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THE NEWCOMER
Path B2B1 by Jay
[Path B2B1. Step by step.]
Cyberreyn finally decides to play it safe. "Maybe next time," she whispers to herself, her blue-gray eyes gazing blankly ahead. She takes a deep breath, then continues the rest of way down the ladder.
Making her way back to the mess hall, her tired attention is awakened by an odd shadow along the wall of pipes. Squinting her eyes slightly, she follows the vague movement...
In the humming cockpit of the "Nosferatu," Captain Kan-chiang wonders about Cyberreyn and her preparedness in the real world. "She has the potential," he says silently to himself, "but lacks the drive, the spark, the purpose..." He presses a more few buttons. "She must be tested... sooner than later..."
Suddenly, the bright indicator flashes and loud klaxon blasts pierce his senses. A security alert!
Hitch, the first officer and senior operator above Flicker, scrambles up the ladder, the creased bill of his orange cap turned from forward to back to avoid hitting the rungs. "What's the situation, Captain?" Hitch calls.
"Three Sentinels," Kan-chiang responds, bringing up the central holographic display. "Behind us... maybe three minutes... and closing."
"Any side entrances, pockets, places to shut down?" Sky, as second officer, jumps into the third seat of the cockpit.
"Uhh, let me see..." Hitch turns to one of his display screens, punches a few keys, "Yes! The tunnel splits into a major and minor branch up ahead... about... three or four minutes away."
"Dammit!" Sky curses. "It's gonna be close."
"We can do it," the captain reassures her. Peering ahead down the spinning tunnel, Kan-chiang weighs his options. In three or so minutes, the junction will appear, as will the Sentinels. The laser cannons don't have a chance of deactivating the machines, but they may delay them. If he can delay the Sentinels, he may have additional time to shut down the hovercraft, and release the electro-magnetic pulse. Or he may not.
But he does have one card he didn't have before -- the digital human 'Nos,' the hovercraft 'Nosferatu' himself. Was this the time... to test her... to test Cyberreyn?
"Hitchhiker," he turns his brown eyes to his first officer. "Get Sky and Cyberreyn ready. I think it's time."
"Time for what?" Sky's emerald eyes widen in realization. "You mean... the Cockpit Construct? But we haven't completed all of the tests. There's still some glitches with 'Nos'--"
"I understand, Sky," the captain nods. "We have several paths before us. It is best to be prepared for as many as we can anticipate."
His words seem to both soothe and pierce her still skeptical soul.
Sensing the familiar energy signature of a hovercraft, the Sentinels correct their trajectories to intercept its fleeing electro-mechanical prey. Assuming a triangular formation, the three tentacled-bullets streak through the wide-sweeping twists and turns of the sparsely-lit passageway.
Their appendages undulating according to specific mathematical formulae, two of the multi-eyed machines focus on their sole mission: Seek and destroy. However, the third machine experiences an improbable electronic sensation... a pulse or flash... a spark verging on desire...
Hitch easily hoists and hurls his muscular mass down the ladder. But upon landing, he sees the unconscious form of Cyberreyn lying upon the cold metal deck halfway up the hallway. With his focused rush up to the cockpit, he hadn't noticed her there before. "Cy!" he calls, hurrying to her.
Quickly, Sky slides down the ladder, and sees the two of them. "Hitch! What happened?"
"I don't know!" He brushes away the short black bangs from Cyberreyn's forehead, blood trailing down her left brow.
"Did she fall?" Sky demands.
"I don't know!"
"Dammit!" she adds, cursing the changed plans. Then amidst the emergency, from the corner of her eye, Sky notices a strange shadow flitting down the pipe-covered hallway. "What was that?" she asks.
"What was WHAT?" Hitch replies.
Choose Path B2B1A for Sky to forget the shadow; inform the captain about Cy; they need a new plan.
Choose Path B2B1B for Sky to pursue the shadow; tell Hitch to inform the captain about the shadow and Cy; they need a new plan.
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