Page 27 of Pets in Space 10
Cass grinned at Zach, more relieved than she cared to admit that he’d agreed to help her investigate, and bent back over the scanner.
“Look at these dimensions,” she said, zooming in on the scan. “The tunnel is nearly three meters high and almost twice that wide. And it extends…” She manipulated the controls, trying to get a more complete reading. “It goes beyond Roland’s scanning range in both directions.”
He leaned closer, and she did her best to ignore the warmth of his big body and focus on the scanner. His scent was distracting, a mixture of musk and leather and something else that she couldn’t identify.
“It would be a good place to store supplies, or possibly take shelter,” he said thoughtfully.
“Yes, but there’s no evidence of any previous drilling or excavation in the area.”
“GenCon didn’t always make its activities public.”
The mention of the corporation made her hesitate. He was correct that they’d engaged in some highly illegal — and unethical — activities before Earth Government discovered what they were doing and put a stop to them. Border Town itself had originally been a secret GenCon settlement.
“It’s possible,” she agreed reluctantly. “Which makes it even more important to get down there and see for ourselves.”
Roland chirped from below, his sensors sending a steady stream of data to her scanner.
“Roland’s found something else,” she murmured, frowning at the new readings appearing on her screen. “There’s a natural fissure next to the shaft he dug. It’s narrow, but it could provide access.”
“If there is something down there, I don’t want it finding an easy way to the surface,” he said, his voice taking on that authoritative tone that both irritated and reassured her.
“I don’t think that’s likely. Whatever made these tunnels, they’ve been here for a while. And the anomalies we detected were below the surface — not the kind of movement you’d expect from something actively trying to reach the surface.”
She set the scanner down and moved to the edge of Roland’s excavation. The hole was deep enough now that she could see the darkness below.
“Roland,” she called softly. “Come back up.”
A series of chirps echoed from below, and moments later, the armadillo emerged, his exoskeleton coated with fine red dust. He scampered to her side, his golden eyes glowing with what she could have sworn was excitement.
“Good boy,” she murmured, brushing some of the dust from his plating. “Now we need to get down there ourselves.”
“I’m still not sure this is wise,” Zach said, but she could hear the resignation in his voice. He knew as well as she did that they couldn’t ignore this discovery.
“We need proper equipment,” she said, already moving towards the rover. “Lights, rope, tools. I have most of what we need in my field kit.”
He watched her for a moment, then nodded. “I’ll widen the opening along the fissure. The rock will provide support.”
“I can help — ”
“No,” he cut her off. “My enhanced strength will make it quicker. And safer.”
She wanted to argue but knew he was right. His cybernetic abilities would allow him to enlarge the hole much more efficiently than she could.
“Fine,” she conceded. “I’ll gather the equipment we need.”
While he worked on widening the opening, she retrieved her field kit from the rover. She laid out everything they might need: high-intensity portable lights, climbing gear, sample containers, additional scanning equipment, and emergency medical supplies.
The sound of his work filled the hangar — the rhythmic scrape of metal against stone as he carefully enlarged Roland’s excavation. His movements were carefully controlled, each strike calculated to remove material without compromising the stability of the surrounding soil.
“The natural fissure Roland found makes this easier,” he called over his shoulder. “It follows the path of least resistance down to the tunnel.”
She joined him at the edge of the now-much-larger hole, peering down into the darkness. “How deep is it?”
“About ten meters to the tunnel floor,” he replied. “We’ll need a ladder.”
She nodded and retrieved a lightweight, flexible ladder from the rover. It was designed specifically for field exploration, strong enough to support several times her weight despite its deceptively fragile appearance.
“I’ll secure it,” he said, taking the ladder from her hands. His fingers brushed against hers, and that now-familiar spark of awareness shot through her. She pulled back, focusing on the task at hand rather than the confusing feelings he stirred in her.
He anchored the ladder securely to the hangar wall, testing it with a sharp tug before nodding in satisfaction. “It’s stable.”
“Good.” She pulled a thermal jumpsuit on over her coverall, then gathered her pack, double-checking that she had everything they might need. Roland circled her feet, chirping eagerly. “Yes, you’re coming too,” she told him with a smile.
“I’ll go first,” Zach said as he clipped a light to his belt, his tone making it clear this wasn’t a suggestion.
She rolled her eyes. “Fine. Just don’t take all day about it.”
His mouth twitched in what might have been amusement. “Such an eager little scientist.”
Normally she would have objected to the term, but the warmth in his eyes made her heart skip a beat instead.
“You have no idea,” she muttered under her breath, watching him climb down the ladder with enviable ease.
“Clear,” his voice echoed up to her. “Send Roland down.”
She knelt beside the armadillo. “Go on, Roland. Be careful.”
Roland chirped once, then scurried over the edge, using his specialized limbs to navigate the almost vertical descent with astonishing speed. She watched until he reached the bottom, then secured her own light and began her descent.
The ladder swayed slightly under her weight, but it held firm. The walls of the excavation were rough where Zach had enlarged Roland’s original tunnel, but she could see the natural fissure Roland had discovered — a jagged crack that wound its way downward through the Martian bedrock.
As she descended, the air grew noticeably cooler. Her light illuminated swirls of dust dancing in the beam, disturbed by their passage. The fissure widened near the bottom, opening into the larger tunnel they’d detected on the scanner.
Zach waited at the base of the ladder, his silver eyes gleaming in the darkness. He reached up to steady her as she made the final steps down.
“Careful,” he murmured, his hands strong and sure on her waist. “The floor is uneven.”
She let him guide her down, trying not to focus on the way his hands felt or the fact that he didn’t immediately release her.
“Thank you,” she said, trying not to sound breathless.
He held her for a moment longer, and she had the feeling he was as reluctant to let her go as she was to pull away. The moment stretched, taut with tension, and then he finally stepped back, clearing his throat.
“What do you think?” he asked. “Natural or artificial?”
The tunnel was wide and high enough that even Zach didn’t need to duck.
Their lights illuminated a rough, rock-strewn surface, the walls streaked with the colors of Martian minerals.
It looked natural enough, except for the perfectly straight line of the tunnel extending into the darkness in both directions.
“Too soon to tell,” she said slowly, studying the walls. “It’s possible that the tunnel was formed by a natural geological process.”
“Would a geological process create such a perfectly straight line?”
“Straight lines do exist in nature. On the other hand, if something could manipulate the natural rock to create this…” She shook her head. “We don’t have that level of technology.”
Roland scurried a few meters down the tunnel, his sensors scanning continuously, and she followed him. His golden eyes cast eerie shadows as he moved.
“The composition of the walls is exactly what I’d expect,” she said, studying her scanner. “But I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Zach joined her, his own light playing over the tunnel walls. “Could it be something GenCon did?”
She shook her head. “I don’t think so. This rock is ancient — it predates the human presence on Mars by millennia.”
“Are you suggesting that there was an advanced civilization on Mars that we’ve missed all evidence of until now?”
“If they manipulated natural materials rather than creating artificial substances, it’s possible. A surface scan wouldn’t have picked up anything except rock down here.”
The implications hung between them, too enormous to fully process. If she was right, they were standing in the first evidence of life on ancient Mars.
Roland chirped, drawing their attention. He had moved further down the tunnel and was examining something on the wall.
“What is it, Roland?” she asked, joining him and shining her light on the wall. Striations covered the rock but there was nothing unusual about them. Except…
“Zach,” she called, her voice barely above a whisper. “Look at this.”
He joined her, his light adding to hers, illuminating the markings more clearly.
“Is that a pattern?”
She shrugged helplessly. “I don’t know. They could be natural markings, but it’s odd that they’re so regular.”
“Like the tunnel,” he said grimly and she nodded.
Roland continued ahead of them, his sensors scanning every centimeter of the tunnel. She followed, recording everything, her mind racing with possibilities. Zach remained close, his attention divided between her and their surroundings.
The tunnel finally began a gentle curve to the right, but as they reached it Roland suddenly stopped, his mechanical body going completely still.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, moving towards him.
Zach’s hand shot out, grabbing her arm. “Wait.”
She turned to look at him, startled by the tension in his voice. His eyes gleamed silver as he scanned the darkness ahead, his body alert in a way that sent a chill down her spine.
“What is it?” she whispered.
“Movement,” he said softly. “Just at the edge of my vision. Something’s down here with us.”
She’d been so caught up in the mystery of the tunnel that she’d almost forgotten their original goal. Her heart hammered in her chest as she strained to see into the darkness. Roland remained frozen in place, his sensors clearly picking up something beyond human perception.
“Could it be a cave-in? Dust from the storm?” she suggested, but even as she spoke, she knew it wasn’t that simple.
He shook his head slightly, his grip on her arm tightening. “No. It’s deliberate movement. Controlled.”
A soft sound echoed through the tunnel — a subtle scraping, like something being dragged across the stone. Roland’s ears twitched towards the noise, his golden eyes glowing brighter in the darkness.
“How far?” she whispered.
“Maybe fifty meters,” Zach replied, his voice barely audible.
The tunnel seemed to close in around them, the darkness beyond their lights suddenly menacing rather than mysterious. The scientist in her wanted to know what was causing the movement, but she found herself moving closer to Zach, drawing comfort from his solid presence.
“It’s stopped moving,” he finally said. “It might have heard us.”
Roland suddenly chirped, a series of rapid, urgent sounds that made both of them tense. The armadillo backed up several steps, moving closer to her legs.
“What is it, Roland?” she asked, kneeling beside him. “What do you sense?”
Before Roland could respond, a new sound echoed through the tunnel — a low, resonant vibration that seemed to come from the walls themselves. It pulsed in a rhythmic pattern, rising and falling in intensity.
“That’s not natural,” Zach said grimly.
“No,” she agreed. “It’s too regular, too patterned.” She checked her scanner, then nodded. “I think that vibration is the source of the seismic anomalies. The instruments can’t make sense of it.”
The vibration continued, changing in pitch and rhythm. It wasn’t random — there was a clear pattern to the sounds, almost like…
“It could be communication,” she whispered, the realization sending a shiver through her. “Whatever’s down here might be trying to communicate with us.”
His expression remained tense, his body positioned slightly in front of hers. “Or it could be a warning. Or a threat.”
The vibration suddenly stopped, leaving an eerie silence in its wake. For several long moments, they stood motionless, waiting for something to happen.
Then there was a new sound and this time she could hear it as well — the distinct scraping growing gradually louder. Something was coming towards them.