ex machina stroke of luck.” Gabriel remarked as he deactivated his sword and stowed it on his back.
“What was that, sir?” Bale asked, the classical metaphor passing straight over his head.
“Nothing.” Gabriel replied, “We’ve got some breathing room. Look around the chamber for supplies or anything we can use.”
Mindful of the shimmering barrier, the squad fanned out to explore the chamber.
In addition to the suite of ceiling-height robotic arms meant to probe the glowing column, several thick cables had been attached to it using special clamps, forming crude connections between the alien machine and the banks of computers and scanner equipment that lined the walls of the chamber. There were no guns or explosives anywhere to be found; although, being a field laboratory, that wasn’t terribly surprising.
In one corner was a spectroscopic analysis chamber with an oblong shaped block suspended in the middle. The analysis had been left to run on a continuous loop, bathing the basalt-coloured block in a sensory light while the computers mindlessly churned out the results onto the unattended holographic screens.
“Does anyone see any square-shaped holes on that column?” Gabriel asked as he examined the oblong block.
“Yeah, there’s one right near the bottom.” Viker replied, “Why?”
“I’ve found a piece that might fit.” Gabriel answered, reaching in and plucking the block out of the chamber, the sensors deactivating automatically as it was removed.
“I’m not sure it’s a good idea to switch this thing on, sir.” Cato said hesitantly.
“But it’s already been switched on.” Viker pointed out.
“And you want to activate it even more?” Cato shot back.
Gabriel’s instincts landed him solidly on Cato’s side. He had dealt with xenotechnology before, and you never just switched on an alien device without first knowing exactly what it was, what it would do when switched on, and how to switch it off again.
“Colonel, what do you want us to do with this thing?” Bale asked.
The squad didn’t have the experience that Gabriel did, but they understood the dilemma all the same. They were safe – or trapped – inside the chamber thanks to the machine they had inadvertently revived. That didn’t mean it was a good idea to switch it on all the way.
One of the computer screens began to flash, brightly enough to illuminate the chamber, arresting the attention of the squad. As they turned to look at it, the flashing stopped and a pair of shapes appeared on the screen: a rectangle with a gap in the side, and a smaller block moving across the screen until it filled the gap.
“Spooky coincidence, or a message?” Viker wondered aloud.
“I vote we ignore the machine telling us to switch it back on.” Cato said.
“For what it’s worth, I second Cato.” Bale added.
A banging sound coming from the corridor snapped their attention back. Someone or something on the other side of the energy barrier was striking it in an effort to break through. Just as they were wondering how hitting an energy field could make a noise like that, the lights in the column began to flicker and grow pale.
“That electric jolt must be wearing off.” Gabriel said, kneeling down in front of the socket in the column with the block in hand, “and once it does, the barrier will probably fail.”
“Are you sure we can hold them off once they break through the barrier, Cato?” Viker asked, tightening his grip on his gun, “because I’m fricking not.”
The brightly-lit alien circuitry continued to flicker, and the glowing energy forming the barrier around the threshold grew fainter and weaker. Seeing that the energy barrier was weakening, the enemies on the other side began to bang even harder, causing the translucent barrier to light up each time it was struck.
“Nothing ventured, nothing gained.” Gabriel said as he inserted the block into the slot.
The tepid and flickering lighting in the column re-illuminated and became bright green, re-energising the circuitry and restoring the barrier to full power.
“RESTORED.” A booming voice reverberated throughout the chamber.
The squad instinctively raised their weapons, fanning out in search of the source of the voice. They were so focussed on the apparent threat that it took them a moment to realise that the voice had spoken to them in Standard Human Speech.
“Identify yourself!” Gabriel demanded using his helmet speakers.
“YOU FIRST.” Said the voice, seeming to emanate from everywhere at once.
“Voidstalker.” Gabriel answered, declining to give his actual name or rank.
“A stalker of the void.” the voice said, lowering its volume, “one who hunts by means of stealth through the emptiness of space. A curious choice of self-identifier.”
“That’s what you can call me,” Gabriel shot back, “now what do we call you!”
The voice was silent for a moment.