by Sean Danker
We could see valleys full of mist, some of them long and winding. I soon realized the mist wasn’t really green—it was tinted that way by one of the dim suns in the sky. The effect was compounded by the reflected light from a dozen or so small moons that were scattered across the ceiling of stars.
Nils was beside me with Tremma’s reader in his lap, keeping us pointed at our destination. There was no indicator of distance; at this point we could only guess, but Nils was keeping track somehow. He couldn’t help it. It was a good thing he was there, because it was too easy for me to look up and get lost in the cosmos and forget our situation. It was something I hadn’t done nearly often enough in the past.
“I thought the Julian would be an easy post,” Nils observed idly, taking his eyes off his screen to join me in admiring the stars.
“It would’ve been,” I assured him. “Not much for a tech to do on a ship like that but look good, and keep your quarters ready for inspection. You’d have to spend a lot of time training.”
“I think I could’ve managed,” he said wistfully.
“Which lab did they promise you?” I asked Deilani.
“Atmospheric sampling.”
“That’s awful.”
“I’d still rather be there than here.”
“Yeah. What about you, Private?” I asked.
“The Empress,” Salmagard replied. “Honor guard.”
Of course. “Do you think she’s really aboard?” Nils asked.
“Why wouldn’t she be?” Deilani replied.
“Nobody’s ever seen her. Everybody says she uses a double for this stuff.”
“Nobody’s seen her without her mask. Doesn’t mean it’s not her under it,” I said.
“It could be anybody under there,” Nils said.
“But it’s not—it’s the Empress,” I told him. “Have a little faith.”
“What’s her name? How old is she?”
“We don’t need to know,” Deilani said. Her mind was elsewhere.
“She’s got to be the thirteenth or fourteenth one by now,” Nils speculated.
“Sixteenth by common reckoning,” I told him.
“So where does the new Empress come from?”
“The bloodline, obviously. It’s the direct bloodline of the Grand Duchess,” Deilani said.
“What about the fathers?” Nils asked.
“There are no fathers. They use the DNA of the Heir.”
Deilani was giving these answers as though they were facts. To many people, facts were exactly what they were—but in truth, it was speculation. Nobody knew the first thing about the Empress for certain. Not even me.
Was she really aboard the flagship? Excellent question. Another interesting point was that if the bloodline was intact, which seemed likely, then it was probable that under the mask, the Empress looked quite a bit like Salmagard, who was modeled after the Grand Duchess herself, the first true Empress.
This discussion was using up valuable air, but it was also taking our minds off things. Besides, I didn’t mind talking about the Empress. I decided to let it go.
“They say she’s got a harem,” Nils said. “So they probably know what she looks like. I’m surprised nobody’s leaked anything.”
“Nobody’s seen the harem,” Deilani countered, probably on principle. “That’s a rumor.”
“Well, you wouldn’t, would you? I wonder if it’s guys or girls. Or both.”
“The Empress of Evagard shouldn’t need companionship. It spoils the aesthetic.”
“She’s still human.”
“But is she really female?” I asked idly.
“How would we know?”
“She’s supposed to be.”
“There’d be a son here and there, wouldn’t there?” Nils said.
“No, she’s totally lab-grown using genetic material from the Heir.” There was no doubt in Deilani’s mind.
“That’s impossible—if it was always material from the Heir, it would mean that every single Empress has the same father. It’s incestuous.”
“It’s all in a laboratory.”
“It’s still un-Evagardian. I don’t know how they do it, but it’s not like that. I’ll bet it’s the genetic material of the best and brightest from one of the core bloodlines, rotating by generation,” Nils said.
“That would make more sense,” I agreed.
“But you never hear anything about the father of the Empress.”
“The father doesn’t know he’s the father; our genes are all on file. You could be the next one for all we know,” I said to him.
“No, I only share one marker with a family that only shares two with a distant removed old Rothschild, not even one of the important ones.”
“It could still be you if you distinguish yourself. A lot.”
“I’m not aiming that high. I just want a ship that can keep me away from my family. I want to get paid. I need citizenship.”
It sounded as if he meant it. I wondered what kind of situation he came from.
“Hear, hear,” Deilani said, sighing.
“I’ll bet she’s cute,” Nils said.
“The Empress? If she is, why’s she wear the mask?” I was just trying to get a rise out of Deilani, but she didn’t bite.
“The same reason we do. It’s tradition. She’s always worn it. The only pictures of the Grand Duchess are from when she was a teenager,” Deilani said.
“Even that’s too much,” Nils said. “When we were in training on those Trigan mining ships, hands on—we stayed in a hotel on the station called the Grand Duchess. Supposed to be high class and exotic—I guess it seemed that way to galactics. Anyway, it’s got this huge mural of her in the lobby. They had no idea how disrespectful that was. And most folks don’t know better out there.” Nils shook his head in disgust. “I mean, I’m not one of these people who gets offended about stuff like that, but there’s something vulgar about using her face that way. Especially since they were outsiders.”
“Were they happy to see you?” I asked.
“Real imperials? On their humble station? Yeah, but the officers escorting us got all the attention.”
“Naturally. My class went to Earth and to the Union,” Deilani said.
“To study disease?”
“Mostly. It was wretched.”
“What was the problem?” I was curious. Someone of Deilani’s origins should’ve luxuriated in traveling abroad.
“Our lead specialist—the one in charge of the curriculum—took ill.”
“You’re kidding,” I said.
“She was the only one with clearance to get us out of the embassy, and she was in stasis while they tried to figure out what was wrong with her.”
“Was it serious? How could they not know?”
“Well, that’s the thing—she wasn’t ill. She’d been poisoned.”
“You’re joking.” Now I was really interested.
“I’m dead serious. The war was still on, and security for six bio students wasn’t all that much. Somebody found a way to get to her.” Deilani shrugged.
“But you guys were a long way from the war.”
“They said it was probably a noncombatant sympathizer.”
“Did your teacher pull through?”
“She did, but only because she had medical training; she put herself in stasis the moment she realized something was seriously wrong. Anybody else would’ve died.”
“Stranding the rest of you,” I said.
“Yeah, but we’d have been stranded anyway because as soon as they realized it was poison, they locked down the embassy.”
“What was there to see?” Nils asked.
“On Earth? Everything. On the Union we couldn’t have gone anywhere. But on Earth . . . It was a disaster. You never saw six more furi
ous people. And our element leader was determined to add an Earth girl to his collection, so he kept trying to break out. He didn’t handle rejection well. I had to break his nose. Twice.”
“You’re not an Earth girl,” Nils pointed out.
“When he realized he wasn’t getting out, he decided not to be choosy. I could’ve had his commission for that. Probably should have, in retrospect—but I was worried about what it’d look like that I’d struck him.”
I couldn’t see Nils’ expression, but his faceplate was pointed at Deilani. “Is Cohengard as bad as they say?” he asked her.
“Worse,” I said.
“How do you know, Admiral?”
“Call it a hunch.”
“I didn’t know officer training was so colorful.” Nils shifted the topic back, sounding impressed.
Deilani shook her head. “It was ridiculous. It was a joke. There was trouble every step of the way. The best bit was on the way back from Earth, just before she went into her sleeper, my roommate’s implant malfunctioned.”
“Oh, no.”
“It nearly killed her. They’re still trying to get her hormones back under control. And it happened because of a scan we had after the embassy—looking for dangerous implants.” Deilani sounded contemptuous.
“Well, that’s the military. Get used to it.” I didn’t have much sympathy for her.
“Incidentally, she was my main competition for this posting.”
“How convenient,” I said.
“I never really thought about it until now, though. I do feel badly for her. She’ll lose her eligibility on medical grounds, but they’ll give her full citizenship and preferential hiring for civilian work, I’m sure.”
“Then she’s coming off better on that deal.”
“Most likely.”
“I can beat that,” Nils said.
“I already know about the thing with the dreadnought cannon.”
“Oh, you heard?”
“That wasn’t you, obviously.”
“No, but he was in my wing.” Nils was disappointed that he didn’t get to tell his story. Even I had heard the one about the Evagardian cadet who vaporized himself.
“How could something like that happen?” Salmagard asked. I was glad to hear her speak up. I was willing to bet she had some stories to tell about her own training.
“Too smart for his own good,” Nils said.
“I think anyone else would call him too stupid,” Deilani countered.
“But he couldn’t have gotten in there without bypassing maximum clearance locks. He was the best.”
“And now lost to our gene pool forever.”
“Well, like you said—his DNA’s still on file.” Nils was grinning inside his helmet.
“Can’t see anyone taking much interest,” Deilani said, looking over to watch the surface of the planet roll past. “I wouldn’t go near it.”
“The desire to show off: poor evolutionary trait,” Nils said.
“Quite,” Deilani sniffed.
“It has its uses,” I said.
“Like what, Admiral?”
“You’ve got to impress girls somehow,” I said. “Doesn’t matter where you come from. That’s a universal constant.”
“There are better ways,” Deilani said firmly.
“Oh, you know about this?”
“What? No.”
“Then you wouldn’t know,” I told her.
“How did your gender stay on top for as long as it did?” she snapped.
12
WE only got about eight hours from the crawler before it finally rolled to a stop.
The screens vanished, and the warning lights went dark. It wouldn’t move another centimeter. Several moments passed in silence. We all climbed out.
Our O2 tanks had gone away amazingly quickly during the ride. We were down to nothing but the fresh cartridges we’d been saving. That was good; I was beginning to feel my withdrawal again, and carrying heavy O2 tanks wouldn’t make the most of the energy I had left.
Walking away from the crawler wasn’t as easy as driving away from the Avenger had been. We were all tired of riding, but none of us wanted to see the vehicle go.
The planet that had flowed by so effortlessly suddenly seemed huge and daunting. I didn’t ask Nils how far we’d come. Knowing wouldn’t change anything.
It had taken longer to drive past the spires than to fly past them; now that we were on foot, it took ages. What did it look like, four figures in white trudging across the black planet? We were lucky to be above the mist for the moment; it would have made for uncertain footing that would have cost us time we couldn’t afford.
I thought about the oddest things: how to breathe most efficiently; wondering what the best gait would be in this situation. Ridiculous things, but I’d take anything to keep my mind from wandering.
“. . . what about you, Admiral?”
“What?”
“You may as well tell us who you really are,” Nils said, walking just ahead of me.
“It’s not important,” I said.
“I don’t think anyone believes that.”
“You’re happier not knowing.”
“Then you really are our enemy,” Nils said.
“I’m not your enemy. If I wanted to hurt you, I think I had plenty of chances. More air for me. I’m a friend.”
“But you’re not an admiral,” Deilani said.
“It’s an honorary title.”
“You’re not an officer.”
“Even an honorary admiral is still an officer.”
“You’re not an imperial,” Nils pressed.
“I am Evagardian,” I said patiently.
“What could you possibly have to gain by hiding it now?” Deilani asked.
“Maybe I haven’t given up on us living through this,” I told her. “I wouldn’t have bothered with all this nonsense if I didn’t think it at least gave us a chance. You think I’m leading you on for my health? It’s all well and good to be prepared for the worst, but you guys are ridiculous.”
Salmagard snorted, and quickly cut her com so we couldn’t hear. Nils actually turned and looked over his shoulder at me.
“What? Can’t I stay positive?” I asked.
“You’re just trying to change the subject. What kind of secret could you possibly want to take to the grave this way?”
“Nothing special. You’re better off living not knowing. You’re better off dying not knowing,” I said. “Has it occurred to you that I’m doing you a favor?”
Deilani’s sound of derision was transmitted clearly over our helmet coms.
“You don’t have to believe me; you just have to keep walking.”
“If we are rescued, you’re done for,” Nils said. “You have to know that.”
“Not true,” Deilani told him. “He thinks the Ganraens will protect him.”
“What about us?”
“We’ll be hostages, I expect. As far as killing us, he’s telling the truth. If he wanted us dead, he wouldn’t have brought us along. I’m starting to see what he’s up to. We’ve played right into his hands.”
I didn’t let myself laugh. It would be a waste of air. “Lieutenant, you are a girl of wonderful insight. Sometimes.”
Nils cut in, perhaps hoping to avoid another argument. “We never did find out what happened to the captain. What was going on with you guys when you were in Medical?” he asked.
I considered that. “Something was alive in there,” I told him.
“That’s impossible.”
“That’s what we said. We think it was a hamster.”
“A what?”
“Earth mammal. Common pet,” I explained.
“But Medical was three decks down, and a long way from anybody’s quarters.�
��
“We’re open to suggestions.”
“You said you’d seen a survey,” Deilani said to me.
“I heard about the survey. I never saw anything,” I corrected.
“They concluded there was no life here, didn’t they?”
“I think so—but how they could do that with faulty scanner readings, I’m not sure. I don’t know if they came down here and looked, or even sampled for microorganisms.”
“That’s what I was thinking. Suppose there is something alive here,” she said.
“I’ve been supposing it. I’m still not sure I buy it. This place is barren. Even if there were small organisms, say the size of the thing we trapped—I think we’d still see some evidence of them. We didn’t see anything when we went underground.”
“We should never have gone down there.” Deilani shook her head. “That was stupid.”
“I know, and it’s my fault. But we didn’t see anything. And if they’re not up here and they aren’t down there, where are they? I don’t think we had a local.”
“What could live here? There’s no atmosphere,” Nils said.
“There’s some pretty hardy stuff out there. Life’s adaptable. But like I said, I don’t think there’s anything here. There’s got to be an explanation for what we found in the lab. What about some kind of rogue prosthetic? Part of an artificial hand?” I said.
“That would make sense.” Nils liked that explanation.
“It would be a pretty small one,” I added.
“Maybe for a woman?”
“The crew was two men,” Deilani pointed out.
“Might not’ve been; I know Tremma was a guy, but he could’ve had a different pilot officer. Hell, a malfunctioning prosthetic could actually explain that stuff with the incinerator.”
My brows lifted. That was actually a plausible explanation. I imagined that the copilot had a prosthetic hand. Something went wrong, causing the copilot to lose control of the hand. They went to Medical and switched it out with a backup—then they went outside with the 14-14. They came back in, and the backup hand had the same problem, except this time there was an incinerator involved. And for some reason, the safety tab had been removed.
It was thin. A lot of things would’ve had to line up just right to get the outcome that we saw, but it wasn’t impossible.