by Trent Falls
“Sergeant Euler.” Shin greeted him evenly. “Please, sit.” Shin gestured to one of the two chairs in front of his desk.
Euler sat down in front of the desk, as he had many times over the last few months.
“Has Mister Dekker offered up any new information?” Shin asked.
“No.” Euler exhaled heavily. Clearly he was disappointed. “He’s on his third session with the brain scanner.”
“Ai ya! Do you want to kill the man? He’s not so young! The machine will wear him down quickly.” Shin responded sternly.
“No.” Euler shook his head, becoming visibly calmer. “No, you’re right.”
“This man was once your commander, yes?” Shin’s eyebrows dropped with the question.
“Yes.” Euler replied plainly, his thoughts somewhat elsewhere. “He was my Captain during the war.”
Shin stared at Euler. The Xen Captain’s dark skin tone, distinct Asian features, and thin moustache and goatee made Shin’s stare all the more intimidating.
“Perhaps we should consider the possibility that this man, Dekker, is telling the truth.”
Shin turned in his chair, looking out past his left side towards the star-filled black of space. “That the Norn truly do not exist.” Shin turned again to look back on Euler. “If this is the case then this is a great waste of resources and we’re on a fool’s errand.”
“Your High Council felt it was important enough to contact me.” Euler replied in strong defense. “I was out looking for the Norn on my own. I was very close. The Denebola Tablet is proof that they exist.”
“The Denebola Tablet still hasn’t been translated and verified.” Shin replied sharply. “For all we know it could be part of some elaborate hoax.”
“Are you suggesting the find is a hoax?” Euler defended himself. “Do you think I created it to deceive the Xen High Council? Remember, I gave it to them and they decided to offer me their help… and the services of your ship.”
“I know all too well, Sergeant.” Shin replied, easing back in his thick padded leather chair.
“You understand better than I do, Captain.” Euler leaned forward, as if trying to convince Shin. “This could be the greatest discovery of mankind. You. Me. If I’m right and the Norn are real, it could mean changing the face of our very civilization.”
“I’ve heard this all before, Sergeant.” Shin replied. “Every Xen child is told the fairy tales of the Norn. A benevolent and advanced race, arriving in Asia to lead the enlightened to the stars. Most of us think it’s but a story. Perhaps someone made it up trying to deify Lei, Eustice, and Gi.” Shin leaned back in his chair. “We all need to believe in something bigger than ourselves; the early Xen settlers probably more than others.”
“They’re real.” Euler noted with certainty. “The writing on the Denebola Tablet is like nothing I’ve seen. Even the hard-core linguists that looked at it say it looks like nothing else on Earth.”
“Whatever the case, Sergeant Euler, we’re not getting the expected results from Dekker. Do you have a backup plan?” Shin asked.
“Actually, I do.” Euler sat up, turning his eyes and his full attention back towards Shin. “The plan is actually in action as we speak.”
“And?”
Euler exhaled quickly. “There were other men in Dekker’s unit when I believe he made contact with the Norn. I intend to find them and bring them here.”
West Palm Beach. It had become the “City of White”. The phrase was meant to note the numerous concrete structures that had made up its center, but it was also a bit of a pejorative statement in that most of the city’s inhabitants were fair skinned. Even in the early twenty second century there was still a degree of racism and a disparity of wealth. Palm Beach was “old money”. It had been for centuries. All the same, it wasn’t as exclusive as the homes of Palm Beach across the intracoastal. A number of people of all walks of life strolled through City Center. The bright white towers around them seemed almost celestial as they reached up into a crisp blue sky with pure white clouds. The air was hot and humid; a typical early Florida summer.
John liked to spend his free afternoons at the Barnes & Noble at City Place. The main reading area on the second floor overlooked the City Place shopping center and offered a decent view of the plaza and the surrounding square. It was quiet, yet the book store and the surrounding plaza offered a decent flow of youthful shoppers, particularly of the female variety.
All the same, it was John’s first day off. All he really wanted was some peace and quiet after dealing with hordes of community college kids for two busy semesters.
Oddly enough, John had decided to hit the travel section. He had spent so much time in space that, aside from moving to and from a few states in the US, he hadn’t seen much else of his home world. He sat in a comfy brown chair, thumbing through a book on Australia as he drank a small ice coffee. Another book on the end table next to him was a tour guide of India. Maybe he’d take a few weeks of his summer and travel abroad; to someplace relaxing but also somewhat interesting.
At about 12:15, John found himself feeling a bit hungry. He got up from the chair, set his books on a nearby return cart, and walked towards the escalator leading downstairs. A number of middle-aged housewives had entered the front door. One eyed John as he walked past. John paid them no mind and walked out through the double doors out into the white stone plaza outside.
Rather than walk out into the center of the plaza, John decided to walk off to the right. The shops of City Place surrounded the square on two levels. There was a good restaurant a nearby along the upstairs loggia.
“John Carn.” A voice called him from behind.
John, confused by the unfamiliar voice, turned around to see a tall man approaching him from behind. Clearly, even though the man was in a grey suit, he was broad and muscular. It took a second for John to recognize the face.
“Chief?!?” John winced at him in the bright sunlight. “Chief Rochette?!?”
“Master Chief!” Rochette corrected him with a smirk.
“How the hell have you been, sir?” John walked up to him and shook his hand. “What the hell?!? First Troy, now you?!?”
“Troy?” Rochette asked.
“David Troy? Gunnery Sergeant was his last rank, I think.” John clarified.
“He’s come to see you?” Rochette asked, his confusion evident.
“Chief?” John was equally confused.
“You got a minute?” Rochette asked.
“Yeah,” John stood with a blank face for a second, then replied with a half grin, “yeah, I was just going to get a bite to eat. You’re welcome to join me.”
“I don’t have much time.” Rochette replied flatly. He walked along side of John as he moved up the stairs quickly to the next level. “Do you remember Sergeant Euler?”
“Scott? Hell yeah! He saved my ass countless times in the Corps.” John replied.
“He’s organizing an expedition to some of the outer systems.” Rochette noted. “He was hoping he might hire you as a hand.”
John looked sideways at the massive Master Chief at his side. “No thanks.” John replied plainly. “I’m done with outer space, Chief. I’m not really interested. Thanks.”
“Is there any way we can sit down and talk?” Rochette asked.
“Okay.” John replied agreeably.
John looked again at the big former Marine. He was still in excellent shape. Someone had also given him the money to buy a halfway decent suit. If John had to guess, he figured that Rochette was a hired hand; an enforcer or possibly even a mercenary. It wasn’t too uncommon for someone with a military skill set and a special forces background to seek out such employment. John was going to head into Jones’, an indoor restaurant but given his company he instead decided to find a table at an outdoor eatery. John didn’t trust Rochette given the oddity of their meeting and, as a precaution, wanted to sit outside where there were plenty of passersby.
John pulled back a chair at on
e of the high top tables and sat down. A pretty looking twenty something blonde girl in nicely cut shorts hurried to their table as they sat, “Hi, guys! I’m Brooke! Can I get you gentlemen something to drink?” the waitress asked warmly, setting down two menus in front of the men.
“I’ll have a Diet Coke.” John noted evenly, keeping his eyes somewhat fixed on Rochette.
“Water please.” Rochette stared back.
The waitress vanished quickly, leaving the two former Marines on their own.
“So, what’s the deal with Euler? How’s he been?” John asked.
“Euler’s fine.” Rochette replied.
“Then what’s this all about, Chief?” John demanded. “I mean, we haven’t seen each other in over ten years and here you are following me around town.”
“Following?” Rochette flinched slightly. “No, you have me all wrong, Sergeant! Actually, I was planning on looking you up. A few other guys here too. I just happened to run into you here.”
“Ah, coincidence.” John faked a grin. Clearly, if Euler had sent Rochette – he had sent the wrong man. John was suddenly reminded of Rochette’s lack of social graces. A Master Chief didn’t need them. A con man does.
The waitress came by and set their drinks on their table. A few others in the wait staff buzzed around the open-air dining area.
“Have you guys decided on what you want to order?” Brooke asked in a singing tone.
Neither man had yet to open his menu.
“Give us a few minutes, dear.” John noted to her indirectly, keeping his eyes locked with Rochette.
John tried to remain cool, but he couldn’t help but run a quick threat assessment in his head. Rochette was bigger than him and looked to be in better shape. Though John maintained a decent workout regime, he hadn’t fought anyone in ages. He smiled at Rochette, but silently wondered if he could take on someone like him after all this time.
“I’ll be back in a bit, then.” Brooke vanished with John’s indifferent tone. She could also sense the tension at the table.
John waited for the Master Chief to speak, but opted to move things along after a few seconds of silence.
“So, tell me about this expedition.” John asked with a tinge of curiosity.
“We’re traveling to some of the outlying systems beyond the edge of Terran Space, just outside The Breach.” Rochette replied.
“Doing what?” John pushed.
Rochette stared back at John for a second. “Archaeological exploration.”
“Archaeological?!?”
“You’re going to laugh, but…”
“Try me.” John pushed. “Besides, I already told you I’m not going.”
“I’d hope you’d change your mind.” Rochette replied seriously. “Euler was really hoping that, out of everyone, that you’d come along.”
“I need to be convinced.” John responded with a smirk. “Where is it that Sergeant Euler wants to take this expedition?”
“Euler’s taken to exploration in a big way after leaving the service.” Rochette explained. “I mean, we’ve only been out here a relatively short period of time and we’ve only charted a dozen or so planets?”
“And half of that time we spent at war.” John added, taking a sip of his Diet Coke.
“Euler’s found a few tablets, with writing that no one’s been able to decipher.” Rochette went on. “He thinks it’s the first step to finding the Norn.”
John laughed aloud. He had suspected that this was where the conversation was going. Rochette’s confirmation of that suspicion was genuinely hilarious. John’s laughter appeared genuine enough for Rochette to believe that John believed him to be insane.
“The Norn! Are you fucking kidding me?!?” John grinned broadly. “Who’s financing this field trip? Really!”
“It’s a genuine lead, Sergeant.” Rochette took a drink of his water. “I know it sounds insane. It took a while for Euler to convince me.”
“And even if we do find….” John tried not to laugh again, “… the Norn. What then?”
“Euler thinks that unlocking the knowledge of the Norn could help us… as in help the human race. Take us to the next evolutionary step in society.” Rochette explained.
“And how does he know this? These tablets?” John shook asked skeptically.
“If the theories are true, and the Norn did give the Xen warp drive, imagine what else we could gain.” Rochette noted. “Euler seems to think warp drive was just the tip of the iceberg.”
John remained silent for a moment. He took a sip of his Diet Coke. “Okay.” He replied in an exhale of air.
“I know this sounds crazy, Sergeant Carn.” Rochette went on. “In any case, Euler’s willing to pay well. One hundred and sixty thousand, all for about three months’ work. And it’s not like you’ll have bills out there so it’s all bank.”
“That’s bullshit!” John took another draw off his Coke. “I can make double that as a merc and have better hours.”
“Yeah, but you won’t have to shoot anyone or be shot at working for Euler.” Rochette replied. “Easy money. All you have to do is lend a hand and know how to handle yourself in hostile off-world environments.”
John stared at Rochette for a while, as though he was considering the offer.
“No.” John finally replied flatly. “I’ve been on Earth too long. I don’t want to go back out. It sounds like a sweet deal for a camping trip but I really have no desire to go back out into space.” John spoke with genuine sincerity.
Rochette apparently decided that he was done. He stood up calmly and reached into the side of his gray jacket. John scanned the room quickly, hoping that the former Master Chief wouldn’t produce a gun. Rochette instead pulled out a business card. It was a plain white card with an IP phone number written on it in ink.
“In case you reconsider.” Rochette placed the card on the table in front of John, tapping on it twice with his index finger. The Navy Chief then extended his right hand out to John. “Sergeant.”
John responded with equal respect. He stood up and shook the Master Chief’s hand. “Chief.”
“See you around.” Rochette said finally, walking away.
John remained standing behind his high top table while watching Rochette leave. The Master Chief didn’t appear to be in a hurry to leave, even though John guessed he was. His cute blonde waitress was busy helping a nearby table. A group of four office workers entered the outside dining area from the left. One of the workers, a rather bland old man, complained to the people in his party about sitting too close to the entrance.
John finished his Diet Coke and set the glass down. He took a step away from his table to leave when Brooke returned to the table. She was about to ask what had happened when John reassured her.
“My… uh, friend had to leave.” John explained. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay.” Brooke grinned back.
“Maybe next time.” John smiled back at her.
Brooke raised her cred scanner up to John. “Uh, for the drinks.”
“Oh! Yeah!” John remembered. He pulled his cred card out and tapped it to the scanners reader at the top.
“Thanks.” Brooke grinned. “Have a nice day.”
John grinned again at the young blonde girl before walking away. He walked quickly in the opposite direction on the loggia from where Rochette had walked. John tried to move normally through the crowd, yet kept a wary eye out for Rochette or, possibly, another thug. Once he felt confident he was in a quiet corner of the shopping plaza, John pulled out his mobile phone.
The numbers scrolled across John’s menu until he found David Troy’s. John elected to use the phone on voice-only and use it as a standard handset.
The phone rang on the other end.
“Troy.” David’s voice greeted him on the other end. It was clear he was on the speaker phone.
“David. John Carn.” John greeted him.
“What’s up?” David asked.
“Do you know why A
ndrew Rochette just stopped me in the middle of City Place to ask about the Norn?” John asked seriously into the phone. He looked around at the few people walking around him in the bright early summer heat.
The connection on Troy’s end went from speaker phone to a standard audio feed. “Who’s Andrew Rochette?” Troy asked.
“Master Chief Andrew Rochette. EEF Navy. Retired.” John answered seriously. “Apparently he said he’s working for Scott Euler, who’s putting together an expedition to go into The Breach and find the Norn!”
There was a half-second pause on Troy’s end.
“Where are you now, again?” Troy asked.
“City Place. Downtown West Palm Beach.” John answered.
There was another moment of silence on Troy’s end. It sounded like Troy was searching the name on his car’s computer. “I’m not far from you. We need to talk in person.”
John pressed his lips together bitterly. He didn’t like what was happening.
“Alright. I’ll be on the corner of Okeechobee and Florida Avenue.” John replied.
“I’ll be there in a few minutes.” Troy responded before closing the line on his end.
John shut his phone. He exhaled deeply. For a while he stared at the phone in his right hand. He thought he should call Julie, if only to see how she was doing. What else should he tell her, though? That he was worried for her safety? Because a few old army buddies of his had looked him up? No, that would have sounded paranoid.
He dialed the numbers anyway. After a few moments, Julie’s image appeared on the small screen.
“Hey, what’s up?” Julie greeted her uncle warmly.
“Hey, sweetie! Where are you at?” John asked.
“I’m with Dan, Kaytlin, and Kaytlin’s boyfriend Tim at the beach.” Julie answered. “Why? Everything okay?” Julie could kind of sense the tension in John’s voice.
“No… no reason.” John smiled into the phone. “Just checking in. What time you going to be home?”
“Ummm, about three, I think.” Julie answered plainly. “Dan’s going to drop me off so I can get ready but he’ll be back to pick me up at about six. He’s definitely coming upstairs to meet you.”