The chair she was sitting in was much like the ones in the shuttle’s control center, as was the console in front of her. She hadn’t had time to familiarize herself with it completely, but if it was anything like the other ones she’d seen, there would be an internal transmitter.
Swiveling to face the uniformed woman on the floor. The woman shot her an angry look, but while Jantine was not quite as threatening as Artemus, she still liked to think she inspired respect.
"You, human. What is your name?"
"Lieutenant Lydia Daniels."
"How many humans can this base support?"
"I’m not sure I like the way you say humans."
Katra stepped forward, raising her rifle. Jantine stopped her with an upraised hand, which was enough to change the look in the human’s eyes.
"Shall I call Artemus back in here to explain the rules again? Or can we discuss this like rational people?"
Before Daniels could answer, Mira removed the tape from another prisoner’s mouth.
"Quit playing around, Lydia. These gennies mean business, and they probably saw that transmission the Captain made you send. Five hundred. It can support five hundred of us for almost a year, indefinitely if we can get enough oxygen out of the walls."
Yes, that will do nicely.
Mira continued releasing the humans, who were careful not to move too quickly around Katra. When Marius returned a few minutes later, he led away a still-fuming Lydia Daniels, four very cooperative and apologetic human scientists, and the two spies Mira had identified.
When all the humans were gone, Yesha came down out of the crawlspace, and with Mira’s help, she sealed the hatch. Then Mira’s face took on a strange look.
"Jantine, tell me what you’re thinking."
Jantine was surprised.
"Don’t you know?"
"It doesn’t work like that. Not with you, anyway. Your mind is very well-ordered, and you don’t let a lot rise to the surface."
"I’m thinking this is a good enough place as any for a colony. With the sleepers, we can hold it against any hostile force. There is food, air, and more than enough room for us to—I think you called it—’build some bridges’ with the humans. "
"An excellent idea, Commander," Katra said. "But what about Janbi? Mordecai Harrison said he could not come to the Moon, possibly for many months."
Jantine pressed her lips together in a smile.
"Janbi will be our ambassador on Earth, as Mira will be to their military. And it will be good for the two of us to spend some time apart."
Mira nodded, and Jantine felt her trust and approval. Remaining on the moon might mean permanent hearing loss from her left side, but she was ready now to believe in herself, and be the person who made her own choices.
She was just about to tell Katra how much she appreciated her support when an unfamiliar female voice came from the command console.
"Aggie? Is that you?"
Mira’s surprise was evident both on her face, and the amusement and recognition she shared through her link. Jantine wasn’t positive, but her own recent experiences with desire hinted at a more personal relationship, one almost confirmed with the very different voice Mira used when answering the transmission.
"Mar? Where are you . . . are you on the Clarke now? When did you leave City of Lights?"
"There’s a story there for later, but it’s been a few days now. When you . . . When Valiant went dark, Captain Maddsen transferred about half his crew planetside. I was on the L6 station when Captain DeMarco and the Commodore arrived, and the captain seconded me to run his comms. I have her for you now, if you’re ready."
"Give me a minute, Mar. I have something to do down here first."
"Copy that. Ping when you’re ready. And Deb would want me to tell you that she never believed what they were saying. You should come visit her and the girls, when you get a chance."
"I will, Mar, thanks. See you soon."
Mira cut the circuit and leaned heavily against the console for several seconds. Jantine watched her face contort as her emotions leaked through her defenses. Sadness, regret, anger, and joy each had their turn, until she finally settled on hope.
She flashed Jantine a mischievous smile, and she chuckled before she spoke.
"Marya is . . . a friend. One of the first ones I made at the academy, and she married someone I care about a lot. Deb is . . . it’s complicated. But you can trust her. She’s almost family."
"You are our family, Mira," said Jantine. "If you love her, we will as well."
Jantine was surprised to see tears in Mira’s eyes. But the Earther was still smiling, and after a moment she was ready to proceed.
"Are you sure about this, Jantine? It’s not too late to change your mind."
"I am. This is why I’m here."
As she said the words, Jantine was finally convinced they were true. Instead of being a mantra handed down by the Alphas, it was now an empowering affirmation.
"Okay, here we go."
Mira reactivated the comm, but before she could say anything the shrill voice of Commodore Ykaterina Maranova filled the room.
"Harlan? Harlan, what’s going on down there? What’s the big idea about making us wait? Do you have any idea what’s been going on up here?"
Jantine couldn’t help but remember Janbi facing down the diminutive Earther with only one hand and a broken cane.
"I’m here, ma’am. We’ve been a bit busy as well. The base is under our control, and Captain Kołodziejski . . . is dead."
"Well good. And everyone else?"
"We are well, Commodore," Jantine said. "I wish to make a statement, not just to you but to your planet. Can you facilitate this?"
"Go ahead when you’re ready, Jantine. We won the battle up here, so take as much time as you need. Marya here will make sure everyone with two ears and a heartbeat gets your message."
Jantine winced at the reminder of her injury, but Mira drew away her pain and placed a hand on her shoulder. Jantine covered it with one of her own, and prepared to deliver yet another worlds-changing proclamation.
"This is Governor Jantine. In accordance with Interstellar Compact and the Magellan Accords, I claim right of conquest over the section of Earth’s moon known as Echo Base, in response to war crimes perpetrated against myself and my people by rogue officers of your military.
"In cooperation with the legitimate leadership of your System Defense Force, my forces have occupied this base, and hereby declare it to be an independent colony. Our ambassador is already in negotiations with the highest levels of your government, and we will not be displaced.
"Attempt no landings here without our permission. Do not seek to challenge our sovereignty. We have come to heal the rift caused between our two peoples by the misguided actions of our ancestors, but if necessary we will defend ourselves to the utmost of our abilities.
"You have been warned . . . ."
Mordecai
MORDECAI STARED ACROSS THE BOARD AT JANBI, who was grinning wide enough to split his face in two. His nose was still a tad crooked, but something about it seemed to fit his face, giving it a comfortable imperfection that the rest of his people seemed to lack.
The Beta was waiting patiently for Mordecai’s next move, with most of his white pieces arranged in front of him. On the board, only four of Mordecai’s wooden army remained, surrounded by a besieging force of black pieces he’d barely managed to scratch.
It’s not like I have much choice, now is it?
Mordecai moved his rook back to take the pawn threatening his king, unwilling to take direct action with that piece and blocked by his own knight from escaping.
Janbi quickly moved his bishop in for the kill, pulling the captured piece off the board and placing it into its correct position with the rest of the queen’s retinue.
Neither player had spoken since hearing Jantine’s announcement, though Janbi’s smile spoke volumes as to his intentions.
Ambassador. Hah! Can’t
even tie his own shoes, and he’s the second most important person on the planet. Who would have thought?
Mordecai felt a slight twinge of guilt for belittling Janbi’s struggles on Earth, but it was hard to find anything not to like about the boy. In order to maintain the upper hand in their "negotiations," he had to at least think of him as an opponent, instead of someone he’d been waiting to meet all his life.
Besides, I’m not entirely sure he’s not reading my mind. Did you hear that, Janbi? Smile if you’re cheating . . .
Mordecai moved his knight to take the bishop, and Janbi’s response was to move another pawn forward into the eighth rank. Mordecai scowled at the move he’d seen coming for at least fifteen minutes, and he waited for Janbi to ask for his queen back.
"How long have you known, Mordecai?"
"What? Are you reading my mind after all?"
Janbi shook his head.
"No, just your archives. And your personal journals, as well as those of your father. The analysis finished a few minutes ago, but we’ve been having so much fun I decided to wait to ask."
"Ask me what? Paul, did you have anything to do with this?"
Paul didn’t shift from his position across the room, where he was waiting with a pair of dinner plates that by now must have been stone cold.
"Don’t drag me into this, old man. I told you to take black."
That you did, my boy. That you did.
"The virus, Doctor. How long have you known where it came from?"
Mordecai’s blood ran cold, and his heart leapt into his throat. Janbi had somehow uncovered his family’s deepest secret, on his own, in only a couple of hours.
It took me sixty years, and I only confirmed the hypothesis this afternoon. Hell of Bad Reasoning, I haven’t even written that down yet.
"Janbi, I’m not sure I like you anymore."
Mordecai’s voice was calm, but it did nothing to disturb the Beta’s smile.
"That’s all right. You don’t have to like me, just tell me the truth. How long have you known?"
Mordecai picked up the black queen and exchanged it for the intrepid pawn. Leaning back in his chair, he nodded at Paul, and the younger man left the room quietly. A few seconds later, convinced that all electronic records of their conversation were now scrambled, Mordecai leaned forward and made his confession.
"To be honest, I don’t know that I do. But I’ve suspected it for the last few years, and the samples I took of Serene’s and Harlan’s blood were the piece I was missing."
"So it is the ice world, then. Where they found Serene?"
"If not there, then wherever that colony ship stopped before it. We have no records of ever visiting it before, but Serene’s virus was still active, in a way that we haven’t seen since the very first expressions. It was changing her as we watched, adapting to whatever challenges she was facing. At first I thought it was because she was an Alpha, but Harlan was born right here on Earth and had the same strain of virus in her."
Janbi nodded.
"But even Harlan was an anomaly among anomalies. There had to be something else, some other factor that linked them together, and not the rest of you."
"It was the Omegas, wasn’t it?"
Mordecai nodded.
"Even your Type 6s, the Deltas, they’re still recognizably human. But the Omegas are so far removed from the baseline genome that they definitely qualify as an alien species, no matter what their origin. They were the first line to express on a planet other than Earth, and it would explain a lot if they had something to do with that ship crashing. Both Serene and Harlan were in near constant contact with one or the other of them since you kids landed, and despite the reverence your people have for them I think they know a lot more than they’re telling you."
Janbi nodded and pushed himself away from the table with his good arm. Mordecai’s eye went to the sensor coupling on his stump, wondering what it was that Janbi was going to do if the T-virus proved incompatible with a prosthetic nerve graft.
"That much is certain. I think Mira will be able to help us with that when she returns, but for now I think we should keep this between us. There may not be other Omegas among the sleepers, but if what you say is true it won’t be long until some start developing here on Earth."
Mordecai hadn’t considered that, and Janbi’s matter-of-fact delivery made the idea all the more frightening.
"So what’s your plan, son? How do you want to proceed?"
"Son. I like that. I never had a father, and you’ll do well enough I guess."
This definitely affected Mordecai, who sat back in his chair and let out a long breath. He and Almira had never had children of their own, raising those of others when necessary and treating the whole planet as their family instead.
I think she’d have liked you, Janbi. I’m sure of it. But you frighten the hell out of me, and I’m sure you know that, too.
"But for now, I’m tired. I think I’ll rest for a while."
Janbi stood and started to walk away from the table. Mordecai didn’t know what to say to him, and as his universe changed at the will of another for the first time in years, he felt helpless to resist the Beta’s pull.
"But, what about the game?"
Janbi turned back, and his crooked nose caught just the right amount of shadow to make his face seem much more mature. The Beta took two quick strides, then used his right hand to tip over first his king, then the queen he’d worked so skillfully to convert.
"I don’t understand you, son. I really don’t"
Janbi’s boyish smile was as wide as ever, but when he spoke it was Mordecai who felt like a child.
"Good. That means we have something to work toward tomorrow. But as for the game, I already have a queen. I don’t need another. I just needed to know how long you’d keep playing after you realized you couldn’t win.
"Good night, Mordecai. We’ll speak in the morning about damages due my people as a result of the Exile. I think I’d like to speak to the other Reclamation governors as well, can you arrange that?"
"Yes. Paul will set that up for us."
"Good then. And think about this for tomorrow, if you will: we sent out six other streamships, each with a team a lot like mine. Assuming they didn’t also land in the middle of a civil war, that’s twelve other Omegas out there somewhere who never met anyone like Mira Harlan, or learned what it means to be truly human. If all went according to plan, they’re already dug in, and prepared to hide for a few hundred years and build up colonies with no outside influences whatsoever.
"What do you think they’ll have in mind for the rest of us, when they finally do come out? I think we need to go to that ice planet as soon as possible, and find out what made that ship crash, and why. Because there’s nothing I’ve ever heard of that can stop an Omega from getting what it wants, other than a kind word and an open heart."
Mordecai Harrison watched the young man who’d just destroyed his life’s work walk out of his office. He felt old, and worn out, but for the first time in many months, he had something to look forward to with the dawn.
I only hope that you kids know what you’re doing. Because if you can’t help us fight whoever unleashed the virus on us centuries ago, the human race might be doomed after all . . .
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
NONE OF THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN POSSIBLE WITHOUT Mark Teppo. He and I both have talked publicly about how I sold him this book, but it’s hard to truly relate how much he inspired me to write the story in your hands today. Not only did he say no to two other pitches, but he drove me to understand what makes a truly great book, and why we should be publishing them. And while I’m not saying this book is perfect, it’s certainly the best thing I’ve ever written or attempted.
Thanks also to my editors Fleetwood Robbins and Darin Bradley. While we didn’t always see eye to eye, their ability to ask the right questions over and over until I understood them is why you have this book in your hands..
Homefront is a book a
bout families, and I would be remiss if I didn’t thank my own. So for the Magners, Fouseks, Pendletons, and Johnsons of the world, thank you so much for being there when I needed you. Living with a writer can be trying at times, I know. I can only hope that your patience is rewarded in my meager efforts.
And lastly, thank you, dear reader. No one gets to the acknowledgements page when reading a book without first finishing it, and certainly not without buying it. You fought along with me to the end, after taking a chance on an unknown author, a new fictional universe, and a rag-tag bunch of misfits doing the best they can to survive.
Let’s do it again.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Scott James Magner has held down many jobs over the years, including circus promoter, warehouse manager, dog-sitter, professional role-playing gamer, and writer. He currently resides in Seattle with his partner of many years and several cats who don’t understand why sitting down to write is not an invitation for lap-time.
Homefront is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or are used in an absolutely fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons—living or dead—is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2014 by Scott James Magner
All rights reserved, which means that no portion of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the express written permission of the publisher.
This is A001, and the ebook ISBN is 978-1-63023-025-8.
This book was printed in the United States of America, and it is published by Arche Press, an imprint of Resurrection House (Puyallup, WA).
Send our children to the stars.
Edited by Fleetwood Robbins
Cover Design by Jennifer Tough
Book Design by Aaron Leis
Copy Edit by Darin Bradley
Ebook conversion by Hydra House
First hardback Arche Press edition: November 2014.
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