by Scott Rhine
“They punished Anatole?”
“Yes. I’ll never understand how he could throw you away for money.”
“Now he has neither,” the ghost of Gina said. “What became of you?”
“I lost everything, and still it wasn’t enough.” His chest heaved. “I’ve avenged and rescued people over a span of sixty years, and I haven’t finished paying. Please end it for me.” He closed his eyes.
Gina leaned over and kissed his forehead.
The relief made him shiver. He wept for several minutes. When he was empty, his body betrayed him. She sensed his desire. “You would have married her to save her from the killer.”
“I studied her for years afterward. As thanks, her family sent me copies of the videograms she mailed home to them. They still write me sometimes when her community center has a special event or needs. She deserved so much better.”
Discomfort flickered across her face, but she forced a smile. “If I give you what you desire, would you make a promise to me?”
“What do you think I want?”
“To save her. You could pretend you married Gina.” That had been his secret fantasy, one he never told a soul. “If I gave you forgiveness and the sex. What would that be worth?”
His xenobiology knowledge informed him this could never be. “Is that what this is about? The captain wants you to seduce me?”
“This is my choice.”
“To survive? No. Magi neutral aren’t built for Human … penetration. It would be like raping a six-year-old. You’d hurt too much.”
She shook her head. “I could do it to heal you.”
He swallowed, realizing what she implied. “The captain already hurt you.”
“He hunted and squeezed me until I couldn’t work for months at a time.”
His lunch roiled in his stomach.
She gazed into his eyes. “From you, I would only feel the love.”
Too easy, too convenient. “And in return?”
“You ease my pain.” When he seemed confused, she spelled out the accusation. “You’re a professional killer. What is one last killing to complete the circle?”
Angry, he pushed her off. “No.” He rolled to his feet, but then he collapsed to the chill floor.
She knelt over him, blurry, but still in the guise of the murdered woman. “I told you not to break the link. Your perceptions could be permanently damaged.” Every action in the !kia dream state was important. The wrong pointing of a finger could cause death.
She reached for the spot on his neck, but he blocked the attempt. Max had sought this level of consciousness with trance drugs for years, yet now he resisted. “Just a trick. You cracked my cube and saw the videos.”
“No. I pulled the images from your mind. Your feelings are strong and real. For a short while, they can make me her.”
He considered Gina for a moment, like a packet of drugs on the table. “Some prices are too high.”
“If you love me, you’ll end my misery.” She broadcast flashes of memories, demonstrating her grief at the loss of her triad and the sadism of her master.
Max doubled over from the wash of misery. “There has to be another way,” he begged. “I’ll bargain with the captain and get him to free you.”
Her eyes shone with sadness as she lowered the room’s gravity setting and helped him back to the bed. “When Zrulkesh refuses, will you consider my offer?”
“If I free you, will you forgive me in her name?”
“You are already forgiven.” Gina kissed him on the back of the neck. The act electrified and froze him in place. As she sang to him in her own language, ecstasy exploded through his spinal column into his brain. This mimicked the healing ceremony of his people. She wrapped herself around him to keep him warm as his body shut down under the landslide of a thousand supportive and loving images.
Chapter 9 – Bargaining with Saurians
At the first opportunity in the private dining room, Max offered the captain two million credits for the astrogator. The Saurian laughed. “Without her, I would need a dozen more crew members to run this ship. No one speaks their language or understands her controls. I’ve tried. Whoever buys her must pay for the ship as well.” New Human ships cost an average of ten years of Earth’s military budget. The Inner Eye was even more advanced. “For structural repairs, I had to sell my own ship and borrow millions from people you do not want to disappoint. I have to recoup my investment.”
Damage from the minefield. Max would never be able to afford this price. “You’re not allowed to keep someone in slavery indefinitely.”
“Unless they agree.”
“What?”
Zrulkesh handed back the gem bag. “I’ve offered to call her government and have her race pay to redeem her. She refuses. There is a reason she’s under lock and key, friend Max. Do not be drawn in by her wiles. Enjoy what she offers but do not believe the illusion.”
“I called her Gina, but what’s her name? Her real one?”
“We refer to her as Echo. She takes an image of someone you know, but never appears as herself. She becomes her role, which can be addicting to some. I wouldn’t visit her for this treatment more than once a month.”
Max panicked for a moment. After so much hope at seeing her every week, could he wait four? “Could I still send her messages?”
“Such as?”
“Videos of the real woman so she can refine her movements and cadence. Notes to explain my likes.”
Zrulkesh polished a spot on his head scales as he considered. “That would be an appropriate use of her time, and I would be happy to pass along whatever you send me. Of course, I would need to charge you a small fee for the additional time she remains awake.”
Max offered the captain a large stone. “That should cover the entire trip.”
“To Jotunheim, certainly,” Zrulkesh replied. “If she spends all of her time as your Gina, she will be of no use to the rest of us.”
The thought of anyone else touching Echo made Max burn, which was the captain’s intent. “How did you acquire her?”
“Came across the ship in a dead-end system, where no one had reason to be. There were no life signs, so we claimed the derelict as salvage.” Dead-end systems had an entrance but no way to jump out because the star was heavier than any other in reach. Hauling a ship out of a dead zone at sub-light speeds would have taken several years. “We had to put ourselves in cold sleep. Only after we began retrofitting The Inner Eye did we find Echo in stasis.”
Max nodded. The Saurians accrued pay in cold suspended animation, even though they only aged at about 1 percent of the normal rate. That explained Echo’s debt and the enormous bill for the rescue, but what had the Saurians been doing in an unoccupied system? When Max attempted further queries, Zrulkesh excused himself to attend duties on the bridge.
****
Reuben caught his boss whistling a tune after the evening meal in the dining hall. “That hash was nothing to get happy about. Are you okay?”
“Better than I’ve felt since my first year of college,” Max replied, sauntering out to the woods. When the healing power flows, the patient is reborn.
During their lesson in the tent, Reuben showed him a chopstick with a piece of gum on the end.
“No, thank you,” Max said.
“For collecting metal pellets,” Reuben reminded his mentor in English, the preferred language for any discussion involving sneaking or cheating.
“Right. Crude but effective, with an easy explanation if someone finds it. We’ll go fishing tonight before the hunt.”
Reuben did reasonably well, procuring three pellets before replugging the container’s sensor hole and fleeing. “What are they made of?”
Max shrugged. “This is your project. Measure the density, melting point, and so forth. When we’re on Jotunheim station, we can buy a mineralogist’s field guide to add to our library.” He told Reuben about the captain’s reluctance to mention where he picked up either the ship
or the cargo.
Max’s good mood lasted through the night. He slept better than he had since the war broke out.
****
Each morning, trying to set a good example for his apprentice, Max made his bed snug enough to bounce a memory cube off.
After several days, Reuben approached Max with a grin. “The density’s a little low, but I tested with a magnet. The pellets are iron.”
“Sounds like an alloy. If we knew the exact composition, we might be able to backtrack to the mine or scrapyard it came from,” Max suggested.
Reuben groaned. “Why do I have to do all the work?”
“Because you’re the one who needs to learn.”
The Goat crossed his arms. “Hah.”
“You haven’t figured out how to beat the Saurians at cards yet, have you?”
“No. They’re stronger and sometimes work together. Why don’t you join me? You seem to know the game well enough.”
Max pinched his thumb and fingers together. “No grip strength. I drop the tiles too often.”
“Even counting cards, I can’t always compete.”
“Then change that.”
“How, oh great mentor?”
“If I tell you how, you run ten laps and put all the gear away tonight?” That would be the equivalent of the morning five-kilometer run. Jogging strengthened the Goat’s leg muscles and reinforced the primary mantra: when in doubt, run. At this point, he could outlast any predator on board. Saurians were great on the sprint, but Humans could walk them into the ground.
Reuben nodded.
“Use what they think they know against them.” Max tapped his temple. “Mark a high card with pepperoni. After you’re sure someone has caught on, wipe the scent off with a napkin or a spilled drink. Then mark a low card next to it. On the next deal, someone else will bet big on the ace and cry foul. While they’re slapping each other, steal some chips. I recommend one from each. Saurians tend to count relative differences in piles, not absolutes. If you palm the chips and toss them out as you bid, they’ll never notice where the money came from.”
“This reminds me of that martial throw stuff you’re trying to teach me.”
“Lessons on one battlefield should translate to others,” Max agreed. “But vary the approach.”
“Such as?”
“I’ll tell you in exchange for ten more laps tomorrow night.”
Reuben groaned. “If it earns my money back, I’ll run every day.”
“When one crew member leaves the room, take a few chips from his pile and distribute them to everyone. Put two on the biggest miner’s pile.”
“His name is Bortral.”
“Yeah, the others will remain silent, and the brute will make sure you get away with the crime if the target objects.”
“How do you learn this stuff?” Reuben asked, in awe.
“A lot of nights around a camp stove with a bunch of restless Saurian soldiers.”
They trained hard, and while Max showered, Reuben ran laps.
Max sat up reading his computer pad at the cafeteria table. He had taken to writing Echo a letter each night before bed. Tonight, she wrote him back. Her prose was polite and perceptive. She pointed out how lonely he sounded, but had many questions on the historical context of Gina’s movie. He explained that it concerned the fall of New Hawaii, a topic of special significance to him. However, Gina’s performance in a broader sense had been a thank-you to everyone who served in uniform during the war. Echo had been in stasis since before the war had begun. As such, his personal views on historical events fascinated her.
Maybe it was all part of the seduction.
The birch forest was dark, and the hunt had long since begun when Reuben knocked on the cafeteria door. “I put the equipment bag inside your closet. That thing gets heavier after a run.”
“You didn’t do all ten laps,” Max guessed, based on the elapsed time and the camera he had beside the tent flap.
“How did you know?”
Max raised an eyebrow. “Never admit wrongdoing around the Saurians, and never expect the enemy to do your thinking for you. Ten more.”
“I’m going to be jogging every night.”
“Good. It’ll give you an excuse to complain about me to the crew. Saurians like to complain about their bosses. You’ll fit right in,” Max said.
Max went to bed at the end of the third week of the trip, still feeling relaxed. His jaw hadn’t reclenched, but the back of his neck ached a little. He scratched the spot absently as he drifted off to sleep.
Chapter 10 – The Butler Did It
Max slept a little longer than normal, dreaming of Gina on a beach. He had to skip making the bed and brushing his teeth to rush out to the track. He left a mug of tea and a crust of toast cluttering the nightstand. When he returned from his shower, the bed was made, the interior doors were shut, and his slippers had been placed neatly under the headboard. The mug and plate were spotless. He stopped drying his hair to stare.
He snagged Reuben who passed by in the hall. “Trying to score brownie points by cleaning my room?”
“I don’t make my own bed. Why would I make yours? You’re the neat freak.”
Max searched for scratches or pry marks on the door and found none. “Check the door access log.”
Puzzled, Reuben obeyed. “You’re the only one in or out since I dropped off the bag. You probably just forgot. You do this stuff without thinking now.”
“Right. Short lesson today because I have lunch with the captain again.”
“You’ve never been in a hurry before.” Reuben rolled his eyes. “Is she going to be there?”
“She was invited. She might.” Max shivered at the thought.
During the workout, Max disarmed his assistant, eating the neural jolt to win the point.
Reuben used the humiliation as cause for a water break. “So I’ve been thinking. Jotunheim is the biggest producer of metals in Human space. Who in their right minds takes iron into that system?”
“An excellent question. My guess is that the cargo’s destination is Eden.”
“Has to be, but why pay to ship ore to someplace that produces it? It doesn’t make sense.”
“Until you have all the pieces.” Max tried to spin the neural staff to show off; however, his right thumb wasn’t up to the task, and the staff clattered to the silver sidewalk. “Your handle is loose. For the rest of this session, I want you to disassemble your weapon and put it back together better.”
“Are you going to time me or make me do this blindfolded?”
“Eventually. Right now, I need something to keep you busy alone while I shower again.”
****
“Is she coming?” Max asked as the servant placed a simmering venison pie on his plate.
The captain glanced aside at the cushion. “You can’t see her? She’s dressed in a blouse the color of sky.” The outfit she wore when she sent video messages to her family.
“I meant in person.”
“No. Magi can’t stand the smell of meat.”
Or the sight of you. “I had questions for her.”
“What did you expect?” Zrulkesh said to the empty cushion. “He’s too deaf to hear you unless he’s standing right in front of you.” He threw a roll down on the plate and snapped, “Don’t raise your voice to me, woman.”
Is he messing with me? “How does she look so much like Gina?”
“The Out-of-Body talent,” the captain said, relaying the answer.
Max knew Humans could only appear as transparent versions of themselves when projecting Out-of-Body. He had heard that, as uplifters, Magi had to hide from humanity and appeared as someone the target knew. Powerful scouts could project from orbit, but only to someone in the Collective Unconscious who they knew well or with Quantum Computing. “What’s her range? Could she reach the cargo level?”
“Anywhere on this ship if she’s motivated.”
“Why did she look so solid to me before?”
“Your memory is very strong,” Zrulkesh replied. Irritated, he turned to the empty cushion. “Maybe you could tell him yourself if you fulfilled you duties.” After another pause to listen, he threw a dinner roll through the space she apparently occupied. “Then leave.”
Max had the irrational urge to smash Zrulkesh’s smirking face. He knew the nerves to hit in the neck to immobilize the tail and feet. For the first time, brooding on what this monster had done to Gina, Max wanted to murder another being. Until he could speak in a normal tone, he had to be content with plotting and eating. “What duties has she shirked?”
“She claims to be stuck in that horrid form.” Zrulkesh shoveled another helping of meat pie off the serving tray with his personal trowel. “Your inability to see her is for the best. Staring at her too long is like gazing at the sun. It feels warm but can burn your face and eyes.”
“Normally, you start with twenty minutes of sun exposure and work up from there, but you’ve been reducing my exposure to Gina each week.”
“Echo,” the captain corrected. “The fact that you can’t distinguish this means I was right to keep you separated. Perhaps the mail has been too frequent as well. We can halt that for a few days to see if it restores your balance.”
Stone-faced, Max sipped his tea. “Your ship, your rules.” This man is going to choose death. He concentrated on his meal for a long time.
After the main course, Zrulkesh offered Max a selection of star-shaped cookies. “You’re a perceptive man. During your exercises, have you noticed any new animals in your woods?”
“Just the birds. Is there a loose python I should know about?”
The captain grunted. “The copilot lost one of my mammals in the hunt. Nothing dangerous. We’ll find it.”
****
That night, Max realized how much he had come to depend on Echo’s letters as he fidgeted at the desk in his room. He looked up articles on helping Magi recover from the loss of a triad mate, but he couldn’t concentrate. Eventually, Reuben limped back to the room with the equipment bag and tossed it inside. “Done.”