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His “eagerness” read the same as his “calmness” read the same as his “readiness”. While Khoth was subdued in how he expressed emotions, Matzen was almost completely colorless. But perhaps Davies didn’t know him well enough. He would have to learn each new member of the crew, especially those of other species so he could read them and understand them.

“Well, there’s certainly more openness,” Davies said, thinking that was an interesting word choice, “but we are disciplined and we get the job done no matter what. Is that understood?”

Both Thammah and Matzen nodded smartly.

“Now let’s get going. We leave no AIs behind and Gehenna is waiting for us below,” Davies said.

The three of them entered the lift. A hologram appeared in the center, sensing their movement. The droids probably didn’t need it to operate the lift, but the device recognized that they did. This, too, was interesting. A series of glowing symbols appeared. He frowned as the comm did not translate them for him. He looked again at his comm to where Gehenna appeared–a lone glowing dot–about three floors down. He counted down the symbols from where they started. Davies pressed what he hoped to be the correct button button. He seemed to have been successful, at least in part, as the lift began to lower again.

“What floor did you choose?” Thammah asked, looking over his shoulder.

“No idea. The translator can’t decipher these symbols at all so I made an educated guess,” Davies remarked.

“They are Altaeth symbols. Rare to find so many of them,” Matzen said as he drew near to the center hologram and began to take pictures of each.

“But isn’t all the technology in Altaeth? I mean, didn’t you have to translate them originally to use the tech?” Davies asked.

“The universal translator was one of the first pieces of tech we found,” Thammah explained. “It was almost as if the technology was wiped clean of all Altaeth personality and made to serve whoever came after.”

“That’s part of another theory of what happened to the Altaeth,” Matzen replied dryly. “That the Altaeth knowing they could not defeat the Khul–or perhaps choosing not to–having left the Seeded Species behind also left them the tech in a mode that they could use.”

“But not understand the tech’s creators?” Davies shook his head.

“Perhaps they feared whatever instructions they left behind would be read by the Khul,” Thammah suggested. “Or they had no real advice to give us. Following in their footsteps might have been impossible or ill-advised.”

“I get why the Thaf’ell stopped asking questions, but what about the other species?” Davies pressed. “Surely, not everyone lacks curiosity.”

“The Neenda seek to know the past,” Thammah said. “That’s how we located the Osiris, I believe, in the first place. And there are other species whose view on the Altaeth is not as… strict.”

“Anyone who joins the Alliance must abide by Thaf’ell law. The Neenda have been allowed to continue their research, because it does not require the destruction of any tech. They have an empathic ability that allows them to read the past from objects. Some deem it little more than sophistry, but they have led us to finds like the Osiris that cannot be explained otherwise,” Matzen answered. “But, for the most part, the Thaf’ell ways of doing things has been respected and viewed as superior.”

“Except when it comes to things like figuring out our past, among other things, so many other things,” Thammah retorted almost sweetly and the edge to her voice told Davies she’d had this argument with others before.

Matzen’s brows furrowed. “Have I said something to upset you, Flight-Commander?”

Thammah crossed her arms over her chest. “No. Yes. Okay, yes! You mouth the platitudes of joining the Osiris, but you’re still acting like Alliance!”

“Not everything that the Alliance has been based upon has worked as intended, but it is still a wise governing body. I would bring some of that to the Osiris,” Matzen answered, of course, neutrally.

“Are you sure that’s really the truth?” Thammah pushed. “We have certain beliefs. One of which was that the Khul would never dare enter Alliance space, let alone attempt to infest Haseon. But they did. Today. And we would have lost to them with ease if not for the Pilot and humans like Davies.”

“I–”

“What if all these supposed benefits of the Alliance were simply un-pressure checked ideas? Basically, we thought them true, because the Khul never proved them false? Not because they couldn’t! But because they had no need to,” she said. “Think about that, Matzen.”

“I will do so, Flight-Commander. And I hope we can have further discussions,” Matzen answered.

Davies saw Thammah’s jaw clench, but she made a tight nod and turned away from Matzen. Davies could have intervened, but this was an argument about ideas, not how the Osiris was run, who was in charge or the current mission. So he allowed it. Keeping in the hostility wouldn’t eliminate it. It would only allow it to fester.

The lift jolted to a halt as they stopped outside another platform three stories down. There were still floors and floors, unexplored, below them. Wind whistled up from the depths and stirred Matzen’s long hair. It was surprisingly fresh. The urge to explore further did not fill Davies. He was intent on getting Gehenna and getting out of here.

Despite the airy corridors and large lift, he felt the weight of the structures above them pressing down. And he also felt an almost atavistic fear of this place. He wasn’t sure where it was coming from. The droids had been harmless. They’d seen no marks or spoor to indicate wildlife. Though the droids would have likely eliminated that along with the Altaeth’s rotting furniture and other materials. And what was there to eat down here? Nothing. Stone and metal and machinery. Nothing any flesh and blood creature could survive on. Still, he felt the skin between his shoulder blades pricking and the weight of unseen eyes upon them.

He checked his comm and gestured for them to head through another set of doors on the platform. “She’s this way about two hallways down to the right.” He unholstered his draagves and aimed it at the center of the doors while indicating for Thammah and Matzen to open the doors from either side and stay out of view of whatever was behind those doors. “I don’t see any movement on the comm, but let’s continue being careful, shall we?”

The two Thaf’ell strafed over to the doors. The sensor pad was on Thammah’s side. She brought her comm near it and the key-software that the Pilot had placed upon it had the sensor going from red to green. The doors slowly opened. Davies held his draagves up and ready to fire. He controlled his breathing. His finger was on the trigger.

No predator came into view. But unlike the floors above them, this hallway was in a state of disrepair. The light crystals that did work were dim and flickering on and off. Electrical sparks could be heard and the reflection of their hot, white light seen in one of the doorways to the right. Their snap and sizzle had the hair on the back of Davies’ neck standing on end. There were pools of water from broken pipes sitting on the floor that was covered in debris and dust. It wasn’t a thousand years of disrepair, but clearly this level had suffered damage and had not–or could not–be repaired.