Cypher Theorem Series Box Set: Books 1-3, The Zero Class, Shadow Moon, Dragon Fire: A Science Fiction Fantasy
Page 23
Vargas checks for anything that might be left behind. No prints, tools, or magical energies were left to use as clues. He asks Phillips a few things on guard swaps, and hand-offs, then about patrols through the vault. Once an hour they patrol, and once every eight they switch.
Vargas says he’s finished, and that he needs to talk to Maldone again. With nothing to go on, he needs to have access to the passenger list, to see if there is any way of narrowing things down from there. They go back up to Maldone’s suite, and he is still sitting in the same place, fingers steepled.
“Where you able to come up with anything?”
“Not yet, but I got some ideas.”
“Then was there anything that I can help you with Mr. Mitchel? I am a busy man after all.”
“I need the passenger manifest, I know you have further access to everything but I don’t need that. Just the list of names.”
He nods. “Anything else?”
“Was there anyone that made a special request for any special equipment that wanted to bring aboard, like myself?”
“No, you are the only one that I have allowed, besides myself, to have any such equipment onboard.”
“You have anything onboard that could melt through two inches of steel?”
“No.”
“Any casters with that kind of ability?”
“Yes, there are a few. I can highlight those for you, but I believe you will find that to be useless.”
“And why’s that?”
“Because if there was any information there that would be of use, I would have already found it.”
Vargas leaves Maldone’s office, Phillips escorting him to the door. Which was completely unnecessary. As he walks back to his room, it gives him time to think about what he is going to have to do. Finding a thief who’s willing to kill for something seemingly unconnected, and recover stolen goods. The whole situation he was in right now was starting to settle in his mind, and he didn’t like his odds. Something felt off, and he was sure he was going to get screwed.
Yay for working in the shadows. He thinks to himself.
Mumbling back he says, “I know, I can’t even see where I’m going.”
He stares at his door, knowing that Amber and Yeti are waiting for him inside. Images flash through his mind of Miku’s body. The exposed innards, and blood splattered around the room. A shiver runs down his spin as he swipes his HaLO to open his door.
Stepping into the room he meets two drawn gunlets pointed at his face. Slowly raising his hands into the air, he says.
“Hey you two, you wouldn’t believe the breakfast buffet they have.”
Yeti tilts his gunlet to the side. “What happened to you?”
“Maldone pulled me out of bed at four this morning. There was a murder and a theft, and he wants to keep them both discreet.”
“Oh.”
“Yea, I know.”
Amber pulls her gunlet down and releases it from her grip. As she does, the barrel flips onto her wrist, breaking apart and unfolding around it. The rest of the gun shortly follows, locking back into place as an oversized bracelet.
“We help?” Amber asks.
“Yea, we help.”
“Wait a minute.” Yeti waves his hands dismissively. “How are you goin’ to do that? We still gotta mission don’t we?”
Vargas nods. “Yea, we do, but if you would have seen what they did, and who they did it to.” He shakes his head. “Look, they might get in our way, or have been put in our way. There are far too many people that know I’m onboard in the first place, and I don’t like that. Then we have a murder and theft, within minutes of each other. Something’s up here, and we’re going to find out what.”
“Aye, I guess we might need to.”
Amber nods in agreement.
“Good. First, let’s go over what you have for our mission Yeti, then we can tackle what’s going on around the boat.”
“I got the external drive right here, let me just turn it on.”
“Amber, how do you feel about doing some analysis?”
“For?”
“It will be for the murder and theft. I got a list of passengers onboard, and I need you to go through them. If there is anything that stands out, tell me.” He flicks over the file he received from Maldone over to Amber’s personal overlay space.
“Ok.” She says excitedly.
“So, what have you got for me Yeti?”
Yeti holds up one hand, gesturing for him to wait. A blueish glow radiates around his forearm, flowing up into his hand, then into his index finger. The magical energy gathers into a point atop his finger, glowing blue. Yeti runs his finger across the top of the device, sending the energy inside. The external drive buzzes to life.
“This is converted Earth tech. I got a hold of this old hard drive on a mission a few years ago. It wasn’t working because it needed power, and some minor repairs. Adding the runic battery onto this thing was a pain, and it only stores about two terabytes of data, but for small things – like my contact list – It works great.”
“Thanks for the history lesson, I got enough of that in school. Who are the contacts we are going to be meeting up with?”
“You should take history, or learning for that matter, more seriously.”
“Noted. Contacts.”
“Biggs will be the first. He is going to be your contact for The Island. He runs security for the whole island, and there’s a theme park there, which he’s at during his off duty hours. It’s going to be the best place to catch him, and it’ll be out of the way.”
“Biggs, theme park, got it.” Yeti flicks a copy of Biggs’ file over to Vargas. A 3D model of the man stands in front of him. Dark skin, white eyes and hair, with a body that never misses a workout. The Island had officially been a place for five years, and he was on the first boat out there. Before that, he worked for the Tree-Son corporation as their chief of security. Tree-Son had claimed The Island as their property, so it made sense to Vargas that their best security officer was placed there. What didn’t make sense is why he would be willing to talk, when that could put him in hot water.
“What’s his angle?”
“Biggs? Nothing really, he owes me a favor, and I’m calling it in.”
“That’s it.”
“That’s it.”
“Must be one hell of a favor to call in for just some information.”
“This information is about how to get into Freedom after all. It’s a fair trade, well, fair-ish.”
“Alright what about the next one?”
“Ah, she’s a real beauty. She likes to be called Wedge, old nickname, don’t ask. She runs the tree farms on Aspiration, you’ll find her there.” Yeti sends over her data.
The model shows a young woman, in her thirties. Carmel skin, silky legs, hourglass figure. Vargas just stares at her for a moment.
Amber pulls on Vargas’ arm, after calling his name twice.
He shakes his head, “What is it.”
“Them.”
9
Food filled every corner and open space that tables did not. Different cuisines of all types were represented there, and in abundance. Vernon finally spots what had caught Marie's eye as he scans the right side of the room. There was a trio of molten chocolate fountains that shifted her stride, pulling her toward them like a tractor beam. There was little hope of resistance for her, once it came into view. She stands in front of them, with Vernon watching as she weighs her choices.
One milk, one white, and one dark chocolate fountain are each surrounded with all different types of choices for dipping. Marshmallows, strawberries, melons, graham crackers, and more. So Marie did what anyone would do in that situation, she grabs a little bit of everything.
It had been some time since Vernon had seen that look in her eyes. It was back in high school, on their first valentine’s day together. She told him not to get her flowers, because they will just die in a few days anyways. He wasn’t sure what to get, so he con
sulted his mother who had told him to try chocolates. Vernon had opted for a box of chocolate covered strawberries. When he gave them to her, there was a visible joy behind her eyes, making his heart flutter. It was that look that he sees now.
He shifts his stance and watches her grab a small piece of everything she wants, having an internal chuckle as she did, with a grin on his face. They go find an open table near the back so they can watch the wake, and Marie sits down to enjoy her dessert appetizer, while Vernon goes through the buffet line.
While perusing the food, he pulls up the map of the ship, and finds the option to show the list of attractions. The floor above the dining hall housed a putt-putt golf field, and next to its description says, not virtual. He puts the map away, not wanting to drop his full plate of pizza, macaroni, French fries, and corn on his walk back to the table.
He asks, “Hey Marie, have you ever played putt-putt before?”
“Yes, but that was years ago. Why?”
“Looks like they have a physical putt-putt place here on the ship right above us.”
Marie’s eyes light up, “Really? Do you want to?”
Vernon replies through a mouth full of pizza, “That I do, that’s the reason I brought it up.”
They finish their meal, and head for the elevator. Again while waiting for the elevator, Vernon starts to fidget, constantly looking to the stairs.
Marie asks, “What’s wrong?”
Vernon looks to her, and then back to the stairs, “Over the last four years I was trained by a man named Rajini Umber. He is the head of the Paladin Academy. Since I was a rune user, and one of the few in school, I had to train my body without question daily. Part of that was no elevators.”
“What would happen if you if you used one?”
“Well for one they wouldn’t operate with me in them. He coded all of the elevators to not function when my HaLO was tracked inside of them. Second, if I did get on one – which I only did once – the training for that day would be more brutal than normal.” An icy chill of the memory for that day runs down his spine.
“Wow, it sounds like you had it pretty hard there.”
“Not as much as you might think, but there were times it was rough. I just wanted to see or talk to you. My parents too, of course, but more you.”
A smile comes across Marie’s face and the elevator announces its arrival. On the next floor they walk toward a large triple-paned glass door that slides open. A gust of sea air rushes in past them, and they have to push against the current to get outside. A member of the crew walks by and Marie asks him where the putt-putt golf course is, and he points over to a set of stairs leading up to the top of the ship.
She turns to Vernon, with a smile of excitement across her face, “I have only played this virtually before, and it wasn’t that good of a place. I wonder what it will be like with a real ball and club?”
Vernon smiles, with a little shrug, shaking his head slightly back and forth. “Not sure, but I do know it should be close to real. Most virtual things are now-a-days.”
“I guess, but I wouldn’t know. I rarely use the full virtual setting. Unless I’m crafting, then I use the overlays like crazy.”
“Crafting huh?”
She smiles. “Yea, it’s something new to talk about with you.”
They reach the counter, grabbing the complementary club and ball. Marie chooses a bright pink ball and club, while Vernon grabs a blue club and green ball.
Vernon asks Marie, “So what do you think of the real ball and club?”
Marie twirls the ball and club in her hands, feeling the weight. “It’s heavy.”
Vernon smiles, and waives her to go first. They walk to the first hole and Marie sets down her ball.
He asks, “So you know what to do right?”
She nods.
The club comes back over her head like a baseball bat, and she swings down hard. It flies across the lane as a tiny pink blur, slams into the back guard, and rebounds into the hole. Vernon stands there, jaw open, unable to accept what just happened.
Marie, elated, starts jumping into the air waiving around the club. One swipe almost connecting with Vernon’s face. As he ducks, she clutches the club close to her chest. A smirk starts to form across her face, as she tries to hold back the laughter. It comes spilling out of her, in fits of belly laughs, to where she falls on the ground.
Vernon couldn’t help but start laughing too, the agitation he felt from almost being hit, subsiding with each laugh. The rest of the putt-putt match continued in much the same way. Marie continued to use monstrous swings, calling in every favor from Lady Luck she had been storing up, as her hole in one count rose to that of a master golfer.
The walk back to the room was filled with laughter and gloating. Vernon still couldn’t explain how she got a hole-in-one on every hole, but Marie had. Vernon rubs both his temples with his right hand and says, “I still can’t believe that I just lost to someone who hit a perfect game.”
Marie cocks an eyebrow as she stares up at Vernon’s eyes, “Oh really, and why is that Vernon Wayne?”
“I have never seen anyone deploy luck like a super power before, and not to mention it’s been four years since I have lost anything to anyone, other than Rajini.”
“He was your mentor or trainer right?”
“Yea, a little of both. Tyler told him about my unknown light power, and he had experience with training unknowns.”
They reach the door to the room, and go inside. There was a piece of paper on the floor, topped with Paradise Sailing letterhead. It was the updated permissions that had been promised to be sent and it was done on heavy paper.
Vernon looks at the paper, and then to Marie. “Did your father tell you how much this trip was, because I am seeing a lot of expensive over here?”
“He told me he had to call in a favor to get us onboard, and in our honeymoon suite,” Marie says happily waiving her arms toward the room, “As long as he paid for the wedding that is, which he did.”
“Alright then, once we get back I will make it a point to tell your father thank you for the trip again.”
“I’m sure he would like that.” Marie says with a smile. “So. Now that we have time to talk and we’re alone, can you tell me about the Academy?”
“I guess we are finally alone, and have a little time on our hands, sure. I know they didn’t announce this at the graduation ceremony but I was valedictorian.”
“Really!? Me too, I am so happy to hear that. I was praying you’d keep up with your studies.”
“Well there really wasn’t much studying. There was a lot of training. The first year was brutal. Physical training for the first six hours of the day, then rest for two, then magic training for the next six, rest two more, followed by classroom time for four, and finally rest for four hours to start it all again.”
“When did you sleep?”
“That is the question isn’t it, and I have no idea. Everything for that first year is blurred together. The classes were about strategies and defenses, or offenses we might need in the field. Only five made it out of the first year.”
“That’s horrible.”
“It is, but it made me stronger, mentally, and has hopefully prepared me for the field once I get out there.”
“So why didn’t they announce the grades?”
“It’s only a prestige thing within the group, and I got to pick which unit I go into.”
“That’s nice, what unit did you pick?”
“Dragon Squad. Rajini tried to talk me out of it, since I am a rune user, but he gave in.”
“Why would it matter if you were a caster or a rune user?”
“I never really thought about it before, but mages can be taught spells that can be duplicated. Rune casters like myself, we have to have a physical object that the rune is inscribed into. You know, like those boots you got me for my birthday a few years back?”
“Ok, I know that, but I’m not sure why that matters.”
“Oh.” Marie says with a surprised look on her face.
Letting out a sigh he says, “I know, and supposedly there is one such spell that all the Paladins in Dragon Squad know that is a necessity for the appointment, and there isn’t a known rune for it either. So I will be the first rune master assigned to Dragon, and it will be on a provisional basis till my full abilities are assessed in real combat.”
“So did you make any friends?” Marie says trying to change the subject.
“I did, he was someone we met during the Mixed Martial Arts tournaments in high school, he was the lightning mage I lost too in Bastion, Vargas Mitchel.”
“Wow, small world.”
“I know, and he was salutatorian in our class. He is a good guy, he knew about my ability, if you remember he experienced it first hand in the match we had, and he kept it to himself.”
“That’s good,” Marie says and looks away, remembering when she last saw him use that power. Her completion fades a little as the memories rush to the forefront of her mind. The crowd of people roaring, the exhalation of breath being forced from her body, and the haze of consciousness as she faded in and out of watching Vernon face Adonis. A boy twice his size and ten times as strong. Someone any other person wouldn't have stood a chance against, but there he was jumping in to save her only to get himself almost killed in the process.
She turns away from the door and walks over the bed. Arranging some of the pillows so she can sit up. Vernon follows her, and does the same. He sees the tears about to form in Marie's eyes, the hazy glaze forming over them, and tries to changes the subject.
“So what have you been up too these past few years?”
Marie's expression softens as she takes in a deep breath to push the bad memories from her mind. “Well, you know I went to college for engineering, but I don’t think I told you why.”
“No, you haven’t. I just remember you always liking plants and animals, or dancing.”