"Who?"
"The chancellor and Zephyria," Jan said. "They are the logical choice. Gwen and Roche haven’t reported yet."
"You might be right," she said, and exhaled forcefully. "It is a huge accusation, but my gut has told me that Lunara had to be attacked by one of the main colonies. But when you say that Zephyria is involved, it seems right."
"Why did you have a hunch about Zephyria and the invasion?" asked Eamonn.
"As I said, one of the main colonies did it, and it wasn’t Aethpis. The math was simple for me. I told my father my ideas, about how I suspected a Neptune base and some evidence that metalor was being routed there, but he dismissed me. Thomas Cross is convinced a rebellious colony was the cause, and my father listens unconditionally to him."
"Neptune base?"
"Suspected . . . a theory of mine. I am in charge of Aethpis’s resource reports. I used them to track some shipments to Neptune. I wanted to find the shipyard used in the attack on Lunara . . . to impress my father."
"And you think this is where the shipyards are?"
"It’s remote, and only Zephyria has an outpost there. We took Uranus during the settlements of the outer planet."
"Zephyria must be brought to justice," Jan said.
"How could my family have been so naive and blinded to what the Zephyrians were doing?" Sarah put her hands in her head. "I should have pressed my father harder, but everyone accepted the explanation so easily."
"Not everyone," Jan said. "Our witness to the invasion was cast aside just like your worries. We might be too late to reverse this."
"This isn’t over yet," Eamonn said. Guilt pulled on his pride. He had ignored the crew, but he would make it up to them now.
Sarah’s head sank into her hands. "What do you suggest our next course of action should be?"
"I want to take this information to the council right away," he said. "Zephyria should be punished."
Sarah shook her head. "If this conspiracy goes as deep as you are saying, we can’t risk assembling the council at this time. We must keep them apart so the chancellor can’t make a major strike at our leadership structure."
These words startled Eamonn. Worry pushed into his stomach.
"Maybe I should call my father and brother into this meeting," Sarah said. "I can’t make these decisions without them."
"I’m afraid their fate is sealed," Eamonn said, making it a point to look into her eyes so she understood his anguish and torment. He wanted her to know he wasn’t taking this lightly. Mars was threatened.
"What do you mean?" she said. She reached for her glass of water and drew in a large gulp.
"As you said before, an assembly of the leadership is a perfect place for them to make their initial strike. Everyone who is prominent on this planet will undoubtedly be at the gala. I think they plan to take Trivium Port by force, and then they will control the two main points of economy outside of Aethpis."
"We must warn them," Sarah said. She stood. Her chair slid back, struck the wall with a clang, and rattled to the floor.
He put his hand on hers. "Please sit. I have a strategy that can succeed, but I need you to listen first. We must serve the Martian people above anything else."
For a few moments, she just stood, looking at him. Her lips pursed. "Thomas Cross is a traitor."
"Cross?"
"My suspicions of him run deep. I’m convinced he is a part of this now."
"Why him? He seems loyal to your father."
"He is loyal to power. About three weeks ago, I was doing my weekly report on the condition of the Aethpis reservoir. I head the task force assigned to keeping the water clean and at a constant water level. Boring work. Anyway, I was in my office at the security center when I heard an awful yell from the hallway. I got up, moved over to the door, and cracked it open enough for me to see down. Cross was talking to a strange man, short and stout with beady eyes. I didn’t recognize him until I saw his Mars Medical insignia."
"Hans Bauer," Jan whispered.
"Yes," she said. "Normally, I wouldn’t be so curious or shocked to see a Zephyrian in our security center. They are here occasionally, and we have a great relationship with them, but they were arguing about preparations for his trip to Lunara. Hans was irate, pointing his finger at Thomas and flailing his arms."
"Why would Hans Bauer need to talk to Cross about his trip to Lunara?" Jan said.
"Aethpis Colony is responsible for all Mars Medical security on deep space missions—mostly to Io. Normally, the security officer dictates what Mars Medical will need in terms of security for their mission. Hans complained about communication relays, bridge commanders, and solar static. Unfortunately, Cross ushered Hans into his office before he would answer." Sarah shrugged. "To be honest, I never concerned myself with Lunara, so I didn’t think much of the conversation at the time. With Lunara invaded, and all this evidence showing hidden caches of metalor, it had to mean something."
"They are tied together," Eamonn said. "I am positive."
"I dug around last night, and there was also a strange report signed by Cross about food shipments to Neptune, and water transports from the Kuiper belt that came back with tons of water missing from their original manifest. I suspect that there is a shipyard on Neptune we don’t know about."
"What about Neptune station and their shipments?"
"That is a ten-person station that has enough water and food to last twenty years. Not the kind of supplies that would get depleted without my noticing."
"So you suspect this is where Cross is hiding the shipyard."
"Yes. If I had access to Zephyria records, I would be able to piece together more resources shifts there. I just know it."
"So, you agree we must take action."
"Yes. What is your plan?" Sarah said. "I have a few people around here I can trust."
"Good. I need you to have a few people for my plan to work," Eamonn said. "Do you have access to five or six assault cruisers?"
"Assault cruisers versus a ground attack force at Trivium. What could you be thinking?"
"You misunderstand." Eamonn tasted a sudden sourness in his throat. This plan would take some convincing, especially to Sarah. "To put it simply—we go and retake Lunara."
"Lunara? That backwater colony?" Sarah laughed, forced to by her contempt for Eamonn’s proposal. "With Mars in this much trouble—"
"Either we control Lunara and the meteor stones, or we control Mars. If Zephyria controls both, we are doomed, and our manpower isn’t enough to recapture Mars."
"You want me to leave my father and all those people to die? The gamble is too big to fly all the way to Lunara. You overestimate its importance."
"Meteor stones are the cause for the invasion. The Zephyrians found out their secret. They want to control the cluster and the pipeline to the metalor production. We need to attack them where we can overcome them. Lunara needs your help to pull this off."
"The meteor stones are common knowledge and their use in metalor. How is metalor so important to them suddenly?"
"They know more now. They found out how to use it in humans. I suspect that is why they want Seth and Chloe." Eamonn wondered if Parker had been right this whole time.
"If they control the stones and capture Seth and Chloe, they will perform horrible experimentations on them," Jan added.
Sarah stared into the display screen and then flipped through various reports. "This course of action will sacrifice my father and my brother . . . but maybe they can still get out alive." She bit her lower lip. "I told your mechanic that Lunara wants to control the meteor stones to control Mars. I was right in that assumption, but the chancellor wants control. How can you ask me to sacrifice my father and my brother?"
"Our plan demands we don’t tip off our surprise. If someone in Zephyria finds out, Lunara will be warned."
"The communications are down . . ." Sarah’s face contorted when she realized her lie.
"No, they aren’t," Eamonn said. "You must
trust your father’s security force to help him. We have the power to act. We’ll leave behind most of our crew; Seth, Chloe, Roche, and Gwen Arwell."
Lowering his head, distracted, Eamonn wondered if Gwen was part of the invasion. Had she deceived them?
Sarah stood and sauntered around the table. "I can’t believe I have the entire Aethpisian military at my disposal but can’t use it because Thomas Cross probably has them all brainwashed or in his pockets."
She flipped up the control pad on the table and entered a command. "Luckily, my father has his own personal army. Maintained by a separate colony, our family sealed the records, and Thomas Cross will not know about them. We can use their cruisers."
A moment later, the guards entered. Sarah moved toward them before they positioned themselves in their assigned corners. "Bring me the prisoner, take off his shackles, and give him back his equipment."
She turned to Jan. "Parker McCloud and Ms. Falloom shouldn’t be allowed to leave here, but you will need him aboard your ship."
Before Eamonn stood to thank her, she had turned her back on him and was in discussions with her aides. Judging by their sour faces, they abhorred what they were hearing.
Jan rubbed Eamonn’s shoulder, a welcome touch to his frustrated mind. He turned toward her with a smirk to let her know he wasn’t angry.
Chapter 28
The Zephyrian hazardous cargo facility resembled an offshore platform. Raised by six giant columns, the facility sat one hundred meters into the air. Four platforms, akin to petals from a clover, jutted out from the main structure. Yellow warning lights outlined the edges, with red lights running up the building. Swirling in a random figure-eight pattern into the sky, attached to the highest point on the central tower, spotlights shined off the clouds out toward the horizon. Normally, the lights directed traffic, but no ships dotted the sky this evening.
Along the Martian terrain, Seth and Chloe waved their arms to signal the platform, but without success; a reply wasn’t offered to them. They continued to walk toward the hulking structure.
Seth squinted, looking at the crater’s edge in the distance. The sun crept down and soon would encase the entire crater in darkness, plunging it into unbearable cold.
After a short walk past the outer pillars, they arrived at the central shaft and the ladder running along the side.
From afar, the tower separating the platforms appeared much smaller. But standing at the base, well below the octagonal platforms, the main building stretched from the ground to the platform and that height again. The tower broke off from the building, stretching like an outreached hand into the atmosphere. The awesome sight was enough to make anyone stand and admire it for a few moments.
The buzz of a servomotor distracted Seth’s attention, and he turned.
To his right, a door that was twice his height opened with a rumble. A fit of excitement and worry struck him. An obscure figure appeared against the harsh lights.
Samantha Burns walked out, looking surprised. A dozen soldiers and four Zephyrian guardsmen accompanied her. With urgency, the soldiers dashed out of the doorway and created a perimeter. The guardsmen flanked Samantha as she walked along the surface toward them.
"I didn’t expect to find you here," Seth said.
"As I didn’t expect you here," she said. Her eyes shifted to Chloe, sizing her up from head to toe. She moved closer to him. "We monitored your progress from the crater’s edge. How did you happen upon our little facility?"
"We crashed about fifteen kilometers east of here and managed to walk. Only the crater’s cliff was a nuisance."
"A terrible cliff," Chloe said.
"A cliff is a cliff," Samantha said. "It can’t be terrible."
"If you don’t like heights, it is terrible," Chloe replied.
"We all have our phobias. Some have a knack for overcoming them while others live in fear of them."
Seth felt Chloe react with anger at the slight. He squeezed her hand as he thought back to Josef in Memnonia Sulci. Zephyrians are our allies now.
"I guess that is true," he said. "We have something important to discuss with the chancellor. His life could be in danger."
"Danger? How so?"
"We would prefer to talk directly to him and in a more private setting." He directed her attention toward the elevator.
"You will excuse my manners. Come inside and warm up at once." Samantha ushered them toward the doorway.
After a long ride up the elevator, she led them down a central corridor into the heart of the tower’s structure.
"Has the gala begun?" Seth said. "We need to speak with the chancellor."
"It started a few minutes ago," Samantha replied. "The chancellor is already there with the rest of the delegations. He asked to not be disturbed."
Seth’s face soured. "This is urgent."
Samantha cast his concern aside with a comforting smile. "Mars has its fair share of emergencies, and I hate to tell you this, but some on Mars despise the chancellor. His life has been threatened on more than one occasion. We probably know about the threat."
Chloe interrupted. "What about connecting us with Eamonn Dalton?"
"The communications into Trivium Port are restricted for security reasons. You will follow my direction if you wish to speak with the chancellor or anyone in Trivium Port."
"A communications blackout," Chloe muttered. "Seems to be a trend on this planet."
"What was that?" Samantha turned to her.
"Nothing."
"When can you prep a transport?" Seth said, trying to steer Chloe to a more constructive conversation.
"Right away," Samantha replied.
The elevator ride up to the top of the tower was quiet.
Seth didn’t mind. He needed to think and go over different speeches in his head. First and hardest, he would convince Chancellor Arwell of what happened. This would not be easy, because the chancellor would not believe that the Aethpisians were traitors. Seth had to find a way of convincing him right away so that he would not even try to debunk their evidence. Zephyria needed to take action or Lunara would be sealed off, forever.
Chloe was staring at the elevator wall with curiosity. When she noticed him looking at her, she whispered, "An ominous feeling fills this place. But I can’t tell what it is."
"Don’t worry, we are safe," Samantha said, overhearing her.
Chloe’s lip twitched. She tapped Seth’s mind, trying to convey her apprehension about the whole ordeal.
Seth ignored her. She held too much loyalty to Eamonn, and she didn’t want to take the risk ahead. He would do it for her.
The elevator opened at the top of the hazardous cargo facilities tower; the wind howled as the gusts passed across the curves and crevasses of the tower’s peak. They stepped out onto the platform, and the cold air bit into their faces. In front of them, a single ship rested on the far side of the small platform, and over the edge, the algae farms they had traveled and the ring of the crater lay in the darkness of the night. In the immediate distance in all directions, marking the boundaries of the property, faint lights glowed like stars along the surface, but it was the aura of Trivium Port over the horizon that first caught Chloe’s eye.
Chagrined, she realized she wouldn’t have the opportUnity to tell Seth about what she sensed from this facility. She didn’t really understand what the feelings meant, and she knew she wouldn’t convince Seth to take another course of action. The desire to reach the chancellor consumed him. But something about the facility made her uneasy, although she couldn’t put her finger on it. Her mind worked overtime with the flood of feelings this place gave off; it was as if the tower was haunted in some way.
Seth’s determination to reveal Aethpis as traitors to Mars troubled her, and if she knew Seth, he would find a way to make it more complicated. Her stomach tightened.
She followed the group toward the plank of the ship.
Chapter 29
"It is a pleasure to meet you," Gwen said for
the hundredth time in the last hour.
She looked toward the entrance at the endless reception line. Unfortunately, when her father received an urgent message a half hour ago, he had left, giving her the star status for Zephyria. The guests made a point of shaking her hand and offering her encouragement to run for chancellor at the end of his term. She feigned interest, yet was slightly flattered by their confidence in her.
By most people’s opinion on Mars, the dream of any Arwell was the chancellorship of Zephyria. For the last six generations, the Arwells had had some kind of leadership role on Mars. Thomas Arwell was the first leader of Zephyria United Colonies and his family line, Gerald, Calvin, Calvin II, and Paul Arwell had been mayors of the main dome. Ten years ago, her father had broken the trend of Arwell mayors by becoming the chancellor of Zephyria, by way of Trivium Port’s Ambassadorial Union—an alliance of ambassadors from all the colonies whose goal was to find a peaceful resolution to the Revolutionary Wars and the injustices perpetrated by the old regime.
As an only child, Gwen found little interest in becoming a pawn in the political arena. Mars would see her as her father’s toy. Still princess to the king. And they were probably right. She had disappointed her father, as was shown by his forcing her to work on Lunara and his distant manner toward her as of late. This had left her devoid of confidence when it came to political ambition, and ambition was the driving force on Mars. She could not bring herself to play that game.
To her surprise, her forced assignment to Lunara had opened her eyes to a few things. She enjoyed being part the Protector's crew. The crew had no politicians and no one was angling for other people’s positions. Everyone had their role and they did it with the greatest of expertise. She wished some nights, lying in her bed, that she wasn’t an Arwell. In a heartbeat, she would quit her role as ambassador and become a full-time crew member of the Protector and a resident of Lunara.
But alas, she was an Arwell, and in a few short years, whether she wanted to or not, she would run for chancellor. She had no way to avoid it other than by death. Unless her father found the data she had collected. She had read it over ten times and still couldn’t believe he would be involved in such a plot. The fact that it had Thomas Cross’s name all over it meant her suspicions about an Aethpisian plot were more likely.
Lunara: The Original Trilogy Page 26