A.N: No more Wednesday posts, I'm afraid; I've about caught up with the actual story - I'm working on part 3 of this chapter at the moment.
9.i. Descent into Darkness
The next morning Gerald returned to his attempts to reprogram the Gizoid, giving up his search for the missing data. He still had periodic flashes of fury at GUN's betrayal, but was unable to decide on a suitable - and feasible - revenge. All he could think of at the moment was to continue trying to program the Gizoid with an emotion-based artificial intelligence designed to emulate Maria's heart and soul. Removing the Gizoid from GUN's use was weak vengeance, but it was the best he could come up with. Just before noon he got a call from the Receiving Area, informing him of an impending delivery in the Weapons Stores.
Puzzled by what sort of weapon would have been sent to him - and who would have sent it - he dutifully made his way down to the designated area, though he found himself tensing at the sight of every soldier with a holstered handgun. As usual, the actual arrival of the shipment was a bit delayed, but finally the elevator on the far side of the room could be heard descending. Then the doors slid open and a large cylindrical container was trundled out on a forklift.
Gerald's breath caught in his throat. That's– It can't be, surely...can it?
It was. The forklift deposited its cargo and retreated, the elevator doors closed and were locked, and Gerald was given permission to advance. He moved forward in a sort of daze, walking in a complete circle around the object before positioning himself by the door at the bottom. At least, it had been the bottom when the cylinder stood in his lab. Though the once-clear sides were now opaque from the heat of re-entry, the ID stamped on the exit hatch had survived: ARK ResLab 16342GR. The question was whether Shadow was still inside; it had been nearly two months now since the alleged accident.
But as Gerald moved to unseal the hatch, a soldier stopped him. "You can't open it sir, not until the transport gets here. I'm sorry, but those are the orders: the pod is not to be opened for any reason until the permanent stasis bed is in proximity."
"Can't open it? But if Sh- if the Project: Shadow specimen is still in there, it could be in serious need of fluids and nutrition by now!" It hurt to speak of Shadow as a thing, but he realized that if they knew how much he cared for the hedgehog, he would not be permitted access to him at all. "Are you willing to jeopardize a high-level experiment just because-"
"The experiment is not at risk Professor," cut in the commander's voice, smoothly. As he stepped into the room behind Gerald, he continued, "The pod's contents were placed in stasis as soon as it landed, so the creature is in no worse need of food and water than it was when it escaped the ARK.
"I realize that you were the primary researcher involved, but considering your attachment to your granddaughter are you certain that you wish to continue work on the project?"
Gerald frowned slightly. "I'm sorry? I don't see what my love for Maria has to do with working on the project."
The commander raised an eyebrow. "I would find it difficult to work with a creature that was responsible for the death of so many, especially someone I 'loved'. You must be a much more forgiving man than I."
Gerald suppressed a surge of rage at the reminder of their lies. That and the commander's inflection of 'loved', as if he doubted that Gerald had really cared for Maria. It wasn't Shadow who took Maria from me, he snarled mentally. Aloud he said only, "I just hate to leave an experiment unfinished. Obviously something went wrong and I need to discover what is was so I can correct it and prevent recurrence." He kept his face as bland and expressionless as possible as the commander eyed him narrowly.
Evidently deciding it would be to GUN's advantage to have the expert continue to work on Project: Shadow, the commander acquiesced. Turning to the attending soldiers, he gave his orders: "Escort the pod to the stasis chamber as soon as the transport arrives. Professor Gerald will accompany you. He is to transfer the creature to the permanent stasis bed and verify its condition." He looked at Gerald, "You will do no more than that today. Any further work on the creature will have to wait until it is properly processed." The commander turned and stalked out of the room as the soldiers saluted.
Gerald seethed inwardly at being ordered about like a menial, but at least he would be permitted to retain contact with Shadow. He waited with the escort for the transport to arrive, watched carefully as the pod was loaded onto it, then followed with the rest as the laden vehicle trundled to the stasis chamber. He was well aware that the soldiers were watching him more than the pod, but ignored the fact. He could do nothing about it, and anyway, his main concern at the moment was the pod and its occupant. He masked his impatience as the escape capsule was hoisted and lowered (though he couldn't conceal his flinch as it thudded solidly against the ground) and advanced on the pod before they'd even gotten the chains detached.
The occupant - a single dokan, by the readings - was alive but in stasis. No injuries or abnormalities had been detected by the pod during landing. Gerald pulled himself away from the pod long enough to set up one of the stasis beds, which looked very like the artificial womb in which Shadow had been grown - he flinched again as the comparison called up memories of Maria peering in with him at the infant Shadow, which inexorably steered his thoughts through his learning of her death, the flare of false hope, and that fatal security tape.
Blip, bleeip. The bed was ready. He shook himself, trying to focus, how many times had it chirped at him? He darted a glance at the soldiers as he silenced the ready signal and keyed for the doors to open; they didn't seem to have noticed anything out of the ordinary. With the tube standing open, he adjusted the height slightly - most dokan were short, but they were all heavy compared to humans of equivalent size, and Shadow was no exception. Then he returned to the escape pod and finally permitted himself to run through the opening sequence.
The escape pods were fairly easy to open from inside, but they were much more complicated to access from the outside. But the air was breathable, the temperature good, the occupant uninjured (Thank heavens, thought Gerald), although still in stasis - the pod accepted his release codes and the base of the capsule swung away, allowing entrance. Huddled there amid the restraint fields was a motionless red-and-black ball of quills and fur that somehow radiated grief. Gerald reached in and took hold; detecting that the weight of the occupant was supported, the restraint fields cut out. The stasis effect had been cut off as soon as the doors had been opened, but would take half an hour or so to wear off. Gerald braced himself as the full seventy-seven pounds of hedgehog suddenly rested on his arms, and drew the limp body closer for easier carrying. He walked over to the stasis bed and carefully lay Project: Shadow within it, positioning the dark form so that Shadow lay on his back with his hands folded across his waist.
Gerald stepped back from the tube as the soldiers moved forward, ready to escort him back to his room now that he'd carried out the commander's instructions. A few moments ago he might have argued, or even tried to awaken Shadow before they could stop him, but suddenly he wasn't sure he was ready to face the hedgehog. It wasn't Shadow's fault, it was in no way Shadow's fault that Maria was dead...but this creature in the tube before him was the last person to have seen her alive, and had left her to die alone...and had been the reason for the attack that had killed her. He abruptly turned his back on the stasis tube and its immobile occupant and returned to his quarters with rapid strides that nearly left the soldiers behind. Once safely "home", he crawled into bed and pulled the covers over his head, wishing he could simply wake up and find himself back on the ARK, with Maria and Shadow waiting to greet him.