Page 18 of The Lone Cyborg
She could hear the satisfaction in his voice and smiled into the dimness, squeezing his hand.
“Then let’s go take a look at your discovery.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
Knowing that Mattie couldn’t see as clearly as he could in the faint glow of the luminescence, J-418 kept a tight hold on her hand as they made their way along the tube and around a bend.
A huge cavern opened up in front of them, the walls covered in a delicate, bioluminescent lichen, its soft blue glow casting an ethereal light over the space. Veins of the strange mineral ran through the rock behind the lichen like an alien vine, seeming to writhe in the soft light. Twisted spires of rust-colored rock reached towards a ceiling spangled with more of the bioluminescent lichen, this one emitting an otherworldly amber hue, almost like the distant light of the sun.
“This… this shouldn’t be possible,” she whispered, her voice echoing in the stillness of the cavern. “Nothing like this has ever been found on Mars before. We haven’t discovered any trace of life or any free moisture.”
“But we’ve been introducing moisture into the atmosphere.” The giant power plants at the poles were transforming the polar ice into water vapor and releasing it on the surface. “Perhaps someof it made its way down here and the conditions were just right for the lichen to survive.”
“But where did the lichen come from to begin with?” Her hand hovered uncertainly over the fragile growth. “I’m almost positive this isn’t anything humans introduced.”
“Perhaps some spores survived from earlier times.”
“From millennia earlier? You know we’ve never found any signs of life before.”
He found it hard to believe as well, but he couldn’t come up with any other explanation. She hadn’t waited for a response, already beginning to explore the vast space, and he hurried after her. The cavern stretched farther than even his enhanced vision could perceive, an endless labyrinth of tunnels and chambers carved by ancient Martian waters.
Sylvester was still perched on her shoulder, watching everything with his wide, mechanical gaze, but he suddenly seemed to find his courage, launching himself into the air and swooping gracefully through the air. He found himself smiling as he watched the small bird’s jubilant flight and when he looked down, Mattie was smiling as well.
“I guess the mystery behind this place doesn’t bother him,” she laughed, then focused on the walls again. “I want to take samples, but I also don’t want to disturb anything.”
“Maybe just take readings this time,” he suggested. “Then we can compare them when we return, to see if we changed anything just by being here.”
“You mean the observer effect?” She sighed. “If you really think that’s a concern, maybe we should just leave.”
“I don’t think that simply looking at the lichen and taking readings is going to cause any damage,” he said firmly. “And it could be vitally important.”
She hesitated, then nodded, darting ahead to examine a vein of glittering crystals embedded in the rock.
“Look at these formations! The mineralogical implications alone are staggering.”
Her voice trembled with barely contained excitement, and he smiled at her as they set to work. They spent several hours in the cavern and discovered that what had first appeared to be a single type of lichen on the walls was actually three distinct species—one of which produced tiny drops of clear fluid.
“I think that’s water,” she said excitedly. “See the dampness on the floor? If this can grow on the surface, it could change everything.”
He didn’t want to dampen her enthusiasm, but that was a big leap.
“Perhaps,” he said gently. “But it might need the darkness and stability of this environment.”
“True.” Her fist clenched as she gave him a rueful grin. “You don’t know how badly I want to take a sample, but I don’t want to cause any damage either. And botany isn’t exactly my field of expertise.”
“The rangers have a list of all the scientists present on Mars. I may be able to track one down.”
“Didn’t GenCon bring them all here?” she asked suspiciously.
“Yes, but most of them came with good intentions. They weren’t part of the corporate schemes.” She was still frowning and he flicked a gentle finger across her nose. “And I know someone who can help. She isn’t a botanist but she knows most of the scientists here.”
Her frown deepened. “She?”
He suppressed a completely unworthy delight at the hint of jealousy in her voice and nodded.
“Yes, she. The Judge’s wife, Addie.”
“Oh yes, I’ve heard about her.” Her face cleared as she smiled up at him. “I’d be willing to talk to her.”
