Q-Gates

by S. H. Jucha

  “You want to stand up there alone?” Lucia asked, surprised that she wasn’t being considered.

  “I think that’s a great idea,” Renée said. “The Usaanans are an elder race. I understand from Julien that they aren’t well liked.”

  “That’s an understatement,” Jess commented.

  “One individual, a human, standing against a detested race will look all the more impressive,” Renée concluded.

  “Did you bring your uniform?” Alex asked.

  “I made sure that he did,” Lucia said.

  “Z, can Luther or Minimalist carry the holo-vid onto the stage?” Jess asked.

  “With certainty,” Z replied. “Their avatars can handle the load.”

  “Good. I want one of them to set it up,” Jess said.

  “Who should activate it?” Z asked.

  “I want it ready, but not activated,” Jess replied. “I’ll do that, if and when it’s necessary.”

  Alex chuckled. “Nothing is to be intimidating, is it?”

  “That’s the idea,” Jess replied.

  “What is your strategy, Commander?” Julien inquired.

  “I’m going to let the Usaanan rep make his accusations public,” Jess replied. “I hope that the details will specify outpost contracts.” His eyes swung across the SADEs, and he asked, “Have the charges been located?”

  “Nothing has been filed,” Miranda replied. “We’ve been monitoring station servers ever since Jarmonin notified us of the impending trial.”

  Alex stared thoughtfully at Miranda, who held his gaze to allow him to think. “Why not record the details for Jarmonin or the council in general?” he mused.

  “A bluff?” Lucia offered. “The rep has no details. He’s been told to make the charge to embarrass us. The Usaanans might be thinking that we’ll be upset, deny the accusations, and return to the outpost.”

  “A probable scenario, dear Admiral,” Miranda offered.

  “Then this could evaporate this morning,” Renée supposed.

  “Maybe, maybe not,” Jess replied.

  The door chimed, and Jarmonin’s senior staff member entered.

  “I’m to escort the defendant or defendants to the dais,” the staff member said.

  “The commander will be on the dais, and Luther, a SADE, will set up his evidence and leave,” Alex replied. “The rest of us wish seats in the audience.”

  “There is a gallery, which is set aside for guests of the council or assembly,” the staffer replied. “If you’re ready, please follow me?”

  Z hoisted the huge holo-vid, which had been borrowed from an engineering lab.

  The staffer’s eyes widened at the size of the metal mass easily carried by the SADE. He turned, exited the suite, and the others followed.

  Z handed off the holo-vid to Luther underneath the dais. Then Luther proceeded up the lift by himself.

  Alex signaled Jess to wait until Luther returned. However, Julien advised Jess to wait for Jarmonin to open the proceedings. In that regard, the commander wouldn’t appear forlorn, while waiting on the stage.

  Then Jarmonin’s staffer led the humans and the SADEs to the gallery.

  Alex had assumed that there would be a period of delay before the trial proceedings, while the assembly’s members and their staff arrived. Instead, when he and his companions entered the gallery, they saw the tiers filled with waiting faces.

  “This special meeting of the assembly is hereby convened,” Jarmonin intoned from the councilor’s circle. “The membership will serve in judgment of accusations brought by the Usaanan member, Umlass, against Outpost One: Resistance. Commander Jess Cinders will represent the outpost. Will the defendant please take the stage?”

  The lift deposited Jess within the councilor’s circle. Then he exited the circle to stand near the forefront of the stage. Following Lucia’s guidance, he stood in a parade rest position. he heard from Lucia in his implant.

  “Umlass, you have the floor. Please make your charges known,” Jarmonin said.

  The lead councilor waited patiently for the Usaanan to uncoil from his resting position. He had a suspicion about the delay. The representative was busy consulting with his staff. Undoubtedly, he was trying to determine if a cube message had arrived for him.

  Doesn’t look like a message is forthcoming, Umlass, Jarmonin thought with satisfaction.

  Finally, Umlass uncoiled. He didn’t project to his full height, which further pleased Jarmonin.

  “I wish to withdraw my complaint against the Pyrean outpost,” Umlass hissed.

  The councilors, assembly members, and their staff were shocked by the reversal. Usaanans weren’t known to back down from a fight. To get this far and then relent seemed unnatural for the race.

  “Commander Cinders, is this satisfactory?” Jarmonin asked.

  Lucia sent to Jess.

  Jess considered Lucia’s urging. Then he turned to Jarmonin and said, “No, it’s not.”

  “Proceed, Commander Cinders,” Jarmonin replied.

  “I object,” Umlass said, rising to his full length. “I’ve retracted my challenge. There is nothing more to this trial.”

  “On the contrary, Umlass,” a senior councilor retorted. “You’ve made allegations against a party who resides within alliance space. Despite the withdrawal of your complaint, the injured party has the right to reply and defend its reputation.”

  “Proceed, Commander,” Jarmonin announced again, firmly and loudly.

  “The Usaanan representative hasn’t filed any charges,” Jess stated firmly. “My associates and I find that confusing. Why would you message the council that you wish to file a complaint against the outpost, but you don’t provide any details?”

  Jess let that sink into the minds of the assembly members. Hostile stares turned the Usaanan’s way, and the sand serpent shrank in height.

  “I’ve an answer to that question,” Jess announced. “If your illicit actions are about to be exposed, the best defense might be to smear the other person or entity. Is that what you or your comrades intended, Umlass?”

  Stares turned into shouts for the Usaanan to explain himself, but he remained silent and sullen.

  “Outpost SADEs uncovered supply pricing that aroused their interest,” Jess explained. “The outpost head of security, Major Fleetfoot, and his lieutenant, Candace Weller, undertook an investigation. The trail of clues led to a non-Tsargit race, the Lemgarts. During the course of their undercover work, they found a shuttle company owner delivering Lemgart products to Usaanans.”

  “This is outrageous,” Umlass hissed loudly, stretching to his full length. “The commander is smearing my race without proof of his accusations.”

  This outburst was exactly what Jess had been waiting to hear. He signaled the holo-vid, whose display sprang high into the air. The specially prepared vid unspooled.

  The assembly watched short scenes from Candace’s point of view within Torque. It established Fystal jer Hathwa as a transport company owner, who yearned for the human’s business.

  In the following images, they witnessed an intercutting of Sam’s and Candace’s views. The couple entered the warehouse and met with Fystal and Usslert, the Usaanan working with the Lemgarts.

  The anger in the assembly was palpable, but the holo-vid display was mesmerizing, which kept the audience quiet.

  The end scene unfolded, and the members were horrified by the attempt of Usslert’s security forces to kill the major. It was evident that if the serpents had succeeded in their attack, the lieutenant would also have been terminated.

  The vid ended as Sam and Candace broke for the exit, and Jess said, “Both Major Fleetfoot and Lieutenant Weller made it safely to the Lemgarts’ dome and returned to the outpost. The only individuals who were harmed during the investigation by outpost personnel were the two Usaanans who attacked the major. A shock stick was used, which means they eventually recovered, if not a little worse for thei
r treatment.”

  Jess turned toward Jarmonin and nodded.

  “The commander has concluded his response,” Jarmonin announced. “The assembly will remain convened,” he added. Then he turned to the councilors, who spoke privately.

  After an extended period of what appeared to be a heated discussion, Jarmonin addressed Jess. “Commander Cinders, the council would like a complete dossier of evidence against the Usaanans ... the financial records and a full composite of the pertinent recordings made by the major and the lieutenant. The council will review the evidence for possible actions against the Usaanans.”

  The assembly was deathly quiet. Earlier the members were outraged, but the general thought was that nothing would be done against one of the oldest of races, an original founder of the Tsargit. Now, they heard the lead councilor say that there would be repercussions for the Usaanans’ actions.

  “Representative Umlass, the council restricts you and your staff to the station, until further notice,” Jarmonin said. “Furthermore, you must preserve all records and may not send any cubes.”

  The assembly reps and their staff stared at Umlass. They wondered if they were witnessing a historic Tsargit event.

  “Commander Cinders, the Tsargit council wishes to extend to you and your companions our sincerest regrets for what has been perpetrated against the outpost and you personally,” Jarmonin said. “Please deliver your evidence, as soon as possible.”

  Jess received a short sending from Julien, and he smiled. “I’ve been informed that you have the information you requested, Councilor Jarmonin. Julien has sent you a message with the server location.”

  Jarmonin looked at the gallery, caught Julien’s eye, and tipped his head.

  “Thank you for your patience, Commander,” Jarmonin said. “This assembly meeting is concluded.”

  Finally, the members and staff broke into noisy discussions.

  26: Bedlam

  Unbeknownst to the Tsargit visitors, they left bedlam in their wake when they left Hyronzy Station. For the council, the challenge to deal with the damning evidence against Usaanans was the least of their concerns.

  Conversations about the initiations of new gates became discordant discussions. Those exchanges elevated to disagreements. Finally, communications broke down.

  The Tsargit membership dissolved into three general groups. The primary divider followed the membership’s rankings. The eldest races wanted the decision power to remain within the Tsargit. The youngest races wanted to select their dome’s new gate connections without interference from the Tsargit. That left nearly half the membership facing two groups, who entreated those races to join them.

  There was a common factor within all three groups that further disturbed each collection’s members. Races had different dome statuses. The minority had domes still occupied by the Colony. Those representatives were cut off from their governments, and they had to rely on their judgments for critical decisions.

  The majority of races had completely operational gates, which meant their gates were open to their primary trading partners. The remaining races had control of their domes, but not all their gates were secure. The losses of primary trading partners had severe economic consequences for those races.

  One group stood out from the discordance, and it wielded power greater than its numbers. What gave the members of this group enormous voice was that they were the core of the Resistance. While others had contributed funds, engineers, and supplies to the outpost’s creation, the Jatouche, Sylians, and Norsitchians were the suppliers of troops. They were the races who had taken the brunt of citizen losses.

  The Resistance members had joined the younger races in politicking for independence. They wanted to choose their gate connections without interference from the Tsargit.

  At the center of the arguments was a rarely discussed matter. What had given rise to the elder races’ power and influence was their dome saturation. Many of these races had domes with four or five gates. Two even had the full complement, six gates. That heightened level of interconnectivity had led to robust trading relationships, faster economic growth, and dependable alliances.

  The youngest races often possessed only one or two gates, which had slowed their societies’ economic growth. Their goods and citizens often were dependent on making many journeys to reach far-flung partners.

  Councilors tried acting as liaisons between the disparate and opinionated bodies of members.

  “It’s hopeless,” a councilor told Jarmonin at a closed-door meeting. “The animosity is growing.”

  “Who would have thought that one of the most alliance-changing gifts that we could have received would have brought about such acrimony?” a second councilor asked.

  “I wonder,” Jarmonin mused. “Did the outpost’s discovery create the rift, or was the underlying acrimony always there and just needed to be exposed?”

  “Whatever the reason for our existing situation, representatives are canceling their calendars. They’re only interested in meeting with other individuals to persuade them to their side,” a third councilor pointed out.

  “Is there a possibility of a majority coming out of this debacle?” Jarmonin inquired.

  “There’s division within groups, depending on whether the outpost carriers have restored their domes and their gates,” a fourth councilor said. “So, if we were hoping this would end soon, then that’s a fanciful wish.”

  “There’s a painful undercurrent that needs to be dealt with soon,” the first councilor said, staring fixedly at Jarmonin with her huge orbs.

  “Elaborate,” Jarmonin replied, preparing for more bad news.

  “The Usaanan representative is taking the opportunity to sow division,” the councilor explained. “It suits his purpose to delay any investigation and subsequent council meeting into his race’s misdeeds.”

  “Has Umlass received cubes?” Jarmonin asked.

  “Several,” the female councilor replied. “The dome operators have intercepted all of them. Interestingly, several were addressed to the Usaanan’s staff.”

  “Staff!” several councilors said simultaneously and derisively.

  Important cubes were always addressed to the Tsargit members. They would come from the respective government leaders. If recent messages had been addressed to the Usaanan’s staff members, then individuals on the Usaana home world were trying to circumvent what they must have perceived as a communication block.

  “It’s possible that the conspirators on the Usaana home world have been informed of their representative’s dilemma by another member,” a fifth councilor volunteered.

  “That’s more than likely,” Jarmonin replied. “If we’re to save this organization, it appears that we need to put out the hottest fire first. How are we to deal with the Usaanan predicament without upsetting the elder races?”

  “Is that the challenge?” the third councilor asked. “The majority of the membership regards the Usaanan member with disdain. If we don’t deal with this sublimation of Tsargit rules for contracting within the alliance and the attack on outpost personnel, then we might find our own influence declining. We won’t have the strong relationships necessary to quell the unrest.”

  “We can’t hold Umlass responsible,” Jarmonin argued. “There’s no direct connection between him and the perpetrators.”

  “I’ve studied the contracts,” the fourth councilor said. “The signature is the same entity. Knowing Usaanans, the conspirators will originate from the same enclave. Umlass should be able to identify the specific enclave.”

  “To what end?” a councilor asked. “We can’t very well journey to Usaana and ask the first sand serpent we meet to identify the individuals who are members of this group.”

  “The outpost must have investigated the entity behind the contracts,” another councilor suggested.

  “I understand from the Pyrean representative that Commander Cinders outsourced much of this work to the Pyrean commandant of security,” a councilor v
olunteered.

  “This line of reasoning isn’t getting us anywhere,” a senior councilor, a Hyronzy, said. “It doesn’t matter whether sources were investigated and by whom. The Usaanans are an elder race. They know the Tsargit’s strictures against what they did.”

  The line of councilors grumbled in assent, and one councilor added, “And the conspirators have transgressed by attempting to kill two alliance sentients. That must be addressed in no uncertain terms.”

  “I’ll summon Umlass,” Jarmonin announced. “We’ll allow him one message. He’s to summon the senior members of the Usaanan directorate. Because the directorate represents the entire body of enclaves, it must provide us the means by which it will make this satisfactory.”

  “We should make it known by subtle means that this is the finding of the council,” the Hyronzy said. “It’ll do us good with the majority of members.”

  Jarmonin nodded, careful not to verbally approve.

  “I might offer a suggestion for an alternative to the directorate,” a newly elected councilor said, and heads swiveled toward the Jatouche.

  * * * * *

  “You can’t be serious,” Umlass declared, extending his full length. When Jarmonin’s staff recoiled in alarm, he lowered his height.

  “The council is adamant and united in this demand,” Jarmonin declared. He wasn’t intimidated by the Usaanan, but he was careful to keep his distance. Like the other councilors, he was shocked by the attack of the two Usaanan security serpents against the outpost major. There was no doubt that the individuals meant to strike and bury their fangs in the major’s body. The bite of a Usaanan was deadly.

  “The Usaanan directorate doesn’t leave the home world, Councilor Jarmonin. You must be aware of that,” Umlass argued.

  “How would any of us know the intimate habits of your species?” Jarmonin replied heatedly. “You’re one of the most secretive races in alliance space. I don’t know of a single Tsargit individual who has ventured to your home world.”

  “There must be another option,” Umlass protested.