"I know, and I already brought it up with him. Before we even reached Trinidad." Henry shook his head. "He refused. At this rate, I'm worried about him, but I need to fill the vacancy in our command chain, so I'm coming to you."
"I understand, and I accept," she answered. "We'll just have to be patient with Yanik."
"His injuries over the last year caught up with him even before Kepper nearly blew his arm off at the shoulder. Now he acts like he's a useless cripple. For a Krasshash, fulfilling duties and obligations is everything."
"Vidia might be able to help him," Miri suggested. "But we have to face the fact that his religious beliefs make his condition and the prospect of losing his ability to serve and fight a terrifying thing to consider."
"I know. But I want to make it clear to him that he's still a valued member of this crew."
"I'll do my best to impart that feeling."
* * *
There was quiet in the Shadow Wolf infirmary while Oskar checked over Yanik's wounded shoulder. His scans showed all of the damaged and affected tissues and the slow, very slow, recovery of some of them.
Seeing the distant look in the Saurian's yellow eyes, Oskar decided to speak on the past. "We've had quite a time these past few years since you found Brigitte and I stowed away," he said. "You were quite intimidating when you opened that crate."
"I could smell you," he said. "It was obvious you were seeking to flee the League. My concern was not your decision to stow away so much as it was the possibility of the League attacking our ship to retrieve you."
Oskar nodded quietly. "I can see that concern. You were quite gentle with us, all things considered."
"You sought to get away from the cruel madness of the League. That was cause enough to be kind, as I saw it." His yellow eyes gazed intently at Oskar. "I recall my impressions of that day vividly. Brigitte was defiant and proud of it. You were different."
"Oh?"
"I smelled the anger on you," he said. "You left the League for personal reasons, but betrayal was one of them."
Oskar's jaw tightened. "Yes," he admitted. "It was. My trust was betrayed by someone I trusted." The old resentment came back to him easily, as if the wound was fresh. "Someone I considered a close colleague and friend."
"Such a betrayal is despised by the Divine, for it damages the soul of the betrayed. It denies them the means to trust others." Yanik nodded to him. "I am honored to have played a role in preventing such damage from harming you, Doctor."
Yanik's words brought Oskar out of his thoughts on the matter. "Thank you, my friend," he said. "Right now, I should be focusing on your shoulder anyway. Reconstructing it will take time and effort, and I still can't promise you'll regain full use."
"I understand," said Yanik. Oskar could hear the uncertainty in Yanik's voice, such an unusual tone to hear in him. "If need be, I will depart the Shadow Wolf to avoid being a burden."
"Don't be hasty, friend," Oskar admonished. "We are here for you as much as you have been here for us."
"I understand that, but it would be a betrayal of my own faith to accept obligations I cannot fulfill," Yanik answered. "My departure may be necessary, for all of our sakes."
Oskar opened his mouth to protest the idea again, but this time, he stopped himself. To continue would only make Yanik feel worse, and as a doctor, he had an obligation to minimize his patient's suffering, not prod an emotional sore spot. "Then I shall endeavor to ensure you are returned to fitness," he said. "For all of our sakes."
He was gratified by the understanding he saw in those alien yellow eyes, joined by gratitude. Now I must follow through, he told himself.
16
Antoine barely had time to get his morning routine going when he received an incoming call from Corporate HQ. He stepped out of his shower and donned a bathrobe before seeing to the call. His cousin's face appeared on the holo-projector along the far wall. "Antoine." He sounded urgent and a little agitated. "It's not like you to keep me waiting."
"And it's not like you, cousin, to forget the time difference between Thyssenbourg and Bekeleville." Antoine tried to keep the irritation from his voice while giving the reminder. "You caught me in the shower."
"I see. I mistimed my call, then. My apologies." Both men knew he wasn't sorry in the slightest, but decorum, professional and family, had to be upheld. "I wanted to speak to you about the exiles' situation."
"What, in particular, concerns you?"
"This incident on Trinidad Station has gained public attention," Rene said. "The mercenaries you hired confessed our involvement. I'm told you were personally named. Station authorities have already issued statements protesting the attempted abduction of an officer of the station's government."
Antoine rolled his eyes. As much as Saxon's cowardice infuriated him, he couldn't lose control in front of his cousin. "Jumped up pirates, that's all they are, and all she is."
"Maybe so, cousin, but the affair at Lusitania means that a number of the Trifid Region worlds have acknowledged Trinidad Station as a legitimate port of call and sovereign government. The Lusitanian government has already made indications they will back any claims made by Trinidad against Rigault. We have trillions of credits in business interests in that region, Antoine, that this failure places in jeopardy." Rene's voice grew heated as he brought up the money. "Given the company's financial state, we can't afford such a loss. If they push on this matter, we'll have to concede."
"So see that they don't, Rene. Rally the other companies. Convince the Galters that this is an attempted state intervention in our economic affairs."
"Prime Minister Ascaro will not be so easily diverted, cousin. I'm sorry, but I'm going to insist you call off the campaign against the exiles. At the very least, make no further attacks on Linh Khánh or any other exiles in the Trifid Region."
Antoine walked over to his pantry. From the refrigerator, he recovered an orange. As he looked it over, he thought of Kepper, already jumping his way to the station. He could recall him, of course.
But the memory wouldn't let him. Linh Khánh had almost as much to do with his maiming that day as Tia Nguyen did. He wasn't going to just let her go. He deserved retribution on the Hestians who took his eye and nearly killed him. Damn the Lusitanians, damn Trinidad, damn them all. I'll deal with them in due time!
"Don't worry about Khánh any longer, cousin," he said. "I will make sure there are no further troubles."
"I took law, cousin. Don't try to talk semantically on this." Rene frowned. "You already sent another agent to pick up Khánh."
"I sent my best," Antoine said. "So don't worry. He'll find a subtle way to deal with this."
"If it's the same one who took Nguyen, I'll remind you an atomic device attached to an atmospheric dome is not subtle!" Rene's voice grew heated. "Dammit, cousin, this is our company legacy you're risking. I've been supportive, but I can't just let you do as you please indefinitely! As it is, the projects we've funded have left our company financially overextended. Nadine and I have managed to keep the extent hidden from the shareholders and the markets, but if there's a major shock to our share price and selling begins, we won't be able to hide it. We could face a hostile takeover."
"We're an interstellar conglomerate, one of the largest in Sagittarius." Antoine's skepticism toward such a threat filled his voice. "We can't be taken over like some small-time, one-market company."
"We can by the likes of Frank Lou."
The name made Antoine scowl. "The Council would never let him. They'd buy us out first," he insisted. "Stop worrying, cousin. Everything will go as planned."
"I'll believe that when we have Tia Nguyen's name on the amnesty and eliminate any potential leadership against your new measures," Rene said. "That's what we need, all we need."
"I'm seeing to it," Antoine remarked coldly. "In the meantime, keep calm and give no indications we have issues. We've come too far to stop, cousin. All we can do is see this through to the end." No more games, he thought to himse
lf. No more tests. Time to see how far we can push Breivik's device.
* * *
As much as Rene's urgency was clear, Antoine wouldn't let his daily schedule be rushed. The last thing he wanted was to give his silent partners the feeling he was losing control of the situation on his end. He went about his day as usual, surveying reports of security activities across the planet while meeting with various subordinates and political figures.
Only when his usual work day was done did Antoine head to the security center. He made his way to the new labs section and found Breivik in his office examining notes. "What is our progress?"
"The motor control still works as intended," he answered.
"We need more." Antoine sat in front of Breivik's desk. It was as spartan as always, befitting the League mentality as Antoine understood it. "She must be made to sign the amnesty."
"I'm not sure the motor control can be fine enough to replicate a hand-written signature," Breivik said. "And while thought interaction is the next phase in the research, I can't promise any immediate results. Especially if I'm forced to rush."
The door to the office slid open. Commander Aristide entered, her steel gaze as cold as usual. While Antoine would always be cautious with her, he did appreciate her competence. "Director Rigault," she said to him, her tone formal. "Have you acquired the test subjects you proposed?"
"You will have as many as you need," he promised. "I have more than enough Hestians in the jails on industrial sedition charges."
"So you do." She turned her attention to Breivik. "Doctor, your progress has been acceptable, but the time is approaching for the next phase. The report from Earth is that events are proceeding on scheduled lines, and the neural control device will need to be ready for mass production soon if it is to be employed as planned."
"As I was explaining to Director Rigault, we are still examining the motor control functions," Breivik answered, this time more timidly. "Forcing the project ahead to thought interaction could undermine the entire project. The more we explore the mechanisms of motor control, the greater our understanding of the interplay…"
"Doctor, perhaps you did not understand me." Aristide's voice could have fogged a glass of warm milk. "We are not talking about a minor matter of scientific curiosity, but a project of import to the Committee of Public and Social Safety. It is critical to Society that progress be made, and be made soon. Am I clear?"
Antoine noticed the way Breivik's face paled. "Yes, Commander, you are. My apologies for failing to understand the needs of Society."
There was no verbal reply from Aristide. Antoine saw his opportunity and spoke up. "If you wish to further test the device's limits, I have a proposal."
* * *
Tia thought her suffering was done for the day, so she was unprepared when the guards came and brought her back to the lab section of the compound. The emotions of fear and frustration and horror were all too familiar to her, yet they came anyway with her removal from her cell.
The men brought her to a room with a single table and several plastic chairs. Aristide was standing in the corner and Breivik was with Antoine Rigault at the table. A stack of papers was in the middle of the table beside a pen. It wasn't hard to guess what it was for.
Tia said nothing as the guards put her in the seat opposite from them. Antoine pulled a piece of paper from the stack and set it and the pen in front of her. "Read it and sign it."
"I already know what it is," Tia said. "No."
"We can make you sign it, Hestian," he reminded her. "And we'll still hold you to it."
"Then do it. Make me." Tia leaned forward. "I'm not going to spit on the memories of my fallen comrades by signing away my loyalty to our principles."
"Very well." Antoine nodded to Breivik. "Doctor, do it."
Breivik pulled the tablet from his lab coat and tapped his fingers on it. Tia felt her arm and hand jerk involuntarily. She fought as hard as she could, but there was no stopping her hand from grasping the pen. It brought the pen over to the paper and started writing along the bottom.
She grimaced and struggled to stop her hand from moving. After several seconds, however, she started chuckling. Her hand stopped.
Aristide's expression slightly shifted, while Antoine was clearly flustered by her sudden laughter. He looked down at the paper to see what was so funny.
Breivik pulled his finger back from the tablet. "I'm sorry, sir, but that is the best we can do."
The result of his penmanship-by-proxy was something approximating a signature, but it was still more squiggles and lines than coherent written letters.
Tia's chuckling led off into tittering. "Well, I don't think that's going to fool anyone."
"Make her do it," Antoine ordered. "Give her an order to sign it herself."
The surgeon was already nodding. "I can try, but this is why we need further testing. The thought interaction and editing capability is still more theory than fact."
"Do it," Antoine insisted.
Breivik sighed and went to work. Tia readied herself as much as she could, not knowing what this would feel like. Could this technology actually go that far? It was bad enough it turned her into a meat puppet.
A twitch filled her body gradually until it became noticeable to the others. Breivik shook his head before they could ask. "The interface hasn't been configured for this kind of control," he insisted. "I can order her motor functions easily enough, but you're asking me to compel her to a decision."
Aristide's tone was unforgiving. "Doctor, you told me you were making progress."
"I am," he insisted. "Every day we improve the motor control interface, every day! But this, this will require more testing. It's not a matter of effort, Commander; it's sheer practicality. The human brain is a complex organ and it will take time to learn more about controlling it through the interface device."
"If you can't compel her directly, there are other methods," Aristide pointed out. "Can the device interact with any of the non-motor functions? The brain's pain centers, for instance."
Tia paled and swallowed.
Breivik bit into his lip. "I… I've not considered such a thing. The entire point of the technology is—"
"—the point of the technology, of any technology, is to serve the needs of Society," Aristide said. "Right now, our needs include supporting our friend here." She nodded to Antoine. "In any way necessary."
The grin that crossed Antoine's face was diabolic in its intensity.
Breivik sighed and started tapping at the controls. Tia drew in a breath in anticipation.
Nothing came.
As the seconds stretched on, she forced herself to breathe. A treacherous hope came to her. Maybe the device couldn't work that way, no matter what her captors wanted?
"Sign the amnesty," Antoine ordered, pushing another sheet toward her.
"No."
"Doctor Breivik?"
"One moment… there." The look in his eyes was almost apologetic. "Trying it now."
Tia again drew in her breath, readying herself for whatever was to come.
It wasn't enough.
The pain was everywhere, as if every bit of her body was immersed in flames. She let out a raw scream and thrashed in the chair.
There was no counting the seconds, any unit of time, while in the grip of this level of pain. Time was meaningless. There was only suffering.
It ended abruptly, leaving Tia to take in a breath while Breivik went over his tablet. "I need to re-calibrate the machine," he told the others. "The power output was too much. The device may burn out."
As he resumed his work, Tia noted Antoine's attention. "Sign," he said. "Or this will continue."
A part of Tia wanted to sign to avoid feeling that amount of pain again. Her eyes settled on the piece of paper. If I sign, that doesn't happen again.
If you sign, you betray all of your comrades. Ngoc, Mathilde, Kanda, Nhung, all of those who died for a free Hestia. You become precisely what Felipe called you.
The pain returned.
17
The Majha and Shadow Wolf departed Trinidad Station within an hour of one another. The two ships burned out to the jump limit alone and made their jump to the same system, an empty system on one of the jump routes toward Hestia.
Once they were alone, the Majha opened one of her empty cargo pods and Cera guided the Shadow Wolf in, bringing her to a landing in the snug fit of the cargo pod. The crew departed their ship for the Majha to preserve the fuel and air aboard the smaller Shadow Wolf.
By invitation, Henry arrived on the bridge of the Majha. Kaiya and Felix were present, as were Kaiya's best officers. Every man wore a turban and everyone, male and female, had a kirpan on their belt. Henry noticed that most of the crew below decks were the same: Sikhs from Khalistan, with a few assorted crew from other worlds and backgrounds.
The bridge was three times the size of the Shadow Wolf's, more akin to the size of a CDF destroyer. Helm and astrogation were toward the front. A sensor station was off to the side, a weapons station on the other, a specialized comm station and systems control/engineering off to the rear with auxiliary stations. To the side of the bridge was a plotting holo-table to allow for greater analysis of nearby stars and possible jump routes as well as in-system flight paths. For the moment, Kaiya was at this table, observing the Majha's quiet burn through the empty system. Technically speaking, they didn't need to engage the engines at all, but most Neutral Space captains burned at least a bit between jumps to avoid making themselves sitting ducks to pirate attacks.
Felix stepped up to him. When he started speaking, it was in a low tone as if to not disturb the bridge crew. "Samina's told me about the Wolf."
Breach of Trust: Breach of Faith Book Four Page 13