The Renegade

by P. M. Johnson

  Logan raised his eyes from the glowing hologram of the fortress and looked at Longmire. The spirits within him churned with trepidation, seemingly comprehending the meaning of the conversation the Humani were having.

  “We’re placing a lot of faith on the Lycian fleet to do their part,” said Logan. “But like you said, the Sahiradin armada is massive.”

  “The fleet will have a lot of work to do. If Admiral Var-Imar doesn’t hit the enemy fast and hard we won’t stand much of a chance,” answered Longmire candidly.

  “So is it our plan to just hide inside the fortification and wait for the Sahiradin to attack?” asked Logan.

  “Hell no! The only approach to the reactors is down this valley,” said Longmire indicating a groove in the holographic map. “The surrounding peaks are too high and steep to allow for any other angle of attack, and of course the reactors are protected by a shield dome. The Lycian General, a big Tullan named Ghorla, has informed us of his intentions to meet the Sahiradin in the valley as they approach so they can’t make use of their superior numbers, but he’ll fall back if the Lycians can’t hold the line. And of course we’ll have heavy guns in the surrounding mountains to hammer at the enemy.”

  Logan nodded his head, happy to hear that the Lycians were willing to meet the Sahiradin in the open field instead of hide behind their barricades.

  “But to be honest,” continued Longmire, “the battle will be lost or won in orbit. I just wish the Sahiradin didn’t have so many damn ships!”

  “The Visk Syndicates among the Reclaimed Worlds have been providing considerably more assistance to the enemy than we had believed,” said Ravenwood gravely. “We’re receiving reports of three heretofore unknown Sahiradin shipyards where they have been working over the past few years to more than double the size of their fleet.”

  “What if the Lycian’s can’t establish air and orbital superiority?” asked Beth.

  “Then Ghorla will probably stay inside his fortress and wait for the Sahiradin to come to us.”

  “The enemy loves close quarters combat,” said Logan. “And if they outnumber us like you say, the best time to hit them is during their approach. They’ll be bunched up, limiting the number of warriors they can actually use in the fight.”

  “I agree, but we might have to push Ghorla to give the order to attack,” said Longmire. “I could use your help with that. The Lycians have a lot of respect for you. They know you went toe-to-toe with Khadiem and nearly killed her. And they know that you can use the Apollo Stone.”

  “Logan is what they would call a Navigator,” said Ravenwood.

  “A Navigator without the Apollo Stone is nothing special,” said Logan.

  Longmire shrugged. “Still, it’s something they respect. We can use that to influence how this battle goes.”

  “It’s not all up to Ghorla,” said Beth. Looking at Ravenwood, she said, “Maybe we should take this up when we go to Tyseria.”

  “Yes, perhaps we should,” replied Ravenwood. Looking at Longmire, he said, “Consul Styles and I will go to the Lycian capital world in order to witness the Dewar’s vote on Earth’s petition to join the Trade Federation.”

  “Which they conveniently delayed until we joined the Alliance,” said Beth.

  “I have no doubt the two are linked,” agreed Ravenwood.

  “Well, good luck to you,” replied Longmire. “Hopefully, the vote will go as expected.”

  They were about to leave Longmire when Ravenwood stopped and turned to face the general.

  “We’ll need someone to take us to Tyseria. Ambassador Pendu Barka has recently offered to place both a pilot and a ship at our disposal, but I would prefer having our own means of transportation. Tell me, General Longmire, do you have the Drake here at Harmony Base? The League has often allowed me to use it in the past for diplomatic missions; I wonder if the Earth Defense Force might do so as well.”

  “You’re welcome to use it if you can fly it,” replied Longmire.

  “Any concerns with us borrowing Commander Caparelli?”

  “I’ll talk to EDF Fleet Command,” said Longmire. “I’m sure they’ll want to support you on this mission. But we need all the pilots we can get. You can have him for just one day. He takes you there then he comes right back.”

  “Agreed,” said Ravenwood as he clapped his hands together. “I believe I know where the young commander can be found.”

  Chapter 31

  There are many things which I choose not to know. Wisdom sets boundaries to our reckless pursuit of knowledge and desire for control. However, I recognize no limits to imagination.

  - Ytsach Sietch. Surviving the Impact.

  Logan and Ravenwood walked down the town of Harmony’s crowded Main Street. Beth had gone ahead of them to Harmony Base’s communications building to inform Pendu Barka that she and Ravenwood would be arriving at Tyseria soon. The two men were making their way toward the Gray Fox, a tavern that had been in operation since 1825.

  The residents and nearby farmers of Harmony, located twenty-five kilometers south of St. Louis, had somehow eked out a living during the Long Winter and decades of hard times that followed. During those years, Harmony was largely forgotten. Grand Guardians rose and fell. Border skirmishes between the People’s Republic and city states west of the Mississippi waxed and waned, finally resulting in two full-scale invasions. The first was launched by the PRA, the second by the League of Free Cities. But neither the skirmishes nor invasions had any measurable effect on the daily lives of the town’s few residents. The town was far too small and too poor to attract the attention of either side. Even the oligarchs of the Southern Union, who prided themselves on their ability to wring profits from the slightest opportunity, saw no point in troubling themselves over the smudge of land called Harmony.

  But those days of living hand to mouth, bartering for basic goods, and watching armies travel back and forth across the river were behind them. The wheel of fortune began to turn in the town’s favor when the Lycians approached various Earth governments and offered to train humans in exchange for support in joint military operations against the Sahiradin. The League of Free Cities quickly agreed, however, Attika and her Septemberist immediately objected, saying a decision of such magnitude should be made in consultation with all nations of North America. Not willing to undermine the authority of the new Septemberist government, the League acquiesced to her demand. Negotiations between the League, the Pacific Federation, the Southern Union, and the Federated States of America were soon commenced, though they quickly bogged down with conflicting ambitions. After months of often heated discussion, no progress had been made.

  It wasn’t until the representatives of the four nations agreed to hear a petition from delegates from Harmony that the debate was settled, though not necessarily to the liking of any of the parties. As they listened to the little town’s representatives, they came to learn two very important things. First, there was a large pre-Impact military base outside of Harmony which could be easily refitted to accommodate Lycian and human training needs. Second, upon reviewing a century of territorial claims and shifting national borders, it was discovered that the little town near the Mississippi River had somehow never fallen within the boundaries, actual or claimed, of the Southern Union, the PRA, or the League. It was therefore a truly free and independent city, and as such, could strike its own deal with the Lycians. The Harmony delegation boldly declared its intention to open up the base to the Lycians and invited the continent's other powers to send as many troops as they wished for training. They would not even need to pay to refurbish the base because the Lycians had agreed to make all necessary modifications.

  Within a few months, the military base was equipped with everything necessary to teach humans the Lycian art of war and how to engaged in joint operations. Soon the area around Harmony was transformed from a forgotten backwater of the post-Impact world to a bustling crossroads of Lycian and human interaction.

  Not surprisingly, the
population swelled from three hundred to thirty thousand in less than a year as humans and Lycians converged on the spot. Long abandoned buildings along the town’s neglected Main Street were quickly renovated and broken streets and sidewalks were repaved.

  And as the population swelled, so did the number of entrepreneurs and opportunists eager to cash in on the sudden concentration of soldiers with ready spending money and Lycians with wondrous items to barter. Demand for food, fuel, clothing, memorabilia, vehicles, and entertainment soared. But the greatest and most consistent demand was for alcohol. The Tullans in particular developed a fondness for beer while the Visk discovered an attraction for wine and spirits. The Tullans indulged their desires to the fullest while the Visk quickly locked in exclusive contracts and shipped large quantities of wine, beer, and liquor to distribution centers throughout the galaxy. Of course, Lycians were familiar with the fermentation process and did produce many varieties of inebriants, but none of them matched Earth’s products in quality, taste, and variety.

  Logan looked at Ravenwood as the two of them made their way down the crowded street where Tullans, Visk, Rahani, Brevians, and humans all rubbed shoulders.

  “You’ve been in that examination room Komatsu showed us before haven’t you?” asked Logan.

  “Perhaps,” replied Ravenwood. “Or perhaps it was a different but similar place. I cannot say.”

  “Komatsu said there are other places like the cave sprinkled around the planet, including near the old Canadian border. Do you think Raven’s Rock is one of them?”

  Ravenwood gave Logan a sly glance. “My dear friend, are you attempting to pierce the mystery of my origins?”

  “Aren’t you at all curious?”

  Ravenwood laughed softly. “I suppose I do sometimes think about it, yes. Do you wonder about the source of your remarkable ability to commune with these strange objects, these Kaiytávae, and the Aenor who reside within them?”

  “Of course I wonder about it.”

  “It is a strange thing, this ability of yours,” continued Ravenwood. “As a Navigator, you have power over Suvial and can compel him to take you any place in the universe, yet he seeks to influence you where he can.”

  “He tried hard,” agreed Logan. “He even threatened me, but I wouldn’t play along. I have no doubt it’s a game he’s played a thousand times with every Navigator he communes with. He tempts them with promises of secret knowledge and power.”

  “In exchange for what? What does he want?”

  “Physical form,” said Logan. “If you believe what he says, the Aenor come from a time before the creation of this universe, before the singularity, the Big Bang. They survived by protecting themselves inside their little spheres, but they can’t act in our universe. That’s why they need Navigators.”

  “So they want physical form, but how can a Navigator help them do that?”

  “I don’t know,” said Logan. “Suvial told me that the Alamani had promised to help them, but I don’t know how.”

  “And when the Alamani refused to help them, the Aenor somehow incited the Sahiradin into rebellion as retribution,” said Ravenwood gravely.

  “Yes. The Alamani broke their bargain with the Aenor. Just like the Geth before them,” Logan said pointedly as he looked at the older man.

  Ravenwood calmly met Logan’s gaze. “And that brings us back to me and my origins.”

  Logan nodded his head. “I know you’re reluctant to talk about your past, Ravenwood, but I have a theory. Tell me if I’m wrong.”

  Ravenwood merely smiled in response.

  “I think the Geth came to Earth to hide from the Alamani and their Sahiradin warriors. Whether Earth was a new colony, a rediscovered lost colony, or something else, I have no idea. But they managed to build those pillars and they used the technology the Aenor had taught them to escape from this universe to go someplace safe. I told you and Beth about the strange communion I had in the cave, at least the scraps that I can remember.”

  “You said you met a Navigator there.”

  “Not just a Navigator, Ravenwood. A Geth Navigator. It’s all a blur to me now. I don’t recall everything we talked about, but I remember that much.”

  “Okay. So he was a Geth. Please continue.”

  “The Geth are gone,” said Logan. “And they’re not coming back. But they still have influence in this universe.”

  “I see. And am I right in thinking that, according to your theory, I am an example of their influence?”

  “Yes.” Logan lowered his voice as they brushed by two Brevians walking in the opposite direction. “I know you deflect any talk about it, but I’ve seen you do things no human should be able to do. You burst those lightbulbs to help us escape from Tamara when she tried to hand us over to Linsky and the Red Legs. Then you ran up the mountain into direct fire in order to get the Apollo Stone back, but the bullets seemed to just bend around you.”

  “Your imagination may be getting the better of you,” interjected Ravenwood with a friendly laugh.

  Logan kept pressing, not allowing Ravenwood to distract him.

  “And I watched Kurak drive a sword clean through you during the PRA raid on Jasper Airbase. I saw you fall to the floor with my own eyes. I know you died, Ravenwood. But Kane, your loyal friend, took you up to Raven’s Rock. He laid you out and stood vigil all night long. Then, miracle of miracles, you woke up the next day without a scratch on you.”

  “I wouldn’t say I emerged unscathed,” objected Ravenwood, “but I understand your point.”

  “What happened up there?” asked Logan. “How did you come back?”

  Ravenwood raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

  “Raven’s Rock sits on top of a cave like the one we just visited,” persisted Logan. “It must. It was the Geth who healed you. They somehow healed you and brought you back.”

  Ravenwood gave Logan a kindly smile. “I have no doubt that there is some truth in what you say, Logan. But I cannot confirm what I do not know myself. Yes, I possess certain innate historical and linguistic knowledge. Yes, I have the ability to, how shall I say it, influence the environment around me, but I do not know how or why. It’s as much a mystery to me as it is to you.”

  Logan frowned. “C’mon Ravenwood. My memory of my communion in the cave is fuzzy, but I’m sure the Geth Navigator knew of you. There’s a link between you, the Geth, and the cave.”

  “Questions,” murmured the old man. “Questions for which there are no answers.” Then he said more loudly, “Does it matter, Logan? Does it matter what I am or where I come from? The point is to achieve as much good as we can in the time we have, don’t you agree? I have certain knowledge and abilities no other person has. You have your own unique abilities. You say the Geth sent me. That may well be true. But if it is, we might just as well ask who sent you. Who gave you the power to commune with the Aenor? How is it that you could communicate with this mysterious fourteenth Kaiytáva, the Omega Stone? I don’t know the answer to these things, and neither do you.”

  Ravenwood stopped and faced Logan as the stream of Lycians and humans flowed around them. “We may not have all the answers,” continued Ravenwood. “But when all is said and done, the only things that matter are the choices we make and the actions we take. Your conscience is your compass; follow it and you will never have cause for regret.”

  Logan opened his mouth to respond, but Ravenwood placed a hand on the younger man’s shoulder and said. “Enough, Logan.” He pointed with his thumb to the building behind him. A sign hanging over the door identified it as the Gray Fox. “Our friends await us inside. Soon, you will be leading troops into battle against the enemy, and I will be departing for the new Lycian capitol on Tyseria. Leave it to the philosophers and mystics to ponder the hows and whys of the universe. You and I have too much work to do for that.”

  They stepped inside the large tavern, a deconsecrated church of red brick. It was packed with human soldiers and an assortment of Tullans and Rahani military tra
iners, Visk traders, and Brevian interpreters as well as visiting Trade Federation functionaries. Combined military exercises and war planning had made comrades of them all. They gathered in groups, and with the assistance of Brevian translators, regaled each other with tales of adventures and battles fought against the hated Sahiradin. The Tullans were the most boisterous of the Lycians, occasionally stomping their feet and breaking into loud song or chants specific to their clan.

  Moments after they entered, the sound of an electric guitar strumming in time with a driving drum beat caused everyone to look toward the rear of the former church. Hands began clapping just as a second guitar and thrumming base announced their presence. A muscular man with tattoos on his arms and a blond beard on his chin stepped up to the microphone, and in a deep gravelly voice, began singing a modern take on an old Irish song.

  As I was going over the Allegheny Mountains

  I saw Captain Farrell and his money he was countin’

  I first produced my pistol, and then produced my rapier

  I said stand and deliver, or the Devil he can take ya

  I counted out his money, and it made a pretty penny

  I put it in my pocket and took it home to Jenny

  She swore that she loved me and never would leave me

  But to Permidian with that woman! For ya know she tricked me easy

  Musha ring dumma do damma da

  Whack for my daddy ‘ol

  Whack for my daddy ‘ol

  There’s whiskey in the jar-o

  I went into my chamber, all for to take a slumber

  I dreamed of gold and jewels and for sure it was no wonder

  But Jenny took my charges and she filled them up with water

  Then sent for Captain Farrell to be ready for the slaughter

  It was early in the morning, as I rose up for to travel

  The guards were all around me and likewise Captain Farrell