The Glorious Becoming (Epic)

by Lee Stephen

  “And here you are,” Natalie said, stopping at their door. It was close to the tram system—that was good. “Spend today getting acclimated with the base; there’s a lot to learn. I’ve scheduled a unit meeting tomorrow at 0900 on the surface, right outside the same garage we entered, above the East Wing. Early is on-time.”

  Salutes were exchanged, and Esther, Jayden, and Boris entered their room. Scott, Natalie, and the two lieutenants continued their trek down the hall. “Our rooms aren’t side-by-side, but they’re not terribly far from each other,” she explained, turning to Logan. “You’re dismissed, lieutenant. I’ll take them from here.”

  “Thank you, ma’am.” The Australian departed.

  Her forward focus resumed. “You’re right up here, Lieutenant Broll.” She motioned to his room. “0900 tomorrow.”

  “Yes, captain,” said Auric.

  “Enjoy the rest of your day.”

  As Auric disappeared into his room, Scott and Natalie continued on their way.

  “What did you have planned for the meeting, ma’am?” Scott asked.

  “Quite a bit. I’ve been here a week, but we’ve by no means been a functional unit. Operatives have steadily been added in, bit by bit, since I was given command. You guys complete us.”

  She sighed. “I’ve been working with the team on a daily basis, just getting them used to the way I do things. This place doesn’t see a lot of action. A lot of men here, top brass included, have gotten pretty comfortable.” Her tone was all-business. “But they’re aware of the dangers of that, and they want it to change.”

  I wonder how she got selected for this project.

  “My hope for tomorrow,” she went on, “is for the unit to get a chance to meet you, and to find out what you’re all about.” She grinned wryly. “You’re getting my good side, Remington. I work hard. There’s a time and place for leniency, but it’s something that has to be earned.”

  This woman got it. She knew how to be a charismatic leader. That same philosophy was what had made the Fourteenth such an elite squad. It had also empowered Esther to make a move on him. Finding the balance was the hard part. It was still Scott’s hardest struggle. “Don’t give me any leniency,” he said. It was a conflicting ideal—for this mission, he needed all the leniency in the world. It still felt like the right thing to say.

  She looked at him as soon as he said it, her emerald eyes studying his face as they continued to walk. Then, ever so lightly, she smiled. Her gaze turned ahead. “That’s why you already have some.”

  They eventually arrived at Scott’s door at the far end of the hallway. According to Natalie, the rooms were a mixture of quads, pairs, and singles, all initially designed for the various family profiles of the workers who would have lived at the park. They had passed Natalie’s room along the way, and it wasn’t too terribly far from his. Opening Scott’s door, Natalie stepped aside to allow him entrance.

  The difference between Cairo and Novosibirsk was almost insulting. Each wall in Scott’s new room had its own ornate three-dimensional mural. The floor, much like the rest of the base, was white marble. He felt like he was in a luxury suite.

  “As you can tell,” Natalie said, “the furniture was added by EDEN. But everything else was part of the original design.” She scanned the walls. “EDEN would never have designed a place like this on their own. The plasterwork alone must’ve cost millions.”

  Placing his duffle bag down, Scott took in the room. The basics were present: a twin-sized bed, nightstand, dresser, and small refrigerator. A door led to what had to be a bathroom, and there was a folding doubledoor that looked like a closet.

  “If you want to see traditional Egypt, don’t look here,” she said. “This place is western, eastern, old world, new world...a little bit of everything.”

  Scott nodded.

  “So I know you have a lot to do, but don’t put too much on the schedule for tonight. I have something planned.”

  Scott raised an eyebrow.

  “A little excursion into the city, just for dinner,” she said. “I want to get to know you beyond just giving you a guided tour. I already know what you are. Now I want to know who.”

  That part hurt to hear. She had no idea what he actually was.

  “There’s a place in downtown Cairo I want us to try—I booked reservations last night when I found out I was finally getting an XO. Nothing fancy, just a chance to talk person to person.”

  Don’t make this harder than it has to be. He didn’t want to get to know her. He didn’t want to get a feel for her. He wanted to backstab her as quickly as possible—end the slow bleed. But he couldn’t show her that. “Sounds good, captain.”

  “Excellent. I’ll be here at 1700—should give us plenty of time.”

  “Yes ma’am.”

  “Enjoy the rest of your day, commander.” Salutes were exchanged, and Natalie departed. Scott closed and locked his door.

  He spent the next twenty minutes unpacking, arranging, and accepting reality. There were so many familiar thoughts in his mind, from the coldness of Novosibirsk, to the banter of the Fourteenth, to the smell of the Pariah before they’d lost it. He wanted to be back in that place and time, with his real comrades, on real missions. He almost wished he’d just shot H`laar on sight. Without Scott’s hearing that cryptically questionable message, he’d have never even known about a possible conspiracy. But what’d been done had been done. No amount of wishful thinking could change that.

  Get H`laar and go home. That was the plan before they’d touched down. That was still the plan now. He didn’t have time to feel sorry for Captain Rockwell’s situation. This mission was bigger than the Caracals. If something devious was happening in EDEN Command, then this was the most important mission on the planet. This was a mission for humanity.

  Now he just needed to believe it.

  18

  WEDNESDAY, MARCH 14TH, 0012 NE

  1110 HOURS

  THE LIGHTS IN Esther’s room were dimmed. Hair dancing at her chin-line, the scout from Cambridge looked like anything but an EDEN operative. Her uniform and ponytail extension were on the floor—she wore only her undershirt and leggings. She stared lazily, gesturing with her hands as if warming up for a performance.

  Jayden and Boris had left the room shortly after they’d unpacked to venture through Cairo’s underground labyrinth. That suited Esther just fine, and she was quick to take advantage of the opportunity to be alone by getting comfortable and focused. She couldn’t turn into Calliope Lee quite yet—not without being in the clear with Captain Rockwell. But that didn’t excuse her from preparing.

  Inhaling deeply, she released a slow, steady breath, canting her head forward just enough to dangle the tips of her inverted bob at the edge of her chin. She focused on herself in the mirror. As if imagining. Body bending subtly, she shifted her entire body posture. Behind dark lashes, her eyes narrowed.

  She was ready.

  Knock! Knock! Knock!

  The posture fell. Her guise collapsed. Grabbing her extension from the floor and hurriedly clipping it back on, Esther crossed the room and opened the door. As soon as she saw that it was Auric, Esther’s posture sunk irritably. Cocking her hips, she said, “Yes?”

  “May I come in?” Auric asked.

  The sigh Esther released said anything but yes. Nonetheless, the scout stepped aside, motioning with her arm in sarcastic invitation. As soon as he was in, she closed the door. “What can I do for you, Auric?”

  “For starters,” he said, “you can stop being sarcastic. I am just here to check on you.”

  “Why do you feel you need to check on me?”

  After meandering for a moment, he faced her. “Because I am your lieutenant here.”

  Esther arched an eyebrow. “Well aren’t you just relishing your new role?”

  “This is an important mission, Esther. I want to make sure your focus is where it needs to be.”

  “Oh, my focus!” she said. “I’d love to talk about my fo
cus with you. But before we do, how’s Scott’s focus?” When Auric said nothing, she went on. “You did ask Scott about his focus first, right, Auric? Since he is, after all, the leader of this operation. And since it’s his pitiful little girlfriend who got us into this mess. I’m sure you must’ve asked Scott about his focus before coming straight to me?”

  Slowly, Auric’s expression grew irritated.

  “Wow,” Esther said. “Really? You mean you only came to me? I feel so utterly privileged.”

  He sighed with disgust. “Okay, that is enough.”

  “I’m not sure it is,” she said. “Why exactly did you seek me out, Auric? What do you know about where my focus is?”

  Sighing bitterly, he answered, “We know what happened between you and Scott. We know there are issues between the two of you.”

  “Well that’s sodding great!”

  “He told us so we would be aware. So that nothing would take us by surprise on this mission. He did not say it to humiliate you.”

  “What do you know? Tell me exactly.”

  Auric folded his arms across his chest. “I know that Scott found out about Nijinsky. And that you and him got into an argument over it.”

  “An argument?” she asked incredulously. “Be a smidge more specific.”

  For the first time, the German hesitated before answering. “An argument about your motivations.”

  “For?”

  “For killing Nijinsky.”

  Eyes firing daggers, she approached him face-to-face. “And what did Scott say those motivations were?”

  “Look, I only came here to see how you were doing.”

  “And now I’m asking you why.”

  Silence struck the German. For five full seconds, he stared at Esther in the absence of an explanation. Then he looked away.

  That was all the scout needed to see. “He told you I had feelings for him, didn’t he?” Still no answer came. “Didn’t he?”

  “Yes! Yes, he told us. Does that make you happy?”

  “Actually,” she said, “it makes me proper livid!”

  “Do not bring this to him,” Auric warned. “I came here for one reason and one reason alone: to make sure you were focused on this mission and not on the commander.”

  Her face was totally flushed. “So everyone knows? In the whole bloody unit?”

  “No. Only the team here.”

  Leer lingering, Esther asked, “Does Svetlana know?”

  “I do not know.” Stepping around her but watching her, he said, “But now you understand why I came to you. You are vital to this operation. I want to do everything I can as lieutenant to make sure you are mentally and emotionally prepared to handle this operation.”

  “You’re not really a lieutenant, you moron.”

  He ignored her and went on. “If there is something I can do to help you, I want to know.”

  “There is,” she interrupted. “Leave.”

  Auric’s jaw set. He stared at Esther eye-to-eye as the scout held her ground, her bitter scowl matching his shift in expression from irritated to had enough. But neither said a word. The stalemate broke only when Auric turned away; the German headed for the door. Esther watched him until he’d departed.

  As soon as her privacy was reassured, the scout returned to her mirror. Staring angrily at her own reflection, she turned on the faucet, cupped her hands beneath it, and splashed her face fiercely, gripping the sides of the sink afterward.

  Eyes closed, she let the water drops fall.

  * * *

  “MAN, THIS PLACE is crazy,” said Jayden. He and Boris had taken dutifully to the halls as Scott had instructed. Around every marble-columned corner they turned, at every tiled mosaic they passed, their eyes widened with a magical sense of wonder. Cairo was beautiful.

  So were its women.

  Despite their adherence to Scott’s request, the majority of the “exploration” Jayden and Boris had accomplished had been of the other gender. Unlike Novosibirsk, the ratio of male and female personnel seemed to be close to fifty-fifty. Actual soldiers were few and far between, as most people seemed to be scientists, technicians, or some other kind of whitecollar role. It was more like an Ivy League campus than a military base. It was a bachelor’s heaven.

  Just the same, duty called.

  “Give me something to do, man,” Jayden said as they walked on. The Texan’s cowboy hat was customarily flat atop his head. “Let me know how I can help.”

  “Maybe you can help me find good access locations,” Boris answered.

  Jayden frowned. “Man, I dunno. I think Esther’d be better at that kinda stuff.” The Texan fell solemn. “I feel bad for Esther, man.”

  “Why do you feel bad?”

  “She was really into Scott and none of us knew. Well I mean, I’m sure some people knew. But it just sucks to get rejected.”

  Boris stopped at a wall terminal. “Yes, I agree. It is the story of my life.” Fingers tapping on the display, he sorted through several informational screens. He finally stopped on an interior base map. “It looks like there are terminals everywhere. I may not need to be in any special place to access what I need.”

  “Do you think there’s anything we can do to make her feel better?”

  “I don’t know, ask her out. Look at this.” The technician pointed at a spot on the map. “Everything here seems to be routed through an interceding converter.”

  Jayden looked at him strangely. “What?”

  “It means that...” When Boris looked at Jayden’s face, he ended his explanation early. “It is just very outdated. The converter acts as a sort of network guardian. But interceding is not the way things are done anymore. It is easy to maneuver around.”

  Leaning closer to the screen, Jayden asked, “How can you tell it’s the interceding thing?”

  Boris pointed at a series of numbers at the bottom right of the screen. “These numbers identify the name of each terminal. But if you look here, you can see that there is an extra period between the two and the seven. You would never put that in a line of sixteen-digit identification, because a guardian cannot process a double decimal.”

  “Oh. So double decimals are bad?”

  “What? No. It just means that whatever is between those decimals is hidden on the backside of the route to this terminal.” Boris inspected closer. “However, only a certain kind of register can even translate—”

  “Dude,” Jayden interrupted, shaking his head, “I don’t think I’m ever gonna understand any of this.”

  Sighing, Boris went back to work. “The whole point is that this is very basic. This was outdated two years ago. I may not even need a special kit to break into it.”

  Hands on his hips, Jayden said, “Well that’s good and all, but that still doesn’t help me find somethin’ to do.”

  Stopping for a moment, Boris looked around. He focused on a column several meters away. “I need you to stand on the other side of that column, and face down the hall.”

  “Huh? Okay, sure!” Hurrying away, Jayden did as told. After a moment, he leaned his head around the column. “Am I lookin’ out for something?”

  “No.”

  “Oh.” He stared silently for several more seconds. “Then what am I doin’ here?”

  Fingers flying on the display screen, Boris answered, “Nothing. I just needed you out of my way.”

  “Man! You’re a jackass.”

  * * *

  SCOTT FLINCHED FROM his bedside as a beating sound came to his door, its volume and intensity prompting a “what the hell?” to escape from his lips. As he threw on a shirt, a pair of heavy thuds followed, as if the person on the other side was trying to kick his door in. “Veck, hold on!” Grabbing for the knob, he yanked the door open.

  Palms hit him immediately—a pair of them, shoved full-strength into his chest. He was actually forced back.

  “You had to bloody tell them!” Esther screamed. She stormed into the room, slamming the door behind her.

  �
��Tell who what—” Scott barely got the question out before he was slapped clear across his face.

  “You ask me to stay behind after our mission brief so we can reconcile, while behind my back you’re smearing me in the mud? How dare you!”

  Slack-jawed and stunned, Scott couldn’t find words.

  Esther didn’t share that problem. “Auric swung by my room out of the goodness of his heart to make sure I was focused enough after you rejected me, you pig-ignorant dregg!”

  “Esther, I—”

  “Isn’t it enough that I’m doing this to save your stupid girlfriend’s life? Do you get off on my personal humiliation? Am I the star of your failure fetish?”

  Voice rising to match hers, he said, “I told them because I had to! Did you really think I was going to go into something this critical without briefing my team?”

  “Briefing them on us? On personal feelings?”

  “On things to look out for!” She needed to understand this. “If one of them sees us going off on each other, I want them to know it’s about us and not the mission. And guess what? We’re going off on each other now!”

  She threw her hands in the air. “Because of this! Congratulations, Scott, you made a self-fulfilling prophecy!”

  “Look, I don’t need to explain myself every step of the way.”

  Nose wrinkled, she said, “No, you don’t. But you could at least give a granule of consideration as to the feelings of your operatives—namely me, the one you seem hell-bent on making a fool of.”

  She was totally out of line. “I need you to calm down for one second and try to understand why I did what I did.”

  “All I understand is that—”

  “I said shut up!” At that, her jaw clamped angrily. “You do think Boris is ready to handle this? Do you think he’s ready for this kind of pressure? I have all the faith in the world in him as a combat technician. But as a spy?” He held his arms out for emphasis. “He needs to be as confident as he can be, and he can’t be confident if he thinks the mission is falling apart. Same goes for Auric—hell, Jayden, too!

  “They need to be aware of what’s going on with us. Is it messy? Yeah, it’s messy. But you know what? It is what it is. Now I am fed up with you acting like a child—”