by M. D. Cooper
“I guess that explains why the version that was with Sera was OK with playing along,” Tangel said, remembering the time she’d spent onboard Sabrina, and the interactions she’d had with the AI. It pained her to think that Helen had been playing a game the whole time. A game that now saw her imprisoned in a containment vessel awaiting judgment. “Did you learn anything from her?”
“Shit!” Tangel swore. “I have to tell Krissy about A1…about her mother.”
“Pfft,” Tangel waved a hand dismissively. “Finaeus has to be over his ex by now. And he has Cheeky. That woman is no one’s consolation prize.”
“No, not really—well, I do about Cheeky. I’m going to blame the Angela portion of me for asserting herself. Not enough acerbic wit of late.”
“Stars, Bob, I do. OK, so what do we do about Helen?”
Tangel laughed, sagging against the railing. “Well I could have done that. Why bottle her up just to do it later?”
“Well we certainly agree there. Has Sera gone to see her yet?”
“She may be a thief, but I’m not.” Tangel gave Bob’s node a roguish grin and could feel a wave of amusement from him.
“Bob!” she exclaimed, eyes narrowing. “Are you messing with me?”
“How productive.”
Tangel shrugged. “I like the extra time it gives me to consider my responses—especially when talking with you.”
The AI sent another wave of amusement.
Tangel nodded silently, wishing she could truly understand what it was that made her unpredictable to Bob…and to the other ascended AIs. It didn’t seem to be working in her favor of late. Although, they had just taken out Airtha, and her largely unaided victory over Helen was something she was happy to celebrate.
Except I can’t do that with Jessica missing, and the girls and Joe in danger.
“Aren’t you?” she asked.
“I’m just afraid those two will blow up that facility before we can learn from it. Erin was nearly apoplectic at the thought of it being destroyed before she could study their star-shifting techniques.”
“Which is what made that message so strange.” Tangel pressed a hand to her forehead. “I guess I should reach out and clarify what they meant.”
Bob replied.
“That doesn’t make any sense…”
“That doesn’t make me any less worried about Jessica, though. She and her ship have been missing for days, now.”
Tangel remembered when she first found Jessica involuntarily stowed away on the Intrepid.
“Or when we never expected to find her at all.”
“True. But I’m not an alien.”
The AI chuckled, but not across the Link; it came over the extradimensional space, and the sound filled Tangel’s mind like a tornado rumbling across a plain.
~What’s alien, anyway? I think that I am, compared to humans. But you two are as well, to a lesser extent.~
“Well, all of that aside, I’m still going to worry about Jessica, OK?”
“You don’t think they’ll do the right thing?”
A FATHER’S DISMISSAL
STELLAR DATE: 10.11.8949 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: ISS I2, Airtha
REGION: Huygens System, Transcend Interstellar Alliance
Kara drew a deep breath and flexed her wings one at a time before carefully folding them behind her back.
The subject of all her fear, anger, and love was on the other side of the door that stood before her—the person who had conceived her and molded her into a daughter that was also a slave…though an unknowing slave.
When she first fled High Airtha, well over a year ago at this point, her primary motivation had been to return to Airtha to save her father. But then she’d met Katrina and her crew, followed by the people of New Canaan, and finally Tangel. She’d learned an entirely different value system from them, a cleaner code of honor—one that had not painted her father in a good light.
Now that Admiral Krissy was in control at Airtha, things had taken an unfortunate turn for Adrienne; the admiral was not taking a soft approach with Airthan collaborators. Kara’s pending testimony, combined with the discovery that her father had not been coerced in any way to work with Airtha, had all but damned him. He was currently being held awaiting trial for his crimes against the people of the Transcend.
An army of lawyers had taken Kara’s statement, and Krissy had informed her that there was no need to speak to her father in person. But she knew that a final conversation was necessary.
She had to know if he’d released her only to save him later, or because he truly cared about her. A part of her knew it was stupid, that whatever he said could just as likely be a lie, but she knew that, without confronting him, the question would continue to gnaw at her.
Katrina had urged her to do it as well. Over the past months, the ancient woman had softened toward Kara, and they’d become friends. It was amazing to think that Katrina had gotten her start so long ago as a spy working for the Lumins in the Sirius system.
She’d escaped with a group of people called the Noctus only to be pursued by her father. In a crazy tale of luck, they’d encountered Tanis, and she’d defeated Katrina’s father.
The people Katrina had escaped with had sentenced her father to death, and she’d never spoken to him—and it gnawed at her to this day. So she’d recommended that Kara get what she never had managed to find: closure.
She’d also warned Kara that it might just create more questions.
Damned if I do, damned if I don’t.
The words echoed in her mind, but she continued to stare at the door for another minute before she mustered up the courage to nod to the guard. She was surprised to see him give her an understanding look before turning to palm open the door.
It slid open, and she stepped into the small room. A clear plas wall separated a narrow viewing area from her father’s cell. The space he was confined to was barely three meters square, and the only furnishings were a bed, toilet, sink, and a small table with a stool tucked underneath.
Her father was standing at the sink, staring into the mirror when she stepped in, and he didn’t move for nearly a minute. Kara remained still as well, taking in the man who had once controlled her in every way.
Once, he’d been the ultimate authority figure in her life, the one who gave her all direction and me
aning and was the arbiter of right and wrong.
Now he was a tired-looking man who had traded away all his moral authority through vile acts and a willingness to do anything in the name of survival.
It made him seem smaller, sallow. She searched her memories, curious to find out if he’d always been like that and she’d just never noticed, but upon reflection, Kara could barely even draw a clear comparison between her recollections and the man before her.
“Are you going to say anything?” he asked, not turning to face her, eyes still fixed on his reflection.
His tone was cold, combative even. Kara knew that she shouldn’t be surprised. Kindness was not an attribute her father often displayed.
“I came to rescue you,” she said after running through a dozen statements.
It sounded as lame out loud as it had in her head.
Adrienne snorted. “Good job. Things are so much better for me now.”
His words were laced with accusation, and Kara bristled.
“I’m not responsible for that. You sided with Airtha. There’s no sign that she placed any sort of coercion on you.”
Her father turned his head, cold grey eyes boring into hers. “I see you got your face back. I always suspected removing it was solely your brother’s idea—despite your claims to the contrary.”
“I was different then,” Kara said, trying not to think of her twin brother, the pain of his loss still an unhealed wound inside herself. “You made me different.”
“I made you useful,” Adrienne shot back. “So many people just take up space. You were doing good work…important work.”
Kara stared at her father in silence, wondering if he really believed what he was saying. So far as she was concerned, she had been sacrificing her individuality, her very humanity, just so her father could exert more control on those around him.
“I was your slave, Father. What you did to me was no different than what Airtha did to Sera. Or was that just giving her purpose as well?”
Adrienne stepped away from the sink, walking to the plas. “Well, she did gain a lot more purpose as a result of her mother’s efforts. Airtha changed Sera from an entitled brat to a woman actually capable of running the Transcend. I see that as a success.”
“I see it as manipulation,” Kara retorted. “Of course, you may not know this, but Sera is no longer running the Transcend. Her father is.”
She enjoyed watching her father’s eyes widen in shock. His mouth worked soundlessly for a moment before he finally said, “I saw him die.”
“You saw a clone die,” she corrected. “Someone…though no one knows who as yet, tucked the real Jeffrey Tomlinson away in the LMC about a thousand years ago.”
Adrienne’s eyes narrowed. “That’s impossible. No, it couldn’t have happened. I was there.”
“You were what?” Kara asked.
“I visited the LMC after Finaeus developed jump gate tech. Jeffrey was with me. That was about a century ago.”
Kara wondered what the significance of that was, but decided not to pursue it. She’d pass it on to Admiral Krissy and let someone else interrogate her father.
“It doesn’t matter. The point is that Sera never wanted to rule the Transcend. Her mother, or whatever Airtha was at the end, tried to make her do it, but she failed. If you ask me, I think that once the war is over, Sera’s going to find somewhere quiet to hole up and live out her days.”
“What a waste,” Adrienne breathed out in a long sigh. “She had so much potential…despite her proclivities.”
“Not everyone uses your measuring stick,” Kara replied. “I don’t want to always be fighting. The idea of retiring for a century, maybe raising kids…that’s an appealing notion.”
He stared at her for a minute, his lips drawn into a thin line. Then a cruel smile formed on his lips.
“I wonder…will they be born with wings? Perhaps in eggs?”
“You’re such an asshole,” Kara spat. “Maybe they will have wings. I happen to think that wings are amazing, and it honestly baffles me why hardly anyone has them. Everyone could, yet almost no one does. I bet now that Sera’s not the president, she’ll get wings too.”
“Doesn’t surprise me,” Adrienne retorted. “Like I said, she’s weird.”
“What does that make me?” Kara demanded.
Her father didn’t reply, and she shook her head in disgust.
“Katrina warned me that I might not like what came of this conversation, but at least I did get some measure of closure.”
“I’m glad for you. And I’m not surprised.”
Kara had already turned away from her father, but she glanced back over her shoulder, meeting his eyes for what she hoped would be the last time.
“Not surprised about what?” The words fell from her lips like lead.
“That you’d abandon me.”
She considered a dozen responses before simply shrugging and walking to the door. It opened without her prompting, and she strode out without glancing back.
A few meters away, Katrina stood waiting, a look of concern in her ancient eyes.
“So?” she said without accusation.
“About as bad as you’d warned me it would be,” Kara admitted as she reached Katrina’s side. “But still worth it, if only so I don’t have to wonder what sort of man he really was. Now I know for sure.”
The older woman placed a hand on Kara’s shoulder.
“Come. I’m going to teach you something to help you ground yourself. Maybe it will be useful, maybe it won’t.”
“Does it involve getting drunk?”
Katrina laughed, guiding Kara down the passageway. “Step one is finding peace. Step two is getting plastered without regrets.”
“Sounds perfect.”
WAR TABLE
STELLAR DATE: 10.11.8949 (Adjusted Years)
LOCATION: ISS I2, Airtha
REGION: Huygens System, Transcend Interstellar Alliance
“My father has asked me to return to Khardine,” Sera said without preamble as she strode into Tangel’s kitchen.
Krissy and Tangel were already present, a glass of wine before each, and a bowl of fruit on the table between them.
“That doesn’t surprise me,” a male voice said from her right, and Sera spun to see Jason leaning against the counter, a cup of coffee nestled between his fingers.
“Put that down,” Sera said, gesturing to the cup he held.
“Why?” he asked as he complied, his eyes twinkling mischievously.
Sera didn’t reply, instead rushing forward and crashing into him, her arms encircling his chest as she pressed her cheek into his.
“Stars I’ve missed you,” she whispered fiercely.
New Canaan’s governor chuckled softly. “It’s only been a few weeks.”
“A few too many,” Sera replied.
“Well, I came as soon as I heard about your sisters. How are you holding up?”
Until that moment, if anyone else had asked, Sera would have said she was holding up just fine, and she wouldn’t have believed it to be a falsehood. She’d decided not to talk to Helen, and was optimistic that, together, Earnest and Finaeus would be able to save Seraphina and Fina the same way they’d saved Cheeky.
But when Jason voiced the question, a shuddering sob escaped her lips and she felt the energy drain from her limbs.
“I got you,” Jason whispered in her ear, the strength that flowed from him through those three words immediately reversing the weariness that threatened to subsume her.
“So you really came because you heard about my sisters?” Sera asked, forcing herself to regain some measure of composure as she stepped back and searched Jason’s eyes for any sign that he was joking.
“Of course,” he replied. “I made excuses that I needed to be here for reasons of state, but those are secondary. This has all got to be hard on you…a lot of family stuff.”
Krissy gave a rueful laugh and shook her head, but didn’t speak.
Tangel chuckled as she poured another glass of wine and handed it to Sera. “I don’t know when Jason became so understanding, but I wish it had happened sooner.”
“Pardon?” Jason asked, simultaneously laughing while shooting Tangel a glare. “I’ve always been understanding, you just needed a firmer hand.”
Tangel snorted, and Sera glanced at Krissy to see what she made of the byplay.
“Don’t look at me.” The admiral held up her hands. “I’m the newcomer here.”
“You’ve known me for a long time,” Sera countered.
Krissy took a sip of her wine, giving her cousin a measuring look. “I suppose. Though you’ve rather surprised me of late—especially with how readily you gave up the presidency. You fought pretty hard for it after your father was killed.”
“Well, I wasn’t going to let Adrienne take the reins…if for no other reason than I would have killed him before long.”
“Not if I got to him first,” Krissy retorted. “Pretty sure he was in the Grey Division’s pocket. I plan to find out for sure, one way or another.”
“The Greys aren’t just going to roll over,” Sera agreed. “Even with Airtha gone, they’ll be a problem. You know, that’s why I opposed you for the presidency. I thought you were in their pocket, too. A lot of rumors were flying around about why you spent so long at the Grey Wolf Star.”
“If I never see that place again…” Krissy began, letting the words trail away.
Sera nodded, pressing up against Jason before moving to sit at the table across from Krissy. Jason walked across the kitchen and refilled his coffee before settling beside her.
“So,” Tangel began in a tone that indicated the meeting was coming to order—such as it could when held around her kitchen table. “How goes the transfer of power here on Airtha?”
Krissy leant forward and placed her elbows on the table. “Per the president’s directions, I’ve reinstated Governor Prentice, and he’s working on bringing back the exiled members of his former government. Airtha didn’t utilize much of a bureaucracy, so there’s not too much to clean up, there.”