It was suddenly very quiet. The roar of the winds was gone, cut off as though someone up above had thrown a switch. Random slowly straightened his aching back and rubbed grit from his eyes. Beside him, Ruby was hacking and coughing, trying to clear the dust from her mouth and throat. They were in a huge airlock, big enough to handle fifty men at a time, if they didn't mind crowding. The air was comfortably warm and blessedly clear. Random took several deep breaths before turning to the guard leader, who was now wearily stacking pieces of his armor in the wall compartments. He was young, barely into his twenties, with a long, serious face under a thick shock of long yellow hair. There were already deep lines of responsibility and hard life around his mouth and eyes. He grinned suddenly at Random, an engaging, almost shy smile.
"According to the sensors and our computer records, you two are exactly who and what you say you are. And man, are we glad to see you!" He gestured to the other guards, who immediately holstered their weapons and set about removing their own masks and armor. They all looked young and sober and more than capable of handling themselves in a fight. Random guessed the weaker elements didn't last long on Loki. The guard leader stuck out his hand, and Random shook it automatically. The leader turned to Ruby, but she just gave him a hard look, so he put his hand away and turned back to Random.
"I'm Peter Savage, guard leader. I wanted to take out a search party to look for you, but the city Council was positive no one could have survived such a crash. I could have told them. I knew it would take a lot more than a crashing ship to finish off Jack Random!"
There was a loud murmur of agreement from the other guards, and Random looked around to find them regarding him with wide eyes and smiles and respectful nods. Random indicated Ruby, who'd finally stopped hacking and spitting on the airlock floor.
"I take it you know my companion?"
"Oh, yes," said Savage, his smile disappearing. "We know all about Ruby Journey. Please don't let her kill anyone important. Or set fire to anything."
"Your reputation preceeds you," Random said dryly to Ruby.
"Anyway," said Peter Savage brightly, "we're delighted to have you here, sir Random. Maybe you can turn this bloody war around."
"Our briefing was pretty basic," said Random. "Fill in the blanks for us."
Savage hesitated. "I'm supposed to take you directly to the city Council so they can instruct you on the current situation."
"You can start the process as we go. Tell me about Vidar. How well protected is the city?"
"Walls and doors of solid steel, over a foot thick," said Savage, leading them out of the airlock's inner door. "The force screen above the walls keeps out the weather. We need the walls and gates because we can't lower the Screen, even for a second, or the storms would devastate the city. It's not just the winds; the dust gets into everything. Tech is constantly breaking down."
"Don't the storms ever stop?" said Ruby.
"No, ma'am. But there are lulls sometimes. This way."
Beyond the airlock lay a simple pattern of narrow streets between low, squat, functional-looking buildings. There was little in the way of color or decoration. Vidar was a mining city, with little time for frills and fancies. People rushed by as Savage led his charges on, but they paid little or no attention to the newcomers. They all wore swords and energy guns, even in the supposed safety of the fortress city. Random found that significant.
"The rebel forces have made an alliance with Shub," said Savage. He made the last word into an obscenity. "They have an army of Ghost Warriors, a few Furies, and a whole bunch of high-tech weaponry that falls apart more often than it works. That's Loki for you. Even Shub can't find an answer to the dust. As a result most of our fighting tends to be hand to hand. Flesh and blood against living corpses and men of metal. Not exactly a level playing field, but that's Shub for you. Certainly the rebels don't seem to be objecting. Their leaders don't care about anything but winning anymore. The disrupter cannon that shot you down was as much a surprise to us as it was to you. They must be really scared of your involvement to risk revealing that powerful a weapon. Think of it as a backhanded compliment."
"Oh, we do," Random assured Savage, perfectly straight-faced. "And we plan to return the compliment as soon as possible."
Savage grinned. "I have to say, I'm really looking forward to working with you, sir Random. You always were my hero. I've seen all your holo shows."
The young guard all but brimmed over with sincerity, of a kind Random hadn't seen since his glory days, when he was the only hope against Lionstone's evil Empire. A lot had changed since then. If anything, such hero worship made Random feel old. He wasn't sure he was the man Savage remembered anymore. He felt slightly embarrassed, and Ruby's clear amusement didn't help at all. He moved quickly to change the subject.
"Where is everybody? I expected to see a lot more people in a city this size."
"With half the outer settlements overrun by the rebel forces, most of the mining equipment on Loki is being run from Vidar these days, which means we're all working overtime to keep the systems going. And… a lot of people here aren't going to be too sure about you, sir Random. There's a man out there with your face, leading the Shub forces, leaving blood and death and atrocities in his wake. Your name has become a curse. That's why you have an armed guard. In case there's… trouble."
"Let them start something," said Ruby calmly. "Let anyone start something."
"Anyway," said Savage hurriedly, "the rebels, backed up by Shub forces, have been systematically wiping out all the outer settlements, knocking out the mining equipment and killing everything that lives before moving on to the next target. They have us surrounded on all sides, and they're moving gradually inward, heading toward Vidar. Because whoever controls this city controls the world's only starport, as well as all the mining. If we fall, the whole colony falls with us. We don't have much of an army, just security guards and a whole bunch of volunteers, mostly refugees from settlements that have fallen. We can't even arm all of them. We've never needed an army before. We were always too busy fighting the weather to fight each other."
"How has your army done in the field?" said Random. "I take it there have been direct clashes, army to army?"
"Some," said Savage. "We go out when there are lulls in the weather. People die, but nothing gets settled. We have the numbers and the training, but they have Shub. It's all been… very inconclusive."
"Why hasn't Golgotha sent you reinforcements?" said Random, frowning.
"We asked," said Savage. "They sent you two. Apparently we're not very high on the priorities list. Everyone's screaming for reinforcements right now, and we're just another mining planet with a relatively small population."
"Just the two of us against an army of Ghost Warriors," said Ruby. "My kind of odds."
"The trouble is, she's not joking," said Random. "Ignore her. I do, whenever possible. How much farther to the Council chambers?"
"We're almost there, sir Random."
"Anything else I ought to know?"
Savage hesitated, and lowered his voice. "Watch yourself. The city Council has always done what it considers best… for the Council."
They walked the next few blocks in silence, each considering their own thoughts. Finally Savage stopped before an ugly, squat building apparently no different from any of the others, and led them through a series of surprisingly stringent security measures. Random was impressed. He still refused to give up his sword and gun when asked, though, and so did Ruby. No one was stupid enough to press the point. Savage knocked diffidently on a door with two armed guards, and a voice from within invited them to enter. Savage opened the door and then stood back to allow Random and Ruby to enter first. Random immediately strode in like he owned the place. He'd learned a long time ago never to appear polite or intimidated by local politicians. They just took advantage. Ruby was right there striding at his side, but in her case it was just natural arrogance.
They found themselves in a reasonably lar
ge room that had been decorated by someone with an extensive budget and absolutely no taste. Ruby felt right at home. Random had no interest in his surroundings. He took one look at the five men sitting rather pompously behind the long ironwood table at the far end of the room, and came to a sudden stop. Ruby immediately stopped with him, one hand dropping automatically to her gun. Random glared at the man sitting in the middle of the group, and when he spoke, his voice was cold as death itself.
"Andre de Lisle! What the hell are you doing here, you son of a bitch? Last I heard, you were rotting in a prison cell!"
"It's good to see you too, Random," said de Lisle calmly. "It's been a while since Cold Rock, hasn't it?"
A low growl of anger burst from Random's lips, and suddenly he was surging forward across the gap that separated them. The guards that had followed him in went for their weapons, but Ruby had already turned to face them, gun in hand. They stood very still. de Lisle barely had time to shrink back in his chair before Random had crossed the room, hauled de Lisle up out of his chair, and held the big, muscular man dangling before him, his legs kicking helplessly in midair. The other Councillors made shocked noises but didn't interfere. They weren't stupid. Ruby made the guards drop their weapons and line up against a wall, while Random effortlessly held de Lisle aloft, glaring coldly into the man's reddening face.
"So," said Ruby dryly, glancing over her shoulder, "I take it you two know each other."
"Oh, yes," said Random, his voice cold and level and very dangerous. "This piece of pond scum used to run the mining interests on a planet called Cold Rock. Treated his people like shit. Paid them the lowest wages in that sector and dealt with any protests through whippings, brandings, and the occasional mass execution. He lived the good life while children starved. When I brought my rebellion to Cold Rock, he funded the army that opposed me. Not surprising. He ruled Cold Rock in all but name. After I was betrayed and captured, and my rebellion collapsed, he saw to it that my cell contained a holovid, so I could watch him execute everyone who'd sided with me, and a further one in ten, chosen at random, to punish his people for having dared oppose him. Men, women, and children died under his orders. Sometimes he went along and watched. And laughed.
"His was one of the first arrest orders I signed after we overthrew Lionstone and her people. I made sure he got the same cell he gave me, for old time's sake. I wanted him hanged too, but he had a real good lawyer and a lot of connections. His kind always do. Even so, I was able to make sure he got life imprisonment, in solitary. No parole, no luxuries, no time off for good behavior. But now here he is, back in charge of a planet again. And I want to know why."
"Please put the Councillor down, sir Random," said Savage diffidently. "There are armed guards on their way, and I really don't want to have to order them to take you down."
"That's right," Ruby said easily. "You really don't want to do that. It wouldn't be wise."
Savage considered the point. "Then may I at least point out that Councillor de Lisle can't actually answer any questions while being strangled."
Random nodded reluctantly and dropped de Lisle onto the tabletop. Savage let out an audible sigh of relief. de Lisle lay on his back, massaging his bruised throat and gasping down air. Random jumped down from the table and turned to face the other Councillors.
"I don't know you, but I might just kill you all anyway for sitting with de Lisle. So sit tight and be quiet. Or I'll have Ruby reason with you."
"Yeah," said Ruby. "I can be very reasonable when I put my mind to it."
de Lisle resumed his seat behind the table. None of the other Councillors moved to help him. His face was very pale as he tried to pull the tatters of his dignity around him.
"Now," said Random almost calmly, "talk to me, de Lisle. Tell me everything. Explain how you came to be here in a position of power again. Bearing in mind that if your answer isn't extremely convincing, I am going to hang you from the city walls. In pieces."
No one in the room thought he was joking. de Lisle cleared his throat painfully.
"I was Pardoned," he said flatly. "The Empire needed someone with mining experience to run this hellhole, and candidates were, understandably, somewhat hard to find. I was offered the post on the condition I never leave this planet. I accepted. I should have known better. This planet is just one big prison."
"My heard bleeds for you," said Random. "I can't believe they gave a scumbag like you a Pardon."
"In return for a lifetime's service here," said de Lisle. "What's the matter, sir Random? Doesn't the great rebel hero believe in redemption through atonement?"
"Not in your case. But much as I hate to admit it, I'm going to need your local expertise. So, you're going to be my second in command, arranging the things I need. I'll take Peter Savage here as my liaison, if only because having to meet with you on a regular basis would undoubtedly turn my stomach. And don't mess with me, de Lisle. I won't be betrayed again." de Lisle nodded jerkily. Random looked at the other Councillors. "Someone fill me in on the political situation here. Exactly who are the rebels, what are they rebelling against, and what in God's good name led them to ally themselves with Shub?"
"My name is Bentley," said one of the Councillors, after they'd all spent some time waiting for someone else to start. Bentley was a tall, slender man with a shaved head and eyes so pale blue they were almost colorless. "I'm in charge of Security. Our situation here is really quite simple. The rebel leaders are the ex-Planetary Controller Matthew Tallon, and the ex-Mayor of this city, Terrence Jacks. They led the rebellion that overthrew the old order here under Lionstone. Your comrades in the great rebellion, sir Random. After throwing out or executing Lionstone's people, they put themselves in charge.
"However, they had no real experience in running a planetary economy, and were soon out of their depth, though they wouldn't admit it. They gave the people of Loki the vote, and after a series of blunders and mismanagement that nearly bankrupted the economy, the people voted them out of office. Tallon and Jacks took this badly, blamed the whole thing on hidden elements of the old order. They retreated to the outer settlements and gathered a new rebel force around them, mostly people disillusioned that the new order hadn't immediately made them all wealthy and powerful. It wasn't much of a force, and they weren't much of a problem. Until the Shub forces arrived to back them up. Apparently, in the last days of their power, Tallon and Jacks had secretly formed an alliance with the enemies of Humanity. And now Young Jack Random leads the rebel forces. Tallon and Jacks stay pretty much in the background these days."
"So," said Random. "I've been sent here to fight for the established order against old rebel comrades."
"Got it in one," said de Lisle, though he had sense enough not to smile when he said it. "Funny how things work out, isn't it?"
"Don't push it," said Random. "At least now I know why Parliament wanted me here. They think coverage of me fighting rebel forces will tie me more strongly to them, distance me from any forces that might oppose Parliament's authority. Well, we'll see about that. Right now Ruby and I need some rest. No doubt your quarters are the most comfortable, de Lisle, so we'll take them. You'll have to make your own arrangements. Any problems, talk to my liaison, Savage, and he will officially ignore them on my behalf. Savage, we're leaving."
"Yes, sir Random. Please follow me.
Random nodded to the Councillors, Ruby nodded to the guards she was covering with her gun, and they stalked out of the room after Savage. And for a long time in the Council chamber, no one said anything.
Some time later, when everyone but the night shift was safely asleep, Savage, Random, and Ruby moved quietly through the narrow streets, hidden inside concealing cloaks. Savage had already arranged it so that the guards on duty at the main computer center were friends of his, and they looked pointedly away as Savage led Random and Ruby in through the main door, using his new security rating to override the security systems. Once inside, Savage searched out the right terminal, then set about
calling up all kinds of files he wasn't supposed to know about. If having Random staring over his shoulder made him nervous, he did his best to hide it. Ruby watched the door, gun in hand, just in case.
Random was surprised at how easy it had been. When he'd first explained to Savage that he wanted information only the main city computers were likely to have, he'd expected all kinds of problems. Instead, Savage had arranged everything with only a few quick calls to some old friends.
"Run the names and backgrounds of all the city Councillors," said Random. "What brought them here, and who put them in authority?"
"Officially, the voters did," said Savage, working his way past security blocks with the ease of long practice. "But since we're all very new to democracy here, the winners tend to be those with the most money to spend during elections. As to their backgrounds… they were all Pardoned war criminals. How about that? All five of them were arrested and tried for crimes against Humanity, convicted and imprisoned, but later offered Pardons if they'd come and run things here."
"And that includes Bentley, the Security chief?"
"Yeah. He was the first. Took up his position under Tallon and Jacks. Far as I know, he's always done a good job."
"Who authorized these Pardons?" said Random, frowning. "And whose idea was it to send them here?"
"That information isn't here, sir Random. Or if it is, it's buried so deep I can't get at it. But only someone fairly high up in Parliament would have had the authority to set something like this in motion, and keep it quiet. I can tell you none of the colonists here knew about this. A lot of us took part in the original rebellion, and there's no way we would have stood for that. Hell, maybe Tallon and Jacks had some justification, after all."
"There's no justification for allying with Shub," said Random. "Let's see what else we can find on the Councillors. Crack open their bank accounts. I want to see what they're being paid to run things here."
Savage had to use a lot of passwords he wasn't supposed to know, but he finally got the answers he was looking for. Even the best systems will fall to an experienced hacker, and as Savage diffidently pointed out, there wasn't a lot of things to do in Vidar when you were young and restless. Which was why Loki had the highest percentage of cyberats per population of any planet in the Empire. Random's smile at that fell away as he saw the figures Savage had dug up for him. The Councillors were taking a percentage of Loki's gross output. Not just a part of the profits, they were creaming money right off the top. They were also pocketing a large percentage of all tax monies, and every other public purse they could get their hands on, and depositing the money in banks on Golgotha. If this continued, the Loki economy would inevitably collapse, though no doubt the Councillors would have arranged their escape long before that became obvious.
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