Aaron whined at his empty carton and dropped it. “Althea?”
“Yeah.”
“Why was she afraid of you?”
A cloak of guilt fell all over her again. “I thought we were helping. Her whole life, people had kidnapped her to exploit her abilities. Archon wanted to protect her from that. I thought she’d become addled and mistook some bandits for being family. You know, the Stockholm thing. She’s a hard one to read. I’ve never seen a person so… innocent.” Anna dropped her fork. “We all thought the little primitive was so afraid of the modern city she craved the familiar world she left behind, even if it meant being someone’s pet. She ran off and I… hurt one of her friends when he tried to kill me.” Anna rubbed her throat. “Word of advice, don’t piss her off. She looks all sorts of harmless, but…”
Aaron scrunched his eyebrows together. “I doubt that girl would swat a mosquito.”
“Depends on who that mosquito bit.” She stared down.
His NetMini rang.
When he pulled it from his pocket, the name Mikhail Kovalev popped into being over a nav pin.
“Who is it?” Anna nibbled on a bit of fish.
He stared at the device until the holo display timed out and went dark. A slow exhale let all the air from his lungs. “Someone I probably ought to talk to.”
nna’s hand lay on the seat between them, though her attention focused away from him out the window. Aaron pondered putting his hand atop hers, but contented himself with smiling at it. For once, he’d take the high road. His gaze traced lines around the contour of every knuckle, daydreaming about what it would feel like to touch her. The mutual awkwardness forming between them could blow up at any moment, in different directions. He could hope Archon did something stupid, so it wouldn’t look as bad on him if he made a move, or he could wait and see where fate went. Or, he could accept Anna was not his dead wife, and stop feeling like an idiot.
He leaned his head back and closed his eyes, letting the rocking PubTran taxi relax him. What if he had glimpsed an image of Allison through the veil that separates worlds? She’d asked him what he was doing. Could she have meant his near-suicidal quest for revenge? That would be something Allison would say. She wouldn’t want him to get hurt because of what happened to her. She’d never let him hear the end of it in the afterlife if he did.
“This place looks risky,” said Anna, breaking him out of his pleasant trance.
“Aye.” He sat up.
Fog rolled by in clouds, gliding down abandoned sidewalks. Half the cars parked at the sides of the road looked like they’d been there for decades. Most had bullet holes and broken windows. Distant dogs barked and fought, brash music from some far off squat apartment throbbed. The car’s ventilation system sucked in the fragrance of charring meat and barbeque sauce. He blinked at such a pleasant aroma existing in a place like this.
The front end of the cabin turned bright blue with the appearance of a holographic cartoon car about the size of a housecat. Shapes formed by the headlights and bumper made it seem to smile.
“Arrival at your selected destination is imminent,” said an electronic voice at some midpoint between boy and man. “Please note the sector you are entering is considered dangerous. PubTran Corporation reserves the right to charge for any damage or loss of this vehicle occurring from an unscheduled violence event.”
“Are they routinely scheduled?” asked Aaron.
“I do not understand your question,” chirped the car.
“You said unscheduled violence event. That implies that if we planned one ahead of time your disclaimer wouldn’t apply.”
The car remained silent for a moment. “Thank you for submitting feedback to PubTran Corporation. I have passed along your comments to our marketing and legal departments for review. Thank you for choosing PubTran.”
Aaron grunted as the vehicle jammed to a halt. Whirring vibrated in the frame for two seconds before the car slid sideways, nestling up to the curb between two behemoth vans. The side door opened, flooding the cab with the recognizable briny putrescence of the southern wharf district. The eastern edge of Sector 1562 left him about five miles from the black zone and about ten from the ocean. He didn’t think anything in this area would be much of a threat to him, especially not with Anna along for the ride.
“Wait in the car.” He started to push the door down.
“Hey!” she yelled, putting her arms up to catch it. “I’m not some helpless little flower.”
“I know.” He transferred his grip on the door to clasping both her hands. “I’m not worried about you being hurt. I’m worried about you being seen. The man I’m meeting with is from Division 0.”
“Have you completely lost your marbles?” She tried pulling him back into the car.
“Thank you for choosing PubTran for your transportation needs. Please exit the vehicle to reduce liability.”
“Need you to wait here,” said Aaron.
Anna tugged at him. “What the devil are you doing? Come on, let’s get out of here.”
“Wait fee for Sector 1562 is two hundred fifty credits per five minutes. PubTran Corporation regrets any inconvenience this fee causes. However, due to the danger present in Sector 1562, we must―”
“Yes, yes,” yelled Aaron. “I agree. Keep the meter going, I won’t be long.”
“Aaron…” Anna whined.
“Trust me.” He gave her a telekinetic lift back into the car and closed the door.
Aaron walked away from the PubTran car. A gust of warm wind, thick with humidity and the stink of low tide blasted out from between two buildings, nearly pushing him off the sidewalk. He held his breath for a few steps until it died down, and hurried about two blocks before reaching a playground that hadn’t seen a child since before he was born. Near a rusting set of monkey bars stood a man in a long, black coat. He’d opened the front, letting traces of a Division 0 dress uniform peek out. At Aaron’s approach, he raised his head with a paternal smile. He looked in his later forties, perhaps early fifties, with darkish skin and short, neat hair.
“I wasn’t sure if you’d agree to meet me here,” said Mikhail.
Aaron accepted the outstretched hand and shook it. “If there’s anyone inside I still trust, it’s you.”
Mikhail waved him off with a bashful chuckle. “You’re too kind.” His mood darkened. “I’m so sorry about Allie.”
“Thanks.” Aaron looked down. “Sorry about the tracer. Hope he didn’t hurt himself too badly.”
“He’ll be fine.” Mikhail stuffed his hand back in his coat pocket. “I want you to know I believe you about the compulsion. The investigations board feels it’s a lie since suggestion is so unlikely to work in that situation. I’ve gained some traction with the command council regarding my opinion that this woman you described might be an unusual case.”
“Like Althea?”
Mikhail coughed. “How did―”
“Classified?” Aaron smiled. “I met her a few hours ago.” The mirth bled out of his expression. “She’s the reason I’m not dead.”
Mikhail leaned into a cautioning glare. “You should come in. These chances you’re taking…”
“I know… I know. Without an assurance of Talis being made a priority, I have to do this.”
“You know I can’t pull the kind of strings Burckhardt does. Do you think this Talis person may be like the girl? Something we haven’t seen yet? Perhaps she’s a military project, which could explain why the brass almost seems to want to let her get away with it.”
“C-Branch likes to keep tabs on the suggestives, don’t they?” Aaron grumbled. “Cull the herd when they get too strong. Maybe they missed this one.”
“Or she’s one of theirs.” Mikhail squinted at the smog overhead. “Something stinks about this whole thing, Aaron. Ravindra is convinced you killed Allison on purpose because no one with true love could do that.”
Aaron hung his head, shaking it. “Oh, for all the cliché…”
Mikhail’s breath stuttered as though he meant to laugh, but the weight of the topic held it down to a weak smile. “I think we can sort this out, but I need you to come in. Running around out here just makes you look guilty. I believe you were compelled, and Carter is almost ready to consider the… incident that occurred in the infirmary an accident.”
Headlights lit up on the van in front of the PubTran car. A few seconds later, it drove away.
Aaron fidgeted. He glanced out of the corner of his eye at the spot of white hair hovering inside the PubTran he’d left two-ish blocks away. “I’ve had some insight on that. I… Did any of them survive?”
Mikhail pursed his lips, nodding. “Only those within a close radius died. Lieutenant Garber, Officers Rios and Frost, as well as Dr. Korran were killed instantly. Chase and Dean made it, though Dean had to get a metal leg. She’s not too happy. She’s applied to have her tissue regrown, but due to the expense of that… it’s taking a while to process the approval.”
“Send her out to that Badlands post. The kid can probably…” Aaron got distracted by a low-flying delivery bot. What the hell am I in the middle of?
“You know.” Mikhail wagged a finger. “I think that might be a good idea. They’d adore the data from such a procedure.”
“Something happened when Talis forced that command into my psyche.” He brought Mikhail up to speed on what Archon told him. “Invasive psionics trigger a violent, involuntary reaction. I… think you can read without setting it off. It’s only when a psionic attempts to change or influence things, but maybe going too deep would set it off too.” He squinted. “Garber wasn’t trying to do an implant was he?”
“May I?” asked Mikhail.
“Aye, one moment.” Aaron took a deep breath, calling to mind as much as he could remember from the medical evaluation they performed the day Allison died.
He relaxed, letting Mikhail’s consciousness filter into his. Mikhail’s probing felt careful, going only where Aaron opened the way, and not trying to force a read from an unready thought. Scenes replayed in a series of speed-up, slow-down bursts. The event lacked the depth of immersion that occurred when Archon did his telepathic dive, making the experience akin to watching a holo-vid as opposed to reliving it.
Aaron saw himself in the center of a white room, surrounded by people in medical uniforms poking and prodding while a doctor hovered over him. Lieutenant Garber, a telepath from I-Ops walked in, officially to read his mind for verification of his claim of coercion. After a brief ‘are you ready’ look from Garber, he stared at Aaron with intent. Seconds later, Garber shot straight up into the ceiling, bursting like a man-shaped water balloon while the doctor, equipment, and technicians went flying in all directions.
Mikhail pulled away, looking ill. “That presents certain problems.”
“I hope it’s not the sniper-rifle-from-two-thousand-meters sort of problem.”
“No.” Mikhail put a hand on Aaron’s shoulder and squeezed. “You suffered a psionic assault while on duty. Assuming everything clears, they’re going to put you back out there. What happens the next time someone pokes your brain and you go off like a psionic bomb?”
Aaron deflated. In the span of a breath, he’d entertained hope of getting his old life back and had it pulled out from under him. “Oh.” He glanced at the taxi again. “It might not be permanent. This bloke said he might be able to correct it, but it could take away being Awakened.”
Mikhail perked up. “What did you say?”
“It might not be permanent.”
“No, that other word.”
“Awakened?” Aaron cocked an eyebrow.
“Where did you hear that from?”
“The man calls himself Archon. He had a peek under the hood and said he thought it possibly impermanent. Didn’t want to go messing around since he seems to want me all jacked up powerful.”
Mikhail narrowed his eyes, rubbing his chin. “I thought I understood what was going on with you, Pryce, but you throw me a spiral screamer.”
“A what?”
“Oh, right… You’re not keen on Gee-ball.” Mikhail chuckled. “You’re making a mistake associating with those people. They’ve managed to steal a classified military battlecruiser. That little girl you met escaped from them. Still not entirely sure how an eleven-year-old managed that. We got quite an earful about that Archon fellow from her.” He rolled his eyes. “If you ask me, she should’ve let him die… would have saved a lot of people a lot of pain, but I suppose she’s just not wired that way.”
“Aye. You’re right on that point.” He explained what had happened at Rakshasi’s apartment, including how the girl insisted on healing her too. “Where the devil would they hide an entire battlecruiser? There’s only so much ocean.”
Mikhail smirked. “Starship, Aaron, Starship. No one uses battleships anymore.”
“Archon nicked a military spacecraft?” Aaron blinked. “They don’t seem anywhere near organized enough to―”
“It’s true. CENTCOM isn’t sharing much with us, since they don’t understand the nature of what they’re dealing with. They still think there’s only a handful of psionics in the world, and the ones who aren’t with us are nothing to worry about. Half of what we know as fact, they consider horseshit. The Senate is eating itself alive calling for this man’s head on a post.”
“They know who Archon is?”
“In a vague sense. They know there is a man out there calling himself Archon, but little else.” Mikhail sighed out his nose. “You may be the only one on our side of the fence who’s seen him in person aside from the girl and remembers it. Solomon got a look at him, but only briefly. He tried to take over her mind when she hesitated.”
“Solomon?” Aaron cocked an eyebrow.
“It’s classified.” Mikhail faced sideways. “I hope you’re still on our side of the fence.”
“Well, f’you ask me, he’s not planning on doing anything dangerous. He claims to want to flee persecution on Earth. You know what it’s like for us in most ACC territories, and even some independent nations. Is that so wrong, to want to be able to live without fear?”
“There are easier ways to do it than stealing a prototype battlecruiser.” Mikhail shook his head. “Those fools all think his plan is to bombard the Senatorial chambers on the moon.”
“Of course, their first thought is a direct attack. Sounds like guilty consciences.”
Mikhail gave him a long, pointed stare. “I know you’re not a killer. I trust you, and I want you to come back to us. You might have just stumbled into a way to do just that.” He gripped Aaron’s shoulder again, squeezing. “If you can find that ship, maybe even figure out some way to neutralize Archon, you’d get a hero’s welcome.”
Aaron stared at the old playground wheel, rusty and creaking in the wind. Mikhail let his arm drop to his side.
“I’m hardly a hero.” His voice faltered. “I failed my wife. She died by my hand.”
“Nothing you do is going to bring Allison back, but she wouldn’t want you throwing your life away, either. There aren’t words enough to express how sorry I feel about what happened to her. One person is to blame for her death, and it’s the suggestive.”
“Talis Lir.” Aaron tempered his sadness with anger so he didn’t lose the ability to speak. “Has there been any progress hunting for her?”
Mikhail glanced down the street.
“They’re not even looking, are they? Everyone thinks it was me. So, how long do I have?”
“Have?” asked Mikhail.
“Before C-Branch puts one in my brain that I don’t see coming.”
“You have not yet been elevated to that level of threat.” Mikhail rocked back on his heels. “In no small part due to my influence.”
“I can’t come back in until I get Talis. I can’t let Allison’s death go unpunished. If I have to rely on someone like Archon to do that, so be it.”
“Perhaps you can convince him we are not his enemy. If what you say
is true, and all he wants is protection and rights for psionics, why is there a conflict? We want the same thing.”
Aaron looked at his hand. “I’m not sure if I should salute you. Am I active or a fugitive?”
Mikhail smiled. “That depends on if you want the official or unofficial answer.”
“That depends on how much is classified.” Aaron winked.
“Solomon’s a pyrokinetic. C-Branch tried to clone and amp one as a weapon, but she got away. Little hard to handle. Archon made a play for her, but she balked at the last minute. C-Branch stuck their dicks in it, and the whole thing turned into a giant mess. When she had second thoughts about Archon, she says he tried to modify her thoughts. Your… situation might just be the only way we have to get inside his group without being detected. He’ll hesitate before trying to do anything to your brain.”
“I’m not sure anymore.” Aaron started back toward the PubTran car. “I’ll need time to think about it.”
“I know who you are, Aaron. Allison knew too.” A note of whimsy entered Mikhail’s voice. “I’m pretty sure that young lady staring at you knows too.”
Aaron stopped walking. If he only knew who she was.
Grit scratched as Mikhail moved to walk away. “Take care of yourself, Sergeant. Hopefully, you’ll figure out who you are soon.”
he PubTran car’s hatch door squeaked open. Anna let go of it, scooting back to give him room. Aaron paused with one foot in, glancing over his shoulder at the playground. Mikhail was nowhere in sight. Except for the baleful rusty cry of the metal wheel with rainbow-painted handrails, nothing stirred. He ducked the drab grey and blue flap and fell into the hard plastic seat, wondering why they even bothered with a layer of thin cloth.
“Wait fee is currently one thousand two hundred fifty credits. Would you like to continue waiting?”
“No,” said Aaron.
Anna leaned forward. “Sector 13628.”
“Destination fee, four hundred and six credits. Do you accept?”
Zero Rogue Page 29