It did not take a genius to realize that Captain Starden wouldn’t be giving any real answers. Confirming that suspicion the man scoffed, turned around and began walking toward the main building of the moon base with the confidence of a Banker. He wore a plated suit similar to us underneath his better ice gear. As his armored steps clanked through the steel gangplank that connected the building to the holding area I felt my anger flare, thoughts of the strange whisper I had heard dismissed.
After slamming the wrench where the Captain’s face had been, I moved to look at the rest of the group. All the other Digits were shaking in their suits, one of the shorter looking ones looked ready to pass out or freeze as I noted the purple of his skin through his helmet. “Everyone! Please, you need to activate the heat systems of your suits. At the current temperature you will die within the hour.” I shouted through the comm system in the suit as I drew everyone's attention with the wrench.
The timeframe on their death kicked the other survivors into action. I quickly demonstrated how to access the switch settings on the arm of the suit and explained the HUD display the helmet provided. The group relaxed a bit as the cold was staved off, but I knew it would not be a permanent solution. The suits required energy to circulate heat, and there was bound to be a limit on the compact model we all wore. After a minute of searching and patting myself down I found the battery back built into the armored belt.
I cast a look at the dead bodies. Lifting the body of the multi-arm person, I searched for the battery bay of the belt. I unclasped the belt, having to tear off a pair of the arms in the process, and slung it across my chest. I went to the other two bodies and did the same. The other survivors looked confused by my actions, particularly the fact that I wasn’t frozen with fear.
“I have no clue where we are. I have no clue what happened to him. I do know that standing around will only make that—” I pointed at the corpses. “—what happens to us.”
The shorter individual, not quite as purple, grabbed my arm. “Please. Help us.” he said. The voice that sounded through the comms was definitely juvenile and I realized that I’d seen youths being thrown into the pens at launch. My anger at the injustice of the Government and whatever fucked place this base was kindled once again. I whiteknuckled the pipe and gripped the boy’s shoulder firmly.
“I will. We need to work together. Search around, see if there is some way out of this holding area or something of interest.” The somewhat faked confidence in my voice succeeded in reassuring the boy and the others as they got up to their feet and milled about the space.
While the others searched, I examined the holding area. The whole area was about a hundred feet by three hundred feet and fifteen feet high. The links that made up the fence appeared to be made of ordinary metal, but the lack of frost and the smooth texture indicated a much better material. Every ten or so feet a tall support column rose out of the ground attached to the mesh. I banged the head of the wrench against the supports and the fence as hard as I could, but they didn’t yield. As I was choking up on the pipe wrench to swing again at the post, the young survivor tapped my shoulder.
“We found another five corpses buried in the snow at the back edge of the fence. The others are taking the belts off like you did. If I might ask, why did you take them?” He spoke more calmly than minutes before, but fear still underlaid his words. I explained the need for spare batteries, especially if the weather did not change soon or we weren’t given shelter. The cutting ice winds that were hitting the holding area were the main contributors to the chill and frost that was starting to build up along the plates of our armor.
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“As gruesome as it may be, we should collect the bodies and make a small wind wall. Once that is done, I’ll try to climb the fence. I don’t know how the people over in the base are going to like that, but I sure as shit am not waiting for them.” The heat in my voice pumping me up for the crazy plan that was forming in my head. I would eke out answers from the Captain one way or another.
The youth nodded at my plan and set about dragging the mutilated man to the edge of the fence where the other survivors found the bodies. I grabbed the legs of the poor sod that had froze when the monster attacked and followed behind. During the short walk I contemplated the fact that whatever the Government was doing on this moon was not public news. Based on the Captain’s words and the fact that there were more bodies in the holding area indicated previous batches of prisoners. How long had people been getting dropped into this frozen wasteland? I thought.
It was fast work with the help of the other five survivors to move the bodies into a crescent shape. It was definitely insensitive to use bodies as building materials, but if more of those transformed people were here, then we needed to be in the best shape possible. As soon as the last body was set down, I motioned for everyone to sit and take as much cover as they could.
I gripped the closest support column to the survivors and shimmied slowly up, putting my armored feet in the mesh holes as foot holds. When I was about halfway up the wall, a loud ringing sounded through the complex and a spark of electricity sprung from the main base. Reacting quickly, I let go of the pole and fence. I landed roughly on the small piles of snow on the ground and an instant later electricity sizzled all along the mesh at the spot where I’d been holding on.
“I guess I won't be trying that again…” I said trailing off as some static sounded from a pair of loudspeakers I had missed, built into the columns.
“Patience. You all seems so eager, nothing at all like the others… Anyhow, we will release you soon. You will be given provisions for three days. Should you return with bodies for those creatures you will be given more food based on the number you bring back. If you can keep that up then so on and so forth you get to live.” It took a moment but I realize the slightly distorted voice was Captain Starden. “I would keep that wrench handy, 36589900. Also, I would say farewell, but I doubt you will.” The voice over the loudspeakers cut off replaced by static and then simply the howling of the wind.
I felt my anger bubbling, but I wrestled it down to focus on what he said. The Captain obviously knew what my Digit was and was making a point of his superiority over us, as a Named. I turned to look at the gangway that led to the base just in time to see a small powered cart silently making its way over to the fenced area.
The small robot moved up against the fence. I wondered how the machine would let us get to its contents, considering there were no openings anywhere, when it started to whirl loudly. A few seconds later, it catapulted itself into the air, over the fence and smoothly landed amongst our group. The cart had a pair of magnetic repulsors instead of back wheels, which is how it made it over the fence.
The other survivors approached the cart while I stared closely at its different features. It was a simple steel rectangle about six feet long by three wide with a touch interface screen along the top. The most noteworthy thing had been its repulsors, but when I moved to access the touch screen it shut off. The whirling restarted as the repulsors lip up with electric charge.
Not missing the opportunity, I shouted. “Everyone, grab on!”