Mavericks (Expeditionary Force Book 6)

by Craig Alanson

Emily sat in stunned silence. When Tutula opened her mouth to speak, she raised a hand to stop the alien, unable to process any more information right then. The two Verd-Kris sat quietly, fully understanding the impact of what they had found. “Tell me,” the human asked when she was able to speak, “when the Kristang at Earth learned the wormhole had gone dormant and they were trapped there, what would have been their reaction?”

  “We are not Kristang,” Tutula reminded gently. “So any guess we make-”

  “They would have shit their pants,” Jates stated. “Tutula, Colonel Perkins is a soldier. She needs to know the truth and not some happy stories,” he chided his companion. “Colonel, your guess is as good as ours, but I am sure you fear the worst. The warrior caste would have panicked at first, then seized the opportunity to make the best of their dilemma by making the worst for your people. With access to effective bioweapons, they could have reduced the human population to a manageable number, that posed less of an obstacle to the warrior caste exploitation of your world, then enslaved the rest.”

  “A manageable number?” Perkins whispered in horror.

  “We don’t know anything,” Tutula cautioned. “We don’t. Colonel, you should not-”

  “Thank you,” Perkins said robotically, so overwhelmed by emotion that at the moment, she felt nothing. “Do not tell anyone, especially my team, about the bioweapon sent to Earth. They do not need to know, not yet.” She would need to tell the Mavericks what she just learned, because they would find out when she informed UNEF HQ on Paradise. If she ever made contact with Paradise. “I assume all human test subjects here were killed?”

  That prompted another meaningful look between the Verd-Kris. Tutula spoke first. “Those test subjects from Earth were all killed when the experiments were ended, yes. The current problem is that there is another set of experiments ongoing, using human former soldiers who call themselves ‘Keepers’?” She checked the translation.

  “Keepers? Son of a bitch!” Perkins exclaimed. “Those stupid-” She clenched her fists. Fuming at the stupidity of that misguided bunch was not accomplishing anything. “Sorry. Yes, I know about these ‘Keepers of the Faith’ as they call themselves. Please, Tutula, continue.”

  “The current experiments are intended not for use against humans, but to use humans as disease carriers, to kill Ruhar. The plan is to infect a group of these ‘Keepers’ with a pathogen that uses human DNA to create a binary prion agent,” she saw the lack of understanding in Perkins’ eyes. “It is a very sophisticated technique. These prion precursors will remain dormant in an infected human for a specified period, the experiment aimed at a dormancy period of three months. During that time, humans could infect others with the precursors, but victims would not display any symptoms. In humans, the binary agents would begin combining into a lethal pathogen in three months, but in Ruhar, the latency period would be around two months. Ruhar could also infect other Ruhar, so the human carriers are only needed to get the infection started. And to provide a cover story, so the Ruhar will think the pathogen is a natural mutation in humans, and not a biowarfare attack that is, as you know, banned by the rules of this war.”

  Perkins was stunned. “The pathogen could leap from human hosts into Ruhar, before infected humans are showing any symptoms of illness?”

  “Yes,” Tutula looked guilty though she had nothing to do with the project. “As I said, this is very sophisticated and advanced biotechnology. The aim of the research is to produce an agent that appears to be a naturally-occurring mutation in humans, a mutation that has evolved an ability to cross into Ruhar. Colonel, because human carriers would not know they were infected, they could infect many Ruhar they come into contact with. By the time the Ruhar are showing symptoms, it will be too late. Two months is long enough for infected Ruhar to travel to other worlds. This pathogen could spread far beyond the planet you call Paradise.”

  “Oh shit,” blood drained from Emily’s face. “This will all get blamed on humans.”

  The two Verd-Kris showed Perkins the data they had skimmed off the unsecure computer at the Kristang base, which frustratingly did not contain critical details about the pathogen that was intended for an attack on Paradise. To assess the nature of the threat and to prepare any possible countermeasures, they needed the research data that was locked up behind a secure firewall, but Ernt Dahl was not optimistic about his little computer breaking that firewall.

  “Colonel,” the Jeraptha announced after running a subroutine he thought had the best chance of penetrating the firewall. “The attempt was a failure. I am sorry, my system was not designed to penetrate a well-designed firewall.”

  “Is there any other way to get in remotely?”

  “Not that I know of,” Ernt shook his antennas. “We must be extremely careful. If an intrusion is detected, I expect the research system is designed to erase all of its data. I will work with the cadets who have studied what you call ‘cy-ber’ security. I must warn you, I am not hopeful.”

  “Then our best hope may be for a Ruhar ship coming to rescue us, they might have experts who can break into that system,” Perkins speculated.

  “Excuse me, Colonel, but I believe that is not true,” Tutula said stiffly. “Arrival of an enemy warship would surely trigger the guards at the base to erase all the research data. The system may even be programmed to erase itself, if an enemy ship enters this star system.”

  “Damn it,” Perkins chided herself. “You’re right. You are right, Tutula, thank you for reminding me. We need to get that data, and any biological samples stored at that base, while the guards here are unaware of our presence. We need a plan to do that, if we can’t access that research data remotely.”

  “We were able to get schematics of the base layout, however the base has been expanded repeatedly and many security features are also behind the firewall,” Jates warned. “We could encounter nasty surprises in any assault.”

  “Understood. There is another problem I have to consider.” She looked first to Tutula, then Jates. “I have a dilemma,” Perkins explained. “If I tell the Ruhar this bioweapon technology exists, they could very well quarantine the human population of Paradise, to protect the Ruhar.”

  “A quarantine is not your real concern,” Jates said as he sat back in his chair.

  “It is not?” Tutula asked.

  “No,” Jates appraised Perkins with a cool eye. “If the Ruhar fear humans could be carrying an undetectable, lethal pathogen, they may take action to remove the threat. Extreme action.”

  “The Ruhar are not Kristang,” Tutula protested.

  “They are also not stupid, nor soft,” Jates concluded. “When pressed to protect themselves, they have a will of iron. That is why the Kristang have repeatedly suffered defeats to the Ruhar, despite the warrior caste focusing their entire society and economy on war. Humans are still viewed by most Ruhar as conquered and rather pathetic former enemies, despite all your team has done for them, Colonel Perkins. Gratitude has an expiration date, fear does not. If the Ruhar federal government believes humans on Paradise pose a real threat to Ruhar society on multiple worlds, they will not hesitate to act against a species that is already unpopular. Besides, I do not think you have a dilemma at all, for you do not have a choice about whether to inform the Ruhar.”

  “Why?” Perkin’s eyes narrowed. “If we destroy this research base and all its materials and data, the pathogen will not pose a threat to Paradise.”

  “I believe the human expression is ‘that ship has sailed’? That expression is particularly appropriate in this situation,” Jates announced without humor. “Colonel, from the data Arlon Dahl was able to extract, we learned that a Kristang transport ship departed this world eighteen days ago, carrying the bioweapon and a group of Keepers who will be infected without their knowledge. That ship,” he paused as Perkins felt a sinking feeling, “is on its way to Paradise right now.”

  “The Kristang might have killed everyone on Earth?” Shauna asked as tears rolled fre
ely down her cheeks. Perkins had told her team about the bioweapon threat to Earth, before she explained the need for a physical assault on the Kristang research base to counter another and more current bioweapon threat.

  “Hey, darlin’, we already knew that could be true,” Jesse said quietly as he held Shauna’s shoulders tightly. His own face was a mask of anger, but his eyes were moist and he didn’t care if anyone saw.

  “Yes, but now we know that was their plan all along” Shauna balled up her fists. “They build a bioweapon, then they shut down the wormhole so they can do whatever they want to Earth without Maxolhx or Rindhalu enforcing their stupid rules. By the time the Kristang open the wormhole again, humans will be extinct and no one will care.”

  “Whoa,” Dave gasped. “You think the lizards shut down that wormhole?”

  “Shauna, I do not think that is true,” Irene declared. “Word at UNEF HQ was, the lizards were totally surprised and freaked out when the wormhole to Earth shut down, they didn’t expect that to happen. Hell, if the Kristang can control Elder wormholes, they would use that ability for something more important than our little planet.”

  “Maybe they didn’t shut down the wormhole,” Shauna snapped at her friend. “Maybe they just, just somehow anticipated that wormhole was going to shut down, and they planned for it. It doesn’t matter! The lizards have control of Earth, they have a bioweapon, and no one can stop them from doing whatever they want.”

  “All right, all right,” Perkins appealed for calm. “Jarrett, I hate the Goddamned lizards as much as anyone, but right now, we need to focus. We have a job to do.”

  “What’s that, Ma’am?” Jesse asked, startled out of his dark thoughts.

  “A dumb-fuck group of Keepers are on their way to Paradise, and we have no way to stop them. But on this planet, at the research base, is data and materials the Ruhar could use to create a cure or a vaccine or some way to protect against this bioweapon. We need to retrieve that data and hold it until a friendly ship arrives to pick us up. We can,” she thought for a moment. “Yeah, we can, we should, load the data into a drone that will respond only to a Ruhar or allied ship, in case a Kristang ship gets here first and wipes us out,” Perkins noted, thinking it strange that the prospect of her own impending death was so relatively unimportant, she felt no fear for herself.

  Shauna wiped away tears with the back of her hands. “Ma’am, I am in. Point me at that base, and no Goddamned lizard is gonna keep me from getting that data.”

  Perkins accepted Shauna’s statement with a grim nod. “Tutula, Jates, what about you? Attacking that base would be taking direct action against your own species. I know the warrior caste are not your people, but-”

  “Colonel Perkins,” Jates thumped the console with a fist, hard enough to shake the tough equipment. “Taking direct action, taking the fight right to the warrior caste, is the reason why we are out here! If needed, Tutula and I will hit that base by ourselves.”

  “That won’t be necessary,” Irene assured the two Verd-Kris. “Ma’am, we’ve got plenty of anger and determination, what we need is a plan. We can’t take any Ruhar with us on the assault, there’s too much risk of infection even if we stay buttoned up in skinsuits. The Verd-Kris aren’t at risk of getting sick, or being carriers, right?” Tutula nodded so she continued. “Then we have to hit that base with the six of us, two Verd-Kris, one Jeraptha and a couple dropships. We need a plan, and we first need to know the opposition. So,” she turned to the aliens. “What do we know in terms of tactical intel?”

  “Ma’am?” Dave asked with a sideways glance at the other four Mavericks, huddled around a console and reviewing a schematic of the enemy base. “A word?”

  Perkins nodded and waved the sergeant to where she was in a cabin seat, working on her tablet. “What is it?”

  Dave lowered his voice. “We know this planet was used to research, and test, bioweapons for use against humans on Earth.”

  Perkins cleared her throat that had become constricted by the thought of unimaginable horrors afflicting the population of her home planet. Her original home planet, she reminded herself bitterly. Earth was lost forever to her now, whether humans still lived there or not. Paradise was her homeworld now. “Yes.”

  “My question is,” he ran a finger on the armrest of the chair next to Perkins, and showed her a fingertip stained yellow with fine dust that blew in whenever the dropship’s doors were open. “We’re all breathing this air. Could the bioweapon they planned to use on Earth be loose here?”

  “Goddamn it,” Perkins swore, keeping her voice low. “I didn’t think of that.”

  “I didn’t either, until a minute ago. We know the ExForce didn’t get infected while we were here, so the lizards must have kept the weapon contained before the Force shipped out to Paradise. But after that? The lizards must have tested the effectiveness of air dispersal at some point. In that case,” he looked at his dust-covered fingertip. “We could all be exposed. And infected.”

  “Shit.”

  “Colonel,” Dave shot a guilty glance forward, where the only other four humans on the planet were struggling with their own problems. “If we have been exposed to that bioweapon, we need to move up the assault schedule. We need to go before the six of us become combat ineffective, and that could be real soon.”

  “Czakja, this is why the United States Army, in its infinite wisdom, has sergeants.”

  “Ma’am?”

  “To remind dumbass senior officers like me of practical considerations that I should have thought of. I’ve had my head in the clouds, worrying about, Goddamn policy, like how UNEF can keep the Ruhar from enforcing extreme measures against us on Paradise to protect their own furry little asses. You just reminded me that I need to focus right here, right now, or there won’t be a future for humans or Ruhar. Listen, Czajka,” she whispered. “Talk with Dahl, or Jates, see if they found any details about the bioweapon the lizards brought to Earth. I’ve been so worried about this new weapon, I forgot about the earlier threat. Maybe they recovered enough data for Ruhar medical scanners,” she nodded toward a hard-cased medical pack attached to the cabin wall, “to detect whether we have been exposed or not.”

  “The tests were inconclusive,” the Ruhar cadet announced with a frightened expression.

  “What are the results?” Perkins demanded.

  “You have to understand, I am not a doctor, I am only in my second year at the academy,” the cadet protested. “This device, this scanner, is also not programmed for human physiology, and I might have adjusted it incorrectly. It could be wrong, or it-”

  “What, are, the results?” Perkins asked in a softer tone. “I understand you are doing your best under difficult circumstances. Still, I need information on which to make decisions. Please, tell me what the device indicates.” She thought that was easier than asking a young Ruhar, barely into medical studies, to render her own opinion.

  “The scanner has detected antibodies in the blood of all six of you. It is very likely that you have all been exposed to the bioweapon that was developed for use against humans on your homeworld, on Earth.”

  “Oh, shit,” Irene groaned. “Sergeant Czajka’s right, Colonel, we need to go ASAP, while we can still fly. And fight.”

  “Hold on, Striebich,” Perkins held up a hand to halt the frenzied conversation that had sprung up around her. “I don’t remember a lot from the biology course I took in college, but I do know that on Earth, we use two types of viruses as vaccines. A live virus that has been weakened,” how that worked, she had no idea. “And a dead virus, a virus that has been killed. A dead virus can’t harm you, but it does provoke your immune system to create antibodies somehow, so if you are ever infected with the real virus, your immune system recognizes the threat and already knows how to kill it. Did I get that right?”

  “Correct,” the Ruhar cadet agreed, slightly embarrassed for the primitive humans. The crude process of using actual viruses to create vaccines was something she learned abo
ut in her medical history class, that technique had not been used by the Ruhar for thousands of years, yet humans still relied on low-tech ancient technology.

  “Tell me this: is it possible the pathogen we’ve been exposed to is dead? It must have been years since the Kristang dispersed it in the air here. All that time, it has been exposed to air, rainwater, heat, cold, ultraviolet radiation from the star, right? Maybe our immune systems were exposed to dead remnants of the bioweapon.”

  “That is possible, yes,” the cadet said slowly, then lifted her head as she warned to the idea. “I was only given a brief overview of human physiology, but I believe your immunity cells react to proteins on the outer coating of a virus phage, does that make sense?”

  Perkins looked to her team for help but none of them had any idea. Derek tilted his head and frowned. “That sounds about right. I saw something like that on the Discovery channel,” he grinned sheepishly.

  “Good. Yeah,” Perkins agreed.

  “If that is true, then it is possible-” The cadet smiled. “No, it is likely, that your antibodies are a reaction to exposure to the dead pathogen. Colonel Perkins, I very much doubt that a relatively crude bioweapon, like the one described in the files we found, could survive exposure to the elements on this planet for such a long time.”

  “Good,” Perkins breathed a sigh of relief. “I do not like the idea of dying of a horrible disease on this rock. We still have to proceed as if we are infected, because we can’t take the chance. The incubation period of that original bioweapon was a couple weeks, right?”

  “Yes, according to the data recovered,” the cadet acknowledged with a pained stare down at her display. “Colonel, please, consider that even if you are infected, you might have been exposed to an early, less effective form of the pathogen. Or the pathogen may be degraded by exposure here, in which case there may be a longer incubation period.”

  “Yes, or the data we recovered might not have contained details of the final, more effective pathogen. I can’t take the risk we could all get very sick, soon, before we can attack that base and get the research data we need. Thank you, cadet,” Perkins cut off further discussion. Her throat had been feeling sore for the past three days, and it felt worse that morning. She remembered her throat being sore the last time she was on Camp Alpha. Was it just the irritating, burnt-tasting dust that covered everything? Or was she infected and on the verge of a full-blown fatal disease?