by M. D. Cooper
From where he sat in the captain’s seat, Jason released a breath he hadn’t realized he’d held as Hailey updated him on the container’s ETA. He smiled and nodded his thanks to Simone once again, then looked up as the doors to the bridge slid open and Terrance entered. Khela was by his side, Beck trailing behind.
The executive looked ready for a state dinner, as did Khela, her raven hair swept into a loose bun. Elegant hairsticks he’d bet a week’s cred chit were really a pair of stilettos in disguise pinned her sleek locks in place, and she wore a turquoise sheath, slit to allow convenient movement should she need it.
She stood just inside the doors, her dark eyes following Terrance’s progress as the man gathered the team with a glance and a slight jerk of his head. Jason nodded and stood. He, Tobias, and Logan would be the only three to accompany the couple down to State House.
“Conn’s yours, Landon,” he said, handing over the captain’s seat before nodding to Noa, and following them out.
Jason chuckled as he heard the big cat’s answering growl from where she lay on the deck next to Hailey’s console.
Tobi chuffed and subsided. A soft, surly voice reached them over the ship’s net just as the lift doors slid shut.
* * * * *
Celia was waiting for him out in the hall, standing alongside his detail. She nodded to him and, without a word, fell into step as he strode toward the drawing room to meet the recent arrivals.
His first impression as he entered was of a petite woman with blue-black hair and exotically uptilted eyes, flanked by two men—one whose bearing held a distinguished air, the other with a smooth, almost predatory grace. Both carried themselves as if they’d seen combat before, and both had short, blondish hair. But there, the similarities ended.
The first man had straightened as Edouard entered, his arm reaching behind the woman to lay his hand at the small of her back, as if he was preparing to introduce her. A side glance from darkly-lashed eyes arrested his movement, and Edouard saw him glance down at her, blue eyes flashing with humor. He saw her lift one shoulder in a slight shrug and quirk a resigned smile up at him before linking her arm in his.
The other man, standing a bit farther away from the woman, caught the interplay and lifted his hand to hide a smirk. As he shifted, he revealed the humanoid frame of a red-headed male with the greenest eyes Edouard had ever seen, accompanied by a cat whose chest easily came to the male’s knees. On the cat’s other side stood a second AI, dark countenance unreadable, one hand resting lightly atop the cat’s head.
The animal stared back at Edouard with keenly intelligent aqua eyes framed in fur of the palest cream. The cat took a step forward and then settled on its haunches, fur rippling with a platinum-like sheen.
This must be the uplifted Proxima cat from Simone’s report, he mused, fascinated by the thought.
His eyes returned to meet those of the first man as Celia began the introductions.
“President Zola,” Celia said formally, stepping forward and raising a hand to indicate the first man. “Terrance Enfield, from Alpha Centauri, and Lieutenant Kodi, the AI with whom he is paired.”
Terrance nodded with a smile as Kodi spoke over State House’s Guest Net.
“I agree with Kodi. It’s a pleasure, sir,” Terrance said. He turned to the woman. “I’d like for you to meet—”
The woman stepped forward, interrupting him in a crisp, almost military tone as she thrust her hand forward for him to shake. “Khela Sakai, sir, in charge of Mister Enfield’s personal security,” she said and the second man coughed, the sound suspiciously like a strangled laugh.
“—and my wife,” Terrance continued, as he placed his arm around her and drew her to his side. “Although she insists on hiding that fact until we get to know people a bit better.”
“Something to do with ensuring your ass is better protected,” came the casual, amused comment from the other man.
Edouard saw Terrance suppress a smile at the sardonic remark. “And this,” the executive nodded toward the other man, “is our acting captain, Jason Andrews.”
Edouard nodded and extended his hand to the man, surprised at the measured strength behind Andrews’ grip—almost as if he were controlling it to prevent harm.
“It is entirely my pleasure, I assure you,” he said to the three as Jason stepped aside to make room for the AIs and their feline companion.
“Tobias,” the redhead said with a genial nod, and Edouard’s eyebrows rose.
“Simone’s told us a bit about you and your history, Tobias,” he said, striding forward and proffering a hand to the AI. “The legends of the Weapon Born have made it all the way to Godel,” he said, eyeing his intelligence director. “Haven’t they, Celia?”
The woman smiled at Tobias. “Indeed they have, sir. I think you’ll find a very warm reception here, especially among our own military, who’ve had cause to study some of your people’s strategies.”
The lead agent for Edouard’s detail, Hanson, stirred. “Required reading at the Citadel, sir,” the agent said with a respectful nod and smile before returning to her ever-watchful stance.
Edouard hid a flash of amusement at the Weapon Born’s apparent discomfiture, as Tobias turned to the AI next to him to introduce the final member of their party.
“This is Commander Logan.” The dark-skinned one nodded as Tobias reached down to tweak the ear of the cat seated between the two. “And this young rascal is Beck.”
PRESIDENTIAL EXPANSE
STELLAR DATE: 03.13.3272 (Adjusted Gregorian)
LOCATION: State House, New Kells
REGION: Godel, Little River
The remains of native dishes, exquisitely prepared, sat on china bearing the presidential seal of Godel. That same president sat across from Jason, face etched with concern as he listened to his intelligence director’s report.
“One of our agents is on the ship bound for Barat and has confirmed that your captain is onboard. They’ve made a positive ID.”
The words, uttered by Godel’s Director of Intelligence, sat for a beat in the silence of the private dining hall where they’d been escorted an hour earlier.
“Positive. That’s an oddly inappropriate word,” Jason heard Terrance mutter as he saw the man lift the black linen napkin he’d plucked from his lap and set it alongside his plate.
“I wish we had better news,” Zola murmured, and the food in Jason’s stomach suddenly soured as he considered the prison camp where Calista was headed. He pushed his plate away and sat back in his chair.
Celia placed her own napkin next to her plate as she sent a token to the three. “Everything we have on Gehenna,” she informed them, then added privately,
Jason’s brows rose and he traded glances with Terrance before thanking Celia and accessing the file.
It was surprisingly thorough, with everything from blackout corridors they could use to enter Barat’s ionosphere once the container ship disgorged its passenger, to the number of soldiers stationed at the outpost, and weaponry loads.
Jason had followed the direction of Tobias’s glance. As he saw Celia return the AI’s look with a probing one of her own, he knew a distraction was in order.
As he began a light conversation with the president about the origins of various foods they’d eaten, he listened in on the exchange between the intelligence director and the Weapon Born.
Jason’s eyes flicked up to Hanson, and the agent tensed slightly under his regard. He sent the agent an easy smile as he responded to Zola’s comment about a particularly obscure dish, while a separate part of his mind mulled over the curious exclusion of the president’s watchdogs.
Fortunately, he was one of the few unmodified humans who could multitask, thanks to a disproportionately high number of nodes interspersed throughout the axons of his brain. What passed for multitasking in L0 humans was, in reality, more like serial unitasking. Not so in him.
As he monitored the heightened awareness of the presidential detail, he worked to abate their suspicion and draw it away from the tension radiating from Celia Mastai. Zola must have sensed it, too, for the president willingly engaged in a spirited debate with Jason over the refinement of the Godel palette over Proxan ones.
Tobias joined in, making a jocular reference to Jason’s obsession with chicken fingers when he’d been a teen, causing him to scowl in mock dismay at the Weapon Born just before the AI asked Celia,
Celia’s forehead creased in a worried frown.
In the next moment, Jason saw the president start as his detail vanished and his surroundings abruptly changed.
* * * * *
The expanse was an experience utterly unique to Edouard. He found himself standing next to Celia outside the very dining hall he knew himself to be seated in. He wasn’t really surprised to see that Simone had joined them. She nodded respectfully as he acknowledged her presence.
With a raised brow, he gestured to the door. “After you,” he invited, and she smiled and walked through.
Inside sat the delegation from the Avon Vale, just as they’d been moments before, only without the remains of the excellent meal strewn about. And without the presence of his security detail.
The Weapon Born looked different here, as did the one called Logan. And a stranger was present, someone who hadn’t been there before—a young man with military bearing, golden eyes, and close-cropped brown hair. He wore a uniform unfamiliar to Edouard. Abruptly, he realized this must be Kodi.
Tobias stood, gesturing to the table. “Mister president, madam. Please join us.” His voice held a power behind it that rolled throughout the room, echoing slightly.
Terrance leant forward as they took their seats. “Since we’re on the clock, here, let’s dispense with formalities. What kind of a proposition are you referring to, exactly?”
Simone gestured, and a single sheet of hyfilm appeared before each of the Vale’s complement. Edouard waited as they skimmed the information on the DBCs and their targets, surprised that Jason appeared to assimilate it almost as quickly as the AIs did. The acting captain’s head snapped up sharply in alarm and suddenly, Edouard found four pairs of eyes—one human, the rest AI—regarding him intently.
Another few minutes passed, and he felt Terrance and Khela do the same. He nodded slowly in response to the expressions on their faces.
“Their plan, it would seem, is twofold,” he noted. “They want what a Godel corporation has found out in the inner belt—”
“High purity quartz silica,” interposed Celia, who then motioned for him to continue.
“—and they will stop at nothing to get it,” he finished grimly. “Including destroying our entire food supply.”
“This…” Kodi’s voice sounded shocked. “It’s tantamount to genocide!”
Celia smiled grimly. “Well, we do have some stores. And I suppose Barat would be willing to sell us rations, for a price. But at least now you see why we need the help of Phantom Blade.”
“Because any attempt by your own agencies would be leaked back to Barat, and the devices would be triggered before you could reach them to disarm.” Logan’s voice held certainty, and Celia nodded.
“We’ve already promised our assets’ assistance in recovering your captain. It is our hope that, while your small tactical team heads to Barat to fulfill that mission, we can convince the rest of Phantom Blade to help us neutralize our threat here on Godel.”
Tobias stirred, eyes resting thoughtfully on Logan for a moment before returning to Celia. “Your suggestion of an expanse was a good one, lass. Tell you what; give us an hour to review this, and we’ll invite you to another one, up on the Vale.”
Edouard saw the Weapon Born cock his head and affix him with a gaze, eyes twinkling in sudden humor.
“Not, I think, with you, though, Mister President.” His voice took on a droll tone and tapped the side of his head. “It would be difficult to separate you from your watchdogs, and though we could pull you in from wherever you are in State House, I would assume your brain waves are somehow being monitored?”
Edouard grimaced at the reminder of one of the more intimate forms of protective monitoring required of his office.
“They are,” he confirmed.
“Then even if you were to decide to, say, get away for an unscheduled nap,” the AI’s eyes laughed at the unlikelihood of that, “they would know something was up. And, begging your pardon, sir, but I don’t think anyone on the Avon Vale would enjoy being shot at, should your detail suspect something amiss.”
Simone looked impressed. “You could pull him in from down here, even while in orbit?” she inquired, and Tobias nodded.
“Aye, lass, I can. Or, rather, those of us on the Vale can. I’ll be on my way by then, so it’ll be Charley who will generate it.”
Simone subsided with a secret smile that had Edouard wondering.
“Another Weapon Born?” he asked, curiosity piqued.
Tobias smiled. “The child of one. A powerful ally, our Charley.”
“I can imagine,” Celia murmured with a quick glance at Simone, whose smile broadened as she nodded.
Terrance turned to Edouard with an expectant look on his face. “What do you say, sir?”
He felt Celia’s eyes on him and turned to see her nod her head at him in quick affirmation.
Turning back to Enfield and the rest, he smiled. “I say let’s do it.”
He felt a pang of disappointment that he would miss out on another such experience, but knew the issue was in capable hands.
* * * * *
Celia waited until she was inside her own secured residence before sending Simone an encrypted missive that it was safe to begin. Simone sent the location up to the Centauri ship, where an expanse replicating the ship’s ready room awaited them
; moments later, she received an invitation to join.
And then she was there, standing next to Simone, shaking her head in amazement at the detail of the ship surrounding her. Simone introduced her to Charley, the powerful scion of a Weapon Born and a multinodal AI.
Charley had given her a small, courtly bow, his humanoid frame that of a simple, young man. When she complimented him on the incredible realism of the construct, he dissembled, claiming it was due in large part to a foundation laid by Proxima Centauri’s AI Council more than a hundred years earlier.
“Welcome, Madam Director, to the Avon Vale,” he said with a smile as he gestured her toward the entrance that slid open as they approached.
As Celia joined the rest at the table, she noticed that the AI standing at its head looked uncannily like the taciturn AI who had joined them at lunch. He introduced himself as Landon.
She was pulled away from that train of thought by Landon, as he sent a file to the ready room’s holo wall and an image appeared. It was one that Celia’s counterpart on Barat had sent, of a design schematic for the Digital-to-Biological Converters.
“This,” Landon informed the team, gesturing toward the holo, “is a DBC. The weapon we need to locate and disable.” He glanced around the room at those assembled. “We’ll send you out singly, each one of you to your own location. Logan and I,” he indicated the taciturn AI whom Celia had met, “will take the ones planted at the storehouses in the most heavily-populated areas here and here.”
Icons flashed over the storehouse closest to State House, in the heart of New Kells, and at the one nearest Godel’s main elevator.
“Khela and her Marines,” he nodded to the four humans lined up and kitted out in the same military garb, “Ramon, Lena and Tama, will take the three farms.”
