Astronomicon: Behemoth

Chapter 21 - Alien Technology

The left-hand plinth was precisely the same shape as the right. The lifting dome had left a very faint, swirling trail of white vapour which cleared in seconds.

"Does that look safe to you?" asked Megan.

"That depends on what it's doing," he chuckled.

"Maybe it's done whatever it's supposed to do?" she suggested.

"I want to get my laser mapper back."

"Is it still in there?"

"Stay here, I'm going to move back and have a look," he replied as he shuffled cautiously forwards.

Megan held her breath as he again approached the right-hand plinth. After a few moments, a red icon appeared on the display projected on the inside of her visor to denote a lack of breathing activity detected. Aron got right up to the plinth without anything else happening.

"My mapper's still there!" he reported happily.

"Don't touch it!"

"How am I going to get it back then?"

"Use your telescopic pole to poke it out," she suggested.

"That's not going to be easy," he replied. "Hang on. There's something in the other one too."

"There is? What?"

She wanted to tell him not to move closer to the left plinth but curiosity was getting the better of her. Aron sidestepped across to it and peered into the concave bowl in the top. Instead of telling her what he could see, he simply continued to stare in silence.

Megan waited impatiently for a couple of seconds then said, "Aron, what is it?"

"I think I know roughly what this is," he replied immediately then, before she could object, he reached into the right plinth and scooped up his mapper. He stepped closer to the left one and reached into that too.

"What are you doing!" she shouted into the radio.

"Look at this!" he exclaimed, turning and walking back to her.

Behind him, the left-hand dome silently swung down and closed. Looking pleased, he held up his mapper in one hand and what appeared to be another mapper, this time in black, in the other. Megan peered at the new scanner and realised that it was formed from the same black material as the walls, floor and ceiling, and pretty much everything else in this place.

"It's made a copy of your mapper?"

"Looks perfect in every detail."

Aron put the original device back onto his belt and then turned his attention to the new version. After carefully rotating it in his gloved fingers and prodding at the few controls, he looked disappointed.

"It doesn't work?" she asked.

"No," he shook his head. "It's completely inert as far as I can tell."

"So, this is a machine for making dead copies of items?"

"Looks that way," he shrugged.

"Does the original mapper still work?"

"It was switched on when the lid came down and it was still on when I picked it up again. However, it scans the object in the bowl, it doesn't seem to harm it."

"Is that any use to us?"

"Not in any way I can think of," he replied, "Maybe if we need to copy mechanical components?"

"Maybe things with no moving or active parts?"

"Like very small furniture?" he chuckled.

"It's probably worth experimenting with it. It's a pity it makes a copy in that black stuff. It would have been great to find something that copies our food in a form we can eat."