Chapter Nineteen
QBBS Meredith Reynolds, General Reynolds’ Office
Lance was at his desk the next morning when Meredith interrupted with an urgent request. “What is it, Meredith?”
“An independent trading ship, which we have traced as being a Leath freighter stolen from a pirate company, broke the quarantine on the system a little over an hour ago. The captain stood down immediately and requested a tight-beam link to you. They’ve complied with all our requests so far.”
Lance frowned. “Interesting.” He reached into the drawer on his right and grabbed a cigar. “Put the captain through. Let’s see what they have to say before we blow them up.”
Meredith opened the video link, and the terrified captain appeared. He held his hands up in supplication and jumped in before Lance could say a word. “Oh, thank the fucking stars! General, before you blow us to shit, you have to understand that we had no way of knowing we were jumping into a quarantined area. We were running for our lives!”
Lance leaned in a little. “Oh, yes?”
The captain nodded frantically. “We were fucked, General.”
“Fucked isn’t the word,” came a voice from behind the trader captain. “The Gate engine just melted on us!”
The captain shrugged at Lance’s expression. “I knew it was a possibility. We’re lucky we didn’t explode.”
Lance blew out in sympathy. “Then you were lucky three times. What or who were you running from?”
The captain’s eyes widened. “To be frank, I don’t know. Our sensors couldn’t identify it, and none of us have ever seen anything like it before.” His eyes misted over as he relived the terror of the pursuit. “All I can describe is this gigantic mass with a rage-on for anything that passed it. We were tracking a bunch of Noel-ni ships that Gated into the system just after we did when the behemoth caught our sensors and sent a… a…something after us. Hold tight for a moment…I’m sending all our sensor data now. Maybe your tech can make sense of it.”
Lance sent the data to Meredith to review when it arrived and looked at the captain. “What happened next?” he asked.
The captain grimaced. “We held onto our asses and hoped like hell that the Gate engine charged before it hit us.”
QBS ArchAngel II
Bethany Anne pushed her plate away and answered the request for a mental link from Lance. Hey, Dad. What’s up?
Lance sighed. There’s been a development in the situation that you need to know about. Have you ladies set off yet?
We’re just finishing breakfast. Why?
A trading vessel broke the quarantine. They were chased by an unknown entity that looks to be the cause of our missing Noel-ni ships, but neither Meredith nor I can make heads or tails of the scan data the captain sent.
She held up a hand to stall Jean, who noticed her raised eyebrow. Send it over, Dad. I’ll have ADAM and TOM go through it.
She received the data a few seconds later. Got it.
Be careful out there, sweetheart.
Her laugh was light in his mind. What do you think I’m going to do?
Lance’s reply was quiet. What you always do, Bethany Anne.
Not this time, Dad, she assured him. Alexis and Gabriel are my first consideration. The only reason I would risk leaving them without a mother is to save their lives. You know that.
I know, Lance told her gently. All the same, watch yourself out there. There’s something off about the whole thing, and it’s got my hackles up.
Okay, I promise we’ll be careful. You just keep the traders in the quarantine area until I get there.
Will do. He closed the link, and Bethany Anne pushed her chair back. “That was Dad,” she told the others.
“What was he contacting you for?” Tabitha asked.
She got up to leave. “He got some information about whatever it is we’re facing on this mission.”
Gabrielle put her coffee cup down. “What did he have to say?”
“Not too much yet,” Bethany Anne admitted. “You three get ready to leave. I’m going to go through the data he sent and see if I can’t figure out who the culprit is before we get there.” She drained her glass of juice and grabbed an apple to take to her room with her.
She brought up her HUD and looked over the logs of the Maiden’s Rage as she walked to her quarters, skipping the sensor data in favor of the bridge transcripts.
ADAM, can you get on that sensor data and turn it into something I can use?
>>I love the way you ask, as if you don’t know I’ve done it already.<<
Bethany Anne smirked as she made her way to her bedroom. She kicked her shoes off, got onto the bed, and sat back against the pillows with her legs curled under her. So tell me what you have. You too, TOM. I know you can’t resist poking your nose in.
>>The scans aren’t conclusive.<<
They don’t need to be, TOM told them. I may already know who we are up against.
Well, don’t keep us in suspense. What do you know?
It’s not so much knowledge as a memory.
Bethany Anne held a hand to her forehead and laughed aloud. I expect nothing less than some vague, half-helpful recollection from you. After all, why change the habits of a lifetime? Just tell me what you’ve been able to work out and we’ll go from there, okay?
Such faith. If you must know, I remember the incident perfectly well. When I was just an acolyte, one of the pilots returned from a planet which had been destroyed by an AI. It became corrupted and tore the planet to shreds to gather the resources to keep growing. She managed to scan the AI and escape with her life and her ship intact, and the data she shared was eerily similar to what we have here.
Well…fuck.
>>You don’t say. This could turn into a complete clusterfuck, Bethany Anne. If this is an AI and its only goal is to grow and defend itself, you can be sure that it won’t go down easily.<<
I remember the scenarios from when we were figuring out what you were going to do, ADAM. It’s some scary shit. She shook her head. But we can’t get caught up in what might be. Get with Michael. We’re going to need a little more firepower than we have.
>>I’m on it.<<
And TOM, study that sensor data. Learn whatever you can from it. We’re not going into this unprepared.
High Tortuga, Space Fleet Base, Michael’s Office, Vid-doc Room
ADAM finished the brief, and Michael sat back to take it in. “AI gone wrong? How do we defend against that?”
“You go back two hundred years and build your own super-awesome AI,” ADAM replied glibly. The speaker rattled with his laughter. “Oh, wait, you did! Looks like we’re all set, then. Just get the fleet to where Bethany Anne is. The AI is sure to defend itself, and she won’t back down no matter how much she keeps telling everyone she will.”
“She probably has every intention of doing so.” Michael shrugged. “She just doesn’t know how to back down. We will be there, don’t worry. Addix already told me about the situation, although she knew nothing about any AI. I began preparing the fleet immediately after her arrival.”
“Then I guess we’ll see you there.”
Michael signed off and looked around the room. His gaze alighted on Addix, who had stayed to keep watch over the children. “Aunt Addix,” he began smoothly. She looked at him with her head tilted in question. Michael grinned and pointed at the screen. “How would you like to babysit for a while?”
Addix looked at Eve skeptically. “I can have my knives in there, right?”
Eve nodded. “Relax, Addix. I’m not mad at you. You can have your knives, and we’ll have fun. And I can hear you, so if you want me to, I can change things on the fly.” She snickered and went back to monitoring the game.
Addix clicked her mandibles happily. “Then I would be honored to babysit!” She’d shed her robes as soon as she’d gotten there, so climbing into the last empty Vid-doc was no issue for her. Once again, she was grateful for the small freedoms that came with th
e acceptance of family.
She closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, she was in a craggy landscape. The children were at rest in the shade with John standing guard close by.
Alexis spotted Addix first. She grabbed her brother’s arm and jumped up and down in her excitement. “Gabriel, look! It’s Aunt Addix!”
Gabriel’s face lit up just like his sister’s. He too began to bounce when he saw her. “Aunt Addix!”
The twins rushed her and scrambled up her legs to be scooped into her arms. She held them close. “And how are my little hunters?”
The twins didn’t need to be asked twice. They launched into a rapid and babbling recounting of their adventure so far. Addix inclined her head toward John, who nodded back. “Bye, kids,” he called. He waved and was gone from the game.
Addix turned her attention back to the children. “Who wants a ride up the mountain?”
Michael observed his children’s reaction to their Ixtali aunt. “Who would have expected them to bond so closely with Addix?” he mused.
“How humanocentric,” Eve stated. “It makes perfect sense, actually.”
Michael walked over to the Vid-docs. “How so, Eve?”
Eve didn’t look up from her station. “Well, Addix loves them unconditionally. It’s only natural that they would respond to that. Plus, she pampers them shamelessly. Look at her—she’s already indulging them.”
She pointed at the screen for emphasis, where Addix was climbing with the children perched on her back.
Michael inclined his head. “I suppose you’re right. After all, they have been raised among many species. A couple of extra legs shouldn’t be too off-putting to them.”
Eve shrugged. “I don’t see the issue with the Ixtali having four legs. Lots of species do.”
Michael considered that. “Most of those species are mammalian or reptilian in appearance. The Ixtali have that whole hairy-legged spider thing going on. It takes some time to convince your brain not to run when you first meet them.”
Eve raised an eyebrow. “And now?”
He grinned. “I didn’t say I had that problem. I have admired and appreciated Addix and her dedication to my family from the start.” His voice dropped slightly. “I would not allow her near the children if I did not trust her. The same goes for you, Eve. I trust the two of you to look after them for me while I am away.”
“Of course we will,” Eve assured him. “And we’ll have fun, too.”
“That’s good to hear.” Michael laid a hand on each of the children’s pods. “Rest well, learn well, and be strong, my children. I will bring your mother back to you.”
Eve heard him as he walked out. “That is a promise.”
Chapter Twenty
QBBS Meredith Reynolds, Large Meeting Room
The tiered seats were filled with gesticulating holograms.
The barrage of catcalls and angry shouting from the assembled Federation leaders echoing around the room for the last two hours had given Lance a headache.
He leaned on the lectern and rubbed his forehead, not caring if everyone in the room saw his frustration.
The screen at the back of the stage where he stood to chair the meeting was paused at the end of the footage from the indie trader vessel.
The Noel-ni leader had begun the meeting by admitting to the assembly that the Noel-ni had gone behind the Federation’s back to negotiate a favorable trade deal with a non-Federation planet, which was now threatening war unless the deal was honored to their satisfaction.
The leaders had skipped completely past the loss of life and impending war and zeroed in on what they’d missed out on with the underhanded trade deal.
None of them were focused on the larger issue.
Lance rolled his eyes at the squabbling leaders and addressed Meredith. You would think that the emergence of a new and potentially extremely aggressive enemy would get them to pull their heads out of their asses and agree for one minute, but no. They want to continue the pissing contest. I’d be on my last nerve if it weren’t for the fact that this circus is exactly what we need right now.
I find it difficult to understand why the leaders do not make the most of the system set up for their benefit. Meredith sniffed. However, that would require looking beyond simple self-interest. I suspect that to be a step beyond what most of the planetary leaders are capable of. It’s too much like logical behavior.
Lance sighed mentally. Unfortunately, you’re right. Then again, I knew heading the Federation was going to be more like herding battlecats at first than the meeting of minds we want to achieve. Politics is a game, and games attract children, Meredith.
True, Meredith concurred.
It is what it is, and like I said, it works in our favor this time. Bethany Anne needs them distracted, so that’s exactly what I’m going to do. Of course, I will not get noticed for what is going to be an Academy Award-level effort.
Lance straightened up to address the other leaders, who had been too busy arguing to notice he’d taken a step back from the debate. The Zhyn and Leath leaders had teamed up against the Noel-ni, who was defending himself from their vicious tirade with his own stream of abuse.
The holograms threw their arms around as they screamed at each other.
“Enough!” Lance barked. “I’ve had it up to here with all the bickering, backstabbing, and bullshit you all pull when you think nobody is looking. This is a federation, dammit! Start acting like allies, or I’ll decide that my daughter is the best person to keep you all in line after all. All it will take is one call, and we’ll be an Empire again.”
The threat had the desired effect. Lance snickered internally at the effectiveness of what he was starting to see as his own particular version of, “Quit arguing, or so help me, I’ll turn this car around.”
“What exactly do you want us to do for the Noel-ni?” the Leath leader growled into the nervous silence. He pointed at Reia accusingly. “They got themselves into this mess by sneaking around to gain an advantage over the rest of us. Let them get themselves out of it as a penalty.”
Lance noted how each of the leaders reacted to the Leath’s statement. He raised an implacable eyebrow. “By that logic, the next time the Leath need assistance, the Federation should refuse on the grounds that you can get yourselves out of it. Still want to be an asshole about fulfilling your obligations? Go ahead.”
The Leath leader looked around for support but found none. Lance’s comment had hit home with the others. Even the Noel-ni leader fell silent.
“That’s what I thought.” Lance rolled his eyes and moved on. “Now, if you’re all done debating who owes who what, we can get on with identifying a way to deal with this threat. We have no solid information yet, and we need to work toward changing that before the situation escalates further.”
The Noel-ni leader raised a paw toward the screen on the stage. “You all saw the video. Don’t imagine that you are safe from this thing if we can’t contain it.”
Lance nodded in agreement. “We’re going to send some advanced spy satellites out there. The ships we have out there right now don’t have sophisticated-enough equipment. They will take around four days to reach the quarantined system, since we’re not going to send them in from anywhere that will lead the enemy back to us. Once we have that data, we can decide where to go from there.”
A flicker passed over the holograms as the leaders broke into debate once again.
I’ve passed all of this on to ADAM. Meredith snickered in Lance’s mind. I think you just bought Bethany Anne a little extra time.
That was the plan, Lance told her.
High Tortuga, Space Fleet Base, QBS G’laxix Sphaea
“Good of you to give us a ride, Kael-ven.” Michael slapped the captain on his arm as he passed him at the top of the ramp.
He waved back at John, Scott, Eric, and Darryl, who stood at the bottom of the ramp with all their ops gear stacked on antigrav carts. “I hope all this won’t get in your way.”
“You won’t be in my way. Eve warned me you were loaded for leviathans, so I assigned you guys to the ship’s APA while we’re active and it’s not in use. You’ll have everything you need there.”
Kael-ven stood back with a flourish as John and Scott reached the top of the ramp with the first cart. “Welcome aboard.”
John nodded. “Good to be here, Kael.”
Michael adjusted his go-bag on his shoulder and waited for Eric and Darryl to maneuver the other cart up the ramp.
“A little overloaded there,” Kael-ven commented as he and Michael walked down the corridor behind the others.
Michael shrugged as they came to a stop at the elevators. “I’d rather be overprepared than left with my ass hanging in the wind.”
The Yollin’s shoulders shook with silent laughter. “I honestly can’t see you in that situation.”
John turned around and grinned. “Pretty sure Akio could tell you differently, Kael.”
Michael gave him a look that could crack permacrete.
“What?” John shrugged. “Akio talks to Tabitha, Tabitha talks to Peter, and Peter talks to us. It’s kinda how we keep abreast of shit around here.” The elevator doors opened and they all piled in except Kael-ven, who excused himself to return to the preparations. “It’s rather efficient.”
They left the elevator and made their way into the training room.
The guys immediately began unpacking the carts. Darryl went over the checklist as Eric and Scott got each one open.
Scott whistled. “We’re going with heavy armor? That shit is just flat out sexy.” He held up one of the flat black pieces to inspect it. “Jean just gets better and better at this.”
“What’s in the crates?” Eric cracked one of them open and pulled out a gleaming rifle from within. “Ohhh,” he breathed. “John, we have to get Jean a thank-you gift when we get back. Have you seen this? She’s spoiling us!”
The Kurtherian Endgame Boxed Set Page 39