Read Online A Memory in the Black (The New Aeneid Cycle) by Michael G. Munz - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Michael G. Munz
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is an alien computer. So much of my analysis involves guesswork that I can't be sure of anything. Did the A.I. target Nick and Namura specifically when it saw them copying data, or was it completely automatic? I don't know."
"And what about your — What is it? Gut feeling?"
"There's too many variables to consider. I can't be certain."
Marette straightened. "Nothing is certain, Marc. If you had to pick, which would it be?"
He started to protest again, but then recalled the sudden change in readings right before the surge and the uneasy feeling he'd had while monitoring the matrix. "It felt like a trap. In hindsight, I mean. It was testing us as we were testing it. It didn't move on us until we'd managed anything beyond a distraction. I don't think the attack was automated. Good news, in a way."
"You refer to the hope that it may be reasoned with?" It was a topic the Agents of Aeneas had once discussed that, if possible, might spare them the difficulty of having to decipher or deactivate the entire system.
"Yeah. You sound skeptical."
"I t would be a great help if it were possible, Marc, but I am not optimistic. When the first team entered the structure, it made no attempt to reason with them. I stood by and watched that first drone slaughter them all. It appeared. It killed them." Her fists clenched. "That was it."
Marc watched the pain twist in the shadows behind her eyes. And Elsa thought her unfeeling?
"Namura's sacrifice bought us two terabytes of data," she whispered. "We will make that count."
"You got a copy for us? I hope there's something in there we can use."
"There will be."
The hard look she fixed him with made Marc realize how much she needed it to be true. He saw Namura's lifeless body slumped over her rig and realized how much he needed it to be, too.
"I ought to speak with the others now." Marette stood and drew a deep breath. Marc stood with her.
"Ah, it might work best to talk to Nick or Gunther or Elsa first. Make them wait that much longer before they can try anything."
"I will speak to Elsa first. Do your best to keep them from acting further." She straightened her uniform.
"I really don't think they'll go without a fo urth, but I'll keep trying to make sure. Good luck with Elsa."
" Oui , and you. I do not believe she has any love for either of us now." She moved to the doorway, but turned back to him rather than key it open. "Marc, I am sorry to have gotten angry with you. I—" She paused, her eyes searching his. For just a moment she reached for him, but then stopped and withdrew the gesture before he could respond. "I am sorry."
He nodded, welcoming the apology but suddenly unsure of what to say or do. Their gaze held for a time before she opened the door, and was gone.
Marette heard the door close as she strode down the corridor. Her impulse had been to touch him somehow. A kiss. An embrace. Some form of physical comfort. But it was her grief to deal with. Marc's was only a transient presence, especially given the day's events. She must not get used to relying on anyone but herself.
Merde .
Chapter 9
Under normal circumstances , Felix viewed a mystery like a kid viewed a Christmas present: an exquisite package of surprises of which the unwrapping was nearly as enjoyable as the contents themselves. Though he also made a passable living finding things out, it was the hunt, the discovery, and the challenge that drove him.
But these weren't normal circumstances. Indeed, if anyone but Caitlin had told him that Gideon could still be alive, he might have felt that same rush of anticipation. To hear it from her left him unsettled.
S he couldn't talk long when she first called, and so they had agreed to meet in a couple of hours. Felix occupied his mind in the time between with not only the miniscule probability that the vigilante yet lived, but how his survival might affect Caitlin. Six months ago, her grief for Gideon was mixed with relief that he was gone. The combination had
"And what about your — What is it? Gut feeling?"
"There's too many variables to consider. I can't be certain."
Marette straightened. "Nothing is certain, Marc. If you had to pick, which would it be?"
He started to protest again, but then recalled the sudden change in readings right before the surge and the uneasy feeling he'd had while monitoring the matrix. "It felt like a trap. In hindsight, I mean. It was testing us as we were testing it. It didn't move on us until we'd managed anything beyond a distraction. I don't think the attack was automated. Good news, in a way."
"You refer to the hope that it may be reasoned with?" It was a topic the Agents of Aeneas had once discussed that, if possible, might spare them the difficulty of having to decipher or deactivate the entire system.
"Yeah. You sound skeptical."
"I t would be a great help if it were possible, Marc, but I am not optimistic. When the first team entered the structure, it made no attempt to reason with them. I stood by and watched that first drone slaughter them all. It appeared. It killed them." Her fists clenched. "That was it."
Marc watched the pain twist in the shadows behind her eyes. And Elsa thought her unfeeling?
"Namura's sacrifice bought us two terabytes of data," she whispered. "We will make that count."
"You got a copy for us? I hope there's something in there we can use."
"There will be."
The hard look she fixed him with made Marc realize how much she needed it to be true. He saw Namura's lifeless body slumped over her rig and realized how much he needed it to be, too.
"I ought to speak with the others now." Marette stood and drew a deep breath. Marc stood with her.
"Ah, it might work best to talk to Nick or Gunther or Elsa first. Make them wait that much longer before they can try anything."
"I will speak to Elsa first. Do your best to keep them from acting further." She straightened her uniform.
"I really don't think they'll go without a fo urth, but I'll keep trying to make sure. Good luck with Elsa."
" Oui , and you. I do not believe she has any love for either of us now." She moved to the doorway, but turned back to him rather than key it open. "Marc, I am sorry to have gotten angry with you. I—" She paused, her eyes searching his. For just a moment she reached for him, but then stopped and withdrew the gesture before he could respond. "I am sorry."
He nodded, welcoming the apology but suddenly unsure of what to say or do. Their gaze held for a time before she opened the door, and was gone.
Marette heard the door close as she strode down the corridor. Her impulse had been to touch him somehow. A kiss. An embrace. Some form of physical comfort. But it was her grief to deal with. Marc's was only a transient presence, especially given the day's events. She must not get used to relying on anyone but herself.
Merde .
Chapter 9
Under normal circumstances , Felix viewed a mystery like a kid viewed a Christmas present: an exquisite package of surprises of which the unwrapping was nearly as enjoyable as the contents themselves. Though he also made a passable living finding things out, it was the hunt, the discovery, and the challenge that drove him.
But these weren't normal circumstances. Indeed, if anyone but Caitlin had told him that Gideon could still be alive, he might have felt that same rush of anticipation. To hear it from her left him unsettled.
S he couldn't talk long when she first called, and so they had agreed to meet in a couple of hours. Felix occupied his mind in the time between with not only the miniscule probability that the vigilante yet lived, but how his survival might affect Caitlin. Six months ago, her grief for Gideon was mixed with relief that he was gone. The combination had
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