Come out to play-yay : Second
13 Jul 2024Willow Thorn
So people say barren waist land, but that makes you think there was something there that’s waisted away, right? But if you fly around the bubble landing on random planets coz you like, found a cool signal or something, you really know barren. Ok, after doing the name thing on the terminal in Citi Gateway, another text box came up with like, a planet some seventy or so light years away, and some coordinates. That was it, no instructions, no why or what should I do when I get there? Yeah okay, but whatever. Being down for the like, cloak and dagger shit, I packed the last of the orders that had come in and, shut up shop till this thing was done. Okay, so when I don’t know what's coming, there is only one ship for the job; my beautiful Python, Bramble. She’s been through a few refits, but a like, a cover-all configuration is the one I almost always fly with now, and like, it can fit the size six living quarters I made from Saud Kruger cabin parts.
I slipped Bramble into a geo-sync orbit close to the deets I was given. Once set, I shutdown everything I didn’t need to like, quiet the radar noise of my ship. So, I’m sitting up there expecting my hud to highlight something down here, you know? But there's nothing. Ok, there can’t be nothing, or why was I told to come, right?
So it's out with probes, and a quick map of the rock ball I was sent to, and still nothing turns up on the whole planet, not even an US to target. Thats where most people would just like, go and see WTF is going on for themselves, but not me. I’m a sensor diva, and I know my shit. Pointing the array at the coordinates, I bombarded the area every kind of radiation the Barb can generate, and yeah, there was something there.
Ok, I got some faint power source, and some non-terrestrial materials. So, a probe maybe? Something small anyway, small enough to fit in my Scarabs cargo bay I’d guessed. But whatever, I’m not just going to land right by it, that felt real dumb. So, I run through the math, fly well out of view of the target, and make sure to come down over the horizon. Like it was some drive from there, but whatever, this place is all flat rock, like not even enough dust to be called sand, so all I had for cover was the damn horizon.
So that’s where I am now, sat on the turret of my Scrabe, scoping some dude standing thousands of KM away, by something narrow with a small genny powering something. Barb is back in orbit, and I’m sending this entry to her. If this is my last entry, then fuck Maul Montresor. He sent me here, and you should throw the book at him.
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Shutting off the mic, Willow sent the log to her ship and looked back through her binos at the guy just standing there. Someone in a suit, standing on a flat featureless word, not moving in the slightest.
“Yeah, not weird at all, but I can’t just hang out here, I guess”
There was no choice but to approach, because there was no cover, and no way to sneak up on the guy. Getting back into the cab, Willow said “Fuck it” and drove towards the solo sentry. When she was within 1km, the guy took a long weapon from his back. He didn’t point it as the Scarab, but he did turn his head to watch the vehicle ride up on him.
Stopping around 50m out, Willow pause to take a good long look at the guy, and form this distance get a clear, full scan. No organic matter, so no life signs at all. She was dealing with a robot who's job it was to stand guard for a computer, that's what was on the narrow pedestal. When Willow got out of the cab, the droid put its sniper weapon away, and took out a hefty looking energy weapon of a configuration Willow had never seen.
Again, the droid just held the weapon, and didn’t point it at Willow at all. It’s faceplate just tracked her as she climbed down from the cab.
“Er, so hi” shouted Willow in a friendly voice assuming the droid had an open audio pick-up. She accompanied her greeting with a little wave.
The droid didn’t move or say anything, it just watched her walk closer. When she was near enough to get a really good look at the setup, the droids black faceplate lit up displaying a soft green glowing hashtag ‘#’ where its face should be.
Willow stopped and waited for something to happen, nothing did, but willow found herself quietly singing a song to her self "Work it. Make it. Do it"
“So, er, hi. I’m Will.. Alice, I guess and um, I got your, like, address, or location from a computer?”
The droid did nothing, so Willow got closer trying to read what was on the screen beside the human like robot.
“Like, do you know who Isaac Asimov is? He had some pretty cool ideas on how we should all act, you know?" Said Willow looking at the big gun it was holding.
“Ok yeah, I guess I’m pretty much talking to a gun turret asking it not to shoot. But like, don't shoot. Little miss friendly here, ok?”
The droid didn’t move. Its hashtag face just watched her as she slowly walked closer. It traced Willow all the way to the screen where another location, this time a place with a name, and the name of a man underneath the top line.
“So this is where I find Neville Clay right? Is that the guy I need to talk to now?” Willow asked the silent guardian. "Tougher. Smarter. Quicker. Shredded. Dow-now-now-nanana-now" Damn, that track was a real ear worm.
The droid didn’t speak, but she saw it had moved a little. Now it was pointing at the ground behind the computer. Willow leaned out to see what the droid was pointing at, and beside the little generator, half hidden by the plastic pedestal the computer was sat on, was a sizable cargo crate.
“Oh, right. Is that for me?”
The droid didn’t move, and it didn’t speak. It did keep tracking Willow. With no new information forthcoming, Willow decided to take a look at what was in the case. Crouching down, she found there was a combi lock on the two clasps that kept the case shut.
“Ah, not for me then.. .Unless..”
She got up and checked the computer. Not even an interface or input of any kind to use. After a quick search of the area for any numbers, Willow concluded she was not supposed to get into the case easily.
“Oh wait, you want me to take this to Neville, right?”
The droid said noting, it just tracked Willow, but it had stopped pointing at the case.
“Ok, great” said Willow enjoying the agent game.
Taking hold of the case by the grips, Willow tried to lift it. It may as well have been bolted to the ground.
“Like wow, its real heavy”
If she couldn’t lift it, maybe she could drag it. Getting a good grip with both hands, Willow leaned back and pulled with all her might. The case didn’t move at all.
“Hey, so, can you help me get this to my buggy? Please?
The droids lack of response wasn’t a surprise by now.
“Yeah, I kind of figured. Whatever Sammy Silent, I got this locked down” said Willow walking back to her Scarab. “This isn't the first time I’ve had to salvage something I can't even lift”
“I don’t let a bit of gravity stop me for grabbing the best salvage you know!” shouted Willow as she got back into the cab “Damn stupid droid”
Driving up closer didn't seem to worry the droid at all. It just watched Willow with a complete lack emotion. She still stopped about ten meters out, coz the gun in the droids hands was very big.
Complaining at every step, Willow fitted a winch to her Scarab, then dragged its hooked cable over to the chest and found an anchor point. Pulling up the slack with her as she returned to her buggy, she got back in the cab.
“See, resourceful” called Willow from inside the cab, more for her benefit.
Coming from a family of salvagers, there was a lot of equipment Willow loaded up on, as second nature now. Her Scarab looked like her work suit. That is to say her personalized mav-suit was pretty much a tool chest that happened to be suit shape, that she could walk around in.
Her Scarab was the same. It was covered in boxes, and hard-wearing material rolls that contained all sorts of tools and devices that were too cumbersome to carry. One of these tools was a winch that was used mostly for getting the Scarab unstuck, but it was really good for dragging heavy items out of tight spaces.
With the case clear of the droid, its computer and generator, Willow used the cargo scoop to pick up the case. Leaning out to snap an image of Neville's info, Willow started to turn to leave.
“Right so, okay thanks Sammy” Called Willow shutting the door “See you never weirdo droid. Work it. Make it. Do it. Better. Dow-now-now-nanana-now "
Driving away, trying to remember what the hell that tune was called, Willow called her ship so she could get off this rock and go find Neville.