EDEN: Dark Universe

CHAPTER | TWENTY

"Sir we have a problem..." The hulking synthetic man's attention was now alerted to another console across the room. He scrambled across to the other side, sending a chair crashing into a nearby holo screen projector.

"We don't have problems on this base," Mr. Synthetic said. "It's your job to make sure we don't."

"I know, sir," said a particularly scrawny crewman named Clip. "I'm trying, but—"

"Trying to what?"

"There's something leeching data from our system."

Mr. Synthetic glanced back at the holo-image of Kane on display in the middle of the control room. The one-eyed man smirked and asked, "Everything okay, chief?"

Mr. Synthetic turned to rush back to the holo-call, but Clip grabbed him by the arm. Such a grab would normally be grounds for extermination, but Clip had a coy look in his eyes.

"Keep them talking," he said. "Pretend we're having problems."

Mr. Synthetic nodded and rushed back to the call.

"What are you doing to our systems?" He barked.

"Systems?" Kane asked. "Which ones? Reproductive?"

"For every smart answer you give me, that's one more finger I'm cutting off before I kill you."

"Gross." Kane winced, then thought for a second. "Wait, my fingers, or yours?"

"That's two," Mr. Synthetic said, glancing up at Clip, who held up a finger of his own.

Keep him talking for one more minute.

Mr. Synthetic gave him a subtle nod of acknowledgement.

"Whatever you're trying to do," Mr. Synthetic said, "It won't work. This station is heavily firewalled."

"Oh, you're on a station?" Kane asked.

Mr. Synthetic wanted to kick himself for that little info slip, but played it off as worthless information.

"Congratulations." He groaned. "You're the greatest detective in the universe."

"Actually, it's a multiverse," Kane said.

Mr. Synthetic wasn't sure where that comment came from and didn't care to debate it. He put on a faux frantic face and shouted off-screen. "Cut it off! Break the connection!"

He might have worried someone would take him seriously, but he made it clear the demand was a ploy by shouting it directly at the nearest wall.

Clip, who was sitting on the complete opposite side of the room, played along by shouting urgently.

"I can't!" He was still smirking while he worked away at his control panel.

"Shut the whole station down if you have to!" Mr. Synthetic let out a desperate grunt and rushed off screen a second time, pretending to be panicking but actually just curious about what the hell Clip was up to. He leaned down to his side and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Almost done," Clip said.

"Done with what?" Mr. Synthetic asked. "It better be good."

"You'll see in three, two, one..." He tapped one final button on his controls, and half the systems on the room shut down.

* * *

Of the many wonders Talia was capable of performing—including but not limited to hacking personal implants, causing battleship weaponry to misfire, and plain-old blowing human's minds—riding long-range data streams was perhaps the most fun.