by Gary Moreau
Casey looked up, searching for confirmation in Glancy’s eyes, but Glancy was studying the deck at his feet.
“Padraig, I don’t trust him.”
“You mean Commander Slater?”
“I don’t trust either of them,” Casey replied, self-consciously fingering his collar.
Glancy said nothing. A moment later the portal swished open. Sabine entered and Glancy left.
“Doctor, how are you? Well, I hope,” Sabine said with a mocking sneer. He withdrew a stiletto from his pouch and began playing with it. Occasionally he would eye Casey, whose attention was fixed on the blade.
“You know,” Sabine said, “if you think a few broken fingers evens the score between us, you are sadly mistaken. And that boated Yamaguchi will get his, when the time is right.” He made a quick move and Casey flinched. He withdrew and laughed. “Kind of a scaredy-cat aren’t you. I hate to waste my time protecting trash like you.” Casey didn’t respond, so he continued. “This joint smells like a place a man like you would live. It would be a public service if I slit that little beast’s throat.” For emphasis he slashed the blade through the air and laughed again when he saw Casey wrap his arms more securely around the little dog.
“You touch this dog and I promise you, she’ll be the last being you ever harm.”
Sabine leaned forward. “You make my knees shake.”
Casey touched his com-collar. “Jane, this is Casey. I need to speak with Commander Slater.” He paused while he listened, and then answered, “Yes, this is an emergency!” There was another pause. “No, he’s here. That’s the problem.” Pause. “No, I’m not injured.” Pause. “All right, Jane.” The connection went dead.
“Tsk, tsk, tattling isn't nice. Don’t look at me like that or I may be forced to come sit next to you. You’d probably piss in your suit and it already stinks enough in here.”
The portal swished open and Sabine turned, his eyes opening wide. “You”
It was the only word he managed before one of Yamaguchi’s hands found his neck and pressed firmly on his carotids, while the other slammed Sabine’s arm against the wall with such force that the stiletto flew out of his hand and clattered to the deck. A few moments later Yamaguchi released his grip. Sabine slid down the bulkhead and slumped over, with his head dangling on his neck.
Casey arose and checked to make certain Yamaguchi hadn’t killed him. Satisfied Sabine was basically okay, he went over to the synthesizer to produce a sedative disk, which he applied to Sabine’s forehead. He gave it a pat for good measure and Sabine’s head flopped back against the bulkhead with an audible “crack”. He stared at Sabine for a moment and then focused on the swastika. On impulse, he jerked the gold chain from around Sabine’s neck.
After Casey stood, he reluctantly released the catch on his com-collar. If Slater finds out, Casey thought, he’ll consider this an act of treason. He held out his hand and Yamaguchi placed his com-collar in it as well. Casey put both collars on the work counter and exited the room for the corridor.
He looked down the curve of the passage. They were alone. At first, he thought it would be best to go to the hall of sleep, but was afraid they’d be observed. Instead, he led Yamaguchi down to the Storage Deck. On his way he dumped Sabine’s chain into a hopper that emptied into ship recycling.
He led Yamaguchi to the land-shaper and quickly climbed the ladder with Yamaguchi close behind. He entered through the hatch and descended the short interior ladder, jumping down from the last step. When his feet hit the deck, the sound was muffled by a thick layer of debris, which puffed into the air as a nose-itching cloud. Old memories lapped at his mind, like waves against a shore, touching and then receding before they could be captured.
When Casey closed the hatch, the cabin became black. From memory, he switched on the lights. He stared at the clear crystal of his cryo-capsule, arising from the deck as if it had sprouted out of the powdery dust. There was one set of footprints leading across the fine dust to where he stood. Lying against the base of the control console was a head. His breath caught in his throat, but on closer inspection it was clearly the head of a mannequin. It appeared to be partially melted and one glass eye was missing, possibly hidden within the thick dust. There was purpose here, but the memories eluded him.
He abandoned these reflections and studied Yamaguchi. There was a dark sparkle in the giant’s eyes and he swung his arm back and forth in a tight arc. Casey was more than a little frightened. It was like being caged with a wild beast.
“Yamaguchi, this is my cryo-capsule.” His voice was weak. He cleared his throat and tried to speak with more authority. “It is my belief that our perceptions are being influenced by some form of electromagnetic wave that is part of a feedback system based on our expectations. The cryo-capsule is able to insulate our brain from the wavefront.”
Before Casey was through talking, Yamaguchi was already moving forward. The door opened without resistance and Yamaguchi turned his face back toward Casey. His look promised more than pain if Casey was wrong. He stepped into the capsule and pulled the door shut.
Casey found himself holding each breath, but as the minutes passed and Yamaguchi remained inside the capsule, he felt exhilaration. He’d been right! He wasn’t insane. His reality was more accurate than that of the majority.
Casey watched Yamaguchi, clearly visible within the glass-like tube. The name “Unsmiling Buddha” came strongly to mind and he was instantly transported to the past, to a time when he was guardian of the sleeping dead. The moment passed. While he watched, he noticed that the capsule was still connected to power. He bent and undid the coupling; the last thing he needed was to have his bodyguard go into stasis.
Casey continued his vigil, feeling oddly nostalgic, until a worry began to insinuate itself into his new found confidence. The passage of time began to taint his sense of triumph with anxiety. He forced himself to wait until he could wait no longer, and then lunged for the capsule and swung open the door.
Yamaguchi moved only his head as he turned to fix his eyes on Casey, as if awakening from a trance.
Casey spoke first. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to disturb you, but there is only a limited air supply in there and...you didn’t appear to be breathing.”
“Do you judge me to be incompetent,” the giant rumbled.
“No, I”
“Do you offer a man, dying of thirst, just one drop of water?”
“But Slater is going to find out I took my collar off and it’ll look like I attacked Sabine. I need your protection.” Casey glanced anxiously toward the hatch of the land-shaper. “The risk grows with each passing moment. Help me.”
Yamaguchi pulled the capsule door shut and activated the inner latch, effectively ending any further discussion.
Casey stood around, indecisive. He shivered. If he believed in ghosts, he could imagine this place was haunted. Fragmentary memories chilled him. He seemed to recall a flight of terror that ended in this hiding place. From what? He wondered. The memory escaped him, becoming distant within himself, until it seemed to disappear altogether, but he couldn’t shake the sense that an unknown horror lurked nearby.
Finally, he could tolerate it no longer. He activated the hatch and hurriedly climbed down the land-shaper’s ladder with total disregard for anyone watching. He slipped and rapped his kneecap painfully against a rung, but ignored the pain and jumped the last meter to land on the deck. He crouched as he turned, expecting to see Meat-Man and Barracuda bearing down on him, not even aware that he was using the old names. He didn’t look back at the land-shaper as he ran the short distance to the up-tube and dived into its mouth.
He exited on Deck Two and walked as fast as his aching joints would allow toward the medical suite. When he reached the lab, he paused, afraid he would find Sabine and afraid he wouldn’t. He could imagine Sabine waiting, just on the other side of the portal, wolfish grin, stiletto in hand.
With a spasm of will Casey pushed himself through the portal and
quickly glanced to the left. Sabine was gone. He scanned the rest of the room, ignoring his puppy that barked a friendly greeting and jumped to put her paws on his leg. The room was empty, but his scalp crawled as if he was being watched. He glanced toward the work counter; the collars were gone. He became sick with dread and tremulous with fear.
He sat down on the pallet and held his head in his hands. How would he explain this to Slater? What would he say? He felt nauseated with remembered pain. He wanted to run, but there was no place to hide.
He was afraid to sleep, aware that with each passing moment some dreadful retribution was coming inevitably closer. He rehearsed arguments in his mind, about how it was his duty as a physician to attend to those in need, but his only real hope for rescue rested with Yamaguchi. Surely Yamaguchi wouldn’t stay in the capsule. Surely he would come to his defense. Fear swirled through his mind. Eventually, he collapsed into a fitful doze and then, just before an unseen dawn, he lapsed into a deep sleep.
Chapter 28
Casey didn’t even stir when his portal opened. It was not until Glancy shook him that he awoke, with a start. It was a moment before he remembered where he was. He had been dreaming of distant Earth.
“Why did you do it?” Glancy asked with genuine regret.
Casey’s tongue felt thick and dry. He pushed himself to a sitting position and Marta jumped, trying to get into his lap, but he ignored the puppy.
“You know why I’m here, don't you?” Glancy asked.
“Yes,” Casey mumbled, “I suppose so.”
When he tried to stand, Glancy took hold of his arm and helped him to his feet.
“Thank you, Padraig,” Casey said, and stumbled his way into the personal room.
After attending to his needs, he re-entered the lab and stood there, swaying and squinting. “Do you know where Yamaguchi is? Have you seen him?” Casey asked.
“As a matter of fact, no. Do you know where he is? Slater wants to have chat with him.”
Casey said nothing.
“If you know something, this would be good time to start singing.”
Casey opened his mouth, as if he were about to speak, but then shut it.
“For such a smart guy, you sure are stupid. But then, Slater says you’re the most stubborn man he’s ever met. Well, actually, he calls you a bull-headed son of a bitch, but I guess it’s about the same. Come on. It’s time.” He held out his hand and made a crook out of his index finger.
“All right,” Casey answered, but it was more mouthed than voiced. Marta wanted to play and, as he walked toward the portal, she ran around his feet. Somehow he avoided stepping on her and followed Glancy into the passageway, managing to shut the portal with the puppy still inside the lab.
Once in the passage he turned to Glancy. “What’s going to happen?” he asked. “He’s not going to hurt me again is he?”
“No clue, but I doubt it. You still have value.”
“Then you think I’ll be okay?” Casey said with naked hope in his voice.
“Come on old man.”
He took hold of Casey’s arm but Casey pulled away from his grip and Glancy allowed it. They walked to the up-tube and exited on Deck One. Olson was standing outside Slater’s suite and touched his collar to whisper a brief message. He stepped aside so Casey could enter, followed by Glancy.
Slater had his back to Casey with his hands clasped behind, but Casey’s gaze fixed on the two com-collars lying on Slater’s console. Jane wasn’t there. The room was quiet.
Casey shifted his eyes, without turning his head, and saw Sabine standing against the bulkhead. Something caught his eye. He turned his head fully and his gaze fixed on the pink plastic of a burn-gun, nestled in a holster strapped to Sabine’s waistband. Its oversized barrel and pastel color seemed to declare it was nothing more than a toy but, in fact, it was an outlawed weapon. Now that he saw it, he wasn’t surprised Sabine possessed one. Despite his predicament, he was outraged that Slater would allow such a weapon in the colony. Perhaps it was the hopelessness of his situation rather than courage that gave him the power to speak.
“Slater!” he yelled. “You’re a perverted bastard to allow an animal like Sabine loose in the colony, and now a burn-gun. You are sick!”
Slater slowly turned to reveal a face that was tight with restrained rage. His cheeks were flushed, his nose a pale beak, but when he spoke his voice was deceptively mild.
“And you are a disappointment. I give, give, give, and you take, take, take. I generously give of my time to discuss your idiotic theories and fears. I tell you how much I appreciate the job you’re doing and how do you repay me? You use your skills as a physician to overcome one of my trusted men, while he was risking his life to protect you, and you subvert another.”
Casey opened his mouth to respond, but Slater cut him short. “Shut up! I’ll tell you when to speak and what to say. We have a colony of five hundred souls working desperately to establish a viable colony and one man who feels he’s above the rest. Who feels his needs come first. He is a traitor, morally bankrupt, self-serving. Do you know who that is Casey?”
Casey couldn’t help himself. “Yes, I do. It’s you.”
Slater picked up one of the com-collars and dangled it from his fingers. Suddenly, he leaned forward and whipped it violently in an arc; it struck Casey in the mouth, causing a trickle of blood to drip down his chin.
“Where is Mister Yamaguchi?” Slater asked.
Casey didn’t want to tell, but the fear of pain reached into him and he began shaking. He shifted his eyes to Sabine and saw him smiling as he caressed the butt of the burn-gun.
Casey wanted Slater to ask him again. He couldn’t tolerate more pain. He just couldn’t. He would tell. He would say or do anything but, before he could give Slater whatever he wanted, the portal opened.
Slater’s eyebrows rose in surprise. Casey crouched slightly to turn in his chair, so he could see who had entered. It was Yamaguchi! Casey felt warm, melting relief, and a revival of his determination not to bow to Slater’s intimidation.
“Mister Yamaguchi,” Slater said, “how thoughtful of you to join us.”
Sabine grasped the butt of his gun and backed a little farther away.
“Where, might I ask, have you been?” Slater asked.
“Doctor Conklin has shown me a place of peace, a place where I can regain my strength.”
“How nice. And what about your duty? Tell me, Mister Yamaguchi, what is your primary duty?” Slater asked with confidence.
“To question and to observe,” Yamaguchi answered.
Slater shifted uncomfortably in his chair and Casey looked down to hide a small smile.
“All right then,” Slater continued, “what is your second duty?”
“To maintain order and serve the leader.”
It was Slater’s turn to smile. He sat down in his chair and leaned back. “And who is the leader?”
“You,” Yamaguchi said.
Casey shifted farther into his seat and glanced up at Yamaguchi, with a terrible cold creeping into his bones. Yamaguchi looked more like he used to, aloof, controlled, and distant.
Slater continued. “Your behavior last night would seem to indicate that you’ve forgotten your duty. Is that the case?”
“No,” Yamaguchi said without hesitation.
Slater paused. His eyes returned to his console. He appeared pleased. When he looked back up, he stared directly into Casey’s eyes, even though he spoke to Yamaguchi. “I need proof that you have not forgotten who the leader is. Are you willing to prove it?”
“Yes,” Yamaguchi answered.
Casey slumped in his chair. Despite the sensation of freezing cold, a trickle of perspiration slowly wormed its way down his back.
“Very well then,” Slater said. “Doctor Conklin seems to have difficulty hearing my orders, so it seems he has no real use for his ears. Cut them off.”
Casey’s breath caught. When he spoke his voice quaked with fear. “Pleas
e, Geoff. I didn’t mean to do anything wrong. All I did was try to help Yamaguchi, one of your men. Please, give me another chance. Have mercy on me!”
When Casey began to rise out of his chair, Slater nodded to Sabine who pulled Casey roughly back into it and held him in place.
“Mister Glancy,” Slater said in his pleasant baritone, “will you assist Mister Sabine and Mister Yamaguchi?”
Glancy stepped forward.
Sabine leaned down until his mouth was next to Casey’s ear. “You stole my gold chain, you asshole. What’d you do with it?”
Casey struggled to escape but was held in place by two men, one dressed in white, the other in black. They took hold of his arms and pinned him to the chair.
“Where’d you hide it?” Sabine yelled.
“So, now we must add larceny to your growing list of crimes,” Slater said and shook his head as if disappointed.
Casey’s eyes were fixed on Slater. “Commander, please! I beg you. Please––” His voice choked off and he began crying, tears flowing down his cheeks.
“Do it,” Slater ordered.
Casey’s head was grasped in a rigid grip. His body was shaking, but his head was held still. He felt the first sharp, slicing pain. It was a burning. The blood warmed the side of his face. His vision began to gray and he lost consciousness.
Yamaguchi met Slater’s eyes.
“What are you waiting for? Both ears. And when you get done put that collar back around his neck.”
Yamaguchi proceeded to slice off the other ear of the now limp and bloody figure.
Chapter 29
When Casey awakened he was on his pallet in the medical lab. There was searing pain on both sides of his head. The skin of his face and neck was stiff and tight with dried blood, but he was afraid to touch the sides of his head to confirm what he already knew. He was curled up in the fetal position, alone except for his puppy. He sobbed with pain and the fear of disfigurement. He cried without pride, without dignity, until he found temporary solace in sleep.
He did not awaken until someone gently shook him. He opened his eyes. It was Yamaguchi.