Outcast

by Guerin Zand

“Ok.”

  “I don’t see any purely military use for this material, but of course everything can be misused. I can understand that you might not want to give us access to the actual manufacturing process for the material, and we can accept that. We would be satisfied if the Collective were to provide the material and some assistance in the construction of the new domes. Humans will perform the actual construction, but we would require some technical assistance from the Collective. Would that be acceptable.”

  “We could provide the material and the technical assistance. The existence of this material is not a secret, so I see no harm. We would require a strict accounting of the material provided to ensure it was only used for the agreed purpose. A Collective representative would monitor the material usage and any discrepancies would result in our canceling the agreement.”

  “Mei? Diane? Is that acceptable to everyone?”

  They all nodded in agreement.

  Diane jotted down a few notes. She would submit a final document with all the specifics of this meeting for review and approval by all parties.

  “Ok. Next, we have to address the medical assistance to help those who are currently suffering from exposure. We know the Collective has the technology, and again, it may not wish to share that information. We would ask that they provide the needed equipment and training to operate a number of clinics to treat the sick. We would suggest that the humans trained to run these clinics be selected from the group of humans currently working with the Collective.”

  “Agreed.” Julie acquiesced. “We would need to work out specific details to protect that technology from being exploited. I can assign someone from the Collective to work on the details of these agreements with Diane and Mei before we give final approval.”

  “That’s fine.” Diane jotted some more notes on her datapad. “We’d also like help in developing a simple food replicator. We are not asking for anything as advanced as what you have on your ships. I believe we can develop a basic food replicator with some help. We’re already working on such a project and we’re only asking for a little technical assistance.”

  Julie nodded in agreement.

  “Supplies. The core worlds have made a lot of basic supplies scarce in the outer moons. Although these colonies provide a lot of raw materials to the core, they do not have the manufacturing base to turn these into usable goods. They are reliant on the core for manufactured goods and refined materials.”

  “What would you want the Collective to do about this, Diane?”

  “Open up trade with the outer moons. They can supply raw materials in exchange. Perhaps the Collective could act as a broker, middleman, between the outer moons and other worlds? There would be no human interaction with those worlds. Once the outer moons have an option, the core worlds would have to negotiate a better deal for the raw materials.”

  “We’d need to be much more specific as to what supplies this would include. All the worlds, including members of the Collective, have a need for raw materials. If we were only to provide items that currently are manufactured on Earth, we could explore the possibility. Trade agreements such as you are suggesting would require separate negotiations. I will only agree to that at this time. I offer no guarantees that those negotiations will result in trade agreements.”

  “That’s fine, Julie.” I looked towards Mei and asked, “Do we have an agreement?”

  “We need ships, Guerin.”

  “That will be up to you and the core to work out, Mei. With all that we have offered, you should have a better hand in negotiations. Your exports will increase in value and you can purchase the ships you need.”

  “Exactly what do we have to do then, in order to receive these incentives?”

  “Stop all raids on supply ships. Contact the core to initiate negotiations to resolve this current conflict. Start working together on some form of unified government.”

  “We want our independence, Guerin. We can’t agree to be governed by the core.”

  “I didn’t say you had to give up your goals of independence, or live under core rule. You can continue to have all your petty little political arguments between your independent worlds, but you need to work together when it comes to the interests of all humans. You figure out how best to do that.”

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

  “Listen, Mei. I just gave you a pot to shit in. I’m not going to wipe your ass for you as well. You’re going to need to put in a little hard work of your own.”

  “What about the Alacians? Will you tell the core about that?”

  “No. As far as we’re concerned, it never happened, and we’ll ignore your little genetic experiments as long as you forget them as well. If I am called back again to deal with any more of your shit, the deal is off. I can’t guarantee the core didn’t have their own spies. They may already know about all of this. If the core brings it up in your negotiations, Roger will handle it.”

  “Do you have the girl?”

  “Yes.”

  “Will you return her?”

  “No. At least not yet. Let me just say, you’re lucky I’m being this nice about that subject. Don’t push your luck. We may have some questions about that later, and we expect you to answer those questions honestly. Understood?”

  “Yes.”

  “What about the core worlds? They are going to know, sooner or later, that we are receiving outside help. What happens then?”

  “Roger will handle that. They have no right to complain after the way they behaved. Hopefully, it will make them more agreeable to future negotiations.”

  “Alright.” Mei looked satisfied with our agreement, or at least the framework we had proposed. “What next?”

  “If that’s all, we’ll end this meeting. You will work with Diane and Roger from here on. I won’t be involved unless Diane needs my help with the Collective and the details of their assistance. You can return to Ganymede. Diane will escort you to the transport room.”

  We all stood up. I was getting ready to leave the galley when Mei asked, “Can I ask you a question?”

  “What is it?”

  “Why did you help my mother? In her diary, she talked a lot about you. She mentioned how she wasn’t exactly a friend when you first met. She never understood why you allowed her to work at NFT when you knew she worked for Chinese intelligence. Why did you warn her about the impending exposure of Chinese agents? You never spoke to her again after that warning. Why?”

  “I did speak to her once more, after the incident between China and America was resolved.”

  “But why help her?”

  “Why not? See, everyone thought I had it in for the Chinese back then. I’m not surprised she didn’t understand. It wasn’t the Chinese I had a problem with. It was their leaders. What she probably never told you was, she did help me out at times. She gave me information, maybe not critical information, but enough to help when needed. I let her spy on us in return. It was a back channel no one ever knew about.”

  “Did you like her? Was there more to your relationship that neither of you ever talked about?”

  “Yes, I liked her, and no. We had no relationship other than a strange sort of friendship. We had a lot of conversations over the years. She was a party member, but she wasn’t a believer. She represented the future of China. That’s why I provided her all the information she needed to one day take power. I think I made the right decision.”

  “She wrote some things in her diary for you to perhaps read one day. If you’d like I can send you a copy.”

  “I’d like that. Thank you, Mei.”

  “She always wanted to thank you. She hoped she’d have a chance to see you before she died. It was because of you that she encouraged me and my daughter to work with Roger.”

  I smiled and gave Mei a slight nod. I turned and started to walk out of the galley. Something inside of me tightened up and I fought the sadness that consumed me. Lihwa and I had never been anything but friends, but it reminded me of t
hat time in my life. When Mei said how she wanted to see me before she died, it hurt. Leaving everything behind after my wife died was selfish, but I couldn’t go back to Earth. Now I couldn’t help thinking about all the friends I’d left behind and would never see again. I left the galley, once again feeling like shit.

  Chapter 15

  Gamma

  I went back to my quarters. I needed a drink. Not that it would do much good. I peeked into my bedroom to get a look at Gamma. She was lying in my bed asleep with her head on Maria’s chest. They were both sound asleep. I couldn’t help but reminded of when Maria was a little girl and she would take a nap with her mother. It was like traveling back in time. It should have made me sad, but it didn’t. I smiled. I was happy for some reason. The sadness I had felt when I left the meeting was gone.

  I poured a glass of whiskey and called Steve over the comms to join me. I only had to wait a few minutes before he joined me.

  “Hi, Steve. Should we get Roger on the line and discuss what happened this morning?”

  “Sure.” Steve fiddled with the viewer on the little table in the Captain’s mess. Roger appeared.

  “Good to see you, Guerin. I hope you’re doing well.”

  “I’m fine. Did you two figure out what went wrong on Ganymede?”

  “We’re not sure, Guerin. Thanks for providing the memory dump of your experience down there.”

  “Not a problem. It was mostly a blur to me. Did you ask our friends what went wrong?”

  “I just got done talking to Sammy and he is running some analysis right now. He said they noticed there was some sort of suppression field active in the secondary lab. It was meant to shield the lab from outside scans. He is only speculating at this point that it somehow interfered with the immobilization field that we used.”

  “That bothers me.”

  “Why? I mean, other than for the obvious reason.”

  “I haven’t sent the Alacians on their way yet, but I’m hesitant to honor my agreement with the Council. If I send them back, they’ll figure out what happened. If it was this suppression field, they’ll have a way to defend against the immobilization technology in the future.”

  “What agreement did you make with the Council, Guerin,” Roger asked.

  “I agreed if they helped, I wouldn’t kill the Alacians. If I don’t, and they figure it out, this advantage will be lost.”

  “Why don’t we wait for Sammy to do his analysis. Just don’t do anything until we know for sure, ok?”

  “Alright, Roger. How about the other teams we sent down? Did they have any issues?”

  “No. They found the other Alacians unconscious as we expected. They had no issues.”

  “Why did it take so long for them to breach the secondary lab then?”

  “It didn’t. When they heard your first gunshot they immediately breached the door and entered to assist you. By that time it was all over. As I said, we reviewed your memory dumps. The whole thing only lasted about fifteen seconds.”

  “Seriously? It felt like a lot longer than that to me.”

  “That’s not unusual. It’s normal for time to appear to slow down in those types of situations. Hell, maybe it actually does. I mean, there’s not much I don’t believe is possible anymore. We analyzed the threat and your response. We all agreed. If it had been anyone else, they wouldn’t have lived through that attack.”

  “I got lucky again.”

  “No, you didn’t.” Steve jumped in and brought up the playback from my memory dump. “The first attacker was on you almost the instant you came out of the portal. It was like he was ready for you. If their reaction time is that good we’re going to have to take the threat a lot more serious than we had. How you knew to bring up your rifle and block his blade is what we’d like to know.”

  “I was bringing the barrel around to fire and I just knew I wasn’t going to get a shot. I guess I instinctively used the rifle to block his blow.”

  “Well, that blade almost went through the barrel. The marines grabbed up their weapons. The blades are made of an unknown alloy, and it’s tough as hell. Still, the force required to cut into the rifle’s barrel like that is incredible. We have been experimenting with the blades and no matter how hard the marines strike one of our gun barrels, they can barely make a dent. Those bastards are strong.”

  “You said it was mostly a blur, and you’re right.” Roger was controlling the playback now. “We played it back and your moving so fast we have to slow it down to see what happened. It was like you moved in one continuous motion. Not one wasted movement. That’s what saved you.”

  “Well maybe, but if it weren’t for the armor, I’m sure he would have finished me with that last blade.”

  “Yes. It looks like it prevented it from going in any deeper, but still, it didn’t stop that blade.” Steve tossed a blade in its sheath in front of me. “We thought you might like a souvenir.”

  “Gee, thanks.”

  “That’s the one that got you. The marines are fighting over the other blades.” Steve smiled.

  “You should probably thank me too.” Katie’s head popped up next to Roger’s. “It was probably all of my training that saved your life.”

  “Thanks.” I smiled back at her and we both had a little laugh.

  “So anyway,” Roger pushed Katie away. “We need to review this more to figure out how we handle these guys if we ever run into them again. Hand to hand we don’t stand a chance. I’d like to understand how you managed.”

  “Perhaps it was just adrenaline. Maybe you guys would have been able to handle it as well. You have the same enhancements.”

  “Maybe, but I’m not sure of that. I believe they may have done more to you than we know. We can ask our friends, but I’m not sure if they’ll tell us. No matter. We can’t have you putting yourself at risk like that again.”

  “That’s not always an option and you know that, Roger.”

  “At least try and not take so many risks, ok?”

  “I’ll try.”

  “We’ll let you know what Sammy finds out. Until then, just leave the Alacians where they are.”

  “Ok.”

  “We’ll talk later.” Roger signed off and the viewer’s display vanished.

  “Are you two done in here?” Maria asked as she popped in the kitchen. Gamma was in her arms.

  “Yes. I should head down to the command center and see how Jackie and Senri are getting along.” Steve said in response to Maria.

  “Oh. I’m sure they’re hitting it off.” I chuckled a bit.

  “I’m sorry about the other night, Guerin. Jackie shouldn’t have pushed you.”

  “Oh, don’t worry about it. I’m the one that should apologize anyways. Maybe I’ll catch up with her later. I’ll give her a nice sloppy kiss and apologize.”

  “Don’t you think one near-death experience is enough for one day, Dad?”

  Steve and I laughed. “You’re probably right, Maria.”

  We got up from the table. Steve headed for the door. Gamma had her hands stretched out towards me.

  “Do you want to take this little monkey off my hands, Dad?”

  I reached over and grabbed Gamma. “She’s not a little monkey. She’s a princess.”

  “Yea. I’m a princess.”

  I don’t think Gamma actually knew what a princess was. She was just agreeing with me. Maria rolled her eyes at both of us. She could make fun of me if she wanted, but I saw the two of them napping together. Maria was just as taken with Gamma as I was.

  “Did you two have a good nap?”

  “Yes, we did,” Maria responded while reaching out to tickle Gamma.

  “Are you hungry, Gamma?”

  “Can we have more cheeseburgers?”

  I laughed. “No. We have a lot of different things for you to try. Have you ever had pizza?”

  “No.”

  “Good. I think we should have a pizza night then. You can help make the pizzas, ok?”

  “Ok.�
�

  I contacted Senri over the comms and told her to announce pizza night to the crew.

  “ATTENTION! ATTENTION CREW! The Captain has declared a pizza emergency. This is not a test. All hands report to the galley to prepare for pizza night. You have fifteen minutes to report your pizza order to the Captain. Pizza menus can be found on the desks in your quarters. I repeat. The Captain has declared a pizza emergency. All hands report to the galley.”

  Maria looked up at the ceiling in the Captain’s kitchen and then looked at me with her eyebrows raised. “Seriously? Is this normal?”

  “We take pizza night very seriously on the Vengeance.” Maria knew about pizza night. It was a weekly event in our house when she was younger.

  When Maria realized I was serious, a big smile lit up her face. She looked at Gamma and with her eyes opened wide she screamed. “PIZZA NIGHT! Let’s go.”

  Maria grabbed Gamma from my arms and they both took off running out of the room and down the hall towards the galley. Maria and Gamma were screaming all the way. When we got to the galley we found Prima, Stella, Julie, Senri, Steve, and Jackie were already there. Huiliang had left with her mother Mei for Ganymede. I looked over at Steve.

  “Where are the marines?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe they didn’t think they were invited.”

  Gamma was standing in front of me with her arms raised. I took the hint and scooped up the little girl and held her in my arms.

  “Contact them and make it clear. Failure to report for a pizza emergency is a spaceable offense onboard the Vengeance. They have five minutes to report to the galley. They’d best run if they have to.”

  Steve smiled as he contacted his team using the comms. I just shook my head.

  “How many pizzas do you think we’ll need, Senri?”

  “We have 9 of us here if you include the little one, and 13 marines. I’d guess 16 pizzas at least.”

  “As soon as the marines arrive we’ll draft a few volunteers. You can take one with you to get the supplies from the stasis chamber.”

  “Do I get to pick the marine?”

  “If you want Senri, but no fooling around. You screw up pizza night and we’ll have a little lesson in keel-hauling. Understand?”