by Mark Iles
“Indeed, nothing like a little reminder. Now, if that’s all Colonel, we’re in the middle of cooking dinner.”
“No, that is not all, Commander.” Delmar looked angry for a moment, and then awkward. Taking a deep breath, she hurried on. “I’ve had a complaint from the Queen’s Council. It appears two of your staff, Lieutenant Roberts and Philips, have been seen cavorting in public. The Council has pointed out that relationships are strictly against our regulations.”
Selena stared at her. “Are you serious?”
“Of course I am. Look, you and I both know it happens, just tell them to keep it quiet.”
“Or what, charge them both with misuse of government property? They’re not the only ones ‘misbehaving’, are they Ma’am?”
“Commander,” Delmar said in chilling tones. “Mind your place! As your senior officer, I’m duty bound to ensure you resolve this and it’s your responsibility to take what action is appropriate. Are we clear?”
“Perfectly, Colonel. Thank you, I’ll deal with it.”
When the wall screen had blinked out, Jas said quietly, “Talk about sending a message…”
Selena smirked. “He did make a bit of a fuss. Men, huh?”
“Yeah,” Jas replied. “Men.”
Chapter Six
“Can’t we increase speed?” Selena demanded.
“We’re at full throttle now and still accelerating, Ma’am.’” Bryn replied.
“They’re on the surface,” Arthur informed them through the speakers. “Some of their ships have gotten through and landed.” At his command, the image on one of the screens changed to show the Dutch Lady’s frozen outer shell, where the Manta vessels could be seen landing and disgorging bugs draped in some sort of protective suits. They watched in dread and fascination as the enemy stalked the surface, looking for a way in.
“Ugly fuckers, aren’t they,” Kes noted, raking them with fire from several of the many Gatling turrets. But more and more of them were filing from the alien craft and returning fire at the weapon emplacements.
“Guys,” Za’an said thoughtfully, “if they’re letting their troops off, won’t they have to drop their shields to do so?”
There was a moments silence from Kes and Za’an and then the guns retargeted. Rounds of ammunition and powerful beams slammed into the enemy ships, blowing them to smithereens. The countless explosions didn’t even make the Dutch Lady wobble, but the shrapnel from the exploding ships sliced through the enemy ranks, like a scythe through corn, heavily depleting their numbers.
Alarms burst into life, their clamour deafening.
They’re in the ship!
Selena awoke, screaming. Jas was on top of her, trying to hold her shoulders down with her body weight as she tossed and turned, keeping Selena’s deadly hands trapped beneath the bedcover.
“Wake up, it’s me, Jas! You’re having a nightmare!”
Selena went rigid, and then forced herself to relax. Her body slackened as she realized that Jas was right, it was in the past, their battle to destroy the Manta’s home world. The memory of Bryn dying hit her again, and she couldn’t stop the tears. Jas held her until her sobs subsided and then she let her go, silently sliding off the bed.
“Sorry, yeah like you say, it was just a nightmare. I get them, sometimes,” Selena said, wiping fruitlessly at the river of sweat drenching her face, and putting her walls back up.
“I’ll go make some coffee, that’ll perk you up,” Jas replied, padding barefoot from the bedroom.
“Okay, I’ll be there in a minute.” Breathing deeply Selena closed her eyes and focused. Just a nightmare, that’s all. She breathed deeply; the thudding of her heart slowly subsided, the feeling of weight on her shoulders and chest eased and gradually she found herself breathing normally. As the scent of fresh coffee perfuming the air she left her bed, threw some water over her face and put on a thin white dressing gown colourfully hand-embroidered with local birdlife, belting it around her waist. She wondered how things were going but it was still far too early to call in. Besides, if there had been any news she knew that someone would have called her, despite the hour.
“Good morning. I know it’s only six but, given we’re both awake, I’ve made breakfast,” Jas said, as Selena entered the kitchen. “Well, toast … and it’s a bit scorched.”
“Sorry if I woke you,” Selena said.
“You didn’t. Listen, I know this isn’t the best time to tell you, what with your nightmares and all, but I’ve had some bad news that you need to know about. I had a call from the hospital, which is what woke me up, to tell me my friend Lucy has been admitted. Another girl, called Sebo, has been murdered and Lucy saw what happened and flipped. We all carry a contact list and that’s how they got hold of me.” Jas poured the coffee and offered her a steaming mug.
Selena wrinkled her nose at the acrid smell and took a tentative bite of the toast lurking on the plate Jas put before her. “I’m sorry to hear that. How is she, and are you okay?”
“I don’t know much, and yeah, I’m fine. I spent all my tears a long time ago.”
Selena forced herself to swallow. Although she was concerned about Jas’s friend, she was secretly pleased that Jas had taken on the task of making breakfast. It was a win-win situation and she’d get the hang of it. Jas now had a regular task and she herself woke with a meal. “So, tell me about Lucy,” she said, putting aside her plate. “I thought you’d said they’d all come in.”
“I’m sorry, but I lied. There were a few who didn’t want to, including these two, and I couldn’t break their trust. They were scared and who can blame them? Afraid they’d be forced to come in and find themselves trapped in a room. Ironic, isn’t it? They thought they’d be safer outside, where they could run away if need be. Lucy was with Sebo, a friend of hers who wasn’t feeling well; and while she stayed in the doorway, Lucy went to get them both something to eat.”
Selena sized Jas up. She’d bulked out a bit, but even so still looked skinny. “What else did the hospital say?”
Jas continued to avoid her eyes. “That Lucy was found babbling and crying by a woman out shopping late at night, to avoid the rush hours. When the medics arrived, Lucy told them that when she’d returned she saw someone bent over her friend, cutting her open. As she was telling them about it, Lucy started screaming and didn’t stop. They had to sedate her and take her to hospital, which is when they found the contact list. That’s all I know, apart from when they found Sebo a short while later she was already dead, gutted like all of the others.”
“Okay,” Selena said. “Try to relax, you’re safe here.”
“But it could have been me!” Jas cried. “I know that sounds awful and that I should be focusing more on what happened to them, and I am, but … me?”
“Yes, it could have been you, but it wasn’t. That’s what you need to keep telling yourself. Look around; see the things in this room? Go and touch them, are they rough or smooth? Taste them, smell them – and remember you’re here now and that you’re safe.”
Selena slid her right arm around Jas, who leaned into her. “I’m going to see this friend Lucy. I’ll try not to be too long, but don’t worry if I am. You can call me if need be and I’ll be back as quickly as possible.” She knew that there was only one hospital in the city, so Lucy should be easy to find. “I’ll let you know how she is when I get back. In the meantime, remember, stay here.”
Jas fought back tears, clenched her fists and compressed her lips. She said slowly, “I don’t think anything could make me go outside at the moment anyhow.”
Selena hugged Jas again, and took a swig of her coffee. She swallowed and said. “Listen, it’ll all be over soon. Trust me, we’ll catch the person responsible.”
At that moment, the door chimed and Selena wasn’t surprised to see Jenks on the viewer. She let him in, saying, “It’s okay, I already know. In fact, I’m going to get dressed, then go to the hospital, you might as well tag along.” In no time at all, she’d
zipped her all in one right up to the collar and led the way.
Selena eyed him as they got into the lift. “As the saboteur issue’s settled, I guess you coming here means we’re working together on these murders.”
“We are. Do you want to know what I think?”
“Do tell.”
Jenks turned to face her. “I think the ForeRunners are behind these killings. They can’t reproduce, remember? This way they get reproductive organs, to try and fix the issues they have.”
“I’ve considered that, and the possibilities top of my list. With the ForeRunnerrs not able to bear children, it means race diminution. Got to stock up from somewhere I guess. But then they were all killed by the Sken, and these murders were last night, which means the killer is human.” Selena wafted a hand in front of her nose and grimaced. “Hey, what the hell is that smell—is that you?”
Jenks nodded. “Yup, it’s the latest from ‘Salam’. Apparently, it’s Phenomes women can’t resist.”
“In that case,” Selena said. “Trust me, you were robbed. You smell like gorilla piss. If you turned up on a date smelling like that, I’d stab you.”
Jenks looked confused. “What the hell’s a gorilla?”
“Think of Braxis, only much hairier.”
“Uh, okay. And another thing. If I turned up for a blind date and found it was you, you needn’t worry. I’d stab myself.”
They were at the hospital within thirty-five minutes, facing a wary-looking human receptionist instead of the expected robosec, much to Selena’s delight. Above and behind the battleship of a woman there was a white sign with bright-blue lettering, declaring Human receptionist, we care for humanity.
“I’m Commander Dillon from the Regiments. A girl was brought here by ambulance, name of Lucy. Where is she?”
“Ayuh,” the woman replied. “Lucy Wilson. Are you a relative?”
“Do I look like a fucking relative?”
“I’ll take that as a no,” the receptionist said coolly, eyeing Selena’s black uniform and matching eyes before visibly shuddering. Smoothing both hands along her too tight dark-blue nurses top, as if to clear away any dirt, she said, “In which case you can’t see her.”
“Now you listen here,” Selena snarled, leaning forward across the sparkling-white worktop that melded perfectly into the wall. “I’m working on these murders and need to see this patient, and that means immediately. There’s a lot of dead kids so far, and more dying by the day. So, tell me where she is right now or I’ll come over there and beat the info out of you!”
The middle-aged woman stepped backwards, eyes widening. Jenks flashed a badge at her.
“Pardon my friend, she hasn’t had breakfast,” he said. “You’ll see I have clearance at the highest level and we two work together. Now, as the commander says, we need to see Lucy immediately.”
“Zed ward, room five,” the receptionist said hurriedly, obviously relieved at finding a way out of the situation. “First floor, you can’t miss it.”
“Tetchy this morning, are you?” Jenks murmured as they walked to the lift.
“Sod off.”
“Roger that,” he replied, looking both surprised and a little hurt.
When they got out of the lift a signpost pointed them along to the left. In the long white corridor, which stretched into a curve until it disappeared, there was little décor—apart from an occasional chair or two besides ward entrances, placed at regular intervals. When they reached the ward they again faced a human guard, who was sat at his desk reading from what looked like an antique E-Reader. Above the door, a sign proclaimed in large red letters, “Secure Unit, Zed Ward”. Selena eyed Jenks, who shrugged.
Again flashing his badge, Jenks’ said, “We’re here to see Lucy Wilson.”
The guard huffed noisily and put down his pad. Taking Jenks’ ID he scanned it in a leisurely fashion and opened the secure door by pressing a button hidden beneath his desk. “The doctor is with her at the moment,” he said in a disinterested fashion. “She’s in room five, which the third on your left as you go in. Please, wear these at all times.” Without barely a glance he handed each of them a self-adhering lapel badge and went back to his book.
“Thanks,” Jenks said, holding the electronic door open for Selena, as they attached their hospital badges and passed through.
A few steps later and they were outside the room they needed. Through an open door, they saw a blue-coated doctor bending over a small patient, buried beneath stark-white sheets. On the other side a servo-med stood guard, bleeping regularly. Gesturing for Selena to wait by the entrance, Jenks went in and talked quietly to the small, Asian-looking doctor. Together they came over to Selena, as she waited with fingers tapping on the door frame.
“So, how is she?” Selena asked.
“Not in a good place, as you can imagine,” the doctor replied peering up at her, his hair and beard in a hygiene net. “She’s under sedation.”
Selena bit back a retort at his short response. “Has she said anything that might help us find the killer?”
“All we’ve managed to get from her is that she and a friend had been sharing a doorway in a secluded back alley, not too far from a well-known food outlet. One who was kind enough to give them whatever leftovers they had. Lucy went to get food and was on her way back when she heard the other girl screaming.”
Selena sighed, resisting the urge to grab hold of the man’s beard. “And?”
“Lucy says that’s when she turned a corner and saw her friend Sebo laying on the ground, trying to fight someone off. There was blood everywhere and this person was bending over her. I’m afraid Sebo was already dead when our paramedics reached her.”
“Look, tell us something we don’t know.”
The doctor raised one eyebrow and continued. “She initially thought the killer had been trying to help. It was only when Lucy ran over to see what was happening that she saw the blood and realised her friend had been stabbed, or rather that her stomach had been slashed open. Then, she says, the demon who did it turned towards her, a bloodied knife in hand.”
“Did you say demon?” Selena asked, finding she was holding her breath.
“That’s right,” the doctor replied, eyeing Selena up and down. “Dressed all in black apparently. Holes in the face where the eyes should be. ‘A shadow that moves in the dark,’ she later said.”
“Say what?” Selena asked, eyes narrowing.
“I guess the killer looked like you, or rather…”
“My God, it’s one of us,” Selena gasped. “Someone from the Penal Regiments has been doing the killings!”
“That makes sense,” Jenks replied, raising his eyebrows. “Trouble is which one? There’s thousands of you guys here, it could be anyone of you.”
Lucy stirred feebly and tried to rise to her elbows. Her eyes opened, focused and widened. She gagged and scrambled backwards up the bed, pushing herself into the wall, where she began shrieking at the top of her voice.
“Demon, demon! Please … help me!”
The doctor rushed back to Lucy, along with two nurses hurrying from adjoining rooms. The nurses tried to hold the girl down as the doctor administered meds. The doctor said something to one of the nurses who practically ran to the door and shut it in their faces. Selena and Jenks faced each other, neither saying anything.
Behind the closed door, they heard Lucy’s shouts turned to sobs. The ruckus quieted abruptly, as they turned and left. Selena and Jenks went through the ward entrance and returned their passes to the disinterested guard.
“Well I guess that gives us something to work on, Commander,” Jenks said briskly and they retraced their steps. “Looks like you’ve a wolf in your midst. All we need to do now is track it down.”
“And exterminate it,” Selena concluded. “That’s a pelt I want on my wall, no matter what the cost or what the law has to say about it.”
***
“Are you certain of this?” Delmar asked in astonished disbelief
.
“As much as we can be, Ma’am,” Selena replied, Jenks nodding silently beside her.
“That’s … rather inconvenient.”
“Inconvenient, are you mad? People are dead!” Selena said, harshly. “We’ve no idea why these murders started, let alone why it’s children who are being chosen.”
“From what Lucy said, it’s quite clear that it’s someone from the regiments, probably a new arrival,” Jenks said, calmly. “Which would explain the why now. We can easily trace them, but we need to run a check on what they were sentenced for.”
“Could be anyone,” Selena replied. “Take me, for example.”
“Hardly,” Jenks replied. “You’ve been here many times, were born here, and there’s no record of such events during those periods—or any others while you were at other posts.”
“My God, you’ve checked me out, haven’t you!”
“It’s my job to be thorough, Commander. Someone of power, such as yourself, would in an ideal position. I know it’s not you; your sense of integrity also rules you out. Now, all that aside, the question is what time frame do we consider recent—a couple of months, maybe five or six? After all, whoever it is might not have started killing immediately.”
“I’ll look into it,” Delmar said. “Target all troopers who arrived three months prior to the first killing. If it is one of us, we need to find who and stop them, fast. Word will get out, no matter what we do, and soon. After all, people talk. Particularly civilians such as the medical staff, and we can’t have this disrupting our recent good press. The description Lucy gave fits all of us to a tee, so go find us our killer, Commander. Do whatever it takes.”
“In that case,” Selena said, “I need to check what those people were convicted of, personally. There might be a lead there and you’ve too much on your plate as it is. To do that I need your permission.”
“Ah, what you’re saying is that you want access to their personal records. That’s not the way we do things in the Regiments Commander, and you know that. Only the officer in charge of each unit, and their direct seniors, have access to the records of the troops under their command. Those are the rules.”