by Ryan Krauter
"Eventually, I was contacted by a Priman operative, Tana Starr. She was working as Senator Dennix's contact and handler. She used her leverage to gain access to me on multiple occasions. One one such visit, she told me to expect a rescue attempt. Soon enough it occurred, and she along with a small team affected my escape. We were pursued through the streets and upper levels of Delos by the same commando team that had captured me in the first place, who by coincidence happened to be near. They eventually found our safehouse and staged an assault. I was captured, along with Ms. Starr. They conducted a field interrogation of her, and the information she had was," a pause, uncharacteristic for the gifted public speaker, "unsettling. She made allegations which I will detail shortly. I also have proof of her confessions. First, I was on hand to hear them, and second, they were recorded from the viewpoint of the person who conducted the operation."
At that, there was enough startled talking to give Velk pause. The Council itself broke into several separate conversations, and as Velk looked around the chamber he saw much the same among the gathered people. This, he thought, was actually a good thing. It meant people were truly listening and taking to heart what he said. He'd need that willingness to listen as his story unfolded.
The noise died down and he continued. "At that point, Ms. Starr was taken into custody and I was removed by the commando team. Based on what they'd heard from Ms. Starr, they elected to hide me in a secret location, hidden from even their superior officers. They didn't trust their chain of command or government itself after what we'd all just heard."
"And what did you hear?" asked the chairwoman. She was trying to look impassive, but her body language said otherwise. She was leaning forward just a bit, one hand supporting her chin while the other laid stretched out ahead of her, as if reaching for the answers.
"Ms. Starr admitted that the Commander had sanctioned the mission personally. The goal was not to retrieve me, however; the goal was to have me die in the escape attempt."
Now there was an uproar. The gallery, the Council itself; everyone started talking at once. There were even a few loud exclamations directed at him, that he must be lying because a Priman Commander would never do such a thing.
"Representative," the chairwoman said severely, "that is an incredibly serious allegation against our highest military officer. I hope you have some sort of evidence, because otherwise even you will not be able to avoid repercussions."
"I am prepared, chairwoman. May I continue?"
"There's more?"
Velk only nodded, and she waved her hand to carry on.
"I eventually spent time among several Confederation officers, as well as a private contractor who kept me hidden. I eventually met with some of their most senior military leadership and we reached a consensus; both of our leaderships were failing us. They are aware of the bargain their Senator Dennix has made with us to stay in power as he allows our people to rule the Confederation. And I have realized that the Commander is more focused on wiping out every humanoid in this part of the galaxy than finding a place for us to call home again."
Again, uproar. Ravine looked at Velk and gave him a small nod, an encouraging gesture he'd not expected.
"And this is not to your satisfaction, Representative?" asked one of the council members, emphasizing the word representative to remind him of his place as an advisor and not the shot-caller.
"Our mandate was to return to this galaxy and take our place here. I along with everyone else assumed that meant we were to rule again. But when we tried to dominate the galaxy the first time, look what happened! Our thousand year exile! I now wonder what our goal truly is. Are we to wage endless war to reclaim a galaxy that will fight without cease? And to what end? Why do we want to rule it all? I propose that perhaps retaking our place means that which we were before the wars: scientists, scholars, explorers. I formally offer that we can have our place in this galaxy living among the inhabitants we've created. Look at what they've accomplished! They've grown, expanded, and will fight for their survival as we would in turn. I say our experiment is a success. Now we should decide what to do next. That will be hard, for we've spent generations preparing for war and know nothing else. But think what we could do now, if we didn't have to fight everyone we see?"
"And what would we tell our people we've accomplished?" asked the outspoken council member who'd taken charge. "Why did we deprive ourselves, suffer, wait for a thousand years, if not to return victorious?"
"But our greatest accomplishment was a success!" Velk said again. "I fought these various peoples from the front for the first half of this war and saw their courage, their conviction. I say we've created what we'd hoped for. Now we can return to choose a new path for our people. We don't have to rule, don't have to grovel, just live."
"You still have not explained why the Commander would want you to perish," said the chairwoman.
"It was known that I maintained a more open mind towards other resolutions to this conflict. I had neglected to use the biological weapons, namely the DNA virus, that were eventually employed against the humanoids here. I believe that I represent a threat to the hard line, that I could be a voice of moderation that offers another choice other than simple annihilation of the galaxy's occupants."
The chorus of voices rose again, and this time Velk just waited. He'd spoken his piece; any more was just going to dilute the meaning of what he'd just explained.
Council members spoke to each other in hushed tones long past when the rest of the gallery quieted down. In fact, it was making Ravine mildly nervous seeing them up there still talking among themselves while silence weighed down on the rest of the chamber.
Finally, the chairwoman spoke.
"Representative Ravine," she said, "do you have anything to add to this conversation? You petitioned on Representative Velk's behalf, after all."
"I can only offer my report on an event that happened to me in the Representative's presence," Ravine said evenly. "While en route here, my family's vessel was attacked by two Priman ships."
Ravine had grown used to the breach in decorum now as the volume rose above respectable limits. Eventually she continued. "They fired on us without warning, and we barely managed to escape. The commanding officers had been killed, and the crew we were able to rescue had no knowledge of mission specifics as to why they'd attack one of their own."
The chairwoman seemed to weigh Ravine's words, then looked back and forth between her and Velk. "Your stories are tall, to be sure, but empty of proof. How do you intend to support your theories?"
Now was Velk's play. He turned to Ravine's family guards at the end of the gallery, and another figure emerged from the doorway Velk had only recently walked through.
This time the guards attending the sides of the Council's table brought their weapons to bear as the crowd all turned to see the new arrival.
Loren Stone, Commander First Rank, walked solemnly up the gallery and took his place on Velk's right, one step behind, in accordance with the tradition Ravine had explained to him which showed he held a lesser status than the person who was serving as his patron.
"A Confederation soldier?" the chairwoman gasped. "What kind of game is this, Representative?"
Loren looked at Velk, who motioned towards the Council.
"I am Commander First Rank Loren Stone, of the CSS Avenger. I am here on behalf of my people to open a meaningful dialogue with you."
The guards at the council table bristled, but the chairwoman motioned for them to hold their position. "And what is your place here, Commander? Are you a prisoner, do you claim diplomatic status?"
"That's up to Representatives Velk and Ravine. When Representative Velk and I crossed from Confed space into yours, I placed myself in his care, and now that of the Ravine family."
The council was silent, several members murmuring to each other but nobody speaking up. Finally, the chair woman spoke again. "This is most unusual, you understand. We are at war in general with your people, though
we do have a cease fire of sorts with the loyalist members of the Confederation. What is your purpose here?"
"My mission is two-fold. First, that cease fire is a sham, negotiated with a compromised leader who has sold his own people out in exchange for personal power. He won't be in charge for long. If there is ever to be any peace among us, we need a real truce, one brokered out in the open with all parties. The second is to do what I can to show support for Representative Velk.
"When the Representative was held captive with us, we talked many times. It became apparent to many of us that he was not simply hell-bent on our annihilation. The short version, members of the Council, is that we believe there is a negotiated peace to be had if there are more people like Representative Velk among you. As he has said in his own words, we can all coexist; it doesn't have to be a choice between you or us. I'm here to do what I can to support him."
"And risk your own imprisonment or death in the process?" came the challenge from the outspoken council member.
"Well, I was personally hoping to avoid death, you see," Loren began with a smirk, "but nothing great ever happened without taking some chances. So yes, here I am. Be gentle."
Loren could see the indecision among the council. He'd feel the same way himself. What if a Priman showed up at a briefing and offered to try to fix everything? He'd be suspicious as hell. He only hoped this council would give him the benefit of the doubt.
"What do you have to offer that we cannot provide ourselves?"
"Perspective, for one. I have no interest in your internal politics. That said, it seems like what worries some among you is whether you've picked up too many of our bad habits. You want to know how our government works? Ask away. You want to know why we kidnapped Representative Velk in the first place? You dropped a DNA virus on my homeworld. I would have done anything in the galaxy to help those people. Granted, I did it with extra enthusiasm as a result, but I would have done so for any world that had been attacked in that way.
"Oh, and I have some medical evidence for you as well that I'll hand over. It came from our ship's chief surgeon after she did some bloodwork on me after we cured the people of Toral. She was studying the DNA weapon and she claims that the way your DNA is mixed with mine is different than most. While apparently it's pretty easy to see where things were altered in most people, my own changes are more random, mismatched. She claims that this can only be the result of a natural union between a human and a Priman. It goes to show maybe we got along way back when after all, and maybe that's a nudge towards thinking we could do it again."
That part didn't go over as well as Loren had hoped. He heard some disparaging remarks from the gallery, Primans saying how it was disgusting that he'd accuse them of mating with the lowly experiments they'd created. But what Doctor Elrad said had to be true; by the time of the wars between Primans and everyone else, genetically speaking they'd been on a very equal footing. Socially, many worlds and cultures would have been closing the gap on them as well.
"Who's to say that by the time of the great wars between your people and ours that there weren't Primans and humans working together as near-equals? You yourself say how you aspired to help all of us catch up to you. Why is it so hard to believe that it actually happened? That every once in a while a Priman and human working close together realized they were more compatible than they'd thought possible?" Loren had more to say but stopped there, not wanting to push any further now that his point had been made.
Loren locked eyes with the council woman in charge as decorum broke down and they waited for everyone to settle in so they could continue. He thought he saw something in her look; maybe it was understanding, acceptance maybe. It didn't strike him as hostile, which was about as good as he could hope for.
"So, to be clear, Commander Stone," the council woman continued once things had settled down, "you are here to help Representative Velk resume his position?"
That was a leading question, Loren thought. "No, I came here to help him return to you. It's my hope that he can help convince you to take a more moderate approach regarding the inhabitants of this galaxy, but I can't influence you in that regard so I'll just see what happens. Members of the council, I am here because I hope the Representative can find support for some middle ground among us. I am also here to offer negotiations on behalf of the Confederation. I have been empowered to agree to certain limited terms, but I am not a diplomat; any lasting truce would need to be hammered out in a more formal setting."
"You're saying that the Confederation military is attempting to negotiate independently of the elected leadership of the Confederation itself," said the council member Loren had grown to dislike. "That sounds like a military coup, and even by your own standards that's not a just way to govern."
"As I said," Loren continued, "we're aware of the personal deal Senator Dennix made with you in exchange for selling out the Confederation. He was not elected to his position in charge. His days are numbered, and while we don't want to be in control of the Confederation, we'll find a way to deliver power back to the people if we need to." Loren paused, a thought occurring to him that hadn't popped up in so long he'd forgotten it was even an option. "Why don't we talk about you returning our senators? You've held on to them long enough to achieve your goals; those are the people you should be dealing with, though I suppose they won't have much love for your people right now."
The council chair woman was about to respond when the doors off to the side of the council platform slid apart and a new arrival stomped into the room. It was a serious breach of decorum, but once he saw who it was Loren understood.
"Council," the man began, "it is my understanding we have a Confederation spy and saboteur among us. I am here to arrest him."
Loren finally got his first good look at the current Commander, a disagreeable man whose family name was Tash.
"He approached under a flag of truce, Commander," the chair woman began, "and your entrance here, while allowable, is bordering on disruptive. You can take your chair and become part of this proceeding if you wish."
The stare down between them was great for Loren to watch, but he quickly shifted to the other council members. Some looked at Tash in shock, some nervously looked anywhere but at the Commander. Loren built a mental list of those he figured were allied with the Commander.
Tash stared daggers at Loren before finally taking his seat to the side of the council table. Loren doubted the man would stay silent for long.
"I formally request an audience regarding the Confederation spy, of course," Tash said as he sat.
"Of course," the council chair woman said in reply before turning to Loren. "Commander Stone, when you entered you claimed you had evidence?"
Loren made a gesture of slowly reaching into a zippered pocket on his upper right arm and retrieving a small data chip. "In here is my medical evidence. I assume you have some of our hardware handy to play it, but just in case it has its own holo projector."
Loren held his hand out, data chip in hand. Velk took it from him and walked up to the council desk, placing it in front of the chair woman. It sat alone, the table not adorned with any other decoration or technology.
"I have something else for you to watch as well," Loren added. "We are aware of your biotech rings, the ones hidden operatives wear to mask their bio signs while working among us. We managed to obtain the ring data for our Senator Dennix in an effort to reveal his treason to our people. The beginning is most interesting to you. I'd rather see your reactions as it plays, but I guess that's up to you whether you want my recap or we should just fire it up and get to watching the feed. First off, though, I assume you can validate the authenticity of the data, even though it's on my device?"
The chair woman gave Loren a hooded glare. "We have our own copies, plus there are markers we would detect. If your recording is false or doctored, we will know."
"Good," Loren replied. "I'll skip right to it." He reached into the pocket on his left arm and retrieved another
data chip, passing it over to Velk just like the first. "This is the first of the ring data from your old operative Ples Damar, Senator Dennix's first handler. It shows what happened during our rescue attempt when the senator was retrieved from occupied Delos."
The chair woman looked at the data chip Velk had placed in front of her, right next to the first. She made no move to pick it up, though, and Loren decided she was giving it the same look that she'd be using if Velk had just dropped roadkill on the table. It frightened her, and he could see she feared what it might represent.
She looked at Loren, then Velk and finally Ravine, then picked it up and activated the tab on the side. She set it down on the table as a holo field sprung to life, showing the interior of a shot-out building. There was a firefight going on outside, the room occupied by a handful of people, including some soldiers and Senator Dennix with Ples Damar in the rear of the room. The chair woman looked to her side at a Priman who had already pulled out some sort of tablet device. His face tightened as he analyzed something or other before turning to her and nodding.
"At first analysis, my tech feels the data is unaltered. We will verify further."
Loren only nodded, feeling himself grow warm. If she reacted badly to this, he might not get the chance to continue.
The video started. The ring used all kinds of sensor abilities that were far over Loren's head and managed to form a relatively complete if somewhat indistinct video of everything happening within a few arm lengths of the wearer. Ples Damar faced Senator Dennix, blaster fire in the background mixing with the whine of aircraft passing overhead and explosions beyond the field of view.
"I am starting to wonder if this bargain needs to be altered," the Senator spoke, and a second later he raised a small holdout blaster and shot Ples Damar square in the chest. The council room erupted as Loren expected it would, but the holo kept going. It showed the senator coldly preparing the scene, calling over one of the Confed commandoes to verify his 'friend' had been killed, and then the telling evidence of taking Ples Damar's ring and putting it in his own pocket. The video paused there, for while recording was continuous, the techs who'd put the thing together for Loren assumed that would be a suitable place to pause and reflect. Was it ever.