Iris flinched at the surge. This one was stronger, laden with fear and self-pity. What good was a construct if it couldn’t remember things for him? The thought came too fast before he could stop it. Iris stared out into the courtyard in panic. “I’m sorry,” he whispered, but his electronic companion had heard the thought as soon as Iris had had it.
What good is a construct if it can’t remember?VIFAI repeated.
“I didn’t mean that.” But VIFAI had already retreated to the furthest corner of Iris’s mind without an acknowledgement. Irishad hurt its feelings. He had maimed it first and then added insult to injury, and he had no means to fix either. Defeated, Iris crawled onto his mat and stared at the wall until morning came.
They set off towards their inevitable demise after five hours of restless sleep. Yan led the way, with Jesi and Ishtan sandwiched between him and Eli. Both the archaeologist and guard had their guns drawn. If anyone spoke, it was in hushed whispers that Yan was quick to quell. Iris trailed at the tail end, mindful to not fall too far behind, but keeping a consistent two metres away from the group.
These parts of the ship, like many others before it, were flooded in perpetual dusk. Vines and other vegetation had grown awry here, twisting wildly around the light panels, and winding themselves through the holes and cracks in the corridor walls. A low, sweet smell of rot wafted around them, and the air once again grew humid and sticky.
If Iris had been at the head of their procession, he would have pointed out to Yan that it was strange that the brain of the ship would reside in such warm and humid conditions. In his experience, ship computers were often kept at unbearably cold temperatures, and this one couldn’t have been different. But if Jesi was right, and Yan was indeed clever, he was certainly having the same concerns. As if overhearing his internal musings, Yan traded his position at the helm with Ishtan and joined Iris at the back of the line.
“Ishtan at the front of the line, gun drawn, is not the best idea, in my humble and uneducated opinion,” Iris said, keeping his voice deliberately low.
Yan handed him his thermos; the golden logo of the Sychi Institute flashed in the dim light. “He can handle it. Anyway,not like we have much of a choice now and it’s been quiet so far, and Eli’s watching his back, and we’re watching Eli’s.”
Iris wanted to confess how Tev had really died, but instead, he unscrewed the thermos lid and took three large sips of warm water. Surprised by the sudden flavour, Iris looked to Yan.
“I found an old tea-tablet in my pack,” Yan explained. “Thought it’d be fine, wouldn’t break your fast. Tea doesn’t have calories, I think.”
“That’s very thoughtful of you.” Iris lowered his head in a small bow. Jesi’s words from the night before pounded on the door of his mental safe, eager to escape. Iris did his best to hold them at bay.
“It’s jasmine.” Yan wrinkled his nose. “I think.”
It was linden, but Iris didn’t need to make a point of it. He sipped at the tea and walked alongside Yan, their footsteps falling in rhythm.
“It’s awfully humid here,” Yan said.
He was having the same reservations then. Iris continued to look ahead, watching over the bobbing heads of their companions. “And you are certain this is the way to the brain you have identified?”
Yan hummed an affirmative.
“And just like every other ship computer I have ever seen, this one would need to be kept cold for optimal functioning?”
Another affirmative hum.
Itwasawfully humid. The closer they ventured towards the spot where Yan had pinpointed as location of the brain of theNicaea, the damper it got. Soon, water was trickling down the walls of the corridor and disappearing beneath the layers of moss, lapped up by the organic sponge. It also trickled down the back of Iris’s neck and ran under the collar of his undershirt. He hoped that the patch on his left shoulderwould prevent any infection, but he also couldn’t bring himself to care.
“Could the humidity be causing it to malfunction?” Iris asked after an uncomfortable fifteen minutes of silence. “Could it be the cause for the fractured speech?” He wasn’t ready to abandon his theory about theNicaea, but he wasn’t going to push it on Yan, not yet. As Jesi had said, the engineer had grown rigid in his thinking and required a gentle hand.
Yan thought on it for a moment and shook his head. “It would probably just shut down. It didn’t get humid here overnight—it would all rust to hell in a month or so—and it’s been like this for who knows how long. No, something else is wrong. I don’t know what, and I fucking hate not knowing things.”
That much was plainly obvious.
After another three hours of silent walking, they could, at last, see the end of the corridor ahead where the walls parted and spread out into a boundless space. Here, a steady pulse radiated through the floors, growing in intensity as they neared their destination. Whatever Yan had tracked down, brain or not, was fast approaching. Having let VIFAI rest all this time, Iris gently nudged it awake.Are you well rested?he whispered, for no other reason than to appear considerate.
Oh, this isn’t good at all, VIFAI said, awake and alert in a fraction of a second.Why did you come here? This is where the pings came from.
Iris nudged Yan, still walking by his side. “This is where the pings came from, my AI says.”
“Yes!” Yan pumped his fist in the air. “I was right.”
They seemed to have very different ideas about what sort of an encounter they were about to face. Yan appeared to be expecting to meet a tired hired gun, tasked with securing the ship for a station or for a rival institute. Iris had no idea whathe expected. With every step, the pulse beneath his feet grew stronger. Breaking away from Yan’s side, Iris hurried to where Jesi walked. If Yan wouldn’t believe him, he would rely on the next best engineer among them. Jesi had been right; they should have asked the ship what it wanted.
“Do you still think we can still ask theNicaeawhat she wants?” Iris panted as he came to a stop by Jesi’s side.
The girl stared at him with mild surprise and gave him a small nod. “I’ll need Yan’s help, I think. Why now, Vessel?”
“Because we’re getting closer to the epicentre of whatever happened here.” This was only the second time Ishtan had spoken in Iris’s company since he and Yan had rejoined the group. The archaeologist muttered something in a foreign language that resembled a prayer as he pointed ahead.
