Marcus picked up the can of inebriating liquid and took another large swig. He had hardly slept the last few nights, despite the intoxication. He rubbed his tired eyes as he stared at the code on the screens before him. The Matrix was quiet, it always was at that time of night. Slowly his gaze turned to the empty chairs ahead of him with a sigh, he wished someone was up, that someone was jacked in, that someone would provide him some excitement. Usually he never had to want for that, the things he had seen had amazed and suprised him; From the earliest Zamping feats of the Science officer to the newest members sheer capacity for learning.
Slowly he tapped a few keys, if there were nothing happening in the matrix then maybe something was happening in his world. Static filled the earpiece as he searched through the transmission frequencies, hoping to pick up a signal. He stumbled across the Zion channel and smiled, they still hadn't managed to encrypt the relay properly, Zero ones decryption processes could still access it with ease. He took another swig from the can, with a large gulp, and discovered he had emptied it once more. He removed the earpiece and stood up
"Time for a refill old girl" he said softly as he tapped the top of the screen with a sense of care. The Simus was one of his oldest friends and he trusted her with his life. It was only right that he showed her a certain amount of love. As he headed towards the engineering deck he heard the crackle of static behind him, suddenly the static became a murmur.
#####Las[]########Balta[][]r###Ma[][]ay##Mayd[][]###Co-or[] 554#3#2###[]4#######
He dropped the can, the metallic echo resounding across the bridge, and hurriedly grabbed the earpiece and listened closely. His hands flicking at switches and pressing keys with urgency, hoping to lock down the signal. The message repeated again
#####Las[]########Balta[][]r###Ma[][]ay##Mayd[][]###Co-or[] 554#3#2###[]4#######
He frowned before remembering the new Analysis program leelia had installed last week. Quickly he tapped some more keys and brought the program up.
"Transmission 19Alpha...Req Code: 01078996+4B HvCft Baltasar
14, 678 KB, Recurrence 24,694, Original Transmission 14.08"
He frowned as he read the analysis. The message had been sent many months ago, during the dark period when the Coma solaris had collapsed and the Baltasar had disappeared. And yet it was still transmitting....that could mean only one thing...somewhere out there the Baltasar's systems were still active, somwehere the ship was still alive. He heard the door openeing behind him and turned, his face a ghostly shade of white
"Marcus?" leelia said as she frowned "What is it?"
