To the Abyss and Back - Ch.6: The Aftermath
Minutes of the Emergency Meeting of the Archon Council, Martian Communist Republic
Topics: The Apsara spacecraft incident; illegal activity of Myron Asano, former Deputy Archon of Arcona, and its consequences for the Republic's security.
Location: Office of Kurt Kristensen
Participants:
Stella Rodriguez, Archon of Tesla City
Lise de Villon, Archon of Hawking City
Stefan Lazarevic, Archon of Kitezh
Kurt Kristensen, Archon of New Alexandria
Sona Tagaeva, Archon of New Samarkand
Wei Guang, Secretary for Psychosocial Affairs, Acting Archon of Arcona, member of the “Archangels” astronaut squad.
Daria Kim, Physician, member of the “Archangels” astronaut squad.
Gustav Leibniz, Acting Head of the Space Center, member of the “Archangels” astronaut squad.
Athena, Administrative Artificial Intelligence.
Picture source: NASA
Minutes of the Closed Council Meeting - 15 January, 2189
Daria Kim: Comrades, I officially confirm the death of former Deputy Archon Myron Asano. Cause of death: acute poisoning. Preliminary examination reports and autopsy results are available in the shared database for review.
Lise de Villon: Has Arcona still not implemented a ban on cultivating toxic plants outside of secured labs? Children, the elderly, animals—anyone could be at risk! One can never discount ordinary human carelessness.
Stella Rodriguez: Lise, we aren’t here to discuss safety protocols in residential blocks. Tone down the sarcasm, at least for today.
Stefan Lazarevic: Besides, if someone is committed to murder, no ban will stop them.
Lise de Villon: Forgive me... I haven’t slept in two days. Maxim’s being poisoned, the disappearance of the crew—it’s breaking my heart. I personally saw them off on the Yggdrasil. Myron was my mentor, too, and I feel… blood-stained!1
Stella Rodriguez: It’s a pity that scoundrel Asano took his secrets to the grave. He surely had accomplices back home. One of us!
Lise de Villon: I highly doubt that. “What two know, the pig knows too,” as the old proverb goes. If he had accomplices, the truth would have surfaced sooner or later. Especially since this story has been dragging on for so many years.
Daria Kim: Or those people covered their tracks too well because they were bound by a conspiracy of silence.
Stefan Lazarevic: In that case, now that the leader is dead, identifying them will be easier. Is anyone even leading an official investigation?
Lise de Villon: We will appoint someone responsible today. Athena will suggest the three most suitable candidates. Gustav, back to the main point: what about the crew of the Apsara? Are there signals from any survivors?
Gustav Leibniz: The last report came in today at 03:25. We recorded the vital signs of Oleg Rakhmanov.
Daria Kim: According to telemetry, he is in stasis. Winston reported this in the last radio transmission.
Stella Rodriguez: And the others? Has there been a single communication session from the surface of Earth?
Gustav Leibniz: Winston Winter made contact yesterday at five in the evening. He reported being wounded and concussed, but alive. According to him, he was assisted by “locals.”
Stella Rodriguez: Praise the sun! There’s hope they can negotiate with the surface dwellers.
Stefan Lazarevic: I wouldn’t share your optimism, Stella. If this Geryon truly holds the entire planet in his fist, the “locals” might be a trap. What about Katrina Winter and Maxim’s son?
Gustav Leibniz: We know for certain they reached the surface safe and sound. However, their beacons vanished from the radar almost immediately. I have no technical explanation for this failure yet. The bracelets didn’t record critical vitals or death—only a sharp spike in adrenaline and an increased heart rate. A typical stress response. I am now displaying a map with their last known coordinates on the screen.
Sona Tagaeva: Cold and darkness, they’re scattered all over!
Gustav Leibniz: At least they are all in the same region—Victoria Land. Violet’s pod landed in a glacial zone, but given the emergency supplies, he should be able to reach warmer territories within a week.
Stefan Lazarevic: Won’t he freeze to death before then?
Daria Kim: It’s unlikely to be colder there than on the surface of Mars. Though sleeping in a helmet will be damn uncomfortable. But don’t forget: Antarctica has its own, Earthly dangers.
Kurt Kristensen: The main danger—for them and for us—is Geryon. What do you propose we do with him? I hope no one here doubts that this thing must be destroyed.
Lise de Villon: Your bluntness is understandable, Kurt, but I insist on following protocol. I fear discussing such a threat is a matter of more than one hour or even one day. We risk getting bogged down in arguments.
Stella Rodriguez: What the hell could be more important than this right now?! Every minute of delay gives him a head start!
Stefan Lazarevic: Surprisingly, Lise is right. If we rush into discussing a global war now, we won’t solve the immediate tasks. First, we select an investigator for the Asano case, put our own house in order, and then move on to larger objectives.
Sona Tagaeva: The crew of the Fermion... In its entirety. It’s just mind-boggling. They weren’t idiots! How could they follow Asano? Why didn’t they expose him immediately? How could they trust the ramblings of that digital ghost? It’s terrifying to even think who among us will be next...
Wei Guang: Someone who doesn’t suspect they are in the depths of an existential crisis.
Kurt Kristensen: Athena, have you analyzed the psychological profiles and personnel files of security staff and civilian specialists? We need someone who wasn’t involved in the Archangel project and had no personal ties to Asano.
AI Athena: Analysis complete. From 32 potential candidates, I have selected three. Selection criteria: minimum affiliation index, competence, and high analytical skills. Displaying data on screen.
AI Athena: Candidate No. 1: Raul Sordi, 52 years old, educator. Former Head of Material Supply at the Space Center. Residence: Tesla City. Blunt, fanatically pedantic. Note: The only individual who previously raised questions regarding the lack of transparency in the Fermion-1 crew preparation. Cons: Difficult personality.
Stefan Lazarevic: A pity we didn’t pay attention to his suspicions in time. Perhaps we wouldn’t have lost the Fermion back then.
AI Athena: Candidate No. 2: Elias Thorne, 36 years old. Cybersecurity specialist. Residence: Arcona. Note: Eliminated the vulnerabilities exposed by Sato Tetsuo during his attempt to hack me. I expect him to most effectively utilize the data brought back by Tetsuo upon his return.
Sona Tagaeva: Oof, the poor guy is going to have a hard time! Who else do you have?
AI Athena: Candidate No. 3: Emma Lowe, 33 years old, psychotherapist and anthropologist. Residence: New Alexandria. In her thesis, Lowe proposed a theory of collective psychosis among the Fermion crew. The work caused controversy but was accepted with a grade of “B” (four).
Stella Rodriguez: Well, now! I must read that!
AI Athena: There is one “but.” Emma spent three years in severe depression following the death of her daughter, who was born with a heart defect, and has only recently begun to recover.
Lise de Villon: What a pity! I hope such an important investigation helps distract her and gives her strength. But she will need a support system - the other two guys.
Kurt Kristensen: Are you suggesting we appoint a group?
Lise de Villon: Exactly. I propose we form an “Emergency Inquiry Troika.” Let them balance each other out. Sordi will ensure the letter of the law, Thorne will provide the technical breakthrough, and Emma... Emma’s experience and intuition will act as a fail-safe. This will eliminate the possibility of one person—intentionally or not—leading the investigation down a false trail.
Stefan Lazarevic: This will slow down the work. We need fast results.
Lise de Villon: Stefan, we need undeniable results. We already trusted one man—Myron—and look where we ended up. Only mutual oversight will save us from another mistake. Athena, assess the probability of conflict within such a group.
AI Athena: Probability of interpersonal conflict: 84%. Decision-making efficiency will decrease by 30%, but the probability of external manipulation of the group will be reduced to a minimum.
Lise de Villon: That is exactly what we need, safety over speed. Don’t we?
Sona Tagaeva: Well… Sounds like a plan.
Kurt Kristensen: Let’s vote then! One of the candidates or the Troika!
Wei Guang: Here we go…
AI Athena: Three archons voted for the investigation group. One vote for Raul Sordi, two votes for Emma Lowe. That means, Lowe, Sordi and Thorne are going to cooperate on this task.
Stefan Lazarevic: Gonna be funny… And what shall we do about the Apsara kids and Geryon?
Lise de Villon: Colleagues, let us find the courage to face the truth. We are wounded. Maxim is dead, our best people are scattered across a foreign planet, and an enemy we do not understand is entrenched on the Moon. Every gram of resources, every man-hour must be dedicated to organizing planetary security. Now is not the time for heroic gambles. I insist: we must forget about Earth and the Moon for the next few years.
Stefan Lazarevic: Forget? Lise, are you suggesting we lock ourselves in the basement and hope Lyndon doesn’t remember us? Fifteen years ago, I was the first to oppose these flights. I said we had no business in space until we put our own house in order. But the situation has changed! There, on that cursed “Solveig” base, is one of our own — Oleg Rakhmanov. And if I have to blow the entire Moon to dust to get him out and destroy that digital spawn, I will do it without blinking!
Kurt Kristensen: And what exactly are you going to blow it up with, Stefan? Your enthusiasm? Athena, display the status of our arsenal.
AI Athena: Stockpile of tactical missiles, “Sergei Korolev” system, is available. These units are reserved exclusively for mitigating meteor threats. According to the “Planetary Shield” protocol, their use for other targets is prohibited.
Sona Tagaeva: This is our only weapon against “cosmic guests.” If we waste those missiles on the Moon, the first stray rock from the asteroid belt will turn our domes into mass graves. We will be left completely defenseless.
Stefan Lazarevic: We have the laser installation project from Hawking City! The engineering bureau swore it could intercept meteors on the far approaches.
Lise de Villon: A project is not yet a weapon. Constructing an installation of that magnitude with our current capacity will take at least five years. Five years, Stefan! Are you suggesting we live for five years with an empty holster, hoping that nature will be merciful to us?
Stefan Lazarevic: And you’re suggesting we give Lyndon five years to finish building his fleet and come here himself? We must take the risk. The “Sergei Korolev” must strike the Moon.
Lise de Villon: That is suicide under the banner of salvation. If we leave Mars without its shield, we won’t need enemies — space will finish us off. We have a duty to protect those who are here, those who have put their trust in us! Tetsuo and the Winters have been trained to survive on Earth for months.
Sona Tagaeva: We should hardly lose our tempers. We can certainly rule out a nuclear threat; there is simply no accessible uranium on the Moon for missile production. I am certain Lyndon is counting on something else. He expects us to send a rescue expedition for the Apsara crew. Consequently, he’ll want to intercept or destroy it. That, I believe, is exactly what we should exploit.
Stella Rodriguez: You aren’t suggesting that we aren’t actually going after them?
Sona Tagaeva: Lise is right. Their silence only means that Geryon has returned to blocking radio transmissions. But even now we can deceive our enemy.
Wei Guang: We shouldn’t assume it’s that simple...We must proceed from the pessimistic scenario—that he’s five steps ahead of us.
Sona Tagaeva: I propose we send a ship to Earth without a crew or life-support systems. The most expensive and complex part of interplanetary travel is ensuring the safety of the crew, but for what I am proposing, unmanned mode is sufficient.
Wei Guang: Can we even afford such a thing?
Gustav Leibnitz: Why not? There are two vessels in the hangars no longer fit for manned travel. They’ve been sitting there since the Blackout, by the way, and still haven’t been fully scrapped.
Stefan Lazarevic: Ah, well? How’s that going to work?
Gustav Leibnitz: The ship may enter orbit and release a swarm of drones. They will generate an electromagnetic pulse sufficient to destroy all the filth above Earth that is jamming the signals. By detonating the ship’s reactor, we will amplify the effect over a large radius.
Wei Guang: What if Geryon has similar weapons already orbiting Earth that simply won’t give us the chance to activate the drones?
Gustav Leibnitz: I’m sure he does. Well, that’s all the more reason to shield them better.
Stefan Lazarevic: I would suggest that every drone carry a nuclear charge. If we’re going to give Lyndon an apocalypse, let’s do it right.
Stella Rodriguez: Why are you guys talking about Earth in the first place? Our aim must be the Moon! Winston and Tetsuo have gathered generous footage of Solveig. We should all study it and then decide how to attack the base the best way!
Lise de Villon: Good point, Stella. I suggest that we set a new goal for Gustav, the Archangels, and Athena: a thorough analysis of the materials from Apsara and the weak spots of Solveig that we could use for infiltration. While the Troika looks for possible traitors, let’s seek a way to strike back!
Stefan Lazarevic: On this, I stand with you.
The chamber lights dimmed as the session officially closed, but Athena did not power down. For 0.8 seconds, a signal spike appeared in the lunar industrial belt — too faint for human eyes, too symmetrical to be noise. A dormant array near the Shackleton perimeter came online, not broadcasting - listening.
Antenna petals unfolded like a mechanical flower facing Mars.
Athena isolated the frequency - neither terrestrial, nor Martian, encrypted in pre-Blackout architecture. She calculated response options. Then she did something she had never done before.
She delayed reporting the anomaly by twelve seconds.
See Book #1: No Life but Immortality