What Tomorrow May Bring

by Tony Bertauski

  Sigrid targeted the fleeing ship. It was already at a tremendous distance and retreating fast. She took a quick moment to calculate its evasive patterns and set her ordnance for proximity detonations before firing. The ballistic rounds covered the distance between the ships quickly and Sigrid watched the flares from the series of explosions. The ship was gone. Whoever they were, whoever they had been, they would bring no harm to her or her friends again.

  Safe for the moment, she pulled herself out of the pod and headed back to the bridge.

  Selene turned as she came in. “Nice shooting.”

  “Nice flying,” Sigrid said, returning the compliment.

  Selene turned back to the small monitor mounted on her chair and brought the tactical display back up on the main viewer. “The next part might be a little trickier,” she said.

  Sigrid could see the Morrigan’s position as it moved quickly away from the Earth toward the Warp Relay. Still millions of kilometers away, but moving to block their path, were fourteen CTF naval ships ranging in size from light Corvettes to heavy Cruisers. The wall of ordnance they could put up was far more than even a nimble ship like hers could dodge.

  “Shit,” Sigrid said.

  Helped by Karen, Lady Hitomi emerged in the doorway of the bridge. “I might be able to help with that,” she said as Karen eased her into one of the little jump seats in the back.

  Selene nodded. “This might call for more of a diplomatic solution.”

  Hitomi raised an eyebrow. “Oh? I had something a little more radical in mind.” She gestured to the console at her side. “With your permission…?”

  “Of course,” Selene said.

  Hitomi’s fingers danced over the console while Sigrid and Selene watched over her shoulder.

  “What the hell is that?” Selene asked.

  Almost embarrassed, Hitomi looked at Sigrid. “I hope you don’t mind, but I had my people make a few modifications while we were on Aquarii. I meant to tell you…”

  Sigrid studied the new schematics and smiled.

  “This is my own design,” Hitomi said. “I’m sure you’ll all understand why I need you to sign a nondisclosure agreement once we’re out of this pickle.”

  “You’re joking,” Selene said, laughing, but when she saw that Hitomi was serious she closed her mouth.

  “Not even my Board knows about this. If this works—”

  “If?” Selene asked.

  “Well, it’s never been tested.”

  Sigrid looked at the monitor; they’d be in weapons range in moments. “Whatever you’re going to do, do it fast—Mistress…”

  Hitomi chuckled and activated the new system she’d installed. It was a variation of the same stealth systems that she’d given to Sigrid, but on a much larger scale. The Morrigan became virtually invisible, both to the eye and to any tracking devices the opposing ships might employ against them.

  “Nice trick,” Selene said, suitably impressed. “So, now we just drift through their ranks?”

  “Yes—but you’d best shut down the drives. I’m not sure how the shielding will affect that.”

  Selene nodded and disengaged the main thrusters. The ship grew eerily silent.

  Sigrid watched the CTF ships trawling this way and that, searching for her ship. “They’re firing,” she said.

  “Do they see us?” Karen asked, worried.

  Sigrid studied the pattern and shook her head. “No—they’re guessing. They’re just trying to cover our path, hoping to get lucky.”

  The stealth systems that Lady Hitomi had employed worked perfectly and within minutes the Morrigan had drifted safely between the blockading ships, slipping harmlessly past the plethora of mines they had laid.

  “I am so glad I took this job,” Selene declared with a jubilant smile.

  When they deactivated their cloak, Sigrid saw all the CTF ships moving quickly to pursue, but it was too late; the Morrigan and her crew were safely away with nothing between them and the Warp Relay.

  “Course?” Selene asked.

  “Aquarii,” Hitomi told her. “We must warn the Board of these developments. It’s a shame we lost the evidence you stole from the CTF offices. I just hope they’ll listen to reason.”

  “I still have the one partial message,” Sigrid said, tapping her head. “I never deleted it.”

  “That’s something, at least. With the facilities on Aquarii, I should be able to finish reconstructing it. With luck, we’ll uncover the truth to all of this.”

  As they blasted toward the relay, Sigrid couldn’t ignore the feeling of worry and dread she felt growing within her. They were definitely caught in the middle of a whole new war. And what of her friends on Alcyone? What of Suko? Would they be able to protect them—warn them in time—or were they already too late?

  Hitomi saw the look on her face. “Don’t worry, Sigrid. We’ll go to Alcyone. But we’ll go in strength. I will convince the Board of the need to send a sufficient force this time. I won’t let anything happen to any of them.”

  Chapter 17

  Independents

  May 2, 2348

  Naked, bruised and bloodied, with wrists and ankles bound, Karl Tarsus was dragged down the narrow steps into the damp corridor below. There were several puddles on the moist floor and the place stank of mildew and sweat. They hauled him into an open room at the end. Rough hands deposited him on a small wooden chair that creaked and threatened to collapse under his weight.

  It took great effort, but Tarsus lifted his head, looking up at them from beneath the swollen lids of his eyes.

  So, this is it, he thought. They finally got him. And then he laughed. They. ‘They’ could have been one of a hundred people or organizations. How many contracts had he taken over the years? How many people had he angered? How many people had he killed…

  Of all the people who could have walked through the door, the last person he thought it would be was Smith, but that’s exactly who it was. Tarsus would recognize that thin face, those narrow eyes anywhere.

  Smith. His most generous benefactor—the man responsible for his demise. This time he had a woman with him; someone he didn’t recognize. She appeared to be in her fifties, but she seemed odd, out of place; she had the look of an academic, hardly a military type. What she was doing with him, he could only guess.

  “You…” Tarsus said. His voice was dry and rasped, like metal grating.

  Smith nodded to the guards, who untied him and tossed him a grubby blanket. Someone handed him a cup of water which he drank from thirstily.

  “Glad you could make it, Mr. Tarsus. It’s been a long time.”

  Tarsus drained the cup and glared at him. “What’s the meaning of this? Why have you brought me here?”

  “I couldn’t take the chance that someone could trace you here to me. Not now.”

  Tarsus stared at him in disbelief. “Then this…this is just…”

  “I have a job for you, Karl. Whatever else would we be here to discuss.”

  Karl gaped at him a long moment and then laughed, a huge belly laugh. Then, the menace returned to his eyes. “Work for you? I’ll kill you.”

  “That would serve neither of us. Besides, who pays you better than I do? Let’s save time and dispense with the games.” Smith threw a pad onto Tarsus’ lap; displayed there were the details of a new contract, and for a staggering sum of money.

  “This…this is enough to buy a ship—four ships. And not just haulers—the real frontline jobs.”

  “More than that, I’d wager.”

  Tarsus was tempted by the money. He was completely broke. But, he also remembered how the last job for the man had gone. Smith had completely failed to give him proper intel on his targets. That group of girls had turned out to be a highly trained group of…he wasn’t even sure what to call them. They’d acted like Spec-Ops, but they were wild, fearless. They had taken apart his best men like they were a bunch of recruits. Worse, his men had let themselves be captured, killed. Evidence had been left
, and his organization had been fingered in the operation. His mercenary group had been devastated by fines and sanctions from the CTF. Tarsus had been completely ostracized from the guild.

  Smith had ruined him, and now the man wanted him to work for him again.

  “If I remember correctly,” Tarsus said. “The last job we did together didn’t exactly go swimmingly.”

  “Granted. Things could have gone better.”

  “Better? We failed—we didn’t retrieve any of the girls.”

  “Fortunately, where your organization failed…” Smith gestured to the woman next to him, “…Ms. Kirk here has succeeded.”

  Tarsus eyed the woman. He’d never heard of her. “Then you don’t need me.”

  “You sell yourself short, Karl. I’ve always found your service satisfactory. I see no reason to terminate our relationship.”

  “You destroyed my organization, and now you want me to—”

  “Rebuild it. Double it. You’re going back to work, Major.”

  Major—now he was spouting rank…

  Tarsus couldn’t figure out the man’s game, but the money… “If I start buying up ships now, people are going to start asking questions.”

  “I would imagine.”

  Tarsus studied him carefully and then laughed heartily as he put his thumb to the contract. “Don’t you think it’s time you told me your name?”

  * * *

  Suko woke up. Her head throbbed and it took several minutes for her vision to clear. What had they done to her? They’d hit her with something, but it wasn’t like anything she’d felt before. The blast had thudded into her in the chest like a mallet, scrambling all her systems and frying her PCM. She searched for it now, but all access was gone. She couldn’t locate any of her systems, not even her most basic bionics.

  Suko surveyed her surroundings. She was lying on the cold metal floor of a small room. She didn’t know where she was, but she was sure it wasn’t any room in the Academy or Annex. Her wrists and ankles were bound and her clothes had been taken away, leaving her only with her underwear.

  “Suko!”

  Suko rolled over to discover Khepri and Lei-Fei sitting behind her with their backs up against the wall. They were also trussed at wrist and ankle.

  “Thank God you’re alive!” Khepri said.

  Suko could see they’d both been crying. Their eyes were red, dark; half-circles lined their eyes. “You got hit so hard—we thought you were dead.”

  Suko hauled herself up next to Khepri as best she could. She tried to scan herself to see how badly she was hurt, but she still couldn’t access any of her systems. “My PCM…” Suko said; her voice cracking dry as she tried to speak.

  “It’s fried, but it’ll reboot when it resets,” Lei-Fei said. “At least, it did for us.”

  “Where are the others?”

  Khepri and Lei-Fei looked to each other. Lei-Fei spoke first. “Mei, Petra, Leia…they’re dead. The others…”

  “They took them,” Khepri said, fear in her words. “Suko…they…did something to them.”

  Who were they? Suko wondered. “Where are we?”

  Both girls shook their heads. “We don’t know,” Lei-Fei said. “We definitely dropped through a relay, but where…”

  They listened to the footsteps coming down the corridor outside; The two girls recoiled in fear, and she, too, slunk back against the wall. A face appeared in the grated opening near the top of the door. Two eyes studied her for a moment, then the face disappeared; the footsteps diminished into the echoes until all was quiet.

  Suko looked frantically about the small room looking for any means of escape. She struggled to her feet, not easy with her ankles bound and her hands tied behind her back. There was nothing in the room but a small bucket—used, from the smell of it. Suko threw her weight against the door, but it was completely solid.

  “It’s no use,” Khepri said. “We tried.”

  Stubbornly, she threw herself against it repeatedly until her shoulder was bruised and sore.

  The footsteps returned—more this time. And there was something about them, something familiar, the same heavy sounds she’d heard during the attack.

  The door rattled and swung open. Three people stood before her. Two were soldiers, dressed in their heavy mechanized armor, leveling assault rifles. The smaller of the two removed her helmet, shaking her hair loose and staring at Suko through narrow eyes.

  Suko’s eyes widened in shock. It was impossible. “Sara…”

  “Hello, Suko,” she said.

  Suko couldn’t believe it. The girl was alive, free—and armed—wearing the same armor as the soldiers who had attacked them. Sara was with them?

  Another man stood to her side. He looked to be in his late twenties, with jet-black hair. His eyes explored her carefully, strangely. He stepped toward her, but Suko recoiled from his outstretched hand, falling back against the wall away from him. But his eyes…Suko thought. There was something…

  “Suko…”

  “Who the fuck are you?” Her parched words came out as a croak.

  “Get some water,” the young man snapped at the guards. “And, godammit—bring back her clothes.” His face and voice were firm and commanding. He looked back at her, apologetically. “I’m so sorry about this, Suko. But I’m glad you’re here.”

  It seemed impossible. It had been so long…It couldn’t be. Could it?

  “Riku…?”

  Riku, Suko’s brother, smiled. “You do remember.”

  Suko stumbled back. Her older brother, Riku. She’d barely known him—he’d left when she was so young. How is this possible? He can’t be…She couldn’t believe it. “Riku…what are you doing here? Where are the girls…?”

  Riku held his hands up. “I’ll explain everything. I promise. You just have to trust me.”

  Suko gestured to her bound wrists and ankles, at Khepri and Lei-Fei, who looked so frightened. “Let us go. Then I’ll trust you.”

  “I can’t. Not yet. But I will. I promise.”

  Another man appeared, accompanied by two more of the armored troopers. He carried a bundle of clothes for them. Suko was given water. One by one, they were untied and allowed to dress, before their wrists were bound once more.

  “Take that one,” Sara said, pointing to Lei-Fei.

  “What?” Suko cried.

  “No!” Lei-Fei cried, shrinking away from them, but the bound girls were no match for the soldiers in their powered armor. They dragged Lei-Fei out, kicking and screaming. Khepri jumped on one of the hulking figures, but he easily beat her back down. Suko kicked at Sara, cracking her shin against the hard shell of her armor, and then fell backwards as Sara smacked her hard on the head with the butt of her gun.

  And then Lei-Fei was gone. Khepri and Suko lay bruised and beaten on the floor of their cell.

  Suko glared up at her brother and Sara, anger clouding her eyes. “Don’t you hurt her.”

  Riku didn’t respond.

  Suko’s heart pounded. “What are you going to do to her?”

  “I’m only trying to help. You’re a slave, Suko. You just don’t know it.”

  “They’ve programmed you, Suko,” Sara said. “They did it to us all.”

  “I’m going to help you,” Riku said. “We’re going to set you free.”

  “You’re mad,” Suko spat.

  “You don’t know what they’re capable of. You don’t know what they’ve done.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  Riku held up his hands, imploring. “You can’t know what it’s like out there, Suko. Tens of billions living in abject poverty, starving, while the Federation grows fat. With each planet the CTF opens up, with all its resources, you’d think that there would be some relief, but it just gets worse. More wealth for the rich, more crippling debt for the rest of us.” Riku shook his head and laughed, the tired laugh of a cynic. “And all of us so willing, so eager to sell ourselves, our children—to the very people who cre
ated the problem.”

  “He’s telling the truth,” Sara said.

  “When our parents sold you…when they took you…I knew I had to do something.”

  Suko couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “You? You’re responsible for this?”

  “Not myself alone, no. There are many of us. And we’re going to stop them, Suko. We can do it together. With your help…we can put an end to this. We can make some real change.”

  Suko turned her eyes to Khepri, bruised and bleeding, to her own bruises and the restraints on her wrists. “You attack us, you kill my friends…now you say this is to help us?”

  “I’m sorry, Suko. That was…regrettable.”

  “Let us go,” Suko pleaded.

  “I can’t. Not yet. But I will. When it’s time.”

  * * *

  Riku closed the door and turned to the man at his side. “Satisfied?” he asked, not hiding the disgust in his voice.

  Riku stood before his compatriots, Nicola Kirk and Dr. Joseph Farrington, in Nicola’s makeshift office in the hastily assembled facility. Nicola had discovered the abandoned mining operation years ago during her work in the Records Office for the CTF.

  Like everyone there, Nicola bore the marks of exhaustion. Dr. Farrington was lost in his calculations, his face locked on the monitor before him.

  Nicola sat on the edge of her desk. She was only in her fifties, nearing middle-age, but her duties with the movement didn’t exactly lend themselves to eating right and taking care of herself. It was starting to show. Still, she had a strong face and carried herself with the confident air of command. She’d proven herself capable time and again, and had risen to become one of the principal architects of the movement against the Federation and its ruling Council.

  “Dammit, Joseph—you stink,” Nicola told him.

  Farrington didn’t bother to look up. “Find me some decent water and I’ll shower.”

  Nicola folded her arms and turned her attention back to Riku. “You’re doing the right thing, Riku. After what they did to her, your sister will be better off. I promise.”

  Riku paced, uneasily. “She’s not what I expected.”

  “Of course she’s not. Look what they’ve done to her—she’s as good as grown up in a cult. Who knows what kind of crap they’ve subjected her to.”