Uncommon Loyalty

by Toby Neighbors

  “Oh, you care about my feelings now?”

  “I’ve always cared about your feelings,” Nick said. “You know that.”

  “I know you, Nick, as well as anyone does,” she replied. “I know you’re here to smooth things over. Well, don’t worry about it. You made up your mind without any input from me, so I don’t think you need my approval now.”

  “I don’t understand,” Nick confessed. “Is this because I said we should wait to take things beyond friendship?”

  “You are so dense,” Ember said. “I’m not mad because you want to wait, Nick. I’m mad because you didn’t talk to me about it. You just made a decision, one that affects us both, without any input from me.”

  “You’re mad because I didn’t talk to you,” Nick said.

  “Of course, I am. Wouldn’t you be? We’re first and foremost friends, then teammates. We could be more, but you rejected that idea before you even talked to me. That’s not like you, and I get that we’re talking about a deeply personal subject, but I don’t like being treated as if how I feel doesn’t matter.”

  “I’m sorry,” Nick said. “The truth is, I was afraid to talk to you.”

  “Because you thought I would reject you?” she asked, aghast.

  “No, because I thought if I got any closer to you, I might never be able to just be friends with you again.”

  “Look, I don’t even know how I really feel about the idea of being more than friends. But I do know that my feelings for you run deep, and I would like the chance to talk about things. That’s all I’m asking. Don’t treat me as if I don’t matter.”

  “You do matter. I never meant to make you feel that way, Em. You’re so important to me.”

  “You’re important to me too, you dope. Now promise when we aren’t risking our lives on an alien world or in the middle of intense training, that we’ll talk. Can you do that? With an open mind?”

  “Sure,” Nick said. “I promise.”

  “Good, now get out of here. I have work to do.”

  He left her by the water, which was still stacked on the repulser sled. Their camp under the tarp was very minimalistic and efficient. They had cut bundles of grain to use as insulation for their sleeping pallets. Because they were wearing their armor at all times, they shared a smaller sleeping area, keeping things as small as possible. The repulser sleds were charged and ready in case a hasty retreat was necessary. They kept their weapons with them at all times, and it was only a short walk between two hills to reach the surveillance area.

  Gunnery Sergeant Beth Tveit was waiting for Nick when he arrived. Her posture seemed stiff, and he was afraid he had done something wrong. He checked the chrono on his wrist to ensure he hadn’t overslept.

  “Is something wrong?” Nick asked his superior as he approached.

  “Nick, listen to this,” she ordered.

  He bent down and let his helmet’s wireless connection sync with the surveillance equipment. He used the simple interface on his HUD to tap into the universal translator. As soon as he was ready, Gunny Tveit played back a recording she had captured earlier.

  The mechanical sounding voice of the translation program was clear in his helmet’s audio, but the translations were never perfect. Still, it seemed they were close to learning what they’d come to find out.

  “Is the test ready?”

  “... spooling up... very soon.”

  Nick wanted to curse the spotty translation, but there was nothing they could do about it.

  “The equations ... proven. The metallurgy should... to the stress of Faster Than ... travel.”

  “All that remains... this afternoon.”

  “They’re testing their FTL drive?” Nick asked.

  “You tell me?” Gunny Tveit said.

  Suddenly Nick realized why she’d seemed so tense. The Issip had something to test, and they were set to do it soon.

  “Can you test an engine like that in atmo?” Nick asked.

  “That depends,” Tveit said. “We don’t even know if what they’re testing is an FTL drive, or if it is nothing more than a computer simulation.”

  “Would that be valuable?” Nick asked.

  “It would be the first step in creating an actual engine,” Tveit said. “And theoretically, if their simulations hold up, it may be all they need to do.”

  “Because they could sell the technology to anyone,” Nick said.

  To his surprise, Gunny Tveit powered down her helmet. It was something they often did to sleep. It conserved the armor’s power and gave them some peace and quiet while they slept. The helmet didn’t unseal from their armor, but all communications were cut off. She pointed at him and then tapped her helmet.

  Nick wasn’t sure what to do. He raised his hands, and she repeated the signal and then waved her hand in front of her neck. He realized she wanted him to cut the power to his helmet as well. He shut the helmet’s systems down, even though he had no idea why or what Gunny Tveit was doing. She leaned close, until their helmets were touching. Nick felt strangely self-conscious and completely unsure of what his NCO was trying to do.

  “Can you hear me?” Gunny shouted.

  Her voice came through the helmet but was hard to hear. Even though she was shouting, it was almost like a whisper.

  “Yes!” Nick shouted back.

  “We have to get that technology,” she demanded.

  “I thought we were just supposed to confirm or deny if the Issip have it.”

  “That’s our mission,” she said. “But we both know what the Proxy will do. They will suppress the technology by any means necessary.”

  “So?” Nick shouted.

  “So I’m staying here to fulfill the mission parameters,” she told him. “You have to go in and get the specifications.”

  “Why? The Proxy don’t need that, do they?”

  “It isn’t for the Proxy,” Gunny Tveit said.

  Nick was confused. If gaining the technology wasn’t part of their mission, and it wasn’t for the Proxy, what was his NCO ordering him to do?

  “Who’s it for?” Nick asked.

  The willowy sergeant stepped back and nodded at him. Nick knew the answer, but he was afraid to even think it. Gunnery Sergeant Beth Tveit wanted Nick to steal alien technology and send it back to Earth. Nick was new to the PMC, but he was fairly certain such action would not be looked on favorably. His mouth went dry, and his knees felt weak. Tveit stepped close again and shouted at him.

  “Will you do it?”

  Nick felt sick, but he knew he couldn’t deny the order. Not because he would be refusing his superior, but because he knew the importance of the alien technology to the human race.

  Chapter 11

  Nick woke up Kal. He still had his helmet turned off, and Nick pressed his own helmet against his friends.

  “Don’t turn your helmet on!”

  “What?”

  “Don’t turn your helmet on!” Nick repeated, before pulling his best friend.

  Nick was close to all his friends, but Kal was his partner in crime. The others were game for anything the two of them cooked up, but Kal had a knack for getting into trouble, and Nick never did anything without consulting Kal first.

  They moved to the edge of the tent, away from where Ember had just settled beside Jules to get some much-needed sleep. Ty was still on the hilltop listening post with Gunny Tveit. He pressed his helmet against Kal’s, but his friend spoke first.

  “Is this about Ember, dude? I’ve got two more hours of sleep, man.”

  “No, it isn’t about Em. We worked that out.”

  “So what’s up? Why are we shouting through our helmets like crazy people?”

  “So the Proxy can’t hear us,” Nick said.

  “What?”

  “The Proxy can’t hear us or record what I’m about to tell you.”

  “Have you lost your mind?”

  “No, just listen. The Issip have done it. They’ve designed an FTL drive.”

  “Good,
we can go home,” Kal shouted.

  “Not yet. They’re starting their tests this afternoon.”

  “So? Let’s record it and complete the mission.”

  “We will. Gunny’s on it. But they won’t build the drive.”

  “Who cares what the Issip do? Or the Proxy for that matter. All I care about is getting us all home safe.”

  “But what if we could get our hands on the drive technology?”

  “Are you insane? You want to steal an interstellar starship engine?”

  “No, they didn’t build it. Gunny’s convinced they only built a computer model. That’s what they’re testing.”

  “A model?” Kal asked.

  “The specifications,” Nick said. “It’s a computer file, maybe a big one, but still just a file. Once we confirm they have it, the Proxy will step in and buy it to keep them from selling it to anyone else.”

  “Okay, so?”

  “What if we can copy it?” Nick said. “Think about what that would mean to humanity.”

  “Who cares about humanity, dude? They stuck us in the ULU and stole everything we worked for. Why should we betray the Proxy just to help the people who never helped us?”

  Nick wasn’t sure what to say. The truth was he felt much the same way. The Proxy had done more for them than anyone on Earth. They had opportunities with the PMC that they couldn’t have earned on Earth in ten lifetimes. The deck was stacked against them on their home world, but in space, they had the chance to make something for themselves. Yet, despite the way they were treated, Nick couldn’t fight the feeling that getting the FTL drive’s plans and specifications was his duty to humanity.

  “Because it’s the right thing to do,” Nick said.

  “Bullshit. You want us to risk our necks so some corporation gets rich and humanity spreads across the galaxy. What makes you think we’d be any better than the Proxy if we have the technology to leave the solar system?”

  “Come on, man. If we can get the tech, we have to do it.”

  “That’s a big if, dude. We don’t know anything about Issip technology. Even if we could steal the plans, we wouldn’t be able to read them without a translator, and the technology to build the stupid thing might be beyond our capabilities.”

  “Or it might be the thing that sets the human race on the path to greatness. It might be what opens the doors of possibility to billions of people, Kal. It might change everything, for the better.”

  “Or might cost us our lives,” he argued.

  “It’s worth fighting for,” Nick said. “It’s worth the risk.”

  “Are you sure about that, Nick? Because you know I have your back, always. But this is crazy. We could be killed trying to get it. And if the Proxy find out we’re holding out on them, they’ll kill us. All of us, not just you and me, but Jules, Ty, Ember, even Gunny Tveit.”

  “I know, but isn’t our first duty to humanity?”

  “Humanity isn’t paying the bills, dude.”

  “But just because we’re working for the Proxy doesn’t mean we sold out humanity. If we turn our back on this opportunity now, we really are traitors. I can’t live with that.”

  “Should we wake the others?”

  “No,” Nick said. “This is just you and me. We get in and get out.”

  “You think it’s going to be that easy?”

  “No, man. I think it might be the hardest thing we’ve ever done, but we can’t turn our backs on this. It means too much to too many people.”

  “Sometimes you’re a pain, Nick,” Kal said.

  “We can’t use our com-links while we do this,” Nick continued. “Hand signals only. And we leave our weapons here.”

  “Are you out of your mind?”

  “No,” Nick said. “Our armor will camouflage us. We go in when it gets dark, we’re out by morning. No one would ever know we were there. Just like the principal’s office back home.”

  Kal shook his head, but Nick could already see his friend’s mind working through the details. They powered on their helmets and went to the listening post. Nick gave Ty a break and then spent an hour studying the layout of the city between their observation post and the propulsion laboratory.

  When Nick powered down his helmet again, Gunnery Sergeant Tveit moved close and turned her own helmet off. Kal joined them, everyone standing with just centimeters between their faces as they shouted to be heard.

  “We’re going in,” Nick yelled.

  “Use your armor’s stealth mode,” Tveit said. “We haven’t trained on it yet, but it’s made for this. As long as you aren’t moving, you’ll be difficult to see.”

  “What happens if we get caught?” Kal asked.

  “Don’t get caught,” Tveit said. “If the Issip can prove we were here, it will give them leverage during the negotiations with the Proxy. The eggheads hate that more than treason.”

  “We won’t get caught,” Nick said. “This isn’t the first time we’ve done something like this.”

  “Any idea how their computer systems operate?” Kal said. “Or what we’re looking for?”

  “They’re testing a computer model,” Gunny Tveit said. “There has to be some way to copy the files.”

  “We’ll figure it out,” Nick said.

  “Good luck, you two,” their sergeant said. “You make me proud to be a human.”

  The two boys started off, moving slowly across the rolling plain between the listening post and the city. They were careful to stay low and not draw attention to themselves. As the glowing planet that illuminated Issip Minor began to set, the shadows grew long. Nick and Kal moved cautiously to the wall that surrounded the city. It was two meters high, and Nick guessed it was built to keep out animals.

  “How do you want to do this?” Kal asked.

  “One person goes after the files,” Nick replied as he watched the glowing planet in the sky slowly shift down to a sliver of pale light. “The other keeps watch.”

  “What happens if we’re seen?”

  “We run,” Nick said. “All we have to do is get out of the city. They won’t follow us into the forest.”

  “Dude, we’re a three-day march from the forest.”

  “So don’t let them see you,” Nick said.

  “You want me to get the files?”

  “You’re better at being sneaky than me,” Nick said. “I’ll keep watch. You get the goods.”

  “Great. I take all the risks.”

  Nick could have jumped up and pulled himself over the short wall that surrounded the city, but instead he put his back to the wall and bent low, lacing his fingers together to give his friend a boost up. Kal stepped onto Nick’s hands, then rose up with his head just barely above the top edge of the wall. Inside the city, the streets were deserted. The team had observed that the Issip weren’t keen on being outside. Unlike humans who moved from place to place all day long, the Issip preferred to stay indoors. Most of the buildings in the city had full services, from food to entertainment. Many of the Issip never left the building where they worked and lived.

  The streets were immaculately clean. There was no traffic other than a few automated transports. Kal pushed up on the wall and flung his leg over, then dropped quietly on the other side. Nick had to jump to reach the top edge of the wall and used the upward momentum to pull himself up. The rough material, a type of alien concrete, scraped against his armor as Nick pushed his body up and then threw a leg over the wall. When he dropped down on the other side, Kal was waiting.

  He waved his hand, pointing in the direction he wanted to go. Nick nodded and they were off, moving through the alien city, in hopes of saving the human race.

  Chapter 12

  Ember wasn’t sure how long she’d been asleep when Jules woke her. At first, she worried that she had somehow overslept. They were all tired, and the last thing any of them wanted was to make the others feel as if they weren’t pulling their weight. She blinked several times, then checked the chrono on her data-link. Relief flooded
through her as she realized she hadn’t overslept. That emotion was immediately replaced with worry.

  “What’s wrong?”

  Jules just tapped her helmet and then beckoned for Ember to follow her. They left the tent, and Ember could see that only Gunny Tveit had her helmet on. She wanted to ask the NCO what was going on, but some instinct told her she needed to keep her mouth shut. So she followed her friend out to the listening post.

  Ty was on the ground, using the long-range scanner, but it was pointing away from the propulsion laboratory. It felt to Ember as if she had awakened in a different world. Everything felt strange and out of place. She was filled with questions and wondered if perhaps she was still dreaming.

  Then Jules pointed at Ember’s helmet and made a cutting motion across her neck. It was clear that her friend wanted her to power down the helmet, which was strange. Why not just say what needed to be said, Ember thought. Why all the secrecy? It took a moment for the helmet to power down, then Ember gave her friend a thumbs up. Jules pointed toward the city. There was no explanation, no suddenly clarity, just a voiceless clue. Ember looked across the twilight plain of golden wheat and saw two dark figures against the wall that surrounded the city. She tried to make out what she was seeing, but with her helmet powered down, she couldn’t use its telephoto feature to zoom in on the sight.

  Jules leaned close. “That’s Nick and Kal,” she shouted.

  Her voice sounded small and distant to Ember. She wasn’t sure if it was the dream effect, but her mind refused to put together the clues she was seeing.

  “What?” Ember shouted.

  “Nick and Kal,” Jules shouted back. “They’re going after the plans of the FTL drive.”

  “Why?” Ember asked.

  Fear tore at her insides like a rabid animal trying to escape a trap. Nick was risking his life, and Kal’s too. It made no sense. Stealing from the Issip was never part of the plan. They were just supposed to listen and report back. Getting confirmation might be useful, but the Proxy didn’t need the FTL technology; they already had it. Humanity needed it, she thought, and then everything became clear.

  “They’re stealing the plans?” Ember asked again, finally understanding why she had been told to turn her helmet off.