by S. H. Jucha
“Quite well, thank you,” Kasie replied tartly. “You had only to ask.”
Lucia waved her objection off. “I need a demonstration under difficult circumstances,” she said, indicating the grays beyond the airlock. “Second, I need to see if you can affect the grays.”
“I’ve never challenged them,” Kasie admitted. “But the records tell us that Harbour and Aurelia could stall their attacks.”
“We’ll see,” Lucia replied. “Lieutenant, stun guns out. Your people go through first. I want to see if the grays react to your weapons. If you receive a positive response, form a protective circle about three meters across. The three of us will enter your perimeter for the first demonstration.”
Jess edged close to Lucia. “I hope this goes well, Commodore, for your sake,” he said softly. “I’d hate to have to shoot a guest for getting my sister hurt.”
Lucia glanced sharply at Jess, but he ignored her. He’d delivered his warning and apparently had nothing else to say. She noticed Sam had been close to them. His expression said that he’d heard the captain.
The group crowded into the airlock, locked the corridor hatch, and opened the one on the bayside. Sam led his squad into the bay. He’d instructed his unit to hold their weapons in front of them with both hands. He wanted them to appear intimidating.
Six of the nine grays were evident. One was raising its head from the bucket, and water drained off its faceted eyes and deadly pincers. When it hissed, water sprayed toward the squad.
Several security members went so far as to glance up at the bay’s overhead, suspecting the enormous insectoids might be clinging to the bulkheads, prepared to drop on them.
Sam was relieved to see the grays, despite their aggravated hisses and rearing forms, scuttling backward from them.
“Now,” Lucia said to Kasie and Jess.
Before Lucia could move, Jess pushed past her. He stood in the hatch opening, with his launcher up, and he carefully scanned the bay. Then he took two steps forward and unblocked the hatch opening. He beckoned to Kasie, and said, “Stay behind me.”
Jess walked slowly toward the circle, with his sister resting a hand on his shoulder.
Lucia was annoyed, but she stayed close to Kasie and guarded their rear. When they entered the circle, Lucia whispered to Kasie, “Point out one of the insectoid members and show me something.”
Three grays had slithered out of the shuttle to join the others that hadn’t fully retreated. Instead, the nine of them took positions about four meters from the squad. They’d surrounded the circle of humans, reared up on half their lengths, and swayed in annoyance.
Kasie considered the commodore’s request and chose to do her one better. She scanned the circle’s occupants, looking for a fortunate alignment and found one. Sam was slightly blocking her target. A second New Terran stood about two meters to the left of Sam. She tapped Sam on the shoulder, and whispered, “One step to the left.”
For a moment, Sam hesitated. He thought he was going to be Kasie’s target. Then he felt his confidence grow, and he did as she requested.
Kasie backed to the far side of the circle. “That gray,” she whispered to Lucia, pointing it out.
Lucia admitted that the demonstration couldn’t have been more perfectly designed. Kasie had created a window between two of the security squad through which she had to focus her power. Furthermore, her target was an insectoid that was at the limit of the distance that Kasie had said she could influence others.
Kasie focused her mind. She chose to project peace by recalling fond memories of her brother and her when they were young. When she was ready, she spun up her power, opened her gates, and directed her emanations at the gray.
Unlike Kasie’s ancestors, she’d rarely had an opportunity to test herself under dire circumstances. Her curiosity to discover the extent of her power drove her to send with everything she could muster.
The gray that Kasie targeted swayed slowly and then increasingly farther and farther to either side. Its hissing stopped, and then it slumped to the deck and lay quiet.
“I think you have your answer, Commodore,” Jess whispered sternly. “Time to retreat.”
Lucia nodded, tipped her head toward the airlock, and signaled the squad. As a group, they made their way out of the bay. Lucia kept her eye on the gray, who lay flat on the deck. By the time, they climbed through the hatch, it was shaking its head and rearing up, but it wasn’t hissing like the others.
Kasie’s power has residual effects, Lucia thought.
In the corridor, Sam asked Kasie, “That was you? Putting the gray on the deck, I mean?”
“Yes,” Kasie replied. She was proud of herself, and by the expressions on the squad’s faces, they shared Sam’s enthusiastic viewpoint. They were crowded around her, expressing their admiration.
“Did you feel anything, Lieutenant?” the New Terran female, who’d been next to Sam, asked.
“I did before I closed ranks to the left,” Sam replied. “That was you too, wasn’t it?” he asked.
“You seemed a little nervous,” Kasie replied, with a gentle smile. “I wanted to relax you.”
“What did you feel, Lieutenant?” another squad member asked.
“Just a boost in confidence,” Sam replied. “It was subtle.” Then he looked at Kasie, and said, “Fantastic.”
Kasie wasn’t sure whether the lieutenant was talking about her powers or her. Either way, she appreciated the sentiment.
Jess noticed that Kasie was leaking. Her emanations were warm and upraising. He also noticed Lucia struggled between smiling and frowning. Stepping behind the commodore, he said quietly in her ear, “She leaks power when she’s happy, relaxed, or sharing appreciation. When it counts, when there’s trouble, she’s in total control. You should relax and enjoy the sharing. It might do you some good.”
Then Jess stepped around Lucia and tapped Kasie on the shoulder. When his sister turned around, Jess indicated the direction to the traveler’s bay with a flick of his head.
As Kasie passed Lucia, she saw the commodore’s frown and clamped her gates shut. The groans of the squad followed her down the corridor.
-9-
Apology
Lucia requested Sam meet her in her cabin. Before they compared their prospective assault team lists, she had some questions for him.
“What did you think about Kasie’s exhibitions of her power both inside and outside the bay?” Lucia asked.
Lucia’s question put Sam on guard. “Inside the bay, where it counted, she was focused. It was a great display of a unique phenomenon.”
“And in the corridor?” Lucia pressed.
“She was a young woman enjoying the praise that was heaped on her,” Sam replied, slightly defiantly.
“Hmm,” was all that Lucia said. She considered whether Sam was reflecting his squad’s opinions or stating his own. It did indicate that possibly her reaction was in the minority. “Enough said,” she said. “You ready to share?”
They’d settled around the cabin’s table, and Sam replied, “Ready. Go.” Then they sent their lists to each other.
Some decisions had been previously made. First, they would make a staggered attack via two tubes. It had been Sam’s grin that conveyed to Lucia that he had an idea. His team would make entry into one tube and act as a decoy. Lucia’s team would delay her entry in the second tube until she heard from Sam that they had engaged the Colony.
The second decision was that they would use four of the five security squads — the Rêveur’s, the Judgment’s, and two of the SE Tridents’. The fifth would be kept in reserve.
The final agreement between Lucia and Sam was that they would deploy a SADE with each team. After entry into the tunnels, it was the only way to ensure communications
between the teams. The SADEs would be able to reach the travelers, which would remain in position over the tubes.
“Why’s my name highlighted in red?” Lucia asked. She was perusing Sam’s list.
“I’d prefer not to see our commodore leading a team,” Sam remarked.
“Would you prefer another leader or commander onsite?” Lucia asked, with a quirk of an eyebrow.
“That’s the problem, isn’t it?” Sam admitted. “No one else is qualified.”
Lucia continued to examine Sam’s list. “You’ve switched the squads around,” she noted.
“Commodore, you’re hellacious when fighting a Trident or a traveler, but this is a ground skirmish,” Sam replied. “I can’t use three squads on my team. These squads are trained as independent units. With the restriction of the tunnel’s width, my center squad would be ineffective. In addition, if our plan goes upside down, you’ll need two squads. Your front squad will delay the Colony, while your rear squad, with our assets, makes its exit.”
“Accepted,” Lucia said. “Why did you trade captains?”
Sam smiled. He’d anticipated this portion of the discussion. “The Crocians will be at the forefront with me in case we’re surprised or rushed, but they’ll need coverage,” he said. “Tacnock is experienced with a Loopah weapon, and he’s short. His height allows me to shoot safely over the top of him. Finally, you need Jess Cinders on your team.”
Lucia eyed Sam. When he didn’t offer any further explanation, she said, “I’m waiting.”
“Our most important asset is Kasie,” Sam said. “Without her, we’re severely hampered in getting our information about Pyre’s location. Jess will protect her.”
“Also accepted,” Lucia said, if a bit reluctantly. “At least, we agreed on the disposition of the SADEs,” she grumped.
Sam nodded in agreement, but he thought, Probably not for the same reasons.
The assignment of the SADEs didn’t really fall into either of the officers’ domains. Juliette and Esteban had decided between themselves, with Juliette insisting on accompanying Sam’s team. Orbit and Esteban calculated that Juliette had placed a higher value on Esteban, where it concerned his relationship with the Omnians, and she chose to accept the greater risks of deploying with the decoy team.
“That’s our teams,” Lucia said, expecting Sam to excuse himself, but he stayed seated.
“I’ve one further suggestion,” Sam said. His powerful hands intertwined, as he leaned back in his chair. “I’ve no doubt that you intend to lead the team from the front.”
“I do,” Lucia admitted.
“I’ve some problems with that,” Sam replied. “First, the Judgment security squad has the lead. Your presence among them will interfere with their action integrity. Second, you’re a primary asset, just like Kasie. You should be in the rear squad.”
“Is that it?” Lucia asked tartly. Sam had rearranged her team rosters, and she was feeling less qualified as an assault commander with every moment they spoke.
Sam grinned. He liked Lucia. Physically, they were polar opposites, but they were both dedicated to their jobs, and they were good at them. That had fostered mutual admiration.
“The rear squad is from an SE ship,” Sam explained. “We’ve trained them as thoroughly as we could, and they’re ex-militia. But they haven’t come face to face with aliens bent on killing them. I don’t know how they’ll react when they’re attacked by giant insectoids. On the other hand, there’s Captain Cinders. He’s experienced with a Loopah weapon, and he knows what he’ll be fighting. I suggest you stay behind him. I suspect he’ll do everything he can to protect his sister ... and you.”
Lucia laughed at what she considered the absurdity of Sam’s remark. “Sam, the captain hates me, or didn’t you hear him threaten to shoot me if something tragic befell his sister.”
“That’s not hate,” Sam replied. “I understand why you had to test Kasie. You were being thorough, but Jess didn’t see it that way.”
“Did he tell you that?” Lucia asked.
“No, he didn’t,” Sam admitted, “but he didn’t have to. Jess was upset that you didn’t accept Kasie’s word for her ability to focus, and I understand his feelings.”
Lucia heard something in Sam’s voice that intrigued her. “Why’s that?” she asked.
“When our societies first integrated, it was difficult for Méridiens to understand the culture shock New Terrans experienced,” Sam said. “I was a Terran Security Forces corporal, when I immigrated to Haraken. It wasn’t just the technological gap that made it difficult. It was the way Méridiens thought and their expectations of us.”
“Did you ever think of returning to New Terra?” Lucia asked.
“A few times I did,” Sam replied. “Then I met some SADEs.” He smiled at the memories. “They made me feel welcome. I followed them to Omnia. It was the best decision I ever made.”
“You’re proposing that your experience meeting Méridiens is similar to what Jess feels when he and I interact?” Lucia inquired.
“On some level,” Sam replied. “With all due respect, Commodore, you’re expecting him to adopt our ways, our culture. I know Jess and Kasie look human, but in many ways, they’re from an alien culture. You might try meeting them halfway.”
Sam let his words hang in the air. A few times before, he’d seen the little tic beside Lucia’s left eye, as he did now. It usually happened when she was irritated with someone’s performance, when they should have known better. He stood, smiled, and made an exit.
“No wonder I like to stay aboard my ship,” Lucia muttered to the empty cabin. Her preference was to command a military organization. Everyone knew their place and what was expected of them. If she gave an order, she could expect it to be thoroughly and completely obeyed.
Lucia leaned back in her chair. The list of those individuals who had commented to her about the imbalance between Captain Cinders and her was growing, and it was adding to her frustration. Then there was Jess himself. She sought words to describe him, adjectives that would identify why he irked her, as Kasie had said. The difficulty was that few, if any, of his actions were improper.
The more Lucia reviewed her encounters with Jess, the more she couldn’t pin down why he irritated her. She considered the fact that he didn’t report to her, and therefore, he failed to follow her directives implicitly. Yet, that seemed an excuse.
“This needs to be fixed before it proves beyond repair,” Lucia muttered. She queried Juliette to see if the SADE knew the captain’s location.
If Lucia doubted the wisdom of her intention to speak with Jess, Juliette’s comment decided it for her.
Midday meal arrived, and Lucia found the SADEs at the head table in deep discussion with Tacnock and the twins. Kasie was utilizing Esteban’s portable holo-vid to draw glyphs between mouthfuls of food.
“It was Aurelia who discovered that these small, straight legs on the glyphs were merely guides to indicate the grouping,” Kasie explained. “The glyphs are entered into the query projection without them.”
“What’s enticing,” Tacnock said, “is that basic gate operations can be performed without entering any glyphs. After the master panel is activated, it’s a matter of finding your way around the other panels and their menu operations.”
“Then the glyphs are superordinary queries meant for the Messinants,” Juliette surmised.
“That’s what Aurelia and Devon came to believe,” Tacnock said.
Lucia sat at the end of the table. A server brought her orde
r, and she helped herself to a glass of aigre from a pitcher.
“Have you deduced the order for any group’s entry?” Esteban asked.
“An order, yes. Which group goes into what query request, no,” Jess replied. “Aurelia and Devon’s daughter, Sabrina, discovered the key to the glyphs found on the deck. It doesn’t apply to the corridor glyphs. The deck is laid out in wedges. Sabrina found that the glyph groups are meant to be viewed from the dome’s center. Any query entry starts with the glyph in the lower right position. Then the eye must travel in a counterclockwise direction to reveal the next glyph to be entered.”
“That’s nonintuitive,” Juliette remarked. “It makes one wonder how Sabrina discovered it.”
“The story goes that she got angry one evening,” Jess replied chuckling. “She marked in white all the known groupings on the deck. Then she outlined in red every glyph that began the query. When she walked around them, she discovered their common orientation. Prior to that, it was presumed that the grouping orientations were incidental, decorative.”
“Then you haven’t identified a lexicon for the glyphs?” Lucia asked. She waited while Tacnock and the twins took a few bites of their food.
When Lucia saw the defenders hurriedly eating their meals, she frowned, which Juliette caught.
Esteban interjected,
When Kasie swallowed and chased her food down with a gulp of water, she replied to Lucia’s question. “If we knew what each glyph meant, the Colony would never be ahead of us regarding console operation,” she said, in exasperation. “In many ways, the console is this inscrutable machine, when it comes to the queries. We try glyph groups in various console submenus until we get a reaction, an output. We’ve had success with this tedious method, but the number is small compared to the quantity of glyph groups within the dome.”