Galactic Assimilation 2:: Empire Rising

by J. K. Mabrey

  "I might know more than you, but I'm not at liberty to discuss it," he said.

  "Why am I not surprised?" Zavik asked.

  "I wouldn't worry too much about it," the General said. "You only have one more delivery to make, and then your job is complete."

  "I worry when those same ships attack me," Zavik said.

  The General's face turned from a forced half smile to a genuine sullen frown. "You sure they were the same ships?"

  "Yes," Zavik said. "The Ascachi confirmed that the ships that attacked us over Rashala were the same ones that destroyed their competitor's power core factory. They were frightened of them coming to Urloth."

  "That is disturbing. I wish I could provide some information for you, but I can't. Truth be told, I don't have any information about the attacks or what they targeted."

  Zavik didn't want to believe him, but he made no inclination that he was lying or hiding anything. There was no use getting mad at a soldier following orders. Revealing classified information, no matter how trivial or unimportant it might really be, is grounds for court-martial. He couldn't blame him. Being court-martialed was no fun, and he had the experience to prove it. "Then I guess we should be moving on. I'd hate to keep the colonists waiting any longer."

  "Right," he said. He took Zavik by the shoulder and turned him away from the soldier that were standing behind him. He whispered, "Look, you're ahead of schedule, and that's great for us, but the equipment you're going to get, it won't do us much good to get it a few days early. So take your time."

  "What are getting at?" Zavik asked.

  "I'm just saying, if there's something you have to take care of before getting to the equipment, it will go unnoticed. I would think the Councilor would be interested in hearing about your attack."

  "Councilor Hains?"

  "She's found little support in taking these attacks seriously. Your interaction could help her sway some of the other Councilors."

  Zavik wanted to meet with the Councilor ever since they were attacked. He hoped, probably in vain he realized, that she would tell them what else was attacked so they could see if there was a correlation. He was putting Garos first, but now he had an opening to see her. Next, he would need permission from his crew. The farm equipment would be the easiest he told himself, there was no need to hurry.

  Zavik said, "Thanks," and shook the General's hand. "I appreciate your understanding."

  "Just don't get too distracted," the General said. "We still need that equipment."

  The Rinada was unloaded and they went back inside. Dani asked, "What did he say?"

  "I'll tell you when we get off the system," he said to her.

  She didn't look too happy with that answer but made the preparations to take off while he gathered Brax and Charra in the living area. Rudy plugged into an outlet in the room and stood against the wall, still listening, as always. Dani set the autopilot to keep the ship in orbit over Garos when they reached space and joined them.

  "What's all this about?" Charra asked.

  "Did the General give you a safe place to get the farm equipment?" Dani asked.

  "Not exactly," Zavik said.

  "What then?" Brax asked.

  Zavik hesitated and said, "He has some reservations about the mystery attacks, same as we do."

  "Does he know anything about them?" Dani asked.

  "No," he paused, "but he did suggest that we contact Councilor Hains."

  "What!" Charra said. "He wants us to talk to the human councilor?"

  "After we finish the final order, right?" Brax asked.

  "Actually, he said that we're well ahead of schedule," Zavik said. "We can afford to take a couple of days even."

  "Is that smart?" Brax asked.

  "Brax is right," Dani said. "We don't know how long it will take to get the farm equipment. Is it smart to risk missing the deadline, just to talk to her?"

  "That's why I brought us all together," Zavik said. "I want us to decide, not me. The General thinks she will have more information on the attacks. He seemed quite bothered by the fact that we were attacked by the same ships, but I don't think he knew anything that would be helpful. If we can talk to the Councilor we might be able to bring some closure to this problem."

  "But it's not our problem," Charra said. "So they attacked us, I say it's just coincidence. I don't see why we should waste any more time on it. Maybe after we finish the job at hand I could see wasting a day going to Cedona."

  "What about you, Brax? How do you feel about taking a detour?"

  "On principle, I agree with Charra, but something tells me there's more going on than just a coincidence. I don't like it, and the Councilor might be able to shed some light on what's going on. I'm quite curious as to why a group attacking the Galaxy also came after us."

  Zavik looked at Dani. She was leaned up against the doorway leading to the cockpit. Her foot was tapping the floor rhythmically. Her arms were folded and her face was tight. "Dani?" he asked in a low whisper as if only adding a drop of vinegar would quell the eruption he expected.

  "One day?" she asked.

  He relaxed. "It won't take that long to see her."

  "Fine," she said in a flat tone. "We can take one day, but if she doesn't give us anything more than just pirate ships wrecking havoc, we drop it. We finish Garos, and move on. We forget about it."

  He agreed that would be best. "Ok," he said.

  "So I'm setting a course for Cedona?" she asked.

  "Yes," Zavik said.

  "Doesn't Rudy get a vote?" Charra asked. "I don't want to be the only dissenting vote in the group."

  "I don't think Rudy can make a judgment on this," Brax said.

  "Based on the information I have," Rudy suddenly said, "we have a ninety-three percent chance of delivering the supplies to Garos within the two-week timeframe laid out. If we take one day to delay such attempts to secure the supplies, the percentage of success drops to ninety-one percent. That is an acceptable risk if the alternative is indeed truly important but I have no relevant data on that."

  "So you think it's ok to go to Cedona?" Brax asked.

  "My programming would seem to agree with that statement," Rudy said.

  "So you are the only dissenting vote," Brax said.

  "Great, even the robot from Garos thinks it's all right to put the job off," Charra said.

  "Sorry, Charra," Zavik said.

  "Ehh, majority rules," he said, "the way it should be. Well, let's get a move on. If there's something to all of this, we should figure it out fast."

  "Agreed," Zavik said.

  Chapter 16

  Zavik stared out the window in Councilor Hains's waiting room. Cedona, known throughout the Galaxy as the Galactic Center, was as active as ever. It had taken them almost two hours to navigate through the towers of space traffic and find a landing platform near the Council offices. Apparently, there was a hotly debated topic the Council was set to vote on and dignitaries from all over the Galaxy had flown in to try and sway the vote to their side.

  The sun was just rising over the vast city, Eturyn, that housed the Galactic Council. Small ships and speeders flew past the guarded window. Important people, diplomats, and ambassadors were all headed for their early morning meetings. There was always much to do on Cedona in order to keep the Galaxy moving.

  They had only been back to Cedona once since the Red Moon Rebellion threatened to plunge the Galaxy into a full-scale war, something he didn't think the Galaxy was at all prepared for then, much less now. He found Cedona to be way too uptight and busy for his liking. How anyone not affiliated with the Council or Galactic matters could stand to live in such a turbulent place escaped him. It was exciting, sure, but just not his kind of excitement. Fancy parties and ceremonies, taking in exotic theater shows and trudging through countless museums were not what he had in mind when he wanted a good time. Granted, not many would consider watching dashball matches in an old dive bar to be exciting, but to each his own, he thought.

>   He looked at Dani and nodded to a clock on the wall. It had been forty-five minutes since they arrived in her office. At this rate, they would waste a whole day trying to just talk to her. The Councilor was willing, she even sounded a little excited, to receive them as guests, but she was obviously preoccupied.

  The Council was near to adopting a resolution to increase fees, yet again, on the use of portals. The reduced demand for portals from the development of lightdrives had hurt revenues. While the funds were supposed to only be used to repair and maintain the portals, the Council had long been raiding the funds to cover other expenses. The Galactic citizens had disliked this practice for a long time and finally started demanding the Council pass a law to only use the funds appropriately. Councilor Hains brought a bill requiring such restrictions before the Council but was blindsided by a competing bill to integrate the portal funds with the general funds permanently, as well as to increase the fee.

  The competing bill had received large support from the Rovun and Farlin delegates, as well as the Bacarians. Many of the shipping corporations supported the bill as well, and their donations proved it. Councilor Hains was meeting with a member of the Alliance for Interstellar Shippers, a loose affiliation of legitimate shippers based on Cedona, to understand their support. It was simple really, they had invested heavily in lightdrives, and so no longer relied on the portals for most of their needs. An increase in fees would not hurt their profits, and if the fees were to go to the general fund, there could be a corporate tax break in it for them as well.

  The door to her office opened and a handsome Iriquios walked out. "I do hope you understand my position in this, ma'am," he said.

  "I do," the Councilor replied. "I will still try and pass my resolution, but understand that you can not support it. I appreciate your time."

  "As I do yours." The Iriquious left the office, hardly glancing at Zavik and the others.

  "Sarah, please send in the next...Oh, Zavik, Dani, Brax," she said noticing them waiting, "you're the next appointment?"

  "I hope so," Zavik said forcing a smile out.

  "I'm so sorry, it's been a busy day already."

  "It's not even, what, eight yet?" Zavik said.

  "And that was my third meeting on this bill," she said. "Please, please, do come in."

  They entered her office. Councilor Hains wore a stark white robe befitting a distinguished Council member. Her hair was straightened and her head adorned with an ornamental gold tiara. She stuck Zavik as more refined and authoritative than he remembered as an Ambassador. He forced back the urge to bow. She had grown comfortable in her role and it showed in her confidence.

  In her office, a large window at the back overlooked the Council Chambers. It was crawling with aliens. An L-shaped desk was nestled in the corner. The Councilor sat behind it. Chairs in front invited the others to sit as well. Her computer terminal lit up upon her sitting. Her scheduled meetings appeared and multicolored meeting tabs littered the screen. Zavik noticed only a fifteen minute break period in mid-morning. She waved a hand in disgust and it disappeared.

  "We really do appreciate you taking the time to talk to us," Zavik said.

  "Of course," she said. "I could hardly say no to you. So," she looked at Charra and Rudy and said, "who are your friends?"

  "This is Charra, he joined us about a year and a half ago."

  "Pleasure to meet you," he said in as calm a tone as Zavik had ever heard and took a seat. "They talk very highly of you. You seem to make a very good Councilor, for a human."

  She smiled briefly and blushed at the sideways compliment. She said, "That is very kind of you to say, but if it wasn't for them I would not even be here. I see you have a robot as well. What is his name?"

  "My name is Rudy," he said to the Councilor.

  "He's Rudy," Zavik echoed.

  "Where did you get him?" she asked.

  "General Walters thought it would be helpful for us to have," Zavik said.

  "And you have been, haven't you, Rudy?" Dani asked.

  "It is my function to serve," he replied. "My current designated master is Zavik Khan, though most requests oddly come from Dani Khan."

  "Dani Khan?" the Councilor asked. "So you two tied the knot?"

  "That we did," Zavik said, his cheeks flushed ever so slightly.

  "Almost three years ago," Dani said with a smile stretched wide.

  "Congratulations, I'm sure it was wonderful. How are you doing?"

  "I think we're good," Zavik said glancing at Dani. The sunlight flooding into the office bathed her in a golden coat. She was as beautiful as ever

  "Yeah," Dani added, "we are."

  "Good," Councilor Hains said. "And how has business been?" Her voice softened on the word business. She knew what their business sometimes entailed.

  "It's been...better," Zavik said.

  "I heard you found yourself in a little bit of trouble on Zalif," she said.

  "You did?" Mike must have told her, he thought.

  "Yes, from Admiral Snyder. He reported back after you accepted the Garos job, and gave me a little briefing."

  "So you authorized us to get the contract?" Zavik asked.

  "Oh, no, no," she said holding her hands up. "I'm afraid I had nothing to do with that decision. Admiral Snyder wanted to hire you but was worried about the pushback he might get from higher-ups. I just assured him that he would get no pushback."

  "How did you do that?" Zavik asked.

  "I made it known that anyone with a problem hiring you would be doing a tour of duty on Hulth. And no one wants to be stationed on Hulth. Hot, miserable, nothing to see or do for six months to a year. When it came time to make the decision, no one objected." She shrugged.

  "Wow," he said.

  "Yes," Dani added, "we really appreciate the confidence."

  "Of course," Councilor Hains said. "So, how is it going?"

  "It's going," Zavik said, shaking his head. "We've delivered a cargo load of food and just finished dropping off a supply of power cores."

  "Ahh, that is good," she said. "I know the colonists will appreciate some fresh food, something different than the military rations, and power cores," she seemed to hesitate on the words, "they're definitely important for the colony to survive."

  "Yes..." Zavik said. "They were particularly tough to find."

  "Oh, really?" she asked, her voice inflections not really conveying surprise.

  "Yeah, it seems one of the main factories was destroyed recently," Zavik said. "The supply of power cores is pretty thin, we had to find alternative means to acquire them. I'm surprised you haven't heard about the power core factory being destroyed."

  "Yes, well, I'm afraid some things I'm not at liberty to discuss," she said, her voice stern and reminiscent of their first encounter where she accused him of being in on an attack at Earth.

  "So you did know the factory was destroyed?" he asked.

  "Zavik," Dani said.

  "No, it's ok," Councilor Hains said. "Since you already know about the factory, I'll tell you. Yes, I did know it was destroyed. It's not information that can leave this office. I didn't know how much it would affect your job, I'm more worried about the effect of a power core shortage on the Galaxy. How did you know about the factory?"

  "The Ascachi we went to to buy power cores from had no inventory for us. Their corporate intelligence knew that a competitor's factory had been destroyed."

  "I see," she said. She shook her head and said, "Eventually the information will get out anyway."

  "What information?" Zavik asked.

  "It's nothing for you to worry about," she said.

  She was hiding something, but she wasn't too interested in sharing it, he thought. "There was something else we discovered," Zavik said.

  "What?" she asked with a genuine curious look.

  "The ships that attacked the power core facility were unidentified. No one has ever seen ships like them before. If I'm not mistaken, there have been other attacks throughout
the Galaxy by mystery ships that no one's ever seen before too."

  "Perhaps," she said.

  "One might think they're the same ships," he said.

  "That's a theory," she said.

  "Well, it seems we were attacked by these same ships, at least the same ones that attacked the power core factory."

  "You were?" she asked and her voice inflection, this time, did convey surprise and a little terror.

  "Yes," he said. "We were above Rashala completing a job to get the food supplies for Garos when some strange ships attacked us. We fled the system and got away. When the Ascachi told us about the power core factory and the ships that attacked it, we gave them the data we had on our ships. They confirmed they were the same type of ships."

  "Perhaps you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time," Councilor Hains said. "The ships could have been going after another target and ran into you instead."

  "Interesting theory," he said, "but there's something about these ships that I think you should know."

  "What is it?"

  "I've seen them before," he said. "Brax has seen them before too."

  Brax nodded his head and said, "It's true."

  Her eyes narrowed and she very slowly asked, "Where have you seen them before?"

  "In Varin's office," Zavik said. "We both saw it in the information we stole to find his contact list."

  Her eyes widened at his name and her head dropped slightly. "Is this true?" she asked.

  Brax nodded. "Yes. I remember seeing it. We still have the information, and it was buried in his files as a prototype."

  She sat silent for a moment. Zavik broke the silence and said, "What are these ships attacking?"

  "I can't talk about it," she said straining to get the words out.

  "There are ships out there designed by Red Moon," Zavik said, "attacking from some place in the Galaxy you don't know, and they're targeting something, and you can't talk about it?"

  "The information is classified," she said. "I'm sorry."

  "Could it be Varin?" Zavik said.

  "Oh, no," Charra said behind him to Brax. "She's going to throw us out cause he sounds crazy."