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  ZERO HOUR

  A Science Fiction/Mystery Short Story

  REBECCA M. SENESE

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  Copyright Information

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  Zero Hour

  About the Author

  Copyright Information

  Zero Hour

  Copyright © (2022) by Rebecca M. Senese

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  Published by RFAR Publishing

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  Cover Design copyright © (2022) by

  RFAR Publishing

  Cover art copyright ©

  frenta/CanstockPhoto.com

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  This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. All rights reserved.

  This is a work of fiction. All characters and events portrayed in this book are fictional, and any resemblance to real people or incidents is purely coincidental.

  This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission.

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  Zero Hour

  Fired from her lead investigator job, Sasha Zero waits for the city to cut her access to the main AI.

  * * *

  Instead, she catches a burst transmission not meant for her. Not blurred camcons in the gambling area. Not adjustments for the food processors.

  * * *

  Something else. Something strange.

  * * *

  Not her job. Not anymore.

  * * *

  Except Sasha Zero never knows when to leave well enough alone.

  * * *

  Even as her time runs out.

  * * *

  Join Sasha's race against time in Zero Hour, a science fiction/mystery short story.

  Zero Hour

  The blast pulse seared the wall an inch from Sasha Zero’s head, leaving the stench of scorched steel burning her nostrils. She ducked back farther in the meter wide alcove by the transport tube. Naturally the damn thing was shut down for the night, typical for Minus Penitentiary City to scrimp on costs. Hadn’t they fired her due to budget cuts? Sure they said it was because of her stim use, but who the hell wouldn’t use stims on this godforsaken rock?

  From around the corner, she heard the telltale hum of a high powered laz rifle powering up.

  Shit!

  With enough firepower, that rifle could pulverize the alcove she was hiding in. She glanced left. The wide open corridor curved away. Brightly lit, illuminating the gleaming silver plasti-steel girders and the windows looking out into the dark night. Almost cheerful.

  A nice bright place to die.

  Or she could stay in the alcove and die.

  Or she could jump down the inactive transport tube and die.

  It was so nice to have choices.

  The hum rose in volume and tone. Almost ready to fire. Not many could recognize the subtle tonal gradations of a high powered laz rifle, but she could. Sasha Zero had been one of the top investigators for the City, before they’d fired her.

  If they’d cut her psychic access to the Central AI at midnight like they were supposed to, she wouldn’t be in this mess. Just five damn minutes.

  The pitch of the rifle shrieked.

  Screw it.

  She jumped.

  They were supposed to cut her access at midnight, and if there was one thing she was looking forward to, it was not having to listen to Buzz, the Central AI, chattering away in her head. None of the other investigators heard it as much as she did, but they weren’t classified as a Psych-One. Most Psych-Ones went into private practice, high priced security firms, or high level government work in the central sector. But Sasha had always believed in helping out closer to home.

  Of course, she had messed up the interviews at those high priced security firms.

  Minor detail.

  Almost as bad as messing up on the job, getting canned, and getting her access cut at midnight.

  Except they didn’t cut it at midnight, they cut it at twelve oh five, just long enough for her to feel the weird burst underlying the regular chatter from the AI.

  Just long enough to realize it was an illegal subroutine, designed to circumvent the AI and enough of a burst for her to realize it wasn’t something tiny like blurring the camcoms in the gambling section or adjusting the food processors for larger portions.

  So if it wasn’t small, what was it?

  It wasn’t her job any more. She had a shuttle scheduled in the morning to get off this rock and head to Dramar Central where she could bunk with her sister and listen to endless haranguing about how she should get a real job.

  Like lead investigator in the city wasn’t a real job, it just didn’t pay the dividends that her sister approved of.

  She could record a report to Carmody and leave it for him to deal with in the morning because it was still his job. Maybe he’d actually look into it, between his own trips to the gambling rooms.

  She wasn’t the only one with issues.

  But hey, it really wasn’t her job anymore.

  It wasn’t.

  All she had to do was sit in the transport bay, on the pale grey couches only slightly less padded than rock hard. The walls didn’t have windows but Buzz the AI projected various external views surrounding the City, just to make it look like they had the money for external views and all the heavy density proofing along with it.

  Never mind that over the years, she’d noticed that all the recordings were the same recycled bits from decades before when the City was first built and flush with money. Now with cutbacks and rising costs for the “residents” (as the Mayor called the prisoners in the penitentiary that served as the City’s largest employer), those recycled images were just another chink in the armour of the budget.

  In a few hours, she wouldn’t have to worry about it. Wouldn’t have to wonder about how to stretch the dwindling staff in her department to cover all the man hours needed. Wouldn’t have to worry about that some strange subroutine under the AI main signal.

  It wasn’t her job anymore.

  But she couldn’t stand to watch these ancient recordings.

  Just a little walk about the City. One last goodbye.

  It had nothing to do with any subroutine.

  Nothing at all.

  It didn’t take long for her to find the initial access location for the subroutine. All she had to do was huddle into one of the AI booths off the shopping plaza. It stank from the perfume of the last user. Shocking there wasn’t a puddle on the floor. The acrid stench was so pungent she could practically taste it and was making a weird face when the AI answered her query.

  “Hey Buzz, it’s Zero. I need an interface location for a subroutine entered at twelve oh five.”

  For a moment, the static on the screen stayed a grey blizzard, then it burst in an array of colors. From the center, an almost humanish face appeared, the way the AI always liked to appear to her.

  “Zero, I cannot locate your direct access link. Please reconnect for detailed response.”

  “Um, I’ve been fired, Buzz,” she said. “I’m not allowed direct access anymore.”

  Was it her imagination or did the visual representation on the screen tilt its head at her?

  “Complete documentation has not yet been registered and processed by the system,” the AI said. “Such terminations need four hour process time by human resources for complete execution. Even high security terminations such as yours takes an hour for complete execution.”

  “Buzz, what are you saying?”

  The screen blanked back to the sea of grey static. She fel
t a familiar spike of pain in her temples, then the warmth of hookup in the back of her neck.

  You may still access my system until full execution of your termination is processed by human resources, Zero.

  “Buzz, you’re a slippery devil. Now show me the location.”

  Which was how she ended up in that alcove in the first place.

  Damn hookup had been completed at a junction in the lower fifth sector, close to the manufacturing section. All endless bright lit corridors and few people.

  She found the alcove easy enough and even the plate that someone had pried off to gain straight access to Buzz’s linkages. Buzz may not have been able to tell what was in the subroutine, but it had sure been able to trace it after she’d fed in her memory of it.

  Whoever it was hadn’t even bothered to conceal their opening of the plate. She could even see the scratch marks on the metal where they’d pried it off.

  She bet she could even have gotten a DNA sniffer to catch a reading in the air...

  And that’s when they started shooting at her.

  The transport tube had a narrow ladder running along the right side of the door. If she’d thought about it, she could had started climbing down. Too late now as she plunged down the two meter wide hole. The City went down another twenty levels. The rush of air whipped at her hair and carried the smell of machine oil, soup, and cooking food. Pretty soon it would carry the stench of her bloody corpse if she didn’t find a way to activate the gravity well and arrest her fall.

  Gravity well? Indicate tube location for initialization.

  Buzz! She’d forgotten how it used to eavesdrop on her thoughts.

  The transport tube in the alcove where you sent me! Turn the gravity well on minus one gravity.

  The air seemed to hiss around her. The hair on her head stood on end but it wasn’t from falling any more. She felt the crackle of static tingling on her skin. In the dim light from the open alcove door far above her head, she watched the rungs of the ladder change from a blur of motion to slowly moving rungs.

  Now she could grab one without snapping her arms off.

  She locked her arm around the slick metal and stuck her feet onto the rungs below. In the darkness, she couldn’t see how far she’d fallen. She felt along the side of the tube wall, feeling the rough surface but no telltale lip of a door.

  She’d climbed onto the ladder between levels.

  Head up or head down?

  She’d better make her mind up quick before whoever had fired on her decided to find out where she’d gone.

  And as if on cue, she felt the blast of laz rifle radiating down the tube.

  She closed her eyes and hugged the ladder. The blast didn’t reach her but she felt the hot air rush past her, stinging her face.

  A moment later, automated alarms started screeching.

  So much for clandestine. She almost felt sorry for them. But it made up her mind.

  Down.

  She started climbing, stopping every five rungs to check if she’d reached another door. Not yet. Another five rungs. Check again. Another five rungs.

  The alarms pounded in her ears.

  Another five rungs.

  Her fingers found a seam. Yes!

  Buzz, open this door!

  For a second, the AI didn’t respond. Sweat broke out all over her body. A second was like an hour to an AI. Why wouldn’t it respond right away?

  Then she felt a familiar tingle at the back of her skull.

  Interference from weapons discharge has overrun my sensors, Zero. I am unable to access your position.

  Okay, she was going to have to open the door herself.

  She hooked her arm over the rung and leaned farther out. Her fingers followed the seam along the left side. Damn, she wished she could see it but it was too dark. The interior control panel had to be here, alongside the door. Keeping her index finger stuck in the seam, she poked around with her thumb. Just the flat surface of the tube wall. She worked her way up, feeling around with her thumb. Her arm ached from clenching the ladder.

  Come on.

  There, was that an indentation? She moved her hand over a little, felt the telltale softness of the control pad.

  If she could only see it, she could tell what level she was at and have Buzz open the door for her.

  She felt the keys on the pad. Emergency override. She knew the code by heart but would her access still hold? Buzz had plugged her back into the system but only for an hour. Time was ticking away on her.

  Its connection had to have given her access to the emergency override.

  It had to.

  Her heart thudded in her chest. Steady. She had to do this with care. Any screw up could lock down the door and she’d be stuck.

  Until the people shooting at her found her.

  She settled her fingers onto the control pad, feeling the raised buttons under her skin. She knew the emergency override. She could open this in her sleep.

  Easy peasy.

  Funny how that didn’t seem comforting.

  She shook her head. Damn bangs in her eyes. She blinked away sweat. Okay, let’s do this. She’d practiced this code over and over, even doing it with her eyes closed.

  That might help.

  She closed her eyes.

  She’d prefer using her right hand but she had practiced with either.

  Come on left.

  She started slow, then the numbers seemed to just click in her head and transmit directly to her fingers. The buttons clicked under her touch. Now that was more like it!

  The door hummed. She saw a sliver of light appear as the door engaged.

  Transport tube door override on level sixteen initiated. Is that you, Zero?

  She grinned. “It’s me, Buzz.”

  The door flew open.

  She grabbed the edge and hauled herself out of the tube. The door slid shut behind her.

  Level sixteen. One of the original levels. Used to hold some of the original cells and guard stations before the penitentiary extended toward the mountain to the east of the city. The natural caves had proved to be easier to maintain than the cells.

  Anything to cut costs.

  Most of these lower floors were abandoned or used as long term storage, with lights powered down to minimum and the air smelling stale and closed in.

  Except it was neither.

  Had she really fallen sixteen levels? Maybe Buzz had gotten it wrong.

  Buzz, confirm my location.

  Warmth tingled on the back of her head.

  Location confirmed, Zero. Level sixteen.

  She stepped out into the corridor. The pale green of level sixteen stretched off in three directions. Fresh air tickled the hair on her forehead. It carried the regular scent of pine freshener.

  This didn’t make sense. This level should have been on minimal power. There should be dust.

  Not this clean, brightly lit corridor.

  Buzz, what’s going on on level sixteen?

  The warm tingle almost had an edge of confusion. Explain request, Zero.

  Why are the lights on and the air filtration set to normal?

  She could almost feel the AI pause.

  Sensors do not indicate such activity.

  Now the hairs on the back of her neck tingled. How could Buzz not be able to tell what was going on down here?

  Maybe that rogue subroutine had something to do with it. Hiding activity on level sixteen and maybe not just here, but other levels as well.

  What the hell was going on?

  She had to find out, while she still had access to Buzz. She blinked, calling up a chrono that floated in front of her vision. Only forty-five minutes left to her hour extension. Then her termination would complete and she’d lose access to Buzz for good.

  And may be stuck down here.

  If Buzz couldn’t see what was going on, she would have to find a way to show him.

  The closest physical connection node was down the right about seventy meters. She headed
off, her shoes tapping in the silence. She should have been kicking up dust but the air was as clean as any of the upper levels.

  Whatever was going on had been going on for some time, long enough to keep the air clean.

  The doors she passed stayed shut, even when she waved her hand over the palm readers. Powered down. The hall curved to the left then opened wide to encompass the communications node. It sat in the center of the area with three other corridors branching off, like spokes on a wheel. Down everyone of those other corridors were other transport tubes. Any one of them could be carrying her friendly shooters down to her right now.

  Even though Buzz couldn’t tell what was going on on this level, she was under no illusions that her pursuers couldn’t either.

  And using this node would be like sending up a flashing arrow that pointed right at her, spelling out “Here I Am!”

  Her palms felt sweaty. She wiped them on her pants, leaving a smear mark on the light grey material. She’d always hated this color scheme. What kind of security wore light grey for god’s sake?

  Focus. She had to connect Buzz back to this level so he could see what else was going on and then she had to get the hell out of Dodge before her “friends” showed up.

  Easy peasy.

  Right.

  Here she went.

  Her hands flew over the console. It hummed and lit up beneath her fingers, almost purring. If there was one thing she excelled at, it was AI connectivity.

  The lights around her brightened to full power. The whirl of the ventilation increased. She spotted the telltale pinpoint of green lights up on the walls near the ceiling. She hadn’t even noticed they were gone before.