Ghost in the Machine (Corwint Central Agent Files)

by C. E. Kilgore

  “Ethan was Brel’s replacement, was he not? He is still with the crew?”

  “Yes.” Jehdra waved her hand. “I’ll come back to that in a minute. What I need you to do is to teach Hank and the rest of his crew how to survive out there using their brains more than their blasters. Understood?”

  Orynn took a deep breath, then nodded. “Yes. Who should I be for this?”

  “Yourself.”

  Orynn shook her head. “Absolutely not.”

  “Absolutely yes.” Jehdra walked back around her desk and took her seat across from Orynn. “And you will remember that I am your commanding Director. Nothing I say is up for debate.”

  “But, Jehdra...”

  Jehdra pointed a finger at her. “Not. Up. For. Debate. I’m not recommending that you tell him everything about what happened. Quite the opposite. I think knowing all that shit might fuck his head over a bit. Look, you are damn good at what you do, Orynn. I want you to show and teach them how you move through the universe, guises and all. They need a crash course on dealing with the cultures outside the Common Races. The mission I am about to give to Hank is going to require your skills. If he fails, they are going to terminate his command, and most likely mine. It’s his last chance to prove to them that he is ready for that Captain’s chair.”

  “Do not make me responsible for the future of another Eros, Jehdra.”

  “You’re the only one who can help him, hon. I let you run away before, and I’ve regretted it every day since. I need you to trust me this time, as your friend. You need to stop running away and start walking forward again. I don’t think I have to tell you that’s an order, too.”

  “But the Sisterhood.” Orynn had one last hope for getting out of this. “There is no possible way they would have agreed to this after what happened.”

  “They have agreed.” Jehdra slid a data pad across the table and pointed at it. “See for yourself.”

  Jehdra watched as Orynn’s eyes surveyed the mission briefing and the agreeing parties. “I don’t know how much communication you’ve had with them lately, but they are getting desperate. Apparently your little rebellion thirty-five years ago was just the first in a series of ‘outings’ they have been running around trying to contain. They are old and out of touch with the younger Vesparians who think hiding in the shadows is just as stupid as you once did.”

  “I had not heard.” Orynn shook her head slowly. “Communications amongst other Vesparians has always been difficult since we are so spread out and secretive. The Sisterhood is the central point of information, but they have been growing quieter. I thought it was because they were displeased with me.”

  “Well now you know.” Jehdra huffed, then leaned forward. “Orynn, they agreed to this because they are hoping you will cause another incident to justify their pulling out of everything and secluding your people to the homeworld.” Jehdra sighed at the distraught look on her friend’s face. “Now don’t go getting that look. You’ll be fine.”

  “And if I am not?” Orynn pushed the mission briefing away. “If I still cannot control it? You saw what I am capable of, what I can become.”

  Jehdra glared at her. “Then I hope you will use it to protect Hankarron just like you did his father and his uncle.”

  “You and I remember things very differently.” Orynn said flatly.

  “Indeed. Well at least we can agree on that. So, that is part one of your mission. You will teach Hankarron how to operate more like a Vesparian. If you feel the need to fuddle his mind afterwards, then so be it, but I hope you won’t take that decision lightly.”

  “Part one?”

  “Ah yes.” Jehdra frowned and leaned across the desk to tap a button on the data pad. A new mission briefing came up. “Which brings us back to Ethan.”

  “The Mecha?”

  “The Mecha.” Jehdra leaned back in her chair and glared down at the mission briefing with spite. “This is the Central Command Council’s mission, not mine. I told them to shove it up their fat asses, so they made it a requirement for me being allowed to bring you back from the Rim.”

  Orynn picked up the pad again and reviewed the document. “You want me to obtain his schematics?”

  “Not me. Command.” Jehdra corrected. “Ethan is a bit of a special case when it comes to Mecha. Command has been after a copy of his schematics for years.”

  “Why not just ask him?” Orynn looked at Jehdra over the top of the pad.

  “Oh they did.” Jehdra laughed. “He told them to shove it up their fat asses too. They can’t force him to give them up under the Nodra M.A. Rights Act, even as a direct order.”

  “So you... Command wants me to infiltrate his system and steal them.”

  “Bingo.” Jehdra replied dryly.

  “And if I fail to obtain them?”

  “You and I both know you are more than capable of it, and so does Command. If you fail to bring those schematics back, they will consider it as defying a direct order from them.”

  Orynn nodded and set the pad back down on the desk. “And my contract will be terminated.”

  “Worse.” Jehdra sighed. “You’ll be given over to the Sisterhood, and they have agreed to keep you confined to your homeworld, indefinitely.”

  Orynn’s eyes focused on the profile image of Ethan’s face on the pad. What choice did she have? Jehdra was right. She owed it to this Hankarron to help him in any way she could. The Mecha shouldn’t be too hard. It all still sounded like a bad idea to her, but what could she do? It was a direct order, and a request from the only friend she had left. “Alright.”

  “Good.” Jehdra let out a small breath in relief. “Now, I’m going to have them meet you on Last Star in one week. In the meantime, I have a small side mission for you.”

  Ethan’s eyes refocused out of the memory as it faded away. It took him a few minutes to regain his bearings. Everything that he had seen was still flooding into his drive and trying to sort itself into proper arrangement for storage. The process was bogged down by the sheer amount of memory it required and he felt slightly dizzy. As his eyes refocused on the room, a deep frown etched itself on to his face and his jaw set.

  He had been right the entire time. She had been after something.

  His eyes lowered to her naked form which was still cradled in his arms. She had been right, too. He hadn’t understood what he was asking for when he had begged her to show him the truth. He had naively thought that nothing could be as bad as she had made it out to be. Now he had seen it through her eyes. She had seriously fucked up the lives of people he had known and cared about. Now she was here trying to make up for so much she had destroyed. How could she ever be forgiven?

  Ethan shook his head and pushed away the emotions. Those weren’t his thoughts. That was the echo of how she felt.

  Wasn’t it?

  His hands let go and her body slipped from his grasp. His mind was such a chaotic mess of her emotions and memories that he was having a hard time hearing himself think. As he watched her form float away from his arms, he wasn’t sure how he should be feeling. The strongest emotion that he could identify was the feeling of betrayal, so he grabbed onto it and used it to anchor himself back in reality.

  Told you she was just after something.

  He wondered if she had already copied his schematics. The painful image of her pretending to enjoy being with him as she used the distraction to raid his files filled his mind. The memory of how she had been looking at him while they… Had that been when she had taken them?

  He felt a sneer form on his lips and he could no longer stand to look at her. He had asked himself earlier if he could trust her. Now he had his answer.

  In disgust, he turned from her and snatched up his clothes. Quickly dressing, he wanted to get out of the room before she woke up. The heavy scent of her was suffocating him. Stuffing his hands angrily in his pockets, he froze.

  I forgot.

  His hand pulled out of his pocket and slowly opened. Sitting in his palm w
as the moonstone necklace they had seen at the vendor.

  It seems so pointless now, when I think about it.

  Brel.

  Ethan turned and looked at her sleeping face. Pulling off the sheet from the bed, he wrapped it gently around her.

  She had loved him. Could she love me?

  He turned sharply away from her. Of course not. You’re just her mission, remember.

  Even showing him everything could just be a way to confuse him, or to try and gain his trust. If he knew what her plan was, maybe he would just sympathize with her and give her the damn schematics. His head hurt. He needed time.

  His hand let go of the necklace and it joined the rest of the free floating items in the room. He glanced over his shoulder once more before erecting a stabilization field in the doorway and walking out into the normal gravity of the hallway. “Rusa, Orynn.”

  The door closed shut behind him. The light from the hallway disappeared, but his last whispered words still lingered in the darkness. Orynn’s eyes stared into the moon-glow lamp as the necklace floated past, the vision of it blurred by tears. Her hand reached out and grasped it. Pulling it to her chest, she wrapped herself in the sheet and wept. “Rusa, Velstrae.”

  24 Gokem

  Orynn awoke violently to the harsh beeping of the com unit in her room. Her breath caught in her chest for a moment as her heart pounded at the intrusion of the loud unwelcome noise. Darting her eyes about her room as the beeping continued, her mind forced itself to reorient her focus.

  Floating over to the wall still entangled in the bed sheet, she slapped her hand against the button. “Yes?”

  Hank’s voice came through the line. “We just landed on Gokem at the arranged meeting coordinates you gave me. Are you able to meet us at the loading dock?”

  How long have I been asleep? Her head spun and begged her to get more rest. “Yes, of course. Please give me a few moments.”

  Orynn shut the line off and took a moment to gather her bearings. She rubbed her eyes and flung off the sheet. “Zera, resume normal environmental settings.”

  “Command confirmed.”

  As the gravity began lowering, Orynn gathered her weightless articles of clothing from the last mission and flung them angrily into her tote bag. When her hand took hold of her blue underwear, she angrily balled them into her fist and tossed them into the trash bin hidden in one of the wall compartments.

  “Blue is my favorite color!” She mocked herself with an irritated hiss and slammed the compartment door shut. When her feet finally touched the ground, she strode into the bathroom and yanked a rag off the rack.

  The heated anger in her eyes shocked her as she viewed herself in the mirror. She closed her eyes and took in a deep breath.

  I have no right to be angry. I got what I wanted. He left.

  He told me to trust him and he left.

  Her eyes opened and stared at the necklace around her neck as the tears started sliding down her cheeks. “Now who is the yexka?”

  Running the rag under cold water and ringing it tightly, she quickly washed her face and sucked back the tears. Her hand touched the necklace and she debated taking it off.

  You cannot blame him.

  “I know.”

  Leaving the necklace on, she went back into her room and pulled out her cargo pants, a black long sleeved top, her support bra and a pair of black underwear. Dressing while trying to block out her thoughts, she slid her feet into her sandals from under the bed and looked around for her hair clip. Her hand reached up and found it already securing her hair.

  Odd. She didn’t remember putting it back in last night.

  Her com unit beeped again and she glared at it. “By the stars, you people have no patience!” She growled at the unit as it continued to beep unanswered. Her fists clenched as she drew in another deep breath. The panel fizzled and the beeping stopped. She scowled at her lapse in control.

  “Wonderful. This day is going to be just wonderful.” She stormed out of her room, the sharp twists in her aura oblivious to the unseen presence she left behind.

  As she neared the cargo hold, she took in several long deep breaths to try and calm her nerves and hoped that it was just going to be Hank waiting for her. At the top of the lowered loading dock, she saw Hank, Tara and Brom. Luckily, Ethan was nowhere to be seen.

  She gave the group a curt nod. “Sorry I am late. For the trades with Gokem and Tir, please refer to me as Ashae.”

  “Understood.” Hank nodded, but frowned at her back in concern as she passed him. She looked like she’d had a rough night. The red puffiness of her eyes had been obvious in the few moments he saw of them before she began creating her guise. Her hair and eyes both switched to a dark brown as her skin took on an olive tinge. She edged near the top of the ramp and plastered that same emotionless smile on her lips.

  Hank wondered if she was okay to go through with this, as something was certainly bothering her. The absence of Ethan, even after Hank had requested his presence, gave him another sign something was up. “You alright to do this?”

  “Yes, of course.” Orynn nodded over her shoulder. “I am just tired, but I will be fine. Thank you for your concern.”

  “Baroos Ashae, jaru’nektoo!” The loud guttural voice of a male Gokem called up from the bottom of the loading ramp. “You keep Lacta waiting in sun all day?”

  “Baroos Lacta, jaru’nektal!” Orynn turned away from Hank and opened her arms wide as she walked down the loading ramp. “The sun is good for your complexion.”

  “Nothing can improve face this good!” Lacta made a gesture with his hand towards his face and stuck out his chest with his chin raised. Gokem males were a large, barrel-chested race with dark brown skin, typically yellow eyes, no hair and a distinctive ridge that ran down the center of their scalp from the bridge of their nose to the back of their neck. The females, rarely seen outside the home, were also bald. “Maybe can improve yours, though.”

  “My face shall never be as handsome as yours.” Orynn frowned at him. “Nor my skin as rich and dark. Why do you point out such flaws to the world? Is my ugliness not apparent enough?”

  “It is.” Lacta nodded. Insults directed at the trade-initiator were a sign of affection on Gokem, and the recipient was expected to agree to them. It made trading with them an interesting experience in humility, and it was an experience many people failed at miserably. “You come trade more limiks, Farsen tells. Farsen tells you need only eight?”

  “Yes.” Orynn nodded and pointed back at the ship behind her. “You see my small ship? How could I carry more in such a ship?”

  “Small indeed.” Lacta surveyed the ship and crossed his arms. “Like last ship better. Why Black Bitch trade you down?”

  “Because she is a bitch.” Orynn sighed heavily.

  “Agreed. But she has nice face.” Lacta rubbed his chin. “Except eyes. Lacta not like black eyes. You not tell her I say that. Bad trade.”

  “And a bad day for me.” Orynn smirked. “So you have the limiks I need?”

  “Do I have limiks?” Lacta let out a deep laugh as his chest moved up and down with the force of it. He removed a small horn from his belt and blew into the end. A long droning note echoed across the rocky steppe.

  After a few moments, a return horn could be heard, followed by the bleating of hundreds of limiks as they crested one of the surrounding hills lead by several Gokem shepherds. Long necked, large eyed, soft grey furred and as dumb as any creature created, limiks were kept mostly for their fleece which could be woven into textiles. They also served as a food source on some worlds and simple companions on others. What they lacked in brains, limiks made up for in loyalty. They would follow the orders of their masters without hesitation.

  Orynn watched as the herd approached. “How am I to choose just eight out of such a grand heard?”

  “That why Lacta ask why bring such small ship!” Lacta laughed again.

  As the limiks approached, many in the front pushed forward to seek
attention from their herd master. Their heads came up to Lacta’s shoulder and he turned to scratch many of them under the chin. The other Gokems corralled the limiks with long thin sticks and made tut-tut-tut noises at them. The limiks obeyed and stopped their progression.

  “This choice cannot be made alone.” Orynn turned and motioned for Hank and the others to join her. “Please honor me by allowing me to introduce my new crew to you.”

  Lacta rubbed his chin and surveyed the approaching group, then nodded. “You may.”

  Orynn pointed to each in turn. “This is Hankarron, Tara and Brommrigor. Good traders, good crew.”

  Lacta looked to Hank and laughed. “This one has hair like limik!”

  Hank grinned. “I tried to shave it off, but it grew back. I’m afraid I will always look like a limik.”

  “Not all men can have nice head like Lacta.” Lacta ran his hand across his bald scalp ridge. “Not problem, though. Some women like limiks.”

  Orynn smiled at Hank. He learns fast. Her eyes turned to Tara and swallowed a laugh. “And all limiks like women.”

  Tara had three limiks stretching their necks out past the shepherding stick, trying to eat her hair. Tara patted one of them on the head. “I think I’ve made a friend.”

  “You take that one!” Lacta nodded. “Barshee good limik. Fertile. Has had two strong calves.” Lacta turned back to Orynn. “I see Ashae’s plan. Bring woman knows good limiks to pick best in herd!”

  Orynn bowed her head to Lacta. “I knew I could not fool you, Lacta. What is the price for the eight best in the herd that Tara chooses? Would twenty Chronae be enough to purchase such great animals?”

  Lacta thought on that for a long moment. “Ashae always fair trade. Lacta give fair deal to Ashae. Fourteen Chronae will purchase best in herd.”

  Orynn bowed her head again. “You humble me greatly with such an offer. Please, allow me to pay at least sixteen Chronae. Two Chronae for each of your best limiks.”

  “Deal!” Lacta opened both arms wide to her. “Pick and be done so Lacta can get out of hot sun.”