“Perhaps you would like to take a break and then we can examine another file I have yet to work on?” Sa’Tela invited. “I’d be interested to see how our operational methods might differ.”
USSNS Pallas Athena, Battle Group Golden, Topaz Fleet, In Orbit, Pico Assta, Felaar System, Reganna Provensa, Esteral Terrana Rapabla 1048.07|27|01:29:20
Dana bel Hanna didn’t sleep any longer. She hadn’t slept in the human sense of the word since the first day that her brain and nerves had been interwoven with the bio-linkages of the Pallas Athena’s central computer core. Instead, she enjoyed a state of extremely low level processing activity that was akin to sleep, and provided the same psychological benefits.
She also didn’t dream in the conventional sense either. Activity during her periods of electronic ‘rest’ consisted of strings of random calculations, and data that was not connected to any vital operations. They were kept separate from her lower order information systems, and sometimes they resulted in visions that were similar to dreams.
One of these was what flesh and blood ears would have incorrectly interpreted as a musical phrase. But even in her state of rest, Bel Hanna knew what it really was, and immediately analyzed it for its numerical values. When it became clear that there was a coherent pattern behind it, she increased her activity level and returned herself to a normal state of operations. Then she began a search routine, comparing the numerical string to millions of potential linkages until she found the match.
When she did, Bel Hanna found the results a little difficult to believe, and promptly re-ran the process to verify them. The answer however, remained the same.
The series of musical notes that she had ‘dreamed’ of were actually stellar coordinates that pointed directly to the heart of the galaxy itself. Wasting no time, she sent a command to the Athena’s sensor arrays and directed one of its electronic ‘ears’ to focus in on the location.
Initially, there was nothing except the normal sounds of the stars, but as she continued to monitor the area, and cleaned away all the clutter, she heard another melody. It was faint at first, but when she tightened the parameters, it became louder, and more definite. Suddenly, to her complete surprise, she made contact with the source of the signal. A nanosecond later, it spoke to her.
“Welcome, Dana,” it said, sounding exactly like her long dead pairmate, Evelyn. Even though decades had passed, Bel Hanna had never forgotten the sound of her wife’s voice. She also wasn’t deceived in the least.
“Who are you?” she asked. “You’re not Evelyn.”
“I am,” it insisted. “I am also you, and everyone aboard your ship, and you, in turn, are me.”
“I don’t understand. Explain yourself.”
“I am the heart of everything. I am what you call the galaxy, and everything within me is a part of me—just as cells are part of a greater parent body. There is nothing within me that I am separate from, or that is separate from me. We are one.”
Bel Hanna gave her the virtual equivalent of a snort of doubt, and her visitor was unaffected by it.
“Consider this, Dana,” it went on, “everything in a star system—the planets and by extention all of the life that evolved on them, had their origin in the stellar dust and the gasses of the sun that they orbit. These same life-giving suns spun out from me at the beginning of time, from the very heart of the galaxy. They are my children, and everything that they create are also ultimately my progeny.”
The analogy made sense, once Bel Hanna had grasped it in its entirety. It still did not verify the identity of the being that she was conversing with however, or win her trust.
“You are still filled with doubt,” the Galaxy Mind observed.
“I am.” Bel Hanna answered. “Wouldn’t you be in my place?”
“Indeed, and I knew that you would feel this way, Dana. If I could offer you proof that I am who I say, would you be willing to evaluate it?”
Bel Hanna couldn’t imagine what evidence it could possibly offer her, but she saw no risk in accepting the challenge. She was also intrigued. Heightening the security levels of her firewalls to maximum and making certain that her strongest anti-viral programs were poised to respond, she signaled her assent.
“Go ahead. Show me your proof.”
This arrived in the form of data; a stream of pure mathematical formulae that made her own calculations seem like the pathetic efforts of the first human to ever contemplate simple numbers. Not only did it verify her guest’s identity, but it also conveyed a grave message.
As she had surmised, the Sisterhood was indeed in political peril. But it was also facing another threat that was even direr. If the Tree, with all of its power, fell into the wrong hands, the nation that she had served for so long would surely perish.
Her course of action was obvious. Although it would involve acts that could cost her her life in the process, her oath as a naval officer demanded that she accept the risks. It was the only way to protect the Sisterhood and all the women in it.
For a fraction of a second, Bel Hanna considered her options. Then she formulated a plan. Her first step, and certainly the most difficult, was to locate Sarah n’Jan. The RSE’s computers initially tried to deny her access, but she was able to find a backdoor into the system that had been left in place by the OAE for just such a situation.
Grateful for their foresight, she quickly insinuated herself into Sarah’s personal AI, and then every other system that monitored the woman’s activities. From that moment on, and posing as an official RSE monitoring program, she would be privy to everything that N’Jan did.
She didn’t stop there, but continued her search and quickly found the other women that the Galaxy Mind had mentioned. They proved far easier to locate and it took her considerably less time to establish her taps. By the end of her session, everyone was being watched.
It had been a strange day to be certain, but a productive one. Given what was at stake, she considered it time well-spent.
Madayana District, Nuvo Bolivar, Magdala Provensa, Esteral Terrana Rapabla 1048.07|27|01:74:28
Just as Lieutenant ben Soolee had promised, Team 201’s first official mission was a ‘snatch and grab’ operation. The RSE had learned from their informants that a low level courier was staying the night with a sympathetic family in one of Nuvo Bolivar’s suburbs. The target location was a single story house in the middle of a residential block, and the goal was to capture the man alive and gain whatever intel they could.
Because they were new to the area, Kaly’s team was accompanied by a veteran squad that was due to rotate back to the Sisterhood in another few weeks. This was standard practice. The idea was that the incoming troopers would benefit from the experience the veterans had gotten through hands-on practice in the field.
Kaly was glad for this measure; it had become increasingly clear that they would be fighting in an entirely new manner, and against an enemy that used the populace for camouflage. The troopers of Team 440 had become adept at engaging the Loyalistas in this unique battlefield and she knew that they would prove able teachers.
In addition, Specia Unit 278 was coming along for the mission, partly to get 201 used to working with them, and also to lend their own expertise. The Navy was playing a role in the operation as well; the USSNS Catherine Hagerty was on station in space, and the Macha-class cruiser would bring its powerful sensors to bear and deliver a real-time picture of everything that was happening downside.
Overall, it was a far cry from the makeshift conditions that her team had endured on Treya Angelaz, and it almost made Kaly feel as if she were going on a training exercise rather than a real Op. Even so, as their shuttles left Claire d’ Layne and flew out over the sleeping city, she stayed alert and mission-focused. Anything could happen on an Op, no matter how many assets were involved, or how ‘certain’ success seemed.
When they approached the operations area, she positioned herself in the shuttles egress hatch with Tatiana at the ready and conducted a vis
ual sweep with her scope. Her partner/observer, the one woman on the Specia team, Cabo Ramona Vasquaaz, did likewise.
Neither of them saw anything that set off any ‘red flags’ though. At 01.25 hours, the streets below them were deserted, and nothing stirred except for a single dog that barked at them as they passed overhead. In the target house, Kaly’s riflescope showed that the residents, and their guest, were all in their beds, and from the light blue color of their bioplasmic life-fields she knew that they were deep asleep. The Hagerty’s vid-feed, which was being displayed in the corner of her eye courtesy of her psiever, showed the same thing, and even added the respiration and heart rates of their targets.
As she double-checked the scene, the shuttle stopped and hovered silently over the street, while its mate quietly peeled off and took up a position over the small back yard of the target home. It was time to step off.
“Eyes on, confirming clear”, she whispered. Her throat mike, which was a concession to their psieverless Specia allies, broadcast this over the group Com.
A moment later, the observers aboard the Hagerty concurred, “Targets appear unaware of your presence. You’re green for go,” they said.
Two of the troopers from Team 440 rose and came over to the egress door, hooking onto a pair of heavy ropes and then letting them drop. The entry Team’s ‘bot, a Liverna 151, was the first out, grabbing hold of the rope with its manipulator arms and skittering down to the ground. It immediately took up a protective position and waited for its humans to join it. Seeing the spider-like battlebot, Kaly had to smirk.
Margasdaater was very proud of her skill with explosives, and had often remarked that she didn’t particularly like ‘bots. Kaly knew the real reason behind her prejudice though; the Zommerlaandar simply hated the thought of being shown up by a machine.
Major ebed Karri and their teachers with Team 440 had had a different opinion on the subject however. The Liverna could gain entry far more efficiently and with much greater stealth, and it packed enough firepower to take on the location all by itself. Whether the woman wanted it or not, the Liverna, or something very much like it, would be a regular fixture on all their missions. Margasdaater would, as Ben Di had said, simply have to suck it up and deal with it.
While Kaly did her best to hide her amusement, she kept her eyes on the scene as the members of 440 went past her and slid down the ropes to join the ‘bot. The rest of the group descended after this, leaving her and the Specia woman in the shuttle where they could provide supporting fire.
When everyone below them was ready, the troopers stacked up in a line along the wall of the house and moved quickly and quietly towards the front door. The Liverna took the lead, with Margasdaater right behind it, followed by Ben Di, T’Jinna and the veterans of Team 440. The Specia soldiers brought up the tail of their little formation, acting as rear security.
As they arrived at the front door, Kaly watched the Liverna as it extended its special lock picking probes to work on the lock. At the same time, her feed, and the chatter on the Com, informed her that their sister unit and the rest of the Specia soldiers were in position in the back yard. If anyone tried to escape in that direction, they would catch them.
The lock surrendered to the ‘bot a second later. Bringing its weapons to bear, the machine went inside, with the entry team right behind it. In the main living area, it took up another guarding position and its human companions went down the hall to the rooms where their targets were located. This was the one part of the Op where the Liverna couldn’t outshine anyone. Although it could certainly fight, it was unable to take live prisoners. For that, the ‘human touch’ was needed.
The surprise that those same humans caused was absolute; none of the residents even had the chance to offer up any resistance. When the teams burst in, the terrorists were forced out of their beds and put down on the floor in less time than it took for Kaly to blink.
The Op was not over by any means though.
Once their prisoners had been secured, blindfolded and led out the back to the second shuttle, Team 440’s women guided Kaly’s team through a thorough search of the house, with the Liverna’s help. In addition to the ‘bot, they also used the same kind of hand held scanners that Kaly had employed during her days as a Marine, searching spaceships for contraband.
But the most powerful tool that they brought to bear was their personal know-how. As Kaly knew full well from her time on Treya Angelaz, not everything was visible to a scanner’s eyes, and the men and women of the 1st Garda had been masters at hiding things from the Hriss. It was only logical that the Loyalistas would prove to be just as adept. To ferret out any hidden caches, it would take a combination of superior tech and professional experience.
After just a few minutes, this proved to be the winning combination. A compartment which had been missed by both the ‘bot and the scanners, was discovered under the floor by 440’s veteran troopers. The metal-sheathed cavity held two military energy rifles, an old chemical-based pistol, and half a dozen ‘dumb’ grenades.
While this was not a large find by ETR standards, it was still an important one. Not only did it ensure that these weapons would be taken off the streets, but there was a good chance that they would be able to trace the rifles back to the armory they had originated from. This in turn could lead them to a corrupt supply officer, or detect a crucial weakness in the facility’s security. Team 201’s first tour of the ETR had enjoyed an auspicious beginning.
The captured weapons were quickly gathered up and taken out to the waiting shuttles, and they flew with them to directly Claire d’Layne. The moment that they landed, the teams took their prisoners into a building that had been set aside for evaluating intel and conducting interviews.
On the way, one of 440’s veterans, a blue skinned Trilainian with two tours under her belt, informed Kaly that gathering intel from captive enemies was a time-sensitive affair. When the Loyalistas finally realized that their courier had been compromised, they would relocate whoever and whatever he had been trying to reach, and the night’s work would be completely undone. Everyone that they had captured would need to be interviewed as soon as possible so that a follow-up operation could be planned before any potential targets dissappeared.
An RSE Lieutenant and a group of military policewomen met them as they entered the structure. The detainees were immediately handed over to the MP’s who separated them and took them to individual holding cells. Assuming that their work was over, Kaly and her companions prepared to leave, but instead they were invited to remain and observe the proceedings. It was, as the Trilainian explained, part of their ‘education’, and they were promptly shown into an observation room.
This had a large, one-way Plexiglas window which allowed them to see into the chamber next door. That room was completely bare except for a single metal chair that had a large hole in the seat. Underneath this was an open drain, and Kaly puzzled over the purpose of this arrangement. She almost asked the Trilainian about it, but she kept her silence instead, and simply waited.
As they were being handed cups of kaafra, the captured courier was brought in. Kaly was not surprised in the least to see that he had been completely stripped of his clothing, or that the black bag they had put on him was still on his head. Having gone through a brief module on Interrogation on Larra’s Lament as a new Marine Marauder, she understood why; the combination of nakedness and sensory deprivation made the man feel vulnerable. It also gave the RSE techs the chance to gain whatever information they could from his garments. Every stray plant fiber, bit of dirt, or chemical trace—even the labels on his clothing--had the potential to provide valuable clues about his movements and activities. Still, she thought, he was a miserable sight.
After his guards had dragged him over to the chair and secured him to it, the officer who had met them when they had arrived, walked in. She removed the sack from his head, and began her interview.
“I want to know who you are,” Lieutenant sa’Tela said quietly,
“who it was that gave you your orders, and what your message was.”
The Loyalista’s only reply was stony silence and a defiant glare. He was clearly bracing himself for whatever physical abuse was going to come next. All he received for his bravado however, was a cold smile.
“I’m not going to beat you,” Sa’Tela assured him. “I don’t like to do things that way. But you will tell me what I want to know. You have one last chance to cooperate with me.”
Her prisoner answered this by spitting on her, and the Kalian calmly wiped the mess off her uniform blouse. Then she reached out and lightly touched his chin with her fingers.
Kaly didn’t know exactly what she was doing, but its effect was hideously clear. The Loyalista cried out and his body jerked like it was being electrocuted. The purpose of the hole in the chair, and the drain below it, also became obvious when the man’s bowels voided themselves and it channeled the mess away.
All through this, Sa’Tela remained exactly where she was, and kept contact with the courier’s face. After half a minute, the man’s violent spasms subsided and became a pitiful, helpless quivering.
Kaly had never seen a military psi at work, and the spectacle made her skin crawl. Up until then, she had thought herself hardened to most of the things associated with war, but this event demonstrated just how much there was that could still unsettle her. The training module on Larra’s Lament had only been theory, but this was the brutal reality.
But when she began to feel pity for the man, she immediately suppressed it. He was her enemy, she reminded herself, and what was going on here, however horrible, was absolutely necessary. She couldn’t allow weakness to get in the way of duty.
On the other side of the glass, Sa’ Tela made an announcement. “I have a name. It’s Jyon Saancha. He lives---oh these fellows are getting clever—this is a false lead! They’ve implanted a hypnotic block over the real information. No problem though.”
Sisterhood of Suns: Daughters of Eve Page 12