by S. H. Jucha
Jessie waited for a reply, but the comm remained silent. A check of his unit revealed the connection was solid.
“What are you thinking, Liam?” Jessie asked cautiously.
“I’m thinking I don’t want to disappoint a lot of good people,” Liam replied in a quiet voice. “What if I’d lost?”
“I suppose we’d have gone with plan B,” Jessie replied good-naturedly.
“Which was what?” Liam asked.
“Well there was always immigrating to Na-Tikkook,” Jessie said, laughing.
“You’re kidding?” Liam shot back.
The fact that Jessie didn’t answer his question but politely ended the call frightened Liam. He’d never considered what might have happened if Strattleford or Fortis won. A shudder went through him, and he could feel the short hairs on his head stand up. You have your work cut out for you, Liam, he thought. It was more of a warning than a statement of the obvious.
The next item on Liam’s to-do list involved setting expectations with the family heads. That meant a message to the council, and Dorelyn was best suited to carry it for him.
“Congratulations, Commandant Finian, on your election,” Dorelyn said politely, when she picked up her comm unit. “I hope we’ll be able to establish a stable and profitable working relationship to the benefit of both our societies.”
Dorelyn had been caught off balance. She’d expected to eventually receive a call from Liam, but she was surprised that it came so swiftly.
“We only have one society, Dorelyn, and I think it would behoove the council and you to start thinking like that,” Liam riposted.
“An interesting perspective, Commandant, but you need to take note of the fact that you’ve introduced a new tradition into your society … elections. Now that your citizens have tasted an opportunity to elect a new leader, who knows where that might lead? They might want to request another one in the near future.”
“And I’m sure the council will try to influence the next one, like you did this past one,” Liam said, an edge to his voice.
“That’s conjecture on your part, Commandant,” Dorelyn replied tartly. “I thought your organization was supposed to deal in facts.”
“Enough bantering, Dorelyn,” Liam growled. “I’ve a message for the council. Soon, I’ll be posting an update to the Pyrean Green site. In addition, I’m uncovering the station’s capital expenditure account.”
“Why are you telling me this?” Dorelyn asked.
“I’ve separated the Pyrean Green fund into topsider and downsider contributors,” Jessie continued. “I’m sure that, unlike last time, the domes’ contributions will be paltry. You should inform the council that if they wish to share in the planet’s surface, they must match the topsider’s portion of the Pyrean Green fund.”
“I imagine you’re intending to contribute the station’s coin to the fund, and that’s meant to be part of your threat,” Dorelyn accused.
“Yes, it is,” Liam replied, in a self-satisfied tone.
“I’ll inform the council, Commandant,” Dorelyn replied. She was biting her tongue. She wanted to unleash her ire on the new commandant, whom she considered an upstart and undeserving of the post.
“Good day, Dorelyn,” Liam said, ending the comm.
* * * *
Aurelia was unsure why Devon had requested they wander the station’s wide, premier corridor. After they’d lapped nearly a quarter of the station’s circumference in silence, Aurelia asked, “Devon, you’re nervous, anxious. Are you anticipating trouble?”
Devon’s soft laugher was tense. “Only from you,” he replied.
“Ah,” Aurelia said under her breath. “We’re walking and talking because our assignment with Commandant Finian is coming to an end, and we’re about to return to our old jobs.”
“Yes,” Devon replied. He was struggling with how to approach the subject he wanted to discuss, but, as usual, Aurelia had a habit of speeding ahead of him. Or maybe I drag my feet too much, he thought.
“And you don’t want that to happen, but you’re hesitant to ask what I want. Why is that?” Aurelia asked.
Devon felt as if he was talking to a woman eight years his senior rather than eight years his junior.
“I’m trying not to be overbearing,” Devon replied.
Aurelia stared at him and then burst out laughing. It was a light, sparkling sound, and it drew the attention of the corridor’s pedestrians, especially because it issued from Aurelia Garmenti. What intrigued the stationers was that they’d considered Aurelia a composed and serious individual, and they couldn’t recall hearing her laugh during the many weeks she’d accompanied the major.
Devon’s flush of embarrassment swept through Aurelia’s mind. Although she’d sensed the emotions of thousands of men whose eyes had roamed over her, she had little experience with relationships. Except for Jessie, who was twice her age and her father figure, she hadn’t opened her heart to another, and she’d never accepted a lover.
The pair walked in silence for a while longer, and Aurelia considered the various indicators from Devon that she’d witnessed. He said he wasn’t afraid of her, and she knew that to be true. Only now did she realize the number of times that Devon had tended to take a post beside her, when the teams mixed during the journey through the domes.
Aurelia considered that Devon might be worried by her hesitancy to respond to his attempts to get close to her. There had been the one time she crawled into his bunk to sleep next to him. But she’d left the bed early in the morning, while Devon slept, and they’d never talked about it.
“I’m going to talk to Envoy Harbour about working at the dome,” Aurelia said, voicing a desire she’d never repeated after the one time at Triton.
“Translating the glyphs,” Devon guessed.
“Yes,” Aurelia replied.
“You plan on asking anyone to accompany you?” Devon asked.
“I had considered who might be useful to assist me, but I couldn’t think of anyone who might be easy to work with and have a facility for translating an alien language,” Aurelia replied.
Despite the crowds passing them by, Aurelia kept her gates open and focused on Devon. She could sense his disappointment as she spoke, and it dawned on her that there was a form of cruelty that she hadn’t suspected she possessed. Do you resent men who want to be with you, because of Dimitri’s actions? she asked herself.
That question disturbed Aurelia, and she considered what that would mean for her future. In a sudden decision, she chose to reject that direction and embrace the opportunity the man walking beside her offered.
Aurelia came to a halt, faced Devon, and said, “It’s occurred to me that someone who had been through the gates would have a perspective that could be useful. And if that someone was a welcome companion, it would make the time in the dome pleasant,” Aurelia said.
“Any idea who that someone might be?” Devon teased.
Aurelia didn’t need to sense the change in Devon’s emotions. His smile said it all.
“It’s still under consideration, but I’ve narrowed it to a pretty short list,” she said, linking her arm in Devon’s to continue their walk.
* * * *
In the afternoon, Liam received Jessie’s promised information, and he sat glued to his monitor, absorbing the details. He was anxious to review the engineers’ recommendations for the intravertors’ deployments. The document’s opening comments spoke to the hull and engine damage that the Belle shuttle suffered, while dropping the first device. This analysis hadn’t been widely circulated, and he was astounded by the courage the pilots displayed in ensuring the success of the launch.
“Okay, so no more shuttle drops,” Liam mumbled, moving onto the report’s analysis of alternate deployment scenarios. The engineers had been quite fanciful with some of their suggestions, but, one by one, they laid out the reasons why these ideas were untenable, either by expense, technology, time, or some combinations of all three.
Eventu
ally, Liam became bogged down in the report’s details. Engineering wasn’t his forte. To be blunt, he had little knowledge in that science. Halfway into the report, he admitted defeat and jumped to the summary.
The engineers chose a mobile launch platform. Intravertors would be loaded into tubes that would be pointed toward the planet’s surface. Compressed gas would launch the devices toward the planet, and gravity would do the rest.
Liam loved the simplicity of the idea. The fact that the platform could be moved across the surface and reused made it seem ideal. He slid a thumb up his comm unit’s virtual screen to get to the budget outline. There he blinked twice and sat back in his chair. The platform was the equivalent of adding two terminal arms to the JOS or installing another foundry line on the YIPS.
When Liam finished his call with Dorelyn, it’d crossed his mind that he might have been too harsh with her, especially about the domes’ contributions to the Pyrean Green fund. Now it occurred to him that he missed the opportunity to have been tougher with her. We’re going to need a lot more coin, he thought.
Pulling up Evan’s report on the construction cost of intravertors, Liam jumped to the budget summary, and mentally added the cost of three-and-a-half more intravertors to the expense of the platform. The total was staggering, and Liam wondered if there was that much coin Pyre-wide. The magnitude of what was being attempted struck him. Pyreans were trying to make the planet habitable to support a growing population, but they would be spending coin for decades, if not generations, without an immediate return.
“And you’ll be asking for more coin every quarter, as more intravertor parts arrive,” Liam said, speaking to his monitor.
Liam pushed back from his desk. He needed to think and decided to take a walk. Passing the sergeants’ office, he heard Cecilia call out, “Going out, Commandant?”
Liam stopped and sighed loudly.
“Don’t blame Sergeant Lindstrom, Commandant,” Miguel said firmly. “None of us want to risk the Envoy’s displeasure.”
Liam pulled out his comm device to call Devon, but he saw Cecilia had already done that. Within a few minutes, Devon came running through the lobby.
“We’re ready, Commandant,” Devon said in a rush of breath.
“How long is this supposed to go on?” Liam asked. He meant it to be a simple question, but it came out rather peevishly, which he regretted.
“I would suggest you call Envoy Harbour and register your complaint, Commandant,” Devon suggested. “But be prepared to be reminded of the attempt on your life and the elimination of your attacker days later.”
Liam regarded Devon, who was trying to suppress a smile. The sergeants’ lips were wiggling, as they fought to do the same.
For a moment, Liam regarded the overhead and resigned himself to the imposed regiment. He had too much to worry about to take issue with this one thing, a contest he was sure to lose.
Passing through the lobby, Liam said, “We’re taking a walk. I need to think.”
In the corridor, a trio of spacers fell in front of them, and the same number followed.
Liam glanced around. “Where’s our early warning system?”
“If you’re speaking of the woman who saved your life, Commandant, she’s busy,” Devon replied tersely.
“Sorry, I meant no disrespect, Devon,” Liam apologized. He mentally booted himself and acknowledged that he was now the commandant and his remarks carried greater weight.
“Well, perhaps it’s for the best, Devon. I’ve wanted to talk to you,” Liam said. “I know that you’re not long for security, but I need your experience.”
Devon eyed Liam and waited.
“Okay, let me be more specific,” Liam continued. “With me moving up and you intending to leave, an officer gap will be formed. I need you to close that. My focus will be trying to put what Harbour and Jessie have started back on track. You know how critical those projects are to Pyre.”
Devon’s nod told Liam that he’d phrased his need properly. Devon was a strong supporter of the envoy.
“What’s your plan?” Devon asked.
“I promote you to major, and I promote Rodriguez and Lindstrom to lieutenants,” Liam replied.
“Rodriguez has seniority,” Devon argued.
“True, Devon, but while Aurelia and you have been guarding my rear end, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking,” Liam said. “Take a look at the future, the one you and others are pushing us toward. What do you see?”
Lately, Devon had come to enjoy these types of questions. “A green Pyre,” he replied, and then he added, “And a need for a security force across the planet.”
Liam smiled at Devon. The lieutenant had got it in one.
“One day it’s going to be what … a commandant, a few colonels, a bunch of majors, and multiple security commands?” Devon asked.
“I think something like that,” Liam replied.
“Then there’s the possibility that Miguel and Cecilia could head separate commands instead of reporting one to the other,” Devon suggested. “That means they need to lead their own investigations and work independently of each other.”
“You see why I need you?” Liam pushed.
They walked for a while, and Devon steered Liam into the Latched On.
“Are we buying spacer gear?” Liam asked. Devon responded with a small smile and said nothing.
Liam waited patiently, while Devon chatted with Gabriel, the store’s owner.
When they left the Latched On, Devon said, “The Belle and Jessie’s ships will take more than half a year for another rotation to Emperion. I can give you, at least, that much time, but this is a conditional response until I speak to Aurelia.”
“I’ll take that answer,” Liam replied quickly. “Let me know soonest. I want these promotions to happen swiftly.”
-40-
Dorelyn Gaylan
Dorelyn convened the council. She chose not to speak with Idrian and Rufus before she addressed the body of family heads.
“I’ve been asked to deliver a message from the new commandant,” Dorelyn began, which immediately grabbed the attendees’ attention, especially those of Idrian, Rufus, and Lise Panoy.
Dorelyn carefully reiterated her conversation with Liam. When she finished her recitation, she said, “We’ve entered a new era, one in which no family head has influence over topsider issues by owning the commandant.”
“You assured this body that one of our candidates would win,” Lise accused.
“And we were winning, according to every report, until the assassination attempt on Finian. Would any of you like to admit to that colossal blunder?” Dorelyn asked. Her eyes swept the council members, and she ended her challenge by staring at Lise.
“You insisted we could recover from that,” a family head objected.
“And yet another factor was introduced,” Dorelyn replied. “Harbour flooded the station with Belle residents, and our agents were late discovering this. The Belle’s shuttle arrived in the early morning hours, docking at different terminal arms, and flooded the station with the colony ship’s residents. We suspect the purpose of these visits was to influence their contacts in favor of Finian.”
“How many residents are we talking about?” Rufus asked.
“According to estimates, the shuttle brought in about four hundred individuals,” Dorelyn replied. “You can imagine their influence. These four hundred talked to maybe five to ten stationers, who talked to possibly the same number of friends and acquaintances.”
Murmurs circulated among the council members, and Dorelyn could sense their dissatisfaction.
“Let’s return to the issue of the commandant’s request,” Lise said. “How are you advising this council to respond?”
Dorelyn knew Lise was intent on exploiting the negative turn of events under her council’s leadership. Lise was chafing under the assignment of the council’s choice of security chief to her office, and this was an opportunity for her to turn the tables.
“Let’s examine our choices,” Dorelyn replied, trying to evade Lise’s trap. “One, we can refuse to cooperate. We simply keep our coin in our accounts. Two, we can contribute amounts equal to the topsiders.”
“And what’s your opinion, Dorelyn?” Lise pursued.
“I think the choice belongs to the council members. The issue should be decided by a vote,” Dorelyn replied, sidestepping the question.
Lise sat in the front row of the small auditorium, where the council met. Few could see the sly smile Lise offered Dorelyn at her adroit maneuvering.
“Are you requesting we vote now?” Idrian asked.
“Is there any other discussion on this issue?” Dorelyn asked.
“How much are we talking about?” a family head asked.
“It’s unknown,” Dorelyn replied. “The commandant didn’t say how much of the station’s construction account would be contributed to the Pyrean Green fund.”
“I’m not comfortable contributing without knowing the final outlay,” a family head said, “and I’m not referring to the addition of the station’s funds. We’re being asked to support a capital expenditure program that is destined to last for years, if not decades. Harbour has secured a Jatouche commitment to supply twelve sets of intravertor parts every year. On top of this, we hear a launch platform will probably be built. We have no idea how much this is going to cost, and you’re saying one of our choices is to pay half the bill.”
“It would take us a while to gather the information to determine the cost of these projects, and we can challenge Commandant Finian to supply those numbers before we commit to matching the topsiders’ funds,” Dorelyn replied. “But does anyone doubt that we have more reserves than the topsiders?”
“You’re missing the council’s points, Dorelyn,” Lise challenged. “The families could be committing their funds to projects that might last their lifetimes. Projects that offer no financial returns. What if the concept fails and the surface can’t be rehabilitated? The families’ leverage, which has always been our coin, would be diminished.”