ARTIS PRIME

by Tobias Roote

  RIGA, however, watched his movements carefully and decided that to trust this man with anything, would be a dereliction of her duty to herself, Gossie and the Empirum. He was what the humans referred to as a snake.

  Outwardly she remained amenable and responded positively. “I will have my AI deliver it to your comms address,” RIGA agreed, knowing that it would be the end of that Captain’s career if it got out; she felt it would indeed ‘clip his claws’. She also knew that the Political Officer would also use it for his own gain within the political circuit. She knew these types right down to their deep-rooted reptilian DNA.

  “All we need to do now is get the Captain’s permission to release your ship,” the PO said with real concern. “He has it under guard and won’t let you near it. I don’t think we will be able to use the video recording that quickly to get him to back down.”

  RIGA cocked her head to one side as if she was listening to something. “I think that won’t be a problem, Lieutenant. I would like to thank you for your assistance in this matter.” Turning to Osachi she asked. “I trust you can make it to the Space Station to fulfil your promise?”

  Osachi looked puzzled, so did Wright, but she didn’t indicate anything of her intent.

  Then, as they were about to leave, an afterthought occurred to her and she looked at the Officer. “If I was to remove myself from the Captain’s clutches, what would he do?” she asked.

  Wright shrugged, not immediately realising the relevance of the question she was asking. “He wouldn’t be able to do anything, his jurisdiction only extends to his ship. He can put impediments in your way to stop you from leaving, but if you are already gone he will be powerless - why, what are you planning?” he asked suspiciously.

  RIGA smiled, and stood up. “Thank you, gentlemen. On behalf of my government, I graciously accept all of your conditions and gifts. I have also sent you both a complete recording of this meeting for your own records.” RIGA bowed her head and turned, leaving the two men slightly stunned at the news that everything they had discussed had been recorded. They looked at each other and then stood and with nothing further to be added, went their separate ways.

  Back in her Stateroom, RIGA communicated with Gossie.

  ‘Are you sure the Tesperadus AI will do it?’ she queried mentally.

  ‘Yes, the AI is advanced and capable of treading between the wider issue of protection of Captain, Crew, Ship, Planet, System, Empire - and so recognises that the agreement you have in place with the Political Officer as binding, and as such over-rides the Captain’s wishes in this matter. It will cite some form of regulation to the Captain, and that will be that,’ the AI responded confidently.

  ‘Good, let’s do it now then before anything else changes our plans,’ RIGA commanded.

  10. Escape Jump

  As RIGA fully materialised inside her ship, she marvelled at the speed and advanced level of technology that allowed her to literally disappear from one location, and reappear in another, instantaneously. Paris, the Tesperadus AI had autonomous control of their teleporter system, quite amazing, she thought to herself as she imagined hundreds of teleports a day and all of that being under the control of an officer. To much work, she agreed.

  She looked down at herself, completely intact; yet seconds before, she had been in her room in the VIP suite, wondering how to get herself off the ship without causing a military incident. The Captain had a marine unit on the ship that looked like they could handle any on-board incidents without missing a beat. She had been glad a confrontation had been avoided. The death of even one of their men might have been enough to spark a full-scale war between their two empires, something she was extremely keen to avoid, although she would stop short of compromising her mission objectives.

  As she changed into her leathers and took a look around, she realised that she much preferred her small cabin to the massive rooms set aside for visiting dignatories. It smacked of trying too hard to impress, she decided.

  “Gossie, well done on providing me with the means of overcoming the stubborn arrogance of Captain Jennings,” she said, as she languished in her chair in the cockpit, looking over the readouts from the sensors spanning the hangar they were trapped within.

  The AI who was still busy communicating with Paris, simply said, “Standby for relocation RIGA, it’s going to happen... NOW!”

  As RIGA’s sensors came fully back on-line, she sensed the immediacy of the change. They were now in open space. After a second or two of realignment, she knew they were within metres of the docking bay of the Station which, even as she watched on the screen, was opening to admit them.

  “We are being welcomed aboard the Space Station, RIGA. The Tesperadus AI, who is called Paris, by the way, calculated our range exactly so that we could officially dock rather than just appear inside the Station. This apparently, overcomes any irregularities in protocol that might prevail otherwise; something to do with them providing formal permission to dock which gives us the right of protection. They use the word sanctuary.”

  “What of the Tesperadus?” RIGA asked. Her discomfort at the AI and the other ship being in control, even for a few minutes evident in her brusque response. Realising she was still reacting to the Captain’s manner, she reset her emotional levels to zero.

  “The Captain is only now being informed of our disappearance from the hangar bay on the Tesperadus. He will not be aware of our new location for a few minutes; Paris is delaying the sensor results momentarily. She informs me he has no jurisdiction over the Space Station. As such, we are protected by their own space laws, but might be trapped here, if they remain in front of the docking zone,” Gossie advised.

  “Excellent, I wonder when Osachi will arrive. I’m rather keen to get my hands on this technology of theirs, it looks...um.. interesting. Do you know if you can operate it, yet?” RIGA asked.

  “Oh, no problem on that point. Paris has given me full operating instructions ahead of installation. I’m also armed with their military grade star maps and vessel routes as well as recognition codes for all of the planets we are likely to visit in our investigation. It appears that Paris has considerable autonomy in situations that are supported by official missions, be they military, or political.”

  “The Captain is in for a nasty shock, then,” RIGA commented.

  She thought about their mission and the directive she had received from Chief Bollida. So far she had achieved quite a lot in a short time, but the problem posed by the Tesperadus and the antagonised Captain was going to be an issue she felt would come back and haunt her before long. She needed to keep her distance from the Terran Navy as much as she could, or at least until she had built up some allies within the fleet.

  “Docking completed,” Gossie informed her, pulling her out of her contemplation.

  “Good. Is it safe to open the hatch and hunt down Osachi, yet?”

  “See for yourself,” Gossie answered.

  Chuckling at the AI’s teasing response, RIGA linked to the ship’s sensors, pleasantly surprised to see that Osachi was already outside the ship, where a small group of white-coated technicians waited with him. Some loaded anti-grav pallets also hovered alongside the hatch.

  Oh good, she thought. New toys.

  She leaped out of the cockpit, mentally unlocked the hatchway, whereby it automatically opened. She jumped lightly off the ship where it was resting on repellers, like those in the Tesperadus hangar.

  Osachi was beaming. His glasses kept falling off his nose and he continuously had to push them back up, making RIGA wonder why he didn’t have his eyes adjusted. They must be able to DNA graft new ones. It would have been normal for the humans in her system.

  “Hi, RIGA! How on earth did you manage to get off the ship so fast? I have only just had time to pull the items together. I thought you would be at least a few days getting free of the Captain,” he said. “Then Paris, the Tessa’s AI, told me to move my ass, and said that you were already waiting.”

  “It see
ms your AI’s are extremely cooperative when it serves the Terran Empire’s purpose,” was all RIGA would say in case she gave away too much information.

  “We can get started now if you let my people on the ship, they are keen to see if your equipment will mesh with theirs. It’s the first time they will have seen Empirum technology, so I hope you don’t mind them being a little nosy,” Osachi explained.

  “Gossie will ensure they only see what she wants them to see,” RIGA replied.

  “Gossie?” Osachi didn’t catch on to the fact RIGA was talking about her ship.

  “Gossie, introduce yourself to Mr Raachi Osachi, please,” RIGA requested.

  The voice of the Ship’s AI boomed out through an aperture near the exit hatch and carried to where they were all standing. “Hello Osachi, your people are welcome to board and ‘nosy’ my systems. I am fully capable of protecting my sensitive bits,” Gossie said affably, not completely unaware of the risqué nature of the comment. The extended research and learning the Terran ways included a large dose of their humour.

  Osachi‘s eyebrows rose causing his glasses to drop off again. He smiled as he caught them with his forefinger and promptly waved his technicians aboard, as if she was likely to change her mind any minute.

  It took two days for the equipment to be installed and tested fully. Several times a military inspector arrived and departed promptly when Gossie refused him access to the ship. RIGA, who suspected he was sent from the Tesperadus, explained to him that just because there was government cooperation between them, didn’t mean the military could walk onto her ship any time they wanted. The officer shrugged and walked off, recognising the futility of pushing the matter.

  Shortly before RIGA was due to make a fast exit from the Station, to avoid the Tesperadus and the Brent that were still monitoring the area while patrolling the sector, Osachi pulled RIGA to one side. “Hey, do you fancy having a coffee with me in the lounge while they finish off here?” he asked timidly, as if asking her for a date.

  “I would enjoy that, Osachi. You can tell me more about your family. There is a lot of information on your Net about them, but it’s all very publicity-based.”

  “Oh, all right then, let's do that.” He pulled her away from the ship toward the main concourse of the Station and the dining area.

  ‘Gossie, we’re not far from finished, let me know if anyone tries to leave us a present like a transmitter, or homing device,’ RIGA sent mentally.

  ‘All cameras are active,’ Gossie reassured her.

  It turned out that the Osachi public life had nothing on their private life. The whole Osachi family were involved in running the Empire. Even Wright, the PO, was a distant uncle of Raachi’s and highly placed in the political elite. He had apparently gone missing for over a decade while ore prospecting. He had lost everything and returned a different man, gaunt, and physically changed by the experience. He had gone into politics immediately, and made surprisingly impressive headway, with the help and considerable support of a small influential group.

  Raachi was the youngest of the family, destined to take over from his father running the family’s commercial interests, but he much preferred to play with the technology and help design new products. Raachi couldn’t get interested in the numbers, but give him new product development and he was happy.

  He looked serious, and moved closer to her so that he could talk quietly. “RIGA, I have a confession to make. The shield and jump technology I have installed on your ship are both fully tested, but not released versions of our military grade equipment. They are the very latest designs and have many extra features that will allow you to remain hidden and protect you. The shield is augmented with harmonic disrupters to stop frequencies being read by enemy ships, that have the same technology. It is still in trial-mode, but I believe you are going to need it.” He was almost whispering. “Don’t trust the Tesperadus, there has been rumour of an overthrow and there are elements of the SCN that are not loyal to my Father,” he finished.

  RIGA analysed the risk that Osachi had taken. While she immediately understood the advantage it gave her, she was also aware that what her friend had done could be considered as treason by his countrymen.

  “Surely, this will cause you serious consequences if you are found out,” she said, having no doubt he would be if her ship was attacked and they failed. “What justification can you give for this, and why do you think I am going to need such high protection?” she asked the young man, who seemed to be keen to help her at every corner.

  Osachi looked earnestly at her and took her hand. She could feel his pulse. Her sensors picked up heightened chemical activity from his skin. He was both agitated and excited. “You are important to me... my family and the people of Terra. The trade agreements you are negotiating will provide increased work for our citizens and help us retain our influence within the Space Council.” He hesitated, and looked around the room carefully before continuing. “I believe you are being targeted by our enemies to stop the trade agreement from succeeding. If you fail, I see war looming, there are many who want to expand the Empire beyond our borders, and my Father is the greatest impediment to their success.” He looked into her eyes, the concern for her evident in his. “I’m convinced the Empirum would end up as a prime target for Terran interests.”

  “You could be right, Osachi, but you are still running a grave risk, and could be handing your enemies an opportunity to harm your family if it is discovered,” RIGA said.

  He smiled grimly. “I don't think it's going to be a real problem. I have it on good authority that beta-test products are exempt until registered with the Military as operational equipment, therefore it ‘could’ be classified as a commercial product,” not for one second believing his own words. “I am putting it in your ship as a field test project for ‘live’ exercises, as I have no doubt the bugs will get fully worked out in the field.” He laughed nervously.

  She shook her head. “At best, it’s what your people will call a ‘fudge’; at worst it's an act of treason. You must tread carefully, Osachi, my friend. You walk close to a line that would be equally unacceptable in my world, as it is in yours.” RIGA thought for a moment, watching his face turn pale at the spelling out of his crime. Secretly, she was pleased with the gift. She felt that the advantages would help swing her mission into favourable odds of success.

  “If I can protect your secret I will do so, but when this is over we must arrange to make a switch. In the meantime, I happen to agree that it might well be necessary. My investigations are likely to encroach on some very sensitive areas in both our worlds. The only margin I may end up with is in the modification of the equipment you have provided.” She looked into his eyes and added, “for that I’m very grateful.” RIGA placed her free hand on his shoulder reassuringly.

  He grinned, the look on his face left RIGA with a feeling of regret. There was nothing she could do to help this young man with his feelings for her. She left him then, with a promise to keep him informed, so he could protect his family.

  Returning to her Courier-class vessel that was now the fastest and most advanced ship in two Empires, RIGA felt that finally, the mission was truly going to begin to make headway.

  “Gossie, transmit all current logs to the GEN Vasta and add my compliments to Captain Xandarl. Advise him we are now proceeding with the true mission, with the cooperation of the Terran Empire. Bring to his attention item four of the agreement, and advise him of the upgrades we have received. Do not mention they are military quality, just say they are of a ‘high standard’. Arrange rendezvous points outside of Terran space for drone pick-up at intervals of thirty hours,” RIGA ordered.

  “Captain Xandarl is asking if you need them to run interference against the Tesperadus and the Brent.”

  “Negative. We have sufficient range on the jump drive to take us beyond interception. Let’s see if our new cloak works as well with the jump drive as before the Vasta arrived. I suspect our Captain Jennings will have
had his sensor operator’s soul stretched over the bridge screens, over the failure to detect the bulk of five battleships off their port side. Let’s see if they have recalibrated their sensors,” RIGA instructed.

  “Requesting un-docking from Station,” Gossie advised.

  When the docking bay doors opened, the tiny ship coaxed itself out into open space, totally dwarfed by everything around them, a tiny speck to all other ships using the Station’s external docking arms.

  “We are being scanned,” Gossie commented. “It’s the Brent.”

  Their ship proceeded to pull away from the dock and slipped around the back of the Station, so they were temporarily hidden from view of the Brent. Heading further into space keeping the Brent blind side for as long as possible, Gossie engaged the cloak when they were comfortably distant.

  “Advise if their course looks set to intersect, or if they begin to jump, get us out of range,” RIGA instructed.

  One of the external sensors had been upgraded by Osachi’s engineers to enable them to know when another vessel was either preparing to jump, or if an incoming jump was occurring in proximity to them. Designed for battleships, to enable them to range guns and prepare for action, it would, nonetheless, prove invaluable to RIGA in avoiding confrontations with Terran ships.

  The Brent continued to scan, but didn’t change its location. RIGA suspected they could discern the cloaking frequencies. She decided there was a small risk of the Tesperadus intervening.

  She felt a tingling down the back of her neck which she interpreted as a change in the local frequencies at a subliminal level. She wanted out of there. “Jump now, please Gossie,” RIGA requested with some urgency.

  As her outgoing sensors distorted through the temporary confusion caused by the jump, RIGA felt vindicated as the ship’s new external sensor indicated the forming of an anomaly near to where they had been. She suspected the Tesperadus would follow shortly.