by A. K. DuBoff
“How would such a weapon even manifest? Would it be more like a disease or a total wipe like what happened on Quel?”
“I hope we don’t ever have to find out,” Wil said. He’d faced many destructive forces over the course of his career, and it never got easier. Nor should it. Losing an entire planet wasn’t a situation he ever wanted to become numb to.
Saera met his gaze. “It’s a terrible feeling to be in this position of authority where we’re supposed to know what’s going on, but instead we learn how much we don’t know.”
“We do the best we can.”
“Always looking ahead.” She let out a long breath and consulted her tablet. “Have you been able to find out anything about SPEAR Tec—the lead Leon mentioned in his debrief?”
“It would have been tricky to track down, but we got lucky. Or, rather, everything is disturbingly connected.”
“How so?”
“There’s a good chance that the SPEAR Tec logo Leon saw is an abbreviation for Steyn Pharmaceutical Experimentation and Research, which is already under investigation for black market drug-running and piracy. Remember the undercover operative we sent out several months back?”
“Oh, that operative?” Recognition filled Saera’s eyes. “I feel really silly for not making the connection to that name sooner.”
“Took me a while myself. But it gets better. The leader of the Steyn operations goes by ‘Maggie’—short for Magdalena. Magdalena Steyn.”
“That’s it, then.” Saera sat up straight. “She could be the ringleader for the Coalition.”
“Perhaps, but I don’t think she’s working alone. As much as I’d like to suggest to Jason that he use his new taskforce to take out the Steyn family and their operations, we need to make sure we eliminate the entire criminal network. There are a lot of unaccounted for people from Duronis still in the wind, not to mention those from the other planets.”
“So we continue to observe.”
“That’s my recommendation—for now.”
She nodded. “Jason won’t be happy about sitting on this lead.”
“Learning to bide time until the moment is right to strike is an important lesson.”
“For sure. I’m a little concerned to see where this goes.”
Is it possible it will trace back to Monsari? The pieces were lining up that way. Such a powerful dynasty had both the connections and financial resources to fund an interstellar initiative of this magnitude. It would explain why they had turned down the power core manufacturing—they already had other plans to strike out on their own. To dismiss that much income potential and influence, they had to have an even bigger play in mind.
He shared the thoughts telepathically with Saera, and she swallowed. “That’s what worries me, too.”
“How much else that’s been going on might be related? The demonstrations on Earth? Narratives in the media?”
Saera looked over the notes on her tablet again. “On that note, there have been a series of disappearances. Young, unattached drifters… with abilities. They fit a similar demographic profile to Lexi’s missing friend and several of the captives liberated from Quel.”
Wil exchanged a worried glance with his wife. “That also sounds an awful lot like the Priesthood’s profile for its subjects.”
“I had the same thought.”
“I hate to think anyone was inspired by their ‘work’.”
“Or, we didn’t get all of them.”
“That’s a possibility I’ve been reluctant to acknowledge.” The fall of the Priesthood had been initiated on Tararia and the TSS had done its best to pick up stragglers on other worlds, but there was no way to guarantee they’d all been apprehended.
“We might need to change our assumptions.”
Wil wasn’t quite there yet, but he would see how these new developments played out. “Aside from their profiles, is there anything linking the women?”
“Nothing we’ve been able to find yet. Honestly, I wouldn’t have seen a connection if it wasn’t for Lexi telling us about Melisa.”
“Definitely a lead worth chasing, nonetheless.”
“Agreed. Since it’s potentially connected to the Coalition, I’ll pass it over to Jason,” Saera said, making a note on her tablet.
“If they do find any connection between the disappearances, we should get someone out in the field as soon as possible to look into it.”
“Speaking of which, have you heard from our operative with Steyn?”
He shook his head. “No—not that I expected to. We might have to wait a while on that one.”
“I don’t like how big this thing is getting, Wil. The more rocks we overturn, the more darkness we find. Has it always been like that, or were we just too distracted by other things to see it before?”
“I don’t know. But we need to address it now. The rot from within is as great a threat as any other we’ve faced.”
She nodded. “We’re going to need more good people to cover all these bases.”
“I’m working on it. In fact,” he checked the clock on his desktop, “it’s just about time for one of those conversations.”
Saera stood up. “I’ll leave you to it.”
“Thanks for the update. I’ll see you tonight.”
When Saera opened the door to leave, Kira was standing in the hall about to knock. “Oh, hi!” the Guard officer said.
“Come on in,” Wil beckoned for Kira to enter.
Saera looked back over her shoulder and gave a nod of approval. “I can’t think of a better person to have on our team. Lock her in.” She gently closed the door, leaving Wil to the private meeting.
“What can I do for you, sir?” Kira asked.
“Please, make yourself comfortable, Kira.” He motioned to the chairs in front of his desk. While she got seated, he continued, “You have quite the fascinating story. A unique form of telepathy due to the biology of your homeworld. The alien nanotech that’s granted you such impressive abilities. Your pairing with Jasmine. There truly isn’t another soldier like you.”
She smiled coyly. “Well, someone needs to get things done around here.”
He laughed. “I can see why your teammates have spoken so highly of you.”
“Just doing my job, sir.”
“And what, ideally, would you like that job to be?”
The question seemed to catch her by surprise. “Whatever is needed.”
“Please, speak freely. I am well aware of what it’s like to be the odd one out. What is it that you would like to do with your considerable skill set?”
She sat in silent contemplation for several seconds before responding. “I would like to be the person who’s called in to save the day when no one else can.”
“That’s a very honest answer.”
“I joined the Guard because I wanted to make a difference. My homeworld wasn’t even a formally recognized colony of the Empire until after I’d been in the service for a decade. I always wanted to be a part of something bigger than myself. And I wanted to be the best.”
“You do have an exemplary record.”
“In the Guard, yeah. But compared to the TSS? There’s nothing I can do that your best Agents can’t do better.”
“That’s not quite true.”
“I can shape-shift, move really fast, and read minds with direct eye-contact. Comparatively, Agents can blow up things with their mind and effectively ‘stop time’ to move across a room in the blink of an eye. They’d win every time against me.”
“Not all Agents can perform the more advanced feats. You’d outpace many.”
“As flattering as that is, there’s no point in pretending that any mission would be better off replacing a Primus Agent with me.”
Wil couldn’t deny the truth of the statement. While Kira was remarkable, and she was able to go places where a Gifted person would otherwise be found out, that didn’t change that she had limitations. The breadth of abilities a trained Agent could bring to bear were s
uperior in most ways.
However, Kira had more to offer than just her raw physical capabilities.
“You do have something that no one else does, Kira: an understanding of how different abilities are applicable in a given situation. You are at the intersection of the skill sets championed by both the Guard and TSS. No one else in the Guard has experienced firsthand how telepathy or super-speed can be incorporated into tactics.”
She considered the statement. “I guess I do have a unique perspective.”
Wil leaned forward, folding his arms on the desktop. “I want to offer you a new role, that’s neither Guard nor TSS. It would fall under the new Taran Unified Force—one of the first positions officially under that umbrella. You would be a mission coordinator, of sorts, reviewing the most sensitive assignments and strategizing the best approach with others.”
“That’s a generous offer. I’m honored.” Despite her words, she wasn’t smiling.
“I sense some hesitation.”
“To put it bluntly, sir, it sounds like a desk-job, and I’m not ready for my days in the field to be over quite yet.”
He smiled. “On the contrary, it’s an opportunity to select which missions are worth your time to go on. One of the perks of command is that no one can tell you ‘no’ when you say you want to tag along.”
She caught on, a bright smile lighting up her face. “In other words, I get to have my hands in a little bit of everything.”
“Precisely.”
“That sounds rather perfect.” Her smile faded slightly. “Where would this new position be located?”
“We’re still working that out,” he admitted. “Admiral Mathaen and I have talked about establishing a new TUF office on Tararia, so that’s a possibility down the line. For now, we’ve agreed to keep it here at TSS Headquarters.”
“You do have a nice place here.”
“Since I can guess what your next question will be, I’d also like to invite Leon to stay on as a member of the TSS research team. He has a lot to offer. As we continue to build out the TUF’s infrastructure, I believe he’d be a strong candidate to eventually head up its research division.”
“I don’t think it would take a lot of arm-twisting to get him to agree to that.”
“And what about you?”
She beamed. “Where’s my desk and my first assignment?”
— — —
Heading to a TSS officer’s office would have made Lexi anxious under most circumstances, but the fact that the Lead Agent was Jason’s mom made the situation all the more nerve-wracking.
Does she know we’ve committed? Though they hadn’t yet sealed their bond, there was a start of one. She didn’t know how much of that would be obvious to other Gifted who knew the signs.
Saera was behind her desk, and she motioned Lexi inside. The Agent closed the door and tinted the outer glass wall opaque for privacy.
Lexi gulped. Stars, what am I walking into?
“How’s everything going, Lexi?” Saera asked.
“Good. Great.”
“This isn’t an interrogation. You can relax.”
Saera had been nothing but kind to her, but that didn’t make it any less awkward for Lexi while she was still trying to get a handle on her relationship with Jason, let alone navigate the larger family dynamics. It was too much to handle right now that the TSS Lead Agent was shaping up to be her future mother-in-law.
“What did you want to meet about?” Lexi asked.
“In short, your future.”
Oh, stars, here we go! Lexi swallowed. “Jason and I are still figuring things out, but I care about him a lot.”
“I can tell.”
“I can’t imagine not having him in my life now that we know each other. I might not be the Taran noble you’d hope for him to end up with, but I’ll do everything I can for us to be happy together.”
“That’s good to hear,” Saera said. “And related to that—”
Lexi held up her hand. “I already know what you’re going to say about marrying into a High Dynasty family, and how everyone is super nice, and accepting, and there’s nothing to worry about. But that’s easy for you to say, as someone who’s actually highborn, even if you didn’t grow up that way. But what Jason and I have is special, and I don’t know what lies ahead for us, but I’m hopeful. It doesn’t matter what others think.”
Saera cracked an amused smile and folded her hands on the desktop. “That’s a good attitude to have. But actually, I wanted to talk with you about your Gifts and training.”
“My…” Lexi’s face burned. “Oh.” Shite, did I just ramble about all of that for no reason? I practically said we were getting married, and we haven’t even remotely talked about that yet!
“I understand that you have some advanced skills,” Saera continued, thankfully moving past the other subject without further commentary. From the look on her face, she sensed that Lexi needed a lifeline. “I’m curious if there are skills you’d like to refine further.”
Lexi gladly took the offer to change the subject. “I thought abilities didn’t develop beyond a certain age?”
“It’s true, gaining new skills with our Gifts becomes more challenging the older we get, but the important thing is to have tapped into the potential by your mid-twenties, which you certainly have. Beyond that, the potential fades, if it’s never utilized. But to augment your capabilities, you’re still well within the window.”
“I don’t want to be an Agent.”
“I wasn’t going to suggest that.” Saera looked her over. “As Lead Agent, one of my responsibilities is to oversee the training program. Now that telekinesis has been legalized, there are a lot more people like you emerging from the proverbial woodwork who’ve received some ad hoc training but nothing formal. The TSS is in a position to offer a sort of… continuing education program to help refine those skills.”
Lexi crossed her arms, not sure whether she should be intrigued or if it was a trap. “Okay.”
“I thought you might like to take part in a pilot program—offer insights and help refine the curriculum and course setup to make it something that would be appealing to civilians.”
The proposal caught Lexi by surprise. She sat in uncomfortable silence for several seconds. “That’s an interesting suggestion.”
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to blindside you,” Saera said.
“I should be used to it by now. This last year has been a doozie.”
“I can sympathize.”
“Shite, yeah.” She flushed. “My problems are nothing compared to what you must face on a daily basis in the TSS.”
Saera shook her head. “Don’t diminish the challenges you’ve overcome. It took a lot of bravery to go after your friend and infiltrate the Alliance. I’m a firm believer in offering credit where it’s due.”
“I still haven’t found Melisa. Total bust on that mission.”
“However, you’ve brought a severe issue to our attention through your investigative work, and we owe you that.”
“These civilians that you want to train… Would you use them as informants?”
The Lead Agent studied her. “Some, perhaps. That’s not the driving motivation for this new initiative, though.”
“I like the idea of helping to teach others about their abilities, but Melisa is still out there. I need to find her… or at least learn what happened to her. I don’t want to give up that search.”
“We will help with that.” Saera paused. “Your friend isn’t the only disappearance.”
“What? Who else?”
“A number of other young women. All Gifted.”
Lexi’s heart dropped. “The Alliance? Or, Coalition. I don’t know what’s what with that.”
Saera shook her head. “The missing women are from various worlds in the Outer Colonies, most far from Duronis. It is possible the larger Coalition is involved, but we don’t have enough information to establish a clear connection.”
“Where might
they have all disappeared to?”
“We don’t know, but we’re going to find out.”
“I want to help.”
Saera folded her hands. “I appreciate that, but we have other people for this investigation. You can do more good in other ways. Help us with this training initiative. I promise, we’ll have a dedicated team working to find your friend and the others. It’ll be rolled up under Jason’s larger task force, so there will be plenty of opportunities for you to stay up to speed.”
Lexi considered the offer. It was a good deal. “I don’t have experience as a teacher,” she admitted.
“Easily rectified. You can offer a lot of perspective in other areas. I think this could be a very good partnership.”
She couldn’t argue with that. It was an opportunity to have a defined role, and it would keep her here with Jason. On the whole, she couldn’t imagine a better arrangement. “Yeah, I’m game.”
Saera smiled. “Welcome to the team.”
— — —
The pieces were falling into place. Jason hadn’t expected half the turns, but he was grateful to have such good fortune. He’d been excited to share the news about Lexi with Raena when she’d called to check in, and he was happy to see his sister so thrilled for him.
With the training coordinator role his mother had designed for Lexi, the biggest questions about how she could fit into his life at TSS Headquarters had been answered. They each had challenging positions that would keep them busy, and they’d have each other to come home to every night. It was everything he’d hoped to find in a partnership.
However, there remained one major step: the decision to bond. He’d hoped that it would be spontaneous; now, knowing they’d need to make a conscious decision, it was more pressure. Wait, or go for it?
Jason was reminded again of that crossroads as Lexi finished telling him about her preliminary concepts for the civilian training program. Curled up on the couch next to him, she had a new vibrance about her—energized by having a clear sense of direction. The passion in her tone and expression made her even more alluring.
“It’s going to be a lot of work,” she was saying, “but I’m looking forward to making these resources available. I could have really used a program like this myself a few years ago.”