by Scott Rhine
Looking younger than she had over the link, his wife entered dressed in full surgical scrubs. She handed Onesemo a pile of blue clothing and a bottle of soap. “We call this a bunny suit. It’s sterile. The nurse will help you disinfect and dress. I don’t suppose you can tell me why the CDC has forbidden me to analyze his blood?”
“No clue. The order came from the Surgeon General about seven years ago. Any genetic samples from Sanctuary survivors are classified Cosmic Purple.”
“Hmm. Fortunately, I enjoy a challenge. We’ll see what we can do through indirect means.” After chatting with Stu for a few moments, she dismissed her husband with a gesture.
“Luca wasn’t in here to guarantee my safety,” Stu guessed. “He was here for yours.”
The doctor smiled. “Fortune Enterprises is very concerned about your well being, but I’ve been attacked by delirious patients before. That’s how I met him … and why I specialize in children now.”
Lena interviewed Stu for hours, taking his medical history. Every time she went, “Hmm,” she signed another piece of paper and gave it to a member of her staff. They still use paper?
When his stomach growled, he said, “Sorry. I lost the only food I’ve eaten in the last day.”
The doctor immediately had a stack of sealed food containers delivered.
She verified all five of his inherited talents, all related to starship control. When he mentioned his sixth talent, for operating the escape pod, she said, “You truly are a marvel. What side effects have you noticed?”
Stu scratched his head. “I dunno. I don’t see warm colors as well anymore, but my blue discrimination is off the charts. I can also see stress patterns in acrylic just like Risa does with her special, polarized lenses.”
“Interesting. You’re taller than your father. Is that related to the new Page you read?”
Stu shook his head. “We reduce the gravity in the ship to conserve energy … sometimes. I work out a lot to maintain bone integrity.”
“And an outstanding job you’ve done,” she said with admiration. “I’d like to see more.”
Onesemo raised an eyebrow.
“Test results,” she added, flustered. “I’ll order those next.”
Soon, Luca came back in, tapping his watch. “We’ll be late for the fundraiser, dear.”
After the doctor left, Onesemo whispered, “You shouldn’t flirt with married women.”
“I can’t help if compassionate, older women want to take care of me.” Stu gestured to the heap of empty food containers. “Besides, I didn’t see you turning down any of the perks.”
“Just saying, you don’t mess with the wife of the guy who’s covering your back.”
“Well, now we can finally sleep,” Stu said.
A male physician’s assistant who had been bustling around a monitor said, “Not yet, sir. We have to wheel you out for a few tests.”
Onesemo asked, “How many?”
The PA glanced at his computer pad. He paged down and then repeated the action. “I’ve never even heard of some of these.”
****
Sunday morning, bright and early, Stu dozed in the quarantine room, waiting for the next hoop to jump through. After a nurse woke him to take his blood pressure, he said to Onesemo, “Hey, could you be a bro and get me a toothbrush? That cute lawyer could come back at any time, and I don’t want my breath to smell like my sick.”
The guard shook his head. “You’re on trial for your life, and you’re worried about getting lucky?”
“The trial is all a smoke screen. The people of Earth are the ones really on trial. So far, only you and she have passed.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Stu ignored the question. “You mentioned your dad was an Override. Was your mom the empath?”
“No,” Onesemo said casually. “That would have made me a multi-talent male. Insurance doesn’t allow those anymore because of the mortality rates.” Suddenly the guard frowned. “Shit fire. I’m busted. How long have you known what I am?”
“Since the infirmary.”
“You’ve been yanking my chain ever since.”
“How does it feel?” Stu asked. “Tell you what: you don’t push my buttons, and I won’t push yours.”
“Deal.”
“Why don’t you have to wear the yellow symbol like other empaths?”
Onesemo winced. “I could lose my job if I answer that.”
“I won’t tell, and I’ll let you stick around.”
His bodyguard left the room and came back thirty minutes later with a new toothbrush. His badge was missing. “My version of the talent only works on Actives. They don’t have protected status.”
“Ouch. How did you acquire this talent, some Homeland Security experiment?”
“No. My last field assignment was protecting an ethics investigator at one of the lunar labs. There was an accident. We lost a lot of people. I was injured badly enough to need almost a year of rehab in Hawaii.”
“You saved the ethics officer, though, right?” Stu guessed.
“Yeah. When she came to thank me, she introduced me to her younger sister, Kelly, who worked at the hospital. She tracks epidemics to their sources with a mix of Empathy and her dad’s detective skills. Anyway, I was so depressed I didn’t want to talk to anyone. My dad went on medical disability at age thirty-three and died at age forty. I was twenty-six and burning out faster than he did. I couldn’t see a way out. Kelly wouldn’t let me give up. She saved me.”
Mental talents can be sexually transmitted. “Some of her gift rubbed off on you?”
“Yeah. Turns out I was good at making friends with people and picking up things in an interrogation. Her sister finagled me a desk job working lie detectors for the investigative branch.”
Stu didn’t see any rings on his fingers. “You haven’t married Kelly yet?”
“Engaged. Actives need to get special licenses and post medical bonds before marriage.”
“Then Kelly can be number three.”
“Pardon?”
“I’m handing out tickets to see Sanctuary, first hand. We have limited seating. While I tour Earth, I’m inviting quality people back to see my place.”
The Samoan’s mouth twitched into a lopsided smile. “I guess that means I have to keep you in one piece until I can collect on that. Will I get to meet Herk again?”
“If I have anything to do with it, Officer Onesemo.”
“My friends call me Mo.”
****
At Stu’s 7:00 p.m. vitals check, Onesemo complained to the nurse, “The itching in Stu’s leg is driving me crazy.”
The nurse nodded. “Come with me. We have some psi-blocking masks down in admitting. They look a little like gel ski masks. You’ll need to come with me to find one that fits.”
The moment the guard left, a woman with pearl earrings entered the room in a lab coat. “Hi,” she said.
Stu sat up in surprise. “Am I dreaming?”
“No,” said his Aunt Mary, nervously.
“Mom showed me your picture. She had a lab coat just like that.” Stu misted up a little.
His aunt ran forward to hug him. “I was afraid you wouldn’t know me.”
He held her a foot away, grinning. “You’re family. How did you get in?”
Mary said, “Lena is my physician of record. Officially, I’m getting a checkup in her office. It also helps that I’m Luca’s boss.” Sitting in the visitor’s chair, she asked, “How’s married life treating Mercy?”
His smile vanished. “I can’t talk about it.”
“She’s my sister, and I’m spending my life covering for Mira. I deserve to know. Is Mercy alive?”
“Yes … It’s complicated.” Stu slumped back against his propped pillows. “She and Dad can’t leave the ship ever again. Come meet her yourself when I return to Sanctuary. Thanks for the guards and the legal team.”
“Don’t mention it. Is there anything else you need?”
“Why do you need a trauma team?”
“The surprise attack at the nexus when we arrived tore Herk up bad.” Stu explained the synchrotron radiation and the evidence left behind.
“E01. Sounds like Earth First could have been responsible,” she deduced. “The FBI lists them as eco-terrorists. They’re a radical arm of a popular Green political coalition. Earth First started out campaigning for vast roadless parks in every country. The coalition also wants military spending to be redirected to species survival. Pesticide companies hired scientists to say America’s ecology did fine without earthworms and bees before Europeans landed. So Earth First saved the bees by bombing the plant where the pesticide was made. Next, they blew up bulldozers in Brazil to save the Amazon rainforest.”
“Why would they have spacecraft or hackers?”
Mary considered this. “I’ll have to investigate. They’re funded underground on the dark web. The Green coalition halted most space research after the fallout from the first orbital war. They’ve banned all nuclear materials in orbit and leaked the truth about the Icarus field’s history.”
“Putting that aside, how did they know when and where we were arriving?”
Mary leaned close and lowered her voice. “The Red Giant Locator Page taught us how to build a receiver the size of a football stadium. Initially, we thought the device was the telescope. However, Jezebel Hollis figured out it really intercepted images broadcast from the telescope already on Sanctuary. Whenever your ship isn’t submerged under the hyperspace sheet, we see whatever it does.”
“Holy crap! That’s how they knew the escape pod was coming, too. I have to get word to the others … But I’m being watched.” He chewed his lip. “Can you meet Oleander in the abandoned LA Zoo in Griffith Park?”
“I might not be able to because I’m under intense scrutiny. However, I may have someone who can pass along the message—Colonel Johann Dahlstrom.”
“Oleander’s brother?”
“I contacted him to consult on this matter as soon as your escape pod hit the news. How long are you staying on Earth?” Mary asked.
“Depends on whether I can get our terms met. Part of my mission is to recruit another seventy crew members. Ideally, we’re heading to a colony planet after we teach Earth to make ships.”
“So I’m never going to be free from this identity?”
“That’s above my pay grade.”
The expression reminded her of something. “We just announced the stock payout for this quarter. Once your identity is confirmed, you’ll be eligible for an income stream of about a million dollars a day.”
“I didn’t come for the money.”
“I understand, but you can control the funds and then vote Zeiss’ proxy as long as you’re here. Mori has used those votes as a thorn in my side for twenty years. It’ll be nice to have them in friendly hands for a while. However, too many people can see what you spend that money on.” She handed him a white plastic rectangle. “If you need untraceable money for an emergency, use this. It comes from my personal account and is keyed to your thumbprint. No one else will see the expenditure. I’ll send Oleander one as well.”
“That will come in handy for exotic metals and old shuttle parts.”
Her wrist beeped an alert, and she stood up. “Time to go. Don’t trust any of the Moris.”
“My new friends said the same thing.” He kissed his aunt good-bye. “Do you want to come with me when I return to the ship?”
Mary tilted her head. “That would be the trip of a lifetime. I’d love to.” She hugged him and dashed away, slipping past Onesemo as he meandered back into the room wearing his Empathy-blocking hood.
The guard shook his head. “You’re getting another nurse’s phone number? Man, you work fast.”
Changing the subject, Stu joked, “You look like a jellyfish is eating your head.”
“Kid, I feel like a jellyfish is sucking my brains out my ears, and not in a good way. Let’s get some more shuteye while we can.”
“Yeah,” Stu said, gazing fondly after his aunt.
“Tell me you’re not in love with this one, too.”
“What can I say? She’s a special lady.”
****
Shortly thereafter, Lena Maurier visited Stu’s bedside while Onesemo was in the bathroom. “I’ll be releasing you to your legal team soon. You’re a remarkable young man. Why aren’t you dead?”
Stu bit his lip. “I can give you a hint, but I want to ask a favor in return.”
Her eyes sparkled in anticipation. “Anything.”
“Mira Hollis is leading a team of experts to visit Sanctuary when I return. I’d like you and your husband to consider volunteering. I think we could teach each other a lot.”
“Oh, my! This is the biggest compliment and opportunity I’ve been given in years. Yes,” she said placing a hand over her heart.
“Then, I can let you know that the anti-rejection process for male embryos has three phases. First, the mother’s talents must be suppressed with medication. This step alone can double the child’s chances.”
An orderly knocked on the door to deliver Stu’s new suit and his personal possessions from the prison. The article he verified first from the evidence bag was a military flight-school ring, which he immediately attached to the chain with his dog tags and looped over his head for safekeeping.
Lena begged to keep discussing Sanctuary medicine, but he shook his head. “Sorry. Once we’re recognized as a nation, we can talk more.”
Chapter 11 – Grand Jury Convenes
At quarter till ten Monday morning, Laura met Stu with the rest of the defense team in the marble atrium of the courthouse. He was so cute when he was excited. “Today they let me ride in the front of the lorry.” His British accent made the remark even more adorable.
“See anything interesting, Ambassador Llewellyn?” Laura asked, bathing in his innocence after the morass of the judicial system.
His eyes swept over her exposed legs, but he quickly focused on her face.
“Call me Stu like everyone else. You earned it by rescuing me. Some of the cars didn’t have drivers, but they had big, smiling faces on their grills. Are they friendly?” he asked.
She smiled, wanting to ruffle his hair. He looked good enough to eat in the dark-gray suit with pleated pants. “They’re useful. Mostly, we use them as taxis and for deliveries. They can communicate with each other and keep traffic flowing more efficiently than humans. They’re also more patient.”
He nodded. “Yeah. We use Snowflake for the long hauls once we lock in a course. He does tricks for me, but he’s really Mom’s interface.”
Laura filed that tidbit away as she tried to refocus him on the trial. She placed a hand on his arm. “Do you know what a grand jury is?”
“Why don’t you tell me? You have a specific reason for asking, and I like the sound of your voice.”
Smooth. “They’re convened for any capital or infamous crime. A prosecutor with ridiculous subpoena powers will attempt to prove to a jury of twenty citizens that the US government has enough evidence to try you for the possession and conspiracy to use banned weapons of mass destruction. Any questions?”
“Did you have your hair tinted?” Stu asked. “The brown highlights match your eyes.”
Or I adjusted my smart-glass contacts to match my outfit. The comment flustered her. He noticed details and complimented persistently. “I meant, questions about today’s hearing?”
“What’s so great about a subpoena?”
“He can demand information from anyone about anything remotely relevant as long as he keeps it secret. The process was designed to filter out incompetent or malicious prosecution from local authorities. This apparatus has successfully investigated organized crime and terrorism, but it has also been used to perpetrate some of the worst witch hunts in history.”
> “So I plead the Fifth.”
“If someone refuses to answer, they can be jailed for the duration of the grand jury, which could be as long as eighteen months.”
Stu shrugged. “I have nothing to hide and nothing but time.”
“Everybody has secrets, Mr. Llewellyn. Guard yours well. Short, vague answers are best. If you even appear to contradict yourself, they’ll stick you with perjury.”
“If I get lost, you can whisper in my ear.” His voice was low and suggestive.
She liked it. “Um … since you haven’t been charged yet, you don’t have the right to an attorney. Due to the secrecy rules, we’re not allowed in, and you can’t talk to people about the proceedings. In order to ask us something, you have to get permission to come out into the hall and talk to us.”
“That seems wrong. What’s our strategy?”
Laura smiled. She led him into the secured and soundproofed waiting area where they could be alone. “We have to bait them into doing our work. First we force them to acknowledge you’re an ambassador from space.”
“Why would they bother?” Stu asked, sitting in a chair with his feet propped up.
“To raise the stakes on a weak hand.” She paced in her high heels as she counted off possibilities. “Without concrete citizenship, they only have jurisdiction over US crimes, and most of the alleged offenses happened over international waters. If you’re a corporate construct, they can fine the company responsible for fraud. If they show you’re a citizen of a country who signed the charter, you’ll be charged with treason in that country. If you represent an opposing country, they can claim you’re an enemy combatant, it’s an act of war, and they get to hold you at a black site indefinitely. If you committed any crime using Magi talents, you could face a tribunal of US talents. If they find evidence of intent to commit genocide or crimes against humanity, you’ll never see the light of day again, but the UN will have to try you.”
“Sounds like a tightrope.”
“The key for you is modesty. Deflect everything to a friendly witness. If they ask about your talents, defer to the expertise of Dr. Maurier. If they ask about your training, refer them to a military historian. Stress that you’re the youngest member of the crew that no one confides in. Here’s a list of experts we want them to interview. Can you memorize it?”