by A. K. DuBoff
Kira didn’t share the AI’s confidence. While Jasmine’s endorsement would carry weight when it came to the Guard command’s review, it didn’t make Kira feel better about herself.
Did the Trols get to me? Or have I just been too distracted by my own issues to focus on the mission the way I should? She didn’t have an answer, but thorough med and psych evaluations were in order either way.
The Raven docked in its typical berth, and Kira went to grab her travel items from the team’s cabin.
“When are we going back there to finish the job?” Nia asked as she grabbed her own bag from her bunk.
“I don’t know,” Kira replied. “There are a few ways this could go.”
“That whole place needs to be destroyed,” Ari stated.
“Would that be enough? Who’s to say that’s all of them?” Kyle countered. “This group has shown themselves to be a threat to us, and they’ve been unresponsive to our attempts to open a dialogue. We can’t just ignore them.”
“They’re in an unoccupied system. If they don’t venture beyond that, maybe it won’t matter,” Nia said.
Kira shook her head. “No way. They’ve insinuated themselves into Taran life once, so they’d do it again.”
“Yep, they need to go,” Ari reiterated.
“We’ll obey whatever direction Kaen gives,” Kira stated. She slung her travel bag over her shoulder. “I’ll talk to you after my debrief with Sandren and the colonel.”
Her team wished her well while they exited via the gangway, and Kira headed straight for Medical.
A nurse directed Kira to Doctor Elric in a back exam room. “How are you feeling, Kira?” the doctor greeted her.
“Good, physically speaking,” Kira replied, hopping on the exam bed. “Jasmine was able to counter some negative effects during the op, so it seems to be working out.”
The doctor smiled while he initiated a full body scan. “Glad to hear it. I’ll take a copy of your records from her and look for anything concerning.” He tilted his head. “Is there anything you’d like me to be on the lookout for, in particular?”
“I have no idea what those logs even look like.”
“I mean, do you have any concerns about your state? Any incidents of note?”
“Oh.” Kira looked down. “I guess, shortly after we arrived on the planet, we went into a formation of rocks that we later determined are made of valteron—the same substance as my TR. I got a bad headache, and Jasmine was able to block it out. The only other thing that’s maybe worth mentioning is that I…” she faded out as she sought the right words. “I guess, I didn’t feel worried at times like I maybe should have.”
“Can you quantify that at all?” Elric asked.
“Not really. And it’s not something I noticed at the time. I only bring it up because Nia asked me at one point why I wasn’t running for the door. Aside from when I almost shifted while we were in battle, I was perfectly calm. I feel like I should have at least been… unnerved when we were walking around.”
“All right, I’ll look at your medical logs and send a copy of the interface data to Jack for analysis. We can run your medical stats alongside the mission recorder from your suit to make sure your physiological reactions are in line with what they should be.”
“I trust my team, and they need to trust me. If something is off, we need to address it.”
“Absolutely. We’ll get to the bottom of it,” the doctor assured her. “It could be a product of the new AI interface, or it might be something related to the nanites. Or maybe it’s nothing at all.”
Kira nodded. “Thank you, Doctor.”
Elric examined the results of her body scan. “In the meantime, everything looks normal. Well, your new normal. The nanites seem to have settled in.”
“How so?”
“They multiplied and embedded in your musculoskeletal system. I believe that must be what’s given you the enhanced strength, and it would also explain the pain during your transformations as some of the nanites stream outward to form the defensive exoskin. That close integration explains why they were never ‘contagious’, since they’re fully integrated with you,” he explained. “Your first full transformation, you didn’t experience the same discomfort because there weren’t as many inside you yet. They absorbed your suit and the decking in order to propagate.”
Kira couldn’t help staring at her hands, searching for any signs of the nanites. “I guess it does make me feel a little better to have some sense of what’s happening during the transformations.”
“I’ve often found that to be the case with any medical condition.” Elric studied her. “Have there been any signs of other abilities… telekinesis?”
“Stars, no!”
“Well, that was one of the goals of these nanites—to replicate TK abilities.”
Kira shook her head. “If Monica succeeded in doing that, I haven’t experienced any sign of it yet.”
“I had to ask.” Doctor Elric motioned her down from the exam bed. “I’ll be in touch as soon as I’ve gone through the logs. Try to get some rest.”
Kira smiled as she prepared to go. “Yes, Doctor.”
As soon as she had exited Medical, Kira messaged Leon at one of the comm consoles. “Hey! I’m back.”
“Already? That was quick.”
“Don’t sound so excited,” she jested.
Leon sighed, giving her a warm smile. “Of course I’m glad you’re back! How’d it go?”
“I’ll tell you when we’re together.”
“Well, I’m at my lab—should be finished with this task in another half hour or so. Should I message you then, or do you want to come here?” he asked.
“How about—” Kira cut off when she saw an incoming message from Colonel Kaen. “Wait, I think I’m being summoned. I’ll get back to you,” she told Leon.
“See you soon.”
Kira switched over to the other call. “Sir, what can I do for you?”
“Major Sandren has filled me in on what happened in Gaelon, but I’d like to hear it directly from you.”
Kira’s chest tightened. “Yes, sir.”
“We’re waiting for you in the conference room by my office.”
“I’ll be there right away.”
Kira was thankful Jasmine left her to her own thoughts for the walk. She already had her talking points in mind for each of the likely scenarios. Aside from being court-martialed for gross negligence, her worst fear was being put on desk duty until her condition was fully understood—if that could ever happen. More likely, only her fitness for command would be questioned, and she would remain in the field as a specialized tool for the Guard to direct as it saw fit. While not ideal, that outcome would still be preferable to the other options.
Trying to visualize a favorable result, Kira strode into the conference room with as much confidence as she could muster. Colonel Kaen and Major Sandren were seated behind the long edge of the table opposite the door.
“Sirs,” she greeted.
“Have a seat, Captain.” Kaen gestured to the chair nearest the entry.
“Sir, if I could explain—”
“All I want to know is what happened to you while you were trying to leave, in your own words,” the colonel interrupted.
The request caught Kira off-guard. Why didn’t he lay into me?
She cleared her throat. “Well, the walls appeared to disintegrate into a swarm of particles. The nearest analogy I can give is that it looked like a sandstorm—except there was no wind. The particles closed in around us, but they let the three other members of my team through, focusing on me. They stuck together and tried to secure me to the ground. We used kinetic rounds to break the bonds, and I was able to escape. They tried the same thing with the shuttle, but we made it out in time.”
Kaen nodded. “By your estim
ation, could the swarm have disabled the shuttle?”
“With enough time, maybe. Probably.”
“I’ll talk with General Lucian about getting authorization for a strike,” Kaen stated.
Kira gave him a questioning look in spite of herself. “Sir, the external processor—”
“Your team’s activities were interrupted by a hostile alien presence, which attempted to disable you and make it impossible to leave. Is that an incorrect assessment of the field report?” Kaen asked.
“No, sir.”
Jasmine sighed in her mind.
Kira sat in stunned silence as the AI’s words sank in. She hadn’t expected the sentiment to come from that source, but it was the stern talking-to she’d been craving. That she needed.
She returned her attention to Kaen and Sandren. “Sir, do you have a response planned against the aliens?”
“We haven’t made a final decision,” Kaen replied. “We’ve just come into some new information that changes our understanding of the situation.”
“May I ask what that information is, sir?”
“It came from Ellen Calleti,” Sandren explained.
Kira did a double take. “I knew she’d gone back to Mysar, but why is she’s still getting herself mixed up in our business?”
“Not like last time,” he assured her. “In her efforts to help the Mysarans rebuild their government, she came across some records. Well, rather, she went digging. But we’ll excuse her foolhardiness, because she stumbled across a data archive. And the facility bears a striking resemblance to the one on the Gaelon dwarf planet.”
Kira folded her arms on the tabletop. “I’d say that doesn’t make any sense, but we’re pretty far past that at this point.”
“I share your sentiments.” Sandren flashed a wan smile. “At any rate, we’ve just dug into the contents of that data archive, and it tells an interesting tale. Reya and her associates have been very busy.”
“What were they doing?” Kira asked.
“Mining and manufacturing—more than the Elvar Trinary could possibly consume.”
“Is that where the material for the artificial dwarf planet came from?” Kira asked aloud.
“We’re waiting on the conclusive results, but the preliminary analysis of the samples you collected points to an affirmative,” Sandren confirmed.
“What I found more pressing was Ellen’s personal account,” Kaen said. “She spoke with someone whom had worked closely with Reya. That woman indicated that others had relayed information to her about some sort of pit underneath the facility where they obtained the data.”
A chill spread through Kira’s limbs. “A pit like I saw in Gaelon, where they spoke to me.”
Kaen nodded. “That was my thought, as well.”
Kira sat in silence for a moment. “Sir, if the beings live down in that pit, that may mean that Reya wasn’t the only entity on Mysar.”
“I have troops ready to keep the peace, if they try something,” Kaen assured her. “But from everything we’ve seen on Mysar, these beings—the Trols, as I saw you named them—like to manipulate things behind the scenes. I doubt we have concern of a violent uprising.”
Kira wasn’t sure about that, but it wasn’t her immediate concern. “There’s still the processor on the Gaelon planet, sir. They could become a serious threat if they have time to adapt that technology.”
Kaen nodded. “I’m actively working on a solution to answer that threat. Stand by for further instructions.”
— — —
Studying his girlfriend like a lab specimen wasn’t what Leon had envisioned for his new career in the Guard. Even as his tasks kept pointing him in that direction, he refused to lose sight of the person he was fighting for. She was too important to him to be reduced to microscopic datapoints on a screen.
Unfortunately, Jack had no such personal ties. “This tech is so weird,” he commented for the third time while reviewing Kira’s medical logs on the other side of the lab.
“Unless you have something useful to say, could you try to keep your thoughts to yourself?” Leon requested.
“Oh, come on.” Jack swiveled around on his stool. “Aren’t you a little curious?”
“To look at your analysis of how nanites have transformed someone I care about against her will, and how she now has a computer intelligence in her brain to keep her from transforming? Yeah, I’m sure it’s weird and fascinating how all that tech is interacting, but I’m only interested in what will help her,” Leon shot back.
Jack spun back around with his hands raised in defense. “Whoa, touched a nerve.”
Leon took a steadying breath. That may have been an overreaction, but he didn’t care. His team needed to remember that there were people behind the science.
Just as he was getting back to work, an alert from Kira popped up on Leon’s workstation. He answered her call. “Hi, finished with the meeting?”
“Yeah. Are you still at your lab?”
“I am.”
“On my way.” Kira ended the call.
“That was very business-y and matter-of-fact,” Jack commented from across the lab.
“Not everyone is as lovey-dovey in public as you and Stacy,” Tess told him.
Leon glared over his shoulder at Jack. “You were the one talking about her like a lab specimen.”
Tess held up her finger. “A smart, pretty, capable lab specimen with thoughts and feelings, and we care about her well-being very much.”
Leon sighed. “Should I expect an ongoing analysis of every interaction I have in all aspects of my life?” he said, hoping to get them to mind their own business.
Instead, Tess shrugged. “Well, we’re scientists, and we also don’t get a lot of action down here in the lab, so… yeah, that’s a safe bet.”
I really need my own office. Leon pushed back from his workstation. “Why don’t you two head out for the day?” he offered pointedly.
“I’m in the middle of something,” Jack replied.
“It’s okay if you step out, though.” Tess looked over her shoulder at Leon. “We’ll hold down the fort until you get back.”
Admittedly, he could use a break. “I won’t be gone long.”
“Come on, don’t sell yourself short!” Jack called out.
It took Leon a moment to realize what he meant, and he decided to leave without dignifying the remark, confident in the knowledge that was one aspect of his relationship with Kira he didn’t need to worry about.
He waited in the hall for Kira to arrive. After two minutes, he saw her round the bend.
“What are you doing out here?” she asked. Her brow was tight with worry, and she had uncharacteristic dark circles under her eyes.
Leon walked forward to meet her halfway and pulled her in for a kiss without saying a word.
She kissed him back, the tension releasing from her shoulders.
“Let’s go somewhere we can talk alone,” he suggested. “My qu
arters aren’t far.”
Kira nodded.
He led the way. “Did something happen out there?”
“A lot of things,” she murmured.
Leon looked at her with concern.
“We’re all fine,” she assured him. “These aliens just have me on edge.”
“I know what you mean.”
He hated to see her so stressed. Maybe that was her normal state in the Guard, but something told him this was beyond normal. The Robus situation certainly couldn’t be helping matters.
I’m sick of feeling like I can’t do anything to make this easier on her. Well, maybe I can’t from a medical standpoint, but I can still offer love and support. That is within my control.
Leon grabbed her hand as they walked the final stretch to his quarters. She squeezed his back.
He palmed open his door and motioned her inside.
The room was slightly smaller than Kira’s, equipped with a double bed between two end tables, a built-in dresser, and a viewscreen on the wall. A door in the center of the right wall led to a compact washroom. He spent so little time in the space that he didn’t need anything more.
As soon as they were inside with the door closed, Kira wrapped her arms around his neck and led him toward the bed as her lips found his.
He eagerly kissed her back, having been days since he’d seen her, and going on two weeks since they’d been intimate—since before the discovery of her transformation.
They were just about to recline on the bed when Kira suddenly pulled back. “Hold on a sec.”
“What’s wrong?”
Kira got a distant look in her hazel eyes for a moment. “Sorry, I wasn’t sure how to handle this with an AI in my head. Jasmine and I had to come to an understanding.”
“Oh, I guess that would be a little weird, having someone watching,” Leon realized.
“Yeah, a mental running commentary about my increased dopamine levels was, shockingly, not enhancing the mood.” Kira drew him down to her. “But don’t worry, she won’t interrupt us again.”
Forgetting about the silent observer, Leon set about giving Kira a reprieve from her worries.