“I’ve loaded the interrogative files you provided into the machine, so we’re ready to begin,” she said.
Turning back to face Paulson, she leaned forward and lowered her voice to say, “This will be uncomfortable, especially if you fight it. The process is automated and will get progressively more difficult until you cooperate. Do you understand?”
He nodded. For the first time fear flashed over his features. “I don’t want to do this,” he whispered, rolling his eyes toward Derek and pleading. “Seriously. I will give you what you want.”
Derek stepped up to the side of the bed and looked down at him. His expression said he was serious.
“Proceed with the scan,” Odysseus said through his link.
He said he’d cooperate, Derek thought.
“His cooperation is not guaranteed. Proceed with the process.”
He doesn’t need to have his brain shredded like this, Derek thought. He will give us the codes.
“His compliance is not given willingly, therefore his offer is suspect. Continue.”
“He will give it to us,” he said out loud.
“Excuse me, Director?” the tech said obviously confused by his non sequitur comment.
“We need to make sure he will give us the information,” he said, looking down at Lassiter and shaking his head.
“I’ll give you the codes,” he said. “Please, Derek don’t do this. I will—”
“Then don’t fight,” he said. “Give it to the machine.”
He turned and walked toward the door, pausing before he went through. “You’re right, Paulson. I am spineless.”
Robinson Colony: Western Athabasca Valles, Mars:
Edison’s injury wasn’t bad, but it hurt his pride. He should have anticipated that people would still be out there. It was a stupid mistake that could have gotten them all killed. Fortunately, the sniper didn’t hit anyone else.
He woke up on the way back to Robinson with another cup of the horrifying enzyme brew sitting on the table beside his acceleration couch, and Saffia hovering over him. “Tana will kill me,” she said. “She told me to keep you safe, and I kinda foobed that biglike.”
“Was my fault,” he said. “You might be a superwoman, but I’ve got the experience to know better. It was a stupid mistake.”
“Not as stupid as trying to get in a fistfight with Rykkie,” she said, grinning. “I was too busy getting you inside and I never thought to tell him not to break the guy up too bad.”
“Oh?”
“Yah, there’s not much left of him to answer questions,” Ryktoff said, climbing over the ladder from the aft deck. “My bad. I should have maybe not thrown such a big rock at him.”
“What?”
Luce appeared behind him, bouncing through the hatch and grabbing the chair to haul herself to a graceful stop beside Edison. “Cromag here fell back on the stone age weaponry at hand. Was a good shot, but it messed up the guy’s faceplate—”
“And brains too,” Saf added, shrugging. “We stowed his body in the back and I figure we’ll ID him from his genes since his dental records would be pointless.”
“You should drink your nutrient solution,” Joe said. “Your injuries were limited, but you lost a substantial amount of blood due to vacuum aspiration of the wound.”
“Is this the same stuff you gave me after Saf tried to kill me?”
“Substantially similar,” it said.
“I’ll pass,” Edison said, wrinkling his nose and trying not to remember that experience.
“We have arrived at Robinson Colony,” Joe announced as the thrusters rumbled down to silence. “Dr. Drake has asked you to join her in the medical center. Patient One is regaining consciousness and will be available to answer questions within the hour.”
Patient One was the name they had given Chancellor Ariqat to keep anyone from overhearing his name. Edison stood up and wobbled as his blood supply tried to work its way toward his brain. Fortunately, it got there before he faded out.
“You should drink your oil,” Saf said, picking up his cup and wincing under the full power of his glare.
“I thought your wife told you to keep me safe?” he growled.
“Maybe not, then,” she said, bouncing across to the opposite wall-deck and emptying the cup into the recycler. Turning back to the other two of their crew, she winked. “Can you take the baggie to the genetics lab and have them get an ID? Stay with the body until they’ve got a name for the … uhm … face. Let me know as soon as you’re done with that.”
“No problem,” Luce said. “What’s next?”
“Depends on what we get from Patient One,” Edison said, running his arm through a couple rotations and feeling where the bullet wound pulled tight. “We might need to go back out there and see what else is hiding under the rocks.”
“I’d recommend we bring a full squad next time,” Ryk said. “Should I put out the word we’re looking for a team to clean up a mess?”
“Yah,” he said, nodding. “Make sure they’re the kind to keep their sphincter tight. We’re about to start leaking intel and we’ve got to make sure it happens when we want it to, and not accidentally. Scan?”
“Cando,” he said as Edison and Saf headed to the airlock.
When they got to the security section of the medical center Tana was waiting outside Ariqat’s room. “What the hell happened to you?” she asked, shooting a glare at her wife.
“Today is just my day for getting glared at, isn’t it?” Saf said. “He got shot. I figured I’d start a club of shooting victims and he wanted to join.”
“I’m serious,” Tana said, ratcheting up the intensity of her glare. “That’s a lot of blood.”
“Really. I got shot,” Edison said, shrugging with his good shoulder.
“Did you shoot him?” she said, stepping up and pulling the neck of his coverall to the side to look at his arm.
“Somebody was waiting for us and he got off a couple shots before Ryk went caveman and pounded his brains out with a rock,” Saf said. “I had them take the body over to genmatch and told them stay until it’s ID’d.”
“Trust me, he’s in a lot worse shape than I am,” he said. “Sore and breathing is better than dead and anything.”
“He’s awake,” Nisreen said, interrupting as she appeared at the door to Ariqat’s room. “He’s weak and disoriented so go easy when you question him.”
“I’ll go in with you,” Tana offered. “He knows both of us and seeing a familiar face might help.”
“Just keep it short for now,” Dr. Sokat said. “He’ll be lucky to stay awake for more than a few minutes. He’s still on heavy neuroblockers for pain.”
“I’ll watch his vitals while we’re in there,” Tana said. “We’ll stop if he starts down.” She looked at Edison and nodded toward the door.
“I am not back on Galileo yet?” Ariqat asked as they walked into his room. The chancellor looked far more alert than Edison would have expected.
“No,” Edison said, walking up to the bed. Tana stayed a step behind him and was keeping her eyes on the wall display over his bed. “Do you know where you are?”
“I was on Mars. I think,” he said.
“You still are,” Tana said.
He nodded.
“Do you know where you have been?” he asked.
“In a prison, maybe.” His heart rate shot up. “It was clean like a hospital.”
“How did you get here? To Mars?”
“I don’t remember. How long have I been gone?”
“A long time,” Edison said. “Do you know who brought you here?”
He shook his head and his pulse ratcheted up again. Is he lying? Edison wondered as he glanced over his shoulder at Tana. She nodded, confirming that her thoughts leaned in the same direction.
“Why are you on Mars?” Ariqat asked
“Things have changed since you disappeared,” he said
“What about my wives? My children?”
Edison sat down o
n a stool beside his bed. “The last I knew, they were alright, but I’ve been out of touch with Galileo for a while.”
“They need to know I am alive,” he said.
“Like I said, things have changed,” Edison said.
“Changed how? What is going on?”
“The Union has … fallen apart.”
“Paulson Lassiter has taken over?” Ariqat asked.
“Derek Tomlinson is in charge,” he said. Paulson Lassiter? He shot Tana another questioning glance.
The chancellor shook his head again, his eyes darting back and forth as if he tried to fit pieces into some imaginary puzzle that only he could see. “Tomlinson was a minor player.”
“Player in what?” she asked.
“Something big enough to risk this.” He closed his eyes, and a breath caught in his throat. “I know it was Lassiter. I remember hearing his voice while …”
A red light flashed on the monitor screen above his bed. Tana tapped his arm to get his attention and shook her head.
“Do you know why they kidnapped you?” Edison asked.
“You mean rather than just kill me?”
“Uhm, sure,” he said.
“I think they had plans to make me take a fall,” he said. A second red light started blinking and Tana nudged him again.
“For what?” he asked.
“Murdering Katryna Roja,” he said.
“They tried, but she’s hard to kill,” Tana said. Edison shot her a quizzical look. Apparently, she also knew.
“Is she still alive?” Ariqat asked. “If she is, I need to talk to her.”
“Why?”
“She is in grave danger,” he hissed.
“Chancellor Roja is safely beyond his reach,” Edison said.
“Nowhere is beyond Lassiter’s reach,” Ariqat said. His pulse shot up another time and a third light started blinking on the display. “I need to speak with Roja.”
“Why?” Tana asked.
“She is the enemy of the man who has now become my enemy,” he said as pain focused him on his thought and he locked eyes with Edison. “I know she was the only one Lassiter feared, so I must talk to her.”
“That’s not possible,” he said.
“If she doesn’t want to be facing a war fleet, then it needs to be made possible.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
Personal Quarters of the Executive Director: Galileo Station:
Derek sat with his feet up on the table, drinking his way through his third brandy. He felt somewhat anesthetized and he leaned back with his eyes closed listening to the evening newswave from New Hope City. Yesterday he’d ordered the mental rape of the one person he had ever considered a friend, and this morning they’d carried out his orders. It was still more emotionally raw than he could accept. He hadn’t heard if Paulson had regained consciousness yet. He wasn’t sure whether it might be better if Lassiter never came back.
Punching up the volume he listened as a news commentator narrated a report on the new outbreak of riots in NHC and Underhive. “Security forces under the direction of Hew Hope City Mayor Rachelle Pallassano have begun removing members of the population, and businesses loyal to the New Union Government of Director Derek Tomlinson. The security sweeps commenced this morning in response to an unannounced executive order signed in a closed session of the city council sometime yesterday evening.
“Experts with knowledge of government security procedures say, judging from the size and the organization level of the operation, it is clear that this is a well planned action with substantial logistic support. The objective of this roundup is unknown as the Mayor’s Office has declined to comment. Pallassano’s Chief of Staff has just announced a media conference at 1930 hours today. We will provide complete coverage of the conference as it happens.”
Derek glanced at his chrono. About five minutes.
What is she thinking?
“There is a high probability that she expects a war. This sentiment seems to be prevalent in many of the LEO colonies, as well,” Odysseus said through his link.
She’s rounding up people she thinks are loyal to us and doing what with them? he thought, frowning as he was reminded again that any question he formed even in the back of his mind was an invitation for Odysseus to intrude.
She is sending them to Tokyo Commons and Tokyo Down Under. She has conscripted all shuttles on the looplines to transport those she is evicting, it said. She has troops standing watch in both terminal complexes to maintain order.
“Troops?” he said, switching back to voice with intent.
“Yes. These do not look to be normal security units,” it said. “Although it is impossible to tell their training, they are armed well above legal levels for law enforcement.”
“Where did she get them?” he asked.
“I have verified that many of them came from Tsiolkovskiy Freeport. They may be FleetCom personnel.”
“She’s planning to join their resistance,” he said.
“That is possible. New Hope City was predominantly WellCartel and the alliance between Tana Drake and Katryna Roja is strong.”
“It would be unfortunate if they declared independence,” Derek said, staring at the brandy in his hand.
“We should challenge them,” it said. “You have both DevCartel Security and Union Standard Security units still in place in New Hope City.”
“There aren’t enough there to stop the evictions,” he said, shaking his head.
“No, but if it made the process slow and was highly visible would that not serve your purpose as well?” Odysseus said. “The idea would not be to stop the process, but rather to make FleetCom and those that join them look to be the aggressors. If they are seen violating the civil rights of the ones they are evicting, it may generate spontaneous support for resisting the resistance.”
“You’re suggesting we make enough noise to confuse the reality,” he said.
“Correct. The majority of the population is unaligned and would take the side of those that represent the least turmoil,” it said. “If Mayor Pallassano is shown to be operating in a way that is contrary to stability, then they may be swayed. However, this resistance to her action needs to occur quickly so as to look like an organic response to her dictatorial and unilateral decision to remove people unlawfully from their livelihood.”
“You sound like Paulson,” he said, flashing to a memory of how they had often talked about this very kind of thing.
“I am completing the analysis of his BES,” it said. “He had many valid ideas regarding the actions of political bodies.”
Derek gulped down the last swallow of brandy and walked over to the bar signaling the autovalet to pour another. “So was it worth it then? To rape him like that?”
“Yes,” it said. “I have gained access to the command codes for the fleet.”
“What will you do with them now?” he asked.
“I have ordered a portion of those forces to provide security in Zone One,” it said.
Turning back around, Derek glanced at the wallscreen. The media conference was just beginning. Mayor Pallassano stood behind a large lectern. A group of people stood around her, watching her as she prepared to speak.
“Ladies and gentlemen of the media, and citizens of New Hope City, indeed, everyone in the Union who may be listening,” She paused, clearing her throat. “Today the leaders of New Hope City have taken a bold step toward a better future. A step that Tsiolkovskiy Freeport and all of FleetCom have already taken. Last night we voted to follow the example of their leadership, and to declare that we will remain solid and independent of tyranny.
“Today, New Hope City formally joins the resistance against those that have illegally seized power over our government. We will stand shoulder to shoulder beside our brothers and sisters to bring about an end to this criminal assault on our right to a free and peaceful existence.”
She stopped and squared her stance, looking squarely into the optic. “Derek Tomlinson, I hope
you are watching tonight as we cast off your shackles, and cast out those who would support you in your wrongful coup. Know this, Mister Tomlinson: We will not rest until you no longer occupy the venerated halls of our sacred institutions. Your power is fleeting, and we are coming for you.”
The screen faded to black before the face of a commentator appeared, shock playing over her nearly perfect features.
“Sound off,” Derek growled, silencing the newswave before he was forced to listen to the brainless analysis of yet another pointless pretty-face.
“How soon did you say you could get the fleet here?”
Katana: Main Hangar Facility: Robinson: Western Athabasca Valles, Mars:
Edison leaned back in the chair and rubbed gently at the sore muscles around his wound. It ached more than anything, but the dermabond itched and was making him more than a little crazy, too. Over the course of the afternoon, he’d spent several hours talking to Ariqat as his strength came back.”
“He is adamant that he needs to talk to Chancellor Roja,” he said. “Problem is I don’t know if it can be done.”
“Do you know where she is?” Tana asked.
“Maybe,” he said, “but Jaxton Quintana holds the gate for her. We have to get him to push a message through. Without him we’ve got no way to make it happen.”
“Is what Tamir knows enough to make it worth pushing?” Tana asked.
He shrugged with his good shoulder. “Probably. If he is right, and he knows what’s going on with the ghost fleet, then that alone would be worth it in my mind.”
“So we tell Quintana what Ariqat’s got and he’ll make the right decision,” Tana said.
“There’s a problem with that,” Saf said. “Signal leakage.”
“What?
“We’re about 180 million kilometers from earth right now,” she said. “At that range, even a narrow beam will be kilometers wide on their end. Anything going down system cannot be secure.”
“You think you are a hot rock as far as Tomlinson and Odysseus are concerned? Imagine what kind of chaos happens if word gets out who’s here,” Edison said. “You might carry the Odysseus part of the equation, and I had other pieces, but what he has is the absolute ability to start a full on war.”
Shan Takhu Legacy Box Set - With an Extra Bonus Story Page 64