Chapter 4

"Such devastation," Rose said, her voice caught in her throat. Any excitement left over from her flight to DC evaporated, replaced with a knot twisting her stomach.

The alien attack had reduced the once mighty city to a shambled mess. Monuments once cherished by millions of visitors were smashed beyond any recognizability. Rose thanked God the Altair had focused more on destroying government buildings rather than residential areas. It was a cruel reminder that the Altair weren't blind beasts. They were aiming to dismantle her entire country!

Rose's hand trembled with pent-up fury, imagining the terrible death toll. "You'll pay for this, Altair! Let's go, Luyten V."

A crashing sound caught her attention as they wandered DC, followed by an inhuman roar of fury. It wasn't hard to locate its source. Bombers zipped pass the Altair, each sleek craft unloading their entire payload. They attacked with their full destructive might, heedless of the damage it might cause to the nearby Capitol Building. Rose hoped everyone had evacuated to safety. While each detonation caused a ripple in its leathery hide, they inflicted only superficial damage. It astonished Rose that anything could survive such a bombardment so easily.

The shark monster's baleful eyes glared at the fighter jets, opening its mouth to unleash a torrent of acidic breath. Rose watched in horror as anything touched by the acid melted through in seconds. While a few ejected in time, most pilots crashed to a fiery demise.

"Why you!" Heedless of the danger, Rose charged forward. The monster was caught by surprise by her reckless charge, making a satisfying crunch as Luyten's fist connected. The creature stumbled back, dazed.

"Ha! Bet you didn't like that!" Rose said, preparing for a follow-up attack.

But the monster recovered quickly, leaping back away from the incoming punch. It snarled, opening its mouth to reveal rows of needle-like teeth. A green substance dripped from its gaping jaw. The cars beneath melted into metal sludge in seconds. Instead of another spray of acidic mist, a long tongue lashed out to grab Luyten V's arm. Rose moved to jerk away, but she hadn't been quick enough. The robot's arm sizzled as the tongue wrapped around its left arm, its acidic saliva already doing its deadly work.

"Let go!" Rose tried ripping Luyten V free, but the monster dragged her robot forward. Luyten V's fist smacked hard against the tongue restraining it, but each blow was futile, bouncing off its rubbery tongue. Rose's heart raced as the acidic appendage dragged her closer to the monster's waiting jaws.

"This thing is much stronger than the last Altair!" Distracted by her impending destruction, she almost missed the sudden call on her comm.

"Rose, is that you?" Sandage asked.

"Sorry, but I'm rather busy at the moment." The street underneath Luyten V's feet was getting totaled as she continued her attempt to create distance between her and the deadly maw. An empty street venture crumbled as her robot's toe connected with it. 

She clicked the button to activate Luyten V's head laser, aiming it at the monster's heart. But the Altair was crazy fast, leaping away to avoid the worst damage. Pixelation oozed from its singed head tail, but the injury only made the monster more determined to snap Luyten V in half with its massive jaw. Stupid, she should have aimed for the tongue restraining her instead.

"I think we can help," Sandage said. "We've discovered some of Luyten V's functions."

"Really?" Rose said, fighting against the control stick as the monster pulled her closer. Unfortunately, the gem laser took time to recharge, she doubted she had the time to burn to wait for it to be ready again.

"At your right is a sequence of five buttons. Click them 2, 4, and 1," Sandage said. "That feature should turn the odds."

"Um, okay," Rose repeated his instructions, praying this would work. With a rumble, the Luyten V charged with incredible power. Steam shot from the vents around its neck, creating a cloud of white. The robot's inner temperature spiked, its overclocked system pushing its operation past its limits. The cooling system worked overtime, so the Luyten V didn't burn out its own innards.

"Yeah, I like this!" A fist crumpled the monster's thick scales like they were a styrofoam cup, the monster releasing her in its pained gasp. She wailed at the monster harder, reducing its pixelated face to a ruined mess.

In desperation, it opened its mouth to hurl a cloud of acid into Luyten V's face. But Rose predicted it might try this, grabbing the edges of both sides and rending them apart with astounding force. The maneuver almost tore the beast in half with Luyten V's impossible strength. An alarm interrupted Rose's victorious cheer. A gauge showed that Luyten V was dangerously hot. Only minutes remained until she'd got cooked alive inside her cockpit. She needed to finish this monstrosity right away.

A dangerous, shark-like smile extended across Rose's mouth as she prepared to finish the monster off. Luyten V extended its arm back before thrusting a fist forward. It grabbed the half-fusion remains of the Altair's head as it tried repairing itself. Pixelatized goop bled from its ruined head as she squeezed.

"Dynaspike!" The sharp appendage erupted from the other side of the monster's head. It flailed as Luyten V unleashed its energy payload into it. For a moment a few wisps of pixels remained until they vanished into nothing.

"Phew. I did it!" Rose leaned back in her seat, relieved. Her eyes bulged at the mess Luyten V's overclock mode did to the surrounding streets. Its heat had melted concrete like butter, leaving a gray pool under Luyten V's feet. Nearby buildings that had survived the Altair's rampage had gotten reduced to charred cinders. Her robot's destructive power was terrifying. She hoped the people in those buildings had escaped to safety. She'd need to be more careful next time.

"Next time?" Was she really considering piloting Luyten V yet again? Her Mom would kill her for even considering it.

"Good work, Rose," Sandage said, interrupting her reverie. "The target has been eliminated."

Rose nodded. "Just give me a few minutes. The Luyten V is still running hot."

"Understood. We'll have someone ready to retrieve you," the FBI man said. "Thank you. You saved America from losing its greatest asset. DC isn't only a city but a symbol of the USA's strength and stability. You'll be happy to know both the President and the Senate escaped unharmed."

"Is that why the Altair targeted it?"

Sandage's voice turned grim. "It might be. This attack may have been only to test our strength and soften us up."

"Is it too much to hope its failure will make them reconsider attacking?" Sandage's silence spoke volumes. Rose only sighed. "Figures. We're in it for the long haul." And it was her job to fix this. Rose trembled from the weight of her mind-boggling responsibility. She just hoped she was capable of pulling it off.

---

"I understand. I'll get to it," Sandage said before clicking off his phone. He ran a hand through his hair, thinking.

"Not good news, I imagine?" Gamow asked, playing with his toothpick between his teeth.

"No, the opposite. They've pushed the bill through the Senate. We're part of the LUVOLT now."

"Sorry?"

"Luyten V Operation and Logistics Team," Sandage clarified. "We're in charge of maintaining Luyten V and researching its capabilities. Make another if possible. Scientists all across the globe are already arriving to help. The politicians are pushing for the LUVOLT to be a global effort. Heck, even Russia is throwing in its support."

Gamow offered a shrug. "The world is at stake. They can't deny the Altair's existence now with DC in ruins. Heck, Moscow might be next." 

The current estimate is that over 140,000 people died in the DC attack. The rescue crews were still searching through the rubble, with the casualties expected to climb even higher. This made the attack three times worse than the German Blitz in WW2 against the UK. He suppressed a shudder, wondering how many people would die once the real monsters appeared?

"What now? Use the young lady as our secret weapon against the Altair?" Gamow asked. "She's the only one who can fight."

"Don't remind me," Sandage said, scowling. How had it come to this? The entire world was on her shoulders, an unenviable position for anyone. Rose was an emotionally unstable preteen. If she cracked from the pressure, they'd all lose. Sandage howled in impotent rage, kicking aside a nearby chair.

"Woah. Remind me to never get on your bad side," Gamow said, unsettled by Sandage's loss of composure.

"Just. Come up with alternatives. See if you can find some way to trick Luyten V into thinking someone else is Rose," Sandage said, somewhat embarrassed by his outburst. Talk about unprofessional.

"Now that's an idea," Gamow said, stroking his chin. "Don't change the lock, but create a skeleton key. Let's hope we can actually fool Luyten V. It's pretty smart."

"Um, is this the right place?" A nebbish voice said. While the small man glanced around like a rat fleeing a hunting cat, his piercing green eyes shone with intense intelligence.

"Ah, Doctor von Fraunhofer," Sandage said, taking the man's hand. Despite his diminutive appearance, his grip was firm. "Pleased to have you join us."

"Your call surprised me." The scientist glanced around and whistled appreciatively. "Quite the setup you have here." He smiled as he spotted a familiar face reading through some data files. "Isn't that Doctor Hubble? I haven't seen him since college! And I recognize other faces here. Quite a collection of minds."

"The best the world can offer." Their science staff had tripled since the DC attack, with each nation offering its best to solve the ongoing crisis. While Doctor von Fraunhofer was more fringe than Sandage liked, they couldn't afford to throw anyone away.

"And a child piloted this? Remarkable that she could control such advanced tech." Fraunhofer parroted another lie they'd spread around. The official story was that a rogue agent in the US government developed the Luyten V. However, everyone involved in the project had either died or disappeared, leaving them with only difficult-to-understand blueprints. It was a convoluted lie, but nobody wanted to admit Luyten V's true origins. 

Fraunhofer asked to examine the blueprints, and Gamow pulled up the info. He adjusted his thick spectacles and traced a line across the screen. "These points here seem like some sort of nervous system."

"That's what Doctor Gold said," Sandage replied. "We've seen nothing like it. He called it disturbingly human-like."

"It is." Fraunhofer pointed at the chest. "And this is its primary power source. What is it? Nuclear?"

Sandage winced. "We aren't sure. It generates power. But the how and why are unknown. It doesn't even seem to produce any waste." If they could replicate this, humanity would have the perfect clean energy source.

"Do we have any samples of the Altair?" Fraunhofer said, suddenly changing the subject.

"We do." It'd been quite the mess to keep it contained. The alien substance ate everything. Only certain polycarbonates seemed to resist its odd absorbing effects.

"The wretched stuff got spread around when that Altair drone attacked. Thankfully, we already knew about its dangerous properties and quickly contained them." Gamow added.

"Already? Expert foresight on your case." This earned a raised eyebrow from Fraunhofer.

Sandage cursed. The ex-hacker spoke too much. He quickly changed the subject. "Are you proposing a direct connection between Luyten V's design and the Altair?"

"Luyten V's heart's biochemistry is unusual, unlike anything I've ever seen before. It's silicon-based, not carbon. I'm curious if the Altair shares similar properties."

"They do," Sandage said, his voice halting as he spoke. Did the German doctor suspect something? Oh, well. They couldn't afford to walk on eggshells with the stakes so high. "But a possible connection with the Luyten V is interesting. Our data on the Altair is still incomplete, however."

Since the Altair cells were so hazardous, tests were still in the early stages. Still, the eggheads were eager to compare the future Brahe's data against their own observations.

"It's a pity we don't have a complete specimen. But I recognize the hazards of attempting such a prospect," Fraunhofer said.

"We hope to change that. They're already preparing to capture a live subject." Sandage had argued against it, saying it invited disaster. They ignored his warnings in the name of science, if they even survived to capture one. Luyten V had barely stood against a single adult scout drone. What would happen when they faced the full invasion? It didn't bear thinking about.

"Do you know someone named Macauley, by chance?" Sandage asked.

Fraunhofer froze, a puzzled and guilty look passing over his face. "I might? May I ask why you're asking?"

Sandage crossed his arms, his expression brooking no nonsense. "He's the one who recommended you. What's your connection?"

"Well," Fraunhofer hesitated, taking a deep breath before continuing. "He's a pen pal of mine. Brilliant in ways I can't even begin to explain. He's been an enormous help in my research."

"And what's his email? I'd like to talk with him."

"When I say pen pal, I mean it. We contact each other through snail mail."

Sandage furrowed his brow. He exchanged a quick glance with Gamow. "Like the old-fashioned way?"

The scientist gave an enthusiastic nod. "It's helpful with the various mathematical and chemical theories we like to exchange with each other. The letters are at least fifty pages long."

"His address, then?" Sandage said, pressing the issue. Finally, a solid lead to this mysterious Macauley! The scientist rattled off an address, but it only created further questions. The PO box belonged to someone who lived in the middle-of-nowhere town in Ohio called Rendville. Still, whatever. It was a start.

"Thanks for your help. We can talk more about our mutual friends later. I have some errands to run. Gamow, can you show Fraunhofer around?"

"I'm not a tour guide," the ex-hacker whined, but did as instructed.

In a few minutes, Sandage left the LVTG facility for the highway. His next appointment was almost a hundred miles away. The facility was more innocuous than the makeshift hanger he worked in, a generic military base not unlike the hundred others spread across America. But Sandage knew this facility hid many secrets. 

After showing his ID to the front guard at the checkpoint, they allowed his car inside. It took another verification and a DNA test to allow him inside access.

"Ah, good." A woman in a lab coat said as he entered the high-tech lab. She was young, attractive, but he detected something sterile and stiff about the scientist, like she was putting on a false front of humanity. She was curt as she spoke, like conversation wasted time.

"Agent Sandage, welcome. This way." The scientist gave him a vague wave before turning to leave, not even checking if her guest followed.

"Some welcome," Sandage muttered under his breath before following. They led him down a confusing labyrinth of identical white corridors that he didn't even attempt to map. He wondered if this was on purpose to deter intruders.

"Here is the subject you requested." She rapped at the door. On its surface was subject 4B. "Cecilia, someone is here to see you."

Inside was a cell, but it was more colorful than the antiseptic building she lived in. Hundreds of drawings covered the walls, each of different animals ranging from domesticated pets to wild savanna grazers. They were impressively realistic, almost jumping from the page.

"Hello. It's nice to meet you," the young lady said. Her age was around thirteen. "Um, I don't get many visitors. So, uh, make yourself at home!"

"Hello, Cecilia. It's nice to meet you," Sandage said with his best welcoming smile. The girl was taller than he'd expected, almost reaching his height. While friendly, he detected tension behind the girl's pale eyes. She guided him to a table and sat across from him.

"Sorry about Doctor Burbidge," the girl said, pushing back her long blonde locks from her eyes. She had a button nose, but her facial structure was round and welcoming. Sandage guessed she'd be a beauty in three or four years. Still, there was something about Cecilia. She seemed wiser beyond her year, almost an adult in a child's body. "She's much nicer when you get to know her. Whenever we start a conversation, she almost talks my ears off."

Sandage couldn't imagine that, but appearances often deceived the unwary. "Sorry to bother you, but I needed to see you. It's about a matter of vital importance."

"It's about my abilities. You're hoping they can help pilot the Luyten V." The girl said, startling Sandage.

"What? Did someone leak the reason for my visit?" Sandage said, frowning. "You're right. There are theories that your unusual properties might allow you to trick its recognition system." They couldn't afford for Rose to be the only pilot. They needed a backup, just in case.

"No, no leak. I pulled it from your mind." This really got his attention. The reports said she had unusual abilities, but this was beyond anything he'd expected.

"You can read minds?"

"No, that's impossible," Cecilia replied with a gentle laugh. "The human brain isn't like a book. You can't just open up and read it."

"But…"

"Do you see all these animals?" Cecilia wore a secret smile. "Many are ones I've never seen before, not even in books."

"Okay, you've lost me."

"When they cloned me, they hoped to enhance my abilities. They hoped to create someone beyond normal human restrictions."

"So I've read," Sandage said, peevishly. The scientists who'd done that experiment had done it without the US government or the scientific community's permission. It had left poor Cecilia homeless when the project leaked to the FBI. They'd done their best to accommodate her, but that didn't stop the testing and examination of her unusual properties.

"Scientists are still theorizing how my abilities work. The best way to describe them is they allow me to tap into a universal subconscious. It is a vast library that contains all knowledge across all history. Every word spoken, thought, or written ends up in this library. I can tap into this knowledge, though what I learn is often random and difficult to parse."

Sandage furrowed his brow. "Universal subconscious? Does such a thing exist?"

Cecilia only shrugged. "My creators called it the Akashic Records. It's a wellspring of unbelievable knowledge, including events that haven't happened yet."

"You can read the future?" Sandage could only stare in astonishment.

"Partly. History is in constant flux, even in the past. I know you need me to pilot Luyten V." The girl's expression turned deadly serious. "For I know that in its next battle, its current pilot, Rosemary Brahe, will die."