Copper Rain

Copper Rain Part 13

The Present

Yeah, so free floating in space is not quite the blast they make it out to be in the ephemerals. Especially when you have a giant space refinery zipping by. Those buggers have all sorts of masts and towers and gantries and generally pointy shit spiking out from their surface. If we even glance one of these protuberances, then we're going to turn into human space kebab.

Off in the distance I see the glimmer of the nano-diamond cable that links the geosynchronous station to its anchor point down on Heladon. Calling it a cable is not exactly accurate, as it's really two giant shafts within which the elevators flow up and down with freight and personnel. It's our job to get into the loading lobby, penetrate the highly secure elevator car and ride it down to planetside. Of course, we're going to have to get some help here—we can't do all the heavy lifting.

I nudge on the comms. "Having fun?"

"Not my first spacewalk, cowboy."

"Yeah, about that, I'm still not getting any memories of where you fit in."

"You're not the only one who wants out of the Skulkers," Zoie replies.

"So you're hitching yourself to Titus's star. What are you, his corporeal transportation system, making sure he can go from place to place?

"Fuck you, Tarq. You never were too good on the people side."

"So educate me."

I'm feeling this is an odd conversation to be having while linked arm-in-arm, hurtling through space. My home planet is laid out beneath me, the blue greens of the oceans contrasting sharply with the rust-red soil that covers most of the continents. The bright white of the polar caps are dazzling, and from this vantage point, Heladon looks a lot like super-sized version Old Earth before the environment was all fucked up.

"You never wanted to do this," she starts. "You thought there were better alternatives."

"What is this?" I ask, pretending I understand the conversations starting point.

"The actual mission. I don't fully know, no one does, except maybe Titus."

"Still not getting it."

"The tetracap cards, the four of you found something, on a covert operation. Then you locked it away."

"But, I don't remember what it was. Why can't I remember?"

"You were mem-wiped before we double tanked. Mission specifics from the operation were altered."

"I was mem-wiped? By who?"

"According to Titus, the four of you did it to yourselves."

"On Xyon City?"

"No idea. All I know is you stuffed something in a space bin, locked it up hard, and then forgot all about it."

"That's not everything," I tell her.

"What'd I miss?"

"Titus, he died for this."

"He died, and before that he gave me the key."

"That would explain why we never found it. So what's you deal Zoie?"

She's got to be up to something. She's handling this transit through space like a vet. She's wet-wired with gear that civilian's don't have access to. And the Titus I remember doesn't get anyone involved in anything unless there's an excellent reason.