----- Chapter 12 : What Lies Beneath ------
Bernie let out a sigh. The spa's bubbles working their magic on his aching muscles. The others had made their way to the Guild bar, no doubt to brag and regale the less fortunate with tales of their heroism. He let his mind drift back to recount the events that had passed that day.
After the unpleasant incident with Ash they had discovered the entrance to the Monitor Room was just a short walk further on. The doors were locked but a combination of hacking efforts from Eric and the kid soon overwhelmed it with ease. The doors slid open with a whoosh to reveal a circular room.
The four of them entered the room and spaced themselves out. The lights were set low, like they were running on emergency power and none of the monitors displayed any data even though it was obvious that electricity flowed to them. Each of them found an appropriate terminal and attempted to extract whatever useful information they could or tried to find a way of shutting down the robot defence system.
The sound of the outer door slamming shut startled them all.
"Okay, that wasn't me." Joked Eventide nervously.
The lights dimmed out to be replaced with flashing red lights and an alarm sufficiently loud enough to annoy all those trapped inside.
"Try to find a way to get that door open." Bernie commanded.
Sarunakai nodded and headed to the door with Eric in tow. They stopped in their tracks when all the monitors came to life and a sinister robot visage appeared on one at the far end of the room.
Bernie had picked up some details on what this new-found danger might possibly be. "Vol Opt." He whispered under his breath.
The face proceeded to move around the room as if the owner was walking. When it finally came to a halt the monitors simultaneously switched off leaving them in red flashing darkness. There was a mechanical whirr and a Maser Beam generator descended from the ceiling, raining bolt after bolt of lightning upon the hapless quartet.
When the barrage had stopped Bernie peeped from his hiding place to see Vol Opt's face begin its march once more. He decided they should act immediately.
"Trash the place!" He shouted.
They did not need to be asked twice. Within moments the monitors and desks inside the room had been reduced to burning debris, the Maser Beam generator crackling and sparking after getting a taste of its own medicine courtesy of Sarunakai's Gizonde technique. They would not have an opportunity to celebrate victory for long as the entire room shook as if in the thrall of a strong earthquake.
Beyond that it had become somewhat of a blur. From the ceiling had descended Vol Opt's physical body. It was a conversion of the old LandCrawler tank hulls. Its imposing bulk filled the room leaving them almost pressed against the remains of the outer wall. With all the noise, Bernie had almost missed the sound of the outer door opening once more. Through the smoke and sparks he could barely make out the silhouette of a Hunter.
The battle was fierce and in truth there was no way they could have defeated Vol Opt had it not been for the miraculous intervention of that Hunter. Despite Vol Opt's formidable size, strength and armaments it was no match for the five of them.
Bernie lounged contentedly in the hot tub. A new exit had made itself available upon Vol Opt's demise. A secret tunnel connected the Monitor Room to some kind of underground door. A gateway to the Ruins of a lost civilisation. So the people of Coral where not alone in the universe.
But this left more questions than it answered, why had the people of Pioneer One kept it secret? Did this have anything to do with the mysterious explosion at the Central Dome? The answer to these questions might very well lie within those underground Ruins. It looked like Bernie would be called to action once more.
He sank deeper into the hot bubbling water. Just ten more Beats.
-----
Sue scanned the news-feed looking for something in particular. She did not have to wait long. Her eyes fixed on the headline 'Sewer Worker Attacked by Giant Rat'. She browsed through the article for the information she needed. Task complete she set off back to the Hospital.
Bernie let out a sigh. The spa's bubbles working their magic on his aching muscles. The others had made their way to the Guild bar, no doubt to brag and regale the less fortunate with tales of their heroism. He let his mind drift back to recount the events that had passed that day.
After the unpleasant incident with Ash they had discovered the entrance to the Monitor Room was just a short walk further on. The doors were locked but a combination of hacking efforts from Eric and the kid soon overwhelmed it with ease. The doors slid open with a whoosh to reveal a circular room.
The four of them entered the room and spaced themselves out. The lights were set low, like they were running on emergency power and none of the monitors displayed any data even though it was obvious that electricity flowed to them. Each of them found an appropriate terminal and attempted to extract whatever useful information they could or tried to find a way of shutting down the robot defence system.
The sound of the outer door slamming shut startled them all.
"Okay, that wasn't me." Joked Eventide nervously.
The lights dimmed out to be replaced with flashing red lights and an alarm sufficiently loud enough to annoy all those trapped inside.
"Try to find a way to get that door open." Bernie commanded.
Sarunakai nodded and headed to the door with Eric in tow. They stopped in their tracks when all the monitors came to life and a sinister robot visage appeared on one at the far end of the room.
Bernie had picked up some details on what this new-found danger might possibly be. "Vol Opt." He whispered under his breath.
The face proceeded to move around the room as if the owner was walking. When it finally came to a halt the monitors simultaneously switched off leaving them in red flashing darkness. There was a mechanical whirr and a Maser Beam generator descended from the ceiling, raining bolt after bolt of lightning upon the hapless quartet.
When the barrage had stopped Bernie peeped from his hiding place to see Vol Opt's face begin its march once more. He decided they should act immediately.
"Trash the place!" He shouted.
They did not need to be asked twice. Within moments the monitors and desks inside the room had been reduced to burning debris, the Maser Beam generator crackling and sparking after getting a taste of its own medicine courtesy of Sarunakai's Gizonde technique. They would not have an opportunity to celebrate victory for long as the entire room shook as if in the thrall of a strong earthquake.
Beyond that it had become somewhat of a blur. From the ceiling had descended Vol Opt's physical body. It was a conversion of the old LandCrawler tank hulls. Its imposing bulk filled the room leaving them almost pressed against the remains of the outer wall. With all the noise, Bernie had almost missed the sound of the outer door opening once more. Through the smoke and sparks he could barely make out the silhouette of a Hunter.
The battle was fierce and in truth there was no way they could have defeated Vol Opt had it not been for the miraculous intervention of that Hunter. Despite Vol Opt's formidable size, strength and armaments it was no match for the five of them.
Bernie lounged contentedly in the hot tub. A new exit had made itself available upon Vol Opt's demise. A secret tunnel connected the Monitor Room to some kind of underground door. A gateway to the Ruins of a lost civilisation. So the people of Coral where not alone in the universe.
But this left more questions than it answered, why had the people of Pioneer One kept it secret? Did this have anything to do with the mysterious explosion at the Central Dome? The answer to these questions might very well lie within those underground Ruins. It looked like Bernie would be called to action once more.
He sank deeper into the hot bubbling water. Just ten more Beats.
-----
Sue scanned the news-feed looking for something in particular. She did not have to wait long. Her eyes fixed on the headline 'Sewer Worker Attacked by Giant Rat'. She browsed through the article for the information she needed. Task complete she set off back to the Hospital.