Carbon Life

by HR Ringer

  Samantha slowly eased her knife blade away from Lang’s throat, bringing it up in front of his face so he could see what had been a hair’s breadth from opening up his trachea. She let go of his hair with a vicious shove, slamming his face onto the steel deck on which he was laying. She slowly got to her feet, her breath catching as she did so. “I think I may need to see a medic, Ma’am. Bastard kicked me while I was down – mighta busted a rib or two.”

  Lieutenant Winters didn’t look at the Specialist as she answered. “Go ahead, Traynor. I’ll meet you there after I get this guy to lockup.”

  “Word of advice, Lieutenant? Get someone to accompany you,” Sammy said. “This man is responsible for a number of high profile assassinations, and he has never been caught. Don’t take any chances, please. At least get some binders on his wrists.”

  While Winters and Traynor were talking, a station security team consisting of a sergeant and a corporal arrived and took over for the lieutenant. Before Lang could get to his feet, the corporal pulled his arms together behind his back and placed a set of binders on his wrists. He then grabbed the assassin by one upper arm as the sergeant grabbed the other arm; they both pulled him to his feet and assisted him to hobble to the main entrance. Winters watched them as they left, then turned back to Traynor. “Hell of a blade you have there, Specialist. Don’t think I’ve ever seen its like.”

  Sammy bent down and shoved the húdié dāo into its sheath, making a mental note to pull it and clean the blood from the edge after she got home. Standing up again, she smiled and replied, “One of a matched set… I wear one on each boot, ever since basic.”

  Winters grinned. “Didn’t know one could learn how to handle a blade during basic. Any other surprises I should know about, like maybe how a female comms specialist nearly twisted that guy’s foot off his leg?”

  “Adrenaline?”

  The lieutenant grinned as she shook her head in mock disbelief. “Come on… I’ll walk with you to the medical station. You can tell me how… and maybe why… you got attacked in a secure residential complex. I’m sure I’m going to enjoy filling out the paperwork for this little incident.”

  * * *

  * ARCTURUS STATION • ALLIANCE MEDICAL STATION *

  After the med-tech scanned the lower ribcage area where Lang had kicked her, he assured her that none of her ribs were fractured, despite the beautiful bruise that was beginning to form. Saying she might be sore for a few days, he had applied a coating of medigel to the bruised area. After commenting, “You have an incredibly toned body, Ms Traynor… probably helped protect those ribs,” he left her to get dressed. Sammy slipped off the exam table and stood beside it, grimacing as she slipped her arms through the sleeves and pulled her blouse on.

  Lieutenant Winters – having asked for and received Sam’s permission to accompany her – commented from behind her, “That is a lovely… and unusual, tattoo, Ms Traynor. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen such an elaborate design, and the colors are really striking.” Moving to stand beside her, she added quietly, “And I don’t believe adrenaline entirely explains how you nearly managed to twist Lang’s foot from his leg, Specialist. You have some seriously developed arms and shoulders… certainly much more than I’d expect from a shy comms tech. I’ll need to write a report on this incident, as will you, Ms Traynor, so you really need to be honest with me.”

  Sammy was silent for several moments before responding. “Lieutenant, I believe you’re aware a major portion of my service history is sealed… That damned assassin is the major reason Alliance Command sealed my records. I never expected to encounter him again; I’m afraid it’s going to cause all kinds of trouble for me.”

  “You don’t think his presence on this station is an accident?”

  “I’ve said all I’m allowed to say under terms of the NDA I read and signed before being transferred here from Vancouver…” Sammy said quietly. “And we really need to move to someplace that’s been secured against electronic snooping before speaking any further, Ma’am.”

  Kelsey Winters scrutinized Sammy with an expression of shocked astonishment, before glancing nervously around the room. “You don’t seriously think…” she began. Expressive, honey-brown eyes narrowed in silent response. “Okay, then. Let’s get out of here and go to my office.

  Traynor smiled grimly as she replied, “If we can, Lieutenant, I’d like to wait until morning… it’s nearly 2300 and I haven’t eaten dinner, plus there’s a full day planned for me tomorrow; that’s in addition to whatever report I need to file about Lang’s attempt on my life tonight. Trust me, I won’t forget any of it. Just, please? Be sure he’s kept isolated, and under 24-hour watch.”

  Winters considered Sammy’s request for a moment before replying, “Okay, Specialist… Seems a reasonable request. Meet me in my office at 0800… we’ll get the reports done so you can get back to work.”

  Sammy nodded as they left the Medical Offices together and went their separate ways. As soon as she was alone again, Traynor activated her omnitool and sent a message to Xiùlán on the Tokyo, saying only “We need to talk… 0730.”

  * * *

  * ARCTURUS STATION • SPECIALIST TRAYNOR’S RESIDENCE *

  Sammy rose at 0530, performed her morning exercise routine – wincing in discomfort at some of the moves she had to make – then took a soothing warm shower before pulling on clean underclothes and a clean SDU. She took time to have a cup of coffee, an energy bar and a piece of fresh fruit while she waited for Xiùlán to call her. Sammy hoped her Inamorata would be able to place a call during the time she’d asked… she really needed some moral support.

  While she waited, she used her personal terminal to compose a message to General Park; she hadn’t sent a message yesterday, hoping to wait until she’d had a chance to talk with Xiùlán about her sighting of Lang. Now that the assassin had made an attempt on her life, she decided Park needed to know everything that had happened. Checking the time, she saw that Xiùlán was ten minutes late in contacting her. Not surprising – her duties on the Tokyo were most likely keeping her just as busy as Traynor found herself on this station.

  Sammy had a chilling thought. With suddenly trembling fingers, she quickly entered the extranet address for Griffin Buchanan, then waited nervously until the call went through. “Traynor!” With a wide grin, Griff nodded as he greeted her. “How’re you doing on the Arc, Specialist? Staying out of trouble?”

  Feeling relief wash over her, she replied, “Doing okay, big guy… least I was until yesterday. You by yourself there? There’s something I need to tell you.” After assuring Sammy he was alone, she told him an abbreviated version of yesterday’s events. As she finished, she glanced at her chrono and said, “I have to go, Griff… Need to meet the Lieutenant and fill out a report. You keep an eye on your six, understand? There’s no way of knowing who else knows about us, and I don’t want to have to attend your memorial service, damn it. Stay safe!” After assuring Sammy he’d be careful, she terminated the connection, grabbed her shoulder bag and left to meet the lieutenant.

  * * *

  * ARCTURUS STATION · AT LARGE *

  Lieutenant Kelsey Winters looked up as the door to her office slid into the pocket in the bulkhead. Glancing at her desktop chrono, she looked up at Samantha Traynor and said, “Good morning, Specialist. Thanks for being on time. Shall we get to it?”

  Sammy sat in a chair beside the lieutenant’s desk as she replied, “Sure. Do we have surveillance video from that passageway? Might be helpful to append something like that to our reports, particularly if there’s infrared video.”

  Winters smiled in response. “That’s a damned good idea, Specialist. I’ll see what’s readily available.” At a look from Traynor, the lieutenant asked, “What?”

  Traynor smirked as she fiddled with her omnitool. “You must have forgotten what I’ve been doing here the past few weeks, Ma’am. You are aware that I can hack into any computer system and beat any intrusion detector made, right?”<
br />
  Kelsey shook her head as she grinned, “I am aware of your skills, Samantha, and I don’t need to remind you those skills are not supposed to be used on Alliance equipment. We can get by just fine with written reports… we can simply say that video might be available to those with a security clearance and leave it at that.”

  If Traynor was disappointed, she didn’t let it color her voice. “Understood, Ma’am. Do you have a datapad for my report?” The lieutenant selected one from the several on her desk and set it beside Traynor, who activated her omnitool and transferred a document to the device. “There’s my report, Ma’am. Not much to tell, but… there is a general at Alliance HQ in Vancouver – name’s RaeLee Park. Someone here – flag rank at least – might be able to convince her to speak about my previous mission.”

  Traynor looked down for a few moments before adding, “My records were sealed by generals above Park’s rank, Ma’am… if they find out Lang is here, in custody for attempting to murder me… well, that might just end badly for me anyway. The only way Lang could have learned my identity… my current duty station… would have been from someone in that chain, bought and paid for by Cerberus.” Thinking, ‘And that’s exactly why the program was terminated and the records sealed! Cerberus owns one of those goddamned generals!’

  Winters’ mouth fell at this bit of news. “That’s a pretty serious accusation, Specialist. Do you have anything… any proof to back up your allegation?”

  “No, I don’t, and honestly, getting the information out of that bastard in lockup by torturing him would get us just as much proof, but…” Traynor fixed Winters’ eyes with a hard stare as she warned, “… I can absolutely guarantee that if we don’t have eyes on that man every second he’s in lockup, he’ll be dead in his cell, and you’ll never see his murderer.”

  Winters took Sammy’s statement the wrong way. “Is that a threat to kill him, Specialist?”

  “No Ma’am… it’s a prophecy. I’ve seen it once before – I cannot say when, or even where – all you need to know is that two Cerberus agents, in Alliance custody on another planet for murdering an Alliance naval member were murdered in their cells, with no one the wiser until breakfast next morning.”

  Chapter 36: Three-Headed Hound From Hell

  My dear, never forget that he was just a raindrop, but you are the entire fucking storm. – Nikita Gill

  * * *

  Húdié dāo - 蝴蝶刀– butterfly sword (knife in English)

  Inamorata – A woman with whom one is in love; a female lover (Italian)

  NDA – Non-Disclosure Agreement, signed by Yuán and Traynor at termination of the O7 program

  O7 – An allegedly discontinued vocational code in the Systems Alliance military. The O designates covert operations; the 7 refers to the highest level of proficiency.

  Officer Rank Insignia – Vice Admiral (O-8), three stars; Admiral (O-9), four stars

  SDU – Standard Duty Uniform

  XO - Executive Officer

  * * *

  * ALLIANCE CRUISER SSV TOKYO, 3-Km FROM ARCTURUS STATION *

  Yuán Xiùlán stepped past a partition to see Lieutenant Olivia McKenzie, still in a med-bed recovering from her injuries during the battle with batarian and human slavers over the colony world of Elysium; the upper third of the bed had been tilted up so she could comfortably read. Noticing movement out of the corner of her eye, she turned her full attention on her visitor, offering a beaming smile as Yuan moved to stand beside the bed. Raising an arm towards her, she exclaimed, “Lieutenant! It’s so good to see you! I’m going stir-crazy in here, and hardly anyone has come by to just… talk.”

  Xiùlán grasped Olivia’s hand as she replied, “Damned good to see you awake, McKenzie. I’m told you really got slammed when that slug hit the hull.”

  “The med techs tell me the impact really rang my bell. The truth is I don’t remember a thing about it… entire day is still hazy.” Her expression turned somber as she concluded, “My dad always did say I had a hard head; I just wish that proving him right hadn’t been so damned painful.” Olivia looked down for a moment, then gave Xiùlán’s hand a gentle squeeze as she looked back up to add in a sad voice, “I was luckier than the warrant officer that got killed down there – at least I can still complain about not remembering that day – he’ll never have that chance.”

  Xiùlán grimaced at that, then gave Olivia’s hand an answering squeeze as she asked solemnly, “When are you getting out of here?”

  “Day and a half – they’ll place me on light-duty for a few shifts once I’m on my feet, until they can be fairly certain my head won’t explode.”

  “Light duty? Sounds like a desk job to me… that’s something that very well could make your head explode… I know it’d do it for me,” she answered with a light smile.

  McKenzie laughed at that. “Your assumption just may be correct, Yuán, but it probably won’t be any worse than laying here staring at the ceiling or looking at department reports on a datapad; at least I’ll be able to get up, move around, go get meals instead of selecting things and having ‘em brought to me on a tray.”

  Xiùlán nodded her understanding as she squeezed and released Olivia’s hand. “I need to get back to it, but it’s good to see you awake, McKenzie. I came by once – right after – but you were still in a coma. I’m glad you’re recovering.”

  “No happier than I am to actually be recovering. Come by tomorrow? It’s really nice to have some company… and Yuán? My friends call me ‘Kenzie’.”

  “You got it… Kenzie… and I know it’s tough, but hang in there…” Yuán replied, before adding in a tight voice, “… at least you’re not facing weeks on your back.”

  Olivia looked closely at the woman and noticed an expression she hadn’t seen before. Something told her that Yuán wasn’t being evasive, it was just… a recent event, perhaps. McKenzie mused about the lieutenant’s final statement as Xiùlán turned and left the Med Bay.

  * * *

  * VANCOUVER, BC • SYSTEMS ALLIANCE, WESTERN NORTH AMERICA HQ *

  Admiral Owen Fletcher nervously waited for the QEC to establish its connection with the mysterious head of Cerberus known only as the Illusive Man. He didn’t know why he had been summoned in the middle of the night, nor did he really care.

  Fletcher had grown used to the perks that came with no longer worrying about having enough credits for retirement – he had enjoyed an extravagant lifestyle ever since pinning on his third star. By the time he’d made full admiral, he was living beyond paycheck-to-paycheck – while still performing in an exemplary manner every day, his love of high-priced women and high-stakes gambling had completely taken over his off-duty hours, making him a tempting blackmail target for the less than savory citizens of the Systems Alliance.

  When the Illusive Man had first contacted him, Fletcher felt as if his prayers had been answered. All he had to do in return for a monthly gratuity – a very generous gratuity – was keep the Illusive Man advised about Alliance-run programs that might have an adverse effect on activities Cerberus needed them to turn a blind eye towards.

  By the time the Illusive Man had asked Fletcher to rein in General Park’s agents in the field, it was too late to interfere with them. The three-person squad had managed to sniff out and retrieve an asari artifact and get away, despite Fletcher’s best efforts to imperceptibly turn an entire space station’s security force against them.

  Fletcher thought he’d heard the end of it when one of the bitches working for Park had been gravely injured, but he hadn’t counted on asari gratitude; the blue squids had performed a minor miracle and saved her leg. The next operation Park had stuck her nose in had involved an assassination plot against a vocally anti-human turian named Raherix Ursivus. The assassin hired to do the job was sloppy – the remainder of Park’s squad had gotten lucky, discovering how and when the assassin was going to strike.

  Fletcher had to use all his powers of persuasion with Alliance Command to allow the p
lot to proceed to its inevitable conclusion. He had demanded – and received – triple his normal fee from Cerberus; additionally, he had convinced the other members of Alliance Command to terminate Park’s pet program and ship her troublesome agents off to their chosen fields.

  He had thought all his troubles behind him, but hadn’t counted on being double-crossed by the Illusive Man – as Fletcher himself pocketed a handsome sum for his actions, the assassin had been short-changed out of his lucrative payday, and was looking to even the score with whomever was responsible. Michael Moser Lang had jumped him between his aircar and his home; with a knife at his throat, Fletcher had named the agents and their new duty stations. Lang couldn’t reach the chink on the Tokyo, but he could certainly deal with the miserable bitch on Arcturus Station.

  After a few weeks had gone by, Fletcher had thought he was in the clear; why he had been summoned for a meeting was a mystery that was about to be revealed. As his thoughts were interrupted by the clandestine quantum entanglement comm system ‘answering’ its mated unit – from a location unknown by Fletcher – the swirling tornado of colored particles quickly resolved into an image of a well-dressed man sitting with legs crossed, drink in one hand and half-smoked cigarette between two fingers of the other, with an unknown red sun filling the background behind him.

  The Illusive Man took a drag from his cigarette, blew the smoke up into the space above him and said, “Good evening, Admiral. I find myself in need of your assistance once again. You certainly must remember Michael Moser Lang… you recently gave him information about one of the agents that successfully discovered his plan to eliminate the problem of a vocal turian.” He took another drag from his cigarette, then blew the smoke upward as he swirled the ice and liquid about in the glass he was holding.

  When Fletcher didn’t respond, he took a sip of liquid from the glass, then stared hard at the admiral as he continued speaking in a soothing tone. “It seems Mr Lang made his way to Arcturus, where he attempted to kill the woman that was sent to Arcturus Station. Unfortunately for him, he hadn’t figured on encountering a bearcat… She nearly ripped one of his feet from his leg and was about to slice his throat from ear-to-ear; regrettably, she was prevented from completing that task, and Mr Lang is currently a guest of the Alliance, sitting in their lockup on the station.”