The Sliver of the Sun exploded into existence 1.68 days later above the atmosphere of the Duchess.
Matrioshka was the first to wake. Grateful the jump was successful, and they only lost a day and a half, she decrypted the rest of the crew. The Fifth Wonder was nowhere in sight, but they weren’t going to stay hidden forever.
The Sliver was less than 9000 km away from the Duchess. The planet’s pink atmosphere was in constant turmoil; the gas giant was above average in mass and size, exhibiting atmospheric bands of varying shades. Most were pink, with some deep reds sprinkled about. Where the bands met there was chaos; planet sized storms raged, their lightning brightening the planet’s rosy expanse into radiant neon.
“Wow. Pink is exceptionally rare a colour for a gas giant, right?” Makoe asked, hovering in the Sliver’s bridge.
“Yes. I am detecting vast amounts of manganese and cobalt fluoride; they explain the shade.” replied Damien.
While they discussed the Duchess, Matrioshka went to check up on Rhea. When she booted up her lattice and directed the mind into a simulation, she went inside. Matrioshka found Rhea drinking a cup of tea, looking reflective. The tea smelled sweet – maybe peach? Rhea looked at Matrioshka and said:
“Now I know how it felt. When you still had the Vector Cage. I never imagined… the loneliness.”
Matrioshka relaxed, Rhea was back.
“Listen captain… What I said about you and-” Rhea tried to explain but Matrioshka cut her off;
“It was a good try. I must admit you can be hurtful when you wish to be.” Matrioshka said in a carefree way, trying to relieve Rhea of her guilt.
It didn’t work. Rhea’s eyes saddened as she sipped her tea.
“I know.” was all she said.
Matrioshka didn’t know what to do next. She knew Rhea was aware of her history, and was at least her equal in age. Matrioshka could mediate arguments and settle disputes easily, but not when they concerned herself. She ventured a change of subject;
“We have arrived at the Duchess. The Set-drive is out of commission. We will land and attempt repair. Would you like to choose the moon?”
“The second one. Inform me if you see any signs of multicellular life.” Rhea said without looking at the Duchess’ moon system. She either had the data ready or she didn’t care.
Matrioshka nodded and left the simulation. The only thing she could do for Rhea was give her time.
Matrioshka want back to the bridge and said:
“Tell me about the moons.”
Damien and PesKal were ardently discussing something about a contact-binary moonlet, so Makoe replied:
“Four major bodies, 87 minor. Diana’s, Rosamond’s and Oliver’s Worlds have an atmosphere.”
Makoe referenced the 4th, 3rd, and 2nd major moons of the Duchess. The Atomic Presses, which they would use to repair the Set-drive, could convert energy directly into matter. But a more efficient and faster procedure used already existing protons, neutrons, and electrons from the ambient atmosphere.
They would land on one of the moons and siphon its atmosphere to build the parts needed for the rear Set-drive. Matrioshka just needed to choose one for the landing, fortunately Rhea had already chosen.
“We are going to Oliver’s World.” Matrioshka said.
Makoe was surprised. “You already surveyed the system? Oliver’s World is indeed optimal for the Atomic Press; relatively high percentage of helium and a dense atmosphere.”
Matrioshka smiled, and said: “Just a lucky guess…”
Makoe turned to Damien and PesKal, as Matrioshka began moving the Sliver towards Oliver’s World. The Sliver gently strained under the 32 g’s of acceleration. The target moon was a pale orange crescent at this distance. It would grow larger over the next 46 minutes. Until it appeared bigger than the Duchess herself.
“We are going to Oliver’s World.” Makoe interjected into PesKal and Damien’s conversation.
Damien shook his head and with a solemn smile said: “An optimal target, though I don’t think you will like the place much, Officer PesKal.”.
“Why would I not? …it is not a desert mega-biome, is it?” PesKal said, his face slightly scrounging.
The Ankrahi were semi-aquatic, they enjoyed water. A lot.
Evolution has ingrained into them a deep sense of fear and anxiety when faced with the prospects of a dry climate. The Ankrahi homeworld had only one major desert, and it was feared as the place where evil souls of the Ankrahi went after death.
To PesKal, Oliver’s World was the equivalent of hell. It would bring about the same emotions in him, as a molten lava-world would in human minds. Matrioshka liked to think she was unaffected by either.
Damien’s eyes turned sympathetic when he answered: “I’m afraid so.”
Mega-biomes were extremely uncommon, baring of course the barren planetary classicisation, which was given to many objects with no atmosphere or were predominantly of a single compound.
PesKal paced slightly on the bridge. His breathing became shallow and his face scrounged further. “I… don’t know if I can…” He stopped facing, spun in place, and exclaimed:
“An interface! One which masks the desert and puts verdant greenery in its place, maybe adds rain clouds in the sky as well.”
PesKal was still spinning in place. An Ankrahi gesture reserved for overcoming fear, or in this case avoiding the fear altogether.
“It would work!” Makoe said and joined PesKal in spinning.
Damien and Matrioshka exchanged a look.
They did a spin too.
After, Damien said: “Suppose I will continue the systemwide analysis, permission to use four sensors captain?” He walked to a console and stood there, deep in the VR.
Matrioshka smiled and nodded.
“I will inspect the Set-drive.” Makoe walked to a console as well.
“Oh! Language analysis! I have recorded samples of Miriani words.” PesKal said and added: “We should be able to gleam some more information about them. Even if we didn’t have the chance to access any of their technology on Prudence.”
“Good idea, Officer. Get to it.” Matrioshka told PesKal. He too went to a console.
She felt content with her crew, they were eclectic, but effective. New crews needed time to adjust to each other – to trust. They were sent on a mission which was supposed to be simple. Nobody expected them to find a lost civilization, or have mercenaries hunting them.
All this assuming the Director of Expansion operated in good faith. They had final say in all proposed mission parameters – including crew makeup.
Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!
Matrioshka looked at the Duchess, receding behind them, and wished she could be amongst family. She thought of her friends back at the Imperium, she had made many over the years. She thought of the Red Violin, she had family there too.
She thought of Samson Song, her father; his kind face, his white hair - messy even after hours of combing, his gentle attitude, his fascination with artificial intelligence.
His death. A hole in his head, brain spilling out. Shkadov standing above him, gun still pointed at his father’s corpse.
Matrioshka watched the Duchess, the red bands in her atmosphere, and saw the blood of her father painted across the wall.
“Captain?” Rhea asked. Her hand on Matrioshka shoulder. “You’re trembling captain. My lattice is experiencing a power shortage. Power system indicates most of the Sliver’s energy is going to you.”
Matrioshka cleared her throat and calmed. Her lattice was at 100%. Now 90 and dropping.
The memory had snuck up on her.
Matrioshka turned to the much taller woman and said: “I am… fine. A traumatic memory. I did not experience its potency in a few centuries. It caught me off guard.”
Rhea pursed her lips and said: “You can’t do that captain. We rely on you, me particularly. You hold my life with our bond.”
“I do, don’t I? I would not have to do so if you just reinstalled.”
Rhea’s hand came off Matrioshka’s shoulder. “Not an option, captain.”
“Why? It is standard procedure. No different from long term encryption. You mind becomes dormant and is replaced by another version of itself, no different than the original.”
“It is categorically different.” Rhea said. “You do not replace a mind during encryption. The same dimensions of consciousness, the same memories, persist through encryption. Reinstalling a mind entails deletion and replacement.”
“The Theseus argument? The mind is not the same if it’s entire existence cannot be traced back to its origin?” Matrioshka nodded. She could accept Rhea’s reluctance. “Alright, sorry for prying.” she said.
Rhea relaxed; she got stiff whenever challenged.
“Apology accepted.” Rhea said and summoned another cup of tea in her hand. She took a sip.
Minds didn’t need eat or drink, only energy to run their lattices. Most however, did enjoy some food on a daily basis. Matrioshka herself was crazy about donuts.
She materialized a donut; chocolate and vanilla foam filling within caramel bread, topped with a strawberry glaze. And of course, it didn’t have a hole.
Matrioshka took a bite of the creamy heaven and enjoyed a quiet moment with Rhea. The bridge was bright pink now, thanks to the light reflected from the Duchess.
They enjoyed a minute of silence until Rhea excused herself to go observe the stars. She was curious whether there was any evidence the stars were sentient, except of course; them speaking.
20 minutes later, Matrioshka was sitting in her chair and was on her 17th donut. Makoe’s mind returned to the bridge and she turned to the captain.
“Easy fix, but it will take time - at least 3 hours. The quantum bridge is barely there, thankfully there is a spare within the cargo hold, otherwise we would be stranded here for days.”
“Good work Officer Rue. Come sit with me.” Matrioshka said and materialised a chair next to her own.
Makoe sat, her dress ruffled as she did.
“Donut?” Matrioshka offered.
“Yes please!” Makoe replied and grabbed the donut from Matrioshka’s hand. She destroyed a third of it with one bite, and let out a satisfied sigh.
She said: “I do not eat often enough. It is good for my ape brain. Simulated as it is.”
Matrioshka smiled. “It is good for my brain as well, artificial as it is.”
“You enjoy eating? Not common for artificials, Matrioshka.”
Matrioshka quirked an eyebrow at the use of her name. She did not mind at all usually, though during work hours Matrioshka expected to be addressed with her title.
Makoe cringed a bit but smiled, teeth covered in chocolate. “Sorry. Captain Matrioshka.”
Matrioshka smiled and waved her hand gently, signalling it was no big deal. She then said:
“I do. Got really into donuts on Akvarok, there is this wonderful little bakery there, called Lumi’s Pastries. Wonderful donuts, both simulated and otherwise.”
“Akvarok, huh? Spent a lot of time in the core worlds captain?”
“I did, most of my life in fact.”
Makoe’s eyes grew interested. Blue light glittered in her eyeshadow. There was chocolate on her cheek.
Cute. Matrioshka thought.
“I’m from Terra.”
Makoe’s eyes went wide. “Really!? I’ve never met anyone from Terra. How was it back then?”
Matrioshka dared not look too deeply at those memories.
“Good as any place. Cramped now that I think of it.”
They were approaching Oliver’s World now, the light of the Emperor was obscured by the moon. Only the Empress was visible, bright, and ancient…
Matrioshka eyes widened at her own stupidity, and she angled the Sliver 90 degrees leftwards relative to their trajectory. Within minutes they would enter the shadow of Oliver’s World.
“Captain?” Makoe asked.
“The Emperor and Empress can likely sense anything their light touches, so the protocol onwards is staying within planetary shadows and night. Even with the Cloak Frame, it’s better to not risk detection.” Matrioshka replied.
Damien focused back into the bridge and said: “Oliver’s World; Desert mega-biome. Average temperature is 96.2 degrees Celsius. Atmospheric pressure is at 3.09 Terran-pressures. Atmospheric composition is 25.2% helium – optimal for the Atomic Press.”
Damien grinned and added:
“Another thing that’s optimal are the dunes - perfect for hoverbikes.”
He looked hopefully to Matrioshka.
“Granted.” she said after smiling.
Damien’s grin deepened; it made him look younger. “Thank you! Ah, the joys of high-speed motion…”
Matrioshka quirked an eyebrow and gestured vaguely at the bridge.
“The Sliver doesn’t count. It different when you’re on the surface and the ground is speeding past you.” Damien said. “You will see.”
“You do like your hoverbikes don’t you Damien?” Makoe asked with a smile. “You will have to show me how to drive one.”
“Of course.” Damien said and blushed slightly under Makoe’s gaze.
Huh. Noted. Matrioshka thought and asked:
“What of the other moons? Anything to report?”
Damien was thoughtful for a moment, doubtlessly checking his findings, he displayed the moons in VR and began:
“Hannah’s World is ablaze, the proximity to the Duchess and the influence of the other moons has induced extreme amounts of tidal heating; I read 3601 active volcanoes.” He showed some images of Hannah’s World, it was as he described; volcanoes spewing bright lava into the sky - which arched back, like hundreds of gigantic fountains.
He showed a low-resolution sim of the next moon. “Rosamond’s World is at opposition, on the other side of the Duchess - no sensors can resolve it at the moment. But based on previous scans, it has an oxygen-rich atmosphere and is 0.73 Terran-masses with 0.9 Terran-radii. High probability of habitability.”
“I covered Oliver’s World, so onto Diana’s World; Breathable atmosphere, frozen mega-biome. Also habitable.” Damien said and showed the final major moon of the Duchess. It was white and covered in a blue haze - its atmosphere.
All standard readings for a moon system of a large gas giant within the habitable zone of its system. Once upon a time such readings would spark excitement, nowadays it was just another day in the Subdirectory of Reconnaissance.
The Sliver approached Oliver’s World; its night side pointed away from the twin stars but was still illuminated - the Duchess was big, it reflected sufficient light to illuminate the surface of the moon and paint it a slight pink.
Rhea, who returned to the bridge the moment they entered the shadow of Oliver’s World, took note of something.
“Unnatural formations detected. Here.” she said and highlighted a region near the north pole of Oliver’s World. Rhea zoomed in and displayed a low-resolution structure, similar to the one they found on Jane’s World. This one was much larger and almost completely covered in sand.
“Looks like we have a landing spot.” Matrioshka said and directed the Sliver accordingly. Matrioshka had begun deaccelerating already, but they were still moving at more than 20km/s. The Sliver would need to reduce the speed much further, lest they risk a hull failure and the destruction of the ship.
After reaching the optimal velocity, the Sliver breached the atmosphere of Oliver’s World. It was gradual, the slight pressure felt across the Sliver gave way to rumbling as the thrusters, the shields, and the hull battled against the orange atmosphere. The Cloak Frame could no longer support the optical teleportation which made the Sliver invisible, and it turned off.
Soon the Sliver calmed, reaching a calm cruise, and gently glided across the sky of Oliver’s World. The moon was covered in dunes, mostly made of fine sand with periodic patches of gravel and larger mountains.
The ship approached the location of the Miriani structure, the display increased in resolution as they went, offering a more detailed depiction of the base. Rhea inhaled and said:
“Look here. Large concentrations of organic matter.” She focused on a room, near the centre of the structure, where 13 pillars of biological compounds were highlighted. “Too symmetrical to be a lifeform, and their arrangement within the room suggests a scientific purpose. Perhaps a biological research station.”
“We will know more when we land.” Matrioshka said as the Sliver closed in on the structure. Damien looked pensive about something, then asked:
“This probably changes your orders concerning downtime?”
Matrioshka considered the man. He was asking whether it was still okay for him to go explore with the hoverbike. Up until they discovered the Miriani structure, Matrioshka planned to help Makoe fix the drive, and let the others do what they wished.
Minds needed ample time to let go – alter their surroundings, and be free in the physical world. It healed the psyche, and always brought renewed productivity when they returned to work. Long hours doing the same thing led to poor performance, annoyance, and sometimes anarchy.
Matrioshka remembered the old days, when a trip from Terra to Jupiter took 45 days. The only thing keeping the humans sane was VR, and just barely. Back then, Matrioshka didn’t need to worry about her mental health. With the Vector Cage, one could stare into the void indefinitely without boredom.
The Sliver reached the structure and began its short descent. Matrioshka turned to Damien and said:
“No. You may proceed with the downtime. Unfortunately, Officer Rue and Lavigne will not be joining you.” She smirked at Makoe, who pouted. “She is needed here to fix the drive. I will assist Officer Lavigne in exploring the Miriani structure. But you and Officer PesKal can take a few hours of leisure.”
Damien smiled. “Thank you, captain. Hey, Officer PesKal?”
“Yes?” PesKal turned to Damien.
The man grinned and asked: “Ever driven a hoverbike?"