Exodus by Michael Poeltl

Author:Michael Poeltl [Poeltl, Michael]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780995288515
Publisher: Skylab Press
Published: 2019-08-25T06:00:00+00:00

STRANGE BEDFELLOWS

The six members of the away party engage the electromagnets on the soles of their thrust boots and open the shuttle door to a tight crevice within Allfather’s manufacturing moon. Headlamps are ordered on, and the intricate workings of the facility reveal themselves to the team. The metal is dark, matte black, like their own armour. Every square metre seems to be alive with activity. Much of the surface appears to be moving, but Raymond questions what he’s seeing, desperate to rub his eyes against the perpetual motion. Raymond leans into a surface to review the tiny, intricate fittings moving like waves on an ocean. He slowly reaches an armoured finger out penetrating the surface, his digit disappearing within the hypnotic movement and reappearing as he gently pulls back.

“Even the surface beneath our feet is moving,” Labyrinth says, placing a hand on Raymond’s shoulder. They look down and watch as the metallic surface flows around their boots like a current in a shallow river. “It seems to pay us no mind.”

“Anyone else feeling seasick?” Tobias asks the team through their helmet comms. “Do you think it’s dangerous?” He lifts a foot, dislodging from the metal, his magnetic sole releasing.

Labyrinth answers, “We’ve little to go on in that respect, Tobias, but at least our magnetic soles are keeping us grounded. The substance of this place is metallic, as much as it isn’t behaving as such.” Her brows tighten together as she looks back at the material.

“It’s i-incredible,” Tessa says, her palm hovering over the foreign material, imitating the waves. “Allfather really is an exceptional thing.”

Raymond appreciates Tessa’s admiration of the tech on display, but not her mooning over him. He wonders whether the animated metal could be sentient too. Perhaps the whole facility is watching them? He voices his concerns to the team.

“Would it have allowed us this small victory if it knew we were here?” Manuel brings up a good point. The team concurs with the observation.

“Allfather may be toying with us,” Raymond responds. “He has a sick sense of humour about him.”

“My uncle’s right,” Tobias says. “Allfather’s a dick.” The team suppresses a laugh and follows Labyrinth as she leads them deeper into the machine. “I’m just saying – he’s a sadistic prick. We could be walking into a trap.”

“We’re aware… of the dangers,” Tessa agrees in her halting speech, anxious over the situation. They all are, and she appreciates Tobias’ coping mechanisms will include sarcasm, but she would rather the team focus on the mission than the multiple possibilities for failure. The further she moves through the maze of shuddering metal the further their odds sink in hopes of affecting any damage to the thing. But then, she’s torn on whether she wants to end Allfather. She hadn’t been facetious when she’d mentioned her interest in understanding the alien when The Flame had returned to earth to stop his assault.

Each helmet includes two headlamps on either side, and as the team moves through the tunnel their lamps ignite the curiosities surrounding them.

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