Chamberlain's Folly (The Terra Nova Chronicles)

by Robert Dean Hall

  Zheng smiled. He could remember that time period well. It was the first time he was able to get any of his more neutral chapters about Chamberlain through the Bureau censors.

  Pedersen saw the smile that was coming over Zheng’s face and asked, “Becoming nostalgic, are we?” He then looked at his chronograph and picked up where he left off. “It soon looked to me like you had powerful friends and they were continuously putting me at odds with Cozeremi.”

  Zheng’s smile grew larger.

  “It was like clockwork,” Pedersen continued. “I would send my edits of your texts to Cozeremi for final approval. He would send them back to me to forward them to Publishing. I would send them to the Publishing Department in the form he approved and the final version always had softer edits.”

  “Cozeremi came storming into my office the first couple of times and ripped me a new one. Of course, I’d mention everything that went on in my reports and before long, he backed off. I don’t know where he is situated in all this, but somebody had to have ordered him to stay out of my face. So, I guess whoever is watching out over you is watching over me, too.”

  Zheng’s head started to spin. It occurred to him he may not be safe. He was only afraid of losing his position with the Academy when he thought Cozeremi and Pedersen were playing games with him. But, if Fleet Intelligence and the Central Government were playing games, the stakes were much higher.

  “Len, please tell me why you are here,” Zheng asked. He was now unsure he wanted to keep possession of the tablet and cards that Mahzarhi had given him, much less the package Pedersen had delivered.

  “I’m getting to that, Herb,” Pedersen told him. “During my lunchtime visit from Fleet Intelligence my visitor just told me it was evident I was able to look at a situation and determine whether action was required over and above my normal duties. He also added I was not one to take on enough initiative to threaten those above me.”

  “I don’t know if that was a complement or insult,” he said. “But, I took it as an indication they trusted my judgment and liked the fact that I wasn’t intentionally butting heads with Cozeremi, even though I felt that he was wrong about a lot of things.”

  “Looks as if they intended for you to stay under cover inside the Bureau permanently,” Zheng said.

  “That was my assessment,” Pedersen said. “Until he told me before long I would find I could no longer remain neutral on some things.”

  Pedersen waited for Zheng’s reaction to the comment. The look on Zheng’s face made him smile slyly.

  “My visitor told me when that time came, I should go to Fleet HQ, show my credentials to the receptionist at the front desk in the FI office and tell her what I needed,” Pedersen said. “Once I made my requirements known, I should return to my office at the Bureau and wait for a call.”

  “What caused you to leave your comfort zone on my behalf,” Zheng asked.

  “Not long ago I was asked to head up a new project,” Pedersen replied. “Cozeremi came to my office like he was doing me a real favor. He said the Central Government needed someone to start extolling the virtues of the socialist way of life and he couldn’t think of a better example of a contented citizen than me.”

  “I asked him what it was the Central Government was actually looking for,” Pedersen continued. “He told me there was still too much resistance to the nationalization of industries and services in the last few remaining free markets in the League and they needed someone to help with a campaign to shift public opinion against capitalism. I’m sure he meant Ekkida, because you know how that miserable little alo hates the upper caste.”

  Zheng and Pedersen had clashed on many things, but, two things they both agreed on were that Galuz Cozeremi was consumed by his contempt of the Ekkidan upper caste, and it was somewhat obvious he was using his post at the Bureau to advance his personal agenda against them.

  “I also know for certain there are those in both the Senate and the representative body who are trying to get some bills passed that would allow executive orders to extend to matters outside the operation of the Executive branch of the Central Government,” Pedersen said.

  “You mean as far as the military,” Zheng asked.

  “They intend to give the League General Secretary the power to write EO’s to bind every branch of the Central Government,” Pedersen replied. “He could also usurp any powers still reserved for the local systems and planetary governments.”

  “Of course, they see it as a way to avoid the distasteful practice of passing any legislation that might make their constituents angry. The fools don’t realize what will happen once the genie is out of the bottle.”

  He looked at Zheng with deep concern.

  “When Gus Cozeremi walked into my office that day, I wasn’t planning to get involved in some sort of power struggle,” Pedersen said. “My plans for the day were to get to work early, finish up some paperwork, have a late lunch, walk around Grant Park and watch some sailboats puttering around at the pier.”

  “Then I realized that what my contact said was true,” he admitted. “I just couldn’t stand by and pretend what Cozeremi and his buddies were trying to pull off didn’t directly affect me anymore.”

  “I went straight to HQ and put in my request for somebody to keep Cozeremi’s attention diverted from me for a couple weeks. I then affected the transfer of Mahzarhi’s parcel from the digs to you and put some other things in motion I won’t mention. I waited for any reaction to the report I gave on what I was doing and there was none so I can only assume that my superiors in Fleet Intelligence are sympathetic.”

  “How do I know you haven’t gotten us both involved in something that could cause us some serious trouble,” Zheng asked. “For all we know, you could have been set up to take a fall for someone else’s improprieties involving any information I was coming up with. I always assumed that Cozeremi was aware I was getting items out of the digs over and above what he was sending me and he was unconcerned as long as it was to his advantage to turn a blind eye.”

  “I’m not saying that isn’t what was going on,” Pedersen said. “I’m only informing you the folks above me seem to have an interest in your activities and they were asking me to report on them. I don’t know how they have been getting your texts, why they are involving themselves in the edits, or how they forced Cozeremi to back off.”

  “I do think that what you are doing is important to them and since it’s at odds with Cozeremi personally, they may be fighting his larger agenda,” Pedersen explained with a big smile. “I think as long as you uncover information in the same manner you’ve been doing and we let them help you make it public at their own speed, we are both safe.”

  Zheng was about to ask Pedersen another question when he noticed that Pedersen was mulling over something in his mind.

  “I am also certain it would not have escaped Cozeremi’s notice that Meqqar Non’s direct descendant has applied to the Academy,” Pedersen said. “It would really piss Cozeremi off to know you have the chance to find out what family secrets that kid has cataloged in his head. Perhaps it isn’t a coincidence he showed up at this particular time.”

  “The boy’s father is running for Ekkidan Prime Minister and there are those who say he is next in line to become the General Secretary of the League,” Pedersen continued. “He is vehemently opposed to any more nationalization of business or industry on Ekkida or elsewhere in the League. Cozeremi and his buddies in the Central Government have been working overtime to find ways to discredit him and his policies. I think you might want to take his son under your wing, Herb.”

  Zheng thought back to his discussion with Emily about Cadet Non.

  Lower caste Ekkidans passed through the Academy and went into military service all the time. But, to have an upper caste Ekkidan enroll, especially one with the advantages Non enjoyed was almost unheard of.

  “I could be risking a lot of embarrassment if Cadet Non isn’t here to serve as an unofficial conduit into the Ekkidan
government,” Zheng said.

  “I wouldn’t go that far, Herb,” Pedersen said. He smiled as if he just found something about the situation humorous.

  “I can understand now why the guys I report to might be interested in your progress,” he said. “What is in that bag is even more dangerous than I thought. Make good use of it.”

  “Are we talking about a coup, Len,” Zheng asked.

  “Not from my guys,” Pedersen replied. “I think they are trying to prevent one.”

  Zheng asked, “Where did you get the contents of the bag?”

  Pedersen replied, “From the evidence locker in the JAG’s office aboard the Armstrong. The same place Mahzarhi got what he sent you.”

  Zheng was puzzled. “Mahzarhi told me he hasn’t been allowed within a thousand meters of the Armstrong,” he said.

  “He hasn’t been near it,” Pedersen assured him. “He doesn’t know where the cards or the tablet came from.”

  “But how did he get them,” Zheng inquired.

  “One of my people went aboard and got them,” Pedersen said. “I had them planted in a place where Nashur couldn’t help but find them.”

  Zheng considered his next question carefully. He knew for certain he would not like the answer. He was only unsure about how much.

  “Len,” he asked. “Does this mean you want me to report to you?”

  “I would be happy if you’d find a way to warn me if anyone comes to you asking why I was here on Thosa,” he said. “But, I have no intention of handling you personally for my superiors. I talk with Nashur almost daily since I manage his project for the Bureau. You should communicate with him and let him pass anything along. Chatter between the two of us should remain the way it has always been, infrequent and cordial.”

  Zheng nodded to indicate he understood.

  “In my estimation, it will be about a week until Cozeremi finds out you have possession of the items that Nashur sent you,” Pedersen said. “If you operate the way you have in the past, he will expect a full report on the items in about a month and you will send them back to Nashur to be cataloged soon after. Be sure the items I gave you are studied, assessed and sent back with them.”

  Zheng again indicated the request was understood and would be fulfilled.

  Pedersen pulled up his jacket collar and headed for the front door. Zheng followed. Pedersen was ready to open the door and walk out when he paused and turned back to speak to Zheng once more.

  “I need to talk to you about Laurel,” he said.

  Zheng’s face reddened.

  “I don’t care if you accept my apology or not,” Pedersen said. “But, Laurel doesn’t deserve to be treated the way you’ve treated her. She practically worshipped the ground you walked on. She made one mistake.”

  “It wasn’t just that mistake, Len,” Zheng replied. “It was a lot of things. We’re better off apart.”

  “She doesn’t think so,” Pedersen replied.

  “But I do,” Zheng said.

  Pedersen looked at Zheng with an expression that bordered on pity.

  “I would never ask you for a personal favor,” he said. “But, Laurel has never forgiven herself for our indiscretion and I can’t leave here without asking you to contact her – for the sake of the both of you.”

  “I won’t promise you anything,” Zheng finally said after an uncomfortable pause. “I’ll think about it.”

  Pedersen smiled and nodded in appreciation.

  “One more thing,” Pedersen said as he put his hand on the doorknob. “You are about the only praying man left I know of, Herb. Godspeed to you.” He then opened the door and left.

  Once the door was closed, Zheng went to the kitchen table and sat down. He was certain that his life was now about to become more complicated and he was not looking forward to it.

  He opened the bag to have a precursory look at the contents before deciding on a course of action.

  Chapter 26

  The Historian set his briefcase on the table and opened the security bag to look at the contents. As he suspected, the bag was full of antique memory cards, arranged into small stacks and tied together with elastic bands.

  With each stack was a note in Lennart Pedersen’s handwriting. The notes were apparently duplicates of the location markers in the evidence locker where each stack of cards was found. The Historian read each note and then placed the cards back in the bag. He sealed it and placed it to his left on the table. He then opened his briefcase.

  He pulled out the antique tablet and the memory card that Mahzarhi marked for him. The excitement he felt when he first realized what the card contained had now given way to concern.

  When he first thought that Mahzarhi had run across the cards by accident he was certain that fortune was smiling. However, after the visit from Pedersen and the revelation that the discovery of the cards had been engineered, the Historian now felt the universe was not doing him any favors.

  He surmised the cards in Mahzarhi’s package were fed to him first for a reason and he should focus on any information found on them before moving to the ones that Pedersen hand delivered. He powered the tablet up and tapped in the password. He selected ‘Personal Files’ and then ‘Security Camera Captures’ from the menu and opened another video file to watch.

  15-January-2161

  McLeod and Sotravits assembled in Petrakis’ office. It had been almost two weeks since the trio had discussed what they should do with the information that John Chamberlain’s artificially intelligent Trojan horse had given them.

  They sat at the desk and McLeod pulled the radio he built from Chamberlain’s instructions out of a fairly worn book satchel. He sat it in the middle of the desk and pointed to the power switch.

  “Tali? Would you do the honors?”

  Petrakis pressed the switch that McLeod pointed out to her. A small computerized display on the front of the device lit up and text from what appeared to be a power on self test started scrolling from top to bottom. After about ten seconds, the scrolling stopped and the words ‘Hyper-Channel Link Established’ flashed and then remained solid on the screen.

  The three looked at each other as if unsure about what to do next. McLeod pointed to the voice pickup and gestured to Petrakis that she should speak into it.

  “Hello,” Petrakis said, not knowing whether to feel silly or afraid. They waited a few seconds and there was no reply.

  “Do you really think that John is on the other end,” she asked.

  “I can’t say for sure,” McLeod replied. “But, the odds are pretty good.”

  “The plans for this communication device are the only completed ones we’ve been given so far,” Sotravits added.

  Petrakis turned to the radio again and spoke into the voice pickup. They waited once more for a few seconds.

  “I don’t hear anything,” Petrakis said after the second failure to get a response. “Not even static. Are you sure we have it tuned correctly, Bryce?”

  “There are no recognizable tanks or resonators in the design, Tali,” McLeod replied. “In fact, there isn’t any RF tunable circuitry at all from what I can tell. I couldn’t even say it was a communication device if it didn’t have a full description of each part and what it is supposed to do. It isn’t a radio in any sense of the term I’m familiar with. Its transmitter portion doesn’t create any electromagnetic waves at all.”

  “How can we be sure it’s working,” Petrakis asked.

  “The display says a link is established,” McLeod replied. “I don’t know exactly how the software knows, because the AI put it on a chip for me before I installed it on the circuit board. But the plans say the radio has the ability to tell if another radio is using the same hyper-channel.”

  “That is correct, Bryce,” came a reply from the radio. It was John Chamberlain’s voice. “I hope you haven’t been waiting long,” he said in an apologetic tone. “I was away from my quarters and only just returned. Who is there with you?”

  McLeod was ex
cited. “Dmitri,” he said. “And, Tali Petrakis…”

  “It’s Taliyah Petrakis-Mills,” Tali said. Bryce and Dmitri both looked at her with surprised expressions.

  “Well, I’ll be damned,” Chamberlain said. His voice boomed from the radio. “Congratulations, Tali. That’s wonderful. How is Mills, by the way?”

  “We’re both doing great,” Petrakis said. “I’d say I was sorry you missed the ceremony, but we didn’t really have one.”

  “Understood, Madame Chairman,” Chamberlain replied. After a few seconds of silence, he spoke again. “I’m glad you decided to take me up on my offer to disseminate all this important science,” he said. “I was biting my nails once I got GAIL’s alert that she made contact with all of you. I’ve been keeping a close eye on my transceiver since then, waiting for your call.”

  “Who is Gail,” Bryce asked.

  “Gee-Ay-Eye-Ell,” Chamberlain answered. “Global cloud Artificially Intelligent Librarian. She’s the AI safeguarding the information for me. You will only be able to access it with her help. If you decide not to go through with this, she will ensure for me that all of this data is destroyed.”

  “John, do you realize what you’ve set in motion back here,” Petrakis asked. “All of your business records, research, financial holdings and real assets have been frozen. The International Police Force has been questioning all of your former employees…”

  “She’s right, John,” Bryce interjected. “You left one hell of a mess. I’ve been questioned by Interpol and CEF Military Intelligence more than a dozen times since you left orbit. And, all employees of the companies of those that went with you are suffering a similar fate.”

  “I’m sorry about that, Bryce,” Chamberlain said. “You and Dmitri have known for at least ten years I was committed to this course of action and there was no turning back. Our world is overpopulated and running dangerously low on natural resources. As far as I’m concerned, this was the best hope we had for saving humanity; transplanting a representative sample elsewhere in the local neighborhood.”