by Paul Collins
‘Keep your mind on the job.’
‘Very well. The platform may well be in stealth mode, in which case I will have –’
‘Great deal of difficulty in finding it.’
‘I was about to say that I’ll have to deploy an array of subtle and sophisticated search algorithms, including but not limited to the analysis of orbital perturbations of visible objects allowing for the deduction of a centre of mass projection around which both planet and OEP orbit in turn will allow for the deduction of the OEP’s position. Mind you, the hypothetical mass of the latter is by comparison so diminishingly small that a probability projection of success yields a figure of … I sense boredom.’
‘Your sensors are pretty sharp.’
‘You want me to continue?’
‘Just the executive summary.’
‘What a quaint expression. Okay. When I eventually locate and make my approach to this nearly invisible object, I will go into orbit about it, make all necessary scans, and launch the microprobe that will gain entry to the OEP and explore the internal environment. Both the microprobe and myself will send highly compressed encrypted data bursts back to you. In the event that either of us are discovered we will self destruct immediately.’ The device paused for a second. ‘Is that part really necessary?’
‘Not if you do your job properly.’
‘I see. How very human of you.’
‘You had better get going. My source seemed to think the platform was in an exactly reciprocal orbit to Reema’s End, so it’s over there someplace.’ Anneke pointed at the centre of the planet below. ‘Just find it.’
‘That’s all? Old Empire technology designed not to be found?’
‘Wow, AI wit. Does it serve any function at all? I have to go now. You do, too.’
The suitcase made a clicking noise and lifted off slowly, checking for passing traffic, then streaking away, heading for a higher orbit. It would track around the planet to a position roughly opposite Reema’s End, then start taking measurements.
Anneke was not looking forward to what came next. Lob Lotang was not a man to mess with and she would have to play a very delicate game if she was to come out of this alive, and free Deema into the bargain.
Worse, she had to thwart the mole’s plan to kill Lotang.
How did I end up between a hard vacuum and a needier, she wondered as she headed for the airlock.
Uncle Viktus had once said she had a natural talent for trouble. At the time she thought that most unfair. Now she wondered if he was right. She was also wondering what to do about her talent.
Once inside again Anneke deactivated the suit field and headed off through the maze of tunnels and corridors, making for the location where she had agreed to meet her escort. This would be a squad of Lotang’s hunkies, and they were sure to still be sore about her little raid on Arcadia. That might turn them into an execution squad, but she was hopefully still of too much value for that.
There were four of them, four grim silent figures waiting at a walkway café. Three men and a woman. They stood as she approached. The woman introduced herself as Alisk and, bristling with hostility, ran an e-pad scanner across Anneke’s features. She nodded when it beeped that Anneke was who she said she was. After a baleful stare Alisk turned away abruptly and led the group through the kind of maze that Maximus had been taken into some days earlier. Anneke did not bother with a retracker. If she wanted to find Lotang’s headquarters again she had other ways.
At a lost lonely spot they stopped suddenly and Anneke tensed. Were they intending to kill her outright, dumping her body from the nearest airlock?
‘What’s happening?’
‘Don’t get jumpy,’ muttered Alisk. ‘We have to scan you.’
‘You’ve scanned me already.’
‘In detail this time.’
For the next thirty minutes they ran every conceivable scan and check they could think of, even testing her DNA. She came up clean. Still Alisk was not happy. She stepped back and eyed Anneke with frank suspicion, her pupils small and flinty.
‘You’re clean,’ she said. ‘Maybe too clean.’
Anneke snorted impatiently. ‘Of course I’m clean, you think I’d come to a meeting like this loaded for bear? Whatever bear is.’
‘Some might.’
‘I’ve scrubbed my ears, already. I just want the girl back. That’s all. I don’t want trouble.’
‘That how you felt on Arcadia?’
Now she understood Alisk’s antagonism. ‘So, you were there?’
Alisk nodded. ‘Right on your tail. Nearly nailed it, too. You’re good. That worries me.’
Before Anneke could answer they were moving again. A short while later a dampener field was placed around her head. She could not see, hear or smell anything. It was an unsettling experience. No human being likes being cut off from all sensation for long, unless they’re a meditation master. It’s too much like death.
When the dampener came off Anneke was standing in an ornate, oblong-shaped room with a throne at one end. Two rows of black clad hunkies faced her, each pointing a nasty, barely legal variant of the needler at her.
I may be in the crossfire, but they are also pointing at each other, Anneke observed.
She watched as Alisk went to a bank of machinery in an alcove and fiddled with controls. No doubt they would record everything she said and analyse it later for nuance, subtle cues and clues. They would have a brainwave lie detector auditing her externally as well.
Either Alisk had sent a signal or Lotang was watching the proceedings from the safety of an adjoining room, because just as Alisk straightened up from the console the huge bronze doors at the end of the room swung inwards and a tall, well-built man entered. Robed like a monarch, his bald dark head was oiled and scented. Anneke had an urge to sneeze but suppressed it immediately.
Ignoring her, Lotang moved to the throne and sat down.
Megalomaniac, thought Anneke.
‘I want the girl,’ she said.
Lotang eyed her, his face expressionless. His profile said he could be unutterably cruel to his enemies but not merely for cruelty’s sake. At heart, Lotang was a canny businessman. He would not respond to threats but he might respond to a good business deal.
‘The –’ Anneke stopped, started again. ‘Nathaniel Brown wants you dead. He sent me here to kill you.’ The weapons pointed at her became rigid. Bad moment.
‘You tell me this? Here on my ground? Surrounded by my people? You have hru hruhh.’ It was a compliment.
Anneke smiled. Being female, she did not technically have hru hruhh. The phrase was of alien origin, but she got the idea.
‘So you didn’t come to kill me, or at least not willingly?’ Lotang continued.
‘All I want is the girl, Deema. Brown has his own agenda.’
‘I know Nathaniel Brown and I know something of his agenda. He tried to kill me but failed. He paid a small price for this attempt. However, I believe the books are being balanced as we speak.’
A gleam came into Lotang’s eye and Anneke wondered at his rumoured cruelty. His calculated cruelty. Never personal of course, just ‘good for business’. Maybe her account against the mole was being settled for her.
Lotang cocked his head like an inquisitive bird. ‘You hate Brown with great passion. What did he take from you?’
‘My uncle, the last of my family.’ The words flowed out like lava, slow and hot, viscous hatred.
Lotang’s eyes flickered towards Alisk who gave a subtle signal back, repositioning her body as if changing posture. There’s more going on here than just a simple exchange, thought Anneke. I must be more careful, not let my emotions take control again. Be calm, watchful, wait for the moment when all becomes clear…
The mantra of her training soothed her. She relaxed, organised her breathing. All good things come to those who wait. Wait as the big cats of the jungle worlds waited. The RIM Instructor-Mystics called it ‘the inward time’ and ‘the waiting moment’, t
hough it might last hours or weeks, or a lifetime.
‘So he made you an orphan.’ It was not a question, more an evaluation. The dark eyes regarded her with a mathematical quality, as if they were adding up numbers. ‘And you do not wish to see me dead?’
‘I do not wish to see you dead at the hands of Brown, in the service of his plans, whatever they are.’
‘But if I had an aneurism right now and died, you would not weep?’
‘I have no feelings for you, one way or another.’
‘Why did you steal from me on Arcadia?’ The words suddenly leaped out at her.
Anneke permitted herself the tiniest shrug. ‘That was just business. You know how it is, you would have done the same.’
Lotang eyed her a moment then suddenly burst out laughing, slapping his thighs. ‘Hah! Just business! I like that.’ Anneke breathed out. She had calculated correctly. The man loved bravado.
‘The girl –?’ He signalled for Anneke to come closer. As she did so she felt a twitching in her nose where the mole had surgically implanted an ejector capsule containing the second part of the symbiotic poison. The twitch had to be psychosomatic. The ejector could not be activated until she pressed the side of her nose. She had checked that. She had no intention of doing so, as long as she got Deema back.
‘How were you meant to kill me?’
Anneke told him, blunt and truthful. Immediately three hunkies stepped forward and shackled her hands to a waist restraint. Now she could not activate the ejector, even if she’d wanted to. She sighed. No matter. She did not want to kill this man anyway – perhaps because she found herself liking him; he reminded her of Uncle Viktus.
Lotang had sat forward on his throne during her shackling. Now he sat back, partly satisfied. ‘I am aware,’ he said, ‘that RIM agents are well trained and extraordinarily … flexible. Some are even double-jointed I believe. Should you attempt any acrobatic feat, whether or not it results in the activation of the ejector, you will be instantly vaporised. Do we have an understanding?’
‘Obviously, Lotang.’
Lob smiled again. ‘Good, I think we can do business.’ He signalled one of the hunkies, who disappeared for a few moments then reappeared with Deema. Anneke’s heart leapt at the sight of the little girl, who broke free of the restraining hand and raced across the room to her, dodging the hunkies who tried to grab her. She flung herself at Anneke and hugged her tightly. Lotang waved off his men.
‘I knew you’d come for me,’ Deema whispered through tears. Anneke’s face was wet as she bent down to kiss the child’s head.
Then Anneke sneezed.
It was utterly and totally involuntary. Deema had obviously been spiked with an actuator. Brown! Anneke cursed mentally. He’s left nothing to chance.
There was a soft gasp from Alisk. Then, in a weird slow motion, as if her senses had sped up enormously and everyone in the room had correspondingly slowed down, the scramble started. Alisk and two other bodyguards grabbed Lotang and hustled him out of the room. Blowers came on at full force, sucking out the air in the room and instantly replacing it. Techies appeared, taking air samples, scanning those present, hunting for every imaginable germ. And all the while a regiment of guns pointed at Anneke, fingers twitching above tabs.
Anneke made Deema stand apart. She did not think Lotang would harm either of them, but an attempt on one’s life can sour the best of relationships.
At one point Alisk came back. She marched up to Anneke and slapped her, hard. Anneke did not flinch but stared straight back, steely eyed.
‘Did you activate the ejector?’
‘Negative.’
‘You checked it out before coming here?’
‘Affirmative.’
‘And it was in manual model?’
Anneke nodded.
‘So the sneeze was accidental?’
‘I doubt it.’
‘Pardon? What did you say?’
‘I said I doubt it.’ She knew she had to keep Deema out of the frame. ‘Reviewing my profile on Brown, it now seems to me unlikely that he would trust me to willingly follow through with his scheme. Perhaps he modified the device to be triggered when it detected the molecular signature of the first half of the symbiotic poison.’
‘You only realise this now?’
‘My apologies,’ said Anneke. ‘You missed it, too.’ She shot a look at Deema, looking quickly away again.
Noting the look, Alisk spat furiously at Anneke’s feet. She leaned close. ‘I hope he kills you.’
Turning on her heel, she stalked out of the room.
An hour later she and Lotang reappeared. He seemed shrunken, older, as he walked stiffly to his throne and sat down. He motioned for the shackles restraining Anneke to be removed, then ordered everyone from the room.
Everyone except Anneke, Deema and Alisk.
‘It seems,’ said Lotang and his voice had sunk by an octave, ‘that you have been telling the truth.’ He paused, then continued. ‘A dangerous thing, the truth. Often mistaken for something else.’
‘You’re letting us go?’
‘I’m thinking about it. Killing Rimmers attracts the unwelcome attention of RIM, not to mention the annoying Sentinels. Not sure which are worse.’
Anneke almost smiled. Describing Sentinels as annoying was like describing killer sharks as irritating.
‘What about –?’
‘I have been poisoned,’ Lotang said flatly. ‘And you have been the vehicle of my death. My doctors tell me that the two halves of the symbiotic poison have already started to establish molecular bonds. Shortly they will start producing proteins. Nasty ones, I have no doubt. As far as they can tell I probably have about an hour to live, perhaps less.’
‘Can’t they do something?’
Lotang shrugged. ‘Designer poisons … it would take days of analysis just to model the base molecule, then several hours of supercomputer time to identify the active mechanism within the poison’s genome.’
‘I had no way of knowing. I’m sorry.’
‘Yes. Puzzling as it, you probably are. My enceph-aloscanner tells me that. Lies can be shielded, even the truth can be missed, but not emotional truth.’ He glanced at Deema. ‘Emotional truth shines through all the training and obfuscations like a supernova through a galactic dust field.’
‘What will you do now?’
Lotang emitted a bitter bark of laughter. ‘Make my peace with my Creator. And maybe send you on a little errand.’
‘Your errand is the same as mine.’
‘So I thought.’
‘But there’s something I need.’
‘Information.’
Anneke nodded. Lotang stared at her thoughtfully for a moment.
‘Well, why not?’ he murmured, almost to himself. He straightened a little in his chair, as if a touch of purpose had come back into his life. ‘Here’s what I know. It isn’t much. Brown has only told me what he wants me and other … members to know.’
‘The other members of the Majoris Corporata?
Lotang grinned wolfishly, throwing up his hands in mock horror. ‘Have we no secrets?’
Beside him, Alisk didn’t look amused. Anneke guessed that if Lotang died before he set them free then they would not be going anywhere – at least not anywhere on this plane of existence.
Lotang continued. ‘Brown is seeking the lost coordinates of –’
‘The Old Empire weapon caches.’
‘Excellent, Anneke. You really should go to the top of your class. However, what you do not know is that the coordinates were broken down into three parts nearly a thousand years ago and hidden in obscure parts of the galaxy. Brown has advanced to finding the first of these parts. He suspects the location of the second. For his own reasons – reasons unknown to me – he moves slowly in this matter. Perhaps he wishes to make proper preparation for the moment when he might have the most powerful collection of weaponry ever seen in the universe.’
‘And what will he do with them when
he has them?’
‘I think he will sell the arsenal off piecemeal to the highest bidders. But he will be very careful. If war starts, it will damage his interests, too. He must ensure that while a balance of power is maintained, that it be ever so slightly lopsided. Just enough to give us the illusion that we have the upper hand, if we were ever to act pre-emptively. Were we to act …’
‘It would mean war.’
‘For a very long time.’
‘Nobody could win such a war.’
‘Brown could, but only if it were started with exquisite care.’
Anneke then saw the beauty of the plan. History showed that when the makers of war did not profit from the chaos and carnage, those in business always did. The business tycoons only had to sit back and pick up the pieces.
‘There’s more, isn’t there?’
‘Brown has obtained an obscure virus cultured from an inhabitant of the planet Arachnor, which circles a K-type star sixteen light years from here. Arachnor has been interdicted for centuries, no one now knows why. In its heyday, when the Old Empire ruled with an iron fist and a disruptor beam, Arachnor was a supply base. Nothing more. Why is planet of interest to Brown? Who can tell? Certainly, the Sentinels have enforced the interdiction with a single-mindedness that makes the old imperial cruelty seem like child’s play.’
He’s holding back, Anneke thought.
Lotang paused. ‘Speaking of children, you should get this one home to bed. She has been through a lot.’ He turned to Deema. ‘I’m sorry if we scared you, child. It was not my intention.’
‘We can go now?’
Lotang opened his mouth to speak but a commotion at the back of the room distracted him. A techie pushed his way into the room, rebuking a hunkie who tried to stop him.
‘Rofe,’ snapped Lotang. ‘I gave strict instructions not to be disturbed.’
Anneke could tell Rofe was a scientist. He had a typical intellectual trait: to be oblivious to personal danger. Sometimes this quality saved their lives. Sometimes it got them killed, but perhaps it was an evolutionary process.
‘Yes, yes, I know,’ Rofe said impatiently, dismissing the idea with a wave of his hands. ‘But this could not wait.’