“Sit up, Lieutenant1 Keyes,” a disembodied male voice said. “Sit. Take a deep breath and cough, sir. Youneed to clear the bronchial surfactant.”
Lieutenant Keyes pushed himself up, peeling his back off the formfitting gel bed. Wisps of fogoverflowed from the cryogenic tube as he clumsily climbed out. He sat on a nearby bench, tried toinhale, and doubled over, coughing until a long string of clear fluid flowed from his open mouth.
He sat up and drew his first full breath in two weeks. He tasted his lips and almost gagged. The cryoinhalant was specially3 designed to be regurgitated and swallowed, replacing nutrients4 lost in the deepsleep. No matter how they changed the formula, though, it always tasted like lime-flavored mucus.
“Status, Toran? Are we under attack?”
“Negative, sir,” the ship’s AI replied. “Status normal. We will enter normal space near the EridanusSystem in forty-five minutes.”
Lieutenant Keyes coughed again. “Good. Thank you, Toran.”
“You’re welcome, Lieutenant.”
Eridanus was on the border of the Outer Colonies. It was just far enough off the beaten path for piratesto be lurking5 . . . waiting to capture a diplomatic shuttle like theHan . This ship wouldn’t last long in aspace action. Theyshould have an escort. He didn’t understand why they had been sent alone—butJunior Lieutenants7 didn’t question orders. Especially when those orders came from FLEETCOM HQ onplanet Reach.
Wake-up protocols8 dictated9 that he inspect the rest of the crew to make sure no one had run intoproblems reviving. He looked around the sleep chamber10: rows of stainless11 steel lockers12 and showers, amedical pod for emergency resuscitations, and forty cryogenic tubes—all empty except the one to hisleft.
The other person on theHan was the civilian13 specialist, Dr. Halsey. Keyes had been ordered to protecther at all costs, pilot this ship, and generally stay the hell out of her way. They might as well have askedhim to hold her hand. This wasn’t a military mission; it was baby-sitting. Someone at Fleet Commandmust have him on their blacklist.
The cover of Dr. Halsey’s tube hummed open. Mist rippled14 out as she sat up, coughing. Her pale skinmade her look like a ghost in the fog. Matted locks of dark hair clung to her neck. She didn’t look mucholder than him, and she was lovely—not beautiful, but definitely a striking woman. For a civilian,anyway.
Her blue eyes fixed15 upon the Lieutenant and she looked him over. “We must be near Eridanus,” she said.
Lieutenant Keyes almost saluted16 reflectively, but checked the motion. “Yes, Doctor.” His face reddenedand he looked away from her slender body.
He had drilled in cryogenic recovery a dozen times at the Academy. He’d seen his fellow officers nakedbefore—men and women. But Dr. Halsey was a civilian. He didn’t know what protocols applied17.
Lieutenant Keyes got up and went to her. “Can I help you—”
She swung her legs out of the tube and climbed out. “I’m fine, Lieutenant. Get cleaned up and dressed.”
She brushed past him and strode to the showers. “Hurry. We have important work to do.”
Lieutenant Keyes stood straighter. “Aye, aye, Ma’am.”
With that brief encounter, their roles and the rules of conduct crystallized. Civilian or not—like it or not—Lieutenant Keyes understood that Dr. Halsey was in charge.
The bridge of theHan had an abundance of space for a vessel18 of its size. That is, it had all themaneuvering room of a walk-in closet. A freshly showered, shaved, and uniformed Lieutenant Keyespulled himself into the room and sealed the pressure door behind him. Every surface of the bridge wascovered with monitors and screens. The wall on his left was a single large semicurved view screen, darkfor the moment because there was nothing in the visible spectrum19 to see in Slipspace.
Behind him was theHan ’s spinning center section, containing the mess, the rec room, and the sleepchambers. There was no gravity on the bridge, however. The diplomatic shuttle had been designed forthe comfort of its passengers, not the crew.
It didn’t seem to bother Dr. Halsey. Strapped20 into the navigator’s couch, she wore a white jumpsuit thatmatched her pale skin, and had tied her dark hair into a simple, elegant knot. Her fingers danced acrossfour keypads, tapping in commands.
“Welcome, Lieutenant,” she said without looking up. “Please have a seat at the communication stationand monitor the channels when we enter normal space. If there’s so much as a squeak21 on nonstandardfrequencies, I want to know instantly.”
He drifted to the communication station and strapped himself down.
“Toran?” she asked.
“Awaiting your orders, Dr. Halsey,” the ship AI replied.
“Give me astrogation maps of the system.”
“Online, Dr. Halsey.”
“Are there any planets currently aligned22 with our entry trajectory23 and Eridanus Two? I want to pick up agravitational boost so we can move in-system ASAP.”
“Calculating now, Doctor Hal—”
“And can we have some music? Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto24 Number Three, I think.”
“Understood Doctor—”
“And start a preburn warm-up cycle for the fusion25 engines.”
“Yes, Doc—”
“And stop spinning theHan ’s central carousel26 section. We may need the power.”
“Working . . . ”
She eased back. The music started and she sighed. “Thank you, Toran.”
“You’re welcome, Dr. Halsey. Entering normal space in five minutes, plus or minus three minutes.”
Lieutenant Keyes shot the doctor an admiring glance. He was impressed—few people could put ashipboard AI through its paces so rigorously as to cause a detectable27 pause.
She turned to face him. “Yes, Lieutenant? You have a question?”
He composed himself and pulled his uniform jacket taut28. “I was curious about our mission, ma’am. Iassume we are to reconnoiter something in this system, but why send a shuttle, rather than a prowler or acorvette? And why just the two of us?”
She blinked and smiled. “A fairly accurate assumption and analysis, Lieutenant. Thisis a reconnaissancemission . . . of sorts. We are here to observe a child. The first of many, I hope.”
“A child?”
“A six-year-old male, to be precise.” She waved her hand. “It may help if you think of this purely29 as aUNSC-funded physiological30 study.” Every trace of a smile evaporated from her lips. “Which is preciselywhat you are to tell anyone who asks. Is that understood, Lieutenant?”
“Yes, Doctor.”
Keyes frowned, retrieved31 his grandfather’s pipe from his pocket, and turned it end over end. He couldn’tsmoke the thing—igniting a combustible32 on the flight deck was against every major regulation on aUNSC space vehicle—but sometimes he just fiddled33 with it or chewed on the tip, which helped himthink. He stuck it back into his pocket, and decided34 to push the issue and find out more.
“With all due respect, Dr. Halsey, this sector35 of space is dangerous.”
With a sudden deceleration, they entered normal space. The main view screen flickered36 and a millionstars snapped into focus. TheHan dove toward a cloud-swirled gas giant dead ahead.
“Stand by for burn,” Dr. Halsey announced. “On my mark, Toran.”
Lieutenant Keyes tightened37 his harness.
“Three . . . two . . . one.Mark. ”
The ship rumbled38 and sped faster toward the gas giant. The pull of the harness increased around theLieutenant’s chest, making breathing difficult. They accelerated for sixty-seven seconds . . . the stormsof the gas giant grew larger on the view screen—then theHan arced up and away from its surface.
Eridanus drifted into the center of the screen and filled the bridge with warm orange light.
“Gravity boost complete,” Toran chimed. “ETA to Eridanus is forty-two minutes, three seconds.”
“Well done,” Dr. Halsey said. She unlocked her harness and floated free, stretching. “I hate cryo sleep,”
she said. “It leaves one so cramped39.”
“As I was saying before, Doctor, this system is dangerous—”
She gracefully40 spun41 to face him, halting her momentum42 with a hand on the bulkhead. “Oh yes, I knowhow dangerous this system is. It has a colorful history: rebel insurrection in 2494, beaten down by theUNSC two years later at the cost of four destroyers.” She thought a moment, then added, “I don’tbelieve the Office of Naval43 Intelligence ever found their base in the asteroid44 field. And since there havebeen organized raids and scattered45 pirate activity nearby, one might conclude—as ONI clearly has—thatthe remnants of the original rebel faction46 are still active. Is that that what you were worried about?”
“Yes,” the Lieutenant replied. He swallowed, his mouth suddenly dry, but he refused to be cowed by thedoctor—by acivilian . “I need hardly remind you that it’s my job to worry about our security.”
She knew more than he did, much more, about the Eridanus System—and she obviously had contacts inthe intelligence community. Keyes had never seen an ONI spook—to the best of his knowledge anyway.
Mainline Navy personnel had elevated such agents to near-mythological status.
Whatever else he thought of Dr. Halsey, he would assume from now on that she knew what she wasdoing.
Dr. Halsey stretched once more and then strapped herself back onto the navigation couch. “Speaking ofpirates,” she said with her back now to him, “weren’t you supposed to be monitoring communicationchannels for illegal signals? Just in case someone takes undue47 interest in a lone6, unescorted, diplomaticshuttle?”
Lieutenant Keyes cursed himself for his momentary48 lapse49 and snapped to. He scanned all frequenciesand had Toran cross-check their authentication50 codes.
“All signals verified,” he reported. “No pirate transmissions detected.”
“Continue to monitor them, please.”
An awkward thirty minutes passed. Dr. Halsey was content to read reports on the navigational screens,and kept her back to him.
Lieutenant Keyes finally cleared his throat. “May I speak candidly51, Doctor?”
“You don’t need my permission,” she said. “By all means, speak candidly, Lieutenant. You’ve beendoing a fine job so far.”
Under normal circumstances, among normal officers, that last remark would have been insubordination—or worse, a rebuke53. But he let it pass. Normal military protocols seemed to have been jettisoned54 onthis flight.
“You said we were here to observe a child.” He shook his head dubiously55. “If this is a cover for realmilitary intelligence work, then, to tell the truth, there are better-qualified officers for this mission. Igraduated from UNSC OCS only seven weeks ago. My orders had me rotated to theMagellan . Thoseorders were rescinded56, ma’am.”
She turned and scrutinized57 him with icy blue eyes. “Go on, Lieutenant.”
He reached for his pipe, but then checked the motion. She would probably think it a silly habit.
“If this is an intel op,” he said, “then . . . then I don’t understand why I’m here at all.”
She leaned forward. “Then, Lieutenant, I shall be equally candid52.”
Something deep inside Lieutenant Keyes told him he would regret hearing whatever Dr. Halsey had tosay. He ignored the feeling. He wanted to know the truth.
“Go ahead, Doctor.”
Her slight smile returned. “You are here because Vice58 Admiral Stanforth, head of Section Three ofUNSC Military Intelligence Division, refused to lend me this shuttle without at least one UNSC officeraboard—even though he knows damn well that I can pilot this bucket by myself. So I picked one UNSCofficer. You.” She tapped her lower lip thoughtfully and added, “You see, I’ve read your file,Lieutenant. All of it.”
“I don’t know—”
“Youdo know what I’m talking about.” She rolled her eyes. “You don’t lie well. Don’t insult me bytrying again.”
Lieutenant Keyes swallowed. “Then why me?Especially if you’ve seen my record?”
“I chose you preciselybecause of your record—because of the incident in your second year at OCS.
Fourteen ensigns killed. You were wounded and spent two months in rehabilitation59. Plasma60 burns areparticularly painful, I understand.”
He rubbed his hands together. “Yes.”
“The Lieutenant responsible was your CO on that training mission. You refused to testify against himdespite overwhelming evidence and the testimony61 of his fellow officers . . . and friends.”
“Yes.”
“They told the board of review the secret the Lieutenant had entrusted62 to you all—that he was going totest his new theory to make Slipspace jumps more accurate. He was wrong, and you all paid for hiseagerness and poor mathematics.”
Lieutenant Keyes studied his hands and had the feeling of falling inward. Dr. Halsey’s voice soundeddistant. “Yes.”
“Despite continuing pressure, you never testified. They threatened to demote you, charge you withinsubordination and refusing a direct order—even discharge you from the Navy.
“Your fellow officer candidates testified, though. The review board had all the evidence they needed tocourt-martial your CO. They put you on report and dropped all further disciplinary actions.”
He said nothing. His head hung low.
“That is why you are here, Lieutenant—because you have an ability that is exceedingly rare in themilitary. You can keep a secret.” She drew in a long breath and added, “You may have to keep manysecrets after this mission is over.”
He glanced up. There was a strange look in her eyes. Pity? That caught him off guard and he lookedaway again. But he felt better than he had since OCS. Someone trusted him again.
“I think,” she said, “that you would rather be on theMagellan . Fighting and dying on the frontier.”
“No, I—” He caught the lie as he said it, stopped, then corrected himself. “Yes. The UNSC needs everyman and woman patrolling the Outer Colonies. Between the raiders and insurrections, it’s a wonder it allhasn’t fallen apart.”
“Indeed, Lieutenant, ever since we left Earth’s gravity, well, we’ve been fighting one another for everycubic centimeter of vacuum—from Mars to the Jovian Moons to the Hydra63 System Massacres64 and on tothe hundred brushfire wars in the Outer Colonies. It has always been on the brink65 of falling apart. That’swhy we’re here.”
“To observe one child,” he said. “What difference could a child make?”
One of her eyebrows66 arched. “This child could be more useful to the UNSC than a fleet of destroyers, athousand Junior Grade Lieutenants—or evenme . In the end, the child may be the only thing thatmakesany difference.”
“Approaching Eridanus Two,” Toran informed them.
“Plot an atmospheric67 vector for the Luxor spaceport,” Dr. Halsey ordered. “Lieutenant Keyes, makeready to land.”
点击
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1
lieutenant
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| n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员 | |
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blurry
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| adj.模糊的；污脏的，污斑的 | |
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specially
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| adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地 | |
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nutrients
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| n.（食品或化学品）营养物，营养品( nutrient的名词复数 ) | |
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lurking
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| 潜在 | |
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lone
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| adj.孤寂的，单独的；唯一的 | |
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lieutenants
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| n.陆军中尉( lieutenant的名词复数 )；副职官员；空军；仅低于…官阶的官员 | |
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protocols
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| n.礼仪( protocol的名词复数 )；（外交条约的）草案；（数据传递的）协议；科学实验报告（或计划） | |
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dictated
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| v.大声讲或读( dictate的过去式和过去分词 )；口授；支配；摆布 | |
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chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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stainless
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| adj.无瑕疵的，不锈的 | |
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lockers
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| n.寄物柜( locker的名词复数 ) | |
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civilian
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| adj.平民的，民用的，民众的 | |
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rippled
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| 使泛起涟漪（ripple的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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saluted
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| v.欢迎，致敬( salute的过去式和过去分词 )；赞扬，赞颂 | |
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applied
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| adj.应用的；v.应用，适用 | |
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vessel
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| n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管 | |
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spectrum
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| n.谱，光谱，频谱；范围，幅度，系列 | |
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strapped
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| adj.用皮带捆住的，用皮带装饰的；身无分文的；缺钱；手头紧v.用皮带捆扎(strap的过去式和过去分词)；用皮带抽打；包扎；给…打绷带 | |
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squeak
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| n.吱吱声，逃脱；v.（发出）吱吱叫，侥幸通过；（俚）告密 | |
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aligned
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| adj.对齐的，均衡的 | |
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trajectory
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| n.弹道，轨道 | |
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concerto
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| n.协奏曲 | |
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fusion
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| n.溶化；熔解；熔化状态，熔和；熔接 | |
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carousel
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| n.旋转式行李输送带 | |
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detectable
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| adj.可发觉的；可查明的 | |
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taut
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| adj.拉紧的，绷紧的，紧张的 | |
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purely
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| adv.纯粹地，完全地 | |
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physiological
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| adj.生理学的，生理学上的 | |
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retrieved
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| v.取回( retrieve的过去式和过去分词 )；恢复；寻回；检索（储存的信息） | |
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combustible
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| a. 易燃的,可燃的; n. 易燃物,可燃物 | |
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fiddled
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| v.伪造( fiddle的过去式和过去分词 )；篡改；骗取；修理或稍作改动 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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sector
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| n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形 | |
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flickered
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| （通常指灯光）闪烁，摇曳( flicker的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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tightened
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| 收紧( tighten的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）变紧； （使）绷紧； 加紧 | |
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rumbled
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| 发出隆隆声，发出辘辘声( rumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 轰鸣着缓慢行进； 发现…的真相； 看穿（阴谋） | |
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cramped
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| a.狭窄的 | |
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gracefully
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| ad.大大方方地；优美地 | |
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spun
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| v.纺，杜撰，急转身 | |
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momentum
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| n.动力，冲力，势头；动量 | |
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naval
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| adj.海军的，军舰的，船的 | |
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asteroid
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| n.小行星；海盘车(动物) | |
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scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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faction
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| n.宗派，小集团；派别；派系斗争 | |
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undue
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| adj.过分的；不适当的；未到期的 | |
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momentary
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| adj.片刻的，瞬息的；短暂的 | |
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lapse
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| n.过失，流逝，失效，抛弃信仰，间隔；vi.堕落，停止，失效，流逝；vt.使失效 | |
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50
authentication
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| 鉴定，认证 | |
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51
candidly
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| adv.坦率地，直率而诚恳地 | |
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candid
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| adj.公正的，正直的；坦率的 | |
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53
rebuke
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| v.指责，非难，斥责 [反]praise | |
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jettisoned
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| v.抛弃，丢弃( jettison的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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dubiously
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| adv.可疑地，怀疑地 | |
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56
rescinded
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| v.废除，取消( rescind的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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scrutinized
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| v.仔细检查，详审( scrutinize的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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vice
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| n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的 | |
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rehabilitation
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| n.康复，悔过自新，修复，复兴，复职，复位 | |
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plasma
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| n.血浆，细胞质，乳清 | |
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testimony
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| n.证词；见证，证明 | |
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entrusted
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| v.委托，托付( entrust的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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hydra
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| n.水螅；难于根除的祸患 | |
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64
massacres
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| 大屠杀( massacre的名词复数 )； 惨败 | |
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brink
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| n.(悬崖、河流等的)边缘，边沿 | |
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eyebrows
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| 眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 ) | |
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atmospheric
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| adj.大气的，空气的；大气层的；大气所引起的 | |
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