“Great,” she said. “Just let me know when you’ve got some free time between fighting fires with Cho and Burton. Been nice meeting you.”
After Hannah left, Tag wandered back to the houses where he and the crew were staying. The 3-D fabricators hummed nearby, working diligently into the night to construct the wall around the town. The sound of Hannah’s laughter lingered in his ears as he walked. Maybe he was being too optimistic, but at least there was a bright spot in what appeared to be an otherwise rocky future. He crept back toward his bed, careful not to wake Sofia, Bull, and Lonestar, who had bunked in this house with him. Lucky was already curled up at the foot of his bed.
There would be plenty of challenges ahead. He couldn’t let the chaos of Orthod politics distract him from his crew’s primary mission. His goal wasn’t to heal Orthod but to figure out how Starinski was involved and whether there was some kind of Collector brainwashing going on. Before his eyes closed and exhaustion wrapped its smoky tendrils around him, carrying him away to sleep, a thought flittered through his fading consciousness.
Be like the dragon.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
“So, did you get to know the locals last night?” Sofia asked Tag with a grin.
Lonestar gazed up from her breakfast with an expectant look, while Bull continued mashing noisily at his.
Tag chugged a cup of coffee. “Well enough,” he said, ignoring Sofia’s jibe. “Although I’m worried today’s meetings won’t go so smoothly.”
Lucky sat on her haunches, carefully cleaning each individual scale on her legs. She let out a purring growl as if she were agreeing with Tag. A knock at the door was abruptly followed by Coren entering.
“Sofia,” Coren said, sounding agitated. “You’ve got to help me. I thought being an anthropologist meant studying another culture.”
“Yeah, that’s right,” she said.
“Greg appears to think it’s the other way around. He won’t stop interrogating me about Mechanics. I can’t even pretend to be an anthropologist with him around. The human is really beginning to annoy me.”
There was another knock at the door. For a species not usually known for emotional range, Coren looked frightened.
“Coren, you still around?” a voice called in. “I wanted to ask you something, if you’ve got a moment.”
“That’s him,” Coren whispered. “Please get this insolent human off my back.”
“I’ll see what I can do.” Sofia opened the door. “He’s right in here!”
Coren shot her a venomous look as he went back out to meet the amateur historian.
“The rest of us might as well get moving, too,” Tag said.
“Aye, Captain,” Lonestar said, adjusting the strap on her pulse rifle. “Should we make a security sweep to check for angry colonists?”
Her tone implied she was joking, but he caught a glimmer in her eye that said maybe it actually wasn’t such a bad idea.
“Get to it,” Tag said, swirling a finger in the air.
Bull and Lonestar lumbered out the front door. A few minutes later, they returned with the all-clear. Tag joined them, and together they strode toward the edge of town. A freestanding building was perched atop a nearby hill. No paved road led to it, but a path in the grass had been trampled until it was brown and dead. Tag started up the well-worn trail, wondering how many times Cho and Burton had been up this hill in attempt to make amends or demands—and, before Cho, how many other marines had tried to work with the colonists.
The marines’ camp was on the other side of the hill. It looked like a typical SRE military facility with barracks and warehouses daubed in brown and green paint. A huge swath of land was scorched black several hundred meters away, which he guessed was the location where smaller spacecraft, like shuttles, landed and took off. Behind the buildings, waves lapped a rocky shore, and 3-D fabricators were slowly patrolling the perimeter of the base to construct a second wall.
“Looks like when one person gets a fence, everyone wants one,” Bull said.
“That’s how it always worked on the ranch,” Lonestar said. “Sure is a shame when people start cutting up that land. Makes it all ugly and unfriendly.”
“I think that’s the point here,” Bull said. “Marines and colonists don’t want the others in their business. We got to be careful we don’t get too wrapped up in it, too.”
“You’re right,” Tag said. “Remember what we came here for. Either of you notice anything odd, let me know.”
Tag steeled himself before entering the squat building. He tried to recall all the advice Doran had imparted to him about dealing with tense diplomatic situations. She had said the most important aspect was simply listening to both sides, ensuring they both at least felt heard. Mediation couldn’t take place if they thought he was coming in with his own hidden agendas. Tag sighed. It would take an extended effort to appear to the colonists like he wasn’t just another crony sent down to subjugate them—time that would be better spent investigating Starinski Labs or collaborator recruitment.
Inside, Burton and Cho were standing across the room from each other. Between them was a conference table with four chairs. Judging by the complete silence and icy glares, he hadn’t interrupted a cordial conversation.
“I would say it’s a pleasure to see you both this morning,” Tag said, “but I have a feeling that I’d regret that statement in a few minutes.”
That got a smirk from Cho and a slight laugh from Burton.
All right, Brewer. Nice start.
Bull and Lonestar stood behind him. A couple of marine escorts guarded the door on the marines’ side of the room, and a trio of colonists with sheathed plasma blades leaned against the colonists’ wall. “Why don’t we sit down?” Tag asked. He took the first chair, followed by Burton and Cho.
He debated where to start this conversation. The tension in the air was thick, and one wrong turn in conversation would undoubtedly end this discussion before it started. Tag decided to approach diplomacy the same way he approached medicine. Start asking questions, probing for root of the problem.
Couldn’t be too hard, right?
Then he looked between Burton and Cho. Burton had a bland smile plastered across her face. It was the same expression Tag had seen on the faces of bureaucrats and politicians throughout the SRE. There was a certain derisive quality to it that said, “I value your opinion, but I have no intention of agreeing with you.” Equally unapproachable was the permanent scowl Cho wore, which said something like, “She’s wrong, and we’re not getting anywhere until she moves out of my way.”
“I’m going to give you both the opportunity to speak while I make some notes,” Tag said. “Let’s start with Governor Burton. Tell me what’s been happening here.”
“Thank you, Ambassador Brewer,” Burton said in a way that almost made Tag feel like she respected him. Almost. “We, the colonists of the Principality of Orthod, have been unlawfully subjugated by SRE rule.”
“Bullshit,” Cho said. “You’re an SRE citizen just like the rest of us.”
Burton waved a hand dismissively at Cho. “This is exactly the dimwitted response we get from the marines rotating in and out of here every year or two. New platoon, same ignorance.”
“Ignorance, my ass,” Cho said. “It shouldn’t be so hard for you to understand.” He jabbed a finger into the table. “This is an SRE planet. Therefore, you are an SRE citizen, and you will obey SRE law. I’m here to make sure that happens.”
“What you fail to understand is that this is not an SRE planet,” Burton said, her tone surprisingly patient. “We established Orthod as an independent colony without the SRE’s help. This place is the result of our hard work.”
“And the investment of SRE corporations,” Cho said. “Don’t pretend this is all your own doing.”
Tag hoped neither of them noticed his eyes widening at that statement. He made a mental note to circle back to that point later. “All right,” Tag said. “I’m beginning to see where this animosity bet
ween the SRE and Orthod is coming from.” Burton gave him a condescending smile, and Cho raised a brow. Both of them seemed to sense he was out of his league. A single thought fluttered through his mind: be the dragon. “It’s obvious these issues have been dragging on for some time. I want to change that now. Frankly, there’s more to worry about in this universe than a trifling dispute between a few hundred humans on a planet like this.”
He looked at Burton first. “I can’t tell you how disappointed I was by this rock when we landed here. Orthod will never be an economic hub. It’s not even in a strategic location to serve as a resupply satellite. You’re fighting for an ideology—independence—and I can appreciate that. But all the same, you’ve got to ask yourself at what cost.”
Cho grinned—until Tag started in at him.
“For whatever gods-forsaken reasons, the SRE wants to maintain control of this planet. They’ve stationed a handful of marines here to keep the colonists in line, and you can’t even manage that. The SRE isn’t supporting their planetary claims with a single starship stationed here, much less an active fleet. This isn’t exactly a prestigious posting. Your importance in the grand scheme of things isn’t half what you think if you’ve been sent to babysit Orthod.”
Cho and Burton were both glaring at him. Tag had succeeded in unifying them. Of course, they were unified in how infuriated they were with him, but it was a start.
“All the same, it’s obvious you both have a vested interest in this place,” Tag continued, now forcing himself to adopt Burton’s measured tone while ensuring his expression was filled with Cho’s intensity. It wasn’t easy. “And for whatever reason, the SRE wants us all here, and they want us all to get along. I hate to break it to you both, but neither the marines nor the colonists are going anywhere.”
“Give me a break,” Cho said. “The SRE wouldn’t have sent us if they didn’t want these damn colonists to fall in line or get the three hells off this planet.”
“If the SRE really wanted the colonists gone, they would have taken care of it already. If they wanted the colonists to have this place, they really don’t lose much by withdrawing the marines.” He shrugged. “Or maybe, with everything else going on in the galaxy, Orthod has been all but forgotten by the SRE. Choose to believe what you want, but the point is, neither of you are moving anytime soon.”
Now for a bit of truth. “Three hells, you can both probably tell I’m not an important ambassador. The SRE doesn’t care enough to send their best talent here.” Cho was fuming, and Burton’s lips were straight, her eyes narrowed. The men and women lined up along the room shifted uncomfortably in Tag’s periphery. “I can’t pretend to know the SRE’s reasons for treating this situation like they have. They only thing I do know is that we’re all on Orthod together, and we are faced with the very necessary and difficult task of learning to get along.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Mediating the conversation between Cho and Burton was like herding ice gods. Neither of them would drop their guard while the other was in the room. After suggesting one-on-one meetings, he finally called the conference to a halt. The revelation that private groups had financed the initial colonization efforts on Orthod still rang in his mind, and he needed time to think.
“Ambassador Brewer, can I have a word alone?” Burton asked after Cho and his marines filed out, gesturing to her people and then Bull and Lonestar.
“Certainly,” Tag said. At his feet, Lucky let out something akin to a bark. “You care about her?”
“Your pet?” Burton laughed. “As long as she can’t talk. I want to speak with you off the record.”
Tag nodded then gestured for Bull and Lonestar to leave. Burton’s colonists did likewise. One of the women paused at the doorway, a hand on her sheathed knife.
“You sure, Governor?” she asked.
“Yes, Sandra, thank you,” Burton replied. When the door closed, she looked at Tag. Her mask cracked, replaced by a weary expression. “You’re truly a neutral party in this?”
“As neutral as I can be,” Tag said. “At the end of the day, my paycheck comes from the SRE. But that doesn’t mean I won’t be honest with you.”
“Good,” Burton said.
Are you helping to abduct marines and brainwash them? Tag wanted to ask. Instead, he decided to take things a little slower. “Tell me why you came to Orthod, and why you all have stayed. Why you don’t want the SRE here. I want to hear the story in your own words, not the reports the SRE gave me.”
“We picked Orthod,” Burton began, “because it was just livable enough. You were quite accurate in saying natural resources are limited here. That was one of the reasons we chose this place. We figured that colonizing a planet of little interest to the SRE might be the best way to ensure we’re left alone.”
“That’s reasonable,” Tag said, waiting for her to continue.
“At the time, terraforming equipment was also affordable enough with a little financing or venture backing, so that’s what we did. We pooled our money from our salaries, businesses, what have you, and took off to Orthod.”
“Seems a little brash,” Tag said. “Coming out here with no support, no ties to the SRE. What would have happened if you’d failed?”
“We knew the risks.” Her answer was curt, but behind it Tag could see the depth of what was unsaid.
“Governor,” Tag said, “maybe I’m wrong, but I don’t get the feeling that the original settlers came out here like a teenager setting out to backpack around Earth. You had to have support, financing.”
“It was either do or die. That’s how repressed we felt while working for the SRE before we started life here.”
Tag didn’t buy it. She was hiding something. And she wasn’t even doing it well. It was as if she wanted him to find out her secret. “What aren’t you telling me? I need to know the whole story. I want to do right by both you and the SRE, but that doesn’t happen if we’re withholding information from each other.”
A grin crossed Burton’s face. “Withholding information? Gods, that’s exactly what’s been happening to us for years. No answers from the SRE. All our communications off this rock are controlled and censored by the SRE. If we ever tried to launch our own courier drone, the planetary defense systems would knock it out.”
“I see,” Tag said. “I’ll deal with that when I talk to Cho. But for now, I still don’t believe you or your colonists jumped into hyperspace without coordinates. You’re smarter than that.”
Burton sighed, looking away for a moment. “The SRE will never leave us alone, will they?”
“I’m afraid I can’t give you a straight answer to that.”
Burton stared hard at him as if to remind Tag what he had just said about withholding information.
“Really, I can’t,” Tag said. “But if I were to guess, no. They aren’t leaving.”
“We have no chance of being truly independent.”
Tag wasn’t sure if that was a statement or a question. Either way, he couldn’t help but think about the Collectors and Drone-Mechs and all the other horrors he had seen in his short career as the Argo’s captain. If Burton knew what was out there, she wouldn’t want true independence. SRE offered protection, safety. Then again, maybe she did know what was out there. Maybe this was all a ploy.
Maybe she was a collaborator.
Burton looked away. Tag waited in silence. He could see she was going to tell him something important. Something that might change the tone of their conversation. Prodding her wouldn’t hasten its unveiling. He had to be patient.
Finally, she turned to him. Her shoulders and face had drooped, the politician’s smile gone. “You were right. We didn’t come to Orthod without a failsafe. We had a backer.”
There was Tag’s opening. “I was a last-minute choice for this mission,” he said, trying to cover his lack of knowledge, “so I don’t have a list of all the investors with a stake in Orthod.”
“I’m not surprised you don’t know who our invest
ors are. I’m not certain the marines know, either.”
Tag’s heart thudded against his ribcage. Good gods, this had to be it.
“We weren’t the only ones interested in a remote planet with few resources,” Burton continued. “These individuals approached me, Lindquist, and a few of the others through surrogates. We suspected something fishy when they claimed they wanted an outworld resupply station for their light-distance transportation network. But we were desperate and struck a deal with them. They would stay out of our hair, and we would stay out of theirs. They planned to construct a satellite station on the opposite side of the planet.”
“And you accepted this offer?”
“We did, for better or worse,” Burton said. “They offered us a free ride off this rock if we decided Orthod wasn’t going to work out.”
“And they’re still around?” Tag asked.
“No,” Burton said. “Not long after we saw the last of their ships take off, the SRE moved in with a platoon of marines. No explanation. They just said this was SRE territory now. We were in hyperspace at the time. It wasn’t until later they claimed we were here illegally. They said we could either comply with SRE laws and pay taxes like normal citizens or be ejected from the planet. We paid our taxes but didn’t get any vote on how the SRE treated Orthod. So we stopped paying those taxes, and although they keep sending new platoons of marines from time to time, they haven’t tried to make us leave. And so it goes.”
“So it goes,” Tag repeated, his mind grappling with this new information. “Have there been any communications with these investors since?”
“No. I told you, all comms to and from this planet have been controlled by the SRE. Even when our friends were here, we never spoke directly to them. Once they had purchased the equipment we needed, we would only contact them in case of an emergency evacuation.”
“Bizarre,” Tag said.
“Looking back with the benefit of hindsight, it was strange. But nevertheless, they were true to their word. If the SRE has some problem with them, they’re looking around on the wrong planet now. The only ones left here are the colonists.”
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