Backup Failure

Bolts of multicoloured laser fire rained down over Sherrif Masran Usa’s head. She dodged the barrage by diving toward the floor and breaking into a somersault, landing behind a crumpled hunk of debris that had previously been a computer console. A faint smell like freshly welded metal entered her helmet from numerous near misses. She peaked above her cover, taking a chance to identify her attacker’s position. Her combat suit instruments indicated their tactical advantage, elevated on a mezzanine at the far end of the cavernous shuttle bay. Attempting to lockdown their position seemed futile in the empty darkness, with only disruptor fire glow as illumination. She cursed the Consortium’s intelligence for not having properly assessed the derelict starship. How had they missed such an obvious hostile infestation?

             “Deputy, I need an immediate infrared scan of the area,” she shouted. “I need the location of all hostiles and the fastest route to a vantage point.”

             “Are you quite sure you do not mean the safest route, Sherrif?” Her suit’s internal artificial intelligence replied in its usual sassy British accent. Despite being a pile of computer code devoid of gender, their voice sounded male.

             “You heard me, Deputy.” Masran curtly replied as a laser bolt trimmed the size of her already narrow cover.

             “Indeed.”

             Trains of blue light highlighted every joint in Masran’s silver combat suit. Each one interconnected, tracing lines up the slim metallic surface toward the tip of her head. Deputy’s complex threat analysis appeared to be an entertaining light show on the outside. All the while, the infesting force continued their relentless assault.

             “Tactical analysis complete, Sheriff Masran. The battle plan is now displaying on your HUD.”

             Masran’s eyes twitched in their sockets as she analysed the three-dimensional view of the shuttle bay. Her head’s up display made it seem like it hung in the air just outside her helmet. Deputy made light work of what seemed like an impossible situation. She had five seconds to review the plan and catch her breath before her HUD asked, EXECUTE?

             “Deputy…” Masran said as she clenched her fists tight. “Let’s do this.”

             The metal of her combat suit began to morph. The silver metallic surface rippled from head to toe like a drop of water into a stagnant pond. Masran felt a prickly sensation consume her skin with the exterior transformation. Deputy had officially taken control.

             A bolt of orange lightning tore from her wrist, shooting toward the ceiling. It coiled securely around a pipe with labels warning of its potential corrosive contents. The force of the energy lasso propelled Masran upward, laser fire pivoting to follow her, but they could not keep up. She swung toward the mezzanine like an acrobat, her suit now reflecting its surroundings, appearing invisible to the attackers. She landed with a thud behind the thirteen hostiles Deputy had identified. They all turned in shock at the unexpected noise caused by the transparent Sheriff. Masran only had a moment to observe their insect-like bodies and Praying Mantis heads before she used her lasso to break the pipe in half.

             She yanked it with enough force to point it directly at the insectoid beasts. A blast of lime-green gas exploded forward with the force of a waterfall. At least five of the attackers slammed into the bulkhead under the gasses power. They had no time to recover as their furry bodies rapidly melted like cheese under a grill, leaving no trace they ever existed. Nor did Masran have an opportunity to appreciate her victory as the remaining hostiles spread wings from fleshy sacks on their backs, each scattering in different directions. The bone, blood and sinew as their unexpected appendages ripped free left an acrid-smelling gel dripping down their backs. Masran had to swallow a tiny bit of vomit that entered her mouth at the sight of it all.

               “Sheriff, this was… unexpected,” Deputy said.

               “No time for regrets, Deputy. We need some light, now.”

               “Indeed.”

               Deputy dropped Masran to one knee in response to the command. Leaning her forward, a small port opened in the small of her back, shooting out a bright white flare. The empty shuttle bay became visible for the first time as it exploded, all but empty except for Masran’s ship and a few chunks of burnt-out debris. However, and more importantly, the remaining hostiles could be seen clinging to the walls and ceiling nearby.

               “Heat lock Deputy. Multiple targets, execute.” Sherrif said in a single breath. A cross hair traced across her HUD, highlighting the location of each bug. Her arms raised, and multiple hatches opened, revealing small missiles no bigger than a pen. “Fire!”

               “Indeed. Firing, Sherrif.”

               In an instant, the projectiles ejected from the suit and spiralled toward their targets, smoke and flame left in their wake. They zigged and zagged to maintain their locks. Five of the closest insects took immediate impacts. The tiny missiles burrowed into their skin before exploding from deep within their bodies, leaving nothing but goop and bug guts smeared on the walls. Meanwhile, the remaining three managed to take flight, desperately trying to outrun Masran’s attack. One of them got taken down mid-air. The initial impact caused it to lose altitude, with the eventual detonation occurring just before it hit the floor. The remaining two managed to trick the miniature warheads by diving behind broken bulkheads dangling from the ceiling.

               “Shit,” Masran cried out. She took several cautious steps backward as her attackers took up an intercept course in her direction, their disruptor rifles raised. Her eyes darted left to right, attempting to find cover. “Shit, shit, shit. Deputy, I think the cloak is malfunctioning. They know where I am.”

               “Now might be time for some of your trademark fast thinking, Sheriff,” Deputy replied.

               “Cutting beam, execute,” Masran said with a confident nod.

               Her left arm extended outward and peeled open like a flower. Just as her assailants took up a position immediately above her, fingers on triggers, a paper-thin red beam emerged. It sliced through the air and directly through their necks. Masran relaxed her body as the bugs' mangled torsos impacted the floor, squishing like a cockroach might under someone’s boot.

               “A roaring success. Would you not agree, Sherriff?” Deputy asked.

               “We narrowly avoid death yet again. Let’s find the data recorder we were sent to retrieve and return to the ship. I have had enough of bug-infested derelicts for one day.”

               “Indeed. I am no longer detecting any hostile elements. Returning full control to you... now.” Deputy said at the exact moment Masran’s suit returned to its usual and fully visible form. She tapped a small button on her thigh to activate small jets in her boots, allowing her to hover back to the main floor. She landed in front of two giant bay doors that had been beaten, dented, and burned, narrowly avoiding a bubbling pile of insect guts. She tilted her head upward to take in the doors enormous size and suddenly froze.

               “Deputy, are you detecting anything beyond this door?” Masran asked.

               “I am afraid not, Sheriff. Why do you ask?” Deputy replied.

               “I can hear something. Like a rhythmic pounding.”

               “This vessel has been adrift for quite a while, Sheriff. It could just be standard hull stress.”

               Masran leaned closer to the doors as if that might focus her hearing. She knew the sound did not originate from her imagination, especially as it got louder and faster. She took several cautious steps back and opened her eyes wide in horror. “Deputy… We need to evacuate,” she said.

               “Sheriff Masran Usa, we have a mission to complete. I must insist we proceed. I am not detecting any further life signs.”

               “Activate the ship. We are leaving… now.” Masran turned on her heels and broke immediately into a sprint. As she picked up pace, she felt a powerful blast of air pushing her from behind. She glanced over her shoulder to see the bay doors flat on the ground and another bug standing in its entrance. Only this one spanned the entire height and width of the opening it had created. The disrupter it pointed in Masran's direction matched the size of her own ship.

               “Oh, my goodness, Sheriff. A million apologies.” Deputy said as Masran propelled herself forward. “This new hostile must be using some kind of shielding.”

               “No time for apologies,” Masran said, eyes solely fixed on her ship at the far end of the bay. “Get the ship fired up and ready to leave.”

               “Indeed, Sheriff.”

               The light from the flare had now completely vanished. Meaning Masran could barely make out the pointed tips of her triangular-shaped vessel. Thankfully, Deputy activated the forward lighting, illuminating a path. The brightness of which Masran's vizor automatically shielded, but temporarily shocked the creature chasing her. Its shrieks of pain sounded like something halfway between a dog and a cat crying, only infinitely more disturbing. The distraction gave her enough time to reach the entrance hatch that extended midway up the ship's structure to the bay floor.

“Deputy, start retracting the entrance platform the moment I set foot on it,” she shouted.

“Indeed.”

Masran descended toward safety, catching a glimpse of the enormous insect, which had regained its balance. They made eye contact momentarily, and she could have sworn it winked. Right as it pulled the trigger.

               She expected a rocket or a laser blast. Instead, the weapon distorted the air around the shuttle bay and propelled sparks of blue energy directly toward Masran. She had no time to dodge. The effect immediately consumed her entire body, causing the combat suit to malfunction. It rippled in the same fashion as when Deputy took control. Only now, both were helpless. Masran toppled over, landing face-first on the ship’s entry platform as it retracted back inside the ship. She felt a sharp pain that should have been followed by euphoria as Deputy injected painkillers. However, the agony persisted.

               “Emergency evacuation… execute… execute… execute.” Deputy stuttered. “Indeed, Sheriff. Indeed.” And then everything went dark.

Masran awoke to a blinding light overhead, accompanied by three vaguely human silhouettes. As things came into focus. she could make out two people standing over her wearing typical turquoise Consortium medical suits. The other wore a black jumpsuit and turned out to be the familiar sight of her commanding officer, Authority Ford.

               “No sudden moves, Sheriff Masran. You are lucky to be alive.” Authority Ford said with a sympathetic smile. He was a tall man with a slim build, dark stubble on an angular chin, and short-cut black hair with hints of iron grey.

               “Authority, I have to report that I failed to retrieve the derelict data recorder,” Masran said as she winced through the pain caused by any movement she made.

               “Yes, Sheriff. Unfortunately, a piece of Consortium property remains at large. The infestation you found is part of a known infestation group who seem hell-bent on disrupting our operations.” Authority Ford took a deep breath before continuing, “As is evident with the state in which they returned you to us here at the Quadrant Command Base.”

               Masran raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean, Authority Ford?” Even as she asked the question, she noticed an unusual sensation. Unusual in the sense that the standard vibrations of her combat suit were no longer present. Also, Deputy had not chimed in with any of their usual commentary. “Deputy?” She called out, shooting upward to get a better look around the medical bay. “Deputy, reply, please.”

               “Sheriff Masran, I am sorry to say that your Deputy was knocked offline by whatever the infestation shot you with. Completely unrecoverable, I am afraid.” Authority Ford said, resting a hand gently on Masran’s shoulder.

               “Can you not reinstall them from a backup?” Masran pleaded. “I cannot continue as a search, recover, and destroy Sheriff without them, right?”

               “I have some bad news, Sheriff. The original Deputy codes are all unique. Programmed decades ago, and all stored on physical servers that we used to refer to as cloud computing. That was before we started storing data on actual water droplets condensed into a gaseous form.”

               “What happened to these physical servers?”

               “They all lost integrity over time, and none of the system administrators thought to transfer their data to the new platforms.” Authority Ford said, staring at the ground uncomfortably, perhaps with a hint of embarrassment.

               “But all my combat suits abilities were dependent on Deputy.” Masran’s voice was increasing in tone and pace.

               “You are quite right, Sheriff Masran.” Authority Ford sighed again. “Fear not. We have been working to rebuild a new Deputy code base. The good doctors here have already installed one in your suit. However, the skillset is quite limited at this stage. It requires significantly more... training.”

               One of the Doctors moved close to Masran’s shoulder and held up a small flashing instrument. “Activating Beta Deputy code now,” she said. Masran felt a slight tingle shoot through her body from head to toe.

               “Well, howdy there, Sheriff,” came a female-sounding voice in her ear. “Pleasure to meet ya, I’m your new Deputy.”

               Masran looked toward Authority Ford. Her brow furrowed in confusion. “I am supposed to resume my role as Sheriff with this Deputy?” She asked.

               “Oh no, Sheriff Masran,” Authority Ford said as he shook his head. “Our developers have not even come close to replicating the original Deputies' complexity. You will be restricted to… light duties.”

               “What exactly are light duties?”

               Authority Ford took a moment before saying, “Lower-level Sheriff tasks. Issuing Consortium infringements. Fines for those who overstay their docking rights on our orbital stations, that kind of thing. All very important and necessary work.”

               Masran’s jaw hung open, unsure what to say next.

               “Super-duper, Sheriff. Sounds like we are gonna have some right old fun together.” The new Deputy said.

               “Indeed,” Masran replied.