The Descent

Chapter 20 - Detention

Denton paced back and forth in the room that had become their prison. The room, not unlike the office of Commander Connor, had a panoramic view of Mars, a desk and a table with a set of chairs. The walls were bare, and the shelves that generally would be occupied by books, awards, achievements and other trinkets were empty.

"You really should sit down," Tanner said from his position by the window. He hadn't moved since they had been locked in the room.

Denton stopped and spun around. "Sit down?" he spit out. "We're prisoners, and you want me to sit down?"

"What else can you do? Breaking out is not feasible. We have no way to continue our journey without the blessings of the Commander and Governor."

"I just can't believe she did this. Holding us against our will like this? It's not like we're terrorists or anything."

"The law is the law. I'm sure you of all people can understand that."

"Don't patronize me, Tanner. You know full well how I feel about those that break the law."

"What's the problem then?"

Denton walked over to a chair and sat down. He leaned back and rubbed his eyes and then leaned forward as he gazed out the window. "It's not so much that she's upholding the law, it's more about our mission. It's at risk of failure now. Was that the whole point in the first place? To sabotage our investigation? I mean, why invite us if they're only going to stop us before we get to our destination."

"Perhaps they intend on eliminating us. That would solve any potential embarrassing revelations they would have to explain. Let a rogue Commander do it, and they can wash their hands of two problems at once."

"You're crazy."

"It's just one of many plausible explanations."

"I'd prefer to hear one that's less terminal."

"Of course. I have 5,349 potential reasons and possible outcomes for the Commander's actions and our current predicament. Should I start with the first one?"

"Should you start...Oh, forget it."

"That I can't, as you well know, but I will refrain from discussing the matter further. Besides, I need to save my power. My reserves are running low."

"Wait, what? You're running on batteries?"

"For all intents and purposes, yes."

"Why are you running out of power then? We've barely been on this piece of junk for a couple of hours."

"The intent was never for me to use this bodily form. As a result, with little preparation, whatever charge remained since its last use had to suffice. At this point, it may not."

Denton stood up and walked over to Tanner. "What happens if your power runs out?"

Tanner looked at Denton. "I will automatically shut down before such time to ensure that all data remains intact until I can be docked with my cores. Unfortunately, I will then be unusable until I am reconnected to a power source."

"How long?"

"23 minutes and 47 seconds."

"23...what?"

"23 minutes and 43 seconds."

"I heard you the first time," Denton said and sighed."We have to find a way to get out of here."

"The situation is less than ideal, that is correct."

Denton walked over to the empty desk. "Can't you connect to the terminal network from the desk? You know, unlock the doors or something?" he said as he looked for a connection for Tanner to connect to.