by Saxon Andrew
Tal shook his head, “Don’t be; you’ve been consistent about this from the very beginning. You should feel good that I’m disappointed, but I’ll move on. I’m headed up to the observation deck for a while.” Tal walked out of the cabin and Ka sat down on the bed and stared at the door for a long time.
• • •
Six days later, the ship arrived at the landing dock and Sig carried their bags to the transport they left in the parking lot. He didn’t say anything to Ka as they pulled out of the port and changed to his normal form a block after they exited. He changed his hair to bright green and his skin to a deep olive color. “Let me out here, Lis.”
“Shouldn’t we go back to Sig and Lis’s house?”
“No, you should contact the Guild Master from there and you should tell him you’ve already taken care of me. I’d suggest taking some extra time to arrive.”
“Tal…”
“Don’t make this any harder than it is. Drop me off and go have a good life.”
“But we’ll still need to work together when we get back to Earth.”
“We’ll do that when we arrive there. Let me know if you run into any issues with the Guild Master; I’ll plug into the guild’s computer and see if he’s planning anything fishy. He probably won’t do anything because he’ll covet his half of the contract Sig was going to be paid. If you don’t hear from me, you’re in the clear.”
Ka couldn’t look at him, when she pulled over. Tal got out, went to the rear of the transport, grabbed his bags, turned, and walked away without looking back. Ka watched him go in the rearview mirror and forced her expression to be neutral. Her moist eyes didn’t match up with her expression.
Chapter Fourteen
Sig disappeared and assumed an identity that wasn’t known by the Guild. He took a flight to Americas and went to a residence he had rented years earlier and looked around. It never seemed so stark and barren as it did at that moment. He went out and ate at a local restaurant and heard Duncan over the subvocal-communicator, “I’m having some issues.”
“What sort of issues?”
“My information has been passed up the chain-of-command and they have real doubts about your honesty.”
“Do this, Duncan. They have an insider in the guild; have them contact whoever it is and ask them to confirm the existence of the viruses.”
“I’ll see what I can do.”
“Let me know if we need to call this whole thing off.”
“The only thing that’s giving me credibility is that I insisted that something was going on and was ignored. Natalie has confirmed what we discussed but they’re still uncertain about what to do.”
“Keep me posted, Duncan.”
“Will do.”
• • •
Tal went back to his residence and pressed his hand on a wall painting. The painting swung out revealing an armored safe. He looked through the contents and began taking out several items. If he couldn’t transfer his accounts, then he needed to use the time to remove the viruses. He told Duncan the truth about the viruses’ existence, but he didn’t tell him the whole truth; he was the one that developed them. He was so ignorant back then. He never really thought about the possible consequences of the colonies ever using them. Even if he didn’t go back to Earth, the viruses had to go. He took an electronic sending unit out of the safe and closed it.
He went into the small-attached garage and pulled his air-transporter out. Only wealthy and rich citizens could afford an air-transport and he loved the freedom his gave him. He flipped on the gravity units and the transport rose from the driveway above his residence. He rose to an altitude of a thousand-feet and flew into the traffic moving toward the center of the capital city. As he began to think about the mission ahead, he had to admit that he did a remarkable job developing the viruses. He created a hundred-different-viruses that were designed to only attack humans. He also designed a container that would be frozen until it was dropped into the upper atmosphere of a planet. The heat from entry would heat the container and make it brittle; it would then shatter on impact when it hit the ground. The virus inside it would immediately start reproducing at an incredible rate and would be spread around the planet on air currents. All human life would be dead within a few-weeks.
He smiled as he remembered telling the high ranking military officer that the safe housing the viruses couldn’t be made of Chronide; it would give off particles that would kill the viruses. That was a lie, but the officer didn’t know enough to know any better. So, they built the storage container out of high-strength alloy and sealed it in a room in a small government facility located in the middle of the capital city. Tal shook his head. The colonies, unlike the Lab in Orlando, had limited security defending the colony’s facility. They didn’t even route air-traffic around it. The Security Minister said that the container couldn’t be breeched by a direct nuclear explosion…but they didn’t consider it could be breeched by an electronic signal.
He flew in the traffic lane moving over the group of government buildings in the center of the city and pressed a button on the electronic sending unit when he was directly above the facility, as he continued flying on his route.
Inside the massive, refrigerated armored container, the seals on the top of the small containers holding the viruses twisted slightly. A small hole was uncovered, and several drops of fluid sealed inside the top seal dripped into the virus solutions. Those few drops contained the virus Tal used on Sig and Lis to disintegrate their bodies. The virus attacked the viruses in the containers and devoured them. Once they were consumed, the virus that consumed them would turn on itself and disappear leaving nothing but oxygen and nitrogen in the containers. The killing of the viruses would never be discovered; no one was going to open them to check on them; they were too deadly to risk it. It was possible they might be dropped one day, but now, nothing would happen. Tal doubted they would ever be used but there was no sense in taking chances. He flew back over the facility on the way back to his residence and sent another signal just to be sure.
He hadn’t heard from Ka, so his plan probably worked. He felt his emotions well up but forced them back. Enough! Put this behind you! He landed at his residence and went inside.
• • •
The next-morning, he heard Duncan’s voice, “You’ve been cleared to come back.”
“What changed, Duncan?”
“They did what you suggested. The insider was totally shocked at discovering the existence of the viruses. It took them all day to track them down but confirmed they do exist. The insider says they see no way you can remove them.”
“They also didn’t know they existed, Duncan.”
“You think you can eliminate them?”
“You’ve seen some of my talents, what do you think?”
“I believe that if you say you can do it, you can. I’ve also established the accounts that you can transfer your money into.”
“Duncan, are you sure that your leaders trust us?”
“They don’t trust you. That will have to happen once they have an opportunity to sit down and discuss all this with you.”
“Fair enough. Give me the transfer codes.” Duncan started reading off the numbers and Tal memorized them. Afterwards, Tal asked, “Have you contacted Lis?”
“I have, and she’s started the transfer.”
“Why did you contact her first?”
Duncan responded with some hesitation, “Dr. Meier insisted on it.”
“Ok. I’m booking a room on the cruise ship and I’ll see you on the Morning Star next week.” The contact ended and Tal gazed out the window. “She could do worse,” he guessed.
• • •
The week passed uneventfully, and Tal packed up his bags the day before boarding. He loaded most of his important devices and solutions in his leather bag and tossed a thermite device inside the safe to burn the contents before closing it. The safe was made from chronide and the fire could not burn through it. He used hi
s left hand to make sure he wasn’t being tracked, then went around making sure nothing important was being left behind.
Tal had put a tremendous amount of effort into building this identity and he didn’t think anyone would penetrate it, but it never hurt to make sure he wasn’t being followed. He focused for a moment and changed his appearance. He wasn’t going to use his normal form on this cruise. He chose another identity he had developed but never used before. He made sure the place was clean and called a commercial transport to take him to the local spaceport, where he boarded a ship to take him to New Asia, where the Morning Star had moved to pick up passengers for another cruise. He checked into a hotel and managed to finally fall asleep; he’d see Ka the next day. That wasn’t going to be easy.
• • •
He arrived at the cruise terminal the next day, an hour after boarding started. The commercial driver dropped him off at the boarding ramp and Tal carried his bags to the bottom of the ramp. The Cruise Director looked right at him and didn’t recognize him, “Name Please!”
“Al.”
“Welcome aboard.”
He put his bags on the moving boarding ramp and arrived at the top, when he heard the computer announce, “Al, cabin number 6001.” He was traveling prime-class and his cabin was located close to all of the ship’ major entertainment centers. He was greeted by a crewman, who lifted his bags with a smile, “If you’ll follow me, I’ll take you to your cabin.”
“Thank you very much.”
When they arrived at his cabin and he noticed a special elevator was next to his room. The crewman smiled, “Only those with a prime-class key can use this elevator. Enjoy your cruise.”
“How many on this floor can use this elevator?” Al asked as the crewman put his bags in his cabin.
“Only one room on each floor can use it, Mr. Al. That prevents it from constantly opening and closing on each floor.” Al tried to tip him, but he refused it, “I appreciate it, Sir, but we aren’t allowed to accept tips. Have a nice day.”
Al settled in and unpacked. He stayed in his room until he felt the ship start lifting. He took the elevator to the outer deck and stared out of the clear viewport as the giant vessel move away from the surface; he could never get enough of watching this magnificent display of technology. He gazed out of the viewports until they closed to prevent the star’s light from blinding anyone. He looked up at the monitor and smiled. This was so amazing. He glanced to his right and saw Ka staring at the monitor and looking around. She didn’t recognize him, and he could tell she was bothered by not seeing him; she knew he wouldn’t miss this. He turned to the monitor and kept his eyes on it until she left.
After some time had passed, he heard over his communicator, “Are you on board?”
“I am.”
“I looked for you on the upper deck.”
“I’ve changed my appearance. I’ll meet you when we arrive on Earth.”
“Tal, there’s no reason to be like this.”
“Like you said, we ended our relationship when we arrived in the colonies. Enjoy your trip, Ka.” He ended the contact with a heavy sigh and she didn’t try to speak to him again.
He went to his room and remained there until the passengers were called to go over the safety procedures that included the use of escape pods. Natalie was introduced to the passengers and he had to admit she did an excellent job of welcoming them. He saw Duncan watching her and he obviously approved of her performance. He started to leave and heard Duncan, “Sig, are you on board? I haven’t seen you.”
“I’m here, Duncan. I’m using a new identity; I’ll come by at the end of the cruise. You can reach me with the communicator if you need me.”
“I’m sorry about you and Lis breaking up.”
“Duncan, we were never really together. She isn’t my wife; that was a sham that was part of the job.”
“Even so, I’m sorry.”
“Thanks, that means a lot. Do you know how I’m going to be used when we get to Earth?”
“I do. Your revelations about how you can mimic another person has frightened us. We want you to make visits to our units and see if you can turn up any spy that’s infiltrated our ranks. Lis says that you can see the difference; is she right?”
“She is, Duncan. I’ll help anyway I can.”
“Enjoy the trip, Sig.”
“Cal me Tal, that’s my real name.”
“There’s no Tal on the passenger manifest.”
Tal chuckled, “Using a new identity would be pointless if I used my real name.”
Duncan laughed, “You’re right. Just for fun, let’s see if I can find you.”
“How many single passengers are on the cruise, Duncan.”
“Twenty-eight-hundred.”
“That’s good enough odds. Give it your best shot.” Duncan chuckled, and the contact ended. Tal wondered how Duncan could talk to both Ka and him; he could only contact Ka. Oh well, let’s see if he could give Duncan a run for his money.
• • •
Tal was sitting in the casino that night wearing a flamboyant red and black outfit to match his hair and eyebrows. His skin was pale, which made his hair really stand out. He was watching a group of card players at a table when he saw Ka enter the casino. He was surprised and instantly forced his face to remain neutral. The woman that entered with her looked almost exactly like Ka did in her normal form. It was an impossible similarity; genetics dictated that it couldn’t happen. He looked closer and saw that there were some differences. Ka’s eyes were green, the woman’s eyes were blue. Ka’s hair was brown, the woman’s hair was a honey-blonde. Her nose was also slightly different. The differences would be seen if Ka was using her normal appearance, however, she wasn’t. She was using Jil’s appearance with blue hair and eyebrows.
Tal watched the woman and knew she most certainly was Ka’s daughter. She appeared to be in her thirties and Tal started thinking about how old Ka must be. Let’s see…. she married soon after graduating and had a daughter a few-years later. Ok, twenty-two plus, let’s say three. That’s twenty-five. Her daughter was fourteen when they faked their deaths. That makes it thirty-nine. This woman was at least thirty, so that adds sixteen-more years. Ummm…Ka was about fifty-five years old. With her extended life-span, she still looked to be in her thirties. She was at least fifteen-years older than him. Who would have guessed it? Still that difference was negligible. Many couples were separated by fifty-years or more. His father was seventy-years older than his mother. But if you knew what to look for, you could tell a person’s real age. Her daughter was radiant, and her skin gave away her youth. She followed her mother around and was pretty much silent. But he could see in her eyes she didn’t miss much. She rejected several single passengers that approached her, and she did it with class without hurting their feelings. He wondered why she didn’t modify her appearance with colony colors; she was using her normal form. He didn’t want his sorrow to give him away to Duncan, who just entered the casino with Natalie. He turned and left the casino making sure his exit was blocked from being seen by the passengers between him and Duncan. To make sure, he walked out slightly behind a woman headed toward the exit.
He went to one of the other clubs and watched a standup comedian perform, who was absolutely hilarious. One of his jokes hit home.
“Hey, how many assassins does it take to change a light ten-feet off the floor?” He paused and smiled, “Only one. He stacks up the bodies and climbs on top!”
The audience roared, and Tal sighed; the colonists took assassins as a part of their normal existence and found a way to laugh about it. He finally went to his cabin and settled in. He thought about it and wondered if he did anything to give himself away. Ummm…could he find himself if he were looking? He knew Ka and Duncan’s perceptions were highly trained and they would see everything around them and remember every detail.
Ka saw him on the observation deck and she would recognize him if she saw him again. If she didn’t, she might conn
ect the dots. Duncan would be watching for someone that tried to avoid Ka. He reasoned that he had no choice but to get close without running away; he needed to do it several times to throw them off. What the heck, he had a game to play and it would help him forget his feelings.
The second day, he was eating in the main cafeteria, when he saw Ka and her daughter come in and sit at a table near him. He noticed that Duncan came in right behind them and scanned the cafeteria. He took a bite of his breakfast and looked directly at Ka but then focused on her daughter. His expression showed his approval and the daughter noticed it. She smiled and looked away. Ka glanced at him and looked at Duncan. He shook his head and went to Natalie’s table. Good!
Tal finished, stood up, and walked over to Ka’s table and smiled, “I just wanted to tell you that you are incredibly beautiful.”
Ka’s daughter looked at him, returned his smile, and said “Thank you, Sir.”
Tal’s eyes narrowed a bit. Adding the sarcastic sounding sir to her comment told him that she saw him as another dirty old man. He nodded quickly, turned, and walked away.
Ka looked at her, “You hurt his feelings.”
“Better to hurt his feelings nicely than have to be nasty. You taught me that.”
Ka sighed, “I guess.”
“You did, Mom! And told me to never trust a man.” Ka stared at her and then picked up a fork and began eating.
Natalie looked at Duncan, “Lis’s daughter is a real knock-out.”
“Yes, I can see that. But she’s rather…Uhhh…”
“Unapproachable?” Natalie finished.
“Something like that.”
Natalie smiled, “Trust me, Duncan. She must be with those looks. Have you picked out Sig?”
“No, I haven’t. I thought it would be easy but he’s doing a good job of hiding.”
“He’s one of the colonies’ best assassins, Duncan. If he doesn’t want to be found, he won’t.”