A dull thud echoed the shuttle’s hull and the hiss of pressurization told her they were now connected to the main port of the Terran system. From here, no ships except human transports were allowed to venture to Terra Sol; in fact, Lyxia believed that when her ship - the Dark Light - had finally set off for home a few years back that it was the last non-human vessel to be in orbit around the blue planet. And when she left, this station was just beginning to be constructed along with the outer ring of cannons. Humanity let their fear drive them to create this mighty defense network in a short time, and in her experience she knew that there was no telling how deep those fears would be now; even after five years in the wake of the Husk.
Pressure doors popped their seals, then slid open as access was granted to the interior of the station. As the door opened, Lyxia half expected an armed escort to lead her towards the office of the human Council, but instead found Sara Foster standing alone in the causeway to greet her. Her face showed the strain of the recent events, but she still managed a half-hearted smile to greet her fellow Council. The two quickly embraced in both friendship and consolation, but held their emotions in check though they remained so close to pouring forth.
“Thank you for coming.” Sara said, pulling back from the embrace. “With all that’s happened it is good to see you here.”
“Well Fleet Com isn’t too thrilled,” Lyxia smiled back. “But I think there are answers here to what drives this madman and I aim to find them!”
“You don’t think that this is a human doing this, do you?”
Lyxia paused; it was a possibility that it was a human behind all this, though the evidence they had pointed to quite the contrary. The way he moved, the way he spoke, and the ways he got into places that no being should be able to, easily dismissed human involvement.
“No, but I think he may have spent time here; or at least accessed files on human history.” She replied after thinking it through. “There are so many questions that need answering instead of running around hunting for ghosts and I believe if I can put a few pieces of the puzzle together we can catch this bastard and make him pay!”
Sara nodded in acceptance and motioned for her friend to follow. As they turned, the sound of boots on the floor startled her and she turned to see Lyxia’s armed escort. The sight of the Ifierin made the real reason for the visit hit home hard; they were at war with an unknown force and the Council would be protected at all costs wherever she ventured. For a minute, Sara felt a tad bit embarrassed she didn’t have an armed detail as well. Until now, she didn’t realize she needed it. Looking over to Lyxia, she then noticed that the familiar uniform had been replaced by intricate armor. This was not a social visit at all, and no matter how much hospitality she could offer, the slightest threat here had the potential to grow into something greater.
“Is all this necessary?” the words slipped from her mouth before she could catch them.
Lyxia smiled and shrugged. “If it was up to my Captain of the Guard, the whole battalion would be accompanying me. We should be lucky it is just this small group.”
Sara smiled nervously and led the group to the awaiting transport. Down the halls they marched, and she found herself struggling to keep in step with the armour clad warriors and Lyxia as well as they marched in perfect unison. As they turned the last corner, she let out a sigh of relief. She was out of shape and the pace was set higher than was comfortable.
The soldiers guarding the docks tensed up at the sight of the Ifierin guard and their armour clad leader descending upon them, but a subtle wave of Sara’s hand let them know that all was fine. She led them inside the cavernous transport that was designed for a few hundred or so passengers per trip and led Lyxia up to the VIP cabin. She was relieved when the Ifierin took up station below and did not follow, yet she glanced nervously back at her guards that boarded as the hatch rose behind them. She beckoned them up to join them as to not leave them with the intimidating red war machines that stood on attention; she owed her men that much at least.
Once the two were seated comfortably, Sara keyed in the command to depart and the ship pulled free of the docks to begin the short trip to Earth. She knew the sight of a near empty transport slipping away to Earth would anger the multitudes of angry travelers that were stranded on the commercial space docks due to the no fly order handed out when she locked down the planet, but they would simply have to wait it out.
“A lot has changed since I have been gone.” Lyxia spoke; breaking the silence that had descended in the cabin. She pointed at the panel readouts of the Jupiter Cannon Ring to show what she was talking about. “Last I had seen, there was the defence network around Terra Sol but nothing out here. It is quite impressive, and very effective.”
“You mean the demonstration for the Council.” Sara replied. “Let’s just say that it was done to show that we are not the weak sister in the family anymore.”
“And from what reaction it got, I think the rest of the ‘family’ got the hint.” Lyxia grinned back.
“Without threatening, I think the Fleet in its entirety would suffer great loss and damage before reaching Earth. For the first time in a while my people feel safe. Now we can focus on the next step for humanity and stop looking over our shoulders.”
“You mean warships?”
Sara paused; she knew there were questions if Earth had their own fleet under construction, but until now she had been sure that the secret had been well kept. Rumors would always be out there, but those involved with the projects were isolated and under high surveillance. She wondered how Lyxia had found out….. unless she was fishing for info in the light of the rumors.
“At some point we will consider warships.” Sara answered after a moment. “But for now we are planning colonization vessels and equipment. Once those are finished, it would be irresponsible to launch them without support and protection. So yes, in a way I do mean warships.”
She looked over at her friend and hoped she had gambled right; if the Paxyn was indeed just looking for info and not trying to blow the whistle on the project, there would be no hint of malice on her face. But Lyxia just smiled, and if she did suspect more she didn’t let it show.
“Well there are rumors, but I just wanted to see for myself if they held ground.” Lyxia spoke with a smile.
“Humanity is not a threat.” Sara assured her friend. Inside she breathed a sigh of relief; she knew there was a lot of suspicion to what was happening out here and why ships had to dock out at Mars. For now, she had deflected the questions and bought some more time. “We have secured our safety and now we must secure our future.”
—
Mount Kailash, Tibet; Lyarran Colonial Base
“Tell me more about these messages.” Aen began after listening to Caretaker report on all the goings on it had been investigating.
They had yet to make themselves comfy in their new home as the AI could no longer hold back all it had learned. Aen had time enough to restart the reactor below by churning energy into the small core; power and environmental systems had all come back online and the chill had finally come out of the temple that had felt like a tomb until now. Iana had just brought up linens for bedding when Caretaker popped his avatar of a glowing ball in the middle of the room.
“I believe the one behind all of this has made their first mistake; as you predicted they would.” The AI began. “It looks like they have infiltrated the Fleet at all levels and left sleepers in place until calling upon them now. I only managed to stumble upon it once I began monitoring all inbound and outbound traffic in order to filter information that may pertain to our whereabouts from being reported. It appears that the Dark Light has thirty two such messages that were sent on subroutine systems to make them near untraceable; all thirty two have answered and declared themselves on standby. What is more interesting is that there are two more signals sent to Terra Sol that remain unanswered.”
“That means that….” Iana began, almost dumbfounded.
�
��That there were two sleepers in the Amarra crew that are still alive on the planet.” Caretaker interrupted. “I have taken the liberty of blocking any further communication from the host and have run trace programs to find and identify the recipients by using the software of their stations to get images of the respondents and run it through the crew manifest of the Dark Light; in effect, I have flushed out the enemy within.”
Iana was blown away; it was hard enough to accept that there was a conspiracy to usurp the throne by the temple that put her in power, but to hear it was this far reaching was beyond shocking. Aen was less than surprised, and took little time to comprehend the news and begin formulating the next steps.
“You said you ran trace programs on the messages?” he asked. “So that means you have the locations of the two Amarra crew members?”
“Indeed. One is in the Ningyocho district of Tokyo and the other is in Alexandria, Egypt on Port Said Street; neither of which has replied to the message as of yet though both terminals are active and show it has been received.”
“So they are alive still then.” Aen surmised. “But I thought the official record showed that Ameia was the last surviving member of the expedition?”
“Official records have a way of being worded to hide the truth.” Iana finally spoke. “I believe the wording was ‘active surviving member’ meaning that all others had perished or deserted. Two members; Palla and Jyn; deserted the search for the Harbinger in the early 1600’s. They had lost hope for returning home and just wanted to blend in with the human population and live out their lives apart from the Empire. I respected their decisions and struck them from the record; in a sense, I helped them fake their deaths.”
“And yet it shows that they were the two members who were part of the movement to strike you from the record, so to speak.” Aen shot back.
“So what’s the plan?” she asked.
“I need all the info available on file for them.” Aen answered quickly. “Personnel files from the Fleet, records in the Earth network to trace their habits, estates, family history, everything Caretaker can dig up. I need to know what can triggers they could have and how they go about their new lives; I need to know my prey before I go hunting.”
“I do not believe that killing them serves any purpose; in fact, they could provide information on the one behind all of this.” Caretaker cautioned.
“Basic strategy states that you don’t send those close to you to the edge of the galaxy and isolate them.” Aen replied. “These two are too low on the chain of command to point to their master directly, but I will extract all I can from them before ending their self-inflicted exile permanently. Loose ends can’t be left at this point; no matter how insignificant they seem.”
—
Inner System Solar Power Relay Station;
Project Olympus
Patterson looked intently at the radar screen as he watched the shuttle that carried Councils Foster and Lyxia to Earth. He sat with tense anticipation; waiting for them to land safely in Switzerland before he would relax any. There had been so many things happen recently for any chances to be taken, especially with a Council of a Lyarran ship in human hands. The last thing they could risk now was the focus of the Empire to be here; not until Olympus had been completed.
Most on the planet would boast that the Lyarran Fleet would face a stiff test trying to break through to Earth past the ring of PA cannons, but the truth of the matter was, without offensive weapons to coincide with the defence, they would inflict heavy damage but still come up short when it came to defending the planet. They needed another year at least to finish, and even then Zeus would be barely space worthy at that point.
The whole time he watched the approach vector of the shuttle, he was keeping one eye on the Lyarran cruiser parked out by Neptune. It had presented its side to the inner solar system in a show of no threat, but Patterson knew what kind of threat that ship presented; both to the safety of the Earth and to the secrets hidden just beyond. For now, it remained where it was and he was damned glad it did!
“You were right about the comm lines being filtered.” Davis interrupted him. “In the last few days all communications in the system are being scanned before being released to their destinations; hence the lag we’ve been seeing as of late.”
“Is it them?” Patterson nodded to the screenshot of the Dark Light.
“No, the source is more localized.” She answered.
“And by localized you mean what exactly Lieutenant?”
“I can’t pin down the source enough to find it, but it is originating from Earth. I think we have a spy on our hands sir!”
“Lock down all normal comm lines and put radio silence into effect other than supply orders.” The General ordered calmly. “If we are being watched let’s not give them any clue to what we are up to. But keep trying to pin down the source and contact Avery and his crew to be on stand-by; we need a response team ready at a moment’s notice.”
“Avery Wilson? Are you sure he is ready after what he went through?” Davis sounded genuinely doubtful.
Patterson too, had his doubts about sending the Lieutenant into another tenuous mission after years of surgeries and physiotherapy. They had found him as the sole survivor of the hanger ambush at Area 51 when the dust settled; barely clinging on to life. But though his body was broken, his resolve and determination to recover never wavered the whole time; despite years of work and the news his family had been lost in the Husk attack. To reward that determination, Patterson had placed him at the head of the first contact strike unit that was sent whenever there was conflicts with aliens and humans. He had proven himself in these little missions time in and time out, so yes the General did think he was ready.
“Yes he is.” He answered after a moment of thought. “It’s not like he’s going up against Aen again; the dead don’t come back to life Davis, do they?”
“No sir, they don’t.” she laughed.
Although he tried to make the point clear, he silently wondered if it was true. Aen was gone; almost six years had passed since he flashed away in the epic conclusion to the battle with the Husk and yet the Empire still searched for him. It became the unspoken secret that everyone knew, but yet the search still raged on even in the face of this tragedy. In a way, it made him think that everything wasn’t so cut and dry, and this rift in the Empire had more behind it then appeared; and it left him with a nagging question. If the dead don’t come back to life, why did they continue to search for him with such reckless abandonment?
EIGHT
Tokyo, Japan;
Ningyocho District
Tokyo burned bright with excitement and activity, even at this late hour and Aen just stood back in wonder. He searched his blank memories for some type of clues of if he had once stood here, but like always there was nothing. His past life remained behind a thick fog; he didn’t know where it was and couldn’t see it from where he stood, yet he knew it was somewhere back there waiting to be embraced once more. Taking a deep breath to shake the frustration and refocus on the task at hand. He was here to find someone who had spent hundreds of years hiding in plain sight; a task not to be taken lightly.
Aen had altered his appearance; it hadn’t taken a ton of effort to shift his thoughts and make himself look more like a run of the mill Paxyn soldier. His hair was gone; burned away in a flash as it was easier than cutting it. His jaw had widened, and his cheeks sharper as he masked his true self. But despite the changes, his eyes remained hidden behind welding glasses as they were the one thing he couldn’t change or hide. With those on, he blended in to the mass of humans and Lyarran’s mingling on the busy streets of Tokyo as nothing more than an Ifierin on leave.
Looking up at the address on the building, he confirmed he had the right place. Inside was his quarry; the lost Lyarran who had abandoned a mission too soon before it could see fruition. Inside was the chameleon Jyn; a male Paxyn who was an expert linguist and cultural guru that had grown to love the human ra
ce so much he chose them over his kind. Caretaker had done immense research to get all kinds of details on Jyn, ranging from details of his many human lives right down to his preferences of evening entertainment. He had found Japanese culture alluring even before leaving Ameia’s team, and immersed himself when he left to begin his ‘human’ life. Here he began to weave a complicated tapestry of lies to build a family name that spanned generations. The house of Jyn was old and proud indeed, and always had a son to carry on the name to the next generation. Now, he was Tanka Jyn; the current head of R&D of Sony, which had become the new communications supplier for the planet in the wake of the Husk.
In a masterful way, he was responsible for cutting edge technology that helped keep the company alive when many others died off in the broken economy. Now with military and political contracts, the company was stronger than ever, and had begun to secure contracts throughout the Empire itself. With Caretaker’s research, Aen had seen how it altered Lyarran technology with a modern human twist that was being passed off as new, but it was still something that had bettered many lives here in Japan.
Aen leaned back to look upwards to the penthouse where the many lights in the rooms told him that Jyn was indeed home. The Ai also reported to him a few minutes earlier that the receiving station had been activated and the message was read again yet remained unanswered. It seemed the deserter was at a conflict of beliefs, and it presented an opportunity to catch him at his most vulnerable. He stepped back into the alley and waited for the foot traffic to slow some before slipping back into the shadows and disappeared completely.
Like a ghost, he passed through layers of metal, concrete and drywall before coming to a stop in the darkness of the penthouse den. From where he stood, he had a clear line of sight to Jyn who sat facing the terminal with his back to the shadows; the light of the screen lit up the dim office. Aen took note that despite most of the rooms being lit, these two remained shrouded in darkness; as if to hide some sense of who he used to be. The office had relics from all ages of Japanese history lining the walls from ancient samurai armor and swords to small statues and timeless scrolls. And in the middle stood his target; a man out of time whom after over two thousand years had just begun to have his hair begin to grey. He was short for a Paxyn; maybe six feet or so when standing upright. His skin tone had faded in his years amongst humans; less bronze and more like a light summer tan. Surgical procedures had clipped the points of his ears and added eye brows as to blend in more seamlessly.
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