by B. V. Larson
When I’d given the order to fire the second time, Galina and her men were taken by surprise. They all aimed guns at me—but they weren’t braced for the kick.
This time, it was worse than before. Something kind of… exploded. I found out much later that firing fusion cannons twice with less than a minute between barrages was dangerous. You were supposed to allow some time for cooling down the big barrels.
In this case, two of the sixteen guns had exploded and pretty much broken off the ship. Even I was knocked to my knees in the resulting explosion. The others in the chamber were decked—some of them knocked unconscious.
Galina did a facer herself, but she wasn’t knocked out. She climbed to her feet angrily, hissing at me.
I reached out a long arm and helped her stand. That might have been a mistake on my part, or maybe she would have shot me anyway. I doubt I’ll ever get a straight answer out of her. She’s kind of touchy sometimes.
With a smoking pistol in her hand, she bared her fine white teeth at me from above. She looked like an angel peeking out from heaven—a mean one.
“James, why did you fire the cannons twice?”
Coughing up some blood and foam, I managed to answer. “Sorry sir. I just wanted to be sure.”
She nodded, and then she lifted her pistol to my forehead. “A good policy.”
The muzzle flashed as she shot me dead.
-53-
Stuff happened while I was dead. Big stuff that I learned about later.
First off, Dominus ran from the Skay border guards after we’d blown up the island we’d been squatting on. It wasn’t a proud moment for Legion Varus, but there wasn’t much choice. Something like fifty mini-Skay were pursuing us, and although they weren’t reputed to be as cagey as their larger, older masters, we figured they were still plenty deadly. After all, a dog doesn’t have to be as smart as his master to provide the mailman with a proper biting experience.
So, we ran. We didn’t just pull a U-turn and head straight for Earth, of course. That would have been a gross error. First off, the pursuing Skay were coming from that general direction, blocking our path. Secondly, running for home would make it obvious where we’d come from and who was responsible for this intrusion into a Skay province.
Instead, we set course for the outer rim of the galaxy and left Province 926 that way. We passed right outside the Empire proper and entered the frontier, then banked and headed on a long circular route back toward Earth. It took months to get home—three of them, to be exact.
Along about halfway through the second month, Galina finally decided to revive my ass. When I came out of the oven and asked where and when I was, the answers kind of surprised me.
“Huh…” I told the incurious bio-lady. “So I’m on Dominus? And I’m not under arrest, or anything?”
“Not as far as I know, Centurion. Are you ready to walk on your own?”
“Always.” While my foggy mind organized itself, I kept thinking of Galina. “I wonder if she’s gotten over things…”
The bio-lady stamped me good to go, so I got up and went. Not twenty minutes later, I found myself timidly tapping on Galina’s cabin door.
I’d had the good sense to wash up, so I wasn’t all drippy and bleary-eyed. I’d put on a fresh uniform, and I’d even smooshed my face into a smile by the time the door finally opened.
“Hello Tribune,” I said, as if nothing had ever happened.
She nodded, and she stood aside. “Come in, McGill.”
Immediately, a swagger entered my step and my overall manner. For some reason I wasn’t hated or reviled today. A man such as myself always took such moments to heart. Deciding to go with the flow, I helped myself to her bar and downed all her snacks while she talked.
“James… this isn’t over with yet. The enemy, as it turned out, attacked Earth in our absence.”
“You don’t say?”
She narrowed her eyes at me. “You aren’t surprised?”
“Nope, not really. I mean, they had to have more of a plan than just hanging around at the bottom of an ocean stacking up supplies. What kind of attack did they manage to land on Earth?”
Galina avoided my gaze for a moment, then she explained. “They attacked Central City. Thousands died. It all started down at the docks… I guess they had some gateway posts and a long underwater tunnel up to the city, you see...”
“Makes sense. What’s the punchline, here? Why’d you wake me up? Just to…” I broke off, because Galina looked upset.
“There were casualties as I said. I… I don’t know how to say this, so I’m just going to do it. One of the people who died was your daughter.”
We looked at one another for a moment. My mouth kind of fell open, and some food and booze dribbled out. It wasn’t a pretty look, I’m sure, but I didn’t care.
“What?”
“Etta, James. She’s been killed. A lot of people at Central were killed. Apparently, the attack began when we landed on that damned island. I think our initial invasion pushed them into acting prematurely.”
She looked at me, but I didn’t say anything. I think I was in shock. She went on, talking a little faster.
“The good news is that our bombardment here worked. We stopped the attacks on the city. People are saying that we must have caused earthquakes here on Green World, mudslides down at the bottom of those pressure-tunnels where they had their secret bases. If—”
She broke off her long-winded speech at that moment because I’d stood up suddenly and grabbed her. Those pretty eyes of hers flashed with alarm. I had her by both elbows, and I gave her a little shake.
“Galina, are you telling me Etta is permed?”
“I think so. I… there were data-core losses. I’m so sorry.”
I let go of her slowly and wandered around her quarters, dazed. “But… she’s part of Hegemony. Surely, there’s a back-up somewhere. There’s got to be.”
She shook her head slowly. “I don’t know. We’re not back to Earth yet, and don’t want to say anything definite. But the news I’ve gotten from Central isn’t good.”
“What about Central itself? Was it destroyed?”
“No. It was shielded. But the attacks came at night from the docks, and her apartment…”
I knew what she was saying. Etta had always liked to live in places that had a good view of the sea. Maybe that had been her undoing.
“We’ve got to get back home,” I said. “We have to know what happened. I have to know.”
“I understand. We’ll be there in a few weeks. There are other issues—the Galactics are sending out Nairbs. It seems like the Skay have lodged a formal complaint against us.”
Turning to her, I scowled in anger. “They were the ones who let this crappy rebel base grow in their territory! We came here to preempt attacks just like this one!”
“I know. We all know. That’s how great powers fight sometimes. They use proxies when they don’t want to resort to open warfare.”
“So, we’re the pawns of the Mogwa, and shit-heels like Armel are the servants of the Skay. Us little guys pay the price, not the big-wigs.”
“That’s generally how it always works. Think of our own history.”
I shook my head. “I don’t want to think about history. I don’t care about any of that. I’m going to Earth, and I’m going to see if I can fix this. I’m leaving right now.”
She looked surprised. “How are you going to do that?”
Shrugging, I downed a drink and reached for the door handle. “I don’t know. I’ll hitch a ride down on Gray Deck. Or maybe I’ll find some gateway that won’t notice one more transmission.”
She came close, and she touched my cheek with the back of her hand. “I’m so sorry about this. I think you should think things over. Etta is already gone, she’s not suffering. Let’s talk about it, plan, and maybe make wiser moves.”
I stared down at her. “If I go down to Gray Deck and steal a teleport harness right now, would you try to sto
p me?”
She shook her head. “No, I wouldn’t.”
Believing her, I gave her a kiss and left. She didn’t try to stop me any longer. She knew it was hopeless to do so.
“Good luck, James.”
Her door closed, and I stormed away. My mind was churning. A chance at romance had turned sour and then some. I was sick in the gut, and I knew I had to do something.
Something drastic.
-54-
Even with the tribune’s blessing, I didn’t have an easy time on Gray Deck. Partly, this was natural reluctance on the part of the techs. The other part, though, was the fact I wasn’t asking to do something that had been approved ahead of time.
“Centurion,” a nasty tech dude told me after I’d explained the situation for the third time. “I know that you’re in a hurry. I respect that, I really do. But my orders are to suit you up and ship you to Earth. This business about Dust World…”
“Okay!” I said at last, throwing my arms high and wide. He flinched a little, but he didn’t take a step back. He was braver than most little techs. “All right, send me to Earth. Let’s do this.”
They wired me up and shipped me out. We were still around a thousand lights from home, so it took a while. I arrived at old Central, coughing and gasping.
When I finally recovered, the hog guards gruffly directed me out into the passages. It was good to be on Earth, doing normal things.
Getting my long stride up to speed, I marched toward the elevators. That’s about when I felt a buzzing on my wrist—no, my forearm.
“Shit…”
It was Drusus. Of all people, why did it have to be him? With a heavy sigh, I answered the call—but I never stopped walking.
“McGill? Why are you on Earth? Something hasn’t gone wrong with the mission, has it?”
“Uh…”
Drusus was naturally having flashbacks of darker times. On several occasions in the past, I’d returned to Earth to talk him into sending reinforcements, or into making a change in leadership—but that wasn’t the story this time. I wasn’t here to pester Drusus, I was here to find a way to get Etta back.
With that in mind, I decided to dodge hard.
“Sir, there’s nothing wrong with the mission. Everything went as well as could be expected, I’d say. We stomped the rebels, and we stomped them down hard.”
“Yes, I read a few reports. Your officers were very negative about your participation at first, but after the attack on Earth came to light, they changed their tune.”
“Aw well, that’s mid-level brass for you. They jump like cats on a griddle when they think their careers might be in jeopardy.”
Drusus chuckled. That was a rare sound from him. “Well then, why are you here—it can’t be that… ah of course. Turov sent you to talk to the Mogwa delegation, didn’t she?”
“Uh…”
“That makes perfect sense. We’re having a pre-meeting right now, in fact. I’d appreciate your input. You know Governor Nox as well as anyone at this point, I’d say. In fact, you’re the only human I know of who’s been to Mogwa Prime.”
I was only a few steps from the elevators by now. I stepped aboard the nearest one, swiped my tapper, and pushed the button to send me down into the depths. I planned to go to the bottom, where Floramel and other smarty-pants types dwelled. With any luck, they might be able to help me get Etta back. At least, that was my hope.
“I see where you are…” Drusus said, speaking half to himself. “You’re going the wrong way! The meeting is up on four-ninety.”
That was lofty territory indeed. Up there, as Central was build kind of like a pyramid with a flat top, the floors were smaller than usual. The highest ranked souls dwelled there, doing unfathomably dull things all day.
“Oh, I’m sorry, sir,” I said. “When I get down to the lobby, I’ll reverse and head back up. I’ll contact you then.”
My finger reached for my tapper. One half-second later, I’d be out of this conversation and on my way to sneak deep into the lab levels in the lower vaults.
“Not a problem,” Drusus said. “There, I fixed it.”
Suddenly, I felt the elevator lurch under my feet. Did he really…? Yes, somehow, Drusus had reached out like a god and reversed the course of my elevator. I was now trundling along rapidly back to the top of the building, rather than plunging toward the depths.
“Uh… gee thanks, sir.”
“Not at all. See you in five.”
The channel dropped, and my tapper went blank. At that point, I indulged myself in some colorful swearing. I’d been so close, but now I was being sucked into a meeting that not only sounded dull, it would most likely be a complete waste of my time.
On the way up, I stewed. Sure, I knew that Etta was already dead and she wasn’t getting any deader, but it still galled me. When your kid dies on you, a man gets a sense of urgency. It feels all wrong, and you just can’t help worrying about it.
As a result of this run-around, I was in a sour mood when the elevator finally let me out on floor four-ninety. I was greeted with disdain in the lobby by a pack of high-ranked secretaries. How could anyone with a tribune’s rank work as a personal butler to a praetor and still call himself a man? I didn’t know the answer, but maybe it was the same thing that made them snooty toward the likes of me.
After a brief hassle and a confirmation call to Drusus, they let me pass. There were plenty of disgusted looks. I stank, apparently, of the legions.
I didn’t care. I pasted on a smile and found a chair at the big table. Drusus and a load of other guys with fat guts and even bigger butts had pulled up to circle the conference display. They glanced at me with mild curiosity, but no one asked me any questions. That was just as well, as I was in a foul mood.
Drusus was the only one standing, and he directed the meeting like the pro he was. “So to begin, let’s go over the latest xenopsych report on Governor Nox.”
I tuned out a lot of prattling and nonsense. The xeno people were growing in popularity among the brass. They were proud as peacocks, dead certain that with enough psychobabble they could figure out which way Nox would jump next. I could have told them that without taking more than a few seconds to think it over. The Mogwa weren’t all that complicated, after all. They were arrogant, mean, and extremely self-centered. Nox would make every decision on the basis of her own personal comfort and advancement.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity to a man of my short attention span, someone called on me. It was the fattest guy in the room, Praetor Wurtenburger. He had a heavy accent and an inflated view of himself, but I didn’t hate him.
“We have one member of this celebrated committee who we’ve heard nothing from as of yet. I suspect his reticence is due to being overawed by so many high ranking personnel. McGill? Please enlighten us with your wisdom on this issue.”
I woke up with a start. I’d been nodding off, just slightly. Worse, I had no earthly idea what the current topic of conversation was. But the truth never helped anyone, so when the adrenaline kicked in, I came up with some brisk lies and glib dodges on the instant.
“I’m sorry, sirs,” I said. “I know all this seems mighty important to everyone here, but I can’t help but think we’re missing the boat.”
They blinked at me for a moment—and it was a long moment. I was using these few seconds of confusion to come up with my follow-up sentences.
As I’m a creature of gross laziness and vile habits when it comes to meetings and committee work, I’d long ago worked out a plan of attack when I was caught-out like this. The old, less smooth McGill, would have probably drooled and said “uh…” or “um…” for a spell, but not this older version of me. Not today.
By claiming that I was thinking some unholy thoughts full of great wisdom, I was able to sidestep the actual question that had been asked and hide the fact I’d been paying zero attention to the group. This was my latest method of both avoiding boredom and looking good at the same time.
> “Now, I understand that long meetings and such-like have their value and their time and place,” I continued, following another dodge, “but I don’t think that’s what we should do.”
“McGill…” Drusus interrupted. I could tell at a glance that he was suspecting me, or at least that he wanted me to get to the point. “What’s more important than an intergalactic incident between the Skay and the Mogwa—an incident in which we’re playing a critical role? Earth is front and center in this crisis.”
“Just this, sirs,” I said loudly, my voice rising as I felt an idea coming on. There was something I knew about Nox that very few others had knowledge of. It was time to play that card with all the volume and gravity I could muster. Standing up to my full height, I made a declaration. “Governor Nox has a baby. She’s a mommy, see, and it’s her greatest shame. I believe, in fact, that the former Governor Sateekas is the father.”
This created an instant stir. The xeno-psychs all but fell out of their chairs. After all, it was their job to know anything and everything about our overlords.
“Ridiculous!” complained the top nerd of the xenos. “How could you possibly know such a thing? I’ve heard about you, Centurion. You’re a fabricator. A sensationalist. A—”
I never got to hear what else I was because Drusus had waved for her to sit down. I stood tall, putting my hands on my hips, scowling and daring the rest of them with my eyes to keep calling me a liar.
“Go on, McGill,” Drusus said. “I know you had several private and nearly private moments with Governor Nox. What makes you think all this is true?”
“I saw it, and I asked her about it. She confirmed my suspicions.”
“Saw what?”
“A baby Mogwa, squirming in her pouch. I thought at first she was pregnant, but she confessed she’d already had the baby, and she indicated it was why she’d been transferred to govern one of the worst provinces in the Empire—and I’m talking about 921, our hometown. She further hinted that she’d had a relationship with Sateekas.”