by Amy DuBoff
>>Yes, I believe so.<<
Well, that’s a really terrible design flaw on their part, she replied with a mental chuckle. I mean, their entire point was to use Hochste soldiers.
>>I suspect the difference is your advanced telepathic abilities. Others likely wouldn’t experience that same break,<< Ruby said. >>But I also don’t think it’s the difference of Hochste versus human form. It might be the act of changing from one form to another.<<
Ava thought back to her encounter with Reya on Nezar. The alien had her cornered as human, but Ava regained control when she transformed into a Hochste. Yet she retained that control when she reverted to her human form.
So, as long as I shift whenever I feel them taking control, I can keep them from overtaking me?
>>It’s only a hypothosis,<< Ruby replied.
Right now, that’s all we have.
* * *
Luke flipped through another batch of the test results that had yielded a false positive.
Jack and Tess had departed the lab for the evening, so he figured he might as well work in peace while Ava was meeting with her team.
The work felt fruitless, however. Nothing was showing up in the scans to explain why the automated review had flagged each of the records.
I really wish I knew what was going on so I could fix it.
He was about to dismiss the final record when something caught his eye. The person in question had been involved in the op three years prior when Nox entered Colonel Kurtz—an event codenamed ‘Starfall’.
Curious, Luke went back through the records of the people he’d already cleared.
“Well, shit.” All of them had been involved in Operation Starfall.
But there was nothing biologically different about them. What might the trigger be? And why that mission?
He couldn’t find any explanation in the mission logs—those publicly available to him, anyway.
All the same, it was the only lead he had. With no other recourse, he sent a message to Colonel Kurtz with the find. If anyone could offer further insight, it would be him.
* * *
Kurtz drummed his fingers on the desktop while he thought through the best way to ask for temporary command of a ship with the kind of firepower they wanted.
On the surface, it sounded like overkill. He knew it wasn’t—not for nanoscopic beings whose tolerance for environmental conditions was unknown.
If we’re going to destroy them, we need to vaporize the whole planet.
His thoughts were interrupted by a notification chirp, and a message from Luke popped up:
>>Sir, Operation Starfall, three years ago, when Nox found you… all the people whose results are getting flagged by our automated checks were on that op. Can you think of any explanation?<<
Kurtz froze in his chair. He hadn’t wanted to think about that op, when so many had lost their lives. But knowing what he did now, he quickly realized exactly what must be causing the flags in Luke’s test.
He initiated a video call with the scientist.
Luke was in his lab and picked up right away. “Sir, thank you for getting back to me so quickly.”
Kurtz nodded. “I should have seen the connection before.” He looked down and took a deep breath, then brought his gaze upward again. “The enemy used a biological weapon on us—an airborne toxin that attacked soft tissues. We lost a dozen warriors before we were able to figure out what was going on. We needed to synthesize an antidote, and the most accessible lab with sufficient facilities was on a ship belonging to NTech.”
“Surprise, surprise.” Luke shook his head.
“The materials that were used as the base of the antidote were extracted from the plant life on Coraxa.”
“It must have been based on some of NTech’s earlier research into the planet’s unique properties. And now that we know there are traces of this alien mineral throughout the biosphere…”
Kurtz nodded. “Did you and Ava trigger in the automated review?”
“No, we never went through that system,” Luke replied. “Ava, obviously, is different. I didn’t even bother to test her.”
“Run a scan of yourself. If that triggers it, you’ll have your answer.”
Luke nodded pensively. “What about the warriors who helped with the raid of the NTech lab?”
“They never ingested anything on the planet,” Kurtz replied. “We brought our own rations.”
“That explains it.” Luke nodded. “Thank you for the additional insights, sir. I’ll look into this.”
“Good work. Now, if you’ll excuse me.” Kurtz ended the call. At least we’re one step closer to solving one of our mysteries.
The next order of business wasn’t a mystery, but rather a matter with a clear solution. After the ambiguity of the past two weeks, Kurtz was happy to have a problem he could shoot with a big gun to make it go away.
Now all he had to do was get that gun.
With his thoughts as ordered as they’d ever be, Kurtz called Colonel Marcie Walton—his best chance of getting what he needed. While an in-person plea would have been preferable, she was presently away from headquarters, and he couldn’t delay submitting the request.
Colonel Walton answered the call after twenty seconds. “Colonel Kurtz, I’m surprised to hear from you.”
“It’s been an eventful few days, ma’am.”
He filled her in on the developments since they’d last spoken.
“That’s quite a mess,” she said when he’d finished.
“After talking through the options, my recommendation is to destroy the dwarf planet in Gidyon,” Kurtz stated.
“I agree with that approach. These beings pose too great of a threat to be left unchecked.”
Kurtz nodded. “I request operational command of a ship with an Arti-Sun weapon.”
Colonel Walton leaned back in her chair and sighed. “I wish there was a ship I could get to you in time, but all are presently engaged in other conflicts. Earliest I could have one to Gidyon would be six days.”
“We have less than four before Coraxa comes into alignment. That timeline might be meaningless, but—”
“That’s a risk we can’t take without knowing their intentions,” she completed for him. “You’ll need to find another way to destroy that planet.”
Kurtz was about to protest, but he knew there wasn’t anything he could do. If there were no ships, there was nothing left to discuss on the matter. When it came down to it, the Alaxar Trinary was an inconsequential system compared to most of the civilization-scale conflicts facing the Etheric Federation.
“We’ll get the job done, ma’am.”
“I have every confidence in you and your team. Good hunting.” She ended the call.
That could have gone better. Kurtz slouched in his chair with a heavy sigh. How else can we destroy the planet?
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Karen hadn’t been frightened many times in her life. As she thought about the alien beings lurking only a few kilometers outside the city, however, it took all of her willpower to keep from giving into the terror.
I’m supposed to be the rational advisor here. I can’t give up. She took a few minutes alone in her office to settle her nerves. As she stared out of the window at the city below, she was reminded of the people she had sworn to protect.
She took one more slow, steady breath and released it. “I can do this,” she whispered to herself.
As calm as she was going to get, Karen stepped over to her desk to send a summons to Trisha and Fiona.
The two women arrived at Karen’s office a minute later, their faces drawn with concern.
“What’s going on?” Fiona asked. “You’ve been acting strangely since that meeting with Edgar.”
Karen motioned for them to close the door, and they complied.
“We’re in danger. The aliens are still on Nezar,” she explained as soon as her associates had taken a seat across from her.
“But Heizberg—” Trisha
began.
“I’ve spoken with trusted friends in the FDG and learned that pits like the one in that valley facility are where they live. So if that pit is there, then Reya had somewhere to escape.”
Fiona paled. “So, Edgar…”
“His statements, along with the FDG’s investigation, have painted the picture for us,” Karen confirmed with a nod. “We need to assume that they will take an offensive stance.”
“Like, try to take over people?” Fiona asked.
“We don’t know, but we need to get everyone to secure locations in case they try something with broad reach.”
“I’m sure you know that Nezar has more of a military than Alucia, but we’re not that well prepared,” Trisha replied. “Certainly not for a telepathic assault—not that anyone would be.”
“Short of a planetary evacuation, which isn’t even close to realistic, the best advice I can offer is to have everyone stay in their homes. The fewer people we have congregated in one place, like all the workers in Dome 1, the less likely it will be for the aliens to hit everyone at once.”
Trisha’s eyes bugged out. “Stars! You don’t think they’d really—”
“Everything I’ve heard suggests that these beings feed on pain and trauma. If they want to get stronger, they’ll do whatever it takes to survive.”
Fiona stood up. “Then we can’t waste any time. I’ll coordinate a peacekeeping plan with the military.”
“I’ll draft some media messaging,” Trisha stated, rising more slowly. “Any other instructions?”
Karen swallowed. How did I get to be in charge? I was just supposed to be a political consultant!
That was a matter to work through at another time. For the present, if people were looking to her for leadership, it was her duty to offer it.
“I’ll look over the media statement once you have it drafted. In the meantime, I’ll see if I can get a status update on getting reinforcements to contain whatever’s in that pit.”
The two other women nodded their understanding and left to complete their tasks.
As soon as she was alone, Karen initiated a call to President Connors. It was well after working hours on Alucia, but if Karen knew the president, he’d still be in his office.
Sure enough, he picked up almost right away.
“Hello, sir. Any word yet from the FDG about an action plan?”
“They’re working on it. How are things there on Nezar?” Connors asked.
“I just filled in the two people I’ve been working more closely with on the investigation. They seem at a loss for what to do.”
“Too bad you didn’t find a suitable head of state replacement before all this went down,” he said with a slight smile.
Karen sighed. “I’m a press secretary! And not even for this world! I shouldn’t be making the kind of calls I’ve had to here.”
“Someone has to do it,” the president pointed out.
But does it have to be me? Karen didn’t have the energy to argue the point. “I’m doing what I can to prepare for an FDG intervention.”
“Good. An action plan is in the works now. We should know more soon.”
“Very good, sir.”
The president looked her in the eyes. “We’re going to keep this system safe. Don’t worry.”
“I know.”
* * *
Half an hour after the informal meeting with her team, Ava received another summons to meet with Widmore and Kurtz, this time in the colonel’s office.
I hope this is the order to finally go blow things up. I’m going stir-crazy with this pent-up anticipation! Ava said to Ruby while she walked to the meeting.
>>Yes, I’ve noticed that. If we don’t head out right after this meeting, I’m going to suggest you go run laps or lift weights.<<
A workout isn’t going to relieve this anxiety.
>>It’ll help.<<
Ava took a deep breath. Hopefully it will be a non-issue.
She arrived at Kurtz’s office and found the door open. Major Widmore was just settling into one of the visitor chairs, and Kurtz was behind his desk. The colonel motioned her inside, and she closed the door behind her.
“Sirs,” she greeted as she sat down.
“We’re going to level with you, Lieutenant,” Kurtz began. “We’d normally reserve the details for senior leadership, but you’re deep enough into this matter that formalities have far less bearing.”
Ava nodded. “Understood, sir.”
“We can’t get a ship with an Arti-Sun weapon in time,” the colonel stated. “That means we need to find another way to destroy the planet in Gidyon.”
Ava’s heart sank. “Do you have any ideas, sir?”
“We were hoping you might be able to offer insights into a potential weakness,” Widmore replied.
“I…”
Ava looked inward to Ruby. When did my job description change from covert ops to planetary-scale savior? she grumbled to the AI.
>>Interstellar savior, technically, now that we’re talking about multiple star systems.<<
Not helpful.
>>We’ll figure something out, don’t worry.<<
That was easy for the AI to say, she didn’t have ties to the system in question. Ava had been trained to keep her personal feelings separate from the mission at hand, but that was easier said than done when her home world was on the line.
Coraxa was never just a singular planet. Nezar and Alucia were almost as much a part of her history as the house she’d grown up in—a small planetary system with cultural ties that persisted, no matter what was going on in the rest of the galaxy. They may not always have gotten along, but it was ultimately a matter of bickering siblings working out their growing pains. In the end, they would unite and be stronger for it.
But now, that future was on the line. The insidious force from Gidyon had upset the balance and was threatening to destroy everything the people in the Alaxar Trinary had fought to create.
I won’t let them. The thought was private, but Ava could tell Ruby felt the same way. We need a precise way to attack the aliens without harming anyone else.
>>What about a variation of how you removed the entity from Colonel Kurtz and Jared?<< the AI suggested.
That was dealing with an individual. We’re talking about a planet here.
>>You don’t need to go after the entire planet. All beings have a core.<<
You may be on to something there.
While the Dyons were capable of functioning remotely, their presence was still rooted in one place. Like in the Gidyon System, there had to be a physical manifestation somewhere on Nezar. It was just a matter of finding it.
Ava realized she’d left the two officers hanging while she had the internal discussion with Ruby. Only ten seconds had passed in real-time, but that was a long time for her to be seemingly staring into space.
“My original advice was to blow up the planet with the biggest weapon we could get our hands on,” Ava replied at last. “My thoughts about that being the best course of action haven’t changed. However, something else did cross my mind that might be just crazy enough to work.”
“We’re all ears,” Kurtz said.
“Well, we know the mineral that comprises their key structures,” she said. “And we know what chemicals dissolve that mineral.”
“You mean like when you removed the TR from me?” Kurtz asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Exactly. If we could scale that up, we could launch a highly targeted attack.”
“There’s no way we could get sufficient quantities of those chemicals to go after a planet like that,” Widmore stated.
Ava shook her head. “We wouldn’t have to, sir. Just the pits and central chambers. That’s the core of their power.”
“Neurochemicals weren’t designed to be administered to rocks. This isn’t just injecting a syringe into someone,” Kurtz objected.
“We’d need a large-scale nebulizer, and a shitton of the chemicals. I know nothing
about that, but I bet someone at NTech does.”
The colonel’s brow furrowed while he nodded with consideration. “Between Luke’s former colleagues and Karen’s government contacts, I imagine we can connect with the right people.”
“And, sir?” Ava paused until Kurtz inclined his head, “I can stand up to the Dyons, now that I have a better understanding of what we’re facing. Ruby and I have gone over everything that happened in Gidyon. I know what went wrong. Let me face them, and I’ll make sure we get our weapon exactly where it will hit them hardest.”
Kurtz and Widmore exchanged glances.
“I don’t see that we have another choice,” Kurtz said after a moment. “I’ll make the preparations with NTech. Major, get to Nezar with Ava’s team. We need to move quickly.”
* * *
Luke shook his head. Of course! Why didn’t I think of that?
Colonel Kurtz’s theory about the false positives had played out just like he had predicted. Anyone who’d been exposed to the NTech serum, or spent an appreciable amount of time on Coraxa, had been flagged in the system’s automated review.
The good news was that they now knew the reason for the flags. The bad news was that he would still need to assess each account, since the very thing that resulted in a flag was precisely what they needed to be on the lookout for. But the testing was in the final stretch, anyway, so the work wouldn’t be a burden for much longer.
With Tess and Jack out of the lab, working on other things, Luke was just settling in for another session of manually reviewing records when Kurtz appeared in the lab’s doorway.
“Do you have a moment?” the colonel asked.
Luke doubted it was really a question. “Of course, sir.”
“Did you get the results of your scan?” Kurtz asked.
“Yes, it flagged me, just like you suspected.”
“So, it’s the trace amounts of the mineral? I’m surprised no one was ever able to figure out what caused the Coraxans’ telepathic abilities before.”