“Could be,” Bethany Anne murmured, distracted by the same information Tabitha had just scanned. “I provided enough colony ships for everyone who wanted to strike out on their own.”
John grunted. “If you ask me, it was a dumbass who left your protection to chase some frontier dream. Come on out, Sayomi. Explain what’s going on here.”
Sayomi’s avatar appeared on the opposite side of the bridge from Bethany Anne, trailing deep shadows around her body. “It’s quite possible. There were many groups that chose to live outside the Empire. Would you like me to open contact with the sphere, my Queen?” she asked Bethany Anne with none of her usual snark.
Bethany Anne tilted her head as she dismissed the information in her internal HUD. “I don’t see why not. Any information we can get on what’s been going on out here would be stellar.”
“Just keep us cloaked,” Tabitha added warily. “You never know what kind of reception you’re going to get from these far-flung colonies. I could tell you about some of the places I ended up at during my Ranger days that you wouldn’t believe.”
John chuckled dryly. “I’d believe anything of humans, from the good to the ridiculous.”
The viewscreen darkened as Sayomi put out the call. A moment later, a man wearing a black atmosuit and an overly decorated hat appeared onscreen, looking somewhat confused. “QBS ship?” he spluttered in greeting. “What did we do to earn the attention of the Empire?”
Bethany Anne raised an eyebrow. “You haven’t heard from the outside for a while, huh? The Empire is the Federation. It’s been that way for over a decade.”
The man may have been lost in time, but he recognized Bethany Anne when he saw her, and it didn’t look like he was happy about it. “You didn’t answer my question. What brings you here? How did you even find us?” He shook his head to clear the shock. “I apologize. It’s been too long since we’ve had visitors from outside the colony. This is no way to talk. Please have your ship dock at module 3247 and ask for Stewart Briscomb.”
“You heard the man,” Tabitha told Sayomi.
“As you wish,” Sayomi replied with a smile before vanishing in a plume of shadow.
Tabitha turned and shot John a look that promised fire. “I thought you told her to be on her best behavior?” she demanded.
John lifted his hands. “I told her not to piss off BA. What do you want me to do?”
Bethany Anne snickered at the AI’s sense of humor. “I’m not complaining. It’s interesting that she would know about you hating that movie, Tabitha. Maybe it’s ADAM you should pick that bone with.”
It took them a little while to get close enough to dock. The ship stored more and more sensor data as they got closer.
Stewart met them at the airlock, doing away with the need to locate him aboard the multiple-residence module. “I have to admit I’m curious about the outside, as well as the reason you’re here, my Empress.”
Bethany Anne waved a hand. “Technically, I’m not an Empress anymore. Bethany Anne is fine.”
Stewart took one look at John’s face and smiled nervously. “I think not. Even if you are no longer the Empress, you are still the Queen.” He relaxed slightly when John nodded almost imperceptibly. “Come with me. I have arranged for refreshments in my office.”
He explained that he was the colony coordinator for that term as he led them down a short corridor that terminated with a door bearing a plaque with the title. “Consequently, I mostly live in my office. You know how administrative duties stack up if you’re not vigilant.”
Bethany Anne gave him a sympathetic look. “I do. You don’t have AI support for that?”
Stewart’s eyes widened in shock. “Definitely not!” he exclaimed. “We run nothing that can be picked up by any ship passing by. This colony was founded on the principle that allowing machines to do our complex thinking is the road to devolution of the human mind.”
Ugh, one of those places, Tabitha complained. Separatists are always PITAs to deal with, without exception. Shoot me now.
Bethany Anne smiled, ignoring Tabitha’s mental plea. “I understand,” she told Stewart. “You have the right to live however you wish, as long as you are not persecuting any sentient digital lifeform to do so.”
Stewart shook his head as he poured the tea. “We have zero sentient technology. Everything we have here was built with human ingenuity, and we have been cut off since the moment we reached saturation and blocked the star's light completely.”
“Completely cut off?” Bethany Anne asked. “The reason I’m here is to find out what you know about the exodus of people out of this quadrant.”
Stewart’s features cinched tight. “I can make a guess. We’ve been attacked a number of times by various groups. Some wanted our technology. Others wanted to tap our star. The most recent attacks have passed us by since the enemy is unable to locate us by tracking the emissions from our star.”
“But?” Bethany Anne pressed, seeing he had more to say.
She sipped the tea while she waited for Stewart to form his reply, wishing he had offered her a Coke instead.
“We’re not blind to what’s been going on in our neighborhood,” Stewart informed her. “While we’re not in a position to prevent the attacks on our fellow human beings, having chosen to behave defensively rather than offensively, we are able to offer the survivors a home here.” His eyes darted to the side. “If they are able to make it here.”
Bethany Anne thought that to be the biggest crock of shit she’d heard since leaving Red Rock. “What if someone attacked your sphere? You’re just going to sit back and allow your people to die?”
Stewart closed his eyes and rubbed his temples. “We have sufficient shielding to repel most attacks.”
John grunted. “That’s not what the Queen asked.”
Stewart shifted in his seat. “We have offensive capabilities.”
Bethany Anne put down her teacup. “So, what you mean is that you’re happy to defend yourselves, but not to do the right thing when your weaker, less technologically-advanced neighbors are in need?”
Stewart reddened. “What do you want us to do? Divert our own resources for the good of everyone? That’s the kind of socialist thinking we left to avoid.”
Tabitha strode forward and placed her hands on the arms of Stewart’s chair. She allowed her emotion to show in the red flare of her eyes. “Then you’re a bunch of fucking idiots, no matter how much tech you have.”
Bethany Anne agreed with Tabitha’s sentiment. “I think we’re done here.” She got to her feet and looked at Stewart with utter disgust. “I can see why your group didn’t stay with the rest of humanity. I have no time for anyone who chooses to ignore those in need when they have the ability to act and save lives.”
She held up a hand to Stewart, putting an end to his weak protests about charity beginning at home. “If I’d taken that tack, humanity would be a distant memory, or slaves to the Kurtherians right now. You deserve everything that’s coming to you.” ADAM, get me everything on their systems. I want to know who these wastes of oxygen have left to die.
>>Already done,<< he replied. >>Sayomi is anxious to leave, so I had her decouple her ship from the airlock. I didn’t think you would want to stick around for the exit rigmarole.<<
You thought right.
Bethany Anne spared a hard look for Stewart. “Enjoy your isolation while it lasts. You can expect a Federation party here within the week to supervise your learning curve. No more isolation. No more selfish fucking decisions. You are the power out here, so you’d better get fucking used to the responsibility that goes with it.”
She had a few more choice words for Stewart and his kind before she placed her hands on John’s and Tabitha’s shoulders and took the three of them back to the Sayomi via the Etheric.
Tabitha pulled Bethany Anne into a brief hug when they came out on the bridge of the Sayomi. “You okay? I know how badly selfish snotweasels like him get to you.”
Bethan
y Anne shrugged. “What can I do except make sure they learn their lesson and do better in the future?” she asked.
“Sayomi, get us the hell out of here before my ability to restrain my temper runs out.”
22
QBS Sayomi, Skaine Space
The Sayomi emerged in an area of space that looked nothing like the place they’d just left, the main difference besides the visible star being the permanent Gate illuminating the dark side of a smallish planet tucked up against the system’s red dwarf star.
Sayomi wisely chose to feed the system data through the console rather than risk annoying Bethany Anne. “It appears that the planet is tidally locked. There is a large settlement that rings the horizon, where the temperature is stable and some natural light is available.”
John peered at a dark gap in the habitation. “Looks like they’ve been attacked recently.”
Tabitha indicated the Gate with a jerk of her chin. “The people in this system can’t catch a break. What are we going to do about that?”
Bethany Anne raised an eyebrow. “The Gate that has no business being here? Destroy it, of course. After we’ve ascertained what’s on the other side.”
John shook his head. “I’m sticking by what I said. Anyone choosing to live outside of the protection of either the Federation or the Interdiction can’t be choosing it for any good reason.” He adjusted his chair into the upright position as the holoHUD retracted into his headrest. “You want us to go in and investigate?”
Bethany Anne shook her head. “Send a few drones for now. Keep them at a safe distance, and make sure they log anything that crosses in either direction. We’re going straight down to the planet, so I can find out for myself why the Skaines are fleeing.”
Tabitha tossed each of them a heavy cloak. “Don’t want the remaining colonists to die of fright before we get a bead on what scared the rest of them away.”
Bethany Anne put on the cloak with a flourish. “Being Skaines, I’d expect they’re going to be more bothered about you than me.”
John chuckled as he pulled up the hood of his cloak. “Yeah, I can see that happening. Tabitha walks in, the Skaines run out screaming.”
Tabitha narrowed her eyes. “What is this, pick-on-the-hot-chick day?” She waved her hands in annoyance. “Jeez. You spend a hundred measly years kicking the slaving tendencies out of a species, and all you get for your efforts is shit from your friends.”
“We have arrived,” Sayomi announced, putting an end to the teasing.
Bethany Anne transferred them through the Etheric to an alley off the main street of the quarter Tabitha had identified as being most likely to have the colony’s leadership buildings. The colony was as expected for a Skaine settlement, uniform buildings made from metal. There were no decorations and no art. All in all, it was a place that did very little for the imagination, despite being perfectly practical.
Tabitha took point, being the expert on the Skaine way of life and therefore, best suited to finding what they were looking for in the metal maze. She led them into the heart of the built-up area surrounding the spaceport, being careful to keep her identity concealed under the hood of her cloak.
Nevertheless, the Skaines they passed on the streets must have known on some base level that their scourge was among them because they gave the three humans a wide berth.
Bethany Anne skimmed the thoughts of the Skaines as they walked. She mostly got a sense of the pervasive dread that blanketed the community, fear of being stolen from their beds and taken who-knew-where for a purpose they could only guess.
John felt disquiet at the flood of thoughts. He glanced at Bethany Anne, wondering once again how she coped with the constant barrage in a crowd.
You'll learn to filter it out, Bethany Anne told John, speaking directly into his mind. It’s just a hell of a lot harder to block it out when it’s the hopes and fears of the innocent.
John did what he could to put up a mental barrier, but he agreed. This was an entirely different situation to the one where he’d had an enemy to subdue. The only enemy here was fear, and he had no clue how to put an end to that unless the boogeymen presented themselves so that he could tear them limb from limb in front of the Skaines.
Bethany Anne felt his turmoil. Take it easy. We’ll get to the bottom of this, and then you can work that frustration out on the root cause of these people’s fear.
That’s how you cope, John replied. Two hundred years, BA. Christ. No wonder when you snapped, you snapped all the way. Your self-control has to be tight.
My mental abilities aren’t even the strongest, Bethany Anne reminded him. You want to see self-control, speak to Michael. Or Barnabas. Hell, talk to Akio. I’ve never seen him so much as raise his voice.
Self-control is overrated. Tabitha had nothing else to add on the subject since she was happy to fess up to whatever was bothering her and apply her foot to the balls of the problem. She paused and read the street signs before taking them through a huge, empty square to a building that was slightly larger and better maintained than the others bordering the open space. This is just an accounting office, but it’s the closest they’ll have to a government seat, she explained as they mounted the stairs to the front entrance. If there is anyone in charge, this is where we’ll find them. Don’t mind the title “overseer,” if that’s who we find. It’s a title, not a functional description.
Bethany Anne murmured her surprise. “This is the first time I’ve had reason to come to a Skaine world,” she admitted out loud. “They don’t go in much for individuality, huh?”
“Yeah, no. Unless you count the financial and military institutions,” Tabitha told her as she pulled the door open. “It’s why you don’t see so many of them inside Federation borders. Those who can follow the rules get on just fine, but the majority are bent on keeping to the old ways.”
She paused to reconsider as they entered the atrium. “Except for the slavery, of course.”
“Yes, well,” a voice interrupted. “You put an end to that as the basis of our economy, didn’t you, Ranger Two?”
Bethany Anne shrugged. “Looks like your disguise plan fell short of the mark.” She pushed back her hood to gasps from the Skaines behind the counter. “You’re the Skaine in charge around here?”
The one who had spoken came forward with his head bowed. “Empress. Forgive me, I did not realize you accompanied the Ranger.” He spat the word “Ranger” like it tasted bad. “My name is Slater, and I am the governor here. How may I be of service?”
Bethany Anne raised an eyebrow. “You can start by dropping the attitude. The Rangers have been disbanded for over a decade. You can’t still be sore, surely?”
John chuckled. “Wanna bet?”
The Skaine didn’t quite dare to answer. His face, however, spoke volumes.
Tabitha shoved a finger in Slater’s face. “An economy built on the backs of others is not how decent people operate. It served the slavers right to be shut down. If I find that this colony is operating a slave trade, you’re going to be sorry we came here to help.”
Slater’s lips drew back in a snarl. “We obey the law here. As for your help, what help do we need from you? We do not take slaves here, so I can only assume you’re here to fuck things up for us.”
Bethany Anne held up a hand before it got heated, knowing Tabitha was—quite rightly—like a dog with a bone on the slavery issue. “That’s not why we’re here, although Tabitha is right about us shutting you down if you’re harboring a slave trade.” She paused while ADAM confirmed that there was nothing to indicate the colony was making income from people-trafficking. “Now that I’m assured you are innocent, I want to know why people from this quadrant are leaving in such large numbers, and I want to know how and why there is an unauthorized Gate in this system.”
The Skaines at the counter looked away quickly, and the atmosphere switched from one of mild anger to one of utter distress.
Slater half-turned and extended an arm to indicate th
e door to the back rooms. “If you will join me in my office?”
Bethany Anne strode past him. “Don’t mind if I do.”
Slater closed the door of his office, eyeing John warily as he did so. “Take a seat. I won’t be a moment setting up a secure space.”
Bethany Anne waved a hand to enclose the room in a bubble of Etheric energy, which she commanded to block all signals going in or out. “No need. I make my own secure space that can’t be matched by any technology.”
Slater frowned, giving away a touch of displeasure at the information.
“Including the recording devices you have set up in here,” Bethany Anne told him firmly. She took a seat in his guest chair, and John and Tabitha moved to flank her.
Slater’s shoulders dropped at the information that he wouldn’t be getting a record of Bethany Anne’s appearance. “Very well, we will get straight to business if that’s how you want to do this.” He took his seat and laced his fingers on the desk. “Two months ago, that Gate appeared. Who placed it there is a mystery we haven’t been able to solve. However, since its arrival, there have been numerous disappearances that can’t be explained. Always the strongest and healthiest. They never take the weak, the young, or the old.”
“How do you mean?” Bethany Anne inquired. “You must know when these kidnappings are happening. You’re not exactly technologically challenged.”
“Speaking of which,” Tabitha cut in. “Are you aware of the human colony the next system over?”
Slater’s distress was real. “We see no one, and we can’t track any technology being used. In short, we are powerless to detect the kidnappers and I’m clueless as to how to prevent them from taking my people.” He twisted his hands fretfully as he spoke. “We don’t have the capability to take out the Gate without causing extensive damage to our planet.”
“Sounds like maybe Saint Payback owns the Gate,” Tabitha muttered darkly.
The Valkyrie Returns (The Kurtherian Endgame Book 7) Page 22