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was just
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smarter, that's all. And I've got a real good memory. I could remember
anyplace I'd been before.?
?You're really something, ace.?The girl looked pleased. Ripley's gaze
shifted forward. Through the windshield the processing station loomed
directly ahead.
It was an unbeautiful structure, strictly utilitarian in design. Its
multitude of pipes and chambers and conduits had been scoured and pitted
by decades of wind-blown rock and sand. It was as efficient as it was
ugly. Working around the clock for years on end, it and its sister
stations scattered around the planet would break down the components of
Acheron's atmosphere, scrub them clean, add to them, and eventually
produce a pleasant biosphere equipped with a balmy, homelike climate. A
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great deal of beauty to spring forth from so much ugliness.
The monolithic metal mass towered over the armored personnel carrier as
Wierzbowski braked to a stop across from the main entryway. Led by Hicks
and Apone, the waiting troopers deployed in front of the oversize door.
Up close to the complex, the thrum of heavy machinery filled their ears,
rising above the steady whistle of the wind. The well-built machinery
continued to do its job even in the absence of its human masters.
Hudson was first to the entrance and ran his fingers over the door
controls like a locksmith casing his next crack.
?Surprise, chiluns. Everything works.?He thumbed a single button, and
the heavy barrier slid aside to reveal an interior walkway. Off to the
right a concrete ramp led downward.
?Which way, sir?"Apone inquired.
?Take the ramp,?Gorman instructed them from inside the APC. ?There'll be
another at the bottom. Take it down to C-level.?
?Check.?The sergeant gestured at his troops. ?Drake, take point. The
rest of you follow by twos. Let's go.?
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Hudson hesitated at the control panel. ?What about the door?"
?There's nobody here. Leave it open.?
They started down the broad ramp into the guts of the station. Light
filtered down from above, slanting through floors and catwalks fashioned
of steel mesh, bending around conduits ranked side by side like organ
pipes. They had their suit lights switched on, anyway. Machinery pounded
steadily around them as they descended.
The multiple views provided by their suit cameras bounced and swayed as
they walked, making viewing difficult for those watching the monitors
inside the APC. Eventually the floor leveled out and the images
steadied. Multiple lenses revealed a floor overflowing with heavy
cylinders and conduits, stacks of plastic crates, and tall metal bottles.
?B-level.?Gorman addressed the operations bay pickup. ?They're on the
next one down. Try to take it a little slower. It's hard to make
anything out when you're moving fast on a downslope.?
Dietrich turned to Frost. ?Maybe he wants us to fly? That way the
picture wouldn't bounce.?
?How about if I carry you instead?"Hudson called back to her.
?How about if I throw you over the railing?"she responded. ?Picture
would be steady that way, too, until you hit bottom.?
?Shut up back there,?Apone growled as they swung around a turn in the
descending rampway. Hudson and the rest obliged.
In the Operations bay Ripley peered over Gorman's right shoulder, and
Burke around the other, while Newt tried to squeeze in from behind.
Despite all the video wizardry the lieutenant could command, none of the
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individual suit cameras provided a clear picture of what the troops were
seeing.
?Try the low end gain,?Burke suggested.
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?I did that first thing, Mr. Burke. There's an awful lot of interference
down there. The deeper they go, the more junk their signals have to get
through, and those suit units don't put out much power. What's an
atmosphere processing station's interior built out of, anyway?"
?Carbon-fiber composites and silica blends up top wherever possible, for
strength and lightness. A lot of metallic glass in the partitions.
Foundations and sublevels don't have to be so fancy. Concrete and steel
floors with a lot of titanium alloy thrown in.?
Gorman was unable to contain his frustration as he fiddled futilely with
his instruments. ?If the emergency power was out and the station shut [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]