The colony. Chapter 8: The Birth of Suspicion

- And the next day you spent in the bunker?

The doctor picked up his glasses and put them on again, and then looked up at Rytnov.

- Yes, Alex, exactly. I hid under one of the beds in room one, and ...

He faltered and looked down at the table, as if something had been written on it, and then continued:

“... and I'm really ashamed of that.”

Silence reigned in the dining room, only the doctor sobbed softly - like a child ready to cry. He told a good story, and Raytnov began to doubt the validity of his suspicions: what if he was telling the truth and really was all this time very close? Alex glanced at Gordon, who monotonously stroked his beard with his right hand and looked thoughtfully at Angus. Barney sat gloomily and thought about something, and it was impossible to determine anything from his face.

Raytnov replayed again and again in his memory as he searched the bunker - and this only heightened doubts. It usually happens when you are looking for some thing. You think that she is on the table, but she is not there. Needless to say, because in fact you saw her literally an hour ago in the drawer of the table - but there is none there either. Raytnov could not remember whether he checked the sleeping places in each room. Out of his thoughts, Emilia’s soft voice brought out:

- Do not blame yourself, Angus - you are not guilty. Fear is an ancient instinct that helps us survive, and it also helped you. You could not help your friends.
“I would have behaved the same way,” Isaac agreed, “hardly simple scientists like us could oppose the titan in such a situation.”

The doctor nodded appreciatively and, without raising his eyes, continued:

“I didn’t sleep all night and just listened.” Sometimes it seemed to me that I heard muffled voices and even screams, but I was not sure that they were real. I fully admitted that it was my brain that reproduced the cries of those poor creatures who died in the laboratory - they were full of horror and firmly ate into my subconscious.

Raytnov took a sip of cappuccino. The drink had not yet cooled and burned his throat unpleasantly, so he grimaced and then asked the question:

- I admit that I could not notice you - I really did not look under the beds. On the other hand, they are very compact, and even a person with your physique would be cramped under them. But I remember exactly that the next day I went around all the rooms of the bunker and purposely loudly asked if there was anyone nearby. Have you really been so scared that you didn’t even respond to my voice?

Angus adjusted his glasses and looked up again.

- I agree that it looks strange, and in your place I, too, would begin to suspect something. But, nevertheless, my explanation will be simple - closer to the morning, I finally completely passed out and simply did not hear anything. And when I woke up, it was already evening - the clock showed 19:37, and at such a later time I did not dare to go out, as I was afraid of their return. Do you find my reasoning logical?

It was the turn of Raytnov to look down. He nodded and agreed:

- Yes, I myself returned to the bunker an hour later and did not dare to lean out more. The rest left before noon.

The doctor did not pay attention to the last sentence and continued:

“Given the late hour and the lack of options, I tried to fall asleep again.” Apparently, I managed it pretty soon, because I did not hear how you returned to the bunker. I woke up around 10 o'clock in the morning when it was already quite light, and finally forced myself to go out and head to the dining room - I was very thirsty. Having quenched my thirst, I went outside and tried to figure out how to proceed.

Emilia met her doctor’s eyes and saw eyes full of genuine horror on the other side of the lenses.

“You shouldn't worry so much,” she said in a quiet and calm voice, “everything is already over, and you are no longer alone.” Together we can handle.

His eyes cleared a little, and he nodded quickly and nervously, and then continued:

- When I came out, I saw blood - a lot of blood. But as for the corpses ... Alex, did you manage to find at least one?
- Not.
- Like me. Everything was in the blood, but there were no corpses anywhere, and I found it pretty creepy. Making short dashes, I got to the residential buildings, which, by a lucky chance, were intact, and entered my room. I took the tablet and immediately made several entries - let me show you one of them.

Angus took out his tablet from behind his bosom and brought out a projection above the table. The recording was short, and on it he said only the following: “I discovered an interesting fact - the residential buildings were intact. Apparently, the titans possessed ... forgive me, possessing such a good sense of smell that they didn’t even waste their energy on opening the empty boxes and searching in vain for the victims - they concentrated only on those buildings in which the colonists really were ... I think they are reasonable. ”

This record is over. The doctor bit his lip and again plunged into his thoughts, forgetting about the existence of the others - apparently, he was working on another theory. From his thoughts distracted Raytnov.

- Only now the case is not empty.

The doctor flinched, abruptly leaving the trance.

- What?
- One person was in his room at the time of the attack.
- But who could it be? As I recall, there were all in the lab.

Raytnov made a small pause, watching the doctor's reaction.

- It was Joe. And he survived.

The doctor rounded his eyes and stood up in surprise.

- Joe ?! Lord, did Joe survive?

He left the table and laughed and then continued:

- Big Joe survived! Wow. He always disliked me, thus provoking my hostility towards myself, but if you only knew how glad I am to hear this news!

The doctor walked around his chair and leaned on him, and then laughed again.

- It is necessary so. He stood two meters from the enraged titan, but did not lose his head, and fate itself was surprised at his courage and generously rewarded him.

The doctor shook his head, still impressed. But suddenly the smile left his lips, and he looked at Rytnov anxiously.

- Alex ...

He raised a questioning eyebrow. Angus, without taking his eyes off him, quickly sat down and rested his elbows on the table, stretching his neck.

“But why wasn't he with you when we met?” Were there any survivors? Did they ... have survived the next night?

In Raytnov's eyes, for an instant, a barely perceptible surprise slipped.

- I do not know this. Besides him, four more were saved - they all took refuge with me in a bunker. And the next morning he found us and delivered a number of problems.

Now Angus raised an eyebrow.

“The fact is,” Raytnov continued, “that I was going to look for survivors, and Joe wanted to take both rovers from the hangar and immediately go to the port of Demetrion, where it would be possible to contact Earth and demand immediate evacuation.” Missing the details - we had a strong fight with him, and I had to calm him down a little with one effective method.

Raytnov cracked the knuckles of his right hand, while demonstrating the rest of the essence of the method.

“It ended up that all the survivors joined Joe and drove away on one of the rovers, leaving me with the second,” Raytnov continued, and with these words his fists clenched tight.

Emilia, still in the same soft and calm voice, addressed her already:

“You shouldn't blame them, Alex.” They, too, were frightened and just saved their lives. In the end, they left you the second rover, right?

She smiled amiably, but Raytnov only raised his eyes full of anger, and his voice was no longer calm. For the first time he began to lose his temper.

- Oh, yes, I left the rover. Only now, no one warned me that he was standing there without an engine for the reason that he was undergoing scheduled repairs. It will be ironic if we still meet with Joe, and, despite all the circumstances, he will die from my hand - and, doctor?

Angus caught Rytnov's angry gaze and felt uncomfortable. Barney was distracted from his thoughts and was on the alert just in case, but Alex quickly pulled himself together and finally opened his fists, resuming normal blood circulation in them. He put his hands on the table with his palms, took a deep breath, and continued:

- I apologize for this scene. Joe knew that the rover was not on the move, and was going to fix it quickly with the help of his supporters. But since I decided to stay, they simply spat on the repair, took another rover and ran off cowardly. I was just engaged in the installation of the engine, when Angus found me in the hangar - together we had time to finish before dark and get ready for the road.
- You got here without incident? - Gordon asked, all the time listening carefully.

Raytnov wanted to answer, but the doctor beat him:

- Surprisingly, yes. - He said, - When it got dark, we had already managed to drive away from Alpha for a half dozen kilometers, but we didn’t meet a single titan on our way, which I personally thought was very strange. On the other hand, it's a sin to complain, I was completely satisfied with this option.

With these words, he got up and, glancing at the empty plates of the others, asked timidly:

“Has everyone finished breakfast?”

Gordon understood his hint and also rose from the table.

- Yes, - he answered, - we promised to show the records from the rover, made on the way here. Come on.
“They can be of great scientific value,” the doctor reminded, pointing upwards with his index finger.

The guys carried their plates to the point of receiving dirty dishes and headed to the hangar. Barney walked behind everyone, and when Raytnov turned around and nodded inquiringly, he only shook his head.

Five minutes later, the doctor was already sitting in the rover’s cabin and looking at the records. He was incredibly agitated and asked Gordon, who was sitting nearby, to squander the episode with a fallen tree three times. Finally, he copied all the entries onto his tablet and left the rover, solemnly announcing to the others:

- These records definitely represent a great scientific value! Despite the fact that the titanium itself is not visible, its roar is clearly audible - this is exactly what I heard on Alpha! I copied these recordings onto my tablet, and I need a little more time to study them carefully. I will find you later!

He was already on his way to the dining room when Isaac called out to him:

- Angus, wait! Angus!

The doctor turned around, adjusted his glasses carelessly and stared at him questioningly:

- Who called me? Isaac, are you?
- Yes. I would also like to analyze these records, but there was no time. Do you mind if I join you?
“Yes, and I would be interested to see how you work,” said Emilia.

The doctor broke into a wide smile, but quickly turned around and just waved his hand to them, inviting them to follow him. When the door closed behind them, Barney ran his hands through his hair, knocking over his hair, and then crossed them at the back of his head and said:

- Damn, Gordon. You know what I thought while the doctor was telling his story?

Raytnov cheered up for a moment in the hope that Barney had found a puncture in the story of Angus. Gordon looked inquiringly at his comrade, waiting for the continuation, but he silently passed by and disappeared inside the rover. Raytnov and Gordon looked at each other interrogatively and followed him.

- What will you say about that? Barney asked, pointing to one of the monitors. It displays the message:

“It seems the Titans are not extinct. We think that Alpha was attacked. The evidence in the attached photos. Transfer it to Port Demetrion, - the power of our traveling antenna is not enough to transmit data over such distances. ”

The program showed that it is the only one in the chain. Gordon finally understood what Barney meant - there was no response to this message.

- Here is the devil! - he swore and sat in the place of the second pilot, - do a trace.

After a minute, the results were ready, and it was possible to understand from them that the message was stuck on the communication tower closest to the Delta - all that could mean was that the base had failed all the equipment capable of processing the message. The reason this could happen was obvious to all.

Gordon put his right hand to his chin and began to stroke his beard, demonstrating the thought process, and then asked:

- What do we have now?

Barney seemed to be waiting for this question.

“Let's estimate,” he said, “how long were we on the way when we realized that the titans still exist?”
- Almost a day.
- So, it has been about a day since receiving the signal, because we moved forward an hour after receiving it. Right?

Gordon nodded.

- Do you remember how fast these creatures can move? Barney went on, looking at his companion.

He looked up at the ceiling in the hope that it would help to remember. Various numbers were spinning in his mind - either from 25 to 35, or from 35 to how many more. The only thing that Gordon was sure for sure was that the number 35 appeared there, but in order not to lie, he decided not to take these numbers from the ceiling and shook his head. Raytnov answered for him:

- From 35 to 50 kilometers per hour. It was with such speed that the titans could move according to what we have.

Barney nodded and continued.

- Well. Assuming that they really got out of this cave near Alpha - could they get to the Delta at this speed a day?

He quickly looked around the interlocutors and answered his own question:

- No, they could not. Between our bases more than two thousand kilometers, and we drove almost in a straight line all this time at a speed of 80 kilometers per hour. In a day we didn’t get to Alpha at such a speed.
“I understand your idea,” said Raytnov, “even considering that this speed is very approximate, the distance is still too great.”
- Exactly. If you multiply these numbers by two - only then they could get to the Delta. But in this case, they would have to move all this time with a maximum speed in a strictly defined direction, and this is complete nonsense.

Barney looked at Gordon and raised his eyebrows in question - he nodded in agreement. Raytnov, stretching his hands to sore cervical vertebrae, went down on one knee — the ceiling was too low for his height — and said:

- Yes, this is really stupid. In addition, we found fragments of skeletons of titans and on the surface, whence it follows that the theory with a cave completely loses its meaning.
- Understand what this may mean? Barney asked.
“Only that they appeared at once from all sides,” Gordon replied, “they could attack all the bases at about the same time.”
- Where did they come from? - continued to talk to Barney, again crossing his arms at the back of his head, - it is damn strange that even the probe scan did not detect anything bigger than the wolf, and now all the surroundings are teeming with titans.

Raytnov tilted his head, crunching his joints, and said:

- Remember the essence of the version that we decided to stick with?

All three of them looked at each other, and the same thought that Gordon voiced simultaneously flashed through their heads:

- Now it seems to me more and more that we are really being fed with false information about everything that is happening here.
“It may seem like conspiracy theories, but why not?” - Barney agreed, - I agree more to believe in it than in the inability to detect the damn titans when scanning the planet.

Gordon suddenly abruptly pulled away from the back of the chair, his elbows on his knees.

- By the way ... - he said, while stretching the letter "a".

Raytnov again felt some excitement - maybe at least now someone will say something about the inconsistencies in the story of Angus? Gordon hesitated a little, thereby unconsciously playing on his nerves, and then continued:

“Have you noticed anything strange in the doctor’s story?”
- Finally! - Raytnov was delighted, - I already began to doubt if it seemed to me.

Barney shrugged and replied:

- Personally, I did not notice anything. But since you both paid attention to something, I listen to you.

Raytnov and Gordon exchanged glances and simultaneously nodded to each other, each giving in their right to speak first. Barney noticed this confusion and suggested Alex start.

“All right,” he said, “remember, when Emilia began to calm the doctor, I asked one question?” On the subject of how he could not hear me when I searched the bunker and loudly asked if there was anyone alive.
“He also agreed that it looked suspicious,” Gordon reminded.

Barney stared at them blankly.

“Well, yes, I remember,” he confirmed, “he asked later even if we found his reasoning logical.
“Precisely,” Raytnov continued, “and I told him that I myself had returned to the bunker shortly before dark, and THE REMAINS WENT ANYTHING. Remember what his reaction to these words was?

Barney still did not understand what he was driving at:

- Yes, like no. What kind of reaction did you expect to see?
“Let me tell him,” said Gordon, “I have already learned to intelligibly explain obvious things to him during these three months.

Raytnov smiled faintly, seeing Barney slowly turn his head toward Gordon and just as slowly squeeze his fists.

“So,” Gordon continued calmly, “but why did the doctor then ride all over the kitchen?” From the news that Joe survived, right? He also asked if someone else survived - do you tell?

Barney sharply opened his fists.

“Damn,” he said, “but it is so!” At first, he calmly reacted to the news that the rest of the survivors had left. And then, when I found out about Joe, I pointedly asked if someone else had survived?
“That's how it was,” Raytnov concluded, “as if he knew in advance that there were survivors, but he outplayed it where it shouldn't have.” Do you know what else seemed strange to me? He said that the poor man’s screams from the lab had eaten into his subconscious, but how could he hear them if he went down to the bunker?
- Do you think the doctor can be involved in everything? Barney asked.
- Sure. I even began to doubt my rightness - it was too beautiful, he told. But now I’m completely sure that I really didn’t see him in the bunker - he simply wasn’t there.
- Where was he at the time of the attack?
“To be honest, I don’t know,” said Raytnov, and backed toward the door, “I can only say that it’s somewhere on Alpha.”

He got out of the cramped car and stretched his limbs in a proper manner, and then threw a glance through the window — a storm had already started in the street. Both pilots also came out and now stood next to him, and Raytnov asked:

- By the way, guys. Could Delta settlers survive the attack?

Barney shook his head doubtfully. There was no bunker on the Delta.

I will be glad to see everyone in VK group :)