Intergalactic Pest Control: The Complete Series by NM Tatum & Sarah Noffke & Michael Anderle

Author:NM Tatum & Sarah Noffke & Michael Anderle [Tatum, NM & Noffke, Sarah & Anderle, Michael]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: LMBPN Publishing
Published: 2019-07-01T22:00:00+00:00

Climate control was almost as loud as the engine room, that constant hum of machinery throwing a blanket of white noise over their conversations. They took to speaking through comms, so they only needed to whisper to be heard. The white noise ended up helping their effort in that regard, providing them cover.

Sam, Reggie and Peppy were inside the room, which was small and crowded with big, bulky machines. The floor was metal grating that allowed the condensation from the heating and cooling systems to drip down and be collected. That water then moved through the filtration system to be reused for everything from plumbing to drinking water.

Sam and Peppy were crouched and huddled together in a crevice between two rumbling machines. Neither seemed happy about it. Peppy wanted desperately to scratch behind his ear, and Sam wanted desperately not to smell Peppy or have his hot breath in her face.

Reggie was behind a machine opposite them, across the small open space where they’d laid their trap.

Joel and Cody were monitoring from outside the room. Cody was glued to the infrared display of the climate control room.

Joel couldn’t stop nervously pacing. “I don’t like this. They went after Peppy last time. What if they do it again?”

“He can handle himself,” Cody said, trying to sound as reassuring as he could. He still felt bad about his early comments on Peppy. “And Sam and Reggie will keep him safe.”

“I certainly will not,” Sam said, hearing their conversation over comms. “Not if he continues to breathe into my mouth.”

Cody snapped back, trying to keep her from agitating Joel. “Quiet. We can’t risk the Rapoo hearing you.” He focused on the display, but cast Joel a quick glance from his periphery. He could see the tension in his friend’s shoulders, the worry in his eyes. Then a flicker of color drew his full attention back to his wristcom.

After the debacle in the engine room, Cody had a conversation with Cleo. She was hesitant at first, but in the end, she was surprisingly more accommodating than most real people Cody knew. Though, when he thought about it, if he were to program an AI, he would make it the way he wanted people to be, and not how they actually were.

“Cleo,” he said to the air. “We need your help.”

“I am mandated to assist in any way that does not compromise the sensitive information housed in my databases.”

Cody fumbled his words as he tried to find his footing. He’d never spoken to an AI before. “Right. I wouldn’t ask you to do that. The infrared scans have helped a lot, but they’re incomplete. Is there any way you can provide scans of the ventilation systems?”

“The current system does not monitor the ventilation systems.”

Cody wasn’t used to how quickly Cleo responded—almost immediately, before the words had fully left his mouth. “Can you modify the current system?”

“I have not been instructed to do so by the system administrator.”

“But is it possible?”

“Yes. I can reprogram the cameras.”

Cody pushed his glasses up his nose.

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