David took a deep breath to collect his thoughts before speaking. How much to tell? Which things to hide? If he came clean with all the details, he would almost certainly be put to death. He was infected now, after all, with the boogeyman people still used to scare children into behaving. David could recall his own parents telling him to ‘behave, or the thinking machines will come and get you.’
I am not a disease, the voice said.
No, you’re far worse than that, David replied. The voice stilled, and David sensed it withdrawing into itself.
“We came across an abandoned hulk and went to investigate,” David said. It was standard procedure to look into old ruined ships when they were found. Such ancient vessels were incredibly rare, and when they turned up their discovery often led to retrieval of advanced technology that had been lost to men over the Dark Century.
“But the Commonwealth had beat us there. We maneuvered to engage the ship, and did damage to it. Then it exploded,” David went on. “It wasn’t our shots. We hadn’t done that much damage. The ship destroyed itself.”
The listeners all frowned in unison. Self-immolation was not practiced often, even by the Commonwealth Navy. It was explicitly not allowed by the Kingdom. The waste of men and vessels was abhorrent to all.
“Did you discover why?” Nicholson asked.
“We did, sir. We docked with the hulk, a massive ship adrift, and sent teams out to explore it. But the ship was not as inactive as we’d thought,” David said.
“You claimed there were automatons on board,” Andrews asked, holding up a tablet with David’s report visible on it.
“Yes, sir. Automated defenders, virtually invulnerable to our weapons, with guns that penetrated our shields. My men were cut apart. I barely escaped them, but managed to make my way to the control room of the ship,” David said. “The controls were still active. I was able to use them to set the hulk to self-destruct.”
This next was the tricky part. The rest of what he’d said had been truth, more or less. But now he had to lie if he wanted to remain alive.
“Before the ship exploded, I was able to glean more information from its system. This ship was not alone. It was one of many. The old enemy of the Intelligence Wars was not as vanquished as we thought. Some survived, thrived, rebuilt - and they are looking for us,” David said. “We must prepare.”
“How did you manage to survive?” Lady Agnes asked.
“I almost didn’t,” David replied. “I jettisoned myself into space before the ship blew. My armor protected me long enough for my ship to recover me. But the threat that vessel represented was too great for me to allow it to survive, even if it cost my life to destroy it.”
Far too much left untold in that story. But he’d rehearsed his answers on the transit home. He knew what had to be said, and what could comfortably be left out. Because he hadn’t actually used the vessel’s controls at all. He’d touched an object in the control room which housed an AI, a true artificial intelligence.
One of humanity’s oldest enemies.
But this one claimed to be a friend, a potential ally. A being that felt the other AIs were wrong to war against humans. It was from that mind, now inhabiting his body alongside David, that he had learned everything he now knew about the threat to his Kingdom, and all other humans.
Warning is not enough, the voice said. We must help them prepare, or all your planets will burn in the slaughter to come.
I know. But we need to take this one step at a time.
“Convenient that this ship is now gone, and you have no evidence of any of these claims except what you say you saw,” Andrews remarked.
David bristled. “I indeed saw these things, sir. I would not be dishonored by lying to you about them.”
Except of course he was lying. About much of the story. Inwardly, David winced. He hated the lie, hated the need to lie. But if they knew he was host to an AI, these people would never believe a word he said. He’d be executed for certain. The fear of intelligent machines was still strong enough in every living soul that his fate was sealed if anyone discovered his secret.
David would be fine with dying, if he would be believed. If his death would serve a purpose and save his people, he would willingly give his life. But that wasn’t the case. His testimony would be seen as tainted. There would be no preparation, no increased readiness.
The Kingdom would be destroyed, unless he told this lie.
It was a greater sacrifice than dying would have been, but David would take on the dishonor if it meant saving everything he knew and loved.
The door opened, interrupting whatever question they might have asked next. An aide’s head popped into the room.
“Pardon, Sir Nicholson. You’re needed on the comms for a moment,” the aide said.
David wondered for a moment why the admiral couldn’t just use a hand communicator, but then looked around the room and realized the answer. This was a sealed room. There were no cameras or recording devices present. It was probably sealed against transmissions as well. Such rooms were used for discussing the most sensitive of material. Nothing he said in here would be passed on, except via the words of these admirals.
Nicholson rose from his seat. “I’ll take the call outside. Sir Drake, please join me for a moment?”
David followed him from the room without a word. Once the door was closed, and the aide a short distance down the hall, Nicholson turned back to David.
“Your report suggests this is a threat great enough that all humanity should work together against it,” Nicholson said.
“I feel that is accurate, sir.”
“There are those in the Admiralty House who would brand you a traitor for suggesting we work alongside the Commonwealth in this matter,” Nicholson said. “Be careful, young man. I like you, and if you’re right I happen to agree. But there are those around here who do not. Mind your step.”
“People like Lady Agnes, sir?” David asked.
Nicholson glowered at him. “I will not speak ill of another officer, and it is beneath you to do so as well. Be wary of everyone. Even me.”
“Understood, sir,” David said.
“Return to the room. I’ll be along shortly,” Nicholson said.
David returned to the room and opened the door. The tableau inside was nothing like it had been when he left.
Sir Andrews was dead. The man’s body was slumped back in his seat, his throat slashed open, eyes staring wide at the ceiling. Lady Agnes was nowhere to be seen.
David crouched low as he slipped into the room. No one had left the room, which meant the murderer was still present. He was unarmed, without armor. A vulnerable target, the same as Andrews had been.
A groan from the other side of the table caught his attention. David darted past the dead man, keeping low as he swept toward the sound. Lady Agnes lay on the floor there, and she was wounded as well. Blood flowed freely from what looked like a stab wound in her belly. A short, unadorned knife was on the floor beside her.
Warning. This feels like a trap, the voice said.
No kidding, David thought back.
You need to escape. We are in danger, the voice told him.
I need to protect Lady Agnes, David replied, his thoughts resolute.
This is a mistake.
David didn’t have a response for that. He snatched the knife from the floor. If Agnes wasn’t the killer, then there had to be someone else in the room. He felt better for having a weapon in his hand. More confident, he rose from where he hid.
“Come out, assassin. Time to face an armed opponent!” David said.
There was no reply. David stalked a circle around the room but couldn’t find anyone hiding there. How had the attacker escaped? Was there a secret door in the room?
No way to know. For the moment, Lady Agnes needed medical attention badly. David went to the door to summon help, but the door crashed open when he was still two steps away. Two men in armor and bearing force lances came into the ro
om. They aimed the lances at David’s chest. At first he thought they were more attackers, but then he realized they were wearing Kingdom livery. These were guardsmen.
“Drop the knife!” one of the guards said.
He did as they bid, relieved. “Lady Agnes needs medical attention quickly.”
One of the guards stood near David, his lance still at the ready, while the other went to see the wounded woman. He tapped his collar to call for medical help. David was about to tell him the room was sealed against radio, but was surprised when the call went through without trouble. He glanced over at the open door. It must need to be shut for the seal to be complete.
“What happened here?” asked the guard near David.
“I don’t know. I arrived to see Sir Andrews dead, and Lady Agnes hurt. No sign of their attacker,” David said.
“Could he have left the room before you arrived?”
“It’s possible,” David said, trying to recall how long his back had been turned to the door. “I didn’t see anyone entering or leaving, though.”
Sir Nicholson entered the room, a medical team right behind him.
“What is going on?” Nicholson asked.
“Attack on the admirals, sir. We don’t know by whom yet,” the guardsman said.
“Oh god. Andrews… Shit. I had a feeling something was up when that call turned out to be a fake,” Nicholson said. “I hurried back as quickly as I could. Thank god you were here, Sir Drake, or Lady Agnes might be dead as well.”
They heard a groan from where the medical team was working on Agnes.
“She’s coming around, sir,” a medic said.
Nicholson rushed to her side and knelt beside her body. David watched from a short distance away. Lady Agnes was struggling to say something..
This is very bad, the voice said.
Why? David replied. There was no answer.
“Who did this to you, Agnes? We will catch the bastard and hang him,” Nicholson said.
“Sir Drake,” Agnes said, her whisper audible across the entire room. She raised an accusing finger and pointed at David as she spoke.
The guard beside David leveled his lance at him again. Confused, David took a step back.
“Don’t move, sir,” the guard told him. “We did find him with the knife in his hand.”
Nicholson’s glare slashed across the room and finally came to rest on David’s shocked face. “Take Sir Drake into custody until we can figure out what is going on.”
The guards both rushed over, their lances aimed at David’s chest. He held very still, still unsure just what was happening. Why was Lady Agnes accusing him?
“Sir Nicholson, I wasn’t even in the room! I came in and picked up the knife in case the attacker was still here,” David protested.
“We’ll get to the bottom of this,” Nicholson said. “But for now? Take him away to a guest room and place a guard on the door.”
It was at least a nice cell, David mused as he paced the small room. He had a bed, desk, and chair. There was a jug of water and a mug. It wasn’t the nicest guest room in the building. Probably used for visitor’s servants or something. But it was much better than an actual cell.
What the hell had happened? He stood accused of murder and had been found with the knife in his hand. Worse, the person accusing him was of high rank. His own position would be taken into account, but David was not noble-born. He’d been elevated to the knighthood for deeds of service. There was no way a court would believe his word over hers.
I did tell you it was a trap, the voice said.
Yes, but how did you know?
It was the only logical answer. Lady Agnes planned the entire event.
David thought back to the guards arrival. How precisely had they heard about the attack? He’d only been on his way to call for help, which meant someone else summoned them. That had to have been done when he opened the door, before he shut it. Someone was going to a great deal of effort to frame him. It was impossible to think that this was unconnected to his report. David recalled Sir Nicholson’s warning to be cautious.
He should have heeded those words more carefully.
If she planned it, then what is her end-game? We need to know that if we’re to thwart her and save ourselves, David thought.
We might be about to find out, the voice replied.
Before David could ask what it meant, the door to his room opened. A guard stood there. To David’s surprise, so did Lady Agnes.
“Are you sure you don’t want a guard, my lady? You say he tried to kill you,” the guard said.
“He is unarmed. I am not,” she replied, patting a holstered weapon. “I think I will be all right. I have questions to ask him.”
“But Sir Nicholson said he would be managing the questions…”
“I am giving you an order. Sir Nicholson is not here. I am.”
The guard snapped to attention at her stony tone. “As you wish, my lady,” he said. He allowed her to pass, then left and closed the door.
David was alone with the woman. His eyes darted down to the weapon at her side. She noticed the glance and chuckled, shaking her head.
“No, Sir Drake. I’m not here to kill you. You’re far to useful to me alive,” she said.
“Useful?” David asked.
“Certainly. Dead, you can’t be held accountable for the murder of Sir Andrews. Dead, your report might still make some waves. But once you’re executed as a traitor to the Kingdom, anything you’ve said will be tainted.”
“It’s my report. The enemy I met,” David said.
“No, boy. It’s the enemy you want us to share intelligence with. You really are a child when it comes to politics, aren’t you?” Agnes asked. When he didn’t reply, she went on. “We’re about to go to war with the Commonwealth again. Even now, our fleets prepare to strike.”
“But there’s a truce,” David said.
“What better time to strike? Or should we wait until after they do it to us? There’s no doubt we’ll end up at war again,” Agnes said. “It is better for us if we do it on our terms rather than ours, you see.”
David did. Hadn’t be been thinking not long ago that the truce could never last? The Commonwealth was already sending small strikes across the border. It was a matter of time before the tiny skirmishes turned into something bigger.
“I can see in your eyes that you agree. I thought you would. Common born you might be, but you understand battle,” Agnes said.
“Better than you, I think,” David said.
“Perhaps. Although I might surprise you. I am sorry to lose a knight, but we simply cannot afford this discovery of yours to interrupt the renewal of war. If anything, it’s even more essential we strike soon,” Agnes said. “If you’re right, then we need to present a strong, united front. Which means we need to beat the Commonwealth once and for all.”
Such a war would wipe out the majority of both fleets! They’d have nothing left. Even if they won, it would leave both realms ripe for invasion from outside. Either other star nations would come at them, or the AI forces would arrive and wipe them out.
“This is a mistake,” David said.
“No, boy. Filing that report was a mistake. This is strategy,” Agnes said. “The court has already seen my testimony. They will announce the verdict shortly. I have no doubt about its outcome. I suspect neither do you.”
She was right. Her word against his. His hand on a knife covered with her blood. No other living witnesses, and no recording devices in the room to reveal the truth. It was a neat trap. But there was one possible way out.
“I demand a trial by combat,” David said.
To his surprise, she laughed. “I was hoping you would say that. You have spirit. I, of course, will not be able to directly accept your challenge. Since I am wounded, I will name a champion to fight the match for me. We will have your armor and weapons brought from the ship and take care of the matter at once.”
Then she turned and left the room be
fore David could reply again. He’d screwed up again. He could feel it. What she planned still wasn’t entirely clear to him, but she’d anticipated this move.
Still, it was the only play he had left. The alternative would be to accept the guilty verdict and die a traitor’s death. David wasn’t willing to roll over and die just yet. He needed to see the rest of her plot. Then with some luck, he could find a way to unravel it.
Your memory could be used as testimony, could it not? the voice asked. She all but admitted to her guilt in conversation with you just now.
We have no way extract or observe memory, David thought. And I had no camera or other recording device.
Problem understood. Working on a solution.
What sort of solution? David asked. But there was no answer. Whatever the entity was working on, it seemed to be taking up a great deal of its concentration.
David lay down on the bed to wait. He should be well-rested for what was coming. Whomever Agnes chose as her champion, it would be someone she was certain would beat him. He needed to be as prepared as possible.
It didn’t take her very long at all to set things up. Clearly Lady Agnes wanted this matter settled as soon as possible. Only an hour passed before his gear was brought to his room. No weapons, but all his armor. The sword would be supplied once he reached the court.
David donned his armor with the same steady care he used each time he suited up. Every piece needed to be placed correctly if he was to get maximum value from its protection. Steel plates covered most of his vital areas, and a padded environmental suit beneath it gave him both protection from the elements and further padding against attacks.
Once the armor was linked up and activated, it would put out a powerful force field. His blade would generate a similar field. The only thing which could penetrate one of those fields was an object protected by a similar field. Or so he’d thought, until recently. The robots on board the AI ship had beam weapons which cut through force fields like they weren’t even there.
The Kingdom had no such technology. David wondered how things would change if they gained that knowledge. Force fields ensured that most viable weapons were hand-held. Swords, pole axes, and similar weapons were favored for their ability to crack the armor warriors wore beneath their fields. But if a gun could kill a shielded man from a distance and fire many times in rapid succession, it would change everything about the way war was fought.
The Expanding Universe 4: Space Adventure, Alien Contact, & Military Science Fiction (Science Fiction Anthology) Page 20