Silicon Minds of Mars

By Jeremy Reimer

Mike Lee was a writer-for-hire who yearned for excitement. After a strange man invites him to a meeting, Mike is kidnapped and put on a spaceship to Mars. He's unwillingly become part of the world's most expensive reality TV show. He meets Kyla Vox, a starry-eyed computer hacker with a passion for finding the truth. When a mysterious set of accidents put all the contestants in danger, Mike and Kyla must band together to protect everyone on board the ship.

But when they arrive at Mars, their struggles are just beginning. Mars is a strange place, where humans and sentient robots walk under giant ice-domed cities, and computers and automation have made some people rich beyond measure. Mike and Kyla find themselves at the center of a deadly conspiracy, putting not only their lives in danger, but the future of all intelligent life-- silicon-based and otherwise!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jeremy Reimer
• Release date: Dec 24, 2019
• ISBN: 9780463933237

Jeremy Reimer

I was born in Vancouver, British Columbia on March 16, 1972, to Louis Elton Reimer and Gail Patricia (Edmondson) Reimer. Our family moved to Winlaw (close to Nelson) in the interior of BC when I was just one year old, and then again to the small town of Gibsons, BC when I was three. I grew up in Gibsons and went to elementary school there, but when it came time to go to high school I went back to Vancouver to attend Eric Hamber Secondary. Thanks to the Challenge Program I was able to finish in just four years instead of five, and started my B.Sc at the University of British Columbia when I was just 16 years old. Some detours and interesting side-adventures later, I graduated with a B.Sc in Physics from UBC, and then got my Bachelor's of Education from UBC a year later. I taught at Kester Grant College (a private ESL high school) and then Saint George's Secondary for a year, then decided teaching wasn't for me and went on to other prospects. Currently I work at a software development company in Vancouver as a software developer and technical writer. Marital status Married since 2001 to my wonderful soul mate Jennifer. Quite simply the most amazing woman in the world. She is intelligent, gorgeous, caring, funny, and just all-around amazing. Kids None. Pets A beautiful tortoiseshell cat named Zoe. Education Bachelor of Science, Physics, University of British Columbia (1996) Bachelor of Education, Secondary (Physics), University of British Columbia (1997) Certificate of 2D and 3D animation, Vancouver Training Institute (1999) Diploma of Technical Writing, British Columbia Institute of Technology (2007) Project Management Professional, Project Management Institute (2010) Vital stats Age: 40 Height: 6 feet Weight: 172 lbs (more muscle than a couple of years ago!) Teeth: Still got 'em Current computers owned 2x2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo MacBook runningOS X 10.5 (CYLON_RAIDER) 2x1.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo running Windows XP (ADAMA) 4x2.8GHz Intel Quad Core running Windows 7 (TELEVISION) 1.8GHz Pentium 4 running Ubuntu Server Linux (ZOE) 733Mhz Pentium /// running Xubuntu Linux 7.0 (GALACTICA) - flown into the sun... 800Mhz G3 AmigaOne running OS 4 (JEREMY) (Sadly R.I.P. ) 500MHz G3 Macintosh iBook running OS X 10.3 133MHz Pentium running DOS 6.0 and Windows 3.1 25MHz 68040 Maci...

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Part 1

1

Preparation

Mike strolled down the beach, his eyes half-closed, so lost in his own thoughts that he almost didn’t see the concrete wall leaping out of the water and slamming to a halt mere inches from his face.

What the… he said, stumbling back.

The wall shimmered and reformed itself. A man’s face appeared on the now-flickering surface. The man was somewhere between thirty and fifty, with blond hair so perfectly coiffed it looked like it was rendered from an ancient video game.

Mr. Lee? the man said. His voice was booming.

Shit! Volume down! Mike instinctively clasped his ears. I thought I turned all notifications off!

You did, the man said, smirking. Mr. Lee, you are very, very fortunate. I have need of your services immediately.

I’m a writer, Mike said. Nobody has need of my services.

The man laughed. It sounded like steel scraping against asphalt. That’s where you’re wrong. I am sending around a car for you. Make sure you are ready. The wall vanished.

Mike carefully peeled the virtual reality goggles from his face and wiped the sweat from his eyes. It took a few moments for him to refocus and adjust to the dim lighting.

He looked around his tiny apartment. The last rays of the setting sun were casting slivers of light through his only above-ground window. Dirty white carpet, dirty drapes, dirty dishes in the sink. A small dying cactus was the only other living thing in the room.

Oh, what the hell, he said to himself.

The car was painted dark matte black. It seemed to suck all light into it, like someone had cut out a car-shaped hole in the world. As Mike approached, it beeped three times and opened the door. He looked around, but there was nobody in sight.

Please enter the vehicle, Mike Lee, the car said.

He hesitated. His dearly departed mother, God bless her, had always told him not to get into strange cars. But if someone really wanted to kill him, there were far easier ways.

Please enter the vehicle, it repeated.

He shrugged and got in.

Traffic was light, as always. The car weaved its way onto the freeway, and Mike stared back at the retreating city. He always liked looking at the tall buildings. They gave him a kind of comfort, even though many of them were old and some had long been abandoned. He felt a lump in his throat. How often had he even ventured outside the city in the last ten years? Three times? Four?

The car wandered on into the night. Mike was getting tired, and he felt his eyelids dropping. He stretched out across the two front seats and fell into a deep sleep.

Mike woke up to a buzzing sound as the seats vibrated. He stretched his arms and slowly sat up.

The car had stopped in a large parking lot. In the middle of the lot was a solitary skyscraper. It was a dull, boxy design with a long vertical slit running down its entire length.

The door opened. Please exit the vehicle, the car told him.

He got out. A telepresence robot wheeled up to him from the building. On the screen was the same person who had appeared to him last night.

Mr. Lee, I’m glad you could make it, the man in the screen said. Come with me, we have preparations to make.

Well, he thought, I’ve come this far. Mike followed the robot into the building and they entered a large elevator.

As they ascended, Mike turned to face his companion. You never even told me your name or what organization you’re from, he said.

I’m sure you have many questions for me, the man replied in a cheery voice. All will become clear in due time.

Well, that fills me with confidence.

The man laughed his tinny laugh again. Don’t worry, Mr. Lee. This is an exciting opportunity for you.

Exciting, or dangerous?

Maybe both!

There was a loud ding and the elevator stopped. Please continue through here, the man said. A pipe-like arm emerged from the robot and pointed ahead. I’ll be back soon.

Mike stepped out of the elevator into a tiny, sparsely-furnished circular waiting room. A young woman with long blonde hair was sitting in one of the two chairs. She had smooth pale skin, a tiny triangular nose, and perfectly symmetrical features. The woman was staring blankly ahead, her eyes transfixed on the wall.

Hello? Are you okay? he asked.

The woman twitched slightly, but did not move.

Right, that’s not creepy at all, he muttered to himself. He turned back to the elevator and hit the call button, but it did not light up.

He squeezed himself into the chair across from the zombie-like woman. Can you hear me? he asked, a little louder this time.

She twitched again, rubbed her temples, and blinked several times before looking at him. I’m sorry, who are you? she asked.

I’m… I’m Mike. He held out his hand, but the woman just sat there obstinately. And you are?

The woman snorted. I’m Adella, if you must know.

He retracted his hand, trying to make the move seem nonchalant. Do you know what we are doing here?

"Well, I don’t know what you are doing here, but I was in the middle of a game of Battle Squadron, and you interrupted me."

You were… wait, you were in the middle of… Mike stared at her. You were playing, but you don’t have any VR goggles… does this mean you have retinal implants?

Duh, Adella said, why wouldn’t I? Everyone has retinal implants.

Everyone does not! Mike stammered. I don’t, for one. The surgery costs over a million dollars!

What are you talking about?

You must be incredibly rich!

I guess I must be. Whatever. I don’t pay for things. Now, can you stop bothering me so I can get back to my game? She moved her fingers towards her temples again.

Wait… I need to know, why are you in this building? I got a call from this man, he didn’t give his name… Mike glanced in vain towards the elevator door, but it just sat there glaring at him.

What business is it of yours? Now go away, and leave me in peace. She tapped her temples and went back to her zombie-like state.

Mike stood there for a few moments, not sure what to do. He decided to try the elevator again, but his feet were starting to feel funny, like they were vibrating.

The vibrations increased, and a loud hum accompanied them.

The building started to shake.

Mike turned towards the elevator and stabbed the button, but to no avail. He looked around the room for another exit, but he found only a solitary red velvet drape that was obscuring a tiny, circular window.

He pushed his face up to the window and tried to understand what he was seeing.

The building was splitting apart.

2

Launch

Mike ran back to Adella, who was still lounging in her chair, staring off into nothingness.

Don’t you feel that? he yelled at her. What the hell is happening?

Whooooo!!! the young woman replied. Awesome!!

An announcement blared through a speaker in the roof. All passengers must be seated, a man’s voice insisted. Please return to your seats immediately.

Mike stared at the ceiling for a moment, then tried the elevator door again. This time, pressing the button made a loud buzzing sound.

Please return to your seats, the voice repeated.

The vibration increased. He felt his knees starting to buckle. He stumbled into the empty seat and fell in.

The seat started to recline. Large belts descended from the ceiling and wrapped around him like a spider’s web. He struggled, but his chest felt like it was made of lead.

This is so cool! Adella yelled from the seat across from him.

The weight and the noise were too much for him, and he passed out.

Mike’s eyes opened and he floated out of his chair. Adella was at the window, staring out into space.

Isn’t it awesome? she said as he drifted next to her. I mean, not as awesome as Battle Squadron, but still…

He gazed down at the Earth, staring at the clouds moving over a vast expanse of water. The dark patches underneath them reminded him of drop shadows in typography, spelling out tiny floating words in an alien language.

So we were on a rocket, and now we’re in orbit? he asked.

Duh, Adella replied.

And you knew this was going to happen?

She shrugged. Not really, but it was pretty fucking cool, don’t you think?

You think it’s cool that we were kidnapped?

Look, it takes a lot to get me excited. This worked. She peered out the window. Hey, that’s probably where we’re headed, don’t you think?

In the distance, highlighted against the blackness of space, was a small, off-white blob. As they stared at it, it slowly grew until it resolved into a space station.

Huh, I haven’t seen that one before, Adella said. Must be new.

The station kept getting bigger until it filled the entirety of their view. As they got close, a docking ring appeared on the station’s surface. With a clang and a thud, they connected. For a moment there was silence, punctured by a loud hiss as a circular door slowly swung open.

Please proceed through the hatch, the speaker’s voice intoned.

They floated through. Adella went first, her eyes lit up with a wonder that had been entirely absent back on Earth. They entered an airlock that was barely big enough for the two of them, then they passed through another round door.

The next room was about the size of a bungalow. Mike felt a momentary feeling of vertigo as he floated through the cavernous space. The walls were covered in instruments and exercise equipment. Soft lights pulsated throughout the room, spidering their way around the crooks and crannies in the superstructure.

A circular screen detached itself from the wall and moved in close to the two of them, using small puffs of compressed air to maneuver.

A face appeared on the screen. It was the same man Mike had seen back at his apartment and on the rocket.

"Welcome to the Argus, the man said, smiling. I hope you had a pleasant trip."

It was rad, Adella said. This guy slept through most of it, though, she added, pointing her thumb at Mike.

I apologize for the manner in which I summoned you, the man said. I’m afraid I have a penchant for the… theatrical.

That’s one way of putting it, Mike said.

The man laughed. Well, there’s nothing wrong with adding a little flair to life. Otherwise things can tend to get rather tedious and dull, don’t you think?

For sure, Adella said.

Anyway, now that you’re here, I can introduce myself. My name is Eletran.

First name or last name? Mike asked.

Both! Now, seeing as you are the last two to arrive, we have some more introductions to get through. Come with me to the conference room and you can meet the rest of the crew.

The screen turned around and puffed its way towards another hatch on the far side of the room. Adella shrugged and pushed herself away from the wall with her feet, following the floating screen like a dolphin through water.

Mike tried to copy her maneuver, but his aim was less accurate and he ended up missing the hatch. He bounced off the wall awkwardly and tumbled back in the opposite direction. Flailing in the weightless environment, he eventually found a handhold on the wall and grasped it. Slowly, he made his way to the hatch the long way around, moving from grip to grip like a three-dimensional mountain climber.

By the time he got through the hatch and to the next room, the lights were starting to dim. He was just able to see three other shadowy figures floating a few meters away from him before the hatch closed again and the room was plunged into darkness.

A hologram display flickered to life. Four glowing blue cubes started to fly around the room before they coalesced near the far wall in a perfect grid formation. Below, the words TETRA CORP flashed to life, completing the logo as the music reached a crescendo.

Mike knew that logo. It was on his phone, on his VR headset, and on most of the cars in the city. It made perfect sense. Tetra was the only company with the kind of money to afford something like this.

Welcome to the greatest adventure of your lives, a voice announced. It was the sort of voice that would accompany trailers for blockbuster movies.

You have won the biggest lottery of all time, the voice continued. "Five of you have been chosen at random from over nine billion people—from everyone on the planet Earth—to participate in the most incredible entertainment television event in the history of humanity. You five have won a free trip to Mars!

"You’ll be traveling in style and comfort on Tetra Corp’s newest and fastest space ship, the Argus. The display shifted and an image of the space station came into view. The Argus is propelled by a magnetically-initiated fusion reaction drive. Tiny pellets of deuterium-tritium fuel are accelerated down the ignition chamber, where a series of lithium rings await them. Powerful magnetic fields implode the rings, surrounding the pellets and compressing them, heating them instantly to temperatures of several million degrees. The resulting charged plasma from the fusion reaction is propelled out the engine exhaust by another magnetic field." The display showed an animated view of the process.

Three days of acceleration, seventy-four days of travel, and three days of deceleration. It all concludes with a landing on the Tetra Martian colony and a party the likes of which the solar system has never seen!

Mike looked over at Adella, who was floating nearby. Her face showed a combination of astonishment and amusement.

So, the announcer continued, who are the lucky five who have been chosen for this great adventure? Let’s meet them now!

The screen dimmed, and came back up with a widescreen video that wrapped around the conference room. The tone of the piece changed slightly—now it felt more like a slick documentary than a game show. The lighting and camera angles were to die for.

Here’s Alex Chernekov, a new voice began, over a soaring view that zoomed into a bodybuilder on a beach. He’s a physical fitness coach whose clientele include popular reality show stars, documentarians, and even famous game streamers!

The camera zoomed in on Alex’s chiseled face. I never thought I’d get to go into space, he said in a light Russian accent. It was always a dream of mine. As a kid I had Yuri Gagarin posters on my wall. I got into fitness because I wanted to train to become an astronaut, but working out ended up being my career.

The scene faded out, and was replaced by a scene of a young black man in a coffee shop, tapping away on a keyboard.

"Jace Manton is a part-time photographer. He also runs a popular website, The Truth, that gets over forty million hits a month!"

I’ve always been fascinated by the stories surrounding space travel, Jace said, as his coffee steamed lazily in front of him. I never thought that one day I’d get to report on it first-hand, rather than just as an interested citizen! Rest assured that I’m going to find the truth behind everything that’s going on up here.

Another sweet cross-fade. This time the lights came up on a small apartment filled with computers and screens. The camera panned over the tower of hardware to reveal a young brown-haired woman peering intently at a giant monitor.

This is Kyla Vox, a programmer and security penetration test expert. She’s been inside every computer network on Earth, but soon she’ll get her chance to experience inter-planetary networking!

This is incredible, Kyla said, bathed in the glow of her monitor. This is like the start of a brand new Internet, at the scale of the solar system. I can’t wait to get stuck into this.

The screen faded again. When it came back it was footage from a sports stadium. Fifty thousand people were cheering as the word WIN appeared on the giant monitor in the center of the arena. Then the camera shifted to a young blonde woman pulling her headphones off, jumping up in the air, and cheering.

It was Adella. Her voice filled the room as the video moved into slow motion.

Winning the Battlegrounds Invitational was an awesome experience, she said, but it’s nothing compared to the feeling of going into space. This is something that no game can ever give me. I can’t wait.

Mike looked over at Adella, who was staring dumbly at the broadcast. When he turned back to the screen, he was looking at his own face.

Mike Lee is one of the most popular writers on the Internet, the announcer said. He’s written for Kryptastic, for Zoomondo, and for Ars Futura. Now he writes for his own website that gets millions of hits every month.

I never thought I’d get to chronicle mankind’s greatest adventure, Mike said on the screen. This is going to be the biggest story I’ve ever written.

Mike stared at the screen, dumbstruck. He looked back at Adella, and realized that he had been slowly drifting towards her all this time. She was practically right next to him.

I don’t remember doing that interview, he whispered to her.

She shrugged. They probably just rendered it, she said. All the big reality shows are doing it these days. It’s faster and more efficient than editing live video. But hey, they made us all look pretty cool, right?

Yeah, Mike said, his voice wavering. Pretty cool.

The holoscreen faded and the lights came back up. Kyla and Alex drifted off and exited the room through separate hatches. Jace pushed off the wall and started floating towards them.

So, you believe that? Jace asked them.

Believe what? Adella asked.

That story! Jace said. There’s no way that isn’t anything but a cover. There’s something else going on here, I’m sure of it.

Adella snorted. Just because you run a conspiracy site doesn’t mean everything is a conspiracy.

Jace was now hovering in front of them. Mike decided to introduce himself. Hi, I’m Mike, he offered, extending his hand,

Mike, you’re a fellow writer, Jace said without accepting it. Don’t you think this is all a bit strange?

It’s definitely not what I expected when I woke up this morning. How long have you guys been here?

We got in last night. They didn’t tell us anything about what was going on until now. Just kept telling us to wait. We were all on a plane heading back to the States, and they dropped us off at this weird terminal. Said there was a delay. Everyone was half-asleep when we launched.

So they kidnapped you as well? Mike asked.

They did! Jace exclaimed. Alex kept insisting that it had to be a reality show, and now that’s what they’re claiming, but it’s super-weird, even for the Internet. I figure there’s some powerful figures back on Earth who want us out of the way.

Oh please, Adella said, you’re being ultra paranoid. If anyone wanted us gone, there are way easier things they could have done than rig up a couple of launch systems and send us to orbit. No way that it’s anything other than a ratings grab. They’re probably filming us right now. She looked around for a camera, then realized the futility of it and shrugged.

Besides, Mike added, it’s not like we’re anybody important enough to want to get rid of, anyway.

Speak for yourself, Adella retorted. I had millions of fans back in the day. Okay, I haven’t gotten much exposure since I retired, but whatever. I’m going to see if there’s a good restaurant in this place. She turned around and slowly drifted away.

So what do you think, Mike? Jace asked, turning towards him. Is there something else going on that we don’t know about?

Probably, yeah. I’d like to talk more to this Eletran fellow. He has to have some answers.

Do you think he’s real?

Mike thought about it for a moment. It’s hard to say. He could be just a render, although if he was I don’t know why they wouldn’t make him look more human. Maybe he’s just a bunch of canned responses. We’ll know if we have a proper conversation with him.

Yeah, maybe, Jace mused. Or maybe he’s a Turing-bot, designed to fool us into thinking he’s human.

I can tell the difference, Mike said.

Oh, really?

Yeah. It’s not that hard. I’ll show you.

Jace smiled, revealing a perfect set of teeth.

You and I are going to get along just fine, Jace said. I’m heading back to my quarters, but we’ll talk later, okay?

Okay.

As Jace floated away, Mike found himself alone with his own thoughts. This was crazy, wasn’t it? It was like a bad dream, where nothing made any sense but everyone acted as if things were completely normal.

Maybe he was just hungry.

He awkwardly swam towards a small display console on the wall. It had helpful hand grips on each side so that operating the touch screen wouldn’t cause you to float away. With a few taps, he pulled up a map of the ship.

It was a large vessel, certainly larger than necessary for five people. He found an exercise room, several laboratories, about twenty crew cabins, and an observation room that doubled as a restaurant.

What the hell. He had to eat.

3

Introductions

The restaurant was a large spherical room with a number of food stations clustered in the center like a hornet’s nest, tethered to the walls by two long aluminum bars. Mike selected a sushi machine and watched in fascination as his California rolls were slowly extruded by a 3D nutrient printer. When they were finished, the machine wrapped them in a clear plastic bag with a resealable opening.

Mike grabbed the bag and popped one of the rolls into his mouth. It was delicious. He looked around and saw that Adella was floating in front of one of the many circular windows in the wall. He carefully drifted over towards her.

What did you get? he asked.

Sushi, she replied.

Isn’t it great?

She frowned. I’ve had better.

Of course she had. Well, I think it’s pretty good. He chewed another roll in silence, staring at the beautiful blue marble of the Earth as it slowly rotated below. What was he going to say to this woman, this successful, rich, attractive woman? What could he say?

So, Mike offered cautiously, don’t you think it’s a little strange, this whole set up?

Adella rolled her eyes. Don’t start with the conspiracy theories again. You sound like Jace. He’s so incredibly dull. That site of his, did you see the headlines in that video? It’s nothing but crazy ideas spun together just to get clicks. She pulled her hair back away from her face, and into a ponytail that she secured with a glowing clasp. People are just bored. They have nothing to occupy their time.

Are you bored?

Since I retired from gaming? Honestly, a bit, yeah. I still play a lot, but the scene isn’t what it used to be. Everyone’s playing new games now, and I think they all kind of suck. There’s talk of a new Battle Squadron coming out next year, but there’s no way it’s going to be as good as the original.

Mike stared at the Earth. I wish I had time to play games all day.

Why don’t you?

Because I have to write and sell articles so that I can pay the rent! he stammered.

I’m sorry, what?

He boggled. You know, the rent? The thing you have to pay every month or they kick you out into the street?

Why would they do that? Don’t you own any buildings?

No, I don’t own any buildings.

What about your parents? They have to own something.

My parents are dead, and they never owned any buildings in their lifetime. He stared at her forehead, which was wrinkling with puzzlement. You and I clearly move in different circles.

I’m sorry, I never really thought about money, she said. I mean, obviously I won prizes in tournaments, but it was just like keeping score in a game, you know? The numbers never really meant anything to me.

He looked out the window again. It’s weird. Up here it just looks like one single planet. But down there, it’s like you and I came from completely separate ones.

Hmmm. Yeah, I guess so.

So what about your parents? Have you told them you’re going to Mars? Are they going to miss you?

Adella laughed. Miss me? They’ll be glad to be rid of me, I think. I hardly ever talk to them. They never even came to watch my biggest matches. She looked sad for a moment, then recovered. Anyway, they live mostly on the Moon these days. Something about taxes, I don’t know.

That’s too bad.

Meh, it was never a great family. I was an only child, and we moved around a lot when I was young… Her voice drifted off. Listen, it’s been nice talking with you, but I’m kind of tired. I’m going to get some sleep. I’ll see you later.

It was nice talking with you too.

Adella nodded and pushed off the wall with her feet, gracefully diving towards the