by Ryk Brown
“It wasn’t me. Except for the boot to his nose in the end.” Enrique gave her a quizzical look. “Jalea snapped and started pounding on him.”
“Really?” Enrique was more than a bit surprised.
“Yeah. She was trying to mess with his head. I guess she got to him, cuz next thing I knew he was screaming something ugly at her and she flat-knuckled him to the throat and then took him down and started pounding away on his face.”
“Damn!”
“Scary part is, it didn’t even phase the guy. He just kept screaming at her. It was my boot that finally shut him up.”
“Screw him,” Enrique declared. “You should’ve kicked him harder.”
Jessica’s mind was already several steps ahead. “You get the comm-set tracking running yet?”
“They’re setting it up now. It’ll be ready in a few hours. It’ll notify whoever has the duty the moment one of our guests goes someplace they don’t belong.”
“Good. These people are making me nervous.” Jessica tapped her comm-set earpiece to activate the device. “Nash to Yosef.”
“Yosef, go ahead.”
“Do me a favor and use Jalea’s comm-set signal to figure out where she is at the moment.”
“Stand by.”
Jessica notices the metal chains and cuffs in Enrique’s hand. “Make sure that guy is well restrained. And don’t let the doc tell you otherwise.”
“You got it.”
“And I want someone watching him at all times until his ass is back in the brig.”
“Jessica?” Ensign Yosef’s voice called over Jessica’s comm-set.
“Go ahead.”
“Jalea is in her quarters.”
“Copy that. Thanks.” Jessica tapped her comm-set again to turn it off and started down the corridor.
“Where you going?” Enrique asked.
“I’m gonna have a heart-to-heart with the rebel princess,” she told him as she walked away.
* * *
Jessica strode confidently down the corridor towards Jalea’s quarters. Her cabin was not far away, since everything forward of the primary bulkheads was still closed off due to the hull breach that had occurred when they had rammed the Ta’Akar ship a week ago. That had given Jessica little time to think about what she was going to say to Jalea when she confronted her.
Arriving at her door, Jessica pressed the buzzer along the side of the doorway. A moment later, Jessica heard the sound of the metal latch releasing right before the door slid open to reveal Jalea. Her face still appeared angry, and the prisoner’s blood splatter still decorated both her top and her right hand.
“We need to talk,” Jessica ordered as she stepped into the cabin, forcing Jalea to step aside.
Jalea turned to keep herself facing Jessica, not wanting to turn her back to her. “I don’t believe we have anything to talk about.”
“Oh, I beg to differ,” Jessica said, a slight chuckle following her words. Jessica stepped deeper into the cabin. It was a small, standard cabin meant to accommodate two members of the crew. Jessica herself had lived in one until only a few days ago, when she moved into a larger single occupancy cabin on the command deck. She had done so not because she wanted to, but because her new duties required her to be as close to the command section as possible, even when she was off duty.
“Very well,” Jalea said, realizing that Jessica was not offering her a choice. “What would you like to talk about?”
Jessica smiled at Jalea’s attitude and at how Jalea not only kept herself between Jessica and the exit, but had also chosen not to close the door. This lady was well trained. And the more dealings Jessica had with her, the more she was sure of it. The question was, trained by who? “What the fuck happened back there?”
“Nothing,” Jalea lied. “I simply lost control. I apologize.”
Jessica could tell in an instant that the apology was fake and was only meant to hasten an end to the confrontation. “That’s crap, and you know it. You’ve been cool as a cucumber since the moment you stepped on board. Hell, you didn’t even shed a tear when you brothers in arms, one by one, blew themselves up to save us. And all of a sudden I’m supposed to believe that you just lost it?” she said, throwing up her arms. Jessica folded her arms across her chest as she recalled the events that had transpired in the brig only minutes ago. “You were pushing him, fucking with his mind, weren’t you? You and the captain. Yeah, I saw the little wink he gave you. So what was it? What did you say to him?”
Jalea turned to her left and moved a few steps away from Jessica while still maintaining a clear shot to the exit should she need a quick retreat. “I was trying to prove to him that the Doctrine of Origins was false,” she said with indignation, “that Caius is not a God, and that his cause is not just.”
“And the part about us being from Earth? And about Na-Tan?”
“It is just a variation of the Legend of Origins. One followed by many of the more spiritually inclined. Ybarans are such people, so I expected he would be familiar with the details of this particular variation of the legend.”
“Well I’m not familiar with the details. Perhaps you’d care to enlighten me?” Jessica’s tone demonstrated that it was more of a command than a request.
“If you insist,” Jalea answered reluctantly. “Many of the societies in this part of the galaxy have been oppressed for countless generations. Caius himself has been in power for more than one hundred years. During this time he has also caused much pain and suffering and has oppressed billions. Believing in miracles, believing that salvation from such atrocities and oppression will someday come to be, helps keep hope alive. For many in the Pentaurus cluster, hope is all they have.”
“And what about this Na-Tan?” Jessica prodded.
“One of the versions talks of one that will save them from evil. This one is called Na-Tan. He is said to come from a distant star called Sol, from the birthplace of humanity. Earth.”
“Na-Tan,” Jessica mumbled as everything fell into place. “You were trying to convince that poor, brain-washed schmuck that Nathan was Na-Tan, come to save the people from the evil Caius.” Jessica shook her head. “And it almost worked, too. Didn’t it?”
“Almost,” Jalea admitted.
“But it didn’t. And you know why it didn’t? Because it was stupid. You don’t win somebody over by telling them everything they believe is wrong. All that does is solidify their beliefs and make them hate you all the more. And when done to groups, it galvanizes them.”
Jalea’s demeanor changed, softening somewhat, as her tone became less defensive and her posture more open and inviting. Jessica may not have been born with Nathan’s natural ability to read body language, but she had been taught the skill in spec-ops training.
“My intent was only to make him question his beliefs,” Jalea explained apologetically, “not to convince him to side with us. Making one question their beliefs puts a crack in one’s armor. Over time, that crack widens and the armor weakens.”
Jessica didn’t much feel like listening to Jalea preach. And she had absolutely no patience to stand by while she tried to play her in the same way that she tried to play the captain. “Yeah. I don’t really give a shit about all that. You see, your methods of persuasion don’t work on me the way they might work on Nathan. So save it, princess.”
Jalea tried her best to look confused and shocked. “I’m sorry. What is it you’d like me to do, then?”
“What I’d like you to do is to shut the hell up.”
“Excuse me?” Jalea asked, continuing her charade.
“If someone asks you a question, you answer them. If someone tells you do go somewhere and do something, you go there and do it. Otherwise, you shut up. You don’t make tactical decisions on your own. And you don’t take actions on your own. And if you do otherwise, at best you end up in the brig right alongside our Ghatazhak friend.”
Jalea did not care for Jessica’s threats and immediately changed both her posture and her to
ne to communicate her dislike back to Jessica. “And at worst?” she asked, as if challenging her.
Jessica’s arms dropped to her sides, her gaze became cold, and her eyes became slits. “I end you.”
“End me?” Jalea asked, feigning ignorance of the term.
“Yeah. End you. You know, put a bullet in your brain? Punch your ticket? Put your lights out? Plant you six feet under? No wait, those are all Earth terms, so you wouldn’t understand them, would you?”
Jalea looked down for a moment. “No, I’m afraid—” When her eyes came back up, she found the business end of Jessica’s sidearm only centimeters from the bridge of her nose, immediately noticing that Jessica had just finished thumbing off the safety. She froze in her tracks, not moving a muscle. Her first instinct would normally be to jerk to one side while smacking the weapon in the opposite direction. But there was a coldness in the eyes of the holder of the weapon that told her caution was the more prudent choice of action.
“Do you understand this?” Jessica asked coldly.
“Yes. Quite clearly, in fact.”
“Good. Cuz the next time I catch you putting this ship or any member of this crew at risk, I will kill you.”
Jalea said nothing in response, only staring over the top of the weapon into Jessica’s eyes. She doubted she could disarm her without injury. And even if she could, she would have to kill her—and that would be difficult to explain.
After what seemed like an eternity, Jessica finally lowered her sidearm and replaced it into her holster in one smooth and quick motion, thumbing the safety back on as she did so. A second later it was back in its holster with the safety strap snapped back over it.
“We’re done here,” Jessica stated as she reached up and lightly double tapped the side of Jalea’s cheek with her open hand. “There’s another briefing in thirty minutes, princess,” she added on her way out. “Don’t be late.”
Jalea stood still for several minutes after Jessica left. She heard the young woman’s every foot step as she walked down the corridor away from her cabin. It had taken every ounce of self-control to keep from exploding and screaming out in sheer anger and frustration at the arrogance of the security officer. The woman had probably fought in less than a handful of battles—had witnessed only a few deaths of others. She had not suffered. She had not lost or felt the loss of loved ones. She had not witnessed the execution of hundreds or thousands of innocent lives. She had not walked the surface of planets that had been glassed from orbit by men in fancy uniforms sipping tea and eating pastries. And she would not prevent her from achieving retribution for the countless lives lost—especially for three of them.
CHAPTER 3
“You’re going to have to tell me eventually,” Cameron insisted. “I am your XO, remember?”
“I promise, I’ll fill you in later,” Nathan told her as they entered the command briefing room. Nathan stopped at the doorway, letting Cameron, Jessica, and Abby enter first, Jessica casting a knowing glance at him as she passed.
Tug and Jalea were already sitting on one side of the conference table. Tug had his usual confident yet approachable expression. Jalea’s expression, although as nondescript as usual, hinted at something more. Nathan attributed it to the events in the brig an hour ago.
“Thank you all for coming,” he stated as they made their way around the table. Nathan took his usual place at the head of the table, with Cameron, Jessica, and Abby on his right, Tug and Jalea on his left. Nathan first addressed Tug. “I understand that you and Doctor Sorenson managed to translate your star charts into English and upload them into our navigation system?”
“In a manner of speaking,” Tug said.
“It was a bit complicated at first,” Abby began. “You see, we use a coordinate system with Sol as a zero reference point. The Ta’Akar use their own star as the reference point for their star charts. But most other worlds outside of the Pentaurus cluster use a system that utilizes the galactic center as a reference point.”
“It does sound complicated,” Nathan admitted.
“It might be better to use the more universal of the three,” Cameron added. “Which would be the galactic-centered version.”
“We came to the same conclusion. We got a copy of the galactic charts from the shuttle. But it appears that each chart has at least some information on them the other charts are missing. So we are attempting to use conversion algorithms that will merge the data from all 3 charts into one that is based on the galactic-centered version.”
“Doesn’t that mean we’ll have to relearn our own navigation points?” Cameron asked, not looking forward to the task.
“Well, since we’re new to this region of space, it shouldn’t be that difficult. Besides, it will be more accurate.”
“How so?” Nathan asked. Although he was a trained navigator, it had never been his strongest skill.
“Coordinate systems that use a moving object as a reference point must constantly be recalculated to accommodate the reference point’s movement through space, as it travels out from the galactic center.”
“Stellar drift?”
“Yes. The galactic center does not move, at least not within its own domain. So it provides a relatively fixed point in space from which to calculate the positions of all objects.”
“How long will this take?” Nathan wondered.
“Days, perhaps weeks. Much of our core is still inoperable.”
“We can’t wait that long.”
“Of course not. That’s why we tested the idea by converting only the Pentaurus cluster for now. We now have a galactic-centered star chart for the cluster that is loaded into our navigation system. And thanks to the information contained in the charts from Mister Tugwell’s ship, we also have planetary movements and even common shipping and patrol routes. We can navigate the cluster at will.”
“That’s great,” Nathan exclaimed. He had not liked relying on Jalea’s advice when deciding where to go.
“I am also working on providing details of each system and the worlds within them,” Tug added. “So that you have a basic understanding of the socio-economic and political structures that you might encounter.”
“That will also be very useful,” Nathan said.
“It was at the request of your security chief,” Tug said, tipping his head toward Jessica in acknowledgment.
“Once the conversions are completed, how big an area will it cover?” Nathan asked Abby.
“An area of approximately one hundred light years, Captain. With the Pentaurus cluster roughly at the center.”
“Not quite enough to link up with any of our own navigational charts, though,” Nathan thought aloud, “not even the ones found in the Data Ark.”
“No,” she admitted. “But we are hoping that once the conversion is complete, we might find at least a few stars common on the fringe of both sets, ours and the galactic-centered charts, that will provide us a navigable route home.”
“Then there is hope.”
“Yes. I believe there is.”
Nathan leaned forward in his chair, leaning on the table and clasping his hands together. “So, then. Any ideas where we should go next?”
“If I may,” Cameron asked. Sensing no objections, she pulled out a small drawer built into the table to access controls for the tabletop holographic display system. The room darkened slightly as a three-dimensional holographic representation of the entire Pentaurus cluster, as well as several of the other nearby systems, appeared floating in the air above the table. “Forgive the graphics, as there wasn’t much time to program a proper display. We just used existing elements to represent the objects for now. But at least it gives us a better understanding of the general layout of this region of space.”
“This is the Pentaurus cluster,” she continued, waving her right hand in a circle around the display. There are five stars in the cluster.” Cameron reached up and pointed at a five centimeter, glowing yellow orb floating in the middle of the display. “T
his is Takar—a G-type star, about three times the size of Sol. It’s planetary system is somewhat similar to our own, with rocky inner planets and a few gas giants farther out. It does, however, have eighteen planets. Seven of them are rocky inner worlds, three of which are hospitable. The rest are a collection of mostly gas giants, as well as a few frozen rocky worlds farther out. Including all the various moons, there are over three hundred objects in the system.”
“Many of the moons orbiting the gas giants are reformed worlds,” Tug added. “I believe at last count there were a total of fifteen bodies in the system that can sustain human life.”
“Impressive,” Nathan admitted.
“Anyway, there are two binary systems nearby. Melbourne, about two light years away, and Taroa about three. Taroa is where we originally entered the cluster and had our first run-in with the Ta’Akar. Taroa’s secondary component, Korak, is the red dwarf with the heavy asteroid belt that we hid in just after that.”
“Yes, I remember it fondly,” Nathan commented.
“Taroa has eleven planets, two of which are inhabited, along with three more reformed moons that are also inhabited. It was on one of those moons that the rebel’s last base was located.”
“It also was a reformed world. It was completed more than three years ago, and was fully developed.”
Nathan noticed the forlorn look on Tug’s face, as well as his use of the past tense. “Was?”
“There were more than three million people living on that small moon. When they refused to reveal our location, the Ta’Akar simply obliterated them from orbit, as a warning to any others that might support us.”
“They glassed the planet?” Jessica asked, shocked.
Tug looked at her for a moment, as he considered the terminology she had used. “Yes. I guess that is as good a term as any. There is undoubtedly little left on the surface.”