Cryptikon Far Freedom Part 2

by Warren Merkey

be spies or worse among us or among those waiting to come aboard. I have a list of Navy personnel who should not set foot on this ship. I don't care what rank they have. Use force if necessary. Screen everyone else. If there is anything at all you don't like about them, escort them off and keep them off. I will issue the necessary paperwork. Do the best you can. I realize time is short and the Marines are few, but our lives may depend on it."

  "Spies? Why spies?"

  "I'm not completely sure there will be spies or sabotage. I am sure that if there is, it will be dangerous. Keep in mind that I have certain goals for this mission and none of them are the Navy's goals, either goals we know or those we don't know. Try not to kill anyone."

  "A little temporary death is about the only thing that will impress some people nowadays, Admiral. I know I've got too many kills on my record, but they were all viable. Why would anyone want to tamper with this mission? Does it have anything to do with the fantastic story you promised to tell me? What are your goals?"

  "Not now," Demba said, and stood up. "You're dismissed."

  Admiral Demba isn't going to explain further! Jamie almost sighed with disappointment. It seemed to her they had only just sat down. The meeting was at an end and she had learned nothing but bad news. She didn't want the meeting to end. She didn't want to continue in ignorance. She wanted to hear the "fantastic story" Demba had promised to tell her. She stood.

  "About Aylis Mnro," Jamie said, hoping to keep the dialog going. "I have at least one Marine keeping watch over her at all times."

  "I know. She's complained to Jon."

  "I thought I was going too far with the bodyguard. I'll back off. But all of us Marines could use a refresher course in emergency medical aid, and that would keep us near her for a while."

  "Don't back off. And medical training would be a good idea, but I doubt you'll get it soon."

  "This mission is a lot more dangerous than most of us think, isn't it? And you still want to bring the child with us?"

  "Everything is more dangerous than you think. Sammy was only days or hours away from dying when I found him. He was in danger almost continuously, until we boarded this ship. He's been through a lot, especially for a child his age - or for a person of any age. I feel he's a little safer here."

  "You found him? He has no real family?"

  "None. The Mnro Clinic has no record of him or of anyone who is related to him."

  Jamie didn't know how complete the Mnro Clinic records were, but the way Demba spoke made her feel that Sammy's lack of identity was more unusual than she would have expected. "Where did you find him?"

  "Earth."

  Jamie waited for Demba to say more, explain more, but she seemed reluctant. This small amount of information only made the mystery greater, the ignorance harder to bear.

  "If something happens to me, please take care of Sammy," Demba added, just to make Jamie's dismissal even more unbearable.

  One of these days, Jamie thought, I will corner Demba and - admiral or not - I will get my questions answered!

  = = =

  "Get your butts on the deck!" Jamie shouted. "Shut up and listen!"

  Sixteen Marines dropped to the deck, no few of them with stupid grins on their faces as they stared up at Jamie. She gave them a "look" until the grins faded. There were no young men in this squad. They were all rejuves out to enjoy their bonus lifetime, many of them with psychological issues the Mnro Clinic had not chosen to modify, and all of them with more testosterone than they had good use for. A few of them were much like herself: too old to care much about living a lot longer.

  "We have a job," Jamie said. "Tomorrow about nine thousand civilians will line up to come aboard. They're already not happy about being invited on this mission and now we're going to make them wait in line to be interviewed. It's a very irritating interview, aimed at finding people with hidden agendas. All of you will get a refresher course on profiling and a lucky few of you will each get to meet and greet and irritate at least a thousand of these happy vacationers. Those who don't get to meet-and-greet will control the port hatches and entertain the impatient. Everyone will draw weapons and register them at squad level. Urban combat rules.

  "During this process," Jamie continued, "you will make damned sure no one comes aboard who isn't on the crew list. Visitors will be discouraged from coming aboard. Visitors stay off the ship until you get authorization, through me, from Admiral Demba. Visitors will be escorted the entire time they are on the ship.

  "Any questions before I continue?"

  Sergeant Aguila raised a hand. "Why so many civilians, sir?"

  "Damned if I know! You'd think we were going to establish a colony somewhere. Even if it was the exploratory mission they say it is, it seems like overkill to me. But I'm no expert."

  "Why the extra security?" Aguila asked. "Why the weapons?"

  "Admiral Demba has hinted to me that there is more to this mission than we know about. She suspects there will be people placed aboard for purposes that would endanger the crew. There is also the possibility of sabotage by transmat, so we have to monitor for transmat probes into the ship.

  "The single fact that Doctor Mnro has joined this mission," Jamie continued, "changes everything. And we don't even know enough to know what has changed."

  "Are you telling me that blonde babe is the real Aylis Mnro?" one of the men asked.

  "I can't believe it either!" Jamie declared. "But that's what Demba and Captain Horss believe. Whoever the 'blonde babe' is, she was assaulted and that's another reason you are guarding her. I'm not supposed to tell you this. If any of you repeat this before we leave port, you will be very sorry, both before you die and if you are revived.

  "Listen," Jamie continued. She let her gaze fall upon each and every man in her squad. "I know what you probably think of me. I have a reputation in the Marine Corps. I question authority. I get busted in rank. I even get brig time. Probably what you don't hear about me is how I treat those I lead. I won't tell you I'm a perfect officer. You decide for yourselves. I will offer you this advice: don't question my authority unless you are damned sure I don't know what I'm doing. Then and only then do I need to hear from you."

  = = =

  A day later, the Third Watch woke Jamie shortly after her head hit the pillow. It was midnight and shift change. Two Marines met her at Security Ops.

  "We got a trace on a transmat feed," Aguila said. "There's somebody down there." He pointed to a sensitive engineering area on their ship map. "The surveillance gear doesn't see anything but there's a whisper I think is someone breathing, modified by the use of an i-field. Here, listen to this."

  Jamie listened and knew Aguila was correct. "I want three more bodies. Get them up and armed."

  Ten minutes later they were converging on the location of an invisible intruder. They were also invisible.

  "Tell me this isn't a drill, sir," Goodman said quietly by shiplink.

  "Not a drill," Jamie whispered. "Do you have the corridor blocked?"

  "Yes, sir."

  "Stop breathing. He should be approaching you."

  Jamie and Aguila turned off their i-fields. Aguila sprayed the middle section of the corridor with snowflakes and an outline of a human figure briefly emerged before the i-field adapted. A few seconds later the invisible man ran into three invisible Marines at the other end of the corridor. Loud scuffling was followed by a rapid return to visibility by the three Marines. Goodman was sitting on the still-invisible intruder while the other two searched for a control switch for his i-field.

  "Hey, an admiral!" Goodman exclaimed as the intruder became visible.

  "He's on the list," Jamie said, checking his identification transponder. "Get off him, Goodman."

  "You letting him go?" Aguila asked.

  "Just want an easier shot," Jamie said.

  The admiral got to his feet and straightened his uniform. He looked at the weapons pointed at him. He seemed calm. He looked at Jamie. He smiled. He had a small scar on his le
ft cheek.

  "Well?" the admiral challenged, holding his arms out, expressing what Jamie imagined was contempt.

  "Bang," Jamie said. "You're dead. Now get off the ship."

  "I don't think so," the admiral said.

  Here was the prototypical Navy admiral, Jamie thought, all muscle and bad attitude. He wasn't offering a reason for his skulking presence on her ship. She wasn't interested in any lies he might tell her. All she knew was that his name was on Demba's list and that was a bad thing.

  "We can drag you off," she said.

  "You'll need to kill me first, Lieutenant."

  "Don't tempt me. Use your link to transmat out of here."

  "No."

  "Did your scan find anything on him, Aguila?" Jamie asked.

  "Nothing, sir."

  "Let's make sure." She turned to the admiral. "Take off your uniform."

  "No."

  Jamie regarded the admiral for a moment. He wasn't very talkative but his speech was just odd enough to make her think Standard was not his primary language. Why was he on Demba's list of bad guys? Why did she have such a list?

  "If you guys would rather skip being court-martialed this time," Jamie said to her men, "you can leave."

  "Thanks for the advice," Aguila said, "but no, sir."

  "Hell, no!" Goodman joined in, and the other two nodded agreement.

  "Want me to take him down?" Aguila asked.

  "You can't even take me down," Jamie said.

  "I'm better than I showed you," Aguila said.

  "You were holding back?" Jamie declared with anger, turning toward Aguila.

  At that moment the admiral jumped toward her, fist