by Eric Warren
“No, it’s just that a robot walking in and demanding something isn’t…usual.” She forced a grin.
“What would you like?” the attendant asked Box.
“As much as you can fit inside me,” he replied, proudly.
Cas groaned, dropping his head.
“Y—yes, sir.” The attendant took the uplink cable and plugged it into a device beside him.
“Oh yes. That’s it, give me more,” Box said.
“For Kor’s sake, Box!” Cas yelled, walking over. He yanked the cable from the machine and swiveled Box around, pushing him out of the store. “He’s had enough, thank you.” He waved to the attendant who seemed speechless. Evie followed them out. “Do you have to make a spectacle everywhere you go?” Cas asked once they were back in the concourse.
“Yes,” he replied. “Life is short. Make it interesting.”
“We need to keep moving. The admiral expects you,” Evie said, walking past them. Cas caught the hint of a smile on her face.
They continued moving down the concourse with Box following behind, completely enveloped in the information he’d downloaded. Every now and again Cas would catch the eye of someone, and they would sneer or turn away. He’d been fooling himself if he’d thought people had forgotten already. It had only been seven years ago. Cas was more astonished no one had told Evie yet.
Just as they approached a second hypervator in the center of the concourse a woman strode up to Cas, fire in her eyes. Before he knew what was happening her palm had struck him across the face. It hadn’t hurt much, though it had been a shock. All around them people stopped moving.
“Do you know who I am?” she demanded.
Cas forced himself to look at her. He nodded.
“How dare you show your face here again,” she said, raising her hand to slap him again.
“Ma’am, step away.” Evie forced herself between them. “This is the Coalition; we don’t assault people. Give me your hand, I need to scan you for security.”
“Me?” the woman yelled. “He’s the criminal.” She pointed to Cas. “You’re letting him walk around free and you want to arrest me?”
“For striking another life form, yes,” Evie said, raising her hand to her comm unit.
“Evie, it’s okay.” Cas placed his hand on hers and guided it back down by her side. “It’s fine,” he reiterated.
“Are you sure? She just committed a class one infraction.”
He nodded, not looking at the woman. “Let’s just keep moving.” They walked around the woman who continued fuming there in the middle of the concourse.
“Next time it’ll be a class two!” she yelled after him. They filed into the hypervator and waited until the doors closed.
“What was that about?” Evie asked. “Are you okay?” She stared at his stubble-ridden cheek.
“Ask around, I’m sure someone will tell you,” he said.
She turned her attention to Box who was still involved with his holo program streaming from his arm. “What about you? Do you know?”
Box nodded. “We’re like soul sisters. We tell each other everything.”
She turned back to Cas, a smirk on her face.
“He’s exaggerating,” Cas replied. The hypervator stopped, the doors opening on a very clean hallway. The sides were a neutral gray and the floor carpeted with something firm but pleasant. On the far side of the wall were a series of doors every few feet, each labeled with a different person’s name. Some were transparent and others weren’t but in the ones Cas could see through people worked at desks inside. They’d reached the main offices. “Where to?” he asked.
“Follow me.” Evie turned right down the hallway. It sported a more pronounced curve, with all the doors on the outside with other, non-transparent doors lining the inside. She tapped her hand as they walked. “Lieutenant Commander Diazal with Caspian Robeaux proceeding to Admiral Rutledge’s office.”
Cas stopped cold. “What did you say?” he asked.
Evie turned to him as someone passed them in the hall. “What?”
“Which admiral?”
“Admiral Daniel Rutledge,” she said, her words falling off a cliff. She really didn’t know anything about him. Any of his history at all.
“I’m not going, deal’s off,” he said. He wasn’t about to face that man again. Not after everything that had happened.
“Wait, you can’t back out now,” Evie said. “You gave me your word.”
Cas had already turned back down the hallway to get to the hypervator. He might not make it far, but he’d be damned if he didn’t to try. “You never said I’d have to deal with him.”
“Captain, don’t do this,” Evie warned. “Don’t force my hand.”
He turned back. Box was leaning against the wall watching the program, oblivious to what was happening around him. “I should have known,” he said. “I should have suspected he was behind this, but I didn’t want to believe it. That’s my own fault. I should have been more honest with myself. Because there is only one reason the Coalition would want me back and it’s sitting on the other side of a desk down there somewhere.” He pointed down the hall.
“What is this all about?” Evie asked. “Why not just meet with him? He’s the one who ordered me to find you.”
“I can’t say I’m surprised,” Cas replied. “But I can’t do it. I’d rather go back to Veena than face him.”
Her features softened. “You told me I could trust you.”
Cas cursed himself. He glanced down the hallway. More than likely there were guards down there, ready to grab him the moment he tried to run. His ship had probably been disabled so he couldn’t escape without authorization. He glanced back at Evie, pleading with him.
He’d known it would come to this, someday. He’d just hoped he’d been wrong. He took a deep breath and turned back toward her. “Fine. Lead on.”
She relaxed her posture but held his gaze a moment. Then she turned, leading them down the hall until they reached a door larger than the others. And based on how far the next closest doors were on either side Cas could only assume this was their destination. As confirmation the plaque on the door said: RADM Daniel S. Rutledge, SCAS.
Cas shoved his hands in his pockets so they couldn’t see they were shaking.
“You might as well do it, boss, you’re already here,” Box said, his focus still on the program.
“Oh, so you can do more than one thing at a time,” Cas said.
“Only on special occasions,” Box replied.
“Ready?” Evie asked, concern in her eyes.
Cas nodded. She tapped the button beside the door.
“Enter,” the voice Cas hadn’t heard in over five years said. The doors slid open.
13
The office was clean and sparse; a perfect picture of how a Coalition Admiral’s office should look. In the center of the room sat a large, wide desk made of some super polymer—Cas didn’t want to guess which one—with a built-in command system that would appear at the touch of a button. He’d seen desks like these before, they were often called “war desks” due to their advanced tactical displays. Behind the desk was a giant map of Coalition space with the borders outlined in a dark blue. To the upper right was the Sargan Commonwealth outlined in green and down below, outlined in red, was Sil territory.
The man Cas hoped he’d never have to see again stood up from the desk, a grin across his face. His broad, stocky shoulders filled out his admiral’s uniform well and his brown beard had gone a great deal grayer since the last time Cas had seen him. It seemed ten years had passed for Rutledge, not five. Though those years had hardened him, not worn him down. His eyes were lit with activity, scanning Cas, then Evie and then Box behind them. Cas had to work not shrink from the man. He’d never thought this day would come, and if it had, he imagined it going much differently. With Cas pulling the boomcannon Evie’d made him leave on the ship and blasting a hole right through the man.
“Commander,” he sa
id in his gravelly voice. “Well done.” He stuck out his hand for Evie who took it, shook once then placed her hands back behind her. Her braid fell off her shoulder behind her back.
Rutledge turned to Cas. “I bet you never thought you’d see me again. Captain, is it?”
“That’s right,” Cas replied, trying his best to hide his anger.
Rutledge didn’t offer his hand. “And this is…?” He motioned to Box.
“My associate,” Cas replied.
“Ah.” Rutledge studied Box a moment. “Glad you could both make it.” He put his own hands behind his back and walked to the side of the desk. “Commander, would you mind taking the robot outside for a few minutes? The captain and I have a lot to discuss.”
Evie’s gaze flitted between them for moment before she realized she was hesitating. “Yes sir,” she said, taking Box by the arm. Cas heard the doors behind him slide open and closed again but he didn’t take his eyes off Rutledge. He swore he’d never turn his back on the man again.
Rutledge chuckled. “Gave yourself a promotion, I see.”
“It’s my ship. It needs a captain.”
Rutledge scoffed, walking to the wall on the far side. A vidscreen was built into the wall and he tapped it, bringing it to life. “Right. Because if you can’t get it through hard work and determination why not just give it to yourself for free.”
“Save it, Daniel,” Cas said. “Let’s just get this over with. What am I doing here?”
“I think you know,” Rutledge said, tapping the screen a few more times. An overhead map of local space came up, zooming in on their location. “I wish I could say it was good to see you again, but we both know that’s not true.” He paused. “You’re here because of the Achlys.”
“I find that statement shocking,” Cas said, deadpan.
“Cut the shit, Robeaux,” Rutledge snapped. Whenever he’d gotten riled up in the past he’d start sweating on his forehead and Cas could already see the sheen reflecting off him. “She’s missing.”
“Good riddance,” Cas replied.
Rutledge ignored him. “Ten days ago we lost contact with her,” he said, “out near the Rekaa Quasar.” The screen zoomed in to the space around the quasar. A red blip indicated where the Achlys had last been seen.
“What was it doing out there?” Cas asked.
Rutledge turned and smiled at him. “I think you know.”
Cas struggled to contain his anger. “You got it working, didn’t you? You finally built the fucking thing and they were testing it.”
“First test was ten days ago,” Rutledge said.
Cas failed at controlling his anger. “Then maybe they blew themselves up. Too bad you weren’t on board.”
Rutledge scoffed again. “This is bigger than just me anymore. We have people counting on the Achlys now. It isn’t just some experiment.”
“You still haven’t answered my question. Why am I here?” Cas followed him as Rutledge walked back over to the desk, staring him down from the other side.
“You’re going to help find it.”
He took a step back. “Why me? Why bring in the one guy who doesn’t want anything to do with the ship’s experiments?”
“Because despite the need, most people don’t know the…intricacies…of the project. They don’t know what they’re looking at, all they’re doing is measuring results. I need someone who has seen this stuff up close. Who can identify it and tell me what went wrong.”
“You forget, I was in jail by the time you finally brought one on board. I’ve never seen it,” Cas argued.
“Technically you’d already run from Kathora by the time we brought it back. But it turns out they are remarkably close to the initial prototypes you developed. I need your knowledge here Caspian. If I had another choice I would have taken it, believe me.”
Cas turned his gaze upward. “That I can believe.” He took a deep breath. “I assume you knew what happened to me on Kathora?”
The admiral gave him a hard stare.
“I thought so. Guess I was harder to get rid of than you thought.”
The admiral’s penetrating gaze bore into him. “You’re not here to rehash history. We can either leave that in the past, or we can waste time arguing about something neither of us can change. Which do you prefer?”
He was right. It wasn’t as if Cas could go to a review board and plead his case. He had no proof. Not to mention he didn’t know how many people were involved. This might be his only chance to get clear of this mess once and for all. He glanced at the map on the wall. “How do you even know the ship is still out there?”
Rutledge relaxed his shoulders. “We don’t. But if it is, I want someone who knows what they’re looking at when it’s found. Things have escalated. I need to know what happened on that ship, why and if the experiment can be salvaged.”
Cas nodded, taking it all in. He worked his jaw, crossing his arms. “And if I refuse?”
“We have a comfortable brig. You can have your old spot back.”
Cas shook his head, staring at the ground. “I expected nothing less. I knew this was a mistake—coming here. And yet I came anyway.” He thought about it a moment. “Fine. Toss me in. Impound my ship. Let’s see what happens.”
Cas swore he could see a vein throbbing on Rutledge’s forehead. The older man watched him a long time and Cas watched right back. Daring him to do it. Because the fact was Rutledge was on a time crunch and Cas wasn’t. He didn’t care if the ship was ever found. If Rutledge had gone to all this trouble to find him and bring him in he wasn’t about to toss him in the brig.
Rutledge turned away first. “It’s too bad you can’t order me to do it.” Cas smirked. “That would solve all your problems, wouldn’t it? Of course the last time you ordered me to do something it didn’t go so well. For either of us.”
“What do you want?” Rutledge asked, his back to Cas as he studied the map in front of him.
“I’ll go find it, in my ship. Alone. When I find it I report the information to you. And then I’m gone. Forever. I want all records of me in the Coalition destroyed. Like I didn’t exist.”
“Out of the question,” Rutledge said, turning back to him. “You’ll run the first chance you get. It’s what you do.”
“I’m not—” Cas began but Rutledge put his hand up.
“I have a ship ready to depart, waiting for you. For the duration of the mission you will be a special advisor to the crew. If you find the ship, confirm what happened, report back to me. Once that’s done,” Rutledge said, raising his voice above Cas’s objection, “then you can depart from there. We’ll load your ship on the Tempest.”
Cas shook his head, nails biting into the palms of his hands. “If you think I’m joining another Coalition crew you can—”
“It’s temporary and I’ll agree to your other terms. Once it’s found.” He sat back down in his chair, eyeing Cas as he leaned back. “Otherwise it is the brig and neither of us gets what we want.”
“Fine.” Cas clenched his teeth.
Rutledge showed the smallest hint of a smirk then tapped the back of his hand. “Commander, come back inside, please.”
Evie entered while Box remained in the hallway. Cas turned just enough to see him displaying his vid on the far wall.
“Escort Mr. Robeaux to the maintenance yards. And arrange for his ship to be transferred over to the Tempest.”
“Sir?” she asked, glancing at Cas.
Rutledge glanced over to Cas, his eyes piercing him. “He’s going with you to look for the Achlys.”
14
The doors closed behind them, sealing the admiral’s office from the outside hallway. Cas took a deep breath, praying to Kor he hadn’t gotten himself into something he couldn’t find a way out of.
When he glanced up Evie was staring at him. “What?” he asked.
“You two know each other,” she said.
He chuckled. “Yeah. We know each other. Who do you think threw me in prison fo
r two years?”
“You were an officer?” she asked, her eyes widening.
Cas glanced to Box further down the hall, his attention rapt by the vidscreen projected on the wall. “Believe it or not.”
“Why didn’t I know that?” she asked, indignant.
“I guess Rutty in there didn’t think it was important.” He walked toward Box.
“I looked for a file on you before I left, but there was barely anything there. It mentioned you were a citizen. You had an altercation and you were no longer part of the Coalition. Nothing about serving in the Sovereign Navy, nothing about being an officer or being in jail,” she said.
“Box,” Cas said, ignoring her. “Put that away. We have work to do.”
Box turned his head. “But it’s on the best part, see this guy Antonio just found his half—”
“Box!”
He reached up and tapped his arm. The video disappeared. “Where to?”
“We need to get back to the ship. We have a mission.”
His yellow eyes blinked on and off in confusion. “A mission? I thought this was the mission.”
“You’ve been assigned to my ship,” Evie said. “The Tempest. We’re going out to look for one that is missing.”
“And you agreed?” Box asked, his voice full of surprise.
“It’s the Achlys,” Cas said. He pushed past Box down the hall toward the hypervator.
“Oh,” Box said. His and Evie’s footsteps fell in step behind him.
“Did everyone know about your service record besides me?” Evie asked, catching up with him.
“It appears that way,” he replied.
She sped up and stood in front of him, forcing him to come to a stop. “Rank.”
“What?” he asked.
“What was your rank? When you were discharged?”
“Lieutenant Commander. Same as you,” he replied.
She visibly relaxed. “That’s how you knew how to disable my shuttle. How you knew so much about Coalition procedures.”
“Once an engineer always an engineer.” This was why he hadn’t told her. He didn’t want to reminisce about the past. About his time on his last posting. Before that things had been…better. Maybe not perfect, but better.