Jess leaned on her elbows. “Radiation?”
Dev nodded. “It would burn off our sleepclothes and the first layer or so of skin.” She said. “Effective way to get rid of dirt and any bacteria.” She inspected her hand. “I think I like water better.”
A soft chime came at the outer door. Jess pressed the release button, then sat back as Jason and Elaine entered. “C’mon in” She swiveled both displays around and slid them back so everyone could see them as they approached warily and took the seats next to Dev.
“Okay.” Jess sorted out the sheets. “Weather cranked us.”
“Heard that.” Jason said. “Shaking the roof upstairs.”
Jess nodded. “Big e-stat storm coming overhead. Met figures it’ll clear by oh six.” She touched a control, and displayed a map on the screen. “Here’s the frontal boundary.”
“Big one.” Elaine commented. “Wouldn’t want to be out in that. Is it going to reach the other side?”
“That’s our cover.” Jess ran the scan forward. “See that? It’s scheduled over the drop site just before twelve hundred. We come in behind it. “
Both Jason and Elaine nodded.
“Then we…” Jess motioned between herself and Dev. “Split off, and head for the front door of the lab there.” She pointed. “You two come around the side here, and tuck in behind the cliffs.”
“You’re not going to drop in there, Jess.” Jason said. “That’s suicide.”
Jess shook her head. “Not in my plans but I want them to think I am. “ She said. “I’ll take out the outer post here.. “She pointed at a lonely outcropping surrounded by sea. “With the guns and then come in at wave level. “
“Freak them out.” Elaine said. “And with the chop they can’t be sure you’re alone.”
Jess nodded.
“So then we wait for the plugs to rush off to grab you, and we go get Dirk and Patrick.” Jason said. “We get out. You get out, you join us, we run for home.”
Jess nodded again. “Real basic. Nothing fancy. We just want to get them back.” She pushed two slips of film at them. “Here’s the plotting coordinates. If I were you, I’d wait until we’re underway to program em in.”
Both agents looked very uncomfortable. “Brents gonna freak.”
Jess shrugged. “Fact is, Bain said he thought someone was still talking from inside.” She said. “You want to risk it?”
“Jess.” Elaine leaned back and crossed her legs at the ankles. “I was thinking about that. Doesn’t make sense they’d use the same vector twice. They don’t, y’know?”
Jess grunted.
“How do we know it’s not … I mean, maybe it was Bricker.” Jason said. “I remember taking classes with him a year ago or so – he didn’t seem like such a hothead jerk back then. I liked him.” He went on. “So maybe he was turned, and he turned Josh?”
“Jase’s right. He has changed… or he did change, anyway.” Elaine agreed. “When he was a group leader, I always thought you could trust him. Hell – he was given just like we were.”
It was tempting. Jess studied her colleagues, and the silently watching bio alt. Tempting to think it was all Bricker, and now that he was dead, they could relax and be safe again. “Josh liked Bricker.” She allowed. “He used to have dinner and drinks with him.”
Elaine eyed her. “Rumor said more.”
Jess put it all aside. “Maybe.” She lifted a hand. “But right now, we don’t’ have time to look at that. Let’s get the teams back, then we can regroup. If we’re lucky, you’re right, and it was him but if you don’t tell your techs, and the plan gets spilled we know two things – one, you were wrong and it wasn’t him, and two, there’s still someone out there.”
“Damn I hope it was.” Jason groused. “I hate walking around with clouds over my head, and we’ve got the new group coming in next month on top of it. That’s twelve more unknown vectors. “
Six new agents, six new techs, fresh from the ops academy. “I know.” Jess agreed. “But it’ll be good to get some of those empty bays back in action. I ‘m starting to feel like a really dying breed here.”
They were all silent after that.
“So, flight deck at oh four?” Jason finally said. “I’m going to get some bunk time. My head’s exploding.” He stood up, stretching his body out. “Meet you all for breakfast?”
Jess and Elaine nodded, and Elaine stood to join him in leaving. They stood in awkward silence, then they turned and went to the door, leaving Jess and Dev alone behind them.
Jess studied the door somberly for a moment, before she turned her attention back to the bio alt. “You ready to do this?” She asked bluntly.
Dev considered the question. “I have done all the reviews I can on the sims.” She said. “I am as prepared to execute your request as I can be, given the circumstances.”
“Sims aren’t the real thing.”
“I know.” Dev said. “I’ll do the best I can.”
They were both quiet for a minute. “So you figured out the shower, huh?” Jess said. “I never thought about that whole water thing upside. We have so much of it.” She paused. “Want to see a lot more than that shower?”
Dev’s eyes searched her face with interest. “Sure.”
“C’mon.” Jess got up. “It’s close to dark, but we can still see it.” She led the way out of her quarters and went along the corridor, turning left at the central corridor and heading down a dark gray painted hall.
They passed three section scans, then she turned right and went into a longer corridor with low, green tinted lights. It was empty except for the two of them, and as they continued, the air became a little thicker and wetter.
“We can only stay out a few minutes. Storm’s coming overhead.” Jess turned a final corner and faced a thick metal door, with a prominent palm scan. Letters stenciled in black on it were clearly visible.
“Exernal Access. This is an airlock.” Dev read them. ‘What does that mean?”
Jess grinned, and keyed the door. It opened with a grinding, sucking sound revealing a square metal box. She stepped inside, and waited as Dev joined her with a somewhat cautious look at the stark walls.
Then she keyed the outer door, and processed the lock. The inner door sealed, and then the outer released, with a pressure change that made their ears pop. At once, the box was filled with the intense smell of salt and a damp wind buffeted them with a roar.
Jess stepped forward onto a small rocky outcropping, and leaned her arms on the rough stone wall. After a moment’s hesitation, Dev joined her, the bio alt’s hair and her own lashed back by the ferocious wind.
Dev put her hands on the stone, the surface feeling cold and damp under her touch as the airlock door closed behind them.
It was strange. She was looking out over a wild, white ruffled surface under a cap of solid, multilayered dark and light gray, and in the distance she could hear a heavy, almost continuous rumble. “W.. .what is this?” She asked, raising her voice above the sound.
“It’s the ocean.” Jess replied. “This is what used to be called the Atlantic Ocean, matter of fact. “ She glanced around at the high cliffs, weather worn and stark. “It’s water.”
Dev looked out over the wild scene, breathing in the rich, mineral scented air. The water was only about a hundred feet below them, crashing against the wall of rock sending spray up so high it almost reached them.
It was amazing. Dev could only stare at it in wonder, it was so unlike anything she’d ever experienced or thought she would experience. “It’s big.”
Jess chuckled. “It’s very big.” She agreed. “We’ll be flying over it tomorrow. “ She touched the wall. “These cliffs this old place is tunneled into used to have a huge waterfall coming over it. Now the water’s taken over. “ She looked down at the surging waves. “It’s our life now. We generate power by it, take food from it, and it’s why you have a water shower. We’ve got plenty of it. About the only thing in the world we have plenty of.”