She took a deep breath. “I think I should meet them when they arrive. I think I’ll be able to communicate with them. Telepathically.”
“Indeed? That happens to be my strategy as well. Not the telepathy part. Just the meeting them part. Then I will exterminate the feckers.” He took another swig from the mug. Adding cinnamon and cream no longer seemed like a sissy way to drink coffee. “And now since I shared my diabolical plan, I definitely have to kill you.”
He gave her a rare Kraken smile. She always forgot that he was only a few years older than her. The burden of leadership had a way of aging a person. The smile turned the clock back to its rightful position.
“How will you do it?” she asked.
“A deadly bio-contagion.”
He might have said ‘a fly swatter’ or ‘a slingshot,’ so casually was the horrific term uttered. Biological weapons had been eradicated in the mid twenty-first century after the Russians launched an attack on China, their economic adversary. Operatives had released a weaponized pathogen onto the streets of Chongqing, Shanghai, and Beijing; the subsequent plague roared through the Asian continent like wildfire, decimating the population. The newly reenergized United Nations had acted swiftly and decisively. Russia’s military, dismantled. Its research labs, destroyed. The crushing sanctions leveled against the Russian oligarchy resulted in the fall of that nefarious empire three years later.
Jaeda believed, as most did, that bio-weapons no longer existed. As with nuclear weapons, humanity had finally gotten smart enough to decide Earth was better off without them.
“What are you talking about?” she said, after her mouth caught up with everything she had been thinking.
“The information resides above top-secret clearance. Not even the U.S. president knows we have it. This won’t end well for you.”
“Sir, what are we doing with a bio-weapon on Mars?”
“Does it matter? The point is, we have it, and I intend to use it. You gave me the idea, actually, when you said the aliens are human. A contagion that is deadly to us would likely be ineffective against a species radically different from us. But if their biological makeup is similar to ours, it’s a good bet that Chimera-23B will affect them.”
“What is Chimera-23B?”
“You’ve heard of the word chimera? In Greek mythology, it was a fire-breathing hybrid creature. Head of a lion, body of a goat, tail of a serpent. Akin to a Kraken in its monstrosity,” he added with a wink. “Chimera-23B combines three of the deadliest agents known to humankind – anthrax, smallpox, and botulinum. The result is a nightmare concoction that would end all human life on Earth in a week if only ten grams of it were released into the stratosphere.”
“Oh my god. What if it got out? On Earth, I mean.”
“It’s not on Earth. It’s only here on Mars, where it would annihilate all one thousand and seventeen people if it somehow escaped the confines of its refrigerated prison. It won’t escape, though. It will be utilized.”
The shocking new knowledge took a moment to assimilate. “That’s why it’s here instead of there. It’s too dangerous for Earth.”
“Precisely. This colony serves many purposes. Deadly bio-contagion custodian is merely one of them.”
Jaeda wondered what the others were she didn’t know about.
“How will you deliver it to the aliens without getting infected?”
“There’s the rub. I can’t just wait for them in the commissary, pop the lid, and fling it at them when they show up for breakfast. Even if I were successful in transferring the virus to the invaders, it would still be present when you all return from the caverns.” Slurp. “Plus, they’ll likely be wearing some type of bio-suit, which it wouldn’t penetrate.”
“You’ve put some thought into this.”
Golden eyes crinkled at the corners. “You could say that. All I have to do is get them to take me prisoner.”
Jaeda felt the knots twist in her stomach. “So this is a suicide mission?”
“Since I’ll be injecting the pathogen directly into my body as well as slathering it on before I don my bio-suit, the answer is yes. It must be timed perfectly. The pathology of the virus runs its course in about five hours. I’ll begin to feel uncomfortable starting at about the second hour. It’s all downhill from there.”
“How will you get yourself taken prisoner?”
“I’m still working on that part. I’m considering several options.”
“Sir, you can’t do this,” she said, moving toward him. She wanted to grab him and shake some sense into him. She stopped short of the shaking part. Inches from the face of her commanding officer, both hands gripping his shoulders, she added, “I won’t let you do it.”
His eyes looked into hers with infinite kindness. “You can’t stop me, JD. My mind is made up. I’m only telling you because I need your help with my cover story. I don’t want anyone questioning my decision. You and I have a...connection.”
“Then I’m doing it with you.”
“Absolutely not.”
“Yes, I am. I can communicate with them telepathically. I know I can. I’ve been listening to their thought-whispers, and while I don’t understand Sanskrit, I’m getting impressions and images. It’s been a one-way process until now, but I think I can transmit as well as receive.”
She saw hesitation in his resolve and pounced. “I’ll project images of where to find us. I’ll lure them to our location. Then when they arrive, we’ll spring the trap.”
He smiled. “You realize there’s virtually no chance that my plan or yours, or any of this, will work. Too many variables. Too many factors. Too many unknowables.” He sighed heavily.
Jaeda had an idea. “What if we conduct a reconnaissance operation? Find out everything we can about these invaders.”
“Let me guess. A telepathic one?” His grin was intended to be indulgent, but she could see he found the notion provocative.
“Yes. We’ll assemble everyone who has the Psi upgrade, as well as folks like me. We’ll see what we can discover, then revisit your idea and at least tweak it, if not come up with something better.”
“We have nothing to lose, I suppose,” he replied. “Very well, JD. Just do it covertly. I can’t officially sanction this insanity, but you have my unofficial support. Let me know what you find out. We only have four days until the Arrival.”
“Yes, sir.”
When she was back in the corridor, she realized how much clearer her thoughts were now than in Colonel Khandar’s quarters. For the first time in all their recent secret discussions, she knew why: there was no hack block in the corridor.
***
“Focus, people.” Corporal Eckland’s ice-blue eyes flashed with annoyance. Six people sat elbow-to-elbow in a circular cluster of aluminum chairs. The stark lighting of Theta pod’s commissary made them all look even more tired than they were. It was well past dinner time, and the entrance had been locked from the inside. Not even Cluck had access to the room at that moment.
Jaeda contemplated a period from American history: the stories about the Old West and the covered wagons rolling across the plains toward the Pacific Ocean. The indigenous population had posed a constant threat to the mixture of largely European settlers who had set their sights on making the wild continent their new home. When in danger, the unwieldy caravan would gather in a circle for more effective defense.
The ring of chairs and its diverse occupants felt like that.
“Is everyone plugged into the HIVE? JD, is your headset optimal?” Shroom demanded.
Jaeda nodded, stifling a grin. She had delegated supervision of the telepathic reconnaissance mission – the TRM – to the indomitable young woman. Military people loved their acronyms. If they all survived the Arrival, Corporal Eckland had a brilliant career ahead of her.
“Let’s begin.”
Everyone closed their eyes except for Jaeda. Her gaze fell in a mute procession upon each face, resting finally on the tiniest member of the group
– Tana. The red curls didn’t move; the brain within concentrated on whisper-thoughts. All the Psi folks heard them now. The alien beings sped closer every moment, thus their thoughts had become easier to detect. One of the techs had rigged up an overlay between the HIVE communication center and the Sanskrit translating program. Shroom would plug the whispers into the program, where they would be recorded and forwarded to Khandar.
“They’re not wearing bio-suits,” a woman with red hair said. It was Cara, Tana’s mother.
“They’re inside their ship,” Shroom replied. “So, yeah.”
Jaeda ignored the sarcastic tone and hoped Cara did as well.
“One of them is thinking about their home planet.” The man who spoke was from the same deployment as Corporal Eckland, also a recipient of the Psi upgrade. Jaeda had had little interaction with the young lieutenant previously, but after a short conversation prior to their covert meeting in the commissary, she decided she liked him. His golden eyes reminded her of the Colonel’s, but less intense. Nepotism was allowed in their branch of the military under the condition of anonymity. Rajish could be sharing DNA markers with the Kraken, but Jaeda would never know.
“What do you see, Raj?” Jaeda’s primary role during the TRM was to facilitate any data they might collect. If she could also pick up anything with her own natural Psi, even better.
“I feel their planet is similar to Earth. I’m picking up oceans and large land masses. Whomever I’m tapping into misses home.”
“So they have the capacity for homesickness.”
“Yes. There’s something else, too. Let me concentrate.”
“I don’t think they have any kids on that ship,” Tana said, with a comically scrunched-up face.
“I’m feeling aggression,” Cara, muttered. “I get the impression they’re trying to ramp up their emotions. Does that make sense?”
“Yes.” Again Jaeda pondered another piece of history: the Nordic berserkers who entered a state of animal-like frenzy before going into battle. The notion was terrifying. She glanced across the circle to a real-life ancestor of the race which had bred that violent sect. Shroom’s expression was dreamy now, but Jaeda remembered the savagery she saw there recently. Those human feckers want to kill us.
“I feel it, too,” Tana said. She and her mother practiced telepathy together. They may be traveling along the same channel to the alien vessel. “It’s like they want to be mad about something. That’s crazy. Why would anyone want to be mad?”
After a few moments, Shroom said, “I feel it too.”
Raj frowned. “I’m not getting that. I think I’m tethered to an individual. I don’t perceive a group or a collective. I think on some level, he’s aware of me.”
“Uh, oh. Better pull back, Raj.”
“Not yet. This is important.”
“Oh, my,” said the tall, slender male sitting next to Shroom. It was the first time the man had spoken. His limbs were folded at odd angles to fit within the confines of the chair while avoiding inadvertent contact with straying elbows. He looked like a praying mantis, but Jaeda knew the civilian colonist possessed an astounding intellect.
“What is it, Doctor Marsden?”
“They’re definitely human,” he said in a voice slightly less acerbic than normal. Marsden did not suffer fools nor foolish questions.
“How can you tell?”
“I’m looking beyond the images to the source of what’s projecting them. Their brains.”
Shroom’s eyes flew open, latched upon Jaeda’s face, and saw the same look of astonishment.
“I don’t understand,” Jaeda said.
“Of course you don’t. It’s not your field of expertise. If we were quantifying water and food for space travel, I would expect you to supply the answer.”
She had no response.
“I’m using an interesting combination of Psi and my vast neurological knowledge to slink past their subconscious output to the source of the output itself. I comprehend how the transmissions are working, but explaining it in terms you would understand would take days.”
Jaeda didn’t bother being offended. She knew he was right.
“I sense neurons firing, dendrites receiving data, axons carrying outgoing messages. This is how the brain communicates with its host. Its human host. No other organic brain works the way a human’s does. There’s no doubt we are dealing with carbon-based life identical to ourselves. Biologically, at least, if not evolutionarily.”
“Excellent, Doctor,” Jaeda replied. “Colonel Khandar is streaming our operation. I know he’ll be happy this intel came from you.”
“As well he should.”
“I’m getting something else from that individual,” Raj said. “Dismay, perhaps? I could be wrong, but I think this might be the entity charged with our...extermination.” Eyelids fringed in thick, dark lashes fluttered open. Raj stared at Tana’s cherubic face and frowned. Jaeda saw a flash of anger on the handsome features.
“Don’t lose contact, Raj,” Jaeda said, urgent now. She had an idea. “Let him know you’re there. Announce yourself. Can you do that?”
“Yes, I think so. There. I’m sensing something like surprise now.”
“Send him images of us, especially of Tana and the other children. Let him see them playing in the rec center and studying in the classroom. Everyone do the same.”
“Okay. Working on it. I have no idea if they’re going through.”
Jaeda closed her eyes now too, increased the volume setting on the HIVE, and concentrated. She pictured Tana and the other children dancing, and singing, and reading. Were the images being received on the other end? Unknown. All she could do was hope.
Everyone stayed silent for several minutes.
Finally, Raj said, “I think he got the picture, JD. I felt a vague emotional shift. I don’t think there’s anything else we can do.”
She opened her eyes. “There’s one more thing,” she said, then stood and walked over to a device set up next to the door. She tapped a button. A faint insectile hum immediately filled the room. Jaeda had the sudden urge to scratch her head.
Everyone else did too, it seemed. She watched the others rub their foreheads and tug at their ears.
“What happened, JD?” Shroom snapped. “I lost the link to the vessel, damn it.”
Jaeda smiled. “Me too.”
“Same here,” Marsden said, raising an eyebrow. “What did you do?”
“I activated a hack block, which I had tech-sergeant Landry install along with the other equipment.”
“Fascinating. I believe it interfered with the Psi connection. Severed it, in fact,” he said, without a trace of condescension. He looked at her with something like respect. “Well done, JD.”
“What? Why is that a good thing?” Shroom said.
“Very simple, young lady,” Marsden replied. “It means our ambient thoughts won’t reveal our presence in the caverns when the galactic invaders arrive.”
***
“We’ve done everything we can do. We’re as ready as we’ll ever be.” Khandar wore the tranquil grin that had appeared even more frequently now that he was about to die. Jaeda thought she understood. Everyone dies. In some ways, he was fortunate. Not only was he in complete control of his own death, his sacrifice may result in a thousand – or perhaps eleven billion – saved lives.
That was his hope.
“I don’t suppose I can talk you into a quick vacation to Oxblood Cavern,” he continued through the communication system of their bio-suits. Chimera-23B coursed through his veins as he stood next to Jaeda on the colony’s landing strip. This was where all the rockets had arrived and departed for the past two decades, bringing humans and supplies to Mars. It seemed the most likely location at which the invaders would arrive. In another hour, it might be that all this – humanity’s exhaustive efforts to colonize planets other than Earth – may have been for nothing. All that work possibly brought to an abrupt end by these human-alien beings.
“No, sir. I’m staying right here with you, sending them images of the value in taking you prisoner.”
Every time she said it out loud, it sounded even more ridiculous. The odds that they would be successful were astronomical. Fortunately, it didn’t have to work in order for them to prevail in their primary mission: keeping the colonists alive. The hack blocks installed at both underground facilities were operational now, and the devices would impede stray thoughts and emotions from escaping the caverns. Armed soldiers were stationed inside the digitally camouflaged openings of the two locations in the event the invaders discovered their hiding places. If everything went according to plan, even partly, those soldiers wouldn’t need to fire a single shot.
The remaining soldiers manned the landing strip. They would be the ones doing the firing.
Space on the supply rockets had always been limited. It was largely reserved for food and medicine and all the necessities of life which people required. Before people arrived, life on Mars had consisted of harmless frozen microbes. The colony was a military operation, though, so they had brought weapons.
Of course they had brought weapons.
The MAHEM system had been moved from one of the storage pods, then placed at the landing site, where Khandar believed the Arrival would occur. MAHEM utilized a magnetic flux generator rather than traditional chemical explosives, resulting in a vastly more efficient and precise launch of its molten projectiles. The fiery globs could penetrate all known metals within seconds. When the alien vessel landed, commandos would blast fifteen holes into its hull. The goal of MAHEM was twofold: disable the craft so it couldn’t continue on to Earth, and breach the internal atmosphere of the ship, which was surely keeping the human-aliens alive as they traveled through space.
Khandar hoped the element of surprise and the invaders’ overconfidence would help the colonists prevail.
“Imagine an arrogant human, walking around barefoot in the Australian outback,” he said. “He’s never been to that part of Earth before, so he doesn’t think much about the insect he’s about to tread upon. He has nothing to fear from something so obviously inferior to himself. The insect bites his big toe, injecting deadly venom into the foot along with a jolt of pain. All we have to do is make sure we get out of the way before the body comes crashing down on top of us.”
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