Cath

The Cradle

The muttering spread out through the group. Freyr scanned some of their faces and saw an array of different emotions on display. Some looked afraid, a few looked angry. She pressed on.

“This other entity is called the Hegemon. Another synthetic - the Navigator illustrated how it enslaved biologicals for some purpose. It said the Cradle, and its four…occupants-” She glanced at Marae. “-tried to stop it. That is why we keep witnessing these signs of damage. The Cradle seems to be some kind of transport, and barely escaped. The Navigator appears to be fixing some of that damage now. We’ve all seen the data - even though we’re down to a skeleton crew, productivity is through the roof in there.”

Freyr realised she was gabbling. She didn’t fully know how much her team had come to these conclusions themselves, but she decided on the spot that they deserved to know everything. They’d been operating on an Institute-mandated ‘need to know’ basis for too long.

“When did you learn about this…Hegemon?” one of the Human scientists asked.

“On our second visit to the Navigator’s temple.” Freyr admitted. This elicited a few, more angry mutters.

“Did it tell you the Cradle was going to start killing my friends?” Another junior scientist asked, stepping forward.

“What? No, of course not! It said it was going to stabilise the Cradle, stop it from malfunctioning.” Freyr protested.

Halo: Aegis Team

Being shook about proved to be too much while impaled by a sword. The Hunter Killer let out one last ragged breath, then his eyes closed and the struggling stopped. Gusts of wind drove sheets of rain across Tar’s back and the dead Sangheili under her. Purple Lightning crackled all around the weapons platform as the stormfront rolled over. The black clouds sucked all other light out of the sky.

The sound of her teammates in her ears died away to just a dull echo. Tar pulled the sword out of her opponent’s side and changing position, sawed through his neck. Yanking on his helmet, she tore the Hunter Killer’s head from his shoulders. Clambering to her feet, Tar took a short run up and threw the head as hard as she could off the side of the platform.

There was no stopping the wave of pent up rage now. She turned her head to the obsidian clouds, puffed out her chest and let out a bloodcurdling roar, talons grasping thin air out to either side of her body.

The Cradle

Freyr returned Marae’s hug in kind. It was good to see her - their bond had been forged mainly through a mutual love of science. But the main thing that drew Freyr to the pre-eminent AI specialist was that she wore her heart on her sleeve.

“Thank you. Yes, very good job.” Freyr beamed, eliciting smirks from a few on her team.

“Let's go and stretch our legs.”

As a loose group of incongruously dressed individuals, the scientists exited their big tent and meandered through the shaded field, talking quietly among themselves.

After a minute or two, Freyr found herself on the edge of the river. Well, it was quite thin for a river at this point. More of a babbling brook that washed over a bed of smooth stones. Some of them shone in the artificial light…

“Boss?”

Freyr woke from her reverie. She realised she must have been staring into the water. She turned and found everyone gathered around. Some were looking round at the scenery but most were focused solely on her.

For a few moments, she didn’t know what to say. So she just started and hoped it would come to her.

“Some of us have worked together for a long time. The Rothians here won’t know him, but before he was killed in the Cradle, Dr Childermass and I had known each other for some eleven years. Some of you have been experts in the field since before I was born.”

A little girl laughed, somewhere far behind her. A man called that girl’s name. Freyr looked round, but couldn’t hear anything out of the ordinary. Just the water. Nothing moved on the other side of the river. She looked back around to face the scientists again.

“Together, we’ve applied learnings from the Cradle to problems that exist in our reality. How do we…communicate, across the vastness of space? How do we provide long-term energy sufficiency to new and remote colonies? How do we shield space-faring vessels against harm? All of these advances in technology were catalysed in this…thing, we found underground.”

All faces were watching her now. She studied them.

“But now, the problem is the Cradle itself. It has killed thousands of innocents. The entity buried on Rothia - the Navigator - It says it was running. Running from something it says is even more powerful, and unfriendly. It wants our help, but I swore to protect you when I took this job. And I can't guarantee safety anymore. I don’t know if anyone can.”

The Cradle

“That sounds like a plan.” Freyr agreed.

The large tent was bereft of much heavy equipment. Instead, a dozen holos projected mountains of data visualisations onto whiteboards, the walls and even the ceiling. Academics of both species stood around talking, sitting quietly and running through simulations in their head or writing out structures to make sense of it all. The groups were more mixed than before, but there was still quite a clear separation between the Rothian & Human cadres.

Most of the Human team greeted their leader returning with relief. They’d been to her bedside earlier, but the doctors had ushered them away to let Freyr rest. She did notice though that some people didn’t come and say hello. They clumped together in pockets throughout the space and watched her with interest.

Eventually, quiet fell in the tent when it became clear Dr Lang wanted to address them.

“Hi everyone.” She began, searching for the words. “I think we all need to talk.”

The Cradle

Freyr leaned back away from Vreta’Sori. She didn’t like talking about her body. “Both - my implants are mostly geared towards helping me inside the Cradle. I don’t go on about it, but I see it differently to you. Having all these data overlays lets me understand it in real time. It's a gift and a curse really…”

She drifted off, then continued after a moment. “If I properly look inside my own head, I'm scared of what I’ll find. That is why I've avoided it for so long.”

“Doctor Lang!” A voice called. Freyr looked around, but couldn’t see the source of the sound. There was just the path they had departed from to sit on the side of the grassy knoll.

“Freyr!” The sound was closer this time. Freyr looked behind her and smiled with recognition when she found Dr Kim striding down towards them. She got up and the young scientist embraced her heartily, careful not to drop his stim-stick.

“I’m glad to see you up and moving. We were all so worried!”

“Thanks to our Rothian friends, I'm fine now.” Freyr replied. Dr Kim glanced warily at Vreta’Sori.

“We’re in a tent on the other side of this thing.” He motioned to the long, low hill they were standing on. “A bot just showed up with a big basket of fruit.” Kim laughed. “I knew you wouldn’t be far behind. Come, I'll show you.”

Together, they scaled the hill. From the summit they looked out over a small field with trees for shade on the edge of a river. An octagonal grey tent stood in the field, with a few people Freyr instantly recognised conversing outside.

“It's good to be out of the safe house, even if this place is just an illusion of space.” Dr Kim sighed contentedly as they strolled towards the tent.

“Some of the team want to leave for good though - they’ve had enough.” He warned, shooting his superior and mentor a glance.

“I can hardly blame them. It is my fault we’re in this mess to begin with - i’ll talk to them.” Freyr responded.

The Shattered Realms

I love the idea! Is it a medieval sort of tech level, apart from the Astral Sea vessels?

The Cradle

The distant walls of the atrium contracted and expanded, like Freyr imagined the inside of a heart might look. A rhythmic pounding lanced the space between her temples, forcing her to squeeze her eyes shut. When she opened them a moment later, Vreta was in front of her, blocking her view.

She let herself be guided to the foot of a nearby grassy knoll and sat down heavily. She grasped the foliage beneath her and it felt reassuring somehow. She stared at her feet And when she looked around again after a minute or so, the atrium had regained its regular lighting. The tentacles had gone.

“I’m…ok.” Dr Lang sighed. She looked over at the large lizard that was examining her.

“I’ve been having these…dreams.” She finally admitted. “Like I'm back inside the Cradle - they feel so real…”

She looked around again. “It's bizarre, am I still in that hospital bed? I feel like maybe I am dreaming right now.”

Song Reference time

Staring at the blank page before you
Open up the dirty window
Let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find

Reaching for something in the distance
So close you can almost taste it
Release your inhibitions

Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins

The rest is still unwritten
The rest is still unwritten
The rest is still unwritten

The Cradle

Once Freyr was connected to the network, she quickly figured out how to summon her gift. A servile bot floated over as they were exiting the infirmary, carrying a large hamper. It was laden with flowers and fruits native to Outremer, an ever-hot flask of fragrant jasmine tea and a holo-card that just read ‘M’.

Freyr examined the eclectic gift with a hint of bewilderment, before taking the flask and a small bunch of yellow grapes. “Take that to wherever my team is.” She instructed the robot, who chirruped in agreement before gliding off ahead of them. Freyr sipped the tea and wandered after Vreta.

She wasn’t that interested in starships as a general rule, but Freyr couldn’t help but be impressed by the park which greeted them. “Wow. Gorgeous!” She breathed, craning her neck to watch as a flight of birds whooshed overhead.

“I’d be surprised if they haven’t brought their workstations out here to work.” Freyr laughed, stopping only when the lights started to flicker. Dark particles filled the air, and blood red hue bathed every surface of the atrium. Thick green tentacles rose from the earth and wrapped around the trees, and the sound of birdsong was replaced by a thick gurgling from all around.

Freyr stared all around at this overlay in her head, rooted in place. She felt her breathing restricted to gasps, as if the atmosphere was being rendered uninhabitable.

The Cradle

Freyr coughed on some water as she listened to Vreta’s story. “Detained? What is it with these people?” She sent a quick response to Masgard:

My Hider

Thanks. Give me 12 hours.

Dr Lang took the Rothian’s hand and carefully levered herself out of the large bed. “Did anything arrive for me from Outremer?”