“Quite.”
Silence hung in the air, as though the Ghost had said all he had to upon that or any other subject.
Jessamyn recalled his quirky speech when they had commed him to inquire about the gravitational controls aboard the station. Gravity is for people on planets, he’d said.
“So you are living here, too?” Jess asked at last, deciding to employ the sort of concrete language her brother Ethan preferred. Perhaps his oddities resulted from a mind that worked differently, like her brother’s.
“I am.”
“Are you … okay with us staying here as well?” asked Jessamyn.
“I am.”
“I’m sorry if we’ve inconvenienced you in any way. We’re a bit stuck here, I’m afraid.”
“I have ships.”
“Do you, um, want us to depart? Using one of them?”
“No,” replied the Ghost. “You can stay. You can assist me in preserving humanity, I suppose. In any case, my ship is too small for your group.”
“Um, okay.”
“I see you’ve made alterations to the comm system here.”
Jess frowned. “Yes. A few modifications.”
“I would have stopped you if you’d done any damage to the equipment I use to monitor for distress signals.”
Jess remembered what Pavel had said about the Ghost being credited with impossible space rescues.
“Fair enough,” said Jess. “You do realize we thought we were alone, right?”
A small laugh. “Obviously.”
Jess blushed, wondering what the Ghost might have observed these past days.
“Okay,” said Jess. “So, do we just carry on, then, doing our … work while you do your … work?”
“That should be satisfactory. I ought to speak to the clever one, though. Ethan. I need to ensure none of you does damage to my systems through your ignorance.”
Jess was fairly certain her intelligence had been insulted. She wondered if the Ghost meant to be insulting or if it was accidental.
“Jumble has been very considerate of my needs,” said the Ghost, apropos of nothing, so far as Jessamyn could tell.
“That’s good,” she said in reply, waiting to see where he took the conversation.
“Jumble keeps my secrets,” he said.
“I’ve heard Jumble is good at that,” said Jess.
“Yes, well, Sister believes I live here at all times. She’s all but commanded me to stay here. But I can’t very well help those who need emergency assistance in space if I stay here, can I?”
“I suppose not,” said Jessamyn, uncertainly.
“There were only two rescues this past lunar cycle. Some moons I’ve saved as many as nine lives. Like a cat.” He laughed. It was a small snickering sort of noise like a child might make.
“That’s impressive,” said Jess. She began to wish Pavel was up. He might know better how to speak with the Ghost.
“I shall leave you now,” said the Ghost, imperiously.
“Wait,” cried Jessamyn.
The Ghost stopped and turned to face her.
“Um, how do we contact you?”
“I will contact you when I wish to.”
“But if I want to contact you?” asked Jess.
The Ghost looked puzzled for a moment. It was clearly a new idea for him. “Send a distress signal,” he said at last. “That’s what they all do, isn’t it?”
Jess nodded. A distress signal. And then she was alone once more in the darkened work station, left to ponder her strange encounter with the Ghost.
~ ~ ~
Pavel rose at his accustomed hour, complaining to Jess that she should have woken him earlier.
“You know I’m happy to keep you company when you can’t sleep.” He kissed the side of her neck, just below her left ear.
Jess sighed happily, leaning into his kiss. A warm tingling sensation threatened to distract her from telling Pavel of her remarkable encounter. “Hang on a minute,” she said.
“Hanging,” he murmured, taking the lobe of her ear between his lips. “Not going anywhere. Wouldn’t dream of it.”
“You won’t believe what just happened this morning,” said Jessamyn.
“You decided to accept my proposal of marriage?”
She sighed, pushed Pavel gently away, and launched into a description of her encounter with the Ghost.
“Man,” said Pavel. “So, every bit as weird in person as he was by comm.”
“He’s different, all right,” said Jess. “Reminds me a little of Eth, actually.”
“Hmm. Jumble says he’s known him forever. I imagine he’s harmless enough.”
However, as the group would discover later in the day, the Ghost was not entirely without the ability or desire to do harm.
The party of four had convened for evening rations, held twice daily when all four were awake. It was one of Jessamyn’s favorite times of the lunar day, and, given the infrequence of sunrises or sunsets, the meal served as a sort of marker that another Earth day had begun or ended.
“Earlier today, the Ghost introduced himself to me,” said Ethan, receiving the plated ration that Mr. Zussman handed to him.
Jess accepted her own plate. A week ago, she’d quipped that rations didn’t need plates and that it was wasteful to dirty them. In private, Pavel had explained that Mr. Zussman took great delight in preparing this “meal” and that, further, Zussman had very few things in which to delight while they were stuck on the Moon. Jess had felt terrible. Tonight, she made a point of thanking Zussman after accepting her plate.
“What did you think of him?” Jess asked her brother.
“He is a most interesting individual,” replied Ethan.
“If, by interesting, you mean bizarre,” Pavel said in an undertone.
“I am not,” said Ethan, “the most qualified individual to pass such a judgment. However, there is one area in which we are likely to have conflicted interests.”
“What’s that?” asked Pavel.
“The Ghost is of the persuasion that Mars poses a deadly threat to the citizens of Earth,” replied Ethan.
Jessamyn snorted, sending crumbs of ration flying across the table. Zussman’s expression did not change as he calmly swept the crumbs off the table.
“Sorry, Zuss,” Jessamyn mumbled.
“Quite to be expected, miss,” said the butler.
“It is, I fear, no laughing matter,” said Ethan. “The Ghost firmly expects that Mars Colonial will one day attack Earth.”
This time it was Pavel who snickered.
“Moreover,” continued Ethan, “It would appear that our new acquaintance believes his primary purpose is to prevent such a Marsian invasion.”
“Good to know someone’s keeping us in line,” said Jess, unable to take her brother’s remarks seriously.
Ethan turned to face his sister. “There are implications for our future here on Tranquility Base. Surely you can see that?”
“I think we can safely agree Mars isn’t sending an armada anytime soon,” replied Jess. “So I don’t see what the problem is. We just keep our planet of origin a secret and everything’s fine.”
“Our upcoming transmission to Mars could attract the Ghost’s notice,” said Ethan.
“Shizer,” said Jess. “I hadn’t thought of that.”
“Did you happen to notice if the Ghost was armed?” asked Pavel.
9
New Houston, Mars
“I wanted to run something past you, Specialist Crustegard,” said the Secretary. She’d called him to her office where she would command his full attention.
“Go on then,” replied Crusty. “I ain’t gettin’ any younger.”
Mei Lo’s mouth curved into a half smile. He was the right person to have this conversation with — a straight-shooter if ever there was one.
The Secretary took a deep breath and then told Crusty about Earth’s “dirty little secret” whereby the Re-body Program was quietly abused by those ho
lding political power on Earth. A century ago, Mars’s Executive Council had discovered this information but swore to keep it a secret in exchange for the cessation of hostilities known as the No Contact Accords. Since then, the information had been covertly handed from CEO to CEO on Mars.
Crusty scratched a four-day’s growth under his chin. “Jess mighta’ told me somethin’ about this already.”
“She did?” Mei Lo felt a pinch of betrayal. “It’s a state secret.”
“Well, if she hadn’t, I don’t reckon she could’ve convinced me to help her get off-world last annum to fix them satellites. I figured a feller like Cavanaugh — or his uncle — could do dreadful things with that sort of information. Try and bribe Earth’s Viceroy, that sorta stuff.”
“Those were my fears precisely,” said Mei Lo.
“Jess pressed me pretty hard on that point,” said Crusty, examining his dirty nails. “She knew I weren’t going to tell no one.”
“Of course. Of course.” The Secretary collected herself. She wasn’t really angry with Jessamyn. Hades, she was here telling Crusty now, wasn’t she? Jess’s reasons for telling had been at least as good as her own.
“Reckon this is a dangerous piece of information to do anything with so long as there’s someone as anti-Marsian as Lucca Brezhnaya on the throne,” remarked Crusty.
Mei Lo pursed her lips, sighing. “It is my belief Chancellor Lucca Brezhnaya has been at the helm of the Terran government since the time of the Accords, at least.” She cast her eyes to her desk, pensive. “Thousands of Terrans have had their lives cut short because of our silence, and I mean for this secret to stop being a secret with me. I want the people of Mars to know the truth, and I intend to call for a vote on how we should proceed with regard to telling Terrans the truth.”
“And with the satellites gone, you think it’s time to haul things out into the light of day?”
“I’m not sure,” admitted Mei Lo. “I don’t know the Chancellor well enough to predict her next move. That’s why you and I are having this discussion. You’ve been to Earth. I haven’t.”
“I reckon the Raiders stuck on Earth are the ones you want to talk to. I never met the Chancellor personally.”
Mei Lo sighed in frustration. “We haven’t heard from them since the destruction of the satellites. We assume they have no way to comm us at present.” She didn’t speak her other fears — that they were all dead. Messages and directives to be sent to the Raiders continued to pile up in her office, awaiting a comm that might never come. “We don’t know if we’ll be able to speak with any of the Raiders again. You are the closest link I have access to, old friend.”
“Well, I’ve got opinions on the Chancellor, certainly.” Crusty ran his fingers over his beard stubble. “I don’t expect Lucca Brezhnaya’s the type to give up on something she’s set her heart on doin’. I wouldn’t’ve liked to have been in the same room with her when she were watchin’ all her precious laser satellites goin’ off like fire-poppers.”
Mei Lo nodded, a furrow creasing her forehead.
“But, in the end, ma’am, I’m just a feller who saw the Chancellor on the newsfeeds and heard a few things about her from Brian Wallace. I wouldn’t trust her, though. Not with my worst enemy.”
The conversation concluded on that note as Crusty was eager to get back to work.
Mei Lo sighed heavily as she watched clouded figures moving past the opaque glass of her office door. She was going to have to bring this to the generals. And they weren’t any more likely to recommend she spill the beans than Crusty had been.
Not with Lucca Brezhnaya at the helm.
10
Tranquility Base, the Terran Moon
As it happened, the first transmission to Mars Colonial went unremarked by the Ghost, who was happily called away to rescue a spacer with a dead fuel cell. The Ghost’s own high spirits following his successful operation were more than matched by the high spirits of the crew. The attempt to communicate with Mars had been successful. And while it had been short, the fugitives on the Moon finally confirmed that Mars Colonial had survived.
There was a furious rush of information from the lunar base to MCC and from MCC to the lunar base, the fugitives having communicated first the limited nature of comms for the foreseeable future. To her regret, Jessamyn was not able to speak with her parents as they couldn’t be located in time before the base passed once more into twenty-eight days of radio silence.
But Jess found it hard to feel dejected about the missed chance to speak with her parents; it was enough to know they were safe. Mars was safe. There had been no direct casualties from Lucca’s attacks upon the planet’s surface, and she couldn’t find it in her to regret Cavanaugh’s suicide.
It took several hours for Jessamyn and Ethan to make their way through the rushed communiqués marked “Not Urgent: Read at Leisure.” In this assemblage of personal greetings (some for Harpreet and Kipper, naturally), Jessamyn found one remarkable message from Mei Lo addressed to the Mars Raiders.
After she and Ethan had read the message, Jessamyn explained its contents to Pavel and Zussman. “The Secretary General wants to make sure that, in the future, we will be able to act in an emergency without needing to establish communication with MCC prior to ‘taking extraordinary measures deemed necessary for the preservation of Mars Colonial, her citizens, or the lives of the Mars Raiders.’” Jessamyn felt a chill run along her spine as she read the words aloud.
“Guess that’s smart after what almost happened with the satellites,” said Pavel.
But Jess shook her head. “It’s unprecedented.”
“Well, from MCC’s perspective, you guys are the ones with boots on the ground,” said Pavel. “And it takes half an hour or more to ask a question and get an answer. Sometimes seconds count. As we found out recently.”
“As we found out,” repeated Jessamyn. But she still felt squeamish about it. “I’m just glad I’m not in charge. Harpreet’s welcome to that job.”
“It is likely,” said Ethan, “that the ‘extraordinary measures’ clause was proposed out of concern that Lucca Brezhnaya may not yet have exhausted her interest in destroying life on Mars.”
Jessamyn nodded slowly. The Secretary had, in fact, used considerable time to grill Pavel about his aunt.
Pavel shrugged. “I believe what I told your Secretary; Lucca won’t act unless Mars stirs things up and gives her a reason to. With the satellites, it was easy and virtually cost-free. Any other form of attack would be costly. I don’t see her going to that kind of expense.”
Zussman cleared his throat quietly.
“Zuss disagrees with me, however,” said Pavel. “Which is why I also presented the possibility that my aunt might plan another strike.”
The idea was sobering.
Even if Zussman was wrong and Lucca would only act if she felt threatened, it was always possible trade-crazed Marsians might “stir things up,” as Pavel put it. The fever for trade had abated for now, but who was to say Marsians wouldn’t change their minds some time in the future?
Jessamyn’s mood dropped considerably lower than it had been before the comm exchange.
Mr. Zussman, however, was in a jovial temper. For evening rations, he opened an intoxicating beverage. (About the hidden location of its origin, he was vague.) The four toasted the health of the red planet and her doughty inhabitants.
“It’s gonna take a lot more than a few overheated buildings to bring Mars down,” said Pavel, raising his tin drink cup.
Presently, however, the combined buzz of alcohol and good news died down, and the crew began to discuss the problem of keeping the Ghost’s attention away from the monthly transmissions to and from Mars.
“We could fake distress calls to get him off the station,” suggested Pavel. Then his eyes narrowed. “Did you fake that distress call, Zuss?”
“No, sir,” replied the butler. “I regret to say the idea did not present itself to me prior to the eventuality which removed ou
r good host hence.”
“While deception is an admirable suggestion,” said Ethan, “it will not serve us if the Ghost chooses to monitor our communications. He is a gifted hacker. I believe we should instead attempt to persuade the Ghost of the errors within his anti-Mars sentiments.”
Pavel shook his head. “Let me know how that works out for you. Dude’s totally convinced Mars is amassing an army as we speak.”
But something very like Ethan’s suggestion turned out to work well for the Marsians and their friends. It began with a small act of kindness on Jessamyn’s part the following afternoon.
“Ghost?” she called into the part of the base where Ethan had suggested their host might be found.
“I’m busy. Come back next month.”
Jessamyn smirked. The Ghost was turning out to remind her less and less of her socially-challenged brother and more of a crotchety old man. Much like Lobster had been on his worst days.
“I found something you might like,” said Jessamyn, ignoring the Ghost’s instructions to return at a later time. Instead, she entered his room, holding out a small flat storage strip.
“It’s a vid of Hamlet,” she said. “The setting’s a twenty-first century asteroid mining colony, with the usurping uncle as a corporate head instead of a king.”
“Is it any good?” asked the Ghost, his lips pulled into the shape of someone trying a food they did not altogether expect to enjoy.
“I think so,” said Jess. “Of course, I might have appalling judgment.”
“Hmm. I’ll watch it and let you know what I think of your … taste.”
“Okay,” said Jess. “You do that. And I have a few more like that if you end up enjoying this one.”
“Shakespeare’s always popular with a segment of the harvesters,” said the Ghost, as though reluctant to part with the information. But then he seemed unable to help himself adding a bit more. “They even put on a little Shakespeare vid-con every year discussing this and that. Who is the producer on this adaptation, did you say?”
Striking Mars (The Saving Mars Series-5) Page 4