Nellie and the Nanites - Bk.3 - Ch.8

Chapter Eight

Search Party

“In the end, it came down to the simple choice between security and space,” Lucy told Nellie as they walked through the docking tube into the new station. “I assumed you would prefer the increased hull strength rather than the extra floor space.”

“You know my paranoid little heart so well,” Nellie laughed. “How much stronger is it?”

“By cannibalizing the other two sections, we have created an entire extra hull layer and extended the remaining complete section by twenty percent,” Lucy preened, “The docking bays will take up the remaining material, but it won’t be completed enough to air up for another week at least.”

Nellie loved Lucy's new nanite-infused suits for the crew. Not only were they fully functional space suits, combat-capable, and armored, but she could actually feel through them. With such close integration with her own systems, Nellie could feel as if she was not even wearing a sealed suit, which should have felt creepy but somehow was freeing.

It was only a short walk through the partially constructed docking bay, past Centrum units, and even a few humans in regular space suits, all working non-stop to complete their first-ever space station. Stopping for a moment, Nellie looked down past the mostly completed section to the long spear of metal and cabling that would slowly transform into a dock for the Bly. 

Once it was complete, the Bly would have a place to load and unload, while the crew could walk from ship to station without needing to don space suits or board a shuttle. 

Nellie smiled before turning back to Lucy and walking through the large airlock. The doors slid smoothly closed, and she felt a flutter of anxiety while it cycled. 

The inner doors opened, and she walked into a fully aired station. The lights were on and seemed shockingly bright, backed by the white paint that was still drying on some bulkheads. 

A quick, reflexive check of her suit's atmospheric readouts relayed to the implant in her head, and Nellie pressed the button to unlatch her helmet before taking it off and looking around. She stood before a large, open area that stretched away from her to about the distance of a city block, which was fitting. The station's interior was about the size of a city block, but the buildings were wrapped around the walls, and the levels went up and down from where she had entered. 

The decision to mount the docks at about the mid-level of the station was a practical one. It was better for the station's rotational mechanics while also allowing them to focus the visitor areas in the central levels, which would also be handy for anyone on the station to use. In case they were ever boarded, it would not take long for all personnel to assemble to repel it while all essential station systems were at either the top or bottom of the station. 

Moving between levels was handled by nanite-lined tubes distributed evenly around the inner hull. All you had to do was stand in one of the entrances, and the nanites would lift the platform into the tube, where it could be carried to any exit on the tube. Additionally, those same nanites could seal a tube in case of breach or security lockdown, another safety feature for everyone on the station. 

The central floor, including the docking bays, was where visitors were welcome. It would feature shops, a few bars, restaurants, and hotels if they ever actually got that far. 

“Captain!” Salem’s boot heels clicked over the still naked deck plating as she came to meet them. “Thank you for coming.”

“Of course,” Nellie smiled at her friend. “You’ve done an amazing job here, Sal.”

“Thank you,” Salem smiled. “We are ready for you in the control room.”

“Lead on,” Lucy said.

Salem led them down the wide path that would allow anyone to navigate the shops and other offers when there were some. Most of the buildings were completed, their bulkheads still empty of logos and their rolling doors locked up tight. 

“Each and every one of these buildings is a separate unit, capable of sealing itself completely in case of emergency,” Salem said as they passed. “A small generator is included for emergency use. It would provide shielding and a short burst of thrust. It wouldn’t be much, but it would allow it to make it to the moon if need be.” 

“It was costly in terms of materials,” Nellie said, “But I like knowing that people will be okay if they end up stuck in there.”

“It has an additional use as well,” Lucy noted. “Every shop, hotel, or restaurant in this plaza is a bunker point for fighting off boarding actions.”

The Plaza ended in a large building. Its curved edge fit snuggly against the deck plates and looked significantly thicker than even the similarly sized hotel. It was painted with a pair of vivid orange stripes, and the words ‘Station Security’ were stenciled over the double-sized hatch.

A pair of Centrum units stood on either side of the door, holding Mk2 Nano rifles. 

“Moving from this plaza to the control room is only possible via the tube in this building,” Salem said with a slightly savage smile. “And good luck getting through this place because we have gone out of our way to make it a nightmare.” She nodded to the Centrum units as they passed, making both salute. 

Inside the building itself were ten Centrum units, Remy, and a grinning Banjo, looking delighted with his new security uniform. Remy was sitting with his feet up on the desk, laughing as Banjo told some joke or other, but they didn’t fool Nellie for a second. Both of them were well aware she was coming… But she appreciated the relaxed attitude anyway. It was still taking her some time to have people she cared about tossing salutes and standing at attention when she walked into a room.

How did she know they were faking? 

Well, that was partly due to her new Explorer instincts. It didn’t show any direct information, but she recognized the slight tension in the jaw muscles of both Remy and Banjo. The tension in the shoulders that belied the relaxed stance and the subtle way they shifted when she entered the room clearly stifled a much stronger reaction.

“As you were,” Salem waved at them as they passed.

The transit tube deposited them in a completely dark room, with the shutters down and the screens dark. This room did not have a chair like the bridge. Instead, it had a raised platform with reactive screens and a small holographic display arrayed around it.

“Captain, if you would?” Salem gestured to the platform.

Nellie felt like a kid at Christmas as she stepped onto the platform, and the room came alive.

Station Control System…

Ready to initiate.

The words hovered in front of her, thanks to the holographic display system. 

“Initiate,” Nellie said.

The lights in the room rose smoothly as booting screens showed on the three consoles. Each one was mirrored in one of her own screens, which hung from the roof on spider-like arms. Turning her head, she noted that the screens adjusted to her every movement, keeping them in her eyeline at all times.

Systems online…

Internal Sensors…Active.

External Sensors…Active.

A pair of screens filled with data. One was plots of everything in the area around the station. She could see the moon's rotational speed relative to the station, as well as a readout of the closest parts of the planet's surface; there were also notations of several pieces of debris, along with projected course, speed, and size. A small note on each one estimated scan delay.

The other screen was filled with a simplified schematic of the station, showing the number of people detected in each area and identifying known signatures. The system showed each dot in one of several colors. Basic Human or Brackta were pale green, while Augmented were displayed as pale blue. Synthetics were bright blue, while the Centrum units were a clear Orange color. She could see her own dot in the control room, along with Lucy’s. They were a solid gold color.

“Gold dots?” Nellie asked with a smirk. 

“It seemed fitting,” Salem said with a smile. 

Shields…Powered but inactive.

Weapons…Powered but inactive.

Life support…Active.

Hydroponics…Active.

Powerplant at 30% 

“We have shields and weapons? Already?” Nellie asked.

“Better to be prepared,” Salem noted, “But I must admit the shields are weak, and the weapons have limited use as it stands.”

“How do I see a schematic of the station?” Nellie asked.

“Just say ‘Status Display,’ and, well, there we go.” Salem smiled as a holographic model of the station appeared before Nellie.

A lot had changed from the original design, thanks to all those meetings that seemed so interminable at the time. For a start, there was only one single section to the station now—a large, pill-shaped central section that sprouted the docking bays in the dead center, with a full scanning array at the base. The top three levels were her favorite. 

“Open shielding on the Hydroponics,” Nellie ordered, hearing a thunk that seemed to travel through the station above her. The hologram in front of her showed the top third of the pill opening like a flower, revealing the still nascent growth levels. “We should look at some transplanting from the moon,” Nellie muttered. “Get this thing jump-started.”

“I’ll add it to the mission list,” Salem said, tapping some keys on a board at one of the stations. The proposed mission list appeared. “Looks like we have some volunteers,” she nodded as the mission flashed, and various crew members volunteered their services.

The mission system was another product of the meetings they had all attended. While specific missions required the senior staff or bridge crew, many were not worth their time. The mission list was a place where non-urgent missions were listed, and all crew could sign on. It gave everyone a chance to get off the ship while also meaning they didn’t have to manually assign each and every crew member, although, obviously, Lucy was more than capable of doing so, as was Salem.

“We need to do two things before moving on to the other levels,” Salem noted. “First, the station needs a name for the ID beacon, and second, we need to confirm you as the station administrator.”

Nellie and Lucy exchanged a look.

“Salem,” Nellie called over to the distracted synthetic, who was busily updating the latest mission listing.

“Yes?” Salem jumped a little. “Sorry, I was just–”

“The station administrator is you,” Lucy said simply. “You’ve earned it.”

Salem’s face went blank.

“Salem?” Nellie prompted. “We are appointing you to command the station.”

“Are you sure?” Salem seemed lost, off balance, and dazed. “It is your station, Captain.”

“And you will run it for me,” Nellie tried. 

“Of course,” Salem did a weird half-bow. “Thank you.”

Lucy shot Nellie an amused look. It was funny to see the normally unflappable Salem so completely flummoxed.

“Station command transferred to Salem….” Nellie hesitated. “Sal, do you have a last name?”

“No,” Salem almost looked panicked. “Do I need one?”

“I don’t know,” Nellie shrugged. “Do you want one?”

“Yes,” Salem said quickly. “Can you give me a last name?”

“If you like,” Nellie shrugged. “Lucy, any suggestions?”

“I have a few dozen possible ones, but I suspect Salem would prefer you to choose it unaided.” Lucy smiled.

“Yes, please,” Salem flushed a little. 

“Okay,” Nellie felt a little awkward, “Then I so name thee as Salem Du L’esprit.” She smiled.

“Salem Du L’esprit,” Sal said with a smile. “I love it, thank you.”

“Station transfer command to Salem Du L’esprit and confirm her as Station Administrator.”

Command Transfered.

“All yours, Miss Du L’esprit,” Nellie stepped aside. 

“Transfer controls to automatic, link to personal communication channels, ping any changes immediately.” Salem seemed to have recovered her confidence as she stood there, rattling off commands, but Nellie did notice the slight trembling in one hand.

“Now all we need is a name,” Lucy said thoughtfully. 

“I did have a thought,” Salem offered somewhat anxiously. “What about Bly’s Rest?”

“Putain, that’s perfect,” Nellie said immediately.

“Seconded,” Lucy nodded. “Our new station admin can make the change official,”

“Station beacon ID set to Bly’s Rest,” Salem smiled. “Broadcasting in the clear.”

Nellie and Lucy clapped, and cheers erupted throughout the space station as people noticed the change in their suits and implants.

With the fun bits out of the way, Nellie and the others turned to the more immediate worries. For a start, the I.E.S. symbol had been found on two more pieces of salvage. It was pretty clear that if they hadn’t owned the old station, they certainly had a strong presence in it. The idea of sitting around and waiting to see if there were any more I.E.S. surprises in the area did not appeal to anyone. That means that they needed to start searching the entire system in a methodical and careful manner. Doing that with a single ship would take several years at best, even with Lucy’s improved sensor designs.

The job was just too big, which was why they were visiting the areas set aside for production much earlier than planned. Two of the three large bays were already planned for the manufacture of Centrum and ship components, but the smallest of the three was assigned as yet. 

“We need to make a new type of sensor drone,” Nellie told the others, “Something that can scan larger areas, as well as ones that can spread out around the system to scan other planets and look for stations or ships.”

“We don’t have the materials for all of that,” Lucy said. “But if we find more stuff to salvage on the moon, we could make a start.”

“You think there will be anything to salvage?” Nellie asked.

“I think it is highly probable that a station here means there is at least one facility on the planet, as well as one on the moon itself. If not, why bother with the station in the first place?” Lucy explained. “I can only see it being used as a central area for a distributed network to report to and gather when needed.”

“So we may be looking at several facilities?” Nellie frowned. 

“I would assume so, and mostly on either the moon or the planet below.” Lucy agreed.

“If you are correct, it would make the station's placement efficient.” Salem added, “Is this area large enough for the equipment needed?”

“For the core drones, yes.” Lucy nodded. “The larger, interplanetary ones will need ship parts, but we had already planned an area for that.”

“So, I guess we have a plan,” Nellie nodded. “I think the sooner we start, the better.”

“I can have the station ready for full staffing and equipment transfer within a week,” Salem proudly said. “But there is one thing that would… expedite matters.”

“See, I hate that little pause,” Nellie said archly. “That means I’m not going to like it, am I?”

Lucy stifled a laugh.

“It is the other synthetic models,” Salem pressed on, “the worker models and others that are more basic in their bodies and programming.”

“What about them?” Nellie asked.

“I would like you to upgrade them,” Salem said hurriedly. “I think it is only fair to not leave them as limited as they were made to be, besides the increas–”

Nellie held up a hand to stop her. “Can we do that?” She asked Lucy.

“Of course,” Lucy nodded. “It would take longer with some models than others, but it is certainly possible. The initial design was already completed when I upgraded Bazm, and you used that design yourself as a base for Salem’s repairs when she was injured. In theory, it should only take a few computing cycles to customize it to each of the other synthetics. The changes to their bodies would take longer certainly, as it would require more changes, but we could do most of the remaining models within a week or so. It would consume a lot of our material stores in the process, but….” She smiled.

“Let’s do it then,” Nellie nodded. 

“I’ll arrange everything,” Salem said with a pleased smile. “Thank you, both.”

===<<<>>>===

“Paren, we need to…” Nellie stopped and packed out laughing.

“Oh, fuck off,” Paren grumped as she tottered across the floor like a drunk toddler.

“Oh, that’s just adorable,” Nellie smirked. “Baby’s first steps!”

“I will shoot you if I can ever get to my gun,” Paren warned as she suddenly drifted to one side. The four legs seemed to want to go in different directions all the time. The sight would have been more hilarious if it wasn’t for all the metal involved in the legs. It was like watching a little monster fall around a mad scientist’s workshop, which was not exactly too far from the truth. 

“I’m getting the hang of it,” Paren grumbled. “Yesterday, I couldn’t even stand it!”

“You’ll be tearing around the place in no time,” Nellie grinned. “In the meantime, I need you to design something.”

“Little busy,” Paren muttered, methodically moving one foot at a time. 

“This is important,” Nellie said. “We need new scouts.”

“Ooh,” Paren perked up, “That sounds fun.”

“Bigger, able to travel further, and even some to operate in space,” Nellie said like a parent offering candy to a grumpy child.

“Nice!” Paren smiled. “They would need to be armed and shielded, and oh, and we need better relays!” She got excited and moved too quickly, her legs tripping over each other. Nellie leaped forward and caught her before she fell.

“Careful,” She warned.

“Yeah, yeah,” Paren pointed. “To the desk!”