A woman, one of the stratiotes from the Cilicia operation, saw them and drew her sidearm, aiming it at their pursuers. Tamara spun around to see them taking cover and aiming their own weapons towards the isolated woman.
“No, we just have to see the Dukas, don’t shoot!” she cried.
Without waiting to see what happened, they rounded the final corner to find an open space leading to the command deck. Two more guards tried to block their passage, but they were too slow. Glaucon threw the first against the wall while Tamara jumped up and slammed her elbow into the second man’s face. They stumbled inside, only to find themselves face to face with their commander.
“What’s going on?” barked the Dukas.
Komes Pasion was stood just a few metres from him and already had a handgun drawn and pointed directly at Glaucon’s face. Next to him was Komes Andronicus, but he simply placed his hand on his hip, waiting but not drawing his weapon. The pursuers chased inside and grabbed the three intruders. The Dukas stepped closer and repeated his question.
“Dukas, there’s something...” started Glaucon, but one of the guards pulled him down to his knees and interrupted him.
“We found them sneaking through the engineering section,” explained the man as he did his best to keep Glaucon down. He was nowhere near strong enough, and the tough Attican put pressure on his legs, forcing himself back up.
“Let him speak!” barked the Dukas, now starting to become irritated at the lack of information coming his way. Roxana shook off her assailant and turned to face the next two who seemed to be holding onto Tamara a little harder than required. The teenager stamped the nearest on the foot with her heel and backed away towards Roxana. Glaucon nearly smiled at the ruckus, but the look from the Dukas told him that he needed to explain, and fast.
“Dukas Xenias, we have discovered a conspiracy on this ship. There are some here planning on...”
“Drop it!” snapped Komes Andronicus. He levelled his pistol at the temple of Komes Pasion. Both men were of similar build and wearing identical uniforms as members of the Arcadian contingent. Komes Pasion glanced towards him without turning his head.
“What is this madness? Have you lost your mind?” he roared.
Behind him a number of the command staff drew their own weapons and forced the others to move to the side of command deck. Dukas Xenias watched in disbelief as his closest advisors and most of the officers of the ship were moved away. He noted those that carried the weapons were mainly men from Andronicus’ unit of spatharii.
“You traitorous dog, what are you up to?” he demanded.
Komes Pasion refused to moved, even when Andronicus pushed the muzzle hard to his head. Xenias did the same, and he was the single individual on the deck the mutineers were nervous of approaching.
“Dukas, join the others, you can all take a visit to the brig. We have need of this ship. Soon we...”
Komes Pasion swung his arm up to knock the weapon aside, but it was too slow. No sooner did he reach the gun before it blasted. At this range, the round tore through his temple and sprayed blood and bone over Xenias and two of the crew. Whether intentional or not, it signalled the start to a bloody but ultimately one-sided firefight. The other men from Andronicus’ unit opened fire on the crew, killing the five and wounding both Kybernetes Manus and the Dukas. Glaucon dropped to the floor and dragged the wounded commander behind the safety of one of the computer systems. More gunshots continued as the surprised crew drew their own weapons. Two bodies slumped to the ground, yet the bloodbath carried on. Roxana and Tamara helped him start moving the wounded man to the doorway. They almost made it until Komes Andronicus stepped out and blocked the gap.
“Stop!” he cried.
Just a handful more gunshots were fired and the command deck was silenced. The only sound was the cries of the wounded, and those trying to console them. Xenias attempted to stand, but a wound on his lower leg forced him back down. Glaucon helped him, and with effort they stood to view the carnage. What had been a bustling centre of an overpopulated ship was now a slaughterhouse. Bodies slumped over computer systems or on the floor. Komes Andronicus waited in the doorway, a glob of thick blood staining his shoulder.
“None of this needed to happen, none of it,” he complained, but it was obvious he was trying to justify the terrible crime he had just committed. Another group of men appeared at the door and entered the command deck. For a second, it looked like they might be there to help, but the first two moved in and grabbed the Dukas.
“Take them to the brig, and spread the word to the others. It is time to set course for the promised land!” he said, almost with a laugh to his voice.
More men came inside and grabbed Glaucon, Tamara, Roxana and the dozen survivors of the crew. As they were moved from the room, Glaucon looked back. Blood covered many of the computer displays, and at least one system sparked and flashed from the damage sustained in the short but violent battle. Broken glass and metal was strewn across the floor. The worst of all though was the bloody mess near the body of Komes Pasion, the renowned and loved Arcadian officer. He reached out and grabbed the arm of Andronicus.
“Where are you taking the ship?” he demanded.
Andronicus pulled his hand off, indicating for the men to remove him. He called out after the prisoners.
“We’re going back home, to the Olympia!” he laughed.
The brutish men from Andronicus’ unit marched the prisoners and the wounded along the corridor. A small number of confused crew arrived, but the sight of the bloodied Dukas being dragged cowed them into inaction. It didn’t take long for them to be pulled into the nearest storeroom now being used by the mutineers as a temporary brig. Without even checking their injuries, they slammed the door shut, leaving just a slit of light to fill the space.
“Olympia? Why are they going back? The ship is gone,” said Roxana in confusion.
“Don’t be so sure,” answered the Dukas. He groaned in pain but incredibly was still conscious. Glaucon helped him to a small filing cabinet and rested him there. Roxana ran her hands over the man’s body, near to where the wounds were.
“How many times were you hit?” she asked.
Xenias groaned as she pushed down on the obvious wound.
“Just the one you’re pushing down on,” he muttered. “I was lucky.”
“Tamara, come here. Put your hand here,” she ordered, pushing the young woman’s hand down onto a piece of her overalls that she’d placed over the wound. Tamara pressed down, but Roxana pushed her hand down even harder.
“You have to keep the pressure on, got it?”
Kybernetes Manus lifted himself up so that he could see through the gap in the door. He was also injured, but either he was very good at hiding the pain, or it was less serious than the bloody wound sustained by the Dukas. He watched for a few seconds before speaking.
“I don’t know this Andronicus very well. Didn’t he and Komes Pasion stay with the rearguard to set the fusion charges?”
“What?” replied Roxana, confused at the mention of the weapons.
“He’s right. The two were responsible for setting the fusion atomics to blow after we jumped. Pasion commanded the rearguard, Andronicus himself set the charges though,” explained Xenias with a tone of dread to his voice.
Kybernetes Manus turned from the door and faced the injured Dukas who could just be seen on the cabinet. He was laid out, and Tamara and other crewmen were doing their best to stem the blood loss.
“He didn’t activate the charges, did he?”
Xenias said nothing, but the gravity of what he was saying was now only just beginning to set in. If what he suggested was true, then the Titan would have been left adrift but salvageable.
“Are you suggesting the Olympia is still there?”
The Kybernetes looked back through the gap in the middle of the door and out into the side corridor. At the far end he could make out various crew and soldiers moving back and forth. None looked into the dark
ness where they were now imprisoned. Five or six metres away stood two spatharii, both wearing the uniform of the Legion and carrying carbines.
“If Andronicus sabotaged the Olympia, he may be planning on returning for something, but what?” continued the Kybernetes.
Xenias sighed, he now understood.
“Of course, you fool,” he said to himself but loud enough for the others to hear. The pain from his wound must have slowed him down for a second. He groaned and took in several pained breaths before explaining further.
“Each of the four Titans carried a reserve of currency, a down payment if you will, for our services. It is nothing compared to our final payment, but more a deposit and a guarantee for our involvement. The funds are in the form of enriched platinum of mercantile value.”
Glaucon had to force himself not to laugh at the news.
“You’re joking. There’s a quantity of enriched platinum on the Olympia, and somehow, a bastard like this Andronicus, has found out about it?”
Xenias coughed, and Roxana was forced to lean on him to stop him from falling off the low cabinet.
“It would appear so,” he muttered.
“Surely Tissaphernes will have stripped the Titan to the bone by now? The salvage in raw materials alone must be worth a fortune?” asked an unseen woman from the side of the room.
“They won’t be rushing. When we left, the power plants were overloading and about to go critical. When they blew, they would have blown out the aft section of the ship and spread contaminants and debris over a wide area. But worse than that, the blast from the core could vaporise any vessel within range. You can guarantee Tissaphernes and his friends would have left the area well alone. He can come back for the wreck anytime he wants to pick up the remains.”
“What about Olympia? Wouldn’t the blast destroy her?”
“That was the whole point. The power of the blast would gut the Titan from the inside out,” said Xenias.
Roxana’s mind was working quickly, and already she was wondering what Andronicus could have been up to in the short time he had on the Olympia, prior to evacuating. His job was evidently to activate the system to force the overload and an inevitable self-destruction of the entire Titan.
“Let me guess, he set charges all right, but only to set off what looked like a meltdown of some kind. Tissaphernes would leave the area and pursue us, and probably the rest of the Legion. In the meantime, Andronicus and his cronies steal a ship, travel back and slip in near the wreckage to start a salvage operation on the bullion.”
Xenias snorted in outrage.
“That traitorous animal!”
* * *
“Wake up, you fool. Come on!” said the voice. Xenophon was convinced he was falling, yet the voice was right next to his ears. He tried to turn, but the voice continued wherever he looked. He tried to speak only to find his own voice making him jump.
A dream!
The woman’s voice, it was familiar, high pitched.
Who is it?
It continued in an almost nagging drone that came from about a metre in front of him. The tone of the person’s voice faded in and out as though they were moving about. He tried to look in the same direction, but he saw nothing, just the blackness around him. He tried to move, but his hands refused to budge.
What happened? He asked himself, desperately trying to remember.
He could hear nothing else other than the voice of this woman and his own breathing. The temperature was normal, and there was no discernible wind or air movement, so they must be on a ship. Wherever he happened to be must be somewhere discreet, and somewhere off the main routes inside the ship. Then he remembered the incident in the corridor.
The woman, yes, the Medes woman in black, she must have done something to me.
“It was you, wasn’t it? The woman with the knife?” he demanded.
The unseen woman sighed.
“Yes, Xenophon, it was me. Now look towards the sound of my voice, and I will remove your blindfold.”
Xenophon could hear her breathing as she moved closer to his face. He still couldn’t see her, not even smell her. He tried to push forward, but the shackles or ropes that bound him kept him firmly into position. Soft, cold hands touched his skin, making him jump in surprise. Then a bright white light almost blinded him.
“Wait a moment, your eyes will adjust,” she said quietly.
He tried to stay calm, but the memory of following Glaucon and Tamara was now returning. It wasn’t just the fact that he was now a prisoner, but the possibility that his friends had been caught, and probably by this woman or her comrades. The pain in his eyes had faded, and he could now see the woman’s face. She was close to him, so close he could see her pale skin and bright eyes. She was definitely not human; a Medes spy or assassin, for sure.
“You’re a Medes agent. What are you doing here?” he demanded furiously.
“Keep your voice down. Things have taken an ugly turn on this ship.”
She moved close again, and this time with her dark knife unsheathed and in front of him. She moved it slowly so that Xenophon could see her bringing it to the bindings on his wrists.
“I will let you go, but you mustn’t struggle. I can put these right back on you and leave you to the mercy of these looting animals.”
He gasped in surprise, but whether it was because he didn’t believe her wasn’t obvious. He did his best to remain still as the blade moved closer to his body.
“What? Looters on the ship, this ship?” he said incredulously.
With a single accurate slash, she removed the plastic bindings from his hands and freed him. For the briefest of moments he contemplated reaching out, but he well remembered their fight in the corridor with this woman. At least he liked to think of it as a fight; the only part he could remember was that she was fast at both moving and striking. He decided to hear her out. She leaned forward and slashed the binding on his feet, now freeing him completely.
“I had to take precautions. There is a sickness on this ship. Some kind of mutiny is undergoing, and I think I know who is behind it.”
Xenophon was surprised at the news, but of more immediate concern to him were the whereabouts of Glaucon, Tamara and Roxana. They were a tight group, and if anything had happened while he had been away, he wanted to know.
“What about my friends?” he asked, dreading the answer.
“Friends, I know nothing of them. Just that a man called Komes Andronicus, at least that is what he is being called, has taken over the ship and that we are no longer moving to join the Legion.”
Xenophon looked at her, almost admiring her strong athletic figure and form. She was no simple crewman on the ship. Based on the way she held her poise, she was definitely Special Forces or an Imperial agent, perhaps both. He almost didn’t notice her explanation, and it took several seconds before the magnitude of what she had said struck him.
“Mutiny? Why should I trust you? A masked agent for the Empire would never work on behalf of the Legion or those on this ship. Why should I listen to a word you say?”
She looked at him, but said nothing, just stared at Xenophon as if trying to size him up. Her eyes gave nothing away whereas Xenophon tried, but failed, to mask his eagerness to understand. The two looked for what seemed like an eternity before speaking.
“Come with me, and I will show you,” she said in her quiet, almost singing tone of voice.
He stood to follow and almost crashed back down due to the cramp in his muscles. As he wavered, she grabbed him, and her balance and strength surprised him once more. They moved out of their hiding place and into a dirty shaft packed with thick cabling. At the end of the tunnel were flickering lights and the sounds of people talking, perhaps even shouting. The woman moved ahead and indicated with her hands for him to follow a short distance behind. As they walked one step at a time, he strained his hearing to work out what the people were saying. At first it sounded like an argument, but once they were just ten metres fr
om the end of the shaft, she stopped and waited. He did the same, and with effort could make out some of the words.
“Take two squads and check the engine rooms. You stay here,” said an unseen man.
They were interrupted by shouting and then two gun shots. The sound made Xenophon stumble, and he crashed to the wall. He was falling, but the mysterious woman pulled him to the shadows and out of sight. A face peered inside the shaft and waved a torch, checking for signs of movement.
“What was it?” asked a man.
Two more shots rang out, and the entire group rushed away, but whether it was towards or away from the gunfire wasn’t certain. Xenophon reached out to the woman and spoke as quietly as he could.
“Who are you and what’s going on?”
“I will explain later, but for now we need to help turn this around before the mutineers get us near Tissaphernes.”
She started to move, but he reached out and stopped her.
“What do you know about Tissaphernes?”
“All you need you know is he is no friend of Lord Cyrus and has been bribing your people. Some of the commanders in the Legion have been paid off, even some of your politicians. Do you think the trouble on Laconia that forced them to leave your world was a mere coincidence? Most of the Thirty Tyrants were in his pay.”
“What? My father was one of the Thirty!” he snapped, almost shouting.
She pulled him back to the darkness and placed her hand over his mouth.
“Your father was Gryllus, was he not?” she asked, almost reverently.
Xenophon nodded, saying nothing.
“Yes, we knew of him. He was a proponent of the plan of Cyrus for peace between Terrans and Medians. There was to be an agreement announced in the Assembly before the uprising brought him down.”
“He wasn’t brought down. He was murdered by one of the Thirty,” he replied angrily.
“Interesting, I did not know that. Anyway, all you need to know is that I am on the side of the Legion. Cyrus is my master, and it is my job to ensure the tendrils of Tissaphernes do not delve any further into this force.”
Black Legion - The First Trilogy Page 37